Oneshot Collection

When We Were Young: Kam

MeowMeowsBooks, your oneshot request for a Kam oneshot based on the songs Different World by Alan Walker and Sofia Carson, and Heading Home by Alan Walker and Ruben!

I tried my very best to base this on the songs, but stuff like this is not my forte, so it m a y not be anything near what you imagined, sorry-

When Tam was young, he'd been hopeful. But that hope had been quickly quashed, stamped out under his father's boot.

("why do mom and dad hate us?" Linh would whisper in Tam's ear as they huddled together in her bed, in the room they shared. tears filled her eyes from Quan's words, and Tam squeezed her hand as he searched for an answer.

"they're scared of how awesome we are," he would respond, waiting for Linh to lift her chin and smile. thinking that if he was strong, she wouldn't have to be."they're worried that we're gonna take over the world.")

Quan and Mai had smothered the light that shone in Tam's eyes, cupped it in their hands and allowed it to fester and fade, extinguishing their son's innocence and faith in the world.

(the drop of ink fell in slow motion, and Tam resisted the urge to squeeze his eyes shut as it landed right on Mai's white sleeve, tarnishing and staining the lace.

Quan's head snapped over, and Tam refused to cower beneath his father's scorching gaze)

Any hint of happiness he found was soon eradicated. His friends were told that they shouldn't play with him anymore, and his freedoms were whittled down to the bare essentials.

(the water crashed down, and Linh's face was peaceful and terrified at the same time as the sirens blared and Mai's scream tore the world in two.

Quan's face was fearful as he beheld his daughter, hovering two feet above the ground as she brought another wave of water down into Atlantis. Tam tugged desperately at his sister's arm, but he knew it was too late.

he was drowning already. not in his twin's waves, but in the knowledge that his parents were done making excuses)

But before all the innocence and happiness in Tam had been eradicated, he'd been happy.

It was too late for that to come back, he'd thought. He was too far gone, and he didn't see why he should have to pretend to be normal.

He'd thought, and he'd been proven wrong.

...

Tam scowled as Keefe poured sand over his head.

"Was that really necessary?" he asked, closing his eyes as he shook his head, sending grains of sand everywhere.

Keefe grinned, but there was something distracted in his eyes.

"What's up?" Tam asked.

"Nothing," the empath shrugged, his eyes darting to the front of the beach, where the water had washed over the sand and left a solid chunk of sand. He sprinted off, and Tam let out a bewildered sigh before following him.

Keefe was scraping his finger through the sand, tracing out his name in swirling letters. Tam grinned and copied him, the three letters of his name forming in spiky blocks.

They stepped back to admire the look of their names side-by-side in the sand, messy and raw. Tam let a grin curl his lips at the sight, but Keefe's face was so regretful that the shade felt a tendril of fear curl in his stomach, his smile disappearing.

"What's wrong?"

(everything around them had changed, but Keefe was his constant, Tam had thought)

"I... don't think I can do this," Keefe whispered, disbelief in his tone, as if he were surprised by himself.

Tam's mouth opened and closed, and the fear in his stomach twisted tighter. "What do you mean?"

(a raindrop landed on his head and slid down the back of his neck)

"I can't..." Keefe muttered, dragging his hands through his hair. "I'm sorry, Tam."

(then there was rain all around them, soaking their clothes as Tam stared and stared and stared)

"Are you..."

"Breaking up with you?" Keefe guessed. "I... guess I am."

(he wanted to ask why, but he could only stare as Keefe walked away, brushing a hand over his eyes as if brushing away a tear)

(good, Tam thought, the fear coiled in his stomach changing to anger. he should feel the pain, for ripping Tam's heart from his body and leaving him in the rain)

Tam clenched his fists, tears blurring his sight. The words on the beach caught his eye, and he watched the rain wash away Keefe's curling handwriting, leaving his blocky letters alone.

Alone.

...

Tam could see Keefe staring at him, but he refused to look back at him.

The empath's eyes were tired (and maybe a little broken), but Tam would spare him no sympathy.

He couldn't afford to.

(as much as he wished they could go back, back to how they used to be, he knew something had broken between them)

Tam still didn't know why Keefe had ended it, and he didn't care anymore.

Even though whenever they happened to meet eyes, something leaped in his stomach. Once, something sparked in Keefe's eyes as they met Tam's silvery gaze.

But the shade ignored it, because they could never go back to when they were young, to when they'd laugh and shout and tease and scream.

They could never go back to the mountain's flashing lights, to the beach's flowing waves, the the sand pouring over Tam's hair or the snow falling down Keefe's back.

It was too late.

Good old angst, how I missed you during that one fluff thing I wrote.

Anyway, I hope you liked it! This p r o b a b l y wasn't my best? It wasn't proofread or anything, either. I COMPLETELY ran out of motivation while writing this. It was a struggle to make myself finish it, freaking writer's block and all.

Hope it's good enough lol