A/N: Thank you all for your patience! I'm back now and will be posting regularly again! Enjoy! In tomorrow's chapter, the you-know-what is really going to hit the fan!


The next morning, Ralphie left early. The room was abnormally silent as the boys got ready and headed out for their respective jobs and cons.

Spot walked up to the curtain that separated Aide and Ralph's room from everyone else.

"Aide?" Spot asked.

"Go away."

"Aide, I'm so sorry."

Spot sighed. He'd let her down. He should've stopped Ralphie. He should've stood up for her like Snipeshooter had, but instead, he just stepped aside and let Ralphie do whatever he wanted.

"Is Snipes okay?" she asked.

Spot looked over at Snipeshooter laying in his cot. Snipeshooter looked up at the sound of his name. His face was so red and purple, it looked like one giant bruise.

"I'm here, Aide," he said, sitting up, slowly. He held his side and winced with every move he made.

"Can I get you anything?" Snipeshooter asked.

They heard quiet rustling through the sheet and soon Adelaide pushed it back. She was wearing Ralphie's shirt, which was two sizes too big for her, and a pair of his trousers, cinched up at the waist.

"Aide," said Snipeshooter, wincing as he stood up.

"Oh, Snipes," she said when she saw his face. She slowly walked over, wincing with every step. She crawled into his bed, on his uninjured side and maternally put her arms around him. Snipeshooter rested his head on her shoulder and she kissed the top of his head.

"Thank you for what you did," she whispered.

"I'm sorry, Aide," said Snipeshooter. "I'm sorry I couldn't stop him."

Adelaide shook her head. "No one can stop him."

Spot watched them, wishing he had done more. "Can I get you anything, Aide?"

Adelaide shook her head.

"Aide, I know I let you down. And you deserve to hate me. But I want to make this right."

"You didn't let me down, Spot," said Adelaide. "I'm not your responsibility. It wasn't your job to do anything."

"Aide. Seriously. Anything. I will…do anything. Get you anything. You name it, consider it done."

Adelaide looked up at him. "You can't get my baby back," Adelaide's voice cracked. "You can't get my brother back, and you can't get me out of Brooklyn."

Spot clenched his jaw and nodded. He couldn't bear to see either one of them like that for one more second, so he turned around and walked out of the building.

"You should go back home," Adelaide said softly.

Snipeshooter shook his head. "I ain't leaving you here by yourself."

"I'll be fine," she said. "I've got Spot."

"Yeah." Snipeshooter rolled his eyes. "Fat lot of good he'll do you."

Adelaide smirked. "Ralphie would've done what he did, no matter what Spot would have done."

Snipeshooter was silent for a few moments.

"It's my fault."

Adelaide furrowed her brow and looked down at him. "What do you mean?"

"It's my fault Ralphie found you," said Snipeshooter. "If I go back to Manhattan, they'll just send me away coz I was the one who told Ralphie were you were."

"I don't think you were," said Adelaide. "Knowing Ralphie, I'm sure he knew where I was all along."

Snipeshooter shrugged. "Still. I ain't leavin' you here alone."

They lay on the mattress in silence for a few moments.

"I was kind of looking forward to being a mother," Adelaide said quietly.

"Aw, Aide," said Snipeshooter. "You'll still be a ma one day."

"Maybe."

"It's true," said Snipeshooter. "One day you're gonna get outta Brooklyn and go back to Manhattan." At that, Adelaide's vision got blurry from the warm tears that filled her eyes. "You and Skitts are gonna get married and have lots of babies."

"Snipes, stop," she said, her cracking. She blinked and the tears fell.

"I'm sorry, Aide," said Snipeshooter, looking up at her. "I didn't mean to upset you."

Adelaide shook her head. "It's not your fault, it's just…" They heard footfalls on the basement stairs. Adelaide glanced over and they saw Ralphie walk in. "I don't think I'm ever leaving," she finished quietly.

"You're still here?" Ralphie asked, walking over.

Snipeshooter wasn't sure how to respond. He was afraid that any response would be the wrong one.

"Leave him alone, Ralphie," Adelaide said softly.

"Shut up, you."

"Don't talk to her like that," Snipeshooter frowned.

"I can talk to her however I want," said Ralphie, walking towards the hanging sheet.

Adelaide watched Ralphie walk away and a plan, which had been forming in her head since after the procedure, began to solidify in her mind. She leaned in close to Snipeshooter and whispered, "I need your help with something."

Snipeshooter nodded and whispered, "name it."