Hello again! Ugh, I must admit that I'm kinda petrified releasing this chapter for all of you! I apologize ahead of time if it gets kind of "cringey" or slow, but I promise it will get better. Right now, I'm hoping to set a theme and lead up to the plot.

Anyway, thank you to all those that read the prologue and stayed around to see this! Please, some feedback would be greatly appreciated! For now, thank you for giving me a chance. I love y'all!

Crash!

Kenzie's eyes snapped open at the sound of something loudly falling, and breaking, from the other room. She immediately looked to her right and found her loudly snoring fiancee draped across the bed. She tried waking him by tapping and shoving him, but it didn't work.

She peeked over his tattooed back and spotted the mess he had left the night before. She knew what that was all too well. He had been on a high for God knows how long, he wouldn't be awake for a while.

So, that left her to figure out what had made the noise. Knowing the apartment building she lived in, she grabbed the broken piece of wood that had come from one of their doorframes and slowly tip-toed her way to the kitchen/living room.

Kenzie kicked away clothes that lay scattered across their cramped bedroom and kept her back against the wall, creeping her way down the narrow, short hallway. She could hear shuffling coming from the other room and braced herself to whatever or whomever might be there.

Tightening her grip on the broken door frame, she spun around and faced her possible intruder.

"'Mornin', Mama."

Her oldest son carried a bowl of cereal over to their small kitchen table and crawled onto one of the shabby green dining chairs. His long, shaggy blonde curls stuck up in all directions and he still wore his Batman pajamas.

Kenzie let out a relieved, yet humiliated sigh and threw the piece of door frame down the hall she just came from. "Good morning, Kellan." Kenzie returned his greeting and pushed back her messy hair from her face.

"Oh, uh, good morning…"

Another voice made her jump. A man had just exited the bathroom directly behind her and nonchalantly walked past her, wearing nothing but his boxers. His eyes were bloodshot and bags set heavily under his eyes. He looked like he had been awake for three straight days. She wouldn't be surprised if he had.

Kenzie's heart beat rapidly in her chest as she watched him trudge into the kitchen and start rummaging her cabinets. She quickly filled the gap between her and her son as the man continued to search for something to eat.

"Who the hell are you?" She demanded, standing in front of Kellan's chair and placing a hand on his tiny shoulder.

The man pulled out a box of cereal, shoved his hand in the box, and came up with a handful of Cheerios. "Mason...In 415." He answered through a mouthful of cereal.

"What are you doing in my house?" Kenzie asked, a little bewildered this time, as she examined him. He was very shaggy and sickly looking. He was skin-and-bones skinny and pale, like he didn't go outside very much or for long periods of time. His dark hair was unkempt and messy like he was trying to make bedhead a trend. It didn't seem to be going very well for him.

Mason glanced behind Kenzie and Kellan and pointed back towards the bedrooms, dropping cereal in the process. "Yo, he invited me, alright? Said it'd be cool. He didn't say nothin 'bout having an old lady."

Kenzie arched a brow. "Excuse me?"

Mason shrugged. "Y'know...whatever you are to him."

Kenzie growled under her breath and rubbed her palms against her face. He had promised he wouldn't invite anymore potheads to their apartment! Sometimes, she wondered why she believed a single word he said.

Peeking from in between her fingers, she glanced at the clock to see what time it was. 7:45 a.m. The calendar was placed right beside it, so from the corner of her eye she saw a date that was circled and underlined many times.

Kellan's First Day

"Oh, shit! Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit!" Kenzie cursed, snatching Kellan by the arm mid-bite.

"Mama!" Kellan whined, dropping his spoon on the table and spilling some of the contents from the bowl.

For now, Kenzie didn't care about the mess she had just made or the fact that she interrupted his breakfast. All she could think was his first day of Kindergarten started in fifteen minutes and they were already about thirty minutes behind.

With Kellan dragging along behind her, Kenzie rushed into his room and flung open his closet door. On the top was a horizontal pole that hung up his clothes and the first one there was his first-day-of-school outfit. She didn't take time to look at it before throwing it on his bed.

"Honey, do you remember how to put on your own clothes? Please, help Mama and put on your new school outfit." Kenzie commanded gently in a soft voice, careful not to wake up the sleeping toddler just in front of her. At least, not yet anyways. She was hoping her fiancee, the boys' father, would be awake and sober to help her but it looked like she was going to have to do this on her own.

Kellan rubbed his eyes and looked at the outfit on his bed. "Mama, I'm hungry!" He whined.

Kenzie was standing over her youngest son's crib and glanced back over at Kellan. "I know, baby, I know and I'm sorry. I'll try to get you something to eat on the way, okay? We just...we don't have time!" She whispered apologetically, pushing back her wild hair.

Her 18-month-old, Bryce, started to squirm and whimper. Kenzie whimpered as well knowing fully well the waterworks that was in store. Bryce was a nightmare in the morning! How she wished Tristan, her fiancee, was awake to help her!

Kellan obeyed his mother and started peeling away his pajamas, moaning and groaning at any effort he had to make. Bryce was now really waking up as he immediately started crying and screaming at the interruption of his peaceful slumber.

"Oh, I know, baby...I know…" Kenzie tried to comfort and calm him, but it was useless. She was just going to have to fight through his morning phase long enough to get Kellan to school.

Bryce rubbed his eyes and continued to scream as Kenzie laid him down on Kellan's bed, changing his diaper.

"Mama! I need help with my buttons." Kellan called out, even though she was just a few feet away from him, and shrugged on his plaid, button-up shirt.

Kenzie glanced over and noticed the seams sticking out and the awkward position of the buttons. She wanted to scream, but resisted the urge to react -or overreact. "Your shirt's inside-out, baby." She informed him as calmly as she could while wrestling with the squirming, crying toddler.

"I'm still gonna need help with buttons." Kellan mumbled and peeled off his shirt.

"Mama's really busy, baby. You're gonna have to help me out...please?" Kenzie asked desperately, deep blue eyes searching for his matching ones.

Kellan just nodded and fixed his shirt. Kenzie didn't know how she was going to possibly get him and Bryce dressed and out the door on time. The last thing she wanted was for him to be late on his very first day of school! What happened to her alarm clock? She could've sworn she set it around 6 o'clock!

With a sigh, Kenzie tried to push away those thoughts and focus on the boys. Attempting to put on Bryce's shorts, she suddenly thought about her own appearance. Glancing down for a short moment, she realized she was still wearing her pajamas.

"Oh, shit!" She murmured as quietly as possible, careful not to let either of the boys hear, and blinked away her aggravated tears.

Her efforts had failed when Kellan, shirt on the right side now, walked up to her so she could button his shirt. "You owe me seven dollars, Mama!" He told her with a sly smile.

Kenzie blushed as her shaky fingers worked on the white buttons. "I'm sorry, baby, Mama's just really stressed out this much. I promise to put seven new dollars in your piggy bank after school, okay?"

Kellan tossed his blonde curls out of his eyes and watched her fingers. "Is Daddy gonna go with us?" He asked hesitantly.

Kenzie's stomach dropped at the question and she was silent as she buttoned the last button. "Daddy...had a long night last night. He worked a lot. Don't worry, I'll make sure he's gonna be there when I pick you up."

Kellan nodded half-heartedly and trudged away from her. Her heart broke as she watched him pick out his new tennis shoes from the cramped closet. At the same time, though, she was furious. Tristan promised to be there, and help her, on Kellan's first day! She was tired of it. Tired of everything…

"I think I can tie my own shoes, Mama." Kellan announced proudly and crawled up on the bed where Bryce was beginning to crawl down with nothing but his shorts on.

She was quick to catch him, much to his disappointment, and pulled on a simple t-shirt that Tristan had picked out the night before.

PROOF MY DADDY SUCKS AT PULLING OUT

Kenzie blushed a darker shade at the inappropriate t-shirt and glared at the wall closest to their bedroom. What was he thinking picking this one out? She tossed it aside, looking for a new shirt for him, but realized that there was nothing else. There was a heap of them in a laundry basket, but she knew there were all stained from previous meals and outdoor adventures at their grandparent's house.

"No, no, no, no!" Kenzie whined and placed her face in her hands. She didn't know how much more she could take. Everything that could go wrong seemed to be happening.

Picking the awful t-shirt back up, she grabbed one of Kellan's old jackets and placed it over the t-shirt. "We'll find you a better after we drop off Bubbie." She muttered to the red-eyed boy who was beginning to calm down.

Bryce stretched his little arms towards her and clenched and unclenched his pudgy fists at her. Kenzie's shoulders sagged when she saw that he was in his "Mama-carry-me-everywhere" mood this morning. "Of course..c'mon." She muttered throwing him on her hip.

"Okay, Kellan, all dressed?" She asked as she tried to finger comb Bryce's wild blonde curls back.

Kellan answered by jumping off the bed and running to the kitchen, probably to finish his cereal. Now that the boys were dressed, she had to change into something more presentable than her baggy, bleach-stained t-shirt and plaid shorts.

During their trip to the hallway, Bryce started to whimper again and she knew why. He must be starving, just like Kellan. For the tenth time that week, she wished that he was old enough to eat solid food like his older brother. She couldn't wait until he had more teeth. Sometimes, she worried about her son's development. Kellan had twice as many teeth at his age. She had talked to his doctor and many other mothers and they all said it's normal. Still, she was jealous every time someone half Bryce's age was popping out more teeth than he was.

Peeking into the living room, she saw Kellan eating cereal silently with Mason. She hated him being there, but he seemed innocent enough. Besides, she was running out of hands and time.

"Hey! Uh...Mason, could you put some water to boil? Um, please?" She called out from the hallway, fighting with a squirming Bryce.

"Uh, sure thing."

With that, she dashed to her room, kicking aside the trash and dirty clothes along the way. Tristan was still asleep when she stepped in, but he seemed to be more conscious than before. He murmured inaudible words as he started to twist and turn under the sheets. At this point, she didn't care if she woke him up. She'd be doing all of them a favor if she did.

"Go wake Dada, Bryce!" Kenzie encouraged while placing him on the messy bed. To her surprise, and relief, Bryce immediately crawled after the mountain of sheets that was cleverly disguised as his father.

She set to work finding something decent to wear as Bryce cuddled Tristan's side and started poking his nose. Kenzie managed to find a black-and-white-striped t-shirt and a pair of ripped jeans. She hated them and only wore them once, but she was running out of time. It was New Mexico, it was still warm, right?

"Dada...Dada, da da da da." Bryce chanted softly, messing with Tristan's moppy blonde curls, the same as both boys. Bryce giggled as Tristan started to grunt at his attempts of waking him up.

"Beat it, punk!" He grumbled, swatting his tiny fingers away.

Bryce was persistent though. Taking him a good minute or two, Bryce stood up on the mattress and started to bounce around him. Kenzie couldn't hide the smile as she watched him bounce around the bed. Normally, she'd protest against this kind of thing, but she'd let it slide just this once.

One dark brown eye peeled open, followed by another one. Relief flooded through Kenzie when she saw that he was able to open his eyes. As much as she hated him sometimes, she was terrified of losing him to his addictions.

"Bryce! Stop it!" Tristan ordered, voice louder than his previous mumbling, and the little bouncing boy halted.

Kenzie's smile faded at his rough tone, but it didn't seem to faze Bryce. He giggled the most perfect giggle, in Kenzie's biased opinion, and wobbled over to his father. Tristan caught him and examined his t-shirt, beaming with a bright, dimpled smile.

"Shit, little man, I might be rethinkin' that shirt after your modelin'!" Tristan commented in a gruff, sleepy tone.

Kenzie spun around, jeans unbuttoned and unzipped, and raised a brow. "Tristan! C'mon, I'm trying to give them a curse-free environment!"

Tristan sat Bryce down on his lap and rested his chin on the top of Bryce's head. "Funny, I just heard a very curse-full environment about seven times." He remarked with a devilish grin.

Kenzie blushed, for the umpteenth time that morning. "So, you've been awake this whole time?" Tristan nodded, shaking Bryce's head in the process. Kenzie sighed and rolled her eyes, finishing dressing herself. "Well, now I know for sure Kellan's your kid since you two seem to count my every word."

"Has anybody ever told you how sexy you are when you hate my guts." Tristan purred, letting Bryce crawl from his lap. With that freedom, he stood up -wearing nothing but his pajama bottoms- and stood a foot in front of her.

Her blush grew deeper, but she was still able to push him away. "Yeah, and the last time I believed it, I ended up pregnant."

Tristan leaned in, placed a warm hand on her waist, flooding her senses with a wave of goosebumps, and lightly traced her neck with his lips. "Actually, two times...wanna go for a third?"

Kenzie gulped loudly and played with her hair. She hated the effect he had on her! "Tristan, I'm trying to get our son to school on time! Which, by the way, what happened to the alarm?"

Tristan, chuckling at her reaction, walked back over to the bed and plopped down near the edge. "Wha', didn't you hear it? Damn thing coulda woke the lower floor."

Running a brush through her messy hair, she answered. "Not the first time. That's what the snooze button's for….you hit snooze, right?"

Tristan was silent as he looked over at the alarm clock, noticing the mess of drugs he left behind too. He was quick to shove that away into the drawer and looked back up at Kenzie. "Nah, I thought you heard it and got up, so I turned it off."

Kenzie stopped mid-brush and gawked at him. "Tristan! Why would you do that?! You should've hit snooze! Jesus Christ!"

"Why's it matter now? You're late, right?"

Kenzie shot a glare at him, but she knew he was right. "Are you going with us? Or are you going to keep Mason company?" She questioned interrogatively.

Ignoring her threatening tone, Tristan chuckled and reached for his jeans on the floor. "Oh, yeah...I forgot about that rat bastard."

She didn't even try to protest when she saw something fall out of Tristan's jean pocket. It was a small, plastic bag and she wouldn't have noticed it if it didn't contain something very serious. Her heart dropped to her stomach at the sight of the blue crystals.

Tristan followed her petrified gaze and saw the little bag that he had tried so hard to hide from her. He was quick to snatch it and stuff it back into its original pocket, but it didn't save him from the argument that was going to ensue.

"What...what the hell is that?" She asked breathlessly, face drained of blood.

"Nothin', Kenzie." Tristan muttered, changing into his jeans.

Bryce crawled off the bed and ran into the living room with Kellan and Mason, leaving the two of them alone. Kenzie gave him a second to finishing buttoning his jeans before speaking. It gave her the perfect time to gain her composure as well.

"We both know that's not nothing, Tristan. Where did you get it?" Kenzie grabbed Tristan's arm as he tried to walk by, keeping him in the conversation. She could feel him tense under her grasp, but she chose to ignore it. This was too important to back down.

Tristan's red-rimmed, dark brown eyes bore into hers before answering. "Mason knew a guy. I figured it was some knock-off shit, Ken."

Kenzie blinked a few times before loosening her grip on his arm. He didn't seem to be going anywhere. "Are you...you saying it's not some knock-off…?"

Running his hands through his messy hair, he sat down on the edge of the bed. "The dude was saying that it was 96% pure. I thought it was a crock of horseshit, but...Kenzie...that's Heisenberg grade."

"You tried it? Jesus, Tristan! How are you even awake?"

Tristan scoffed. "It was Mason's, he's the one who bought it. I took a hit and after seeing how pure it was, I let him lose his mind with that shit. The rest is his damage."

Kenzie was surprised at his self-control. For years, all anyone had to do was mention any kind of substance and he'd be first in line for whatever they offered. She wanted to congratulate him for resisting, but she felt now wasn't the time. They could celebrate a little progress later.

"Aren't you going to be late?" Tristan asked, obviously hoping to throw her off the topic at hand. It didn't seem to throw her too much though. "You should probably go now, considering Mason ate Kellan's lunch last night."

That did it. "What?! What the hell, Tristan! Why didn't you stop him?" Kenzie was steaming now and she glared through the wall, more than likely at Mason. "You know what, I want him gone by the time I get home. I mean it, Tristan! No more random guys over! Especially when you're getting high, for Christ's sake!"

Tristan just nodded as she stormed out of the room. With a relieved sigh, he flopped back down onto the mattress and tugged the pillow over his face.

"Kellan, Bryce! Come on, boys, we gotta go now!" Kenzie called out, rounding up her purse, diaper bag, Kellan's backpack, and now-empty lunchbox from the fridge.

Kellan finished tieing Bryce's shoes, something Kenzie was actually surprised of and would have commented on if she weren't too preoccupied at the moment, and waited for Kenzie at the door while she filled her flask with warm water, the water Mason boiled for her.

When she finished pouring the warm water, she faced Mason and held out her available hand.

"What?"

"Tristan told me that you ate my son's lunch last night. I need at least 20 bucks to cover what you stole." She informed simply, curving her fingers twice.

Mason blinked. "Why the hell 20? There wasn't much in there, yo."

Kenzie arched a brow. "It's around $20, trust me. There's bread, almond butter 'cause of Kellan's peanut allergy, jelly, chips, and his favorite juice that was actually the last one of his juice and now he won't get to drink on his first day of school. So, yeah, I think $20 is a pretty reasonable offer."

Mason frowned, but eventually pulled out his wallet and handed her a twenty-dollar bill. "There, better?" Kenzie nodded and shoved it into her pocket. Mason paused and glanced down at Kellan who was watching behind his mother. "Hey, have a good first day, lil' man."

"Thank you, Mr. Mason." Kellan replied shyly as his mother took his hand and ran them out the door.

"I'm serious, dude. That's what everyone's been saying around town. I'm not trying to bring back bad memories, I'm just tryin' to warn you."

Flynn looked over at his childhood friend and arched a brow. "They're just r-rumors, Louis. I, I need proof before go-going in half-assed like, like that."

"I'm tellin' you, man. Everyone's been talkin' about it and it won't be too long before you and your guys find some in some junkie's hiding place." Louis grinned at his friend's reasoning, leaning against the cash register.

"We fi-find anything, you'll be the f-first to know." Flynn shot back, jokingly straightening his uniform.

After the death of the "great Heisenberg," Flynn and his family have been doing very well, or as well as could be expected. Through Gretchen and Elliott's surprising and generous offering, he was able to get the physical therapy he needed and wanted for so long. He still had his occasional moments where he felt he needed his elbow crutches. Then, there were days where he felt like he could run a marathon three times over.

He went into the police academy after high school and after the completion of his therapy, and now he's been happily serving the city of Albuquerque for about five or six years. It was hard coming back to the town he was born and raised in, especially after previous circumstances, but it was time to move on. Time to stop letting the past control him and his family. Besides, it was good being able to see and spend time with his best friend, Louis.

"H-how did y-you hear about..about that here, an-anyway?" He asked, looking around the grocery store Louis had been working at for the past four months.

Louis looked around as well, looking behind his shoulder -to which Flynn rolled his eyes. "There's a lot of conversations 'round here, man. C'mon, you of all people should know how many junkies parade the streets every day."

Flynn scoffed even though he knew was right. This was the best place to hear any type of rumors, especially involving the "extracurriculars." "It's a g-good thing you're here, then...Wh-who else would tell me this shit i-if you went to college." Flynn joked, a crooked, wry smile pulling at his lips.

Louis arched a brow, knowing full well what he was insinuating for the third time that week. "Ha ha, you're hilarious. Look, man, I'm all proud of what you've done, but it's not meant for everyone, 'kay? Way too much commitment for some."

The two shared a laugh, Flynn shaking his head at his friend's nonsense. It still surprised him how much had changed since they were teenagers. They always talked about doing great things, or at least college. Perhaps he was right, though, college is hard and it may not be meant for everyone.

"Speaking of commitment...look at this tragedy." Louis snapped him out of his thoughts when he tapped him on the shoulder and nodded toward the entrance.

Outside, he could see a run-down, used car pull in front of the store and a little boy, about five years old, jumped out from the backseat and ran towards the door. A, seemingly, stressed-out, exhausted woman was quick to remove herself from the front seat and called out for him.

"Kellan Jonathan! Get back over here and wait for me!"

The little boy, Kellan, groaned and stomped back over to his mother, who was digging through the backseat. When she resurfaced, she came up with a toddler boy on her hip and her purse and diaper bag on either shoulder. To say she seemed busy was an understatement.

"That there looks like my own personal hell." Louis teased, watching the mother help her son push open the front door.

"Dude, kn-nock it off. It looks like she h-has it hard it enough without a-assholes like you making fun." Flynn scolded, furrowing his brows.

"Yo, I'm kidding, alright? Like with the college thing, some people are designed for...that and some aren't. I mock everything, you know me." He said defensively, holding his hands up at his sides.

The pair watched the juggling mother as they entered. As if sensing their stares, she suddenly looked up and offered a forced, greeting smile. Louis responded with a two-finger salute while Flynn gave her a full smile. She didn't stick around long enough to see his as she turned down an aisle and called after her eldest son.

"You know what, I think parents pick out middle names by how easy it is for them to scream it at you. Something that rolls off the tongue real nice, you know? Kellan Jonathan, kind of a mouthful, in my humble opinion."

Flynn looked back at him and arched a brow. "I-if that's the case...your parents should've stopped a-at asshole."

"Adorable, real cute...Hilarious!" Louis laughed mockingly.

Flynn just shook his head and looked around the store. He didn't start his shift for another forty minutes or so, so he had a few minutes to kill. He always came to visit Louis where he worked just before work, when he could. This just happened to be one of those days. He loved these days.

An aggravated squeal brought his attention down one aisle, he knew that cry. After years of living with an infant sister, and years of being his mother's only help at home, he knew exactly what was behind that cry. He knew which mouth it came from as well.

The young mother that had just came in was standing in front of the lunch meat aisle, desperately pleading with her crying toddler. He was on the ground now, stomping angrily and reaching his arms up for her. She was a little preoccupied at the moment.

Her shaky hands tried to pour the right amount of water from a flask into a bottle, but ended up spilling the majority of it around her, to which she cursed repeatedly at. The oldest boy, Kellan, was naming off the variety of Lunchables displayed before him. It was obvious that she wasn't exactly in the most stable condition at the moment and two loud kids weren't helping her any.

"I'll...I'll see you later, Louis." Flynn said, breaking the silence, and reached over and patted him on the shoulder.

"Wait, what? Where're you going?" Louis paused, watching Flynn walk toward the aisles instead of the door. He wasn't just browsing the inventory, he was heading for the aisle the busy mother was in. Knowing that, Louis rolled his eyes and scoffed. "Dude, seriously?"

"To protect and..to serve, remember?" He said sarcastically, waving at the badge on his uniform.

Louis waved him off and poked at the beef jerky by the cash register. "That joke died five years ago...wasn't even funny then."

Flynn ignored his sarcastic remark and straightened his back, hands rested on his belt. He marched proudly towards the anxious-looking mother, who was now digging through her diaper bag in search of the tin of formula, he presumed. She had placed the bottle on the shelf behind her and the bag on the ground.

She didn't notice him approaching until he was a few feet away. Her eyes found his boots and travelled up until they met his own. In an instant, the light skin of her face drained into a ghostly pale shade. Her thin hands shook harder as she pulled them from the bag and she seemed to have trouble standing up.

"Are...Are you okay, ma'am?" He asked hesitantly, noticing the drastic change.

She seemed at a loss for words, her lips quivering as she tried to find the right words. Kellan was back with his Lunchable and stood beside Bryce who had turned his crying into a complaining whimper.

"I, uh, I'm fine...thank you for asking...These diaper bags are damn near black holes..or something." She managed to stutter out breathlessly, holding the container of formula in a white-knuckle grasp.

Flynn smiled and glanced down at the contained before offering a hand. "I,I saw that you were having a bit of trouble and...thought I'd offer some help."

The woman followed his glance and loosened her grip on the container. "Oh, I'm sorry...I've just been a huge ball of...well, nerves lately and I, I didn't mean to spill it everywhere. I promise to clean it up...It's just, the first day of school and being majorly late I...Kellan, I mean, my son's first day, not mine…" She paused to take a deep breath and grinned nervously. "I'm sorry, I'm..a bit of a mess right now."

Flynn just smiled politely. "It's...okay, ma'am. Please, may I…?" He pushed his hand closer towards her, pointing towards the formula.

The woman, realizing what he was asking, let him take the container and the bottle. "Um, do you...I mean, do you know how..?"

Flynn peeled back the lid and looked up at her from underneath his lashes. "I actually have a much younger sister...I, I helped with a few things when I was a...a teenager."

The woman nodded twice with a forced grin and watched him fix the bottle. She seemed so...on edge and he didn't know why. It wasn't just the stresses of young motherhood. He had seen many women while on the job that he easily learned from; he could easily spot out who was hiding something.

Of course, that didn't mean she was hiding something like they were. He was sure she wasn't involved in anything illegal, just unlucky circumstances. If that was the case, he had more in common with this stranger than most of the people he called friends.

"There...a-all set."

She smiled her thanks and handed the bottle to her young son, automatically reaching out for her. With a sigh, she bent over and picked him up. He then proceeded to wrap his mother's hair around his tiny fingers and relaxed his head on her shoulder. Flynn chuckled at the sight and watched him greedily gulp away, what he figured was, his breakfast.

"Thank you, Officer…"

"Please, you can just, just call me Flynn." He finished, reaching out and offering a handshake. "U-unless, I'm a-arresting you."

She returned the gesture with her available hand and giggled half-heartedly. "I'll, uh, try to keep that in mind. Thank you, Flynn, it was really...nice what you did. It's been an...insane morning and it's nice to have a little help, you know."

"You're welcome. Besides, i-it's kinda in the job...description," he paused, making a waving motion towards the badge on his uniform, "to serve and protect."

"Shucks...and here I was thinking I was special." She joked, finally calming down.

Flynn smiled and glanced down at his watch. It was time to go, probably for her as well. "I-it's been a pleasure meeting you…"

"McKenzie."

"McKenzie." He nodded and offered another handshake. "I hate to up and leave, b-but…"

"Oh, no, it's fine. I really should be finishing up anyway. Thank you, again."

The two said their goodbyes and Flynn waved to his friend before exiting the building. All the while, he couldn't stop thinking about the woman. That name...it sounded so familiar. He knew the case that came to mind as well, one of his colleagues was on it and told him all about what they found.

Surely, though, there was no way this woman, McKenzie, was the same woman. She couldn't be the same McKenzie that was tied to Tristan Reese. Someone like her involved with the likes of him...it didn't seem real. Then again, looks could be rather deceiving.

He learned that the hard way.

The trio jogged down the school's hallway, Kenzie praying that they hadn't already started class. The last thing she wanted for him was to be the very last one on his first day

have everyone stare at him when he finally showed up. She knew that kind of embarrassment all throughout high school.

She was afraid to even check the time because she already knew she was very, very late. She just didn't want to know exactly how late.

She was able to repack a lunch for Kellan and get them both in the car when she left the grocery store. Out of paranoia, she watched the cars behind her as she drove to the school. Luckily, there were no cop cars following her, even from a long distance.

After finding the Blue in her own home, she was on edge. Finding a cop five feet in front of her didn't necessarily help her anxiety. He seemed friendly enough, like he was just trying to help a struggling young mother. She just hoped she didn't do enough to raise suspicion. The last thing she needed to deal with was police.

"Mama, my class was right there!"

Kenzie skidded to a halt and looked over her shoulder. Looking at it now, she remembered the door from open house and internally scolded herself. She was getting too unfocused. All that mattered now, in this moment, was getting Kellan to class and making sure he was well settled.

The door was wide open, along with a few others, and decorated from top-to-bottom. The background was blue and along the side was brown, designed to be a tree with some branches. Along the branch were small, animated birds with the kids names on them. They must've already had a list of all the students' names. On the bottom was a much larger bird, probably the "mother" of the bunch and just above the bird's head was the teacher's name.

Ms. Martin's Nest

She looked at the names on the birds and spotted Kellan's on the middle branch. A strange wave of emotion flooded over her seeing his name. It was official. He was in school and a part of class. Tears pricked her eyes and she just stared at the door.

She still couldn't believe he was already five years old. It seemed like it was just yesterday that she and her high school friends were standing over the sink in the school's bathroom to see her pregnancy test result. She wasn't proud of the age she was when she conceived Kellan, but that didn't matter to her anymore after she saw his little face for the very first time. After that, her entire life changed. It wasn't about her anymore.

She looked down at Kellan who was looking the door excitedly, looking over all the names on the birds and trying to sound them out on his own. The Blue came to mind again and Tristan. What was she going to do now? With Blue back in the picture, nothing good could happen next. She had to protect the boys, though. Somehow, she was going to find a way that any contingency would not come back to them.

"Miss Carter?"

Hearing her name drew her back into reality and she blinked away the tears. "Yes, I'm sorry, we're here."

Kellan's new teacher, Ms. Martin, greeted them with a kind smile and immediately stretched out a hand to Kenzie. "It's so great to see all three of you again! We're so happy to have Kellan with us this year, we're going to have a ton of fun!" She greeted enthusiastically, her bright hazel eyes glimmering with pure excitement. She was committed to teaching, that much Kenzie could tell already.

"I am so sorry we are late, I promise you this will not happen again and I promise I'm totally good for it. It was such...a switch, I-"

"Please, Miss Carter, it's okay! There's no need for any of that. It's the first day and it's hard for every parent. I can assure you that you aren't the only parent who's just a teensy bit behind schedule." She reassured, grinning sympathetically.

Kenzie just nodded twice and looked down at Kellan who had already shrugged off his backpack and was holding it with both hands. "Is...Is it alright if I can talk to him just for a minute...the two of us?"

"Oh, yes, of course. We'll be starting in five minutes, though."

"I promise we won't be long."

With that, Ms. Martin attended to her class, speaking with two of the other parents that were still there. Kenzie set Bryce down beside them and squatted to Kellan's level, messing with his hair and straightening his clothes.

"Oh, crap, you didn't get to brush your teeth." She complained quietly, digging through her purse and pulling out a small plastic box of mints. Dumping most of the contents into her hand, she transferred them to his. "Here, take these and...well, don't open your mouth that much, I guess." She teased, watching him throw them into his mouth.

"Now, sweetheart, it's important that you remember what we talked about the other day, okay? What was it?"

Kellan crunched on the mints before speaking over them. "Daddy works at a chicken plant and my mama stays at home. They're both really nice people and we're all really, really happy."

Like every time he quoted it, her heart ached that she was forcing him to lie. It was the only way to keep him and his brother safe, though. She hoped he would understand that some day. All she's ever wanted to do is keep them safe.

Kellan gulped down his mints and played with a loose thread on his backpack. "Mama, why do I gotta lie? Why can't we just tell people Daddy's not a good guy." He asked in a whisper, already knowing that she would get mad at him if he didn't.

Kenzie's heart dropped. She knew Kellan and Tristan didn't have a good relationship, they never have, but actually hearing his opinion about his father tore her apart inside. That wasn't how it was supposed to be. Little boys were supposed to idolized their fathers, not despise them.

"We can't, baby. Daddy...Daddy's family. You know we can't betray family. Besides, it won't just be Daddy that gets in trouble. I'm your mother, I swore the day you were born that I would let nothing, nothing bad happen to you. I know I'm not winning any awards, but I love you. You and Bryce are my world and I refuse to let anything that happens to your daddy or me come back to you...Okay?" She tried to find the right words to show him how sorry she was and how much she wanted to make his life better, but she wasn't sure if she had.

Kellan kicked at the tile floor and looked up at his mother. "I gotta get to class." He said a little louder, glancing into his classroom.

"Oh...yeah, of course, baby. Now, have a great first day and...play nice!" She swallowed back her previous emotions and enveloped him in a tight hug, placed a kiss on both cheeks, and sent him on his way.

She watched him happily jog into his classroom, immediately finding his seat and listening to Ms. Martin tell him the new procedure. He seemed so happy, so independent. She'd be lying if she said that she wasn't hurt seeing him so happy to be away from her.

He was already chatting away from some of his classmates and looking at their new notebooks and crayons. Bryce was back at her side, tugging on her shirttail, and she knew it was time to leave. She had a lot to do, anyway.

Taking Bryce by the hand, she tried to figure out how she was going to possibly get the Blue Sky out of her mind. How was she going to just forget about the fact that Jesse Pinkman was up and running again? How was she going to figure out a story when they pounding on her door asking about him?

Once again, like so many times growing, the cancer of Heisenberg and Jesse Pinkman was threatening to ruin her life.