"Yeah, well, we ain't allowed to park near the city or we get dragged out. Literally. All places are private these days so we gotta find somewhere. We're near a posh people's hunting reserve so we'll probably be moved sooner or later but for now, this is it. We got a water pipe 60 meters from our home, we got public toilets about 150 away." Jonathan explained, not seeming as bothered by the walk as Edward was. Of course he wasn't, he did it every day if he went to the city centre.
Once they were up the hill, Jonathan took Edward's hand and pulled him to the top, pausing so the other could get his breathe.
"My Holden and Axel, they walk to school every day. Ain't no bus here and the local school won't take 'em cause they're gyppos. They refused us. So they gotta walk an hour into the city. They do this route, every day and night. And in winter, it's fucking dark, lemme tell you." Jonathan hated it too but what was he supposed to do? To settle was an insult to his family and the world was just against them travelling. All he could do was try to survive it all.
"Shame." Really not much else he could say to that, especially not because Jon was holding his hand and that kind of just made his heart flutter in a way that was even more intense than the walk had been. He caught his breath slowly, smiling at Jonathan while his heart was beating too fast. "At least it makes for good songs, that rough life."
So there was that. "Who're Holden and Axel then?" He was curious. Did Jon already have children? Surely not. Especially not school aged ones. He knew travellers started early, but Jon couldn't be much older than him. "Your brothers?" He assumed. Stood to reason.
"My brothers, yeah. Younger brothers. I got a whole mess of siblings. I had a younger sister but she turned 16 and when that happens, they leave you. You gotta get married at 16. That's the way." And yet, Jonathan had avoided it. His refusal mixed with his absent father and new duties made it easy for him to keep avoiding the topic but he knew that Alfie wouldn't let it be ignored for long. "You're supposed to. He and the eldest, we're breaking tradition. He's a manslut and I'm a queer."
Jonathan laughed and grinned at Edward, pulling him along by his hand before letting go. The two of them kept walking but now the ground seemed mostly even and a bit less damp. "I guess our generation really is ruining society."
"I don't know, love. Sounds to me like your big brother and you are making excellent choices." But then, he would think that. Edward grinned, hands back in his pocket to resist the temptation. He wanted to be all over Jonathan, but he knew that was unlikely to be an option now they got closer to his place. Wasn't really an option for them anyway and wasn't that a shame? "I'm glad you ain't about to introduce me to your wife."
That could have been a bit awkward. "My old man always thought I'm going to drag down whatever I'm near, so why not go after society? Fuck morals. I want to fuck you."
"I ain't got morals, I ain't fitting nowhere and I do what I fancy. I just keep it all to myself." Jonathan didn't want to make waves, he didn't want to be that faggot and get ousted from his family. He loves his brothers and he would do whatever he had to for them. Even if it meant keeping it all in.
As they got closer to the park, he could hear the kids yelling and shouting, playing together, and he could see the smoke coming from the fire. "If anyone asks who you are, you're just a mate. We're in business." Otherwise they'd all get funny with him for bringing an outsider in. "You may have to look at my horse while I get the whiskey. Just look interested in buying her."
Edward looked down himself and adjusted a strap of his guitar case, lifting his eyebrows a little. He knew he didn't look as if he could afford a horse. He also doubted as if he overly looked like he'd been near any horse very often. Still, he got the importance of keeping whatever cover Jon picked and he assumed Jon knew better. "Whatever you say, Jonny."
It wasn't as if he'd planned on introducing himself as a queer. He didn't fancy getting beat up either. "Can't wait to get myself a horsey. Clip-clop." How did one look interested in buying a horse? "Is there anything about looking in their mouths?" He just wanted to know.
"Okay, you know what? No. Don't go near my horse. Actually, expect a talk when we got the whiskey about how a horse works." Jonathan insisted, unsure why he thought a city boy could pretend to understand horses. He rolled his eyes and shoved Edward out of the trees, coming out behind him. "The brown caravan is mine. Come on, just stick with me."
As they came along, he stepped passed the kids playing footie and then caught sight of Axel. Ah, the first brother had noticed. Shit. One down, three to go. "Jonny!"
"Sod off, Ax. Keep playing." Jonathan kept moving towards the caravan, not being suspicious but not wanting to stop and chat.
"Hello, Axel!" Edward waved, in good spirits, following the script. More or less. "I'm Jonny's mate." Wasn't he lucky? And that little boy was adorable. He could see the family resemblance, dark shock of hair and all that, only the boy was still tiny, which made it adorable rather than striking. "I'm Ed. Eddie. Edward."
So many names.
Still, he kept on walking, even as he introduced himself to the boy. Headed for the brown caravan. "Yours is the biggest here too, eh?" He noticed.
Of course, entertaining Axel was like opening pandoras box and Jonathan knew exactly what was coming because suddenly Axel was barrelling down the caravan park to get a better look at Edward, eyes wide with awe.
"Hello! I'm Axel. You play the guitar?" That was so cool. He studied Edward in much the same way Jon did - clearly he had learned from his big brother.
"Seriously, Ax. Sod off." Jonathan said as he rolled his eyes at Edward's dick joke and opened the caravan door, heading inside to grab some booze and not bothering to check who was in here. The less he engaged, the better.
"Did you come to smoke and drink? I tried drinking, it was so gross." Axel wisely informed Edward as the other children slowly started to gather around too. Well, he was new. They didn't often have new. "Do you wanna see my Barbies?"
"You got Barbies? Hell yeah, I wanna see them. You got nice clothes for them too?" Edward crouched down to be closer to level with Axel - and the other kids that were staring at him - and he smiled at them all, clearly not minding the attention. "I do play the guitar. That's how me and Jonny met."
Holden had been in a corner, writing something, but the commotion was making him get up. He nodded at Jonathan, but looked out the door more curiously. "Why's Axel talking to a stranger?" That was odd. Why would Jon permit that?
"Not really but I got a few different ones. Jonathan allows it. It's not girly cause they're mine and I'm a boy." Axel just clarified he was allowed as others had expressed dislike and hate towards him having them so he just wanted Edward to know it was totally cool with Jonny. "Did you know that Jonny plays the fiddle?"
Jonathan looked at Holden and then looked out of the caravan door with a sigh. "He's not a stranger. He's a guy who-- we're working on a business deal." Jon lied as he snapped his fingers at Ed. "Oi, you're not here to play Barbies."
"Shame. I'm real good at playing Barbies." Edward impulsively picked Axel up and carried him into the caravan, because if Jon felt he could snap his fingers at him, Edward was going to intrude on his personal space. Seemed fair to him. "I didn't have any Barbies when I was your age, but I made some clothes for my friend's Barbies. She loved them."
Holden looked at the man who definitely seemed like a stranger. He seemed strange, if nothing else. Not like anyone Jon had ever done business with before. "Axel, don't bother the man."
"He ain't no bother," Ed assured the worried looking bore that had to be Holden. He set Axel down and ruffled his hair. "He plays the fiddle beautifully, your Jonny."
Axel was having a good time. He was playing with someone new, he got lifted up and now he got to show off his Barbies. Could the day be better?
Jon, on the other hand, not so thrilled. It was his fault, he invited chaos into his life and here it was. Chaos incarnate. Jonathan huffed and came back into the caravan. If he was sticking around, he may as well get a new packet of cigarettes and a lighter. "I played fiddle with him earlier, he's a good musician. He's above board." Jon turned to Holden and frowned. "Alfie about?" He hoped not, he'd freak.
And then there was Axel, who was hands down the least bothered. He was opening a cupboard and getting his dolls, rushing over to show Edward. "My dad didn't let me either but Jonny allows it. He said it doesn't make you queer." Axel assured the man as he held up summer fun Barbie. "This one was for my birthday this year."
"Nah, Alfie's training. Though I think he's not training, he's just with some girl." That was Holden's assessment of that, but either way, it meant Alfie wasn't there to see Axel proudly show off his Barbies. Probably for the best.
"She's beautiful, ain't she?" Edward did good on admiring the Barbie, inspecting her dress. "She's all dressed for summer. Doubt she'll see it here, but we can pretend, eh?" Seemed like it was never going to stop being damp and just a bit miserable in Manchester. Whatever, he was ready to make the most of it, just like summer fun Barbie. "I'll teach you how you can make Barbie clothes some time, if I ever come visit again."
He reckoned chances were slim, the way Jon was eyeing him.
"Really? Woah! If you do, I can show you how to do the splits. I learned last week." Axel explained and Jonathan snorted in amusement. Yeah, he'd fucking pay to see that one. He pocketed his cigarettes and came over to Edward, raising his eyebrows.
"Come on, enough Barbie summer fun time. We should get going."
Axel whined and pouted as he looked up at Edward. He was the first guy that didn't sneer at his dolls or call him queer or sissy. He wanted to learn more about the dresses. "Can you come back tomorrow? I can make us spaghetti hoops!"
"What a dinner date." Jon mocked as he shoved Axel slightly with his foot. "Stop being a pest and shift it."
"We will see, yea?" Ed pulled Axel back a little just to keep him from being shoved by Jonathan again, realising suddenly how much that idea bothered him. He didn't really think that Jon hit those kids, not with how they reacted to him, but even just the thought was threatening his good mood. He pushed back on those dark memories and smiled. "I'll see you again some time. Those spaghetti hoops sound brilliant."
"They're kinda naff," Holden muttered, moving over to coax Axel to stick by him. He knew when Jon got annoyed.
Ed looked at Jonathan, smiling as if he hadn't just befriended his baby brother. "Are we ready to head off?"
In the time they had talked, Jon had lit himself a cigarette and he was getting a little less pissy over all of this. It was just not at all what he had expected. "Yeah, let's go." He shoved the bottle of whiskey at Edward and hopped out of the caravan, stopping to peer back in at Holden and Axel. "I'll be back later. Be good."
He noticed Axel was pouting deeply at being called a pest and having his friend removed. Baby. "And don't pout, you silly sod. You can't be mad at me. If you're mad at me, I'll have to go away and you'll be raised by Alfie. You'll have to eat beans all day and punch things. You'll be such a smelly boy, eh? You want me gone?"
"No. I guess not." Axel smiled despite himself and Jon waited for that smile before he turned away, shaking his head.
Ed held on to the bottle, waving to both of the boys and watching as Holden picked up the Barbie, clearly ready to engage with it all a little to cheer his brother up. Sweet kids, really. He smiled, waving once more and then turning away, so he could focus on following Jonathan with his unreasonably long legs.
He looked at him as they walked, assuming that he'd pissed him off with that. Whatever, he didn't like having fingers snapped at him either and the kids were cute. He felt it was all fair. "Thank you."
He assumed Jonathan wouldn't know why he was thanking him, but that was good. Confusion might distract him from getting any angrier. Still, he finally clarified. "Thanks for not hitting those kids."
"Eh?" Jonathan had no idea why he was being thanked but it seemed oddly sincere so he turned to look at him. He raised an eyebrow at the gratitude and then looked back at his caravan. "I ain't never hit my brothers and I never will. I didn't fight my dad from slapping Axel just to do it myself. No one touches Holden or Axel, no one makes them feel bad for who they are."
He was making them outsiders and he knew that. Outsiders with their own people, with society, with the world but they would find their people. They would be educated and ready to escape. Not like Jon.
His brothers had what he didn't have. That was what mattered. "I weren't really pissed with the twerp, you know? Axel is cute. He adores you, apparently."
"That is because I'm adorable," Edward claimed without a hint of irony, simply presenting it as fact. "You'll follow suit yet and adore me as well. It's inevitable. Luckily for you, I think you are precious too."
All right, so maybe there was at least some humour in the mix. Not that he didn't think he was truly adorable. "Axel is a cute kid. Very bright, I can tell." He felt that. "Also, Holden thinks the world of you. That's pretty impressive, inspiring that in someone. You're a great man, Jonny."
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Once they were up the hill, Jonathan took Edward's hand and pulled him to the top, pausing so the other could get his breathe.
"My Holden and Axel, they walk to school every day. Ain't no bus here and the local school won't take 'em cause they're gyppos. They refused us. So they gotta walk an hour into the city. They do this route, every day and night. And in winter, it's fucking dark, lemme tell you." Jonathan hated it too but what was he supposed to do? To settle was an insult to his family and the world was just against them travelling. All he could do was try to survive it all.
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So there was that. "Who're Holden and Axel then?" He was curious. Did Jon already have children? Surely not. Especially not school aged ones. He knew travellers started early, but Jon couldn't be much older than him. "Your brothers?" He assumed. Stood to reason.
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Jonathan laughed and grinned at Edward, pulling him along by his hand before letting go. The two of them kept walking but now the ground seemed mostly even and a bit less damp. "I guess our generation really is ruining society."
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That could have been a bit awkward. "My old man always thought I'm going to drag down whatever I'm near, so why not go after society? Fuck morals. I want to fuck you."
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As they got closer to the park, he could hear the kids yelling and shouting, playing together, and he could see the smoke coming from the fire. "If anyone asks who you are, you're just a mate. We're in business." Otherwise they'd all get funny with him for bringing an outsider in. "You may have to look at my horse while I get the whiskey. Just look interested in buying her."
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It wasn't as if he'd planned on introducing himself as a queer. He didn't fancy getting beat up either. "Can't wait to get myself a horsey. Clip-clop." How did one look interested in buying a horse? "Is there anything about looking in their mouths?" He just wanted to know.
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As they came along, he stepped passed the kids playing footie and then caught sight of Axel. Ah, the first brother had noticed. Shit. One down, three to go. "Jonny!"
"Sod off, Ax. Keep playing." Jonathan kept moving towards the caravan, not being suspicious but not wanting to stop and chat.
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So many names.
Still, he kept on walking, even as he introduced himself to the boy. Headed for the brown caravan. "Yours is the biggest here too, eh?" He noticed.
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"Hello! I'm Axel. You play the guitar?" That was so cool. He studied Edward in much the same way Jon did - clearly he had learned from his big brother.
"Seriously, Ax. Sod off." Jonathan said as he rolled his eyes at Edward's dick joke and opened the caravan door, heading inside to grab some booze and not bothering to check who was in here. The less he engaged, the better.
"Did you come to smoke and drink? I tried drinking, it was so gross." Axel wisely informed Edward as the other children slowly started to gather around too. Well, he was new. They didn't often have new. "Do you wanna see my Barbies?"
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Holden had been in a corner, writing something, but the commotion was making him get up. He nodded at Jonathan, but looked out the door more curiously. "Why's Axel talking to a stranger?" That was odd. Why would Jon permit that?
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Jonathan looked at Holden and then looked out of the caravan door with a sigh. "He's not a stranger. He's a guy who-- we're working on a business deal." Jon lied as he snapped his fingers at Ed. "Oi, you're not here to play Barbies."
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Holden looked at the man who definitely seemed like a stranger. He seemed strange, if nothing else. Not like anyone Jon had ever done business with before. "Axel, don't bother the man."
"He ain't no bother," Ed assured the worried looking bore that had to be Holden. He set Axel down and ruffled his hair. "He plays the fiddle beautifully, your Jonny."
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Jon, on the other hand, not so thrilled. It was his fault, he invited chaos into his life and here it was. Chaos incarnate. Jonathan huffed and came back into the caravan. If he was sticking around, he may as well get a new packet of cigarettes and a lighter. "I played fiddle with him earlier, he's a good musician. He's above board." Jon turned to Holden and frowned. "Alfie about?" He hoped not, he'd freak.
And then there was Axel, who was hands down the least bothered. He was opening a cupboard and getting his dolls, rushing over to show Edward. "My dad didn't let me either but Jonny allows it. He said it doesn't make you queer." Axel assured the man as he held up summer fun Barbie. "This one was for my birthday this year."
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"She's beautiful, ain't she?" Edward did good on admiring the Barbie, inspecting her dress. "She's all dressed for summer. Doubt she'll see it here, but we can pretend, eh?" Seemed like it was never going to stop being damp and just a bit miserable in Manchester. Whatever, he was ready to make the most of it, just like summer fun Barbie. "I'll teach you how you can make Barbie clothes some time, if I ever come visit again."
He reckoned chances were slim, the way Jon was eyeing him.
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"Come on, enough Barbie summer fun time. We should get going."
Axel whined and pouted as he looked up at Edward. He was the first guy that didn't sneer at his dolls or call him queer or sissy. He wanted to learn more about the dresses. "Can you come back tomorrow? I can make us spaghetti hoops!"
"What a dinner date." Jon mocked as he shoved Axel slightly with his foot. "Stop being a pest and shift it."
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"They're kinda naff," Holden muttered, moving over to coax Axel to stick by him. He knew when Jon got annoyed.
Ed looked at Jonathan, smiling as if he hadn't just befriended his baby brother. "Are we ready to head off?"
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He noticed Axel was pouting deeply at being called a pest and having his friend removed. Baby. "And don't pout, you silly sod. You can't be mad at me. If you're mad at me, I'll have to go away and you'll be raised by Alfie. You'll have to eat beans all day and punch things. You'll be such a smelly boy, eh? You want me gone?"
"No. I guess not." Axel smiled despite himself and Jon waited for that smile before he turned away, shaking his head.
"Bloody kids."
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He looked at him as they walked, assuming that he'd pissed him off with that. Whatever, he didn't like having fingers snapped at him either and the kids were cute. He felt it was all fair. "Thank you."
He assumed Jonathan wouldn't know why he was thanking him, but that was good. Confusion might distract him from getting any angrier. Still, he finally clarified. "Thanks for not hitting those kids."
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He was making them outsiders and he knew that. Outsiders with their own people, with society, with the world but they would find their people. They would be educated and ready to escape. Not like Jon.
His brothers had what he didn't have. That was what mattered. "I weren't really pissed with the twerp, you know? Axel is cute. He adores you, apparently."
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All right, so maybe there was at least some humour in the mix. Not that he didn't think he was truly adorable. "Axel is a cute kid. Very bright, I can tell." He felt that. "Also, Holden thinks the world of you. That's pretty impressive, inspiring that in someone. You're a great man, Jonny."