You Can't Hide Forever (boyxboy)

Chapter 25

*Jax's POV*

"Can you tell me how you got into the gang life?" I asked hesitantly not knowing if he would shut himself off at this because he seemed to avoid the topic or change the subject. Oliver sighed dejectedly, as if this conversation had to happen sooner rather than later. He nodded his head towards the open seat next to him, the silent sign to sit down.

I slowly sank into the seat next to him and waited patiently for him to begin. After about five minutes of silence I was about to tell him he didn't have to tell me but he must have sensed my thoughts for he took a deep breath and released it slowly.

"After Jackson left the orphanage and didn't return, we all got worried. A few families had come in before and wouldn't adopt us. None of us knew why until a couple came back after he left and seemed...happier I guess the word would be. I was only nine at the time so I didn't exactly understand, but part of me knew. I knew they wouldn't take us because of Jackson. I don't blame him now nor did I blame him back then. So, when the others went to bed, I went in search of my brother," Oliver began; the kitchen was quiet enough so he didn't have to speak that loudly.

"Every day, I would try to search for him, knowing he would be out there. One time I had left in the day time because we had no scheduled meetings with more families. At this point I think the orphanage was going to split us up so they could just get us out of there because only one or two of my siblings would be taken for meetings. So while the others were distracted, I went in search again. I got hungry while I was searching because at the orphanage they gave us food if we've earned it, and any time I would get food I would sneak it into Baxton's Levy's or Luis's because they were still young at the time," he continued, and gave out a humorless chuckle but I didn't say anything.

"My older sister Chelly would always scold me for giving our younger sisters and brother food when I should have been eating it, I told her: 'Without Jackson, they will need it more than me,' She didn't understand how lost Olivia and I were when he left; we basically lost a part of ourselves when he left since we're triplets and were so close. Anyway, I was walking along the streets when I came up on a store where they were selling their fruit outside, like they would at a farmer's market, and at that point my stomach was in knots, wanting the apples they had out. When I thought no one was looking, I stole a couple apples, intending to sneak some back for the rest of us.

"Turns out someone was looking and I walked away, pockets full of apples when my arm was grabbed by this older kid, he couldn't have been older than fifteen or sixteen. He asked me what I was doing out and stealing things when I should have been at the house. I had looked at him like he was crazy because for one I had no idea what he was talking about and I didn't know who this guy was. I ran, and he followed. From the days I spent searching for Jackson I got a pretty good understanding of the streets so I easily lost the kid that was chasing me and I didn't lose a single apple," he said the last part with a smug look on his face.

"I gave the apples to the rest of them and ate one for myself and went out the next day. The same kid was out and he looked at me with confusion. He didn't chase me again but went on the phone to talk to someone. He kept stealing glances to look at me but I continued on, not knowing my brother was kidnapped a few months prior which is how long I was searching. Pretty soon, I was following the kid to this house where he would train with these other people. As a nine year old it intrigued me because I always wanted to be able to do the things like they do in movies which is what they were doing; fighting, sparing doing the things we did in training. I was in the same spot most of the days, looking in through their fence.

"The kid one day had someone around his age and a smaller kid who looked around my height, but I never saw the smaller kid's face. I let it go and kept walking but kept them in my sight in case I had to make a run for it again. The new teen looked at me in shock and nodded to whatever the other kid was saying. They were talking about me but I didn't call them out on it. The smaller kid was too distracted to know what was going on, so I went back.