"What's wrong?" Lex asked instantly when Seth stepped into the apartment, his face ashen and tired.
Seth folded his arms and kicked the door closed before walking forward, shrugging his shoulders, "Nothing really. Just.......information overload."
"Care to elaborate?" Cal asked from his usual seat beside Annabelle and Jaimie.
Seth shrugged again, "Just hard to wrap my head around," he said, sitting in Kieran's empty armchair and looking over at his friends, "I mean, my brother and sister show up after five years. I learned one was in a psych hone for those five years while the other made a whole new life. Rowan has been married for three years, and.......," he looked down, "I wasn't at her wedding. That...makes me a bit sad," he smiled weakly, "But I'm also happy. She's pregnant. I get to be there for her kid. I'm gonna be an uncle," he frowned and leaned back, arms still folded, "Also I've come to learn I have a younger sister and a brother, both by marriage. Dylan's younger siblings."
When he stopped, Casey raised an eyebrow, "And?"
Seth sighed, "Well, my younger sister is Katherine, while my brother is Christopher....Chris......," he arched an eyebrow at Casey, "That Chris."
Every one gasped in shock, and Cal set a hand over his chest, "I am so sorry!" He said, and Jaimie glared at him as Seth rolled his eyes.
"I'm not," he said seriously, ignoring the confused looks he got, "I got to witness the other side of him. He has a little sister. Freaking cute. Guess what I got to see him do? Tell Brad off over the phone. Straight up told him to go F himself, then snapped his phone in half."
Lex didn't look impressed, "So?"
"That's not all," Seth sat back, folding his arms, "He gave us some fun information about Brad that we might be able to use," he smiled and winked, "I'm not usually one for blackmail, but Brad needs to be put in his place."
"I don't trust him," Lex muttered, and Seth shrugged.
"You'll have to learn to, because he's coming over tomorrow."
"You invited him over?!" Cal gasped.
"Him and Sam," Seth said, "I thought it would help to involve him in the Winchester Project."
"No way, absolutely not!" Cal snapped, "That asshole's not getting anywhere near that door!"
Jaimie stood up then, turning to his cousin, "Isn't your whole motto about helping people like us?" he asked, "Believe it or not, Chris has been hurt as much as any of us! Remember what I wrote in my blog about him? About what my brother did to him?" a nervous silence followed, and Jaimie turned, picking up the photo of Nash and Mr. Creed, "Are you really going to let someone else die when you can save him?"
Expressions twisted to guilt, and Cal sighed, sitting back, "Well......looks like we're letting in another wolf in sheep's clothing."
"People can change, Cal," Seth said, "Look at Sam."
"Sam was never a jerk to begin with," Cal argued, and Seth nodded.
"Neither was Chris. He was manipulated by Brad," he looked over at Casey, "What do you think?"
Casey nodded slowly, "We have to try it at least," he smiled, "What's the worst that can happen?"
~@~
"This is the worst thing that could have happened!" Cal screamed, falling to his knees and grabbing onto the bottom of Annabelle's shirt, "What do you mean we have no snicker doodle cookie mix?!"
Annabelle sighed and rolled her eyes as the rest of the room burst out into hysterical laughter. Well, almost the rest of them. Lex's lips only twitched up a bit, Chris was silently sitting with a pale face, and Jaimie had gone on a walk, so he wasn't even there.
"Would you knock it off?" Annabelle smacked the top of her boyfriend's head lightly, "There are plenty of choices."
"But I don't like oatmeal raison!" Cal whined, "Why do we even have that?! Oatmeal raison cookies are liars!"
"Cal, cut it out!" Seth said while laughing, "My god you're pathetic!"
Cal muttered as he stood up, arms folded as he shuffled over to the live seat, sitting beside Seth. Casey and Lex were sitting on the couch as usual, while Chris was sitting awkwardly in the armchair, Sam on the edge of the couch closest to him. Annabelle finished what she was doing, grabbing snacks, and walked back to the love seat, sitting beside Cal, who continued to pout.
After everyone was settled, Lex spoke up, speaking to Chris, but nit looking at him, "The only reason you're here is because Seth decided to give you a chance, as did Jaimie, and Sam saw no problem with it. Casey, too, is willing to look past your cruelty. I, on the other hand, am your worst enemy right now."
Chris winced a bit, looking down, "No offense, but I'm more afraid of Brad than of you."
"Just tell us what you told Seth."
Chris looked up, "He didn't tell you himself?"
"No, because he's smart," Lex said, and Cal leaned against the back if the love seat.
"Had he told us, we wouldn't have let you through the door. This way you're useful."
Chris sighed and nodded, "Fair enough."
"So?"
Chris sat still a long moment before looking up, "All I can really do is warn you."
"Warn us of what?" Cal scoffed, "Brad? We can take him."
"No, Shaw, you fucking can't," Chris snapped, "He's a complete asshole, I'll admit that. He's an abusive, sadistic bastard, but he's damn smart, and the freaky fixation he has for Casey just fuels his craziness."
Casey winced abd leaned against Lex, who wrapped an arm protectively around him, "What do you mean?"
Chris sighed heavily, "You're smart, Divine. You know what I mean," he stared directly at Lex, "The only reason Brad has people to hurt Casey is because he doesn't want to do it himself. Why? Because he can't. Every one has a weakness; his is Casey."
Casey gasped at Chris, "M-me? He hates me!"
"Far from it," Chris corrected, "He doesn't hate you, but the emotion he has for you isn't love either. He's psychotic, he's crazy, and he's sadistic. He wants to possess and control you. When you were friends he could do that, but for some reason when you came out to him, that small bit of control he had snapped. It wasn't your fault, is was just how he was back then. Anything could have made him snap. Unfortunately, it was you."
"So what's that supposed to mean?" Cal asked, "He actually doesn't want to hurt Casey?"
"No," Chris looked at him, "He's a weak link. He wants to hurt him, but not in the way you think. Harassing him and bullying him barely suppress what he really wants to do."
Casey gasped, and a low growl left Lex's throat as he wrapped both arms around Casey, pulling him down against his chest. Cal's mouth was open, and Seth looked extremely nervous.
"So what, he wants to hurt Casey.....sexually?" Cal asked, abd Chris nodded.
"Maybe not at first, but as time went on, bullying him wasn't enough. I guess because of the fact Casey had cone out to him as gay, he figured he'd be able to, but I don't know. He started thinking up these sick fantasies he always wished he could be a part of."
"Then why didn't he?" Casey asked shakily, "I was a weak target, he did he not just attack me?"
"Because despite his sick mind, he treasures you. He wanted to hurt you, but the thought of it just made him angry. At one point, he held your friendship close to heart. I guess it was a mixture of things that set him off. His childhood, bis parents, the way he was raised. He harasses and hurts you indirectly, but he holds in most of his sick desires and doesn't touch you."
Casey shuddered and grabbed onto Lex's shirt, "I-I don't understand......"
Chris frowned and sighed, bowing his head, "He held it in, but it's not like all of that rage could stay there. He had to get it out somehow, so....," he shrugged, "that's what I was for. He took all of those fantasies, and instead of hurting you, he hurt me," he lifted his head to meet Casey's horrified gaze, "So in a way I've been looking after you. You're welcome."
Casey opened and closed his mouth before finally finding words, "You.....s-so what Jaimie said....about Brad.....about what he did to you.....that was true?"
Chris folded his arms and leaned forward a bit, bowing his head, "What part?" he asked nervously.
"Th-the part where he'd....you know, beat on you and....hurt you sexually."
Chris winced, nodding, "Yea."
"And you never tried to stop him?" Casey asked, and Chris lifted his head to glare at him angrily.
"He's a fucking unstable psycho. It's not like I never tried or never wanted to, I fucking couldn't!" He bowed his head again, his bangs falling in front of his face to hide his eyes, "I'll admit for a while I thought if I faked it then he'd actually learn to...not be such an asshole abd actually care, but...obviously that didn't work."
Casey bit his lip, "I'm so sorry."
Chris lifted his head to gape at him, "You're sorry?! Hell, I should be the one apologizing! I fucking deserved what happened to me, Casey, I'm an asshole! You didn't deserve anything that Brad put you through, or what I put you through......!" he winced and trailed off, looking down, "I can't apologize though."
Casey furrowed his eyebrows, "Why?"
"Because I don't deserve forgiveness," Chris said, shrugging, "Anyway, that's what I have on Brad. He's git two weaknesses. Casey and drugs. It's been a while since he's indulged in drugs, but he still has contact with the low lives who sold him the stuff, and let me tell you, they're bad news," he sat back in his seat, folding his arms, "They're a bunch of snot nosed kids hopped up on too much sugar, but they pack a punch. They can organize and it's damn scary."
"How do you know?" Lex asked, and Chris arched an eyebrow at him.
"I've known Brad for quite a while, so I know a few of his contacts."
"When you say that," Cal spoke up, "That means you've met them?"
"Duh," Chris looked over at him with a confused expression, "A few times. Why?"
"Are they the kind of people to take advantage of others? Like Brad did?"
Chris stared at Cal a long time before his body tensed up, "You're asking if they fucked me?"
Silence followed, and Cal looked down. Chris stared at his hands, which were folded in his lap. Just the realization the he'd been hurt that much, by so many people, for so long; it made him sick. Now, because he was desperate, he was telling these people all about it. They could use the information against him and make his life hell. What did he really have to lose, though?
"Yea," he said finally, "They did."
The room grew quiet again, until Casey spoke, "How long has that been going on?"
"Long time," Chris muttered.
He didn't notice Sam standing from his seat, and jumped a little when he felt him fall to sit in the chair beside him, leaning forward on his knees, brushing his shoulder against Chris', "So, what are we going to do?"
Lex stared straight ahead for a long time before speaking, "Kick his ads, obviously."
"Well that goes without saying," Cal said, folding his arms, "I think he meant what are we going to do about Brad's delinquent friends."
"There's one guy involved who isn't a complete ass," Chris said, "He's a sarcastic little shit, and he doesn't know Brad, but he knows everyone else. He might be able to help."
"Alright," Lex said with a sigh, "Who is he?"
"I met him once and I never got his name," Chris admitted, and Lex glared at him.
"Then why bring him up?"
Chris bit his lip and looked down, "I just wanted to help."
"You are," Sam assured quickly, "With this information at least we have some leverage against him. Just do your best to stay away from him, alright? I don't want you getting hurt anymore."
Chris shifted uncomfortably in his seat, nodding slowly. It still amazed him how genuine Sam's words were. After being such an asshole, Sam still legitimately cared about Chris. Slowly but surely, Chris was realizing he still cared too.
He stopped talking after that, and simply sat there slumped over with his arms folded over his stomach, letting the others talk. He was pretty sure they wouldn't accept him. It felt like he was in court waiting for the jury decision of death or parole, and it was fraying his nerves.
Chris felt a hand settle in his lower back and jumped a bit in fear, cringing and pinching his eyes closed, waiting for the all too familiar bite of nails digging into his back to keep him from moving. Instead, the hand moved up, and Sam leaned a bit closer to whisper to him as the others in the room talked.
"You're okay, Chris, calm down. Its just me."
Chris inhaled sharply and bowed his head more. He shivered a little and leaned towards Sam, laying his head on his shoulder, allowing him access to his back so he could massage calming circles along his spine. The gentle touch was something he hadn't felt in a ling time, and he slowly felt himself fall into unconsciousness, leaning there against Sam.
He was sleeping so soundly that the others in the room decided it was a safe time to discuss him and his situation, not that Lex was happy about it.
"He's an asshole."
"He's been badly hurt, Lex!" Casey said, grabbing Lex's hand in his, "Just think about this for a second, please? He only did what he did because of Brad!"
"He hurt you," Lex growled, and Casey sighed, cupping his hands around his face.
"A lot of people have hurt me. What matters now is how I deal with it."
Lex lowered his gaze as Seth began to speak, "The whole idea of the Winchester Project is to help people like us. People who have been raped, abused, molested, neglected, and people who cut, burn, have eating disorders. Like it or not, Chris is one of those people. He's like us, Lex. We can't turn him away. We'd be no better than Brad."
Lex stared down a long moment before nodding, "Alright, fine," he resented with a huff.
Casey smiled and shifted positions so he was sitting on Lex's lap, arms wrapped around his neck. He leaned towards him and kissed his cheek, "I'm proud of you."
Lex couldn't fight the smile, and he wrapped his own arms around Casey's waist, "Can I have a reward?"
Annabelle awed and Cal laughed, but Casey just stuck his nose up, "Nope."
"Since he's one of us now," Annabelle started, leaning forward to the coffee table, "He'll need a Nathaniel bracelet."
She plucked a dark purple bracelet from a bag on the coffee table and stood up, walking over to where Sam and Chris were and kneeling down, slipping the object onto his left wrist. She took a moment to push his sleeves back, frowning.
"What are you doing?" Casey asked, and Annabelle looked up at him.
"Looking for cuts or burns."
The room git quiet until Cal spoke, "Are there any?"
Annabelle looked back at Chris' arm, "No, but...there are still scars. I think...from rope or handcuffs...there are.....kind of tiny crescent shaped scars, probably from fingernails......"
Sam tensed up and tightened his grip on Chris, his teeth grinding together. Annabelle tugged Chris' sleeve down and stepped back, sitting down with Cal. San continued to grind his teeth as he held Chris against his side. Sensing his distress, Casey sat forward.
"Sam, are-."
"I let this happen," Sam hissed out, shaking, "I fucking let this happen. I knew something was wrong, and did I help? No, I fucking didn't. I just yelled at him for being a fucking idiot and ditched him. I knew Brad was hurting him. I didn't know how, but I knew.....I knew it was killing him. Damn it."
"It's bit your fault," Casey said gently, "He'll be okay, Sam."
"Okay?" San scoffed, his eyes wild in regret and anger and fear, "He was raped! He won't be okay! Have you been raped, Casey?" when Casey shook his head, Sam looked over at the love seat, "You? Have you been raped? Have any of you been raped?" When every one shook their head, Sam sat back in the chair, wrapping his other arm around Chris, "Brad hurt him really bad thus past week when he didn't come to school. He was sick the entire time. I went over tho Bush house to see if he was okay and he fell asleep. He....woke me up at night screaming. I've never heard anyone scream like he did. It was fucking awful!" he looked desperately at his friends, "I already watched one person I cared about die, I can't watch another."
"You won't have to," Lex said suddenly, "We'll help him with what we can, alright?"
Sam bit his lip and nodded furiously, "Thank you."