AN: I'm trying to finish this so here's another update. Enjoy!

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Ryan enjoyed his lunch with Kirsten and as she spent time with him out of the house, she saw how much he was improving. She watched him eat and was surprised to see him eat most of his meal before laying down his spoon.

"You full?"

"I have to pace myself," He replied. "I'm getting better, Kirsten, but I know I'm not well yet. I shouldn't be eating Mexican or anything really spicy, no Italian…but soup, bread, pasta with certain sauces…I have to keep my stomach happy."

Kirsten could see now how seriously Ryan was taking his recovery. "Okay then."

He folded his napkin with his good hand and put it beside his plate. "Finish eating. You've lost a little weight in the past few weeks, too, you know. The Newpsies are going to start talking."

"Yeah, they'll ask me about my diet…" She grinned. "So…how're things with Anna?"

"We're still friends. Sort of."

"Sort of?"

"We're going to try dating when I'm not housebound," Ryan smiled shyly.

"That's nice. You should call her. See if she wants to come over tonight."

"Well, I'm usually pretty beat after my therapy but I'll talk to her tonight," Ryan said.

"She's very nice."

"I think so, too."

"So. You ready to go back to the house?"

"Sure."

She studied him. "You have something else in mind?"

He met her gaze. "Can I tell you something and you won't get mad?"

"I'll definitely try."

"I feel like Seth and everyone's been a little neglected lately. You and Sandy and Seth…you've been spending all your time worrying about me…and none of you have really done anything fun or relaxing for yourself."

"Okay…I can see that, but…"

"So…I don't have any money. But I'd like to do something nice for them. For you. Something to show that there is light at the end of this tunnel."

Kirsten nodded. "That's…very nice of you Ryan. What did you have in mind?"

"Can we go to the mall?"

She smiled. "You know how I like to spend money…we'll have to go straight to therapy afterwards…"

"I'll let you know if I get too tired," Ryan promised.

"You better."

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"Uh oh. Um, Dad?" Seth called. They'd arrived home around the same time and Sandy had gone straight to the kitchen while Seth went in search of Ryan.

"Yeah?"

"Ryan's gone. You think he finally snapped under the pressure and took off for the hills?" Seth asked, only slightly joking.

"Well, Kirsten's not answering her cell phone so I hope she took him to therapy," Sandy replied.

"You think she's going to set him free any time soon?" Seth asked.

"I hope so. You know that I disagree with her, don't you. But I have to support her…"

"I know. But who's supporting us? Like, when does Ryan get a say? You guys make all the rules, but we don't even get a shot at making our grievances known!" Seth said, angry.

"Where is this coming from?" Sandy asked, amused.

"You're a lawyer, you're supposed to understand about the judicial system…"

"This isn't a court…"

"So you just hand out sentences for the fuck of it?"

"Language, Seth. Calm down…" Sandy said, confused at Seth's escalating anger.

"I don't want to calm down. I want my brother to be freed. You know, he's trying to keep up in school, he even got Mr. Anderson to agree for us to do our presentation over the phone and he was halfway through his part when Mom came in and made him hang up. Do you know how long we've been working on that presentation? It's forty percent of our grade, Dad. Forty." Seth said, lowering his voice from a yell to a speaking voice.

"I'm sorry, Seth…was Ryan upset?"

"I hope so. It's not fair, Dad…I know Ryan's getting better, I can see it, he needs to get out…"

The door slammed. "Can we get some help here?" Kirsten called.

Sandy immediately went to her aid, grabbing several shopping bags from her. Ryan was standing behind her holding a single bag in his good arm.

"Where have you guys been?"

"Therapy…and the mall…I'm on parole," Ryan grinned. "Where's Seth?"

Kirsten gave Sandy a hug, kissing him.

"What's going on?"

"Everything's okay…Ryan and I talked and…I know I was overreacting. He's almost too smart for his own good…"

"You took the kid shopping?" Sandy whispered, still holding her.

"Yeah. His idea." She pulled away. "He really is getting better."

"Yeah. He is. He's strong, he's going to be okay," Sandy nodded.

"Hey man," Ryan said, sitting down beside him at the counter.

"Hey. So, what are you going to do about Mr. Anderson?" Seth asked.

"Kirsten fixed it. I get to go to school tomorrow," Ryan said with a sly smile.

"Yeah? How'd you do it, man?"

"I talked to her." Ryan lowered his voice. "Does she ever talk about your Grandma?"

Seth shook his head, confused.

"Your mom really loved her a lot. Kirsten's having just as much trouble with this as you and me. She's just got executive power," Ryan whispered.

Seth smiled. "But you're free now?"

"Yep. Tired, though." He put the bag on the counter.

"What's this?"

"Well, I went shopping with your mom."

"Shopping?" Seth already had a glint of anticipation in his eyes. "For…"

"For you guys. There's been too much dwelling on me lately and I'm fucking tired. So I talked to your mom, said that all of you need to be pampered, too, and…"

Seth was already opening the bag. His face lit up. "You…where'd you find these?"

"God, dude, I had to call all over town…but I know they're the ones you needed to finish out your collection."

Seth examined the comics with awe. "You really do listen…"

"Granted, I have to run everything through a filter, but I do try and pay attention," Ryan laughed.

Kirsten and Sandy entered with the rest of the bags.

"God, guys, where did you go?" Seth asked.

"The mall. Ryan wanted to do something nice for us since we've been smothering him so much lately," Kirsten said.

"Really?" Sandy was surprised.

Ryan couldn't stifle his yawn. "You guys, have fun. I need to go crash before I pass out right here…"

"You don't want to stay and see everyone…" Kirsten started.

"I do…I just don't think I should. I need to lie down…I'll come out again later…" Ryan said, leaving before they could stop him.

"He walked out of the therapists with that look on his face again…the one like he lost his puppy…but by the time we got home, he was back to normal. We had a good day today," Kirsten said.

Seth was rummaging through the bags. He pulled out a small box. "What's this?"

Sandy took it and opened it. "It's a new leg rope…for my board. He must've heard me say I lost the old one…."

"He pays good attention. He bought me a new manicure set, I was doing my nails in his hospital room a few weeks ago and I left the box there. He remembered," Kirsten said.

"He talked you into this? The new Halo? Oh god…this is just…" Seth scurried out of the room with the video game. "Ryan!"

"This was really nice of you," Sandy said, finding a new wallet in the next bag. It was the same style as the one he carried, but it wasn't frayed and bursting like his current one.

"Ryan's idea. He wanted to do something nice for us, but he didn't have the money. So he had to suck it up and ask me to take him. We had a good time."

"What happened between you?"

Kirsten hesitated. "He asked me to talk to him. I…I lost it when I saw him on the phone with his computer…I don't know what I was thinking, but I snapped. Turns out he was on the phone with his chemistry class doing a project conference call. He was…he was so calm, Sandy, he just walked out and asked me to explain it to him. Why I wouldn't let him go out…"

"And? What'd you say?"

"I…I told him about my mother. How she went through all the treatments and we thought she was okay…and then she just died…I haven't let myself think about it…even now, I've been hiding from it…" Kirsten said quietly.

Sandy embraced her. "I'm sorry I didn't make the connection…"

"I don't think I did either…until he made me think about it…" Kirsten sighed.

"Everything's going to be okay, honey…"

"I know. I'm sorry about…"

"Don't be sorry…"

"I got something for us while Ryan was in the video game store," Kirsten said with a smile, pulling a bag out of her purse.

"Yeah?" Sandy pulled a book out of the bag and immediately blushed. "Kirsten…Kama Sutra?"

"We've been talking about it a long time…I figured we could give it a try…" She grinned.

"Definitely…" Sandy laughed.

Seth burst into Ryan's room and saw him asleep on the bed with the phone in his hand.

"Dude. You can't sleep, you have to wake up and play this with me…" Seth insisted, sitting on the bed and shaking Ryan.

"Hmm?" Ryan didn't open his eyes.

"Seth?" A small voice called. Seth took the phone from Ryan's limp hand and put it to his ear.

"Who is this?"

"It's Anna. I was talking to Ryan and then there was just nothing…"

"He fell asleep. But he's been released, he can come to school tomorrow and Mom took him shopping and bought us all stuff and…"

"Seth. Pause. Slow down. He's been released?"

"Why don't you come over?" Seth asked.

"Can I?"

"Yes. You can. Granted, Ryan is sleeping right now but I'm planning on sticking around until he wakes up, he got me lots of presents and I need him to play with them with me," Seth said.

"Okay…do you want me to call Summer?"

"Sure…tell her to come over, too…" Seth said, distracted as he loaded the game into the system.

"Seth? Are you sure…"

"Yes, Anna, completely, Ryan won't mind, he's asleep and he had a good day today so come over and see him," Seth said.

"Okay. I'm on my way…" Anna hung up.

"Seth? What are you…" Ryan stirred, blinking tiredly at him.

"You can't buy me a brand new game and then not play it with me, that's just not allowed…"

"Can I just take a nap first?"

"Sleep, dude, I'm not going anywhere," Seth said, not even looking at him as the opening graphics appeared. Ryan smiled and rolled over, immediately drifting back to sleep.

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"Guys, you know the rules…he's still tired, okay?" Kirsten peeked into the bedroom.

Ryan was asleep on the far edge of the bed. Seth and Luke were sitting on the end, painfully close to the TV while Summer and Anna were on the bed beside Ryan flipping through magazines.

"Yes, Mom," Seth said, not looking away from the TV.

"There's pizza in the kitchen, too," Kirsten said before leaving.

"This game is awesome…I'm still waiting for mine to come in the mail, stupid pre-order…" Luke said, managing to speak despite his awe.

"I'm so going to kick Ryan's ass at this game, I'm getting such a jumpstart…" Seth said.

"Cohen, we're going to go get some pizza, you should probably blink some time soon," Summer sighed as she left with Anna.

"So, Cohen. How's Chino really doing?"

"He's better…"

"Then why did your mom flip out? I mean, he looks lots better…" Luke said.

"She…she got worried about his safety. With his arm and stuff."

"The stitches are nasty but…"

"He could've bled to death, Luke. He has to be extra-extra careful for a while."

"We'll make sure of it. If we have to follow him around for the next six months, we'll do it. Coach Jenkins made it clear that this was our fault. The team's, I mean," Luke said quietly.

Seth paused the game. "It was an accident."

"I know. But your mom…I think she laid him out," Luke confessed. He glanced back to see if Ryan was still sleeping.

"He's coming back tomorrow. She's cool now, they talked it out," Seth said.

"Let's get some pizza, my eyes are getting crossed," Luke said, standing up.

Anna returned while the rest of her friends were eating. Ryan hadn't stirred.

She climbed onto the bed and settled beside him. She wanted to talk to him, not just watch him sleep. She lowered her lips to his ear. "Ryan…Ryan, are you going to sleep all night…"

"Sleep…yeah…" He muttered.

"Ryan…"

He sighed in his sleep and smacked his lips. "Anna?"

She smiled as he opened his eyes and regarded her. "Hey, there."

"Hey." He yawned as he sat up. "Why didn't you wake me?"

"You seemed pretty tired. How're you feeling?"

"I feel better, actually. It's good to see you," He said, giving her a one-armed hug.

"I missed you," She said, returning his hug. She looked in his eyes and the next minute, she was kissing him. They were friends, but now that they'd made the decision to take the next step, she couldn't help but kiss him. His lips were magnetic.

"Whoa…sorry about that…" Luke's voice broke through her thoughts.

"Hey, Luke…good to see you," Ryan said, pulling away with an embarrassed grin.

"Yeah, you, too. Cohen called me," Luke said, shaking his offered hand.

"I see he likes the game," Ryan nodded toward the TV.

"It's awesome, dude…" Seth responded, walking in with Summer.

"Cool…"

"You should probably eat something, come on," Anna said. Ryan got up and she took his hand, leading him into the kitchen.

"So. I'll get to see you tomorrow," Ryan said, stopping her in the hallway and kissing her. "And the next day…" He kissed her again. "And maybe even on the weekend…"

She giggled, enjoying his attention.

"And maybe we can try for that real date…"

"Maybe…" She responded.

Sandy's voice drifted from the kitchen. "We have got to get him an answering machine, my hand's tired from taking all his messages."

"Sandy's been on phone detail for the past two hours," Anna said as they separated.

"Uh oh. I bet he interrogated everyone," Ryan smiled, walking into the kitchen.

"Hey, kid. Nice nap?" Sandy asked.

"Yeah. I hear you're taking messages tonight," Ryan said.

Sandy handed him a sheet of paper with his neat handwriting on it.

Chip—on the soccer team, wants to make sure you're really coming tomorrow. Sounds drunk.
Teresa—long distance from Chino, angry, says you haven't returned any calls-call her.
Larry—calling from Vegas-sounded drunk but wants to know about Chemistry—do his parents know he's in Vegas alone?
Trey—calling from jail. Says you haven't returned his calls, either. You should call.
Mr. Anderson—just checking in. Says there's a quiz tomorrow. Study.
Todd—don't know him. Says he's sorry about the accident and wants to make it up to you (who is this kid?) and will see you tomorrow.

"Thanks, Sandy," Ryan smiled.

"You should call your brother, Ryan. And Teresa…and…"

Ryan held up his hand. "Larry doesn't drink. His Dad knows where he is. Chip…he might be drunk, I don't know. And Todd…he's a guy on the soccer team."

"Todd's brother is the kid that threw the glass," Kirsten said from the counter.

Sandy nodded. "Okay. That answers all my questions."

"What do you feel like eating, Ryan? Would you like me to make you something?" Kirsten asked.

Sandy coughed on his pizza.

Ryan laughed. "No, that's okay. I think I'll just have a sandwich and some fruit. Nothing heavy or anything." He went to the refrigerator and started gathering the things he'd need with his good arm.

"How's your arm feeling, kid?" Sandy asked.

"It hurts sometimes, but I can tell it's healing because the stitches itch like crazy," Ryan replied. "I can't wait until I can stop using this sling. My arm was hurt, but my hand and my shoulder's fine. I hate this thing," He muttered.

"Well, you have a doctor's appointment tomorrow afternoon so hopefully you can get rid of it," Sandy said. Kirsten glared at him. "What?"

"He needs to wait until the stitches are out," She said.

Ryan gave Anna an amused glance. "Guys, don't start up again. We have company."

"Okay, we'll discuss it with the doctor tomorrow," Kirsten said.

"So, is it just for the stitches or is it a general checkup?" Anna asked.

"He's going to run some follow up tests," Ryan answered. "Blood tests, MRI, stuff like that. To make sure the cancer's gone."

The kitchen was silent.

"Can you pass me that apple?" Ryan asked, ignoring their silence. Anna reached over and picked the apple out of the bowl and took it to the sink to wash it.

"Chino! Are you going to play this thing tonight?" Luke's voice echoed through the house.

"Like I can play with one hand anyway," Ryan muttered, rolling his eyes.

"Come on, Ry," Anna laughed, picking up his haphazardly assembled sandwich and carrying it back towards his bedroom.

"You're both coming tomorrow, right?" Ryan asked, holding the apple.

"We'll be there, Ryan. Sandy's picking you up from school and I'm meeting you both there," Kirsten replied.

"Thanks. I'm going to go eat," Ryan said, giving them a smile before leaving.

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