Chapter Text
Quiet. He had to stay quiet. He always had to be quiet. Eyes down, follow what was said, and stay quiet.
It was the same every day, especially where he lived. Stay in your room and be quiet. Don’t leave your room unless you need to go to the bathroom. Don’t bother your brother. Don’t bother mother. Don’t bother father. Don’t bother guests when they come over. Don’t bother your brother’s friends. Let your brother have your stuff. Don’t ask for anything. Don’t exist.
And if he didn’t follow those rules?
He had a lot of bruises.
He barely spoke. When he did, he was usually taunted by his brother for having a lisp. It wasn’t his fault that he couldn’t talk well. He could barely talk at all. After he was made fun of, another bruise would be on his skin by the end of the week. He was misbehaving, after all. He shouldn’t have asked for water, or food, or whatever he had done that time. He was supposed to take care of himself.
He had very little, too. He didn’t have any clothes that didn’t have holes or dirt or some sort of stain on it. The most he usually wore was a stained white t-shirt with a giant hole on the bottom of it, some black shorts that kept getting bigger for some reason, and socks with holes in the heels. His dad told him he should be grateful that he even got some of his brother’s hand-me-downs, even though when he got them, they were gross. Still, it was better than nothing.
This whole family was better than nothing, at least, that’s what they had said to him. He didn’t really remember the other families he had been to, his time had been so short with each of them. He had been with this family the longest, but he didn’t know how long. He didn’t know a lot of things. Like, what happened to his original parents. One day they left him with a sitter, then they never came back. He didn’t know, and then suddenly the men came, and then he was with other kids, and then another family. He didn’t know anything.
All he could do was sit in his room, the basement. It was cold, but no one really bothered him unless he bothered them. He got by with his little rat friends in the corner and his pillow and his blanket. If he was lucky, sometimes he’d steal some paper and pens while his family was away, and he’d draw in the basement. It was usually rats, since that was the most he could really think about, and himself. They weren’t the best drawings by any means, but they were his. He liked to think the rats liked them, too.
He had been drawing one day. He was drawing the cool bugs that made webs in the corners. He wasn’t really sure what they were called, but they had a bunch of legs and climbed everywhere. He wished he could climb on walls. It seemed fun.
He started to hear shouting and stomping from upstairs. Panicked, he grabbed his papers and pens and shoved them under his flimsy little mattress, and threw the blanket over himself, trying to feign being asleep. He didn’t know what he did wrong, or even if they were mad at him, but he couldn’t risk it.
“Daaaaad!” his brother’s voice whined. “Do we have to take it?”
“Unfortunately,” he heard his father hiss back, “the bastard child needs to come. We’re meeting people that know he exists, and we can’t just leave a toddler here when they know he should be at the party.”
His eyebrows shot to the top of his head as his brother continued to whine. A party? For what? Where were they going? And he had to go? That… didn’t happen. Ever. But he was excited!
The door to the basement opened loudly, startling him. He sat up from his bed as his father stomped down the stairs, making him turn towards the man. He could see his glare, so he quickly averted his eyes, trying to be on his best behavior. He couldn’t be a bad boy.
“Brat,” the man grunted, taking a sip of whatever was in his cup, “get dressed. We’re goin’ somewhere.”
“Whewe?” he couldn’t help but ask with his lisp, before zipping his lips back when the glare intensified.
“Doesn’t matter. You need to get ready. We leave in five minutes. Put your best shirt on.”
He nodded in reply, looking at the ground while he messed with his hands. He could hear his father retreating back up the stairs and slam the door, and he could finally relax himself. He went over to his pile of clothes and sifted through them, trying to find the ‘best’ shirt he had. He ended up picking a gray one with only a small hole by his right shoulder, so he took off his current white shirt and put that one on. He kept his black shorts on, he didn’t really see the need to change those, or his socks.
The only pair of shoes he had were ones that his brother grew out of. They were two sizes too big, but they were all he had, so he put them on and waved goodbye to his little rat friends in the corner. He heard a squeak, so he offered a freckled smile back, starting to go up the stairs, as quiet as he could be.
Hesitantly, he opened the door, still hearing the arguing taking place. He kept his head down as he walked into the living room, eyes glued to the white carpet as he stood silently and obediently.
“Good, the brat is ready. Put your shit on, Hunter, we’re heading out,” his father grumbled. He glanced up through his raggedy brown hair, watching as his father left, and his brother followed, crossing his arms and continuing to complain.
He started to follow, unsure if his mother was coming. She usually wasn’t at the house during the day, and he had no idea where she usually went, so it was probably only going to be the three of them.
He followed silently, closing the door to the house when he reached the outside, blinking as his eyes readjusted to the blinding light. He looked at the sky and smiled a little. He liked the sun. He wished he saw it more.
“Hurry it up, brat,” his father spat, ending whatever trance he had been in while looking at the sky. He swallowed thickly and nodded, walking over to the nice car that his father owned. It was blue. He liked blue. He wished he had something that was blue.
When he did go in the car, he usually sat in the back, so he did this time as well, struggling to open the door, taking more time than his family probably would have liked trying to get it open. He eventually did, climbing in, then wincing when his father slammed the door behind him.
“Useless,” he heard him mutter.
He knew he was. But he was doing his best.
He buckled himself, struggling to get the clip in, ignoring his brother’s snickering at his failed attempts. His father got into the car and started it, already moving before he could finish buckling. He finally snapped it into place as they started to drive on the main road.
He kept his hands under his legs and his eyes on his shoes. He didn’t want to make a scene and ruin things like he usually did. Just sit, be quiet, and be grateful that he was even going on this trip.
He wasn’t the best with time, but it couldn’t have taken more than an hour to get to their destination. As the car pulled into a lot, he finally looked up from his dirty shoes and out the window, his eyes widening when he noticed a huge purple building with signs with cartoon animals plastered all over it.
This is where they were going? And he was allowed to go? Granted, he had no idea what it was, but it looked fun! And colorful!
He was excited. His legs started to bounce, and it took another couple of minutes to try to find a place to put the car. When the car stopped, he unbuckled his seatbelt, trying to hide his enthusiasm by clenching his fists. He opened the door, careful not to hit the car parked beside them, and closed it, ignoring the glare from his brother as he stared back at the ground.
“Come on now,” his father said, already moving towards the giant building. His brother cheered, but he gave no response, knowing it would be bad for him. He followed his father and brother as they talked animatedly, and he wished he could join in. Just once.
They entered the building, screams and music and loud noises suddenly erupting from every direction. He finally looked up, shocked at all of the bright colors, screens, and people around. He had never seen anything like that before. There were so many pictures of those same cartoon animals, other kids shouting about something, and it was just so overwhelming. He had never seen that many people before, and it had been a long time since he had seen that many colors, too. He had to squint to see anything, it was so bright.
“Hurry it up, brat.”
Startled, he looked up, his father and brother glaring at him from a couple feet away. He nodded and continued to follow, putting a little more speed in his step so as to not fall behind and get lost in the sea of people. The three reached a check-in point, he assumed, since everyone else had been stopping before them.
“Listen,” he heard his father start, “is there a place I can put the one back there while we go to a party? He wasn’t invited.”
“Uh,” he heard a younger sounding voice reply. “Yeah, there are attractions for smaller kids, and we have the Daycare too.”
“Daycare?”
“Yeah. It’s on the top floor of the lobby. Just take a right and you’ll see a pick-up sign. All you need for it is a guest profile for your kid and a pass. A daycare pass is also a part of a yearly family bundle.”
“How long is it good for?”
“A standard daycare pass is just for one day, but there are monthly and yearly passes as well. Those cost more, though.”
He winced when he heard his father huff about the price. He didn’t really know anything about money either, so he hoped that he could still stay. He dared to look up, watching as his father scribbled some stuff on a weird pad. Maybe he was drawing.
Whatever the case, it took only a few seconds before he was finished. “Anything else today, sir?” asked the guy in the booth.
“No, that’s all.”
“Great. Your total is displayed on the pad, and you can put your card in at any time. Let me know if you have any questions about your yearly family plan.”
He watched as his father took out his magic money card and put it into the little thingy. He heard it beep and ding, and the magic money card was soon put away. He wanted a magic money card. He could get a new shirt! Or socks! He really needed socks. Maybe a new pen.
His father handed his brother a card, and then turned to face him. Realizing that he had been looking up and appeared interested in the magic card, he quickly glanced down, hoping that nothing would happen. Shockingly, all that happened was a card was also shoved into his chest, making him let out a squeak of surprise. He grabbed the card as his father let go, trying to see what was on it.
He couldn’t read, but the colors were pretty. It was more blue, his favorite. His eyes shined when he realized that he had something blue! For himself! No one else! The card also had funny little guys on it. One was yellow and one was a darker blue. He gave a tiny smile at it, trying to hide it from his father. He liked the silly people. They looked fun.
He let out a tiny yelp when his father grabbed his arm, dragging him forward. Scared, he quickly held the card to his chest with his other arm, letting himself be pulled through a crowd of people. He looked at the ground and winced, trying to avoid the legs of his brother who was trying to trip him on the ground.
He couldn’t see where they were going, but they started to climb some stairs. They were too tall for his little legs, and he actually did trip, nearly stumbling down a couple steps, but it made his father let go.
He flinched, and quickly scrambled to get back up, still looking down at the ground when he made it to the top of the stairs. He could feel his father glaring at him, and he could hear his brother laughing at him. It was normal. He should have been used to it by that point. He tried pushing down the upsetting feeling in his stomach. He deserved it. He misbehaved.
His father didn’t say anything. He just turned around and continued back up the second flight of stairs. His brother followed, and he did as well, staying behind more to avoid being grabbed if he could. He deserved it, yes, but he still didn’t like it.
They all turned right at the top of the stairs. He followed his family’s legs. He didn’t look up. He didn’t speak. He was a good boy.
The floor suddenly became much harder, and it became much quieter than before. He felt himself relax a bit more in this… room, or wherever they were. The noises were too much. He wanted it to be quiet, like in his room with his rat friends, but he liked walking around. He wasn’t used to it. It was new for him!
He liked the room they were in now, but it didn’t last long, because he heard something big made a loud noise like it was rising to the ceiling! His curiosity got the better of him, and he looked up, shocked to see a weird flimsy thing just going up! It was like a big magic door! He looked through it, and he let out a little gasp.
It was so big! It was really blue, his favorite, and there were two gold thingies in the middle! He didn’t know what they were called, but they looked like the silly guys on his card! There were some tables around, and a big screen that also had the blue silly guy on it. There was a huge net too! And a giant hole that had some more words that he couldn’t read, but there was a rainbow on it!
There were also a couple more people there, but mostly standing around the tables. He noticed a person was standing behind a little desk near the giant hole, and his father ended up walking over there, so he followed suit, his brother staying right by his father’s side.
“Give him the card,” his father barked, and he realized he was being addressed. He nodded nervously, and held the card up to the employee.
“Thanks, kid,” the guy said with a bored tone, looking over the card. After a second, he scanned it with a cool gun thing, and handed it back. “Alright, you got a yearly pass. That means he can come at any time during the year, but you need to renew it at the same time next year, or just the whole family bundle in general.”
A year? He could come here a whole year?
“Yeah, yeah,” his father waved it off. “Come on, you two.”
Not being addressed as ‘brat’ or ‘bastard child’ was weird. He liked it. He should leave the basement more often! That wasn’t his choice, but he really hoped that he could. Maybe he was so good at being a good boy that he was being rewarded by not being called that stuff and being allowed out! He tried to hide his smile, covering it by rubbing his face.
“There are two entrances to the Daycare,” the employee continued. “There’s the slide,” he pointed halfheartedly to the giant hole that he had seen earlier, “and the doors on the bottom floor. Just continue down the hall and go down the stairs. It’s hard to miss.”
His father grunted, and without another word, turned around, not bothering to tell the two boys to follow. He looked longingly at the slide. He wanted to go down it! It looked fun!
Instead, they silently walked down the hall. He stuck his gaze back down at the floor, following the footsteps of his father. His shoes were nice. He wanted shoes like that. He looked at his brother’s shoes. Maybe he’d grow out of those ones and he could have those soon! His shoes were too big and he couldn’t tie them, and they were dirty.
They started to go down stairs, and he made sure to go down them carefully, since he didn’t want to inconvenience anyone by falling again. His efforts resulted in success, and they were soon on some black and white tiles. Quickly glancing up, he saw a giant door surrounded by glass and netting. He held in a gasp. It was so big! He could see so many colors! He heard some other kids, which made him nervous, but he was going in there!
His father quickly turned around, grabbing onto his arm and shoving him to the front. He held in a yelp, and his father forced open the big brown doors. “We will be back later, brat. Behave.”
Before he knew it, he was pushed into the supposed Daycare, falling over onto his chest. Tears built up in his eyes, but he stood back up, turning around to see the doors slammed in his face. He sniffled and wiped his eyes trying to get the doors open again. He failed, it was too heavy, or it was locked. That’s fine. He was used to being locked in.
He didn’t really know what to do. He was just put in there. It seemed fun on the outside, but now that he was alone in a strange place, the nerves were finally getting to him. He shivered, a bit cold, still staring at the door. What did he do?
“Hello, new friend!”
He squeaked in surprise, turning around, pushing his back to the door. He had to look up to see the entirety of who was talking to him.
It was a giant man! He looked like the person on the card! He had giant spikes coming out of his face, which had a huge smile that didn’t seem to move. He was all yellow! He liked yellow. He had red and yellow striped pants, and ruffles under his face. The man(?) was so tall! He wanted to be that tall! He looked like a giant sun!
Nervously, he waved. He wasn’t used to other people, especially ones that were talking to him or not hurting him. He didn’t know what the sun man wanted, so he did what he always did. He looked down. He stayed silent.
He could see him move in his peripheral vision, and could tell the sun man kneeled down in front of him. He gulped anxiously. He probably did something wrong. He braced himself, his shoulders raising to his ears.
“What’s your name, friend?” the sun man asked, much softer than before.
He was shocked, eyes widening as he looked at the sun man. He wasn’t in trouble? That’s usually what happened when he was being talked to. He wanted to know his name? He wanted him to talk? He fought back some tears. He could speak?
The sun man’s head tilted to the side, and his cool rays spun. “Take your time, friend.”
He took a deep breath.
He opened his mouth.
“I’m Gwegowy.”