Author: Moon Roses or Moony
Rating: R for language
Disclaimer: Don't own anything.
Feedback: Not necessary but greatly appreciated.
Recap: Damn her son for being such an old soul. She wished she didn't have to meet Jesse and Dom either. Vince and Leon were enough to last a lifetime.

Chapter Forty

Shorty tossed and turned but couldn't find enough peace to sleep. Instead she climbed out of bed, pulled on a pair of shorts and a wife beater. She snuck past Brer's room, hoping he wouldn't wake up. It'd taken her much longer to get him to fall asleep again after the races. He was certainly upset that his first meeting with his extended family had gone as badly as it had. And he undoubtedly blamed himself; though she'd assured him it was her fault they were angry.

Sliding the glass door open she crossed to the diving board and climbed on it, laying on her back and letting her feet dangle in the water. She stared above her where she knew the stars were located but instantly felt heartsick for Mexico. She knew it had only been a day but she already missed being able to make out the constellations that always took her mind off her problems. Focusing on the moon she silently begged it for help, or at the very least peace of mind, for it had always been able to calm her troubled soul. Tonight though, it hid behind the smog as if telling her she'd dug herself in deep this time.

It was right of course. She'd royally fucked up. And there was nothing she could do to fix it. Brer was a part of her and she wouldn't change that part of her life even if she could. Both Mia and Letty had forgiven her, though maybe they still harbored hurt feelings. And yet, Shorty knew they were her best chance to get Leon in Brer's life now.

"Mami? Why doesn't uncle Vince like me?" Brer asked, his green eyes twinkling in the dark at the end of the diving board.

She resigned herself to neither of them getting any shuteye tonight, "Come here, baby," she called softly. He climbed up onto the diving board and crawled over to her, laying his body on top of hers and placing his head directly over her heart. "He's mad at me not you."

"Cause I made you leave?"

Sighing deeply with regret, she sometimes wished her son wasn't as perceptive as he was. Not to mention it was a little creepy how he just seemed to know things, even at such a young age. She'd told him the stories of their travels but she'd never told him it was because of him that she'd left Los Angeles. Somewhere along the way he'd put two and two together himself.

"I made us leave, not you. You were just a passenger on my crazy adventure."

"I love uncle Vince, but I don't like him," he said.

"I know you do. One day, uncle Vince is gonna love you too. Just give him time to come around, yeah?"

He didn't say anything for a while and Shorty looked up to see if he'd finally fallen asleep. She saw his eyes staring absently at the garden and wondered what he was thinking, but knew he'd tell her when he was ready. "Is uncle Vince gonna love you again too?"

Her heart balked painfully at his question and she wanted to answer in the affirmative. Instead she answered truthfully because she knew Brer would be able to sense her lie, "No, baby, uncle Vince is never going to love me again."

"How come?"

"It's to late for me."

Shorty leant up and kissed his curly hair, holding him tight against her chest, and gazed back up to the moon, whom was just starting to peek through the smog. It beamed at her but didn't settle her soul for once, and neither did the cool water tickling her toes. For once in her life, they wouldn't solve all her problems for her. It was as if they were telling her it was time to grow up and deal with her mistakes.

Brer fell asleep on her and she let him rest until the sun broke through the smog for the day. Her back was smarting from the position she'd lain in for nearly four hours but the pain helped her focus on the tasks at hand. One: Leon was going to accept his kid. Simple as that. And two: uncle Vince was going to love her child. And he was going to love him as much as he'd once loved her.

After Shorty had put Brer back to bed for another couple hours she stood under the scalding spray of her shower for what seemed like forever. As upset and exhausted as she was she knew she had to get her ass in gear. She still had some boxes to unpack, and framed photos to hang up around the house before she could really call it home. But Letty would be bringing Lalia around sometime during the day and this also meant that both Jesse and Dominic knew she'd returned to L.A.

With all members of the DT team aware that she was home, she felt somewhat uneasy, but at the same time she also felt like a huge weight had lifted off her shoulders. She wasn't going to rush her meeting with Dom but let it unfold naturally. He was a volatile man, but a man with a heart of gold. He'd come to her because he'd feel like he needed to settle things once and for all for his family.

When Brer awoke a few hours later she'd just finished leaning the pictures against the walls until she could find time to hang them. He still looked a little tired but she figured he'd adjust to L.A over the coming weeks. Banjo followed him into the kitchen and she wandered after them, ready to feed them both. She deposited the dogs kibble in his bowl and rummaged through the fridge for sausages and eggs. Brer slid the patio doors open before climbing his way onto the stool and then sitting cross legged on the counter facing her.

"I want three sausages, please," Brer murmured, his eyes focused on the breakfast meat already frying.

"You're gonna eat us out of house and home, you little pig," she joked, and glanced over her shoulder to catch his reaction.

He grinned broadly and oinked loudly. She wasn't worried about food yet, but once he hit his teenage years she knew she'd be in trouble. Keeping the pantry and fridge stocked was already a chore because he seemed to have the fastest metabolism she'd come across. He ate three solid meals, though he often tried to avoid breakfast.

Cracking four eggs into a bowl, she handed him a whisk and let him go to town. He enjoyed beating the eggs into a sloppy mess and though he was still a tad uncoordinated, and some sloshed out of the bowl, she let him do it. Shorty tried to make breakfast every morning just to spend extra time with Brer, and she was disappointed when some mornings she only had time to serve him cereal.

"Is aunty Letty coming over today?" he wondered aloud.

"She said she would but we'll just have to wait and see."

"What's a cousin?"

Shorty chuckled at the silly question. He'd already asked why the sky was blue, why the water made waves, and why she always looked at the moon. And this one was just as difficult to answer as the others. She wasn't a genius by any means but explaining how families worked was, even at the best of times, difficult to explain. "Well, cousins are family. Say Hector marries Mia, right? And if they have a baby together, that would be your cousin. Letty is your aunty and she has a baby. So that makes Lalia your cousin."

"I'm bigger than her?"

"She's older than you by two months."

"Oh," was all he said, and pushed the bowl of eggs towards her.

Shorty fried up their eggs and set their plates on the table before pulling Brer off the counter and placing him in his seat. He picked up his fork and ate in silence, his mouth pinched at the corners in deep thought. She couldn't imagine what he was worrying about and he kept it to himself. When he was done he put their plates and cutlery in the dishwasher and disappeared upstairs to dress. She hollered up the stairs for him to brush his teeth and washed the dishes quickly.

Brer came bounding down the stairs minutes later wearing shorts so baggy his knobby knees were swallowed in the bottoms. He barreled past her with Banjo hot on his heels and launched himself into the pool. He surfaced and called for Banjo who was pacing along the edge looking less than eager to follow his human into the water. Finally he snuffled, jumped in and Shorty grinned. If Banjo spent as much time in the pool as he did in the ocean she was going to have a hell of a time cleaning that pool. In fact, by the looks of it she was going to need to hire a full time pool boy.

After she finished putting away the morning's cooking utensils she grabbed her sketchbook and her colors. Pulling a lawn chair up alongside the pool she drew her son's playful happiness and continued to sketch until she heard the front door slam. Seconds later Letty's husky voice floated through the open patio doors. "Where you at, Boo?"

"Out here," she called back.

Brer swam to the edge of the pool and climbed out as Letty strolled through the doors with Mia at her side. She grabbed Brer around the middle as he stood awkwardly beside Shorty. She hugged him tight and looked back towards the door, "Lalia, come out and meet your cousin."

From the corner of the door Shorty could make out a pale cream dress with small red flowers, one tiny foot in the sunlight, and the rest of her body hidden in the shade of the house. "She's a little shy around new people," Letty added, and waved her daughter out into the open.

Lalia kept her eyes down and her thick black hair fell across the sides of her face as if to shield her from everyone around her. She was thin and her skin was a shade darker than Letty's. It was obvious to Shorty that the small girl was beautiful already, even at such a young age. She could only imagine how many hearts she and Brer would break when they were older.

Mia pulled up a chair beside Shorty's and Brer climbed up on her legs to give her a hug. He turned and settled onto her thighs and watched the small girl in front of him with curiosity. Brer had never been shy and she didn't understand how any child belonging to Letty or Dom could be so quiet.

When Lalia finally made it to Letty's side she looked up at her mother and Shorty fell in love. The lightest amber eyes she'd ever seen stared back at her and the corners of her eyes pulled up nervously, "Hi," she whispered.

Shorty leaned forward and extended her hand in a fist, "Nice to meet you Lalia. I'm Shorty." She wasn't sure if Letty's daughter had seen people touch fists before, but she reached up and pressed her miniscule knuckles to hers. "This is my son Brer," she added, and gestured to her son who was still watching Lalia intently.

"You like cars? Or Barbies?" he demanded, his face showing disdain at the thought of another girl playing with dolls.

Lalia sneered, mimicking Letty's attitude, and shook her head wildly, her hair fanning out before settling over her shoulders, "Barbies are for girls."

Brer seemed undone by the answer and he looked at Shorty for confirmation that, in fact, the person in front of him was a girl. Shorty smiled but didn't answer. She saw a little of herself in Lalia. She too, had hated Barbies all through her childhood and it had never really stopped.

"But, you are a girl," Brer responded seriously.

It was the wrong thing to say and much to Shorty's surprise Lalia came alive. Snarling, she launched herself towards Brer with her fists clenched tight and her bottom lip sucked behind her teeth. Before Letty could reach her she'd landed a fist against the corner of Brer's mouth. Almost immediately blood began to pool, staining his lips red as if he'd been sucking on raspberries.

Letty sprang from her seat, yelled, "Lalia Tierney Toretto!" and grabbed her daughter around the waist, hauling her off her feet. She stomped back inside the house and Shorty could hear a heated conversation filtering through the open patio doors. Brer pressed his hand to his mouth and his fingers came away covered in blood but he didn't look upset. Instead he had a wide smile across his face, and as macabre as he looked, she smiled back at him without pause.

He climbed off Mia's lap and climbed up onto her own and hauled himself to his feet. His hands rested against her face and he squealed, "I'm a man now!"

Shorty burst into laughter despite the situation. She should have been fuming but instead she looked at her son with overwhelming love. He could have screamed bloody murder, stomped his feet, or even worse – hit back. Instead he'd sat calmly with his hands at his sides and took the punch like the "man" he thought he now was. "Ok, you're a man. But I don't want you hitting people."

"But I hit uncle Vince last night."

"Everyone hits your uncle Vince," Mia joked, her hand hiding her laughter so Brer didn't get the idea that violence was acceptable.

"Out!" Letty snapped from the kitchen as she followed her daughter back to the chairs where they were still seated. "What do you say?"

Lalia handed Brer a wet cloth and when she heaved an annoyed sigh Shorty finally saw what Letty had been like as a small child. The scowl on her face broadened when she forced herself to apologize, "I'm sorry for hitting you, Brer."

She scuffed her tiny toes against the concrete as Brer accepted the wet cloth and pressed it to his lips. He watched her curiously, his eyes lingering on the feminine dress she was wearing over her scabbed knees. "That's ok," he smiled, sliding off Shorty's lap and taking her tiny hand in his own. "Wanna play cars?"

The girl looked shocked that he'd forgiven her so easily and even more perturbed by him taking her hand. "Ok, but I'm not a girl," she stated, her clipped tone igniting laughter in the three adults around them.

After the children moved into the shade Letty slid her sunglasses down onto the bridge of her nose and sighed," I don't know where she learns it."

Shorty exchanged a look with Mia and then burst into laughter. It was absurd to think that Letty didn't see herself when her daughter acted out. She was a perfect replica of Letty right down to the small toes on her feet. "Lett, you've got to be kidding me," Shorty cried, her hand massaging the stitch from her side.

"What?"

"You two are incorrigible," grinned Mia.

A vague memory of Vegas flashed to the forefront of her memory and she remembered the first time Mia had uttered those exact words. Although she still didn't know the meaning of the word she had to assume both she and Letty fit the profile.

"What ever you say, Mia," she answered for both herself and Letty.

"No, seriously. What are you talking about?"

"Both of those kids are like tiny versions of you. Lett, you hit first and ask questions later. And Shorty, you'll take a hit just to prove you can. You two will never change! Neither of you see how completely they look up to you. Jesus Shorty, Brer even asks "Would I lie to you?"'

Shorty had noticed Brer picking up on her phrases and mannerisms but she'd never realized just how alike they were. More often than not, if an unfavorable habit cropped up, she assumed it belonged to Leon. But after Mia explained Brer taking a hit so calmly she couldn't help but realize he was a miniature of her. And for the first time she was truthfully scared, because she'd made more than her fair share of mistakes in her lifetime. And they weren't small mistakes either, they were world shattering mistakes. Heart crushing mistakes. And she never wanted her son to have to go through the same desperate periods she'd experienced.

Mia shook her head and waited until both Letty and she were ready to resume their conversation. Although she wasn't a parent herself yet she seemed to already know more than both Shorty and Letty combined. "Anyways, Shorty," Letty began, "I had to tell Dom you were home."

If there had been any tranquility left in her body after Lalia hit Brer, it dissolved slowly until she shivered as if chilled to the bone. "Oh?" she asked, a little tinge of fear prickling along her spine.

"He was pissed, obviously. All that macho bullshit and whatnot, but he's not going to break down your door. And I told him about Brer," she voiced softly.

"I think he's a little unnerved that you had a kid. I mean, he looks just like his father," Mia added her input, her eyes watching the children pushing hot wheels along the road map carpet.

Before Mia could continue she shook her head swiftly, stopping the conversation about Leon there. She hadn't told Brer about his father and that moment was not the right time to discuss it, with prying ears so close by. As far as Brer was concerned, Leon wasn't Papi but a less mentioned uncle.

"You didn't tell him where I live, did you?" she asked.

"I didn't have too. Vince couldn't wait to tell Dom. I think he was expecting him to rush right over and give you shit."

Shorty was shocked he hadn't done just that. He was going to enjoy confronting her. If the situations had at all been reversed she would have given Dominic a piece of her mind too. But Dom was different; his presence alone could drive a person inside their own mind until they were lost. Even as sure of herself as she was she knew if he showed up she'd probably end up apologizing to him as if she'd wronged only him.

"Leon heard too," added Mia.

Not only did Vince know her specific location but now both Leon and Dom knew, and that could only spell trouble. She wasn't worried that either of them would show up. Dom was a homebody and would likely wait until her guilt forced her to him, probably crawling the entire way. And Leon, well he hadn't uttered a word, just stared dumbfounded at his own kid. He'd never approach her either; it would be much easier for him to block the situation by completely avoiding her. But if Vince knew where she was, it was only a matter of time before he beat her door down, maybe following that up with a good old fashioned beat down.

"You know that silver spoon rich kids carry around with them all the time?" They both nodded uncertainly, unsure where this question was going. "Well I wish I could take one, scoop out their full of themselves asses and hide up in there."

Letty's husky laughter filled the air and lessoned some of the tension she felt. It was no use worrying what she'd do when the time came to face the music, and really what was the point? She had more important things to think about, like how to raise Brer so he didn't become an utter failure like his mother.

"So, what else has happened since I've been gone?" she asked, instead prying into their lives and moving the spotlight off herself in the process.

Mia talked about her residency years with a far away look in her eyes, like she missed the hours of homework and constant studying. She explained she specialized in general surgery, although she'd considered pediatrics. Experiencing something new everyday instead of roughly the same surgeries day in and day out was something she couldn't pass up. This simple information proved just how alike Mia was to the rest of them. They were challenged every day, performing some sort of surgery on some sort of car, but never the same thing on any given day. She worked

Before long she told her how one night she'd spent the evening talking with Hector at a party and by the next morning he was all she could thing about. Even when the buster showed up to apologize she'd only seen him as a stranger. Her heart by then belonged fully to Hector though he had no idea how deep her feelings went. Finally after a year of dating she'd just straight up told him she loved him, she was going to marry him, and they were going to have three kids. And Shorty had to chuckled when Mia explained how Hector's face had paled and he'd said, "It's about time, woman! I've been waiting to say it for a year." He'd proclaimed his love for her too, but as much as he loved her he still never mentioned Shorty to Mia.

She told Shorty how Leon took to sitting on the beach he'd taken her on their first date. If they couldn't find him they'd go to the beach and there he'd be, staring into the waves, lost in his thoughts. He fell back into his womanizing ways after she'd been gone a few months but the thrill of the game was gone. He did what he had to, to make it through the night, but come morning he was lost in his head again. He drank a little more, he smoked pot a little more, but he held onto her even harder, sure she'd come waltzing back like it had all been an elaborate joke. And she had waltzed back, though it was far from a joke.

Eventually he slowly started to smile again but he looked at Vince with questioning eyes. He didn't outright say it but he blamed Vince for Shorty's disappearance though he couldn't formulate a reason for it. By the third year she was gone he began to come alive again, though it was obvious he still missed her and if he spaced out the team let him stay in his daydreams. Until one day when Dom told him to "smarten the fuck up," and "she's gone and she ain't coming back." That was just before he'd asked Kim out on a date and now almost five years later, he was just about back to the old Leon.

"This is heavy shit," Shorty murmured.

Lalia and Brer had moved their play to the pool and both were diving in the shallow end trying to save the hot wheels they'd let sink to the bottom. Brer had grown up swimming every day and he was trying to teach Lalia to hold her breath long enough to make it to the bottom, all three feet. She wondered how both she and Letty could have such adventurous children, already adept enough at swimming to be able to swim to the bottom of the pool, despite it's small depth.

"What did you expect, girl? You left us. And I know it was for good reason but it doesn't change anything," Letty said.

"I know. I hated myself for a long time after that," she confessed, but quieted so she could hear the rest of it.

Letty smiled when she talked about how Dom had been the perfect doting father for Lalia, and while she was pregnant wouldn't let her out of his sight. Shorty was a little jealous that she didn't receive the same attention from the man she loved. Dom stopped all parties at the house shortly after Letty was six months pregnant and there had only been small gatherings there since Lalia was born. He'd started a college fund for his daughter and started talking about marriage although he still hadn't popped the question.

She told Shorty how she'd missed her so badly when she'd first left, though she assured her it was probably just the hormones. She talked about finding the note in her socks and how she felt so guilty writing a secret email. How she was sure if the rest of the team found out they'd have her head on spit, but she'd missed Shorty so much she couldn't ignore it. She was a little disappointed that her replies were always so short and vague but that at least she knew she was alive and well. And she talked of raising Lalia and how easy it really was when there were so many hands to help. Mia, Jesse and Vince took to it right away, but Leon took a few years to really open up and let his niece in. She mentioned how Jesse was Lalia's favorite but Vince fought so hard for the position, teaching her guitar and how to spit and cuss.

Jesse had been hurt too when he'd discovered she'd left but he wasn't nearly as destroyed as Leon or Vince. It'd taken him a few months but he stopped talking about her because saying her name sent both Leon and Vince running for their rooms. He'd once confided to Letty that he thought maybe he'd found a trace of her through the internet but he didn't mention it again. He'd had a serious relationship with a girl named Mae but they'd ended it when she moved to Atlanta with Edwin. As cut up as he was about her cheating on him, he never mentioned her again either, perhaps burying her in the same pit Shorty's memory had been placed. He bought a house down the block and Leon moved with him, though they still showed up almost every day for dinner with the family.

Dominic prayed for a boy but both Letty and Mia thought he was thrilled when a tiny baby girl was placed in his arms, swaddled in pink. He thought he was going to get a beautiful debutante like daughter and he was going to be the macho daddy who lit up her world. Instead he got a smaller version of Letty who loved him dearly, but whose world lit up every time Jesse stepped in the room. He'd come to accept that but he never stopped spoiling his little girl. He was happy with his daughter and Letty, and he talked about marriage but said the moment wasn't right for a wedding. He was waiting for something, a sign maybe, but Letty was fine with the way things were. Mia told how she'd caught Dom's siting on the stoop twice, a couple days apart, a week before Vince's birthday. She'd asked him what he was doing, and he'd replied "Nothin'," but she knew without him admitting it that he was waiting for Shorty to show up, sure that she'd return for her Ol' Coyote's birthday.

And finally they came to Vince and Shorty held her breath. Everything she'd learned was manageable. It hurt to know they'd gone on without her, but what had she expected, really? They loved her, a lot, from the sounds of it. But they'd been a family before her and they'd be a family after her. She was far from the be all and end all of the DT team. In fact, she seemed more like a hiccup or a bump on the road. A memory that some found fond and other's detested.

"I think even Dom missed you. I overheard him about a year ago ask Hector how you were doing," Mia whispered, as if this secret could change the last few years.

Shorty smiled but figured he was asking just to make sure she was alive and well so he'd have the opportunity to crush her neck with his bare hands one day. She remained silent while Letty continued, unable to block her ears from what she was sure was going to kill her all over again. Sometimes she wondered if she had more than one life because she felt like she'd died when she left, but gained a new life in Mexico. Now it was all at risk again, and it wasn't anyone's fault but her own.

Finally, Letty told her that Vince had searched for her for months, then years. He'd set Jesse on a mission to dig up any information about her via the internet. And he's spent thousands of dollars trying to locate her through private investigators. But neither Jesse nor the P.I.'s could turn up anything about her. He also hounded Hector and the rest of her team constantly, searching for any clues. He, like Leon, fell into drinking more, and doubled his pot purchases. He stopped taking female companions home from the races for almost two years. He just stopped living, they said. Like he was lost in some dream world, he moved in slow motion, his anger surfacing again tenfold. He became his namesake again, though he maintained his cool around his niece, whom was the only light in his dark days.

He began teaching her to play guitar, slowing his drinking, cutting back on his drug intake. He starting hunting bitches again, until he too purchased his own house a couple houses down from Hector's. Shorty was a little perturbed that Hector never mentioned this and she listened intently as Letty explained he moved so close to her family home to keep an eye on the house. In case she ever showed up again. He had her pictures in a well worn shoe box he kept below his bed, and another he kept next to his couch in the living room. Sometimes they'd find the pictures strew across the floor, like he'd throw them in a rage, but the next day they were all packed away carefully. Like they were precious memento's instead of painful reminders. But through the years, to present day, he still looked at Leon as if her disappearance was his fault. And Mia said that now he had validation that it was Leon's fault, because they all now knew how Leon felt about starting a family. They'd been sure Vince was going to kill Leon the previous night, but he'd just shaken his head sadly and wandered off, skipping the races all together.

"They said they'd never let a female get between them," Shorty said, sure this wasn't the case. Leon and Vince had been close for years, although less than best friends, but as close to brother's as you could get.

"They said that," Mia answered, her hand reaching out and resting on Shorty's legs. "But you came between them."

"No way, Mi," she replied, looking to Letty's for confirmation.

Instead of putting Shorty's mind at ease she sent her into a downward spiral. Shorty had wanted Leon and Vince to be able to comfort each other when she'd gone. They'd each been so close to her, granted it was in their own ways. But she'd thought, hoped even, that they'd get on with hating her together. Assuring each other it was because she was a spoiled selfish cunt who only thought of herself and had played both of them. Instead, for near five years they'd blamed each other, unfairly.

"They loved you," Letty said.

That was all she needed to say to confirm what Mia had said. They were still family, but they weren't close like they'd been. The worked, played, and lived in the same area, but they assumed each the reason for their own pain.

"I hate what I did," she said, angry at the unwelcome tears that gathered in her eyes. "I need a sandwich. Do you need one? I'll make some lunch for all of us. Can you watch Brer?"

Shorty disappeared into the kitchen without waiting for a response. She needed to be alone for a few minutes to process everything she'd heard. Hector had been truthful but he'd been so in a sneaky way. He made it seem like Leon and Vince were as close as ever, and maybe he did it for her benefit but she didn't deserve it. And how had he not mentioned that Vince was living a few houses down from theirs? Wasn't that a key piece of information?

She set the table and quickly made turkey sandwiches while the chicken noodle soup warmed on the stove. The truth, the whole God awful truth, was out in the open now and she wanted it buried deep inside the recesses of her mind where it couldn't hurt her. Not that she didn't want to feel the pain; she deserved every last bit of it, but she wanted to feel it in increments. She wanted to take a moment, let it sink in, hurt, and then move on. But she couldn't and everything had been piled on her all at once. It was her old friend Karma come to kick her ass again.

When their late lunch was finished, she took a deep steadying breath and called her son and guests into the kitchen. It was hard to think of them as guests because she was so used to seeing them as family. However, those days had passed and she was a stranger to them now, as they were to her. So many things had changed and she hoped that she could regain some semblance of the relationship she had with Mia and Letty before the world went to shit.

She ate in silence, letting the random chatter of Brer and Lalia fill the dining room. They bickered like old friends over whose car was better, Letty's or Shorty's. All the while the three adults kept silent, knowing that their laughter and happiness could stall them from the talk they had yet to finish. To Shorty, it seemed like everything and nothing had been said.

After the group finished eating Shorty let Brer take the empty bowls and plates to the dishwasher where he loaded them haphazardly. Before she could ask him to correct it, he'd yet again grabbed Lalia's hand and drug her to the front room. Mia followed them in and put a movie on to keep them quiet while the adults finished their conversation.

"I just feel so terrible," she finally said, when she set three cups of Chai tea on the table. "I couldn't deal. I needed to get away, but I should have taken Vince with me."

"He wouldn't have gone," answered Mia, so sure that Vince would never leave his family behind.

"Please, Mi. That boy would have followed her to hell," she snapped rudely. "He would have gone with you, you know? If you'd asked," she added, her face serious for once.

Shorty exhaled the breath she'd been holding, "I wouldn't have asked him anyways. His place was here. He's the guy who'd take over if something ever happened to Dominic."

"We could have made it without Vince, Shorty, but he couldn't make it without you."

"I'll never forgive myself for what I did to them. They're good men."

Both Mia and Letty nodded their agreement. That was putting it simply after all. Leon was a wonderful man, his carefree attitude making him an asset to any group of people. He could calm those around him like a cool breeze on a hot day. And Vince was the steadfast friend, the guy who'd give his life for the people he cared about. She'd taken them both for granted and now they were lost to her, for good.

"What are you going to do about," Mia paused, her hand guarding the side of her mouth as she whispered, "Leon?"

Even thought Brer was well out of earshot she appreciated the somewhat secretive gesture from Mia. If there was one thing that would unsettle her son's happiness it would be finding out his father had been right in front of him just last night. Though he never asked much about his father, Shorty had seen the way his eyes lingered on the father's at the park, as they hugged and played with their kids. She tried to be all he needed but as unfeminine as she was, she just couldn't be what a father would be.

"I don't know. He didn't say a thing when he saw Brer, just stared at him like he was contagious," confided Shorty.

The scene from the night before played through her mind again and she was still unnerved that he hadn't said a thing. Even him cussing her out would have been an improvement on what had transpired.

"He didn't say anything when we got back from that races either. He walked around in a daze, ignored Kim completely, then went home. By the way, she didn't look happy when she found out you were back," said Letty.

Shorty waved off the last comment. Honestly, she could care less if Kim was upset about her returning to Los Angeles. Her love for Leon wasn't going to change the fact that he'd produced a kid before they started dating.

"I miss him a lot, you know? He was so easy, so calm. Just being around him reminded me of my childhood. He was like the ocean, like a wave that swallowed my problems and spit me out breathless, but free."

Mia and Letty stayed silence as the information sunk in. The obviously hadn't understood how much she relied on Leon for comfort. He'd been able to absorb her worries and dispel them and she never given them a second thought. Until the time when he was the cause of her worry and all he could do was damage her with his hypnotic and dangerous pull. Turn your back on the ocean and it'd catch you and tug you under.

"I want him to know Brer, but I can't force that on him. Especially after he made himself so clear."

"Like hell you can't!" Letty snapped, her hand slapping the table in indigence.

"No, Lett. I won't be an obligation, and Brer won't be a burden."

Her inner fear quieted Letty's anger, and Mia slumped in her seat at the admission. What she'd said was exactly how Leon would see them if she forced him into their lives. They'd heard how adamant Leon was about a life free of family other than the team. Dom, Letty, Vince, Jesse, Mia, and Lalia were all the family he needed and she wasn't going to change his mind.

"He owes you a lot though, his life – if you think about it," Mia said. "You did what was right, for him. You didn't ask for help, or money, for him. You left your family, Vince, for him. He owes you, Michael. He owes you, damn it."

"He doesn't owe me anything, babe. Brer and I made a good life for ourselves," Shorty replied, cupping her hand around Mia's.

Mia was the only person she knew who was able to control their temper as easily as she did. In fact, it was out of place in the family and friends she kept. But she'd seen the spark of anger flash faster than a lit match in drought ridden country.

"I could just kill him."

And Shorty smiled sadly, knowing none of them could ever think about disposing of Leon. He was stiff in his convictions but he was also a blessing in disguise because he'd given her the most precious gift in her life. All Letty and Mia had to do was look at Brer to realize Shorty was right. He'd given her more than enough. He given her a real life and unwavering happiness.

"Do you think Vince will ever forgive me?" she asked, the subject change so swift they wondered if he'd been on her mind the entire time.

He had, of course, been on her mind for years, but now he was only minutes away and she longed to be able to stroll in his house, grab two beers, toss him one, then lay down beside him like they'd done so often.

"I don't know," Mia said.

"I don't think so," Letty added, the truth of her statement brusque and hard against Mia's noncommittal answer.

They left then, taking with them her worries as her own. It was clear they wanted exactly what she wanted. She just wanted Leon to love Brer. They wanted him to get his shit together and take responsibility. She wanted Brer to love Leon. They wanted Brer to receive his due. She wanted Vince's forgiveness. They wanted her back in his life, if only to return him to the calmer version he'd been around her.

It was kind of funny how they wanted the same things, but for completely different reasons.

A/N: Thanks to D274, Love Ink, lad-kira6606, Rogue's Queen, demonpixie1, Bindie, and Violet201 for the brilliant reviews. I will try to get to your personal thanks tomorrow. I'm exhausted after a 14hr shift in the beautiful North and just wanted to post this. Shout out's to Love Ink, demonpixie1 (it means so much that you've favored my story after it lost your attention before!), and girllyingbythesea901 for the alerts and favorites. Much appreciated.

Cheers!