𝘾𝙃𝘼𝙋. 𝙎𝙄𝙓𝙏𝙔 𝙊𝙉𝙀 ─── 𝖲𝖤𝖠𝖲𝖮𝖭 𝟰
❝ 𝗥𝗨𝗡𝗡𝗔𝗪𝗔𝗬 𝖢𝖫𝖠𝖸 ❞
❪ 𝘾𝙊𝙇𝙇𝙀𝙂𝙀 𝘐𝘕𝘛𝘌𝘙𝘐𝘌𝘞𝘚 ❫

𝟲𝟭. ╱ ✷ ❝ 𝖺𝗇𝗒 𝗐𝗁𝖾𝗋𝖾'𝗌 𝘀𝗮𝗳𝗲𝗿 𝗍𝗁𝖺𝗇 𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗌 𝘀𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗼𝗹. ❞
▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁

𝗔/𝗡: I didn't really know where to put Riley for this episode, so this is
just a filler chapter from parts or this episode. The next chapters will
be longer though because we're getting to the good parts and the
sad parts.

       "𝙃𝙊𝙒'𝙎 𝙃𝙀 doing? Have you heard anything yet?"

Riley sighed, walking up the school with her phone pressed against her ear, "I don't know. Justin went with them this time; he's supposed to keep me updated. Last message that I got from him said that they wanted to keep Clay for a little while longer. Ther doctors want to keep him under observation."

"But he passed everything else, right?" Scott asked, walking to his own class with Eddie next to him.

"Yeah, he passed the eval test so he's not psychotic, not that I thought he was in the first place. They just wanted to make sure they did all of the test." The blonde stops in front of her locker and opening it to put her stuff inside and grab what she needed.

"Well, at least that's something." He sighed, "How are you holding up? I'm sorry we had to leave."

"No, it's okay. I'm doing . . . okay. The nightmare's stopped and I took Lainie up on talking to Dr. Ellman, so there's that."

"Hey, that's good. At least you someone that you can talk to." Scott stops outside his classroom, Eddie walking ahead to get them some seats together, "Look I'm at my class so I'll call you during lunch, okay?"

"Okay. I love you."

"I love you."

˗ˏˋ 𖤐 ˎˊ˗

      "𝗛𝗘 𝗟𝗘𝗙𝗧?!"

Riley and Justin stare at Sheriff Diaz and Dean Foundry as the two sat in the office, being told the new of Clay leaving the hospital that he had been in.

"You mean he escaped?" Riley sighed, running a hand through her short blonde hair.

"Yes."

Justin looked over at the Sheriff, "How?"

"Still unclear." Sheriff Diaz says, "Guys, I know that Clay and I have history, but I am still here for him. And I'm worried. He's in a fragile mental state.

"Yeah, you can thank Bolan for that." Riley spits back at the officer.

"It's not safe for him to be alone right now. He could act out violently." He tells the two teenagers.

"He wouldn't hurt anyone." Justin defended Clay against the officer.

"Not even himself?" Dean Foundry asked, earning silence from the teens.

"Do either of you know where Clay is?"

Riley shakes her head, "No."

"I have no idea." Justin says before standing up, grabbing Riley by the arm to get her to stand up from her chair as well, "But any where's safer than this school."

˗ˏˋ 𖤐 ˎˊ˗

         "𝗜 𝗧𝗛𝗢𝗨𝗚𝗛𝗧 I'd find you here." Riley's hands are in the pockets of her blue jean jacket as she walks into the music classroom, Zach back facing her, "Justin said he'd texted twice but you didn't reply. Thought I'd come find you."

"Yeah, I'm, uh . . . ," Zach sighed, "I'm ignoring that shit now.

She tilts her head as she walked around him so that she was standing in front of him, "Justin told me, who heard from Jessica that you told Winston. What were you thinking, Zach?"

"That I was going to die."

"We're all gonna die." Riley shook her head, grabbing a chair so that she could sit in front of him, "What you really have to ask yourself is if you wanna die in jail."

He stays quiet.

Riley sighed, "I know you hate Jess, but what about Alex? What about me? Alex killed Bryce and I covered that shit up."

"I don't hate anyone, Riley. You are one of the most important people in my life, and I didn't mean to make things worse." Zach looks at his best friend in front of him, "I was stoned, and I know that isn't an excuse, but I thought I was going to die. That drill was just so fucked-up."

"I know it was, but you really need to fix this, Zachy." Riley lean forwards to grab his hand, "You need to fix this with Diego especially."

He looks at her, and sighed, "Yeah. I'll . . . I'll try."

˗ˏˋ 𖤐 ˎˊ˗

      𝗧𝗢𝗡𝗬 𝗣𝗔𝗖𝗘𝗗 around the outhouse, Riley sitting on Justin's bed and Clay sitting on his own.

"You think Tyler's making a buy and they're going to take him down?" Clay asked the Padilia boy, having told them all about how the police had the same photo's Tyler had in his backpack and were talking about him down at the police station.

"They set him a trap." Tony said, "Tomorrow night. And we've gotta stop him somehow, but I can't get ahold of him, and he's nowhere to be found, so . . . ,"

"I'm not in any shape to help anyone right now." Clay shakes his head.

"What does that mean?" Riley questioned.

"Clay, what does that mean?" Tony repeats, crouching down to Clay's hight, "I don't . . . I don't understand what's happening."

"I'm like . . . I'm grounded forever. I . . .,"

"Clay, this is everything! This is everything!" Riley stands up, "If they take him down, we're done. It's over."

"I feel like it's over already." Clay tells them quietly, not meeting either of their eyes.

"What's going on? This isn't you."

"No, I . . . I know."

˗ˏˋ 𖤐 ˎˊ˗

     "𝗜 𝗗𝗢𝗡'𝗧 . . . I don't want Clay to know." Justin looks down at the table in front of him, the two adults and Riley sitting with him.

The teenager blonde holding his hand in comfort after getting his text that his mother had dad and wanting moral support as he told her aunt and uncle.

"Um . . . he needs to get better, and um . . . I don't really want to be in the way of that." Justin leans up more, the boy running his finger over the diamond resting on Riley's finger as a form of his own comfort.

"You could never." Matt quickly denied, feeling like Justin was already such a big part of their family, even with the adoption.

"What would you like to do for a service?" Lainie asked, hands wrapped around her coffee mug.

"A service?"

"Yeah, a funeral. A memorial?"

"I don't." Justin shakes his head, "I don't want a service. She didn't have any family or friends, so. . . ,"

Matt stares at him, "She had you."

"She didn't, really."

"Maybe we take a day." Lainie sniffles, shaking her head. "As a family. We could scatter her ashes in the rive."

"I don't fucking want anything! Okay!" Justin suddenly yelled, hands banging loudly on the table as Riley flinched away from him. He laughed softly, "I don't need some bullshit service so that you all can feel better about some broke junkie being dead! Jesus! Fuck!"

A tear falls from Riley's eye at the sound of how broken her best friend sounded as he shouted, but she quickly wipes it away so that he doesn't see it.

"Sorry." Justin whispers, turning to walk away, "Uh, I just . . . I've been to enough funerals in my life."

"Of course."

"Justin, love." Lainie's voice calls him back to the kitchen, "What can we do?"

"I'm good." Justin smiles at them, "I'm good, really, thank you."

The three sit in silence for a few minutes before Riley stands up, wiping at her wet eyes, "I'm gonna . . . I'm gonna make sure he's okay."

The two adults nod at their niece before she disappeared out the door, and towards the outhouse.

Slowly walking inside, Riley is met with Justin sitting on his stripped bed in just his underwear, crying, "Justin . . . ,"

Justin looks up at the sound of her voice, sobs leaving his lips, "Please . . . . make it stop, Lee. Please, make it stop."

The blonde quickly toes her shoes off, pulling her leather jacket off of her body and quickly crawling onto the bed. Taking Justin into her arms, her own tears begin to fall as she holds him tighter, the two of them crying together.

˗ˏˋ 𖤐 ˎˊ˗

      "𝗛𝗢𝗪 𝗜𝗦 he?" Lainie asked as Riley walks back into the house, her and Matt waiting in the living room for her.

Riley sniffles, wiping the remaining tears away from her face, "He's asleep now. But, uh, I don't . . . . I don't know if he's gonna be okay."