I'm A What?!

He Hugged Me?

     Gat couldn't tell what kind of expression Howard had on his face. It was blank most of the time. There was a moment of silence after his answer. All that could be heard was the scraping of dishes from the kitchen.

     Howard let out a sigh and took his glasses off. He set them on the table next to a tablet he'd been looking at. He rubbed the bridge of his nose for a moment, then turned his attention back to Gat. Gat started to panic internally. Everything about this man scared him.

     "What was your name again?" Howard suddenly asked.

     "G-g-gatlin." He said with a hard lump in his throat.

     Howard got up and walked over to the boy. Gat's internal panic turned external. His breathing picked up and he cowered slightly away. Howard kneeled down next to the boy's chair and took him in an embrace.

     Gat's eyes grew as his body trembled. He had no idea what was going to happen... but this wasn't even in his options he'd come up with. Howard didn't say anything, he just directed Gat's head into his shoulder and held on.

     "Um..." Gat tried to talk, the lump in his throat growing.

     "Don't talk. Listen." Howard's slightly gravelly voice blew over his ear. "Whatever happened in the past will not harm you now. My brother will keep away the monsters from your nightmares and your past. Trust him. Believe in him. You're going to be ok." Gat swallowed the lump and slightly nodded in understanding. "And if you tell anyone I hugged you, I'll kick your ass. Little or not."

     Howard let go and placed his hands on Gat's shoulders. He gave a slightly worried look before returning to his seat. He put his glasses on and didn't say anything else to Gat. His slight scowl even returned to his face.

     Tim woke up just before his alarm went off. He dragged himself to the bathroom and noticed that it was still wet. 'Gatlin must have already been here. Good. I don't have to get him up.' He thought as he got himself ready.

     After dressing, he checked the Sub room. Gatlin wasn't anywhere to be found. His backpack was also missing. He must already be downstairs. Now Tim just had to make their breakfast and they could get going.

     Tim gathered his things together and headed for the kitchen. When he got to the dining room doorway, he stopped and took a few steps back. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. Howard was hugging Gatlin. He tilted his head and tried to figure out what was going on. He waited until Howard let him go and went back to his seat.

     'That was... weird.' He set his bag down and walked up to the table.

     "Have you eaten yet?" He asked Gatlin.

     Gatlin jumped and was about to answer when Emma walked in with a large plate of pancakes, eggs, and bacon. She set the plate down in front of Gatlin and handed him a fork. "He's eating now." She said with a friendly smile.

     "I... I... thank you... but I..." Gatlin was looking at the overflowing plate. He felt bad about what he was about to say. "I can't eat all this. There's too much."

     "We can fix that!" Emma disappeared back into the kitchen and came back with a fork and handed it to Tim. Tim looked at it confused and gave a slight scowl. "Now you can share with Tim." She added.

     Tim's eyes widened. Did Emma actually expect him to eat from the same plate as Gatlin? He shook his head. Nope. Not gonna happen. He went into the kitchen himself and came back with his own plate. He took about half of the food on Gatlin's plate and sat down. Emma gave a scoff and sat down next to Howard.