Elliot

I couldn't believe what happened or how fast it had gone down. One minute, everything was fine, and the next, Reno completely snapped. It was probably a good thing Max had been there because no one else had the sense to keep Riley from bashing his head on the ground as he fell. Now, all I could do was feel relief as Riley began to stir to life, his eyes looking around blearily as Max softly tried to talk to him.

Before I could understand how the entire disaster left me feeling, Leon was there, and Max had Riley on his feet. The whole thing had unnerved me completely, and I was as shocked as everyone else. No one had seen it coming. I'd heard of fights happening on the ranch, but there hadn't been an incident the entire time I'd been here, and now this?

It reminded me all too much of the robbery I had stupidly let myself get involved with. The whole thing was supposed to be a quick in and out, scare the guy behind the counter, grab the cash, and get the fuck out. No one was supposed to get caught, and no one was supposed to be hurt.

The first had been ruined because the second was. One of the guys, some asshole called Lee, had decided the old man behind the counter was taking too long. It didn't matter that the guy was really old and scared out of his wits, his hands shaking so much he'd dumped the cash all over the counter. Lee had driven the butt of his gun between the guy's eyes, sending him falling in a heap behind the counter.

I would have stood there, feeling the dawning horror of what had just happened, until the cops arrived. But my friend dragged me away, snapping me out of it and making me go. He had almost convinced me to ignore the whole thing until I saw it on the news later. The old guy wasn't fine. He was in critical condition, having taken the blow to the front of the head and then the back when he'd fallen.

It took me three days after that, three days I was ashamed of before I did what needed to be done. I turned myself and everyone else in the group in. The robbery and assault were bad enough, but they tacked on attempted murder as well. The last was dropped for me because I'd agreed to have my testimony used, and it turned out the old guy was up and kicking, even now, a few years later.

Things could get out of control so fucking quickly sometimes. I knew that better than anyone. And yet, despite everyone moving away from the group and the rage I felt, I hadn't missed the way Reno had just…stared. There had been no triumph or more anger, no horror or sadness. There was just a blank stare as he looked down at what he'd done.

That didn't stop me from being pissed, however, and once they'd taken Riley away, I stepped up and gave Reno a hard shove. "Are you fucking kidding me, Reno? What the fuck is wrong with you?"

The anger returned to his face, his lip curling in a snarl. "You want some, too?"

"Fuck you," I snapped, giving him another shove. "Then fucking hit me. At least I'll fucking see it coming, you piece of shit! At least I'll be able to put up a fight! Fucking coward."

His face twisted, and I braced for what was coming, what I had basically provoked into happening. I wasn't a stranger to fighting, having had to do my fair share in my life, but Reno was probably stronger and definitely meaner. My only hope of winning was that he had worn himself down with the day's work and the wrestling, while I hadn't even had a chance to go into the ring yet.

"Enough," a deep voice snapped, and a hand came down onto each of our chests and shoved us away.

It was more the sudden bark of the person than anything else that startled me back to reality. The sharp, stinging anger that demanded I let it all out and deal with what had pissed me off disappeared and left me feeling ashamed of myself. It was just one more side effect of the little gremlins that lived in my head. Sometimes, instead of letting me react normally, they took the dial on a particular emotion and cranked it up to maximum.

Leon had stepped in and stood off to the side, his hands still on our chests. I wasn't trying to fight him, and from the looks of it, neither was Reno. If anything, it was the first time I'd seen Reno look…wary? Scared? His face was hard to read when he wasn't looking pissed or annoyed.

"Leon," I began in protest, but the hand on my chest came up to clamp over my mouth.

"Don't start talking, or you won't stop," Leon warned me.

"Pfft," Reno began, and then his eyes widened when a hand also covered his mouth.

"And don't think your ass isn't in deep trouble," Leon told him in a foreboding tone. "You two had lunch yet?"

"Uhh…no?" I answered in confusion.

"No," Reno said in a more neutral tone, but I thought maybe his furrowed brow was more confusion than anger, which was still hard to read.

"Fine. Both of you, with me," Leon said, pulling his hands away.

"What the fuck did I…" But my protest was cut off, once again, by a hand clamping over my mouth. I glared at Leon, not caring if it got me into more trouble because this was absolute bullshit. Sure, I probably shouldn't have tried to pick a fight with Reno, but I'd love to see how Leon would have reacted if he were in my shoes.

"You done?" Leon asked, raising his brow. I rolled my eyes until I realized he was waiting for a silent response, and with a heavy sigh, I nodded. At that, he removed his hand. "Good, now follow me."

I had to bite my bottom lip to keep from saying anything. I begrudgingly followed Leon, but he never said I couldn't silently communicate, so I gave Reno a glare and the finger for good measure. He scowled but didn't do anything else, looking down at the path as we walked, his face screwed up, entirely unreadable because of it.

I hadn't thought about where Leon was taking us, but I hadn't expected to head toward the Big House or through the front door. Everyone who came to the program was brought in through the front door on their arrival…and departure. Problem was that departure could happen at any moment if you fucked up enough. Which made sense for Reno. There had been no need for that attack, but fuck, was I also on the chopping block?

Even worse, we were led up the stairs along a hallway and into a small room. Well, I'm sure it was small by Big House standards. The thing was bigger than the cabin I shared with three guys. It looked like…well, I guess you could call it a sitting room. I didn't know if a sitting room had a specific use other than…well, sitting.

Leon pointed to a round table in the back corner. "Sit."

Which seemed appropriate given my assessment, and I did as I was told. I wasn't surprised when Reno sat on the other side of the table from me. I would have preferred it if he had sat next to me. Then, it would have been easier to pretend he didn't exist. Now, he was directly in my line of sight, and I would have to work twice as hard to ignore him.

"You two stay here. No talking, no more fighting, understand? Any fighting and you two will be in deeper trouble than you already are, and no talking to me!" he told me sharply when my mouth parted and snapped shut. "Stay here. We'll deal with this when I come back, got it? Just nod."

I nodded, and after a moment, Reno did the same, even as he shot Leon a dirty look. If Leon noticed, he certainly didn't show any sign of caring as he left the room. At that point, I was left with a sullen Reno, the sound of my breathing, and the clock ticking on the wall. Personally, I would have preferred something else as background music because that ticking took a whole minute before I thought it was going to drive me insane.

"Oh fuck," I grunted after another minute passed and got up.

"What the fuck are you doing?" Reno hissed as I opened the clock and began fussing with it.

"My dad had one of these," I grunted and then let out a sigh of relief when the ticking stopped. "There. Jesus."

"What is wrong with you?" he demanded.

I whirled around and glared at him. "Really? You want to go there after what you just fucking did? You want to compare making that fucking noise stop to decking someone like Riley when he wasn't even looking?"

His nostrils flared, but he looked away, lips going thin. I gave him a moment to respond before returning to my seat and dropping down. The silence wasn't strictly better. I had always needed some background noise to keep my brain from overloading, but at least that ticking had stopped. Now, I just had to endure the pain of silence while we waited for whatever hammer was going to come down on us.

"What was wrong with the ticking?" he asked.

I almost asked him what was wrong with Riley that he deserved a sucker punch but managed to hold back. Then again, it was probably better not to explain in the first place. All it took was a ‘weird' explanation, and people tended to treat me like more of a freak than they already did.

"Some sounds just drive me nuts," I said, gesturing to my brain. "You might as well drag your nails across a chalkboard. They're basically the same thing in my head."

"Seriously?"

"Yeah. Drives me nuts. Feels like I've got all this shit in my head as it is. Add in noises like that, and it's like you scramble it all up and set it to spin dry. Ends up making me feel like I'm going to lose my mind, and then I start…feeling bad."

He grunted. "Is that why you take meds?"

I eyed him. "Are you thinking you're the person I'm going to share why I take my meds with?"

"I'm just asking," he said, jaw tightening and looking away. "You're the one who likes to talk a lot."

"And you're the one who doesn't want to talk ever."

"Well fuck you, maybe I do now."

I opened my mouth and then thought better about it. No one on this ranch would ever describe Reno as someone they wanted to have a nice sit-down chat with. He had always kept to himself and generally didn't like to be bothered. I knew there were probably a couple of guys from his cabin that he got along with just fine, but even then, it wasn't like he was opening himself up for conversations with random people.

Yet now, suddenly, he wanted to have a conversation? Was this his way of finding a way to take his anger out on me? Or was he…was he scared about what was going to come? He had never seemed interested in participating in what the ranch had to offer before, so what had changed? Or…maybe nothing had, and I was just getting a glimpse behind the angry curtain he always kept around him.

I hated the idea that he was possibly using this as ammunition against me, but I hated that he might actually be attempting to connect with someone and would go unheard if I did nothing. I knew all too well how that felt, how much it could sting just as much as words intended to be painful. It wasn't less painful or more, fire and ice both gave you a burning sensation, but I'd yet to find anyone hurt by either who said they preferred one over the other.

"I was…diagnosed with ADHD after I got to the ranch. Shrink took all of five minutes to figure it out," I told him, slumping in my seat and hoping I didn't regret this. Lord knew how many counselors and teachers I'd dealt with who never caught it, but one dude with the thickest glassses I'd ever seen had done it in no time. I hoped school systems were better at catching that shit now and maybe make some poor kid's life a little easier.

"Is that why you're such a spaz?" he asked.

"Alright, fuck you," I said. It didn't matter how many years had passed. That word still managed to sting as badly as it had when I was ten, and I was not allowed to play with the other kids because they found me annoying. "Sit there and be a raging dickhead. And I know you don't give a shit if anyone likes you, but if you ever start wondering why, just think of conversations like this you've had with other people.

"I don't want any fucking…" He stopped himself, his hands balling up into fists on the table, glaring at its surface. I almost thought he would lose it right then and there, but I watched as his temper disappeared. After nearly a minute, he took a deep breath. "I meant, is that why you're so…why you have so much energy all the time, and why you talk so much?"

I eyed him warily, still smarting from his comment. Then again, how many years had I spent accidentally saying an offensive or wrong thing, bothering someone, and then wishing I could take it back or say it differently? It would be more than a little hypocritical if I didn't give him the chance I wanted others to give me.

I gave a heavy sigh and nodded. "Yeah, that's exactly why."

"Because you can't…" he thought about it for a moment. "Or you have a deficit of attention?"

"More like I can't control my attention," I told him with a shrug. "Everyone seems to think it's ‘Oh, ha-ha, he gets distracted by shinies and squirrels,' but my brain can't help but not focus on things. Even when I want to focus on something, or when I want to ignore something, my brain doesn't let me."

"Like…a clock ticking?"

"Yes! It drives me bonkers because I can't block that noise out, so it just tick-ticks the whole time in my head. Then suddenly, I can't focus on anything in my head, and it feels like I'm losing my mind."

"And…the rambling?"

"Because I'm talking about something I can focus on. So all that split attention gets shoved right into it and fuels it, like strapping a rocket on top of a car. All I can do is zoom forward. The meds…I don't know, I guess they're supposed to make it easier for me to drive the car, make it less likely to swerve all over the road. Doesn't make it completely drivable, though. I still constantly have to fight for control of the wheel."

His nose wrinkled. "That sounds…annoying."

I actually smiled. "Yeah, it kind of is sometimes. And, uh, clearly, it means I don't always make the most thought-out decisions. They tell me it's supposed to get better with age, but we'll see."

He scoffed, and I thought it was almost a laugh. "So, you're like this because something in your brain is busted."

"Uh, yeah," I said, wariness returning. "That is definitely the way you could put it."

He leaned back in his seat. "Must be nice."

I stared at him. "Seriously? Even if it does calm down in the next few years, do you think there's anything great about this? I mean, yeah, if I can focus on something productive, I can work harder than three guys but fuck, man, imagine having that, but the trade-off is that sometimes it mentally hurts to pick up your dirty laundry."

"I just meant it must be nice to know what's wrong in your head," he said, scraping his nail on the tabletop. "To have a name for it."

That took me by surprise, and I didn't have a retort for him. All I could do was watch him carefully, wondering what was going through his head. For a moment, he seemed almost sad…no, not sad. That was too small a word for what I'd caught a fleeting glimpse of as it passed over his face. Sorrow might've been closer or despondent. English had never been my best subject…well, no subject had been in school, that place was my own personal nightmare, but that particular word had apparently stuck around and seemed to fit.

"Reno," I began carefully. "Why…why did you do that to Riley? You've always been borderline pissed off all the time, but you've never tried to hurt someone before. And Riley is harmless…so, why?"

His eyes flickered to my face and back to the tabletop almost immediately. The scraping of his nail stopped, and I watched his fingers flex, nearly digging his nails into the wood. I couldn't tell if it was just anger, but there was certainly something going on in his head. I wanted to believe there was more to him than just his anger and frustration and that maybe there was some reasonable explanation for what he'd done.

"Because I'm an asshole, remember?" he finally asked in a low tone.

Disappointment flared and then gave way to frustration. "Fine, whatever. I don't know why I even bothered."

"Because you're an idiot," he grumbled, and that was all he apparently had to say on the subject, which worked just fine for me. It had been stupid of me to think he could even begin to act like a normal human being. One with genuine emotion, maybe sadness or even regret for what he'd done. Maybe he hadn't been a dick to me when he really put his mind to it, but unlike me, he wasn't even trying to work on his issues.

I felt relief when the door opened, and Leon appeared with a tray. It was followed by the rumble of my stomach when I saw the food, along with two stacked glasses and a pitcher of what I hoped was the ranch's famous lemonade. Both feelings plummeted to the core of my being and curled into fear when I saw Mona behind him.

She wore her customary Sunday sun dress, with a big straw hat and a flower in the middle. The woman knew how to dress. The pink and white dress looked great against her dark skin, and the hat added just a touch of class and mystery. It was only thrown off by the thick boots she wore. As I'd heard her say before, looking good didn't mean throwing sense out because she was not wearing heels or slip-ons at the ranch.

Well, at least she seemed to have left the gun she usually kept on her somewhere else, so there was that much to be glad about.

"Gentlemen," she said, her voice husky and melodic, with just a touch of a twang that wasn't quite Southern. The first time I'd heard it, I'd wondered if maybe in another life, she could have been one of those women who still liked to dress and act like antebellum times. It would have suited her. "Have your lunch, and we need to talk."

"Uhhh, before I enjoy this," I said, looking over the collection of cured meats, cheese, bread, and other additions. "Is this a last meal sort of thing?"

"Oh yes," she said sweetly, shooing Leon away when he tried to pull a seat out for her and doing it herself before sitting down. "I plan to feed you, then take you both out back and put you down like rabid dogs."

"The worst part is, I believe that," I said nervously.

"Hmmm, you have a suspicious mind," she said, then glanced at Reno. "You should know, Riley's been examined and save for a minor concussion, and needing his jaw reset, he's going to be fine. Should be back on his feet in a couple of days."

It was sheer luck that I happened to be looking at him, mainly to see if he would grab food or a drink first so I could go after what he wasn't. The relief was the briefest of flashes over Reno's face, but I saw it all the same. Of course, he was probably just hoping it meant he wasn't going to get his ass served up on a silver platter after Mona was done with him. At this point, it wasn't like he'd shown me a whole lot of proof that he'd think of anything but his own ass.

"Sure," he grunted, taking a piece of bread, so I went for the lemonade while he made a sandwich.

"Is that really it?" I asked. "Like, it's nothing serious? He went down pretty hard."

Mona was looking at me, and Leon was sitting opposite her, so this time, I was the only one who saw the second flash of emotion. Reno had stopped putting butter on the bread to take a moment and breathe deeply before continuing. It was only a moment of what I thought had to be guilt, but even then, I couldn't be sure.

"They're not even sure there is a concussion. That's just a precaution. His jaw was dislocated, and they're going to keep him around for a little bit to make sure, but all in all, a bit of swelling and some pain is all he's going to have once the painkillers wear off," she said with a chuckle, smiling at me. "Don't worry, your new best friend is going to be okay."

"Does he…have anyone to look after him while he's recovering?" I asked nervously. I really liked Riley, he was a nice guy, and it was so shitty that he, of all people, had to go through this. I'd never seen him show even the slightest anger or unkindness toward anyone.

"Max is his mentor. Max is going to watch over him," Mona said, her eyes drifting over the tray before nabbing a slice of cheese.

"I…are you sure? He's not exactly the caretaker type," I said, my nervousness not at all soothed.

"He'll be just fine," Reno said, making everyone turn to stare at him. He paused before taking a bite of his sandwich and scowled. "What? Did anyone but me see how Max practically flung himself to catch Riley? And then wanted to tear my head off."

"He wasn't alone in that," I grumbled.

"Yeah, I get it. You've got a crush on Sunshine," Reno snapped at me. "But Max wasted no time getting there to help Riley and was ridiculously careful getting him away. Even wanting to tear my head off, he chose Riley first. Apparently, Mona knows what she's doing because he might be a grumpy dick?—"

"Takes one to know one," I muttered, wincing when a boot hit my shin. Eyes watering, I stared at Mona in disbelief, who gave me a dazzling smile in return.

"But he clearly cares about Riley," Reno said with a shrug. "So, he'll be fine taking care of him."

"How very…astute of you," Mona said with a wide smile, looking across the table and meeting Leon's eyes. "See? Someone around here is smart enough to trust me."

"I never said I didn't," Leon said. "But that doesn't mean I still don't think you have an ulterior motive. Even if it's covered by a better one."

"Such suspicious minds at this table," Mona said, pouring herself a glass of lemonade.

If I hadn't witnessed it, I wouldn't have believed Leon could roll his eyes, but there he was, rolling them at Mona like she probably didn't eat men's heads. I mean, she probably didn't do that. She seemed like a woman who believed in everything the ranch was doing. That didn't stop her being a terrifying person to deal with, though. The woman made me think she could read my mind and wouldn't hesitate to roast me if necessary.

"To get back to the topic at hand," Leon said, leaning forward and clasping his hands together. "Obviously with something like this, I have to turn it over to Mona."

"Not completely," Mona said, pulling a piece of cured meat apart and chewing it. "These two are your responsibility, probably more than mine."

"Does that mean we're safe or not?" I wondered aloud and then put a hand over my mouth.

Bewilderingly, Reno smirked at me. "It means she can overrule him at any time because she's the big boss bitch, but she wants Leon to decide if our heads go on pikes or not."

"You're lucky I am, in fact, that big boss bitch, or I might be offended," she told Reno with an arch of her brow and a smile. "Very lucky."

"Uh…yeah," he said, clearing his throat. "Sorry."

Alright, it appeared even Reno knew his limits. I honestly thought Max was the only person I'd witnessed shrug off Mona's weird…aura. From the way Leon had just spoken to her, it was clear he apparently wasn't too shy about it, which was weird. Max struck me as someone who could let Mona roll off his back, considering his attitude, but Leon was gentler, more understanding, and perceptive.

Huh, that was interesting. It meant I was going about it all wrong, or he was ‘perceiving' something I was missing about Mona. That wouldn't be too surprising. I'd always been notoriously bad at reading people. More surprising was that Reno was apparently good at it if Mona's approval and Leon's quiet were anything to go on.

I usually liked learning new things, but it was always weird when the latest thing I learned ran opposite to what I thought I knew. I remember there was a word for that feeling, but it escaped me as I absently prepared another sandwich. It had to have been a psychology term, which was the sort of thing Riley was good at. Though now I couldn't ask the guy since Reno decided to haul off and punch him, but he would know I was sure.

I looked around, finding three pairs of eyes locked onto me. Mona gave me a bright smile. "Welcome back."

"Uh," my face began to warm. "What'd I miss?"

"Well, I was asking if you two could eat while we talked, but you seem to have given me my answer," she said, sounding amused. The arch of her brow was a little too sharp for my tastes.

"Umm, I'm here, I swear. I was just…lost in thought," I said, taking a bite of the sandwich before I could say anything else. Generally speaking, I could be trusted not to talk with my mouth full, especially when I'd already made an ass out of myself. "Sorry."

"Good," she said with far more warmth. "Then I suppose, Leon? You're up to bat. I'm just here to observe."

It felt like she was here to do a lot more than observe, but once again, I clamped my bottom lip between my teeth to keep that thought to myself. I already knew trying to predict people was a losing game for me, and that was with your average person. Mona was…well, she was scary, especially because her mind seemed to work on levels well above mine. Trying to predict her was asking to be completely wrong, and end up with a headache.

My suspicion was confirmed when I caught Leon watching her, his lips pursing for a moment before leaning forward again. "Alright, I'm not going to pretend that what happened today wasn't serious. Everyone here knows it was a serious offense. I won't insult your intelligence by pretending otherwise."

"I know what's going on," Reno grumbled, taking a piece of meat and wrapping it around some cheese. "Can we just get it over with, alright?"

"Get it over with?" Leon asked, tilting his head and peering at Reno curiously.

Reno gave a huff. "Look, I know I fucked up, alright? We don't have to sit around and talk about our feelings or see if I get what's going on. I fucked up, I'm going to get fucked for it, and I fucking deserve it, alright?"

I realized that despite all his obvious anger problems, this was the first time he'd actually ever yelled at someone. Except it didn't feel like he was yelling at anyone in particular. Just…yelling, and in its wake was an uncomfortable and thoughtful silence as we all stared at him.

"What?" he asked defensively. "I'm just being straightforward. Why can't you?"

"I'm attempting to cover this carefully," Leon said, raising his brow.

I saw Reno's jaw tighten, and I couldn't help rolling my eyes or the heavy, exasperated sigh that came with it. For once, I thought I had an insight into what was going on in Reno's head, or at least some of it. Christ, even when someone was trying to be nice and gentle with him, he had to make it a fight.

"Something to add, Elliot?" Leon asked in a voice that was oddly testy for him.

"Is that a real question?" I asked, glancing between everyone. "Like, do I actually get to talk, or will I be told to shut up again?"

Mona's eyes found Leon's, and there was a slight tilt to her head but little else. Leon's expression shifted to something more neutral. "Reno?"

"Oh Jesus, just let him talk before he fucking explodes from holding it in," Reno groaned.

"First of all, fuck you, you absolute dick," I told him with a growl.

"I didn't say go ahead yet," Leon muttered, but so quietly I thought it was safe to ignore him.

"Secondly, fuck you," I continued, sneering when Reno flipped me the bird. "You're just doing the same thing you did to Riley, but now you're doing it to Leon. All Leon wants to do is what's right for you."

"That's his job," Reno shot back.

"It's not a job. You don't just get assigned to his ‘job.' You have to show you want to help people, maybe you could try some of that. And then you have to accept it, choosing to want to help people," I said, slapping my hand on the table. It went off with a harsh crack, but I ignored it. "So yeah, he wants to help you. That's who he is. Just like Riley is a decent person who'd probably help you too if you let him."

"I don't?—"

"Want any fucking help? Yeah, we know, we got it. All you've done since you got here is be a giant bag of dicks to anyone who showed you even the slightest smidge of kindness or friendliness. And now, after you fuck up and deserve to get slapped upside your head, you're going to spit in his face?" I asked, standing up and gesturing around. "If you don't want to be here, if you don't want to be better, then just fucking say it and save everyone the trouble. That way, the guys won't keep trying to see if you'll ease up, Leon can spend his energy on someone who won't waste his time, and the ranch can have someone in your place willing to do more than roll over and die."

"You…" Reno began, eyes widening.

"Elliot," Leon began in warning, but I was just about done.

"You want to give up? Then give the fuck up," I told Reno in a low voice. "This wishy-washy, back-and-forth bullshit is doing nothing but making everyone here, including you, absolutely miserable. Either commit to leaving or commit to getting your shit together. If you can't do either of those things, then yeah, you really will have fucked up. You will have fucked your life up all over again. So put up, or shut the fuck up."

I let out a ragged breath and dropped back into my seat, snatching up a piece of bread and shoving it into my mouth. I glanced around nervously, finding Mona watching me intensely, with no expression on her face, but at least I didn't feel like I was about to get struck. Leon was watching Reno intensely, with Reno giving me the fiercest stare I'd ever seen him give.

"Done?" Leon asked, clearing his throat.

I looked at Leon. "Don't try to use kid gloves on him, he keeps taking it as you coddling or babying him. Just be direct. Maybe you'll get somewhere."

Mona made a soft noise, but when I looked at her, there was still no emotion on her face. She ignored me, looking at Leon, who gave a weary sigh and looked back at Reno. "Alright, we'll try it this way. You screwed up, Reno, and by all accounts, we'd be in our rights to send you back and find someone else to fill your place."

Reno was still watching me, his throat working for a few seconds before he took a breath. "And why haven't you?"

"I want you to answer a question, and I want you to answer it honestly."

"What?"

"Do you want to stay here? Do the program properly?"

"Seriously?"

Leon turned on him, his voice low. "Yes, seriously, Reno. Because despite how…roughly Elliot put it, he's got a point, and I think you see his point, even if it pisses you off. I still believe there's a chance for you, but of everyone here, you're the one who has to believe in you. If you don't think you can get your shit together, then there's no point in you being here."

Reno flicked his eyes toward Leon before turning to me. I couldn't tell if the man wanted to murder me on the spot or just punch me in the face. Either way, he didn't look thrilled, and in that moment, I couldn't give a shit. His tantrum was just…ridiculous, and I didn't understand. If he was going to get the boot immediately, they wouldn't have bothered having me here, that much I knew.

"And if I say yes?" Reno asked slowly, Adam's apple bouncing as he swallowed hard.

"Then you'll agree to some terms while we put you on special probation," Leon said, and I watched him glance at Mona again.

Reno bowed his head, making it impossible to see the expression on his face. I didn't know what was going on with him or what had made all this happen. It didn't take a genius at reading people to know he had anger problems or that his lashing out at Riley had been unusual, even for his angry ass self. But whatever was eating him up inside and making him so pissy all the time wouldn't help him here. He needed to figure it out. Maybe one day he could stop being pissed off enough to tell what he was pissed off but right now?—

"Fine," he said, picking his head up. "Chipmunk for Brains over there is right. I need to give up or commit, and I'm not giving up. I fucked up, and you've clearly got something in mind to punish me."

"Not a punishment," Leon said, apparently satisfied with Reno's answer. I wasn't, but then again, I wasn't the type of person you put in charge of people for a good reason. "Think of it more as a way to give you a…tether."

"A tether," Reno repeated slowly.

"A connection you've struggled to make since you got here despite my attempts. I've only seen a hint of connection here and there, but you're still a mystery to everyone here," he said, something passing between Leon and Mona as he finished. "But for this to work, you'll?—"

"I agree already, okay?" Reno said with a roll of his eyes. "Chipmunk for Brains?—"

"Said to take off the kid gloves with him," I growled. "The Dick for Brains."

Reno hesitated and, unbelievably, let out a snort of what should not have been amusement. "Yeah, that."

Leon's brow rose, glancing around before shaking his head. "It's a buddy system."

"A…are we in preschool?" Reno asked in a mix of confusion and annoyance.

Leon shrugged. "I'll point out you already agreed. Then I'll say that despite having lived with three others, you've made next to no connection. Maybe something a little lower-key, more intimate, will make it easier. It's less of an audience to worry about."

"I-I guess," Reno said, and it was the first time I'd seen him visibly uncomfortable. "Maybe?"

"There is no maybe. You and your buddy will be expected to be around each other constantly. Unlike your cabin mates, you two will always be working together, eating together, sleeping in the same cabin, and in your free time, you're around each other."

"This still reeks of forced friendship," Reno retorted, wrinkling his nose. "Do I get to pick my buddy?"

I was barely able to stop myself from laughing at his increasing desperation. I almost felt bad for him. I knew what it was like to agree to something to avoid serious punishment, only to realize the alternative might actually be worse. But after what he'd pulled today, I wasn't feeling all that charitable and didn't think anyone would blame me for taking some amusement from it.

"No," Leon said almost immediately. "This arrangement is my idea, which means I'm steering the ship. You'll buddy with who I say."

"Great," Reno said, hanging his head. "Amazing. Fine. Who?"

At that, Mona gave a soft chuckle, and I felt a chill down my back. Leon cocked his head and glanced at me and then back to Reno. Which didn't answer the question but still left me feeling uncomfortable as Reno's eyes widened.

"What?" he gasped.

And then it hit me, and my amusement fizzled out quicker than a doused flame.

Iwas his buddy?