The four men sat back down outside with a beer each. Dean looked at Baron, torn between liking and disliking the man. They had one thing in common, their fondness for Monday, and Dean really wanted to know how deep Baron's affection for her ran.

"So you know stitches?" Dean asked.
"Who?" Baron looked at him puzzled.
"Monday," Roman chuckled. "Dean calls her stitches due to her face."
"What the hell happened to her?" Baron asked.
"No one really knows," Seth answered.
"How can no one know?" Baron asked.
"They found her out here with her head split open," Roman pointed at the tiles next to the pool. "She was cleaning up after a party and she must have slipped on the wet tiles."
"You were here when it happened?" Baron asked.

Seth and Roman shook their heads while Dean sat up more straight.

"I got here later that day and met her with stitches on her face," Dean said.
"Hence the nickname," Seth added.
"I worked here... How long was it?" Dean looked at his two friends.
"You called us about a month in," Roman reminded him.
"Yeah, that sounds about right. I brought these two ugly faces in about a month after I arrived," Dean chuckled.
"You're just as ugly as us," Seth said.
"I never denied that," Dean stuck out his tongue.

Dean reached for his beer and took a swig before clearing his throat and looking at Baron again.

"So you were here back when she was brought in?" He asked.
"Yeah, ten years ago. She was just a scared 13 year old kid," Baron answered.
"She told me last night," Dean said. "She told me her mother sold her to Hunter."
"Say what?" Roman looked shocked.
"She did," Baron nodded. "Poor thing never got a choice. I thought Hunter would let her go when she turned 18."
"Why didn't you get her out of here?" Dean asked.
"I left when she was 17. That was fucking six years ago. I never once thought she would actually still be here after all this time," Baron answered.

Baron emptied his beer fast in an almost angry manner.

"This shit ain't right," he mumbled. "She shouldn't still be here. Not with..."
"Not with what?" Dean asked.
"Nothing," Baron sighed.

They all looked up as Hunter came walking out to join them.

"Your old room is set up for you," he said.
"That's good," Baron stood up. "I'm taking her out for lunch."
"I need her here," Hunter said.
"You can go without her for an hour. I haven't seen her for six years, Hunter, and I know none of you ever take her out," Baron said.
"Fine, one hour," Hunter said.

Baron took the stairs two steps at the time and found her moving towards the bathroom upstairs to clean it.

"Leave that shit," Baron took the items from her hands and dropped them on the floor. "You and me, Monday, we're going out for lunch."
"But Hunter..." She started.
"Hunter gave his permission. Come on. I've missed you," he said.

Dean chewed on the inside of his lip in order to keep himself calm as he watched Baron and Monday walk down the stairs and out of the house. He was back to being full on jealous. So many times he had wanted to take her out of the house but he had never dared asking for permission, let alone demanding it as Baron had just done. He knew Baron was higher up in the hierarchy than he'd ever get himself but that didn't stop the jealousy.

Baron drove by a Burger King and picked up food before driving to a deserted place where they could be alone. They left the car and walked to the empty benches and sat down on one. He opened the bag and handed her a burger, a bag of fries and a coke.

"So how have you been?" He asked.
"The same," she shrugged.
"Not quite," he pointed at her scar. "What happened?"
"I don't remember," she answered.

He put some fries in his mouth and chewed while watching her. He didn't believe her one bit but he wasn't about to drill further into it at the given moment.

"How are things in the house? Do you have someone you can rely on?" He asked.
"Dean's nice," she answered.
"Yeah? You're talking to him?" He asked.

She nodded and he smiled. It meant the world to him that she talked to someone. Back when he had lived there, he was the only one she actually talked to and he hated the thought of her being alone and quiet for all those years where he had been gone.

"That's good. Anyone else?" He asked.
"Just Dean," she answered. "Roman and Seth seem nice too but I haven't spoken to them."
"Do you think they're trustworthy?" He asked.
"Yeah, I do. They're Dean's friends and he puts all his trust in them. He doesn't seem like a guy who trusts easy," she answered.
"So what is it about him that has allowed you to trust him?" He asked with a smile.
"He never gave up," she smiled back.

He chuckled a little and reached over to tousle her hair.

"Where's the kid I remember?" He asked.
"She grew up," she answered.
"Into a beautiful woman," he smiled warmly. "Now has this woman by any chance started feeling towards a certain man?"
"Who?" She asked.
"Dean, of course," he laughed. "Come on, Monday, keep up with our conversation."
"He's nice," she said.
"Nice?" He grinned.
"And good looking," she blushed.

He chuckled again while stuffing his mouth with more fries, chewing as he watched her blush fade. The little kid had indeed grown into a beautiful woman. A woman who had a crush on a man he could only hope repaid her feelings. She deserved to feel happiness.

"And Randy?" He asked.

Her smile disappeared and a haunting look came into her eyes.

"What about him?" She asked.
"Judging by the look on your face, he's still the same piece of shit," he said.
"He'll never change," she said.
"Unfortunately not," he said. "He's still giving you a hard time?"

She nodded and put her burger down. He had seen this before. When he cut in too deep, she would give up on whatever she was doing, in this case give up on eating. He sighed as he put down his own burger as well.

"You wanna go back?" He asked.
"It might be better," she answered.
"Hey," he reached over and patted her hand. "I'm here for a little while. Don't disappear into your own head. You still got me and you got Dean. Maybe let in those other two as well and create an army of brothers to knock down everyone around you."
"You're gonna be my warriors?" She let out a little giggle.
"We're gonna fight for you, baby!" He said firmly.

He stood up and let out a giant roar that made her laugh out loud.

"Now, come on. Let's go back," he said.