Title: Conviction
Author: ness
Disclaimer: this is illegal. I'm bad.
Notes: follows on from Matchmaking - in my head

edited over to fix Greg Ryder into Ryder Forrest blush

The road through Rawley woods was deserted. If it weren't for the road's existance, you would think humans had never set foot there. Bird song was the only noise, until a rustling started from the undergrowth. Two golden retrievers emerged and trotted across the tarmac to nose at an interestingly smelly bag someone had thrown out of a car.

At the sound of a distant engine, accompanied by a pounding stereo, the younger dog ran off, but the other, grey muzzled, awkward moving, might not have heard. At any rate, it was still in the middle of the road when, a very few seconds later, a sports car came twisting round the bend. Loud, fast, out of control, the car hit the dog hard.

"Shit" said Ryder.

Bella glanced over Jake's shoulder. "Where's Hamilton?" She'd been expecting both of them.

"He stood us up. Something with Grant from his math class."

Bella put away the third face mask while Jake tucked her hair away. Ham had promised he'd help paint the truck too.

Jake lifted her mask plaintively. "Do I have to wear this?"

"Fumes."

"They do odourless paint now."

- yes. It's expensive - "I thought you two were joined at the hip" Bella said aloud.

"So did Grant from Ham's math class."

A show of independence, then. Jake's eyes weren't giving much away. Bella was righteously indignant.

Jake tried to explain. "Ham's susceptible to peer pressure. It's 'cause he needs to be one of the guys."

"Don't make excuses for him" Bella snapped. First Scout stood her up this afternoon, and now Ham. At least Scout had given a good reason; he'd had to get tutoring from Will, and Will could only fit the time in today. She and Scout had just started going out together. She'd wanted to spend the afternoon with him.

"I'm not" Jake excused Ham. "He's into people. He needs contacts, he needs approval. More than I do, I think."

Ryder was out of his car, moving up to the dog. It was lying in an odd position. The animal rolled its lip back to reveal more teeth than Ryder would ever have expected to fit in that mouth. He stopped and eyed it from a safe distance. The snarl it was making increased in volume.

He wasn't a dog person.

He hesitated and glanced back. He wasn't sure where a vet lived, or whether the dog could be helped. If there was nothing he could do .. He took a step back to the car.

Jake roped in Grace to help with the paint job. - she would be whining continually if she didn't have residual hopes of Jake asking her out - Bella thought. They were interrupted by a rubber burning turn onto the garage fore court.

"Good car, bad driver" Bella commented lightly. "Who is it?" The driver was shouting at them.

"Ryder!" Grace pulled her hair loose, her eyes shining.

"Who?" Bella vaguely remembered the name.

"Top of the Rawley food chain."

"He would be so incredibly flattered you said that" Jake threw over her shoulder to Grace, turning back to the truck.

"I Said" Ryder repeated, dangerously angry "where's. the. sodding. vet?"

"You've been hurt, man?" Jake yelled without noticeable anxiety.

Grace had gone to the side of Ryder's car. "You're bleeding" she exclaimed.

"It bit me" he said tightly.

Jake and Bella came over. "That's Hamilton's dog" said Jake.

Bella jerked the car door open. "Get out and have Grace see to that cut. Jake and I will get Timmy to Mr Jurgen."

Ryder didn't get out right away. "Can you drive?"

"Better than you can," Bella snapped.

Ryder watched the car go, Jake in the back, bent over the dog. What was Pratt doing here anyway?

"Come on" Grace urged. "We need to clean out that bite."

Ryder thought about the smell of dog breath, and meekly followed her to the first aid kit. "Ugh" he said.

Grace tended him adoringly. She thought his accent was the most exotic thing ever.

Even Bella, once he'd gone, while they were organizing returning his car to him, admitted he was good looking. Admittedly, Bella's teeth were gritted when she spoke, but, Grace thought, Bella had issues with being nice to guys. "So, I'll bring his car over to Rawley?" Grace confirmed. She tried to make it sound like a sacrifice. Maybe she could do this in lieu of something boring round the house.

"Yeah, okay." Bella said vaguely. She was in no hurry to meet Ryder, and was more interested in cooking supper. The vegetables had gone in too late again. "Grace, can you run over to the store and pick up the makings of a salad?"

"I can't." Grace was irritable. "I won't have time to do that and the errand to Rawley." The door banged behind her.

Bella didn't see Ryder for another couple of days.

She slid into the Friendly's booth just as Scout concluded a pitch to Will to get Will to loan him a Tale of Two Cities. It was a long and elaborate pitch. Will's reply was brief.

"I used the library copy."

"But-" Scout realised he had that shuttered look, which usually meant it was a money thing. "- I could ask Hamilton or Jake, I suppose."

"Not just now" suggested Bella.

"Do you know what's up with Hamilton?" Will asked her.

"His dog got hurt in a car accident" she said.

"Yeah, but he has how many dogs-"

"Five" said Will. "There must be a story behind that."

Scout smiled; that was such a Will remark.

"Jake says it was in lieu of siblings. I'd trade Grace for five dogs any day of the week ..I'm joking" she added defensively.

"I used to ask my parents for a little brother" said Will. "But then it stopped being cute for them-"

"-so your dad beat you till you bled" a familiar voice finished for him. Ryder had just swaggered over to them. "There's a fatal sameness to the punch line of all your memories William. You can't buy a childhood like that, but, the good news is, you can sell it. Go back to Angela's Ashes or that Pelzer guy. If you're going to make a career of this.."

"Why are you bothering us Ryder?" Scout wanted to know.

Ryder assumed an innocent expression. "I'm being a little gentleman. Thanking townie tart, here, for patching me up."

"That was my sister." Bella didn't look at him.

"Whatever."

The boys watched Ryder wander off. "What was that about?" they wanted to know.

"Ryder got hurt in the accident with the dog. He was driving."

"Wait - Ryder did that?" Will said.

"One more reason for Hamilton to hate him" Scout said.

Bella looked confused.

"What do you know about Ryder?" Will asked.

"He's a Spike wannabe?"

Scout cackled.

"He's really verbally abusive" Will said. "He says things ..well, anyhow, Ham is one of his favourite targets."

"Because of the gay rumours?"

"I told Ryder they weren't gay" Scout said unexpectedly.

"What'd he say?"

Scout assumed Ryder's accent. "You're not asking me to suspend my disbelief. You're asking me to garotte it."

"-in hospital with three smashed ribs this morning" Marcus was telling Jake as Hamilton came up to them.

Hamilton sighed. He knew exactly what they were talking about. Ryder had been beaten up pretty badly last night. The dean had been out of the house before Hamilton's breakfast, finding out about it. Hamilton wanted to talk about something else. All round the school people were giving him weird looks today and it was starting to freak him out. Maybe Marcus or Jake could tell him what was going on. Neither had seen him; Marcus' voice had dropped and Jake was intent on whatever he was saying.

Jake fell back a step. "No way." She was denying something strongly. - pissed off - Hamilton thought, detached.

Marcus shrugged. "He punched Ryder before, that time. A lot of guys saw it."

Hamilton got interested. Were they working out who hurt Ryder? He thought about it. Didn't Will hit Ryder one time? But Will wouldn't go to the broken ribs stage; Jake must be defending him.

"Hamilton doesn't have that kind of mean streak."

Huh? What?

"Look. A lot of the guys are saying, is all. You know how Ryder hassles Fleming, and with that thing with his dog, as well as, you know-" Marcus trailed off.

"The gay rumours?" Jake asked coldly.

"I don't know about that" Marcus lied, backing down.

Jake groped through her annoyance to find a rational argument. "If it's motivation you're talking about, half the school has reason -"

"Why not pin this on Harry Johnson?" suggested Hamilton. Johnson would be as random a suspect as him.

Marcus and Jake swung round. Marcus was looking flustered. "Hey" said Jake.

"Hey" said Hamilton briefly. He was looking at Marcus though. "Is the whole school in on this theory?"

"Not the whole - uh - mostly."

Well, that explained the weird looks. Ham glowered. Marcus left fast, unnerved.

"How can they see me as that?" Hamilton was furious.

Jake studied her boyfriend. "Yeah you look just like Gandhi right now. I never saw it before."

Hamilton stopped, stricken. "You don't believe this?"

Jake glanced round, and risked a quick kiss. "Don't be crazy. I know you." She grinned slyly. "Passive aggression all the way, baby."

Hamilton still looked upset. "This is not how I thought school was going to be" he complained. He had had such high hopes, all those years when he was too little to tag along with the Rawley boys. He had planned to be popular, to have loads of friends, to blend in - "Where did it all go wrong?"

"Blame Ryder" said Jake promptly.

"Oh, I do." They had started heading to the dorms, but Hamilton halted suddenly. "Wait, why?"

"Ryder told your dad you did it." Seeing his face, Jake added hastily "This is just Marcus talking. You know how inaccurate the gossip here is." She looked at him anxiously. "Don't do anything crazy."

"I'm going to go and see Ryder."

"Well, I'm coming with you." She thought she'd better.

"And my dad believed him?" Hamilton was outraged.

"I don't know! What did your dad say?"

"Yeah, like I've seen dad today" he snapped.

A man's voice interrupted before he got into the full rant - "Hamilton."

"It's your dad. I'd better go - unless you want..?"

"No, go. Your dorm in ten, okay?"

"Hamilton." His father came up to him. "A very serious accusation has been made."

Hamilton clenched his jaw. "I heard."

"Ah." Steven Fleming cocked his head. "Now, I realise you would prefer me to reject this out of hand-"

Hamilton realised he was grinding his teeth.

"-but for two reasons I cannot. Firstly, it would be unfair to submit my son to a lower standard of proof than any other student -"

He paused, but if he was waiting for Hamilton to express enthusiasm for his principles, he was disappointed.

"- and secondly, there are stories I have heard about you and Mr Pratt."

"What?" Hamilton yelped.

The Dean was in full more in sorrow than in anger mode. "Arguments have been seen taking place between you two and Mr Forrest." He waited.

"He's a creep."

Steven sighed. "Two boys, ganging up to taunt and bully one - rather isolated - boy; does this seem decent to you?"

Hamilton choked in disbelief. "He bullies us." God, that sounded lame.

His father dismissed it out of hand. "Ryder Forrest is a long way from his home and family. We should give him a better impression of our country. Have you noticed his lack of friends?"

"But that's 'cause he's a jerk" Hamilton protested.

Irritated, Steven said "Have you and Pratt been harrassing him?" At the hospital, Finn had asked the groggy boy if Jake and Hamilton had done this, and Forrest had said yes, slurred, but Steven didn't think he was in a condition to be questioned. On the way back to Rawley, Finn had evaded Steven's questions too. Essentially, Finn had told him to ask Hamilton.

"No." Hamilton was exasperated.. "It's the rumours-" He tailed off regretting what he'd just said.

"What?"

"About Jake and me." Hamilton took a deep breath.

Steven stood very still.

"We're, uh, we're together." Hamilton looked anywhere but at Steven. "Ryder has a problem with us."

After a full minute, Steven said, very quietly, "oh."

"What do you mean, "oh"?" Hamilton rounded on him, misreading Steven's stunned silence as detachment. "I'm your son, don't you-" Steven's apparant calm infuriated him. "Grandchildren!" he exclaimed. He knew it would be his mom's first thought. He wanted to goad some kind of reaction from his dad.

Steven managed a wintry smile. "You're not the startoff point of a dynasty Hamilton."

"You're okay with this?" Hamilton wasn't quite sure what was going on here.

Steven eyed his son. "I think we need to have a talk."

Hamilton should have been careful what he wished for. He didn't reach Jake's room in ten minutes.

Hamilton jogged to Jake's room, not caring now about the people he passed. He hammered on the door without effect. Damn. He'd told Jake he'd meet her there, in (he checked his watch) an hour ago. He leaned on the door, breathing deeply, until he noticed voices down the hall.
Was that Jake?

He swept into the room where Jake was and grabbed her. "Hamilton?" she asked before putting her arms around him to return the hug.

"This is bad. This is so bad."

"Ham, what's up?"

"Dad knows about you-"

Jake's knees buckled.

"No! Not about you, about us."

"What do you mean?" her voice sharp.

"I told-" He ran his tongue over his lips. "It just slipped out."

Jake frowned as if she couldn't understand how something could just slip out. Actually, maybe she couldn't.

"And they won't let me near Ryder" he added indignantly, expertly moving the topic along.

"No kidding." That was Will. Hamilton loosened his grip on Jake enough to look round the room. There were Scout and Will. What were they doing here?

"Hey" said Scout.

This was Scout and Will's dorm room. Oh, right. "You heard about the Ryder thing?" he wanted to know.

"Oh yeah" said Scout. "Did you do it?"

"No!"

"That's what Jake said" Will agreed.

"What exactly does your Dad know?" Jake cut in.

"He knows we're dating. He wants you over for Sunday lunch."

"Oh god." She went pale.

Scout snickered.

"So, like, your dad thinks you're gay?" Will asked, all serious and trying to cross the Ts and dot the Is.

Depressed, Ham dropped onto Scout's bed, pulling Jake down next to him. "Tell me this is worth it" he said to her.

She stared at him. "I don't know. Is it?"

"Yeah." He sighed. "I got The Talk."

"The talk?" Jake asked.

Hamilton waved one hand. "The Talk. He's getting Uncle Eddie to visit to give me support." He had been embarrassed and guilty. It was turning out a hell of a day.

"Uncle Eddie?" Will asked. Scout was laughing pretty hard now, and Jake was tugging at her fringe, lost in a horrified vision, possibly of Sunday lunch.

"College friend of Dad's. He stayed last Christmas." Hamilton spoke with a strong air of but-thats-not-the-point. "Jake? Hey, Jake?"

"This is so bad" she whispered.

"We can deal.." He turned back to Will "What do you mean, what about Ryder?"

"Your dad doesn't think you did it" Jake interrupted.

"Dad's investigating. He doesn't think it's fair to take my word for it."

Will raised his eyebrows at Hamilton's bitter tone.

"You shouldn't have told your dad about Jake" Scout said. Now the Dean knew about Ryder baiting Ham and Ham hating Ryder, it just made them fighting more plausible. Scout tried to put this to them.

"Thank you, Lord Peter Wimsey" said Jake. "Who do you think did it?"

"We should find out" Scout announced. He looked round at them. "I mean it. We've got contacts in town, Will and Jake are really smart, I think we can do it."

Bella saw Jake in Friendly's that evening, on her own in a booth. "Can you take over Daddy" Bella yelled, and ran across the road. Jake was hunched over a bowl of ice cream which she was stirring into smoosh. "Hey" said Bella.

Jake raised her head. She looked crushed.

Bella had heard today's news from Will and Scout and she cut out the preliminaries. "Did Ham talk you out of leaving Rawley?"

"He talked me out of telling his parents I'm a girl" Jake corrected. She pushed the ice cream away. It was melted and squishy now anyway.

- that would mean leaving Rawley, yes - thought Bella. She thought Jake was over reacting. "Are you more worried about Ham's, ah, reputation than he-"

"That's not it. He's having to lie to his parents now, and he feels so bad about it." She was making him do that. He'd told her that he'd rather lie than lose her, but maybe the least selfish thing to do would be to overrule him and go to the Dean. Jake chewed on her bottom lip.

Bella sat opposite her. "Didn't you feel guilty about lying to your Mom when she came that weekend?"

Jake thought about it, and surprised herself. "Not really." She felt so powerless with her Mom, the only way she could get some kind of control of the situation was through head games. For years now, any private information she let slip made her think she'd betrayed herself. It was like giving away something for nothing. 'Cause Mommie Dearest sure as hell wasn't letting Jake into her life. "I'm used to not telling Mom stuff. She's, like, this stranger who pays bills. But it's destroying him to mess with his parents' heads. He has this totally close family life. And this thing with Ryder ..Hamilton's life so sucks right now."

"Scout talked to me about finding out about Ryder."

Jake nodded.

"Where was Hamilton when it happened?"

"Asleep in bed."

"That's only an alibi if someone else was there - oh." Bella had caught Jake's eye. They both blushed.

"Uh - I'd better order. What would you like?" Jake jumped up hastily.

"One of those sandwiches. Tell Rory it's for me, he'll know the kind."

Jake came back soon. "What I'd like" she grumbled "is to ask Ryder what made him say it was Hamilton."

Bella shrugged. "I'll ask Grace."

"Grace?"

"She's at the hospital now. It's visiting hour." Bella had a thought. "Maybe we should go and pick her up. Give her a lift home."

Jake turned away. "Excuse me. Could you make that sandwich to go?"