AN: Another update for you guys. Hope you all like it. PLZ R&R!

To Emily (Guest): You have a very interesting idea there. Maybe you should try to write your own fanfic. Your dream sounds like it could be a very interesting story. I'm sorry to say that this story will be how I originally planned it. So the Cohen's will be moving out of Newport, and it will for the most part be a Cohen Plus 1 story. Thank you for your review though! Hope you enjoy how I end up writing this story.

Disclaimer: See first chapter.

Chapter 2-Family?

Ryan sighed as he heard the door open yet again. He pretended to be asleep as he heard things being set down on the nearby chair.

"I'm not interested in talking to you anymore." Ryan grumbled.

"The adults are out in the hall," he heard an unfamiliar voice and turned over to see a dark-haired kid with curly hair.

"Who are you?"

"Seth Cohen," he approached the bed. "You've already met my parents and grandma."

"Yeah," he mumbled.

"I know they can be a bit pushy," Seth placed the bags on the moving table and pushed it towards Ryan. "Just try growing up with them."

"What is all this?" Ryan watched him pull the items out of the bag.

"Hospital rooms are boring," he told him as he pulled a chair up to his bed. "So I took my dad's credit card and got you some things down in the gift shop."

"You didn't have to do this." Ryan slowly sat up.

"Sure I did." Seth told him. "I wasn't sure if you liked comics, but I do so I got you what they had available. There's also crosswords…"

"Thank you," Ryan said softly as he reached for the nearest magazine and unwrapped one of the sandwiches.

Sandy glanced into the room and saw Ryan nodding and smiling as Seth rambled on about something. Kirsten and Rose came up to him as he turned away.

"How's it going in there?" Rose asked.

"They're talking," he told them. "I'm not sure if he can get him to talk about the accident, but it's a start."

They all sat in the waiting room as the TV played a pointless program overhead. They looked up as the door to Ryan's room opened and Seth came out to them.

"Ok, he's ready." He informed them.

"Ready for what?" Sandy stood up.

"He's ready to talk to child services," Seth told them. "But he wants mom present while he does."

"What?"

"Why me?" Kirsten asked.

"Because you're not involved with the system." Seth told her. "He trusts you a little, but he's still apprehensive."

"I'll go get the agents," Rose walked away.

"Are you ready for this?" Sandy turned to his wife.

"I guess I better be." She saw the agents approaching and followed them into Ryan's room.

Kirsten approached Ryan as he sat nervously on the bed. He eyed the agents wearily as Rose came in as well.

"Are you sure that you want me in here?" Kirsten asked him.

"Yes. You're the only one, other than Seth, that I don't feel threatened by. I want you here."

"All right. I'll stay with you."

"Thank you." Ryan said softly as the agents opened up their notebooks.

"Ryan, we just need your recollection of today's events." One of the agents told him.

"I know how this works. I've been through it before."

Sandy and Seth remained in the waiting room as Rose joined CPS as well. They sat restlessly in the chairs as they tried to occupy themselves.

"So what's going to happen to him now?" Seth looked over at his dad.

"He'll be put back into the system. They'll probably find a group home for him while your grandmother finds him a permanent placement."

"Do you think she will?"

"She's very determined, but I wouldn't get my hopes up."

"Do you think-"

"Don't say it." Sandy stopped him. "I don't think your mother would go for it."

Forty-five minutes later the door opened and Kirsten came out to them. She approached them and sat in the seat beside Sandy.

"How'd it go?" he asked as he took her hand.

"I can't believe that kid went through all that." She told them.

"Was it that bad?"

"Bad enough." She sighed. "It wasn't his first visit to 'the farm'. One of the other occupants set his sights on him from the moment that he arrived there."

"So how'd he get hurt?" Seth asked.

"He was ambushed as he was walking into the barn to start his chores."

"All right," the agents came out of the room with Rose. "We'll be taking the Miller's into custody and shutting down 'the farm'."

"What about all the other kids?" Sandy asked.

"We'll find placements for them."

"What about Ryan?" Seth asks.

"We'll take custody of him for now and find a place for him when he gets out of here."

"Family meeting," Kirsten stated loudly as she pulled her husband, son, and mother into a huddle.

"What's the matter?" Rose asked her daughter.

"I think it will do more harm if Ryan is put into foster care."

"So what are you suggesting?" Sandy looked at her.

"Ok. I know that it's crazy…"

"Are we going to let Ryan stay with us?" Seth asked hopeful.

"Maybe," Kirsten looked at Sandy.

"You're serious? You want to take him in when you don't know all that much about him?"

"I told you it was crazy."

"I'm all for it." Seth spoke up.

"I'm on board," Rose added. "I think he'd do well in your home."

"We need to really think about this." Sandy told them. "We need to talk to the right authorities and see what child services say."

"Then what are we waiting for?" Seth asked.

"Calm down," Rose told her grandson. "Your parents need to do this by the book."

"We need to talk to Ryan about this." Sandy told them all.

"Um, excuse me." One of the agents got their attention. "May I just say that you have a really good chance of getting custody of Ryan."

"You really think so?" Kirsten looked at him.

"You live in an excellent neighborhood, you're pillars of the community…."

"I think I know some people that could help us push things along." Sandy took out his phone and dialed.

"I'm going to go break the good news to Ryan." Seth rushed back into Ryan's room.

"Do you really think your friends would want to help us?" Kirsten looked at Sandy.

"My friends owe me some favors." Sandy turned his attention back to the phone. "Yes Michelle, this is Sandy Cohen. I was hoping you could help me with something."

Ryan worked fast as he got changed back into his street clothes and grabbed all of his belongings. He knew that it was only a matter of time before child services came back in for him and put him in another home. He couldn't go through that again. He started for the door as it opened and Seth came in.

"Hey, man. I have awesome news-" Seth spotted the back pack slung over Ryan's shoulder as he froze on the spot. "What are you doing?"

"Just get out of the way, Seth." He told him.

"You're running away?"

"So what if I am?"

"Why would you do that?"

"I'm not going back into the system. You don't know what it's like. I can't go back into foster care again."

"You're right. You're not going back into the system." Kirsten appeared behind Seth.

"Mrs. Cohen? What are you doing in here?" Ryan looked back at her.

"Running away never solves anything."

"It does when the alternative is a dead end life."

"You are not going to run away. Do you hear me?" Kirsten went to him and took his bag from him. "And you can call me Kirsten."

"What else am I supposed to do?" Ryan demanded. "Nobody wants me."

"We want you. Come home with us."

"What for?"

"Dude, we have awesome news." Seth speaks up as Kirsten leads Ryan back to the bed.

"What 'awesome' news do you have for me?" Ryan mumbled as Kirsten got him back on the bed.

"We want you to come live with us." Kirsten told him. "Sandy's making some calls right now."

"Why would you want to do that? You don't know anything about me."

"We'll get to know you."

"But I'm damaged."

"I don't care what anyone has told you. You are not damaged."

"Good news," Sandy came into the room. "Going somewhere, Ryan?"

"I was leaving." He mumbled.

"He was running away." Kirsten told him.

"Well I hope you want to stay." Sandy smiled at him. "Because we want you stay with us very much."

"Did you hear back from your friends?" Kirsten looked at him.

"They're drawing up the papers right now and they should be here by morning."

"What exactly does that mean?" Seth spoke up.

"It will mean that once we sign them we will be Ryan's legal guardians."

"No one can take me from you?" Ryan asked softly.

"We won't let anyone put you back in a foster home."

By the next morning, Ryan was in the back of the Cohen's car heading towards Newport.

AN: So what'd you all think? Hope you liked it. PLZ R&R!