Chapter Text
"Hello? Is this Mr Surebrec?"
There went his coffee break, Enjin realised as soon as he heard the voice on the other end of the line, distressed.
"Nah. 'S this about Rudo? You're speaking to his guardian."
A sigh, rustling of papers and a click in the line, then - a pause. Enjin was ready to flip the table by the time the voice returned, gritty through his dated phone's speakers. His hand around the pen stilled, mid-click.
"Yes, Mr... Enjin." He heard the discomfort in her voice, having to call him by his first (and only) name. "I'm sorry, we are calling about Rudo. You'll have to pick him up, principal's office, your son's been caught fighting with another student."
Great. Just what he fucking needed after a day of arguing with half-grown kids on the job. But, being his guardian, he could hardly refuse. Thus, he muttered a 'be there in ten' into the speaker, hung up before she had any chance to add more and, on his way out, called Bro to let him know he'd be alone for the rest of the day. At least that man had his kids in check, and would manage their job just as well on his own. He'd buy him drinks for the hassle, next time they went out together, Enjin set a mental note to make sure.
As promised, he made it to Rudo's school in less than ten minutes, cutting lines and speeding here and there. Even without emergencies, his style of driving was rather infamous amongst his colleagues, and even the kids they helped didn't particularly like him as a driver.
The building was as uninviting as he remembered, grey outweighing any dot of colour they'd tried to sprinkle on, by planting half-dead trees on the asphalt and drawing shitty emojis to the walls. No wonder kids came home with all types of issues, if that was where they were forced to spent most of their days in. Really, had he had the means, he would've pulled Rudo out of there, but that was a futile thought.
In he went, up the stairs towards the principal's office. He still knew the map, burnt into the back of his eyelids, from the many times he'd been called in himself, back when he'd gone to school here himself. Look at that, he noticed, they'd actually changed the rooms. Slabs of stone covered the hallways these days, instead of cheap linoleum floor, and the walls - albeit scribbled with markers here and there - had an almost inviting, pale blue colour to them, now. Hell, they'd carpeted the corridor towards the staff offices, and fancy wooden chairs lined the wall, for parents to wait in while their kiddies were told off. Or praised. Whatever, really, with Rudo it was usually the former. Always the former, if Enjin was being honest, and he tossed himself into a free seat. The only other person was a tall man, taller than himself if he had to guess, with a surprisingly soft face contrasting a long scar along his cheek, and a trimmed beard. Looked too young to be the dad of a twelve-year-old kid, but then again - Rudo could have been his, after all, seeing that he was twenty-eight already and regularly met kids having kids, some younger than eighteen, even. He fidgeted with his lighter, five seconds, ten seconds, before he raised his voice.
"So, you know who of 'em won?"
He couldn't keep his mouth shut for the life of himself, Enjin realised, and grimaced as soon as the other man turned to face him.
" 'scuse me?"
Ah. He didn't look particularly amused, staring Enjin down with a puzzled expression. Enjin was on the verge of raising his hands in defense, but dropped them again once he saw the gears turn in the dude's mind.
"I dunno, they were pulled apart from each other before it was decided, I assume." A low chuckle followed, the type that had Enjin feel at home even when this man was supposed to be the enemy party (although, he doubted that anybody would press charges here). The enemy party, who now stretched out his hand in greeting. Maybe he had misjudged the gravity of their situation. "Gris Rubion. You're the other kid's dad?"
"Kinda. Name's Enjin." His hand almost cracked between Gris Rubion's fingers, the strength forcing a puff of air from his lungs. "Shit, man. Nice handshake you've got there."
"Ditto." Enjin, momentarily distracted by the ice blue colour of his eyes, flexed his hand as if to test whether his knuckles still worked after that, but even now, they appeared to be fine. "Follo's my nephew. His mother's a nurse, so she can't come in on short notice."
"Ah. Explains why you're so chill with me here." Running a hand through his blonde hair, Enjin kicked out his legs, heavy boots cushioned by carpet floor. His head thumped against the wall behind him. Silence stretched between them, the minutes ticking by when all they could hear were muffled sounds from behind the office doors. Fuck that, Enjin thought, they'd been called here half an hour ago. School didn't get to steal his time anymore, after all, and he was on his way to barge into the room when the door opened, revealing two kids before him.
One with pale grey hair, wide eyes and spindly legs, Rudo, and the other, half a head taller, with a dark brown shock of curls, dressed neatly with a scarf around his shoulders and a bruise to his chin. Follo, evidently. Enjin put his best stern face on and crouched, brows pinched together during his scan of Rudo. Except for a scratch along the nose, he didn't find any injury, and the kid glowered up towards his guardian without any trace of guilt. His gloved hand shoved Enjin's tattooed fingers away from his fringe. "We're even, old man."
The brat snapped at him, had the guts to do so even after he returned from the principal's office. Enjin grit his teeth, still frog-legged while he gave Follo an estimating glance. "Are you even? He apologised to you?"
"He did. It was my fault, anyway, I started this." Sceptically, Enjin gave Follo a brief blink - he didn't believe a word of this, but if the kid wanted to paint Rudo innocent, well. He wasn't one to pass up on the chance to get out of trouble.
"Mr Surebrec?" Enjin hadn't heard that voice in a decade, damn. The whites of his eyes flashed, flicking up towards the door. Shit, the principal had aged, a tall man with grey lining his chin, his hair slicked back. He'd forgotten how much he disliked that guy, and cursed his own inertia, the way he felt like a fucking schoolkid all over again when the man fixated him over the rim of his glasses. Recognition crossed his face, too, accompanied by a scoff.
"Not what I'm called." Having found his tongue, he rose up to his feet and gave Rudo a pat on the shoulder before he stepped up, in front of the man he now saw eye to eye with. A silent play for power, while he held his stare, not intending to back down. In the end, Dr Knivert (he valued his title, Enjin remembered) stepped aside, offering Enjin a way into his office. Wordlessly, he slumped down at the desk, opposite the principal's chair, and waited until the man had taken a seat. He took his sweet time, another display of his position, while he set the stapler to the side and reached for a paper sheet.
"Didn't think I'd see the next generation of yours here in my time, Enjin. Although, with you, I shouldn't be surprised." Enjin could read between the lines, the taunts already starting to work. We all knew you'd end up a single dad. You're a failure, a drop out. You're not gonna get anywhere with that attitude. Enjin remembered that look in particular, the judgement, but he'd managed to forget these kinds of stares in the years since he'd last sat in Dr Knivert's office.
Even so, his fist clenched, tattoos flexing over his knuckles while he reclined, forcing his shoulders down and a lazy smile to appear on his face. Better get this over with quickly, cleanly, no need for useless fighting. Who knew what Rudo was doing in the hallway, he wouldn't want Follo's uncle to be forced to deal with his dumbass. "I've heard the kids already got on with reconciliation all by themselves. What's left to discuss?"
In response, the document was pushed over towards him, Dr Knivert's hand resting on the upper edge even after he'd turned the paper for Enjin to read. "Here. We found that Rudo's shown abnormal aggression, both towards staff and fellow students, which today has culminated in a fight. Whether Rudo started this or not, he was seen throwing punches at his classmate, and we cannot let outbursts of his calibre stand, nor risk another sudden spike of violence from him." His ringed index tapped a date, written by hand between the printed letters. A date, for next Thursday. "All we need is your signature on the application form, then we can offer him meetings with the school therapist. No charge, but I strongly suggest this approach to you. Otherwise, he risks expulsion, should a fight like today happen again."
Enjin's brows furrowed - as much as he wished to believe Knivert's suggestion was meant as a slight against them, he couldn't find evidence in his expression, nor in the document he skimmed. Pretty standard, that one, he'd seen enough during his job to get the gist. And, admittedly, maybe working on his anger issues was not the worst idea for Rudo...
"I'll sign. Am I required to show up, as custodian?"
"No need. Unless Rudo and Dr Sayers feel they would like to include you in sessions, that is, but for now it should be sufficient to pick him up later. And ensure he actually shows up... I don't need to tell you how some teenagers make it their habit to skip not only classes."
Ah, there it was again, the arrogance he'd come to hate. Enjin had almost started to get wary at Knivert's down-to-business tone, but now scratched his signature down against the page, delighting in the idea of denting the expensive table below. Fuck him, fuck that they needed an offer like that in the first place, fuck the way he chuckled at Enjin's signature, how he inspected him as though he was a stray cat submitting to domestication.
"We'll call you, if there's anything else."
Enjin couldn't help his scoff, and left the chair where it was after he pushed it back, in the middle of the principal's office space. Behind him, the door shut harder than necessary, and in the corridor, three pairs of eyes focused on him, immediately.
Right, he'd forgotten that Follo and Rudo were still present, and that acting brash wouldn't exactly set the right example.
"C'mon, Rudo. Time to head home." He schooled his voice back to his cheerful tone, before he glanced down towards Follo again. That boy really did not look the type to start a fight, and he sighed - be a good person, he told himself and scribbled his phone number down on a scrap of an old notebook page. With a half-amused, half-surprised chuckle, Follo's uncle took the slip of paper from him and raised his brows.
"Here. In case Follo wants to revisit his version of what happened. Call me if that happens." When he'd almost reached the glass door, he turned his head, a half-smirk lighting up his eyes. "Or, even better, text. Gives me the chance to ignore ya."
Downstairs, in his old-ass car, the jeep he had upcycled eight years ago, he slumped back in the driver's seat, groaning. Let Rudo feel the exaggeration, he decided. As much as he felt responsible for him, that kid could get on his last nerve - he never had to speak to the principal personally before, though.
"Ugh. A fucking fight, you kidding me? How often do I gotta remind ya that you can't go 'nd explode into people's faces, kiddo." He grunted, metal scraped on flint and he opened the windows while he smoked. Inside the car, call him a bad example, he didn't care much about other people's opinions, anyway. A curt glimpse at Rudo's hands, and his hair scrunched against the headrest - seemingly exasperated, he blew smoke up against the ceiling, tracing the doodles up there. All colours of the rainbow, strange smileys, eyes and psychedelic patterns. Abstracted poo, too, hiding in between the bleached colours. "The other guy, did he start it? Bother you about your hands?"
"Nah. He did start, tho." Rudo had already secured the belt around himself, ready to drive home. Instead of facing Enjin, his glower remained on the pavement outside, head turned away, his chin creasing the thick, worn fabric of his glove where it covered his palm. "Was jealous or whatever. I thought we got along well, then he starts yellin' bout how I am an ungrateful cunt and whatnot. As if it's my fault he got benched and I didn't."
"Whaddya mean, he got benched?" Enjin chuckled, incredulously so. "Was this over some P.E. drama?!"
"No." The boy shrugged and shoved his bag further down the legroom, as if uncomfortable. "Doesn't matter. Let's just drive home, I won't let anyone else provoke me, promise."
Enjin flicked his cigarette off, watching the ash fly away in the breeze outside the car. If it wasn't immaculate timing to drop the bomb on Rudo, then. Why not light the fire, he thought, the atmosphere in here was thick enough to immediately detonate already. "Yeah. 'Bout that, you're gonna love this - we gonna try therapy."
Where Rudo had dangled his feet around before, his dirty sneakers stilled when his body locked up. Worn out gloves creased around his clenched fists, and Rudo turned, trying to kill him with his stare. Didn't work, that grimace had Enjin chuckle instead.
"Jeez, Rudo. That supposed to be scary?" He muttered, turning serious again while he fiddled with his earring. "Listen, kiddo. They gonna go and expel you if somethin' like today happens again, but not if you prove you're trying to change. Go to therapy. I'd let you give them the flick, but I ain't got the time to look after you if you're expelled from school, and as irritating as you are, I won't allow CPS to take you to some random orphanage. Which means you're gonna go to therapy, starting Thursday after sixth period."
"I ain't going."
"See, that's the point, I wasn't asking. You're going, and if you don't show up there, I'm gonna be informed. So don't think skipping the appointment will fly with me." Trashing his cigarette butt into the makeshift tin box ashtray, Enjin revved up the car, his brows still furrowed. Rudo had an inclination to running off if he got pissed, but even he was sane enough not to try bolting from a moving car. Thus, Enjin began driving them home, occasionally taking a glimpse at Rudo. The boy had fallen quiet, observing the streets they passed by, the bloom of flowers and people crowding the sidewalks. Fewer and fewer, the further from the city centre they got, until they reached the apartment tower.
Enjin didn't need to wait long until Rudo made a break for his room - they lived on the fourth floor, one of the many apartments there which had been rented by Enjin ever since he'd made enough money and had turned sixteen. As expected, once they'd entered the flat, Rudo immediately turned. His red-eyed glare, while not exactly dangerous-looking, did sting while he paired it with the most venomous 'I hate you' he could muster. Then, the kid stomped away and into his room, leaving Enjin to go through his phone once he was off to sulk. Draped over the sofa, the man sighed at the new notification popping up, showing a new number which had already texted him a lengthy message. A new version of today's events from Follo, possibly. Probably. Well, at least Gris had texted him and not called. Enjin still could name ten things he'd rather do than read through the messages.
And yet, he clicked on the notification bar. Nobody had told him that taking care of a kid meant that said kid would take up most of his headspace. For three years now, whenever he wasn't focused on work and the kids he supported there, the majority of his thoughts concerned Rudo, Rudo, Rudo. The household, chores, bills and rent, but even there - since he'd stepped up to take responsibility, Rudo wormed his way into just about every aspect of his life.
"Hey, this is Gris. Follo's uncle from today. I sat him down and he told me what happened, he's the one who snapped. Got frustrated over being benched for the hockey games and let it out on Rudo." - he had added an embarrassed emoji in between - "So sorry about the trouble, if there's anything we can do to apologise, tell me."
Enjin squinted - Rudo really didn't start this? More importantly, what was the boy doing on the hockey team, he wondered and typed his response.
"Don't worry about it. Rudo said they're even, so that's settled from my side. Thx for telling me."
He'd barely closed his messenger, ready to order pizza today, when the device buzzed again. Another message, "Ofc, sorry for the stress!", paired with one of those happy smileys. This time, Gris was ignored in favour of clicking through his order.
_________
"You never told me you're on the hockey team."
Rudo, who sulked in his chair, had not spoken a word since dinner began. Even now, he merely shrugged his narrow shoulders and continued inhaling his food.
"Follo's uncle told me. That the other kid let his frustrations out on you, cause you were chosen for the junior team while he got benched. That true?"
Rudo exhaled, the weight of the world on his shoulders, lowering his head. "Yeah. Said I was ungrateful, that shit's unfair, that I am arrogant, whatever. Jumped on me from one second to the next." He wiped the grease from his lips, swallowing the last bite of pizza down hastily. "Not my damn fault the coach picked me, for being agile or shit. I didn't ask to be a regular."
"Ah. Well, he probably was frustrated or shit. Glad to hear that wasn't your fault, less glad you responded in kind. Next time, try not to punch back unless there's no other way out, okay? Not in school, at least." Enjin could hardly give a lecture on the topic, not when he'd spent every second day scuffling with his peers at Rudo's age. He didn't care much about a fight here and there, either, so long as Rudo stood his ground and returned with no broken limbs. Bringing his chin forward to rest on his palm, he squinted. "You gonna play real games, then? For the junior team?"
"Maybe. They're on saturdays, so... i dunno, who wants to go to school on Saturdays? Stupid concept, really." Rudo waved a gloved hand around, lips pursed. Fascinating, how little he knew about Rudo, Enjin realised. Still frowning, his fingertips drumming on the table, he sighed. "Guess I'll try, though. So long as these matches don't take the whole day."
"Huh, look at ya. Didn't think you'd be all passionate like that." Enjin grinned, because going to the school gym on a saturday? That was determination, no matter how casual the boy was trying to sound. "I'm so gonna cheer you on at your games, Rudo. Like a real annoying mom." His shit-eating smirk didn't fade when Rudo glared, once again attempting to crack his skull with looks alone. Once again, it didn't work. "Anythin' else you've been keeping from me? Homework, failed tests? Girlfriends?"
He didn't expect failed tests, or missing homework, because for all his brash behaviour, Rudo was diligent in classes. His grades had always been surprisingly consistent, not straight As, but definetly better than Enjin had been at his age. Dare he say he was proud?
"Nah. No failed tests, not like you'd trust me, anyway." Muttering, and still very much with a glower on his face, Rudo's chair screeched back. "Bet Gris wouldn't force Follo to take therapy."
Still on about that, huh. Enjin crossed his arms, back bent half over the table while he eyed Rudo - kid always managed to be so damn complicated. "Seriously? You ain't gonna die from spending one hour per week on a sofa." He huffed, then rolled his eyes when Rudo remained unimpressed, arms folded across his chest. "I didn't have much room to argue with your principal, and I won't allow you to risk expulsion, buddy. Your grades are far too brilliant for that." I ain't sending you to a fucking orphanage, why won't you idiot understand that this would be your alternative if they kick you out of school. He wanted to snap at Rudo, get it into his head that he was not trying to be malicious. Luckily, years of training helped him keep his voice down, even here.
"Tch. As if you cared about good grades, old man." He stomped away, still in his shoes - he wasn't strict about shoes in the flat, so long as they were more or less clean. Hell, their apartment had looked run-down even when he'd moved in, years ago.
"As the responsible adult assigned to you, I do care." Dishes in hand, he carried them over to the sink, ready to skip the task for today, add it to the task list for tomorrow. "Now, off you go, bedtime and all that. Shoo. Old man's gotta clean the dishes." He absolutely would not, they both could tell, Enjin was a mastermind when it came to procrastinating chores. And two plates, well, they could be stored in the sink until next evening. Or the one after.
"Whatever. Stop trying to be fucking family, Enjin. And don't you dare turn up at my matches, you ain't my dad." Deciding to keep his sulking up, Rudo stomped away into the hallway, leaving Enjin at the sink. Rudo just needed to let off some steam, as usual - he couldn't count the times he'd stormed off anymore. Yet, with a person like Rudo and both their tempers, it would be better to wait until the boy had cooled down, lest they would only start yelling at each other. Thus, once Rudo was gone to retire to his room, the plates in their sink received was one last look before Enjin switched the ceiling lights off.
This night, he stayed home - on work nights, he often did, although from time to time, he spent the evening at Bro's house or with the people he'd matched on what numerous dating apps he kept on his phone. In any case, he made sure to be home before morning. Before Rudo woke up. He didn't like the idea of him having to prepare breakfast alone, no matter how self-sufficient Rudo was for his age, and paired with the fact that he'd gifted Rudo a Nintendo for his last birthday... well, might be better to make sure he got out of bed in the mornings.
On his stomach and draped over the bed that took up most of his room, Enjin couldn't help feel the odd sensation in his ribcage, which he chalked up to the unnatural amounts of chili oil he ordered on his pizzas. Maybe heartburn, or stress from fighting with Rudo, not that this was a seldom occasion. Never good with emotions, he scraped any consideration as to why Rudo's comments stung as they did today - Rudo was pissed, to be forced to take therapy. He understood, he would have been pissed, too. But damn, the kid was good at hitting where it hurt, and Enjin pinched the bridge of his nose, fighting off any thought of Rudo for now.
Owning a phone helped a great deal with distracting himself, and upon seeing the number of times people had swiped right on his dating profile, the dopamine hit was imminent. That was exactly why he used his favourite picture, the one with his short-sleeved shirt that showed off his tattooed arms, chest and neck. Pretty privilege be thanked, he normally found himself with quite the selection of people ready to 'date' - most people understood that he wasn't interested in anything permanent from the rest of his pictures, all of them shirtless.
He began to go through the list - the latest had been ten minutes ago, a brunette chick with curls and dimples. Pretty much his type, although, whenever he felt stress, nearly every woman became his type. He matched her, and the next, and the one after that (he really wasn't particularly choosy after a long day).
Then, his finger stilled over the next picture - the profile had already swiped on him last night, he noticed, but he did recognise his face immediately. Blonde hair, blue eyes and a trimmed beard on his chin and jawline. The most defining feature was his scar, though, all along the left side of his face. No wonder Gris had looked as startled as he did today, in front of the principal's office. He looked pretty enough, apparently built well beneath the wide shirt he had seen him in, wearing leather bracelets and a silver chain in a mirror selfie. Even though he'd found out early on that he was attracted to more than one gender, men weren't as frequently his type as women, and maybe he would've chosen differently if he had been less worked up. If he hadn't met Gris beforehand already. He'd seemed trustworthy, kind. Reliable, somehow.
Without thinking longer, he swiped right.