They Don't Approve

Your Fault

Trigger warning: mentions of physical abuse, descriptions of injuries, implications of self harm, self deprecating thoughts.

Disclaimer: this and all further chapters were written prior to the season two release, and do not take place with any of the team's canonical house or parents.

"Adam?"

The boy in front of him looked like he had just fought and lost a real life boss battle. Any patch of open skin, his arms, his face, his ankles, were littered with tiny cuts and bruises. His left eye was puffy and in the beginning stage of turning blue, as were a couple spots on his cheeks. He was balancing on his right leg, barely able to put pressure on the other. A drop of blood trickled from his split lip as he looked at Kai with pleading eyes.

"I'm sorry... I didn't know where else to go,"

"Oh my God," Kai whispered, throwing his arms around Adam in the gentlest bear hug he could. Still, Adam winced at the sudden contact.

Kai kept repeating the phrase like a mantra as he turned, letting Adam lean on him as they stumbled into the house. His own anxiety was forgotten as he yelled for his mom to get the first aid kit, which she did without question. His dad came back into the kitchen seconds later, saw the situation, and put Adam's other arm around his shoulder no questions asked, helping him walk to the table. By the time she came back with the small box, Adam was seated in one of the dining room chairs. Kai was leaning over him, pushing his hair out of his face while Adam dabbed at his bleeding lip with a tissue.

"Adam, dear, what happened?" His mom asked, setting the kit on the table. She opened it and started digging through, looking for the antiseptic wipes she knew were in there. They had both never been more grateful that she was a nurse who insisted on having a medical grade kit in the house. Kai's dad sat down across the table from them.

Adam looked up at his boyfriend worriedly, getting a nod in return. It was the kind of silent communication the whole group had learned to wordlessly understand over the years. They're okay with us. He took a shaky breath, letting Kai take his hand as his mom cleaned the dozens of dirt covered scrapes.

"My dad saw Kai and I kiss after the game... so he knows I'm gay. They both yelled at me the whole drive home, and when we finally got there, I tried to run," he hissed as Kai's mom touched an especially deep scrape on his arm with an alcohol pad, "I know how he gets sometimes. But I've never seen him that mad. He grabbed me and basically dragged me into the house and..."

He hadn't realized how fast his breathing had gotten until Kai shushed him gently, pulling up a chair so he could sit next to him.

"You don't have to, Adam,"

"No, it's okay," Adam took a deep breath, squeezing Kai's hand, "He used a belt. The metal part. And when he was done, he tried to lock me in my room; he put a chair or something against the door, so it wouldn't open. He took my phone after the game, so I jumped out the window-"

"Your room is on the second floor!" Kai exclaimed.

"Hence the ankle,"

"Speaking of which," his mother interjected, "It's definitely not broken, it just looks like a really bad sprain. Not bad for a second story jump. I'll wrap it, just try not to walk on it for a while,"

"I guess there are those bushes underneath it, so that must have cushioned the fall a bit, right?"

"Kai, those are blackberry bushes. They have thorns,"

"Oh,"

Adam cracked a smile, inhaling sharply as the action re-opened the wound in his lip. "I guess it's better than hitting the ground. But that's what most of the cuts are from,"