A/N: Slash undertones? Probably. But that's just how I write Tyler and Reid's relationship. I think it's necessary to show that they let all of their shields fall when they're around each other - shields that remain intake when they're with Caleb and Pogue.. They can do whatever without putting up a front. There is also slash undertones in this chapter…But I'm pretty I envision Reid and Tyler as straight in this story?…rare for me, I know….

The chapter deals a great deal with Matthew. Sorry, but it's necessary. I'm also trying to divert the story away from Matthew and focus more on Reid and Tyler's reaction to him. Future chapters will feature and star Pogue and Caleb. Don't know where to take the story from here, so feel free to make suggestions…I don't really brainstorm -- but I guess I'll have to wait and see what the muses cook up. I know I said I wanted ten reviews, but a certain reviewer asked me nicely (practically begged…) to update regardless of review number. Every writer knows they write for the response of others. I write because it's necessary for me to do, but it's the reviews that I look forward to. I put my stories online because I want to know what others think. Reviews are important.

I was already writing a second chapter and via editing….I decided I liked it and will update it regardless of how few reviews I got from you bums. Don't be lazy. I like this story. I like how I write. But I want to know what you think.

Warning: Language. There's no violence or sex though….just cussing and that's only in the first part of the chapter. I cuss vicariously through Reid Garwin….

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Matthew Clyde was at the top of their senior class. Valedictorian; the only student that had managed to slip past Caleb. Reid suspected he would be bitter, but Caleb didn't look concerned. He didn't seem to mind. He was also one of the few students who even acknowledged the existence of Matthew. Reid sucked in a gulp of air and forced it down his throat before spitting it back out through clenched teeth. Matthew Clyde ate lunch alone, in the corner of the cafeteria, hunched over a text book. No wonder the kid got such high marks. He had no life.

Matthew only looked up from his book when a shadow fell across the pages. He frowned when he realized just who was standing beside his table. Reid knew he probably looked uncomfortable, apprehensively shifting from foot to foot, hands clenching and unclenching around the straps of his book bag. "Can we talk?" He asked. His voice was steady, firm. It didn't sound like a question but Matthew shrugged as if he were offering an answer. Then he nodded at the seat across the table from him and Reid nearly smirked. Of course this loser would want a son of Ipswich to sit with him. Imagine the publicity…

He shrugged out of his book bag and sank heavily into the seat across from Matthew. The boy was staring at him, almost like a predator. Reid managed to fend off the glare threatening to rearrange his face. "Did you see anything?" He asked, his voice defeated, half hearted.

Matthew cocked his head to the side. He looked amused. He wasn't even trying to look confused. What the fuck was Reid talking about? That's what this kid was supposed to be asking. He wasn't supposed to know. Reid's frown deepened, engraved in his face. "Yes." The word was a quiet puff of air, smoother than Reid thought the kid was capable of. He sounded slick. Almost cool.

"What?" Reid spluttered. What the fuck was wrong with him? It was just a geek. How could he get such a reaction from him? The truth was, Caleb was right. That's what pissed Reid off. That's what made him worry. Caleb was right every time he bitched; every time he shoved Reid against the wall outside of Nicky's; every time he invited himself over to Reid's dorm just to rib him for Using. Every time he said Reid would expose them all - kill them all. He was fucking right. Reid had just exposed them all. He had been bound to expose them. Just too stupid to stop himself. Too damn eager. "What the fuck is that supposed to mean?" He nearly growled, leaning forward against the table that separated him from Matthew.

"I saw you," Matthew told him quietly with an amused smirk twisting his face in a way Reid hadn't ever seen before. "I saw your arm, Garwin. It was broken in two separate places. From the pressure against your skin. I know the bone broke. It wasn't fractured. I saw your eyes. I know what you did, Garwin. I think I even know what you are."

A puff of air forced itself from Reid's mouth in a sharp gasp. It wasn't audible but Matthew's smile stretched tighter. "Why didn't you say anything?"

Matthew shrugged. "Wanted to see how long it took for your resilience to shatter. You're not who everybody thinks you are, are you Reid?" He didn't like how his name sounded in Matthew's. mouth. "Careless. You care a lot about this. Don't you? It concerns you. I've been watching you. The worry eating away at you. All because of me." The kid smiled at that thought. "I…affect you." He chewed on that word. Affect. And when he spat it out it sounded different; dirty and Reid cringed.

His eyes narrowed at Matthew. "Right," he drawled, quickly regaining his composure. "What are you gonna do about it now? Nobody will believe you. You'd sound like a fucking psycho."

Matthew shrugged. "I won't tell anybody. You're off the hook, Garwin. Now go back to ignoring me."

"Why --"

"Does your friend know?" Matthew interrupted. He nodded toward the table Reid knew the sons of Ipswich usually populated. He followed Matthew's gaze and saw Tyler staring at them. Caleb said something and Tyler glanced over at him. His lips barely moved when he answered. "What you are. What you do."

Reid shook his head, tearing his eyes away from Tyler. "No. Nobody knows. And I'd prefer if you would keep it that way. So what happens now?"

Matthew shrugged again. Reid didn't like how the kid was still staring at Tyler. Tyler was reluctantly engaged in a conversation with Caleb. For a second Reid almost wondered if the boy could hear them. He had extraordinary hearing yeah -- the best, but could he pick out two voices from hundreds? Across the room. Is that, like, even possible? "You stop laughing at my dispense. At everybody's dispense. Quit being such an ass all the time."

Reid laughed. It helped to loosen up. It helped to regain the posture he'd always had before. Mellow. Nonchalant.. Untouchable. "You just asked me to not be who I've always been."

"Always been in public, yeah," Matthew agreed. "But I don't think that's who you really are."

"The fuck you know who I am?" Reid asked.. He'd already lent back in his chair; already crossed his arms over his chest and fixed Matthew with an amused smirk. He didn't know when he had grown so comfortable with the boy.

"I've been watching you," Matthew murmured softly. This forced the contentment from Reid's voice; he knew he grew stiff. His eyes flickered over to Tyler but the boy looked just as stiff. His face was rearranged into an odd expression. He wasn't' listening to Caleb anymore but Caleb didn't seem to notice. He'd already turned to Pogue. "I see how you are when you think you're alone. I see you doing your homework, reading books….books that haven't been assigned. I've heard the conversations between the two of you. You almost sound intelligent when you're with him." Reid scoffed. What the fuck was this kid trying to imply? "I've seen you do more than just heal your arm, Reid. You're something magical, aren't you? Like….like a witch. Or a wizard. Warlock. What's the correct terminology, Garwin?" The boy actually sounded excited.

"I don't know," Reid all but spat. "Doesn't matter. Quit stalking me and mind your own damn business." Out of the corner of his eye he saw Tyler grow stiffer. He saw the boy shake his head and cover his face with his hand. Reid cleared his throat uncomfortably. "Um…okay. I didn't mean that. Sorry…."

Matthew's smile stretched tightly over his teeth. Reid wanted to smack the amusement right off of the geek's face. "What else do you want, kid? Besides turning me into a pussy?"

Matthew was quiet for a moment, as if he had to really think about the question. Reid figured he'd probably been thinking about his demands since he discovered what Reid could do. "I want to get in good with your friends," he said finally. Reid blinked. "I want them to be my friends."

"You mean you want people to think they're your friends," Reid corrected, his voice low and suspended in disbelief. "They'll never go for that. Pogue and Caleb -"

"Caleb and I are already friends," Matthew interrupted. Yeah, I bet you'd like that. If it were possible for Caleb to have friends….

"You're on speaking terms," Reid told him slowly. "That does not make you friends. That makes him a nice guy and you a dork. Pogue would never look at you twice and --"

"And Tyler?" Matthew inquired politely. Reid's head snapped to the side so quickly it hurt. He ignored it and the pain disappeared to the back of his mind.

"What about Tyler?" He asked sharply. He glanced over at the youngest son and Matthew followed his gaze. Tyler wasn't watching but Reid would bet his life that the youngest was listening harder than he ever had before. No one was talking to him anymore, but he was staring down at his food. He looked like he was trying to concentrate, his brow furrowed and his face scrunched up in frustration.

"I would like to be friends with Tyler specifically. He's nice." Matthew told Reid quietly. Did this kid know no shame? Reid shook his head quickly. "You can tell him whatever you want, Garwin. But he better start treating me like a friend or else --"

"Or else what?" Reid demanded, rising swiftly to his feet. "You've got no proof…."

Matthew rose too, a great deal more slowly. He stepped forward and leaned in closer to the blonde. "Any x-ray will show that your arm has been broken," Matthew told him quietly. "And it doesn't even matter, Reid. When has mass hysteria ever needed proof? I'm not asking for a lot. I. Just. Want. A. Friend. Tyler Simms. Are you going to comply, or am I going to have to start a witch hunt? Because I can tell you who will burn first."

Matthew's gaze was heated as his eyes held Reid's. Reid frowned darkly and opened his mouth to argue. What gave this kid the right to barter with him? He was Reid Garwin for fuck's sake. Nobody told him what to do. But then a presence appeared beside him and Matthew's face lit up. Reid followed his gaze. Tyler was standing beside him.

"Reid --"

"Tyler," Matthew started abruptly. The look on Tyler's face would have been amusing if Reid wasn't so pissed off at the moment. "I'm Matthew Clyde. I don't know if we've ever spoken before, but Reid and I are now friends. Isn't that right, Reid?"

Reid glared and looked over at Tyler. Whatever Tyler had heard his face didn't show. He looked surprised. Stunned. "Right," Reid mumbled. "Friends." Matthew's expression changed sharply and Reid swallowed hard.

Tyler elbowed him hard in the ribs but Matthew didn't seem to notice, even when Reid gasped loudly. "It's about time Reid started to befriend those few of us with brains still in our heads," he offered. His voice was surprisingly soft as he offered a hand. Matthew accepted his hand a little too eagerly for Reid's liking. Fucking Faggot.

His grip on Tyler's hand was tight, almost as if he didn't really want to let go of the younger boy. The realization didn't show on Tyler's face. Reid couldn't stop the scowl from crossing his face. Since when did Tyler become such a good actor? "Do you want to hang out?" Matthew ventured tentatively. Reid doubted it was really hesitancy. Just all a part of his master plan to deflower baby boy…

Tyler shrugged. "Sure. We can play video games or something after school, if you're free." He glanced over at Reid. Reid opened his mouth to say something but then he caught Matthew's gaze. It was evident what the nerd was trying to convey.

"I've got stuff to do," Reid told him, his voice empty. "Chicks to fuck…and since you've just freed up the dorm room…"

Tyler shrugged and turned back to Matthew. Reid couldn't understand why that annoyed him. Tyler didn't ever care what he did with girls - even when he did it in their dorm. But he had just agreed to allow baby boy be alone with Matthew Clyde. The bell rang abruptly and for the first time in his life, Reid actually welcomed class. He didn't have any classes with Matthew and the boy bid the pair farewell before scampering out of the cafeteria.

Reid trailed Tyler from the lunch room, silent, but when he slid into the seat next to the younger boy, he didn't look happy with their predicament. "What the hell was that?" He hissed, turning to glare at Tyler.

The boy shrugged, his face suddenly confused. "He said he wasn't going to tell," he murmured reasonably. He hadn't heard the entire conversation, even when he concentrated. All he'd gotten was broken statements and an intense headache. But it didn't matter. He'd heard Matthew's demands. All the kid had wanted was a friend. "It's not like he's trying to crucify us. I don't see what the problem is…."

"You heard him, didn't you?" Reid demanded. He glanced up when the students began filtering in and then lowered his voice. "He's a fucking psycho. He fucking wants to be alone with you….I know you're an impressionable, naïve boy, but honestly Tyler….what do you think people do when they're alone….?"

Tyler's eyes narrowed and his gaze sharpened into a glare. He wanted to say something but all he managed was blowing out a puff of air and turned away from Reid. Impressionable? Naïve? Sure, Tyler didn't get shitfaced every night. He didn't satisfy his sexual desire whenever it arises. He hadn't ever been into hardcore drugs and he did accept people with an easy air. But did that really make him naïve or impressionable? It didn't matter. All that mattered was whether or not this was what people; thought of him. Did everyone see him as his own best friend did?

Reid frowned and set his mouth in a firm line as he turned back toward the board in front of them. They both knew Tyler could easily give him the silent treatment. The boy had done it before. They both knew being left alone in silence annoyed Reid to no end. They both knew Reid was bound to come crawling back, but until then, Tyler was going to ignore him. No. He was going to do more than just ignore Reid. He was going to divert his focus. He was going to ignore Reid's problems and his personal affairs. He was going to once again submerge himself in his school work, even though he didn't need to. And furthermore, he was going to submerge himself in Reid's primary problem. Matthew Clyde.

He was going to accept Matthew first in a way that Reid seemed to have failed to accept him. And he was going to allow Matthew the one thing the boy seemed to want; a friend. How hard could that be? The boy didn't seem nearly as off as Reid seemed to think so….maybe he was just misunderstood….maybe Reid was just assuming he was psychotic; jumping to conclusions without proper cause. Either way, Tyler wouldn't ever be completely helpless. He'd always be in control. He had a gift that Matthew didn't. A gift Matthew still failed to conceive. He'd always have a weapon regardless; he would always be safe.

The classes slowly faded. The further he progressed in the day, the easier it was to ignore Reid's agitated glances; the easier it was to turn away from him. He nearly missed the grimace that flickered across Reid's face when the pair exited their last class of the day to find Matthew Clyde waiting beside the door. He wasn't propped against the wall, but standing rigid beside it. Reid's face twisted into a glare he didn't even try to hide and Tyler forced a smile to his face. "Hey."

"Hey," Matthew offered cheerfully. He even grinned at Reid who in turn had to struggle against the growl of disapproval threatening to escape his mouth. "About the --"

"Video games," Tyler finished for him. He shot Reid a look but the blonde remained at his side. "If you're still free --"

"I am," Matthew assured him.

"Cool," Tyler murmured. "We can hang out at my parents' house, for a few hours, until whenever. Here, my trucks out front…" he trailed off, leading Matthew away from Reid and toward the staircase that would take the pair to the first floor and out of the school. Reid made to follow, but a sharp glare from Tyler forced him to stop. That's right, they weren't talking. And he was supposed to have plans.

"So, what's up with you and Reid?" Matthew asked tentatively as he slid into the passenger seat of Tyler's hummer. Tyler sat beside him and busied himself with fastening his seat belt and starting the car.

He shrugged, but he could feel their disagreement weighing heavily on him. "We got in a fight."

"Oh," Matthew murmured. He almost sounded apologetic. Tyler tried to ignore the stare he was receiving from the boy and focused more on the road. He hadn't been home in three months. There had always been reasons for staying away. One of the most prominent reason was because his parents were never home and he hated the empty house. The other reason was more often when his parents were home. He feared which problem would greet him when he returned home. He hadn't ever decided which problem was worst. Isolation or the trauma that was his parents.

"Tyler?"

Tyler visibly jerked, his eye darting from the road to Matthew and then back again. "Huh?"

"You okay?" Matthew asked. He actually did sound concern but Tyler forced himself to be alert. This kid was damn near holding Reid ransom. He couldn't ever really be a friend. "You looked kind of lost in thought….Something wrong?"

Tyler shrugged again, focusing on the road once more. "Reid's my best friend," he murmured. "I know he's a lot of awful things but…he's my best friend. And if anything were to happen to him…or between us….I don't know. Everything would change. It'd be off. Wrong." He cleared his throat uncomfortably. "I'm sorry. It's just how I get every time we fight." He didn't know why he decided to tell Matthew that. But if Matthew wanted to be his friend, he'd just have to accept Reid. If he wanted Tyler, he had to protect Reid as well. He needed to understand that friendship surpassed secrets; it surpassed insecurities and fear.

Matthew fell quiet, contemplative. His eyes, dark and intelligent, stared fixatedly out the window. But the silence wasn't awkward, it wasn't uncomfortable. Tyler felt no need to fill in the silence and Matthew seemed to agree because he made no effort to break the silence. He remained silent as he followed Tyler into the Simms estate and up the stairs to his rarely used bedroom.

The room wasn't exactly what Matthew would have expected from the boy, though he wasn't sure exactly what he had expected. The room was dark, navy carpet and black bed sheets. Posters decorated the walls but the posters were several years old. Figurines and stickers decorated his desk and shelves. Books lined his shelves but they weren't children's books. They were books Matthew knew the average person would consider difficult. The room was diverse and almost conflicting. Matthew almost immediately realized that it couldn't have been all Tyler's doing. Who else could it have been…except Reid Garwin? Their friendship must've gone back years. Matthew swallowed at the thought. The depth of their friendship, it must be irreplaceable. This was the side of their friendship that Spenser didn't see.

"You guys are really good friends huh?" Matthew had asked the question without meaning to. It's just….this room reeked Reid Garwin and yet Tyler had managed to make it his own too.

Tyler glanced over his shoulder at Matthew. "He's my best friend," he repeated. His voice didn't sound bitter, despite his current feelings for the boy. "There isn't anything he doesn't know about me. There isn't anything I don't know about him." It was a test, that's what Tyler had meant it to be. He was providing Matthew with an opportunity to hint at Reid's secret, a secret Tyler wasn't supposed to know. Tyler was supposed to be the delusional friend that Reid was lying to. But Matthew only nodded understandably and shifted his gaze to scan further into the room. Huh….he'd passed and he didn't even look any wiser. If Tyler didn't know, he wouldn't have been able to guess what Matthew thought he knew. Maybe he was telling the truth….maybe he was trustworthy….

A TV hung against a bare wall, equipped with an x-box and a box of games. Tyler switched on the light and entered the room with acquired familiarity. Matthew followed him with mute meekness. Tyler had already knelt beside the x-box and began connecting the wires. "Pick a game," he said, glancing briefly over his shoulder before returning to the wires. Matthew knelt at his side and rifled through the box of games. He wasn't a gamer. He didn't play video games, but he wasn't thick enough not to know what was in and what wasn't. He was just surprised at how many games Tyler had that he hadn't ever heard of before. The games were diverse, a mixture of intellectual games and action games. He briefly considered the possibility that maybe some of the games belonged to Reid as well.

Tyler glanced over at Matthew, who seemed unusually contemplative for such a mundane task. "Um….here," he offered, leaning closer to the boy. He didn't notice Matthew's sharp intake of air, or how rigid his body had grown. No, Tyler had continued closer, and picked a game from the box without deliberating on the title. "It's a strategist war game….if that's okay…?"

Matthew nodded, recoiling slightly. "Yeah. Yeah, that's good," he agreed with a sheepish grin. The pair retreated to Tyler's bed. Matthew was a surprisingly quick learner. For a boy who hadn't grown up playing video games, he learned the buttons and controls within minutes. And within the hour, the two boys were joking back and forth, nearly ruthless, as if this were an activity they did every day. It was an odd possibility -- to waste hours playing a video game that provided delicious gore and war strategy. It was odd, how openly they discussed their options during the game -- which course provided their characters with the greatest possibility of not just further life, but profit as well.

Along this course, Tyler realized exactly why Matthew was at the top of their class. Exactly how Matthew had connected all of the shattered pieces of the covenant together so quickly. His mind was something extraordinary; working extraneously, nearly instantaneously. He found himself working for the boy's approval; he found himself smiling when the boy complimented his course of action; when the boy praised his thoughts. It wasn't often, not while he was submerged within the covenant, that he found himself learning from another student in such a way. The way Matthew explained things, his thoughts and his reasoning, it was all so very intellectual. Like a computer; so very calculating. But he explained things to Tyler in a sophisticated yet understandable way. It seemed like he wanted Tyler to learn, to understand and appreciate what he had to offer. It was all so very foreign. It was foreign to have the ability to say whatever he wanted, whatever came to mind, yet never having to explain anything; because Matthew seemed to know everything. Except for the processes of the modern human, of course. He couldn't understand teenagers.

Matthew was perched on his bed, his legs crossed Indian style, his fist curled around the controller as if they belonged there. Tyler was sitting beside him, leaned casually against his head board, his own controller in his lap. They were waiting for the next scene to load. Tyler had already glanced at the clock beside his bed. Four hours, that's how long the two had been in this room, working strenuously through a video game Tyler hadn't ever finished. He had came close once, with Reid at his side. While he was intellectual, Reid was almost ingenious when it came to warfare. Matthew seemed to think so too, because Tyler had recycled some of Reid's theories and received praise.

Matthew hadn't done anything suspicious, and Tyler had been far more than cautious. And now, when his guard had finally crumbled, a sound echoed throughout the empty house; a sound that made Tyler tense. It was the front door slamming. It couldn't be Pogue or Caleb because they hadn't been to his house since the eighth grade. And Reid was still somewhat hesitant, ever since he'd gotten into a fist fight with Tyler's father over something he'd done to Tyler. There was only two people that would come to his house. Joseph Simms and Isabella Simms. His parents.

"Tyler?" Isabella. Tyler forced himself to breathe. "Sweetie, you home?" Her voice echoed through the house, uncertainty tainting the musical chime.

"Wait here," Tyler told Matthew quietly. He knew he was still tense, he knew Matthew probably noticed it. It didn't matter. He had his own problems. Reid's would have to wait for a minute. He shoved the controller onto the bed and left the room, gently closing the door behind him. His mother was standing at the bottom of the staircase, waiting knowingly. She smiled when he appeared at the top of the stairs. "Hey, baby. What brings you back here?"

"Funny," Tyler grunted. "I was gonna ask you that."

Izzy frowned but she made her way up the flight of stairs anyway. It was an old argument. She knew she neglected her son. He knew she felt bad about it. They both knew nothing would ever change. "Baby," she murmured, pulling a reluctant Tyler into a hug. Tyler stood unresponsive for a full minute before gradually responding. He wrapped his arms around his mother and pulled her closer to his chest. "I missed you, baby boy," she murmured against his chest.

"I missed you too, mom," Tyler mumbled grudgingly.

Izzy pulled away, smiling slowly at her son. "Reid locked in your room too?" She asked. If anybody had a soft spot for Reid, it was his mother. He desperately didn't want to know exactly what had arisen from that situation. He didn't know what the relationship between Reid and his mother was, and Reid had managed to mercifully keep the details to himself.

"Um, actually no," Tyler answered. "Reid's an asshole. And I've got a different friend over. A kid named Matt."

"Huh," Izzy sighed. "Do I get to meet your new friend?" She tried to peer past Tyler toward his room. Tyler watched as her expression changed. Matthew was standing in the hall, silently watching the exchange between Tyler and his mother. "Ty, is this Matt?"

The boy turned to face Matthew. The two exchange a glance before Matthew stepped forward and offered his hand. "Hello, Mrs. Simms, I'm Matthew Clyde."

Izzy grasped Matthew's hand and gave it a firm shake. "Please, call me Izzy."

"Izzy," Matthew agreed. The two shared a smile and there was something locked within that smile that didn't sit well with Tyler. His mother did this with every guy he brought over, most severely with Reid, ever since the boy had turned fourteen and grown a great deal more abrasive. Tyler could generally ignore the obvious flirting so why was this any different?

"Lunch?" Izzy asked, turning toward Tyler once more.

Tyler grimaced at his mother's effort. "It's seven o'clock at night, mother," he murmured.

Izzy shrugged, undaunted. "Then how about an dinner. You'd like to stay for dinner, wouldn't you, Matthew?" She didn't pause for his answer but Matthew didn't seem to mind. "And you could invite Reid. I haven't seen that boy in months."

Tyler shook his head. "We're not talking, mom," he told her tersely.

It was Izzy's turn to grimace. "The two of you playing that silent treatment again? They're like kids when their feelings get hurt," she told Matthew conversationally. "But boy does it take forever to hurt their feelings. The two of them are as tough as nails and as sharp as knives. What'd he do this time, sweetie?"

"Nothing," Tyler told her just as stiffly. "Doesn't matter. I'm sleeping here tonight."

Izzy nodded understandingly. "Yeah, me too." And then her face lit up as she turned to Matthew once more. "Would you like to stay too, Matthew?"

"Mom," Tyler said in a warning voice.

"No, that's alright," Matthew agreed. "I've got a dorm, I'm good.' Izzy nodded, but she didn't look as happy. "You're father gets home Friday." Four days, that's what she was telling him. She was warning him because she knew his and Reid's fights would span days, weeks. And all he had was four days before he had to find another place to stay. "How about the pair of you go back to doing whatever it was you were doing, and I'll make us something to eat? Okay, kiddo?"

Tyler glanced over at Matthew before looking at his mother. "Yeah, okay."

She pulled him into another hug, this one not as fervent as their first, before scampering off down the stairs and toward the kitchen. Tyler glanced toward Matthew again, but the boy wasn't watching his mother's departure.. He was watching Tyler.