Forums » General Roleplay » What Makes a Family {Private}

Piper was glad that her brothers seemed to enjoy the movie, even if Jacob had fallen asleep for most of it. She realized that it was dark outside now, meaning that she would probably have to sleep soon. She definitely didn’t look forward to that.

When Jack spoke about wanting to watch the credits, she stopped getting up and sat back down so that she could watch the credits with him.

Her cheeks turned red when Jules thanked her, only shaking her head.” I didn’t do anything. Jack bought the movies.” She muttered, hugging her knees to her chest.

She glanced at Jack.” I don’t think I’m gonna hate you guys.” She said after a few minutes of watching the credits.” You have a good home.” She added.

"Well, I'm glad to hear that," Jack said, wondering if he should feel as amused as he did. "I'm glad you like the place."

"Piper, time to start getting ready for bed," Jules called. "It's a little early, but I want to give us plenty of time to figure things out. There's no point in being rushed, right?" He led the way toward the bathroom. "First, are you tall enough to reach the sink okay? I can get a stool if you need one. Oh, and here is your toothbrush and the toothpaste."

Jacob and Jack finished cleaning up the living room, putting the extra food in bags and setting them in the fridge for tomorrow's lunch. They talked in quiet tones about tomorrow's schedules. Jack had been able to get it off though he had agreed to do a little work from home. Julian had the morning off, but the zoo was receiving a shipment of a new animal in the afternoon and he needed to be there for that. Jacob had asked, but the project his company was working on was nearly complete, and his boss had made a deal with him that if he didn't take any extra time off, Jacob could have a longer vacation period before the start of the next project. It meant things would be a little awkward trying to juggle Piper and her schedule, but at least it seemed she wasn't afraid of Jack any longer. That would make things a little easier.

Piper followed Julian to the bathroom though a frown was ever present on her face. She definitely would need a stool for the sink, her hands could reach the sink but not the faucet or nozzles.

“I don’t want to go to bed. It’s early.” Piper wasn’t use to a bedtime, usually just sleeping whenever she passed out on the couch that was her bed back with Mama. She especially wasn’t excited to be shut in her room again. It was fine with the sun pouring through but the idea of being alone in a dark room made her tummy twist.

She use to be okay with being alone, after all, her mother would leave her alone for hours but then she died and Piper was alone for so long. When the police left her alone in their childrens’ room, she had freaked out entirely. She didn’t freak out anymore but she didn’t want to be alone nonetheless.

"We have about half an hour or so," Julian told her, checking his watch. "We don't want to go to bed too soon after eating, but I wanted to walk through the evening routine with you. It's not something you're used to, and that's okay. You don't have to try to sleep if you don't want to, but we should get all of us, including you, on a good schedule for school. Hang on. I'm going to go find something for you to stand on."

He walked out for a while, the sounds of thumps and bumps announcing his travels through the house. He finally found what he was looking for and returned with a small wooden block that was just big enough for Piper to stand on. "Here we are! Try this. Can you reach now?"

Piper didn’t want to go to bed in half an hour either. She just wanted to stay up with them, but she figured that maybe they had other things to do like Mama. Would they leave her alone in the apartment like she did? Before she died, she might have thought she could but not now.


She was frowning when Julian came back but she still got up on the stool, reaching and turning on the sink.” Yeah, I can re-…” she stopped when she saw herself in the mirror. She looked in the mirror for a second, taking in her appearance next to Julian.” Do you think I’ll be pretty like Mama one day. Did…” She hesitated.” Did she dress up sometimes? Really pretty? Her dresses were always pretty and she had pretty make up.” She smiled a little then frowned.” It was straight and mine wasn’t, that’s why she chopped it off. She didn’t know how to take care of it and neither did I…” She ran her hand through her hair.” You all have straight hair too…”

Jules crouched down and brought his face level with Piper's. He looked into the mirror with their faces side by side and smiled as he touched her hair gently. "Mama was pretty when she dressed up sometimes, yes, but that prettiness didn't last, did it?" he asked, his voice low and soft. "She could be really pretty when she wanted to be, but only when she wanted to be because her beauty was only the stuff she put on. The way she did her hair, the dresses, the jewels... all of that she could put on and take off whenever she wanted to. Whenever she took it off, she wasn't pretty anymore, was she? There's nothing wrong with wanting to be pretty like that, nothing wrong with wanting to wear nice things, but it's just stuff that can be lost.

"What's really important is the beauty that's inside. The real beauty, the kind of beauty that no one can take away from you is inside. It's in the way you think about and treat yourself, it's in how you treat other people, and it's in the kind and good things you do for animals and people, even if no one else knows you did anything at all. Like if you have a bit of money, you can give it to someone else with even less than you have, or you can pick up other people's litter, befriend a lonely kid at school, speak up for someone who isn't getting treated nicely, or maybe give a secret note saying nice things to someone having a bad day. The light of your smile and the kindness of your spirit are the things that make you truly beautiful no matter if you're wearing the coolest dress or your big brother's old clothes."

He ran his fingers lightly through her scruffy hair. "I don't really know how to take care of hair other than my own, but I know people who know how to take care of all kinds of hair! When it grows out a little more, we'll go talk to them and see how we can look after your hair so it's just how you want it. Okay?"

Piper, like she did when most of the time when she was touched, flinched when Julian’s hand came to her hair. She relaxed almost instantly and leaned into his head, listening to Julian speak. Piper shook her head at his question, because he was right. The dresses and make up would come off and Mama would go right back to yelling and stomping around, always grumbling about something.

Her eyes shone with a little confusion when Julian began to talk about how someone could be beautiful on the inside. She thought that sounded silly because nobody can see your insides. The confusion soon faded and the awe came back to it, like when Julian had spoken to her in her room. If that was inside beauty then Piper was sure that Julian was pretty on the inside like he was on the outside.

She closed her eyes, leaning into his fingers as he ran his fingers through her hair. Her eyes popped open when Julian told her that they could find someone who could help them learn to take care of her hand. Piper suddenly flung her arms around his neck, squishing Bruce between them.” I-I won’t have to cut it?” She asked, her voice sounding watery.

Jules started in surprise at her sudden move and then relaxed, pulling her in close for a warm hug. "No," he said gently, "you don't have to cut it. You can grow it as long as you like! If someday you decide you want to cut it, you can! But only if you want to." He gave her a gentle squeeze and waited for her to let go first. "We'll learn together how to take care of your hair, okay? And we'll get you nicer clothes, too, just remember what I told you about beauty, okay?"

As Julian hugged her and told her that she could have her hair however she liked, Piper really understood what Julian meant by people being pretty on the inside. She was excited to be able to grow her hair out and even maybe get new clothes.” I’ll remember cause I’ll just look at you. You are pretty on the inside.” She pulled away and reached to gently touch strand of his hair.” You are way pretty than Mama in all the ways so I changed my mind.” Her voice sounded very determined and she even grinned a little as she looked at the mirror.” I want to be pretty like you!”

Julian blushed and couldn't help a small, startled laugh, blushing slightly. "Thank you, Piper, I appreciate that," he smiled at her. That is a very kind thing to say." He made certain she had ahold of Bruce the plushie before straightening. "I think you're already quite pretty just the way you are. But! That doesn't mean we can skip brushing our teeth!"

He grinned at her and handed her a brand-new toothbrush. It was a simple pink thing, nothing special. "We weren't sure what you would like, so we stuck with something simple. If you don't like pink, we can get another color when we go shopping." He pointed out the toothbrush holder and the empty slot among the other three larger brushes. "Those are ours, but you can put yours there when you're done."

He selected his own out of the lineup and showed her where the toothpaste was kept before putting a dollop on his own brush and then hers. He'd never been a fan of brushing at the same time as other people, but he felt that Piper might want some company, so he stayed with her anyway. Then he politely asked her to step out so he could use the bathroom, and then gave her all the space she needed to use it as well, waiting out in the hallway for her. He had the feeling she was stalling going to bed, or at least wasn't looking forward to it. He ran through some ideas in his head, prepping himself for when it was time to head to her room.

Piper thought it was kind of funny how both Julian’s and Jacob’s faces turned red like hers when she said something nice to them like her own face usually did. She wondered if they were just as unuse to kind words as she was. She merely giggled though and took her toothbrush, setting Bruce down on the stool next to her feet so that he wouldn’t get any toothpaste or water on him.

“I like brushing my teeth!” Piper exclaimed as she put the toothbrush in her mouth. She was a little messy with it, the toothpaste dripping from her mouth to her shirt but managed to keep it off the counter. She went out of the bathroom when Julian used it and then made sure to use the bathroom. She took a few minutes longer, wanting to push everything out of her bladder before going to bed.

Finally, Piper came back out and took Julian’s hand. She wasn’t sure how much time had past and she bit back a yawn. She didn’t want to go to bed anytime soon. That meant alone in a dark room and what if she woke up and everyone was gone? A silly fear but one she felt deep in her bones.

“I really don’t want to go to bed.” Piper decided to try voicing her hesitation again, maybe hoping for a different answer.

"That's a valid feeling," Jules said agreeably.  "One I can very much understand.  Oh!  I almost forgot.  We got something for you and left it in your bedroom.  I think you and Bruce will like it."

He led the way into her bedroom, letting her pull away if she wanted to, and went to the small desk where he'd left a small plug-in item.  It was a simple white cylinder, very unassuming.  He took it to the outlet in the wall at the foot of the bed and knelt down to plug it in.  After a second, a very faint glow emanated from that corner.  Then it flicked to a brighter setting.  Then brighter still!  Then back to the faint glow.

His head popped up over the bed, and he grinned at Piper.  "It's a night light!  And you can pick how bright you want it to be.  There's one in the bathroom already that turns on automatically when it gets dark.  That way, you have a light to guide you to where you need to go at night.  But what do you think of this one?"

Piper wasn’t really sure if Julian’s answer meant that she wouldn’t go to bed but she was beginning to suspect that she was still going to have to go to bed as they walked towards her room. She really did like her room. It felt like it was a normal to have one and she hoped that maybe she could color some pictures to put up.

She walked over to the bed, setting Bruce on top with a little smile. He looked good on the bed and she had to admit that it was a very comfy bed. She just wished that the wall that separated her room from the living room didn’t exist so it didn’t feel so closed in like the old apartment.

When the light came on, she walked over to the nightlight and played with the settings on it. Piper had to admit that it was pretty cool.” I like it.” She nodded her head as she continued to change the brightness on the nightlight.” I still don’t want to go to bed though. I can go to bed when I get tired. I always stayed up for as long as I wanted.” Her voice firm and tight.

"You did a lot of things before coming here," Jules pointed out gently. "Many of those things were not healthy. Like having no schedule at all. It's going to take a while to find a schedule that suits you, but we'll have to find something before school starts. For now, we'll start with just staying in your room, alright? You can leave the door open and do something quiet like reading, writing, drawing, or listening to music, but the light should be off. You can go out, of course, if you need something like a drink or a snack. I wouldn't recommend eating so late at night, you might get a tummy ache, but you can if you want to. You can lay down on your bed, sit at the desk, whatever you like as long as it's in your room and quiet."

“What am I suppose to do? Just stare at the walls? I don’t have the stuff to do any of that!” Piper asked and she wasn’t even sure where that tone came from. She never dared to get sarcastic with her mother so the words surprised her. She looked away from Julian before retreating away from the man.” Why can’t I stay in the living room until I’m falling asleep? I’ll be quiet there, I’m really good at being quiet!” Her voice lacked the sarcasm and was just as sad as all her other pleas to avoid bedtime.

“I don’t want to go to bed yet!” Piper repeated, her voice raising in volume and frustrated tears prickling her eyes. She grabbed Bruce from her bed then ran from the room. She crawled under the coffee table in the living room, pressing herself against the floor.

"Piper? What are you doing?" Jules asked, bewildered. He followed her and knelt down so he could look under the table. "Why are you hiding under the table? You liked your bedroom earlier. Why are you acting scared of it now?"

"What's going on?" Jacob asked, coming out of the bathroom in sweats and a loose shirt. He frowned at Jules kneeling on the floor. "What are you doing down there?"

Jack leaned out of the bedroom to watch but didn't join them.

When Piper saw Julian kneeling, she simply just screamed as loud as she could.” I don’t want to go to bed! You can’t make me! Go away! Go away!” She was fully crying now, burying her head into Bruce as she sobbed.

“I….don’t…want…to see her!” She sobbed as she lifted her head, her eyes were wet and tears were pooling down them. That was only half the truth though, she just didn’t want to be alone in the dark.

“You aren’t the boss of me!” She shouted through her crying.

Jules reacted to the screaming as if the words were physical blows. He recoiled, flinching into a smaller position, hands going to his ears. He didn't even register the meaning of the words, just that they were being screamed. He closed his eyes briefly, shuddering each time Piper yelled. His heart thudded hard in his chest as adrenaline rushed through his veins.

Across the small apartment standing in the doorway of his own room, Jack flinched and stirred restlessly, his eyes darting to and fro as if seeking an escape. His reaction was not quite as extreme as Jules' but every muscle tensed, and one hand clenched the doorframe so hard his knuckles went white.

Jacob dried his hands on the towel and tossed it back into the bathroom. "Jackson, in you go," he said quietly to his brother as he stepped out and walked into the living room. "Julian, bedroom."

Jules hesitated, looking up at Jacob through stricken eyes. "But..."

"Go on," Jacob said sternly.

Jules scrambled to his feet and retreated into the bedroom he now shared with his brother. The door softly closed behind Jules and Jack. Jacob dropped down to sit next to the coffee table, giving a small amount of space if Piper wanted to crawl out. He didn't lean down to try to look, instead keeping his body sideways as he sat with one leg bent in front of him like half of a crosslegged position and the other knee drawn up so he could rest his arm on it. His voice was lower and more firm than Julian's gentle tones, but he wasn't harsh when he spoke. He kept his gaze on the floor when he spoke, watching the coffee table out of the corner of his eye without trying to see under it.

"Piper, this is unacceptable. You are upset. I see that and I understand. You are allowed to be upset and to express yourself. You can hide under tables and chairs all you want, you can swear, you can curse us out, you can even lock yourself in a room - not the bathroom - but you cannot break things that are not yours, and you cannot scream and yell. You can break your own things if you want, they are yours, but you are not to scream or yell."

He gave a slight pause before continuing. "I want you to take a few deep breaths and count backward from ten. When you are ready to talk without screaming, you can tell me what the problem is and we will solve it. I will wait until you are ready."

Piper hadn’t really expected Julian’s reaction, the way that he flinched and covered his ears. She was being too much but why was she doing this? It was like she was asking them to throw her into the system. She had seen the group home, Kate had left her in the car to go retrieve some paperwork but Piper saw all the big kids and the glares they fixed her with from the car.

Jacob stepped in, sending Julian away and Jackson to his room. She buried her face into Bruce and sobbed loudly into the stuff animal, trying her best to reign it in but having a hard time. Maybe Jack was right and this wouldn’t work out.

Jacob was talking to her in a firm voice, telling her that her actions were unacceptable and that she couldn’t scream or yell. Piper didn’t even know why she had screamed or why she was acting like this at all. She just didn’t want to sit alone in her room even if it wasn’t dark and even if she didn’t have to sleep.

Her sobbing had paused so that Jacob could talk, but little quiet sobs or whimpered still managed to break through her lips.” I’ll see her! She’ll be all still and cold like she was at the apartment! I don’t want to keep seeing her dead. I don’t want to be by myself. I want to stay out here with you b-but you don’t want to hang out with me. You want to leave me alone and you want me to be quiet like Mama always did.” She spoke in a shaky voice filled with tears. She had crawled half way out from under the table.

She wasn’t looking at him but when she was done, she started sobbing.” I-I’m sorry! I don’t want to be alone, I want to stay with you and Julian. Please don’t make me be alone.” She begged through her sobbing.

Jacob listened patiently to Piper, his expression unchanging from its calm neutrality.  "Deep, slow breaths," was all he said when it seemed as though she might be choking on her own tears.  This seemed to be a big deal.  What had the social worker done with this situation?  She hadn't mentioned any problems in this area that he could remember.  Did she let Piper share a bed with her or something?  That wasn't happening.  The bed-wetting thing wasn't even an issue, it just wasn't going to happen.

"I see.  This is something definitely worth being upset over," he agreed calmly. "Loneliness is a scary thing, especially when you have bad dreams.  Unfortunately, you are going to have to sleep in your own bed, and we all have to sleep in ours.  That's simply the way it has to be.  Hmm.  How can we try to fix this problem?"  He lifted a hand and tapped his chin thoughtfully.  "One of us could sit with you for a while, but eventually we'd have to leave.  What if you had some music playing softly in the room with you?  That might make you feel better.  Perhaps something warm and weighted that could be in the bed with you.  What do you think?  What are some ways you think we could make you feel less alone in your bedroom?"  Maybe engaging her in trying to fix her own problems would help calm her down and give her a sense of security, even confidence.