Hey! I'm ina good mood because I found a Ducks RPG on LiveJournal; or rather, Meme started it and I joined in. it's so much fun! Hehehe. I'm Charlie. Surprise, surprise! I actually got lucky because I beat I think two request. I would have been sad if I didn't get to be Charlie. Allie is Ken, Emmy, is Guy, and Mary is Goldberg. Kaila's Banks. It's SO much fun, I say! I've never RPed before, but now it's become a time-consuming thing for me! So much fun. Hee hee. If anyone's interested, we have spots open for Casey, Jan, and Orion. I also saw that we might need bad guys like (maybe) Cole, cheerleaders, and other Varsity members. It's on LiveJournal.com and the community is named "edenhall." Fun stuff. Yeah.

Strangerdanger- I'm glad you liked the twist. ::grins really big:: I'm sure all the questions about Shane will be answered soon... ::suspenseful music:: Dun...dun...DUN!

Adriana- How cool! I'm gald to hear you're out of school. Summer great, isn't it? Hehehehe...yeah...Charlie's a bit screwed there, huh? Nice knowin' ya! Lol...I'm glad you liked the chapter, and congrats again on getting out of school!

Rach- Hehehe...yeah. No spoilers. Unless the author happens to slip...but that NEVER happens to ME...lol... I'm so glad to hear that you like it and that I still manage to surprise you, even after 60 or so previous chapters. Hee hee...you know me. I can't resist a good argument. Hee hee. Thanks again, and I hope you like the chapter! ::grins::

Banksiesbabe99- Lol...I hope you enjoy the chapter. Thanks for reviewing!

Preciousbabyblue- Hehehe...yeah...he tends to get into trouble occasionally.

Denverhockeygirl- ::grins:: I figured you'd like Shane. Ya never allow me to go and get lazy or sappy. I'm glad I reeled you back in with the dysfunctional group despite the C/J-ness...lol...Glad to know you're liking it!

Emmy- Hee hee. Yes. 61 and goin' strong! Lol... ::giggles at the chant:: Hee hee...Greatness. Love ya bunches, Em! Adored the review, and I hope you like the chapter!

Katie- Hehehe...yeah. Dr. Shylo's umm...a bit slow. Yeah. I hope you enjoy the chapter!

French Chipmunk- Lol...yes, it would be a very angsty ending. I could easily do it, but I would feel so guiltly. Lol. I've made his life bad enough as it is. Thanks bunches for reviewing, and I hope you like the chapter!

Brnnttebabe12- Lol...yes. Charlie should have known better, but oh well. The C/J will come eventually. Worry not.

Sade- I'm so glad and honored that you like my story! Thanks so much for the review, and I hope you continue to enjoy the story! ::grins::

Nebula- Heh...fair enough. A minor oversight on my part. Very sorry. Heh...Yes. Bombay should be scared.

Disclaimer- BAH!

-Chapter 62-

Charlie unlocked the door and walked in, closing the door behind himself. He saw Gordon Bombay sitting on the couch silently, but he shrugged it off and started for the stairs as usual.

"Charlie." The voice startled Charlie slightly; it wasn't so much a greeting as a 'stop right now, we've got to talk.'

The teen turned around and looked at his former coach, seeing an emotion he couldn't quite place. Charlie saw the man stand up and look him in the eye as he approached.

Charlie automatically adverted his eyes; it was second nature.

"Where were you this afternoon?" Gordon asked calmly.

Charlie felt a panic rise inside him as he swallowed. "I was the same place I've been going for awhile," he answered, carefully speaking so he could avoid lying if at all possible.

"Really? And where is that?" Gordon asked, trying to regain eye contact. It was harder to lie when looking someone in the face.

Charlie swallowed again. "Um, Dr. Shylo's of course. You dropped me off, remember?"

"Funny, yes I do remember dropping you off there...but what really confuses me is how he told me that you haven't shown up in his office for roughly two weeks."

Inhaling sharply, Charlie felt his throat go dry as he tried not to look at the older man. "Really?" he asked, trying to say it lightly but it came out in a slightly cracked voice. "I can't imagine why he would say a thing like that..."

"Me neither, considering I've dropped you off and watched you walk in every single time. But what also gets me is how the lady behind the counter said she's seen you come in and walk back out again every time. Tell me Charlie, how can this be possible if you've been going?" Gordon asked, trying to keep himself calm; he was hoping to get through the conversation without an argument or yelling.

"I don't know, Coach," Charlie said, his voice chilling and shifting to an angrier and sharper tone. "Maybe she was mistaken."

"I doubt that. Charlie, where have you been going?" Gordon asked, his voice filling with exasperation.

Charlie's jaw tightened and he looked up at Gordon with a fiery gaze. "Nowhere. What does it matter to you, anyway? You don't care so long as I'm not bothering YOU," he snapped coldly.

"Here we go again, Charlie. Do we really have to fight about the same things over and over? I do care, and as your legal guardian I deserve to know."

"If you were such a caring 'legal guardian,' I would imagine we wouldn't be having this problem. I'm sick and tired of you waiting for me to screw up so you can yell at me about what a horrible, mean person I am!" the teen hissed.

"I'm not the one yelling, Charlie. You are the one who provokes the yelling," Bombay said in defense.

Charlie looked back at him again, shaking his head slightly. "You know, Shane was right. You're just looking for someone to blame because YOU don't want to accept any for yourself. Yes, I accept the fact that I'm screwed up, but YOU are too scared to admit it! You want to sweep it under the rug and get a quick fix so YOUR life can return to normal. You don't care about ME or what I want. You would much rather blame it all on me, as if I ASKED for this to happen. As if I WANT to go through this. But I'm sick of it, and I don't want to take it anymore, alright?! I sick of being blamed for EVERYTHING, and not EVERYTHING can be my fault, you know!"

"Shane? Who's Shane?" Gordon asked, furrowing his eyebrows as he blinked with question.

The teen just shook his head again. "What do you care? Funny how the thing you find most dire to address is who Shane is...You totally missed the point," Charlie said, his eyes narrowing as he glared hotly at the man.

"The point? What point? That you think I don't want to take any blame for this?" Gordon asked, both of their voices steadily rising.

"Only in part, but your missing what I'm saying! You hear the words, but they don't process! You're not getting it! And I'm sick of taking it!"

"YOU'RE sick of taking it?! Charlie, this is hard for everyone, and you would realize that if you would step out of your self-centered little universe and see what's happening around you! You haven't spoken to any of your friends in ages! This is hard for me too, you know!" Gordon shouted in return, both of their voices escalating to an argument.

"I have been speaking to friends, they just aren't the friends who abandoned me! They aren't the ones who don't understand my problems or what I'm going through! These are friends who can honestly say they understand what I'm going through without sounding like some insincere, cheesy after- school special! And if YOU would step out of YOUR universe long enough, you would realize this!" Charlie screamed back, turning to retreat up the stairs before he lost any more control. He could already feel his voice begin to shake.

"Charlie-" Gordon started.

Once at the top of the stairs, Charlie turned around and his mouth quivered slightly before he continued. "No! I don't want to do this anymore! I'm tired of getting hurt, and I'm tired of being here! I just want you to leave me alone!"

"Charlie!" Gordon said, more demand behind it this time.

"NO! I hate you, and I just want you to leave me alone!" he screamed, his voice choked and thick with tears. "I HATE YOU!"

Gordon froze as Charlie stormed into his room and slammed the door, a deafening crack filling the silent air; for a few moments in time, you could faintly hear sobs before a blast of notes and vocals filled the void.

Charlie didn't bother to wipe the free-flowing tears from his eyes as he shoved things into a bag. A few pairs of clothes, his pocketknife (which he had removed from the bathroom and kept on hand), and just about anything else he could think of.

He left the CD player blaring as he unlocked the window and slung the bag higher on his shoulder. Once he had crawled out, he closed it shut again and struggled to calm his breathing as he inched across the roof. He soon discovered there was no use in trying to even his breaths, so he quit trying and continued to inch his way around.

His foot slipped slightly, and he grabbed the nearest niche in the roof desperately, eyes wide as he watched one of his shoes roll down the roof and thud lightly on the ground below.

Swallowing and taking a shuddering breath, he crawled to the lowest place he could find and saw that he could crawl onto a tree.

Convincing himself that he could do it, he leaned across and grabbed the branch, jumping slightly as he wrapped his legs around it. After nearly loosing his footing, he clutched the branch with a death grip before easing his way towards the trunk. He dropped down and bolted, not even bothering to retrieve his shoe; he couldn't take any chances.

He ran as fast as he could, feeling his sock rip under his feet as he tried to remember the way. He felt he would never get there, but he knew he had to try. He had to make it.

It seemed he had been running for forever before he collapsed on the sidewalk and curled into a fetal position, sobbing. Some would give him a curious glance as they passed, but most continued on their way.

He was short of breath as it was from running, but his choking sobs raised the difficulty. He was so angry, and he just wanted to be there...He didn't want to do this anymore...

"Hey, kid...you alright?" a voice said, but Charlie didn't acknowledge it.

The owner of the voice knelt down beside him. "What's wrong?" the person tried again. "Hey, you're that kid Shane's been bringing. You okay?"

Charlie tried to contain another sniff as he swallowed and nodded, doing the best he could to calm down; it wasn't working.

"Come on, he's still at the hangout so I'll take you there." The source of the voice, one of the guys who hung out with Shane, helped Charlie up as they finished the walk to where Shane and his friends were staying.

When they arrived, Shane looked up to see his buddy Derek lead Charlie into the room, looking like a wreck.

"Charlie, you okay?" he asked.

Charlie just walked over and sat on the couch, the anger returning as he tried to calm his shaking form. "Depends on your definition of okay...My old coach and I got into a fight...I...I just couldn't stay..." he said, trying to keep his face as void as possible.

Shane then noticed the bag and nodded. "Was it bad? What happened?"

"I just hate him so much..." Charlie started, having to stop himself to recollect before continuing. "He just doesn't understand...I had to leave. I knew he'd find out I wasn't going, but I...I just..." he started, feeling everything crash back around him as Shane placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"I know...it's rough. Did you need to stay here?"

Charlie looked at him with bloodshot eyes, nodding slightly. "Yeah...that is, if you don't mind...I wouldn't want to impose-"

"No, no, it isn't a problem. You're family now, so don't you worry about anything; we'll watch out for you." Shane clasped his hand on Charlie's shoulder.

The teen nodded, not trusting himself to speak again.

"Don't worry about anything, kid. Just make yourself at home," Shane said.

Charlie nodded slightly and swallowed, unable to calm the anger boiling inside. He was just relieved he could count on THESE people...They wouldn't betray him...

He watched as Shane pulled over a tray of pills. He did every time.

Shane popped a few in his mouth and held the tray out to the younger teen. "Want one?" he asked, just as he always did.

Charlie didn't have a clue what any of them were, but suddenly he didn't care; it didn't matter anymore.

"Sure."

Shane grinned and tossed one to him. "Why the sudden change in heart?"

Charlie put the pill in his mouth and swallowed, letting out a shuddering breath as he blinked his eyes a few times.

"I'm sick of living by their rules, and I really don't care at the moment," was his simple reply.

"So you're not scared it will mar your hockey jock perfection?" Shane asked with amusement.

"Screw hockey." Charlie hurled his bag on the floor about a foot from the couch, feeling the anger continue to simmer.

Shane let out a light, snarky laugh. "Now that's more like it."

Gordon didn't know how long he stood on the stairs in shock.

Scaling the remaining steps, he made his way to Charlie's closed and locked bedroom door. He knocked on the door loudly, growing accustomed to the ever- present angry music.

"Charlie! Come on back out!" he shouted, pausing to wait for a response.

When all he heard was the vocals of Linkin Park screaming their lungs out in reply, he sighed. Gordon tried knocking again.

"Charlie, we really need to talk this through..." Gordon said, feeling his confidence shake after their argument. Charlie couldn't REALLY hate him...

There was still no response.

Letting out a sigh of defeat, the man sunk to the floor and sat by the door...The kid had to come out eventually...

The next morning, Gordon shook awake. He felt around, momentarily disoriented as he processed where he was.

When he discovered he was still by Charlie's door, he climbed to his knees and tried the door again in a feeble attempt.

Still locked.

He let out yet another sigh. What was he going to do if Charlie wouldn't answer the door?

Charlie curled into a tight ball and covered his head with his arms as he faded into consciousness. Noises were growing louder and clearer, but he didn't want to wake up yet.

He was having difficulty distinguishing dream from reality...but he didn't think he was ready to honestly care.

"Morning, Sleeping Beauty. Care to join the rest of the world?" He wasn't quite sure whose voice it was...They all blurred together...

"Wake up, kid! We're getting breakfast," the voice continued.

"Go away...leave me alone..." he mumbled, almost incoherently. "Sleep...Need...sleep..."

Shane shook his head and plopped down in the couch, startling Charlie into full consciousness.

"What the heck was that?!" he muttered, looking around at the vaguely familiar surroundings.

When his confused gaze was drawn to the group of already awake older teens, he frowned. "Why'd ya have to go and wake me up..." he mumbled covering his head with his arms again.

"We figured we couldn't leave you here, sleeping all by your lonesome while we went off and ate breakfast." Shane propped his arms on the back of the couch.

Charlie mumbled something that somewhat sounded like "you figured wrong" before sighing and looking back up at them.

"You sure aren't a pleasant person to be around in the morning...We'll have to remember that," Shane said cockily, smirking at the blue-eyed teen.

"What I don't understand is how anyone can be alive in the morning...Waking up before eleven should be a sin..." he mumbled, still groggy from recent sleep.

Shane laughed and shook his head. "You crack me up, kid. So are you going to come or not?"

"Food is over-rated..." he mumbled, pulling his abandoned bag over his head.

"If you insist..." Shane said with another grin.

"Oh, I do..."

"Alright then. We'll see you when we get back; maybe you'll be awake by then," Shane said as he stood up from the worn old couch.

"Or maybe I won't."

"If you aren't, then we'll have to change that. We can't have you sleeping the days away; where's the fun in that?" Shane asked, just as sure of himself as always. When he didn't get a reply, he simply laughed lightly to himself before leaving with the others.

Charlie rolled back over and groaned to himself as he curled up tighter. What was it with people and freaking WAKING HIM UP?!

He let out a sigh and opened a single eye, now unable to go back to sleep. Then again, he would have to admit that he was already semi-awake when they spoke to him...but it was still more fun to blame other people. They didn't mind.

Well, most of the time.

Okay, so SHANE didn't mind; then again, there were quite a few differences between Shane and the rest of the world.

Number one: Shane was nice...well, relatively speaking.

Number two: The rest of the world wasn't.

Number three: Shane understood his problems and gave him support.

Number four: The rest of the world didn't.

Number five: Shane...umm...Shane sided with him and agreed that it was everyone else that was stupid and mean.

Number six: The rest of the world...um...did everything the opposite of that.

Charlie sighed and rolled over on the couch, his face resting on the worn material. He would wake up eventually...Just five more minutes...