Chapter 2: Uncertainty and an accident

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"Just say it god dammit," Clay almost hissed. He knew he looked completely inhumane, but he didn't care. He needed to hear the truth from her, and he needed to hear it now.

Shaking, Quinn took a deep breath, and looking straight into his eyes repeated the words Clay had said only a couple minutes earlier, "He's your son."

And with those 3 words, Clay felt his world crash into pieces all around him.

"Clay open the door," Nathan shouted as he banged on Clay's beach house door, "Don't even try to pretend you aren't home because your car is here."

Nathan was beyond frustrated with Clay at the moment. Ever since his run in with Quinn on the beach a week ago, Clay had completely shut himself out. He had been ignoring all of Nathan's calls, and avoiding him to the best of his ability. Nathan had tried to be patient with him because he knew he needed time to process the bombshell that was dropped on him a week ago. I mean, he came to Tree Hill thinking that his life was finally getting back on track, and on the very day he arrived, he found a 10 month old son that he had no clue existed. That was enough to blow any guy's mind away.

But he had given him enough time, it had been a miserable week for Quinn, and even Ryan seemed to be suffering. Nathan knew that Clay was angry at him, and he had every right to be. After all, he had been meeting for the past six months, and never bothered to mention the fact that he was a father. Now it was the time to set things straight, and when Nathan Scott put his mind to something, he isn't going to turn away empty handed.

"Clay, you have two choices. You either open the door, or I'll blast it open. And don't think I won't do it, because I will, and you know I can do it," Nathan threatened, praying to whoever was out there that it didn't come down to that.

However, Nathan's threat seemed to have done the trick. A couple of seconds later, Nathan heard quiet shuffling inside the house, and a very aggravated looking Clay opened the door.

"What do you want Nate?" Clay asked tiredly. He was in no mood to talk to him, and he wanted to make sure that Nathan knew that.

"I want to talk to you," Nathan said simply, walking in without asking permission. The inside of the house looked exactly as he had expected it to.

"I am really not in the mood right now," Clay said sharply.

"Someone's planning to become an alcoholic," Nathan said pointing to the numerous wine and beer bottles lying around the place, and completely ignoring Clay's previous statement.

"Nathan this is really not the time," Clay replied sharply with a slight edge to his tone.

"No, this is the time Clay. I gave you a week to process things over—"

"A week? Do you think 7 days is enough to process the fact that I have a 10 month old son? Who I had no idea existed," Clay interrupted furiously.

"Look, I know you're angry, and you have every right to be—"

"I am not just angry Nathan, I am furious. You have been meeting me for six months, six months. And you didn't bother mentioning that I had a son in any of those numerous visits? Nathan, how could you keep something this huge from me?" Clay demanded, his eyes burning black with fury.

"Clay, I know this looks bad, but it wasn't my place to tell you. Trust me, there were so many times when I wanted to just come clean and tell you, but I couldn't. I couldn't betray Quinn's trust like that," Nathan said apologetically.

"Quinn's trust? Seriously, Nathan? What about me? Did you think for a second what would happen when I came back to Tree Hill? Did you think this would have remained a secret for long? The kid looks exactly like me for god's sake," Clay shot back.

"I didn't know you were coming back Clay. I mean, I knew you were thinking about it, but I had no idea that you would show up when you did. You took all of us by surprise, and it all happened so fast that it became almost impossible to warn either you or Quinn beforehand," Nathan tried explaining.

"Well I didn't know I was coming to Tree Hill only to meet such a bombshell, did I?" Clay asked sarcastically, "What would you have done if I had told you I was coming? Would you have told me the truth?"

"No- no, don't interrupt me. I wouldn't have told you the truth because trust me, I wasn't the person you would have wanted to hear it from. But had I known that you were coming in advance, I would have alerted Quinn and she probably would have been a little careful with how she wanted you to find out about Ryan," Nathan said.

"Careful?" Clay asked bitterly, "If you had told Quinn, she would have run away first thing in the morning. She hid the fact that I had a son for almost two years Nathan, did you seriously expect her to come clean to me just because I was moving back?"

"Clay, Quinn never wanted to hide the baby from you. This wasn't some sort of a secret that you were never supposed to find out about. She didn't know where you were. Like I said last week, it was as if you had disappeared from the surface of the Earth. When she found that she was pregnant with Ryan, she did all she could to get in touch with you. She called your secretary, went to your office in Charlotte, and even questioned Ken. But no one had no idea where you were," Nathan explained.

"But she knew that I was in Charlotte for the past six months—"

"Uh, no she didn't," Nathan said slowly, "Quinn had no idea I was meeting you. I didn't tell Haley about you Clay, do you seriously think I would have told Quinn?"

"Wait, so you're saying that Quinn had no idea that you were in touch with me?" Clay asked after a couple of seconds.

"She had no idea," Nathan reaffirmed.

"Why?" Clay asked quietly.

"Why what?" Nathan asked confused.

"Why didn't you tell her you were meeting me? You knew I was the father, why didn't you tell her?" Clay clarified.

"In the beginning, it was because I honestly didn't think you would come back. I mean, you were so hell bent in not having anything to do with me or the ISC, that I thought that telling her about you would cause more problems rather than solving some. I knew that if I told her, she would have tried to contact you, she never wanted to keep Ryan a secret Clay, but I wasn't sure how you would react. I mean you have changed so much Clay—"

"I have been miserable for the past two years, Nathan. Change was bound to happen," Clay interrupted sharply.

"I know, and I don't blame you. But I had to look out for Quinn at the same time. I mean what if she had told you about Ryan, and you walked away, wanting nothing to do with him? You not knowing about Ryan, and not being in his life was one thing, but you knowing and then choosing to not be in his life, that would have been a whole another ball game," Nathan said simply.

"I wouldn't have walked away, Nathan," Clay said quietly, his head spinning with all the new information.

"Like you aren't walking away now?" Nathan asked, "Maybe you're not walking away in the literal sense, but you've been hiding ever since you found about Ryan. You bolted when you realized that he was yours."

"I was stunned, Nathan. I didn't know what to do but run," Clay said helplessly.

"I get that, I do. And Quinn does to. But that doesn't make it any better. You haven't showed your face anywhere for one week, and even though she tries to pretend like it doesn't matter, it is hurting her. She knew that you would go into shock when you found out about Ryan, but she didn't think you would completely cut her out after when you did," Nathan said.

"I haven't cut her out, Nathan. I mean, what do you want me to do? Go and talk to her?" Clay asked incredulously.

"Yes," Nathan said immediately, "You need to go talk to her. Otherwise the only impression you're giving is that you don't want to have anything to do with Ryan. And that might be true, I don't know what's going on in your head right now, but you have to let her know where you stand. You might want to try and become a part of Ryan's life, or you might not want to have anything to do with him. Either way, you need to talk to Quinn so that she knows what to expect from you."

"I can't talk to her, when I myself don't know what I want to do," Clay said putting his head in his hands.

"You've had one week Clay. Whatever decision you want to make, should be clear by now. I mean, you can argue with yourself all you want but after 7 days, the mind is usually made up one way or another," Nathan said seriously.

"This is a life changing decision Nate," Clay said softly.

"One that shouldn't be that hard to make," Nathan said looking straight at Clay, "Not if you are the guy I always thought you were."

"What are—"

"Here are the facts Clay. Ryan is your son, you hear me, he's your son. And nothing you can do can change that. You can turn your back on him, but that doesn't change the fact that you're not his father. So you either accept the responsibility or you don't. And honestly only one of those options should make sense to you," Nathan said firmly.

Clay's head was spinning. He knew Nathan was right. There were no options to consider. Yes, he was scared, but could he forgive himself if he turned his back on his son just because of his insecurities? And more importantly would his son ever forgive him for that?

When Clay didn't say anything for the next minute, Nathan continued, "Listen, hiding here and drowning yourself in alcohol isn't going to help things, it's just going to make matters worse. So get yourself together, and come over for dinner tonight."

"Nathan I—"

"No, hear me out first. You don't have to talk to Quinn, or go anywhere near Ryan if you're not ready. But you need to get out of here, and who knows maybe seeing them would help clear your thoughts. And if you get uncomfortable at any time, you can leave, no questions asked," Nathan said.

"I don't know, Nate," Clay said uncertainly.

"Look, its thanksgiving tonight. You can either choose to spend it here all alone, or you could come over and keep me company. And I promise, Quinn will not approach you until you let her know that you're ready to talk," Nathan said convincingly, "Plus, Haley is cooking, so you can be sure that the food will be good."

"Oh yeah the last one completely got me," Clay said cracking a small smile.

"I knew it would. Not many people can resist Haley's cooking," Nathan said grinning, "So you'll come?"

"I am not sure—"

"Oh come one, man," Nathan groaned at his stubbornness.

"I am not making any promises, but I'll try. And that's the best I can offer you right now," Clay said giving in a little.

"Alright fine. Do whatever you feel is right," Nathan sighed, "But for what it's worth I hope you show up."

"You know for the past week, I have been so angry at Quinn," Clay started suddenly as Nathan turned to leave.

"What?" Nathan asked turning around.

"I thought that she knew that you were meeting me, and intentionally decided to not tell me about uh—"

"Ryan," Nathan finished his sentence.

"Yeah," Clay said running his hand through his hair, "And now you tell me that she didn't know and all my ideas and thoughts are thrown into chaos all over again."

"Well maybe it's time you stop bottling them up, and talk to somebody about them," Nathan said simply, "Anyways I have to go, gotta pick up Jamie from Skill's place."

"Right, of course," Clay said distractedly as he walked with Nathan to the door.

"See you later?" Nathan asked as he stepped out of the door.

"Maybe," Clay said quietly, avoiding Nathan's intense stare.

"Well if I don't see your face for another week, I will more than just threaten to break down your door," Nathan said warningly and with a nod turned around and walked away.

"I'll keep that in mind," Clay said quietly as he closed the door, and walked back to the living room.

He really needed some thinking to do.

--

4 hours later- 7 o' clock the Scott household

"Don't you think it's too peaceful right now?" Haley asked as she scooped the mashed potatoes into a dish.

"It is," Quinn agreed, "I don't it's ever been this quiet in this house. Where are Nathan and Natalie?"

"Nathan is taking a shower and Natalie is sleeping," Haley answered, "And Jamie's in his room. But the real question is, where is your little monster?"

"He's with Jamie. They're building the world's tallest block tower," Quinn said laughing.

"Oh god help me if that's true. That's going to make such a mess," Haley groaned.

"They're going to clean it all up, I am sure. Plus, it provides Ryan with a good distraction," Quinn said shrugging.

"Hmm…speaking of distractions, have you heard from Clay?" Haley asked softly.

Quinn's face immediately lost its smile, and Haley saw her stiffen, "No, no I haven't. Ad honestly, I doubt I will be hearing from him any time soon."

"Quinn—"

"No, Haley don't make any more excuses. You didn't see his face when he realized that Ryan was his. He was horrified. I mean I knew that he wouldn't take the news lightly, but I didn't expect him to just disappear either," Quinn said bitterly as her mind flashed back to the incident on the beach a week ago.

--Flashback—

"Just say it god dammit," Clay hissed, his eyes never leaving Ryan's face.

"He's your son," Quinn said softly, but Clay heard every word, and it was as if a ton of bricks had hit him in the head.

"I-what-how-um—"

"Clay?" Quinn asked concerned as he mumbled incoherent words to himself. She knew that whatever would happen in the next couple of minutes would change her and Ryan's life completely.

"This cannot be happening. This really cannot be happening," Clay whispered as he was in some sort of a trance as he backed away from Ryan.

"Clay just let me—"

"I need to go," Clay mumbled his eyes wide, and skin as while as chalk, and with one last look at Ryan, he turned around and bolted away towards the beach houses.

--End Flashback—

She honestly didn't know how she made it back home that day. Her whole body was shaking, and her mind was numb as she replayed Clay's reaction in her head over and over again.

Shaking her head, Quinn tried to get rid of the memory that had been plaguing her for the past 7 days. She knew it would do her no good to dwell on it. Turning towards Haley who was looking at her with a concerned expression, she put up a strong face and said, "But whatever, it's okay. Ryan has been just fine without a father in his life for the past 10 months, and I'll make sure that it remains that way. I am not going to force Clay into anything that he doesn't want to do."

"But what if he does want to be a part of Ryan's life?" Haley asked quietly.

"I don't know. With the way things happened, I haven't really thought of that possibility." Quinn said honestly, "But I seriously doubt that would happen."

"But what if—"

"Haley, can we please stop talking about this? Its thanksgiving and I really don't feel like spending my nigh dwelling on this," Quinn said pleadingly.

"Yeah, of course. Sorry," Haley apologized.

"It's okay," Quinn said smiling slightly, and she finished pouring the salad dressing on the salad.

The sisters worked quietly for a couple of minutes, before the silence in the house was interrupted by the door bell.

"I'll get it," Quinn said wiping her hands on the kitchen towel.

Smiling slightly to herself as she heard Jamie and Ryan's excited voices from upstairs, Quinn quickly made her way to the main door, and opened it. Her smile immediately slipped from her, and her eyes grew wide when she saw who was on the other side.

"Hi," Clay said softly as he shuffled his feet, it was obvious from her shocked face that she wasn't expecting him, "Can I come in? It's kinda cold outside."

"Yeah, yeah, of course. I am sorry, you just took my by surprise," Quinn said hurriedly as she moved out of the way to let him in.

"I can tell," Clay said, "I am guessing Nathan didn't tell you that I might be coming?"

"No, no, he didn't," Quinn said, making a mental note to kill her brother in law when she saw him, "He tends to not tell me things when they come to you."

"Sorry?" Clay asked awkwardly, unsure as to what to say to a statement like that.

"It's not your fault," Quinn said shrugging, looking everywhere but directly at him, "Anyways, Nathan's in the shower, so why don't you just get comfortable in the living room and I'll get Jamie—"

But before Quinn could finish her sentence, a loud crash came from upstairs followed by a horrified scream.

"Ryan," Jamie screamed and Quinn felt her heart stop beating as Clay went completely pale next to her.

"What happened?" Haley asked worriedly as she ran towards the stairs, but Quinn and Clay were already ahead of her. Clay didn't know how it exactly happened, but one minute he was standing next to Quinn in the entrance hallway, and the next he was running up the stairs towards Jamie's room as Ryan's cries got louder. His heart thumped loudly in his chest, and he had never felt more afraid in his life. Maybe it was because he knew that it was his son who was in danger, but this feeling of intense fear and protectiveness was completely new to him.

As they ran into Jamie's room, Quinn felt her eyes widen as she saw her son lying on the floor, crying loudly as blood poured out from his mouth. Not wasting another second, Quinn rushed towards Jamie who was trying to stop the bleeding with his hands, a horrified look on his face.

"Here, its okay. Give him here," Quinn said gently as she took her bleeding son from the terrified 9 year old. Her heart broke as she took a hysterical Ryan in her arms, and she felt like breaking down at the sight of all the blood, but she knew she needed to stay strong because at this moment her son needed her and that's all that mattered.

"Napkins, I need napkins," Quinn choked out as she tried to calm Ryan and stop the bleeding at the same time. Her words brought a stunned Clay out of his trance, as he immediately grabbed a box of Kleenex next to Jamie's bed and quickly walked to where Quinn was holding a struggling Ryan.

Quinn was about to hold out her hand so he could give her the box, but Clay was already one step ahead of her. Kneeling down next to the pair, he quickly ripped out a wad of the napkins and gently placed them on top on Ryan's lip, which was the source of the bleeding.

"Its okay, it's okay," Quinn repeated over and over again as she rocked Ryan in her arms and Clay tried to stop the bleeding.

"Can you bring me some ice?" Clay asked a minute later, turning towards Haley who was watching from the doorway.

"Yeah, sure," Haley nodded as she quickly made her way downstairs to get the ice.

"The bleeding is slowing down," Clay said relieved as the intensity of the bleeding declined, and Ryan started to calm down a little.

"Yeah," Quinn said relieved as she gazed Ryan's pale face, his eyes and nose red from all the crying, and Clay noticed that she was shaking terribly her eyes glazed with tears.

"Hey, it's going to be okay. He's going to be okay, I promise," Clay said softly as he placed his hand on top of hers trying to calm her down. It worked, as he felt both Quinn and Ryan still beneath his hand.

Nodding shakily, Quinn ran her hand through Ryan's sweaty hair. He had stopped crying, but was still whimpering in pain.

"Here's your ice," Haley said breathlessly as she handed a cup full of ice to Clay.

"Thanks," Clay said as he placed the ice next to him. Removing the bloody napkin from Ryan's lips, he wrapped a piece of ice in a clean Kleenex and gently placed it on the swollen lip. Ryan flinched at the sudden contact, but gradually stopped struggling as the cool ice soothed his bruised lip.

"Do you think we need to take him to the hospital?" Quinn asked softly after a couple of seconds as Ryan started to become more aware of his surroundings.

"I don't think that would be necessary. He's calm and the bleeding seems to be under control," Haley said, "But it's you call. If you think taking him to a doctor would make you feel better, then we'll go to the hospital."

"Clay?" Quinn asked turning her attention towards him, her question clear in her voice.

"I think he'll be okay. The bleeding's stopped, and he's completely conscious of his surroundings," Clay said as he lifted the ice cube to show Quinn that there was indeed no bleeding.

"We will need to put some ointment or something on the wound, but other than that he'll be fine, won't you buddy?" Clay said as he softly ran his hand through Ryan's hair, his eyes raking his son's face properly for the first time. Ryan seemed to find the contact with his father's hand pleasing as he shifted a little on Quinn's lap so that now his head was lying partially on Clay's lap as well.

"I am so sorry Aunt Quinn," Jamie said quietly, speaking for the first time.

"Hey, it's okay. He's fine, you're fine, and that's all that matters," Quinn said softly.

"What happened though?" Haley asked curiously, "That crash was so loud."

"We were trying to build the world's biggest block tower, but it kept falling, so I got on my little chair so that I could reach higher, and Ryan wanted to copy me—"

"Jamie, please tell me that you didn't have Ryan stand on your chair," Quinn gasped.

"No, I didn't," Jamie said, "But he crawled over to his rocking bike, and tried to get on it. He couldn't get on it by himself, so I was about to go help him when he lost his balance and fell face first into the blocks."

"Jamie—"

"I know it's my fault. I should have been careful, but—"

"Jamie. It's okay. It wasn't your fault. This could have happened with anyone," Quinn said seriously.

"So you're not mad at me?" Jamie asked softly.

"No, I am not mad at you," Quinn said smiling as Jamie breathed a sigh of relief.

"So, Ryan's going to be okay?" Jamie asked as he looked at his cousin, who was currently playing with the button on Clay's shirt.

"Yes, he'll be fine," Quinn said as she turned her attention back to her son. Her eyes immediately went to his lip, where a large gash was visible, making the lip swell up to two times it size, "You really know how to give Mommy a heart attack huh?"

"Was this the first time he got hurt like this?" Clay asked quietly, speaking for the first time in minutes.

"You mean with the blood and everything?" Quinn asked as Clay nodded, "Yeah, this has got to be a first. But I guess this is just the beginning of all the injuries. Once he starts walking, he'll be all over the place, and no matter how hard I try I won't be able to protect him from everything, and that thought scares me more than anything else in the world. I can't stand the thought of him hurt, I mean I almost had an emotional break down watching him today, I don't know how I am going to handle the more serious stuff."

"I guess you just learn to deal with it, like you did today," Clay noted. His mind was in a complete whirlwind. He had no idea what to make of the last half an hour. The blood, the fear, the connection, the relief, everything was so overwhelming. He never thought one person could have such control over his emotions, but if the past half an hour was any indication, his son had somehow managed to completely capture his heart. Now it was only a matter of admitting it to himself. Clay was so engrossed in his thoughts that he didn't hear Quinn speaking until he felt Ryan's head being lifted from his lap.

"You said something?" Clay asked looking up to see Quinn lifting Ryan in her arms as she got up from her spot.

"Yeah, I said I was going to get him cleaned up," Quinn said pointing to the blood stains of his clothes and face.

"Right, okay," Clay said as he too got up from his spot, "I better go and clean myself up too."

Nodding quickly, Quinn turned around and walked out of the room, leaving Clay in the room alone.

Once they were gone, Clay sighed for what seemed like the billionth time that day, and made his way to the hallway bathroom to wash off the blood from his hands.

In the bathroom, as he looked at his reflection, he was once again struck by how much Ryan looked like him. He had come here tonight in the hopes of getting some answers, but the past hour had just put his mind into more conflict. He couldn't deny the instant connection he felt when he touched Ryan and the fact that he could love someone so much after just knowing them for ½ an hour terrified him.

Past life experiences had taught him that he was not meant to have any happiness in his life. Every time something good had happened to him, it was cruelly taken away, leaving him completely hurt and broken in its wake. He knew that if he decided to let himself in Ryan's life, it would only be a matter of time before he would become the most important person in his life. Even now, he felt this love and protectiveness over him that he had never felt before. And if for some reason he was taken away from him, Clay didn't think he would be able to survive that.

"You're a natural, you know," Haley said leaning against the bathroom door, as she watched him was his hands.

"At what?" Clay asked, snapping out of reverie as he turned to face Haley.

"At being a dad," Haley said in a 'duh' voice.

"Haley—"

"No, listen to me, Clay. Nathan told me about his conversation with you earlier, and from what I could tell, you're scared to death of letting someone in your life in such a big way. But that's natural. Having a human being completely be dependent on you is a huge responsibility, but trust me, it's worth it. After you ran away that day on the beach I didn't know if you were "father material", but today you showed me just how wrong I was. The way you handled the situation, the way you calmed Quinn down, not everyone would have been able to do that. I saw your face when you saw Ryan lying there, you were terrified, but you can through, and that's what parenting is all about. I know you're angry for being kept in the dark for so long, and you have every right to be, but you can either chose to live your life with resentment for the past or you could move on, and look forward to all the moments that you will get to experience," Haley said passionately, "Ryan is a great kid, Clay. You don't want to miss out on more than your already have or you will regret it for the rest of your life."

And with that, she turned around and walked away leaving Clay to gape at her back. How she had known his fears, he would never know, but for the first time in the past week, he finally had some answers.

--

30 minutes later

"How is he?" Clay asked immediately, as he saw Quinn come downstairs. She had changed her shirt and looked completely exhausted.

"He's okay. I put some antibiotic on his lip, and he's sleeping now," Quinn said.

"Good. That's good," Clay said relieved.

"Yeah, it is," Quinn said awkwardly. She wanted to thank him for what he did, but she had no idea how to do it. However, she was saved from the uncomfortable silence when Haley called them for dinner.

"Hey, I heard about the accident," Nathan said as they walked into the dining room, "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, everything's fine," Quinn replied, "He's sleeping now, the crying completely exhausted him."

"You sure he doesn't need to see a doctor?" Nathan asked concernedly.

"No, the cut isn't that deep. I mean with the way it was bleeding, you would have thought that the whole lip was cut open, but it wasn't that bad," Quinn said running a hand through her hair.

"What a perfect way to celebrate Thanksgiving huh?" Haley said shaking her head.

"Well, in a way it is. This accident really gives me something to be thankful for- my son's life."

"And there's the Quinn we know and love. Seeing the good in the worst of situations," Haley joked trying to lighten the mood.

It worked, and soon everyone was engaged in small talk as they devoured the delicious Thanksgiving feast Haley had prepared.

--

"What are you doing out here?" Clay asked as he walked out to the patio where Quinn was standing. Dinner had ended an hour ago, and he was just about to leave when he saw Quinn standing outside, and after everything that happened tonight, he just wanted to make sure that she was alright.

"Just thinking," Quinn said softly and Clay could tell by her voice that she had been crying.

"About what happened today?" Clay asked even though he already knew the answer.

"That and a lot of other things," Quinn said shrugging, as she tried to wipe away her tears.

"He's going to be just fine, you know?" Clay asked trying to reassure her, "He's a fighter, and he's so brave."

"Yeah, I guess he gets that his dad," Quinn said smiling slightly.

"I don't know about that," Clay said slowly, "His mom's pretty brave too."

"Yeah right," Quinn said scoffing, "Did you not see me today, I was this close to completely breaking down."

"But you didn't. You knew that Ryan needed you, and even though you couldn't think straight, you held yourself together. If that is not being brave then I don't know what is," Clay said seriously.

They stood in silence for a couple of minutes, before Clay decided to break it again, "You're a great mom, you know. Ryan's lucky to have you."

"Thanks," Quinn said quietly, "That means a lot. And before I lose my nerve, I want to thank you for being there today."

"Quinn, you don't have to—"

"Yes, I do. You had no obligation to do what you did today, but you did it anyways. You helped me get through one of the scariest moments of my life, and I want you to know how much it meant to both me and Ryan. So, thank you," Quinn said softly, and giving his a quick hug, she turned around and quickly went inside, leaving Clay alone for the second time that night.

A/N: Wow that was ridiculously long. I don't know how I feel about this chapter, but it's 6 in the morning my time, so whether it's crap or a masterpiece it will have to do just the way it is. This chapter was ridiculously hard for me to write, especially the accident scene, and I seriously doubt I did justice to it. But I hope you guys got the gist of where I was going with it, and I really, really hope you liked it.

I know Clay's character seems to be a little OOC in this story, but that's because he is a different guy here than he is in the show, He's suffered a lot in this story, and that has caused his character to be withdrawn and conflicted. However, if you guys have any observations, questions, or comments about this, please let me know, and always feel free to offer suggestions because I try to incorporate them in my writing as much as I could.

Next, thank you so, so much for all the reviews! 16 reviews, you guys have set such a high bar just from the first chapter, and it is the only reason why I posted this chapter so fast. I have the next couple of chapters planned for this story, and right now I am going through this phase where I just want to write. So you might want to take advantage of that, because if the review rate remains consistent you will get a new chapter within 2-3 days, since I am very invested in this story right now.

Also, as a warning, just because Clay seemed to have made an instant connection with Ryan doesn't mean he's going to accept it. He has a lot of demons in his past that needs to face, and that will cause conflict in his relationship with both Quinn & his son. So no happy ending just yet, but don't worry, Clay won't be able to deny Ryan for much longer.

With that said, I hope you liked my ridiculously long and complicated chapter, and please, please, REVIEW! Because the more reviews I get, the faster update you'll get. It's a win-win situation for everybody =)