Unsteady

Summary: Liz arrives home from work to see her son sobbing on the porch. Sequel to Cruel Like You.

Liz sighed tiredly as she parked her car, lids heavy as she walked up the sidewalk to her house. It wasn't until she was about a foot away from the porch steps that she registered the sound of soft sobs coming from the porch. Looking up abruptly, her eyes fell onto Jake, curled up on the porch swing, knees up under his chin, skinny arms wrapped around them. "Jake?" She asked worriedly, rushing up the steps to sit beside him. She gasped as he fell into her arms, sobbing deeper now, his head buried in her chest and his arms around her waist. She hugged him back tighter, pressing a kiss to his hair. Rubbing his back soothingly until he calmed down a bit, she asked, "Did something happen at school today?"

Jake shook his head and pulled away, breathing in a couple of breaths before he spoke, "No. School was okay. Everyone was really nice about Franco." He bit his lip, wondering if he should tell his mother what Cam had said. He knew that it wasn't okay. His mother had always taught he and his brothers to be kind and not yell at one another like this. Then there was the reaction Josslyn had had after it happened.

Liz's brow raised. "You know that you can tell me anything, right Jake? Something's obviously upsetting you."

He turned his head to meet her eyes. "Did my dad kill Franco?" He questioned timidly, voice a mere whisper.

His mother froze, her eyes wide with alarm. Had someone at school told him that Jason had been arrested? Guilt filled her to the brim that she had yet to tell him. Of course, she'd planned to. She'd wanted to approach it delicately, when she wasn't so angry. She knew what her middle son needed was sensitivity, understanding, and comfort. "Who told you that?"

Jake's attention turned to his knees, covered by soft, blue pajama pants.

"Jake?" Liz prompted. "Did someone at school tell you this?"

Finally, her son shook his head. "No...it was Cam."

Her mouth fell open at that. "When did he tell you this?" She asked of him.

"Before you came home." Jake replied. "I came downstairs to get some juice and a snack when Josslyn was giving Cam the work he missed. She asked me how I was doing and if school had been okay, and I was answering questions. I was going to go back upstairs, but I decided to ask Cam if he thought it would be okay for me to go see my dad this weekend. I promised I wasn't going to forget Franco and that I just wanted to see him to know that he was okay. I'd never seen Cam so angry. Josslyn couldn't even stop him. When I came out here, I could hear her telling him off."

That immediately made alarm bells ring in Liz's mind. She'd known Josslyn her entire life and the blonde was never usually an angry person. She might've been a bit of a troublemaker as a child, but now she was soft and sweet, it was sometimes hard to believe that she was Carly's daughter. Whatever Cam had said must've been truly awful. "Tell me exactly what Cam said, baby."

The boy was quiet for a moment, trying to gather up his courage before he finally spoke, "He told me that my dad did something he'd always wanted to do when he shot Franco and watched him bleed to death." He confessed.

His mother's breath caught in her throat at that. It was worse than she'd imagined. Taking a moment to calm herself, she finally spoke. "I did originally believe that Jason did it because he was there. But honey, I don't know if that's true. The policemen are working hard to figure out the truth. But whether he did or didn't do it, that's not your fault. You can love your father and miss Franco. Your older brother had no right to make you feel differently, okay?" She ran her hand through his hair and watched him reassuringly.

He smiled, a soft, sad sort of thing and finally nodded his head. "Okay."

Liz grinned back at that and stood to her feet, holding out her arm to Jake. "Now come on, let's get inside, it's getting kind of chilly.

Jake immediately complied and they walked inside, stopping when they spotted Josslyn and Cam mere inches from one another, Josslyn glaring up at Cam angrily.

"Josslyn, honey, could you take Jake upstairs and sit with him?" Liz asked, gaze locked on Cam who had a look on his face that alarmed her. "I'd like to speak to Cameron alone for a few minutes."

The teen nodded and quirked her lips up a bit. "Of course." Her hand reached out for Jake and the little boy immediately ran over to her and let her lead him upstairs.

Liz watched them go and waited for the door to the bedroom Jake shared with Aiden, who was thankfully on a sleepover at a friend's house before her attention turned fully toward Cam. "You've got some explaining to do." She told him fiercely, hands on her hips.

The End

A/N: Next part will be Liz confronting Cam about what he did and said, as well as Joss and Jake upstairs.