I don't own anything recognizable.
Rydel shrieked. It wasn't out of horror, nor out of joy. It was out of surprise.
The person in front of her practically looked half-dead; Covered in lots of blood, bruises and cuts all over, and looked about to drop down dead any second.
Well, it happened. That person dropped down, not dead, just unconscious. Rydel caught him - yes, it's a him - as she heard her brothers running down the stairs.
"Rydel! What happened?" Riker asked, being the first person who got to her. He didn't see the person Rydel was holding yet.
"Oh my God, we heard you scream. What is it, del?" Ryland asked, arriving second.
"Rydel, are you alright?" Rocky asked, arriving last.
The girls - Laura, Skylar, Lillian, Alyssa, Maggie - all came down too, but didn't say anything.
Stormie and Mark arrived last and immediately approached Rydel. "Rydel, are you alright?" Mark asked.
Rydel nodded. "Yeah, yeah I'm fine. Sorry I screamed, but... Help me get him to the couch."
"Who?" Riker asked as he took a close look at the unconscious person.
Everyone else took closer looks too, and then in unison, they gasped. "Oh my God."
That person was someone they never thought they'd ever see again. It was the person they thought they'd lost forever.
It was the one and only... Ross Lynch.
"Need some help?" A voice asked from the doorway.
The girls jumped out of surprise and turned around to see another familiar face, but couldn't put a finger on him.
"Who are you?" Laura asked.
The person at the door looked offended. "I leave for four years and you guys don't recognize me? Wow, that hurts."
"I'm sorry, we just-"
"Ratliff?" Rydel guessed, cutting Laura off.
The person nodded. "Yup."
"Y-You're alive?" Riker asked.
"Well if I wasn't, I wouldn't be here, would I?" Ratliff smiled.
"But- how- what?" Rocky asked.
"We thought you were dead!" Ryland exclaimed.
"You thought Ross was dead too, but you didn't seem so surprised." Ratliff stated.
"Well, that's probably because Ross was 'dead' for only 10 months." Rocky stated using air quotes around 'dead'. "You have been for 4 years."
Everyone wondered why Lillian, Skylar, and Alyssa weren't joining the conversation, and they turned towards them to see that they had a conversation on their own.
"But the website shouldn't be wrong. How is he still alive?" Skylar asked.
"Do you think he faked his own death like Ryland did?" Lillian asked.
Alyssa shook her head. "No. Sky and I watched dad kill him."
"Okay, first of all, stop calling Jedd 'dad'. Second, we can discuss this later." Lillian told them.
They turned around and was face to face with everyone else.
"You're gonna have to tell us what you were talking about, later. We need to help Ross." Rydel told them.
They just nodded and helped put Ross on the couch.
"He's so pale." Laura stated, kneeling down on one side of the couch.
"We should take him to the hospital." Stormie suggested.
"No need." Lillian told her. "Do you have a first-aid kit? I can help him."
"It's true." Skylar nodded. "Lily's good at nursing people."
Stormie nodded and went to get the first-aid kit.
"What do you think happened to him?" Rydel asked.
"I don't think we wanna know." Rocky stated.
"But we have to know eventually." Riker sighed.
Suddenly, Ross opened his eyes and looked terrified, until he noticed the faces around him. But when he was looking terrified, it wasn't just plain scared or anything. It was real horror, real fear. Terrified.
"Ross?" Rydel asked. "What happened?"
"Are you alright?" Ryland asked. He mentally slapped himself. Stupid question, Ry. Of course he's not alright!
"N-No." Ross croaked out.
"Sorry, it was a stupid question." Ryland muttered.
"Okay." Ross said.
"I have the first-aid kit!" Stormie stated as she got back. Her eyes widened when she saw Ross awake, and she went to hug him, but stopped as she knew it would hurt him.
"I'll take this." Lillian smiled slightly and walked back towards Ross and the others.
"Ross, I'm going to clean you up. This might hurt a bit." Lillian warned. Ross just nodded, not saying anything.
"Ross, can you tell us what happened to you?" Skylar asked.
Ross shook his head. "Why?"
"Because we need to know." Riker told him. "We thought you were dead, then suddenly you show up. We need to know how."
"But I don't wanna tell you." Ross said.
"We deserve to know, Ross. Tell us, it's alright." Mark told him.
Ross sighed. "Fine. When he shot me..."
*Flashback*
Right after that officer took Riker out, Jack snuck in through the basement window. He quickly made his way towards Ross and checked his pulse. It was faint, but it was there.
He lifted Ross' shirt up to his chest, and saw the wound. But it wasn't so bad. It was bleeding, but it wasn't bleeding too heavily. The bullet was on one side of his chest, but it wasn't inside.
Jack quickly hoisted Ross up, forcefully making him wake up too.
"What?" Ross gasped, looking around. He saw Jack. "You! How?"
"I never wanted to kill you. But your brother gave me no choice, so now you're dead to them." Jack smirked. He took out a gun and pointed it towards Ross' head. "Now this one can kill you for real. So I suggest you climb up that window now."
"But-" Ross stopped himself and put his hand on his chest. "It hurts so much."
"The sooner we leave, the sooner that can be treated." Jack told him. "Now let's go!"
Ross just had his chest treated, although it still hurt quite a lot. Jack was now practically dragging him into a room in the old warehouse he was in.
"Where are you taking me? What are you gonna do to me this time?" Ross asked.
Jack rolled his eyes. "Oh just shut up. You never learn your lesson to shut up." He opened the door to the room. "Now get in there and be a good boy. You can roam around in there if you behave."
"And what if I don't?" Ross asked.
"Then I'm either gonna tie you up or chain you to the wall. Now get in there before I do either one." Jack told him.
Ross gulped and slowly backed away into the room. "Okay."
Jack slammed the door shut and locked it once Ross was inside. He smirked. He finally got to keep one of them, for what he thought was forever.
*Flashback over*
"...and he also told me that he was going to keep me there forever. I thought I would never see you guys again." Ross finished.
"Neither did we." Rydel sighed. She looked at Ross properly. "Can I hug you or will it hurt?"
Ross shook his head and let a single tear fall. "You can. I kinda really need one right now, but it's going to really hurt me. But I don't care. Just... please." He opened up his left arm as Lillian was treating his right one.
Rydel nodded and hugged Ross slowly, trying to not hurt him. "I miss you."
Ross nodded. "I miss you too." Both of them tightened the hug, which wasn't really tight. It was just a normal hug, but Ross flinched and pulled away. "I'm sorry, I just... It hurts too much."
Rydel nodded and went to kneel on the floor again.
"Oh my God." Everyone heard Lillian gasp. The turned towards her and saw that she had cleaned the blood from Ross' right hand, but the cuts were visible. They were deep gashes which was at least a centimeter deep.
"Ross, what caused that?" Rocky asked.
"I-I don't even know anymore." Ross answered shakily. "It could either be the knife, or the whip, or the spike chains, or the-"
"What?" Everyone exclaimed.
"He used those things against you?" Riker asked.
You could now practically see Ross trying to hold his tears back. "Yeah, sometimes."
"What do you mean 'sometimes'?" Ryland asked.
"Like, whenever he wants to." Ross answered. "He usually does it everyday, but when he's in a bad mood, he does it every few hours." He sighed. "But sometimes he acts nice. Not really nice, but more like... creepy nice."
"What kind of creepy nice?" Rocky asked.
Ross shook his head. "He would treat me like a son. He'd let me out of the room and have a dinner with me, then he'd tell some corny jokes and sometimes even made me laugh, forcefully though. Then he tucks me in bed and stuff, but in the morning he changes again."
"When does he normally do this?" Maggie spoke up for the first time. "Because knowing him, it'd be weird."
"It's not just weird, it's creepy." Ross stated. "He does it like once a month, but I don't like it. He practically forced me to laugh at his jokes, and he wouldn't even let me talk about you guys because he kept saying that he is my new family."
"Well he's not." Mark stated. "We're your family. You are my son, not his."
"I know." Ross told him. "But he's just so... Oh God, I just wish those things never happened."
"Wait..." Alyssa said, noticing something. "How did you and Ratliff meet just now?"
Ross and Ratliff looked at each other, then Ross motioned for Ratliff to tell everyone.
Ratliff sighed. "Alright. I was um... I was walking down the street and then..."
*Flashback*
Ratliff saw a blonde figure limping down the street, and recognized it to be Ross. He quickly went over to him and helped him walk.
"Who are you?" Ross asked.
Ratliff smiled. "It's me, Ellington Ratliff."
"How are you still alive?" Ross asked.
"It's a long story. What are you doing here?" Ratliff asked.
"I'm trying to go home. It's also a long story, so don't ask why." Ross answered.
They soon reached the front of the Lynch house, and Ratliff pressed the doorbell. A while later, Rydel turned out to be the one to answer the door, but she didn't see Ratliff.
When she saw Ross, she shrieked out of surprise. Ross felt so happy to see his sister, but then he felt nauseous and blacked out.
*Flashback over*
"...so, yeah." Ratliff finished.
"I know you don't look the same as four years ago, but somehow, you look so familiar, like I've seen you before." Lillian stated.
"Um, we never met." Ratliff told her.
Lillian nodded. "But you just look so... never mind."
"Ow!" Ross suddenly cried out as Lillian accidentally pressed the washcloth too hard on his arm.
"Oh my gosh! I'm so sorry!" Lillian apologized. "Does it still hurt?"
"It's alright." Ross nodded. "But don't ask me if it still hurts or not. It's gonna keep hurting until at least next week."
Riker suddenly stood up and turned towards Mark. "Dad, do you think we should tell the police about Ross?"
Mark sighed. "I don't know, Riker. It might put him in danger again if Jack finds out, and the media would also be demanding to talk to him."
"I think we shouldn't. Not yet." Stormie told them. "At least not until Ross wants us to."
"Alright." Riker said and walked back over to where he was before.
It was about 7.30 by now and everyone was on the table, ready for dinner, including Ross. Although dinner reminded him of Jack, he tried to just shrug it off because he knew that he would be more comfortable to have dinner with his family. His real family.
Even though he was having dinner with his family, he couldn't help but pick at his food, instead of eating it.
"Ross, why aren't you eating?" Stormie asked, being the one to notice.
Ross out his fork down. "I can't eat."
"Why not? You're skinny as wreck." Ryland stated, observing Ross' body.
"That's because Jack only gives me food on our 'family dinner'." Ross rolled his eyes when he said 'family dinner'. "I only eat once a month, but I can't do that anymore now."
"Why? Eating isn't hard, you know." Alyssa slightly joked.
"Yeah, it's like this." Rachel told Ross, as she took a bit of spaghetti and put it in her mouth. She chewed, then swallowed. "Like that, uncle Ross." She had been told that Ross wasn't dead but he just came back from somewhere. Luckily, she didn't question that.
Ross chuckled slightly at Rachel. "I know how to eat."
"Why can't you eat anyway?" Skylar asked.
"Because I'll only throw up later." Ross answered simply.
Rydel suddenly gasped. "Oh no. Ross, please tell me you're not anorexic."
Ross furrowed his eyebrows. "I'm not anorexic. I just can't eat. You know how when a person doesn't eat in so long and then their body isn't used to the food that they just ate so they throw it up. Well, that's what happened with me."
Rydel sighed in relief. "Okay."
"Let's try it slowly, alright?" Laura suggested. "Give me your plate."
Ross handed Laura his plate as she was sitting right beside him. She took a little bit of spaghetti onto the fork. "Open wide."
"Laura, I'm not a baby." Ross stated.
Laura giggled a little bit. "Just open your mouth."
Ross sighed and opened his mouth. Then, Laura put the fork and spaghetti in his mouth and pulled the fork out. "Now, I know it feels good to eat, but eat slowly. Chew it slowly, swallow, then drink a sip of water."
Ross did as he was told, then he looked relieved. "It worked, Laura. I don't feel like throwing up."
Laura smiled. "Told ya. Just keep doing that."
"Thanks." Ross exclaimed. He went and hugged Laura tightly, but pulled away right when she was about to hug back because of the pain he suddenly felt. "I'm sorry." He mumbled.
"It's alright, it's not your fault." Laura told him.
"Do you need some painkillers?" Lillian asked.
"No." Ross shook his head. "I'm just tired. I need to sleep. May I be excused?"
"You know you don't have to ask." Mark told him.
Ross sighed. "Sorry, habit. Jack told me to do that so... never mind." He made his way upstairs.
"Can I go after him? He looks like he needs someone." Laura said.
"Please, go ahead." Stormie told her.
Laura nodded and stood up, walking up the stairs.
"Ross?" Laura asked, opening the door to Ross' and Ryland's room. She saw him sitting on his bed, already changed into a shirt and short pajama pants.
She felt so bad for him as she saw that he was also crying there, sobbing quietly to himself.
"Ross." She whispered, going over to sit next to him. "Hey, wanna talk about it?" She asked, referring to what really caused him to cry like that.
Ross shook his head. "You're gonna think I'm childish. I probably am."
Laura sighed. "A lot of people are childish. It's alright, I won't judge you. I understand that you've experienced a tough time. You can trust me, it's okay."
Ross sighed. "I'm going to seem like an attention seeker."
Laura shook her head. "No you won't. You don't seek attention. You need attention, and I'm willing to give it to you."
"Okay." Ross said. "Well, you know about these past 10 months when everyone thought I was dead? I know you guys know that it was horrible and all, but to me, it's not just horrible. It's terrifying, and I don't think I'm going to ever get over it."
Laura gently took his hand and held it. "It's going to be okay. Don't worry."
Ross shook his head. "No it won't. I'm probably never going to be the same again. You might know what I've been through, but you don't know what I felt during those times. Nobody's been there for me. Nobody was able to stop it. I could have actually died there. He beat me up, he starved me, he nearly killed me. All of it hurt a lot. Not just physically, but mentally too. I don't want it to ever happen again."
Laura sighed and touched Ross' cheek, carefully as it was bruised and cut badly. "We're all here for you now. I'm here for you. We won't let him get to you again. We won't let it happen again."
"Laura." Ross' voice was just above a whisper. "Again, this seems so childish, but... I'm scared. I'm scared he's gonna come back for me. I'm scared he's gonna hurt any of you guys. I'm scared he's gonna hurt me again. I'm scared of him."
"I know. It's okay to be scared, Ross. He did terrible things to you. But we're all here for you." Laura assured him. "I'm here for you, like I said before. You can tell me anything. You can always share secrets with me. You can come to me."
Ross smiled slightly. "Thanks Laura." He gulped. "I wanna tell you something else, but it doesn't have anything to do with this."
Laura nodded. "Go on."
"I have feelings for you." Ross admitted. "Since we were 15. I should've told you sooner, but I was afraid that you didn't feel the same way. And I know it's not only some teenage crush, because... I love you."
Laura smiled. "Ross, I feel the same way. I love you too."
Then, at that cute, bittersweet moment, they kissed.
To Laura, even though it was probably not the right time, that kiss felt so right and so magical.
To Ross, although it hurt his lips, that kiss felt so good and so perfect.
To both of them, there was not a moment as beautiful as this one, and nothing could ever ruin this moment.
A/N:
So... this is the new sequel to Save Us, Please! Do you guys like it? I know it seemed like the Raura part is rushed, but it's really part of the story.
And *gasp* that was Ross! And Ratliff! Some of you answered correctly, and here's a shoutout to those of you who did:
Sofia - Ross
livelearnlovesing - Ross & Ratliff
Stay-Rossome-R5 - Ross
Guest - Ratliff & Ross
Congrats for guessing correctly guys! You readers are amazing, smart, and awesome!
Well, until next time! R&R please!
