#I wrote this literally until 2 in the morning and did bareley any editing

[boxboysandotherwhump]

Jake guard dog AU

Soooooo after that Jake guard dog au was mentioned on Ash‘s blog months ago it lived rent free in my head and I just had to write a small fanfic about this.

This will be two parter :3 have fun with part one :3

Thank you so much @ashintheairlikesnow for letting me write your wonderful characters :3 <3

„I I I I‘m fine mom. Aunt Nat is is is, is really nice. Every- everyone here is“

Tristan Higgs listened to his mother sigh on the other end of the speaker, fingers tapping a relentless rhythm against the cheap throw away phone pressed close to his ear. The second one in over a month. The second time he heard his mothers voice in 33 days.

„Are you, you you you and dad, dad okay?“

I miss you. Please hurry and get me back.

„Yeah. We are, baby. I talked with him yesterday and he and your uncle are working hard to fix the garden. Everything‘s going to be alright Tris.“

Garden?! You don‘t need to call his stupid job, stupid garden anymore.

Tristan squashed his anger down as best he could, unwilling to waste the few precious seconds he could listen to his mothers voice with his anger, and nodded. Once. Twice. A third time, until he realized that Ronnie couldn‘t see him.

„Okay.“

„Tris,baby I should- we need to hang up now.“

There were tears in his mothers voice. So badly concealed even he could pick them up.

And he hated it.

She had never been anything less than a fierce thunderstorm waiting to come down on whoever was threatening their family but now-

Right now she sounded as lost as Tristan felt and it was all his stupid dads fault. Stupid Paul Higgs with his stupid job. Why couldn‘t he just be a stupid salesman like all the other stupid dads in this stupid stupid stupid world?!

A dull pain sparked up his fingers under the force of his tapping against the wall. If one could still call it that. It was more of rhythmic fingertip punches, in sync with his rocking. The bed he was sitting on creaked under the force of his anger.

„Baby? I love you Tris.“

Words were getting difficult to force past his lips but he had to tell her. Needed her to know before the line went dead for another two weeks.

„Love... you too.“

The call terminated with an impossibly quiet ‚click‘ and an ear-piercingly shrill beep.

He threw the phone against the wall before he could hit the tiny red speaker button.

______________________________________________________________

Tris tiptoed down the stairs hours later. Eyes still red rimmed and cheeks puffy.

„Should I go and get him, Nat? He will miss dinner.“

„Give him some time Antoni. He‘ll come when he‘s ready.“ As if she had sensed him, did Nat turn to the kitchen entrance. Warm brown eyes crinkling with her smile. „Tristan, you‘re right on time. Antoni  made piroshki.“  

A nervous smile danced around his lips as he felt Antoni‘s eyes settle on him and his fingers tapped gently over his empty stomach.

The food smelled delicious.

„I I I I I- Sorry for for for blocking your, your room all day.“

„You did?“ Antoni turned and fished a plate from a cupboard. Started to load it full of the cheese filled dumplings Tristan had learned to love since a friend of his father had dropped him off at Nat‘s doorstep on that rainy summer night. „I was so caught up in cooking, I did not notice.“

Tris ducked his head and sat down with a sheepish grin.

______________________________________________________________

It was in the dead of night when the doorbell rang. Startling Tris from his fitful nightmare ridden sleep.

There had been blood on their living room wall. Blood and cold skin. She had been so, so terribly cold.

Antoni‘s bed creaked on the other side of their room and Tris could see the shadowy outline of him slowly sitting up.

The night stole parts of his voice away, leaving only a quiet cracking whisper. „What what what is, is going on?“

„A new rescue, I think.“

Both of them listened in quiet anticipation. Tris strained his ears.

Muffled voices came from downstairs. Nat argued with a man but Tris couldn‘t, for the life of him, hear about what.  

„You will wait hear.“ Antoni muttered softly and swung his legs over the mattress. Landing soundlessly on bare feet. „I will go and see what is going on.“

The door opened without a sound under Antoni‘s careful hands and he disappeared into the hall.

Tris stared at the thin stripe of faint light illuminating the floorboards. His green round eyes followed it to the door, slightly ajar. The voices were still to faint to make out any words.

He slipped out of his bed. Heart stuck in his throat. Hammering wildly. Like a bird eager to break free.

The door gave the faintest of creaks as  Tris sneaked after Antoni.

Guilt for disobeying the man who had taken such gentle care of him since he arrived here and his insatiable curiosity fought in his stomach, twisting it into nauseating knots, but his feet already moved. Making the decision for his mind.

Antoni crouched close to the banister, peering down into the hall, not noticing Tris until he was nearly next to him. He whipped around quiet as he could, fixing Tris with a stern look and gesturing for him to go back to their room.

Tristan hunched his shoulders up to his ears, finger twist and tapp tapp tapping against his leg, but he didn‘t move.

The visitors pleading broke the tension between them. Antoni nodded for Tris to come over, a finger pressed to his lips.

Be silent.

Tris nodded, creeping closer with a barley bitten back smile.

„Nat, none of the other shelters wants to take him. I beg you-“

„Listen I-“ The sigh that followed betrayed Natalie Yoder‘s age. Years of hard work and endless tired nights lingered in her exhale. „Trust me I would love nothing more than to help him, but I can‘t take a half feral guard dog in. Not right now.“

„Yoder please. I know you‘re concerned, hell everybody is, but he‘s really in no condition to give anyone trouble. Not with one leg broken and the other ankle sprained. Please just for a couple days. Until I found him another shelter to stay.“

Tris strained his neck and caught a glimpse of Nat, pinching her nose. Her braid was stuck under a washed out, hastily thrown on flannel.

„He can‘t walk?“

„Not without help or breaking down after three steps, no.“

„What happened?“

„From what I gathered? His owner got tired of him and threw him out a driving car. I found him half delirious down a road side slope. Nearly two days ago. He‘s patched up as best I could but he needs rest, and someone to take care of him. Nat you know I don‘t have the time too-“

„Okay, okay. To hell with it all. Help me get him inside.“

„Has anyone ever told you that you‘re a literal angle Natalie Yoder.“

She followed the stranger with a pained snort. Disappearing into the night.  

Just as Antoni gestured for them to go back to their room, did the front door open again.

A blond, giant of a man was half dragged half carried inside. Muscular arms slung over Nat and the stranger‘s shoulders as they helped him get inside, both huffing and grunting under the effort.

Only he remained utterly silent through it all. Even as his bandaged feed took step after ginger step towards the living room.

Tris could see his shoulders tremble, ever so faintly.

When the man suddenly lifted his pale sweaty face.

Chris froze as blue haunted eyes bored into his.