A.N: Thank you so much for the reviews its means a lot to me. I didn't know other countries were reading this too Hi! ahahaha. I noticed the story chart or something like that and thought that is so cool. Music and fanfics bring people together *hugs*

...

"Tell me more about you." Robbie says when they've both dropped themselves onto a swing seats at the park.

The weather was more chilly than Rocky expected, and he shivers beneath a large goosedown coat and a blue knit-hat atop his head. Even with Robbie's jacket he can still feel the cold in his bones and he attempts to shrink into as much as he can.

Blinking at the sight of the turtle beside him, Robbie looks down at his light sweater then smiles. "Guess I should have given you my gloves too." Chuckling he rubs Rocky's back. "I forget you're not really used to the cold like I am."

Scoffing, Rocky turns his dual gaze at the 'eskimo' to say. "Glad you can poke fun- and stop rubbing my back you're raising the jacket up at the bottom."

That only seemed to make the Ballerini boy laugh a little harder. "I'm sorry." Smiling fondly at the blond, he holds out his hand. "Gimme your hand."

Rocky looks skeptically at it but reaches out for the offered hand, then tucking the other one into the sleeve. A frown crosses his expression. "Why do you get to be so warm?"

Robbie shrugs holding tightly to the hand. Scooting his feet back in the sand below he starts pumping his legs to get the swing to move but is jerked gently back by Rocky's lack of movement. "Well?"

"Well, what?" Rocky says almost grouchily and very much still scrunched into himself.

'Cold cranky? This guy just keeps up the cute coming, doesn't he.' Thinks the brunet. "Come on, swing; it'll take your mind off the cold."

"Alright." Scooting his legs back as well, he wonders briefly how swinging, of all things, could keep him warm when he's gonna have wind whipping in his face.

"As I was saying, I wanna know more about you. I know that you're half Japanese and that you live in L.A.; but there's gotta be more than that."

"I don't know how to talk about myself; just ask me things and I'll answer them." He says, muffled with his mouth beyond the neck of the jacket.

"Okay... Let's seeeee... What do you like to eat or drink? Any favorites?"

Nodding, Rocky says. "I mostly like brown soda's and clear ones, I've never been a big fan of fruited, but as far as favorite drinks go V8 and instant powdered teas have always been my favorite."

"I mostly like cream and Sprite, not much else."

"Foods are... soups I guess, and pasta. I never get soup much though because, you know, living in L.A. there aren't many- if any, cold days."

"I'm more into breakfast than other meals, but I've always been attracted to sea food."

"Have you ever had sushi?"

Shaking his head. "Not the real thing from the homeland, but California sushi is just as good."

Wide-eyed, Rocky shakes his head. "Its completely different!" He declares. "Huh... I'm gonna have to take you to a place where you can get it in its true form." He kicks his legs out getting more height than before. Spotting Arc in the distance under the dome shaped jungle gym, he smiles. "He likes building sand sculptures in dirt?"

Confused by the conversations change in direction Robbie looks off to where Rocky is staring. "Oh yeah, he likes making turtle families. He'll get about five done then sit there and make them talk to each other."

"Hahaha, that is so cute."

Admiring the look of the ninja as the peek of bangs under the cap rise and fall with his movement, Robbie shakes it off. "Yeah it is..." Returning the conversation back to them he asks. "So, what about music?"

"I like anything I can meditate to." Rocky says abruptly.

"Meditation? Eh, I don't know if I could do something like that. My brain won't shut up long enough for me to relax."

"I should teach you how sometime, you'd love it."

"Naah, with you in the room my brain definitely won't shut up."

Rocky only chuckled at that.

Smiling with his mouth, though not his eyes, Robbie asks in a bland but heartfelt tone. "Did you always hate compliments or did it start around the time Maria was harrassing you?"

Rocky shrugs. "I'm not entirely sure when it happened but, I don't know, I just think that if you're gonna say that I look good or whatever you should take it up with my parents. I mean, to me, with looks, I'm just keeping up what they gave me; I want for someone to compliment me. Hn. Plus..." He trails off a second then continues. "I get kind of shy about the reply, 'thank you' has always seemed weird to me because why am I thanking them- for noticing? Not likely because I don't really care that they noticed. Does that make sense to you?"

"Yeah."

Looking at the male, Rocky then says quietly. "You know, back there with Corin... the reason that I agreed to forgive your aunt is because of you. I thought about how you loved her enough to not want to believe that she would do the things she'd done, and it made me sad to realize that I've stopped seeing her as a person by demonizing her worst half; and that isn't, in a way, fair. It made me think that my hurting her hurt you in some way. Even Corin, whose never had any good contact with her found herself loving her, so for you I had to forgive her. You've become an achor for me, Robbie, and because of that I want you to be happy."

"...Thank you."

Grinning faintly, he nods with an affirmed assurance. "You're welcome... So, my question to you is an obvious one- when is your birthday?"

"July 9th."

"Mine is November 13th."

"Is that a good thing?"

"I think so." Looking over to Arc again, he follows him with his eyes as the boy dashes over to the merry-go-round. "Is Arc a busy-body?"

"Isn't every four year old?"

"I guess so. I remember Tum being such a pain all the time with wanting to go here with me and Colt, or wanting to go there alone. But he was so much fun to hang out with, so we didn't mind."

"I kind of wished for brothers and sisters but then again, I loved all my parent's attention solely for me. Before moving to L.A., when my aunt went to the institute, Corin was dropped off so then I had a sister. She cried a lot asking when her mother was coming back and things like that... she even refused to eat after a while."

"That had to be tough having your mother gone so suddenly."

"Yeah, her father too and knowing what people all over the news were saying about why that was." He sighs. "But I perked her up by making jokes and always lugging her here and there with me until she couldn't help but laugh and join in. My friends thought I was nuts to keep bringing my cousin everywhere with me but so what, that's just what I wanted to do so I was gonna do it."

"Ahaha I wish I could think like that, with me, I'm always thinking how what I want to do will effect others and then I end up not doing it."

"Kind of like now?"

"Yes, kind of like now- buzz killer." He smiles.

"Again, I'm asking gently; why not just be together?"

"Because it could hurt us, you most of all. And I love you, so I don't wanna see that happen."

Robbie snickers a minute. "Its true. I hate violence, I'm the worlds biggest push over because I'd rather make peace and all that."

"That's a shame to hear, I love fighting. Its the one thing that I can claim for myself from the side of me that's Sin'. Everytime we went to my grandfather's cabin I would be in my element, having fun and laughing, it was always a good time... then I'd get home and it'd be back to school and back to an odd life that I was trying to rid myself from."

"Hmm."

"But," With more spring his his step he sticks his legs forward so the swing jets out. "with you as my friend there's no way I'm gonna be down; everything is over and I can breathe again, really breathe. I might even tell Dr. Maxim to cancel my sessions since I won't be coming in."

"That's the spirit!"

Looking over at Arc Rocky drops his weight down so that the swing stops moving, releasing Robbie's hand he stands up.

Alarmed, Robbie stands as well then asks. "What? What is it?"

But Rocky takes off running. Doing the same the Canadian sees up ahead his cousin and a man from the area talking.

'Oh no, that must be it.' Pushing his legs a little harder to speed up he manages to get to Arc a second after Rocky and in that instant he grabs his lovers arm to stop him from lunging at the man. "Rocky wait!" He shouts hoping the adrenaline hasn't deafened the male.

Smacking the man's hand so that the candy he is holding out to Arc falls to the cold, dead, grass. Rocky glares at the man. "What the hell do you think you're doing?" He demanded to know.

"What? I just-..."

Cutting the man off, Robbie says to Rocky after giving him a shove to snap him out of his head-strong raid. "Rocky, relax, this is Mr. Chaplin and he's really nice. He lives right across the street, and plays with the kids all the time."

"Don't most preditors live 'right across the street'? And anyway he shouldn't be offering kids candy muchless thinking its alright to come up and play with them without asking permission first."

"Who are you, young man?" Asks Chaplin. "Never in my life have I been accused of such a thing. I would never do any harm to a child."

"None being monitored anyway, right!"

"No." The man sounded on the verge of tears by the assumption that he is a child molester. He's lived here his whole life, he has a son of his own- granted his son is living with his mother now but he visits him over weekends. How can this boy come along and just throw insults around- especially ones so serious.

"He doesn't mean anything by it, he's had a very rough past. Please don't take it to heart, Mr. Chaplin."

"Come on, Arc, we're leaving." Rocky says taking the boy's hand.

"How come?" The child pouted down at the dropped candy.

The ninja pauses for a moment then replies with something that's not entirely a lie. "Because its time for lunch, we're going to have McDonalds. Is that ok with you?"

"Yay! Woo hoo!" He throws his empty hand into the air following the male.

Robbie watched them leaving but he then turns his attention to Mr. Chaplin. "I'm sorry."

"That guy a friend of yours, Ivan?"

"Yes- actually, he's Arc's father."

Wide-eyed the man looks at Robbie. "His father? I thought he was absent- ha, and nevermind that, that boy couldn't be any older than you!"

"Its complicated." Robbie glances back at them. "But my aunt did some pretty bad stuff to him and its got him completely hauled up in a bad place, that's why he's super protective of Arc."

"Protective or not, that's some serious stuff he's spitting at people. I'd advize him to watch hisself."

Nodding, Robbie says. "I will. But really, please, don't take it too hard." Patting the man on the shoulder, he smiles and says. "You just keep being that nice old man with the strawberry candies. Rocky is only visiting Arc and me then we're going back to L.A."

"Aaa." Intones Chaplin. "How is school for you, Ivan? You making good grades or scamming on all the pretty girls?"

Blushing, Robbie shakes his head. "No, no I'm not scamming pretty girls. I'm seeing someone, though, but as far as grades go... well... I'm still trying to find my direction in life."

Patting Robbie on the back he turns slightly to gesture that he's leaving. "You'll figure it out."

"I hope so, the stress is really starting to get to me." Waving he starts away. "Bye Mr. Chaplin."

"See you around, son."

Catching up with Rocky, who's getting pretty far down the street, though, slowly since he doesn't know the neighborhood. Robbie wraps his arms around the pouting male's waist before nuzzling his cheek to his. "Dude, you've gotta get a life."

"I don't 'gotta' nothing." He flashes him a dangerous glance.

Falling into step with him, Robbie decides to push the issue... just a bit. "He really is a nice man."

"I don't care, nice men lead to NOT nice men, and I don't want Arc to grow up as one of those people who just talks to anyone."

"Well he can't be afraid of life." Robbie retorts.

Rocky said nothing only kept his attention forward.

Robbie watched his face a moment, but with a shrug walked on in silence with the two. He supposed Rocky would get over it eventually.

"...I'm sorry. I just" He pauses. "I just don't like that fact that the world is so unsafe, but you're right, I can't go around accussing everyone of being bad. That's not how you heal and its not a healthy way to live."

Blinking, Robbie smiles. "I love that about you, you sum up exactly what you're thinking and say it with sincerity. Its a good quality in a person, makes me feel all safe and secure."

Scoffing Rocky repeats. "Safe and secure. Some people find it annoying."

"No. Not me, I meant what I said, its a good quality and I love it."

Rocky thought about that and with a confident grin he says. "You know what? That's the first real compliment I've ever gotten; thank you."

"Ahahaha you're welcome."

"There's the store." Arc points as they walk by the restaurant.

"Oooh, let's see if they still have those race car toys." Says Robbie looking both ways then crossing the street. "Buddy system." He calls moving his hand behind him for Rocky to take.

Unsure a moment, he remembered what Robbie said about being free in a place like this because no one knows him so who cares what anyone may see or what they may think when seeing it, its his life and if he chooses to live it with a male- even for a short while, that's his business and no one else. Taking his boyfriend's hand the three of them cross the street.

...

Colt opens the door to his new dorm room. His intentions are pure and hopefully the end result will be a good one. After all, there's nothing wrong with doing a little follow up, a person can never be too suspicious until any little indicator to a bad outcome is completelty snuffed out. So with mock gloves on and a fine toothed comb he searched the room from left to right in search of some kind of evidence that might contradict what his younger brother had told him. With any luck he will find nothing and with that he'll drop the matter completely but if he finds something well... well, he doesn't actually know what he intends to do but it will be something.

Looking through the desk he locates some pieces of candy, some loose change, and a rubber band ball. He thought people stopped doing lame things like that but guessed not. In another drawer he finds some pictures he assumed were Robbie's because he's never seen any of these people before and he knows just about the same people as Rocky and Tum Tum. Surprisingly enough the pictures are all of girls, minus the one of Rocky that his father used to flash over the news; tucking it into his pocket he doesn't care whether the double dipper notices its missing or not, he should not have pictures of his brother.

'I'm not gonna count that as evidence because I have lots of pictures with male friends.' He mentally notes, but still he's keeping the picture. Abandoning the dresser, Colt moves over to the drawers. People usually keep pay dirt in a dresser or under the bed. Rifling through the clothing both Rocky's and Robbie's he finds nothing out of the ordinary so he leaves it alone. Lowering himself to the floor he searches for boxes that might hide secrets only to come up with a new pair of Nikes under the Canadians bed and some comics and handheld games under Rocky's. 'Guess he never kicked that gamer habit.' Looking around for another place that secrets lie Colt comes across the closet. 'Bingo.'

...

"So there we were, trapped on this huge ship with all these bad guys around us." Rocky says to his son.

Eyes wide, Arc chews gingerly on a french fry. "Then what? Did they kill you?"

"Dummy. If they killed Rocky he wouldn't be sitting across from you, would he?"

"He might. Ghost are real." Answers Arc.

"No. I'm not dead," Rocky responds in a playful tone while giving the boy's hand a shake to show that he's real. "But we thought we'd be dead for sure because this Snyder guy was no joke, he pointed guns at us."

"Wow." The boy says in awe.

"But we weren't scared," Rocky adds very casual like the guns were made of toilet paper and the threats to them paper cuts with said paper. "infact, we got out of the cell when I remembered something that our grandfather taught us." Seeing that the boys attention never waned even a bit he goes on. "that everything around us can be our friend."

"Even snakes?"

"Even snakes. It was because of that that I noticed that there was a phone in the room, so I used it to call the opperator- not really sure who was on the other end, but we had to do something to get out of there."

"Did he know it was you?" Robbie asks, enthralled in the childhood tale as well.

"Not at all, I disguised my voice to make it sound more grown-up and said that... I don't know, I was doing a phone check."

Laughing, Robbie sips his soda. "There's no way the guy went for that."

Nodding Rocky says. "Yes, he did. And when I hung up the phone he called back asking if it were a real phone check so I told him as myself that the guard had stepped out of the room a second and when I called the guard outside in, I whacked him over the head with the receiver and we took off."

Nose scrunched in wonder, the boy asks. "What's a receiver?"

"That's the part of the phone that you talk through." Rocky answers reaching over the table to wipe, with a napkin, some barbecue sauce from the boys mouth.

"Thanks." He licks his tongue out to where Rocky had wiped as if to salvage some sauce or remove the sticky sensation left behind. "Then what happened, Rocky?"

"We fought many battles on the ship, this guy and that one, coming after us at every turn; we even had to make our own weapons out of junk lying around."

"Did you find your grampa?"

"He more or less found us while we escaped, but he helped us out in the end by defeating Snyder."

"Cool... Did all that really happen?"

"Mhm."

"Where's Snyder now? Can I go kick him in the knee for picking on you?"

"Hey, you picked on me too, remember 'scaredy Rocky'?"

"But I was only playing, this man was a mean bad guy." Arc states in his own defense to name calling.

"Naah, you can't kick him. Snyder went to prison and, he was released but he's a dish washer at a restaurant for reformed offenders."

"What about those three funny guys that kidnapped you and your brothers?"

"Fester got a job as a janitor at the airport, Hammer- whose name is actually Maki Namikawa, works at a shoe store under his grandfather's supervision and Marcus speaks to teens about child abuse." Rocky shrugs. "He apparently had a rough childhood." Blushing when he realized what he'd said, he apologizes. "I shouldn't be saying things like that to you. I should just say they all lived happily ever after or something, I'm sorry."

Tapping Rocky on the shoulder, Robbie points at the boy. "I don't think he heard you, look."

There, head flat against the table, Arc lay sleeping.

On the walk home Arc is held by Rocky piggyback style, resting his head between the ninja's shoulder blades. Beside them Robbie eats the fries from his lunch hidden in the bag he's carrying. "What about dessert? And don't tell me you're one of those people that doesn't like sweets." He actually looked as though he were going to cry if Rocky said he was.

"I love dessert, don't worry. I don't so much like candy, though. But cakes and brownies especially, caramel candy has always been good too."

"If it has sugar in it, I'll put it in my mouth."

They walk silently for a while, Rocky taking in the scenery while Robbie watched him, at least, until his eye caught the young boy resting against his lover's back. Hand reaching up he strokes the boys hair.

"Are you planning on telling him?"

"That I'm his father? I can't- I mean, I thought about it this morning during breakfast but... I don't know, its too nerve wrecking. What will he say? Will he ask where I've been all this time or why me of all people. I just don't think I can take the rejection." He looks over his shoulder seeing the top of Arc's head. "Believe me, I would love to be his father in any way I can but... I don't think now is the time for it."

"I can understand that." Lowering his hand he stuffs it into the bag pulling out three fries. "Open up."

Taking the offer Rocky thinks about how he will tell Arc about being his father- if he tells him. Maybe he should just go to L.A. happy that the boy sees him as a friend. Behind him, Arc blinks thoughtfully over what he's just heard...