Chapter Text
Lucas hated wearing suits.
He hated the way the collar would rub against his neck, irritating him and completely ruining his mood. He hated how the suit's coat would prevent him from moving as freely as he wished, completely restraining him. He hated how the tie would wrap around his neck, making him feel like he was being choked to death. Safe to say, Lucas just didn't understand the appeal. After all, suits were foreign to his usual style of clothes, making him look more formal and professional— it was stupid. He wasn't some old man in a business meeting; he was still in high school.
Moreover, Lucas specifically hated how that whenever he wore a suit it would be nothing but a complete waste of his time. Formal events with a strict black tie dress code— those were the burden to his existence.
Events such as formal balls and dances were always filled with a bunch of stuck-up, greedy rich people, just like his parents. Lucas didn't see the appeal in sucking up to the filthy rich nor did he appreciate being pushed to dance with some random girl who he had no interest in. Dinner parties, award ceremonies, weddings, birthday galas— the whole lot of black-tie events aggravated him.
But, most of all, Lucas hated funerals. Especially, the one that he was obligated to attend today.
Arms crossed, Lucas stared blankly ahead at the coffin in front of him. He was wearing a freshly tailored suit, pure black that was curated to make him look well-put together. His hand fiddled with his tie in annoyance, brow creased as the coffin began to descend into the grave. He intentionally ignored the sniffles and choked sobs coming from the people surrounding him, simply watching as funeral unfolded with a tightly shut lip. He shifted his attention elsewhere, instead taking the time to read the name on the gravestone.
A name he was all too familiar with.
His body tightened as he crossed his legs, his facial muscles frozen like ice. Lucas didn't shed a single tear during the ceremony. He shed enough of those already during the actual day of that man's death. Why would he waste them now?
It was strange, seeing a person who was once so alive reduced to a name on a simple stone. Lucas could still remember his pale, white eyes and the way they would shine silver, like moonlight. They carried a faint metallic glow, almost as if they carried some sort of mystery. Of course, near the end, they lost that intrigue and simply became dead inside. Lucas recalled his long hair, white like the soft feathers of a swan or dove. It was always in the best of conditions— excluding nearing the end of his life, when he had given up on maintaining any part of his physical appearance. Lucas huffed, internally cursing the dead man for leaving just like that. His stomach turned as he thought about him, making sure to call the dead man a a stupid bastard once more.
"Lucas." The man next to him scolded, voice low as his hand ran through his brownish-gray hair, bringing Lucas back to reality. Lucas turned to look at the man, his face remaining stoic despite feeling like his guts were all scrambled up on the inside. But, of course, his father never noticed anything. "Please, stop tapping your foot and fiddling around like that. People are taking notice."
Lucas took a brief moment to pause. No one was looking at him, they were looking at the dead body being lowered into the grave— his father is really an idiot, huh? Lucas broke the silence with a scoff before firmly playing both his feet on the ground in exasperation. "There." Lucas chided, a sour expression on his face. "Happy now?"
"You're acting too smug for someone at a funeral." His father hushed, his tone stern, "People will begin think you don't care about dead if you keep that attitude."
Lucas stilled as he questioned the audacity of the idiotic man next to him. His eyebrow twitched. "Whatever old man."
The rest of the funeral went by like a blur, with Lucas growing more and more irritated by the second. The only thing that he wanted to do was get out that stuffy place. The moment the funeral came to a close, Lucas wasted no time, hastily following his father to his car. A designated driver sat by the wheel, his frame visible from the window of the black vehicle as he walked closer.
Lucas slammed the car door shut, immediately yanking off his tie after getting inside. His father eyed him, taking a moment to sigh of disapproval before putting his seatbelt on. Now that they were out of the public's eye, he didn't dare say anything verbally. The engine purred as it roared awake, filling in the empty silence of the car before driving off.
Filled with boredom, Lucas looked out at the street as the raindrops began to downpour onto the city below. His father sat next to him, his posture stiff as he exchanged messages on his phone, the clicking of the keyboard sound effect breaking the void of silence. The sound continued for a few moments before briefly stopping. Shortly afterwards, a soft click reached Lucas' ears as his father shut off the phone, a gentle rustling sound against the leather seats following as he turned to face him.
"That was your mother." He revealed, "An extra bedroom has been cleared out for you to reside in."
"An extra bedroom?" Lucas questioned, receiving a nod of confirmation in response. "What happened to my old one? Y'know, from before I escaped from that damn place?"
His father ignored the comment about escaping, letting out a weary sigh, "Your youngest brother took that room while you were gone."
Lucas didn't question any further, letting out a scoff. "Ah, right."
He met his younger brother maybe 6-7 years ago? He was a newborn then, so he probably didn't even remember him. Besides, Lucas also had no doubt that his mind that his parents probably never uttered a word about him to the young boy. Considering the way, they looked at him that day, that child probably didn't even know of his existence.
Lucas' jaw clenched at the memory.
He looked back outside the window, keeping his lips shut as silence engulfed the car. He wasn't going to force a conversation with someone like him. Staring at the droplets rolling down the window, he got lost in thought once more. Only two more years. His mind repeated, two more years until graduation.
Lucas couldn't wait.
The rest of the drive remained silent, excluding the occasional cough or typing from his father's phone. Not that it bothered Lucas— why would he waste time talking to him? The tires of the car whispered on the wet road, its rubber swelling into a growl as it touched the asphalt. Water hissed beneath the wheels of rubber, the drumming of the downpour echoing in the background.
"Sir, we're here." The driver informed as he drove into the property driveway, breaking the silence.
His father checked the watch on his wrist. "Earlier than expected. Just in time for dinner."
Lucas writhed at the thought of spending dinner with his biological family. He already had a shitty day and now they wanted to make it worse? Did he burn down an empire in his past life or something? What sort of karma is this shit?
The driver nodded as the car came to stop, the engine shuddering to a halt. Promptly afterwards, both his father and the driver stepped outside the vehicle, slamming the door shut as Lucas remained inside, agitated beyond belief. He could hear the muffled sounds of his father's annoying voice, directing the driver and some other worker to bring his stuff upstairs. Grabbing his tie that was on the ground, Lucas immediately cursed under his breath before stepping outside.
Lucas stood at the house in front of him, an uneasiness forming in his gut. He hated every single bit of this bullshit. He looked ahead. Sunlight creeped from the clouds left behind in the aftermath of the recent storm, shining down onto the exterior walls made of brick. Stone stairs paved the way to the entryway as the front door stood at the centre, two planted pots of flowers on each side. It was a grand house, that's for sure. But, Lucas couldn't care less about how grand this place was— he would much rather be living in a shack or in a tower isolated from society than with his biological family.
He turned to face one of the workers. "You."
"Me?"
Lucas scoffed. "Who else would I be talking to idiot?"
"R-Right." The worker stammered, clearing his throat. "What is it, Sir Lucas?"
Lucas tossed the tie from the funeral into the hands of the worker. It was now curled up into a ball all wrinkled. "Throw that shit away." He demanded.
The worker stood there baffled, blinking a couple of times to ensure he was serious. After all, it was an expensive tie. Once he realized that Lucas, was in fact, deadly serious, he nodded awkwardly before taking one of the suitcases from the trunk into his arms, quickly making his way up the stairs. Lucas looked at his father who was talking to the driver before interrupting the conversation.
"My room. Where is it?" Lucas questioned, his annoyance and impatience evident in his tone of voice.
His father dismissed the driver, sighing as he made his way up the stairs, motioning for Lucas follow him. "This way, Lucas."
Both of the men walked up the stairs before reaching the front door. The door swung open, revealing the building's interior. Lucas scanned the area, feeling more like a guest then a now-permanent resident of the house. It had been so long since he was last in the damn place, much less actually living there. He couldn't help but rage on the inside, feeling utterly pissed off about the whole situation.
"You should settle in just fine." His father cleared his throat; a fake smile plastered across his face. "As you can see, nothing really changed."
Lucas opened his mouth to reply, wanting to mock him about how he says that like it's a good thing. But he was interrupted.
"Son?" He asked, blinking a couple of times in shock.
Lucas froze.
"Have you finally gone senile? Who are you calling—" Lucas berated, looking at his father in disbelief before realizing that he wasn't actually talking to him. He turned to look at what he was looking at.
There stood a young boy, barely over the age of six staring at him from behind a plant. His eyes gleamed like liquid ruby, like red wine spilled over snow, similar to Lucas' own eyes. Unlike him however, the boy had chestnut coloured hair that was styled neatly. He smiled innocently as he looked at Lucas, a certain curiosity and excitement in his eyes as he slowly peaked from behind the plant. There, Lucas got a better look at him. The boy was wearing a high-end, navy-blue sweater, the collar of his light blue shirt showing from below. He also wore black trousers, although they were clearly covered in a few scuffs and mud, most likely from playing in the rain.
"God, what happened to your clothes?" Lucas' father scolded, crouching down to meet his eye level. "What did I tell you about playing in the—"
"Who's that?" The boy asked, not caring about the words from his father, pushing him aside to meet with Lucas. Lucas' father stumbled in his place, catching himself before falling over into the plant as Lucas snickered at him.
"Finn—!" Their father yelped.
"What's your name?" Finn asked, smiling happily without care in the world.
Lucas chuckled at the sight. Considering that scene Lucas had just witnessed of his father being utterly humiliated, he decided that gracing the kid with his name seemed a suitable payment. He crossed his arms as he stared down at the kid, "It's Lucas."
"Cool. Are you staying here from now on?"
"Yeah." He nodded.
"Well, my name is Finn." He exclaimed before taking a brief moment to pause. Blinking a couple times, he smiled as if realizing something. "Hey, we have the same coloured eyes!"
"That's because he's your older brother." Their father added, now standing up and readjusting his tie with a sigh, "Remember? I told you about his existence last week."
Finn's eyes twinkled with delight. "Oh yeah! I helped pick out your curtains yesterday when I was out shopping! They're red— that's my favourite colour."
"Yes, you were of great help." Their father smiled warmly, making Lucas grow uneasy at the unfamiliar sight.
"C'mon, follow me! I know where your room is!" The young boy tugged at Lucas' pants, beaming with joy as he gestured for him to follow him upstairs with his hand.
But his fun was cut short as his father hurriedly separated his grip from Lucas's pants. A nervous smile creeped on his face as he looked at the confused boy. "I-I'll take care of that, Finn."
Looking at the sight, Lucas' previous amused mood immediately became sour, his eyebrows furrowing as his eyes squinted. He looked at his father coldly as he talked to his younger brother. Lucas scoffed, Was he seriously that terrified that I would do something to him?
"Why?" He asked.
"You need to clean yourself up." Their father answered, gaining his composure once more. "You'll see him at dinner."
Finn stared at his father then back at Lucas, almost instantly feeling uncomfortable at the cold expression on Lucas' face. Children typically can't control their expressions, so Lucas could immediately tell he was already intimidating him. He looked away in annoyance.
This is why he didn't like kids.
After a short while, his brother left the scene, leaving just him and his father standing near the entryway. His father looked at him, that fake smile back on his face. "Just follow me—"
"You're right about one thing." Lucas ridiculed, crossing his arms with a sinister smile as he stepped closer. "Nothing has changed here."
His father stammered, clearing his throat as his false smile twitched. He took a step back, swiftly turning around afterwards. "T-This way, Lucas."
Lucas clicked his tongue, feeling his blood pressure rising as he begrudgingly followed him upstairs. He just had to ruin his mood, didn't he?
"Idiot." He mocked.
Eventually, they made their way up to his room. It was bigger than the room he stayed in from his old house, but then again, this new place was huge. Thinking about it further, it was obvious that he probably got the smallest room of the lot. He took note of the red curtains; those were the ones that his brother picked.
He'll have to get rid of them later.
Lucas looked around the rest of the room. The wallpaper was a dark gray, just missing the mark on being pure black. The room was complete with an empty bookcase, a desk with a computer on it and wardrobe. A double bed stood in the middle, complete with newly changed sheets and blankets with two bedside tables with lamps on both end of it. All his luggage was neatly stacked near the bed as something laid on top of the sheets.
He made his way to his bed, checking what was on it. There laid a school uniform, freshly ironed. The uniform consisted of a white-collared shirt and much to his dismay, a striped red and black tie. In addition to that, there was a gray V-necked jumper complete with a matching school jacket, the school logo placed on the top-right pocket. The pants matched the jacket, being pure black in colour as it laid next to it. Lucas groaned as he realized that the uniform showed striking resemblance to the suit he was wearing currently. The world really must hate him, huh?
"We had the uniform arrive yesterday." His father spoke up, still maintaining his distance as he stood near the door. "You'll start Monday."
Usually, Lucas despised school. But, right now, he would do anything to get out of the house. So, he didn't argue any further, simply dismissing him and telling him to leave.
"I'll give you time to unpack then." He hesitated, "Dinner should be in 45 minutes. You can join us."
Lucas nodded, not looking at his father's face but instead going to unpack his things. Soon afterwards, he heard the door shut and footsteps hastily walking away.
This was going to be a long two years.
Lucas checked the clock, those 45 minutes passed quicker than he wanted it to be. Groaning, he stood up from his bed, tossing his phone back onto the mattress. He ruffled his short, black hair slightly, opening the door before making his way downstairs. He navigated his way through the house, eventually making his way to the dining room. There sat his father, Finn and who he could only assume to be his older brother. There were two seats available for Lucas— a seat next to his older brother and idiot father or a seat next to Finn.
The choice was obvious.
Lucas sighed and made his way over to his younger brother, taking a seat next to him. Finn looked next to him, staring at his older brother. Lucas assumed that he would look at him with discomfort, considering how their last interaction ended with him running away. But it was the opposite.
"I saved a seat for you next to me." Finn announced, a smile on his face before going back to eat the dinner on his plate. His announcement made Lucas blink in confusion, his forehead wrinkling as his eyes squinted.
"He did." The man opposite to him added, "He even kicked me out of the chair for you."
Lucas looked ahead at the person talking. His older brother, Liam. The last time he saw him was about 6 years ago he was pretty sure, around when Finn was born. He had the same black hair as him, only it was styled more neatly. Other than their eyes, they looked extremely similar, with him sharing the same birthmark as Lucas under his eye. The only difference was that his brother had the mark under his right, not his left. He had dark brown eyes, like a shot of espresso, rich and steady as his gaze remained low and calm. He looked more mature, after all, if Lucas' memory served him correct, he was 2 years older than him. He wore a collared white shirt and a black vest on top; both clothing items clearly ironed to perfection.
Lucas eyed his brother who was simply eating next to him, acting as if saving the seat for his sake was completely normal. In all honesty, he couldn't wrap his head around it. Him and his brothers have always been detached from one another, hell, the first conversation he ever had with his younger brother only happened today. Not to mention, Finn looked terrified earlier when he saw that cold expression on his face.
Whatever. He decided to brush it off, remaining silent as he simply picked up his knife and fork to eat his dinner.
The rest of the family engaged in conversation not too long afterwards. They discussed their day, with Liam and Finn engaging the most in the conversation, allowing it to flow smoothly. Lucas watched the scene with nothing but an empty expression. Despite his younger brother's weird welcoming attitude, he couldn't help but feel out of place.
And it pissed him off.
Suddenly, the door swung open, shifting Lucas' attention away from his thoughts.
Lucas turned to look at the woman that walked through the door. His mother. She had long, silky black hair, with the exception of a few gray strands, styled into a blowout. Her red eyes stood out from her complexion as a birthmark resided under her eye. Her features still looked the same as it did all those years ago, only showing slight signs of ageing. It was obvious she was his mother; she really did look just like him. She wore a sleek, black dress that flowed down to her kneecaps that complimented her beautiful, pearled necklace and earrings.
Finn smiled at the sight, calling out to her. "Mum!"
Her lips let out a content smile at her youngest's excitement before quivering as her gaze shifted to Lucas. She stammered for a moment, as if remembering an unpleasant memory, fear obvious in her crimson eyes. Clearing her throat, her gaze cut deep, burning the same red as a sunset as she made her way to sit next to her husband. They made brief eye contact for a second before she turned to face Lucas, a fake smile plastered on her face. Just like her damn husband.
Lucas couldn't help but think about how they really were meant for each other.
"Lucas." She smiled, "It's nice to have you back."
"Is it?" He responded bitterly, making almost everyone go completely silent.
"O-of course it is." His father intervened, "Finn was really excited to meet you."
"Is that why you were so scared for me to meet him earlier? Not even letting him lead me to my room?" Lucas retorted, a derisive smirk on his face as he watched his father's face sink. "Is that why he only learned of my existence a week ago?"
The room fell silent once more.
"Lucas…" His mother sighed.
"Don't act all sympathetic." He chastised, a cold expression on his face, "Just because we're under the same roof doesn't mean you have to act like we're some perfect family. It's pathetic."
For the third time, the room grew quiet. Lucas couldn't believe the audacity of them, acting as if they hadn't kicked him out a young age.
Acting as if they thought of him as family.
Liam cleared his throat, inserting himself into the conversation in hopes of easing the obvious tension. "So, Lucas, when are you starting school? You'll be attending mine I'm pretty sure."
Lucas looked up at him, "Monday."
"Monday? That early?"
"Yeah. That's what the old man said."
Finn snickered at the old man comment before putting his hand over his mouth, trying to control his laugh.
The old man interjected, ignoring the snickering and the comment altogether, "Liam can show you around on your first day. Besides, he's a school leader— I'm sure that's what he's required to do for new students regardless."
"I can't do Monday." Liam replied, "I have a field trip on that day."
His father blinked in surprise, before letting out a deep sigh. "I completely forgot about that."
"I'll get someone to give you a tour in my stead." Liam stated as he turned to face Lucas, "I'll find someone in your class to do it so you can get well acquainted."
"There's no need." Lucas replied, taking another bite of the food in front of him. "I'll find my way on my own."
"The schools a pretty big place." He insisted in response, "One of the biggest in the city."
Lucas stared blankly at him before letting out a sigh, knowing that his brother probably wouldn't let it go. "Fine. Do what you want."
"I'll make arrangements."
Surprisingly, dinner continued without any further issues. Despite Lucas' mother not talking as much, Finn and Liam filled in the moments where an awkward comment was made or whenever the room grew too silent. Even Lucas' father would interject every now and then. The dessert wasn't half bad either. Chocolate cake served alongside vanilla ice cream— it's impossible to go wrong with that. And besides, Lucas figured, it couldn't get much worse than this. So, he sucked it up and endured listening to useless conversation in order to get a good meal.
God, he wanted the two years to go faster.
Once the dinner finally came to a close, Lucas rushed out of the dining hall and escaped to his bedroom. Closing the door, he took a deep breath as he looked at all the unpacked luggage, already feeling annoyed that he couldn't just flick his finger and use magic to make his life easier. Maybe in another life, he supposed. Walking over to his suitcase, he grabbed some comfortable clothes to wear to sleep. He quickly got changed, putting them on before getting under the covers. He looked up at the roof, still feeling weirded out for being in this strange house, even if he spent half his life there.
It never felt like a home. More like some annoying prison.
Now he was back. Again.
Fuck.
That night, as he laid awake in bed, Lucas prayed to whatever was out there that he would wake up the next day and those two years would be over.
"Finn." His mother smiled, half her face slightly illuminated by the lamp from his bedside table, the other half covered as the shadow concealed her facial features as she tucked him into bed.
Looking up at his mother, he smiled, raising a brow slightly. "Yeah?"
She stroked the side of his cheek. "Your father tells me you were eager to meet Lucas today."
Finn nodded. "Yeah, he doesn't talk as much as Liam, but he seems cool. I can't wait to get to know him."
His mother paused, taking a deep breath as she moved her hand up to his hair, gently playing with it as she spoke softly. "Now Finn, I know your excited. But please don't get ahead of yourself."
Her face was ice cold, as if she was wearing a mask. "Now, I don't want you jumping to get to know him. I want you to keep your distance, can you do that?"
"What?" He blinked, "Why?"
"Just trust mommy, okay?" She smiled, "I know what's best."
Finn pouted, muttering about the unfairness of it all. He looked away, staring at his window instead of looking at her direction.
"I know it's unfair, honey. But you have to trust me." She frowned, "Do you understand?"
He didn't reply, still looking away.
"C'mon, what are you looking at?" She turned to face the window.
There stood by the windowsill, a raven. Its black feathers shimmered in the moonlight, inclining its head with great precision as it stared inside. It tapped on the window once, its curved beak absorbing the intricate weave of moonlight before letting out a squawk. Finn smiled as he looked at the bird, mouthing out the word 'cool' as he observed from his bed. His mother on the other hand had a different reaction, calling Finn's nanny inside, ordering her to get rid of the bird.
Much to Finn's dismay, the bird was soon dealt with, being shooed away into the night.
"Sorry honey." His mother sympathized, "Did the bird scare you?"
"Why would it scare me? It wasn't doing anything." He replied. "Why did you shoo it away?"
His mother clicked her tongue, sitting down on the side of his bed. "Well, some people say ravens typically mean bad luck and death."
"I was only looking out for you. I didn't want that sort of energy in the house." She further elaborated, stroking the side of her son's face.
"Oh."
"But that's beside the point." She sighed, "Back to the topic at hand. Now, I want you to promise you'll leave our new guest alone for the time being."
"Lucas doesn't seem too bad."
"Finn."
"But—"
"I need you to trust me."
He stared at his mother, even in the darkness he could see her pleading eyes, as if they were terrified. At the same time, they gleamed of determination, as if she was ready to do whatever was necessary to keep the gap between her youngest son and Lucas.
Finn felt uncomfortable all of a sudden. He stammered, "Y-Yeah— I'll do that."
His mother smiled. "Thank you."
She gave a light kiss on his forehead, her demeanor completely shifting as she turned off the light. "Sweet dreams, son."
Finn laid awake longer than usual that night.
Lucas woke up, still disgruntled from his sleep. His eyes felt as if they had been stitched closed, but of course, the sunlight just had to pry them open anyways. The room remained still, a quiet whisper of the breeze flowing through the open window. He groaned, shifting onto his back as he stared at the ceiling. He could hear the muffled sounds of Finn's voice, ranting about something— probably stupid— early in the morning. He stretched his body, grabbing his phone from his bedside table to check the time.
His eye twitched, still pissed off from yesterday as he shut off his phone. Lucas inhaled deeply, sitting up on his bed with a groan as he mentally prepared himself for a shitty day.
Then, he got up.
He made his way through his new bedroom, avoiding his already opened suitcases and clothes scattered on the floor from yesterday to reach his bathroom. He splashed water on his face, attempting to fully wake himself up as he got his toothbrush ready. He smeared the toothpaste on the brush and began brushing his teeth. Once he was done, he grabbed some of his clothes from his suitcase and quickly changed into them.
He wore a simple black t-shirt paired with jeans; his hair was somewhat messy, but he figured it was still presentable enough. Grabbing his shoes, he put them on before promptly leaving the bedroom. As he left, he made sure to avoid all the members of his family, trying to minimize any sort of contact at all. He snuck out the door, phone in hand as he checked the online map for directions to the nearest bus stop.
Navigating his way through the neighborhood, he looked at all the houses with an unimpressed expression. Eventually, he made his way to the bus stop, sighing as he took a seat on the bench and waited for the next bus. The breeze was calm and not too many cars driving by the area, it was quiet. He took comfort in the shade of the nearby tree, taking out his phone to scroll mindlessly to pass the time.
"Don't forget that you have teatime with your father at 3 this afternoon!" A female voice yelled.
On a whim, Lucas looked up, seeing the silhouette of a lady through the house's gate, yelling from across the front yard from the entranceway. Even though she was far away, Lucas could make out that she had chestnut brown hair tied back into a bun.
"Don't worry Lily!" Another voice yelled back, sounding much younger. "I should be back in time for Daddy!"
Shifting his gaze, Lucas looked at where the voice came from. There he saw the back of a girl with honey blonde hair, glistening golden as the morning light caught in her curls as she was about to enter the backseat of her car. Her hair flowed in the wind gently, matching the way in which her floral white and pink patterned dress flowed in the breeze. Her back was turned to him, only about to show her face as she slowly turned to her right.
Before Lucas could get a glance of her face, the bus came driving up, obstructing his view. He brushed it off, putting his phone in his pocket as he entered the vehicle before sitting down on the seat. He got his phone out once more, quickly forgetting about the interaction he was just looking at.
Lucas moved on with his day, taking the bus to the main city to hopefully get some breakfast. He was hungry since the moment he woke up, but he would rather die than have breakfast with his family and deal with them first up in the morning. Dinner the previous night went better than he expected— then again, it's easy to subvert expectations when the bar was quite literally on the floor. Still, he considered it to be somewhat of a miracle that he didn't storm out of the room because people, mainly his parents, were being annoying pests.
He wasn't going to push his luck and have a meal with them a second time.
Walking around the city, he scoped the area for a good place to eat. He took note of the bustling city, the sound of chatter and cars bustling filling his ear. Lucas took a deep breath; he needed to find someplace quiet. There were too many people. After walking around some more, he eventually reached a cafe that he deemed suitable. He walked inside, taking a seat before picking up the menu that was to his side. He sat by the window, making sure to pick out what he wanted to eat mentally. Soon, the waitress arrived.
"Hi Sir, what would you like to order?" She asked, taking out her notepad.
Lucas gave the waitress his order.
"Okay…" She smiled, "Is that it?"
"Yeah." Lucas nodded.
The waitress soon left, leaving Lucas alone. The cafe was nice and cozy— most importantly, it was quiet and far away from any family members. Lucas smiled to himself, turning to face the window.
His smile dropped. "You've got to be shitting me."
There stood his younger brother, Finn, and a nanny that was all too familiar to Lucas, staring at him through the window. Did the universe hate him? Finn was waving at him eagerly, smiling happily. The same couldn't be said about the woman next to him, her face looked downright horrified. The corners of her mouth pointed downwards, her eyes wide and eyebrows raised. If he didn't know any better, he'd think she was seeing a ghost.
Honestly, Lucas was pretty sure she would much rather see a ghost than him.
Finn yanked at his nanny's skirt, rushing her to enter the cafe, much to the nanny and Lucas' displeasure. Finn smiled, looking at Lucas as he yelled out to him. Of course, it was all muffled through the glass the window. But Lucas could tell what he was saying— he wanted to come inside. Lucas' brows furrowed, his mouth tightly shut as his jaw clenched.
But then, the excited boy paused, as if remembering something.
He looked over at Lucas then at his nanny, his eyes open wide and mouth slightly agape. He stopped his jumping up and down, releasing his grip from his nanny's skirt before running away into the crowded street, forcing his nanny to run after him. Lucas stared at the scene in confusion.
"What's up with him?" He muttered before getting a grip on himself. It was better this way— at least his morning wouldn't be ruined. Soon afterwards, his drink arrived. Hot chocolate. The smell of the beverage already lightening his mood. He sighed, taking a sip as he prayed that the rest of the day wouldn't be as shitty as the last.
After all, he had the following day to be more wary about.