A Place Called Home

Group Home

-Anthony's POV-

I told Hope that I would be fine in the group home, but it's fucking miserable. The guys here are complete assholes, well all of them except for Kev.

Kevin and I met the first day, when most of the other guys were out on a "field trip". He's a bit shorter than most guys, but he was bulkier and smarter than everyone in the home. Kev's here in the system because his mother had him here in the United States. She was deported when he was 10. Kev is 16 right now, so he's waiting to turn 18 to return to El Salvador.

The worst ones are Chris and Gerardo. Chris is 250 pounds of stupidity with a killer left handed punch, and Gerardo was the designated group suck-up. They were never held accountable for anything because of the sway Gerardo possesses over Mr. Tate, the home manager. Chris's mom died when he was 7 and his dad left, and Gerardo's parents are both in prison.

Layton wasn't completely terrible, but he was a follower. Layton was left at an orphanage when he was a month old. He did whatever Chris and Gerardo told him too, and I've never understood why. And then there's Uso, the "big guy", he wasn't known for his strength, but for his brains. Uso is, well I don't really know Uso's story. We've never talked for more than a minute before. The only reason Kevin is smarter than him is because Kev is a genius, although, Uso is also extremely smart.

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"Dinner time boys!" Mr. Tate called from the kitchen downstairs. I slid on a pair of black basketball shorts and I walked out of my room that I shared with Kevin.

I arrived to the kitchen and grabbed the a spoon and a plate, then walked to grab a plate full of macaroni and cheese.

"Say, Mr. Tate, when are you going to make something other than macaroni and ramen noodles?" Kev said. The guys all laughed, while Mr. Tate's face turned red, "The same time you find a sorry ass foster home Kevin." That comment silenced the room. Kev was unphased by the comment and shook it off, but it was still uncalled for.

I sat down at the old wooden table and silently ate my mac and cheese.

Oh my god this shit is salty as fuck. I cringed as I tried to swallow the mac n cheese without dying from my sodium flying to 1,000.

It was a quiet dinner, which was utterly unusual. Chris wasn't boasting about his video game score and Layton wasn't asking Gerardo about how his day went. The silence was incredibly disturbing. It was probably because of the salt.

"Anthony, Gerardo, it's your turn for kitchen clean-up." Mr. Tate said with a mouthful of macaronis. There was cheese all up in his Viking beard.

Gross. He needs to shave that before we start seeing red hair strips in our noodles.

After everyone was done, they left to change and shower. Gerardo grabbed all of the utensils, while I grabbed the plate.

"So when do you get out?" Gerardo inquired. "Why do you want to know?" I snapped. Gerardo squinted at me, "Chill the fuck out, it's just a question dumbass."

"3 days Gerry." I replied. Gerardo hated the nickname I gave him on my second day. His face was plastered red, "What the fuck did you just call me Ant?"

"Chill the fuck out, it's just an answer dumbass." I replied.

"I told you not to call me that." He snarled, "You just don't know when to quit don't you?"
With that, he grabbed the plates from me and threw them into the tile floor. We watched as the pieces shattered into what seemed like a million pieces.

I sighed. We both knew what was going to happen. Gerardo smirked as we heard a yell come from a room upstairs, "WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT?!"

Seconds later, Mr. Tate appeared. Gerardo didn't say a word, just pointed at me. I knew Mr. Tate would believe him.

Fuck me.

"Let's go Anthony." He said. I silently walked over to him. He grabbed me by the ear and pulled me into his office.

"You know the drill kid." He said as he walked over to the cabinet and grabbed a wooden paddle.

I pulled down my basketball shorts and bent over, my hands grasping onto his desk. I winced at every strike, but I've been through much worse. The pain lessens every time he "disciplines" me.

I can't wait for the day I get the hell out of here.

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-Hope's POV-

Training has been rough this week, but I'm excited to see Anthony again. Jeremy already took care of getting him a bed and new clothes and stuff like that.

"You excited?" Kelley asked as we jogged.
"Honestly, I'm a bit nervous." I said truthfully.
She stopped jogging, and I stopped also, "Why are you nervous?"

"It's just... what if he changes his mind? What if he ends up hating the house or Jer?" I confessed. Kelley simply laughed. "Why are you laughing? It's not funny dude." I grew a bit agitated. "Look, Hope, you saved this kid. Literally, if you wouldn't have been you he could be in prison right now, or dead." Kelley comforted.

I sighed. I knew she was right, it's just that I don't want to disappoint him. "Come on Solo, we still have a mile to go." Kelley said with a smile."Get it? 'Solo', 'to go'?" She laughed adorably. "Yeah Kels, I get it." I said as we continued to jog.