The Pack and Sidemen Oneshots

Leston- Different Part 1

Preston's P.O.V.

I lugged the sack onto my back, trying to find the most comfortable position to carry it for almost 10 minutes into the house, down the stairs and into the basement kitchen. It was obvious that I was struggling, the others running around could see the pinched look on my face but they didn't stop to help, they had other things to do.

I was used to it too, you had to get your tasks completed within a time frame that was often very short and if not, the whip or cane came out. I still had welts and scars on my back. It was painful and scary but it was to teach us a lesson I supposed, and I hated it.

Somehow I managed to get all the way downstairs before dropping the sack onto the floor, exhausted. I groaned as a flare of pain ran through me and I wanted to stop, to rest for 30 seconds, but I knew I couldn't, I had to keep going.

Before I headed back up and licked the palm of my hand, smoothing down my cat ears that had been perked up and my hair, which was a sweaty mess and all over the place. I was about ready to throw in the towel but I still had at least 6 hours to go before I could collapse into bed.

"OI!" The yell came as I stood in the hall, leaning heavily against the wall. "MOVE IT!!!"

I was shoved into the ground as the man in charge of the kitchen, a spiteful and rude person who found it pleasurable to both push around the hybrids who "worked" there, read again, slaved there, or take them as his own personal slaves. I shuddered, hoping I would never have to go through that horror.

"Yes sir." I muttered under my breath, scrambling away from him and disappearing up the stairs to get my next job. It was better than being around him.

I was about to open the back door when a frazzled attendant came running at me, waving his hands. I recognised him as someone who worked with the family, the people I never saw due to the separation of living, and he looked terrified.

"You! I need you to do something, now!" I stopped, hesitating.

"I- uhhhh..." He didn't even give me a chance to object.

"I need you to go up room 4A, the teenage boys room, he's requested for it to be cleaned but there's no one available right now! Just go! Pick everything up, make the bed, dust, vacuum if needed and if he comes back, don't talk to him! Just get out!"

He pushed me down the hall and as much as I tried to object he just kept shoving me, gesturing for me to go.

"But where! Where is it! The room I mean!"

"Third on the right through this door! Just hurry up! He's meant to be back in less than 15 minutes!" He shoved me through a door in the wall, which from the other side appeared to be nothing. It was disguised so the family wouldn't see it, they wouldn't know they had slaves running back and forth behind their walls.

The door he was talking about was inconspicuous, no indication that this room belonged to one of the main family members. Inside the room was big but simple, clearly belonging to a teenager, but the thing was, it wasn't that messy.

There were some clothes on the floor and the bed was unmade, but it wasn't messy. That wasn't what I expected from a teenager, especially one who had several dozen slaves running around, doing everything for them.

I did as the attendant had asked, making the bed with skilled hands, picking up all of the clothes and bundling them in my arms to take to the laundry. With a cloth that was always hanging on my belt I gave the room a quick dust and I was just about the leave, I had literally just turned to the door, when it opened.

The boy was tall, over 6 foot which was unusual considering the famine and poverty running rampant in the region, which made him stick out like a sore thumb. He did look exhausted, barely standing, and his golden blonde hair was also unusual.

"Oh!" He looked surprised to see me in his room so I just lowered my head and pushed past him, brushing past his side while avoiding eye contact. "Hey! Come back!"

I was about half way down the hall when he called me and I turned, physically shaking. I had no idea how to react because I had never been around the main family before, I had been told from day one that I was so insignificant to them they would never even notice I was there, but now here one was talking to me.

I knew I wasn't supposed to talk to him, so I turned to face him with my eyes glued to the ground.

"Are you new? I haven't seen you around he- oh." He paused, having seen the ears on the top of my head. The thing was, most hybrids weren't seen around the main family. They were behind the scenes doing all of the dirty works. We were ugly, unimportant, so the slaves that they saw were either humans, paid humans, or older hybrids that had been there for dozens of years. They never saw the young ones.

I closed my eyes, shuddering. He could tell I was uncomfortable.

"Sorry... I'm not really used to seeing you guys around... why're you out here?" He was genuinely curious and it was a direct question, so I had to answer.

"Got told to." I mumbled, his washing still gathered in my arms. He noticed and stepped closer, taking it from me gently. Even though he was gentle I still jumped and took a step back, watching as he dumped all of the laundry down a chute I hadn't seen before.

"It's alright, I normally tidy my stuff on my own. They don't really listen." He said nonchalantly, turning back to me. I still had my eyes glued to the ground and was digging my nails into the palm of my hand because I was so shaky. "Oh- hey, you right? You're shaking."

"I- umm..." My voice shook, my exhaustion getting to me. It was a combination of pain, exhaustion, anxiety and fear that overwhelmed me all at once and suddenly I found myself on the floor, having completely collapsed.

"Shit! Oh my god are you alright!?" I heard his panicked voice and attempted to wave him away even though I physically couldn't stand and every few seconds another wave of dizziness ran through me. "Woah, woah, no stay here, you can't get up!"

"I have to-" I moaned in pain, my hand touching my forehead.

"No." He said, fiercely. "Please, just stay down, you're really hurt."

Finally I just collapsed onto the ground, lying my head on the ground to try and get the dizziness to pass. The boy scooped me up into his arms, he was clearly quite strong and I was both underweight and stunted so I didn't suppose that it was much effort to carry me.

I was placed down a few seconds later on a bed, soft and warm and comfortable, but because of the pain and dizziness I couldn't even move.

"Are you- are you alright?" I heard his voice shake, he really seemed concerned for me. I physically couldn't reply but I blinked to tell him that I could hear him. "Okay, good. I uhhhh- I'm Lachlan."

He was panicking, flapping his arms.

"Preston." I mumbled, flinching.

"Okay, okay, what do I do now?"