The Fall of the Aftons

010: Michael Song

Michael exhaled a shaky breath that he hadn't realized he was holding as he somehow held eye contact with William. Then he turned away, facing the road. He watched as a few straggling cars passed by in the strong rainstorm.

"It's from a beer bottle," he repeated, his voice no louder than a murmur.

"What happened?" William pressed quietly.

He didn't answer for a few seconds, not wanting to give him an answer. Then he finally started to talk. "It was just before my dad died. He was drunk for the second time that week, so Aster was watching over us. Khael and I were being loud, which annoyed him. And since I was the loudest, he threw the bottle at me. I... I put my hand up to block it, but it shattered when it hit my hand. He never drank alcohol again because he felt so guilty for hurting me."

He could feel William's stare on him, the oh-so-familiar judgmental stare. A sob slipped through his lips. He felt William take the umbrella from his hand. He wrapped his arms around himself, trying to hold himself together.

"Michael, what happened yesterday? What actually happened?"

He found himself telling William everything. Everything. From early that morning when Khael was throwing knives and nearly took out Aster's eye. All the way to last night when he didn't do anything because he couldn't stop thinking about his deceased brothers. About halfway through the explanation, William had wrapped him in a hug with the arm that wasn't carrying the umbrella.

Once they were done with all of the questions, he was carried inside the police station and William left with Terry and Henry. The tall police officer from the night before took him to his old house and let him pick a few things to take with him to the adoption center. He took a few shirts, his galaxy-like blanket and his white pillow from his bed, some toiletries, a few books, some things to go in his backpack, and the yellow plush bear Aster's boss had let him take for Michael and Khael's birthday. Khael had gotten a book about tigers and lions and Michael had gotten a blue shirt and the aforementioned plush. Technically the shirt was meant to be Khael's, but he had given the shirt to Michael because he knew Mike's favorite color was blue.

The police officer, whose name was Officer Janson, took Michael to the adoption center. Officer Janson left him with his stuff and the other family-less kids as the officer talked to the owner of the Center. He hobbled his way to a corner, sat down on his blanket and pillow, and started to read one of the books he brought.

"¡Hola!" 

Michael flinched and looked up from his book, greeted by a girl around his age. She was a little taller than he was, maybe by two or three inches. She was especially tan compared to the overly pale skin that he got from his father. Her slick, pale brown hair was pulled into a loose, messy braid that barely made it to her shoulder blades. He waved at her, his fingers on the other hand curling around a small bunch of his blanket out of anxiety. He didn't like to be around people that he didn't know.

"Are you new here?" she asked. He nodded his head hesitantly. "I'm Felicity! What's your name?" When he didn't answer, she looked at his few belongings. Her eyes fixated on his book. "Until you tell me your name, I'm going to call you Libro because you're reading a book," she told him. She giggled, then held out her hand. "It's nice to meet you! We haven't had a new kid here since I came, all the way back when I was a baby."

He took her hand in his and she shook his hand gently but firmly. She smiled at him and Michael loosened his grip on his blankets. He went back to reading, partially to get the girl to go away, but the girl adjusted herself next to him and peered over his shoulder. The owner of the adoption center, Miss Iaea (eye-ah), came over to him, shooed away Felicity, and helped him up onto his foot and crutches. She took most of his stuff and led him to a bedroom down a narrow, dark hall. There were two bunk beds lined up against one wall and the one across from it. The furthest wall from the door was lined with assigned dressers and shelves on one side, the other side with desks. There were balls--mostly soccer balls--scattered across the floor. Most of them surrounded a lived-in bottom bunk of a bed. 

"You'll be sleeping across from Felicity's bunk. Would you like some help putting your stuff away?" Miss Iaea asked politely.

Michael shook his head. Miss Iaea shrugged and walked out of the room as he started to put his belongings away neatly. Books on the shelves assigned for him, clothes in the dresser, toiletries hidden underneath his clothes so no one would steal them, and bed items on his bed. He hid his backpack underneath his bed, then sat down on the thin mattress and rested the nearly-too-tall crutches against the side. He looked over at Felicity's bed. It was messily done with stuffed animals piling on it and the floor around it. So many stuffed animals that he thought, Where does she sleep?

"I sleep on el pizo if you're wondering." He flinched at her uninvited voice and his eyes darted around the room until they landed on her. She was standing a yard away from him, staring at her bed with a blank expression. "My friend gives me all of them. A new one each semana." She chuckled before she turned to him. "I should introduce him to you some time. I think you'd like him." She turned back towards her bed and walked over to it, picked up one of the stuffed animals, and walked over to him. She held out the plush; it was a bright red bunny with a pale orange stomach and large black eyes. It had a pattern similar to molten lava. "Would you like him? I call him Lava. I know that some kids have a few rough nights when they first come here. I've heard enough stories." Michael stared at the plush, subconsciously reaching back to grab his plush. He hugged the plush bear and Felicity looked at it, smiling. "Oh, you already have one! Cool!" Her smile widened as she sat down next to him. "What's his name?"

Michael gulped, not wanting to speak. But he shoved his fears away and he finally mumbled, "Fredbear. His name is Fredbear."