Finally Wanted

Chapter Twenty-Three

Helloooooo

I'm double updating today...so consider this my apology for not updating for ages:)

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The day went well. 

School was a breeze and it was better now that Calum and Michael were his friends. It felt good to have people he could stick around with and truly have fun around. 

Later when he got home he stayed up in his room doing his homework, which he found was pretty easy when he sat down and got it done, and then went down for dinner when the other boys came home. 

Dinner was a tense affair. There was small talk made but all in all  no one spoke unless spoken too. They were all anxious to hear what Lou had to say, especially considering what happened the last time Lou came to see them. 

Lou arrived a few minutes after they had finished eating and she greeted them enthusiastically, giving each  of them a kiss on the cheek and hugging Corbin tightly. She got straight into business, requesting that she speak to the boys first, then call Corbin in. So they each made a cup of tea then went into the lounge while Corbin set himself up in the dining room. 

He half listened to the soft murmurings coming from the lounge, most of his attention, however, was stuck onto the movie he had playing on his phone. He idly stirred his cup of coffee and glanced up as Liam entered the room, heading towards the drawer that held their supply of biscuits. Liam smiled at him. 

"You all good?" He asked, sliding a few biscuits to him. 

Corbin smiled appreciatively and nodded. "Yeah, I'm good." 

Liam nodded and ruffled his hair on the way out. 

Corbin rolled his eyes and nibbled on one of the biscuits, fixing his hair from where Liam had ruined it. 

About fifteen minutes later, Louis came out and said, "Could you join us in the lounge Corb?" 

Corbin raised an eyebrow but nodded, pocketing his phone and following Louis into the lounge, where Harry and Lou were sitting on the two seater-couch, Liam was on the love seat, Niall was on the armchair, and there were three dining chairs which were plainly for himself, Louis, and Liam. 

He took a seat between Zayn and Louis and leant back, waiting expectantly for someone to talk. 

"So Corbin," Lou started. "I was just talking to the boys about one of them fostering you." 

A surprised look appeared on Corbin's face and he tilted his head. "Uh, okay." He didn't really understand why they would need to talk to him about this, or why one of them would want to foster him. 

"But before we signed any forms, we just wanted to know if you were okay with this." Harry explained. 

Corbin sat up straighter and crossed his arms across his chest. "Why do you need to know my opinion about this?" He asked. 

'We don't want you to be stuck in a situation that you feel uncomfortable, or even worse, unsafe, in." Liam said. 

Corbin blinked once then shrugged. "Um, well if you guys don't mind doing it then I'm okay with it." 

Zayn placed an arm around his shoulders and said, "Okay then, I think we should go for it." 

Corbin watched with mixed emotions as Harry signed the forms that would make him Corbin's official foster parent, one step away from adoption. No, that would be going too far. The boys wouldn't want Corbin around for, potentially, another four years. 

"Here you go Lou." Harry said, sliding the forms across the coffee table to her. 

She took the papers and read them over, making sure all the ts were crossed and the is dotted. "Well, that's that." She said, placing the form into her folder and smiling brightly. "I'll be back in a week to see how it's all going." 

"All right," Harry got to his feet. "thank you for coming." He walked her to the front door while the others stayed in the lounge. 

Corbin involuntarily scratched at his wrist, stilling when Louis laid a hand over his. 

"Are you okay?" He asked. 

Corbin let out a breath and slowly nodded. "Yeah, I-I think so." He sat back and folded his arms, fingers nervously playing with his hoodie. 

Harry came back in and sat down, a bright smile on his face. 

"Well, here we are." 

Corbin nodded and rubbed his arm. What if the boys regretted doing this later on? Would they just dump him somewhere with no regard to him or his feelings? He didn't know how he would react if the boys, literally the only place he's ever felt this safe, this secure, didn't want him anymore. 

His breaths got shorter and faster as his negative thoughts invaded his head. He desperately tried to calm himself, not wanting to make a scene in front of the boys. He let out a chocked sob and clenched his eyes shut, digging his nails into his wrists as he tried to use that pain to ground himself, to give himself a sense of reality. He was startled when he felt hands grasp at his shoulders, and another set of hands take hold of his wrists and tug them apart. 

One of his hands was placed on something solid, something clothed that was moving, up and down, up and down, in a solid sequence. He tried to match his breathing, to take slow, deep breaths in and out. He calmed down slightly when he managed to bring in a solid breath. 

His felt his hands start to tremble, and apparently so did whoever was holding them, for he gave them a gentle squeeze. The sound of his blood rushing through his ears decreased so that he could now start to hear things more clearly. 

"Corb, could you open your eyes?" Asked Harry, his soft voice pulsated through his head. 

Carefully, he cracked his eyes open, blinking a few times to clear his vision, and realized he was sitting with his back to Louis' chest, Zayn was holding his hands, and the other boys were crowded around, Liam however was nowhere to be seen. 

"There we go, that's it, just keep breathing." Louis murmured into his ear, gently rubbing up and down his chest, relieving slightly the pressure in his chest. 

He closed his eyes and ignored everything else, concentrating solely on calming himself. His inside and mind were still racing with post-panic-attack- adrenaline and he was feeling slightly nauseous. 

Finally though, he opened his eyes and tugged his trembling hands out of Zayn's grip. He rubbed his eyes and let his hands fall into his lap. 

"I'm sorry." He croaked, his voice rough and sore. 

"Here bud." Liam was suddenly in his vision, holding a glass of water. 

Corbin took it in his own hands, taking a few sips and noting that Liam kept a hold on the bottom of the glass, most likely because his hands were still shaking and as of yet, they showed no sign of calming. 

"What triggered this bud?" Zayn asked. 

He knew it was a blunt question, but it was better to ask bluntly than to beat around the bush. 

Corbin fiddled with his fingers and whispered. "What if you regret doing this later?" 

"Regret doing what later?" Niall asked, not quite understanding what he was asking. 

Corbin rolled his eyes and gestured weakly around the room. "Regret fostering me, what if you decide I'm too much of a bother?" 

"Corbin." Harry said slowly, reaching out to take one of his hands in his own. "Let me assure you of one thing. If we weren't one hundred percent sure of doing this, then we wouldn't have done it. We want you to feel safe and secure, we all love you and want you around. understand?" 

Corbin's eyes glistened with tears, but he nodded because yes, he did understand for once. "I understand."