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Title: Some Comfort Here
Fandom: The OC
Characters: Ryan Atwood
Prompt: 072 - Frozen
Word Count: 822
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Ryan's tired of feeling so cold.
Author's Notes: 8th in the Runaway Series, comes after: 'Finality', 'Breakaway', 'A Gnawing Pain', 'Desperate Times', 'Fake ID', 'Next Stop', and 'Make A Change'.
Some Comfort Here
Ryan felt like ice as he walked the last block to his destination. It had taken everything he had left to walk so far without stopping for longer than a few minutes at a time, and he was tired and could feel that the melted snow that had soaked into his boots had frozen again into a sheen of ice. All he wanted was to be warm and not have to sleep sitting against a brick wall.
Finally, he reached the small house in the Bronx, and headed up the front walk to knock on the door. He was desperate enough to come here, to Sandy's mother, and he only hopped that when Sophie Cohen opened the door she wouldn't turn him away. He got his answer when the door did swing open, revealing her to look as healthy and strong as ever, and he smiled uncertainly. "Hi," he said.
"Ryan?" Sophie asked, shocked. But a moment later she had pulled him into a hug, holding him close. "I can't believe it. You disappear for a year and a half then decide to turn up on my doorstep?"
"I... I don't know what to do," Ryan said. "I... I can't go back, and I can't... I haven't found work, and... I'm just so tired and I don't..."
"Come in here," Sophie insisted, pulling him into her nice and warm house, and letting her tug his duffel from his frozen hands, then letting her pull his jacket off of him, shaking the snow off onto the entry hall floor. "You look half frozen. More than half."
"It was a long walk," Ryan said, nodding slowly and wrapping his arms around his stomach.
"Get off those boots, then go sit in the livingroom," Sophie ordered. "I'll make you some nice hot chocolate, get you warmed up."
"Don't... don't call them..." Ryan pleaded, his voice cracking. "Please, don't call them."
"Not until after you're warm and we've talked," Sophie promised. "Go sit."
Ryan sat down on the bench to untie his boots, wincing as he pulled them off and his frozen toes were forced into moving. Then, he did as told and went into the livingroom, finding a fire going in the fireplace. He took a seat on the couch, his feet stuck out towards the fire, and sat back, waiting. When Sophie came back with a mug of hot chocolate, she also grabbed a quilt from the back of the couch and tucked it around him, running a hand over his hair. "You could have called me, I would have come and gotten you," she admonished gently.
"I didn't have enough change," Ryan said. "I've got a grand total of 23 cents in my pocket."
"Haven't you ever heard of collect?" Sophie said, though it was without any sting or anger. She was like The Nana he had first met, the one who had seemed all nice and sweet, not the woman he had come to know as strong and stubborn.
"I thought you'd just hang up," Ryan said.
"Why would I hang up on one of my grandkids?" Sophie asked. "And whether you believe it or not, you are one of my grandkids. Just as much as Seth."
Ryan smiled slightly and pulled the quilt tighter around him as he sipped the hot chocolate. "I didn't really know whether you'd care."
"We all care," Sophie said firmly. "Do you know how scared Sandy and Kirsten are for you? Last I heard they both flew to Chicago to look for you because some friend of yours said they'd seen you there."
"Lindsay," Ryan said, nodding. "I left right after I talked to her."
"Why didn't you go home?"
"I can't."
"Yes you can, they love you, they just want to help you..."
"After what I did... I can't..." Ryan said, closing his eyes as he began to cry, and hating himself for showing how much he hurt. Sophie was by his side in a moment, pulling the mug from his hands and wrapping her arms around him to smooth his hair back from his face and offer comfort.
"It's okay, it's okay," she said, letting him cry. "Everything is going to be okay."
"You can't tell them," Ryan said, pulling back. "Please, don't tell them where I am... I can't... I can't face them after what I did..."
"You didn't do anything," Sophie said. "The crash wasn't your fault, neither was that poor girl's death!"
"Not... not that... what I did, to get money..."
The way Sophie stiffened beside him, then immediately relaxed again told Ryan that she understood what he meant. "It's okay," she repeated, holding him just a little tighter "It's okay."
As he sat with his body wrapped in a quilt, and Sophie's arms around both him and it, Ryan felt himself slowly begin to relax and for the first time in a year and a half, he felt warm and safe.
THE END
Fandom: The OC
Characters: Ryan Atwood
Prompt: 072 - Frozen
Word Count: 822
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Ryan's tired of feeling so cold.
Author's Notes: 8th in the Runaway Series, comes after: 'Finality', 'Breakaway', 'A Gnawing Pain', 'Desperate Times', 'Fake ID', 'Next Stop', and 'Make A Change'.
Some Comfort Here
Ryan felt like ice as he walked the last block to his destination. It had taken everything he had left to walk so far without stopping for longer than a few minutes at a time, and he was tired and could feel that the melted snow that had soaked into his boots had frozen again into a sheen of ice. All he wanted was to be warm and not have to sleep sitting against a brick wall.
Finally, he reached the small house in the Bronx, and headed up the front walk to knock on the door. He was desperate enough to come here, to Sandy's mother, and he only hopped that when Sophie Cohen opened the door she wouldn't turn him away. He got his answer when the door did swing open, revealing her to look as healthy and strong as ever, and he smiled uncertainly. "Hi," he said.
"Ryan?" Sophie asked, shocked. But a moment later she had pulled him into a hug, holding him close. "I can't believe it. You disappear for a year and a half then decide to turn up on my doorstep?"
"I... I don't know what to do," Ryan said. "I... I can't go back, and I can't... I haven't found work, and... I'm just so tired and I don't..."
"Come in here," Sophie insisted, pulling him into her nice and warm house, and letting her tug his duffel from his frozen hands, then letting her pull his jacket off of him, shaking the snow off onto the entry hall floor. "You look half frozen. More than half."
"It was a long walk," Ryan said, nodding slowly and wrapping his arms around his stomach.
"Get off those boots, then go sit in the livingroom," Sophie ordered. "I'll make you some nice hot chocolate, get you warmed up."
"Don't... don't call them..." Ryan pleaded, his voice cracking. "Please, don't call them."
"Not until after you're warm and we've talked," Sophie promised. "Go sit."
Ryan sat down on the bench to untie his boots, wincing as he pulled them off and his frozen toes were forced into moving. Then, he did as told and went into the livingroom, finding a fire going in the fireplace. He took a seat on the couch, his feet stuck out towards the fire, and sat back, waiting. When Sophie came back with a mug of hot chocolate, she also grabbed a quilt from the back of the couch and tucked it around him, running a hand over his hair. "You could have called me, I would have come and gotten you," she admonished gently.
"I didn't have enough change," Ryan said. "I've got a grand total of 23 cents in my pocket."
"Haven't you ever heard of collect?" Sophie said, though it was without any sting or anger. She was like The Nana he had first met, the one who had seemed all nice and sweet, not the woman he had come to know as strong and stubborn.
"I thought you'd just hang up," Ryan said.
"Why would I hang up on one of my grandkids?" Sophie asked. "And whether you believe it or not, you are one of my grandkids. Just as much as Seth."
Ryan smiled slightly and pulled the quilt tighter around him as he sipped the hot chocolate. "I didn't really know whether you'd care."
"We all care," Sophie said firmly. "Do you know how scared Sandy and Kirsten are for you? Last I heard they both flew to Chicago to look for you because some friend of yours said they'd seen you there."
"Lindsay," Ryan said, nodding. "I left right after I talked to her."
"Why didn't you go home?"
"I can't."
"Yes you can, they love you, they just want to help you..."
"After what I did... I can't..." Ryan said, closing his eyes as he began to cry, and hating himself for showing how much he hurt. Sophie was by his side in a moment, pulling the mug from his hands and wrapping her arms around him to smooth his hair back from his face and offer comfort.
"It's okay, it's okay," she said, letting him cry. "Everything is going to be okay."
"You can't tell them," Ryan said, pulling back. "Please, don't tell them where I am... I can't... I can't face them after what I did..."
"You didn't do anything," Sophie said. "The crash wasn't your fault, neither was that poor girl's death!"
"Not... not that... what I did, to get money..."
The way Sophie stiffened beside him, then immediately relaxed again told Ryan that she understood what he meant. "It's okay," she repeated, holding him just a little tighter "It's okay."
As he sat with his body wrapped in a quilt, and Sophie's arms around both him and it, Ryan felt himself slowly begin to relax and for the first time in a year and a half, he felt warm and safe.
THE END
