Please Don't Leave Me

Chapter One

Remus groaned when he heard the knocking on his door. The persistent sound signaled that it was time to wake up and get ready for the day. Not that Remus was sleeping anyway.

The 15 year old boy sat up and crawled out of bed, walking to his small set of drawers and opening them to find a somewhat nice outfit. "Today is an important day! It could change your future!" The matron, Jennifer, had shouted every time a new couple was coming to potentially adopt. Remus groaned upon thinking of that phrase. This couldn't change his future because he was never adopted. Nobody wanted him. With a groan, Remus looked through his nearly barren drawers and grabbed a pair of black jeans and a green flannel. Changing quickly, Remus then went to the small shared bathroom and attempted to calm his curls down, to no avail. His curly hair was wild and messy, no matter what he tried. After finishing getting ready in the bathroom, Remus went back to his room to slip on his black high top converse. Taking a deep breath, Remus left his room and walked downstairs, immediately standing in the forming line of children.

Remus was the oldest child in the orphanage by far. Most of the children were either infants or toddlers. There were a few children who were around ten years old, maybe even eleven. But then there was Remus. 15 year old Remus. The adults tried to act like it wasn't a big deal that the boy was so much older than the others, but he knew the truth. Nobody wanted to adopt a teenager. A teenager with issues, no less. Remus was pulled from his thoughts as Jennifer began speaking to the group. "Good morning everyone! Today we have a lovely couple coming to visit and meet all of you! Please remember to be on your best behavior and be very polite to our new guests!" Remus groaned audibly. "Especially you, Remus," Jennifer added with a chuckle. Remus playfully rolled his eyes before nodding. Jennifer was the only caring adult Remus had ever had in his life. He could do this for her.

After about five more minutes, a sleek silver car pulled up in front of the orphanage. All of the children started squealing and fidgeting with excitement. All of the children except for Remus. Remus just rolled his eyes. Two men stepped out of the car, grabbing each other's hands before knocking on the front door of the building. Jennifer opened the door with a wide smile, greeting the men with enthusiasm. "Hello! You must be the Berry family!" The taller of the two answered with a sense of formality. "Yes, that is us. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance." The slightly smaller man smiled widely. "Thanks so much for letting us come by! We're both super excited to be here." Jennifer smiled before turning toward the children. "These are our children. They're all thrilled to have you two here." Both men smiled lightly and waved in the general direction of the kids, who in turn waved back with little giggles. All except for Remus, who kept his arms crossed. The taller man seemed to take notice, but didn't say anything to the boy. "Feel free to speak with any of the kids, they're just going to be playing in this room! I'll leave you two to it," Jennifer said as she turned on her heel to head back into her office. Not before giving Remus a look, of course. All of the children dispersed and grabbed different toys and books from around the room, trying to seem less ecstatic and nervous than they were. Remus huffed and walked over to the back corner of the room, sitting on the couch there and pulling his knees to his chest. He grabbed a notebook and pencil on his way and began doodling, attempting to distract his mind from the inevitable disappointment he felt every time he wasn't chosen. Remus couldn't help looking up at the couple every few minutes, watching them play with the little ones and laughing at their antics. Remus wished he got that much attention from everyone, but he knew that he deserved his loneliness. That's what everyone had told him his whole life, at least.

Remus almost jumped out of his seat when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked up quickly, only to be met with warm honey colored eyes behind thick black framed glasses. "Hey kiddo! I'm Patton! What's your name?" Remus slowly shrugged off Patton's hand and mumbled a quiet, "Remus." Patton didn't seem to acknowledge the boy's discomfort and sat next to him on the couch. "That's a really cool name! How old are you bud?" Remus swallowed thickly. This question was usually what drove people away. "I'm 15..." Remus said softly. "Wow! So you're in high school then?" Remus was shocked. Patton didn't leave or ask why he was still stuck in this orphanage after all these years. That was a change of pace. Remus nodded. "That's so cool. Hold on one second, I'll be right back," Patton stood and walked to the other side of the room. There it was. People always leave Remus behind. He knew it was coming, but this time seemed to hurt a little bit worse than usual. Remus shrugged it off and went back to doodling, ignoring the stinging in his eyes.

Remus was shocked when Patton walked back toward him with the other man in tow. "Remus, this is my husband, Logan!" Remus smiled lightly at the other man with a small wave. "Hello, Remus. It is very nice to meet you," Logan said, his smile mirroring Remus'. The couple sat on the couch facing Remus. "Remus was just telling me that he was in high school!" Patton started. Remus felt his heart drop. Sure, Patton didn't care about how old he was, but surely Logan would. However, Logan's face seemed to light up. "Really? That's coincidental. I work at the high school a couple of blocks away. Do you attend that high school?" Remus shook his head. Logan raised his eyebrows in shock. "Oh? I thought that that would've been the closest school for you to go to. Which do you attend?" Remus froze as his eyes widened. Patton took immediate notice, reaching out to touch the slightly shaking boy's arm lightly. "Hey, it's okay bud. You don't have to answer if you don't want to." Remus shook his head. "It's okay, Jennifer will probably tell you if I don't. I..." Remus couldn't seem to get the words out. Patton continued to rub his arm lightly. "Take your time, kiddo." Remus took a breath before continuing. "I don't go to school. Jennifer homeschools me here because I'm too much of a problem at school. She pulled me out of middle school after I had too many complaints against me from the teachers at my old school." Patton and Logan shared a sad look. "I'm sorry, kiddo. That sounds really tough. Thank you for telling us, that was super brave of you," Patton smiled lightly at the end of the sentence. Remus shrugged, his expression staying somber. He knew he was problematic, and he knew that he was a bad kid. He didn't deserve these two men, and he knew it. This whole conversation suddenly seemed stupidly pointless. It would only get Remus' hopes up so that they could be shattered once again. "So, Remus, what-" Logan started before Remus cut him of. "Listen, can you just stop pretending?" Patton and Logan both looked shocked at the boy's sudden outburst. "Pretending about what, bud?" Patton asked with confusion. "Pretending that you're interested in me! I know you just want to adopt one of the little kids, everyone always does. I don't need you to pity me. Just...stop acting like you care about me," Remus whispered the last part. The couple felt their hearts ache at the boy's words. "Remus, were not pretending about being interested in you. You seem like a really good kid, and-" Remus shook his head, tears filling his eyes. "I'm not. I'm a bad kid. You don't want anything to do with me, I promise." Logan furrowed his brows lightly. "Remus, please do not think so lowly of yourself. You are a very charming young man." Remus just shook his head again. Patton shared a look with Logan, signaling that he wanted to talk. Logan nodded before the pair turned back to the young boy. "Hey, Remus? Logan and I are going to go talk for a moment. You gonna be okay?" Remus nodded, keeping his eyes down. Patton looked at the boy with a pained expression before standing and pulling his husband over to a someone private portion of the room to speak privately. Remus wiped quickly at his eyes. Crying was a sign of weakness. His father instilled that in him. He wasn't sure why he was upset, anyway. He got let down so often, why was this time any different? Because these men seemed to actually care about you. Remus shook that thought away. Nobody cared about him. He was alone.

Remus looked up in confusion when the couple approached him again. Why couldn't they just leave him alone? The couple sat across from the boy, a light smile on their lips. "Remus, we would like to talk to you about something," Logan said with an undeniable excitement in his tone. Remus looked up at him with a raised eyebrow. "How would you feel about becoming part of our family, bud?" Patton said with a large smile.

Remus couldn't stop the tears that streamed down his cheeks.