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It stated with Michael and Gavin.
No it started with Gavin and Ray.
No it started with all three of them, in passing, circling around like vultures who thought they owned the land of others.
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Michael had heard of Gavin, the awkward and lanky British boy who lived on the floor above him. He was somewhat of a legend around them.
Michael lived on the bottom floor of the old run down orphanage that no longer had the funding it used to. He was a rough and tumble boy with violence in his veins and poison in his words. He slept on a mattress that was coddled by thick wires underneath. A wool blanket for cold nights, and weak pajamas for the others. He slept in a room with three other boys, they were filled to the brim. The other rooms, for the lesser of the bad kids only had pairs in them. The late night antics of preteen boys was far more fun then some stupid British kid who ran the upper part of the building.
It wasn’t until Michael met Gavin that he understood. He far smarter than his age could handle, he stood out in a crowd. Hair standing at gravity defying angle no matter the length he kept it. His words shone against their familiar and boring accents. He was hyper active and loud, fumbling always for the words to say but he was special. It was easy to see from the moment anyone met him. He explained later that’s why no one wanted to adopt him. Anyone who wasn’t dumb could see the potential that he held, if he could just get a hold of himself long enough to give into that potential.
Michael hated him.
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Ray had heard of Michael is passing. His name always came up around the orphanage. He was like a myth among the younger kids. The things he’d done to the nanny’s, the words he’d uttered in the halls. The etches of his name all over the building it was there but there were never set in stone stories about the rage of a child he was. No one knew where he came from or why he was here. No one knew where he was now, how he got fostered. But it didn’t matter to them. The fear of the auburn curls still haunted even the bravest of souls.
Ray however, wasn’t too fearful of anything. He could laugh off the myth of a kid who was no longer roaming there halls easily even as whispers of it passed around his crowded room. Kdin, his bunk mate nearly wet himself from stories told of Michael.
It wasn’t until Ray met Michael that he understood. He was a ball of fury rolled into a prepubescent boy. He held nothing but anger in his eyes. Most feared him, the nannys did just about everything to keep him happy or stay far away from him. Michael was unpredictable and strong, he could crowd the biggest of kids with just a look. He was too much in such a small body, he held too much for such a short life.
Ray envied him.
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The three became inseparable by the time Ray was fourteen, Michael fifteen, Gavin sixteen. Nothing could stand in their way, and nothing dared to. Gavin was special, he stood out. Michael was everything but special, but he knew how to put people in their places. And Ray, Ray was just along for the ride. Happy to be there and happy his boys kept him so.
They ran the orphanage. Everyone looked up to them, everyone wanted to be them and have what they had. They all needed a home to fit into and the lads gave that to each other. While they slept in rooms knowing tomorrow they wouldn’t get adopted. For a year they woke up every day like this, found each other a mess of overcrowding. They gave each other what they needed to get through each day like this for a long time.
They were trouble.
Gavin was always the one to get caught, but he knew all the words to say to get out of the mess. Michael liked the trouble but never risked the others getting the brunt of what he’d done. Ray was quick with his fingers and quick on his feet, never missing a beat to feed them, or crack a joke when it was too hard to breath. Ray held together the older boys who fought endlessly most days. He would step in between any rage that Michael had without fear. He was quick to back up any stupid words Gavin had spewed and struggled to make sense. Michael was softened by Gavin during the nights his best friends lungs struggled to make sense of the anxiety he held. Gavin was pulled back to reality by the both of them. And Ray, Ray felt better the moment either of them walked into a room. Held down by Michael but eased by Gavin. They were the perfect equilibrium for each other.
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They were gone before Ray turned sixteen.
Two years’ worth of taking care of each other. They figured they could try their hand at doing it on their own. So they did. The orphanage didn’t really miss them after they packed what little they had and booked it. They ran for a while, sleeping anywhere they could find comfortable. They kept each other warm, light on their feet, happy. It was easy for a long time.
Until it wasn’t.
Without many words they realized they couldn’t do it for much longer. They couldn’t skip town to town conning anything and everything for people. They couldn’t continue to hold down Gavin’s anxiety without help. They couldn’t hold back Michael from nearly killing anyone who crossed them. They couldn’t deal with Ray’s powers budding. Confused and lost was all it took for them to find shelter. And so they did.
Dan was his name and he was a blessing, a miracle is any of them could put their trust in something like fate. At the time he was living off of his father’s wealth, he had a nice sized apartment and no trouble feeding himself. He and Gavin were the first to connect, mainly because they were both English. They connected easy, Gavin the only lad to be quick to trust anyone who smiled at them. And then Ray fell close behind, falling for Dan’s easy smile and funny jokes. Michael didn’t trust Dan for a long time, even after sleeping on his couch. But he caught on eventually. Eventually Michael could put his life on the line and trust Dan to be there to catch him and his two boys.
It was finally easy for them.