Summary: Once again, Ryan stays up all night worrying about Trey.
A/N: I wrote this after the first episode aired, but then totally forgot about it. This will be a two part story (I think)...Okay, I suck at predicting how long these stories will be. Suffice to say it is NOT a one-shot. The part in italics are flashbacks. Just so you know. I would like any and ALL reviews...pretty please with a cherry on top?
P.S.--Okay, so two stories and an update, all within...what, five days? Not too shabby, I gotta say. Don't expect this all the time though. This was already sitting on my hardrive, that's why it's here. I still have Less of a Mother and The Line Begins to Blur to continue as well. Sorry!
Disclaimer: I do not own anything that has to do with the O.C. I do, however, own the story. Do not steal and do not copy.
Ryan knew exactly where Marissa would be.
After the emotional exchange he had had with Sandy, he felt like he had better go find his girlfriend.
The beach was dark and quiet, with only the waves rolling in and out. The ramp seemed older than usual and steeper.
"Thanks," Ryan said, leaning in to kiss her.
Settling himself down, already preparing for a long night, he had a distraught look on his face.
Marissa picked up on this and kissed him again.
"You okay?"
"Yeah…yeah…" His voice was distant, as if he was off in a world of his own.
Ryan was in a world of his own. A world full of memories and sad goodbyes.
"This one time, when we were kids, Trey got into this big fight with my mom and her boyfriend of the day."
"Do not walk away from me, god dammit," Dawn yelled after the retreating figure of her son.
"Why not?" Trey yelled back. "You walk away from me every day. You walk away from me to be with Robbie. You walk away from me to go get more booze. Name one time when you haven't walked away from me."
"Hey, don't go dragging me into this mess," Robbie, his mom's girlfriend, said over the game show playing on the television.
"You wanna freeload off of us and I will drag you into any mess I feel like," the twelve year old said brashly.
"What did you say to me?" Robbie threatened, looking up from the television.
"Robbie, lay off of him. This is between him and me," Dawn slurred, pouring more alcohol into her glass.
"I'm not going to lay off that little bitch. You have really got to teach your damn kids some manners." By this time, Robbie had gotten up off the sagging couch.
"Robbie, I said back off. Trey and I are not done here, and I don't need another argument."
Ryan watched this all from the door of his bedroom. They thought he was asleep, but Ryan never slept until everyone else passed out or cried themselves to sleep.
"Wuss. What, you need mommy to stick up for you?" Robbie was right in Trey's face, his words washing over the kid in a wave of beer and T.V. dinner. With one last glance at Trey, Robbie stepped past him, making his way into the kitchen.
Trey was breathing through gritted teeth and Ryan could hear it down the hallway.
"Now, you wanna explain to me why the hell you punched that kid today? Three times in two months, Trey!"
"I didn't like the way he was looking at me," Trey replied, still through gritted teeth.
"God dammit, you can't go around punching anyone who looks at you funny!"
"Why not? Why the hell not? Dad did."
Dawn gulped down her drink and poured yet another one at the mention of her ex-husband.
"And look where that got him."
"Yeah, well, it's better than being here," Trey muttered.
"What did you say?" Dawn said sharply, the alcohol not yet clogging up her ears.
"Nothing."
"I asked you what you said. You will tell me what the hell you just said," Dawn said, letting her anger get the best of her.
"I said being in jail would be better than living here."
"You ungrateful little son of a bitch," she said, glaring at Trey.
"Dawn, if he is so damn unwilling to live here, kick him out," Robbie called through a mouthful of food.
"Shut up, Robbie. Don't tell her what to do," Trey said.
"Sorry, little man. I don't take orders from little shit heads. At least, I don't take them without getting a little something in return." Robbie walked out of the kitchen, cracking his knuckles.
Dawn was too engrossed in getting her lighter to work to notice the scared look on Trey's face.
The blow came so fast that even Ryan wasn't expecting it. In response, Trey stomped on Robbie's foot. Another fist came out of nowhere and got Trey on the other side of the head. A third one to the stomach and he was on the ground, wheezing.
"That'll teach you not to order me around," Robbie said, satisfied.
Dawn had watched the entire thing happen and hadn't said anything. She gave Trey a look that said Sorry, before turning back to the almost empty bottle, totally forgetting about the previous argument.
Practically crawling on all fours, Trey slowly made his way back to the bedroom he shared with Ryan.
"He ran away."
Upon hearing Trey in the hallway, Ryan had quickly dived under the covers and clamped his eyes shut. The door creaked open and Trey crawled in.
"Stop pretending, Ryan," Trey said, reaching underneath his bed for something. "You're supposed to breathe slower when you're asleep, not faster."
Reluctantly, he opened his eyes. Trey had a beat up duffel bag sitting open on the bed and was stuffing the nearest clothes into it.
"Wait, where are you going?" Ryan asked, it dawning on him that he could be left alone.
"I gotta get out, little brother. I can't stand another second here."
"But, but…you have to take me with you! It will be like an adventure!"
"I can't take you with me. You'll just get in my way."
"No, no, I promise I won't!" Ryan jumped out of bed and started tugging on Trey's sweatshirt. "You can't just leave me behind, Trey!"
"You'll be fine, little brother," Trey said, barely paying attention to Ryan. The younger Atwood kept on pulling at Trey. "Get off of me! I said you're not coming, and that's it!" With one zip, the bag was closed and Ryan's fate was sealed.
"Don't let them know I left, got it?" He popped open the window and kicked out the screen easily. Throwing the bag out, he quickly followed it, replacing the screen before he took off.
Trey never looked back. If he had, he would have seen Ryan standing at the window, looking lost and forlorn.
"And I stayed up all night waiting for him, wondering where he went. It was always me and Trey against the world. How would I make it without him?"
For the first hour, Ryan sat on his bed, thinking about to do. He couldn't very well go after him. After all, he had no idea where Trey had even gone.
When the second hour rolled around, Ryan decided to go talk to his mom.
However, when he walked out into the living room, he found his mom and Robbie making out on the couch. His hand was up her shirt and she was moaning.
After a few minutes, Robbie looked up and saw Ryan standing there.
"What the hell are you doing, perv? You think it's hot to watch your mom get horny?" Ryan had no idea what Robbie had just said, but most likely it was an insult.
"Ryan?" Dawn slurred. "What are you doing up? I sent you to bed hours ago."
"I-I-It's Trey," Ryan stuttered. "He left!"
"Trey leaves all the time, Ry. I'm sure he just went over to Arturo's."
Robbie started unbuttoning Dawn's shirt, but Ryan wasn't finished.
"No, he left! He…he ran away. He's not coming back."
"Look kid," Robbie said angrily. "Trey is fine. Now go back to your little bed and shut up."
Dawn didn't add anything, although she didn't take back anything Robbie had said. Dejected, Ryan plodded back to his room.
Sleep was not coming. For his entire life, Ryan had slept in the same room as Trey. The room was too quiet without the sound of Trey's snoring.
Besides, he had too much other stuff to think about. What was he supposed to do without his brother? Trey was the one always looking out for him. Trey was like the dad he could barely remember, only a lot shorter and filled with a lot more anger.
All night, even after Dawn and Robbie had gone to sleep, Ryan sat on his bed, looking over at the empty bed across from him. Every little sound was Trey coming through the door. Every little sound disappointed him when it didn't materialize into his brother.
"Now here I am again, alone, and wondering where he went."
Ryan had gone over to the hospital to thank Trey. To apologize for what he had done. To hopefully hear an apology from him.
Then he had found the bed empty and the tubes unhooked. He didn't know what he was expecting. It wasn't like Trey to stick around.
Where else did anyone go in this town to get away but the Greyhound? Of course, he had gotten there just as the doors closed.
Scanning the windows, Ryan finally saw Trey. For just coming out of a coma, he didn't look too bad. He took a window seat and leaned his head against the window.
Ryan stared at him and Trey gave a little half wave. Ryan returned it, with the exact same wave he had given his mother before she took off. There was a faint smile, and all apologies and thank-you's were exchanged.
The bus slowly pulled out, leaving Ryan and Sandy.
If Trey would have looked back, he would have seen Ryan looking lost and forlorn.
Ryan never cried, at least not like he did then. All Sandy had to do was put a reassuring hand on his shoulder, and Ryan broke down. He had been crying for all the people who had walked away from him. All the people he would never see again. The tears were for the twelve year old Trey that had left him alone, and the twenty year old Trey who had done the exact same thing.
"Hey, you're not alone this time," Marissa said, speaking for the first time in a while.
"I know, I know," he replied, looking over at her.
"I really want to put this behind us," she whispered, nervous about what he might respond with.
"So do I," he said quickly. "But…I mean, can we?"
"I hope so."
Ryan stared at her for a moment, drinking in her beauty and couldn't imagine not having her beside him.
"Okay," he said at last.
"Okay."