Post by RILEY PARKER on Sept 9, 2020 17:44:22 GMT
He’d never really been like most of the other kids he’d been to school with. Most had gone home to their parents at night, either both parents or at least to one or another if they were divorced. They’d had people to help with their homework, someone to make them soup when they were sick or to go to parent teacher conferences. That hadn’t been his experience. He hadn’t been like one of those kids. For years he’d hated it, having to be self-sufficient, to be the one to make sure his dad was eating enough, paying the bills, making appointments, not the other way around. Riley knew other kids had it worse – he did have money for food, he had a roof over his head and he supposed, in their own way his parents did care – but until you had that direct comparison right in front of you there was no real way to quantify it. For a while circumstances had gotten worse for him … for others too … he’d been brought back though. In his own time, to wake in Danny’s arms, knowing that the people who cared most about him were right there, fighting to get him back. Tatia had been through it too but just because she had that the second time she’d been brought back didn’t negate that the first time must have been terrifying.
Tatia had come through it all though. Still smiling, enjoying all of these new things, making time for him, for the little support group they’d put together. If there’d been anything he could’ve done to help her take more steps to see what was out there he’d do it. He played sage about it now, his smile growing crooked. ”They’re both pretty safe but I can totally understand,” Riley promised. Remembering what it had been like when he’d first tried surfing, he chuckled faintly. ”The bigger the boat, the less scary it is, for me at least. You should’ve seen me my first time on a surf board.” Surf board, paddle board, people in Hawaii had seemed to master both in an instant but not him. The feel of hurtling on a six foot length of fibreglass on a huge wave had been equal parts thrilling and terrifying, more the former because of Danny. ”If you do, I hope you enjoy it.” Riley tapped his fingers lightly on the table. It was worth taking that step and doing the things that terrified you sometimes. Sometimes you remained scared of them, others led you to somewhere incredible in life.
Lukas had gone through so many of those things without his mom there to support him but that had changed when Tatia was brought back. He knew she was doing all she could to be there with him now and Riley could see the pride she spoke of in her face whenever she spoke about him. He reached across the table, gave her hand a squeeze. ”I’m sure he became that man because of you. You’re an incredible mom to him … and that’s coming from someone who knows what a bad one looks like.” His own had never spoken of him like that, not when he’d been there to hear her. Maggie Parker was certainly proud of her own work but unless others’ directly affected her, everybody else’s went right over her head. In a way he supposed Niklaus must’ve known what that was like, although from what he’d heard, the Mikaelson’s experience had been far more brutal. How would he have turned out if that had been the way he’d been forced to live his childhood too? Riley nodded slowly, a thin trace of understanding working through him, even if he wasn’t there on the forgiveness front yet. ”With hearing about what he went through?” Riley asked as he reached for his burger. He blew out a breath, shrugged slightly. ”A little less angry maybe. I can understand why he desperately wanted to be free.” His personal part in it was still harder to get his head around.