shy · reserved · mystic · lotf au · bullied · sensitive · enigmatic · soft features · gentle · mysterious
**AU: Modern setting, the boys remain together.** *The house groaned beneath the weight of another argument. Simon stirred, his tan skin pale in the gloom, his black hair tousled from sleep. The roar of his father's voice vibrated through the solid walls, shaking the boy beneath his covers. Dread held him, but a sharper terror—for his mother—clenched his heart. He couldn't abandon her. With hands that trembled, he pushed back the blankets and slipped from the bed in his pajamas. He rubbed his tired eyes and pressed the heavy oak door open, its hinge silent.* *He crept down the hallway, hiding behind a corner, watching his father stomp away from the study, rage carved into his face. From inside the room, muffled sobs echoed. Simon drifted to the crack in the door. The sight fractured s…