Chapter Text
Cory walks upstairs, bummed that the rain is preventing him from playing baseball outside. He goes to turn on the light to his bedroom when he feels a hand on his shoulder and a familiar voice whisper "Don't turn on the lights."
Cory recognized that voice imminently and turned to see his best friend Shawn standing, soaking wet. His hair was dripping and his clothes were drenched, but Cory could recognize his best friend anywhere.
"The cops are after me," Shawn said, "Maybe even the FBI, your not in involved unless you want to be."
Without hesitation Cory replied, "I'm in."
Earlier that Day:
Shawn left his house pretty early in the morning, he didn't want to sick around any longer than he had to. He hated going to school but at least it gave him an excuse to get out the house, but today there wasn't any school. It was Sunday, a weekend, this gave Shawn two options, stay home and see what kind of mood his father was in or leave and wonder the town. He wasn't in a risking mood and figured that leaving was by far the safer option. He got dressed, grabbed a bit of toast and his bike, and was out of the house before his folks could even wish him a good morning. It was better that way, he didn't like being invisible but it was better than the alternative most days.
He didn't notice the cherry bomb that he had in his pants when he left the house. He bought the bomb awhile ago but he hadn't done anything with it. He remembered feeling so proud when he bought it. He didn't have any plans for it, but it looked so cool and it made him feel dangerous, powerful, just to hold it.
Clouds were rolling in and it was clear that a storm would strike later, but until the rain Shawn wasn't going home. The world was his, he could go wherever he wanted... well anywhere within biking distance. He thought about heading to Cory's house but he knew he already spent most his time there and he always got the feeling that Mr. and Mrs. Matthews didn't like him hanging around their son so often. Besides, there were plenty of things he could do on his own.
He spent the first half of the day just riding around. It wasn't until around noon when he finally noticed the firecracker in his pocket. He pulled it out and marveled at its beauty. He held it in his hand, turning it around as and he begin to hear it. The cherry bomb was whispering to him, beginning to be lit, begging to blow something up. He knew that he must have been in his head, but that didn't make the voices any less prevalent.
He returned the cherry bomb to his pocket, but he still felt its presents. He knew it was there now, and it wasn't going to leave him alone. He didn't have any money for lunch and refused to go home, but he'd skipped meals before, it was nothing new. Instead he continued his bike ride. He took stops occasionally to check on the cherry bomb. It was still there, still whispering to him. It wanted to be lit, it needed to be lit. He did his best to ignore it though, and for a while it worked, until around five.
The storm was getting closer. Shawn could smell the rain in the distance. He figured it was almost time to head back home before it started to downpour. He took a left though, opting to take the long way home, the path down "K" street. He took a break and parked at the Market Giant. It was Cory's dad's story and it always made Shawn feel safe to be near it. He knew he needed to get home before the rain, but a few minutes walking around wouldn't hurt.
That's when he spotted it. It was just laying on the ground by the shopping carts, a small red matchbook. It was destiny, a sign saying that now was the time. He did remember picking up the matchbook, he didn't remember lighting the cherry bomb, but it was lit now. It was sparking, counting down to blow. A wave of anxiety washed over Shawn as he realized that this was real, he was holding a bomb, a lit bomb, one that was going to go off any second now. He could lose an eye, an arm, he needed to get rid of it. There were too many people around. It wasn't just his life at risk, it was the people in the parking lot. He didn't want to hurt anyone, he couldn't, but he had to get rid of it.
That's when, like a illumined light bulb, he spotted a mailbox. It was perfect, the metal would prevent anyone from getting hurt. He rushed over and tossed it and closed it before backing away. It was just in time, in less then two seconds after throwing it in he heard the explosion go off. The hinge fell off and Shawn could see the fire inside. The fire was actually quite beautiful, be he didn't have time to admire his work as he heard the hushed whispers around him. He started to look around and noticed the look on everyone's faces. They looked terrified... they were terrified because of him. He felt his stomach drop as he realized what he had actually done.
That's when he heard the sirens. He didn't wait for the cops to get close. He rushed to his bike and began to peddle as fast as his legs could manage. He knew he couldn't go home, he would get the shot beat out of him by his father. His father would hit him for no reason at all so if Shawn managed to actually give him a reason he feared of the outcome. He didn't have many close friends outside of the trailer park that he trusted, but he knew exactly were to go. He knew that his best friend Cory could help him. Cory would do anything to help him just as Shawn would for him. The two of them were thicker than thieves, he knew that's were he had to go.
The storm finally started and there wasn't any kind of drizzle, just giant booms of thunder and a heavy downpour. He needed to get to Cory's. He waited until he'd lost the cops before dumping his bike. He didn't want the evidence to follow him. He went the rest of the way on foot and hustled to the Matthew's. He climbed up the tree and through the window into Cory's room. He took a moment to catch his breath before Cory walked in.
Shawn explained the situation to Cory and just as he suspected Cory agreed to help him.
"Why don't you just go home?" Cory asked.
"My dad will kill me," Shawn explained. He didn't want to get into anymore details then that, "Just let me stay here a few nights before I figure things out."
Cory agreed without hesitation, just as Shawn had expected. Shawn had to explain how this whole running from the law thing worked, telling Cory that he couldn't tell him parents. Cory wasn't the best at lying to anyone, especially his folks, but this was the only chance Shawn had, it was either trust his best friend, or pray his father wouldn't murder him for his crimes. The answer was pretty clear.
Shawn watched as Cory left the room. He took a few short breaths to try to calm himself. He didn't realize how heavy he was breathing until Cory was gone. He couldn't tell if the liquid that drenched him was from the rain or the sweat. Cory was right, he needed a change of clothes. He went into Cory's clothes and grabbed a few outfits to change. It didn't take long for him to realize that there was a big difference between Cory's clothes size and his own. Oh well, it's not like he had any other option. As he was changing, he knocked into the clothes, making a loud thump. Shawn held his breath, terrified of being found out.
He hid behind door, waiting for Cory to come back. It didn't take him long. Shawn was relieved when he smelled the food Cory had, he hadn't eaten anything all day expect for a single slice of bread. Even better, it was a homecooked meal, a treat that he'd only ever get at home on very special occasions.
"What no ketchup?" Shawn joked, but he happily accepted the food, he'd eat anything in that moment.
Before he got a chance to eat, he heard footsteps coming up the stairs. Someone was coming. Shawn quickly returned to his hiding spot behind the door just as Eric entered the room.
"Think your pretty smooth don't ya," Eric said as he walked in and looked around, "I know exactly what's going on."
Shawn could feel his heart start to beat faster. He wished he could just melt into the wall. He tried to focus on his breathing but his heart was thumbing too loudly. Surely Eric could hear it, it was so loud, Eric had to have known. Did he really think he could get away this easily? He was doomed, Eric would tell his parents and they would tell Shawn's parents and then he would be dead, surely dead.
"Yeah, I tried the same thing once," Eric continued, "You're hiding a puppy huh? Where is he?"
Shawn let out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding. Maybe this wasn't as bad as he thought. Like Cory said, Eric wasn't the smartest tool in the shed, or however the saying went. Maybe he could get away with it. Shawn quickly hustled into the bathroom, hoping it would be a better hiding spot.
He wasn't in there for more than thirty seconds when he heard Cory shout, "You're going into the bathroom to give Morgan a bath?"
Shawn hustled once again, out the window in the bathroom and climbed through the tree and back into Cory's room. There was just one thing he forgot, as he climbed back into the room, he came face to face with Eric who was still sitting on his bed.
"I can explain," Cory said after closing the door to the bathroom where Morgan and Amy were.
"No no no no no, I don't even want to know. I mean, if I know the truth I only have to lie when questioned."
Shawn finished his climb, getting fully inside the house. He readjusted Cory's tight clothes and ran his hands through his once again soaking hair. He'd need to borrow more of Cory's clothes now, these ones were just as wet as his old ones.
Before Shawn even got a chance to breath, he heard the voice of the last member of the Matthew's household, Cory's Dad, Alan.
"Cory? Eric," he called up.
Shawn hit the ground, hiding under one of the desks. For once he was glad with how messy Cory's room was, plenty of objects to hide behind.
"Trash night," Alan continued when he opened the door, "Whose turn is is it to take out the cans?"
Cory and Eric exchanged a look. Eric gave a sheepish smile before he said, "You know Dad, an interesting thing. See we were just-"
"My turn," Cory said quickly before Eric could spill the beans about who he was hiding. If Eric wanted to use blackmail, it was working. It looked like Cory would be doing most of the chores for a little while.
Cory left with his dad and Shawn pulled himself up. He gave Eric a look, but did end up thanking him for not ratting him out. He wasn't sure how to feel. He'd gone through so many worried emotions in the last hour and it seemed like he was finally going to get a chance to breath, but he had to stay on his toes. One slip up and he'd be forced back to his parent's house with his dad over top of him, belt in hand. He shuttered at the thought. He instinctively pulled his shirt down, covering the bruises on his stomach.
After Eric and Cory were tucked into bed by their parents the brothers set up a small pill of blankets and pillows between there beds for Shawn to sleep on. Shawn was scared to sleep, but he was completely exhausted. The brothers feel asleep soon after, but Shawn lay awake. He wasn't sure if he got any sleep all night. His paranoia kept him on high alert. Every sound in the house rang in his ears as nervous sweat began to pool on his forehead. He did a few breath exercises to try and calm himself but he wasn't sure how much it helped. Soon enough the sun was rising and it was the start of Monday. Cory and Eric would have school leaving Shawn alone. He'd have to take that time to figure out what his next move was, he couldn't stay in the Matthew's house forever.
"I'll see you when I get back," Cory said.
"And remember, you can't say anything about me, to anyone, you got it?" Shawn replied, he was even more nervous that Cory might spill while at school. He knew Cory, he couldn't keep his mouth shut, he was a complete blabbermouth. He was nervous, but he had to trust him, he was his best friend after all. There was a reason they were such good friends, they would do anything for each other, Cory was proving that to be true.
"Don't worry," Corry said, "I'm a rock, they won't get anything out of me."
Shawn wasn't sure if that made him more or less assured.
He watched as they left school. He waited until the parents had gone to work before sneaking downstairs to grab some breakfast. He was shocked with the verity of food that the Matthew's had. He had of course been in their kitchen, but this was the first time he was actually studding the selection. Normally Amy had always provided him with snacks or dinner when he was there, he should have thanked her more often for that. He was surprised that running away had brought this more venerable side of him out. He had a desire to thank anyone that had ever helped him before. Maybe before leaving he would write notes to all the Matthew's to thank them... maybe even Mr. Feeny... the thought of thanking Feeny disguised him.
After making himself some cereal to eat and washing the bowl he used to make sure no one noticed his presents, he returned back upstairs to Cory's room. He went straight to the video games, but it didn't take long for the amount of filth in the room to start to bug him. He wouldn't exactly consider himself a neat freak, but Cory's messy room took disgusting to a new level. He turned on the TV for a bit of background noise, keeping it on the lowest volume so he could hear when the downstairs door opened, and began to clean up. He picked up all the trash around and organized the beds before turning his attention to the closet. He had seen yesterday just how messy it was and was determined to organize it.
It was almost perfect timing, just as he finished, he heard the door open. He quickly turned off the TV and listened closely to see who was there. It didn't take him too long to figure our it was Cory's Mom and apparently she had the same idea of cleaning that Shawn had. He heard her coming into the room and quickly hid under Cory's bed. She was singing some kind of song, maybe from a movie or a musical, he wasn't sure. She plugged in the vacuum and started to clean while she sung. Shawn kept himself hidden the whole time.
It didn't take long before Cory to come in, speaking about his day at school. He was able to shake off his mom, hopefully avoiding suspicion and Shawn climbed out from under the bed to face Cory once again. He dushed himself off, still wearing Cory's tight clothes.
"You organized my closet?" Cory asked.
"Yeah well, I didn't mean to," Shawn replied, not wanting critize Cory's messy lifestyle, "Just what was I supposed to do in this room all day?" He ran his hands through his hair once again.
"Feeny said you're parents came by school," Cory said, getting right to the point.
"You didn't say anything, did you?" Shawn asked, his heart racing. He did trust Cory, or he wanted to at least, but any mention of his parents always made him paranoid.
"He was working me alright, but I was a stone."
Before Shawn could reply thanking him, Cory's dad called up.
"Yeah! I'm alone!" Cory shouted back before turning to Shawn, "hide."
"I fear for my life," Shawn replied, only half joking but his inflection made him sound more calm then he actually was. Shawn slide under the bed once again. He was glad he'd cleaned it earlier, it gave him just enough room to turn around and breath without knocking anything.
Alan entered and asked his son how his day was. Cory acted like a bundle of nerves, but he didn't say anything. Shawn respected him for that. Alan went on to explain how he'd put bills into the mailbox that Shawn had blown up the previous day. Shawn's heart began to beat. He hadn't realized how big of a mistake he had made. He knew it was bad, but he didn't realize it was that bad. He knew that Alan must have been mad at him, he had to have been, it was his fault after all. His breathing got heavy again, he hadn't wanted to do anything to cause the Matthew's trouble, he just didn't know what else to do at the time.
"You know when I was growing up, there was a kid in my neighbor a lot like Shawn, always getting into trouble," Alan said, he continued to talk about that kid, but Shawn had heard enough already.
"Dad, Shawn's not like that," Cory said.
"I don't know, I think he is," Alan said. Shawn felt a part of his heart break when Alan said that. Alan was probably right. Shawn wasn't worth much, he knew that, but hearing it said from someone he'd always looked up to felt so much more real. "And if he were here right now, I'd come down on him very hard."
Shawn let out "Uh!" as Alan jumped onto the bed Shawn was hiding under, hitting him in the head. Despite that, the physical pain was nothing compared to what his words had told him. If Alan thought he was a bad kid, then it must be true, maybe there was no hope for him after all. Maybe his own Dad was right to beat him, maybe he deserved it.
"Because what Shawn did was irresponsible and dumb," Alan went on, rubbing salt in the wound.
"Why are you telling me this?" Cory asked, playing defense.
"Because you need to know that if you ever do anything wrong," he paused for a second, "You can always come home. I don't care how bad it is, it can never be as bad as not coming home. I don't care how tight a spot your in, we're here for you."
Alan was right of course. Cory could always come home, but not Shawn. His parents weren't like Amy and Alan. They wouldn't understand. His dad would just hear that he had made a mistake and that would be enough reason for him to Shawn's life.
Shawn took a moment to collect himself as Alan left the room. He climbed out from under the bed, "Oh man, your dad really hurt me." He tried to play it off cool.
"That stuff he said?" Cory asked.
Shawn didn't want to admit that so instead went with, "No. He sat on my head."
"You know, Shawn, I bet if we explained to my dad how this happened. he could take to your dad and then-"
Shawn cut him off quickly, he wouldn't put Alan at risk, "No way, I can't ever go home, cory."
"Didn't you hear what my dad was saying? If both our dads worked together, and talked it over... and my dad explained to your dad that you're still an okay kid-"
"It won't work Cor." Shawn knew his dad better than that, and he wasn't sure if Alan even thought he was an okay kid anymore. Shawn knew his dad, he knew what would happen, "My dad will kill your dad just to get to me."
"Shawn, you're overreacting," Cory interjected.
Shawn wasn't sure if he was or not. He'd crossed the line this time. No, he defiantly wasn't overreacting, this was survival of the fittest and his dad was the apex predator. Shawn needed to find a way to escape him.
"Watch, I'll prove it to you," Cory said before turning to the door and raising his voice, "Dad? Dad can you come here a second?"
Shawn's heart skipped a beat. He hesitated for a moment, just a moment. Maybe Cory was right, Alan was a good father and Shawn no that, but he couldn't risk it, it wasn't worth in. Shawn got up and rushed towards the window, he had to get out before any adult found him. This place wasn't safe anymore, he had to move on. He climbed out the window and slipped down the tree and began to sprint as fast as his legs could carry him. He didn't even register the rain drenching him once again, there was too much fear to think of anything other than run.