Hunter

Chapter 4

When we arrive at the Carr home, we head inside, and I quietly ask Mrs. Carr; "May I be excused to the room, so I can read?"

"Of course," she replies, looking worriedly between Gabriel and me. "Is everything okay, boys?"

"Everything's fine, ma'am," I murmur with a tiny, fake smile. "May I go now, please?"

She nods, and I scurry away to the bedroom I'm being allowed to use. As I reach the bedroom, I can faintly hear Gabriel and Mrs. Carr quietly talking in the kitchen where I left them. Stopping in the doorway to listen to them the best I can. I know eavesdropping isn't right, but I don't care either.

"Gabe, what happened?" Mrs. Carr asks, and she sounds worried which is strange to me because why should she care about me?

"My lesson ended early because Kara had a family emergency, and when I came into the main part of the store, Thad was giving Hunter a hard time," Gabriel softly replies. "Thad questioned why you and dad took him in as another foster kid in front of Hunter. I threatened to kick his ass. Thad's ass, not Hunter's."

"Oh, dear," Mrs. Carr sighs, and that's when I walk into the bedroom, and quietly shut the door behind me.

Laying on my back on top of the made bed to read one of the books I borrowed. I decided on a book about Ancient Rome first. Rolling onto my stomach with my feet, swinging my feet in the air as I place the open book on the pillow while continuing to read.

There's a soft knock on the closed door, and I softly call out; "Come in!"

The door quietly opens, and Reid quietly walks inside the room with a shy smile; "Hey. Can I come hangout with you, if that's okay? If I'm bothering you, I can leave?"

"Come on in, please," I murmur with a soft smile as I glance at the page number I'm on before shutting the book, and leaving it on the nightstand next to me.

He lies on his stomach next to me with his feet swinging in the air, too. He rests his cheek on his left palm with a smile toward me.

"How are you doing, and don't sugar coat your answer with me?" he quietly ask as he searches my face.

Shrugging my thin shoulders as I mirror his position; "I'm doing okay, I guess. Being here isn't any different than any other new foster homes I've been to. I just feel like a burden being here. I asked Mrs. Riley if I could be emancipated, but she refused the topic. How long have you been here?"

"I've been here for just over a year," he answers with a large grin. "They want to adopt me, but I'm not sure if that's gonna happen because I'm seventeen already, and at this point, I'm not sure if there's any real point in doing so. Would you want them to adopt you if the option was given to you because you're only sixteen?"

Biting my lower lip as I think over his words for a moment before softly saying; "I think I'd like to be adopted, but why would they, or anyone else want me? I'm damaged, and I can't offer them anything useful. I'll make you a deal, if they offer to adopt me, I want you to get adopted with me, otherwise I won't get adopted by them."

Reid frowns at me; "Why would you want that? We don't even know each other. We're just two people in the same foster home."

Frowning at him, whispering; "We might not know each other, and just two people in the same placement, but we share that common bond along with whatever brought us into this system. I want this because I want both of us to have a forever family, and I want us to have the same forever family. If the rest of them are like Gabriel, then I'm starting to think they're the family for us."

"What happened with Gabriel?" Reid questions with a curious expression, so I explain what happened earlier at the music store with Thad, and how Gabriel handled his friend for me.

"I've never had a foster sibling or parent stand up for me against someone they knew. Hell, I never had someone defend me against anyone for that matter other than my mama until the day she died," I whisper with tears pooling into my eyes at the thought of my mama.

"I'm sorry to hear that, Hunter because you seem like a sweet person," Reid murmurs with a genuine smile. "I'll take you up on your deal."

Reid holds his right hand out toward me, and I grasp his hand. We shake on this agreement with large grins.

"Now about Thad," he softly says. "He really isn't that bad of a person, he just..."

When Reid doesn't finish his sentence, I supply him with the words; "Protective of those he loves? That's what Gabriel said."

Reid nods with a smile; "That's it, and once you're around him more, you'll see what we mean."

Silently nodding at him, placing my arms crossed over each other, and lie the side of my face on my folded arms with a tiny smile toward Reid.

"Why do bad things happen to good people?" I whisper with a sad smile.

He mirrors my position with a shrug of his shoulders, murmuring; "I dunno, Hunter. I wish I knew so I could give an honest answer. Can I ask how you ended up in the system? I'll tell my story first if that makes you feel comfortable?"

"You can go first," I murmur with a soft sniffle, digging my face into my arms.

"Hey, what are you guys doing?" Celeste asks as she and Blake step into the room without knocking.

"We were just gonna share why we ended up in the system," Reid tells them quietly with a tiny smile. "If Hunter doesn't mind, you can join us."

"I don't mind," I murmur, and Reid and I sit up, leaning our backs against the wall, sitting with our legs criss-crossed under us.

Blake and Celeste run into the room to join us on the bed. They sit at the end of the bed, sitting criss-cross, facing us.

"Hey, can anyone join this little party?" Gabriel asks from the doorway.

The four of us look at each other briefly before we eagerly nod, and he comes over, and wiggles his way in between Celeste and Blake with a cheerful smile.

"What are we discussing?" he ask, looking between the four of us.

"How we ended up in the foster care system," Reid answers. "Sorry, you won't be able to join this conversation fully."

"That's okay, I'm okay with listening and learning," Gabriel replies with a large smile.