The Long Walk for Rose

Mr.BossMan

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Troy looked down at Rose through her sad eyes. Words couldn't explain how bad he felt right then in that instant. He knew he messed up, he knew he'd have to confront Deborah and Jon, he knew all thee things. But he also felt like if Rose was by his side then he could find the courage to face his past.

"You're right, let's go find Deborah." He then opened up the bathroom door and walked into the hall way. Stopping for a second Troy waited for Rose to follow then he put his hand on her back and the both of them walked downstairs. Troys feet were getting heavy as he neared the door to the porch. Reluctantly Troy opened to door and walked outside.

As soon as Deborah saw Rose's red eyes she could tell she'd been crying. Instantly she rose to her feet and asked "what happened to you Rose?" Her tone was edgey as if the slightest push could send her one way or the other.
 

Lucy Lou

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Despite what had happened, Rose stayed close to Troy. One moment of shock and terror wasn't enough to break the tiny girl's trust in her friend. She grabbed his hand and held it tightly as they walked downstairs and back to the porch. She went through the door before Troy, as he held it open and as soon as she saw her Momma she released Troy's hands and all but leaped into her Mom's arms. She didn't start crying again, but she did wrap her arms around her neck and bury her face there quietly. Taking comfort in one of the safest places she knew. The only place the girl felt safer was with her Papa.

"Debbie, something wrong with Rose?" Asked Jon as he came up onto the porch. The rest of the family had already scattered off to clean and get ready for dinner. Jon, Deborah, Rose, and Troy were the only ones outside at that moment. Hearing her Papa's voice, Rose looked up and held out her arms to her father, who obliged and took the girl from his wife.
 

Mr.BossMan

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"I don't know they just both came down here all...." Deborah said in reply to Jon's concern. Troy just stood there and watched to scared to move, to scared to admit what he came down here to admit. He met Deborah's eyes as she held her daughter tightly. Troy tried to speak but no words came out of his open mouth. Deborah stood up and Rose ran to her father the woman walked slowly up to him, careful not to scare Troy.

"What's wrong Troy, you tell me right now." She said a little harsher than she probably intended. Troy couldn't speak, he could find the words. He took a glance over at Rose and in that moment Troy....just did it.

Turning around he placed his back to Deborah, then he hurriedly tore off his shirt and threw it to the floor. Instantly the boy closed his eyes and fought back hard tears. His throat burned and he had to swallow a lump of bitter emotion. Suddenly he could feel his heart thumping in his chest, suddenly he noticed everything, all of his nasty little scars seemed to him on his skin. He heard Deborah breath in sharply, and Troy jolted.

"Oh my...." Is all the woman could say. Troy couldn't face her, but somehow he found the courage to do so. Spinning on his heels Troy looked the woman deep in her eyes, he stared at her with his fist clamped shut so tight his knuckles went white. "Troy," he heard her say softly, he could start to hear her voice losing her composure "how did you get these?" She asked as she waved her arms at his various cuts and burns.

Troy looked at her but he almost seemed to look through her, lost in space.

"Uh, ya. These are gifts courtesy of the Walker family."
 

Lucy Lou

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Rose hid her face against her father's throat, clinging tightly to him. She didn't want to see the scars again. She didn't want to make Troy angry at her again because she saw his scars. She didn't want to see.

She felt and heard her father make a deep rumbling noise in his chest. Disapproval, if she had to guess. Not disapproval at Troy, but probably disapproval in what the boy had to go through. Family was always the most important thing to him and he treated Rose with the tender love, as he believed every parent should. To see a child so poorly treated by the ones who were supposed to protect him. It was truly disgusting.

Jon let his wife do the talking for the moment. Just holding the young Rose. She was more gentle handed them him. All Jon wanted to do was to grab a rifle and go after the son-of-a-bitch, while the other part of him just wanted to go inside and love Rose and remind her what family really was.
 

Mr.BossMan

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Troy stared straight ahead in silence, no one wanted to talk and he didn't blame them. A matter of fact he didn't want them too. Never before in his life has he shown anyone the scars on his body. He just didn't. A part of him wanted to run away again, he'd just take off in a sprint and make a B-line for the fields. However the boy didn't move, he didn't run, he didn't even blink for a long while. He was lost in his own thoughts and away in his own world. That is until he was dragged back by the sound of Deborah's voice.

"Your family did this to you Troy? Who?" The older woman said as she slowly made her way to Troy. She couldn't help but ask, these scars, these burns, they were horiffic and in all honesty she couldn't fathom who would do these things to a...to a kid. "Troy, Troy listen to me boy, you gotta talk to me." She said, her voice was on the edge of desperation.

Suddenly Troy was thrown back into his harsh reality and he locked eyes with Deborah. Still fighting back tears he spoke softly, almost as if he would break if he spoke to much to soon. His fathers voice whispered in his head, 'My boy don't cry,' then it was Troy's voice he heard. "My father liked to teach me right, said he was teachin me how to be a man. But...but it just got to tough on me and," A tear raced down his cheek as it escaped his eyes, which he quickly wiped it away and started to ramble again. "and I didn't like it none, so I ran, I ran from my pa and was walkin a whole bunch. Then I found you guys cause I was hungry, and the corn looked real good, and I didn't mean nothin by it." Suddenly he started to cry, his efforts to hold back his tears were in vain. He tried wiping them away as he spoke but he couldn't stop. He couldn't stop crying and he couldn't stop talking.

Deborah gave Jon a look as Troy just kept on talking. Her face said it all, she, herself was fighting back tears. Her mind was set already and there was no changing it.

"And now I've been stayin here and I see Rose and you and Jon and Norman and all the others and they just seem so nice. So I didn't leave and I don't kno-"

"Oh, Troy you stop right there boy," Deborah said as she wrapped him up in a warm embrace "Your gonna stay with us from now on." She said as she patted his hair and muffled Troy's sobs. "You got a new home now, and a new family.......son."

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Time Skip​
 
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