Before All This ((closed))

[Jack Reid]

Jack sat in his room, at his home in Scotland. It was the tail end of the summer, and he was about to start his fourth year at Hogwarts. It had begun to get chilly out, but not enough for the full gloves, hat, jacket, and boots ensemble. Jack held his head in his hands, so frustrated with his parents. They had been doing this since his brothers had been born. He was the oldest. He should be getting the most attention. Why hadn't his parents just been happy with one child? Ever since August and Bronsen had been born, it was all about them, it seemed. August got so much of his father's attention, probably because of him being so smart and such. Meanwhile, Bronsen got his mother, at least until she went crazy. Jack knew something had happened with Bronsen and Mom, but he couldn't place it. Not only that, but he didn't care anymore.

His mother was basically dead, brain-wise anyway. She had gone crazy because of something or other. Jack assumed it had been because of his cheating and lying father. But still, he didn't care anymore. It was up to him to branch out and grow, so he could get a job and live a life apart from his family. He wasn't even sure if he wanted anything to do with anyone in his family anymore. Jack wanted to find a girl to live his life with, alone. He would wait as long as he could to have children as well, so he could learn enough about himself and his wife that he wouldn't do the same thing his parents had done. He also planned to only have one child, so he could appreciate the one and not have to worry about any others. How he longed to never have to deal with the problems ever again. How he longed that his own child would never have to go through the things he had to go through.

His father called him. "Jack, dinner!" Jack turned his head, the words making him even more upset. He just couldn't deal with it anymore.

[Jack Reid]

Jack made his way out of his room, trudging down the stairs. It would be yet another meal where he wouldn't talk to anyone, unless he was directly spoken to by one of his parents. August and Bronsen were there, but he couldn't talk to them. They were too naive to understand what he was dealing with. Abandonment, for the most part, was what he dealt with on a daily basis from his parents. He pulled his chair out, sat down, and pulled into the table. "How was your day, son?" his father asked innocently. You wouldn't know, would you? You were out of the house all day, he thought to himself. "It was fine, Dad," he said, lying through his teeth. "The boys and I played some games outside, and I got some reading done for next semester at Hogwarts." He eyed his father, giving him a look like everything really was fine, when it completely wasn't. Mom was in the kitchen, getting the last of the dishes cleaned up.

As the family began to eat, after his mother came in, things became quite tense and the air could be cut with a knife. His brothers didn't say a word while he was there. That usually happened. His mother was a quiet woman, even though she was involved in their lives. He resented them both. Especially for the way they treated his brothers seemingly better than him. What was so great about August? Just because Dad got along with him so well because he was smart didn't mean he should just ignore Jack. And Bronsen?? Don't even get him started on that. Bronsen was a small child that knew nothing of what the family really went through. Yes, they might have been rich, but that still didn't make up for the crap Jack had to go through because of the lack of care.

He finished his meal quickly, and without even asking if he could be excused, he pushed the plate away and said, "Thanks for dinner Mom," and walked to the stairs. "Jackson Reid! You stay down here and wait until the rest of us are done with dinner," his father called to him, loudly. Jack kept walking, climbing the stairs two at a time, to get as far away from them as he could.