Chapter5

#Chapter5

The thing about people was that once you got to know them, it became harder for their actions to surprise you.

Stryker wasn't surprised; he was annoyed.

Teeth snapping together into a tight clench and his eyes narrowing, Stryker knew- deep down- that there was nobody to blame but himself. He had been stupid enough to trust Maddy to lock up and leave his home.

/"Why,/" he asked, as calmly as he could, /"Exactly is my sofa in my driveway?/" He lifted his hand, snatching it out of Jamie's to point out of the window to where his brown couch sat, lazing in the place where Stryker usually parked his car.

They were in the living room, his eyes scanning the spot where the couch once was; a long, rectangular patch of lighter carpet was the only evidence that it had once been there. His other furniture had been moved around, the coffee table pushed into the corner of the room.

/"Because it was disgusting,/" Maddy said nonchalantly. He didn't look worried. His expression was one of concentration as he worked his nail file against the long nail of his thumb. His lean body was propped against the fireplace, his eyes flicking up to meet Stryker's only for the briefest of seconds. They then flicked over to Jamie and the faintest of smiles turned his lips. /"Kernal owes me 50./"

/"You don't get to throw out my stuff. I liked it,/" Stryker growled. Jamie, who clutched the bag Kernal had given him in his arms, backed away. /"And you were betting on whether I would take one or not?/"

Maddy shrugged, turning his attention back to his nails. /"The sofa was disgusting; it had spills and stains on it and I swear there was even mould growing down the side of the arm. Your new one will be coming tomorrow. And yes. Kernal thought that stick up your ass was shoved too high to take one. I knew that you would./"

/"I don't want a new one./"

/"Tough. If you're this pissy about this, then you're going to hate what I did upstairs./"

/"I... what did you do?/" Stryker snarled, his eyes narrowing. He had known even as he left Maddy at his house that it was an idiotic thing to do: lesson learned.

/"I moved a little furniture. No big deal. I bought you a few things, too, because like I said, I knew you wouldn't be coming back empty-handed. You'll be getting a delivery tomorrow. New furniture, mostly for the kid. Toodles./" He waved, pushing off and heading towards the door. Stryker stopped him, slamming his hand into Maddy's chest, causing him to take a few sharp steps back.

/"Don't come back,/" Stryker warned after a pause of silence. It wasn't what he had wanted to say. It wasn't even close but after a calming breath it was the only thing he could come up with that lacked cursing and insults.

/"Don't worry, best buddy. I'll be back in the morning. I want to check if the new sofa is as cute as it looked on the site. And I have to finish setting up a nursery for... Jimmy?/"

/"Jamie,/" Stryker breathed, closing his eyes, resisting the urge to count to ten. /"His name is Jamie. I assume by the 'finish setting up,' that you've already started?/"

Maddy gave a bright nod before slipping past Stryker, calling out a chirpy farewell.

/"All you have to do, kid,/" Stryker said once the sound of Maddy's car pulling out of the drive had vanished. /"Is be less annoying than him. Think you can manage that?/"

A small nod was the reply. His body had cowered into the wall, as though he was trying to become one with it. The headache that had been tingling earlier had begun to evolve, and as he gave the living room one last glance, noting the absence of beer cans and bottles that had littered the floor around the sofa earlier that morning, he turned the light off.

/"Might as well go and see what the damage is,/" he muttered to himself at last, grabbing the sleeve of Jamie's jumper as he exited the room. The boy squeaked and pulled back a little but stilled beneath the hard look Stryker fixed him. After Maddy's antics, he really wasn't in the mood for any more nonsense.

The floating staircase seemed to unnerve the little, the tiny hand slipping into Stryker's as he mounted the steps. The home had once been bright and open; photo's had combed the walls and happiness and warmth seemed to radiate from the very walls. Now, empty nails sat where the photos had once hung and the house harboured a stale and depressing air.

Evidence of Maddy's interference was obvious; outside one of the spare bedrooms, the furniture lingered. A wardrobe blocked the way to the end of the hall and the small desk that had held a t.v unit had been pushed out to join it.

Stryker forced a deep breath before heading into the room that they had only hours before still been in.

Shopping bags sat in the middle of the room and the only item that remained was the thin, twin bed that had been moved, pushed into the furthest corner, just beneath the window.

/"Well, it's not much,/" he muttered dryly, eyeing the bags. /"But I guess it's yours./"

/"Mine?/" Jamie echoed, almost in wonder. The backpack in his hand slipped, hitting the floorboards with a dull thud.

/"hmm./" Stryker cleared his throat, giving a nod. He moved towards the bags, checking the contents, emptying them onto the floor.

Bottles, diapers, wipes, so much shit that he really hadn't been looking forward to seeing, fell out. Pacifiers, socks, bibs. Even a teething ring.

His headache seemed to intensify.

/"Do... do you need to... wear those?/" he asked in discomfort after a short bout of silence. The pack of diapers seemed to mock him; he had looked after his nephew before so he could handle kids but diapers had always been his kryptonite.

Jamie's cheeks tinged red as he nodded, clumsily reaching down to pick up the bag that he had dropped.

Stryker felt for the kid. It was very obvious how scared the kid was. With every tremor that ran through his hands or every flinch, it showed. It made Stryker respect him a little. Fear wasn't easy. He knew what it felt like to be afraid. I could be crippling.

/"Okay./" He gave a small nod, giving himself a small pep talk as he held his hand out for the bag that Kernal had sent. Jamie passed it to him, almost tripping over his feet in his rush to oblige. He emptied it out into the small pile, grimacing. All that was in there was half a pack of wipes and a pull-up, a fresh set of clothes that looked far too big for Jamie and a cardboard storybook.

/"I have no clue what I'm supposed to be doing here,/" Stryker admitted as he picked up the pull-up, turning it in his hands. They seemed a little less hassle than the other kind with the straps. /"I don't know how to be a Daddy, or whatever, so how about we make a deal?/"

Jamie didn't answer but his head tilted slightly, letting him know that if nothing else, he was listening. Little fingers wound around themselves, the skin around the beds of his long, dirty nails sore and pulled. Stryker knew that he was in over his head. He should have taken Kernal's offer to decline, but it was too late now. He had to deal with it.

/"You tell me if I'm doing something wrong or something that you don't like, okay? I won't know unless you tell me. In return, I can look after you the best way possible. Does that sound fair?/"

A small, almost unnoticeable nod. It wasn't much; it was barely anything. But it was enough.

/"Have a look through this stuff. See if there's anything here that you want. I think I have some milk-/" If it hadn't curdled already /"- if you want me to fill up one of those bottles, or water. I definitely have water./" In fact, he had a whole tap full.