So I gave a chapter of potential ideas and this isn't a single one of them, because I'm a horrible easily sidetracked writer. If you read my first introduction of Angie then you might remember I offered two options, Angie and a boy named Manny – I ultimately went with Angie. But I've always kept Manny in the back of my mind throughout season 3 so far because he has the most interesting storyline(seriously you guys, the cliffhanger to this is killer). So I'm finally doing it, not that a single person asked (because I'm still horrible). If you didn't read my first introduction, great, because this is a completely reimagined version of that.

I am so tired of killing their poor baby, so I'm erasing that detail in this version – Lane either wasn't pregnant or they decided to get rid of it (you can decide). But, Lane still breaks up with Sweet Pea but this time it's because he chose the Serpents over her and she almost died because of it. That is where this chapter starts.
If you can see the story banner the faceclaim for Manny is actor Santiago Segura.

XV. we'll never get free, lamb to the slaughter, what you gonna do when there's blood in the water

She stood with a bag slung on her shoulder with only the things she absolutely needed. They'd lost the war with the Ghoulies, lost the Wyrm, lost half their people, and now they were losing Lane but they didn't know that yet. After FP announced his retirement he told Lane, who'd been hiding in their camp, to pack a bag – Hiram wouldn't stop coming after her, ever. So she couldn't stay.

FP waited as patiently as he could letting her say her goodbyes, but Minetta was combing the streets looking for her. She stood with her arms tight around Fangs' shoulders and he hugged her back, a crutch held under one arm to help hold him up. This boy who she'd almost died coming back for, and she'd do it again without hesitation. "Tell Cheryl I love her."

"I will," Fangs swore softly, his mouth against her shoulder as he blinked the water from his eyes.

"Kid."

As of that moment there was no plan for when she'd come back, if she ever could. So she stood soaking in every ounce of him she could because she didn't think she was gonna see him again. "One minute," she told FP in a voice that broke as her chin tried to quiver.

How long is forever? Sometimes, just one second She couldn't remember where she'd read that, and in this case it was a minute – but she tried to squeeze forever out of Fangs.

"Lane."

At FP's gentle urging she took a breath and let him go, knowing if she didn't do it all at once she'd never be able to do it all. "The deed to the house is in the crawlspace under the coffee table, so is my checkbook so you can pay the mortgage. At least for a few months." He nodded understanding and glanced at Sweet Pea who remained silent, wondering what happened between them.

Sweet Pea could still hear the tired way she'd said it, like she didn't want to but it was something she had to do – you made yourself clear, you don't wanna come with me. We always knew it'd either end with me dead or leaving, we were kidding ourselves thinking we could make this work. God he wanted to tell her how wrong she was, he wanted to yell it at her: they could make this work, because he loved her. He was ready to leave with her now, having almost lost her, but all he'd needed to see was the sad way she'd shaken her head to know she didn't want him to come with her. Because she wasn't worth giving up his life for – it was his fault she felt that way.

Lane looked up at him meeting his dark pained eyes and she reached for him, feeling his hand in hers as he squeezed it. She was ruining his life every time she dragged him deeper into this, he wouldn't let her go so it was up to her. So she pulled away and turned to Jughead hugging him briefly, the closest she'd cared to let him in a long time. "Take care of them," she said even though she knew he would. And she pulled back looking at his still bruised face and added, "that includes you."

They'd never really been close, but he could already feel the loss of her. And it had him pulling her back against him and squeezing her as she patted his back. "Never change, Lanie," he told her, meaning it.

After everything she'd lost and how hard she tried to keep from having to lose anything else, she should've known she'd never get to keep this. That in the end she'd be left with what she started with – nothing. "Shit," she muttered with a hand to Jughead's chest as she pushed herself away.

Running a hand through her hair she turned her back on them and climbed in FP's truck, hearing his muffled voice as he told Jughead he'd be back tomorrow when she was safe. It was a long quiet drive and the further they got from Riverdale, the further they left it behind, the more Lane felt like she could do this. Every now and then FP reached a hand to her knee, wishing they'd been able to do more for her.

Pulling outside of the old junkyard FP kept his foot on the break and turned to Lane. "I don't wanna linger in case he had someone tailing me," he said by means of apologizing for dumping and leaving her so quick. She nodded understanding and turned into him for a tight hug, finding everything about this hurt. "You be good," he told her, his words ruffling her hair. "And the Serpents will be here when you're able to come back." He sat back with his hands cupping her face, staring hard at her like he was trying to memorize it. They should've done more for her.

She nodded knowing the Serpents would take her back whenever she came back, if. Leaning forward she pressed a soft kiss to his cheek before she climbed down out of his truck and headed for the achingly familiar woman who was taking her in. "Hey Ms Jones," she greeted in a lackluster tone, but it was best she could manage.

Gladys offered a small smile knowing from what FP told her over the phone how hard this was for her. "You are the spitting image of your mother," she said honestly surprised by how much Lane looked like her, the only part of her that was her father was the way her eyes squinted at the corners when she smiled and she wasn't doing much smiling. "I bet you hear that a lot."

"More than I'd like," Lane admitted seeing Jughead in her face.

She reached a hand to the younger girl's chin fondly. "You keep that pretty head up," she told Lane. "You're gonna be just fine, we'll make sure of that." Seeing Lane's small nod she wrapped an arm around her thin shoulders and led her past the gate, nodding to the boy Lane's age who held it open for them.

Lane glanced at him finding something in his features she almost recognized, but she blinked and she lost it. So she turned away, letting Gladys take her inside. But his dark eyes followed her, knowing exactly who she was.

.^.

Four months later

He found her in the small back room she'd been staying in since she got here, and for the last month it was the room they'd been staying in. But she had the bag she'd come with on the bed as she rifled through the dresser drawers throwing everything in. "Going somewhere?"

Getting the last of her things in the duffel back she pulled the drawstring and looked up seeing Manny standing in the doorway with a dark brow raise and a bag similar to hers hung on his broad shoulder and a plastic bag in hand. "The Sheriff found me, you know I have to leave," she said, having already told Gladys that morning she was skipping town. Again. Gladys' response was a tight hug before she got a small bag of food and drinks for the road, not knowing how long she'd be on it. "And I already told you, we haven't been together long enough for me to want you to come with me."

"Well now you're just being mean," he said stepping into the room and setting the bag on the bed in front of her. He watched her look at it like it offended her. "And we both know you're not really leaving." They might not have been together long but Manny had spent the last four months with her, one hundred and thirty days. He knew her.

She knew he did, and no matter how many different ways she said she didn't want him it never changed the fact that underneath it all she did. So goddamn much. But he wouldn't let her go the same way Gladys wouldn't let her go, or the way FP wouldn't let her stay. Snatching the bag off the bed she held the handles in either hand and looked inside to see he'd bought her hair dye and bleach. Her eyes were wide and soft with uncertain vulnerability when she looked up at him, at his handsome face with his impossibly warm dark eyes that twisted everything inside her until she couldn't breathe. "You're really gonna do this with me?"

He shrugged dropping his own duffle bag on the floor as he stepped to her and wrapped his hands around her waist pulling her against him. "I'm gonna quote someone famous who found a way to say this more eloquently than I could," he started seeing her brows raise as she waited. "I know life would suck without you," he said in a severely serious manner.

"What," was her first reaction before she laughed seeing his eyes squint the way they did when he was smiling but his mouth wasn't. "That's a song isn't it?"

Half his mouth was twisted in a smirk as he stared down at those pretty green eyes, not knowing if he remembered how to wake up without them being the first thing he saw. There was another line that he liked more - you're an asshole but I love you - but they weren't ready for that one yet.

Several hours later Lane laid across the counter with her legs curled letting him wash the dye from her hair in the sink. Every so often his eyes strayed to her calm face as she stared at the ceiling, and he'd bend to kiss her momentarily smiling mouth before he sat back and she returned to her thoughts. He worked with gentle hands until the water ran clear and then he wrung it out before helping her sit up as she toweled her hair off.

"You worried he's gonna find you again?" She scowled when she thought, and since she was always thinking she was always scowling, so he had to look for the smaller signs to know exactly where her mind was. She was pursing her mouth in a way that pressed her lips together, which meant worry.

Throwing the stained towel aside she ran a hand through her now rust colored wet hair and looked up at him, at this face she now knew better than her own, this boy she trusted with every part of herself even the weak ones. "What if I can't find enough to take him down, or I do and he still weasels out of it?" Because this was Hiram Lodge she was going after, with everything she had. So she asked Manny the question that scared her most: "what if it's never gonna be enough?"

He took her face in his hands tilting it back far enough she had nowhere to look but his eyes, feeling her small nimble hands around his back as he stood in the place between her legs. "It, or you?" He watched the stone in her eyes crack as he forced her to admit what she was really afraid of, that she wasn't strong enough to do this. "If it gets to that, and you need me, I will take him out."

She'd never told Manny who was after her, she'd left it at an ambiguous male pronoun. But at times like those, hearing a faint underlying level of hatred, she couldn't shake the feeling Manny somehow knew.

Before she could think anything else he raised her chin pressing her lips to his, filling her mouth and her mind with his tongue as his hands trailed down her body and grabbed her hips pulling her against him. Several long heated minutes they came out of the bathroom and grabbed their bags heading out.

"It's been real good having you, and you'll always have a place here," Gladys said hugging her again. The girl refused to be idle and whoever taught her about cars did a damn good job. Then she turned to Manny, who she'd taken in years ago after finding him on his own, not surprised in the slightest he was going with her. She reached a hand to his face wishing it didn't feel so much like she was losing him. "You take care of him," she told Lane.

With a small smile Lane said, "I will," knowing the care would be pretty evenly spread between them. The pair snuck out the back of the junkyard and into the thin line of trees under the cover of dark. Gladys had sent two to scope out where they first spotted Rivedale's Sheriff and they'd come back confirming he was still there, waiting for Lane to make a break for it because she wouldn't stay cornered.

There was one road that passed by this place, if Lane somehow got out without him seeing her and got to a car parked in the trees, she'd have to drive down this road to get back to Riverdale. But what he hadn't counted on is Manny knowing this place like the back of his hand, every in and out, and the two were headed to the next town where a car was waiting. It took them over an hour to get there and they were both out of breath when they finally slid into the front seat. For a moment they looked at each other both considering the possibility of actually leaving, before they started the long drive back to Riverdale.

…

For the length of her absence Lane only reached out to them once, and she'd done it through a letter addressed to FP as though from Gladys. It was really to Fangs, and she'd written inside the envelope for FP not to let him send one back. So FP had given it to Fangs and told him it was a one way deal, not knowing Lane left Manny's number for Fangs to call if he needed her.

And as he stood outside of the place he'd tracked the Ghoulies to find they had HotDog, he didn't really need her. But he wanted her. So he hiked his way back to where he'd left his bike and he pulled out the letter he always carried in his wallet because he never knew when he'd need to call.

And he called, knowing she was gonna turn him down because Jughead would take care of this, but he'd been looking for any excuse to hear her voice. "Hello?"

The deep unfamiliar voice had Fangs pausing wondering what he was supposed to say, maybe he dialed it wrong, was it okay to say Lane's name. The man said hello again asking who was calling and Fangs cleared his throat before responding. "I, um, I got this number in a letter," he said, not wanting to cause trouble if for some reason this guy either didn't know Lane or was with Hiram.

But there was a heavy sigh on the other end before he asked, "is this Fangs?" At the kid's quiet affirmative Manny looked up at Lane as she walked out of the gas station having paid in cash what he was about to put in the car.

She gave him a look as she took the phone from him and brought it to her ear. "Hello?"

Everything in him somersaulted at her voice, his heart his stomach his brain, liver. "Hey baby girl," he said in a rushed breath having lost his voice.

Manny watched her expression fall to pieces as she turned away, feeling like someone had gotten a hand around her heart and squeezed. "Hi," was all she could muster at first. But she composed herself quickly and shook her head in effort to clear it before asking, "is everything okay there?" She'd given this number for emergencies so it had to be something.

"The Ghoulies have HotDog," he said hearing how stupid that sounded when she was literally hiding from a man trying to kill her. "I know you can't be here, so don't be mad when I say I really just needed to hear you." There was so much he wanted to tell her, that he did kind of already tell her because he made Jughead find where her letter came from so he could send one back. He wanted to hold her again, for her to hold him.

Lane nodded hearing the click of the pump behind her. "I take it things aren't better," she said knowing how crazy everything still was. The Serpents were homeless and doing their best to survive, the Ghoulies were working for Hiram, the Wyrm was now a cook site. "I'll explain when I get there, I'm an hour outside of town. Where do I need to go?"

He fumbled over his words as his mind ricocheted between utter relief that she was coming back and a protectiveness of wanting her far away from this. But he gave her the location of where he was currently standing, leaving a marker on a tree for her to find and then detailed how far in the woods the place was. "But why are you,"

"When we're done," she told him again. "I'll see you soon." It was hard not to smile as she turned back to Manny and handed him his phone.

Reaching a hand to brush her hair back he got a hold of her chin tipping her head back to look at him. "You didn't think you'd get to say that again," he said knowing how much this particular boy meant to her. He could see it shining in her eyes. "They've got you pegged wrong, you're not fighting to get your life back you're fighting to get them back." All that love, it made her dangerous.

…

The five Serpents stood back watching Jughead facing the Ghoulies on his own, Hot Dog having been nothing more than bait to get him there. Cheryl proved to have quite the trigger finger and Penny stood seething as Malachai hissed holding the arrow imbedded in his shoulder. "That's it, just kill them all," Penny ordered having reached the end of her care and patience.

"Cheryl aim your next arrow right between Penny's eyes," Jughead yelled, seeing Penny first grit her teeth before she threw a hand up to get her dogs to hold off.

She still had a play, she was close enough to Jughead to duck behind him when things got hairy, there were options. But in the very short moments she took to consider this the two Ghoulies that had been waiting in the woods behind the Serpents crept forward shifting their hold on their weapons prepared to get the arrow off Penny by any means necessary.

The two came around either side of the truck to surround the remaining five, Toni caught sight of the one to their left and called for her girlfriend before a young man came up behind him cocking a rifle. "Give me a reason," Manny warned.

Sweet Pea heard the snap of a boot on a stick and turned to his right seeing the other Ghoulie, and behind him came a short girl with a bandana tied around half her face so only her fiery hair and pale deadly eyes showed as she held a gun to the back of his head. "I wish you would."

Lowering their weapons the two Ghoulies were herded forward, away from the Serpents, and Penny looked between them furious her last play had been ruined. "Congratulations, you just made the Northside fair game."

Sweet Pea would know that voice and those eyes anywhere, and he stepped in front of her staring hard down at her half covered face having never thought he'd see her again. "Lane?" he breathed as though part of him was unable to believe it. Needing to see he reached almost timidly to the scarf, but her small hand fastened around his wrist pulling it away from her covered face.

Clapping his arm she turned away heading to the back of the truck, taking Manny's hand as he helped her climb up. Sweet Pea moved to the driver's side looking at the unknown boy, meeting his dark eyes as they quietly sized each other up. Fangs smacked his shoulder to spur him on and Sweet Pea climbed behind the wheel and drove them back to the main road, his eyes straying every few seconds to the rearview mirror where he could see the back of her head as Cheryl held her.

"I'm still mad at you for leaving without saying goodbye," Cheryl told her, her arms tight around Lane's shoulders jostling against her in the truck bed. And she was, rightfully furious, but she was also so goddamn happy to see her.

Beside them Toni smiled gently knowing what Lane meant to Cheryl, and what Cheryl meant to Lane, and that Lane's not saying goodbye was in effort not to completely break either of their hearts. "You know you have to share her," she said more for Fangs, but she planned to hug Lane too mostly because she knew how much Lane hated it.

"I adore you TT, but this one's mine."

Toni's smile grew having expected that response, but she took the hand Lane reached to her and held it fast.

Across from them Fangs sat glancing at Manny, noting the heavy way he watched Lane. "I'm Fangs, but you already know that," he said realizing this was who answered the phone earlier.

"Yeah she talked about you the most," he said turning to Fangs and holding his hand out. "Manny." It wasn't the typical handshake, they came at it from the side and clapped their hands together before letting go.

He watched Manny's eyes return to Lane immediately, and Fangs wondered about it: if it was out of care, concern that Lane was back in a town almost completely run by the guy trying to kill her, possession. "Thanks for looking out for her," he said trying to gauge his relationship with Lane, how close they were because he had to mean something to her if she brought him.

Without taking his eyes from Lane, who rolled hers as Cheryl commented on her hair, Manny told him, "nah man, she never needed me for that." He knocked on the window to get Sweet Pea's attention and told him to pull over. "We're parked over there," he said pointing to the clearing they'd left the car in.

"We'll meet you at the camp," Lane told Jughead before he could object, knowing between him and his father she'd get the most trouble for being there. She took Manny's hand again as he helped her climb down.

They stored the guns in the back and followed the truck the rest of the way to camp. "How you feeling?" he asked wondering how sure she was in this plan, or if she just wanted to be back so much it was clouding her judgment.

Which it was, and Lane was aware of that, but she also knew Hiram wasn't just going to fall into a ditch and disappear. "Fifty-fifty this'll get me killed," was her honest answer.

He nodded contemplating that and the vague details she'd told him, that she didn't really sound all that concerned. "Well your odds haven't gotten worst at least," he said knowing that's how it'd always been for her.

They pulled up next to the truck outside camp and she looked at Manny curious where his head was in all this, nothing ever seemed to shake him. "How about you?" she asked, knowing at some point he had to wonder if she was worth all this. But he had the warmest eyes as he turned to her and leaned closer so the tip of his nose brushed hers, he had a way of looking at her that always made it feel like he was holding her. "I swear to god if you start singing."

From the toothy way he grinned she wouldn't put it past him, he was a dork and there wasn't much he wouldn't do to make her smile. Getting a hand under her chin he tilted her head like he did for a kiss, and she smiled leaning into him but he pulled away. "Who said I wanted to kiss you?" he asked watching her roll her eyes. "I mean, I know I'm irresistible but we've got more important things to do."

"Just," she started and smacked his chest with the back of her hand, "get out of the car." She was shaking her head as she climbed out but the corners of her pressed mouth were curled as she fought not to smile, which she gave up on when she came around to the trunk to see his boyish grin.

Jughead had taken Hot Dog and Betty into the camp to find his father, but Toni and Fangs shared an unhappy look before glancing at Sweet Pea to see dark shadows hiding his scowling face, and Cheryl stared at the two with her brows raised. "I did not approve of that," Cheryl said softly sneaking an arm around Toni's waist.

"I know," Toni told her, knowing Cheryl hadn't really liked Sweet Pea with Lane either.

Grabbing the tent and air mattress along with the two bags they'd packed Lane made her way in the direction Jughead had gone with Manny close at her back. Her eyes were on FP who's face contorted with rage the more Jughead said, but Manny noticed the suspicious glances they got – mostly toward him – before their eyes lit up with recognition as they realized it was Lane.

"Girl, you better have a damn good reason to be back here," FP said with an accusatory finger raised at her. After the trouble he'd gone to get her out, and she was wasting it.

Any emotion she had at being back with her people soured at his tone. "Minetta found me, and before anyone tries to tell me what to do," she said mostly to FP because he'd opened his mouth to cut her off, but also to the six others surrounding them, "tell me one thing you found out about Hiram since I've been gone. Just one, it doesn't have to be big. You saw him wearing shorts one day – just, anything." At their silence she looked around mostly at FP, Jughead, Fangs and Sweet Pea, none of whom besides FP would meet her eye. "So he's still sending guys after me and not a single Serpent has been assigned to watch him? Do I have that right," she turned to Jughead, "Serpent King?"

With a wry unamused smirk Jughead shook his head. "We've been a little busy."

"Doing what?" Lane demanded opposing him loudly. "It certainly wasn't taking care of your dog, or getting the Serpents out of this camp, and you couldn't have been looking that hard for the Ghoulies because they all but put up a sign saying 'we're here, dumbass.' So I'm out there trying not be killed for the last four months and the only thing you've done in that time is make these two," she pointed between a wide eyed Betty and an amused Cheryl, "Serpents."
Lane turned back to FP, who she still thought of as the leader and so far was the only one she respected in that position. "Shit's not getting done unless I'm here to do it. And under his nose is the last place he'll look for me. So unless someone has anything they want to add," she extended an arm waving at the silent group around her, "then we're gonna set up our tent."

"You can put it up next to mine," Toni offered without hesitation. She and Cheryl led the two through the camp, followed by Fangs and a reluctant Sweet Pea because their tent was pretty close to Toni's as well.

When they were out of earshot of the Jones' Cheryl chimed in with, "I must say, I have truly missed the ease with which you tear down every man that thinks he has any power over you." The two girls shared a long look and a smile as they each reached a hand to the other.

They reached Toni's tent and Lane set down the large cylindrical bag and unzipped it pulling everything out and gathering the metal poles setting everything neatly on the ground to assemble. She looked up at Manny and told him, "I don't know why I'm acting like I know what I'm doing."

He smirked down at her. "I was seeing how far you were gonna get," he teased knowing she didn't know how to set it up.

"There are instructions, with pictures."

He handed her the bag for the air mattress and ruffled her hair before kneeling in front of the tent to take over. "Yeah yeah, you don't need me."

Lane got the mattress blown up and Cheryl helped pull the fitted sheet over it before they set it inside the tent Fangs had helped Manny get up before Lane smoothed the blanket over it and Manny tossed their pillows inside. "Really?" she asked looking from where they lay barely even on the bed and certainly not straight and then up at him. She leaned into the tent and stretched an arm to grab one so she could fix it but he got his arms around her middle and plucked her off the ground. "Manny, put me down," she laughed feeling his shoulder in the middle of her back as he carried her high up on his chest.

"Bring her this way," Cheryl said grinning as she led him a little ways from the tents to the couch and lawn chairs they had set around a dumpster they usually had a fire going in. She was liking how open Lane was with him, how unconscious she was about it.

Fangs and Sweet Pea stood back with mirrored unhappy faces, their eyes mostly on Manny. "What are you thinking?" Sweet Pea asked knowing any opinion he had would be tossed aside and labeled as jealous. Which Cheryl informed him he had no right to since his fling with Josie.

"She seems to really like him," Fangs responded not wanting to say what he thought. Because Lane seemed happy, and it was clear she trusted him. But the way Manny watched her, how heavy his eyes stuck to her, it had something twisting in his stomach. "There's something off about him."

Sweet Pea had felt that the moment he locked eyes with the other guy, a gut wrenching sense of danger that had his hands wanting to ball into fists. "You said it, not me." They shared a wary look as if knowing this wasn't going to end well before they followed the others and Sweet Pea lit the fire.

They sat next to each other on the couch with a little space between them, his arm around the back of the couch more than around her shoulders: cautious, respectful given the circumstance. "Why don't you tell us about yourself?" Cheryl asked sitting on Toni's lap in one of the lawn chairs across from them. "The dashingly handsome knight in shining armor to my dearest Lane?"

Licking his lips Manny turned to Lane to see her waiting with a brow cocked. "I'm more the not as important, but still dashingly handsome, faithful steed that follows the knight," he knocked her chin affectionately, "wherever she takes him."

"That makes it sound like you have to be here," Lane told him.

He shrugged smirking in a way that made her suspicious of what was about to come out of his mouth. "If I want you to ride me." He laughed as she smacked him, even at her hardest it didn't do more than sting a little.

Huffing she turned to Cheryl, not appreciate her or Toni's suggestive grins. "He's one of Gladys' boys, I met him there," she said answering what Cheryl really wanted to know. She sat back and rolled her eyes muttering, "I knew you'd make it sexual." His response was to wrap his arm around her and kiss her temple, and she rolled her eyes like she was annoyed but her mouth was pursed around a smile.

"Gladys Jones?" Toni asked when Lane looked their way, ready for someone to ask anything else.

Manny nodded keeping his hold on Lane and she sat back against him more comfortably than when there'd been space between them. "Yeah, she found me on the street a few years ago," he said not elaborating about his parents. And they respected that because they all understood, but Lane knew his mom split on him like hers had and his dad had been in prison for years. He'd been on his own a lot longer than he'd been with Gladys, his edges were jagged and rough, but he had a soft heart. And she reached a hand to the one he had hanging from her shoulder and wove their fingers together. "Then this one came along," he said, his eyes on Lane, "got me thinking about the future. Ruined everything."

"You're welcome," Lane stated simply. And she smiled as he kissed her cheek, best day of his life was the day she came and messed it all up; he told her that the day before Minetta found her.

The four sat back watching them, seeing and hearing the familiarity between them, the easy way they smiled and joked. Neither Fangs nor Sweet Pea liked it, thinking this boy had come in and changed Lane into someone they only vaguely recognized. But Cheryl, she sat back so proud of how comfortable Lane was. Nothing about Lane's situation had changed, in fact it was more dangerous now since she was so close to Lodge; and yet there was something almost free about her, with him. "So what are some things you like to do?" Cheryl asked knowing but not caring that she was probing, and beneath her Toni smiled faintly as her hold on Cheryl tightened.

With the unyielding way she stared it felt like an interrogation, and considering she was Lane's best friend it had him swallowing uncomfortably. "Um, I like art. Drawing and um,"

"Welding," Lane offered.

"Yup, welding," Manny said having been drawing a blank. "Made her that ring," he said pointing to the thin metal band on her middle finger that bore only a small stone he'd cut and smoothed. "I really like doing the paneling on cars, she'd get them running and I'd fix them up." They made a hell of a team.

He looked down at her asking silently for help and she took pity on him. "You can be done," she told him, hearing his quiet relieved exclamation.

"Excuse me," Cheryl piped in, "it's done when I say it is. Although you're lucky I'm easily distracted." She held out a hand and knowing her well Lane handed her the ring to inspect. "Look babe," Cheryl said showing Toni. "How precious is this?" Inside the silver band he'd painstakingly carved the Serpent tattooed on her ring finger, and the stone he'd put in was a shade darker than Lane's eyes that he'd cut smaller than a pencil's eraser. "Any significance to it?" Cheryl asked handing it back, watching how quickly Lane put it back on her finger.

He nudged her and Lane shot him a look having figured he'd make her explain her own gift. "Last month was the first time I left the house, he snuck me out," he actually carried her over his shoulder because she at first refused so technically it was more kidnapping, but he'd known how tired she was of being there, "it's from the section of the river he took me to. We had a picnic." It was probably one of her best days, hanging out for hours talking and laughing, skinny dipping, dancing under the stars.

"From your smile I take it that was your first kiss," Fangs said having been watching them quietly. She seemed so relaxed, not only with someone she'd known for four months but with someone she'd only been close with for one. She seemed so happy and after everything she'd been through he really wanted her to be – but Lane just wasn't like this, and he had a hard time shaking how odd it all was.

Lane pulled her knees to chest as she leaned against Manny's side. "Maybe," she admitted. They'd checked just about every first that day, it'd been a really good day. And it never failed to surprise her that everyday that followed, which were mostly boring, still felt just as good as that one. Even today.

They talked a while longer as they came full circle with the getting-to-know-you's, which were mostly on Manny's end because Lane was nothing if not thorough and she'd told him about the four sitting across from them. Even the ex, who stared with heavily suspicious, bordering angry, dark eyes and a silent frown. Fangs, the other best friend, opened up the more they talked and realized they had a few things in common.

Until Manny yawned one time too many and he turned to Lane who sat with her legs curled but fallen to the side and her temple against his cheek. "We're gonna go to bed," he said seeing the others weren't ready yet. And by that point at least half of the Serpents had already turned in. "Our day technically started last night."

"Are we finally going to bed?" Lane mumbled having stirred by him shifting beneath her.

He felt her go twenty minutes ago, and she was already halfway back asleep as he slid out from behind her. With a smile he got his arms under her and picked her up, knowing she was really tired when she didn't make any complaints about being manhandled. "We'll see you guys in the morning, it was nice meeting you," he said over his shoulder as he carried her to their tent, hearing their goodnights called to them as the others planned to stay up a little while longer.

Kicking his shoes off outside the tent, and pulling hers off and tossing them on the ground, he dropped to his knees onto the air mattress and set her on it before climbing over her. They both scooted up to the pillows and pulled their jeans and socks off, along with Manny's shirt and her bra, before they settled next to each other letting out a contented sigh to be lying down after such a long day.

But Lane huffed as her mind turned and he asked, "do you want me to do it?"

"No," she whined forcing herself to sit up and lean out of the tent to straighten their shoes. When they were where she wanted them she zipped the flap and turned to where he lay with an arm stretched out, and she crawled up to him laying her head over his chest as he wrapped his arm around her shoulders. "I would've been thinking about that all night," she said, glad to have that thought gone.

He settled with her against him feeling the weight of the day settle in his bones making him heavy, and she made him feel warm, and overall he was plain and simple happy. But she was unusually quiet, and had been for most of the evening unless it pertained to him. "Being back's not what you thought it'd be, is it?"

She released a heavy breath as she sat up on her elbows and looked down at his shadowed face. "I've been thinking of this moment everyday for months, it was never gonna live up to my expectations," she said, glad it was mostly dark because he'd see how close she was to lying.

Dark or not he could hear it in her voice. "But you thought they'd at least make something of an effort to get you back." He heard the deep breath she expelled through her nose, saw the way she dropped her head as her eyes fell to his chest. "From what you told me that guy was the one who took care of you," he said not remembering Tall Boy's name, "Fangs and Toni were your friends. But everyone else, including your ex, only changed their minds about you when you started doing things for them."

She'd been trying not to think this the last couple hours, after realizing no one had done anything while she'd been gone. But Manny was right, the Serpents only accepted her because she was being loyal to them, and they'd been quick to step back when she wasn't doing what they wanted her to – Sweet Pea had been the worst. Could she really be surprised that no one did anything for her in the time she'd been gone. "That doesn't seem fair," she softly replied, not wanting to recognize this because if she didn't have them then she didn't have anyone.

"No, what's not fair is them only caring about you when you're being a Serpent," he said, as he'd told her a few weeks ago when they first had this conversation. "The only reason you care so much is because you needed a family and they were only ones that took you in. But you've got one with us and Gladys," he said, wanting her to see that they were happy to have her without condition. But she was so blind because she thought she loved this place, rather than just the idea of it.

"Or, after we take your guy down we can always get your GED," like she'd helped him get his over the summer. "We found several universities that'll take them, you can still go to law school if you want. But if you change your mind and you wanna stay here, we can do that too," he said brushing her hair out of her face, grazing her cheek with his knuckles. "But there's a whole world out there waiting for you, you don't have to settle for this place if you don't want to." He wanted her to see there was more than this, that she was worth more than this, she just had to want it.

But she wasn't there yet, because she still wanted that feeling of home she thought the Serpents were. Only it was colder than she remembered, the love started to look more like situational necessity, and even though she was back it still felt like she was missing it. "As disappointing as today has been," you make everyday feel like the best day, but she'd never let herself say that, "I'm really glad you're here."

He knew how hard saying that was for her, that pulling teeth with tweezers was easier than getting her to talk about anything she was feeling. So he knew not to push or tease, or be anything that wasn't honest. "Me too," he told her because he knew at several points that day she would've wondered if he thought he was making a mistake. And he never wanted her to think that. Getting his arms around her shoulders he rolled on his side bringing her with him, holding her close.

This is a three part story, the crazy cliff hanger comes next chapter (sorry about that, I meant for this chapter to be shorter but I ended up really liking her and Manny's relationship), so next chapter will likely be shorter than this. I don't know when I'll post it, if anyone's even interested in reading more.
I've got a couple other potential Lane x other characters – I've got one for Tommy Kinkle (Chilling adventures of Sabrina) that is a two part story. And I have the idea of one for Mad Dog that I never planned the end to. Not sure if I'll do either of these, they're just there.
But thank you all for reading, I hope someone other than me at least enjoyed it.