Date: Fri, 10 May 2019 02:33:04 +0000
From: dan <darkluvr@protonmail.com>
Subject: Into the heartlands chapter 7 reup

Into the heartlands
Chapter Seven
6 Months Later

Happy reading, but...don't even think of abusing children in real life

Some frightening statistics.

Before today is over 4 children will DIE from being abused. One will be a
baby less than a year old. Two probably haven't yet celebrated their fifth
birthdays

2,700 children will be physically and sexually abused today

Approximately 1 in 4 women in North America were molested in childhood

Approximately 1 in 7 males have been sexually molested before the age of 18

Please help to keep this amazing site free to all to read and enjoy. Donate
to the cause at http://donate.nifty.org/donate.html

Contact me at darkluvr (at) protonmail (dot) com also I have now got a
Discord to discuss this story at https://discord.gg/wvrS9YK Join if you
want to talk to me and others that enjoy the story. Also allows for
discussions and more fu



(Sean M 31, Kweli M10, Kareem M8, Ash M11, Luca M6, Lucifer M5)

Things have moved on with us in the last 6 months. After the testing that
was done to the boys it was determined that they were not far behind in
their academic studies. This had been rectified in the last few months and
Ash had started to excel in mathematics. Lucifer had shown his intelligence
and now was using his PECS cards less and less. His primary enjoyment was
still his art to which he excelled at. Luca was showing an aptitude for
science and was showing unbelievable empathy skills.

Innocence had fully healed from her trama. Now living in her house with her
2 boys and working in my house, she had come out of her shell and also
eating better meant she was now at a better weight and so much happier in
her life. Kweli had been recovering too, his arm cast had been removed and
his hip spica cast shorted. He was beginning to excel at languages and
creative writing. Placing Ash and Kweli together in the shower duty had
caused both boys to become very close and they were often seen together
laughing and joking around. Kareem had become a very confident boy now he
was away from the shadow of his dad. This however did not reduce the amount
of love and cuddles this little guy give out. He was excelling at all forms
of sports and I loved taking him to sports events.

As for the other people in our lives. Andrew who was a daily visitor to the
house was working very well with Lucifer and we enjoyed him being around.
With his help I understood Lucifer and his limitations a lot better. Whilst
he had made a lot of progress there would always be some things that would
be out of his grasp and we were beginning to understand and catalogue
them. Caroline was no longer a free person. Having originally being reduced
in duty and forced to retrain, her cases where looked into. She was then
found to have been negligent in her duties. After ignoring 3 other children
in her care over abuse allegations and still placed people in their care,
she was found guilty of facilitating the abuse of minors and neglect in a
public office. Susan and me met on occasions to review the boys cases as
they came closer and closer to adoption. Mbappe was and still remains our
case worker and as such we meet very regular and he often interviews the
boys. Even though I could see and hear what the boys and Mbappe said, I
never did pry into their private business. Doctor Jonas and the boys had
regular appointments as he checked on the healing of Ash, Kweli and
Kareem. The boys loved attending his office and spending the time with
me. Ash had fully healed physically from the minor damaged caused by his
past. Kareem had also managed to stretch his foreskin enough that it was no
longer a issue, however, this didn't stop his nightly ritual of making sure
it didn't get tight again.

Finally we had got a new member of our family called Car. As Lucifer was so
into art I decided to show him online some of the old masters. We looked at
Dali, de Vinci, Michelangelo, Raphael for example. As it turned out Lucifer
liked the contrast of light and shade as well as the models used by
Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio. So when we went looking for a dog for
him he decided on Caravaggio as his name. After looking up breeds of dogs
suitable I found that a Great Pyrenees was best for him. As it is a smart
sturdy dog that is loyal to its family as well as been protective I found
it very suitable for Lucifers companion. Upon seeing the litter he choose a
pure white dog and as such Car came home with us and bonded straight away
with his young master. Car was never far from Lucifer and their bond
brought forward Lucifers development.

As for their schooling, there was nothing going on there that was
amiss. Lucifer was accepted even with his name and the other boys fitted in
greatly. Ash has a female teacher which eased some of his anxiety at school
but he was still very anxious around men even me. Lucifer had even
developed his own little signature in his work. Often in one of the corners
of the pictures he drew would be the planet Venus and on that planet in a
different shade of green was the letter L. He was so proud when he came up
with this. Well this pretty much fetched us up to date.

I woke up today excited to how things could be. I was hoping that the
results today would help lift the depression that I had sunk into over the
last few months. I was not majorly depressed but very down. I knew that my
life was better than it was and I was happy about how my life was
going. However, I could not get over the sadness that was plaguing me. I
put on a fake smile when the kids were around but when I was alone I was in
a funk.

I was lying in bed close to tears but full of hope that today would be a
new start for Kweli. I looked up as my door opened and saw a white lump
jump on my bed and move to snuggle into me. I was pleased when I decided to
fit Car with a door chip in his collar as well as fitting one in Lucifer's
hand like mine. Cuddling into him I buried my head in his shaggy fur and
softly cried. "Car what can I do? I see Kweli watching the others doing
sport, swimming and playing but can't join in. I see the pain in his face
when he watches them. I know he is healing and getting better but I hate so
much that he is like this." My anger gets out and I punch a pillow "I hate
it so much. I don't know what I will do if it goes bad today. Please please
let it go ok. I know he will need some rehab to get his strength back but
at least he is free of that damn cast." I got out my stress to him.

"Sean" came a voice from the door.

Looking up I saw Ash standing quietly at the door with his big dark brown
eyes glistening in the light. Clearly he was getting close to tears. "Ash
sweetie come here." I said patting the bed. Practically running across the
room he jumped on the bed. After taking Car's place in my arms he accepted
the cuddle. I completely ignored his regular morning nakedness. "So I guess
you heard all of that big guy." I felt his head nod against my chest. "Ash
I can't see you nod your head silly." I said with us both giggling. "I'm
sorry you had to see me like that, it's just I'm frustrated and angry that
he is like that."

"Sean I noticed you weren't the same as when we first met you and I didn't
know why. I thought you didn't want us anymore. I didn't know." Came a soft
voice and I felt my chest start to get a little wet.

"Oh Ash that is not the case and I have never thought that at all. I love
you and your brothers more than anything. I only ever want what's best for
you all. You know I don't want you guys to lie to me and I don't want to
lie to you guys either. Sometimes there might be reasons I can't tell you
stuff for some reason or because your not old enough to know. But I will
always tell you why I can't tell you and hope that you can understand."

"I can understand that Sean and I have not and won't lie to you. I do know
that Kweli does not mind that much as he knows that soon he will be
better. He is happy for being where he is now and I think that he would do
it all again to get away from what happened." Ash said to me.

"Ash sweetheart I know that. I can see how happy he is but I feel guilty
that could of stopped. I should of stopped it." I said tears falling from
my face.

"What do you mean?"

"I knew that their dad was hitting them. I found out by accident and was
trying to help them get away from him. I never imagined he would do
something like this. I should have stopped him. I promise I won't let
anyone hurt you guys again." I finished.

"Sean I know you can't see the future as such there was no way you could
stop what was going to happen. Anyway do you think that he would love you
if he blamed you?"

"I guess not. I guess we have to get up and get ready. Will you send
Lucifer to me for his shower. If you wash your face first and let's see how
today goes. Let's pray for the best." I said and we both got up. I went
into my bathroom and Ash left with Car.

I got into my shower and started to wash when I heard the sound of
footsteps. I opened the door to let Lucifer into the shower and was shocked
to find Luca standing there wearing nothing but a smile. I smiled back and
invited him into the shower. Not long after Lucifer joined me too. I had a
sneaky feeling that Ash had sent them both to me to help cheer me up. After
washing myself and the boys Luca left to get dressed and give me a kiss. I
got dressed and then helped Lucifer get dressed too. I was then surprised
to receive a kiss from Lucifer before he went to get his breakfast as was
his routine.

I walked into the kitchen and sat between Luca and Lucifer having Kareem
sitting opposite me who was softly and rhythmically kicking my shins. I
looked over to him showing my teeth in a fake growl. He growled back then
kicked me again before giggling and starting to eat. The two boys next to
me dug into their food as did I. Half way through our breakfast Kweli and
Ash came in to join us and have their breakfast after showering over at
Innocence house. After we all have ate the boys and I left to do the the
morning drop off.

After dropping off 4 of the boys at school I took Kweli to the hospital for
what I hoped would be the day he lost his cast and we could enter the end
straight of his recovery. After meeting with the doctor and getting a quick
check up we were off to X-Ray. He sat through 4 X-Rays from differing
angles before going back and sitting in the waiting room. Kweli looked as
nervous as I was.

We had not waited long when the doctor called us into the room. It was good
news. I helped Kweli undress as the doctor got the plaster saw. I then
lifted him onto the examination table before putting a piece of cloth over
his groin. The doctor then cut down the left hand side then the right hand
side before completing the cut as he did the inside of the legs. After
getting what looked like a mini crowbar he opened the cuts before we lifted
the top cast off. Upon lifting the cast off we had accidentally uncovered
Kweli but in his excitement he didn't really care. I then lifted him as the
doctor slid the underside of the cast out. Then I burst out laughing. Poor
Kweli had tan lines where the cast had been and had been blocking out the
sun. It looks like he will have to work on his tan as well as his muscles.

"Uncle Sean why are you laughing you know I'm not that small!"

"Kweli you can't see now but where the sun has been your skin is
darker. I'm laughing at your tan lines." I replied

"Oh I guess that would look funny. Can I have my clothes please?" He
asked. I passed him his clothes and the doctor and myself stepped away as
he got dressed with the doctor telling him not to try and get down.

We discussed physiotherapy for Kweli but as it was practically all water
based and I knew he would be swimming a lot we decided that he would be
discharged to me and would just swim his strength back. I also agreed to
regular strength check ups with Dr. Jonas. A soft voice called to me and I
helped him down and was lucky I did as his legs almost give out. Placing
him back in the chair we left the hospital and the cast behind. Kweli
refused the offer to take it as it was a reminder of his dad.

Getting into the car I mentioned to him that once we got home I felt a
shower was needed for him. Looking at me funny he reminded me that he had a
shower this morning. I then explained how parts of his body had not been
washed for 6 months and was encased in a sweaty cast. He paled before
smelling down his t-shirt and agreeing with me. On the way home and took a
detour. I decided to take him for a meal just the two of us. I helped him
out the car and he shuffled into the restaurant like he was 90 years old
but he wanted to walk in himself.

As it turned out we had a very quiet lunch as Kweli was lost in his
thoughts and sat eating his burger and fries staring mindlessly out of the
window. He also had a Coke where as I supplemented my burger with a pure
orange juice with lemonade mix. Before we left I had to ask him something
"Kweli are you ok. You have been very very quiet?"

"Sorry uncle Sean. Can you see that building over there with the wall and
gate?" I nodded my accent "I keep getting glimpses of something I'm not
100% sure of."

I looked over and saw the building that he was talking about. It looked run
down and broken. The cast iron gates had the word orphanage above it. I
could see children playing in the yard. I had learned to trust my and other
people's instincts. After paying for our food I helped Kweli cross the road
and was pleased to see him being able to walk better. We both walked
through the gates and into the orphanage to see hundreds of kids running
around playing. I then saw a boy run passed us pushing a boy in a
wheelbarrow. Kweli looked at me straight away and I knew this was what had
drawn his attention and his focus during the meal.

"Hey kid. You with the wheelbarrow come here now." I shouted at him. I had
a feeling what Kweli wanted.

The boy came over to me pushing the younger boy in the Wheelbarrow. "Yes
sir how can I help you?"

"What's your and that boys name and why is he in the wheelbarrow?" I asked.

"I am oasis and his name is Ollie. I'm pushing him around because he can't
walk so this is the only way he can move around. He is my roommate even
though he is 5 years younger than me. I'm 12 and he is 8. The staff think
he is stupid but he is not. They cannot afford a proper wheelchair for him
that's why I use this. He loves it." Oasis said as Ollie clapped and
giggled.

"Oasis can Ollie talk or not?"

"No sir that's why he is classed as stupid but I know he understands what
I'm saying don't you Ollie?" He started to really giggle then.

"Oasis can you go and get one of the staff please?" I asked and smiled as
he took off running. Looking at Kweli I asked "the thing you just stopped
using, you want to leave it here?" His eyes started to glisten as he nodded
his head. "It's good for you to pay it forward. I'm proud of you." I
cuddled him.

It was not long before Oasis come bouncing out of the building followed by
a stocky older man who walked over to me. After shaking my hand he said
"Hello I am Mr Jones and this young man said you wanted to talk to me?"

"Yes, I am Sean Cooper and this is my nephew Kweli Owamba and we were
having a meal across the road when he noticed Oasis and Ollie and we
thought we could help them."

"That's good if you like I could get their child welfare workers details
and you can start the process of fostering or adoption if that is what you
would prefer." He said eagerly.

"I'm sorry you misunderstood me. I am not talking about fostering or
adoption. Kweli has just finished the first stage of recovery from a broken
leg. Due to the nature of his injury I bought a wheelchair for him to
use. Fortunately for Ollie, the wheelchair is no longer going to be of
use. Kweli I believe would like to donate it to Ollie as it would be better
suited for him that collecting dust at home. Would that be acceptable?"

"Any donation to the orphanage would be appreciated but as you can see
there is no wheelchair access to the property so it would make things
difficult." Came the reply. I could see Ollie's shoulders drop in defeat.

After thinking it over a second I had a question. "Mr Jones do you have
bedrooms on the ground floor and does Ollie have one?"

"Yes we do. It's generally for the older occupants that have the ground
floor bedroom."

"Kweli can you go get the chair and the spare PECS that's in the glovebox
please." I said as he walked off slowly. "Oasis can you go and get a friend
who is about your age please." I watched as he scampered off to find
another boy. "Mr Jones I have a idea that I hope will sort out the issues
that you brought up."

It didn't take long before Oasis came running back dragging behind him a
older boy. "Sir this is William my friend." He said coming to a stop.

"Hello William I am Sean Cooper and I was wondering if a big strong boy
like you can help us sort out" I said watching him swell with pride.

"Yes sir I will try my best, but how can someone like me help?" William
asked.

"Well I need someone for a month to lift a wheelchair down the stairs to
get it in and out the orphanage. It takes two people to lift it. I know
Oasis will do it and I wondered if you could help him do that?" I asked.

"Yes sir that will be easy. Who is coming in with a wheelchair because
Ollie could really do with one." He asked

"The wheelchair is for Ollie. My nephew who I see is on his way back with
the chair. That issue is sorted now if I could only find out how to move
his bedroom to ground floor."

"Um Sir?" Came the small voice of William.

"What is it William, don't worry what your going to say." I replied. I
could see Mr Jones watching closely at what was going on.

"Well me and my roommate Jordan don't like being on the ground floor. I
feel worried about it but don't know why. Mr Jones if it's ok with you and
the staff we will swap. We will feel safer and Ollie will be on the ground
floor which Mr Cooper thinks will be best." He said with sincerity.

"I will look into it William. Why did you not say anything to us." Mr Jones
replied.

"I was scared people would think I was weird or a baby." He replied

"Actually William there is a reason why you feel like that. Our ancestors
used to sleep in trees as sleeping on the floor was too dangerous and full
of predators. Fears like these are in our DNA so is hard to get out. It is
a logical and normal fear. Ah here is Kweli with what I wanted." I said as
Kweli pulled up on the wheelchair and got off. He also passed over the
PECS. I picked up Ollie who I heard had spina bifida and that was the
reason behind his inability to walk. After showing him how the chair worked
he zoomed off on the chair giggling all the way.

"Mr Jones, if it is ok with you I will get my contractors in who will build
you a permanent ramp to the front door. I also will pay for it myself. I
will also pay 100 per month for electricity to keep the charge on the chair
and as a result keep his independence." I said

"I am shocked that someone would do this for some children that he's never
met. If your serious about this I can only accept and I will do all I can
to make the change of rooms happen." Mr Jones said to me.

"That's all I ask and I am totally committed to this. Ollie can you come
here please." I shouted over to him and he come over to me. "Ollie I used
to use these with my son who couldn't talk because people called him stupid
too. Now that he is talking much much better we only need the one set so I
would like you to have the other set." I handed over the PECS to him. We
watched as he looked over them. "When you need something Ollie you show the
card with the picture on to someone, and they help you with it." He looked
through the cards and held up the toilet one to me. "Yes like that Ollie
but I would get my son to say the word too." He then waved the card at
Oasis. "Oh I think he needs the toilet" realising what was going on.

I watched as Oasis reached down and felt over Ollies groin area. "He does
not feel like he needs a changing though."

"No I think he means that he has to go not that he has gone. He wants you
to take him to the toilet." I said to Oasis. He looked shocked and quickly
took Ollie off towards the toilet.

"I am so sorry Mr Cooper we all thought he couldn't do anything or is smart
enough to understand stuff. Yet in 30 minutes you come in and fix
everything for him and understand him better than we all have. May I ask
why you needed them cards for your son?" Mr Jonas asked.

"Oh not a problem. My son Lucifer has autism so he had problems with his
communication skills."

"Wait your the person that took on Lucifer? He was due to come back to here
when he was fostered out. How on earth did you manage to control him? Not
one person here could control him. He was totally a wild child."

"I listened to his body language and looked up his condition. So I could
understand him and why he reacted the way he is. He is now in school. The
same school as his brothers and his cousins." I replied shocking the
man. We watched as Oasis slowly jogged back to us with Ollie zooming along
next to him.

"Sir you were right he actually needed to go and once on the toilet he went
like the rest of us. He was so happy." Oasis gushed at me. I could see the
happiness in Ollies eyes.

"Well I hate to break this up but me and my little guy need to get back
home because he's really starting to smell bad." I said with a wink.

"Uncle Sean it was my cast that smelt it was not my fault. I'm going to get
you back for this." He shouted at me trying not to laugh. I took him in my
arms and we walked back to the car.

"Kweli I am very proud of you and what you did today. Now let's get you
home and showered." I said as we got back into the car. I then drove us
home. Once back we parked up and I sent Kweli up to shower as I went to
find Innocence.

"Sean how did it go" Innocence asked me as she was standing starting the
preparation for tonight's meal.

"I'm sorry Innocence it's bad news" I said looking somber.

"He still has the cast on? I was sure that this time it would come off. He
must be so sad." She said to me.

It was now Kweli decided to make a kind of appearance. "Uncle Sean can you
come and help me. I can't stand in the shower and wash myself I don't have
the strength yet." Came over the loudspeakers. I couldn't help but laugh at
Innocence scowl as she realised I had dooped her.

"I said it was bad news Innocence and it is. He has his independence back
so can start to cause you trouble again. I best get up and help him
shower." I said as I ran out of the kitchen before she could throw
something at me.

I walked into the boys bathroom to see Kweli naked and supporting himself
on the sides of the shower cubicle. He looked at me sheepishly and said
sorry. After laughing I told him that it was ok and it wasn't the first
time I showered him. We decided that I would wash him as he kept his
balance. I got undressed and joined him in the cubicle. As I knew he had a
shower earlier that day I only washed the part of him that had been covered
by his cast. Even though I didn't touch it, the close contact of my hand
washing his body caused the natural reaction of a erection to appear in his
slim body. After drying him and myself off I picked him up and took him
downstairs I walked through the kitchen and after a brief hello to a
Innocence I took him outside and dropped him into the pool.

Once he surfaced I jumped in splashing him once again. It was when I was
surfacing I heard his beautiful laugh again and it raised me up again. We
spent a little time swimming and playing around for 30 to 45 minutes before
we both started to do some easier exercises. We both walked backwards and
forwards across the pool. This allowed the water to support his weight as
it also put up resistance to allow muscle growth and strengthening. We had
been in a few hours when I heard a noise. Looking up I saw the other boys
standing there with grins on their faces. I told them they could have half
a hour in the pool if Ash got me some shorts. He ran inside as the others
stripped down and joined us in the pool. I heard a shout and turned to see
Ash's pale butt go flying past me and into the pool. He surfaced and handed
me my shorts smiling as he did so. I put them on and exited the pool.

After first visiting inside the house to see Lucifer sitting at the table
and doing his homework as per his usual routine with Car lying next to his
feet. I left him and Andrew before going into my office. I opened up my
email and found one from Ruth. If you remember Ruth was one of the final 2
people I interviewed for the position to help with Lucifer. As it turns out
she no longer has a job due to unforeseen circumstances and wondered if I
still had a job going. I was thinking and decided to call her and invite
her over for a quick meeting. Afterwards I called the building collage and
after speaking to Mr Kyle who helped to build my 2 houses I offered them
money to go to the Orphanage to build the ramp for Ollie. He thought it was
a good idea and immediately agreed to do it.

I was happy about how things were turning out today I was also very happy
about how much Ash had come along with catching up his work and how he was
doing very good at mathematics. Remembering back to when he came into my
life and the wish to learn how to code give me an idea. Getting on the
phone I called up the technical college where I had the coding for the
house programmed. After a quick enquiry I ended up with an interview with
Emily for a little later.

I decided that now was a good time to call Ash into the office and sent the
page out to him. It didn't take long before a damp and towel clad Ash
entered the room. "You wanted me Sean?" He asked.

He moved closer to me and I lifted him until he was sitting on the desk
between my legs and his head was a little higher than mine. I hated the
idea of talking down to the boys even if it was only physically. "Ash I
have been very impressed with the progress that you have made whist here
especially when catching up with your work. I remember what you said when
you came here and I think now is the time to start it."

"Thank you Sean but I am not sure what you are talking about." He said
confused.

"Well when you came to live here you said you would love to learn how to
program and do create things like the A.I. of this house. Well there is a
college student coming over soon. One who helped create the program we know
as Al to talk about teaching you how to program. That is if you still want
to." I replied watching his face break out in a massive smile.

"Are. You. Shitting. Me???" He said

"Ash language. You do not use language like that in this house. I should
punish you for that." I scolded him

"Yes sir. I'm sorry sir."

I got him off the table and his towel dropped in the process before turning
him so his butt was facing me. I then said "This will hurt me more than
you." I saw him stiffen his body waiting for the hit. I leaned over and
softly flicked his butt before pulling him onto my knee and starting to
tickle him. Ash to his credit lasted all of 5 seconds before giving in and
squealing like a pig. I relented when I saw he was getting close to wanting
to pee. "Ash, you are safe now and I won't ever hurt you. However, I won't
put up with bad language in this house. You're too smart to use language
like that. However, I know how excited you where. So I decided to play with
you. There will be times you slip but that's ok. Now I think you should go
and get dressed as we are having 2 lady's come soon and I don't think they
would want to see your little pink worm." I said laughing.

Ash was looking at me as I was saying this with warmth in his brown
eyes. "Sean I........... You are right I best go get dressed." He said as
the warmth drained from the eyes again. I knew I was slowly chipping away
at his defence and the warmth that he had shown me then was evidence of
that and I knew that I still had a way to go.

After letting Ash go I went to let the other guys know they would be best
clothed. Passing his room on the way I popped in to Lucifer's room and
grabbed him a pair of loose shorts. I felt that shorts would be ok to spare
the blushes of the two ladies. After telling the boys and dressing Lucifer
I relaxed on the sofa. It was not that long before the first person I was
expecting turned up and that was Ruth. After showing her around the
property which she was loving. The oohs and aahs as we toured my house and
the gallery that displayed Lucifers art work. Ruth couldn't believe the
quality of the work which was improving as he was getting used to it. My
idea to have the boys get dressed was rewarded when Ruth saw the picture of
me showering with Lucifer and she turned as red as a tomato. It took the
walk back to the house before she could look me in the eyes.

Once inside I introduced her to all the boys and she remembered
Andrew. Once that was done I escorted her towards my office with her
looking a bit confused. Once inside we both sat on the sofa and I said,
"Judging from your expression I feel your confused to why I would invite
you here as Andrew is still in service?"

"Yes the thought has crossed my mind Sean. I know that it would confuse
Lucifer to have two people helping him out as for the other boys I can't
see why they would need specialist help." She replied still blushing
slightly when she made eye contact.

"Your right on all accounts and to be honest until I got your email the
idea that I have would not have come to me. Today I took Kweli to get his
cast off. Due to the nature of the cast I bought him a wheelchair to
use. On the way home we stopped for lunch and it turned out to be opposite
a orphanage. Kweli noticed through the gate a boy being pushed in a
wheelbarrow and wanted to investigate before possibly giving him the unused
wheelchair. This action I would agree with. Once inside we found the boy
called Ollie has spina bifida and was unable to walk. I have the people
that built this house to go this week and build a ramp so Ollie can have
access to the property. That is a brief background on what happened up to
your email."

"Wow, what can I say Sean what you have done will have made such an
improvement to his life and giving him independence. However, I am not sure
how I come into this equation." She said then looked shocked as the TV came
on showing a car pull up.

"Just a moment. Al can you tell Ash to meet Emily at the door and show her
around the house but not the office before getting her a drink and chatting
with her please." I said

"Ok Sean I'm on it." Came the reply over the speakers before Ash popped up
on the screen meeting Emily.

"Wow, so is Emily here for the same reason I am here?" Ruth asked
anxiously.

"Oh no not at all. As you can see the house is pretty much automated and Al
is the program that runs the whole thing. Emily is one of the programmers
that created Al, when he found out what it was Ash expressed an interest in
wanting to learn how to do things like that, as a result I am planning on
hiring her to teach and mentor Ash how to program." I explained.

"Wow you really are in the job of changing lives." She stated

"Yes and that is why you are here I want you to help change one boys life
maybe even two." I noticed how she was starting to watch me more with
interest. "The boy I was talking about in the orphanage, his name is
Ollie. He seems to be a smart boy and was unable to communicate for some
reason. I left a copy of Lucifer's PECS cards to help him out. Once I got
your email I thought maybe you can help him communicate. So what do you
think?"

"That sounds interesting. With spina bifida it shouldn't interfere with his
brain development. However, if he had people who thought it did or if his
development was delayed a bit people might have thought he was not worth
teaching or even learning him to do things like talk. There is one problem
though." She said.

"What problem is that?"

"As he is in an orphanage the state has no money to hire me and I can't
work pro-bono as I have bills and stuff. Also you said possibly 2 boys what
about the other?"

"The other boy is his roommate called Oasis. He does not seem related but
is much older so shouldn't really be roommates with Ollie. I think they are
because Oasis looks after Ollie despite the fact he could be doing stuff
with boys his own age. I think that should be rewarded." I saw her
nodding. "As for the pay I could not ask you to do this with no pay. I want
to pay you to do this job and help give them the life they wanted. You will
be paid 1.5 times your last pay if you accept the position."

"Are you serious? If you are then of course I will do it." She said
enthusiastically.

"That's excellent. Can you start tomorrow?" I saw her nod. "I would like
progress reports weekly on both boys please. Al can you call Mr Jones at
Princess Orphanage please." I waited a moment as the call Connected and Mr
Jones answered. "Hi Mr Jones it's Sean Cooper we met earlier. I am calling
to let you know my guys will be coming over to discuss how they will create
and install the ramp for Ollies wheelchair and they should be there around
10 am tomorrow. They also know I am the one that they will be billing. I
have also set up the money for the energy supply to cover the additional
costs of his wheelchair. That will be paid directly on the 15th of the
month. Finally at 9am tomorrow Ruth Gardner will turn up to help with Ollie
and seeing if we can help him talk and supplement his educational
needs. She will fetch her qualifications for you to take a copy of and keep
on record. Again this will be paid for by me. Do you have any questions?"

"Well me and the board cannot believe someone who never knew him is doing
so much for him. That was before you hired Ruth. What you are doing far
exceeds any call of duty so we all thank you and if possible we would all
like to meet you and your family. I also have a update to say that the move
had been approved and now Ollie and Oasis now have a ground floor
bedroom. The boys are currently moving their belongings around."

"Thank you Mr Jones. I will look into meeting with you all and I will call
you with a date and time when we can get together. Thank you for the time
and I will let you go. Good evening." I said as we disconnected. I saw a
curious look on Ruth's face. "I didn't mention Oasis as I didn't want the
other children to feel left out or you to feel obliged to help everyone. If
Oasis is in the room doing work and asks u questions that can't be helped."
I said with a cheeky grin.

"Oh! I get you. Thank you for this opportunity. I think this can work out
well for us all." We then wrapped up this interview and I escorted her out
of the house.

I went to find Ash who was sitting outside with Emily both talking away
like old friends sipping on a soda. This caused me to smile as it means
they will work well together. I sat down with them and said "hi Ash what do
you think of Emily?"

"She is cool and funny I like her and wonder why she is here."

"Emily what you think of Ash?"

"He seems like a great guy, I'm not sure why I'm here. Don't get me wrong
he's cute but too young for me." She said with a wink before we both
laughed as he turned bright red. "Wait everyone is wearing iWatches, is
this the AI house?"

"Yes this is that house. Thank you for working on the Al and making it so
good. This is also the reason you are here. When he come to live with me,
Ash expressed a desire to learn how to code and program. I would like you
to tutor him once and twice a week slowly building up from the basics. Then
if he wants to do this as a job he has the experience to go to university
to get the qualifications. What do you both think?"

"You are really willing to pay someone to teach me this just because I said
I would like to learn it?" Ash said in shock.

"Of course Ash, I mean I built Lucifer a gallery and art studio so why
would I not do the same for you?" I asked.

"I don't know. I guess I still think this is all a dream and not
true. Maybe that something is going to go wrong. I'm so scared." He
replied.

"As for me I would love to tutor Ash. I think this would be good for us
both as it can help reenforce my knowledge of the subject. If your both
willing I would like to take the job." Emily said.

"For me you have the job. But it's up to Ash as he will be spending time
with you. So Ash what do you think?"

"Emily I would like you to tutor me. Which days would be best?" He said

"Mondays and Thursdays would best if that's ok?" Came the reply.

"That works for both of us. Ash when you finished talking with Emily you
can escort her to the car and meet me in the office." I said as I got up
and excused myself.

I had been working on some things for about a hour when Ash came in and
said, "Sean you wanted me?"

"Yes, firstly I am proud of how considered you where with Emily making sure
that she was helping you at her convenience not at yours, some employers do
not take their employees feelings into consideration, what you did today
will make Emily more of a friend than a teacher or employee. Secondly
something you said made me concerned and this I would like to talk to you
for a little bit."

"What thing Sean?"

"Well you said you don't think you belong here and that you still think
that things will go wrong. I was hoping over the last 6 months things would
have changed and you would feel like part of the family. It also suggests
you still don't trust me. I am unsure how to help you Ash. I am beginning
to think maybe it would help you if we got a councillor to talk
to. Likewise I want you to know that you can always come to me and talk to
me over things on your mind. If you do this I will not judge you on your
past and I will help you work through any issues that you have. All I want
you to do is think about what I said and decide how we can move forward. I
want you to be here and I want you to be happy here."

"Sean thank you and I will think about what you said." He replied. We both
went our separate ways to get on with our daily tasks.

Things went along normal for the next few days before I got a call from
Mbappe asking me to come into the office to talk about the adoption of all
3 boys as there has been progress on the process. I grabbed my coat and got
in the car before leaving anxiously towards the child welfare offices.

I quickly zoomed my way through the local traffic. Thankfully it was after
the mid morning rush and as such the traffic was slow and easy to manage
and before long I was pulling into the car park and parking up. After I was
buzzed into the building I sat and waited in the reception area for
Mbappe. After he greeted me in the waiting room he took me into another
part of the office block and as we walked past some interview rooms we
passed one of them I could hear soft crying from behind the door. A few
doors later we stepped into one of the interview room.

After sitting down and Mbappe getting us both a drink of water. "Sean I
called you in today as I said on the phone there is progress to report on
the adoption of the boys. Firstly I would like to say thank you for what
you did for Oasis and Ollie. Ollie's life has changed in the last week and
he has seemed to become a new stronger person now he can communicate and
move independently. This has also give Oasis some freedom to grow too and
he is making more friends without the need to constantly watch over Ollie."
Mbappe said.

"That is good news Mbappe but this is what anyone would do if they had the
chance."

"I know you believe that Sean but the realist thing is that most people
wouldn't do a-thing to help them out much less what you have done. Now over
the visits and meetings that I have with yourself and your boys it has been
decided to take the adoption to the judge in one months time. As far as
myself and the Child Welfare team, we will not be contesting the adoption
of all 3 boys we will be sure to recommend you as being the sole father of
these boys."

"Oh, Wow, Oh ok. Thank you for this Mbappe, thank you for your help and
patience through all of this. The boys will be so happy. Would it be
suitable for yourself to join us for a party when the adoption is complete?
Of course your family is welcome too if that is ok?" I said shocked.

"It would be ok for me to do that as at that time I would be winding up the
boys cases and would only need 2 check-ups afterwards. Until that time I
would need 3 more interviews with the boys and yourself but as far as we
are concerned we have a final date set and we are heading to that not
expecting any problems or issues to crop up so fully expect you to leave
court that day with 3 sons." He finalised with me.

We sat there for a few minutes in silence as I processed what I had been
told with tears softly running down my face. I was so happy about what was
going on. "Mbappe, I understand that you work with children that have had
or got issues and need counselling as a result I would like to know if you
have anyone to recommend to help Ash as he is struggling to let people in
and open up. He also has trust issues. I have recommended he sees a
councillor but I've left it open to him. I would like a very good
councillor if he wants to take up that option money is not a issue. Do you
know anyone that would fit the role?" I asked him.

"That is a very good idea. I will take you back to the reception and I will
get you that number for the best councillor in the area. She is fantastic
but we can't use her often due to money issues." He said getting up.

We both left the room and walking back I heard the soft crying again coming
from the room. "Mbappe what is going on in there? That sounds like a child
crying. Why is no one helping them?" I asked.

He pulled me into a little room next to the crying room. Inside was a glass
window which let me see the boy in the room sitting in the corner
crying. He was curled up in a ball and sobbing in the empty room. "That is
Hunter Liam he come to us today. His parents were killed in a car crash and
we have not managed to get a word out of him. As far as we know he has no
other family. We have left him to calm down and get it out of His
system. He had been like this for 2 and a half hours." Mbappe said
quietly. "Let's go, he will be placed either in a foster family or an
orphanage later today. I will get you that number and you can get back to
break the news to the boys." He said opening the door.

We both stepped out of the door. Mbappe turned and started to walk to the
reception. I turned and walked through the door that held Hunter. Picking
him up and felt his body stiffen and then start to fight. I held him
ignoring the fight he was putting up and feeling a hit to my eye, I walked
to the sofa that was in the room and lay on it holding Hunter to my body
and as a result had him lying on me. I felt him relax a bit and stop the
fighting as he went back to crying. Reaching into my pocket I pulled out my
iPod and placed the headphones in my ears. I put some soft music
on. Looking at the mirror which I knew was the window to the other room I
give it a shrug as if to say what did u expect me to do and I hope Mbappe
got the message as I relaxed into the music with my eyes closed. One was
already closed from the hit but I closed the other and projected calm and
security to the boy lying on top.

I could feel him crying but relaxing into me. My top was getting wet and
covered with booger's, snot, and other whatnots. It was about the 3rd song
when I felt a movement and one of the earphones leave me and I assumed went
into the ear of Hunter. I still had not opened my eyes but I changed the
track to one that I knew would have meaning to Hunter and hopefully
conveyed that I understood in a way to what he was going through.

In my head I listened to the lyrics which always hit me in my heart and
made me cry.

One More Light Linkin Park

Should've stayed, were there signs, I ignored?  Can I help you, not to
hurt, anymore?  We saw brilliance, when the world, was asleep There are
things that we can have, but can't keep If they say Who cares if one more
light goes out?  In a sky of a million stars It flickers, flickers Who
cares when someone's time runs out?  If a moment is all we are We're
quicker, quicker Who cares if one more light goes out?  Well I do The
reminders pull the floor from your feet In the kitchen, one more chair than
you need oh And you're angry, and you should be, it's not fair Just 'cause
you can't see it, doesn't mean it, isn't there If they say Who cares if one
more light goes out?  In a sky of a million stars It flickers, flickers Who
cares when someone's time runs out?  If a moment is all we are We're
quicker, quicker Who cares if one more light goes out?  Well I do Who cares
if one more light goes out?  In a sky of a million stars It flickers,
flickers Who cares when someone's time runs out?  If a moment is all we are
We're quicker, quicker Who cares if one more light goes out?  Well I do
Well I do


After the second play through of that song I placed on Enigma's album "love
sensuality devotion" and placed that on repeat. I hoped the very calming
nature of the album would relax him and get him back into a functioning
state of being. The songs I felt would help was, "gravity of love",
"shadows in silence", "return to innocence". I lay there myself succumbing
to the melodies and harmonies, as well as the rock elements and use of
Gregorian chants in the music to completely relax myself to a state where I
was walking the line between awake and asleep.

Suddenly I see myself lying on the sofa with Hunter lying on me with his
eyes also closed. Next to us stands a man and woman hand in hand. The man
turns to me and says "Sean I am pleased to see you with Hunter. After
seeing what you have done with the other boys in your care we decided to
steer you into the path of Hunter and see what would happen. We are pleased
to see that you have bonded with him. Hunter is going to have some hardship
in his life. The degree of hardship he will have will depend upon your
actions. Your choices will determine how hard his life is going to be. The
boys and hunter will not be the only ones that come into your life. Follow
your heart Sean. We will be watching." With that the man and woman
disappeared and the world around me warped to hear Ash and Luca
laughing. Pictures drawn by Lucifer floated past me. I was unable to see
what they were properly but I knew they were his work. Also from around me
I could hear a beautiful singing voice that filled me with joy and
emotions. Then the scene went dark as I felt myself travel back into my
body.

As I become more aware of myself and my surroundings I could feel the slow
and steady breathing of Hunter on top of me. This suggested that he had
fell asleep and that what I had hoped for had worked. I also realised that
I couldn't leave his fate here. Holding onto him I softly sat up then
carefully I stood up still holding onto him. Adjusting him slightly so his
head was on my shoulder I got a better grip on him and made my way to the
door. Meeting Mbappe at the door I informed him that Hunter was going home
with me. Mbappe smiled at me and held up the fostering papers to
me. Clearly from watching me with Hunter he knew what was going to happen
and judging from the smirk I had been set up. I was beginning to think my
trip here was to collect a boy I didn't know I was going to be
fostering. Mbappe escorted me to the car as I had my hands full and then I
strapped Hunter into the back seat. Mbappe directed me to the passenger
seat and said he was driving me home on account of my eye. As he was
driving I noticed another person shadowing us and was told that it was a
member of his team to take him back to the office.

Once we arrived home myself and Mbappe got out of my car and after he
handed me the fostering papers I asked him to push back the adoptions for a
month to see if Hunter wanted to stay with us and if so to adopt him with
the other boys. I was lucky that Mbappe agreed with me on this choice and I
watched as he got in the car and they drove off the property. I opened the
back of the car and after unbuckling Hunter I picked his sleeping form up
and carried him into the house. I took him upstairs and into one of the
spare rooms which I hoped he would call his own.

Holding him in one hand I undid the blanket before laying him on the bed. I
then took off his shoes and socks then his pullover and t-shirt. Finally I
undid and took off his jeans. The process of taking off his jeans pulled
down his underwear exposing his ampule dick. Felling it would not be right
to let him sleep naked I pulled his underwear back up before covering him
with the blanket. I watched him sleep for a few minutes before I went and
got him a iwatch which I placed on the unit next to the bed. I also placed
a note asking him to put it on before asking the watch to find me.

I left the bedroom and popped into the study where I called Dr Jones and
asked him to pop to my house on a home-call and to fetch a scalpel with
him. Once that was done I went down into the kitchen. Innocence was there
doing the preparation for dinner. "Innocence there will be one more for
dinner today." I said calmly.

"Ok Sean" she said before turning around. "Bloody hell Sean what happened
to your face. You really need to go to hospital with that." She continued
as she began to fuss over me and tenderly touch my eye. I could already
feel the pressure being placed on my eyeball by the swelling and possible
blood pooling in or around my eye. "Get your coat now I'm taking you to
hospital."

"Innocence calm yourself. Dr Jonas is already coming over to look at my
eye. If he decides that I need the hospital then he can take me. I got it
in a small disagreement at the child welfare building. It seemed someone
there didn't want to be cuddled. But I will explain more later." I said as
calmly as I could as pain was starting to taint my voice.

Luckily I didn't have to wait much longer as the TV turned on and showed
the Doctors car pull up and Jonas exited it. I got up to meet him at the
door. He took one look at my eye and I knew it looked bad as he gasped a
little. "What the hell happened to you Sean, do you have somewhere we can
go where I can drain your eyes and look you over but I think you will be
going to hospital." He said.

I had not managed to see the damage to my eye yet but I could feel it was
getting bad. "Jonas I'll take you to my study as it will be best there. As
for how I got it. I guess you can say it was a disagreement." I said as I
started to lead him through the house towards my study.

"It must have been one hell of a disagreement to cause that. What was he a
18 stone bouncer?" He said jokily to me.

"Na it was a 9yo boy and we disagreed over a cuddle." I replied with as
straight a face as I could.

After feeling around my eye and looking at it from multiple angles before
trying to open my eye, Jonas then had me lie down on the sofa with my head
on top a towel. He then took a quick summary of my background. He advised
due to the pressure I was feeling that he was going to have to drain each
eyelid as the swelling was crushing my eye but also spreading across my
face. After a quick wash of iodine solution he made 2 one centimetre cut on
each eyelid. I could immediately feel the pressure start to reduce as the
pressure build up itself caused the draining of the blood abscess or
hematoma that had formed in the eyelids. I could also feel the blood
running down my face. Jonas then started to wipe up the blood as well as
putting a small amount of pressure on the eyelids and surrounding area to
help encourage the blood to drain and the swelling to go down. From my
instructions he called out to Innocence who fetched a ice pack which was
placed on my eye. This would help my eye in 2 ways. Firstly it would reduce
the swelling and secondly it would cause the blood vessels to contract and
help in the formation of clots that would seal the openings that was
causing the bleeding and aid in their recovery.

Jonas held the compress on my eye for a good 5 minutes before re-examining
my eye. As far as I was concerned it felt 100% better. The pressure had
gone and such the pain had receded. After looking at my eye again he deemed
me ready to go to the hospital.

Before we went I popped into the kitchen to let Innocence know what was
going on and I saw my reflection in the mirror. What I saw shocked me. My
eye was pure black from one centimetre above my eye to three centimetres
below my eye. From my nose to three centimetres to the other side of my
eye. As for the eye itself the pupil was a darker shade of what it normally
was and the usual white of my eye was now pure red. This kid is going to be
a great boxer in the future.

Once at the hospital I was treated to a head X-ray, eye drops so they could
look into my eye, a very detailed eye exam. After about a hour of being
poked and prodded it was announced that I had bad bruising to my eye and
eyelids as well as a fractured eye socket. I was told not to blow my nose
for 3 weeks and given a nasal spray to help if I get a stuffy sinus. I was
also given a list of things to look out for and told to come back if I
experience any of the symptoms.

After being discharged and given a protective eye mask if I needed to use
it, then Jonas drove me back home and I was back before both Hunter woke up
and the boys returned from school. I went back into the kitchen to see
Innocence look at me and turned back to the cooking. She did comment
"that's one hell of a shiner and that my red eye looks demonic." I had to
laugh at that.

I was sitting talking to Innocence with my back to the door when the boys
came in from school. "Hi boys how was school today?" Innocence said to the
boys.

The boys all said it was ok with the exception of Kareem, who said "mummy
it was ok but a boy called Hunter got called out of class today and never
come back. I hope he is ok."

I filed that information away for now. "Boys I have something to talk to
you about but before we talk I need you to know I had a hit to my eye and
it does not look too good but I promise you it is ok." I said. When the
boys said ok I turned around and heard gasps from them all.

"Sean what happened to your eye it looks really bad." Ash said with some
concern in his voice.

"Ash I will talk to you more about that after. But the thing I wanted to
talk to you about concerns you boys. I had a meeting with child welfare
today. They are ready to finalise the adoption and wanted to set a date of
a months time to finalise it. However something cropped up and I asked them
to push that date back by a month. So as long as you guys want to in 2
months time I will formally adopt you." I said. Ash got up and stormed out
of the room with Luca starting to run out after him. I stopped Luca and
said "Luca I know what is wrong with Ash and I can sort it out. Kareem I
have a hunch can you go to your old bedroom and sit with the person in that
room please. Find me when he wakes up. Innocence stop with the scowl I told
Ash I would always tell the truth." I finished as I could see the looks
that Innocence was shooting me.

I got up and left the room making my way slowly to Ash's bedroom. I found
him face down on his bed. I walked over and sat on his bed. Turning over to
look at me Ash said "Why don't you want us Sean? Have we done something
wrong? Is it because I won't have sex with you? When we going back into
care? I thought you were the one to keep us safe. To keep Luca safe. Your
just like the rest." He said with some venom to me.

"Ash, sweetie you didn't hear all that I said. Can you remember when I said
that I would not lie to you?" I paused a moment whilst he nodded. "That is
why I told you about the DELAY in the adoption."

"Delay?"

"Yes Ash the adoption is not being cancelled it is now just going to be on
another day." I held up my hand to pause what he was going to
say. "Originally you where going to be adopted by me in 4 weeks time. In 8
weeks time you WILL be adopted by me if you still want to. Yes I still want
you and Luca, yes I'm here to protect you and all of your brothers. No this
has nothing to do with you not giving me sex. You boys have done nothing
but made me proud. None of you boys are going back into care as long as I
have anything to say about it."

"Really? I've been an idiot haven't I? I'm sorry that I reacted like that?
Why is there a delay then?"

"Ash yes I really want to keep you. No you have not been silly, you have
had a bad life and because of that it means that you look at the negative
of everything because your not expecting anything positive to come into
your life and you probably don't think you deserve it. As for the reason
for the delay it's also why I have a black eye."

"What is it? I think you might be right."

"When I was at the child welfare Centre I found a boy that was crying as
his parents were killed this morning. He is called Hunter Liam."

"Wait Kareem said a boy in his class called Hunter was took out of class."

"That's right and that's why I sent Kareem to the bedroom. I brought Hunter
home. When I saw him I felt so bad for him I had to cuddle him and he
lashed out and hit my eye. That's where this black eye comes from. I didn't
think it would look good for me to adopt 3 of you and still foster Hunter
so I asked as long as Hunter wants to he will be adopted with you 3 in 8
weeks time. What do you think."

"I think that's a very caring thing to do and it shows that you do care
about him and want him to feel like he means something. I think that is
something that will help him out. Thank you for telling me the truth and
sorry I acted like a baby." He said throwing the wall back up.

"That's ok Ash and I care about you all. Don't tell anyone about my eye the
other boys don't need to know about it. Can I have a cuddle?" I said

He give me a quick hug and we both went back to the kitchen to get a snack
and get his homework done. We both went down to the kitchen and Ash started
on his homework. It was not that much longer before two black boys came
into my kitchen holding hands. Well to be honest Kareem came in dragging a
bewildered Hunter into the room. "Uncle Sean how did you find Hunter and
why is he here?" Kareem asked bouncing with energy.

"Kareem this is the boy I was telling you about." I replied

He stopped bouncing and got really somber. "The one who's parents died?" He
said.

"And the one that give you the black eye?" Ash followed up with.

"Yes to both of you." I replied back.

I watched as Hunter looked a little shocked at what Ash had said, the
others also looked shocked at what was said. Hunter reached into his pocket
and pulled out a notepad and pen. He then wrote down "I did that Sir?"
Before showing me it.

"Yes Hunter you did hit me but that does not matter. After you had a snack
we will go to my office and a chat. Is that ok Hunter?" I watched as he
nodded and Kareem dragged him over to the table and they sat down
together. We enjoyed a snack together and Kareem passed Hunter the homework
that his class had and they did it together. I had been sitting and
checking all the work as it was being done and I was happy to see that all
the boys work was correct and doing good. Before long Hunter had finished
and I was taking him along to the office.

We both got into the office and I directed him to the sofa where we both
sat down facing each other. I started the conversation with "As you
probably gathered I am Sean and this is my house. Kareem you know I guess
from school. His mum is my housekeeper and they live on my estate. I am so
so sorry about your parents and once I saw you in the child welfare I knew
I couldn't leave you there. You had been through so much and it broke my
heart when I saw you there." I saw he was trying to get out his notepad and
I stopped him. "I know you have questions and we will get there. I have 3
boys living here before you and if you want to then you can live here too."
I saw his eyes go wide and he reached for his notepad again. Once again I
placed my hand on his silencing him and shaking my head no. "I understand
that you have a lot to talk about and we will get to that part. With the
other 3 being adopted by me in 2 months time I hope that you wish to be
adopted on the same day but that is up to you Hunter. In this house all I
ask is for you to be respectful, honest and do your best in all you
do. That includes school, on the subject of school you won't be attending
for the rest of this week. However, Kareem will be fetching your work home
for you to do as we wouldn't want you to fall behind. I see Kareem has you
wearing the watch. This watch is connected to the home A.I. System so it
knows where you are in the house. It can guide you to people and will know
where you are in the house. This house is very secure and high-tech. You
can even talk to the house and it will talk back. Now one of my boys
Lucifer has autism so he finds communication and social environments
difficult as such I got him a helper to assist him. Now from what I can
tell you have a communication issue too?" I watched as he nodded and
dropped his head. I reached over and lifted up his face. "Hunter never drop
your head, you have nothing to be ashamed of. From what I gather you can
talk but don't want to?" I saw a nod in assent. "I guess you also only talk
in front of family?" He nodded again. "Because your not cussing at me I
gather you don't have Tourette's?" He smiled and shook his head to indicate
I was right. "So my best guess is that you only ever spoke in front of
family? You were probably bullied when you tried to speak outside of your
family? If I'm also right it's because you stutter?" I watched as he nodded
as small tears slipped down his face. "From now on this is your family and
WE all have your back and we will help you if you let us. No one will judge
you or bully you when we are around. I understand that you have a couple of
questions and I would like it if you would say them to me. Don't worry how
you sound or how long it takes for you to say them." I finished.

"S....s....s....sir I....I....I....I...I'm S.....S......s....s.....sorry
I....I.....I....I h....h.....h....hit y....y....y....you" he said to me
turning darker as I gathered he was blushing. "Wh....wh....wh....why
d....d....d...do y....y.....y.....y....you wa...wa....wa...want
m....m....m.....me?"

"Ok I can see why your reluctant to talk Hunter but I promise you that if
you let me I will try to help you talk without any issues. As for why
wouldn't I want you Hunter, when I saw you lying on the floor in that ball
crying as hard as you where it felt like my heart shattered into a million
pieces and all I wanted to do is help you and make sure you never cry like
that again. When I felt you relax on my chest when we were listening to the
music it felt right and natural as if it was the right thing to do then
there was the dream I had."

"Wh...wh...wh...what dr..dr...dr...dream wa...wa...wa...was
th...th...th...that?"

"I dreamt 2 people where looking at us and telling me that fetching you
home was the right thing to do for you, so that's what I did." He looked a
little lost in thought so we sat there in silence for a while.

We continued the talk and we discussed what he and his parents would want
for their funeral. As a result I had a very good idea I then showed him
around the house and outside. It was then he gasped and told me his parents
told him that the guy who lived in this house was mega rich. It turns out
they didn't live to far away and drove past my property regularly. He was
excited about the pool and swimming. He did say something that concerned
me. He was worried about forgetting his parents. That sparked a idea in my
head. Something that I will look into later. But for now it was bedtime and
I took my boys to bed. The 3 eldest showering alone and me washing
Lucifer. I tucked them all in and told Hunter if he needed me where my
bedroom was and for the rest of the week he was not going to school so he
could sleep in if he needed too. After that I sat listening to music in the
TV room making notes on the idea that Hunter had give me. Hopefully it
would help a lot of people.

The next day started as normal with the boys running around like crazy
getting ready for school except Lucifer who just calmly walked through the
morning in his regular routine. I figured no matter what his routine was
not going to keep his routine the same. I packed all the boys in the car
and drove them to school. Keeping Kareem with me I went to into the
principal's office and explained about Hunter and that he was staying with
me. I asked to speak to the teacher about his work. I also advised that all
the boys but Lucifer would be absent on the day of the funeral. I advised I
would let them know when. Once that was agreed on Kareem took me to his
classroom where I spoke with his teacher and it was agreed until he was
ready to come back that Kareem would fetch his work home. I also handed
over Hunters homework from the day before. I then said goodbye and was on
my way out when the sound of soft music and singing from one of the
room. Following my ear I found the room to see a choir singing beautiful in
practice. Having a idea I spoke to the choirmaster and advised of what I
was planning. Thankfully he accepted and I left him with the music I
requested. On my way out of the door a boy come running up to me and asked
if I was looking after Hunter when I said I was he give me a handmade card
then ran away back to his class. I noticed that his clothes where a bit
worse for wear but put it to the back of my mind as I left the school
before getting in my car and travelling to my next destination.

When I arrived at the next destination I parked up and walked into the
office of the child welfare building. Asking for Mbappe he met me in the
reception a few minutes later. Once I let him know what I wanted he went
and appeared moments later with the keys to Hunters home and said he would
look into where Ash and Luka's stuff where and if Lucifer had any
belongings before he advised that next week he would like to come and talk
to Hunter to which I agreed too. At that I left and my next stop was the
Funeral Director that Hunter had advised that he had heard his parents had
spoke about. I advised them of the situation and what I would have liked
done for the family as well as my own special request. Once this was agreed
upon and the music passed over to them, I was advised that they would take
over the planning and information for this and that if there was any issues
they would contact me directly to resolve it and that they would see me on
friday for the viewing and on Saturday for the funeral. Having done all
that I needed to I called Innocent to take a meal order and that after
collecting it I would be back home.

Pulling up at the house I could hear splashing and I went around the house
to see Hunter-Liam in the pool wearing what appeared to be a pair of
shorts. I called him over and advised that lunch was ready and to get
out. I entered the house to see Innocent baking, it seemed her natural
instinct was to cook and being honest she was really good at
it. Hunter-Liam came into the room with a towel wrapped around
him. Innocence had advised me on the call that he still was not talking in
the presence of her. I had him sit down and asked how he was doing. He
looked around in panic for his notepad. I placed my hand on his shoulder to
calm him. He looked at me and I smiled encouragely to him. "I...I...I..I'm
con...con..con..conf..confused s...s...s...sir."

"I'm am guessing that you are confused as your really sad about what has
happened but you are feeling happy and pleased to be living in this cool
house," I replied to him. He nodded his head as tears started to fill his
eyes up. "Feeling that way is natural, a lot of people also feel angry that
the person that died left them and that's an ok feeling to have too." I
said to him. At this he got up and sat on my knee. "Oh Hunter-Liam I was
asked to give you this." I said as I handed him his card.

He opened it and read it before breaking down in tears
again. "it...it...it's fr...fr...fr..from mi..mi...my be...be...best
fri...fri...friend Art..art...Arthur." He said and we sat quietly for a
while as he got his feelings out of his system. During the time I got a
call from Mbappe saying that the brothers belongings where in storage and
that Lucifer had some stuff in a box at the office. I advised him that I
would pick up the lockup keys tomorrow and Lucifers stuff. Before going
back to cuddling Hunter-Liam.

We sat there for a while just enjoying the comfortable feeling of being
with each other, but it was something that I knew would have to end as
there was something that needed to be talked about. "Hunter-Liam there is
something I need to talk to you about and it is not going to be easy to
do." He looked at me silently and nodded. I guess he was still getting used
to my you can speak whenever you want thing and reverted back to his
comfort of not talking. "I got hte keys for your house and whilst it is
your house and everything in it is yours, until your old enough you will
live here and so we need to figure out what you want to do with it. I can
put your stuff in storage excep anything that you want to fetch into the
house. As for the house it's up to you what you do with it. I want you to
think over it and when your ready we can sort that out. As for the stuff if
your ready we can go tomorrow and get your stuff before stopping at the
shops." I looked at him and his eyes where misting over.

I then decided that he needed to play again until the boys got home so I
dumped him back into the pool. Whilst we waited for the boys I called a
storage place and booked a large storage place and paid for it for 2
months, I also advised that I would be there tomorrow to pick up the
keys. I then started to work on the idea that I had so that I could present
it to Emily to work with it with Ash as I believe that it would be a great
project to get him into coding and something that could help a lot of
people. When I was finished sorting it out was when the boys came back from
school so after helping Hunter-Liam out of the pool the boys got on with
their homework and Hunter-Liam the days work. I was pleased to see how
smart he actually was and how he finished not longer after the boys had
finished their homework.  The younger boys and Andrew went to play in the
pool as Ash waited for Emily to come and do his study. Before they could I
had a talk with Emily and we agreed on the project and that when it was
going out to the world Emily would get 40%, Ash 35% and I would take 25% of
the profits of the sale of the app they created.

Ash and Emily got on with the coding with a vigor that I had not seen
before, Ash was laughing and coming up with some good ideas from what I
heard. Before too long the class come to an end and Emily went home and me
and the boys watched a movie before we were all in bed.

It was now a thursday and once i had got myself and the boys up and dressed
before dropping them off at school, i went back and got Hunter-Liam
up. Once we had ate and he had dressed we left the house. Our first
destination would be the hardest place of the morning but sadly not the
day. Unbeknown to Hunter-Liam the funeral company had placed a message in
the papers advising of the deaths of his parents and advised on the viewing
times and the funeral times for everyone that would like pay their respects
to the family. But for now our first stop would be the place he used to
call home and maybe one day will. We pulled up at the property and
Hunter-Liam had a very aprehensive and had tears streaming down his face. I
told him that I just wanted him to take everything from his bedroom that he
wanted to take back to my house. Whilst he did that I went around the rest
of the property and with a large box that I found in the house I went
around and took all the family's pictures and documentation that I could
find as well as taking an inventory of the house and all its
belongings. This would allow me to accurately store what would be needed
for Hunter-Liam to decide what he would want to keep moving forward. One
thing that did shock me was the faces in the picture as they where the
people that come into my dream when I was in the child welfare with
Hunter-Liam as it turns out they were his parents.

It took Hunter-Liam over a hour to go through his stuff as I guess he
wanted to some time to himself to say goodbye to his room and quietly mourn
the loss of his parents in the house and room that he was so happy in. Out
of respect I give him the space he needed but I was also close to him in
case I was needed. I also went around taking pictures of all the items in
his house as this would be evidence of proof if anything was damaged in the
transit to transferring his houses belongings into storage and the storage
lockers that I had purchased. Once he was finished and the car was filled
with stuff I asked if the family had any locked places eg safes. They had
and Hunter-Liam took me to them. With a little probing of Hunter-Liam I
managed to ascertain the codes and emptied them of their belongings
including 2 hand guns that I once again placed securely within the car. My
phone pinged giving me notification that I had a email. I read this and it
was Mbappe advising about the information about Ash, and Lucifers family's
belongings. I emailed back that I would be in after an hour or so to
collect what I would need to collect before taking Hunter-Liam back home
and dumping him in front of the TV. I emptied the car myself and put
Hunter-Liams stuff in his bedroom and the stuff I collected in my office.

Once that was done I went and got Hunter-Liam as I knew he needed something
to distract him so we both went out to the mall to get some lunch. Once
there we both collected our meal and headed to the seating area to eat. We
both had some fun watching the looks that we were being given but to be
honest I didn't care and I was used to it from when I took Kweli and Kareem
out with me. Once we were finished I took Hunter-Liam to get a suit and
knowing the boys sizes I also got them a suit each. I was advised that the
suits would be ready in a hour for me. That was fine by me and I went to
take Hunter-Liam for a haircut at the same place I took Lucifer and once he
was safely in there I popped out and back into the electronics store where
I got the ones before and I got the same as I got the other boys, a mobile
on my family plan and a computer for him to use. I went back to see
Hunter-Liam sitting waiting patiently having had his hair cut. He looked at
me and the bags curiously. Seeing that we had another half hour left to
wait for the suits I decided to take him for ice cream. We sat over the
icecream and had a laugh at each other as we made faces and acted like
little kids. He also got very surprised when I handed over the bags and
told him what was inside was his. Once he was over the surprise and the
newness of the phone I went and inputted all of our numbers in them before
passing it back to him. what had turned out to be a 30 minute stop over in
the ice cream store ended up being a hour but that was ok by me. We then
headed back and got the suits before heading to the car.

Once in the car I drove over to the child welfare building. Once inside I
apologised for being late and got a box containing the belongings of
Lucifer and a set of keys for the lockup for where Ash and Luca's
belongings where. I advised that I would fetch the keys back when I had
moved the property into the lockup that I had rented. We said our goodbyes
and Mbappe advised that he would be present at the funeral and that he
wished to do a home visit within a week to check how hunter-liam was
settling in and how the other boys where coping with him. He also wanted to
discuss keeping Hunter-Liam's heritage alive as I could support the white
side of his heritage. I said that was not a problem and that Innocence
would help me with his black heritage. I said that I was supporting
Innocence with her sons heritage and so we could both do this type of work
as I wanted all of them to grow up knowing all walks of life so they could
best understand them. We both went our separate ways and I went to the car
where Hunter-Liam was waiting playing on a game that he had downloaded onto
the phone. I figured I might have to set a screen time limit.

Once I had secured Lucifers box I put the address to the storage company
and we went off to find it. As it happened it was not that far away and
that it didn't take me that long to find. I was in luck when I went there
and found that it had been carefully packed with all the big stuff at the
back and the stuff that I wanted including the boys clothes, pictures and
paperwork at the front. This is the stuff I was looking for and with
Hunter-Liams help I had quickly loaded it up into the car and we were on
our drive back home. Also with his help me and Hunter-Liam made quick work
in transferring the stuff out of the car and into my study. It was almost
time for the boys to return from school so I sent Hunter-Liam up to the
bathroom for a shower and asked him just to put on shorts when he was
finished for a quick meal after. He had just come back from the shower when
the boys returned from school. It was now we sat down for a quick and light
meal.

After the meal me and the boys went for showers and I advised them to wait
in their bedrooms for me. I had already discussed this with Innocence and
she had took her boys to hers to do the same. Once I was finished mine I
put on my suit and started in Ashes room. He was sitting in his room
wearing only a towel and I quickly helped him dress in the suit before
doing the same to Luca. Finally I went into Hunter-liam's room to help him
and realised that he had took my just shorts literally and i had to place
underwear on him first. I then took them all into the TV room where Lucifer
was drawing and working with his Aide Andrew and I advised of Lucifer's
schedule and thanked him for looking after him whilst we were at the
viewing. After Innocence and the boys come in, I got us all to stand in a
group and asked Lucifer to draw us. He looked up at us and smiled before
starting on a new piece of paper. I knew he had the image stored in his
head and we left for the wake. On the way there I advised the boys on what
it was and what was expected.

The viewing was a quiet and somber affair with lots of people coming to pay
their respect to and I was very proud of how the boys reacted to it. They
even went over and said bye to Luna and Adam and thanked them for allowing
Hunter-Liam from joining the family. At one point I saw Arthur and Theodore
with their mum nad I used this as my advantage to give poor Hunter-Liam a
break from all the people talking and consoling him which was slightly
making him worse. He was happy for the break but came back with puzzled
look on his face. I knew this would be something that we would talk about
later. After a 2 hour viewing the door was closed for a private farewell
and the mortician give me a package with the items that I had
requested. After that it was home for us and I give Lucifer his bath before
putting the boys to bed and placing on his request Hunter-Liam in my
bed. After a drink and a hour think I joined him in slumberland not looking
forward to Friday and the funeral.

The morning came all to soon and we were all having breakfast before I
dropped Lucifer off to school and called the company to move all the stuff
to my lockup. They arrived for the keys and quickly departed. The boys and
myself were then getting dressed again in our suits. The time quickly came
for the boys and myself to go to the funeral. The horse drawn hearse pulled
up at the door with the coffins in it and followed by another car for the
family to go along with it. Once we arrived at church we were greeted by
the sounds of the school choir singing.

Run Leona Lewis / Snow Patrol

I'll sing it one last time for you Then we really have to go You've been
the only thing that's right In all I've done And I can barely look at you
But every single time I do I know we'll make it anywhere Away from here
Light up, light up As if you have a choice Even if you cannot hear my voice
I'll be right beside you, dear To think I might not see those eyes Makes it
so hard not to cry And as we say our long goodbyes I nearly do Light up,
light up As if you have a choice Even if you cannot hear my voice I'll be
right beside you, dear Louder, louder And we'll run for our lives I can
hardly speak, I understand Why you can't raise your voice to say Light up,
light up As if you have a choice Even if you cannot hear my voice I'll be
right beside you, dear Louder, louder And we'll run for our lives I can
hardly speak, I understand Why you can't raise your voice to say

I don't think there was a dry eye in the full church as we made our way in
following the two coffins and sat in the front row of the pews. Hunter-Liam
was sitting between me and Innocence so he could take on our support. The
service went the way it was expected until half way through when the vicar
asked if there was anyone who wanted to say something. A few colleagues of
them and friends stood up to pay their respects and tell a few funny
stories that made us all giggle. Then Hunter-Liam stood up and made his way
to the front. He handed the organist a piece of paper and then his clear
voice rang out singing.

It Was Our Day B*Witched

8 O'clock on the morning you left The day was dark I sat in my room They
walked in and told me that you'd gone That moment on I knew I'd be your
angel Knew you'd be our angel That day I spent was the hardest day ever
Trying to paint a picture for you Before my eyes There's so many colors
Just for today they all seem blue Heaven Heaven was calling you Heaven
Heaven needed you.  We'll join our hands again someday We'll trade kisses
before night And talk of time we had We'll be together oh someday And watch
over the stars at night (night) And laugh at the fun we had It was our day
Oh yeah!  I'll lay a rose beside you forever And light a candle to remind
me of you Here in my heart You'll be on my journey Wherever I go whatever I
do Oh Our day

When he had finished I looked around the church and everyone was mirroring
the look I had with open mouths and tears streaming down their faces. After
that the vicar who also looked like he was crying finished the service
before the coffins were taken from the church. I advised the teacher that
after we left and went to place Hunter-Liam's parents in their resting
place to tell everyone that there would be a wake and where to find it. As
we got up to leave and follow the coffins out the choir started up again
singing the song that was requested by Hunter-Liam for the final song.

Stars Skillet

You spoke a word and life began Told oceans where to start and where to end
You set in motion time and space But still You come and You call to me by
name But still You come and You call to me by name If You can hold the
stars in place You can hold my heart the same Whenever I fall away Whenever
I start to break So here I am, lifting up my heart To the one who holds the
stars The deepest depths, the darkest nights Can't separate, can't keep me
from Your sight I get so lost, forget my way But still You love and You
don't forget my name If You can hold the stars in place You can hold my
heart the same Whenever I fall away Whenever I start to break So here I am,
lifting up my heart If You can calm the raging sea You can calm the storm
in me You're never too far away You never show up too late So here I am,
lifting up my heart To the one who holds the stars Your love has called my
name What do I have to fear?  What do I have to fear?  Your love has called
my name What do I have to fear?  What do I have to fear?  If You can hold
the stars in place You can hold my heart the same Whenever I fall away
Whenever I start to break So here I am, lifting up my heart If You can calm
the raging sea You can calm the storm in me You're never too far away You
never show up too late So here I am, lifting up my heart To the one who
holds the stars You're the one who holds the stars

After the small graveside service we went to the wake where everyone that
had been at the church had gathered and we had a meal and people told
stories and just celebrated the life of Luna and Adam. A Lot of people
commented and congratulated Hunter-Liam on his singing and told him how
much it touched them and how nice the song was he choose. He blushed a lot
and thanked everyone who spoke to him. After a few hours the party was
starting to wrap up and I could see the boys starting to sag as the
emotional toll of the day got to them. After ordering a taxi we went home
and I let the boys go for a nap. When Lucifer came back from school he
showed me a picture from last night I asked him to draw and I knew this one
was going to be on display in the TV room. I got the boys up for a meal
before we all watched TV and had a early night.

Saturday morning came all too soon and we started the day as we normally
did and was having a good day until Lunch time came. I was busy in the
kitchen with Innocence and the boys when the drive sensor pinged and then
the doorbell. Before I could react Kweli jumped up and shouted I will get
it. He came back moments later with a man I did not recognize looking a
little anxious. I had my back to them but I saw Ash go deadly pale. Turning
around I saw a man I did not recognised and Kweli moving away from him as
quick as possible.

"I've come to take back the faggot and his brother" He said

"Sorry you have me at a loss, Sir. There is no faggot here and I don't know
who you are." I replied having a little idea of what was going on.

"I used to own Faggot boy and Luca and they are coming with me now" he
continued pulling a gun out of his pocket.

"Boys get behind me. Your not taking any of the boys from here and I would
like you to leave. If you want them you will have to go through me." I said
calmly but firmly. Slowly edging the boys towards a door.

"Ok" came the reply.

I saw the flash.
I heard the bang.
I felt like I had been hit.
My world went black.


This ends this chapter and there is links to listen to the songs mentioned
in this chapter below.

https://youtu.be/Tm8LGxTLtQk
https://youtu.be/AOBs8dU4Pb8
https://youtu.be/jqpAgMxhx30
https://youtu.be/uMRa1KmTLHs
https://youtu.be/TbLJyjfyACM