A wail pierced the night, the infant it came from squirming in the older man’s gentle grasp, making him shudder. Running, he felt his heart pounding against his ribs, turning each breath into an agonizing, quick gasp. But he had to get back home. The child had to stay safe. Briars tore at the man’s legs, ripping through the ankles of his pants and whipping his legs, but that...was the least of his worries. The greatest? Was that the infant's father...an awful, awful man...would find him before he made it to safety. His breaths shaky, tears and sweat streaming down his face and stinging his eyes, the man burst through the door of the shack that he called “home,” the shack that seemed ready to collapse as he entered it. Finally, he could rest some...at least, once he calmed the child down. Glancing down at the wailing child he still carried in his scarred arms, he felt waves of many, many different emotions striking him, but...pity was the strongest. He knew that he would have to take care of this child, protecting him from what dangers were there...even in his own family. No. That man wasn’t family. He would never be. Taking a deep breath, Liam began to comfort his wailing brother, holding Skilar as close as he could, gently resting a hand on the side of his face. “No one’s going to hurt you. Ever.”
The characters and writing belong to me uwu idk how to feel about this writing tbh
