When Tom spotted the tall figure standing in the door way, he felt how he shrunk a bit. He caught himself tightly pressing against the car seat, afraid out of every and no reason at all. "Get out", Lenny's father said in a commanding tone, and Tom obeyed. He did not want to get himself into further trouble. He knew that he probably wasn't going to get away easily this time. Chris's tall frame came closer to him and Tom looked away. He felt how Chris slightly and subtly brushed his shoulder in an encouraging motion, but he pulled away, not caring wether this could give anything that was between Chris and him away to his mother and her husband. Slowly, he walked over to the entrance to their house.
"Hello, son", his mother said coldly, as always not giving away one hint about what she was feeling. Tom wished, he could hide just as well as she did.

"Go upstairs and instantly go to sleep, Thomas", Robert said, and even though his stepson complied without protests, Robert did not miss the eye roll Tom gave. Neither did his wife.
"What should we do with him?", Robert asked frustrated and walked over to the table where he sank down on a chair. Tessa just shrugged.
"I told you about ten times that I don't want anything to do with it. I accept him as my son, but that's about as far as the contact we have goes. Finished!"
Robert sighed in annoyance.
"Theresa, you can't do that to him. He needs a mother. He could never accept me, and the reason is that you don't accept his father. Or him."
"Oh, don't play the merciful God again. As if you would treat him any better!"
"At least I try!", Robert bolted louder than he had originally intended to. He instantly regretted it when about fifteen seconds later he heard hasty footsteps on the boards of the wooden stairs. Lenny and Thomas both came around the corner. You could clearly sea that Lenny had cried. Probably out of fear for Thomas. Or maybe out of happiness that the latter had returned safely.

Tom jolted around the corner, closely followed by Lenny. He had spend the last minutes, trying to soothe his younger brother, who had been terribly upset about Tom going missing. Now they both stood in the living room, Tom still in his daily clothes and Lenny in his pyjamas.
"Stop!", Tom said loudly as he first faced his mother and then Robert. He didn't exactly know what he meant with it. The fact, that Robert had yelled? The fact, that they argued in general? Maybe just that Lenny's father should stop fighting for him when it was not possible to change anything?
"Mother, please leave the room", he heard himself say now, his voice less steady than he would have wished for it to be. "And take Lenny along. I need to talk to..." Tom took a deep breath, trying to figure out how to call the man. "Robert", he finally finished the sentence.

Lenny sat in his room and tried to eavesdrop as much as he could understand. From time to time he heard Tom's desperate yelling. "Stop saying that! She is my mother", was the first thing he could clearly make out. From then on the conversation carried on in a volume that probably the whole street could hear it. Lenny feared for his brother. Not because he thought his father to be cruel, but because he knew he was clueless what to do. His father's shouts turned louder and louder and as Lenny heard a sharp slap and a yelled command afterwards, he frantically pressed his hands to his ears. He did not want to hear Tom's sobs. Not again for today.

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A/N: Shit's starting to go down. I apologise for this very dramatic chapter. I promise the next one will include more fluff.
Btw, does anyone of you have wishes/suggestions for how I should evolve the story and/or the relationships between the characters?
I am happy about every feedback I get. Thank you very much! :)