CK doodles : when she died

Hear hear, there's a downhill spiral of events that happen to Owen and Adrian throughout their childhood/teenhood.

(It's gets better but for it to get better, it has to get worse)

For a pair of years, their mother had been sick, treatments allowed under their healthcare system wasn't enough, they couldn't afford a few meds anymore, and they'd be in debt... (On top of it, there had been a flood in the nearby city that made service robots unusable) this gave them no access to their healthcare benefits until the situation stabilized.

But it's not like a few meds would have saved the situation. Their mother was terminally ill. It wouldn't have lasted long regardless. Cancer took her too soon, leaving a barely 18 Owen taking care of a 12 to 13 year old Adrian (and to take care of house/bills/food/etc) he'd been prepared a few months ahead but it wasn't enough.

Now juggling 3 jobs, leaving university for good and trying to learn business strategy at home, Owen had to grant safety and care to Adrian, an emotional pre-teen that didn't grasp the gravity of the situation till it slapped him in the face.

Sleepless nights, nightmares, and hours spent together just to make Adrian calm down and get better quickly enough to go back to his studies. Those were still paid, their mother had saved up for Adrian to continue. Owen wasn't as lucky (he was given funds too, but they were desperately needed for the household). Working was a must now.

Thankfully, Owen's friend... Troy! Invited them over at his family's house quite often, just to feel better, to distract themselves (and to grab food his mom made) He was there even for Adrian, was granted special access to Troy's vintage consoles. ;)

Sleepovers happened, too. Revealing to Troy how stressed Owen was and pretty much how hard it was to raise your little sibling through grief.

This made Troy much more present in their lives. He already was, but at this point, he decided to stick around often. Adrian needed to be picked up from school, and Owen was still stuck at work? No problem, Troy'd do it. Adrian needed to have some fun to get his mind off things? Troy's the best entertainer. Adrian and Owen struggled to reach the amount needed for groceries or food for a few nights? Troy would already be there with some pizza, take-out or literally asking his mom to make some more so he could bring it to the two.