03-21-2022, 02:56 PM
[align=center][div style="width: 470px; text-align: justify; font-family: new times roman; font-size: 7pt; letter-spacing: 2.5px; word-spacing: 1px; line-height: 14px;"]Laurent Knope was not fed love on a silver spoon; he had learned to lick it off knives.
He hadn't always been a house on fire, but he was full of fight nonetheless. A home where his family could seek shelter to feel protected from the world outside, Laurent was always their safety. Their shelter. But if he were to carry the weight of their responsibilities on his shoulders, then who was his home? He felt worthless if he could not be of service, and so for his family he refused to crack under this immense pressure. Hands bloodied and knuckles bruised, Laurent's life had been one where he had been met with more fists than handshakes, more lies than reassurances, more disappointment than satisfaction. Teddy would ridicule him for being a pessimist, but who could blame him?
He remembered too much about their past. Like the air in his lungs when his breath was hitched in the back of his throat — on high alert for any sound of his father's power-hungry hysteria in the room across — as it held itself still, letting nothing escape. He remembered too much as he lived and breathed the memories of his childhood. Flies hovering over dirty dishes, wallpaper peeling off of walls, a backyard with dying grass in it, and a father that was never home. It was not the whimsical fantasy that young Teddy boy had conjured in his mind, but that house was an everyday reminder that Hell was a place on Earth, indeed. Those memories consumed as much as his body as his flesh and bones, and it made Laurent cruel. Cruel enough to shut everyone out because the ones that trusted the least had once been the ones who trusted too much.
He no longer wished to be trapped in the life where he forever remained a child, staring out the window and thinking that one day he could touch the world with his bare, bloody knuckled hands, even if it burned. A place where he could create and destroy, bring life and end it, search for a life beyond the ramshackle hands of his father's stony-hearted clutch and find a place which finally felt like the throne. Never again would he be that young boy destined to a life of destitute, sacrificing his own childhood to give his baby brother a few more years of ignorant bliss before he too would be thrust into a life where everyday was another day to feel afraid. He wanted fear, power, a life where he was finally in control of its outcome.
Once it had been the power that had bound the two brothers; now, it was the power that kept them apart.
Stern eyes darted across the town square to where Theodore lounged back at a coffee table, head thrown back with laughter as he waved a cigarette pinched between two fingers towards Papa who sat opposite, sipping at a coffee with a smug grin. ❝ Yeah, and d'ya remember that fella down of Royal Street who used ta try and scam us of our money. He'd try dat trick at least once a month! ❞ It felt like the old days where Laurent and Teddy were not on speaking terms. It always appeared as if Giovanni was always what kept the brothers away from one another. He promised his sons salvation and left nothing but a bitter taste in Laurent's mouth.
Laurent clutched tighter on James' hand as Julien played a couple of steps ahead of them, tiptoeing on the stamped concrete road as if were a game of hop scotch. ❝ Dis is our funny game! ❞ Julien informed with puffing breaths as he jumped on each slab, earning a halfhearted hum from Laurent as his distracted gaze lingered on his brother and father from across the street. Before he could make a sharp turn to avoid them, James began to pull his hand away and jog towards Teddy, soon followed by Julien as the two boys exclaimed, ❝ Uncle Teddy! ❞
He thought that he could be understood without words but here he was, lip twitching in a slight scowl before following his sons to the table. ❝ Aww sha! Where ya been?! ❞ Teddy exclaimed, crinkling his nose as he leaned forwards to tickle the twins' sides, earning a squirm and giggle from both. ❝ Lets go, boys. ❞ Laurent's voice was monotonous yet commandeering as his brows knitted together. Teddy peered up towards his older brother, lips attempting to twitch into a smile but falling short just as quickly.
Giovanni was soon to pipe up. ❝ Relax... They just sayin' hey to their favourite uncle and grandpa. ❞ ❝ Right, we're going. ❞ Jaw was considerably tighter. The word ❝ grandpa ❞ felt rotten in his mouth and so he would refer to him using his given name. ❝ Say bye to Uncle Teddy and Giovanni, else we can't play on da beach. ❞ The twins pulled away from the table, giving the two men a wave before trotting away, leaving Laurent to stare down at the coffee table with a look of contempt.
❝ He might have ya on a tight leash, but don't drag my kids into the middle of it. I don't want him to even look their way. ❞ Laurent lectured Teddy before he whipped his head towards Giovanni, jabbing a pointed his way and brows raising with disgust, ❝ Ya hear me? You ain't their grandpa if you never wanted to be my pops. You don't get to try play ya game of redemption with my boys; they deserve better than that. ❞
Turning to walk away, a Made Man approached with lips parted to ask Laurent a question. Laurent pointed his finger towards him, snarling, ❝ Fuck off, ❞ before redirecting his attention towards Giovanni one last time to state, ❝ and fuck you. ❞ Catching up to his boys, Laurent left with flaring nostrils and eyes alight with flames. Laurent had never wanted Giovanni to be a Saint — he didn't even want him to be a good man — he just wanted him to be his father.
Once reaching the beach, he waved the boys off as they went to go play by the sea, soon slumping down on a deck chair nearby as he kept a close eye on them. This was supposed to be an afternoon off of his usual work just so that he could enjoy family life, and instead his mind was consumed by a deep-seated rage towards a family that felt dead to him, yet they haunted him nonetheless. But, Laurent would keep reminding himself: no matter the situation, never let emotions overpower intelligence. Perhaps today was a slight blip, but Laurent was only human (even though most likened him to the devil) — but he would learn from this mistake.
It was so fucked up that he had to learn about love from a man that never loved him, but Laurent would do his best to be the father that Giovanni could never be. Maybe one day Teddy would understand where Laurent was coming from.
He hadn't always been a house on fire, but he was full of fight nonetheless. A home where his family could seek shelter to feel protected from the world outside, Laurent was always their safety. Their shelter. But if he were to carry the weight of their responsibilities on his shoulders, then who was his home? He felt worthless if he could not be of service, and so for his family he refused to crack under this immense pressure. Hands bloodied and knuckles bruised, Laurent's life had been one where he had been met with more fists than handshakes, more lies than reassurances, more disappointment than satisfaction. Teddy would ridicule him for being a pessimist, but who could blame him?
He remembered too much about their past. Like the air in his lungs when his breath was hitched in the back of his throat — on high alert for any sound of his father's power-hungry hysteria in the room across — as it held itself still, letting nothing escape. He remembered too much as he lived and breathed the memories of his childhood. Flies hovering over dirty dishes, wallpaper peeling off of walls, a backyard with dying grass in it, and a father that was never home. It was not the whimsical fantasy that young Teddy boy had conjured in his mind, but that house was an everyday reminder that Hell was a place on Earth, indeed. Those memories consumed as much as his body as his flesh and bones, and it made Laurent cruel. Cruel enough to shut everyone out because the ones that trusted the least had once been the ones who trusted too much.
He no longer wished to be trapped in the life where he forever remained a child, staring out the window and thinking that one day he could touch the world with his bare, bloody knuckled hands, even if it burned. A place where he could create and destroy, bring life and end it, search for a life beyond the ramshackle hands of his father's stony-hearted clutch and find a place which finally felt like the throne. Never again would he be that young boy destined to a life of destitute, sacrificing his own childhood to give his baby brother a few more years of ignorant bliss before he too would be thrust into a life where everyday was another day to feel afraid. He wanted fear, power, a life where he was finally in control of its outcome.
Once it had been the power that had bound the two brothers; now, it was the power that kept them apart.
Stern eyes darted across the town square to where Theodore lounged back at a coffee table, head thrown back with laughter as he waved a cigarette pinched between two fingers towards Papa who sat opposite, sipping at a coffee with a smug grin. ❝ Yeah, and d'ya remember that fella down of Royal Street who used ta try and scam us of our money. He'd try dat trick at least once a month! ❞ It felt like the old days where Laurent and Teddy were not on speaking terms. It always appeared as if Giovanni was always what kept the brothers away from one another. He promised his sons salvation and left nothing but a bitter taste in Laurent's mouth.
Laurent clutched tighter on James' hand as Julien played a couple of steps ahead of them, tiptoeing on the stamped concrete road as if were a game of hop scotch. ❝ Dis is our funny game! ❞ Julien informed with puffing breaths as he jumped on each slab, earning a halfhearted hum from Laurent as his distracted gaze lingered on his brother and father from across the street. Before he could make a sharp turn to avoid them, James began to pull his hand away and jog towards Teddy, soon followed by Julien as the two boys exclaimed, ❝ Uncle Teddy! ❞
He thought that he could be understood without words but here he was, lip twitching in a slight scowl before following his sons to the table. ❝ Aww sha! Where ya been?! ❞ Teddy exclaimed, crinkling his nose as he leaned forwards to tickle the twins' sides, earning a squirm and giggle from both. ❝ Lets go, boys. ❞ Laurent's voice was monotonous yet commandeering as his brows knitted together. Teddy peered up towards his older brother, lips attempting to twitch into a smile but falling short just as quickly.
Giovanni was soon to pipe up. ❝ Relax... They just sayin' hey to their favourite uncle and grandpa. ❞ ❝ Right, we're going. ❞ Jaw was considerably tighter. The word ❝ grandpa ❞ felt rotten in his mouth and so he would refer to him using his given name. ❝ Say bye to Uncle Teddy and Giovanni, else we can't play on da beach. ❞ The twins pulled away from the table, giving the two men a wave before trotting away, leaving Laurent to stare down at the coffee table with a look of contempt.
❝ He might have ya on a tight leash, but don't drag my kids into the middle of it. I don't want him to even look their way. ❞ Laurent lectured Teddy before he whipped his head towards Giovanni, jabbing a pointed his way and brows raising with disgust, ❝ Ya hear me? You ain't their grandpa if you never wanted to be my pops. You don't get to try play ya game of redemption with my boys; they deserve better than that. ❞
Turning to walk away, a Made Man approached with lips parted to ask Laurent a question. Laurent pointed his finger towards him, snarling, ❝ Fuck off, ❞ before redirecting his attention towards Giovanni one last time to state, ❝ and fuck you. ❞ Catching up to his boys, Laurent left with flaring nostrils and eyes alight with flames. Laurent had never wanted Giovanni to be a Saint — he didn't even want him to be a good man — he just wanted him to be his father.
Once reaching the beach, he waved the boys off as they went to go play by the sea, soon slumping down on a deck chair nearby as he kept a close eye on them. This was supposed to be an afternoon off of his usual work just so that he could enjoy family life, and instead his mind was consumed by a deep-seated rage towards a family that felt dead to him, yet they haunted him nonetheless. But, Laurent would keep reminding himself: no matter the situation, never let emotions overpower intelligence. Perhaps today was a slight blip, but Laurent was only human (even though most likened him to the devil) — but he would learn from this mistake.
It was so fucked up that he had to learn about love from a man that never loved him, but Laurent would do his best to be the father that Giovanni could never be. Maybe one day Teddy would understand where Laurent was coming from.
[align=center]
THE WORLD'S CONTROLLED BY PEOPLE CONTROLLING PEOPLE
[div style="width: 400px; font-family: georgia; text-align: center; font-size: 7pt; line-height: 1; letter-spacing: 1.2px; word-spacing: 1px; margin-bottom: 5px;"]SO COME ON PEOPLE, BURN THE EMPIRE, BRING HER TO HER KNEES.
[div style="width: 400px; font-family: georgia; text-align: center; font-size: 7pt; line-height: 1; letter-spacing: 1.2px; word-spacing: 1px; margin-bottom: 5px;"]SO COME ON PEOPLE, BURN THE EMPIRE, BRING HER TO HER KNEES.
![[Image: BpnKZNK.gif]](https://i.imgur.com/BpnKZNK.gif)