Ryoma clung onto the back of Fuji's shirt as the two of them sat on his bed. His entire body shook and he could hear yelling coming from below them. Fuji reached for the phone that sat on his nightstand and held it firmly in his hands.

"Echizen…" Fuji's soft voice trailed off as he shook his head. "I'm going to call the police."

"I'm scared," Ryoma mumbled as he heard beeping coming from the phone.

"Get out!" Fuji's mother growled as footsteps grew closer to the room the two boys sat in.

"You took my boy, so I'm here to get him back," the door slammed up against the wall. "Miss me, Ryoma?"

Fuji jumped off of the bed and set the phone in Ryoma's lap. His icy blue eyes quivered as he walked up to the older man. "You have no right being here."

"Oh, it's you again…how annoying. Don't worry, I know how to take care of you," Nanjiro placed his hand onto Fuji's shoulder and shoved him into the wall. His body slid to the floor in an aching pain.

"Nn!" he cringed as he saw the man heading for Ryoma. "Call the number, Echizen!"

Ryoma fumbled with the phone and tried to quickly push at the buttons with his unstable fingers. Before he knew it, the phone dropped to the floor and his father had a tight grip around his wrist. He let out a painful scream as his body was dragged out the door.

"ECHIZEN!" Fuji yelled as he tried to get onto his feet. Tears formed in his eyes as he saw the young boy being taken away from the place he belongs. His entire body cried as he felt like he had failed at what he wanted to do the most…protect Ryoma.

Ryoma was forced into the small car that his father had always driven. His attempts to push the older man away were usually; his body was too weak and the man was too strong. As the car sped down the street, Ryoma began to think of the options he had. If he were to scream, there would be no one around to hear his cries for help. If he were to open the door and jump out, he might not be able to survive the contact with the ground do to the speed of the car. In his mind, the only option he really had left was to sit there and wait to see where he was being taken.

The car came to a stop and Nanjiro opened his door. "If you try to run from me, it will just make things more painful for you."

Ryoma didn't bother to say a word as he removed his seatbelt. Slowly, he followed his father back into the house that used to be filled with happiness. The only memories that filled his mind now are the ones of being violated. Even though he wanted to run so fast down the sidewalk, he instead walked into the house and stared at the broken glass and stains on the floor. How long had it been since he last stepped foot into this house? Time had passed so slowly that he no longer remembered. He never thought he'd be brought here again.

"Welcome home, Ryoma."

"This place…it isn't my home any longer," Ryoma mumbled as he made his way through the rubble. "This is prison…"

"Ah, those aren't the types of things you say when you're welcomed back. You're supposed to thank the person," Nanjiro picked up a magazine from the off the carpet and flipped through it. "You were hard to track down…and it wasn't easy getting to you. Calling the police on your own father…why would you do such a thing?"

Ryoma watched as Nanjiro took a couple steps towards him. "Nothing I've done…none of it has compared to what you have put me through. Calling the police was for my own protection!"

"For your own protection?" he reached his hand out causing Ryoma to jerk away and fall to the floor. "On the floor already? You're such a naughty boy, Ryoma."

"Stay away…go away!" Ryoma placed his arms in front of his face in defense, but let out a scream when he noticed his father wasn't after his lips. A hand slipped down his pants and softly brushed against his skin. "Stop it!"

"You know you enjoy these things more than I do. Now behave yourself or I'll have to use force."

"You already are!" he growled as he tripped to pull away.

His father responded by turning him over. He quickly stripped away the clothes that covered Ryoma's frail body. Ryoma tossed around, but Nanjiro's hand was firmly pushed against his back causing his movement to be pointless. He yelped as his father's tongue traced his body from ear to toe. Two fingers were placed in his mouth causing him to cough.

"St…stop…" Ryoma begged as he felt the now wet fingers trail along his bottom half. As they slowly entered inside him, he gasped and tried to once again escape the man's grip.

"It's so tight, Ryoma," Nanjiro laughed as his hand movements became rougher. "Enjoy it!"

"N…NOOOOOO!" his breathing began to fade as his eyes shut. Ryoma's body had completely shut down from shock.

"Hn…" a set of honey-brown eyes flickered open and squinted from the bright light of the room.

"Echizen…" a hand lightly brushed across his causing him to pull away. "Sorry."

"Where…am I?" Ryoma looked around but didn't recognize any of the objects in the white room.

"The hospital."

"Fuji-senpai…how…?"

Fuji stood up from the chair next to Ryoma's bedside. Taking the remote for the small television that sat in the corner, he clicked for it to turn own. "After your father abducted you, my sister called the police. An alert was given out to find you and your father." He let out a soft sigh. "It's all over the news."

"Who found me?" Ryoma looked at his left arm to see a small tube filling his body with a clear liquid. He gently touched it with his shaking fingers.

"I did, but…" Fuji turned and fixed his eyes on Ryoma. "Echizen, by tomorrow, everyone will know what has happened."

Ryoma attempted to sit up, but when a sharp pain shot through his back, he fell back towards his pillow. "Why?"

"Be careful, Echizen, it seems like he was being rough with you…"

"Why will everyone know?" his voice became more demanding.

"It's all over the news, Echizen. There's no way that you can look at them and pretend as if none of this has ever happened. Eiji already called me and asked what was going on…they're just worried about you," he returned to the chair he once sat in. "I'm sorry, Echizen."

"Fuji-senpai," Ryoma touched his hand against the older boy's cheek allowing the salty water to tickle his skin. "Why are you crying?"

"I couldn't protect you…" Fuji traced his fingers along Ryoma's. "All I could do was watch as you were pulled away from me."

"…Senpai…"

"I wasn't lying when I said you were loved more by my family. I really do…I―" Fuji rose to his feet as he heard the door click open.

"Good afternoon, boys," a busty female tapped her pen against a clipboard. "How are you feeling, Echizen-kun?"

"…I'm fine," Ryoma mumbled.

"That is wonderful. Now, I'm sure you know what happened to you. Right?"

Ryoma firmly stared into the woman's forest green eyes. "My father took me from the house I've been staying at only to bring me back to the place I never wanted to see again. Then, to top it off, he raped me. Yeah, I know what happened to me."

"Ah," she was shocked by how blunt he had been. "Yes, that is true. Your body has a bit of pain to it, but you should be fine by the morning. I have been told that you are now in the care of the Fuji family, so I will release you to go home with them. I will be back in a few minutes, and, please, Echizen-kun, if you need to talk, there are plenty of people who are willing to listen to you."

"Right," he picked at the sheet that covered his body as he heard her walk back out of the room.

"I brought you a clean set of clothes to change into. I'll step out so you can change," Fuji pointed to a small bag that rested on the floor.

"Don't leave…I…I might need your help…since…umm…"

Fuji let a smile form on his face as he removed the covers off of Ryoma. Wrapping his arms carefully around the boy's shivering frame, he helped him off of his back. "I'll be gentle…I promise, I won't hurt you…"

Ryoma flinched as Fuji began to remove the cloth that he wore. Raising his arms up, Fuji placed a fresh, blue colored t-shirt over Ryoma's head and onto his bare body. Slowly, a pair of jean shorts made their way up his skinny legs. He attempted to button them himself, but his hands wouldn't stop shaking. When Fuji reached to help, Ryoma let out a soft sound as his cheeks grew a light shade of red.

"Senpai…I…" Ryoma wrapped his arms around Fuji's neck as tears trickled down the sides of his face. "Please…I don't want to…I don't ever want to go back there. Don't make me…please…"

"Echizen, you won't ever have to go back to that place again. Your home is now with my family. I won't ever let that man harm you again," Fuji allowed himself to hold onto Ryoma's broken body until the doctor walked back into the room. Handing Fuji a piece of paper, she told them they were free to leave and that his mother was waiting for them outside.

In the backseat of the car, on the way back to the Fuji residence, Ryoma had fallen asleep. Only waking him up to get him inside, Ryoma once again passed out when his head hit the pillow on Fuji's bed. Fuji watched him as he rolled over onto his side; he looked peaceful. Turning away, he made his way towards the window the held his cacti. He picked up a piece of the pot Ryoma had broken and played with it in his left hand.

"Just like this small cactus, I will continue to care for you until you no longer want to hold my hand," Fuji let out a sigh. "I've picked up your broken pieces…you're almost fixed…soon, you won't need my help…"

"Fuji…senpai…" Ryoma murmured into his pillow in his sleep. "Don't…leave me…love…you…"

"…Echizen…" he looked back towards him and smiled. "You couldn't even imagine how much you've come to mean to me…"

Fuji changed into his pajamas and placed himself next to Ryoma on the bed. He enjoyed the face that Ryoma had as he was sleeping. It was calm and relaxed…so unlike the way he had been acting. It had put Fuji's heart as ease knowing that as long as things continued like this, Ryoma would be fine in the end.

NOTE: Hi~ Long time no update, I know. People must dislike me for taking so long to update and having the last chapter end with a cliffhanger. Sorry, please don't hate me! Anyways, this was chapter 17, and I hope it was worth the wait. I will try for the next update on July 20th. Just so you all know, one or two more chapters is all this fic will have unless I do some crazy plot twist (which probably won't happen). With that said, I have a poll (if you haven't seen it yet) up in my profile to decide on the next FujiXRyoma fic I will be writing.

I had other things to say, probably, but I don't remember any of them. Thank you for continuing to read this fic. It means a lot to me. Also, that you for all of the reviews I have been receiving. When I got my 50th review on "The Fallen Prince" I was shocked…to get 120 reviews on this fic is even more amazing. I will continue to do my best with all of my writing. Thank you so much~