Well this took decidedly shorter than last time.

Ugh, you guys! Love your amazing reviews... hope you like this chapter as much as the last.

Enjoy...

XIII

After Caleb's unexpected conversation with Penny on Monday afternoon, the week passed with relative normalcy. He was out of the house most evenings, either studying with Hanna or helping Noel out with a few bits and pieces up at his cabin. Either way, it meant he'd hardly had any time to pick up his conversation with the six year old and find out exactly what she knew about Sean and this Lucas guy. And when he thought he might have had the perfect opportunity on Thursday evening, Helen's plans with Jonathan were suddenly cancelled at the last minute and for once Sean was in.

So he'd holed himself up in his room instead, packing for his and Hanna's departure the next day. They'd agreed that they'd go to school in the morning and then cut out at lunch so it wasn't completely obvious they weren't there - Hanna had tried to tell him that Emily would never forgive her if she left her alone with Bridget Wu again, but he'd convinced her that they had to get an earlier train so they could at least enjoy the evening in the city.

Plus, he knew the longer he left it the more chance he'd have of backing out. He hadn't been back to New York for four years and he'd have had absolutely no intention of setting foot in the city again until Hanna had stuck her pretty little face in front of his. Still though, didn't mean he wasn't feeling the knot of anxiety in his stomach get tighter by the hour.

He'd put on some jazz to try and untangle the tension whilst he rummaged around for the hash brownies he'd hidden in a sock in his chest of drawers. He stacked them on the floor next to the rucksack he was in the middle of packing before standing and reaching for his phone to see if Hanna had messaged him.

Got my confirmation email about Saturday

He smiled as he read her message, typing out a short response before a sudden knock on his bedroom door jerked his body. Helen wasted no time pushing the door open, sticking her head round as Caleb quickly moved to try and subtly kick the brownies underneath his bed.

"Hey sweetheart," She smiled, "Do you have a minute?"

"Uh, yeah," He shrugged awkwardly.

"Are you packing for your weekend camping with the boys?" She glanced at the clothes on his bed that were folded neatly.

"Yep," He muttered, feeling more than a little guilt at the lie he'd fed to her earlier that week about Noel hosting a boys only camping weekend just outside his cabin.

"You looking forward to it?"

"Kind of," He said, reaching for his t-shirt to refold it, "It's basically talking crap and pissing in a bush," He murmured nonchalantly before blinking his eyes shut as he realised he'd cursed twice, "Sorry."

She waved her hand. "Just because my husband's the pastor doesn't mean I don't curse when he does something wrong. I'm just glad you're honest about what men really do when they're together."

There was silence as Caleb refolded his t-shirt againto keep his hands busy.

"Anyway," Helen took a step closer to the bed, "You've been here a few weeks now," She took a seat next to him, "And I just wanted to see how you're feeling about everything."

"Everything?" He quirked a brow. Most foster families didn't care how he felt about anything.

"Well, living here," She said softly. "I know Penny loves having you around, that's for sure."

"Yeah," He couldn't help but smile genuinely as he thought about the innocent girl who'd managed to weave her way into a small part of his heart that was reserved for very few people, "She's great," He looked down at his shoes. "It's all great," He mumbled quietly.

"Good," She smiled, "I know your last few foster homes haven't been easy," She reached out to rub his shoulder, "But we really want this to work out Caleb."

He was silent as he thought of Hanna, of Penny. For the first time in a long time, he really wanted it to work out too.

The next day Hanna found Caleb loitering on the front steps as he waited for her to ditch class. He smiled when he saw her, reaching for her hand as they began to walk down towards the sidewalk.

"Caleb," She murmured uncertainly, glancing around to see if anyone could see them together.

"What?" He asked, lacing their fingers. Ever since Penny had let slip about Sean and Lucas, the only person who he'd cared about not seeing them had suddenly become a non-issue. And after his conversation with Helen the night before, he felt more confident than ever about her being supportive, about people actually wanting him to be happy.

"What if..." She trailed off, squeezing his hand.

"I don't care anymore," He told her, letting go of her when they reached her car. "You don't wanna be seen with me or something?" He sent her a smirk as he looked at her over the car roof.

"No," She shook her head vehemently, "I just don't want to hurt Sean. He didn't take us breaking up very well," She sighed, opening up the car door and sliding inside, throwing her bag in the back. "He lied about us having sex to the whole school," She reminded him as he settled in the front seat, "Who knows what he'll do if he knows we're together."

"Hey," He reached out to cup her chin, a lazy smile on his face, "I don't think he'll care as much as you think," He told her, "And besides, we are having sex so he can tell who he wants."

She couldn't help but smile as she shook her head at him, reaching out to wrap her arm around his neck as she placed a kiss on his lips. He held her there, wanting to soak her in before she pulled back and started the car, "I need to go to yours first," She told him as she reversed out, "I left one of my sketchbooks there."

He shrugged in agreement and muttered, "Sure," before reaching for his phone to message the contact he had up in New York about the place they were staying. They were quiet as they drove to his, Caleb unquestioning as she parked round the corner in case someone was home and they had to sneak in. But there was no one so they raced up to his room, Hanna immediately rifling around under his bed where she'd shoved her sketchbook one afternoon.

"You know you really shouldn't keep food under here," She muttered, pushing herself up with a sketchbook and brownie in hand.

"You see any others under there?" He took it from her, dropping it next to him on his comforter.

"No," She shrugged, putting her purse back over her shoulder, "But it was dark. Why are you hoarding chocolate brownies under your bed?"

He pulled her down onto her lap, "They're hash," He grinned as she rolled her eyes at him.

"And you made them with Penny?" She shook her head in disbelief, wrapping her hands around his neck.

"Well she had her own batch," He squeezed her waist, leaning forward to place a gentle kiss on her lips when they heard the front door slam, both of them freezing on the spot and sharing a confused look.

"Penelope Ackard you go upstairs to your room right now," They heard Helen yell.

"No," They heard a crying Penny scream back as Caleb quietly encouraged Hanna off his lap and walked towards his bedroom door.

"Until you tell me why you hit that boy at school, you need to think about your actions."

"She hit someone?" Hanna sent Caleb a questioning look as she whispered harshly.

"I guess," He shrugged again, pushing the door shut a little more as he heard more crying. A part of him wanted to stay and find out what had happened, what had made Penny so upset. But the other part, the bigger part, wanted to go to New York with the girl who made every haunting thought in his brain fade into the abyss.

He pulled Hanna close, pressing a hard kiss on her lips. "What was that for?" She fort for her breath as they pulled apart, both of them hearing the patter of feet as Penny raced upstairs.

Caleb held his finger to his lip as they waited for it to be silent again before he smiled at her cupping her cheek. "You ready to run away with me?" He murmured, stealing her mouth again.

"Penny!" Helen snapped close to them, making the pair recoil back closer to the wall. "I said go to your room and think about what happened today."

Hanna and Caleb looked at each other warily, waiting until they heard another door close down the hallway before he grabbed her hand and dragged her out of the room, racing down the stairs and quietly out of the front door while the coast was clear.

"That was close," Hanna clutched her sketchbook underneath one arm as they walked quickly towards her car, squeezing their interlaced fingers before they separated. "Thank god they didn't know we were there."

Neither had expected the six year old to notice his door moving. And neither had expected her to stop and see if her foster brother was hiding in there, a person who could offer her some comfort when she needed him. They'd been too caught up in each other to notice the eyes that peeled through the gap between the door and the hinge.

And they had absolutely no idea she'd heard everything.

Caleb was quiet on the train ride, spending most of the time staring out of the window as they sped along to their destination. The little conversation they did have tapered off to silence the closer they got to New York and Hanna sensed Caleb's growing distance. But she didn't push him; for once she felt confident enough that he'd talk to her when he felt ready, so she simply pressed herself close to him and settled against his side as her focus returned to the open sketchbook in front of her.

"We're here," He eventually murmured as the train pulled into Grand Central Station, encouraging her up before he threw his backpack on and slung her hold all over his shoulder so that he could take her free hand in his.

"Do you know where we're going?" She asked as the busy commuters seemed to be moving in the opposite direction to them.

"Yep," He simply said, guiding her towards the metro entrance as he headed for the six line. He thought he'd have forgotten how to instinctively know what line they needed to take, but the map of the subway was more imprinted than he'd liked to think.

"You know I can cover us for a hotel if we need to?" She muttered as he pulled her close to him on a carriage, looping a protective arm around her waist as it started to move.

"I know," He agreed, his eyes scanning the faces around them. "It's fine." He added after a small pause, "You know I wouldn't ask you to run away with me if I didn't have things sorted."

She looked up at him and didn't say anything, holding onto his waist for the next 20 minutes until he guided her off the train and up the escalator at Astor Place. They only walked for another five minutes, Caleb following the map on his phone, until he stopped her in front of a dingy looking door.

He dialed a number on his phone and held it against his ear, muttering a "Yo," when whoever was on the other end picked up. "I'm here."

Hanna stood silently as he hung up and began to tap his foot impatiently, only relaxing when the door suddenly opened and a tattooed girl appeared, pulling him into a tight hug, "Caleb," She smiled at him, squeezing his sides, "You've been a complete shit since running off to Philly."

"Trust me," Caleb muttered as he separated, "It wasn't my choice."

"And you must be Hanna," The dark haired woman turned to the blonde, "C won't stop dropping your name in when he finally replies to my messages."

Caleb couldn't help but role his eyes, "Hanna this is Maya, Maya this is Hanna."

"Hi," Hanna smiled tentatively, relaxing a little as Maya gave her a hug too.

"You guys don't have much stuff," Maya commented, looking at the two bags Caleb had as she let them inside and led them up two flights of stairs.

"People don't know we're here," Caleb reminded her of their previous conversation.

"That's right," Maya sent them both a playful pout as she opened up the key to her small loft apartment, "You're two star-crossed lovers who can't tell the world you're together because it goes against the rules," She sighed, spinning around dramatically, "How romantic," She said sarcastically.

"Don't be a dick," Caleb warned her, throwing the bags down next to the small sofa. "How you affording this place?" He glanced around, taking in the small studio, "Fucking your landlord or something?"

"Well my landlord's a guy so no," Maya rolled her eyes at his defensive behaviour, "Hanna," She took pity on the silent teen, "Do you want a drink before I punch your boyfriend in the balls?"

"What do you want babe?" Caleb threaded a reassuring arm around her waist, "Maya's leaving soon so take advantage of her being polite whilst you can."

"Water would be great, thanks," Hanna said quietly, sending her a smile. She watched her move around her tiny kitchen, pulling two glasses down from a cupboard before filling them with water from the tap. Her eyes dragged down her tattoo sleeve, trying to figure out all the different pieces of art that mixed together - maybe that was how her and Caleb knew each other. She froze as she caught sight of the same name she'd seen etched on Caleb's body. Kennedy. There it was in big black curvasive writing, right along her forearm. She knew Kennedy too – whoever Kennedy was.

"So Caleb told me you're a designer," Maya started, pulling Hanna from her reverie.

"Trying to be," She smiled a little. "Parsons have an open day tomorrow," She added, glancing across at Caleb, "So… that's why we're here."

"You know Caleb told me he'd never come back to New York," Maya tilted her head as she sent her a knowing smile, "It must really be love if he's willing to be here after everything that hap…"

"Maya," Caleb growled, cutting her off.

"So you haven't told her?"

"Maya I swear to god."

"And that's my cue that I have to go," Maya tossed her hair over her shoulder as she shook her head at Caleb, "My date for the weekend is expecting me."

"Good," Caleb told her.

"You have my place for two nights," She dropped her keys on the countertop. "Change the sheets before I come back and don't use all my weed." She grabbed her bag and threw it over her shoulder, grabbing her coat before she sent them both a short wave and walked out.

Hanna took a short sip of her water before pouring the rest of it down the drain. Suddenly she wasn't so thirsty any more. "So…" She trailed off, turning around to rest against the counter as Caleb headed for the bed. "How do you know… Maya?"

Caleb sighed as he took a seat and collapsed back against the mattress, rubbing his eyes, "Maya St. Germain," He shook his head to himself as he muttered her name, "She was my foster sister for a while," He explained, finding the energy to sit up again, "She's a dick."

"She's letting us stay in her place," Hanna reminded him, "Seems kind of nice to me."

"Okay she can be a dick," Caleb conceded, holding his hand out for her, "But I guess I can be too," He shrugged, pulling her onto his lap when she got close enough. "You okay here?" He murmured tenderly, "I know it's not the Ritz or anything."

"Then it's a good job we're not in Paris," She whispered, giving him a gentle kiss before sending him a sweet smile that made him remember everything was okay. "I'm gonna grab a shower," She told him, standing and reaching for her bag. "Do you think we're okay to use her towels?"

"She won't care," He told her, watching as she pulled her top and jeans off before heading towards the door she assumed led to the bathroom in her underwear. She'd put weight on, he noticed, as he took in her fuller curves. And she looked damn good.

He grunted a little as he felt his dick twitch at the sound of the water running and the image of her naked body filled his mind. He wanted her all the fucking time. "Fine," He gave in, tossing his own clothes off before he followed the direction she'd taken, quietly opening the door before pulling back the shower curtain to grab her attention.

"Caleb!" She gasped, a hand to her chest as he took her by surprise. "Don't do that," She told him as he climbed in and pulled her back against his chest, both of them under the spray.

"What?" He asked as one hand immediately cupped her breast, the other running down her flat stomach to trail between her legs. She said nothing, just bit her lip as his fingers ran through her folds and back again to find her clit where he began to play with her.

She relaxed back against him and felt him already poking her butt, discovering a new found feeling of contentedness at the thought that she made him that way.

She reached a hand back to play with his dick as his lips found her neck and began to suck, eventually trailing their way up towards her mouth where he immediately pushed his tongue into her mouth. She groaned, dropping his cock as he spun her around and bent his legs a little so that he could run his head along her slit. She opened her legs a little, clinging onto him as she felt him push the tip of him into her before withdrawing and going back to teasing her folds again.

He did the same thing over and over until it wasn't enough anymore and one of the hands holding her face in front of his trailed down to cup her breast again, tweaking her nipple before he reached for her leg and pushed it up so that he could position himself properly.

She gasped as she felt him right there again, before he finally sank into her, both of them throwing their heads back as the familiar sensation of each other took over their bodies.

His hand moved to the wall, resting flat to give him leverage as the other pulled her closer to him. "Fuck," He muttered, resting his forehead on the cold tiles over her shoulder as he tried not to let loose straight away. She was so tight and wet that every time he pushed into her he felt like he was about to blow his load straight away like it was his first time.

She wrapped her arms around his neck, one trailing down his back before coming to rest on his shoulder as he began to move inside of her. "Caleb," She moaned as he began to fuck her hard, taking and taking from her body until she felt like he owned every part of her.

He was so hard, so deep inside of her that he felt he was about to drown in her; sucking him in until he couldn't breathe by himself. He thrust quickly, his thumb finding her clit against as they desperately sought their release. It was wet and fast, both of them grunting in each other's ears as Caleb guided them through the rolling waves of desperate sex. She groaned louder, "Yes," She muffled her voice against his neck as he suddenly hit that spot.

"Han," He moaned again, "You there?" He gasped for breath as he felt the coil inside him beginning to tighten and tighten.

"Yes," She breathed, her eyes squeezed shut as shoved his hand away from her and replaced it with her own fingers on her nub.

"Fuck," He picked her up instead, pinning her against the tiles as he suddenly erupted inside of her, burying himself deep as she tightened around him and began to come.

"Oh my god," Her chest heaved, the water trickling down her breasts as they both tried to make the high last as long as they could, "Caleb," She muttered his name over and over as she held him against her, squeezing her inner muscles around him until he finally pulled out and set her down on her own two feet.

She fell against his chest as he moved them back under the spray, cupping her cheek as he pressed a hard kiss against her lips before she pushed his mouth away so that she could breathe again by herself.

He glanced down at her as the water ran down both of their bodies. She was everything. And she had absolutely no idea.

Suddenly he felt an undeniable need to tell her, to make her understand what she did to him every single moment of the day. "Maya's right," He whispered as she clung to him, both of their hair sticking to their slick skin as the stream of water began to turn lukewarm and their lungs filled with air again.

"About what?" She asked, her mouth against his heart. "Caleb?" She tilted her head to look up at him, wanting him to tell her everything he could ever think of.

"I think I love you."

Back in Rosewood, Helen Ackard stalked up the stairs after giving her daughter time to think about what had happened that afternoon at school. She noticed Caleb's door was unusually wide open and paused to check it was empty before heading further down the hallway to the six-year-old's bedroom.

She looked at the shut door that had the latest attempt at drawing a family of horses stuck on it. What had happened to her sweet little girl who just wanted to play happy families with her toy ponies? Never in a million years had she expected her to hit a boy in her class. She was going to find out exactly what was going on...

And yet as she walked into the messy bedroom, that was suddenly the last thing on her mind.

"Penny…"

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