Originally written by: bunnieeeeeex

"Mamma, Papa?" Nya calls out, her high voice echoing the shop. She whimpers, and grabs her little blanket and plushie, and jumps out of bed.

The three year old toddles over to her twin brothers' bed, and shakes him awake. "Kai, Kai.." She repeats his name.

Groaning, the boy sat up. "Sissy, what's up?" He asks, holding her hand. Tears well up in her eyes and she sniffles. "I-I heard a scream from down stairs - it sounded like daddy." Nya said, holding her blanket close.

Kai jumps out his bed and walks over to his sister, and held her hand again. "We will go downstairs together. We will make sure daddy is okay, and then find mommy, okay?" He said with a soft voice.

The girl nodded, and the three year olds cautiously walked out into the dark hallway. The brunette feel uneasy, and clings onto Nya. He had always been afraid of the dark, and needed someone to be with him. "It's okay, I here."

"Mamma?" Nya calls out, reaching the stairs, she holds Kai's hand tighter. "Together?"

"Together."

The twins walk down, and they don't even get to the bottom of the stairs.

Their dad is lying on the ground, with brown dried blood surrounding his chest and abdomen.

"DADDY!" They both scream, sobbing as they make their way to the body. Kai curls up to his body and clutches his short sleeve shirt and sobs into it, while Nya desperately tries to find a heartbeat. Nothing works, and they're left to scream their mothers name.

She doesn't answer.

Shakily, Nya gets up and walks into the kitchen, attempting to find her mother.

"Mama?" She calls out, voice shaking. Again, no answer. No one is in the kitchen, and it worries the three year old even more.

There's a bit on the floor in front of the kitchen table, and the little girl looks at it wo blurred vision. She kneels down and begins to read it.

I'm sorry, but I have to go.
Goodbye, children. I love you.

Nya only sobs more at that, running to her brother who was still crying. The twins hug each other for hours and hours on end, with no intention of stopping.

~~~
"Nya? Nya!"

Mentioned girl jolts up, panting and sweating. Her brother is knelt beside her bed, visibly worried for his twin sister. He looks at her softly, and held her hand tightly. She looked back with tears in her eyes, and clutches the blanket with her other free hand. It was a blanket she's always had since a young baby, and she's always kept it throughout the many years of moving throughout orphanages and one foster home - which was absolute hell.

Kai hugs her tightly and she responds, letting a few tears fall from her chocolate brown eyes. The blanket falls down to her lap, and she is left to hug her brother more, considering the cold conditions - as the fan is broken. Shivering, the brunette rubs her back gently, trying to stop her shaking. "Was-was it a nightmare?" He asks, holding her small wrists in place as they separate. She whimpers, and then nods slightly. She hated to admit her feeling to anyone, even her own brother, but she hates this real nightmare even more.

"Was it Mira and her father again..or..or.." He couldn't finish his own sentence as the flashbacks off 13 years ago came back into full view in his mind. Tears burned in his own eyes and he wipes them away quickly to make sure his little sister was okay. Granted, he was born 7 minutes earlier, but Nya is smaller than Kai, so he always thinks of her like a little sister. They're only two inches apart - so it's hard to tell anyway.

"It- It was about mother and..father.." Nya replies, using the hoodie sleeve that draped over her hands to wipe the one tear that was travelling down her face.

The other twin sighs and holds her tight again, breathing out shakily as a single, lonely tear pooled onto her shoulder, wetting the hoodie making the navy blue a shade darker than it already was. Nya responded, her arms wrapped around his back as he began to cry. Kai has always gotten into arguments with his father at a young age - so he feels extremely bad. Although; they end up hugging and laughing around, with Nya and their mother joining in - giggling.

"Oh, Kai. Please don't cry. Shh, it's okay." The tables have turned here; Kai was supposed to be comforting Nya, as she was the one who had the nightmare, but now she was comforting him.

"B-But I used to get into arguments with him, a-and I don't think I-I ever got to tell him I loved him!" He stuttered out, mourning into his sister. She sighed and rubbed his back. They both knew it would never be easy, considering that not even two days after their death, they were sent off to an orphanage to then be sent to a horrible home a year later. They had only just gotten out of it two years ago, and it had left emotional scars on them both - not to mention some physical ones. And the counciling at their school doesn't do anything.

But, they have lovely friends.

"I'm sure he knew that. We both love them, and we will continue to love them until the end of our lives." The teenage girl pulls away and wiped her brothers tears off his face, and hugs him quickly once more. He smiled back, and stood up. "Now, get ready and let's not tell a soul about this."

~~~
BEEP! BEEP!

Jay groaned, and flipped onto his side, throwing his pillow over his head to stop the loud sound from his phone to ring in his ears.

BEEP! BEEP!

He sat up, and lazily travelled his arm to his bedside table, and gripped his phone. Rubbing his eyes, he checks the time.

6:00AM.

He puts his hand over his face and groans into them for a second before getting up out his heaven he calls bed and opens his draw to get a towel.

Exiting the room, he notices how quiet it is in his apartment.

He knew exactly why.

Sighing, he makes his way to the kitchen, and sees the note on the fridge.Walking up to it, he drops the towel and his sock-covered feet pad onto the kitchen tiled ground quietly. He ripped the sticky note off the compartment and his eyes quickly skim over it.

Dear Jay,
Hey sweetie! So, I have to go to Dire Island with your father so he can take some pictures for the Starfarer Video Game. There's some food for breakfast in the fridge, and some more essentials. I'm sorry.
Love you!
From your mother xx

Jay rolled his eyes ripped the note in half and walked over to his bin, and threw the pieces in there. He sits down on one of the seats, and rested his head in his arms.

"When will I ever get a weekend with my mom and dad without them going out for some stupid acting or modelling career?" He mumbled, tears in his eyes.

Being alone this much got to him - causing social anxiety to become a big thing for him. The only people he felt comfortable for Jay was his nine other friends - also known as the 'freaks'.

He could be himself around them; and especially his girlfriend - Nya. Just the mention of her name made his lips curl into a smile. She was so beautiful and cute and funny and-Gah! He's rambling in his own mind.

Shaking his head quickly, the brunette picked his towel up and rushed to the bathroom, taking a quick shower before rushing back to his room. Checking his phone, he saw that there was a message from Skylor. He opens it, an eyebrow raised.

Skylor: Hey Jay. I'm gonna be late today so can u please tell Kai? He isn't responding

Jay: hey Sky, sure. See ya in English

Throwing his phone back onto his soft bed, he drops his towel and makes his way to his closet. He pulls out a black shirt, a blue jacket, blue jeans, and some underwear.After putting them on, he goes to his mirror and grabs his brush, trying to tame his curly brown hair. It was no use. Plus, Nya thinks it looks cute; and anything that his girlfriend thinks, he'll take into consideration.

However, she's said that he doesn't need to change for her, be the best you.Smiling again, he puts the brush back into his draws and stands up, grabbing his backpack from the corner of his room and headed to his work desk. There were a few bits of stationary and two books on the table.And in the corner, we're old scrapped blueprints that were abandoned. School had really being pushing him for a while - so he had no time to work on his hobby. Which was kinda sad, he really enjoyed it.

Jay shoved the mentioned items in, and zipped the bag up. He picked his phone back up from his bed and slung the back over his shoulder, and then rushing into the kitchen - bringing out a bowl, a cereal box and some milk.While eating, his phone began to rang.

Groaning, he swallowed the spoonful of his breakfast in his mouth and answered it, with a small 'Hello?'.

"Hey son! How are you doing at home?"

Jay sighs. "I'm fine, dad."

"I just wanted to know when you're heading to school-"

"Now, actually."

"Okay, well, have fun! I have a few more action scenes to shoot then I'll be onto the-"

At this point the freckled boy hung up the phone, completely done with his father's flexing on his great acting career. He loves his dad, but sometimes he just wants to hang out with him, without talking about his great success.

And yeah, you would expect them to have a better house. They do, but since it would take Jay forever to get to school - they've resorted to a small apartment in the city until summer, and they'll then go back to the mansion.

He finishes his cereal and puts his phone into his pocket, and leaves home to school.

~~~
"But..But dad! You said I could meet some friends today!"

"No buts, Skylor! I'm your father, and you will run the shop tonight!"

The redhead groaned, and put her hands over her head. "I've been doing the shop every evening for the past two weeks, can't I just have one day with my friends?!" She clenches her fists behind her back and Chen looked at her with an emotionless expression, and rolls his eyes.

Ever since her mother died, Chen, her father, had been going out almost all the time with his friend, Clouse. For a few months, he worked the shop by himself while Skylor took a month off of school to mourn.

But, for the last few weeks, he had been going out and meeting people again. And leaving his shop. Which meant, Skylor had to cover for him sometimes. By she means sometimes, she means for weeks on end most of the time. And she just wanted to spend time with her friends - and boyfriend - Kai.

But, Chen thinks that Skylor shouldn't waste time on a guy like him. As he's an 'weak orphan'.

When she heard that the first time, she flipped out, swearing and shouting at him. No one is going to call her boyfriend and his sister quote on quote 'weak orphan'. They were anything but weak. They survived a 10 year abusive foster care, before the police finally caught the two in the act of hurting them - and they were back into the foster system.

She had been dating Kai since they were 13, and had loved every second of it. Once, she tried to tell her father. Big mistake. He flipped off saying that she could do better.

But, she still dates Kai, and will continue to.

A few articles of clothing and some shoes snap her out of her thoughts as they are literally thrown at her, and she catches them swiftly. "Now, take a shower and go to school. I'll see you tomorrow morning." Chen gets up and walks out of the living room.

Skylor sighs and heads to her room, flopping onto her bed as she tries to take in what she just heard for the millionth time this month. "When will you treat me right, father?" She breathes out shakily, and shuts her eyes, attempting to relax for a few minutes before leaving for school. She doesn't even get the money she earns by working at the shop. She gets a quarter while her father gets the rest and spends it on new things for the house and himself, and to go out with his 'mates'.

Sighing, the red haired girl stands up and places the clothing into her bag and leaves the shoes at home. They were uncomfortable and since her father wouldn't be there to lecture her, she'd be able to wear her trainers.

She heard the door slam and lock from downstairs, echoing the mansion.

The girl got up and walked it her closet, pulling out a plain white t-shirt and a small red jacket, along with black leggings and a black hair tie. Discarding her nightwear into the washing basket beside her, she puts on the chosen article of clothing for the day and ties her long red hair into a ponytail, and then goes over to her desk to pull out her books from her draws and shoved them into her bag. She zipped it up and then left her room, shutting and locking it behind her.

Pulling out her phone, she opens the Starbucks app and orders a croissant and a iced coffee to collect. She wasn't going to make her own breakfast, considering that she had smashed a few plates in frustration from her father a few days ago - and the rest are in need of washing or drying.

Skylor leaves her house and heads over to the garage, pulling out her keys for her car and the opening to the place itself. She found hers; which wasn't very big, but it was good enough for a 16 year old. She put her bag on the passenger seat and began to drive to Starbucks, putting the radio on for background ambience.

Before she left, Skylor checked the time.

7:23AM.

She can make it to Starbucks and eat in there if the traffic isn't bad.

She reached her first destination, and parked her car, walking into to the relatively quiet coffee shop to collect her order and sit down.

A beep from her phone caught her attention. She saw in the lock screen that Nya had texted her. She opened it and read the message.

Nya: Hey skyyy! So, Heard u were gonna be late today. Well, classes start in a few minutes, so I won't see u until lunch. Cya then! Oh, and also, be safe! I heard there's a drunk driver going around a few minutes ago xx

Skylor: Haha thx Nya. Yeah, cya at lunch.

Skylor sighed, and finished the last bit of her coffee. She couldn't afford to be late for the 7th time this month - she'd get suspended. She rested her head in her palms and sighed again. "Come on Skylor. Just get up, ignore your dad and leave. You barely see him anyway."

She left the coffee shop, and headed to school.

Late again. Wonder what she'll get this time.

~~~
Cole jolted up, hearing the sound of retching coming from the bathroom. Worried, he quickly check his phone and he sees it's 5:56AM. He quickly puts his phone back down and rushes to the place he heard someone retching, and looks through the crack in the door.

Of course, it was her mother. She was diagnosed with a sickness a few months back, and it was taking her harder and quicker than Cole or his father would like. Speaking of which, he already heard his father from downstairs greet some early people who were rather ready to sing or dance. It was his job, so he couldn't blame him for being up this early - but he needs to take a day off once a while to check on his wife.

Cole's face softens and he opens the door, and sat next to his mum, rubbing her back and she coughs up whatever is in her stomach.

"Good morning, Cole." She says, looking him in the eyes as she weakly smiles, standing up and flushing the toilet. Mentioned teen sighed, and stood up himself to fetch the woman's toothbrush. He smiles back when she turns around, looking a bit stronger than before. She hums a thank you and takes the item that her son had given her, before going to brush her teeth.

"Good morning, mum. Are you going to be helping dad today?" He asks, standing in the doorway of the bathroom. He yawned one rubbed his eyes, waiting for a response. She spat into the sink and cleared her mouth, before wiping it and facing Cole.

"Yes. I'm feeling a lot better today. Go and have a few more minutes of rest, I'll go and get your stuff from the coffee shop down the street." The black and brown haired woman replied, giving a small and soft smile up to her son. He smiled back and hugs her tightly.

"Thank you. Stay safe."

His mother giggles at the last sentence and she and leaves to her and her husband's room, waving a hand at Cole. He laughs back and walks his way to his room, flopping on the bed and pulling out his phone.

6:15AM.

Jay: Hey Cole! How's your mother doing today?

Cole smiled as he felt happy tears prick his eyes. Once a day at least one of his friends asked how his mother was. Her health increased and decreased every time the family of three went for their weekly check up - and it was really starting to worry Cole and his father.

Cole: She vomited this morning but seems way better now. Thx for asking Jay :)

Jay: No problemo brotheren 😌

The black haired teenager laughs at Jay's sense of humor and puts his phone away, getting up and walking over to his closet. He pulls out a pair of vans, black ripped jeans, a grey hoodie and a white shirt underneath.

As he goes to get his back, his phone ringing caught him off guard. He rushed over and looked at it. It was his mother. Worried, he quickly answers.

"Mom, you okay?"

His mother laughs. "I'm fine sweetie. I just wanted to ask. Do you want a blueberry muffin? They have no donuts left."

"Awh..uhm, yeah sure. Please."

"Alright. Can you ask Lou if he wants anything? Text me back as soon as possible. Bye!"

"Bye mom!"

He hangs up the phone and grabs the many pencils from last night on the floor, and stuffs them into his pencil case. He puts that into his bag, and them grabs his books from the corner. Putting that into his bag, he ruffles his hair and looks in the mirror before exiting his room and walked downstairs, with his phone and headphones in hand.

"Hey, Uh dad? I know you're about to start teaching people, but mom asked if you wanted anything from the store while she's there?" He asked, knocking on the door to the studio. He saw a group of people in the corner, warming up their vocals while Cole's dad sat on his piano waiting for them. He glances at his son and smiled, standing up to greet him.

"Morning, son." He said, rummaging through a few song papers. "No, I don't think we do. Tell her to stay safe." He replied, smiling and waving at his son. Cole nodded, and typed a quick message to his mum before he left.

Cole: Dad doesn't need anything. I'm going to school now. Stay safe and I'll cya this evening :)

Mom: I will, have a good day!

Cole then went into his music app, and picked his favourite sock rock playlist, the song lowly playing in his ears, and he made is way to the bus stop, ready to meet Kai and Nya there.

He looked up at the board, seeing it's coming at 7:00AM. Groaning, he checks the time on his phone, seeing it's 6:54AM. He won't get time to see Seliel or anyone else for that matter!

"Hey Cole!" Nya said, making the mentioned teen jolt. Since when did she and Kai get here? Or was he just blind?

"Oh, hey guys. Bus is late today, huh?" Cole said, pulling out an earbud and letting it dangle next to his phone as he started a conversation with the twins. They both nodded and Kai pulled out three breakfast bars and handed them to Nya and Cole. The taller male takes one gratefully and rips open the packaging, taking a bite of the crunchy chocolate cereal and smiling at the brunette, giving his thanks.

"You not having one, sis?" Kai asked, snapping the girl out of her thoughts. She shook her head and locked eyes with her brother, and shook her head. "No, I'm not very hungry at the moment. I'll probably end up eating it after 1st period." She replied, stuffing the bar into her hoodie pocket, and looked out for the bus.

Cole looked at Kai, confused. Kai shrugs and let's Cole finish his bar, while also waiting for the bus.

~~~
"Get up! Get up!"

Morro groaned, hearing the constant pounding on the closet door. He rubs his red puffy eyes and sat up. He turned the lamp on near his bed and stood up, looking in the small mirror to scan over his face. The bruise from last night was still a very dark purple on his face and tear stains were still on his cheeks.

Sighing, he grabbed the brush from his bedside table and messily brushed his black and green hair, making it look fluffy and poofy. His long hair covered his black eye, and he was going to use makeup to cover it up - until last night. His mother and father had found out he used a tiny bit of makeup - as he thinks it looks good, (and to cover up the bruises) but they didn't agree with it. It had even quiet brutal; and although it wasn't as physically violent as some days, it had still hurt.

Morro open his drawers and pulled out a black long sleeve top, blue jeans and some ordinary trainers.

As he was just about to get changed, the door swung open, and a broom was thrown into the room, along with two cloths. "I recommend you hurry your ass out here and start cleaning before you get to school!" Morro's fathers voice boomed from the stairs, a angry tone in his voice.

Covering his eye, the teen grabbed the items and opened the closet door, carefully trying not to make too much noise, as it's early and the morning and the last thing he wants to do is disturb his mother.

He entered the kitchen, and the events from last night flashed fresh in his mind.

"You CANNOT wear a skirt! What kind of man would it make you?!"

"Dad! It's 2020, no one cares about girl and boy stereotypes!"

"WHAT DID YOU SAY??!"

Wincing, the teenager kneels down and cleans up the shattered glass from the floor and puts it into a bag, throwing it outside. He then went in to clean the blood up from the floor - his mother had smashed the glass and cut her hand open, so she blamed Morro.

"There's a sandwich and 2 pound on the side. Take it and go." His father mumbled, fumbling with the buttons on the TV and then turning it on, Ninjago News was the first voice he heard. Morro stood up and threw the clothes into the bin and gratefully took the money and food. He only got food once a week, and was given at the most 2 pound every day. The only reason being is because Morro's neighbour was an elderly women. She sadly couldn't take Morro in for herself, as she was partially blind and white old, but she always checked up on them at 7:00AM sharp.

Speaking of time, the male looked up at the Roman numeral clock above the fridge and saw it was 6:56AM. Crap! He was gonna be late!

"Thank you so much, father." Morro said, rushing out of the room with said items and back into the closet. His father grunted, and changed the channels on the TV.

"Whatever. Your mother is going out with some friends tonight and I'm going to a fight club to watch. We won't be back until late, so like, stay at your friends house I don't really care."

Morro nodded once more, and shoved something for nighttime in his bag, before rushing up the stairs to get his toothbrush and toothpaste. He squirts some onto the brissels and quickly brushes his teeth, spat into the sink and cleaned himself up.

"Morro, would you stop running around?! It's 7:00AM in the morning for gods sake!" His mother yelled from her bedroom. "Sorry, mother."

"No! Come in here now!"

Morro gulped and slowly made his way into his mothers room. He was visibly shaking, afraid of what his mother would do. He entered her room, which was very messy, and he had a hard time trying not to trip up on the many fallen things.

"Yes, mother? What is it?" He asked, as calm as he could. He put his bag around his shoulder and clasped his hands together in front of himself. He swallowed again, waiting for his mother to respond.

"I've told you many times to not be so loud. I was up all night upset at you." She used her two fingers to rub her temples softly, and put them back down.

"B-But mother! Like I said, no one cares if I wear a skirt - except for you and father!" He retaliated, tears streaming down his face. He had enough keeping it together now. Being told all day everyday that he was a boy and he was supposed to wear 'boy' clothing and be attracted to females. He had just shoved his tears down all those times - too afraid to tell his parents that he's Bi and he likes a boy at the moment. He couldn't hold it together anymore, and completely broken down and screamed at his mother.

Slap.

"Don't you dare talk back to me." She mumbled against his ear, then standing up and shoving him out of her room. Before shutting the door, she added on one more thing. "I suggest that if you don't want your father hearing about this you leave right this instant."

The door slammed after that, leaving the slap and the loud sound to ring in the boys' ears.

He stumbled back, and wiped his tears. Buying his lip, he went down the creaky stairs and went back into the kitchen. He rummaged through the draws - desperately trying to find the key before his father found out what had just gone down.

He hears a disappointed sigh behind him. "Oh for gods sake." His father mumbled. "The keys are on the side. Just leave."

Morro doesn't even say thank you as he races to the front door, seeing the key on the side. He swiftly picks it up and shoved it into the key hole, twisting it, and opening the door. He locked it as quick as possible, before making sure he is definitely in school. His house was basically opposite the high school he goes to, so he would leave later.

Sighing, the boy checked his phone.

7:09AM.

Twenty one minutes until form starts. He hides behind the school wall and takes a few deep breathes, before finally retreating to school.

~~~
Knock knock

"Come in, Zane."

Zane gently pushed the wooden door open. His father, well, inventor, was in his bed reading a newspaper. When the white haired boy cane in, he put it down and smiled contently at him.

"Good Morning." He said, taking his glasses off and placing them on his desk. He eyed his son again, and noticed that he was slightly twitching and looked uneasy. His face softened, and he raised an eyebrow at his son. "What is wrong? You seem quite uneasy." He asked, motioning for Zane to come forward. He does, anxiously.

"Father, you do know I have school in about an hour, a-and.." He trailed off, a spark coming from his arm. He sat down on the bed and looked at the inventor in the eyes.  "And I cannot seem to fix these sparks and twitches." He sighed, and pulled out the oil that he had been trying to use to stop his twitching all night.

Julien sighed and pulled the thick covers off his body and swung his legs over the bed, gradually standing up and walking over to a set of draws. He opened the middle one, crouching down so he can reach the items better.

Zane raised an eyebrow at his father, and slowly walked over to him. He had not told a single soul that he was robot - except for Pixal, his robot girlfriend. They were compatible at first sight, and from then, they've been together. It had only been around a year; but they trusted each other with their lives.

Julien held a screw and Zane handed the lil can be had almost used up. "Turn around please." He asked. Zane turned around and held a bit of his blond hair away from his neck, as the compartment for his brain is behind it. The screwdriver began to enter his neck, and Zane braces himself for a minor spark.

"You're going to have to give these to Pixal and if you feel any sparks or glitches use this card." The inventor says, pulling out a card which says 'Bathroom Pass. All day use.'

Zane took it and smiled, stuffing it in his pocket before he braced himself. The spark came quick, making the teenage robot glitch and gasp. Panting, the doctor removed he screwdriver and pushed his compartment door in, and turned the boy around. He was panting. "Thank you, father." He smiles.

Julien smiles back at him and hands him the screwdriver, before getting up and heading to the oil changed in the corner of his room. He dumps the old part back into the filter and placed the can underneath the dispenser, pressing the button and wait for it to fill.

"Father..do you think that I would ever be able to tell anyone I was a robot..? Do you think they'd make fun of me?" Zane asks, looking down into the ground with a dejected look on his pale face. The inventor places a hand on his sons shoulder and smiled reassuringly. "Son..what matters is I love you. Pixal loves you, and so do your friends. That's all that matters. If worst comes to worse and you do get bullied, I know some of your friends are pretty strong. And even if I didn't implement a high self-defense system in, you can learn some more."

Zane hugged his father tightly, a smile creeping on his face. "Thank you, father." He says, standing up off of his bed and exiting the room. He gives his father a quick wave before leaving his sight.

"Uh, Zane! You forgot an item!"

"Ah! I'll be right back!"

Finally, Zane had the items he needed to get through the day. He rushed back into his room and stuff them into a backpack, before slightly ruffling his blonde hair and taking a quick glance in the mirror to his pale self.

He then went down in his drawers, picking out a white jacket, a grey shirt, blue jeans and some trainers. He put them on, and then went to his hair. It had gotten more..human-like, over the years, so in the morning it was normally quite soft and it had fallen down his face. But one of his friends, Kai, introduces him to hair gel, he can't get his hands off then.

Rummaging through his top draw, he found the container and flipped the lid open, squirting a generous amount on his fingers before letting it run through his bleach blonde hair, the gel making quick progress at the hairs stood up on his head.Smiling contently, Zane grabbed a wet wipe and wiped the remaining gel off of his hand and into the bin. He grabbed another one and quickly cleaned his face with them. He then put the products back into his draw, and grabbed his bag and phone.

6:03AM.

Zane was normally the one to make breakfast in the house, as his father said he became much better over the first few years of being at school. He took cooking club 3 times a week with Pixal, and they were always partners and always enjoyed it. Is, his father now complimented his own son on the phenomenal cooking he makes.

He stuffs the remainder of his items in his bag, before exiting and heading to the kitchen to start making breakfast. He left home at bout 6:30AM, and his father left for work at around 6:45AM, so they needed to be up a bit earlier. It didn't bother Zane, considering he's a robot and doesn't necessarily need sleep. And Julien always goes to sleep early, considering he's around 55/56 and he's getting older.

The teen puts his bag on one of the seats and heads to the kitchen cabinet, pulling out a few ingredients, and some accessories to put on the food later.He grabbed a pan and lit the stove, a small flame igniting from it. He was just about to grab a mixing bowl from the cupboard, when his arm tightened. Rolling his eyes in frustration and fear, he stood back up and unzipped his back, desperately trying to find the oil. Finally, he found it, and clicked the trigger a few times, sighing contently when the arm loosened up again. God, does he hope nothing like this happens in class.

He starts to pour the ingredients into the bowl, stirring it up to make a it a nice thick batter. He grabbed the spoon and dips it into the cold mixture, filling it up to the brim as he poured it onto the pan.

The blonde haired boy grabbed the pan after a few minutes of it heating up the bottom half, and flips the pancakes perfectly. Scoffing, he puts the pan back on he heated stove, and then going to grab two plates.

In case it wasn't obvious, Zane decided to make American fluffy pancakes, and he only needed to make a few more. It wasn't going to be hard, considering he had just finished his own and was now quickly making his fathers.

Finally finishing, Zane sits down and quickly checks the time on his phone. He had to be out the house in 15 minutes, so he had to be quick. His father then came out, in relatively casual clothing, considering he was an engineering scientist.

"Oh wow, Zane." Julien said, sniffing the air, which smelt amazing. "Where's the-"

"On the side over there." Zane cute him off, putting a portion of the syrup drizzled and strawberry on top pancake as he pointed to the kitchen side and smiled amusingly. The inventor did the same, before walking over and getting it. He drizzled a bit on the top, watching it fall down like a graceful waterfall.

"My, this is amazing!"

Zane laughed lightly, finishing the last bit of his food and then placing in in the sink. He checked his phone. 6:23AM. "Ah! I've got to brush my teeth, and wash my hands. I'll see you tonight, father. Have a good work day." Zane said, quickly rushing out the room with his backpack on.

Julien smiled to himself. "Have a good day Zane!"

~~~
"Pix! Pixal!"

Pixal jolted up to sound of someone shouting her name. Not caring about whatever she was wearing, she flew the covers off her body and jumped out of bed, her bare feet padding loudly on the ground.

The automatic doors slide open for her, and she immediately speeds out of her bedroom, worried that something had happened to her father.

"Father? Father?! Are you okay?" Pixal yells back, rushing into his bedroom. He's laying down on the ground, his wheelchair all the way across the room. He doesn't look like he's in any pain, which is a relief and a half, but he cannot stand up.

"Oh my! What happened?" She says, lifting him up and placing him on his shared bed with his wife-oh.

Of course, her 'mother' was to blame. But she hardly called her a mother. She'd go out randomly whenever she feels like and comes back smashed out of her face from drugs or alcohol, and it's not nice at all.

"Was it Zara?" The female robot asked, not bothering to use her real name, and she thought of her as the complete opposite of a mother in general. They were supposed to be kind and sweet and gentle, not snappy, drug/alcohol abused.

Her blood boils as Borg nods, and his head turns away from his daughter. She walks over to the corner of the room and observes the wheelchair, seeing that there's only a few scratches on the wheels. Other than that, it's still fine to put her father in and make sure he gets to work fine.

"Are you okay? Does anything hurt?" She asked, picking him up and placing him down. He places both hands on the wheels and heads to the door, Pixal close behind.

"Yes, yes, I'm fine. You better get ready for school, it's fifteen minutes past six." Borg says, the door opening and letting Pixal out. She turns around and hugs her father tightly. He responds, worried for the teenage girl. "Pixal, are alright?"

"Why does mother treat you like this? You've never told me." She mumbles into his shoulder. The inventor chuckled nervously and scratched his head. He didn't want to tell Pixal, but he didn't like lying to her. She pulls away and looked worried, her eyes bright greet and watery.

"I-I'll tell you once you get ready. Just relax." He responds, a soft smile on his face as he grabs her soft hands. She grips them back, and nods shakily. "Okay, thanks dad."

She walked off without another word, worried sick about what her mother had been doing. Sure, they weren't her biological parents, but she was much closer with her father and her mother. She was rather at work, or going out with friends. It worried her, that one day she could have a little too much, and she just-

"No, Pixal, do not think that. She's fine. She will be fine. Maybe mother was just a little confused." She reassured herself for the time being.

She entered her room again, taking a deep exhale and trying to get her concerns to wash away. Pixal walked up to her walk-in her closet and it opened, showing her a few outfits that she could wear for school.

She pulled out a blue skirt and a white jumper, and some shorts to go underneath the skirt. She went to the draws in the corner of the closet and grabbed some socks, and a pair of trainers. Putting them on, the robot folded up her pyjamas and placed them in the laundry basket in the corner of her room.

Her bag was by her desk, and she swiftly picked it up, putting the rest of her stuff in it, and then quickly put her hair into a ponytail. She left the room and headed to the kitchen, where her father was sitting down eating breakfast.

Pixal sat down beside him and took a few bites of the eggs and bacon, but then swallowed them, put her fork down and looked at him.

"Father, where's mother?"He looks up at the platinum haired girl and stopped eating, putting his own cutlery down and scratching the back of his neck. "Pixal, I don't really know myself. Just..go to school and I'll tell you when you come back home. Maybe Alice will be back home too. Have a good day sweetie."

She sighed and walked to the elevator.

"See you, father."

~~~
"You're the one that's supposed to pay the bills this month!"

"No, I did it last month, and the month before, and the month before. You just sit of the sofa and watch shitty films!"

"Because I work hard!"

"Yeah, as being a fucking lazy bitch!"

Seliel reluctantly opened her eyes after hearing her parents fight again. She pulled the covers over her head, and tried to drown out the insults that echoed back and forth in her mind. Of course; it was the rent again. They always had this argument every month, and it was really starting to drive the girl crazy. She had even gone out of her way and dyed her hair Pink and Blue - and gotten in trouble with the school, but they still wouldn't stop bickering and acknowledge their only daughter for once.

"You hear it too?" The voice of someone above called out. It was her cousin that she shared a room with - her name was Scarlett. There were two other boys who stayed in another room; and they were called Alexander and Sam.

Seliel's auntie, (their mother) has been charged with assaulting her boyfriend, leaving him to uncharacteristic-ness, and trauma. She had been sent to jail for about 10 years, so she's not gonna see anyone soon.

Scarlett was 3 years older than Seliel, she has a small job as a waitress in a restaurant. Sam and Alex were a year younger than the pink haired girl, so they went to school together.

"Scarlett, I hear it basically every day since I turned 12. You're about to get a house, and Alex and Sam are gonna leaving in about a week." She wiped a stray tear away than ran down her face. "And then there's me; too young to work a job like you, but too old to run off to an adoption centre. Plus, mom and dad don't let me go out unless I sneak out. You and the other two get to do that." She exhaled shakily, and sat up in bed. 5:48AM.

"Hey," A body dropped down in front of her fork the bed. "I know, it's gonna be hard. But, as soon as you leave school, you can move to university, and have the time of your life there; especially with your boyfriend. What was his name again? Is it Nicholas, Alex, wait no no, that doesn't sound right-"

She sighs. "Scarlett, his name is Cole."

Scarlett clicked her fingers. "Yes, him! You practically finally live with him!" She draped an arm around her shoulder. Seliel tolled her eyes. "Yeah, now get out, I'm gonna get changed."

Her cousin giggled and let the room, closing the door behind her. The younger girl walked over to her drawers, and pulled out a white t-shirt, black leggings, and a soft pink hoodie. Her next thought was to quickly brush her hair, and spray some deodorant on herself before retreating to the bathroom and washing her face. She brushed her teeth, and left silently.

"Seliel, there you are!" Her father yelled, throwing a piece of paper at her face. She sighed and picked it up from the floor. Opening the crumpled letter, she finds that it says something along the lines of:

Rent is needed to be paid by ___, if there is not payment by that date, you and you're family shall be evicted from the premises.

"And what do you want me to do with this?" She asked, raising an annoyed and confused eyebrow at her parents.

"Choose one of us. Rather me, or you father to pay for it." Her mother responded, crossing her arms and squinting her eyes at her husband, who growled for a reply.

Seliel sighed and threw the paper on the floor and walked away. "I'm not picking anyone. I'm going to school, and I might stay at my..uh, friends' house today. Goodbye." She mumbled, grabbing a quick and easy breakfast bar and walking outside. She closed and locked the door behind her. And that's when she heard the sound of bickering which was muffled by the outside world for the millionth time this month.

The girl sighed and took a bite out of the bar and unlocked her phone, going to the call log and scrolling down, finding the taxi number and dialling it to get a cab.

"Hello?"

"I'd like to order a cab please."

"Okay, what's your address then?"

"34 Donovan Street - by the memorial statue."

"Alright it should be there in about 20 minutes."

"Thank you."

Seliel hung up the phone and checked the time quickly. 6:15AM. She needed to get to school earlier than usual, as she had an morning detention to attend to. She hadn't done anything wrong, but trying to argue with her geography teacher is trying to teach a dog full on posh English. Basically, it was impossible.

She took another bite of the food before hearing her parents go at it again for the laundry.

The fucking laundry.

"Can't your lazy asses just do it?!" She mumbled angrily, groaning into a her hands, trying to refrain from pulling her hair out for the umpteenth time today as she heard the people who were supposed to love each other be at each other's throats again.

"Fine, I'll do it! This is the final time I'm interfering in an argument!"

Was that Scarlett? Why was her cousin doing the work? She practically doesn't even live here!

The girl felt her anger rise and the married couple didn't stop arguing. They were making Scarlett do the chores because they couldn't stop bickering. Her eyebrows creased in guilt, and she wiped her watery eyes quickly.

The cab eventually came and Seliel rushes over to it, saying her thanks and requested the location of her destination. She sighed as she rested her shoulder on the edge of the car window, watching her house fade away with every second. She waved slightly and pulled out her phone, making sure she wasn't going to be late. 6:32AM. Huh, a bit earlier. She'll doubt she'll see her boyfriend, or any of her friends for that matter. Because they've all got problems of their own, and they all could be suffering right now.

Another twinge of guilt flashed through her body. She feels bad for the homes her friends have. Kai and Nya don't even have a Home, Jay's almost always alone, Skylor's dad is an absolute d*ckhead, Cole's mother is deteriorating by the days, Zane is desperately trying to hide the fact he's a robot, Morro has an abusive relationship with his parents, Pixal barely sees her mother, and Lloyd is concerned for his father.

And then her own problems. Family problems, marriage problems, fear of abandonment.

She just wants to be happy.

~~~
"Lloyd, Lloyd wake up. You're about to be late." A soft female voice said beside the blonde, shaking his shoulders. The boy groaned, and fluttered his dry eyes open, seeing his mother. He smiled weakly and rubbed his eyes. "Morning mom, what time is it..?" He mumbled, looking over to his alarm clock and seeing it was 6:32AM.

"Ah crap! Sorry mom!" He yelled, sitting up and sprinting out of bed. Misako laughed and stood up from his bed, waking to the doorway before turning around and looking at her son.

"Bad night?"

Lloyd nodded. "Dad stormed out again, talking to someone in the phone. I never knew his work shifts was were that random." He sighed, remembering when he was up at about 1AM. The woman sighed. "It's bad, he really should stick to a shift, but he's always trying to find money for us. Apparently my 'history teacher' job doesn't pay enough." She responded, putting air quotes over history teacher. She did teach history, but she didn't just teach that. She taught primary school children 9AM-4PM on Wednesday's and Fridays. She doesn't get the payment she deserves from it, and considering she's a big history buff and the kids normally just want to go outside and have a few more minutes of break, it's quite hard.

"Mom, what job does dad even do? I don't remember him ever telling me." Lloyd asked, grabbing a comb and brushing his naturally messy hair as he talked to his mother.

"He's a business man, meaning he'll sometimes go overseas, or he won't come back for a few days. That's what he's told me, and he seems to get good pay, so it's really all that matters." Misako replies, shrugging her shoulders. "Well, I'll leave you be, breakfast is on the side, then you'd should get going and meet Morro."

Lloyd nodded and wave to Misako as she left, walking back into the kitchen and digging into her own meal.

The green eyed teen pulled out a black jacket with green writing for the logo, a white t-shirt and jeans. He went over and grabbed a pack of wipes, taking one out and cleaning his face. He then walked over to his bed, which was a mess. He had been shuffling around for quiet a bit at night as he heard his father talk to someone, presumably a colleague or his boss, before the door finally was shut and he could relax again.He honestly worried for his father. When he did come back he was too tired to do anything with his wife or Lloyd himself, and he'd grab a bottle of alcohol and lie of the sofa.

He shook his off and grabbed his bag, his spare change his mother left him and walked to the kitchen, grabbing a spoon and digging into the cereal, eating some of it.

"Mom? Is dad staying overnight today?" He asked, putting his spoon into the bowel and eyeing his mother. Her blue eyes responded, worried and glazed over. She swallowed. "I don't know Lloyd. Maybe they'll be one day where he wants to hang out with us. But, that will be while." She mumbled, fumbling with her spoon and sighing.

Her son sighed too, and finished eating. He stood up and place the bowl and cutlery of his and his mother's, before swinging his backpack over his shoulder and wiping himself off.

"See ya' later mom." Lloyd said, waving at the woman with glasses as she sis she'd goodbyes. He walked down the hallway to the front door. Lloyd was about to put his trainers on, before something caught the corner of his tired eyes.

Making a hum of confusion, the teen turned his head to the side and saw a piece of paper that was flipped on the radiator. Thank god it wasn't on, the house could've been burnt to a crisp before he would realise. His hand grabbed the slip of paper and he flipped it over, glazing his eyes over the writing written in bold sharpie.

Be there. 015729.

Lloyd raised an eyebrow at the number. Was this his mother's? He doesn't recognise that number at all. It may be something for his fathers work, but why would he keep it here? He may have forgotten it.

Gah! Lloyd, you're gonna be late!

He put his shoes on and shoved the key in, turning it and opening the door, yelling out a quick goodbye it Misako, before shutting and locking the door behind him and pacing to the street.

Ring Ring.

He pulled out his phone and looked at the number - it was Morro.

"Hey Morro, you okay?"

"H-Hey. Have you heard from Seliel or Nya?"

"Apparently Seliel has a morning detention to go to, and I think Nya is going on the bus with Kai and Cole."

"Ah, crap. C-Can you do Make-up quickly?"

"Morro.."

"I-It was my father. Please, Lloyd."

"I'll try. Stay safe buddy. I'm five minutes away."

"Meet me behind the swimming pool."

"Okay. Goodbye."

"See you."

Lloyd felt his empathy rise when he heard that Morro's father was doing that to him. He didn't deserve it. He went to his messages and found Nya, and then dropped her a quick text.

Lloyd: Nya, I need you to meet me and Morro behind the swimming pool before school.

Nya: Sure. 7:15?

Lloyd: I'll be there.

Lloyd put his phone away and sighed.

What was that number?