A/N: Song mentioned in this chapter is Bruce Springsteen's 'The River'. Good song. I don't own it.
Timeline:
1. 'In the beginning' Parts 1 and 2 (Chapters 13 and 14) Rusty is seven, Danny is nine.
2. 'Neverending Conversation' Parts 1 and 2 (Chapters 15 and 16) Rusty is seven, Danny is nine.
3. 'Trick and Treat' (Chapter 34) Rusty is eight, Danny is ten.
4. 'Matilda and the Werewolf' (Chapter 23) Rusty is nine, Danny is eleven.
5. 'Something more than it should be' (Chapter 10) Rusty is ten, Danny is twelve
6. 'The humiliation of Norris Carrol' (Chapter 20) Rusty is ten, Danny is thirteen
7. 'Four Day Interlude' (Chapter 5) Rusty is ten, Danny is thirteen
8. 'Remember the first time' (Chapter 4) Rusty is ten, Danny is thirteen
9. 'Sunshine, smiles and sweet, sweet words' (Chapter 17) Rusty is ten, Danny is thirteen.
10. 'Lie, Cheat, Steal, Play' (Chapter 24) Rusty is ten, Danny is thirteen
11. 'View from the outside' (Chapter 12) Rusty is eleven, Danny is fourteen
12. 'When we were young' Part 1, 2, 3 and 4 (Chapter 25-28) Rusty is eleven, Danny is fourteen
13. 'And we won't get it back when we die' (Chapter 29) Rusty is twelve, Danny is fourteen
14. 'Walk before you can crawl' (Chapter 2) Rusty is twelve, Danny is fifteen
15. 'Other Nightmares Parts 1 and 2 (Chapters 8 and 9) Rusty is twelve, Danny is fifteen
16. 'Unseasonal' (Chapter 36 37, 38, 39 40, 41 & 42) Rusty is twelve, Danny is fifteen
17. 'The more things change' (Chapter 1) Rusty is thirteen, Danny is fifteen
18. 'Different Roads' Part 1-3 (Chapter 31-33)
19. 'Words and Silence' (Chapter 22) Rusty is thirteen, Danny is sixteen
20. 'Six months of roses' (Chapter 18) Rusty is thirteen/fourteen, Danny is sixteen
21. 'Two stories with some understanding' (Chapter 21) Rusty is thirteen, Danny is sixteen. Falls within time of 'Six months of roses'
22. 'Life Lessons' (Chapter 7) Rusty is fourteen, Danny is sixteen - falls within time of 'Six months of roses'
23. 'The lies we live' (Chapter 3) Rusty is fourteen, Danny is sixteen
24. 'If the fates allow' (Chapter 19) Rusty is fourteen, Danny is seventeen
25. 'This is our decision (to live fast and die young)' (Chapter 6) Rusty is fourteen, Danny is seventeen
26. 'Such a perfect day' (Chapter 11) Rusty is fourteen, Danny is seventeen
And sequels after they move away!
'Adjusting' - two months after they leave town, Rusty is 15, Danny is 17
'Time to regret' - shortly before 'Learning Curve'
'Learning Curve' - eighteen months after they leave town, Rusty is 16, Danny is 19
'All in the family' - shortly after 'Learning Curve'
'Outward Ripples' - Rusty is 18, Danny is 20
'Eye for an Eye' - Rusty is 18, Danny is 20
'Chasing Echoes' - set after O11.
'Reconstruction' - set after movies.
26th December 1978
Danny woke up the next morning to the sound of the door quietly opening. Barely awake, he half sat up in time to see Yvette vanishing beneath the covers at the foot of the bed. Seconds later, he felt her hands on the waistband of his pyjama pants, drawing them down.
Oh. This was one hell of a way to wake up.
"Good morning, Danny," she said presently, when she was lying in his arms.
He smiled and kissed her tenderly. "Good morning to you," he said.
"I thought I would surprise you," she went on wickedly. "Were you surprised?"
"Definitely," he agreed fervently.
"Ah, good," she said with a smile.
"Did you have a nice Christmas," he asked a second later.
"Oui," she nodded, her eyes lighting up. "Oh! You must see what ma mere has bought me!" She made as though to drag him out of bed.
Laughing, he protested. "Let me at least get dressed first."
She pulled back the covers and looked him up and down. "I think, perhaps, I like you better naked."
Tempting though that thought was, he showered and dressed quickly while she waited for him, and then he followed her downstairs and out into the courtyard.
"See," Yvette said proudly, pointing at a little red compact car. "It is very pretty, n'est c'est pas?"
He looked at it with appropriate admiration. Looked brand new. Certainly it was very shiny. "Your mother bought you this?"
"Yes," she agreed, contentment in her voice and he smiled. She was happy, and surely that meant that her relationship with her Mom must be at least a little better than he'd assumed. Though he supposed his Mom was prone to expensive gestures...but that was a handful of cash thrust at him, now and again. Nothing like this. "Would you like to take a drive with me?" she asked, breaking his train of thought. "We can go anywhere."
"Not just yet," he demurred. "I thought we might go and see the pawn shop down the street first."
"The pawn shop?" she asked, after a fraction of a seconds hesitation.
"Yes," he nodded determinedly. "If I'm going to get your jewellery back for you then I need to know what I'm looking for."
"My jewellery," she exclaimed. "Oh, Danny, you do not have to - "
" - but I want to," he said firmly. "You deserve to have your jewellery, Yvette. No one should have taken it away from you."
She looked at him for a long moment, as if considering, and then nodded twice in rapid succession. "Yes," she said simply, holding his hand tight. "Thank you, Danny."
"I haven't done anything yet," he smiled. "Come on."
The pawn shop was open when they arrived and they stood outside a moment, Danny talking in a low voice. "Alright, the important thing is not to draw any suspicion. Look at the jewellery as if you're browsing, but don't look right at your stuff. Find it, memorise exactly where it is, and then go on looking at other things. Most of all, try to look bored. I'll keep the shopkeeper distracted. Okay?"
She nodded, looking a little overwhelmed. He guessed she'd never done anything like this before. If it came to it, he'd never done anything quite like this before. Certainly not without Rusty. "Hey," he said softly. "It'll be fine. Don't worry."
She nodded again intently, and they walked inside.
Playing the part of the arrogant American tourist, Danny had the shopkeeper show him the guitars hanging on the wall. He couldn't play them, but that hardly mattered. He knew how to stand, how to strum as if he was lost in some fantasy of fame and fortune, and it was easy enough to be dismissed as simply one more foolish teenager.
He gave it fifteen minutes. He figured that was long enough for Yvette to do her part, and he took the opportunity to check the shop out too. The skylight opened directly above the counter, and certainly it looked as though he should be able to get in without breaking it. The door was alarmed and the windows shuttered, but he couldn't see any wires leading to the skylight. He figured it must be okay, though he longed for the chance to check his thinking with Rusty. He'd need a way out too, and really it had to be the skylight again, and that didn't sound fun at all.
Taking Yvette by the hand, they wandered outside and into a nearby cafe for coffee and pastries.
"Was your jewellery there?" he murmured, once he was sure they were alone.
She didn't answer for a moment, staring at him as if weighing something up. She must be worried about him, he realised with a smile that surprised him. Concerned that he might get caught. "Yes," she said at last. "A square diamond ring on the display on the left. The third tray from the bottom. The ring in the middle row on the right hand side. And a necklace with a single pearl. The next display along. The top row, the second necklace."
He nodded, quickly jotting the directions down on a napkin, as obliquely as he could.
"And a diamond bracelet," Yvette added quickly. "In that same display. The bottom row on the right hand side."
He added that to his notes. "Okay then," he said with a smile. "I'm set for tonight, except..." He frowned. "Do you know where I could get some rope?"
The garage a few miles away was the answer and they told the morose mechanic that they were looking for a tow rope for Yvette's new car. The guy barely glanced at him when he dropped the rope on the counter, and Danny handed the cash over for that and a flashlight, before inspecting the rope doubtfully. It looked kind of thin. But if it could haul a car he guessed it should be able to hold his weight.
"Now I'm set," he told Yvette confidently. "By tomorrow you'll have your jewellery back."
He felt something swell in his chest at the way she looked at him. Admiration and awe, like he was something special. Just that look made him feel like a man, and he wanted to stay with her, to care for her.
They spent the rest of the day driving around, abandoning themselves to the moment, talking about everything and nothing. Danny barely stopped smiling, he felt so happy, and Yvette's eyes were shining whenever she looked at him.
Was this how it felt to fall in love? He didn't know. Everything in his head was so mixed up. He just knew that he had to do this. He craved her approval. Longed to make her proud of him.
It grew dark, and they stopped for dinner at a little restaurant overlooking a cobbled street.
"I wish you did not have to leave tomorrow," Yvette said, as she ate a spoonful of caramelised peach. "I feel like I am losing you before I have even got to know you."
"I know," he said regretfully. "I'm gonna miss you."
"Perhaps you will come back one day," she suggested hopefully. "Or maybe I could come and visit you in America?"
He smiled. "I'd like that."
Her face fell. "Not that I would be able to visit anytime soon. Plane tickets are expensive, and I do not earn very much working as a maid."
Danny frowned, surprised. "Your Mom pays you?" he asked. He'd got the impression that Yvette's mother just expected her to work whenever.
"Yes," she nodded, "But only the same as the other maids."
Huh. Well, he supposed it didn't really matter, but he still suddenly felt uneasy. Distracting himself, he stared out of the window. "What's that?" he asked curiously, pointing to a building further down the street.
She followed his finger. "That is the swimming pool," she told him. "I believe it is shut over Christmas, which is unfortunate." She smiled and ran her bare foot up the inside of his thigh. "I believe I would like to see you in swimming trunks."
Mmm. He licked his lips. "How about without swimming trunks?"
Finding a side door that was out of sight of everyone was easy. Getting the lock open while they were both giggling so hard was a little trickier.
"You are good at this," Yvette told him as the door swung open.
"Practice makes perfect," he said, and they snuck into the darkened building, Danny turning the flashlight on as they followed the smell of chlorine downstairs and to the poolside.
Yvette slipped her dress off in one easy motion. "Perhaps there are other things we could practice," she murmured, standing before him in her bra and panties, and breathless, his eyes swept down over her stockinged legs. She looked like she'd walked straight out of his wildest fantasies.
They made love for hours in the pool, the warm water lapping over them. Danny thought this might just be as close to heaven as he'd ever get. He held her tightly, her body hot and smooth beneath his hands, and for one, fleeting moment, it felt like they were one person.
"I never want this to end," he murmured into her hair.
Her hands gripped his shoulders. "I do not want it to either," she said.
Honestly, he didn't think that this was love, but it was something. Intense and sudden and wonderful and dazzling and maybe, just maybe if they only had the chance, it could grow into something even stronger. After all, when he'd first met Rusty, he hadn't realised...hadn't known...and it wasn't the same, it wasn't anything close to the same, but he needed someone and Yvette had been there, and she had cared for him, and she was wonderful and beautiful and wicked, and he liked her and he wanted her, and right now he needed her.
This was their last night, and he made every second of it count.
They drove back towards the hotel later, locking the pool up as best they could. Yvette's hair was still damp as she drove.
"Drop me off a block or so from the pawn shop," he requested. "Then just head on home."
"I could come with you," she said slowly. "I could help."
He smiled and laid his hand on hers briefly. "Go home," he said. "I don't want you anywhere near this, Yvette. I can manage just fine on my own." He could. He was sure he could. But he still wished...
"I do not wish to leave you," she said unhappily. "I could wait in the car at least? Be your...getaway driver."
"No," he said certainly. "Thank you."
"If you are sure," she said, and somehow he would have expected more of an argument. It was strange; he almost felt...disappointed, and that was stupid, because what was he doing? Comparing her to Rusty? That didn't even begin to make sense.
He watched as she drove off. Right. Time to get to work.
Walking quickly, but not hurriedly, he headed round towards the pawn shop. Wasn't anyone around that he could see, but there were times when caution was the only way to go. Last thing he wanted was to be caught breaking into the building; being arrested very much wasn't part of his plan for tonight.
Like he'd thought, the tree overhung the building and it was easy enough for him to scramble up, the rope coiled loosely over his arm. He leapt down onto the roof, biting his lip hard to stifle the cry as his feet nearly skidded out from under him on the loose roof tiles.
Oh, he had to be more careful than that. Swallowing hard, he dropped down onto his hands and knees and crept up the roof towards the sky light. Only took him a moment or two to get it open, and he tied the end of the rope around the chimney securely before dropping it down to the floor below.
Looking down, it seemed a lot further than it had from the ground that morning. He took a deep breath, gripped the flashlight between his teeth, took the rope in his hands and swung out into the empty space.
Danny had never been the best in gym class. He didn't know the rules of football, and he didn't care for running round a track in a circle, but he could out sprint any cop he'd come across, and he could climb a rope with the best of them.
Still, his palms were sweating as he inched his way down, the rope spinning dizzily. He could do this. He could do this. He closed his eyes, concentrating on the feeling of the rope rasping over his gloves, and he imagined Rusty, just below him, imagined his voice steady and encouraging, imagined knowing with absolute certainty that he could not fall because Rusty was there.
"Keep going, Danny," Rusty murmured in his mind. "You're almost there."
His feet sank onto the floor and he breathed a sigh of relief. That was it. He was in.
He hurried over to the displays Yvette had indicated and set to work. The locks here were more complex than he'd been expecting and he grimaced. This was going to take a while. If he'd had the time...if he'd thought...he would have checked these locks while he'd been in before and gone to find something similar he could practice on. But he hadn't, and all he could do was lay the flashlight down on the counter while he worked, and keep his hands steady.
Took him twenty minutes, and all the time he was expecting to hear someone come in, expecting someone to notice the light through the shutters, to investigate. But there was nothing, and the case eventually swung open, and he reached in and retrieved the ring, the bracelet and the necklace. There. That was everything Yvette's father had given her. He grinned victoriously; he'd done it.
He closed up the cases quickly and headed for the rope. It was even harder going up than it had been coming down, but he managed it, pulling the rope up behind him and securing the skylight. And that was it. No one had seen him and he hadn't left anything behind. All he had to do was get back to the hotel and he was home free.
Mom was waiting for him in the lobby, standing in front of the reception desk, talking angrily to Yvette's mother. Yvette herself stood a little way distant, looking upset and afraid. They all turned to look at him as he walked in.
"Daniel!" Mom said, her voice loud and sharp, and she rushed over to him, hugging him tightly to his complete astonishment.
"Mom?" he said uncertainly.
"Oh, Daniel, you're back," she said without letting go of him, and she actually sounded thankful. "I thought...I thought..."
"I am relieved your son is safe, Madam Ocean," Yvette's mother said behind them.
Mom stepped away from him immediately. "Yes. Thank you for your assistance," she said stiffly. "Come along, Daniel." She headed for the elevator, nodding curtly to Yvette and her mother.
Danny smiled awkwardly at Yvette, uncertain of what was going on, but conscious of the jewellery stuffed into his back pocket. This wasn't the moment. He could only hope there'd be another one, but right now, he had to talk to Mom.
Unsurprisingly, she waited until they were in his room before she started in on him. "Daniel, where have you been today?" she demanded. "I've been looking for you all day. You weren't in your room, you weren't in the hotel...I've been going out of my mind searching for you. I was just getting ready to call the police."
Oh. He felt like the ground had vanished beneath his feet. "I didn't mean to worry you," he said awkwardly. "I was with my friend."
"Yes, I know," she said, scowling. "That girl downstairs. She told me that you'd spent the day with her, but she didn't know where you'd gone after that."
"I went for a walk," he said numbly. "Mom, I...I'm sorry. I should've left a note or something, to let you know where I was." Briefly, he thought of two days ago, and she'd walked out on him without telling him she was going or when she'd be back, and not for the first time either. She'd been doing it since he was a little kid, but that wasn't the point. Didn't matter what Mom did, it didn't change the fact that he'd been stupid and thoughtless and...and he'd actually frightened her. He could see it in her eyes. She'd been afraid for him. "I'm sorry," he said again.
"Sorry isn't good enough," she said angrily. "God, Daniel, this is just like you. You're so selfish."
It hit him hard, because right now it was true. She'd wanted to spend time with him, and he'd been caught up with his own concerns, with Yvette and the burglary. "Mom, I didn't mean to scare you," he said miserably.
For a second, he thought she was about to deny it, then she sighed and pressed her hand against the side of her face. "I thought you'd run away," she whispered and he could hear the fear and the grief in her voice.
He didn't say anything. He couldn't say anything. But for the first time in a very long time indeed, he reached out to her, trying to offer comfort and risking rejection yet again.
She let him embrace her for a long moment in complete silence. Funny. He was a little taller than her now. He'd never realised that before.
"I'm so sorry, Mom," he said again at last. "I just didn't think."
"Yes." She stepped back from him, and smiled, actually looking a little amused. "I saw the girl downstairs. She is very pretty. I...I'm glad that you've made a friend."
Oh. He swallowed hard and nodded, smiling slightly.
"I think," Mom said wearily. "That we should both head to bed now. It's very late, and we've got a long day tomorrow. Goodnight, Danny."
"Goodnight, Mom," he said, as she headed to the door.
She paused and looked back at him. "I'm so glad that you're alright," she said, and her voice was so soft that he wasn't even entirely sure he'd heard her right.
Sleep was a long time coming.
Once again Rusty found here was no particular reason to get up.
The air felt cold outside of his little fort of blankets. Fort...he grinned at his choice of words. When he'd just started school he, Brady and Cameron had made a fort in Cameron's living room out of blankets, cushions and furniture. This was sorta the same thing, he guessed, only colder. And without Cameron's Mom warning them to keep their feet off her couch. But put that way, it seemed kinda fun. He stretched stiffly and lit a cigarette and lay smoking and staring dizzily at the ceiling. Might be warmer than it had been, but the cold was in his bones and he ached.
He spent the morning curled up, listening to music and eating the other can of spaghettios. He'd swear the tomato sauce was actually close to frozen solid. Now there would be an interesting experiment to suggest in chemistry. The relative boiling and freezing points of canned goods. Beat that stupid thing with the sprouting beans from three years back anyway. Turns out that if you shut something up without light or heat or food or water, it grows up twisted and stunted, and it doesn't matter what you do after that, it'll always be wrong.
That hadn't been something he'd particularly wanted to learn. He looked around the cold dark room and sighed. Had been two days before he'd managed to tell Danny what was bothering him. Oh, Danny had known there was something wrong – Danny always did, after all – and he'd already been as solidly reassuring as Rusty could wish for, but that had been only a couple of months after Mom left and he'd still been mired in the days when talking was difficult and sometimes impossible. But eventually he'd told Danny about the experiment and Danny had sighed and leaned against him while he'd talked. Later Danny had taken him into the public library and shown him a book full of plants that thrived in the harshest conditions. Flowers that bloomed in the desert. Grass that grew in Antarctica. Lichen that clung to the top of mountains. So maybe he was lichen or maybe the metaphor only took them so far, but he understood what Danny was trying to tell him.
He was tough. He was alive.
But sometimes...at times like this when he was alone and Danny wasn't around to argue, sometimes he had to wonder. Normal was overrated but he wasn't like the other kids in his class and he didn't see that changing anytime soon. Maybe there'd always be something wrong with him cos of where he came from. Maybe there was no escape from this life. Maybe...
"I come from down in the valley
Where Mister when you're young
They bring you up to do
Like your Daddy done..."
His fist clenched convulsively and he turned the tape player off. Yeah. Thanks, Bruce. That was pretty much what he was afraid of.
He ate a forkful of spaghettios moodily. He wanted his life to amount to more than this. But sometimes he couldn't see how it ever could.
With an effort he brushed the thought aside before it turned into self pity and turned his attention to going over his plans for tonight again.
He hadn't forgotten anything, and every time he he thought through the plan he became more convinced that he hadn't missed anything. So the only danger would be something he didn't know about. He had to admit, he wished he had a few more days to check the place out properly. Even more, he wished that Danny was here. So often Danny would see angles that he'd never even thought of thinking of. He could really use the second opinion right about now. And even more than that, he missed Danny. And that was only partly because he was desperate to know that Danny was alright. Truth was, he was tired and lonely.
Through the afternoon he worked on his book report for The Outsiders. Somehow, he found himself focusing on the friendships maybe a little more than he should have. Everything was better when you weren't alone, and nothing good lasts. Nice to have a book that didn't teach you anything new.
His fingers were stiff and aching and beyond cold, and he was in constant danger of nodding off. Seemed as though every day he felt a little more tired. Might not be freezing right now, but he was very far from warm and he had a feeling that probably wasn't good for him in the long run.
The candles had almost burned out by the time he'd finished and was reading over his report. Pretty good, he thought. Maybe a little too good. With a sigh he went back over it, adding in spelling mistakes, removing some punctuation and capitalisation, and changing one of his arguments so it said the opposite of what he meant. There. Hopefully that should be enough to get his essay passed over. He hated English class. Stuff like Math or Physics were better, when he could have a good idea whether he'd got things right or wrong. English he was left struggling and he tried to err on the side of caution. So much safer to be dismissed as on the stupid side of average.
With a sigh he rolled over and glanced at the clock. Just before eleven. It would take him a couple of hours to walk to the power company. Seemed like now was a good time to leave.
Gathering together the lockpicks, a flat knife and a flashlight, he glanced towards the door and grimaced. The walk was going to be cold, but he didn't want to layer up like he had before. Might be a squeeze getting through the window. And he certainly didn't want to risk leaving any of his stuff lying around near the soon-to-be-crime scene. No, he would just have to put up with the cold.
Though one good thing about this weather was that he could pull his hood up and half cover his face with his jumper, and no one would spare him a second glance. Try doing that in the middle of summer, see how long it took before someone called the cops.
Like he'd expected the walk was long and cold. Luckily though it seemed as if the snow had all but gone. Should make the whole Spider-man schtick easier anyway. Even better, there were practically no people on the streets. On the two hour walk he saw about four other people. None of them looked at him. He was confident that they wouldn't be able to recognise him later, and that was good. Being arrested very much wasn't part of his plan for tonight.
He smoked a couple of cigarettes on the way. Mostly just for the chance to cup his hands around the match in some out of the way doorway, and let the warmth touch him even briefly. Huh. Mrs O'Donnell had once told him he should have more empathy for the Little Match Girl. If she could see him now...he'd tell her he still thought the girl was stupid. There were a whole host of things he was willing to try before lying down and dying became the best option, dead Grandma or no dead Grandma. Mind you, Mrs O'Donnell would probably stick him in detention for a month if she saw him here and he told her that. She hadn't thought much of him. Most of his teachers didn't think much of him, right back to the first grade. It was like he was wearing a sign that told them he wasn't worth it. Stunted and twisted and wrong. And lazy, stupid, troubled, a show off, a liar, an attention seeker...he'd heard them throw a lot of words for him around. It didn't matter. He could charm them when he had to and the rest of the time he just tried to make them forget he existed.
He was already tired out when he reached the power company and he lingered for five minutes or so in a doorway opposite, resting up, rubbing his arms and legs furiously to try and ease the cold and the ache, all the while watching the buildings around him carefully. No sign of life. No sign anyone might be watching. Right. Time to get to work.
The drainpipe was relatively easy to climb, all things considered, and that took him to a window on the second floor. He managed to scramble up onto the ledge and hunch over, back pressed against the wall, while he used the knife to slowly force the latch.
It swung outwards, of course, and that required a tricky moment of dizzy negotiation, standing on the ledge and leaning back out over the street below as he eased the window open.
His foot slipped slightly and he half fell forwards, clutching desperately at the side of the window, fighting for his grip.
The wind was rushing past his ears. Funny, it had barely been noticeable when he was safely on the ground.
"You're alright," Danny murmured in his head. "Just keep going."
Finally, he managed to scramble inside, and he closed the window behind him so no one passing from the street would notice anything wrong. Keeping it low and covered, he carefully turned the flashlight on and looked round. He was in a large room, crammed with rows of filing cabinets. Right. Mr Lewis' office should be just a little down the hall, on the left.
Confidently, he headed for the door and out into the corridor. Sure enough, the office was right where he expected it to be. It was locked of course, but that didn't slow him down for more than a minute or so.
Now, the petty cash had been in a lockbox and he'd told her to lock it in the filing cabinet. That filing cabinet, right behind the desk Rusty would guess. More locks, and these took a little longer. Wasn't exactly difficult so much as it was fiddly, but eventually the drawer slid open and with a grin, he looked down at the lockbox. Perfect.
Lifting it out, he shook it gleefully. Seemed like it was full, but he sure as hell wasn't gonna stop and open it here. He tucked it into his coat instead. This was the point where he got out and headed home.
He heard the footsteps on the stairs the moment he opened the office door. Saw the swinging flashlight. And as the security guards shouted, he was already back inside, slamming the door shut.
Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit.
Someone must have seen something. Alright. They were between him and his way out. What now?
He ran straight for the window, throwing it open wildly as the door opened behind him, and they hadn't got a good look at him, they couldn't have got a good look at him, and he jumped out and down, onto the flat roof of the building next door, and he ran, scrambled along it towards the edge, and they were shouting after him, climbing down themselves, and they were gonna catch him...
He jumped. Off the roof and down, and the feeling of falling seemed to last forever as the world rushed up towards him, and he landed awkwardly in a tangle of twisted shrubs.
He heard the crack before he felt it, and then the pain came. White hot splintering, racing up his left arm, and automatically he curled into a ball, his teeth tearing into his lip, trying to manage the pain, trying to make it stop.
White noise surrounded him and he felt sick and dizzy and lost. Alright. He had to focus. He had to get up and get moving, cos they might not jump off a roof after him, but they'd be coming nonetheless.
Staggering to his feet, he pulled his arm in tight against his chest. He didn't look down at it. He didn't want to know. Instead he ran, or jogged at least, weaving a drunken path down side streets and alleys, no thought but to get as far away as possible.
After a time – he couldn't say how long – he was sure that no one was following and he couldn't go any further. He fell into a doorway in a deserted alleyway and sat huddled against the wall, trying to catch his breath, trying to think past the pain.
They'd seen him. But he really didn't think they'd caught more than a glimpse, he'd moved too fast. A figure in black, that was about all they could've got, which meant that if he could just get home then he'd be safe. Nothing to connect him. He hoped, at least.
There was something warm trickling down his neck. He touched his face curiously with his good hand. Huh. His cheek was cut up pretty badly. Must have been the bushes he landed in.
He looked down at his arm for the first time. It was hidden by his coat but...it didn't feel like his arm any more. There was only pain and he couldn't move it properly.
Couldn't be that bad. He'd probably just jarred it or something. Sure, it hurt like hell now, but that'd fade. Soon. Very soon. Any minute now.
He bit his lip hard and forbid the tears from falling.
Had to get home. Might be kinda tempting to just stay here, but the security guards would call the cops, and they might comb the streets, and a kid sleeping in a doorway might just draw the wrong kind of attention.
Slowly he stumbled to his feet and every movement had him gritting his teeth against the sharp pain in his arm. Soon. Honestly.
He walked home with his arm cradled against him, and the pain was immense and blinding, and he couldn't think of anything else. He had no idea who he might have passed, or who might have seen him...all that mattered was getting somewhere safe.
Finally, he reached home, and it was so difficult to get the door open with only one hand. By the time he got in, he was shaking uncontrollably, and as the door slammed behind him, he fell to his knees and crawled unsteadily through to his room. With a dizzying feeling of dread, he pulled his coat off and looked down at his arm. It looked...wrong. Purple and swollen and unnaturally crooked.
He swallowed hard. This couldn't be happening. He didn't know what to do.
There was nothing he could do right now. He could only hope that it looked better in the morning, but honestly, he didn't think it would.
Too tired and sore to move any further, he lay down beside his bed, pulling his coat up and over him, and he closed his eyes and waited for the world to stop spinning. The tears rose up and this time he couldn't stop them no matter how he tried, no matter how fiercely he told himself that he was twelve now and far too old to be crying like a little baby.
Danny. Oh, Danny, it hurt, and he was scared, and he wanted...he wanted... He wrapped his arm around his chest awkwardly, and imagined Danny sat behind him, his arms around Rusty's shoulder, holding him safe and tight until he fell asleep. It was a nice dream. But it wasn't anywhere close to the real thing. He listened to the sound of his own sobs, and waited for sleep to take him.
Sleep would make everything better.