Chapter Sixteen

Rocky was shocked to see that his Aunt freaked out so badly, but some of things she said rang through his head.

"He told me to hush and then they took him from me."

"Took who?"

"My son... My beautiful boy."

He couldn't get it out of his head. Was Aunt Sabrina more on the level than she let on? Or was she simply missing her past with the recent events of now. It wouldn't be the first time its happened. But what can he do? He couldn't question her again, not in the state he had left her. Shouting and screaming. But one scream struck him as weird. She called out his brothers name? Usually Aunt Sabrina called them whatever came to mind: Sabin, Jordan, and Mitchell, etcetera. Never by their actual names.

So what would make her Colt's name? He wondered.

Rocky sat warily on a bench at the park, he had his fill of walking and thinking. He had been at it half the day. Sighing, he scratched a hand through his hair and looked left then right. He was gonna have to get a hotel for the night. He wondered briefly if he had enough money on him so he fished around his pocket for his wallet.

"Hmm? Just enough for a room and nothing more." Swearing lowly, he stuffed his wallet back into his pocket then stood from the bench. He needs to find an ATM or he wouldn't get very far in this place, exhausted and hungry. Making his way back to where he had parked, Rocky felt a spark stirring inside of him that said everything was going to be all right. And he hoped it wasn't just a whim inside of him, that always looked on the bright side, he really wanted everything to be ok. For his families sake, and Colt's.

Colt sits in the mini cafeteria area of the college, rummaging through his back pack. "Come on..." He shoved this book and that out of the way. "Where is it?"

"What are you looking for?" A girl asks, helping herself to the empty seat across from him.

Looking up, Colt recognized the girl from History class and he smiled at her politely. The girl nearly fell from her seat seeing the dimples on his cheeks stand out, at the moment, 'just for her'. "I was just looking for my highlighter. Mrs. Kalinalski is a slave about import things to high light."

"I know!" She agreed, almost over emphasizing the matter. "Isn't she the worst? I have her around fifth period."

"Actually I think she's pretty cool." He shrugged.

"Me too! Did I say she was the worst because I really meant another teacher I have."

Colt nods, knowingly at this type of personality. Agree with everything you say to impress you. He was NOT impressed. "Right, some other teacher." Going back to the task at hand, the young girl watched silently a moment, before searching her back pack producing a pink high lighter then a blue.

"You can borrow mine. I don't mind, you can keep it, incase you don't find yours."

"...Oh," he smiled at her again. "Thanks Jodie."

Jodie squealed that he remembered her name. "Anytime, Jefferson." Showing that she knew his as well.

Colt made a face at her before going to his work of high lighting the important names and dates that teacher had discussed in class. All the while he felt the girls eyes on him. Looking up, he closed the book over and stared her directly in the eyes. "I can tell you really wanna ask me something? So go ahead."

"Me!" She chirped. "Uuuhh... ummm," feeling cornered, she quickly stood. "I just remembered, I have to go, see ya!" With a wave of her hand she was off.

Throwing his hands into the air with exasperation, Colt returned to his work. But all the while he felt eyes on him. "Natti, come on out. You can sit with me." He called into the air.

"Well if you insist." The girl came from, what he could tell, was out of nowhere and sat down beside him. "You wanna do homework together?" She asked.

"That's what I'm doing right now," he could feel the sarcasm growing in him. "So chances are if you take out your homework and begin to do it too-..."

Raising a hand to cut him off, she nodded in defeat. "I got it, I got it." But she blushed anyway. Tasha loved Jefferson, she had come to believe this. And would do anything to get his attention so that he would like her. And maybe... ask her out. Taking out her homework assignments, she began to do the ones that needed less attention on them so if she were to peek at this handsome boy she wouldn't be severely messing up anything important.

The two worked quietly together for what seemed like a half an hour, before Tasha looked up and smiled. "Jeff... Can I ask you something?"

"Go on." He didn't look up at her. Just kept his head down. For some reason he was feeling very... work ethnic like in this place. Could be because the place made him feel uncomfortable, it could be because he wanted to avoid really making any kind of friends because they all asked the same questions about the trail. What it was like knowing that he was with the wrong family all that time, things like that. Either way, he hated it there.

"Okay, and you can say 'no' if you want to." She cleared her throat before putting her hand over his stopping his pencil, causing him to look up. "...Would you let me take you out this Saturday?"

"What'd I do to deserve that?" He teased.

Tasha laughed. "I don't mean like shoot you."

"Oh thank God!" He rolled his eyes, but laughed to himself.

"I want to take you out for pizza." Her eyes were pleading.

"I don't know... you're my sisters best friend." He shrugged. "Wouldn't that be kinda weird?"

"No, not at all!" She said quickly. "Anna wouldn't mind at all."

Colt considered the girl a moment before he turned his mouth left than right before frowning out his answer. "Sure, why not?"

"Really! Oh... I mean, thank you!" She was beaming. Natasha stood up nearly banging her knees on the table as she did so. "I'm.. I have to go tell people, see you around Jefferson." Dashing off, she went to locate any and every friend she, and any other girl in school had.

Colt looked after her with a laugh. Girls around here are weird. But hey, who knows, maybe he could get used to them. Maybe he might even like it here. Nah, it was too much to consider right now, and underneath it all he was still hopeful that somehow he would be returning back to his real home, with his real family. Not these- strangers.

Sighing, Colt shook his head in dismay. "You had to see that flyer, you had to care." And yet it was funny, even as he thought these things, he still couldn't explain a lot of things. He had no kind of detectives mind when it came to things like this, that was more Rocky's bag. Ha. Rocky. He wondered what he could be up to now. Was he moving on with his life, making new friends and girlfriends? Too many questions, too much to think about. "I better get back to work."

After school was just as bad as being in school. The girls here were nuts for the dark skinned boy. His dirty blond hair and caramel colored skin were more than they could bare. It was so bad they were actually following him and John and his friends home! With luck the boys were allowed to walk, they told their mother they were stopping for shakes and things at the local parlor and surprisingly she let them go. It was daylight after all. What could happen?

"Man, I wish I had your luck with the ladies." John was saying. He kept an eye over their shoulders at the mob that was following them since they left campus grounds. "I'd pick a date for each day."

"Yeah right," Colt swatted his brother on the back of his head. "I don't see you as much of a ladies man, John."

The boy mock frowned, defeated. "Yeah true."

Colt laughed and shook his head. "You make me think so much of my-..." he quickly corrected his self. "Of Rocky. You two would get along great."

"You think so?" Asks John. "What's he like?'

"Oh he's great!" Leaning over to whisper. "Never tell him I said that though,"

John laughed.

"We have sort of a love- hate thing going sometimes." He shrugs. "But he's alright. He's into books and stuff and a total dork when it comes to girls."

Again, John laughed. "He sounds more like Anna's type than mine. I don't really like reading too much."

"Yeah, but Rocky is a philosopher, like you."

"Oh."

"He's nice too, you-..." Someone bumped into his shoulder. Looking back at the person Colt's eyes widened. Rocky!

Walking backward, his brother gave him a small smile and a quick wave when he noticed that he had seen him. What on earth is he doing in Arizona! Colt smiled at his brother as well. John noticed his brother had stopped walking and turned around.

"Jeff? What are you-...?" He looked over the boys shoulder but saw no one.

"Huh? Oh!" He laughed lamely. "I'm just waving at my admirers." He lied. "Gotta give them something to go home with."

"Ha, well I don't think they'll be going home right now," John teased. "They're more likely to be giving that ice cream place some good business depending upon how long we stay."

Colt laughed. He didn't doubt that. But it was all a thoughtful rouge. He was really wondering what his brother was doing there, and how long he planned to stay. "I hope it has something to do with getting me home." He pleaded mentally. Turning back around, he followed his other brother the rest of the way in silence.

Rocky walked along with the smile still on his face. He saw his brother and Colt seemed to be doing alright. He would have to report back to Tum tum when he was in a more private place.

"Tasha, I would really rather you just-... stop hitting on my brother, okay?" Annalisse was saying. She was at wits end with her friends silly crush on Jefferson. "it's becoming annoying and embarrassing."

"Hey I never held a gun to his head." The girl replied, still grinning madly about the boys answer.

"He probably only agreed to date you so you would fuck off in the long run."

"Anne, Anne, Anne..." a sigh and her red haired friend slipped an arm around her. "You're only saying that because you don't date."

"And I never will might I add." Anna turned her nose up. "There are better things out there to think about than 'What boy likes me, and how much?' Tasha puleeze."

The other girls rolled their eyes. Even they had to admit Colt was a major babe, so they had to agree with Tasha on that one, but they also had to agree with Anne that enough was enough when it came to talking about him. "Jefferson" covered mostly all the covers on her books! Not to mention the girl was thinking about asking him for a picture later on if he agreed to a date. Fumiko told them that. She's a gossip sometimes.

"Anyway, if I can find a guy that can hold my attention intellectually for more than a half hour than I'll be head over heals." She froze. Looking straight ahead she nearly lost her breath as the perfect- in her eyes- specimen of a an came walking down the side walk. "Wow..." She muttered.

Her friends looked at her as though she had lost her mind. Then looking toward their friends gaze.

"Oh..." Libby's jaw just dropped.

A few feet away from them stood a very attractive male. Ashy blond hair, blue green eyes and a very nice build to him. Not too hard not too soft. Perfect.

Tasha barely threw the boy a glance as she was fawning over her own crush at the time. Tensing up when she saw him moving closer, Anna held a hand to her heart.

"Excuse me," Rocky said as he walked up to them. "Do you know where I can get a phone book around here? I need a hotel for the night and I'm new in town."

The girls could only stare at him. They had never seen anyone that looked the way he does. Except maybe in magazines or described in fictional books.

"Oh honey there are phone booths right around here at the ice cream place. They might have a phone book in them. I'll show you." Waving a hand for him to follow, Tasha headed toward the ice cream parlor. Her intentions in the first place and Rocky followed.

"Thanks you umm,"

"Oh, I'm Natasha and this is Libby," she points at them. "Fumiko, Piper, Naomi and Annalisse."

They all waved. "Hello."

"Hi." His eyes fell mostly to Anna, she looked remarkably like Colt. In fact, if he didn't know any better he'd swear she was his sister. He had only seen the family briefly on tv when the trial was going on. So he couldn't place it but he was sure this was the girl and that boy Colt was with must be his brother. "So Colt hs a sister, I can only imagine the torment he's bringing her." He almost laughed out loud at that. "Hmm, maybe this girl could help me out in some way."