AN: Okay I know I've been awful lately. But I'm coming up to the end of the story. I probably won't be consistent with the postings, but I'll just try to get them all up as soon as possible.


The next few days dragged for Ryan. He tried to spend as much time as he could alone. He had to stop pretending like everything was happy and prefect. He couldn't believe he let himself be so stupid as to actually start getting comfortable. What had he been thinking?

All he had to do was look around whatever room he was in to remind himself that he didn't belong. Just their kitchen was huge, probably half the size of their last house altogether. It was also clean and filled with food, two things Ryan had never fully seen happen in his own household. The couch in the living room probably cost more than all the furniture he had ever sat on before combined. He had eaten on that couch. What if he had spilled something? The walls and the ceiling throughout the entire house were spotless, free from mold and grime. Ryan had looked.

There was one time where they were not clean when Rosie had taken some crayons to the wall. There wasn't any yelling or hitting as far as Ryan could tell. She was simply sent off to her room and then helped Kirsten clean the wall. It was just more evidence that Ryan didn't belong. How long would it be before he would start acting out without his father keeping him in line? Had he already started without realizing

It was best for everyone if he just stayed by himself. Seth asked him to hang out a few times, but he would get over it. He probably didn't even really enjoy Ryan's company. He was probably just bored or felt obligated to spend time with him.


Sandy was frustrated. And frankly, he was pretty pissed off too. In spurts of being angry with everyone else – child protective services, Frank Atwood's lawyer, Frank Atwood, Dawn, Frank Atwood's lawyer's secretary – he realized he was angry with himself. It wasn't like before where he couldn't have known what was going on with Ryan.

While he knew he may never really make peace with that, he was able to push it out of his mind for the most part. He knew that focusing on that wasn't going to do Ryan any good. What he couldn't stop beating himself up over though was what he had said to Ryan. Why couldn't he have just kept his big mouth shut? It had been days since he had brought up a problem with the paperwork. He hadn't even told him that it had to do with his father. He hadn't really told him much. And at this point, he wasn't sure that would help. He wasn't sure what would help.

He barely saw Ryan but, unlike before, neither did Seth. The two had been inseparable for over a week and suddenly, nothing. There was obviously something wrong. And there was a good chance it was Sandy's fault. Ryan had been upset over what Sandy had told him. Or didn't tell him. It was probably a mix of the two but was that why he was locking himself away from the rest of them? Was he sick? Was there something else wrong?

Sandy sighed. He would worry about Ryan later. But for now, he had to focus on taking care of Ryan. That meant finding out exactly what was going on with the deadbeat Frank, putting out any fires he may have started, and going back to Ryan and confidently tell him that he would never have to be near the man again.


Ryan just wished there was a place he could just curl up and be alone. No Sandy, no Seth, no Kirsten, no mom or brother or dad. No responsibilities, nothing to worry about. Maybe if Ryan could just push through his last year as a minor, he could get there. Would he be able to get a job? He wasn't qualified to do anything.

He had worked construction the summer before and he hadn't been too horrible at it. At the very least, he hadn't gotten himself fired. He could probably even do that without a high school degree. Could he just leave everyone behind now?

The idea of being on his own in his own house or apartment, filled him with a warm feeling. But he didn't have any money saved up. He had been planning on saving almost everything he had earned that summer, but his mother had found it. And drank it. He would need some money to get started. Maybe he could find a job and work it until Sandy and Kirsten kicked him out.


Sandy sat across from Frank Atwood's lawyer trying his best to look calm.

"Mr. Atwood has proven his ability to be a calm and productive member of society." Sandy felt his entire body tense.

"Yes, around guys that will shoot him if he's not. What happens when you put him back with a defenseless kid?"

"Mr. Atwood's son is almost seventeen years old. Referring to him as a 'defenseless child' would probably be an insult to the young man."

"You know what? I don't care what you would consider 'insulting' at this point. Even if I spent years trying to think of a way to insult him, it probably wouldn't be half as bad as the abuse that poor kid suffered."

"Mr. Atwood has never abused Ryan." Sandy's entire body froze. It even took his brain a few seconds to register the emotion of anger. His brain was too shocked to process what the man sitting across from him had just said. "There has never been any proof…" Sandy cut the man off with a laugh. It had to be a joke. Or a dream? Maybe he had gotten his clients confused. Maybe, in addition to defending the scum of the earth, he actually did have an innocent client and he had just gotten the two mixed up.

"I'm sorry. I think there's been some confusion here. I'm talking about Frank Atwood. The man who raised and beat Ryan. And there's proof. Right here." Sandy grabbed the file that had been sitting in front of him and practically flung it at the lawyer across the table. His blood felt like it was literally boiling. It seemed like a ridiculous sentiment, but Sandy was shaking. He wasn't sure if it was pure adrenaline or pure fury and he really didn't care. He tried staring at the lawyer across the table from himself but felt his eyes dry out and begin watering. He forced himself to blink and look down.

"I… This is Ryan Atwood's file?"

"Yes." Sandy heard his voice come out strong and mean. He didn't care. Were they done? Sandy glanced up at the man's face. He could tell that he was trying to keep it neutral, but he could still see confusion in the man's face. "All right. So obviously there was a misunderstanding here. I think we're done."

Sandy went to stand up and heard the folder slam down on the table. When he looked up to the lawyer he was sitting up straight, a completely different look on his face. Sandy knew that look.

"No one in the family ever admitted to abuse. Even if it was abuse, which there's no direct proof…"

"He was taken away and put in foster care!"

"Even if it was abuse, there's no way to tell that it was my client and not his brother or his mother." Sandy couldn't believe his ears. He had to grip the table to keep him from leaping across it and punching his in the face.

"It was him. Ryan said it was." He tried to keep his voice even and quiet, but it wasn't working out very well.

"But is Ryan willing to say that in court?"