A Long Life (But One Worth Living): Chapter Two
Title: A Long Life (But One Worth Living)
Author/Artist:
rumpelsnorcack
Rating: PG-13
Characters & Pairings: Rory, Amy, Brian
Word Count: 1179 this chapter
Summary: The story of Rory's life, from meeting Amy to death.
Notes: This section deals with a child's response to a divorce.
Many thanks to the wonderful
a_phoenixdragon and
mollywheezy who have been extremely supportive through this whole process. I've been writing this on and off for a while. It's still not finished, but is getting there. Not sure how many chapters there will be, but each one is intended as a short one-shot in its own right so all can be read independently. However, they do all build together to give a picture of Rory's life, complicated timelines and all. It's all roughly chronological, but each piece doesn't necessarily exist in the same timeline as each other piece. So some are pre-reboot, some post, some exist in a universe which includes Mels, others don't.
Disclaimer: Sadly none of the characters are mine, I just enjoy hanging around in their sandbox.
Chapter Two
'Muuuuuum!' Rory shouted as he ran in the door, throwing his schoolbag in the direction of his bedroom and sliding to a halt in front of the fridge.
'Mum's not here.' His father's voice was different somehow. If sound could have colour, Brian’s voice would be grey. Lifeless. Always attuned to nuances in emotions, with his heart pounding while a sudden leaden ball took up residence in the pit of his stomach, Rory turned towards his father.
'What do you mean not here? She's always here.' Rory's voice shook, though he tried to retain his composure. As he looked into his father's eyes, which were watery and sad, Rory's hunger abruptly vanished and he slowly closed the fridge door.
'She's gone away. She'll be back in a bit to talk to you, but she's not going to be living here anymore.'
Rory's ten year old heart twisted at the words.
'No.' Rory shook his head, refusing to believe his father. 'But ... why? We're a family. Families stay together, that's what they do.' His voice quivered a little as he looked up at his father. Rory tried very hard to sound reasonable, but he could feel his body beginning to tremble, so his final words came out in a rush before he gave in to the trembling and cried. 'Doesn't ... doesn't she want to be a family anymore?'
Brian walked over to Rory and gave him a hug. 'Oh son, of course she wants to be a family. She just ... she and I just don't think we should be together right now.'
Rory's lips quivered even more, and he held himself rigid, knowing that if he melted into his father's embrace the tears definitely would come. He pulled away quickly, then asked, 'But why? Is it something I did? I'll be better, I promise. Just tell her to come back.' Rory’s hands felt like ice and he twisted them together in a desperate attempt to stop them from trembling. For some reason it was vital that Rory not allow his father to see how important this question was.
'It's not you, Rory.' Brian's mouth hardened into a tight line, and he took a deep breath before continuing. 'It's ... she found another man to love and she wants to be with him.'
Rory's mouth twisted even more as he watched his father. He refused to cry, but he knew it wouldn't be long before he couldn't hold it in anymore so he said, his voice tight with the effort of containing his emotions, 'I'd better go put my bag away. Don't want to leave a messy house,' and ran out of the room, grabbing the bag as he barely made it to his room before the trembling overwhelmed him.
When he got to his bedroom, arms wrapped protectively around the bag, Rory shut the door carefully before throwing himself onto his bed and letting the tears fall.
Despite what Brian had said, Rory felt that there must be something he had done or not done to push his mother out. People didn't just up and leave their families for no good reason, and in Rory's head 'finding another man' was just not a good reason. Besides, if she really wanted to be a family, surely she would have said Rory could stay with her?
It wasn't normal to want to leave your kids behind, surely. Unless those kids were really awful, people fought over them. Rory had seen them at it; occasionally other people in Leadworth had divorced, and the parents had always said to the kids 'who do you want to go with?' and bribed them with sweets and toys and outings to try and win them over. If Rory's mother was just leaving him behind then he must be part of the problem. Hot tears ran down his cheeks again at the thought.
There was a knock on his door.
'I'm not here!' he shouted, his voice thick with emotion.
'Of course you are, you great idiot,' Amelia shouted back. 'Your dad said you were here.'
Rory groaned. Amelia never let up when she wanted something and he knew he'd have to let her in. 'Just a minute,' he called. He wiped his cheeks, then reluctantly opened his door.
'You look terrible,' Amelia said in a matter of fact tone that brooked no argument.
'Yeah,' Rory agreed.
She stared at him in shock. 'You're not going to tell me I'm wrong?' she asked.
'No, not today. I can't be bothered. What do you want?'
'I thought we could play raggedy doctor, but you're acting weird.'
Rory sighed. Raggedy doctor was Amelia's favourite game, but he didn't feel he could do it justice today. To his horror, tears started leaking out of his eyes again. He pressed his lips together, and turned away from her, desperate to hold the tears in and not let Amelia see him so weak. Unfortunately, he was a beat too late.
'Rory! What's wrong?' Amelia asked, giving him a tentative pat on the shoulder.
'My Mum's gone,' he blurted out as the tears finally burst through his careful defences.
Amelia stared at him in consternation. 'Gone where?'
'I dunno. Away with some bloke. She doesn't want me anymore.'
Amelia's face darkened with rage; she looked ready to take on the world - or at least Rory's mum - to defend his honour. 'I don't believe it. Why wouldn't she want you? Look at you - you're awesome!'
This elicited a watery chuckle from Rory.
'Thanks. But she's gone and she doesn't want me to go with her, so you know ...'
'I'll be your mum,' she stated staunchly. 'I'll look after you and make you breakfast and tie your shoelaces and do all those mum things.'
Rory stared at her in horror. 'No you won't. I'm not a baby; I can do those things myself. Besides, you have to live in your own house,' he added pragmatically.
Amelia sighed. 'Well, whatever. I'll look after you anyway. And you'll look after me. I only have Aunt Sharon and she's useless. We don't need grown ups, Rory. We have each other.' She sat beside him on the bed and took his hand. 'And your dad. He's cool; we can keep him around for the important stuff, like food and that.'
For the first time, Rory smiled. She was right. They had each other, and of course she knew what it was like to have no parents around. His mum may be gone, but Amelia was right - his dad was still there, and Amelia herself.
'Rory!' His dad called up the stairs. 'Rory, your mum's here and she wants to talk to you.'
Amelia squeezed his hand. 'Good luck, Rory. Remember, no matter what … you and I - we've got each other.'
Rory squeezed back, and went downstairs to see his mother. With Amelia's encouragement he knew he could ask her all the questions that were swirling around in his head. He felt calmer now and ready to hear what his mother had to say.
Prologue
Chapter Three
Author/Artist:
rumpelsnorcack
Rating: PG-13
Characters & Pairings: Rory, Amy, Brian
Word Count: 1179 this chapter
Summary: The story of Rory's life, from meeting Amy to death.
Notes: This section deals with a child's response to a divorce.
Many thanks to the wonderful
a_phoenixdragon and
mollywheezy who have been extremely supportive through this whole process. I've been writing this on and off for a while. It's still not finished, but is getting there. Not sure how many chapters there will be, but each one is intended as a short one-shot in its own right so all can be read independently. However, they do all build together to give a picture of Rory's life, complicated timelines and all. It's all roughly chronological, but each piece doesn't necessarily exist in the same timeline as each other piece. So some are pre-reboot, some post, some exist in a universe which includes Mels, others don't.
Disclaimer: Sadly none of the characters are mine, I just enjoy hanging around in their sandbox.
Chapter Two
'Muuuuuum!' Rory shouted as he ran in the door, throwing his schoolbag in the direction of his bedroom and sliding to a halt in front of the fridge.
'Mum's not here.' His father's voice was different somehow. If sound could have colour, Brian’s voice would be grey. Lifeless. Always attuned to nuances in emotions, with his heart pounding while a sudden leaden ball took up residence in the pit of his stomach, Rory turned towards his father.
'What do you mean not here? She's always here.' Rory's voice shook, though he tried to retain his composure. As he looked into his father's eyes, which were watery and sad, Rory's hunger abruptly vanished and he slowly closed the fridge door.
'She's gone away. She'll be back in a bit to talk to you, but she's not going to be living here anymore.'
Rory's ten year old heart twisted at the words.
'No.' Rory shook his head, refusing to believe his father. 'But ... why? We're a family. Families stay together, that's what they do.' His voice quivered a little as he looked up at his father. Rory tried very hard to sound reasonable, but he could feel his body beginning to tremble, so his final words came out in a rush before he gave in to the trembling and cried. 'Doesn't ... doesn't she want to be a family anymore?'
Brian walked over to Rory and gave him a hug. 'Oh son, of course she wants to be a family. She just ... she and I just don't think we should be together right now.'
Rory's lips quivered even more, and he held himself rigid, knowing that if he melted into his father's embrace the tears definitely would come. He pulled away quickly, then asked, 'But why? Is it something I did? I'll be better, I promise. Just tell her to come back.' Rory’s hands felt like ice and he twisted them together in a desperate attempt to stop them from trembling. For some reason it was vital that Rory not allow his father to see how important this question was.
'It's not you, Rory.' Brian's mouth hardened into a tight line, and he took a deep breath before continuing. 'It's ... she found another man to love and she wants to be with him.'
Rory's mouth twisted even more as he watched his father. He refused to cry, but he knew it wouldn't be long before he couldn't hold it in anymore so he said, his voice tight with the effort of containing his emotions, 'I'd better go put my bag away. Don't want to leave a messy house,' and ran out of the room, grabbing the bag as he barely made it to his room before the trembling overwhelmed him.
When he got to his bedroom, arms wrapped protectively around the bag, Rory shut the door carefully before throwing himself onto his bed and letting the tears fall.
Despite what Brian had said, Rory felt that there must be something he had done or not done to push his mother out. People didn't just up and leave their families for no good reason, and in Rory's head 'finding another man' was just not a good reason. Besides, if she really wanted to be a family, surely she would have said Rory could stay with her?
It wasn't normal to want to leave your kids behind, surely. Unless those kids were really awful, people fought over them. Rory had seen them at it; occasionally other people in Leadworth had divorced, and the parents had always said to the kids 'who do you want to go with?' and bribed them with sweets and toys and outings to try and win them over. If Rory's mother was just leaving him behind then he must be part of the problem. Hot tears ran down his cheeks again at the thought.
There was a knock on his door.
'I'm not here!' he shouted, his voice thick with emotion.
'Of course you are, you great idiot,' Amelia shouted back. 'Your dad said you were here.'
Rory groaned. Amelia never let up when she wanted something and he knew he'd have to let her in. 'Just a minute,' he called. He wiped his cheeks, then reluctantly opened his door.
'You look terrible,' Amelia said in a matter of fact tone that brooked no argument.
'Yeah,' Rory agreed.
She stared at him in shock. 'You're not going to tell me I'm wrong?' she asked.
'No, not today. I can't be bothered. What do you want?'
'I thought we could play raggedy doctor, but you're acting weird.'
Rory sighed. Raggedy doctor was Amelia's favourite game, but he didn't feel he could do it justice today. To his horror, tears started leaking out of his eyes again. He pressed his lips together, and turned away from her, desperate to hold the tears in and not let Amelia see him so weak. Unfortunately, he was a beat too late.
'Rory! What's wrong?' Amelia asked, giving him a tentative pat on the shoulder.
'My Mum's gone,' he blurted out as the tears finally burst through his careful defences.
Amelia stared at him in consternation. 'Gone where?'
'I dunno. Away with some bloke. She doesn't want me anymore.'
Amelia's face darkened with rage; she looked ready to take on the world - or at least Rory's mum - to defend his honour. 'I don't believe it. Why wouldn't she want you? Look at you - you're awesome!'
This elicited a watery chuckle from Rory.
'Thanks. But she's gone and she doesn't want me to go with her, so you know ...'
'I'll be your mum,' she stated staunchly. 'I'll look after you and make you breakfast and tie your shoelaces and do all those mum things.'
Rory stared at her in horror. 'No you won't. I'm not a baby; I can do those things myself. Besides, you have to live in your own house,' he added pragmatically.
Amelia sighed. 'Well, whatever. I'll look after you anyway. And you'll look after me. I only have Aunt Sharon and she's useless. We don't need grown ups, Rory. We have each other.' She sat beside him on the bed and took his hand. 'And your dad. He's cool; we can keep him around for the important stuff, like food and that.'
For the first time, Rory smiled. She was right. They had each other, and of course she knew what it was like to have no parents around. His mum may be gone, but Amelia was right - his dad was still there, and Amelia herself.
'Rory!' His dad called up the stairs. 'Rory, your mum's here and she wants to talk to you.'
Amelia squeezed his hand. 'Good luck, Rory. Remember, no matter what … you and I - we've got each other.'
Rory squeezed back, and went downstairs to see his mother. With Amelia's encouragement he knew he could ask her all the questions that were swirling around in his head. He felt calmer now and ready to hear what his mother had to say.
Prologue
Chapter Three