Born Broken by Anna Huscha (good summer reads .txt) 📖

dogs head before walking away, Buddy didn't follow.

He walked the streets, it would be a few hours before his foster family would wake up and call the agency so he had a few hours to wander the town and do whatever he wished to do.

Though there was nothing to do in the small town of Louisiana that he had lived in for a few different families, he still managed to not get bored to the point of pulling his hair out. Xavier hoped that with the next family he was moved to, they'd kick him far away from the small states and to somewhere much larger.

Damien

Damien sat in class, watching his friends talk to one another about their plans later, the pranks they'd do and which parties to hit. Though Damien hated parties he didn't like being left behind from his friends and so he went to them, he was shy so it made him appear 'cuter' to the girls and he liked that.

Once having all the details from Jake, Chase turned towards Damien and whispered the plans to him, Damien took a minute to think about it all and make sure he heard Chase right before nodding towards Chase.

"Got it" Damien whispered, Chase nodded then sat up straight. The night had been planned out and it wasn't even ten in the morning.

The day continued at a steady pace, seeming to slow down once the last period of the day rolled around, Damien dropped his head down onto his crossed arms and closed his eyes; The. Worse. Class. Ever.

The teacher had a monotonous voice and he was bored, tired beyond belief, and it was hard to focus no matter how hard he had tried to on any day.

The class finally came to an end as '3:05' ticked onto the clock and the bell rang, giving everyone the big sigh of relief as they left the class.

"So, when's our plans coming into action?" Chase ran up to where Jake and Damien stood talking, they had yet to figure out where the rest of their crew was at.

"Hm, I was thinking four thirtyish because if we wait too long I'm going to get bored with the night" Jake stated, Chase nodded.

"We gotta get the news around" Damien spoke up after a moment, as if on que, Kaden came out of no where and rested his arms on top of both Chase's and Damien's shoulders.

"Did I hear somebody needs news to be heard?" Kaden asked simply, both Chase and Damien nodded.

"Got'cha covered" Kaden stated, Kaden was the loud mouth, never cared what anybody had thought, and said what came to mind. Kaden ran over to a small platform and jumped up onto it. A bunch of people were still standing around in the hallways.

"Hey, everybody! Anyone who is sixteen years of age or older is invited to a party at Jake's place! Nobody under that age and it starts at four, got it?" Kaden asked, the entire crowd went wild.

"That's what I like to hear!" Kaden said victoriously before jumping down and returning to Chase's side.

"Thanks" Jake said flatly, though he hadn't wanted to host the party, he didn't quite have the option now to protest.

"No problem, bro" Kaden said with a smug smile, Jake smacked him upside the head before turning and leaving the building, leaving the rest of them following after him.

"So we're going to need money and booze" Jake said as he walked, he knew he was going to end up hosting the party anyway since Damien was too shy and Chase would flat out tell him 'go to hell' if he asked him to do it all. Jake was the expert at parties and knew what and how to keep the people entertained.

He needed a place to host the party and though he knew he would have to do it at his place, he didn't quite like the feeling of doing that.

In the corner of his eye Damien recognized a car in the parking lot, his mothers car. It struck him as odd that his mom would be there since Damien walked home after school every day since he had been in middle school, why suddenly would she be picking him up?

"Yo, guys... I'll catch up with you guys later, I have to go check something real fast" Damien said before turning and running off, the rest of them muttered 'okay' and 'sure' as he ran off, not bothering to ask in his hurry. They continued walking.

Damien ran off towards the blue Saturn, placing his hand on the hood of the car once close enough, it was still hot from when it had been running previously.

"Mom?" Damien asked out loud, wondering where she was since she didn't appear to be in the car.

Instead, she was off in the field, standing in front of a strange looking man in a suit. Damien cautiously walked over to them both, stopping a few inches from his mom's back.

"Hey ma" Damien said, not wanting to startle her, she turned around and smiled up to him.

"Hey there, what're you doing, aren't you supposed to be with your friends?" Lexi asked, Damien nodded then wondered the same thing.

"Was going to ask you the same thing minus the friends part, what's up?" Damien asked, shifting his feet and meeting her eyes.

"Damien, this is a man from the adoption agency, now don't go freaking out. He asked me to come here and talk with him for a moment because they've been looking for a boy named Xavier and they say you, thinking you were him. I reassured him you weren't" Lexi explained, Damien brought his eyes up and stared at the man.

"Why would you think I'm somebody I'm not?" Damien asked, the man cleared his throat.

"Xavier is in the agency, he's seventeen years old and the reason I had questioned your mother here is because you were in the agency long time ago and Xavier... is well, your twin" The man explained, Damien gave him a funny look.

"What?" Damien asked, Lexi sheepishly smiled up to him, she had not ever been told this before.

"Follow me and I'll explain it to the both of you" The man stated, Lexi gently took Damien's arm and led him to the building across the street.

Once inside they followed the man to a small office to the back of the building, once inside they took a seat and the door was closed for privacy reasons.

"Before we get started, my name is Mr. Bakster" Mr. Bakster stated then went on before either of them could say anything.

"I know this is random, it's sudden, and it's definitely not something that is often brought up. Xavier has been in foster care for seventeen years, he has been through more families than I have ever seen any child in this agency go through. He is a large part of this problem, we know that but still none of the families want to go through the trouble of controlling him since they have kids of their own. Now, Xavier isn't much of a trouble maker he is just a rough child who has been through more than I could explain to you, half because he bottles up everything. He's been arrested for protecting people and sometimes beating people with a coffee mug. I know he sounds violent but he's not half bad... I was just wondering if you'd be offering to give him a chance, you are the strongest mother I have seen to adopt and this is Damien's twin... he needs this, it's that or we have to do something with him because he just keeps running" Mr. Bakster explained, Lexi squeezed Damien's arm gently while thinking about it, she knew she had to for Damien.

She wanted him to get to know his twin and she felt bad for him, seventeen years in the foster care and not one of them housed him for more than a few months, seeing as he always ran.

"Is he violent?" Lexi asked, she felt stupid for saying this.

"Uhm..." Mr. Bakster started.

"What I mean, sir, is would he randomly smack Damien with a mug if he says something or would he wake in the middle of the night and I have to fear for my sons life?" Lexi asked, explaining it thoroughly.

"Oh no, no definitely not, he's not like that. You see, where he lives there's thousands of fights a week, he's a protector and thus helps people in need of aid. He doesn't go looking for it, they come looking for him because they know he doesn't take any of that stuff." Mr. Bakster stated, Lexi nodded before looking up at Damien.

"What do you think, wanna give your twin a chance?" Lexi asked, Damien looked straight, thinking about it.

Xavier

Xavier continued walking, pulling his hood up as he did, the skies seemed to growl as they rumbled, signaling a storm was approaching if not already there.

"Great" Xavier mumbled, he shoved his hands in his pockets and continued towards his destination, he normally didn't mind storms but he didn't feel like getting soaked.

He finally entered the cemetery, walking a few rows back of graves before kneeling in front of a newer gravestone, the dirt had just about settled. He placed his hand gently down on the dirt and sighed softly, closing his eyes.

Xavier didn't budge once he felt a hand on his shoulder, he turned his head and stared at it before looking up the arm to the source; Danny.

"Hey, kid" Danny said softly, he knew it had annoyed him but they had become best friends over time so he knew he was the only one allowed to say it.

"Hey Danny" Xavier said, looking down, Danny was tall and scrawny with strong arms, he had short, black, spiked hair that was styled to his likings every day, and deep green eyes.

Xavier sighed before putting his face into his hands, he bit his lip to the point that blood slowly trickled into his mouth to keep from breaking down, he felt weak when he cried and had only once ever cried in his entire life.

Danny knelt beside him, he knew the amount of pain Xavier was going through but hadn't ever gone through what he was. Xavier didn't look up at him, he dropped his hands back down to the dirt.

The cool dirt felt soft beneath his calloused fingers, it just wasn't right. It had been a few months since the incident and he knew none of them had blamed him but he still couldn't help but blame himself for the entire thing; and that's half of what hurt him the most.

After a moment he raised his hand and trailed his fingers across the letters that had been carved on the gravestone, the numbers, the words, the name 'Jimmy Williams'.

"Xavier... please, look at me" Danny pleaded unnoticeable, Xavier forcefully looked up at him.

"I.." Xavier started but cut himself off, his eye's were swollen from his silent crying, Danny's heart dropped. He had seen Xavier cry the first and only time he had ever cried in the past and that time had killed him.

Xavier had cried on the night Jimmy had been pronounced dead, Danny was the first to arrive..

The car sped faster than the signs speed stated, nobody in the car seemed to notice