He felt the small boy wrap his hands around his clutching onto him tightly as if his life depended on it.
They heard another crash and a loud scream followed, making the boy beside him shudder a bit, the louder the crash got, the closer the small boy clutched onto him.
He could hear his light whimpers, making him take in deep breaths, he had to be the bigger of both of them, being the eldest, he had to be stronger for both of them.
He stroked the smaller boy's hand, trying to soothe him and reduce the fear the boy was feeling.
"Gio" the boy whisper making Spade to look down at him, seeing the tears welling up in his eyes and the way his lips trembled
"Are we gonna be okay"? He whispered, making Spade tighten his hold on the boy's hands, he wanted to tell him it was gonna be okay, that they were gonna be okay, but he would be lying to both of them, himself more.
He swallowed hard, before stroking the boy's hair.
"We're gonna be fine" he whispered barely audible even for his own ears.
He looked away from the boy and at the door, silently praying In his mind for the noise to stop, or at least reduce a bit.
He bit on his lower lip hard, feeling it drawing blood, as he tried to take his mind off the noise and clattering sounds coming from downstairs.
He felt the boy's fingers dig deep into his own skin, making him grimace and shut his eyes.
He could feel his own heart hammering hard against his chest, his fear was slowly consuming him, he was only putting on a brave font because of the kid clutching onto him for his dear life.
How long would they keep going like this?
This was even one of the best days yet, at least they were spared today from the wrath of their father, unlike other days when he would take out his anger on them, telling them they needed to be men at an early age.
Gio had the marks to show for it, he always tried his best to protect his brother from it, day in day out, he preferred if it were him who took the beatings, the young boy beside him couldn't even take half of what he took.
He rubbed his back, soothing him and shushing him at the same time, they were hiding out as always, but they could hear the screams of their mother from where they hid, making it even more painful and excruciatingly frustrating.
His eyes moved to the kid beside him and he felt the need to protect him, protect him with all he's got.
The screaming and sounds downstairs suddenly stopped making him look at the door, he could hear the thumping sounds of footsteps, he held his breath in his throat, he could feel his heart run to his throat.
He started counting, hoping the man passed by without stopping and just like that the footsteps grew louder, he felt the boy beside him start to shake as his hands gripped tighter on his clothes
He rubbed soothing circles on the back of the boy, all the while holding his own breath, until they heard the footsteps pass them by, moving farther away from them and fading away, they both could finally breathe as they let out deep sighs of relief.
He looked at the kid beside him, and slowly unlatched his hands from his clothes, he tried to get up but the kid's eyes held him posted there, pleading for him not to get up, but he placed his hands on the kid
"I'm gonna be back okay, just stay here" he whispered and the boy looked at him, blue doe, innocent and scared eyes before he slowly nodded.
Spade moved slowly and gently, he opened the closet door, peeking out to make sure they were alone.
He sighed out when he realized they were indeed alone, he looked back at the boy and slowly he stepped out, shutting the door behind him making sure the kid was safe and secure, he walked out of the room, opening the door gently, not to make any sounds, he stepped out and looked down the hall, his eyes landing on the door of his father's study, he swallowed and quickly he ran as fast as his tiny ten year old legs could carry him, he ran towards the stairs and straight for the living room.
Stopping on the last stairs, he gasped as he saw the damaged that had been done, glasses were scattered everywhere and everything in the living room was upside down, he swallowed as he gently walked around the shards of broken glass, careful not to get any stuck on his foot.
He headed for the kitchen, it was far worse than the living room, from the entrance, he could see tiny droplets of blood on the floor, leaving a long trail which he followed until he spotted her lying almost lifeless on the floor, with bruises all over her body.
He rushed towards her, this time not minding if the shards of glass pierced his skin, he stopped in front of her crouching down to listen to her heartbeat, he let out a sigh of relief when he felt it, faint but it was there.
He gently got up and stroked her cheek, seeing the dried blood and tears on her face, he felt the pang of guilt in his heart, making bile rise up in his throat.
She groaned out and moved a bit, making him rush and place his hands on her body.
"Mom" he whispered with his voice shaking
"Are you okay"? He asked feeling his voice get shaky as tears already started to form in his eyes.
She managed to look at him, her eyes turning purple with bruises around them both, he wondered if she could see him as a result of her eyes being swollen
"Hey baby" she croaked out trying to force out a smile as she stared into his grey beautiful eyes.
"Where's your brother"? She asked her eyes looking behind him hut finding nothing
"In the closet" he managed to croak out as he used the back of his hands to wipe away the tears that was already pouring from his eyes.
"Mom are you gonna be okay"? He asked again and she just smiled, before groaning again in pain, he could almost feel her own pain as he grimaced, watching her face contort in pain.
"I'll he fine baby" she whispered before her hands went to his face, she stroked his cheek
"My beautiful boy" she whispered, with half a smile as there was dried blood on her teeth and gums.
"I want you to promise me something Gio" she whispered, her expression turning serious, he nodded vigorously
"I want you to promise that you're gonna take care of your brother for me" she whispered and his eyes widened as he shook his head, pulling her closer to him the tears in his eyes becoming too much
"Where are you going mom"? He asked fearfully, feeling his whole body shake with terror, he couldn't lose her, she wouldn't leave them now, would she?
"I'm not going anywhere baby, but I need you to promise me that no matter what, you're gonna look after your brother for me" she whispered looking into his beautiful eyes, he swallowed before he nodded slowly
"I promise" he whispered and she smiled before wiping the tears in his eyes away
"That's my little boy" she whispered as she let out a shaky breath
That was only one of the many dreadful and horrifying days he had to endure under the roof of his father
Watching the man hit and abuse their mother continuously, sometimes he shifted his attention on both of them, making sure he inflicted pain on them, but Gio never let him touch the little kid, not even when they grew up as teenagers, he still protected him like he promised their mother.
He sat in his office, looking into the space in front of him as his mind kept drifting from the future to the past, bringing back sour memories he'd been trying to keep buried in the deepest parts of his heart.
He twirled his chair as he placed his hand on his cheek, trying to understand just how much he'd pushed Nate.
He was really good with taking care of others when he was a kid, so what happened to him now.
He knew he'd changed from the sweet little kid his mom raised, but he had to change, for the good of everyone, if he didn't change then a lot of things he had today, a lot of things he achieved today wouldn't have been possible.
But that change was slowly but surely affecting him, because now everything he'd become was threatening everything he was trying to work through now.
Not that he regretted any actions he's taken, the only action he's regretted every doing was putting his hands on Nate when he did, when all he should have been doing should have been taking care of the kid.
Sitting in his office, he was itching to go over to Nate's house, today marked the 48 hours Ultimatum he gave to Greg to bring his daughter to him, but all that didn't matter to him anymore.
None of it mattered if Nate hated him.
He sighed out
Matteo hadn't reported back to him on anything new about Nate, and he was beginning to worry.
But he trusted Matteo to handle it just perfect, all he really wanted was for Matteo to get him the names of those who beat Nate up like that, maybe he might start redeeming himself from there.
*****
Almost having a panic attack the previous night, Nate was able to control his emotions after shutting off the many voices that tormented him, he used the words his mother always told him, and he was able to stop himself from doing something really crazy to himself.
But waking up this morning on the cold hard, tiled floor, he was once again reminded of the reality of things, he still had his father to worry about, the man gave him till today to get his sister back, but that is very impossible for him to do
Even if he knew where she was, he'd never bring her to his father.
But how was he gonna deal with the man?
And then there's Spade, even though Spade had somehow come to his rescue yesterday but calling the doctor and staying with him till he regained consciousness, that still didn't mean his threat to his father was no longer invalid.
Knowing the kind of person Spade is, Nate was very sure the threat was still pretty much valid, and the 48 hours Spade gave to his father was already up, so it was only a matter of time before everything came crashing down again.
His father always dealt with dangerous people but he never took the fall for it, he always pushed his children to take the huge blows, right from when they were kids, their father made them take whatever backlash that came with a failed business deal, and that was exactly what was happening right now.
His deal with Spade didn't fall through and Nate and his sister would be the one to take the fall for it.
If anyone ever knew of the torture, the abuse and humiliation he went through at his father's hand day in day out, they'd be surprised why he never ran away.
He'd tried to, more times than he could count, but he couldn't.
You couldn't run away from someone like his father, and even if he did, he would be leaving his sister behind, and now that she was gone, he still couldn't run away, because he was sure his father would be watching his every move, tracking him.
And with Spade involved, it wouldn't even take long before they find him.
But with him here, his sister had a better chance of running far and never coming back, because now all focus would be on him and not her, it was a sacrifice he was ready to make for his sister.
'but she left you to die' the annoying voice in his head suddenly started talking again, making him look around the living room, trying to see if anyone was with him but he was alone, it was the stupid voice in his head again.
'she doesn't care about you, none of them do' the voice whispered and he shut his eyes trying to push the voice into the depths of his mind
'stop trying to fight me Nate, you know I'm saying the truth, your sister left you to die here' the voice muttered making him shake his head vigorously
"No, you're lying, she wouldn't leave me, she'll come back, she has to" he whispered shakily
'i can't lie to you, because I'm you' the voice taunted making him put both hands covering his ears, but the voice wouldn't stop taunting him.
He could feel the clogging in his throat, the lump gradually forming there, slowly suffocating him.
Was the voice saying the truth?
Did Su really leave him here to die?
He quickly shook his head
No, she wouldn't do that to him, she only left because of the pressure and when everything dies down, she'll come back for him.
He tried to reassure himself, pushing the voice away and locking it into the very abyss of his mind.
The door bell jolted him from his thoughts as he almost jumped, his eyes trained on the door, he isn't expecting anyone today.
Was it his father?
He contemplated as he watched the door, feeling heat crawling into all parts of his body.
The door bell rang again, indicating the person was still there, and they'd probably be there until he answered the door.
He swallowed as he slowly got up, taking calculated steps towards the door, he stopped just in front of it, there was no peep hole that he could try to check who was there, he let out a deep breath and slowly wrapped his hands on the doorknob.
Counting to three in his head, he twisted and slowly opened the door, making sure his head peeked out first, he felt his muscle slowly relaxed at who he saw on the other side of the door.
Standing there, with his hands shoved into his pockets, he wasn't wearing a suit or a trenchcoat like he always did, he was putting on casual clothes, a jean and white top, with a black leather jacket on top.
His blonde hair was a bit ruffled, but not completely rough like a homeless person, his blue eyes looked calm and somewhat peaceful.
This made Nate open the door fully as both of them stared at each other.
"Can I come in"? He asked gently and Nate's parted lips quickly closed as he realized he was sucking in too much air from there, and his throat could dry up quickly, he swallowed and looked behind the blonde making sure someone wasn't following him, Matteo quickly sensed skepticism to let him in
"Spade's not with me, I came alone" he muttered, in a way assuring Nate, as the younger man nodded before stepping aside for Matteo to enter.
The blonde slowly walked in, his eyes darting around the living room, it didn't look flashy like the penthouse but it was just perfect.
He'd seen it from camera, but up close, it was far more homely than it did on screen
Nate shut the door, and faced Matteo, walking into the living room, his eyes watched Matteo while his mind kept wondering what the blonde was doing here.
"May I sit"? He asked again, softly.
This caught Nate off guard as he flinched a but, before he cleared his throat and nodded, letting Matteo sit on the double sitter couch in the living room
He stood there awkwardly watching the blonde.
Matteo could feel the tension and awkwardness oozing off Nate, he knew Nate didn't expect to see him here today, infact ever in his apartment
😁😁😁😁
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