Blood Bound

Part 7 - Cinderella

"You know, I used to only have to shop once or twice a month."

"It was your decision to take in a teenage boy, Steven." Brine reminded him, a reusable grocery bag slung over each shoulder as he ambled along the sidewalk beside him.

"I didn't expect him to eat the same amount as three grown men!" Steven threw his hands up in the air. "I've never taken care of a kid before."

"You've been a teenage boy, haven't you?" Brine pointed out. "Surely you didn't come out of the womb a fully-grown doormat of a man." Steven barked a laugh.

"You're so rude."

"I prefer 'witty'."

It had been almost three weeks since Caden had introduced himself to their rapidly growing household, and the boy was slowly starting to come out of his shell. It took a little while, but he seemed to have figured out by now that he was safe there. Since he was eating regularly now, he was starting to put on a bit more weight, and no longer looked like the starving urchin that had broken into Steven's house and threatened him with a knife.

Steven had allowed him to entertain himself using his computer, under the condition that he spent a certain amount of his day doing something educational to make up for the time he was missing at school. So, Caden was teaching himself JavaScript. Anything computer-related seemed to come naturally to him, and it kept him entertained while his hosts were out of the house.

"To answer your question, I did not, in fact, eat a lot as a teen." Steven shifted his grip on the grocery bag in his hand, rolling his shoulder to alleviate the growing ache. "That's when I started donating blood, so I wasn't very active."

Brine hiked up a brow. "And you didn't... eat more to make up for the blood you were losing?"

Steven shrugged. "I had a lot of protein shakes."

"That isn't food."

"It's nutrients, and hydration."

"Still not food!" Brine pointed an accusing finger at him. "And... you started as a teenager? What did your parents think about all this?"

"They encouraged it." Steven's face colored slightly. "They were getting all the money from my donations, after all." Brine didn't respond for a moment.

"...they sold your blood to make themselves rich."

"Pretty much." Steven shrugged. "When I was seventeen, I contacted a lawyer, and moved out a few months later."

"Well, good on you." Brine patted his shoulder. "Perhaps you're not a doormat after all."

"That's the nicest thing you've said about me all day."

The pair turned onto Steven's street, Brine continuing to poke fun at his rich roommate as they approached his apartment. When they reached it, Steven unlocked the door, calling as he stepped into the front hall,

"Caden, we're home!"

There was a brief pause before he got a response, coming from behind his closed door. "Hi guys."

"Didn't get up to too much trouble while we were gone, did you?" Herobrine called as he passed the door on his way to the kitchen. There was no response, but neither man gave it much thought, continuing their conversation as they put away the fresh groceries.

"I've been in contact with a few of my local allies," Brine told his roommate as he slid a jar of dill weed into a cupboard. "About getting the kid some help. He clearly can't go back with his father, but my research has shown that he may have influence over local protective services,"