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Title: Withdrawal with the Fosters
Day/Theme: July 4 / new ways, old things
Series: Original / Misfits
Character/Pairing: Tom Brennan, Shirley Foster, Jane Foster.
Rating: PG13 (for mentions of drug abuse)
Day/Theme: July 4 / new ways, old things
Series: Original / Misfits
Character/Pairing: Tom Brennan, Shirley Foster, Jane Foster.
Rating: PG13 (for mentions of drug abuse)
The second time around, withdrawal wasn't any easier. Tom soon had to discover that when he locked himself up with Shirley to help her confront her drug addiction.
The methods he used were the same he had resorted to when less than two years ago he had done it with Jane. But Shirley was less familiar than Jane who he had been with for years. He had known her past, her facial expressions, and, most importantly, that she didn't mean what she said.
Shirley on the other hand was a stranger who happened to share her sister's body language and looks but she wasn't Jane. She was younger, feistier, a tougher nut to crack. Everything Tom knew about her was what Jane had told him over the years and what he had found in her case file but it wasn't enough to figure out who this young woman really was. Most of the time, Shirley refused to talk to him when she wasn't cursing him or acusing him or having kidnapped her.
One of the biggest problems he soon encountered was that he couldn't just hold her when she cried, when she needed emotional support. Whenever he touched her, the memories of Jane came back vividly which could be hurtful but it kept him going. It reminded him that he was doing all of this for Jane, who was the only reason Tim felt responsible for the young addict.
He tried to find ways to help her open up so that he might understand her. He had realized very early on that what Jane had told him was merely her own perception of her sister, not who Shirley really was. Jane might have gotten the basic characteristics right but there was much more to Shirley. Sometimes, when angry, she told him stories about Jane she assumed Tom didn't want to hear. He only smiled and told her he knew; in some cases it wasn't even a lie.
The worst moments weren't seeing Shirley in a real bad state. It had broken his heart to see Jane like that but with Shirley, he had no problem seeing her like this. He didn't share the emotional connection he had had with Jane, the one that had prevented him from leaving her when she had been a mess. It was this connection that had made him want to help Shirley.
Every morning, when he woke up and saw the the brown head of hair under the blanket, his heart skipped a heat and he thought this had all been a dream, that Jane was still there with him only to have to remind himself that this woman wasn't Jane but Shirley. It broke his heart to realize it over and over again. Sometimes, he felt like time stood still when he was watching Shirley and she did something that he had been used to Jane doing.
He knew he was torturing himself by having Shirley in his house but he needed to help her overcome her demons if he wasn't able to deal with his own.
The methods he used were the same he had resorted to when less than two years ago he had done it with Jane. But Shirley was less familiar than Jane who he had been with for years. He had known her past, her facial expressions, and, most importantly, that she didn't mean what she said.
Shirley on the other hand was a stranger who happened to share her sister's body language and looks but she wasn't Jane. She was younger, feistier, a tougher nut to crack. Everything Tom knew about her was what Jane had told him over the years and what he had found in her case file but it wasn't enough to figure out who this young woman really was. Most of the time, Shirley refused to talk to him when she wasn't cursing him or acusing him or having kidnapped her.
One of the biggest problems he soon encountered was that he couldn't just hold her when she cried, when she needed emotional support. Whenever he touched her, the memories of Jane came back vividly which could be hurtful but it kept him going. It reminded him that he was doing all of this for Jane, who was the only reason Tim felt responsible for the young addict.
He tried to find ways to help her open up so that he might understand her. He had realized very early on that what Jane had told him was merely her own perception of her sister, not who Shirley really was. Jane might have gotten the basic characteristics right but there was much more to Shirley. Sometimes, when angry, she told him stories about Jane she assumed Tom didn't want to hear. He only smiled and told her he knew; in some cases it wasn't even a lie.
The worst moments weren't seeing Shirley in a real bad state. It had broken his heart to see Jane like that but with Shirley, he had no problem seeing her like this. He didn't share the emotional connection he had had with Jane, the one that had prevented him from leaving her when she had been a mess. It was this connection that had made him want to help Shirley.
Every morning, when he woke up and saw the the brown head of hair under the blanket, his heart skipped a heat and he thought this had all been a dream, that Jane was still there with him only to have to remind himself that this woman wasn't Jane but Shirley. It broke his heart to realize it over and over again. Sometimes, he felt like time stood still when he was watching Shirley and she did something that he had been used to Jane doing.
He knew he was torturing himself by having Shirley in his house but he needed to help her overcome her demons if he wasn't able to deal with his own.