After Sean had walked Ellie to her co-op job, he started on his way to his own house. *I wonder if Tracker had kicked them out yet. * Sean began to pick up his pace at the thought of having his house back.
He took a deep breath before opening the door to his apartment. To his surprise, the place was clean. All the bills that were scattered on the counter were gone. The clothes that had been all over the floor had disappeared along with his parents' suitcases.
"Hey little bro," he heard Tracker's voice coming from the bathroom.
Sean walked down the hall, and found his brother scrubbing the toilet, "Tracker . . . uh, what are you doing?"
"What does it look like? I'm cleaning," Tracker answered.
"Why?"
Tracker stopped moving the brush, and turned to look at his brother, "I've always thought that no matter what I did, you'd be better off living with me than Mom and Dad. Then they were here, and I realized that I hadn't really been trying to raise you better than Mom and Dad did. So, today, we are starting over. We'll have dinner at six thirty every night, and I'll try to make breakfast every morning. We'll divide the chores between us, and we might actually be able to keep the place clean."
Sean still wasn't sure what was going on with his brother, and he wasn't certain he liked the sound of 'chores' but it seemed like his Tracker was trying to act grown up, "Okay, well I just came to drop off my bag, I'll be back later."
Sean started to turn around, but stopped when he heard his brothers voice, "Where are you going?"
"Out," Sean answered.
"Who will you be with?" Sean turned to look at his brother.
"With friends."
"What will you guys be doing?" Tracker questioned.
"Have you been watching a lot of TV?" Sean asked.
"I'm supposed to know where, who, what, and when. Questions: The anti drug," Tracker repeated from the commercial.
"Ya, whatever. I'll see you later Tracker," Sean walked out.
Tracker called down the hall, "Be back before ten, it's a school night!"
Sean couldn't help but smile as he shut the apartment door behind him.
Ellie sat at her desk in her 'office'. She looked through a few papers Caitlin had left on her desk. Most of the papers had phone numbers of people Ellie needed to call to schedule interviews with. After she had sorted through the papers, and organized them according to what needed to be done first, she saw a file that was left on the ground marked 'Nash, Ellie'. Ellie opened the folder, and pulled out the one paper that was inside. It read:
Hey Ellie,
I'm really busy today, so I'm sorry that I couldn't tell you about this in person. We have an extra five minutes for the next show and we need filler. I've been hearing about things going missing at DCS, and I wanted to know if you could come up with a story about it. Here's a folder to put any information you find in. Maybe you could even come on the show and report it!
Thanks,
Caitlin
Ellie smiled at the thought of getting to be on TV. She was excited about getting to do an investigative report, and couldn't wait to get started. It wasn't until she read the not over again that she realized what she was supposed to do.
*Sean. I can't do this to Sean. Especially not after everything he's done for me. * Ellie sat down on her chair. *She'll fire me. Can she fire me? This is a co-op, not a job. She'll want to at least know why I can't do it. I can't tell her. * Ellie's mind was racing, and she reached into her pocket.
She grabbed the bobby-pin, and pulled up her sleeve. She was about to drag the pin across her arm, when she noticed the red rubber band. She had a moment of internal struggle, before putting the bobby-pin back in her pocket, and pulling up on the rubber band. She let it drop, and it snapped back into place against her skin.
It wasn't quite as satisfying as cutting was, but Ellie knew she was trying to do something right. She pulled on the elastic again. Another snap. She repeated this a few more times, until a red mark was visible on her left wrist.
She took a deep breath, and pulled her sleeve back down. *I'll tell Caitlin tomorrow that I can't do the story. *
Craig glanced at his watch as he waited in the garage. It was 7:05, and still no sign of Manny. Finally he saw her walking up the driveway. As soon as she came in, he pulled the garage door down.
"Hey Craig," Manny whispered.
"So what did you need to talk to me about?" Craig asked quickly.
Manny sat down on the couch and looked around nervously, "Well, I uh, I haven't been feeling so well lately . . ."
Craig wasn't exactly sure where this was going, but he didn't like it.
"I think I'm pregnant," Manny said quickly. *He's going to hate this. Why did I even tall him? *
Craig fell back on the couch next to her, "You think . . . or you know?"
Manny nodded her head, "I know. I talked to Spike a couple days ago. She's helped me a lot."
Craig nodded his head, and tried to stay calm, "So Spike knows?"
Manny nodded her head.
"Have you told your parents yet?" Craig asked while he stared straight ahead.
Manny turned her body toward Craig, and tried to make eye contact with him, "Yeah, I did. They took it a lot better than I thought they would."
Craig could hear her voice waver, and he realized that she needed him. He took a deep breath before looking at her. He reached one hand out, and gently held hers, "What do you want to do?"
Manny started to feel a little better, knowing Craig was there with her, "After talking it over with Snake, and my parents, I think . . ." But when she saw the expectant look on his face, she realized she wasn't feeling as well as she thought, "What do you think Craig?"
"Well, I always wanted to have kids, I didn't think I'd be so young, but so what?" Craig looked at Manny. She didn't seem too thrilled, "Well, I guess we could always put it up for adoption . . ." he waited for her expression to change. It didn't. *She can't be thinking about abortion, can she? * But he could tell by the way she was looking at him that she was.
"Craig, I'm only fourteen," Manny tried to stress this point, "I can't have a baby. Even if we were to put it up for adoption, I'd still have to carry it," she felt weird using those words. It was like she was playing house, only in a seriously demented way, "And think about the people at school. What would they say?"
Craig unconsciously let go of her hand, "Why did you even stop by if you had already made up your mind?"
Manny folded her hands in her lap, "You're apart of this so I thought you should know."
"But I shouldn't have a choice in what happens to my baby?" Craig asked her as his voice began to raise.
"Craig, sh . . . please, Joey might hear," Manny begged him to be quiet.
Craig stood up, "Well, he's going to hear about it anyway. You wonder what the people at school would say if you were to have the baby. You don't worry about what they'll say when they find out you got an abortion?"
Manny shook her head, "Nobody else has to know . . ."
"They will Manny!" He cut her off. Manny winced as he yelled, "It doesn't matter if we don't tell anyone, they'll find out!"
Craig finally realized the silent tears that were streaming down Manny's face. He felt guilty, so he back down next to her, and held her tightly to him, "Sh . . . it's okay Manny. Joey couldn't have heard me, he's not even home."
Manny tried to smile, "You couldn't have told me that before I freaked out?"
She slowly sat back up, and wiped her tears away, "I just want this to be over, Craig."
Craig nodded his head, "Are you sure this is what you want to do?"
Manny hesitated, "It's what's best for us."
Craig doubted those were Manny's words, but he didn't want to upset her again, "Okay then. Well, where do we go from here?"
"My mom scheduled an appointment for me on Friday," Manny informed him.
"What happens at the appointment?" Craig asked.
Manny shrugged her shoulders, "I don't know. I don't think I want to know. It's just all so scary, and it's happening so fast."
"Do you want me to come with you?" Craig offered.
Manny looked up at him, "You wouldn't mind?"
"Of course I wouldn't. Your dad won't kill me, right?" Craig asked jokingly.
Manny smiled, "I don't think so. So, just walk home with me after school on Friday, okay?"
Craig nodded his head as she stood up. They walked over to the garage door, which he lifted up for her, "I'll see you tomorrow," Manny said as she walked away.
Craig pulled the garage door back down. As he walked back into the house, he thought about Friday. *The day after tomorrow. I need to talk to Manny more to make sure this is what she wants. *
When he walked by the calendar, he almost had a heart attack. On Friday, January ninth, written in red ink, and circled numerous times, were the words: SCHOOL DANCE!!
Sean had visited what seemed like hundreds of pawn shops, and though he wasn't sure if the jewelry he bought had once belonged to Ms. Hatzilakos, it matched the description pretty well. He had gotten both the silver locket, and the gold pair of earrings. Of course, when he bought these back, the money he had dropped from $252 to $175. Now, all he needed was $345.
He checked his watch. 9:45. Sean smirked. *Well, Tracker has been acting considerate lately, so I might as well go home.
He got home at 10:01, where he found Tracker sitting on the couch, snoring loudly. *I'm glad to see he's concerned. * Sean thought sarcastically to himself as he covered Tracker up and shut off the TV.
Sean picked up the cordless, and dialed Ellie's number. He was happy when she picked up, and they talked for almost two hours. Elli would mention her father every now and then, and Sean would listen intently. Anytime Sean brought up a happy memory of his family, Ellie would return the favor.
It was a little after midnight by the time Sean crawled into bed. For once, he felt like things could be getting better.
A/N: Hey everyone! Just wanted to thank Justanotherdream, PsYcHoJo, Krys, and musikchik for reviewing! My birthday was last week, and my friends and I went to the ice skating rink and played Broom Ball! Anyone who hasn't played before you should try it. That game is awesome! We played for two hours! Okay, well, I'll update as soon as I can!
~*~Sammi~*~
He took a deep breath before opening the door to his apartment. To his surprise, the place was clean. All the bills that were scattered on the counter were gone. The clothes that had been all over the floor had disappeared along with his parents' suitcases.
"Hey little bro," he heard Tracker's voice coming from the bathroom.
Sean walked down the hall, and found his brother scrubbing the toilet, "Tracker . . . uh, what are you doing?"
"What does it look like? I'm cleaning," Tracker answered.
"Why?"
Tracker stopped moving the brush, and turned to look at his brother, "I've always thought that no matter what I did, you'd be better off living with me than Mom and Dad. Then they were here, and I realized that I hadn't really been trying to raise you better than Mom and Dad did. So, today, we are starting over. We'll have dinner at six thirty every night, and I'll try to make breakfast every morning. We'll divide the chores between us, and we might actually be able to keep the place clean."
Sean still wasn't sure what was going on with his brother, and he wasn't certain he liked the sound of 'chores' but it seemed like his Tracker was trying to act grown up, "Okay, well I just came to drop off my bag, I'll be back later."
Sean started to turn around, but stopped when he heard his brothers voice, "Where are you going?"
"Out," Sean answered.
"Who will you be with?" Sean turned to look at his brother.
"With friends."
"What will you guys be doing?" Tracker questioned.
"Have you been watching a lot of TV?" Sean asked.
"I'm supposed to know where, who, what, and when. Questions: The anti drug," Tracker repeated from the commercial.
"Ya, whatever. I'll see you later Tracker," Sean walked out.
Tracker called down the hall, "Be back before ten, it's a school night!"
Sean couldn't help but smile as he shut the apartment door behind him.
Ellie sat at her desk in her 'office'. She looked through a few papers Caitlin had left on her desk. Most of the papers had phone numbers of people Ellie needed to call to schedule interviews with. After she had sorted through the papers, and organized them according to what needed to be done first, she saw a file that was left on the ground marked 'Nash, Ellie'. Ellie opened the folder, and pulled out the one paper that was inside. It read:
Hey Ellie,
I'm really busy today, so I'm sorry that I couldn't tell you about this in person. We have an extra five minutes for the next show and we need filler. I've been hearing about things going missing at DCS, and I wanted to know if you could come up with a story about it. Here's a folder to put any information you find in. Maybe you could even come on the show and report it!
Thanks,
Caitlin
Ellie smiled at the thought of getting to be on TV. She was excited about getting to do an investigative report, and couldn't wait to get started. It wasn't until she read the not over again that she realized what she was supposed to do.
*Sean. I can't do this to Sean. Especially not after everything he's done for me. * Ellie sat down on her chair. *She'll fire me. Can she fire me? This is a co-op, not a job. She'll want to at least know why I can't do it. I can't tell her. * Ellie's mind was racing, and she reached into her pocket.
She grabbed the bobby-pin, and pulled up her sleeve. She was about to drag the pin across her arm, when she noticed the red rubber band. She had a moment of internal struggle, before putting the bobby-pin back in her pocket, and pulling up on the rubber band. She let it drop, and it snapped back into place against her skin.
It wasn't quite as satisfying as cutting was, but Ellie knew she was trying to do something right. She pulled on the elastic again. Another snap. She repeated this a few more times, until a red mark was visible on her left wrist.
She took a deep breath, and pulled her sleeve back down. *I'll tell Caitlin tomorrow that I can't do the story. *
Craig glanced at his watch as he waited in the garage. It was 7:05, and still no sign of Manny. Finally he saw her walking up the driveway. As soon as she came in, he pulled the garage door down.
"Hey Craig," Manny whispered.
"So what did you need to talk to me about?" Craig asked quickly.
Manny sat down on the couch and looked around nervously, "Well, I uh, I haven't been feeling so well lately . . ."
Craig wasn't exactly sure where this was going, but he didn't like it.
"I think I'm pregnant," Manny said quickly. *He's going to hate this. Why did I even tall him? *
Craig fell back on the couch next to her, "You think . . . or you know?"
Manny nodded her head, "I know. I talked to Spike a couple days ago. She's helped me a lot."
Craig nodded his head, and tried to stay calm, "So Spike knows?"
Manny nodded her head.
"Have you told your parents yet?" Craig asked while he stared straight ahead.
Manny turned her body toward Craig, and tried to make eye contact with him, "Yeah, I did. They took it a lot better than I thought they would."
Craig could hear her voice waver, and he realized that she needed him. He took a deep breath before looking at her. He reached one hand out, and gently held hers, "What do you want to do?"
Manny started to feel a little better, knowing Craig was there with her, "After talking it over with Snake, and my parents, I think . . ." But when she saw the expectant look on his face, she realized she wasn't feeling as well as she thought, "What do you think Craig?"
"Well, I always wanted to have kids, I didn't think I'd be so young, but so what?" Craig looked at Manny. She didn't seem too thrilled, "Well, I guess we could always put it up for adoption . . ." he waited for her expression to change. It didn't. *She can't be thinking about abortion, can she? * But he could tell by the way she was looking at him that she was.
"Craig, I'm only fourteen," Manny tried to stress this point, "I can't have a baby. Even if we were to put it up for adoption, I'd still have to carry it," she felt weird using those words. It was like she was playing house, only in a seriously demented way, "And think about the people at school. What would they say?"
Craig unconsciously let go of her hand, "Why did you even stop by if you had already made up your mind?"
Manny folded her hands in her lap, "You're apart of this so I thought you should know."
"But I shouldn't have a choice in what happens to my baby?" Craig asked her as his voice began to raise.
"Craig, sh . . . please, Joey might hear," Manny begged him to be quiet.
Craig stood up, "Well, he's going to hear about it anyway. You wonder what the people at school would say if you were to have the baby. You don't worry about what they'll say when they find out you got an abortion?"
Manny shook her head, "Nobody else has to know . . ."
"They will Manny!" He cut her off. Manny winced as he yelled, "It doesn't matter if we don't tell anyone, they'll find out!"
Craig finally realized the silent tears that were streaming down Manny's face. He felt guilty, so he back down next to her, and held her tightly to him, "Sh . . . it's okay Manny. Joey couldn't have heard me, he's not even home."
Manny tried to smile, "You couldn't have told me that before I freaked out?"
She slowly sat back up, and wiped her tears away, "I just want this to be over, Craig."
Craig nodded his head, "Are you sure this is what you want to do?"
Manny hesitated, "It's what's best for us."
Craig doubted those were Manny's words, but he didn't want to upset her again, "Okay then. Well, where do we go from here?"
"My mom scheduled an appointment for me on Friday," Manny informed him.
"What happens at the appointment?" Craig asked.
Manny shrugged her shoulders, "I don't know. I don't think I want to know. It's just all so scary, and it's happening so fast."
"Do you want me to come with you?" Craig offered.
Manny looked up at him, "You wouldn't mind?"
"Of course I wouldn't. Your dad won't kill me, right?" Craig asked jokingly.
Manny smiled, "I don't think so. So, just walk home with me after school on Friday, okay?"
Craig nodded his head as she stood up. They walked over to the garage door, which he lifted up for her, "I'll see you tomorrow," Manny said as she walked away.
Craig pulled the garage door back down. As he walked back into the house, he thought about Friday. *The day after tomorrow. I need to talk to Manny more to make sure this is what she wants. *
When he walked by the calendar, he almost had a heart attack. On Friday, January ninth, written in red ink, and circled numerous times, were the words: SCHOOL DANCE!!
Sean had visited what seemed like hundreds of pawn shops, and though he wasn't sure if the jewelry he bought had once belonged to Ms. Hatzilakos, it matched the description pretty well. He had gotten both the silver locket, and the gold pair of earrings. Of course, when he bought these back, the money he had dropped from $252 to $175. Now, all he needed was $345.
He checked his watch. 9:45. Sean smirked. *Well, Tracker has been acting considerate lately, so I might as well go home.
He got home at 10:01, where he found Tracker sitting on the couch, snoring loudly. *I'm glad to see he's concerned. * Sean thought sarcastically to himself as he covered Tracker up and shut off the TV.
Sean picked up the cordless, and dialed Ellie's number. He was happy when she picked up, and they talked for almost two hours. Elli would mention her father every now and then, and Sean would listen intently. Anytime Sean brought up a happy memory of his family, Ellie would return the favor.
It was a little after midnight by the time Sean crawled into bed. For once, he felt like things could be getting better.
A/N: Hey everyone! Just wanted to thank Justanotherdream, PsYcHoJo, Krys, and musikchik for reviewing! My birthday was last week, and my friends and I went to the ice skating rink and played Broom Ball! Anyone who hasn't played before you should try it. That game is awesome! We played for two hours! Okay, well, I'll update as soon as I can!
~*~Sammi~*~