Sandy and Kirsten had just settled into bed—Sandy tapping away on his laptop while Kirsten had her head buried in a book—when they heard a knock on their bedroom door.

They looked over at each other for a brief second, confusion evident on their face, before Sandy stood up and walked over to the door, cracking it open slightly. "Elena," he said, smiling warmly. "Is everything okay?"

"Mr. and Mrs. Cohen? I'm sorry, did I wake you?" Elena stammered, her eyes wide with worry.

"No, no, of course not, sweetie. Come in." Kirsten replied, patting the bed in front of her, signaling for Elena to sit down.

"Thanks," she said with a nervous chuckle. "Can I ask you something?"

"Of course you can. Is everything okay?" Kirsten asked.

"Yeah, everything's fine. I was just..I was wondering, if, um—well, you know my brother? Trey? Well, I kind of..I haven't seen him in a really long time. And I, um. I've been missing him a lot lately."

Kirsten smiled sadly at the young girl, placing a sympathetic arm around her shoulder. "I can imagine."

"Yeah. I was wondering if maybe one day this week I could go visit him?"

Kirsten and Sandy exchanged glances, knowing how difficult it must have been for Elena to work up the courage to ask that, given how nervous she looked. They didn't want to break her spirit and just say no without any hesitation. She was, after all, a young kid and Trey and Ryan were pretty much the only blood relatives she had left.

After a long pause, Sandy cleared his throat. "You know what? It's getting late. Why don't you let me and Kirsten discuss it with Ryan tomorrow and then we'll go from there, okay?"

"Yeah." Elena replied with a bright smile. "Thank you so much Mr. and Mrs. Cohen. For everything. And I'm sorry for coming in here—I know how late it is and everything."

"It's fine, if you ever need to talk to us, no matter what time of night, we're here." Sandy said.

"Thank you so much. Goodnight."

Early the next morning Ryan sat in the Cohen family kitchen, sipping a cup of coffee when Kirsten and Sandy entered. Ryan looked up at them and nodded his head in acknowledgement of them.

"Hope you don't mind I put some coffee on." He yawned.

"Not at all!" Kirsten replied, grabbing a mug out of the cabinet and pouring herself a cup.

"Where's Seth?" Sandy asked.

"He went to pick up Summer."

"Ahh," Kirsten grinned knowingly. "Where's Elena?"

"She's just getting dressed."

"Uh, Ryan..speaking of Elena..we just thought you should know. She came into our room late last night—told Kirsten and I she wanted to go visit your brother in Chino."

"What? Are you serious? Did you say no?"

"I told her we wanted to talk to you about it first."

"And?"

"Well? What do you think?"

"No. No, no, no. I don't think it's a good idea. She doesn't need to see Trey in the conditions he's living in right now—she's too young. It would do more harm than good."

"That's what I said," Kirsten piped up, taking a sip of her coffee.

"You're right," Sandy sighed, frowning. "I'll tell her when I get home."

"It's fine. Don't worry about it, I'll do it."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. It'd probably be better coming from me, anyway."

"Alright. I'll see you guys when I get home," Sandy said, leaning down and placing a kiss on Kirsten's forehead before disappearing out the front door.

Several seconds later, Elena emerged from the pool house, wearing a green crocheted batwing jumper, a pair of beaded flip flops and a pair of butterfly sunglasses on the top of her head.

Kirsten grinned. "Don't you look adorable!"

"Thanks," she said, smiling sheepishly. "Summer got it for me."

Ryan sighed and shook his head as if to say girls and their clothes! while Elena pulled out a chair at the kitchen table.

"Elena, can I talk to you for a second?" Ryan asked after a long pause.

"Yeah, sure. What about?"

Kirsten quickly stood up, whispering "I'll let you guys talk" before scurrying off into the other room.

Ryan sighed, knowing this conversation wasn't going to be easy—his little sister was just like him. Quiet, at times ill-tempered, and stubborn. Very, very stubborn.

"I heard you want to go visit Trey."

"Oh. Let me guess, you don't think I should?"

Ryan nodded. "Look, Lena, I know how much you miss Trey—I miss him too. But it's not a good idea..you're too young."

"I'm not too young!" Elena cried. "Besides, he's my brother, Ryan! I should be allowed to see him!"

"You will, just not right now."

"Why not?"

"Because I said so."

"But—" she began, her lower lip trembling.

"No, Elena. The answer is no."

"I hate you, Ryan." She said, choking back a sob. She quickly stood up from the table and ran out the back door back into the pool house.

Ryan sighed, running a hand through his messy dirty blonde locks. He briefly considered running after her, but he knew if he did, it would probably just make things worse. She just needed some time to cool off. He walked into the living room and plopped onto the couch before drifting off into a deep sleep.

Several hours later, Ryan awoke to Summer and Seth standing over him, amused grins on their faces. Ryan quickly sat up, wiping the drool off of the side of his face and peering over at the clock on the wall. Seth snorted he and Summer plopped down on the couch next to him

"Tired?" Seth asked dryly.

"Hey, Ryan, where's Elena? I wanted to take her shopping. There's this new store in the mall that she would love and it just opened up."

"In the pool house, moping." Ryan replied, rolling his eyes.

"Why, what happened?" Seth asked.

"She said she wanted to go visit Trey."

"Yikes."

"I know. She'll get over it."

"Do you mind if I go get her?" Summer asked, clapping her hands together excitedly.

Ryan shook his head and Summer immediately stood up, running out the backdoor and into the open pool house. "Lena?" She called out, knocking on the glass door and poking her head in. "Lena? Where are you? It's Summer! Elena?"

Silence.

"Elena!" She called out again, a little louder this time. Nothing. She checked under the covers, in the bathroom and behind the curtain. Again, she came up empty. Shit, she thought. She quickly ran back into the living room where Seth and Ryan sat, deep in conversation about some new video game.

"Ryan! Seth! Elena's not in the pool house." She said, practically out of breath.

"What?" Ryan and Seth said in unison before they both darted out into the pool house.

Ryan sighed. "I'll check in here once more, you check in the living room, kitchen, dining room, basement—Summer, you check the second floor?"

"On it."

Twenty minutes later, Elena was nowhere to be found. Kirsten had checked with the neighbors, Seth and Summer practically tore apart the entire house, and Ryan searched the entire property. Nothing.

Ryan sat at the kitchen table, his face buried in his hands, while Summer called several friends around town, asking them to be on the lookout and Kirsten was trying to get a hold of Sandy. He felt completely and totally helpless. He couldn't bear the thought of something, anything, happening to his baby sister. It was too much.

"I called a few friends. Nobody has seen her. I told them to ask around, though, so if anybody has seen or does see her, they're going to call me."

"Thanks, you guys." Ryan said quietly. After a moment, his head shot up. "Wait..you don't think she—"

Kirsten's face lit up, like a light bulb just went off in her head. "Chino!" She exclaimed.

Ryan's eyes widened and he nodded. Kirsten turned to Seth and Summer. "One of you guys needs to stay here. Seth, I need you to get in touch with the Orange County Transportation Authority, okay? See if there were any buses leaving out of Orange County to Chino or any of the surrounding cities this morning."

"Okay. Wait, wait, where are you going?" He asked, clearly not understanding what was happening.

"Chino."

Elena Atwood sat in the back of a hot, stinky bus, staring out the window, mulling over everything that had happened just an hour prior.

She knew what she was doing was probably a huge mistake, but in that moment, she didn't care. She just wanted to see her big brother. She was sure she'd be back before anyone even really noticed she wasn't there anyway.

After about an hour long bus ride, they pulled into the bus stop. As the remaining passengers emptied out onto the sidewalk, Elena couldn't help but feel nervous. She had never been alone anywhere before, let alone in a place like Chino. She reached into her bag and fished out a map of Chino she had from months ago when she was out with her mother.

"You gettin' out, kid?" The burly bus driver called from the front seat.

"Oh, yeah, sorry. I didn't realize…" she giggled, her cheeks turning bright red.

The bus driver chuckled. "You with your parents?"

"Um, yes." She lied before slinging her bag over her shoulder. "They're out there. Sorry about that. Thanks for the ride, mister."

"No problem."

When she walked out onto the sidewalk, she saw a sea of people wandering around her and she gulped nervously. She looked down at the map in front of her and saw the county jail was roughly six blocks from where she was standing. She shoved the map back into her bag and began to walk as the guilt began to creep in.

A half an hour later, Elena found herself waiting at the table, her eyes trained carefully on the visitation room entrance, waiting for her brother to emerge. After about five minutes she spotted him, messy hair and all, searching the room intently. When he spotted her, his entire face lit up as he practically towards her, arms open wide.

"Trey!" Elena exclaimed, throwing her arms around her older brother.

"Lena," he said softly, tightly wrapping his arms around his little sister. He felt tears begin to sting his eyes as he felt overcome with emotion—it seemed like it had been years since he saw her, anyone, really. He had missed her so, so much. "Where's mom?"

"She's not here." She admitted quietly, looking up at him through her thick lashes as she sat down at the picnic table in front of them.

"Who did you come with? Ryan?" He asked, looking around, looking to see who she was with.

"Um, no. I'm here…I'm here by myself." She practically whispered, hanging her head in shame.

"By yourself? Does mom know where you are? Ryan?"

"I don't live with mom anymore."

"Hey," he put his hand on her chin and lifted her head up, forcing her to look at him. "What do you mean you don't live with mom anymore?"

"Ryan and I live with the Cohens."

He furrowed his brow in confusion. "The Cohens?"

"Yes. They're a family in Newport Beach."

"Wow. Newport? But wait, wait, wait…they let you come here by yourself, Elena?"

"I kind of..snuck out."

"Elena!" He exclaimed angrily, slamming his fist on the table in front of him. A guard looked his way, glaring, and Trey lowered his voice. "What the hell are you thinking? Do you understand how dangerous this is? You're a child, Elena! And what about Ryan? He's probably worried sick about you."

"So what? Not everything is about Ryan!" She snapped back, all of her pent up frustration being unleashed.

"Hey, watch it missy. Just because I'm in jail doesn't mean I can't punish you."

"I know," she said quietly, tears forming in her eyes. "I just..I missed you so much, Trey. I just wanted to see you, that's it."

"Shh, shh. I missed you too, okay?" He said quietly, putting his arm around her. She sniffled and smiled through her tears, nodding her head.

As she cried into her older brothers arms, suddenly, nothing else mattered.

After searching endless bus stops, sidewalks and rest stops, Kirsten and Ryan pulled into the county jail. When they entered, they were greeted by an elderly lady in a cardigan who directed them towards the visitation center. They immediately let out a sigh of relief upon entering, seeing Elena giggling over something Trey was saying.

"Stay calm, okay?" Kirsten said, putting a hand on Ryan's shoulder. He only nodded.

When Elena spotted them, all the blood drained her face and her smile quickly faded.

"Elena," Ryan whispered harshly when he reached the table. "It's time. To. Go."

"Ryan." Trey nodded, offering his little brother a smile.

"Trey." Ryan said, returning the favor. "Elena? Now."

Kirsten went to follow them but was stopped by a hand on her shoulder.

"Um, Mrs. Cohen, is it?" Trey asked, looking over her shoulder at Ryan and Elena's retreating figures. Kirsten nodded. "I just want to thank you for taking care of my little brother and sister. You know, she looked happier than I've ever seen her when she was talking about you guys."

Kirsten couldn't help but smile. "She's a good kid. So is Ryan."

"Yeah, they are. So..just..thanks."

"You're welcome." Kirsten replied before turning on her heel and walking towards the jail exit.

They all piled into the car, an eerie silence settling upon them. Ryan's jaw was set and his fists were clenched but he didn't say anything, nor did Elena. Kirsten knew she should probably talk to her about it but she figured now probably wasn't the best time and Ryan knew how to handle Elena better than she did. When they pulled into the Cohen family driveway, Seth, Summer and Sandy were all waiting by the front door, the worry evident in their features.

"Elena!" Summer called out when she saw them, a relieved expression on her face she ran towards the little girl.

"I'm so sorry I worried you guys," Elena sniffled, enveloping Summer in a hug. Summer seemed surprised at the affection but immediately returned the hug, wrapping her arms tightly around her. "And I'm so, so sorry for everything, Mr. and Mrs. Cohen." She said, turning to Sandy and Kirsten. "I didn't think you'd notice I was gone. I never intended to worry or upset you guys."

"Of course we'd notice if you were gone," Kirsten said, smiling sadly at the little girl. "You're family now. How could you think we wouldn't notice?"

"I know that now." Elena said softly. "And Ryan.."

"We'll talk about it in the pool house, okay?" Ryan replied, his tone clipped and his arms crossed.

A half an hour later, Ryan stood on the cold tile of the Cohen pool house floor, pacing back and forth, brows furrowed and arms crossed.

"What the hell were you thinking, Elena Nicole Atwood?" He exclaimed. "Huh? Chino by yourself? What if somebody had grabbed you, huh? What if something horrible had happened to you? You could have been killed! You're a child, Elena! You know what happens to children who are alone on the public bus?"

"I know," she whispered as tears pooled in her eyes. "I'm sorry. How many times do I have to say it? I just..I wanted to see him so much."

"That's not your decision to make, Elena! And what about Mr. and Mrs. Cohen, huh? Seth? Summer? They spent the entire day looking for you! Mr. Cohen had to leave wor—"

"I said I was sorry, Ryan! I apologized to Mr. and Mrs. Cohen, I apologized to Seth and I apologized to Summer, what else can I say? I'm an idiot, okay? I know that! I made a mistake." She cried, the tears spilling down her cheeks.

Ryan's expression softened. "You're not an idiot, Lena."

"Yes I am," she sniffled into her hands. "It's just..you and Trey are all I have left."

He grabbed a tissue off of the nightstand and handed it to her before snaking an arm around her. "I was so worried about you, you know." He said, letting out a humorless chuckle.

"I'm sorry," she said again, her voice hoarse from crying. "I'm so sorry, Ry."

He nodded his head. "I forgive you."

"Are you going to punish me?" He only nodded, causing Elena to burst out into tears yet again. "Do you have to?"

He sighed. "Lena. You know the rules."

"Please?" She cried, this time her voice a little louder than the time before. He firmly shook his head.

"C'mere." He sat down on the bed and motioned for her to come over. She reluctantly began to drag her feet towards where he was sitting. He gently grabbed her arm and guided her towards his lap. She bent over and let out a pained cry when he landed one swat to her clothed bottom. She squirmed in his grip, crying and protesting but he continued. After six smacks, Ryan released her. "Okay, you're done.

She stood up, face flushed and wrapped her arms around her brother.

"I'm sorry again." She whispered.

"It's okay. Now if you misbehave again, Sandy and Kirsten can spank you as well. Got it?"

"Got it." She murmured.

"Now go get your pajamas on and run a cold rag over your face, okay?" He said, offering her a small smile. She smiled back before disappearing into the bathroom.