Category: Angst / Adventure / Romance

Pairing: Hector / Steph / Lester

Rating: R for language and some vague referencing.

Summary: How will Hector take the news?

Disclaimer: None of the characters belong to me, they are the sole property of Janet Evanovich, I'm just having fun with them. I promise I'll put them back then I'm done.

Warning!! Have you caught on yet that Hector's history is not filled with hearts and flowers? Good.. If It's bothering you, move along, it's eventually going to get worse.

Author's Note: Thank you all for having the patience of Saints. And being insanely wonderful Reviewers! Real life just hasn't been willing to give me the time or patience to write the past few days. Feel free to spank me if it's necessary. It's not all my fault though.. Hector ran away screaming when we woke up and found three little ten year old girls in the living room playing the Wii.. He ran.. I took some Excedrin and thumped my head on the desk. I should get some kinda extra credit for not running.. And Mucho thanks go to the Beta Extraordinaire, who puts up with my insanity.

Breaking The Habit

7

"Ranger sent me up to talk to you," The amusement dropped from his face entirely as he spoke. The light in his eyes even dimming behind the seriousness of whatever it was that had brought him there. "There was a body pulled from the brush at the side of Route One halfway between here and Newark, about 45 minutes ago. Going by description from the local police bands and the involvement of a Gang Task Force, Ranger's pretty sure the victim is the same man who was shooting at you this morning."

OoOoOoO

Every speck of air in my body left in one giant whoosh.

A moment was wasted being grateful that Lester had been the messenger, before the reality of his words hit me full force.

My body shuddered as my head sank into my hands and images flashed unbidden behind my eyes.

OoOoO

The day I'd gone to live with Rufio and the others. The way he looked up at me like I just might be his savior. Two days later when I had proven to be exactly that, saving him from a drunken beating from our foster father. Shielding his small frame with my own as the worst of Felix's blows landed soundly on my back.

The months spent bonding over shared hardships in that terrible place. The day Rufio finally convinced me to run away and become our own family. Those months on the street, relying on no one but each other. Until La Araña found us.

The small bedroom we'd called our own for so many years after LK took us in. We'd sleep in that small bed curled around each other like animal cubs searching for warmth. Even as we slowly aged from adolescents into teenagers, we just grew closer in that little room. Running our errands for the Crowns during the day, returning to our little hovel to curl into each others arms every night.

That first trip to Juvie, the first time we were separated. It took so long to get back to him I thought for certain he'd be gone. Lost to me like everyone else I'd ever loved. That was the day I realized that what I felt for Rufio was love, in the truest sense. The day I'd had to leave him behind. Two years, three months and four days they'd kept us apart. When I finally made it back to him, he was different, withdrawn.

I'd spent two years in my own private hell, and the only thing that had kept me going was the thought that Rufio was being taken care of, that I could someday go home to him.

I knew something had happened while I was gone, but no one would talk. Not even Rufio.

Now he's gone. And I may never know how they tore us apart.

Every moment we'd had since then had been equal parts pain laced with pleasure. The makings of nightmares and screaming orgasms alike.

We learned how to take another persons life together.

We learned how to make each other whimper and scream in ecstasy until there was no choice but to bury ourselves in each other until the focus narrowed down and we were the only ones left in the world. But the world always came back with a vengeance. And the last few years it seemed as if every time we collided with the real world again, Rufio left a little piece of himself behind. He just hadn't seemed whole anymore.

I couldn't save him.

OoOoO

When the memories finally eased their grip on me, I raised watery eyes to meet Lester's sympathetic green ones. Leaving me to wonder how much of what I'd just relived had been obvious.

"I'm sorry. I didn't realize he was a friend." A genuine edge of guilt traced his voice.

I shook my head, clearing my throat of the emotion that clogged it before I tried to explain.

"It's ok. There's no reason you would have. He was shooting at me earlier. It's just..." I trailed off, not knowing how to explain the dynamic of my relationship with Rufio. I lifted my eyes to the ceiling for a moment, hoping to find life's answers there. When I found Lester's face again he was offering me a small smile, and encouragement shined from his eyes like the beacon of a lighthouse. I suddenly wanted to tell him every bit of my grisly history. Thank God for self-control.

"If you don't want to tell me that's fine, but I'm interested enough to listen, and it might be easier if you got it out." He looked so genuine and honest sitting there on the other end of the couch. What harm could it do?

"His name was Rufio. He was my Lost Boy." A sad smile flitted across my face and somewhere in the back of my mind I could hear his voice as he explained his namesake to me. "He was my friend, my brother. My Lover. Rufio was the only family I've known for a very long time. We were each other's everything for so long."

"I'm so sorry….. Koa." He hesitated over my name causing me to drag my eyes to his again. Catching the light of shared sadness behind them told me he understood exactly what I was trying to tell him, on a personal level. I couldn't stop myself from wondering who had been lost to him.

"Hector. My name is Hector Aguila." I held his eyes as the truths continued to pour from my lips. "Only the streets call me Koa."

"Hector." He tested my name on his lips, rolling the 'r' on the end the way it was supposed to be. And I hate to admit even now that it sounded good. Damn good. Still does. "But why? After so long, being so close, what could make him turn on you like that?" His voice sounded just as puzzled as I felt.

"I don't know. The only logical solution I can come up with is that someone wanted me gone, and they managed to hold something over Rufio's head to make him do it. His death.. This soon.. Has all the signs of an LK drop." Once again my head hung in sadness as I contemplated what those bastards had done to the man I loved. This was the final cut. There was nothing left now to tie me to them. They had taken what I loved from me and now I had no reason not to take them apart piece by piece.

"That's fucked up."

"Yeah. No shit."

We sat in silence for a few long minutes. I didn't know what he was thinking, but me, I was trying to imagine a future without Rufio in it, and damning LK for making me face it.

"Tell your boss I've got his answer for him. It's up to him if he wants it tonight, or if he still wants to wait until morning." My voice stayed surprisingly steady as I told this virtual stranger that I was about to drastically change my life forever. It made sense. Everyone I'd ever cared about was among the Angels now. I may as well start fighting for them. What better way, what better reason, to turn my life around could there possibly be?

"Don't worry about it tonight man. Ranger's offer will still be there in the morning." The words tumbled slowly from his lips as he rose and made his way to the door. Catching in his throat like there was more he wanted to say but wouldn't allow himself to.

"Thank you Lester. For telling me, and for listening." Hesitant, quiet. It wasn't often I entrusted as much information about who I truly was to another living soul. Rufio was the only other person that knew just how deep our relationship ran. Sharing even that little with Lester hadn't been planned.. But it had felt right as it came out of me. Like he understood what I meant. How I felt. There hadn't been much of that in my life before.

"Honestly Hector, it's no problem. I don't mind listening, and you seem like you could use a friend. My offer from earlier still stands. If you need anything at all, you can contact me with the intercom, I'll be in my apartment the rest of the night. I'll come by in the morning with some breakfast and then we can go talk with Ranger. Your secret's safe with me." He stood in the open doorway just long enough to see my nod of agreement before turning and quietly shutting the door behind him.

OoOoOoOo

I was once again torn from my recollection by Stephanie. This time she wasn't trying to get away, she had simply settled her hand on the back of my wrist, her slender fingers stroking gently back and forth across my skin.

I lowered my eyes from the ceiling to meet hers and found a sadness that hadn't been there last time I looked, a wateriness around the edges.

"I'm so sorry you lost him." Her voice wavered, as if she'd actually felt the pain I'd suffered at losing him. I wanted to comfort her. I wanted to NOT be the source of her sadness. I brought my other arm around, settling my hand over hers where it laid on my wrist.

"It's ok Hermosa, I haven't lost him. He's always with me. Right here." I brought my hand back from hers, laying it on my chest over my heart. "And here," I said, rolling to my stomach.

It was only a moment before I felt Lester's fingers gently running down my back. Tracing languidly over the letters of Rufio's name, twined in thick black ink throughout the wings of the tribal angel tattooed on my back.

There were other names woven in there as well, but those were other stories and Stephanie wasn't ready to hear all of that just yet. It would take time and a lot of explaining, but if things kept going like this… I held out hope that maybe she really would understand, and maybe even love me for who I am after all.

The End

A/N 2.0: Please don't shoot me!! It's not really over. Habit is just the first in a series of stories that map out Hector's past. The next installment has been promised by the man himself, since it was his insane idea to leave it where we did. So… hate mail, questions, and marital requests can all be directed Hector's way…