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"Who's idea was it?" Arjun questions, crossing his arms over his chest. 

Apparently, no one is entertained by the idea that these two idiots fucked up big time and bought a kid home or more like kidnapped a kid home. A kid who doesn't look scared. For now as he is busy swallowing food and inhaling the sweet aroma of it.

"You should already know the answer. Rajeeb isn't the one to do this kind of stupid shit." Avinash comments, without taking his eyes off the kid who is too busy eating. 

Avinash doesn't know what to do and that's a first. There wouldn't be a problem getting rid of him if he wasn't a kid who looked too innocent to face this kind of fate, who looks too miserable to go through it as well. He will have to question him nonetheless. But for now, he will let Arjun them, or Manav who just control himself from fucking things up.

"You heard the man." Rajeeb mutters, taking a bottle of cold water from the refrigerator. 

"Hey, that's favoritism! Just because he acts like a nerd doesn't mean he can't do anything bad." Manav defends himself, as if yelling would make him right. 

"Shut up." Rajeeb says from the corner, "And you." He says, coming closer to the boy. 

When he gets no response from the boy, he knocks at the table. The boy flinches at the sudden sound. However, he finally looks at Rajeeb with hopeful eyes. 

Please don't take it away. Rajeeb interprets his eyes that way. And he isn't wrong because the kid brings the plate of food closer to him, too afraid Rajeeb would take it away if not so. 

"I'm not gonna take it away. Just take some water as well. You are gonna choke yourself." He states, bringing the bottle closer to the boy. 

The boy looks at Rajeeb for a while before taking the bottle with a hesitant hand. The teenager seems to be struggling to uncap the bottle. Geez, how long didn't the kid eat anything? 

Avinash takes the bottle from the boy's hold, scaring him. However, the kid still doesn't say anything. Avinash uncaps the bottle wordlessly before keeping it onto the table so that the boy can reach for it. 

He gulps down the water in one go while all of them watch him hungrily drink it. He was so thirsty still didn't ask for water. Well, they don't expect a scared kid to ask for anything either. If he gathered the courage to do so, they would have to hold another discussion entirely. 

The teenager winches loudly when he takes another spoon of food. It doesn't stop him though. He goes back to eating. 

"Back to the conversation, why did you think it was a good idea to kill a man just because he disrespected you?" Arjun raises his eyebrow, already knowing what Manav has to say. 

There's something really fucked up with his head. He is totally unpredictable. One moment you will find him listening to baby shark doo doo  and the next moment he will be at your throat, ready to take your soul for no apparent reason. 

"What did he say that got your panty in a twist?" Avinash asks. 

"You all are teaming up against me, that's not right." Manav mumbles, trying to be cute but ends up making all of them want to vomit. 

"Please Manav. You are too filthy to be acting this way." Rajeeb says, burying himself in a book afterwards. 

"Manav, you need to be serious because this isn't going to work. This is like your 100th murders this year. You gotta keep yourself in check." Arjun scolds the man-child. 

"103 murders." Manav corrects, a smug look taking over his handsome features.

They look at the boy who chokes at the food. They aren't really sure if it's the number of murders or eating without any break that did the trick. 

"I'm not gonna save your ass if you end up in jail for your carelessness, Manav." Avinash warns to which Manav rolls his eyes. 

He couldn't stop himself from killing that bastard. He could have taken it quite well if that man stopped at talking shit about him only but he went on talking shit about his mother. Now, you shouldn't go there if you want to live. Manav just gave him what he asked for. Death. 

"And who's idea was it to bring the kid here?" Arjun goes on again with his questions. 

The kid has now seen all of their faces. Something that some people are dying to see. But Venom is as secretive as a well-trained undercover agent who knows how to hide his whereabout, how to hide his identity. But there is Manav. It's like he is desperate to tell the world who they are. The kid now knows too much, thanks to Manav.

Arjun doesn't have a good feeling about it. He finds it rather suspicious. The kid isn't saying anything either which makes him suspect the kid even more. What if he is a mole sent by a rival gang? It's not totally unbelievable. However, he keeps his thoughts to himself for now. He will act on it later if the kid does something that arouses suspicion.

"Do you even have to ask at this point?" Rajeeb replies, closing his book. 

"Hey, I suggested killing the kid but his righteousness didn't let me." The kid chokes again at that. 

So, he isn't totally oblivious to the conversation. Anyone would think he isn't listening shit because he looks like he is too engrossed in eating whatever is left on his plate which is still a lot. 

The kid was literally begging Rajeeb with his doe eyes to give him more and more food when Rajeeb brought food. Now, there's a pile of it and he doesn't look full yet. 

"Alright. You are done with food now, kid." Arjun tries to take the plate from the boy who grips the plate tightly, not wanting to let it go. But his weak hold is no match for Arjun's.

He is full for now but he wants to keep it for later. Who knows if he would ever get to eat something so delicious and fulfilling? He doesn't remember the last time when he had something that wasn't leftover of rubbish.

But Arjun takes the food away forcefully. That's enough food for one sitting. He will get a serious stomach ache if he keeps eating.The second reason is that he wants to question the kid. He will have to put an end to his troubling thoughts regarding the kid. 

The boy almost cries and tries to take the plate back but a glare from Arjun makes him look down in fear, retreating his forwarded hands immediately. He slowly sits down on his seat once again like an obedient child. Thy said that they would give him food if he's obedient. He will take their words for it and hopes that they will keep their word.

Rajeeb is sitting two seats away while Avinash is sitting on the couch, Manav claims the seat next to him. All of their eyes are now on Arjun and the kid. 

"What's your name?" 

No answer. 

Arjun's patience is running thin by every passing moment. He has always been known for his anger. Apparently, he doesn't take it very well when someone disobeys orders from him. It makes him feel disrespected and he doesn't like that idea. He has been disrespected one, two, many times but that time is over now. 

"Being quiet won't help you in any way. If anything, it will bring only trouble for you. So, answer me while I'm still being nice. What's your name, kid?" Suppressed anger can still be separated from his voice. 

He hits the table hard when the kid doesn't speak still. What does he think he is? 

"Speak, damn it!" He hits the table yet again, this time harder than before. 

So hard is the force that the kid can't help but stand up from his seat and take two steps backwards. 

"He can be mute. You never know." Rajeeb interferes, seeing Arjun losing his cool. 

Arjun is a cool person but there's just one problem with him. He is extreme with everything. If he wants to show his love to you, he will show it to that extent that you are bound to feel annoyed and if wants to show his anger to you, you will fear for your life at that point.

Arjun calms his nerves down. That can be a possibility but that boy makes no indication of that sort. 

"Tell me, are you mute?" Rajeeb asks this time, using a tone that contrastes Arjun's. 

The boy still doesn't say anything which makes Arjun angrier. He will really let the boy go if he makes any indication that he is mute but that boy isn't helping calm his anger or suspicion down. 

Unknowingly to him, the boy has already gone through treatment like this recently which has left him traumatized. Even if he wants to speak, he can't. He can't even use his head to answer his questions because his body won't cooperate with him. He is just too scared to do anything, not wanting to get beaten up again. He couldn't even trust his blood, how can he make himself believe that the man who looks ready to kill him won't beat him up? 

"Sit down." Avinash orders the kid, using a tone that can't be considered too threatening nor friendly. 

The boy looks at Rajeeb on his right. Till now, Rajeeb is the only one who seems like the calmer one. He gave him food, water and even made sure he didn't choke on his food while the others just scared him one way or another. 

Rajeeb nods his head at the boy, silently telling him to oblige by their orders. So, he does. 

"Not a deaf then." Manav observes. 

"I'm asking you once again, are you mute?" The boy finally shakes his head. 

Alright, he is honest. He could have gotten away with it by lying but he didn't but that doesn't explain why he doesn't speak. It's not like Arjun is asking him where his treasure is. 

"Then why aren't you speaking?" Avinash asks, coming into the boy's sight of vision. 

The boy is shivering right now. Tears fall freely from his eyes as he lifts his hand and points at his mouth. 

Arjun raises his eyes at that. 

"What's wrong with your mouth?" Arjun asks but the boy goes back to his usual state, keeping his mouth shut. 

"I'm running out of patience. Fucking get me my gun." Arjun says to Manav. 

Manav doesn't get up though, instead he blows air on his nails as if they were freshly polished. He knows Arjun is just barking right now to scare the kid. 

The boy desperately shakes his head, crying even harder while he keeps pointing towards his mouth and then he falls on his knees in front of them to beg for mercy. Still not uttering anything. 

Arjun and Avinash share a look. They can't pinpoint what's wrong with the child. 

"Let me see what's wrong with your mouth." Arjun offers, not because he is concerned but because he is curious. 

He kneels before the kid who is shivering like a leaf in a deadly storm. 

Arjun holds the kid's knees together with one hand to steady him and grabs the kid's jaw with another hand. 

"Let me see." He says, sounding less angry than before. 

The boy finally opens his mouth. Unfortunately he can't seem to control himself to empty his stomach at the same time. Arjun, already seeing what the boy is about to do, takes his hand away thanks to his quick reflex. But he isn't lucky enough to save his jeans as the boy keeps vomiting. 

"The fuck!" Arjun yells in utter annoyance. 

He would have slapped the shit out of him if he weren't a kid.

Manav, on the other hand, can't contain his laughter anymore. Soon enough, the sound of his laughter overshadows the boy's gagging noise. 

But his laughter comes to an abrupt end upon seeing the kid vomiting blood. 

********

"Why would you give a kid so much food when he was literally starving for days?" The doctor says, getting furious, looking at the kid's face. 

"Alright. Don't give me a headache with your high pitched voice now. You sound like an anime girl." Manav complains. 

"At least, I don't sound like you. You sound like a bitch in heat all the time." The doctor argues. 

The doctor is Shivam bhutt, a close friend of Rajeeb, one of the few people who knows what Venom exactly is and who are behind it. He came to become best friends with other members of Venom as well. However, he loves his profession too much to leave it behind and join the force. 

"Stop it, guys. You all are not kids. The situation calls for seriousness, not stupidity." Avinash says, keeping them away from coming at each other's neck. 

"Anyway, why was he vomiting blood? Was it the food?" Rajeeb asks, grabbing their attention. 

"His tongue is burnt. Like seriously burnt. It's like someone deliberately tried to burn it so that he couldn't talk or something. It's not healed. Moreover, there was too much movement of his tongue which made the situation worse." 

Silence prevails in the air for a while. It takes them a moment to comprehend the information. Is that why the kid couldn't talk? Why would someone do that? 

"Are you sure?" Rajeeb asks, finding his voice finally. 

Shivam nods his head. 

"Is that why he couldn't talk?" Manav enquires.

"Yeah. It must have hurt like shit to even move hit tongue. It's a wonder he was able to eat so much in such condition."

Hunger is a bitch. Manav knows it, Arjun knows it even better. It makes you do things you will never imagine someone else doing.

"Will he be like that always?" Rajeeb asks.

"No, it will get better but will take some time. He might slur for a while even if he can speak. Anyway, I'm leaving a prescription. Buy them, make sure the kid takes those medicines and the cream." Shivam advises. 

"And give him a shower when he wakes up. The kid looks like he has been living in dumpsters for a while." 

Well, he isn't wrong. 

Shivam takes his leave after asking thousands of different questions regarding the kid but none had any answers other than that he was hungry beyond words. 

"What to do with him now?" Arjun asks. 

He can't deny the tiny amount of guilt tugging at his heart. However, it's not something he can't control. He has done worse than yelling at a helpless kid. It shouldn't make him feel bad. But it does. His condition someone reminds him of his situation years ago. It reminds him of something that he wouldn't like to recall.

"Let's keep him." Manav says all of a sudden. 

"What do you mean by that?" Avinash asks, surprised at Manav's suggestion. 

"I mean let's keep the kid and make him one of us." Manav explains himself which doesn't make things any better. 

"Are you out of your mind?" Rajeeb asks this time. 

"Apparently, yeah." Arjun answers on his behalf. 

"I mean I don't think this kid has anyone. He has also been tortured by someone so-" 

"For a psychopath, aren't you feeling too much emotions?" Avinash asks, which just makes Manav laugh. 

"Oh, please. It's not like that. I mean, he seems to have fucked up backstory like us. Maybe he is also burning in the fire of revenge-" 

"I don't see him burning." Arjun cuts him off, "If anything, that boy looks like he will cry if someone refuses to give him a candy." 

"Don't cut me off unless you want to get your tongue burnt like the kid's." Manav warns, to which Arjun doesn't react. 

"Anyway, all I'm saying-" 

"We are not talking him in like he is some stray puppy." 

"But you took me in and he does look like a stray puppy." He says to Avinash. 

"He and you aren't the same, Manav. Stop feeling sorry for the kid and start being a psychopath like usual." Avinash says, leaving no room for argument. 

"Trust me, Manav. You looked like a fucker who would kill anyone who dared to come his way. That kid is anything but that." Arjun says. 

"I will try not to take it as an insult." 

Manav doesn't know why he is trying to keep the kid. He knows that the kid won't survive in their world. He isn't the one to feel sympathetic. He kills people without having a second thought, without feeling remorse for God's sake!

"Let's just drop him off somewhere when he wakes up. I don't think he will tell anyone about anything that has happened." Rajeeb says. 

And for some reasons it doesn't sit well with Manav. He looks at the sleeping kid for a while before leaving the room.

A/N: A whild ago, I read a report where brothers, having enough wealth of their own, did unthinkable things to their sister for the property. So, this isn't anything unbelievable. Human are worse than monsters.

Anyway, hope you guys liked the chapter though it was kind of sad ;-;