HEY! I'm back! And proposing a toast...to these next couple chapters not sucking. Please let me know what you think. You kick ass! ;)
xoxo
After deciding that searching Chino was a lost cause, they got back into the car and started towards home. Sandy, this time, didn't attempt to force his awful music on his family, and in turn the car was uncomfortably silent. The only sound came from Seth, nervously drumming songs out onto his legs. When they got home it was late, around eleven. Traffic had been brutal and everyone's patience was tried. Kirsten leaned dismally against the kitchen counter and sighed.
"What are we doing?"
"We're eating some ice cream, first and foremost," Seth replied, digging through the freezer.
"I was actually speaking more in terns of Ryan," Kirsten said, rolling her eyes.
"So was I. We're having some ice cream and thinking things over." She smiled weakly as Sandy started getting out the bowls.
"You guys ate like an hour ago." Both Seth and Sandy's faces contorted with disgust and Sandy slid an arm around her waist.
"Hon, the little bags of granola you packed were very attractive and very health-conscious, but..."
"It tasted like butt," Seth completed bluntly.
"I was going to be kinder with my adjectives, but...yeah, it did," Sandy agreed. Kirsten laughed.
"I threw mine out the window. I assumed you two had enjoyed it because your bags were empty," she said with a shrug. Seth unzipped a pocket of his backpack to reveal that it was full of granola.
"I tossed mine out the window, too," Sandy admitted.
"One of the girls at my yoga class told me that granola was the new chocolate," Kirsten explained.
"She was wrong," Seth said, spooning ice cream into bowls. He handed one to each of his parents and hoisted himself up on the counter to eat his own. There was a brief silence while Sandy and Kirsten settled themselves at the island.
"Could Ryan be with Marissa?" Kirsten suggested.
"I was with Summer and Marissa yesterday," Seth said. "Plus I think they left on kind of bad terms."
"Where, then?" Kirsten thoughtfully played with her spoon.
"You don't think he..." Sandy stopped in mid sentence, shaking his head.
"What?"
"Dawn?" he said guiltily.
"Oh, my god..." Kirsten muttered. "You don't—I mean—he wouldn't...oh, god."
"It was just a thought," Sandy said. "I'm not saying...I'm not saying anything. We just have to consider...everything."
"Do you think he would?" Seth asked.
"Well...look what happened to Ryan. He came here and he was just starting to feel worth it. And then the second he went to Chino he was just demeaned again by those assholes who beat him up. He felt like he used to feel. So...maybe he'd go back to the place where all of that started?"
"But he doesn't even know where that is," Seth objected.
"Teresa knew," Sandy replied. Kirsten sat fidgeting.
"But...that's kind of a stretch, right? Ryan felt at home here. He was getting really comfortable with us. With me, even. I mean, I thought...I thought I was kind of becoming..."
"His mom?" Sandy completed. He smiled and wrapped an arm around her. "You were. It is kind of a stretch. I'm just saying...we want to cover all of our bases here."
"Yeah, Mom, you totally were. People who saw is thought I was the adopted one. And even though I do kind of look...extra-terrestrial, it was more because you and Ryan were so...matching." Kirsten laughed in spite of herself.
"You don't look extra-terrestrial," she replied kindly.
"No, I totally do. I get it from Dad. It's cool. Chicks dig aliens."
"I look extra-terrestrial?" Sandy interjected, offended.
"No!" Kirsten protested while Seth nodded furiously.
"No offense, Dad. It's not exactly a bad thing."
"How do I look extra-terrestrial?" Sandy studied his reflection in the side of the toaster.
"It's just a general...thing. Nothing specific."
"Neither of you look extra-terrestrial," Kirsten mediated.
"She's being nice because she's the attractive member of the family," Seth explained to Sandy. "In her mind she's seeing you flying across the sky on a bike. Trust me, man."
"I am not!" she disputed, laughing. Seth hummed the "E.T." music softly and Sandy glared at him.
"Back to Ryan..."
"Right." Kirsten sat up straight, assuming a more serious position.
"I, frankly, can't see him going back to Dawn," Sandy said, shrugging. "But with the children of alcoholics and possible abusers, you never can be sure of the mental state or the degree of loyalty."
"Hey, message," Seth suddenly quipped. Sandy rolled his eyes.
"If this is the beginnings of an 'E.T., phone home' joke--,"
"Phone message, dude. Not everything is about you." Seth smirked as he pressed the blinking button and they all listened with anxious ears.
"This is Dawn Atwood, Ryan's mother. I just got a call from one of Ryan's friends that he ran away. I don't know what the hell that's about, but if that's true...I'm suing your asses for...abuse. Have him call me the second he gets this." Sandy laughed disgustedly.
"I'd kill for her to turn us in for child abuse. That'd make for quite a trial." Seth mused incoherently about the irony while Kirsten was still staring at the now silent machine.
"What a bitch. What a senseless, conniving...degenerate bitch."
"Ooh, Mom. Busting out the profanity on us."
"She couldn't really sue us, Kirsten," Sandy explained softly.
"I know! I don't care! Who the hell does she think she is?"
"She's not the sharpest blade in the drawer," Seth narrated.
"Look what she did to him," Kirsten muttered, and Sandy gently touched her hair.
"We're going to find him."
"I hate to rain on the parade, but wasn't that our number one suspect who just called and cleared her name? And I guess she could have been pulling, you know, like a little 'Magnum, P.I.' hoax type of thing, but personally I don't think she has the brains," Seth commented.
"Back at square one," Sandy said in agreement. He sighed. "Well, what the hell. It's almost twelve. There's nothing that we can get done tonight. Is anyone else up for a midnight swim? I need to unwind." Kirsten shrugged.
"That sounds kind of nice." Seth shook his head.
"No way. I'll be upstairs. You guys have...ew...um...I'll be upstairs." Kirsten laughed.
"Night, honey."
xoxo
After deciding that searching Chino was a lost cause, they got back into the car and started towards home. Sandy, this time, didn't attempt to force his awful music on his family, and in turn the car was uncomfortably silent. The only sound came from Seth, nervously drumming songs out onto his legs. When they got home it was late, around eleven. Traffic had been brutal and everyone's patience was tried. Kirsten leaned dismally against the kitchen counter and sighed.
"What are we doing?"
"We're eating some ice cream, first and foremost," Seth replied, digging through the freezer.
"I was actually speaking more in terns of Ryan," Kirsten said, rolling her eyes.
"So was I. We're having some ice cream and thinking things over." She smiled weakly as Sandy started getting out the bowls.
"You guys ate like an hour ago." Both Seth and Sandy's faces contorted with disgust and Sandy slid an arm around her waist.
"Hon, the little bags of granola you packed were very attractive and very health-conscious, but..."
"It tasted like butt," Seth completed bluntly.
"I was going to be kinder with my adjectives, but...yeah, it did," Sandy agreed. Kirsten laughed.
"I threw mine out the window. I assumed you two had enjoyed it because your bags were empty," she said with a shrug. Seth unzipped a pocket of his backpack to reveal that it was full of granola.
"I tossed mine out the window, too," Sandy admitted.
"One of the girls at my yoga class told me that granola was the new chocolate," Kirsten explained.
"She was wrong," Seth said, spooning ice cream into bowls. He handed one to each of his parents and hoisted himself up on the counter to eat his own. There was a brief silence while Sandy and Kirsten settled themselves at the island.
"Could Ryan be with Marissa?" Kirsten suggested.
"I was with Summer and Marissa yesterday," Seth said. "Plus I think they left on kind of bad terms."
"Where, then?" Kirsten thoughtfully played with her spoon.
"You don't think he..." Sandy stopped in mid sentence, shaking his head.
"What?"
"Dawn?" he said guiltily.
"Oh, my god..." Kirsten muttered. "You don't—I mean—he wouldn't...oh, god."
"It was just a thought," Sandy said. "I'm not saying...I'm not saying anything. We just have to consider...everything."
"Do you think he would?" Seth asked.
"Well...look what happened to Ryan. He came here and he was just starting to feel worth it. And then the second he went to Chino he was just demeaned again by those assholes who beat him up. He felt like he used to feel. So...maybe he'd go back to the place where all of that started?"
"But he doesn't even know where that is," Seth objected.
"Teresa knew," Sandy replied. Kirsten sat fidgeting.
"But...that's kind of a stretch, right? Ryan felt at home here. He was getting really comfortable with us. With me, even. I mean, I thought...I thought I was kind of becoming..."
"His mom?" Sandy completed. He smiled and wrapped an arm around her. "You were. It is kind of a stretch. I'm just saying...we want to cover all of our bases here."
"Yeah, Mom, you totally were. People who saw is thought I was the adopted one. And even though I do kind of look...extra-terrestrial, it was more because you and Ryan were so...matching." Kirsten laughed in spite of herself.
"You don't look extra-terrestrial," she replied kindly.
"No, I totally do. I get it from Dad. It's cool. Chicks dig aliens."
"I look extra-terrestrial?" Sandy interjected, offended.
"No!" Kirsten protested while Seth nodded furiously.
"No offense, Dad. It's not exactly a bad thing."
"How do I look extra-terrestrial?" Sandy studied his reflection in the side of the toaster.
"It's just a general...thing. Nothing specific."
"Neither of you look extra-terrestrial," Kirsten mediated.
"She's being nice because she's the attractive member of the family," Seth explained to Sandy. "In her mind she's seeing you flying across the sky on a bike. Trust me, man."
"I am not!" she disputed, laughing. Seth hummed the "E.T." music softly and Sandy glared at him.
"Back to Ryan..."
"Right." Kirsten sat up straight, assuming a more serious position.
"I, frankly, can't see him going back to Dawn," Sandy said, shrugging. "But with the children of alcoholics and possible abusers, you never can be sure of the mental state or the degree of loyalty."
"Hey, message," Seth suddenly quipped. Sandy rolled his eyes.
"If this is the beginnings of an 'E.T., phone home' joke--,"
"Phone message, dude. Not everything is about you." Seth smirked as he pressed the blinking button and they all listened with anxious ears.
"This is Dawn Atwood, Ryan's mother. I just got a call from one of Ryan's friends that he ran away. I don't know what the hell that's about, but if that's true...I'm suing your asses for...abuse. Have him call me the second he gets this." Sandy laughed disgustedly.
"I'd kill for her to turn us in for child abuse. That'd make for quite a trial." Seth mused incoherently about the irony while Kirsten was still staring at the now silent machine.
"What a bitch. What a senseless, conniving...degenerate bitch."
"Ooh, Mom. Busting out the profanity on us."
"She couldn't really sue us, Kirsten," Sandy explained softly.
"I know! I don't care! Who the hell does she think she is?"
"She's not the sharpest blade in the drawer," Seth narrated.
"Look what she did to him," Kirsten muttered, and Sandy gently touched her hair.
"We're going to find him."
"I hate to rain on the parade, but wasn't that our number one suspect who just called and cleared her name? And I guess she could have been pulling, you know, like a little 'Magnum, P.I.' hoax type of thing, but personally I don't think she has the brains," Seth commented.
"Back at square one," Sandy said in agreement. He sighed. "Well, what the hell. It's almost twelve. There's nothing that we can get done tonight. Is anyone else up for a midnight swim? I need to unwind." Kirsten shrugged.
"That sounds kind of nice." Seth shook his head.
"No way. I'll be upstairs. You guys have...ew...um...I'll be upstairs." Kirsten laughed.
"Night, honey."