Hey guys, I'm back! =D

Xxander: I'm glad you're enjoying the story so far! ^^ no, I don't have a beta writer, I just have a good friend that helps me with possible ideas and generally just kicking my ass until I write XD

The first thing Charlotte noticed when Freddy and Eli came back was how nervous Eli looked and how ticked Freddy looked. This, needless to say, worried her. But before she could ask what was wrong, Eli headed upstairs to his room. She sighed and looked at Freddy. "Okay, what happened?" She asked. Freddy shrugged, sitting down on the couch. She glared until he sighed and spoke.

"Some old..." He took a slow breath. "One of the employees gave Eli a hard time and I...may have threatened him..." Charlotte sighed.

"And, let me guess...it freaked Eli out?" She asked. Freddy shook his head.

"I made sure he couldn't hear it, but I think he could tell I was mad." Charlotte raised an eyebrow.

"You think? Everyone can tell when you're mad, Freddy. It's not hard to tell." Freddy groaned, facepalming. "Hey...how about tomorrow we go out somewhere? All of us?" Freddy looked at her, then nodded.

"Yeah, sure. Sounds fun. If Eli will even want to go. I probably scared the Hell out of him." Charlotte laughed.

"Dude, even when you're not mad you're scary. You're literally almost three-hundred pounds of muscle." Freddy looked indignant.

"Nobody's scared of Goldie!" He protested. Charlotte grinned.

"Maybe it's because he's blonde?"

"Not naturally!"

"Then why don't you dye your hair and see if you're less scary?"

"I am NOT dyeing my hair, Charlotte!" She laughed and walked into the kitchen.

"CHICKEN BREAST AND BAKED POTATOES FOR DINNER!" She screamed. There was a collective 'YAY' from the boys upstairs (except for Eli, who added it to the list of reasons this family was weird), and Charlotte began to cook. "So, Freddy." She calls out. "How was work last week?" Freddy sighed.

"I'd love to tell you, but it's pretty much your cliche nine-to-five job sis. But longer." He shook his head. "But at least I get paid the extra hours."

"That's not good for you, Freddy. I've never seen you take a vacation." Felix said behind them. Freddy sighed and shook his head, but the redhead continued. "How many vacation days do you have saved up? Be honest."

"...six months." He grumbled.

"...what the Hell, Freddy." Freddy growled.

"Just stop asking me about work! When it's your damned business, I'll let you know!" He shouted. Silence.


Eli heard Freddy yell and frowned, curling up and holding Biscuit like it were an actual baby wolf instead of a plushie. He knew it was childish, and it made him feel self-conscious (though that was nothing new for him), but it still made him feel better. He used to carry it around the orphanage all the time. He sighed, staring at the plushie. Don't. It's stupid, embarrassing, and childish. But he did it anyway, his voice hushed.

"What am I gonna do, Biscuit..." He whispered. Immediately feeling like an idiot, his face flushed and he threw the plushie across the room, where it hit the wall with a quiet thud and hit the floor. "..." He got up and ran over, picking Biscuit up and making sure it wasn't dirtied. Then he hugged it tightly.


When Brandon walked into Eli's room, the auburn haired teen was sitting on his bed, holding a stuffed animal in his arms tightly.

"Hey..." He called out quietly. Eli jumped and hid the toy under his pillow, his face reddening. Brandon smiled a bit, walking to the bed with a plate of chicken and a mashed up baked potato. "You didn't come down for dinner, so I..." Eli's gaze alternated between Brandon and the plate for a few seconds before he took it.

"...thanks..." He mumbled, slowly eating. Feeling awkward, Brandon sat down on the bed next to Eli.

"So, I...wanted to talk to you..." He muttered, looking away. Eli stopped eating and swallowed what was in his mouth before answering.

"What about?"

"Nothing, really. Just...talk, I guess. I, um...want to know more about you." Brandon's face was probably bright red, and it wasn't helping that Eli was silently staring at him. Then he redhead continued eating, averting his gaze. When he next spoke, it was a minute or two later.

"What would you like to know?" He questioned. Brandon hummed and looked down at his lap, trying to think of a good way to start. He decided and returned his gaze to Eli.

"Do you like to read?" Eli nodded immediately.

"Freddy bought me a book today, I'll probably start reading it after I eat." He replied, taking another bite from the chicken.

"Okay...is there any sport that you like?" Eli paused for a few seconds, then shook his head.

"I've never cared much for sports. Do you play one?" Brandon shook his head, then grinned.

"Aren't I the one asking questions?" Eli nodded in response and gestured for him to continue. "Uh...what's your favorite food?" Unexpectedly, Eli grinned and playfully groaned.

"Noooo, you can't put me on the spot like that! There's too much to eat in the world!" Brandon laughed, and so did Eli.


Early that morning, everyone was dressed and ready to go to the park. Except...

"Where's Eli?" Fred asked, frowning. Felix slowly looked at Freddy.

"I thought you were going to wake him up?" He asked. Freddy shrugged.

"I did, I guess he went back to sleep." Felix sighed and trudged upstairs to Eli's room. The teen was halfway dressed, still in sweatpants but in a regular t-shirt with a hoodie over it. How late did he stay up...? Then Felix saw the book on Eli's bed. The bookmark was on the last page. That must've been a really good book. He shook Eli gently.

"Come on, kid. Wake up." Eli groaned and opened his eyes. After a few seconds, he jumped up and pushed Felix out of the room.

"Sorry, I'll get dressed and be right down!" He exclaimed, almost too quickly to understand as he shut the door. Felix stood, waiting for about a minute before Eli flung the door open and ran past him downstairs. Felix rolled his eyes with a grin, then followed him down.


Eli was silent on the drive to the park, just staring out the car window until they arrived. Everyone else that was in the car with him (Freddy, Charlotte, and Brandon) tried to pull him into a conversation, but he'd wanted to go into his own little world. He'd been kind of neglecting it for awhile. But he was also still tired. He had stayed up until four in the morning reading the book. He hadn't started until twelve, and had finished it before he went to bed. Now he really wanted to read the sequel...but that wasn't what his little world was about. It was like he had his own little Wonderland to go into in his imagination.

"Eli, we're here." Brandon said to him. Eli snapped out of it and got out of the car, then started to mentally freak out when he couldn't. Then he remembered that he hadn't unbuckled his seatbelt.

He really needed some sleep. He unbuckled it and got out, walking around. He very vaguely registered Freddy calling out to him...but he saw a swing and damn if he wasn't going to use it. He sat down in it and started swinging, not wanting to go very high for now. He looked around, yawning a bit and shaking his head. Then he saw a familiar boy with blue hair. He waved a bit. Ryder grinned and jogged over.

"Hey Eli! What's...are you okay?" He asked, frowning. Eli nodded.

"Yeah...just didn't get much sleep..." He stopped the swing, but stayed on it. "Thanks for the book, it was really good." Ryder nodded, then looked back and waved as Brandon walked over.

"Hey Bonnie!" He greeted cheerfully. Brandon glared and muttered something about stupid nicknames and his stupid family. "I hope you've been treating Eli well?" Brandon's glare intensified.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Ryder looked confused.

"You take things too seriously, you know that right?" He asked. Brandon shrugged and looked at Eli with a worried expression.

"When did you go to sleep, Eli?"

"Uh...four in the morning...ish..." Before Brandon could berate him, Felix called out to them.

"Guys! Mind if I borrow Eli for a minute?" Eli stood up, yawning again, and walked over to the crimson haired boy.


Ryder looked at Brandon with a grin. "He's cute, isn't he?" Brandon made a face.

"Don't even think about it, Ryder." He growled. Ryder's grin became joking.

"Aww, do you have a crush on him?"

"Shut up..." Brandon muttered under his breath. But his face was reddening. "...but yeah. He's cute."

"I knew it!" Ryder almost yelled, and Brandon clamped a hand over his mouth.


Eli stood in front of Felix, rubbing his eyes. "What did you need?" Felix smiled, although it looked a little strained, and he sat down on a bench. After Eli sat by him, he spoke.

"So...I was thinking about your little anger problem again...and your antisocial habits..." Eli nodded. "And...I think maybe you should talk to someone about it." Eli's face turned stony, and his eyes held anger in them through the drowsiness.

"I don't need a fucking therapist, Felix." He replied. Felix looked a bit surprised, but continued.

"I just don't think it's good for you to be so..." He trailed off.

"Apathetic? Aggressive? What were you going to say?" Eli demanded, glaring.

"Uh...I don't know...?" Eli rolled his eyes and walked towards the parking lot. "Hey, where are you going?"

"I'll be in the car!" He yelled, speeding up. He got into the car and slammed the door, taking a slow breath to calm down. "Why can't any of them mind their own business?!" He clenched his fists, but the fire was replaced with an empty, hollow feeling. He stared down at his lap, losing himself in thought.

He couldn't do this.

He really couldn't.