Make New Friends
Summary: (AU) Blair's beginning at Rainier.
Disclaimer: The Sentinel belongs to Pet Fly and Paramount. This story was written for enjoyment purposes only.
Naomi left the day he'd started Rainier and that made it the strangest day of his life. He'd watched her climb onto the southbound bus and never look back to him for one final wave good-bye. To see the one person who had been there for everything he'd ever done, leave him to go through this new journey entirely on his own was a little unsettling, but he was proud to know she thought he could handle things without help.
Starting his new college career was exciting. Advanced placement tests he'd taken before arriving gave him enough credits to start as a mid-year sophomore. He was only sixteen years old and once again found himself placed out in front of his classmates.
The first few days of his new life were awesome. He explored the campus with vigor, as if he was combing the ruins of an ancient civilization. The library, filled with titles he'd only dreamed of getting his hands on and having a card that gave him twenty-four hour access, was pure heaven. And the girls, well, what could he say? Yeah, he was younger than all of them, but they didn't seem to mind.
But now, two weeks after discovering his new-found freedom, he learned it came with a price that had never been explained. A situation, that couldn't be solved with a flash of his confident smile or a flurry of words that he used to dazzle his teachers and classmates, now threatened his buoyancy. Slightly shaken, he was unsure how to proceed.
Sitting dejectedly on the cool hall floor surrounded by his strewn belongings, the young freshman pondered what to do. Reaching for the closest notebook, he paused when a pair of long legs dressed in jeans and running shoes stopped beside his hand. Not ready for another round of humiliation from his peers, he kept his head tipped down so that his long auburn curls hid his face.
"Need some help?" A warm sincere voice asked quietly; it was neither threatening nor mocking, simply an offer of assistance.
He remained unusually quiet, nodding cautiously as he watched the long legs bend and was surprised when he found himself eye level with the stranger. Piercing blue eyes met his upset gaze as he recognized an upperclassman, before quickly looking back down to gather up his books.
"My name's Stephen," the pleasant voice spoke. Not getting any kind of reply, he continued as he picked up pencils and pens, "You're the whiz kid, freshman, aren't you?"
Brown curls bobbed erratically as the teenager on the floor jerked his head up to meet Stephen's gaze. Curiosity flashed through his dark blue orbs at the thought that a senior would know a freshman, let alone so early in the new semester.
"Hey, let me try this again. Hi, my name's Stephen Ellison, my friends call me Steve. I noticed that you need a hand. Mind if I help?"
An audible deep breath filled the silence as the blue eyes continued to meet Stephen's gaze. "Blair Sandburg," he finally said as he received the supplies being handed to him.
"Nice to meet you, Blair." Rising to his feet, Stephen picked up the pack and held it out to the young man with a grin.
The youthful teenager took the bag hesitantly from him and slipped it over the shoulder of his worn coat. "Thanks, man."
Stephen's grin faded as both young men walked wordlessly down the dim hallway. Exiting out into the bright courtyard, he noticed the shiner forming over Blair's left eye, hidden in the hallway by the cascade of curls, now turning a nasty shade of purple. "Geez, kid, who did that to you?"
Blair lightly touched his face and grimaced in pain before shrugging, "I had a slight run in with some other students in the hall. Nothing I can't handle."
"Blair," Stephen gripped the young man's shoulder and stopped him. "I didn't see what happened to you, but I have a pretty good idea what occurred. Why don't we head over to the student union and get some ice on your eye before it swells completely shut?"
Seeing the strange looks they were getting from passersby, the teenager shook his head. "I…I think I'll head back to my room."
Stephen wasn't about to be deterred. There was something about this adolescent, some kind of big brother vibe going on, and he couldn't just let the kid disappear. "How about we head over to the house and get some ice there? The rest of the guys should be in class so I don't think anyone will bother us. It's private…and you can tell me what happened, okay?"
Recognizing the Greek letters on the senior's jacket, the last place Blair wanted to go to was the Omega Chi house, home of all the richest, biggest, most popular jocks on campus. Any ideas he had about making a break for it and slipping back to his dorm was shattered though, when the tall senior draped an arm over his shoulder and steered him off-campus.
Lost in their own thoughts, they walked quietly away from the university along a beautiful tree-lined street. Brick homes surrounded by manicured lawns and picture-perfect front porches graced the setting by adding elegance far beyond anything Blair was used to.
Stopping in front of a red two-story home trimmed with white shutters, Stephen turned to Blair and grinned, "Welcome to Belle Isle."
Blair shifted on his feet as he studied his surroundings. For all he knew, this could be the beginning of round two. "Belle Isle?"
"Sure, you know, Belle Isle, from the Chevy Chase movie, 'Fletch Lives'. He inherits an old plantation from a dead aunt and everything gets all crazy." Steering Blair into the house, Stephen continued talking, not giving his new charge any chance of escape. When Blair actually smiled at his imitation of one the movie scenes, Steve knew he was making headway in setting the young man at ease.
Pulling a stool out from underneath the breakfast bar, Stephen gestured for Blair to sit. "Drop your pack and coat and get comfortable while I scrounge up some ice." His head disappeared behind the freezer door before he gave a yell in disgust. "Tony! I swear, don't you know how to flip the bar back down on the icemaker? There's no stinking ice!" Popping his head back out into Blair's view, he shook his head, "One of the guys has this thing about making homemade juice slushies, and he never fixes the bar when he's done pulling out the ice tray." Holding up a bag of frozen veggies, he grinned, "Peas work for you, instead?"
The first true smile graced Blair's features as he accepted the bag and placed it on his eye. "My mom, Naomi, always put frozen bags of veggies on my bruises when I was a kid."
"When you were a kid?" Stephen snorted in fake disgust, "What, was that last year?"
"Hey, I'm sixteen." Blair replied in mock indignation.
"Yeah, well I'm twenty-one, so to me you're still a kid."
"You're both children, if you ask me."
Blair jumped at the soft sound of an elderly woman's voice from behind him. Turning in his seat, he was surprised to be face to face with a smiling, petite, gray-haired Native American woman. The delight that filled her face disappeared as she took in Blair's black eye.
"My dear, boy, what on earth happened to you? Stephen, there's some steaks in the refrigerator on the top shelf. Get one of those out for me please." Taking the bag of peas, she replaced it with a cold slab of raw meat across the bruise.
Blair moaned inwardly at the thought of what Naomi would say if she could only see him now. His mother never touched raw meat if she could help it, saying it held bad karma from the dead animals.
As if reading his mind, the woman looked him straight in his remaining eye and shook her finger, "This is the best way I know stop the swelling, so I'll tell you what I tell all my boys, leave it there!"
Stephen stood behind the woman, mimicking her with a grin. Watching him shaking his finger above her head, Blair had to laugh.
"Stephen Ellison, you do know that I can see everything you're doing in the reflection on the microwave, don't you?" The twinkle in her eyes let Blair know this was normal behavior between the two. Turning to her tormentor, she placed her hands on her hips, and smiled. "Are you going to introduce me to our guest?"
"Mrs. A, I'd like to introduce you to Blair Sandburg. Blair, this is our housemother, Mrs. Applegate."
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Applegate," he replied holding out his hand.
She looked at his hand and smiled before grasping it warmly between both of hers. Holding onto it longer than necessary, she gave it an extra squeeze before letting go. "It's Mrs. A, Blair. That's what all my boys call me. Although I do believe I've overheard them call me Granny Gray Braid when they think I'm not listening."
Stephen rolled his eyes towards the ceiling and then looked everywhere but at the small woman. When she whacked him with her long braid he pretended to be shocked, "You honestly think we'd call you such a thing?"
"As long as that's all you call me, Stevie," she replied with a feisty grin of her own. Walking around the breakfast bar, she went to the refrigerator and began to remove several items. "You are staying for dinner, aren't you, Blair?"
The look on her face let Blair know that she wasn't really asking him. Shooting a glance towards Stephen, he saw the tall senior smile and nod. "Yes, ma'am, I'd like that."
"Good. Now that that's settled, Stephen, you boys look like you need a snack before dinner so make yourself a sandwich to tide you over. I must get some items from the pantry; I'll be back in a bit." She quickly disappeared from the kitchen into another room, closing the door behind her.
"Wow," Blair said in awe.
"Oh yeah, she keeps us in line. I've only ever seen her get really mad once in the four years I've been here, called us all rich spoiled brats and refused to speak to us for two weeks. It was awful. We never threw another keg party in the house again!"
Blair grinned as he accepted the sandwich on a plate that Stephen passed over to him with one hand while trying to figure out where to put the steak with the other.
Seeing his dilemma, the upperclassman grinned, "We have a pre-med student here who has tried to tell her that doesn't work but she is insistent that it does. Hand me the steak, I'll put it away."
Happily passing the raw meat over, Blair grinned, "Deal."
Both young men once again were silent, this time not in awkwardness, but in the pleasure of food and good company.
The slam of the front door and heavy footsteps filled the hallway before a huge figure emerged into the kitchen. "Honey, I'm home," he boomed as he swiped half of Stephen's sandwich and stuffed it in his mouth in one bite.
"Hey, Tony, make your own," Stephen complained as he got more bread out of the bag.
The dark giant named Tony grinned and then turned, noticing Blair for the first time, "Damn, little brother, what the hell happened to you?"
"Anthony," the older woman's voice called out from the back room.
Tony looked to Stephen and whispered, "Gray Braid's here?"
His housemate nodded.
"Sorry, Mrs. A," he called back to her. Pulling out a stool beside Blair, and surprisingly fitting on it, he reached over and turned Blair's face to get another look. Letting out a low whistle, he turned to Stephen, "Steak?"
Both men nodded.
"Who hit you, kid?"
Blair cringed mentally at everyone calling him kid. For crying out loud, I'm in college, he thought. His emotions must have been displayed across his face because both upperclassmen were grinning like idiots. Taking a deep breath, he let it out slowly. "A couple of guys like to tease me now and then. It kind of got out of hand, today."
"What are their names?" Tony asked. "I might want to do some teasing back."
"Blair was just about to tell me what happened when you came in, T."
Tony looked closer at the young man on the stool beside him. "Blair? Hey, you're the kid in my advanced anthro class, aren't you? You always sit in the back near the door."
Blair nodded.
Tony studied him a moment longer before turning his dark brown eyes to Stephen. "The Teke house is rushing this week and I'm pretty sure I overheard something about them having to 'Bag a geek for the week' as part of the pledging. Remember Chris Fellows, he pledged here a few years back and we tossed him? Well, he's in charge of the Teke's now, and he got bested by your friend here in front of the class last week. He was pretty pissed."
Stephen leaned against the counter lost in thought for a moment. "Are pledges bothering you, Blair?"
The young man's silence was all the answer he needed.
"You know, kid, this is one of those times in life when you need a big brother. Do you have any sibs?"
"Nope, just always been my mom and me."
"Well, Blair, I got to tell you, you've been missing out. My brother, Jim, might be a selfish pain-in-the-you-know-what, but when it comes to protecting me, he's the best."
"Seriously, B, his bro's a Ranger. On his last visit, I challenged his big bad self to a wrestling match and he whipped me silly. I have at least 80 pounds on the guy!"
Blair grinned as his two new friends told several stories about Jim, making him sound like someone who might be interesting to get to know. Fully engulfed in watching a reenactment of the wrestling match between the two friends, he didn't notice more of the housemates enter the kitchen, until they began egging on their brothers. Glancing around the room, he was amazed at the different ethnicities, sizes, and characters of each person. This group would make an excellent study for his human behavior class.
With the match over, after Stephen begged Tony to get off or he'd sue, both climbed to their feet laughing.
"Geez, T, you've got to stay away from those Wonder Burgers because you weigh a ton," Steven griped good-naturedly, rubbing his shoulder in fake pain.
Soon the kitchen was buzzing as each member introduced himself to Blair and then made him feel right at home. No one seemed to notice that he didn't look like the rest of them or that his outfit wasn't as new as theirs: he was just another mind to add to their conversation. Eventually, Mrs. Applegate shooed them all from her kitchen to prepare for dinner, but several happily stayed to assist and set the table.
When time for dinner arrived, the young men stood behind their chairs until their housemother was seated first, and the food was not passed until a moment of silence was shared. The conversation around the table was exciting as ideas were shared about their new classes, discussion of professors, and an interest in how Blair got into school earlier than the rest.
Inwardly, Blair sighed. This was something he'd always wanted, to be accepted as an equal because of what he could add and not judged because of what others thought he lacked. The evening ended much too soon but he knew he had to go back to the dorm and face whatever new damage his idiot roommate had inflicted on his stuff while he was gone. He also had to put in some serious study time before his brain shut down for the night.
Pulling on his jacket, he was secretly pleased when Stephen and Tony also grabbed their coats and joined him on the walk back across the campus. "We can't let anything happen to our new little brother," Tony remarked as he pulled the door closed behind them on their way out.
The walk back had been great. Both Stephen and Tony regaled him with tales of the other when they had been freshman and of the stupid stunts they'd tried to get away with. Stopping outside the heavy steel door to the dorms, he had to squelch a desire to turn and hug both of his new friends.
"Thanks guys, I'm pretty sure I can make it from here okay."
Tony grinned as he reached out and tugged on one of Blair's long curls before running his hand over his own short-cropped head. "And you say you get the ladies with these?"
All three guys had to laugh just then when a pretty young co-ed walked by and winked at Blair.
"They love 'em, man. What more can I tell you?"
"Blair, my little brother, it was good meeting you, today. See you in class tomorrow." Tony gripped Blair's wrist and then bumped his knuckles with his own.
Stephen then dropped his hand on Blair's shoulder. "Same goes for me. If you need anything, kid, let us know. Stop by the house whenever you want; I know Mrs. A and the guys loved having you around tonight."
The two seniors turned and made their way back across the campus as Blair stood and watched them, until they disappeared from view behind another building. "Kid," he grumbled and then let a smile fill his face. With his confidence restored and new friends to call upon, he was ready to handle whatever came next.
The light sense of joy in his soul turned into a firm resolve as he made his way up the stairs to his room. He hadn't told Stephen and Tony that his roommate was Chris Fellows younger brother, Eric, because he wanted to take care of this on his own. If he ran from his very first problem, how would he survive the remainder of his college career? Pulling out his keys, he unlocked the door and pushed it open.
"Sandbag, where the hell you been?" Eric's drunken sneer greeted Blair as he stepped into the room and spotted a pile of empty beer cans on his bed.
"I asked you a question, boy. Someone said he had spotted you hanging out with the Omegas. What, all those rich assholes need you to tickle the family jewels?"
"Hey, man, what's your problem with me?" Blair stepped around his roommate and slowly gathered some of his belongings. Stuffing them into his duffel that he kept hanging on the back of the door, he'd decided to go to the resident assistant and see about getting a temporary new room assignment until something more permanent could be established.
Eric stood up and blocked his roommate's way back out the door, "You are my problem. I don't like hippie junior brains who think just because they're smart; they can get what they want before everyone else." Reaching for Blair's bag, he missed as Blair quickly moved it behind him. "Where do you think you're going?"
"Move, Eric, I need to go study."
"No…I don't think I want to move. Why don't you make me, geek?"
Blair tried to step around Eric but was roughly shoved back. Tripping over his bag onto his bed, he landed on the pile of cans, spilling them onto the floor in a loud clatter.
"Look what you did! Clean it up!"
"Get away from me, Eric, or else."
"Or else, what? Are you threatening me? What happened to all of your non-violence crap? Do you think you can hurt me?"
Blair tried to roll off the bed and get away, but Eric apparently wasn't as drunk as Blair thought he was. The bigger teen lunged and pinned Blair to the back of the bed, slamming his head into the cinder block wall. Stars danced in front of his eyes as he tried to blink them away. "Please, Eric, stop. Just let me leave."
"Please, Eric, stop," Eric mimicked. "Damn, you sound just like a girl. You gonna cry next?"
Blair struggled with all his might and successfully shoved the larger teen off him onto the floor. Bolting to the door, he whipped it open only, to be stopped by Eric's brother Chris and a few other Teke members.
"Where's the fire?" Chris drawled as he pushed Blair back into the room. Spotting his brother still on the floor, he swore and punched Blair in the gut, dropping him to the floor beside Eric.
Tight pain gripped Blair's chest as he struggled to catch his breath.
"Get him up," Chris ordered his fellow Teke's, while he pulled his brother to his feet. Two pairs of strong hands yanked Blair up, keeping him straight. "Let's take him to the house for a little pledging."
"Check the hall." Seeing his sibling motion that the coast was clear, he turned to Blair, "Ready for a night to remember, geek?"
"Please," Blair pleaded, gasping to catch his breath as he was dragged out of the building. Not seeing anyone who could help him, his heart sank as he realized that he was in a lot of trouble, "Let me go."
"No, I don't think so. You see, no matter how smart you may think you are, that doesn't really matter now, because I'm in charge. How are you going to solve this one, brainiac?"
Blair had lived through a lot in his sixteen years, but nothing had prepared him for the sheer hatred of this group of fellow students. Sitting tied up on the cold cellar floor with nothing on but his boxers, his buttocks and back ached from the paddling he'd received. Each brother had taken his best swing at Blair until he'd passed out from the beating. He could only imagine what the sadistic bunch might think up next. Tipping sideways to lay on the damp floor, he let his eyes slide shut in exhaustion.
Ice cold water being dumped on his weary body abruptly jarred him awake.
"Ready for round two?" His roommate asked, almost giggling, in warped delight at the sight of Blair's discomfort.
Blair remained quiet as two more students untied him and yanked him to his feet. They roughly dragged him up the stairs and forced him to sit on a steel folding chair. His hands were pulled behind him again, and tied awkwardly to the legs of the chair.
"You ever been drunk, Blair?" Eric slurred as he waved a plastic cup of beer in Blair's face, splashing some of it over his bare chest.
The frightened young man remained silent.
Chris stepped behind Blair and, grabbing a fist full of his hair, yanked his head backwards. "My brother asked you a question."
Blair slowly shook his head, no.
"Well, then tonight, roomie, we're gonna make a man out of you." Gesturing to another pledge in the room, Eric pointed to a large pitcher of beer sitting beside a keg on the floor. "Bring that over here."
Chris tightened his grip in Blair's hair when the young man began to struggle and tried to turn his face away. "Oh, no, no, no…you need to pay attention. We want you to party with us, be like one of the brothers. Right guys?"
Blair watched the pitcher passed to Eric as some of the others in the room were high-fiving each other and starting to chant, "Chug. Chug. Chug." Taking a deep breath, he tried to ready himself for what he knew was coming.
Once again, his head was roughly pulled back, but this time, Chris also pinched his nose shut so he had to open his mouth to breath. "Ready or not, geek, here it comes."
The warm bitter liquid quickly flowed into his mouth and over his face as Eric poured. Trying to spit it out and gasp for air, Blair finally had to start swallowing if he wanted to survive.
He wasn't sure how many pitchers they had poured on him when he finally stopped counting. The room was now spinning with the throbbing in his head, and he was sure that he was going to throw up at any second. He could feel his heart pounding erratically in his chest as darkness filled the edges of his vision. He wearily gave in to his exhausted body.
The splintering of the front door of the Teke house as it was thrust off its hinges startled Blair into opening an eye. A huge dark figure charged into the room, tossing bodies as he made his way to the tied-up young man. Several more followed him and stopped anyone from leaving the house.
Blair couldn't feel the tapping on his cheek as his rescuer tried to get his attention. Finally, the big man gently turned his face to meet his gaze and Blair's eyes briefly recognized the dark brown eyes looking at him.
"T?" he whispered, as a tear of relief slowly slid down his cheek.
"Yeah, little brother, we got you."
"Blair," another voice spoke quietly from behind Tony, "I'm going to untie you. It might hurt a little bit, okay?"
Another tear slid down his face as he recognized the warm rich tone that had helped him earlier that day. He wasn't able to tell Stephen that he really couldn't feel anything at that moment, no matter what anyone did to him.
His eyes slid shut again and it wasn't until he felt as if he were floating, that he weakly opened them. Wrapped in a blanket, he felt cool air brush his face as he was carried outside and placed on the front lawn. He could see Stephen's lips moving but only a soft buzzing noise reached his ears.
Unfortunately, the change in position caused Blair's stomach to start churning as soon as he was horizontal, then violently expelling a foul-smelling liquid. Not able withstand any more abuse to his weakened body he passed out.
"Blair. Come on, kid, I know you're in there. Not even Tony can sleep longer than three days."
Stephen's voice continued to call the abused teenager from his safe place. Slowly he became more aware as every muscle in his body ached, his throat and nose burned, and his guts felt as though they had been ripped out. There was also a steady beeping in the background, a warm weight across his chest and legs, and a strange medicinal smell. Cracking his eyes open, he found himself in a small unfamiliar room…a hospital room.
"Blair?" Stephen was at his side, patting his hand.
Blair opened his lips to speak, but his tongue was so dry, it stuck to the roof of his mouth. "Ugh", he rasped hoarsely.
A straw was slipped into his mouth, as the senior's voice urged him to sip slowly. Once he'd let some of the cool liquid slide over his parched tongue and down his raw throat, he tried again.
"How?"
Stephen smiled. "How'd we find you?"
Blair nodded slowly.
"Well, it's a good thing you're lying down, because this is a strange story. You know I told you about my big brother, Jim?"
Blair nodded, again.
"He called that night after we left you at your dorm. It seems he was getting ready to fly out on some mission to Central America. Peru, I think he said. Anyway, he had a really strong need to call me and wanted to know what happened that day. When I filled him in and told him about you, he got real quiet. Then he said I had to go find you right away."
"Blair, he scared me. So, the guys and I turned the campus upside down looking for you. Tony heard about the Teke party and he crashed it in every sense of the word!"
A small smile lit up Blair's tired eyes.
"When you get well, the guys and I want you to move to the house with us. You can stay there until you graduate, if you'd like. Mrs. A's already got a couple of the crew fixing a room just in case."
"Why?"
"It's kind of weird Blair, but we all feel as though this is what we are supposed to do. We're brothers, not by blood, but by heart and we look out for each other. Say you'll stay with us.
Blue eyes locked onto each other and the connection was made. Nodding 'yes', Blair was overwhelmed by the smile that lit up Stephen's face and then surprised when his new friend jumped up and raced to the door.
"He said, 'yes'!" Stephen yelled down the hallway and a loud whoop rang out as several of the house members raced into Blair's room.
"Welcome to the family, Blair."
The End
(Continued in Keep The Old. Will be posted soon.)