Trauma At Its Finest (Lip Gallagher X Male Reader)

Ch 68. New Year, New Family

It was about twelve years ago—the day that changed his entire life. It was supposed to be a simple, snowy day. Back at an orphanage in Siberia, two young boys were playing, tossing snowballs at each other. Their home sat just nearby. Y/N, then known by his previous name, Maksim, hurled another snowball at his best friend, Mikhail, who was two years younger.

"Эй, поосторожнее!" 'Hey, watch it!' Mikhail shouted happily as another snowball hit him.

"Попробуй!" 'Try me!' Maksim shot back, aiming another snowball.

The boys laughed and ran through the snow, expecting the game to go on forever. No older or younger children bothered them—they were just two friends, lost in the snow.

While Maksim ducked behind a tree, he noticed a group of suspicious men near the orphanage. Four vans were parked alongside them. As he watched, one of the men handed cash to the orphanage caregiver, who counted it. Soon after, the men entered the building.

Curious, Maksim stayed hidden, only to be hit by a snowball from behind. He spun around, glaring at Mikhail.

"Попался!" 'Got you!'

"Не сейчас, идиот." 'Not now, idiot.' Maksim scolded.

He gestured for Mikhail to come closer. As the younger boy's smile faded and he approached, they saw some of the men escorting other orphans to the vans. The children and teenagers looked confused as they carried their bags. Even more alarming, they were being separated by gender—boys in one van, girls in another.

"Что происходит?" 'What's going on?'

"Я не знаю." 'I don't know.' Maksim admitted, unease creeping in.

"Может, нас наконец-то усыновят?" 'Maybe we're finally getting adopted?' Mikhail asked hopefully. "Богатой семьёй." 'By a rich family.'

"Да, поэтому нас и собираются посадить в фургоны." 'Yeah, that's why they're putting us in vans.' Maksim replied sarcastically.

"Не будь таким мудаком." 'Don't be such an asshole.' Mikhail muttered, then ran back to the orphanage to ask what was happening.

"Эй!" 'Hey!' Maksim shouted. "Подождите! Мы не знаем, что происходит!" 'Wait! We don't know what's going on!'

"Я спрошу!" 'I'm going to ask!' Mikhail called back innocently, dashing toward the men.

"Михаил! Михаил!" 'Mikhail! Mikhail!' Maksim shouted, trying not to panic.

Still, Mikhail had already exposed himself to the strange men and the woman who was supposed to be their caregiver. Maksim's gut twisted. He knew he shouldn't go, but a terrible unease gnawed at him. Feeling extremely nervous, he took a shaky breath and followed his best friend.

He would regret that decision for the rest of his life.

Four months later.

Inside a base hidden deep in the desert, the boys who had been trafficked still didn't fully understand what was happening to them. They wondered where the girls had gone, but with the language barrier between them and their captors, answers were impossible to come by.

Despite everything, Maksim and Mikhail still clung to fragments of childhood. Their innocence hadn't completely shattered yet—it was cracked, but still there.