(Matty Healy x OFC!Teen!Sister!r)
warnings: crying, mention of divorce and fighting, sibling issues??, absent family members, name, R white ask i guess? should I have done adoptive r or sum? Will rewrite if u wanna!!
a/n: i thought this was gonna be the best thing ive ever written but now idk
Matty was nineteen when he found out his parents were pregnant again. He wasnât so excited at first. Not angry â just didnât care. He was out of high school, playing random gigs around London while he waited for the other three to finish University. He was an adult, and practically on his own, having already moved out of the house. Everyone was excited â He just didnât care.
He drove himself and Louis to meet you at the hospital the day your mother gave birth. Louis couldnât contain his excitement. He had hoped it was a girl from the day he found out a new baby was arriving. Matty had to tell him to âbe chillâ when walking inside.
When they walked into the room, you were sat on a warming table in the corner on the other side of the suite. He caught a glimpse. Tiny little thing wrapped up in pink. You had only been alive for a number of hours and they already got a bow on your head, he thought. Louis ran to you while Matty went to your Mum. âWouldnât shut up the whole car rideâ He said.
When Louis kept jumping up and down shrinking âI wanna hold her! I wanna hold her!â You mum said, âMaybe Matty should hold her?â
He turned to her, pale almost. She did nothing but nod.
âYeah, alright.â He said.
Louis made some sort of noise in disappointment and went and sat with your mother, your father joining too, and watched Matty near the bassinet.
He peered over the edge, fully laying eyes on you. His breath caught in his throat, just for a brief moment. He doesn;t remember Louis looking this tiny when he was born. Your eyes were closed and you were still. Like a literal baby doll, he thought.
âGo ahead, son.â Your father whispered.
Heâs held a baby before. Being the first born and one of the oldest cousins meant being a built-in babysitter at one time or another. But why did it feel so different now?
He lifted you up and held you close. You squirmed slightly,
âWhat do you think, son?â Your dad said.
He thought for a moment. âTiny.â Was all he could say.
He tried his best to fight the tear peering from his eye. âHi, Hazel.â He said, voice barely above a whisper
He let out a quiet âYeah,â In confirmation.
âYouâre gonna be trouble, arenât you?â
You sink deeper into the kitchen chair, arms folded so tight it feels like theyâre welded in place. Your mum stands by the counter with her mug, giving you that look thatâs equal parts stubborn and smug, like she already knows sheâs going to win.
âHeâs busy, Mum,â you snap, not even bothering to look at her. Your eyes stay fixed on the cracked tile beneath your foot. âItâs not like heâll have all the free time in the world to âsort me outâ while performing on a fucking world tour.â
âYouâre his sister â heâs always got time for you.â
You laugh, sharp and bitter. âYes, because Iâve seen him so much over the course of my sixteen-year life time.â
Her voice drops into that warning tone you know too well. âHazel.â
You straighten in your chair, chin tilted up like youâve got armour on. âWhat? Itâs true. Heâs been busy with his band since forever. And now Iâm supposed to go hang around like some backstage charity caseââ
âYou are getting on that plane to see your brother and thatâs the end of it,â she cuts in, the mug landing on the counter with a sharp clink. âI donât want to hear another word.â
You throw your head back with an exaggerated groan. âYou canât force me to enjoy it.â
âJust think of it as Iâm paying for a holiday with your brother,â she says. âWhere you donât have to deal with me on your arse all day.â
That gets you. You try not to show it, but a smile almost tugs at your mouth. Instead you shrug like youâre bored. âYeah, it might be worth it.â
She smirks, just a little, before picking up her phone. You watch her thumbs fly over the screen, probably texting him alreadyâlike youâre some parcel being shipped off.
Matty: What time she land again?
Denise: 11:30. Iâll send you the confirmation.
Sheâs being a bit cady, fair warning.
Matty: Wonder where she gets it fromâŚ
The car park is loud, even though the doors havenât opened yet. Kids press against the barricades with signs and phones, screaming Mattyâs name as he drags you behind him. You keep your hood up, eyes on the ground, chewing the sleeve of your jumper like maybe you can disappear.
âNearly there,â he mutters, flashing a smile at security.
Inside, the noise dulls, replaced with the clatter of wheels and cases echoing down the concrete halls. You hate the way you feel hereâsmall. Like the building itself swallows you whole. Matty glances back, clocking it, but you cross your arms tight and look away.
âYou alright?â he asks.
âIâm fine, Matty.â You make sure your voice has just enough bite.
But you can tell he doesnât buy it.
He pulls you through to a dressing room. Itâs quietâamp buzzing in the corner, half-eaten pizza sagging on the table. âSee?â he says, throwing the door wide. âSanctuary. Sit, hide, raid the snacks. No oneâll bother you.â
You collapse onto the couch, kicking off your trainers. You donât reach for food. You donât grab your phone. You just stare at the carpet until your eyes blur, nails scratching against each other until they sting.
Matty stares at you like that, eventually sighing and droppingh into a chair across from you, elbows on his knees. âAlright. Out with it. Youâve been acting like you swallowed a lemon since you landed. Wanna tell me why Mum flew you across the bloody globe to see me?â
You glance up, sharp. âShe didnât tell you about my one too many out-of-school outings?â
âJust some sparring details.â He smirks. âYou on your period 24/7 or what?â
âWhat? Iâm just trying to understand.â
âYouâre not helping.â
He sighs, holding his hands up. âFine. No more jokes. Either wayâIâm happy youâre here.â
You nod, quick, and rip into the sandwich he pushed at you earlier. Bite after bite, chewing like it
You nodded, quick and stiff, then sank back into the decaying couch you were sitting on.
Matty leaned back, watching. Something in his chest twisted. You werenât just being difficult. You were sad. And he hadnât been around enough to notice until now.
He leaned forward, elbows on his knees. âHazelâŚâ
âWill you tell me whatâs happening?.â
And just like thatâthe wall cracked.
You bit your tongue and looked away, as if it could hide the new fresh falling tears in your eyes.
Mattyâs jaw clenched, his thumb pressing against the filter of his half-finished cigarette. He hadnât lit it yet. Couldnât, not with You looking at him like thatâeyes wet, shoulders trembling. It was a look he remembered, suddenly and painfully, from when you were small. When youâd toddle behind him down the hallway, sticky fingers reaching for his hand, terrified of being left behind.
Only now you werenât a toddler. You were sixteen and furious. Sixteen and broken.
He leaned forward in his seat, âIâm right here Hazeââ
âI want you to come home.â
âHazel⌠it doesn't work like that, my love.â he sighed. âCome here.â
You shook your head no, which shocked him. This wasnât going to be as easy as he thought.
âWhy did you leave?â You said, voice barely audible.
âIâm here, Hazel. Iâm right here.â
âNo youâre not! Youâre halfway across the fucking globe everytime I try and call you! And then you canât talk because you're working, or on stage, or in a completely different time zone from the one I'm in. Youâre never there for me, Matty!â
âThatâs not true. Iâm always here for you, youâre my sister.â
âThen why doesnât it feel that way?I know you have a wonderful life outside of me. I know youâre out here, with your best friends, living your dream. But why am I not a part of it?â
He was silent after that. âYouâre close with Louis? Is it because Iâm a girl?â
âIs it because Iâm younger?â
âThen what is it Matty? Tell me what I did?â
âWhat did I do? Why did you leave me there?â
He swallowed. âI didnât leave you, Haze. I swear I didnât.â
âYou did.â Your voice cracked, softening. âYou left me with Louis and Mum, and Dad, and when Louis left I had to deal with both of them by myself. The cheating, the divorce, all of it. And youââ You choked, pressing the heel of your palm to your eyes. âYou were supposed to be mine. My brother. And you werenât there.â
Matty felt the words sink into his chest like stones. He hadnât thought of it that way. Heâd thought you were young enough, sheltered enough, to not notice. Heâd thoughtâmaybe stupidlyâthat you had been spared the worst of it.
He reached forward, tentative, and took your wrist, lowering your hand from your eyes. âIâm sorry.â His voice came out rough. âI was a selfish prick. All I cared about was music, and getting out, and my own bloody head. I didnât mean to leave you with their mess. I thoughtâHazel, I thought youâd be alright.â
Your lip wobbled. âI wasnât.â
âI know,â he said quickly. âI know now. And I hate myself for not seeing it.â He pulled you closer, and this time you didnât resist. Your small, wiry frame pressed against his chest, shoulders shaking as you cried.
Matty rested his chin on the top of your head, holding you as tight as he dared. âYou didnât do anything wrong, alright? Itâs not because youâre a girl, or because youâre younger, or because of anything you did. Itâs me. I shouldâve been there, and I wasnât. But Iâm here now.â His voice cracked on the end.
âYouâll just leave again.â The words were muffled against his shirt.
âNot like before,â he promised. âI canât quit the band, butââ he pulled back just enough to tip your chin up, forcing you to meet his eyes. âI can do better. I can answer the phone. I can fly home more. I can let you come with me more. Hell, you think I donât want to show you off? My kid sister who terrifies teachers and tells Mum to piss off?â He tried for a smile.
It almost worked. You gave the tiniest snort through tears.
âThatâs my girl,â he whispered, brushing your hair back.
There was a silence, softer now. Just the two of you in the dim backstage lounge, the hum of equipment vibrating through the walls.
âWere you acting out because of me?â he asked again, quieter this time.
You shrugged against him. âMaybe. Probably. I wanted someone to notice.â
âYou got my attention,â he said wryly, then his tone gentled. âBut you donât have to break yourself to get me to see you, Haze. I see you. Always have. And I love you.â
Your arms tightened suddenly around his middle, like you were afraid heâd disappear if you let go.
âI love you too, Matty,â you whispered, voice small.
Matty closed his eyes, holding you like he had all those years ago in the hospital, when you were tiny and pink and squirming in his arms. Back then, all heâd managed was âTiny.â Now, with her pressed against him, older and hurting but still his, the word came back to him.
âStill tiny,â he murmured into your hair, and felt you laughâshaky, but realâagainst his chest.
And for the first time in a long time, you didnât feel like heâd left her at all.
Bonus: The lads meeting baby sister
âOi! Shut up, will you!â
Your brotherâs voice snaps across the room in a whisper sharp enough to quiet all three of the towering men hovering around him. They fall into a hushed sort of awe, their tall frames leaning down like a forest of giants around you.
Adamâs the first to comment, âThatâs the tiniest thing Iâve ever laid eyes on.â
âI donât think Iâve even laid eyes on a proper baby before?â George says, which earns a wack on the back of his head from Ross.
Their voices are rough and clumsy, but curious. You shift in Mattyâs arms at the sound, your little fingers curling.
âGuys,â Matty says, softer now, his chin brushing the top of your head. âMeet Hazel Healy.â
âHi, Hazel,â they all say, too shy, too quiet, too in sync, as if practiced.
The name tugs at you. Your body squirms, and your eyelids crack open to a blurry world of unfamiliar faces. You blink, as if you recognize them. The boys collectively gasp.
âShe knows her name, thatâs what it is!â
âWhy her name Hazel if her eyes arenât hazel?â George blurts, squinting.
Matty lets out a sigh that sounds like heâs already tired. âI donât know. I didnât name her. Itâs just a pretty name. H and H.â
âHave you even held a baby before?â
From the other room, your mumâs voice carries like a bell: âDid you boys wash your hands?â
Silence. Then, muttered: ââŚNo.â
âI better hear a long stream of water coming from the kitchen before you hold that little girl!â Denise calls.
The three boys scatter immediately, bumping into each other, elbows knocking. Itâs chaos, lanky limbs scrambling toward the sink. The sound of running water echoes down the hall, followed by childish argumentsâ
âNo, I was already in front of the sinkââ
âYou didnât even use soap, you animalââ
When they pile back into the room, Adam wins, drying his hands on his jeans like a trophy. Matty scowls but carefully passes you over.
âHi, little Healy,â Adam whispers. His voice is the softest itâs ever been. You coo, your tiny fingers lifting toward his shirt. The other three make noises that sound suspiciously like melting.
âIâll bet youâre a way cuter baby than your brother ever was, huh?â Adam grins.
âRude,â Matty mutters, swooping you back with a glare.
âMe next, me next!â George is already crowding in, arms outstretched.
âSupport her headââ
âI know how to hold a fucking baby, man,â George whisper-snaps, but his hands are careful as he cradles you. You stare up at him for a beat⌠then sneeze.
âWell, bless you, miss,â George murmurs, his whole face softening in a way the boys havenât seen before. âWhat else does she do?â Ross asks from behind him, leaning in close.
âSheâs not a fucking dog,â Matty groans. âShe doesnât perform tricks for your liking, sheâs a human.â
âA cute human,â Adam adds, leaning over Georgeâs shoulder.
âThatâs right,â George says down at you. âWhereâd you get your genes from, Hazel? âCause itâs certainly not your brother.â
âYouâve already said that,â Matty grumbles.
âMy turn,â Ross says firmly, holding his arms out. âGive.â
George smirks but gently transfers you into Rossâs arms. Ross holds you like youâre spun from glass, shoulders hunched, breath shallow. He stares down with equal parts awe and terror.
His jaw drops. âSheâshe made a noise.â
âChrist, Ross,â Matty sighs. âSheâs a baby, sheâs supposed to make noises.â
You settle after a moment, your tiny hand curling around the drawstring of his hoodie.
âShe likes you,â George says, smirking.
ââCourse she does,â Ross replies proudly.
Matty reaches out to take you back, shaking his head. âAlright, thatâs enough. Sheâs not a prop, sheâs my sister.â
But the four of them are still staring at you like youâre the most miraculous thing theyâve ever seen.