Gabe raced around the hotel room. "Look!" he kept shouting. "Look! Tiny soaps! Can I jump on the bed! I wanna get fish and chips! What are fish and chips! Are we going to go outside! And and!" Rowan and Jasper dropped the bags and flopped down on the bed, eyes closed, exhausted. Gabe jumped up onto the bed next to them and started to bounce, his feet seemingly getting closer and closer to their heads. Rowan grabbed him around the legs and brought Gabe crashing down onto the slim pillows and hard mattress. "I think I want to take a nap," yawned Gabe, suddenly sleepy as the time change caught up with him.

"Really?" asked Jasper and Rowan, trying not to sound too excited. Gabe curled up on his side and was soon fast asleep. "I'm going to say my favorite Gabe is a sleeping Gabe," remarked Rowan, watching Gabe breathe through his mouth, drool already forming.

"Isn't it everyone's? But I think I'm going to use some of those tiny soaps and shower," Jasper groaned as he sat up slowly; back aching from the long plane ride that seemed longer with Gabe everywhere after he drank 3 sodas.

"I think I'm gonna go for a walk." Jasper caught Rowan's eye and nodded.

"Just stay out of trouble, K? And get back here by 7- we're having dinner with Billy." Rowan nodded and stepped across the doorframe. ********************

Rowan stood in front of the plain looking flat. Small like most urban places. He lifted his hand and knocked, once, twice. A fair teenage girl with light brown hair in small cornrows and green eyes stared back at him, opened the door. "Um, i know this moight sound strange but i used 'a know someone who'd lived 'ere and i um, i um,"

"Rowan?" The girl stepped forward, the screen closing, snapping behind her.

"Evelyn?' She nodded. "Christ girl! You're supposed to be 5 years ol'!" She laughed and hugged him, he hugged back. What had it been? 9 years too long? He held her arm length. "I feel old but, damn. You grew up." She smiled and motioned for him to come inside.

"Pat's here- he'll be insane to see you." He stepped across the doorway and into the flat where he had spent so much of his time when ever he and Sara were back in Dublin, on break. ******************************

"Pat!" cried Aisling as she let herself in his bedroom window. She folded upwards and stood, began walking towards the door and the living room where the noise seemed to be coming from. "If this is about Gerald, just let the fuck go! He's an idiot! And if you're back together again than great! Where are you!" She entered the living room to see the whole gang there- Patrick, Evelyn, Nate and Owen. There was someone else there, someone laughing. "New boy, Pat?"

The laughing boy stood up. "And here I was thinking that you'd remember me. But fuck that- who's Gerald?" Amber allowed the memory of a voice to deepen, mature and lose part of the innocence they all had had at one time and a second later she knew who it was. Flinging herself across the room she hugged Rowan about the shoulders, legs around the waist, he stood with her wrapped around him, hugging her back, kissed her hard on the cheek. 8 years was a long time for someone who didn't write or call. Truthfully the only time anyone ever heard from him was when he was in JuV- only time he knew he'd be somewhere long enough to write and get a response. He'd been writing a lot recently, from this Horizon place.

Rowan put her on the ground as she looked at him, really saw him. The spiky hair looked only slightly longer than the crew cut he had last, but definitely a lot more blond. Peroxide. He had grown, was taller than her whereas she used to be the one who towered over the gang. Two fingers traced the scar on his face. He always had little scars and bigger bruises but this seemed beyond what his father would do to him. He grabbed her fingers and gently pulled them off the scar. "Thrown into a mirror."

"O mo Dhia*." He didn't say anything, just let her stare. She hugged him again, more carefully and then fell into the couch. He sat down a little more gracefully. "So what have you been up to? What's this place Horizon really like?"

"You already know it's supposed to ease me off drugs and shite, stop the self mutilation. Not much else to it." She fingered his shirt-covered wrist, couldn't help it. That was about the time he had started talking to the gang again- the first time he tried to kill himself. For a year and a half they had heard nothing from him, not even a complementary letter, then a 'I tried to hang myself so I figured I'd tell the people I care about' note written on an index card that said the name of a strip club on the embossed front. And then he was back to talking. Just every so often another 'I changed my address- I'm now at this JuV, I'm now here, now there'.

"Does it work?"

"Well enough. Got more to go for now."

"Like?"

"As I was telling the rest of them- Jasper reappeared and I made a few friends." She started to say something and he cut her off. "Yes I can make friends. Other than you blokes. And these friends don't know half the pissers you all do. Not to mention I found out I have a brother." He covered his head as they all threw various possible missiles at him, yelling why hadn't they told him before? Aisling did no such thing, just slapped him upside the head. "So I'm guessing you don't want ta hear bout it?" She smacked him again and Patrick tackled him and easily, the 5 of them pinned him on the ground, between the table and couch. "Alright, alright- so about 2 months ago Dwayne- my case worker, 'member? shows up this kid and drops the bomb. He's like 'yeah- your mum dropped him off at school and then didn't pick him up.' Dwayne heard about him and realizes he's my brother, did a blood test and it matched all the pints I had on file. His name's Gabe and he's 5 and a half. Really sweet kid. Chip off no other block."

"Huh," remarked Owen. "So you're keeping him, right?"

"Yeh. I'm now 'is legal guardian."

"So you get to go to parent teacher conferences?" asked Nate, grimacing, remembering how those always ended up getting him in trouble. Rowan nodded and began to struggle to sit up. Slowly all got off him so he could breathe.

"You all meet him later. After the dinner with Billy."

"What time?" asked Mrs. Galway, walking in to see what the substantial crash was that had ruined the line of neat picture frames and clattered the teacups filled with coffee that were skewed on the table.

"Supposed to meet them at 7, bathed and clean."

"You realize it's ten of?"

"No! Christ!" Rowan sprang up.

Minutes later, Rowan stood in the shower, waiting for Patrick to bring clean clothes. But he wasn't ready for Patrick to open the door without knocking. "Christ! What the!" Rowan turned his body to face the shower wall.

"I'm just bringing-"

"Don't look at me! Alright! Don't look-"

"I'm not." Rowan glanced over his shoulder and Pat was facing the closed door. "Rowan, um, did something happen at one o' the houses you were at?"

Rowan sighed and turned his eyes back to the wall. " A couple of things happened at a couple of places I was at." He turned his head again. "Hey- I know you're out and proud but."

Pat laughed, sensing the problem. "You're borrowing my baggiest Vans and a lose black T-shirt. And a gray shirt for underneath."

"Err, it says what?"

"Nothing. I'm wearing my 'I suck dicks' shirt. Sorry. You can borrow it later though." Rowan laughed. He had sent Pat that shirt but hadn't expected him to wear it.

"I'll remember that. Savor the memory and then hold it over your head so I steal it."

"You gave it to me."

"You remembered?"

"You're my best friend." Rowan didn't know what to say to that. Best friends wasn't being the only two people who knew who the Sex Pistols were in first grade or being two of the few knackers in the school. What could he say to that?