Thank you for the reviews.

This is rated R.

The edge of Chino was surrounded in a glow of gray that seeped into a person's skin and made their insides feel gray as well. Not literally, but there was a definite change that happened when a car passed the barrier between the next town over and the jurisdiction of Chino. It was like the difference between the rich and poor; night and day; happiness and sadness.

Seth felt it and maybe that's what caused his actions to be so desperate.

It was stupid to stakeout the apartment of the guy he'd been exchanging money for sexual favours with. He knew that. But Seth couldn't help it. He needed to see things end well...he needed to see Ryan.

He knew he stuck out like a sore thumb. There weren't too many people driving around in Range Rovers in the deserted streets of Chino. Those that did were either drug dealers or there for the same thing that had initially drawn Seth: sex. Sex was a lucrative business in Chino.

After he'd left the hospital, home had seemed very far away. Retracing his way back to Ryan's apartment seemed like a good idea at the time. An hour had gone by before anyone emerged.

Seth had watched Ryan exit the apartment, cigarette dangling from his lips, expression sullen.

He'd kept the car far enough back to not draw suspicion to himself, but even so, he was pretty sure Ryan was aware of his presence.

Seth had once smashed an entire fleet of G.I. Joes with his skateboard after school in a fit of anger. Their tiny plastic arms and legs flew across the yard, some landing in the swimming pool and on the deck, one rebounded off the glass doors of the pool house and hit him in the side. He'd laid there on the grass, curled up, restraining his tears, until his father had scooped him up and then he'd sobbed onto his shoulder; his nose bloody from the fight he'd had that day, staining his father's Armani suit. It had been one of the worst days of his life. It would probably seem trivial compared to Ryan's day to day existence, but he knew what it felt like to not be in control. To feel powerless. And to want revenge.

Vengeance was the only thing on Ryan's mind as he stalked the streets of Chino. Rational thoughts meant nothing. They were gone. Every muscle in his body was tense.

His feet knew where to find Eddie even if his brain was trained on other things. The walls of buildings seemed to close in on him, tightening on the corners and making his existence seem so small. All his life he'd lived in this town and, as a child, it had seemed endless, but now everything was clear and he realized how empty this place really was. How empty he was.

"Eddie!" Ryan called when a group of guys came into view. They were sitting around on the hoods of beat-up cars, sipping hard liquor and horse-playing like children without a care in the world.

A tall man -six feet, two inches, with greasy hair and a long, crooked nose- separated from the flock. Eddie.

His smile was sinister, his eyes dark. "Atwood, you fucking fag! What the hell you doin' 'round here?"

Ryan didn't stop walking; he picked up his pace and shoved Eddie, making him drop his liquor. The liquid spilled out and darkened the pavement. "She lost the baby because of you!"

Ryan's fingers squeezed around Eddie's neck, pushing him hard onto the hood of a car. All he wanted to do was keep squeezing and wipe that smirk off his face.

Pushing Ryan back, Eddie regained his footing and laughed. He rubbed his eyes, pretending to cry, and then smiled eerily. "Oops?"

Ryan was pissed. His fists were clenched at his sides. A fight was inevitable. "You're a sick bastard, you know that?!"

"Here," Eddie said, crumpling up a twenty dollar bill and throwing it on the ground in front of him. He pulled down his zipper and laughed. "Suck it."

Everyone jeered. Ryan couldn't hear any of it. It was like he wore a filter that could only let in Eddie's voice and censored any other background noise.

"Fuck you!"

Eddie's face straightened. He stood to his full height, towering over Ryan. "No, fuck you, Atwood!" He poked him in the chest. Hard. "You're lucky your brother's not around. He woulda kicked your ass until the queer was outta ya."

He turned, laughing with the rest of his crew. Trey was serving time, destined to become another failure in the long line of Atwoods that proceeded him. And, yeah, if Trey was around, he probably would have beat him for what he'd been reduced to. It only served to provoke him further.

Ryan surprised Eddie with a jab to his side. He doubled over. The crowd had been awakened.

Ryan didn't show fear. If he wasn't incensed he would have ran the hell out of there. That would have been the smart thing to do. But he was a man of honour; a man who sought retribution for people he loved. Theresa deserved some justice.

The boys, five of them in total, surrounded Ryan. They closed in on him like walls and Ryan got the same feeling of insignificance as he had on his journey over here. Fists began to pound down on him. Blackness crept into the edge of his vision.

Seth couldn't see much. He saw enough to know that Ryan was going to get hurt, if not killed, if he didn't step up and do something.

Turning on the ignition, he floored it a few blocks up where all the action was taking place and threw open the passenger side door. Ryan was barely visible in the centre of the riot.

"Ryan, get in!" Seth's voice screeched and he'd never felt more sheltered in his entire life.

"I told you to go home." Ryan looked up, costing himself a punch to the ribs.

"Get. In."

Ryan took a look at his surroundings. He was no match for five guys, but he needed to hurt Eddie. Needed him to bleed. Bulldozing his way through them, he caught Eddie on the jaw and sent him to the ground where he proceeded to kick him with his steel-toed boots. Someone jumped on Ryan's back, but nothing was going to stop him now. Eddie used his hands to try to grab a hold of Ryan, so he smashed it into the cement. Eddie screamed.

"Ryan! Come on," Seth begged, fear making his voice quake.

Ryan kicked Eddie one last time...in the crotch. Everyone grabbed their own privates and groaned in sympathy.

Ryan looked like a rabid dog, ready to spring and tear apart anything that got in his way. The men parted and allowed him passage. Ryan didn't look back as he got into the SUV.

Seth peeled away. His heart raced in his chest and his throat constricted. "Are you okay?"

Ryan touched his face and hissed. "Been better."

"You should probably get stitches."

"I've had worse."

"That was really...intense." Seth checked the rearview and noticed flashing lights coming closer. "Shit, the cops! What do I do?"

Ryan looked over his shoulder, wincing as he did so. "Just drive slow and keep your eyes on the road."

Seth did as he was told, kept to the speed limit and his eyes up front. The car pulled beside them and passed a second later.

Ryan surveyed the damage in the mirror. Blood and sweat merged into his open cuts and it looked like it stung.

Seth could feel Ryan's eyes on him. "Thanks for..."

"Yeah, no. I'm glad I was there," Seth said humbly, knowing how much it cost Ryan to say that.

They didn't speak the rest of the way back to the apartment. When they got there, Theresa was laid out on the couch, a blanket covering her even though the room was stifling hot. Stix was sitting in the chair, Jags in his lap while Gwen boiled water for tea over a hotplate.

Ryan knelt down, smoothing the hair from Theresa's forehead. She took one look at him and tried to sit up, but he pushed her back down. "Ryan, what did you do?"

Ryan shrugged. "Forget about it."

"Eddie?"

"Taken care of," he assured her, keeping up his light touch.

"You shouldn't have. If the cops had picked you up..."

"Don't worry about me." Ryan leaned forward and kissed her forehead, lingering. He pressed his cheek against hers. "Think you can make it to Atlanta like that?"

Theresa pulled away, dropping her eyes.

"You're going, Theresa," Ryan stated, leaving no room for argument.

"There's not enough."

Ryan pulled out the money Seth had given him earlier from his pants and stuffed it in Theresa's hand. "You're going."

This time when Theresa attempted to sit up, Ryan let her. "What about you, Ry? I can't go without you. I can't leave you here."

Ryan settled back on the couch, sucked in a breath and turned his eyes away. "I'll manage."

"How?" she asked, pulling at his shoulder so he would look at her.

"Somehow," he answered, meeting her eyes. "I always do, don't I?"

"He'll stay with me," Seth said, surprising himself and everyone else in the room, especially Ryan.

"No." Ryan stood. "Absolutely not!"

Seth shifted, unsettled by the attention from everyone in the room. "Why not? We've got a lot of extra room."

"Ry," Theresa said, pulling on his hand. "I won't go if I know you're not safe."

Ryan shook his head. "You want me to go with him?" he asked, pointing to Seth while keeping his eyes trained on Theresa. "Be his bitch for the rest of my life?"

Seth's eyebrows went up. He held his hands in front of him, defensive. "Whoa, no one said-"

"Stay out of this," Ryan said pointedly. His eyes turned on Seth for a second and they were the icy gray of hate, of Chino.

Theresa pulled on his hand again and forced Ryan back on the couch where she could reason with him better. "Please, Ryan. Just consider it. He's been good to you, hasn't he?"

"That's not the point!"

"This is your shot, Ryan."

"My shot at what?"

Tears were in Theresa's eyes and Seth wasn't sure if that was from the pain of her body or her heart. "At a better life. You can't do this forever. We both knew this day was coming." She was letting Ryan go and, essentially, giving him to Seth.

"I can't, Theresa."

It was like no one else was in the room. Their conversation remained focussed and unobstructed. Seth leaned against the wall by the door, wondering if he should just slip out and leave them be.

Seth didn't know exactly when everything changed. He'd been too busy studying the floor to noticed the mood shift, but suddenly he felt all eyes on him again. When he looked up, he saw Theresa first and Ryan second. Both their eyes were trained on him and broken. Seth felt his unease reach a plateau well beyond anything he'd ever experienced before. The heat of the room was making him feel dizzy.

"What?" It probably was the least elegant thing he could have said, but despite all his good breeding, Seth was still a social retard by design.

"Ryan's going to stay with you now," Theresa said and Ryan's face fell.

Seth nodded, but didn't speak. Couldn't. His voice was lost somewhere. It was probably in the same place his brain had been when he'd offered Ryan a place to stay without consulting his parents...

No one spoke the entire ride to the bus station. Theresa decided it would be best if she took the bus to the airport and waited by herself. It would be too hard to do it any other way. She didn't want to sit for hours prolonging things. Jags, Stix and Gwen had all said their goodbyes back at the apartment. The entire exchange had been brief and emotionless, but Seth was sure he heard Theresa crying in the backseat as Ryan sat with her, holding her hand.

Ryan had packed up the apartment, giving almost everything they owned to Theresa even as she protested. She was very weak and still in shock and Seth wasn't sure where she'd drawn the strength to even stand let alone make a trip across the country.

Ryan made all the arrangements while Seth sat with Theresa on a bench. She looked tired and sore and barely spoke to him. Not that he blamed her, it wasn't like they had a lot to talk about.

"Seth?"

The sound of his name, spoken so softly, drew him out of his thoughts. "Yeah?"

"Ryan's going to be okay with you, won't he?"

Seth nodded, afraid his voice would betray him again. Theresa surprised him by taking his hand. Looking over his shoulder, Seth caught Ryan's eye at the ticket counter. He quickly turned away.

"I think he hates me," Seth said.

Theresa shook her head, the effort looking strenuous. "He doesn't."

"Are you sure? 'Cause...well, he kinds looks at me like he does."

"Give him time," she offered, releasing his hand. Theresa craned her neck, saw Ryan's approach and met Seth's eyes. "Take care of him for me, huh?"

Seth nodded vigorously. He was pretty sure that Theresa was putting all her faith in him and the last thing he wanted to do was disappoint her. "I will."

Theresa hugged him hard, desperately. "Don't hurt him."

"I won't," Seth said, pulling back. A lump had formed in his throat and he had to stand up and walk away to get himself back in control.

He watched as Ryan kneeled in front of Theresa and gave her the bus ticket and something shiny.

Theresa opened her hand exposing the cross that Ryan usually wore around his neck. "Ryan, I can't. This belonged to your dad. It's all you have left."

Ryan shrugged, looking off to the side. "It's not a big deal."

"He's dead, Ryan. It's not like he can get you another one for your birthday."

That caught Seth's attention. Dead? But hadn't Ryan said that his father was in jail?

"Take it," he said and placed it in her palm, closing her fingers over it. Theresa clung to him and Ryan held her, gently stroking her back.

Seth hung back as Theresa and Ryan said their final goodbye and Ryan helped her board the bus. He waved alongside Ryan as it pulled away and Theresa became a tiny speck in the distance.

When they couldn't see the bus anymore and the smoke from the exhaust had evaporated, Ryan turned to Seth and spoke. "All right, she's gone. You can go."

Seth was puzzled. "What? Go? Go, where?

"Anywhere," Ryan answered and headed for the closest exit. " Just, get away from me."

Seth trailed after him. "But I thought...? I mean, we agreed-"

Ryan stopped. "Look, you've done your good deed, but Theresa's gone now and we don't have to keep pretending... So you can drop the act. I'll pay you back."

"What act? And I don't want your money. I thought... I meant what I said: you can come stay with me."

Ryan rolled his eyes. "Why would you want to do that? Why would anyone do that for me?"

Seth shrugged. "Why not?"

"Whatever," Ryan said and began to walk again.

"Hey, wait up!" Seth grabbed a hold of Ryan's arm. "Can I ask you something?"

Ryan looked at Seth's hand on his forearm but didn't comment or even pull away. "You're going to anyway."

"Theresa said -I wasn't trying to eavesdrop or anything, I just overheard--" Ryan glared at him.

Seth continued quickly. "Is your Dad dead?"

Ryan nodded slowly, his eyes narrowed.

"But back at the diner you told me your dad was in jail."

"He was," Ryan said, reflectively, but then he caught himself and his mouth contorted into a cocky smile, "but then someone killed him."

Seth scratched the back of his neck, his eyes unfocussed. "So, why did you lie to me?"

Ryan looked annoyed. "Look, I don't even know you. Jail has more shock value than death, doesn't it?"

"So you were trying to shock me?"

"What's with the psychoanalysis?"

Seth had asked the question more to himself and jumped when Ryan answered.

"I just want the truth, Ryan. If we're going to learn to trust each other..."

Ryan pushed his hand onto Seth's chest, moving him backward. "I don't trust anyone, especially not some rich kid that wants to take me home to his mansion and claims to want nothing in return."

"Okay, I get that," Seth said, holding his hands in front of him to show Ryan he wasn't a threat. "Why don't you just come home with me and you can see for yourself. It's not like I'm going to force you to stay. I mean, look at me...do you really think I could make you do anything you didn't want to? I couldn't even prevent a three-year old from smearing paint in my hair -not that that actually happened," Seth said, laughing nervously. "Just come with me and the second you don't like something or I get on your nerves, you can go. What's the harm in that? Either way, everything is up to you."