Tales of the Lost Ones I: The Babadook

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She didn't ask for a ride. And wouldn't, even if it was a need. Her fingers pressed the journal cover before open it, when nobody else was looking. Wendy's calligraphy was making her nostalgic. Alexia still didn't know if it was in a good or bad way, but staying there with her siblings, her mother's memories... It certainly was messing up something inside her. Maybe some time alone with her thoughts would fix it.

When she closed the book and got up a lot of people was already gone. It was just in time to listen the lawyer's last speech and see Rosario getting out of the room. Alexia basically mirrored her moves, but didn't stop in the parking lot: She just kept walking, a little lost, her mind blear by thoughts about how she would get in the bar and, more important, where she would stay. The first problem wasn't that hard since the woman could simply call a taxi, but her house was miles from there and a hotel could be pretty expensive. She shook her head. Maybe it was time to call Simon. Alexia trembled with this idea. He wouldn't be happy to know she was staying longer in the city.
 
Kei flashed his sister a smirk as he stuffed the disheveled bills back into his pocket, pulling out his Eclipse MP3 player as his hand withdrew. Flicking his thumb over the screen, he selected a different playlist, something fast-paced and empowering. As the new melody filled his ear, he gave a nod to Danny and headed out, leaving the lawyer and their older siblings behind. Once they were far enough away, he quietly spoke to her again, carefully watching any passing adults to make sure they did not hear.

"I've got a friend just a few blocks from the house willing to sell to me- booze and smokes. We can load up, then sneak in through your window." He said, the angst that had gripped him previously fading away as the excitement of breaking the law filled his mind. It was an exhilarating outlet- you had to be fast, discreet and know the right people. It was like he was a part of a secret world, using slang terms and code to get what you want, all the while watching your back. Sure, this kind of dealing has gotten him in more than a few fights, but he loved that part of it too. Smashing some jerk's face into the pavement felt good, it was a triumph- the kind of victory he had told himself he would have over Charlston.

It was too late now, though; the insane, idiot of a man got himself shot. What kind of closure was that? Shaking his head slightly, Kei fought to focus his thoughts back on the task at hand. Bringing Danny with him might make the deal harder, but he was confident he could handle it. When the bus rolled up, he handed Danny a few dollars for the fare, and got on, finding a couple of seats towards the center doors.
 
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As Oliver drove, he stopped by a coffee shop, remembering his promise. "You have any special requests, Carlos? I'm buying..." He gve a smile as he got what Carlos wanted before he walked inside, leaving the van running. When he returned, bearing enough coffee for everyone, he handed Carlos's to him, smiling.

When they were back on the road, Oliver awkwardly spoke up. "So...ummm, sorry...I guess, for leaving. I...I should have done something, and now I feel like you and all the rest of us blame me. Maybe...maybe if I'd reported what he was doing or tried to win custody, you all wouldn't hate me..." He nervously raked his fingers through his hair, suddenly very anxious. "Art...please, the light blue pill..."

Art, who understood perfectly, found a pill bottle in the glove compartment and opened it before handing one to Oliver. He took it dry, and immediately seemed to mellow out. "Holy shiiit..." He said, drawing out the word. "That new med the doc put me on is fantastic..." Art nodded and lightly patted Oliver's shoulder, making sure he wasn't swerving or looking like he was falling asleep.

"Just be careful, alright, babe? That stuff's supposed to be strong. And you've got your kid brother in the back of the car..." Oliver nodded, his dark eyes focusing on the road.

Somehow, they made it to the house, and Oliver was getting out of his van, thinking that he shouldn't have driven. He gazed up at the house sadly, biting his bottom lip. "Guess we can't just leave and never come back?" He glanced at Art, and slipped his hand into his.

"I'm here for you, Olly," Art murmured, giving his hand a squeeze.
 
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Carlos didn't know if Oliver's boyfriend Art was joking or not. He just gave an awkward smile and sat there. He might just be a joker like me, that's what Carlos thought. On the way to the house Oliver stopped at a coffee shop and got Carlos some coffee. Three sugars and three creams, he liked his coffee just like his girls...sweet and bad for you. Then Oliver started to talk about how if he would've stayed maybe he could've reported their father or something. Carlos stopped listening; there was nothing he could've done. Carlos was already damaged way before Oliver decided to leave. Maybe one day Carlos would tell his siblings what really happen to him. For now he would just try and get this whole thing over with. He didn't have any hate for Oliver, the only person he hated was dead in the grave. Carlos started to smile when he thought of his father in Hell, getting everything he did to him and his siblings but 10 times worse. Some people had to rebel to overcome what happen, some had to ignore it, and some like Oliver had to use drugs. Carlos he just had to think about how now his life could be different now that his tormentor was gone for good.

On the way to the house, Carlos drunk all his coffee. He didn't even notice nothing was left until he put it to his mouth and nothing came out. He was really nervous he would have to relive his nightmares. As long as he faced it maybe it wouldn't be so bad. His friend's father told him once "to overcome fear, you have to face fear right in it's eye". This was his chance to face it. Once out the car Carlos walked up to the house. He put his hand on the door and...nothing it was locked. "Oliver! Who has the key?" Carlos sat on the house porch waiting for everyone to show up. He felt a cold wind hit his neck, it was weird it wasn't this cold before. It was like the house was an igloo or something.
 
Oliver shrugged when Carlos asked who had the key while he got the book his father had left him from the van. "Dunno...maybe Rosario...but, I guess all we can do is wait..." He sighed and sat down on the porch next to Carlos. Art leaned against the railing, letting out a soft sigh.

"You want me to stay for the funeral?" Art asked Oliver. "Cause I can...I get worried about you, you know..." He gave a reassuring smile, his dark eyes filled with warmth.

"No," Oliver answered. "You've got your cat, and work...I'll be fine. I should be home by next week." He smiled up at him, his fingers playing with a couple of the pages of the book. Glancing at Carlos, he asked, "So, do you ever remember seeing this book at the house? Cause...well, Mom never read this to me when I was there, or any of you, I'm pretty sure."
 
Luka, blue

Luka had a quiet car ride, he had his eyes fastened to the road and stood directly not out of focus. But then he began thinking about what had just went down, everything was going fast as just this morning he found out that that his father had been murdered, the man he knew as an abusive father. But then he stared thinking about another memory, about his mother, the last words he said to her, which projected through his head like a huge stereo used for concerts. His palms began to get sweaty and tighten harder and harder as he thought of the last words he said to the mother who gave him a home and love.

"You can't do anything right, you can't feed these stupid kids, you can't pay the bills, And your a terrible and thoughtless mother."

Every word that came out of Lukas mouth that day was a lie, he thought she pushed her limits to care for those kids and to pay the bills, he thought that she was a magnificent mother. Luka breathed more heavy and a little bit of sweat dropped down his hair and down his forehead, his focus started getting blurry as that sentence blared through his brain like a bullet shot to the skull. Luka knew he was a terrible son and had a cold heart and deserved to rot in this life, he had no doubt that this was true. But then came back to vision when he felt a loud thud or bang, he opened his eyes where he saw his car in impact with a different car.

"What the fucking hell, who the hell do you think you are driving into this lane, are deaf?"

Luka's ears were buzzing and ringing at the impact and with the words jumbled and scrambled through out his brain, he could see the man freaking out. Luka got out of the car, he could still hear the ringing through his brain and out his ear, not hearing a wor\d oiut of the mans mouth, but noticing some words like 'Hell' and 'Jail'. Luka got a little worried about the word jail, because of the last incident he had in court. Luka was in court about three months ago for trespassing at his exes house and was told by the judge that if he would come back to this court for any crime, that he would personally escort him to jail.

The man kept freaking out pointing back at the two cars both who had came into impact just minutes ago, when Luka began hearing again he took a deep breath and then listened what the man had to say. Luka had been told to process words that had anger as an emotion, to take a deep breath and out, then continue to speak. Luka walked over to the cars to see how bad it was, his car had a broken left light and a dent in the front that would probably take a couple weeks to get fixed depending on who the mechanic was.

"Okay how much will this cost to repair?'' The man out laughing when Luka finished the sentence. "Unless you got three thousand dollars on you, then your screwed buddy!"

Luka walked back over to his car, he opened the front door of the car and began searching through the car. Luka had to take a choice between going to court and getting sent to jail and probably prison, or giving him his life savings he kept inside the vehicle. Luka had recently lost his job for coming in late and only had his two hundred dollars in his bank account and his life saving. Luka scattered through the garbage infested vehicle till he got to his glove box. He took out a can and crawled out of the small vehicle, Luka then walked back to the man.

"Here is five grand, you happy now, good." Luka threw the can to the man, then walked back to his car.

Luka started his car and drove out of the car he came into impact, he drove through the streets with the decent sized dent in the car. As Luka made his to the house, he kept his eyes on the road not thinking about his now deceased parents. When Luka made it to the house, he stopped on the road across from the house, noticing another vehicle blocking the space, which was most likely Oliver. Luka walked across the street to the house where he saw three boys, one he didn't know.

"Who has the key?" He asked all of them then asked a second question. "Is this a kid who came after I left of a friend of one of yours?"
 
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Carlos looked at the book that Oliver had. "The...Babadook? No I never seen that weird thing before." Carlos opened the book and flipped through the pages, it looked weird but nothing came to mind. "Maybe the others might know what it is." Carlos handed the book back to Oliver. He was skived out about the book, the front cover was just creepy. Then some other man came up from his car. He asked Oliver who Carlos was. "I'm Carlos one of the three teens that the older kids abandoned. Who are you?" Carlos didn't know this guy, he must of been the first to leave before Carlos remembered faces. Carlos didn't really get a brotherly vibe from him; Carlos would have to watch him.
 
As Luca arrived, asking who was with him, Oliver immediately answered his first question, "I dunno...I think Rosario, maybe..." As Carlos introduced himself, Oliver stood and said, "Uh, Luca, this is Carlos...he's still in high school..." Oliver glanced over at Luca's car, seeing the dents and the smashed headlight. Deciding that it wasn't worth asking him about it, he said, "Umm, Luca, you've never met Art! This is Art, my boyfriend." He smiled, trying to relieve the tension. He always felt nervous around Luca, for some reason, and even his medication wasn't helping.

"Uhhh...Rosario should be here soon...want coffee? I bought some for everyone." He smiled, gesturing to the numerous cups of coffee in carriers beside him.
 
Rosario left soon after, realizing that she would be going alone. What a shame. All these years, separated, and her siblings seemed more antisocial than ever. She didn't even know when or if they would come around, but, she sighed, put her car in drive, then tried her best to not think about it and not to take it personally.
As she passed through the old town, she remembered almost every landmark as if it were yesterday. But, though still fresh in her mind, she felt like a complete stranger. She had to remind herself not to take it personally again as she continued driving, eventually leading her to the driveway of the house. She got out, then locked her doors and stuffed her keys in her pocket. She noticed a few of her siblings where already there, so she waved hello on her way up to the porch. "Sorry! Sorry!" She walked up the steps, digging the old key out of her other pocket. "I hope you weren't waiting for too long..."
 
When Rosario arrived, Oliver smiled brightly, getting to his feet. "Hey," he said, brushing his hair back. He had always been close with Rosario, since they were the same age, and was sad when they fell out of contact when they moved out. He still liked her a lot, as a sister, and was happy to be near her again. She had known Oliver was gay long before he himself had, and had even tried setting him up with his first boyfriend. "It's fine...I missed you though, little sister," he said with a smile, teasing her. "Want a coffee? I bought a bunch, but I'm not sure that you're a fan of black coffee..." He shrugged before adding, "I dunno, maybe there'll be sugar and cream in the house..."

Still, despite Oliver's forced happiness, he was extremely nervous about entering his childhood home again. While he had only suffered at Charlston's hands for a couple of years, he was still mentally and emotionally scarred by what he had done, and now held a great number of reservations about going inside.

"S-so, uh, we should...head inside..." he said softly, approaching the door.
 
Nodding slightly at Kei's words, Danny followed him onto the bus, and went to take a seat next to him. "Yeah, sure." She said. "Sounds like a plan." She rolled her eyes slightly as she said it, not even realizing she was doing so.

Despite herself, she found his caution almost amusing. Maybe it was the troublemaker in her, or maybe it all connected back to her thirst for attention, but she had always enjoyed flaunting what she did wrong in others' faces. If it had been her decision entirely, she would have walked straight through the front door of the house with a bottle of beer in one hand, and a cigarette in the other. She'd like to see how the others would react. Most likely, she imagined that they'd be annoyed, or upset. She'd expect the usual lecture about how she was too young to act like this, and that she shouldn't be throwing away her life. It always annoyed her when people said that. What they never seemed to realize was her life had been thrown away from the start; she didn't have any prospects to begin with.

Chuckling slightly at the though, she leaned her head against her hand, and stared at the ground. Tapping her foot, she was all too anxious for them to reach their destination, as the distraction was certainly needed.
 
Rosario smiled at him throughout the small teasing. "Coffee sounds great, thank you." She didn't really prefer black, but the first thought she had was that the cream inside could be spoiled, and sugar? Well, ants could've gotten into that. Funny how someone who is used to seeing blood and saliva gets squeamish around bugs and spoiled milk.
She twirled the key in her fingers and stepped towards the door once Oliver did. The key spinning stopped abruptly. "Yeah..." She looked at the key in her palm. With some slight hesitation, She handed him the key. She couldn't bare to open the door herself. The thought made her knees quiver. Why did she even take it if she couldn't go through with it?
 
Kei caught the eye roll, responding with one of his own. "I'd really like to keep the stuff I'm working to get, we can do it your way next time." He hissed as he tapped his MP3 player, switching to the next song. After that, he let the silence fall between them, the music blaring in his ear and occasional "ding" of the requested stop alarm filling the void. He drummed his fingers on his knee as the scenery passed, dark eyes lazily watching the concrete jungle outside.

The ride was short, as the twisting route picked up few people this time of day. As the vehicle closed in on their destination, Kei reached up and tugged on the red cord that lined the bus wall, the familiar bell ringing out again. Without waiting for the bus to stop, he stood and made his way to the doors, tapping his foot impatiently as the public transit slowed to a stop. Once the doors slid open, he headed out, stopping only to make sure his sister was following close behind. He then lead her through a back alley and small maze of fences that lead to a basement door of a rather quaint looking home.

After scanning the area for a moment, he gave the old wooden door two swift kicks. A bit of shuffling and muffled voices came from the other side before it cracked open, a pair of green eyes peering down at them from behind a chain-bolt lock. Kei gave a nod in greeting. "Hey Finnick, you got anything for sale?"

The older teen on the other side narrowed his eyes before closing the door for a moment to slide open the lock. "Yo, Firecracker- who's this?" The red-head asked, looking Danny over warily.

"My sister, don't worry about her." Kei responded, huffing a bit. "So, you got some, or not?"

"Your sister? You two don't look anything alike!" Finnick said, crossing his arms. "I told you, if you try to bring any of your brat frien-"

"I'm fucking adopted, moron. Now are you going to sell, or should I give this fifty to someone else?" Kei spat, reaching into his pocket to flash the money in Finnick's face.

"Woah, alright there little guy." The red-head held up his hands, gaze following the cash. "I doubt you have another guy to buy from, but I'll let it slide- this time. Stay here."

The older teen disappeared into the basement again, muffled voices once again breaching the door. Kei stuffed his hands back into his pockets and glanced to Danny, giving a bit of a shrug. "He's dense, but he gets the good stuff. Have you ever had imported beer? Its like three times as strong as the American shit."
 
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Carlos saw his sister Rosario walk up the walkway. Carlos and Rosario didn't really have a relationship, but out of all his older siblings he liked her the most. Rosario to Carlos reminded him of their mother, she was nice and innocent. "Hey Ro, haven't seen you in a while." Carlos could tell that everyone was nervous about going back to this house. He saw how Rosario was shaking when she took out the key. She was about to hand it to Oliver but Carlos took the key. "Let's just get this over with, shall we?" You have to face your fears head on. Carlos put the key in the door, a creaking sound came from the old door opening. Dust flew out the old house. Carlos could see that the house was in bad shape. He may have opened the door but something about walking in the house first freaked him out. Carlos was frozen in place, all the memories coming back. Carlos felt sick to his stomach; next thing that happen Carlos fell over blacking out.
 
Oliver watched Carlos take the key from Rosario, still feeling nervous about entering the house he had grown up in. He bit his bottom lip as Carlos put the key into the lock, and Art had to put an arm around his waist to keep him steady as the door creaked open. With the door opened, Oliver's uneasiness only grew, and he immediately wanted to run and go to a hotel or back to his university.

All of that left his mind as he saw Carlos fall down onto the porch. Letting out a shout, he immediately knelt by his side, trying to figure out what was wrong with him. "M-maybe he's just got heat stroke...or he locked his knees or something...l-let's get him inside..."

Art nodded before kneeling down beside him, and Oliver said, "Luca, help us get him inside...Rosario, can you clear a space on a couch or a bed or something? We can't just put him on the floor..."
 
Rosario jumped and let out a squeal in fear after watching Carlos fall. She watched as Oliver knelt down, but she didn't know what to do. She was paralyzed by worry.
She collected herself quickly after she was instructed to find a room. She couldn't just stand there, after all. She nodded, then hurried quickly to the first room she could find. There was a couch towards the back of it, but it appeared dirty and worn out. Though not ideal for her brother, it would have to do. She began hand beating the dust off of the cushions, just so Carlos wouldn't feel sick once he woke up. Once finished, she looked around. Everywhere was dusty. It was inescapable. She decided there that would have to stay in the room. She couldn't leave Carlos in such a poorly cleaned room, now could she?
She hurried back out to Oliver and Art. "I found a couch." She pointed to the room. "It's in bad shape, but it's better than nothing."
 
Danny scowled slightly, and raised a brow when Finnick spoke, obviously annoyed. Once he left she glanced over at Kei, and shrugged slightly. She wasn't sure, to be honest. She liked to drink, but she certainly wasn't particular about what. Sometimes she didn't even ask what was in the cup her friends gave her, just eagerly gulped it down. Most of the time, as long as she got wasted, she didn't really care. "Eh... I ain't sure." She said, pushing a strand of hair behind her ear. "The stronger the better though."
 
Oliver nodded as Rosario told him that she had found a couch that would work for Carlos, for now. "Art, you're stronger than me," he said, looking to his boyfriend. "Can you pick him up from his head? I've got his legs...just wrap your arms around his chest, under his armpits..."

Once Art was in position, he counted to three and they lifted Carlos up. They were able to move Carlos inside without dropping him, and, thanks to Oliver's instructions, they didn't let Carlos's lolling head hit the walls or the threshold of the door.

"Okay, just set him down there, on the couch," Oliver said, helping to gently set Carlos down. "Let's...let's get some lights on," he said, once Carlos was safely on the couch. Walking to the all the door was set against, he used the light coming in from the dirtied windows to find the nearest light switch, holding his breath all the while. Hopefully, the house wasn't nearly as bad as he feared.

Worry written across his features, he flipped the switch, and the front room was illuminated with light.
 
"Amen to that." Kei said with a slight smile. If he could, he would hand over the money for some real liquor, but that was expensive, plus they would have to wait for Finnick to get it through whoever it was that got him his stuff. The small Asian seriously considered it, though. A quick walk through the streets would get him plenty to pay for a few bottles, and with the nightmare that just ended, plus the one that was just starting, he knew he would want something stronger than a six-pack of ales. However, this would have to do for now. They had to get back to the house before too much suspicion was raised. However, he did have to agree with Danny on the fact that it was satisfying to make the adults panic and get angry... Maybe they should dawdle.

After a short while, the gangly teen cracked open the door again, carrying a backpack. "Alright, two sixers and four packs of smokes, plus a little something, just 'cuz I like ya. Now hurry up and fork over the dough, my dad's going to be home soon." He whispered, eyes narrowed as they darted back and forth, as if he expected the man to appear behind them at any moment.

Kei wrenched the bag from the other boy's hand and opened it, checking to make sure everything was there. The packs of bottles were haphazardly stacked, but padded with a towel. Thrown on top were the cigarettes and a pint bottle. Though he wanted to grin, he stuck with a stoic nod and zipped the backpack shut before slinging it over his shoulder. He then handed over the payment and turned to head back to the house, not waiting for the greedy red-head to ask for more than what he was given.

Once they were back on the street, he broke out into that grin. "Your wish has been granted, Dan- we got belly-burning, cheap whiskey. C'mon, let's hurry up so we can crack it open!" He said as he quickened his pace, nearly jogging with child-like enthusiasm. It was a short walk, only a few blocks to the dirty, cluttered building they called home. The distance was crossed in just a few minutes, and he quickly ducked into the side yard and around to the back of the house, to the window that was their entrance.
 
Danny let out a small huff when the boy returned. She wasn't ready to go home yet. It wasn't that she was scared of the house like some of her siblings seemed to be, no, that certainly wasn't it. She had lived there basically her whole life, after all. Why would she suddenly started to be afraid of it now? Nothing had changed. She really didn't understand what their problem was. She guessed they were just babies, which was something she wasn't. No, the thing that made her want to stay away was the idea that her siblings would already be there. She hadn't seen many of them in quite some time, and frankly, she hadn't felt like changing that. She had her friends, and Kei, and that was all she needed. As far as she was concerned, the others wanted nothing to do with her and she wanted nothing to do with them. Why should she have to spend time with the idiots just because their asshole of a 'dad' had died? It's not like they were really family, after all.

Upon hearing of the addition that had been added to the bag, though, she couldn't help but feel her spirits brighten a bit. Even if the next few days were going to be hell, at least they had something to drink. Besides, it's not like she had to act all sappy around the others. Maybe if she made it clear to them she didn't want their company they'd just leave her alone.

Despite her apprehension about returning home, she flashed a grin at Kei. Giving a thumbs up to show her approval, she followed after him, though she seemed a bit less eager than he was. Upon returning home, she walked over to her window, and went to push it open. She almost always left it open a crack when she wasn't home, so she could easily get back in without being noticed if she needed to. Now of course, this wasn't always ideal, as it left her room freezing in the winter and would make it easier for someone to break in. She didn't care though. Blankets were an easy fix for the cold. And as for robbers... well... she had always just figured, what was the worst that could happen? They'd steal her stuff? Most of what she owned was worthless, and the stuff that wasn't she could easily replace through theft. What else could they do? Kill her 'dad'? It's not like that would have really bothered her either. She'd considered it more than a few times herself.

She carefully climbed inside, not wanting to tear her clothes, before turning to glance at Kei. The room was a total mess, as usual, but she didn't care. She preferred it that way. Her life was messy, so why shouldn't her room be? Besides, a disaster of a room was a lot easier to hide things in.
"Hey, want me to take the bag while you climb in?" She asked, raising a brow. "If you break something you're the one who gets to drink less, whether you bought the stuff or not."
 
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