He didn't cry for very long—and it probably had more to do with the fact that the floor was really the least comfortable place to be comforted.

With a sigh Ellis untangled himself from the other and scooted himself back onto the edge of the bed. Nick continued to kneel for a moment longer. He studied Ellis intently before he grudgingly got to his feet.

Nick moved to speak—to reassure Ellis, somehow, but the young man started to crawl to the head of the bed and then he turned back and gave Nick a pleading look. Nick tilted his head slightly but climbed in without comment. Before he had even managed to adjust the pillows so they could lean against them, Ellis had already latched onto him.

Nick fully expected Ellis to start talking, but instead the young man reached over for the tv remote and clicked it on. He was half-grinning, which looked rather silly considering his face was still heavy with misery.

"Hey… Phineas an' Ferb…" Ellis muttered.

Nick couldn't help himself. He let out a noise of disbelief, "Cartoons, Ellis?"

I'm complex, I'm like an onion!

"That's not even funny," Nick said flatly. Ellis, however, was giggling. Nick let out a sigh. Well, if the kid wanted to melt his brain with cartoons, then he supposed he'd have to let him do it. He tried to allow his mind to wrap around the show, but as more characters were introduced he found himself thinking more than letting his brain go numb—like it should when watching senseless kid shows. "There is something seriously wrong with this cartoon…" He grinned slightly. "I can understand why you enjoy it."

"Fff… it's funny… Ya should watch cartoons more often…" Ellis shifted slightly, nuzzling his face a little closer. "…Keith, Dave an' I would watch cartoons like… every mornin'. Even when we got inta high school an' stuff… Man… high school. Tha' really wasn't tha' long ago, wasnit?"

Nick snorted, "Maybe not for you."

"Ya ain't tha' much older than me, Nick."

"You wanna bet on that?"

Ellis tilted his head back, as if trying to get a better look at the conman. "Man, ya have ta be like only… five or six years older than me."

Nick laughed, hard. "Jesus, Ellis. I'm not a woman you don't have to try to flatter me."

"I ain't tryin' ta do nothin' like tha'. I'm bein' serious…" He shifted a little closer, eyes intently studying the older mans face. "…Uh… how old are ya then?"

"Thirty-five."

"Shit, man. Yer kiddin'."

"Love me less?" Nicks smirk was positively devilish.

"Ffff. Yeah, whatever. Ain't never woulda though', but it don' bother me none… When's yer birthday?"

"September. The sixth."

"Ah, man. Ya probably don' even remember yer golden birthday then! Thas depressin'."

Nick frowned. "What's a golden birthday?"

"Man, ya don' know wha' a golden birthday is?" Ellis shifted about excitedly and Nick had to adjust his arm so that the young man could inch closer without digging all kinds of elbows and knees into him. "Man, it's when ya are turnin' the same age as yer birth day. I was born February sixteenth, so when I had my golden birthday my Ma went all out. She got me a truck! It was the coolest thing ever. Keith even went with her an' stuff ta find me one. I mean, it wasn't no new car or nothin', but man, it was still perfect…" He trailed off for a moment before continuing fondly, "His Ma an' my Ma were best friends back through high school an' stuff an' so thas why we was always hangin' out. Man, we practically lived at each others houses. I remember how his Ma ended up buyin' me my own sleep-over stuff 'cause I always ended up jus' stayin' the night. Ma did the same fer Keith too. Shit, man, we was like brothers. I di'n't have no real brothers or sisters growin' up, ya know? So it woulda been pretty lonely if I di'n't have Keith… ya… ya know?" He looked as though he might continue, but there were tears in his eyes. He didn't trust himself to keep talking.

Nicks response was to tangle his fingers into Ellis' growing hair. He may have commented on how long it had gotten to distract him, but he didn't want to make any indication that he wanted it cut. He liked how he could lose his fingers in those soft curls.

The cartoon still played, sending colors dancing across the ceiling and their bodies, the voices almost distorted as their minds focused elsewhere.

"Man, Keith an' I did everythin' tagether," Ellis whispered. "I can't believe… can't believe tha'…" He let in a long breath before resting his face back against Nicks shoulder. "Wha' was it like growin' up where ya were from, Nick? In Omaha? Didja like high school an' stuff?"

Nick raised on eyebrow, frowning slightly. "I think I spent more time in the principles office than I did in all my classes combined."

"Tha' don' surprise me none… In fact I'd probably be surprised otherwise. Ya not like school?"

"It wasn't that. I didn't really mind it. I had a smart mouth and not many of the teachers appreciated it. And I cussed. A lot. Another thing that they tended to frown upon."

"Well, ya never really broke tha' habit none. Wha' were ya in school? The jock, the bully, smart kid?"

Nick snorted. "I don't know, Ellis. That was a long time ago."

"Ain't tha' long ago!"

"Honestly, Ellis. I barely passed high school I was in so much trouble all the time. I hardly ever even got to interact with the other kids."

"So ya were the troublemaker!" Ellis sounded pleased at this discovery.

Nick sighed quietly and had to keep himself from rolling his eyes. "Yeah, Ellis. I guess so."

"Well, man. So was Keith an' I. There was this one time fer our senior prank tha' we took a bunch of homemade roman candles an' set them up in the front lawn. All them other kids put like, spoons an' forks an' stuff, but we wanted ta make sure the class of '04 went out with a big bang, ya know? An' shit, man, when those things went off it was the coolest thing ever. They're gunna remember us forever… We also sorta scorched some of the buildin' too… Wonder if thas all still there..? But, man, the principle was sooo mad. He wanted ta, like, not let us graduate… but then I think he sorta figured he'd rather get us out then make us stay another year. We almost di'n't get ta walk though. I woulda felt real bad if we couldn't, 'cause Ma was real excited fer it… But it all worked out in the end."

Most things seem to work out for you, don't they, Ellis? But then Nick sighed. Well, except for the whole 'everyone-you-knew-dying-or-going-crazy' thing. Some huge fucking shock, huh kid? Goddamn.

"Whas wrong, Nick?"

"Nothing."

Ellis studied him, reaching up with one hand to gently trail his fingers down the others stubble. Nick shifted his face slightly so he could watch Ellis' eyes greedily taking him in. He liked that look on Ellis. The mechanics fingers brushed across his bottom lip and then the young man sighed softly, contently.

"Hey Nick? Wha's Oak Ridge like?"

"Hmm…" Nick dropped his head gently against Ellis' "Well… let's see. Last time I was there it was still pretty quiet, peaceful. Not a whole lot goes on there. And I like it like that, you know, Ellis. It's a calming place," his voice became a little more stern, but obviously teasing, "a place where I go to relax."

"Ya ain't gonna be relaxin' much with me there," Ellis pointed out. Whether he was trying to be suggestive or not was hard to tell just by voice, but the grin that occupied those words made it very evident. The little grin promised many things. He snuggled closer, "Tell me more."

"Ah... well… I live in an apartment-sort-of-complex. It's actually really a townhouse, but whatever. And it's not exactly in Oak Ridge, but close enough… I'm honestly not there enough to really talk about it. I mostly just stay inside and drink when I'm there."

"Do they allow pets?" Ellis asked. He sounded hopeful.

Nick looked at him suspiciously. "I don't know, maybe. Why?"

"We should get a dog. Or a cat."

"I don't like animals."

"Wha'? How do ya not like animals? Man, I always wanted ta have like a dog or somethin' but we di'n't live in big enough of a house an' so my Ma wouldn't let me have nothin'. Keith though, man, he always had like a bunch of cats an' a dog or two. It was cool though. Bein' able ta like play with 'em but then go home an' not have ta worry 'bout takin' care of 'em or nothin'." Ellis chuckled. "Keith use ta complain 'bout tha'."

"Can't we get a plant instead or something? And you can play with that. Water it and talk to it and stuff. You can even let it in inside during bad weather."

Ellis' face scrunched. "Tha' don't sound like no fun, Nick."

"Having a pet isn't fun, Ellis. They're all hairy, always demanding attention and you have to feed them, pick up after them… You have to spend money on them... That doesn't sound like fun to me. Sounds like a pain in my ass."

"Yer no fun. Why not a cat then, man? They don' really need attention or nothin'. Ya jus' have ta keep their litter box clean an' keep feedin' 'em an' so long as ya pet 'em every so often they're pretty content. Ain't gatta walk 'em or nothin'."

"That almost sounds nice, Ellis. Almost." Nick's tone was littered with sarcasm.

"Man, are ya allergic ta 'em or somethin'?"

"No."

"Had a bad experience?"

"I jus' am not a fan of animals, Ellis."

"Wha' if it has short hair?"

Nick made a little noise, "God damn, kid. You really want this fucking cat?"

"Yeah."

"All right. Shit. You can have a fucking cat. But it's getting declawed, fixed and if it sheds one god damn hair I'm going to shave it."

"Aw, man, thanks, Nick!" Ellis drew the other into an excited kiss. "Thanks."

"Yeah, yeah. I'm going to regret it, but you're welcome. And if you name it 'mittens' or 'boots' or something, I'll never let you have another animal again."

Ellis laughed. "Shit, man, I promise I won't do nothin' like tha'. But, man, that reminds me. One time Keith an' I caught this toad when we was kids an' we kept it an' stuff for awhile. We named it 'Fish' 'cause we kept it in an old aquarium an' my Ma alway's told us ta remember ta 'feed the fish'. We though' it was so funny… Then again, she kinda accidently killed it when she put a hot lamp over its cage… Though' toad's needed the heat…"

"Ellis, you just ruined the story for me," Nick said laughing.

Ellis chuckled, "Sorry. But, man, tha' had ta be the first time I ever got real mad at her. I di'n't talk to her fer like… a whole day."

"A whole day?" Nick blew out mocking whistle. "I really don't think I believe you. That just seems far too long."

"I got will, man," Ellis replied, grinning. "An' I was jus' a kid. Probably only like nine or somethin'. Thas a long time fer a kid ta go without talkin' ta their Ma. Man she was so upset though… I ain't never ignored her after tha'…" He sighed quietly. "Man I hated seein' her cry, ya know? I mean, she was my Ma… I'd do anythin' ta make sure she was all righ' an' smilin' an' stuff… I remember when we got inta a car accident when I was twelve or somethin'. Some guy di'n't stop at a red light an' hit us. Man, I ain't never seen her cry so much in my life. She kept sayin' she was sorry, but I di'n't know wha' she was so sorry fer. It wasn't her fault or nothin'. I got banged up pretty bad. Messed up my pelvis some."

"Jesus." The conman drew the other a little closer, probably unconsciously, but Ellis noticed. The mechanic smiled slightly.

"Yeah. It was okay though. I mean, it really sucked for a long time havin' ta do therapy an' shit, but it really wasn't so bad. I kinda started doin' shit I wasn't supposed ta be doin' righ' away an' tha' kinda messed me up some even today. But, it's okay. The faster I recovered the sooner it made Ma happy again. An' it don't hurt none, so it ain't really tha' annoyin'… Guess thas my story behind why I can't run well." He nudged the older man. Nick looked at him again. "Tell me a story 'bout when ya were a 'lil kid."

"Huh?" Nick blinked, taken aback. "A story?" He frowned. "I really can't think of anything."

"Think hard. I wanna hear a story 'bout ya. I've been doin' all this talkin' an' ya haven't said much."

"All right…" Nick squinted one eye, thinking hard. "Uh… Once when I was ten I fell out of our tree-house."

"Tha' ain't a story, Nick," Ellis said, frowning. "Thas a statement of a fact."

Nick snorted. "All right. I guess it is. Well, I didn't really fall out, my sister pushed me out. It was stupid, really. I took one of her dolls or something and I was holding it hostage with my brother. And she got all mad that we wouldn't give it back and she ended up pushing me and I fell out. It really wasn't that high—like six feet up, but I guess I landed just right. Broke my arm. I had a cast and everything… My sister drew hearts all over it when I was sleeping. God I was so pissed when I woke up… But, anyways, that's the story behind why I'm ambidextrous."

"Nick…?"

"Please don't tell me I have to define ambidextrous."

"No, it ain't tha' Nick…" Ellis stopped. He looked like he wasn't sure if he wanted to continue but Nick gave him a slight nudge of encouragement. "Nick, I know ya left yer sister behind an' stuff, but it don' sound like ya really wanted ta leave her. I would give anythin' if any of my friends or family were… were okay… I… I really think ya should get back in contact with her. Catch up, ya know?"

Nick sighed. "Ellis."

"Please, Nick?"

"I'll think about it."

"Will ya really?"

"Yeah."

"Okay… Cool. I'd like ta meet her."

Me too, Ellis. Me too. But he didn't say that out-loud. He wasn't sure if he was ready to admit that to even himself.

Fifteen years was a long time for someone to change. He was living, breathing proof of that.

A/N: Goddamn thas alotta useless backstory.

The way this chapter went in my head was so flawless and fluid that I am just so frustrated that I can't remember it enough to write it in the same manner. I wanted to end this –cough- differently. But I think I'll work that in for the next chapter. =) This ended up being another one of those chapters were nothing really that exciting happens, but information is just sort of… thrown in there in a wannabe-fluid way so that the story can progress.

Sorry for missing an update day. Something came up and I didn't get a chance to write. Sadface.

Ellis runs funny. I had a discussion with someone about it once and I took the liberty to give a story behind it. XD Also, I guess Nick is the only survivor that is shown holding weapons in both hands and it's theorized that he's ambidextrous. Being ambidextrous myself I instantly accepted the theory and used the first chance to give a reason as to why.

p.s. I love how Ellis just rants. It's so much fun... also Phineas and Ferb FTW.