-1The Ties That Bind

Three weeks later...

"Ryan?"

It's followed by a tentative knock on the pool house door, and Ryan debates whether or not to answer. He knows it's Sandy, knows what he's coming to say. It's just a question of whether or not he can bear to listen today.

"Ryan?" Outside, Sandy fights back impatience. He isn't one to easily lose his cool, but he feels like he's been living in a war zone for almost a month now and he is tired of walking on eggshells. Besides, he has important news and he'd like to share it with his family, as divided as they are right now. "Can I come in?"

This piques Ryan's interest because it's not a part of the usual routine. Every other day for the past three weeks, Sandy has simply knocked once, said his name, and waited in silence. He hasn't pressed the issue any further than that.

Seconds later, the door opens and he waves Sandy inside.

"You look good," Sandy comments, studying the boy's face. Ryan still looks worn down, as if he's several years older than eighteen, but his eyes are less blood-shot and his knuckles aren't swollen from another session with his punching bag. "You feel okay?"

"I'm not the one who had the concussion," Ryan points out, and they both fall silent.

After the ambulance carrying Seth and Summer had disappeared, Ryan's first thought had been to call Sandy. To his credit, the man hadn't asked any questions or cast any blame. He'd simply done what he did best - talked and signed papers until the problem was taken care of. Never would it be said that Ryan didn't have himself a good lawyer.

But the rest of the fallout hadn't been so painless. Seth had refused to see him during his overnight stay at the local hospital - or at any time after. Summer, too, had disappeared from Ryan's life - no phone calls, letters, visits, nothing. He'd wanted to call her - it seemed like the idea flashed through his mind every five minutes, at least - but then he thought of the dullness that had been in her eyes as the ambulance doors closed between them and lost his nerve.

"So?" he prompts, when Sandy has yet to say anything else. "What's up?"

"I've got some good news." Sandy's eyes crinkle when he smiles, a fact Ryan had almost forgotten. "That'll be something different, right?"

It doesn't earn the smile he'd been aiming for. "I'm sorry, Sandy," Ryan sighs, raking a hand through his hair. "For Seth, for ... everything."

"Ryan." He sets a hand on the younger boy's shoulder, not gripping, but steadying. "Everything is going to work out for the best. I know things look bleak right now, but ... Seth is going to come around. The two of you will get past this. Brothers fight."

"Seth doesn't fight. Seth and I don't fight." Frustrated, Ryan shakes his head, briefly closes his eyes. "I'm sorry. You said you had news."

Sandy doesn't want to change the subject, not when Ryan is actually acknowledging it openly for the first time. But he thinks what he has to say might move them all a step closer to normal. "The clinic is releasing Kirsten this afternoon," he says and, despite everything, there is a note of hope in his voice. "She'll be here around three. I was hoping you'd come up to the house to welcome her back."

There is a moment of hesitation. Ryan hasn't stepped foot in the main house since Seth had first closed his bedroom door on him. "Of course I'll be there," he finally says, because there is no way he can refuse. "I wouldn't miss it."

XXX

The house looks just the same as when she left it and, for that, Kirsten is grateful. She knows, from Sandy's phone calls and Ryan's most recent visit, that things are different now. She can feel the changes in herself as well, but it's nice to know that some things - granite and glass and garbage disposals that have never worked properly - are constants.

Sandy is waiting for her by the door as the taxi drops her off. He greets her with his familiar embrace, solid and warm, and Kirsten can't help but melt a little. "Oh, it's good to be home," she murmurs into his chest before pulling back. "Where are the boys? How are they?"

"Things are still rough around the edges," Sandy says honestly, not entirely removing his grip from her shoulders as he leads her into the kitchen. "But I think seeing you will help."

"Mom." Seth jumps up from the seat he's been fidgeting in, crossing the room in two long strides to hug her. "I've missed you. How are you?"

"Better." She fingers his curls, patting them down like he's a two year old again. For once, he doesn't seem to mind. "How are you?"

It's a loaded question - they all know about the event that led up to his concussion, but it has yet to be acknowledged. "Fine," he says briefly, stepping back.

Ryan hurries to fill the void he leaves in his mother's arms, seeing the hurt flash across Kirsten's face. "We're glad you're back," he tells her, wrapping his arms around her.

"Oh, you boys," Kirsten sighs, taking both of them in with one sweeping gaze. "Things have been so difficult lately. I'm sorry I wasn't here."

"There wasn't anything you could have done," Ryan is quick to assure her, but he can feel Seth's accusatory gaze on him. "Things just ... happened."

Seth scoffs, loudly, and pushes himself off the countertop he's been leaning against. "I'm leaving," he announces and cuts off his father's protests with a curt, "Mom, I'll see you later for dinner. I'll bring home takeout."

He's out the door before anyone can stop him, and Sandy and Kirsten exchange long looks. Ryan takes a deep breath, then grabs his keys. "I'll go after him."

"Ryan, you don't have to -"

"Yes, I do," he interrupts her somberly. "I have to make this right."

XXX

It isn't hard for Ryan to track Seth down - he knows all his brother's hideouts and he drives almost instinctively to the harbor. The first time Seth was disillusioned, he'd gone straight for his boat, and Ryan has a sneaking suspicion that things haven't changed that much.

Sure enough, Seth is there, hunched over his knees and staring out at the water like it can give him the answers he's looking for. He doesn't look up when Ryan approaches, but he says, "I don't blame you, you know."

Confused, Ryan settles himself on the ground, making sure to keep a respectable distance between them. Who knows if Seth is one for revenge? "For what, exactly?"

"For the head trauma." Seth knocks lightly against his temples. "I shouldn't have swung at you in the first place. I deserved what I got."

"No, Seth, man, you didn't deserve -"

"I don't even blame you for what I overheard," he cuts in. He's still not looking at Ryan, but the talking is a definite improvement. "These past few weeks have made me think and I've realized ... you know, maybe Summer and I were never meant to be together like I convinced myself we were. I fell for this ... completely imaginary person. It was only ever going to work for as long as she was willing to fit the mold."

Ryan tries again. "We never meant for you to find out like that, Seth. We never meant for any of it to happen at all."

"I know." Seth hesitates, then continues. "I talked to her, you know. At the hospital, after they bandaged me up and all that. She said she would never see you again, if that's what I wanted."

He hadn't known it was possible to feel so hollow. "That's -" He swallowed, tried again. "That's understandable."

Seth chuckled mirthlessly. "Ryan, the last thing you need in your life is another excuse to play the martyr. I was looking right at her when she said it, and I've never seen anyone look so miserable - including you." He paused, shook his head. "She doesn't love me like that. She tried, we both tried, but ... if it's not right, it's not right."

Ryan didn't know what to say to that. He kept quiet instead, waiting for Seth to deliver whatever damnation he might come up with.

"So what are you still sitting here with me for?" Seth asked a minute later. "Go talk to her, already. Summer and I aren't supposed to be together, I get that. I'm glad we had the time we did, but ... I think you guys could be the real deal. I'm not going to stand in the way of that."

"But ..." Ryan stared at him, shell-shocked. "Seth, I can't - you're - there's -"

"You're my brother." And now, finally, Seth turned to look at him, brown eyes meeting blue for the first time since all hell had broken loose. "Do you really think I could forget that? You're my brother and I want you to be happy. So, go."

Ryan was silent for a long moment. Then, surprising both of them, he leaned in and hugged Seth, hard, before standing up. "Thank you for this," he said earnestly. "For everything."

"Back atcha, bro." Seth smiled, a real smile, and Ryan thought they just might be okay after all.