A/N: I'd like to thank everyone who read/reviewed tha last chap (and the ones before that) - I can't stress just how much your feedback means to me. Anywho, about the update - the large chunk of italics represents a dream. Leon is dreaming. Got it? Good.

Leon's head bounced off the cabinet, the sound of glass shattering behind him loud and ear splitting. He whimpered as he tried to climb to his knees, glass embedding itself into his palms as he put his hands on the floor.

"You little bastard! It's all your fault that she left!"

His breath whooshed out of his lungs when the bigger man's boot crashed into his ribs, sending him careening into the broken cabinet again. This time he cried out in pain, slivers of glass biting into his side, shoulder and cheek. He started to cough violently, the tears that leaked from his eyes stinging as they dripped over the cuts on his face.

The glass crunched beneath his step father's boots, the sound ominous and filling him with a sense of foreboding. He turned his head slightly, cringing down against the wrecked furniture. His shirt tightened and started to choke him when the angry man in front of him twisted his big beefy hand into the back of it and lifted him up. He shook him gruffly, sneering.

"You told her to leave, didn't you! You told that stupid mother of yours to leave me, didn't you!"

Leon shook his head frantically, "No sir!" He gagged, eyes squeezed shut. "I didn't, honest!" he could feel the blood starting to seep through his shirt from the cuts and his hands clawed desperately at the hand now around his throat. He choked, wincing when his facial movement stretched the already stinging cuts.

"DON'T YOU LIE TO ME!" The man boomed, shoving him backward. The cabinet's frame bit into his flesh, the fragmented shards of glass left in the small doors splintering further and driving into his skin. By now, he was a mess of cuts, scratches and gashes and blood was seeping freely from all his wounds. He could feel the grainy texture of glass beneath his skin.

Leon gasped, black spots forming in his eyes. He barely even had the chance to move before he found himself picked up and being tossed again. This time he landed face down, his head through the hole in the cabinet door. Hands grasped the back of his jeans and pulled, dragging him backward across the jagged edges of the now glassless door. He cried out as he felt the remnants of the once stained glass pane cut into his throat, slicing at the delicate flesh beneath his jaw. His hands flew up to try to free his jaw, caught on the edge of the moulded panel. His wounded hands slid wetly over his chin, fumbling to hold his weight off it and more debris dug into his knees as he scrambled upright.

He whined sickly, sounding more like an injured animal than a teenaged boy. By now he was beyond trying to stay composed, a nail jammed up into his chin.

The room was oddly silent, save for his whimpers.

Leon stopped trying to free himself for a moment, his heart thundering in his chest. He was starting to feel dizzy from blood loss and the pain in his hands, knees and face was driving him crazy. Dread swelled in his gut when he realised why everything was so quiet.

Frank was gone. The bastard had thrown him through the cabinet, gotten bored with him and left.

Leon listened for a while longer, just to be sure he was alone and bit back a sob. Everywhere burned. He stifled another sob as he reached into his pocket, the coarse denim chafing at his wounded hands as he fumbled for the cell phone his mother bought him for emergencies. Albeit the emergencies she had gotten it for involved the car, but he figured she wouldn't mind him using it now. Tears burning down his cut up face, he carefully dialled 911 and brought the phone up to his ear. When an operator answered he burst into tears, sobbing against the cabinet door, caught.

".. help me."

Leon jerked awake, struggling to breathe and covered in sweat. He could hear the muted rumble of thunder over head and the light patter of rain on the roof. He shook his head, rubbing his eyes with the heels of his palms.

"Shit," he mumbled softly to himself, "- Jesus."

The sheets were pooled around his waist and the room was dim. It was either late afternoon of very early evening judging by the lack of light. Scouring the room he searched for the location of Ruby's clock, giving up after a few minutes when he didn't see one.

He stared down at his hands, his dream still fresh in his mind. Across the heel of either palm he had scars, just like on his side and neck, that had been inflicted by his step father. Well not thanks to his step father directly, but due to his actions. It was the first time he had dreamt about it in years but it was possibly triggered by the days events. He had made up with Ruby, lost his temper, almost attacked a fifteen year old girl and then had once again, fallen into bed with his best friend. The term fallen into bed being used loosely, more like 'had rough, violent sex with her on the front porch'.

He cringed at the memory of realising she'd passed out, then realising he'd made her bleed. He had been entirely too rough with her, especially considering it was only her second time. Leon's shoulders slumped. He'd hurt Ruby again. She had assured him over and over that she was alright, that he hadn't harmed her and that she had wanted it, but that still didn't make him feel any better. The momentary horror of realising she was unconscious had terrified him. He'd never done that to anyone – even Letty.

He blinked back tears when he thought of Letty. She had been all he'd ever wanted in life, all he lived for. He'd remained silent for so long about his feelings for her – waited for so long, only to have her cruelly taken away from him. Whoever said it was better to have loved and lost than to never have loved at all was a fucking moron. Losing your love hurt more than an entire life of emptiness.

Leon ran his fingers through his hair, brushing it back behind his ears and out of his face. He'd let himself go since Letty had died. Only Vince pestering him telling him that he looked like Jesus stopped him from ceasing to shave altogether during the past two years.

He frowned. Cade's birthday was coming up soon. It had been easy to play it down the year before as he was only one then and he hadn't understood what his birthday meant, but now he was pretty much two and had seen Aurora have birthdays he knew what was involved. He loved big events like that when people got presents. Whether it was him or someone else, he loved seeing people get gifts and he loved giving them. Leon sighed. This year would be hell – Cade was already excited about it.

Leon pushed the blankets back and climbed from the bed, looking around for something to put on. He'd just curled up in the bed as soon as he'd gotten out of the shower and all his clothes, correction, coveralls, were out on the front porch. He was just about to pull the sheet off the bed and tie it around him when he saw a pile of his clothes sitting on the chair by the dresser.

Slowly he pulled on his boxers then the baggy black cargo shorts and buttoned them, wondering where Ruby had gotten them from. He picked up the basketball jersey and walked toward the door, squinting as the warm amber glow of Ruby's hallway light flooded into the room when he opened the door.

The sounds of cooking was coming from the kitchen as well as some quiet music and the television, both turned down low. He sniffed the air and his stomach grumbled. He smelled roast chicken. Leon shuffled down the hall, still sleepy and into the kitchen where he saw Ruby standing at the bench chopping vegetables. An oversized black poet shirt hung off her shoulders, it's length hiding the cobalt hot pants she wore. Her hair was tied back in a messy bun.

She looked up when he entered and gave him a warm smile.

"Feeling better, precious?"

He started to nod, then changed his mind. Ruby already knew what had happened to him as a teenager so he didn't need to hide it from her. She'd seen him the day he was released from hospital, still in bandages and still stitched up like some kind of rag doll.

"I had a nightmare." He told her quietly, sitting at the table.

She stopped chopping and put the knife down. "About?" she asked, her brow furrowed as she moved to check on the chicken.

He touched his chin, tracing the three jagged scars the ran along the underside of his jaw. "My scars."

Ruby nodded, bringing him some coffee. "They've faded really nicely, Le – you can't even see them unless you're looking for them and even then they're difficult to see."

He nodded. "I know," he decided on a change of subject, "I need to go and get Cade."

Ruby waved him off. "Already done. Where do you think the clothes came from?"

Leon stared at her in shock. "You went and got Cade and some clothes for me?"

"You were wiped out, Le – It was the least I could do." She replied simply. Her face turned gleeful. "Angie blew the shit out of Marissa!"

He lifted a brow, trying to imagine the sweet woman screaming at someone. A small smirk crept onto his face at the thought.

"Oh yeah?"

Ruby's eyes sparkled as she nodded. "When I got there she thought I was you – the slut puppy that is – and came running out to grovel. She saw it was me and started screaming and calling me horrible, but oh so thoughtful names and Angie came out a screamed at her again!"

Leon frowned. "Didn't Bethy send them home?"

"Yeah, but the stupid little hose beast came back for some reason and Angie was in the process of abusing the shit out of her for making 'her son' feel so uncomfortable in his own home."

Ruby went back to preparing dinner. "Anywho – I grabbed Cade and some essentials for you and brought him back here. Angie says to give her a call when you feel like talking and to tell you that your phone has been ringing like mad."

He nodded, trying to process all the information she had just given him. Then something odd made him stop.

"Wait – she thought you were me? Why?"

Ruby bit her lip. "Well – I took your car."

Leon's hand stopped half way to his mouth, his coffee forgotten. "You did what?"

"Well my car is still kinda dead – I really didn't think you'd mind!" She told him, unaware of his irritation. "I tell you though, the right hand drive takes a bit to get used to."

Leon swallowed a mouthful of coffee and grimaced. "Did you fuck up my gear box?"

"Nope! Didn't grind 'em once – proud of me?"

He looked at the hopeful look on her face and shook his head, standing up. "You're fucking nuts." He started out toward the living room, only stopping when something hit him in the back of his head. He turned slowly and saw an oven mitt laying on the floor behind him. "Real mature Ruby."

"Well you should be more supportive!"

He leaned against the doorframe. "If your car's fucked how are you getting to work?"

Ruby shook her hips to the beat of the song she had playing, something by Jamiroquai, and bit into a piece of carrot. "Cab."

Leon shook his head yet again, watching her bounce around the kitchen. He was surprised she was moving so easily, yet he noticed she wasn't as enthusiastic as usual. Shit, he thought, I have hurt her.

"Where's the boy?"

She spun around in a circle, bopping her head to the music. "On the couch – he fell asleep watching Peter Pan earlier."

Leon stared at her, confused. "He doesn't have Peter Pan." He tried to recall whether Cade indeed did have the Disney movie in his collection. "Did you hire it for him?"

"Nope," she munched on some more carrot, shaking her butt, "-it's mine."

"You own Peter Pan."

Ruby grinned, nodding. "Yep! Love that movie – I've got loads more too. Hercules, Sinbad, The Little Mermaid… Though Sinbad isn't as good – no songs in that one."

"I was right – you are fucking nuts."

He narrowly avoided being hit by a flying saucepan lid.