Failure to Launch (Andy/Moreaus)

[Andy Moreau]

Andy shook his head a little and looked down at the remains of his waffle cone. "Nothing," he muttered. "Thank you for the ice cream... Should I go back to Hogwarts now?" He wanted to see Tam again before he left. It hurt, but if Tam was happy here, then maybe it was better if they all got on with their happy lives.

[Matthew Moreau]

"You don't have to go back right now if you don't want to, it isn't even dark out yet. I know you're technically staying at Hogwarts right now, but this is your home, too," Matthew said. "What can I do to convince you I'm telling the truth?" A minuscule part of him kind of wanted to shake Andy a little, but it was quickly rooted out and chucked away. It could be frustrating, yes, but he'd dealt with enough self-hate from Rhys to recognize it in someone else, even though it wasn't as strong.

[Andy Moreau]

Andy finished off his ice cream cone, debating, then sucked a bit of ice cream off his thumb. "Do I have my own space here?" he asked casually. He didn't mean his own bedroom. He knew they only had two bedrooms, and didn't' mind sharing, but if it was Tam's room and there was just a place for him to sleep in it, it didn't count.

[Matthew Moreau]

"We've been trying to decide how to redo the second bedroom to fit both of you better," Matthew said. "It's a small room, but we're thinking of trading out for bunk beds. Then maybe one of you can have the closet and a dresser, and the other can have a wardrobe. We're not quite sure yet." They'd also considered switching the bedrooms, but there wasn't a very significant difference in size. Despite Tam's additions to the bedroom, it was still more an adult guest room than one meant for a pair of young brothers.

[Andy Moreau]

Andy gave a halfhearted shrug. He hadn't expected to hear any different. We'll figure it out later, We'll do it next month after we get paid, Do more around here and we'll think about it. He'd heard it all before and it didn't break his heart or anything. If he was at all disappointed, it was just because he was a little stupid sometimes. "I guess I'll go say bye to Tam again. He likes it here." Andy stood to leave.

[Matthew Moreau]

Matthew stood as well, and reached for Andy's arm, but stopped himself just before grabbing it. "Hey, we want you to like it here, too," he said. "You're part of my family. I don't care if foster is in front of the word, both of you are our kids, and we want you to feel comfortable and at home. It's a huge adjustment, though. When we found the two of you, we'd resigned ourselves to surrogacy, which can take years, so we weren't prepared at all for this. We're doing everything we can, though." Why couldn't he find the right words to say?

[Andy Moreau]

Andy hugged his book bag to his chest and gave a vague nod. It was exactly what he'd wanted to hear for years, but he couldn't believe it. Disappointment he could deal with. Building up dreams to watch them fall apart over and over? He wouldn't do that to himself. It was better to keep people at a distance. "I'm gonna go hug Tam," he said. He hesitated before heading toward the door, then stopped there a moment. "Thank you," he said softly, and made his way downstairs as quickly as he could.

[Matthew Moreau]

Matthew could have screamed. He enjoyed making people feel good. In fact, he thrived on it. Finding the right words to say to a sad friend, making a joke at a party, doing something silly to get a laugh, that was what he loved, and he couldn't get through to Andy. He reminded himself of what they'd been told, that older foster kids had a hard time trusting and building connections, but actually experiencing it was very different from hearing it or reading it in a pamphlet.

Instead of trying to stop Andy and spew further explanations and promises, he accepted the thanks and stayed upstairs for a bit. His employees could handle the flow of customers, and maybe Rhys could handle further interaction with the brothers for now.