The boy sits in a restaurant with a vanilla smoothie, his hands are shaking as he slowly sucks from a straw as Jackie talked over the phone
"...no...no I'm not qualified.. yes but that's of their own....fine"
The boy looks around at all the patrons in the restaurant as he
The boy glances at her as she talks on her phone
"....he doesn't even remember his name... Look we both... Fine ..." She hangs up, and glance at the boy mutters under her breath "now what am i going to do to you..." The boy flinches as he notices her gaze
'You look just like her' she thinks as a small smile comes to her face
The boy looks down at the milk shake
"... it's nice..."
"Pardon?"
"This...is nice"
"Oh the drink" she chuckles to herself "yea i bet it is huh?"
'he's thin and his eyes are sunken, signs of malnutrition' she thinks to herself as her smile slightly fades still seeing the bruising on his wrists 'what did they do to you' as her eyes finally land on the bags under his eyes
The boy looks out side as cars pass each one more interesting and odd to the boy Jackie follows his gaze
"...what are th..those..."
"Those are cars"
"Cars?"
"Yes cars people use them to move around"
"Move around where?"
She smiles "anywhere really"
His eyes ever so slightly widen and a hint of awe appears on to his face
A smile appears on her face a gentle one
A waiter appears with a check and credit card reader Jackie taps her card on it and the reader prints out a receipt and the waiter hands it to Jackie as the boy slowly finishes the milk shake
She glances at him as she starts to stand up his eyes slowly follow her
"I'll be back i have to do to the restroom for a bit ok"
She steps away as his eyes follow her as soon as she disappears around the corner his eyes linger there for a moment longer just as a car passes by it was loud and fast as it's low rumble shook the windows of the restaurant. He jumps as he to look at it as it disappears to a nearby parking lot it
"Loud cunts" Jackie says returning to the table a scowl on her face as she notices the boy's panicked expression she involuntary clicks her tongue as she finishes drying her hands she
She shifts her gaze to the rags that cling to his frame the boy notices her gaze and give a panicked expression as her brows forrow with displeasure "Hey kid come along" the boy obediently stands up and follows her to the exit as a few patrons look at her and him as they some murmur and whisper a little girl looking to her mother speaks
"mommy where is the lady taking that girl"
"Don't look at them" her mother replies sternly
As the two exit the restaurant the boy shivers Jackie takes her jacket off and puts it on him covering him as they make their way to her car parked just out side the restaurant she opens the door and gently lifts him putting him in the backseat feeling how light he was. A few guys watch her from the side as she straightens up some whistle and exclaim and one clasps his hands together looking up makes a hushed prayer Jackie looks at them and gives a warm smile making them react excitedly
She sits in the driver seat and starts the car and they drive off the city scape slowly shifts from dense and filled with lots of people to less dense are with sleeker buildings to lower density population it's a smooth ride as they climb higher the boy looks back he sees that the city is lower
"Hey kid do you have a name or something"
The boy turns and looks at her then down at his thighs
"You don't huh?"
She says as she pulls into a driveway of a two a one story house it's front yard green it was a beautiful she turns off the car and steps out stretching before going the boy and helping him out he follows her up to the house door where she produces her keys and unlocks the door and opens it
"I'm home" she says with a bit of joy in her voice
"Welcome home" a feminine voice responds from the kitchen
"Hey there Ellie how was school"
A girl approaches her but stops upon seeing him Jackie sees this and gives a warm smile
"He'll be staying with us" Jackie says as she walks past Ellie
"He? Don't you mean she?" Ellie says as she turns following a slight frown on her face
"Yes Ellie he, he'll be staying with us"
"Absolutely not" Ellie says following her "he's a boy why here couldn't you just like give him away"
"Ellie please"
"No not please i don't want him here"
"He's going stay and that's that, ok" Jackie says with finality in her voice accompanied by her stern gaze
"Now get a set of clothes and ready a towel and bring him to the bathroom" Jackie says as she goes to her room and emerges
Ellie is about to say something but stops herself seeing the futility of it Ellie goes back to the door and finds the boy there
His head whips around to see look at her she flinches at his blank stare
"Hey there"
"...h..hi..."
"Can you follow me"
."..o..ok.."
His voice was barely above a whisper
As Ellie led the way to the bathroom she kept looking back stealing glances as if she was talking short notes of he's appearance though she wouldn't admit it a part of her felt pity and curiosity where had Jackie picked up this stray
She stops right outside the bathroom entry turning around to face him
"Stay here" she says as she disappears around a corner only to return with clothes and a towel
"Hold this" she says as she hands him the towel and change of clothes before entering the bathroom getting the water ready as Jackie approaches the bathroom and sees him standing there holding the towel and clothes. Ellie exits the bath room and looks at Jackie
"The water is ready"
"Thank you, Ellie" Jackie says as she enters and hold the door for the boy "come on"
He follows her as Ellie follows them both with mild displeasure on her face. Jackie closes the door behind him and gestures to the center of the bathroom
"Take off your clothes" she says sternly
As he begins to take off the rags that once covered his body revealing deer red lines that run along the sides of his torso ending in sharp points and continuing to his back which had a circle adorned with runes on his back and one line running from the bottom of the circle down to his lower back and splitting off and circling around his thigh making a circle and from the same rune circle a line begins heading to his head before splitting into two more parts as it ended at the base of the neck and looping around his neck the lines circle up to his biceps and loop around it
He looks up at her as her eyes go down his body and his lack of endowment
'You have her lost puppy eyes' she thinks to herself as she picks him up and puts him in the tub and begins slowly and gently cleaning him bit by bit till the muck and grime is off of him she moves on to his head, applying shampoo and begins washing his head after a few moments she finishes and dries him off with the towel and begins dressing him, as she remembers her call
"Why do you say he its not like its human or anything and do really think the church cares"
"Sorry if these are uncomfortable" she says as she dresses him in a white oversized shirt and shorts before leading him out as Ellie finishes setting up the table and looks at him her eyes lingering for a little longer than normal as the boy notices her gaze and slightly wilts from it .Jackie noticing this sits the boy down and pulls Ellie to the side
"Hey...you ok"
"Y-yea..."
"You sure you have that a thousand yard stare"
"Yea I'm sure"
"He looks like her"
"I know..."
The boy looks at the table, as a shadow darts in the corner of his eye he turns to face the direction it disappears to as he continues walking a faint song becomes louder as he follows he stops at the base of a staircase he follows the song and takes a left turn to a room decorated with pastel colors with a bit of gothic designs. A computer sits on a desk at the base of the monitor sits a pair of headphones he slowly enters and bit by bit comes closer to it he reaches out compelled by something to take the pair of headphones as he slips them on it feels natural
Back down at the dining table Jackie and Ellie notice that the boy has moved
"Where is he" Jackie asks as if to herself, her voice slightly panicked though she tries to hide it Ellie picks up on this, her brows furrows
"Ellie check around the bath room and the kitchen and I'll check up in the rooms"
"Sure..."
The boy sits on the chair and sways left and right along with the music. He closes his eyes and listens to the music, as Ellie comes up the stairs looking through each room and finally finds him seated at her desk with her headphones on. She immediately moves forward, her expression a mix of mild anger and frustration, and snatches it off of him startling him and making him nearly fall off the chair. His eyes are locked on her face
"What the heck are you doing!" she says through gritted teeth
"I...uh" he stammers
Her free hand subconsciously clenches making an audible sound that sends a shiver down his spine and he moves back such that he is on the edge of the chair
"Well I'm waiting..." she says as she folds her arms against her chest as her eyes bore into his
He was on edge there was fear in his eyes and a flicker of recognition passed her before the mask of mild anger and frustration returned albeit softer. She clicks her tongue before placing the headphones at the base of her desk lamp before turning away from him and walking to the door, she pauses.
"Come down stairs to eat or I'll lock you in here, stray" she says without turning to face him before stepping out of her room
As she turns the corner she sees Jackie leaning against the wall she walks past him
"Reminds you of someone doesn't he"
"Shut it cradle snatcher" she retorts with slight heat behind it
"Getting colorful are we" Jackie says as chuckles before she gets off of the wall and walks into Ellie's room and approaches the boy who is still seated at the chair as the fear and jumpiness drains out of him. He turns to face her as she offers a warm smile that calms him down a bit more
"Come on kid" she beckons, the boy nods and with slight hesitation approaches and follows her