Chapter 8: You Can't Always Get What You Want

Tracker sat down, studying his brother hard. He frowned. "Jesus, Sean! Are you nuts?"

Sean flinched and frowned. "What are you talking about?"

"You're-" he'd began to shout, but felt several curious eyes on him, so he leaned forward and whispered harshly. "You're screwing that little…that freak, aren't you?"

"She's not a freak!" Sean hissed.

Tracker rolled his eyes and sat back hard. "So help me…if you get her knocked up, Little Bro, don't bother bringing her to my place asking me to help you out!"

"Like I would-" he stopped, all the color draining from his face as Tracker's words began to sink in. "Why would you say I'd get her knocked up?"

Tracker rolled his eyes. "Oh, yeah. Like this place is full of condom machines! Jackass…you're just plain stupid sometimes."

Sean sighed and stared at the table. "She's…we get each other. No baggage. Nothing but…"

"Go back to Toronto, idiot."

"No! You're not getting it, are you?" Sean sighed. "Obviously I'm not what she wants, or she'd have called."

"And why can't you pick up a fucking phone, Moron?"

"Would you stop bashing me? She's nice…and I feel good when I'm around her."

Tracker waved off his comment. "She's a slut, and she hit on me right before you walked up." Tracker glared at Sean when he started to say something, and then continued as if Sean hadn't said a word. "She called, you know."

Sean frowned, thrown for a confused loop. "What? Who? Shanna called you?"

Tracker sighed and rolled his eyes. "Emma…she called me."

Jay knocked on the door and Emma ran to answer it. She smiled up at Jay as Alex slid past her and grabbed the pizza. Walking towards the kitchen, Alex turned her head. "Hey, Emma? Tip the man and send him on his way," she teased.

"Eat shit, Lexi," Jay muttered with a smirk.

"No thanks. Not on the mood to stick my tongue in your mouth at the moment," she said with a smirk.

Emma laughed and let Jay in. He rolled his eyes and smirked. "You two smoked up earlier, didn't you?"

Emma nodded. "How'd you guess?"

"It's the only time Lexi is a playful bitch instead of just a bitch."

"Hey, fuck you!" she called from the kitchen.

"No thanks…" he called back. "We just did that yesterday."

Emma blushed. "OK…you're both gross. I've still got to eat, you know!"

Jay scooped Emma up, making her squeal with surprise. "Put me down, you oaf!"

Jay laughed and shook his head. "Nope. You're stuck with me for the rest of the day." He carried her into the kitchen and sat down, holding her tightly on his lap and grabbing a slice of pizza. Alex rolled her eyes and laughed at Emma, who was laughing too hard to struggle free.

"Forget it, Nelson. Might as well just relax and grab a slice. Enjoy the moment. He's actually letting you sit there without groping you."

Jay wiggled his eyebrows. "Who says I'm not groping her?"

Emma laughed and slapped his arm. "You're nasty! Let me up!"

After Tracker left, Sean walked around the hospital a bit, trying to figure out what Tracker was up to. Had Emma really called and pranked him like that? Could Emma really say that kind of stuff? If she could, Sean had never heard her talk that way.

Finally, he sighed and walked back into his room. His frown grew when he saw his duffel bag strewn across the room. "What the hell?" he muttered as he began picking up articles of clothing. "OK…who the fuck took my hoody? Where's my-"

"Sean?" he heard her murmur softly from the other side of the curtain.

Sean sighed and rolled his eyes as he walked over. "Shanny? Have you seen my-" his voice cut off as he walked into her side of the room and found her sitting on the bed with a huge grin on her face, wearing nothing but his hoody and beanie.

"You like it?" she asked softly.

He swallowed hard. "Shanny…you're gonna' get us busted. You know that, right?" he asked, even though his legs were carrying him over to the small girl.

She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him over her. "We've got half an hour before they do bed checks," she whispered as her lower body ground against his.

Sean looked up, scanning the room quickly before adjusting himself over her and pressing himself into her. "Hi," he murmured softly, smiling at her.

"Hey, yourself," she whispered back and wrapped her legs eagerly around his waist as they found their rhythm.

Jay, Alex, and Emma had finished eating and were sitting around talking. "So, Alex? Do you need a ride to work? We can drop you off on the way to the Dot," Jay offered.

Alex shook her head. "Thanks, but Paige is picking me up."

He arched a teasing eyebrow at her. "So…you mean you two are a thing again? Does that mean you don't need me around anymore?"

Alex rolled her eyes. "Paige and I aren't together. That was…it was just a thing…and it's over. We're better friends, as strange as that sounds. Oh. And just so you know…as for needing you? I can find plenty. Thanks, though."

Jay frowned. "What? I'm not the only one?"

Alex gave Emma a look and rolled her eyes. "Unlike you, Jay. I stick with one flavor at a time. I'm not like a little kid at a candy store."

Emma snorted, trying to hold back her laugh. It didn't work, and soon Alex had joined her. Jay frowned in confusion. "OK…what gives?"

Emma shook her head and laughed harder. "N-nothi-nothing. I-in-insi-inside j-joke."

Jay frowned and grabbed her hips tightly. "Tell me, or I'll tickle you until you pee yourself! I swear I will!"

Alex snorted and rolled her eyes. "Go ahead. Tickle her. If she pees, where will it go?"

Jay frowned and cringed, realizing Emma was still on his lap. "You two are so…so…unfair!" he pouted.

"Oh, poor Jay!" Emma laughed, laying her forehead in the crook of his neck and hugging him. "Poor baby!"

Jay shoved her teasingly from his lap. "You're not my friend anymore. I'll drive you to work…I'll even drive you home, but that's it. No more talking or hugging…I don't like you anymore!"

Emma laughed and hopped back on his lap. She batted her eyelashes at him innocently. "You know you love me. You can't live without me. As a matter of fact, I'm the very air you breathe."

"Only when you fart," Jay groused. Emma gaped at him in shock and Alex hooted with laughter.

Sean and Shanna lay on her bed, out of breath and covered in sweat.

"So…how many times did you think of her that time?" she asked innocently.

Sean looked over at her with a frown. "What?"

"Emma. How many-"

"Shanna!" Sean groused. "What the hell?"

She shrugged. "I just wondered."

He got up angrily. "Well, don't." He started walking back to his side of the room, but turned to glare at her. "I want my hoody and my hat back."

"Sean! Don't be mad!" she pled.

"Too late." He hopped on his bed and rolled away to look at the wall.

"Sean?" Shanna whispered, touching his back lightly. "I didn't mean to-"

He rolled over and studied her. "What? You didn't mean to what? Steal my stuff? Go talking about things that are none of your business? Oh, wait! I know! You didn't mean to try to tag and bag two Cameron guys both in one day, right?"

She blanched and whispered, "Is that what he told you?" She frowned when he turned away. "Oh, yeah. And let me guess. You believed him, right?" She began pacing back and forth, ranting. "Of course you did. And why wouldn't you? I mean…it's not like we've been best friends for the last month. It's not like I'm the one who was here to talk to you at all hours of the night when you were lonely…when you were having your fucking nightmares! And it's not like I'm the one who's been listening to you piss and moan for the last month about how sad you are that you're too much of a puss to go back to that shit hole town…where you know you belong. Well, you know what? Fuck you, Sean Cameron. Fuck you and your shitty assed brother!"

"Too late. You had one of us…and the other wouldn't touch you with a ten foot pole!"

Emma hugged Alex and hurried out after Jay. "Great! I hope we're not late!"

Jay shrugged. "Chill. We'll make it."

Emma sighed and rolled her eyes. "Jay! Rent's due next week! I need every penny of my pay to make sure I have my half of the rent and still be able to afford to chip in on groceries."

Jay sighed. "Emma…Green Peace? Have they…the cops…have they called you?"

Emma frowned, watching the traffic as they sped by, trying to forget. "Ummm…no. Why? Should they-"

Jay nodded, cutting her off. "They found him. This morning."

Emma paled, but shrugged, staring hard at her chipping fingernail polish. 'I should have painted them instead of toking up today,' she thought to herself absently. Finally, she sighed and looked back up to stare out the windshield. "Sucks to be him, I guess."

Jay shook his head. "Anyway…just…just stay out of the ravine, OK? Word has it that some of his Toronto buddies are out for your…uhhh…" he sighed harshly. "They said they're gonna' do to you what you're claiming he did."

"He did! I'm not lying!" Emma shouted as tears sprang to her eyes. She refused to let them fall.

"Emma, Babe. You don't have to tell me. I was there, remember?" He sighed again. "Just…don't go back there until things cool off. I know Aaron hated him, but…" he shrugged. "He's an asshole, and shit knows where his loyalty really lies."

Emma nodded. "OK…thanks."

Jay pulled in front of the Dot. "No problem." He laid his hand over hers. "Don't worry about it, though. Just stay the hell away from Aaron, and I'll keep an ear out."

"Thanks," she murmured with a small smile as she leaned in to kiss his cheek. "You know…I've changed my mind. You're not as big of an asshole as I previously thought."

Jay's eyes widened and he teasingly put his hand over his heart. "Be still my beating heart! Green Peace doesn't think I'm an asshole!"

She laughed and slapped him playfully. "Oh…you're an asshole. Just…I've met bigger."

He rolled his eyes and chuckled. "You and Alex are way too much alike! It's almost scary."

She wiggled her brows. "Admit it. You think it's kind of hot."

He laughed. "Emma Nelson and hot…hmmm…two words I'd never found synonymous before."

Emma's eyes widened. "Don't hurt yourself Jay! Four syllable words aren't for a beginner such as yourself!"

He rolled his eyes and opened his door. "Get you skinny ass out of my car. We've got about thirty seconds to get clocked in."

Sean woke up, wondering what the strange sound that had woken him up was. The room was dark and he strained to hear. 'There! What the hell was that?' his mind asked as he sat up and listened harder. He climbed out of bed, realizing it was coming from Shanna's side of the room. Rolling his eyes, he yanked the curtain open, half expecting to find her rifling through his stuff again. What he saw made him want to gag.

There was Shanna, lying on her bed, covered in vomit and convulsing. He ran over to her, shocked, and rolled her to her side to prevent her from choking to death. He looked around and found the culprit and quickly began shouting.

"Help! I need help!"

His mind raced as he tried to open her mouth. Her teeth clamped down on his finger and he yelped, but refused to give up as he began digging pill after pill from her mouth.

"Shanna? Shanny? Come on, Baby! I'm sorry, OK? Shanny?"

Where in the hell were the doctors? "I need help, dammit!" he shouted louder.

Suddenly, someone was in the room, but Sean didn't have time to wonder. He saw the standard issue yellow sweat pants and knew it was another patient. "Get help!" he shouted.

He looked up numbly, his mind reeling, as another boy took over. He hit the nurse's call button and stood her up, giving her the Heimlich Maneuver. "Charlie?" he whispered in shock.

Charlie nodded as Shanna began breathing on her own. "Call me Whoopy," he mumbled, laying her back on the bed.

As the nurses began to rush in, Charlie began frantically running around the room screaming his famous "whoop-whoop". Sean was too shocked to speak as two large men came in and ushered the two boys out of the room, leading them into a large waiting room. Sean didn't fight. He just collapsed into a chair in exhaustion.

"She does that for attention, you know."

Sean frowned and his eyes narrowed at the other boy. "What the fuck are you saying?"

Charlie frowned and pushed greasy light brown bangs from his eyes. "Every time Batey threatens to send her home, she does that. It buys her some extra time."

"From what? Going home? Seeing her mom?"

Charlie shrugged. "It's not her mom she's worried about. It's her mom's boyfriend."

Sean was still trying to wrap his mind around Shanna's suicide attempt and Charlie's "recovery". "Why? Does he beat her or what?"

"Or what is more like it." Charlie sighed. "I suppose she told you about getting caught with that girl?"

Sean nodded and Charlie continued. "Well…from what I gather…her boyfriend was in the mix. It wasn't her mom who caught her. It was her mom's old man."

"And he's the one who beat her up?"

Charlie snorted. "If only it were that simple," he muttered, shaking his head. "Nope. Dude beat the hell out of her boyfriend, and the kid woke up just in time to find him screwing the hell out of Shanna…after he'd had a go at her friend Christy. Guess he'd been doing it for years and it pissed him off to find out he was sharing."

Sean paled, his stomach turning. "So, they were having an affair…or he raped her…or what?"

"Who knows? It's hard to say. I think that's why she…well, when she gets a room mate, she hooks up."

"Shit!"

Emma hurried in the door of the Dot and clocked in, grabbing her apron. A tall girl with red hair walked up and handed her a note pad. "Nice hair."

Emma smiled nervously, touching her hair. "Thanks."

The other girl, Janice, nodded. "Well, I'm out. Table three needs their drink orders taken."

Emma nodded and hurried to table three as Janice rushed out, stopping for a moment to flirt with Jay. Emma caught his absent eye roll and chuckled to herself as she got to the table. "Hi, I'm Emma, and I'll be your waitress."

The six customers had given her their orders and Emma turned away. She heard whispers from table five. "That's the little slut who hooked up with Teddy and cried rape." Emma turned to glare pointedly at the people when she heard something that made her drop her tray. "Like any little slut who screwed Aaron and all his friends could ever get raped!"

Jay saw the look on Emma's face and hurried past Janice, shoving through the door. He got there just in time for Emma to walk over to the little blonde who was still muttering insult after insult directed at Emma.

"Excuse me? Miss?" Emma said.

The girl seemed shocked, but leaned back nonchalantly in her seat. "Yeah?"

Emma leaned down, her knuckles on the table. "If you're going to run your big mouth about me…then let's get the facts straight. First off, yeah. I screwed Aaron. He just happened to be my boyfriend at the moment. So, yeah. I screwed him. As for his friends? Nope. They only got blowjobs from me. No sex. So, yeah…maybe that makes me a whore, but I only collected green bracelets." She looked pointedly at the multi-colored bracelets filling the girl's wrist. "As for you…looks like you've been pretty busy."

The girl looked sheepishly at her friends as she slid her arm under the table. Emma just smirked and continued. "OK…now the green is oral…red is for virginity…didn't notice one of those there on you, so I'm guessing you weren't…yellow is just plain sex…how many did you have twelve? Fifteen? Saw a few orange there…just kissing," she muttered with a shrug. "Can't quite remember what the purple is for…necking, maybe? Oh, well! See…I quit going to the ravine for that a while back. But you know what is really funny? Those brown ones. Now…" she turned to Jay. "Correct me if I'm wrong, but doesn't brown mean the most disgusting of all sex acts?"

Jay smirked and nodded. "Yeah…so gross even I won't do it. And I like being a whore!"

"And gee, Jay! She had six of those!"

Her friends backed away from her a bit. The girl turned red with fury. "Eat shit, you little bitch!" she whispered.

Emma smirked and picked up a drink from the table. "You need your mouth washed out, young lady." Her eyes swept over the other girl's body, landing on her seat with a frown. "Among other things," she muttered as she shot the cold pop in the other girl's face.

The enraged girl just sat there gaping as Emma leaned in again. "Ever been hit in the face so hard your limbs went completely numb? Then woke up to find yourself hurting and bruised to hell and back with teeth marks over every inch of your body and you don't remember having sex, but knowing someone had it with you? No? Then you have no fucking idea what I went through!" she murmured through gritted teeth. "Next time, get your facts straight before you run your little cock sucker about shit you know nothing about!"

Before the girl could respond, Emma turned on her heel and stormed off. She was shaking so hard with fury that she couldn't carry the drinks. Jay walked up and took her tray, kissing her temple. "I've got it. Go catch your breath, Super Woman…and be thankful the manager didn't see that little stunt. Emma smiled weakly and nodded. When Jay returned, he leaned and whispered in her ear, "Table three wanted me to tell you that they think you're cool for not taking that chick's shit."

Emma laughed. "Guess I should go take their orders and tell them thanks."

Jay nodded as Emma grabbed her tray, feeling more confident, and walked over to table three grinning.