Up in the night

Gunner's eyes widen at Bree's comment and he turns to her, letting out a low growl. He leans in towards her neck, but turns at the last second just to put his head on her shoulder instead of playing a vampire. "A bed... no bars... mmmm yeah, I think I can handle that... especially the door on the bathroom." Once his head has rested on her shoulder for a few moments though, his eyes fall shut, the grin slowly fading from his face.

Out of nowhere, he snaps up and stands abruptly, almost dumping his punch on the floor. "Okay, that's it, time to go. I can't stay awake another minute."

Still having Bree's hand in his, he pulls her up out of the chair and drags her to the door. "G'night y'all! Thanks for the party!"

The others laugh and wave, all knowing it was getting a bit late and glad that he'd been there for a while at all. JT sees Gunner and Bree disappear and downs the rest of his punch quickly. "I better go or they're gonna leave me here without a car." Grinning, he waves to the group and heads out quickly to follow the other two out.

The car ride doesn't take too long and Gunner winds up riding shotgun just so he can talk to JT and stay awake until they get back. Running on pure adrenaline, he manages to stay up a little while longer. Once JT has gone to bed though, Gunner kicks his shoes off and barely makes it to the couch to flop down on his stomach, not even bothering to turn out the light.

"Are you staying?" he mumbles to Bree into the cushions. "I don't wanna get up in the night and think there's not a lady in the house."


The party was over. TJY was cleaned up. People were going home and Reese was one of the few who was left. It wasn't for a pleasant task though. He'd been tempted to put this off, but he knew he needed to get it done before anything else happened.

"What?" Alec is sitting up in the infirmary bed, soon to be released to his room on the lower level again. He was going stir crazy, but at least Ryan had visited. Now though... "You can't do that."

"I can keep out whoever I want to keep out," Reese retorts as he stands beside the bed, his arms crossed. "You won't talk, Ryan won't be allowed back."

"I've been telling you the truth!"

"Then try sticking with the same story for once." Reese's eyes narrow. "I'm through playing games, Alec. Either you talk or Ryan will be escorted out next time she tries to come. It's that simple."

Alec glares at Reese, feeling his insides churn.

"Think about it." Reese turns to leave. "I'll be here in the morning."


Dylan thinks for several long moments as his jaw muscles work out his tension without realizing it, just like his father. Everyone thought he'd caved to peer pressure or had just been stupid... the problem was that he hadn't given them anything else to believe. After recent events, something deep down just wanted someone to believe in him again. And if it wasn't going to be his father, anybody would do. Would Dan really listen? Would he really believe him? Dylan had heard Dan had a past of his own... maybe there really was some sort of connection there.

"I didn't want to do it." On the surface, Dylan didn't want to talk about this at all. But something deeper wanted release from these chains.

"My friends were crap... and I knew it. But I didn't have anybody else." He shrugs lamely. "I wasn't doin' good in school and I don't know... I didn't get along with Ben, and me and my mom weren't doing real well so... I hung out with the losers. Got in a bit of trouble now and again. Got picked up by the cops a couple times, but it wasn't anything major enough to send me away."

Dylan's eyes drift to the table where he picks up another french fry to play with. "One night there was a party. I snuck out of the house to go 'cause I was already grounded. Most of the others were getting drunk or smoking weed out back. I drank once in a while, but never did any more than that... always figured I was smart enough to stay away from anything else whether they offered it to me or not. I hung around for awhile then a few of my buddies dragged me into a back room. They didn't tell me what was going on - I thought they were just fooling around or something. Then they sat me down and held me in a chair. I think they were half drunk themselves and they thought it was pretty funny."

He pauses and rubs his arm where one could still faintly see the marks of needles. "I... tried to get away when I saw them come out with the needle. They were laughing. Talking about seein' me high in the clouds. I tried to fight them off but they were stronger." He shrugs lamely. "So they shot me up."

It was obvious from the look in his eye that even though he tried to be tough about the whole thing, that it really bothered him still. It had been a very bad experience that haunted him still, though he'd never admitted it. He'd told people at he McClains that his nightmares had just been about a fire or something, when in reality, they were of that night.

He looks away for a moment, finding something else to focus on, then eats a fry, not even sure himself if he was going to go on. But after a sip of his pop, he does, still not looking up at Dan. He was too afraid he'd find disbelief or disappointment.

"Um... anyway, I don't remember much else about that night. I think the guys brought some girls in or something and I don't remember what happened but I don't think I did things I should have. Somehow I got home. I almost thought it had all been a bad dream 'cept the mark was still on my arm. I didn't say anything to anybody 'cause I knew there was no way they'd believe me. 'Oh sure, Dylan, they "forced" you.' So I kept my mouth shut over the weekend. Only thing was, come Monday, I was wanting whatever they'd given me real bad."

Dylan's face gains color, proving how embarrassed he was. "I... I tried to get past it. Figured if I just waited it out, I'd be okay. I didn't want to get hooked... I knew it was bad stuff. But... after school that day, on my way home, those same guys nabbed me again. And... it happened all over again. They threatened me... said if I told anyone, they'd hurt my mom and sister. They were serious so I... got scared. A few more times just like that and... they got what they wanted - me, addicted to their drugs."

He starts on another fry then lets it drop back to his plate, feeling sick in his gut just thinking about it all again. "I kept wondering what the point was... them getting me addicted. It didn't make sense. But all I ever got was hearing them boast about how much they'd got paid." He scoffs in disbelief. "Someone paid them to get me high. It got bad enough that it wasn't even hard for me anymore to get the stuff. Mostly I found 'em after school or at night when I'd sneak out of the house. Sometimes they'd make me do things for 'em for a fix. Nobody ever got hurt, but I stole more than one thing from the school. I only heard them talking once or twice and it sounded like someone was still payin' them, and they were just taking advantage by getting me to do things for them."

Dylan swallows hard, looking at his hands. "I wanted out so bad, I just... I was too weak. I couldn't say no anymore. Every time I tried, I just..." This was the worst part. Admitting he'd wanted off the stuff but couldn't do it. It just proved how weak he was.

"Eventually, there was a bunch who said they were goin' for a one-way joyride. I just wanted to get out of town and leave it all. So... I went with. I figured I was enough of a mess I deserved whatever I got. There were guys, girls... I don't remember much other than trying to forget and not caring what I did with who or how or how many." He scoffs again. "Yeah... Mama's little boy done did things that'd make her heart stop."

Dylan stops once more, not even sure why he should go on. This was the first time he'd told anybody any of this. The trouble, the drugs, the girls... all of it. He might as well finish now. "Next thing I remember is being totally doped up and the gang from TJY found us. I... found out Dad was involved and it just made me mad 'cause..." He shrugs. "He didn't care about taking care of me when I was a kid, and now he showed up to tell me how to live, while showing off how he was weak-willed himself."

Emotion floods Dylan's eyes as his gaze remains downcast. His hands grip each other so tightly that his knuckles turn white. "I hated it the whole time, Dan. I never once got enjoyment out of sticking myself or getting higher than a kite or doing stupid things while I was there. I just... I couldn't help it and every time I came back around, I wanted to go walk in front of a mac truck 'cause I felt so stupid. I hid it all well but it didn't matter."

Pausing again, he tries to stay in control. "Part of me was glad to be at the McClain's. I finally got off that stuff but they all automatically thought I was just some punk kid who'd had too much fun... even my dad. I knew that my story was impossible to believe. I just wanted to be gone but they wouldn't let me. I didn't want anything to do with my dad, but he had to be there too... I suppose the rest isn't worth saying. You know how things went after I got here."

Dylan still avoids Dan's eyes. "So that's it. I was stupid. I couldn't even stop myself from getting hooked by some mongrel high school thugs. I was born a loser and always will be. Family thinks so and they're right. Doesn't matter what I do now... I'll always have been a druggie and a petty crook." His thumb runs along the table, his food now forgotten. There was only one thing left. "And they're still after me."