oh and it's so unfair ,

[anna trent-orsino]

ANNA MARIE TRENT

AND I DON'T KNOW HOW MUCH I CAN KEEP LETTING YOU UNRAVEL ME
'CAUSE THE MORE YOU LEARN THE MORE WE SHARE

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ANNA HAD NEVER THOUGHT THINGS would get better after losing Hunter. People had said it would, preached up and down that it was all just temporary, and a matter of time. Anna hadn’t believed them. Things were getting better, though. As far as Anna was concerned, nothing would ever be the same again, or as good as it once was. Her baby had a lot to do with the getting better, though. At first, finding out she was pregnant had only made things worse. She had just lost her husband and was going to have to raise their child all on her own. If anything, finding out she was pregnant had sent her even further over the edge. But she had slowly come around. The child was a part of Hunter. He was present in her child. She had a part of Hunter left to hold on to. From that moment, anytime she referred to her baby, it was always as a male. Her parents and others didn’t seem to think that that was healthy either. They were constantly telling her not to get her hope up; that there was just as much chance that it was a girl. But Anna was more than convinced that her child was a boy. She could feel it, but that was never enough for anyone. She even saw doubt in Brit’s eyes. She was convinced, though, and no one could tell her any different. She had even decided that she was going to name him after Hunter, but that she would refer to him by his middle name, Michael. Calling him Hunter would be too hard. Her parents had tried to suggest girl names to her, but she had just shook her head at them or ignored them. Her child was a boy, and his name would be Hunter Michael Trent. She wouldn’t even consider other options. She sometimes thought that her family thought that she would be disappointed if her baby turned out to be a girl instead, and that she might do something stupid again. It was true that Anna would be disappointed, but this child would still be a part of Hunter, and she would love it all the same. That child was her reason for living. He, or she, was all that she really had to hold on to.

OF COURSE, ANNA COULDN’T IGNORE Tyler Orsino’s part in all of it. Tyler had been a close friend of Hunter’s and he had stepped up and helped in more ways then anyone else had. It amazed Anna how dependant she had become on Tyler. Whenever Anna started to feel like she was going downhill or sinking fast into her really dark place, it was always Tyler that she called. He was the one that helped her, and saved her from herself. Because of the pregnancy she had been taken off all of her medication. Anna was left to her own mind. It was the main reason that everyone kept her so closely watched, and despite her reasons for living, she still slipped up sometimes, and she knew that she was still a risk to herself and her son. She realized the risk, and her problems, but she still got frustrated, and most of the time it was Tyler that was around to deal with her. He dealt with well, too. He would argue back and lecture until both of them weren’t talking to each other. The next day, though, they would be perfectly okay again. Anna had always liked Tyler. They had been friends for a while, and they even had a past relationship. They hadn’t dated, but it had been the closest she had ever come before Hunter. It was easy to be around Tyler, and she enjoyed his company, even when they were angry at one another. He was a good friend, and having someone like him around had only been good for her. Anna had thought she had lost everything when Hunter had died. Because of her child and Tyler, though, things at least looked a little brighter.

THAT DAY, TYLER HAD COME over like did some days, when her parents or Jace couldn’t be around. From the minute Tyler had come in she could tell that he was in a bad mood. Anna had done what she could to try and stay on Tyler’s good side, and didn’t start anything. She didn’t really have to try that day, though, because she hadn’t been feeling all that well and she mostly laid on the couch and watched the TV. Her mother had said that it was probably just the baby; that she was sick on her stomach from morning sickness. But up until that point, Anna hadn’t even come close to being sick. In fact, she had felt perfectly find. Anna didn’t really get sick anyway. As a child she had always been very healthy, and had only been sick a couple times in her life. No one seemed worried, though, but Anna still felt utterly miserable. She hadn’t slept much the night before, though that wasn’t very unusual, and so she decided to try and sleep at least a little. Tyler was spending his time channel surfing, so it wasn’t like he needed her for entertainment. She drifted off to sleep, but only for about twenty minutes or so. She woke up, the overwhelming urge to throw up hitting her. Anna never got the chance to tell Ty. She jumped to her feet, tripped over the coffee table, and ran to the bathroom, just making it in time. As she had expected, Tyler had ran after her. Given her history, she was used to him following her from room to room, and her sudden movement without explanation could have helped matters much. The entire content of her meager breakfast had come up, but Anna felt much better. She flushed the toilet, then rose to her feet and walked over to the sink, grabbing her tooth brush. She looked at Tyler. “I’m fine, Ty,” she said simply, then went about brushing her teeth.

BUT AS IT TURNED OUT, she wasn’t fine. Fifteen minutes later, just as she was relaxing back on the couch she was running back to the bathroom and throwing up again. She would feel better after throwing up, but in a matter of minutes she felt bad again. After the fourth time, Anna gave up on brushing her teeth and just rinsed her mouth out with water from the sink. Tyler looked after her well, though. He brought her flat coke and plain pieces of toast when she asked, and ran after her every time she ran to the bathroom. After an hour of that, and when the time between each trip spaced out more, she suggested that they go up to her room, which was closer to the bathroom upstairs than the living room was to the one downstairs. Not only that, but it would have been more comfortable. Tyler agreed and walked up with her. No sooner had she reached the landing, though, she was running to the bathroom yet again. She walked into the bedroom after that and curled up on the bed. Ty sat down beside her. He had been in her room many times before, so this was nothing new for them. Anna watched as Ty turned the TV to the channel he had been watching before in the living room. Anna had given up on trying to sleep, so she just stared at the TV. “I hate having the stomach flu,” she said softly, because she knew without a doubt that that was what she had. She also knew that there was nothing she could do but wait it out. She shifted her gaze up to Tyler. “I’m sure you’d much rather be spending time with Molly instead of taking care of me. Sorry.” She felt bad. Anna hated being sick, and she hated that Ty had to be there with her when he could be having fun with his girlfriend. Anna was starting to feel like a child, being watched by someone every time her parents and brother stepped out. Tyler had to have better things to do than baby-sit her, and as much as she loved his company, she hated that she was the reason he never got to spend time with his girlfriend.

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tagged for tyler orsino ,

[tyler orsino]

tyler orsino.
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-----Today was not going to be a great day. There was just something about it when Ty woke up that morning that told him so. Maybe it was in the way Molly had said her good morning to him. Maybe it had been that look in her eye, or the way she had kept completely to her side of the bed that night and had avoided touching him at all costs. Tyler and Molly were a great couple. Anyone that had seen them together would tell you so; they were a good match. They were loving and kind to one another. They were so sweet that it was probably sickening to a lot of people, but it wasn’t like they had ever cared. Tyler treated that girl like she was a princess, and did whatever he could to make sure that she was happy. And she had always been so understanding. She had never once argued with him about the time that he spent helping and watching over Anna, knowing how close Ty had been to Hunter and how he cared for the wellbeing of his good friend, Anna. Molly was just so sweet and Tyler was almost convinced that she was the one, that perfect girl in his life that he would never be able to find another one like. She was just it, and he couldn’t imagine how things between them could ever be any other way. Until that morning, that is. Apparently, he was an asshole now. He had said something about Jocelyn, Molly’s sister, that he probably shouldn’t have said, and it had pissed Molly right the fuck off. Ty could see that; he was defensive when people spoke about Amy, and sometimes Micah and Brandon, in a bad way. It was a thing that siblings felt for one another when they even remotely cared, and that had kicked in when Tyler had said what he thought of Jocelyn to Molly. He knew that he should have picked his words more carefully, but hell, it was Ty after all. He never cared what people thought, and said what he had to say whether they liked it or not. In this case, though, that had been the wrong thing to do.

-----Molly had been upset, and he thought that he had made up with her last night when he had gotten home. It had seemed fine when they had gone to bed, for the most part. But that morning, it was like the surrender flags had been taken back, and it was a full fledged war again. Nothing Tyler said or did was right. He was an awful person, he did this and this and this wrong. Ty wasn’t the type to take shit from anyone, and he had fired back, putting Molly in her place and then she come back with something else. The two of them had never fought before, and Tyler was completely in uncharted waters with her. Eventually, it did come time for him to leave, and that started yet another fight. She was pissed that he was going to go spend his whole day with Anna, something that had never bothered her before. Ty simply told her that she would fucking get over it before he walked out the door, his day ruined already and it had barely started. He was in a dark mood when he got to Anna’s house, and was relieved to find her not in one of her lows but actually having a good day. He really didn’t think he could have handled her being bitchy after the episode that morning had turned out to be. It was funny, though. Usually, he left and went home to Molly to find relief and comfort. Today, he came to Anna for that. She had to be aware of his foul mood, but Anna didn’t pry. It seemed that she was being super cautious with him, trying to stay out of the way of his rage. Which, was probably a good thing. Ty wasn’t normally the guy that lost his cool and blew up at someone that didn’t deserve it, but he had definitely lost his cool with Molly and he needed to just calm down. Anna let him do that, him sitting in a recliner and her laid out on the couch. He noticed that she seemed tired, so he kept the volume on the TV low and kept himself quiet so she could sleep on the off chance that she was able to doze off.

-----Which, she finally did do. Ty felt a smile come to his lips as he watched her sleep, seeing that baby belly of hers rise and fall slowly as she breathed. He was finally feeling better. Still aggravated with Molly and what was happening with them, but he was better. He flipped through the channels, finally settling on the movie Cars. Mater was just the shit, and Ty laughed at all the stupid little things that children would laugh at. He reminded himself to be quiet so that he didn’t wake up Anna, though, and kept his amusement with the movie to himself. She was only out for about twenty minutes or so, though. Ty was still watching Cars when he saw Anna suddenly sit up, and then proceed to stand and almost trip over the coffee table as she quickly moved out of the living room. Ty was on his feet, following her. He had no idea what was going on, and was afraid of what it was that Anna might have gotten in her head to do. He could restrain her, and he could help her work through it, but it was moments like these that were heart stopping, making him so afraid that Ty was almost afraid to round the corner and see what Anna might be trying to do to herself. She had gone into the bathroom, and Tyler was there just in time to see her vomiting into the toilet. Oh, how lovely. He knew that his face had probably paled, him not having the strongest stomach in the world when it came to puke. Blood he could do. Gutting a deer, fine. But for some reason, he could not take it to see someone throwing up. He remained by the door, watching as she flushed the toilet and then got to her feet, going to the sink to brush her teeth. “I’m fine, Ty.” ”You call that fine?” He knew what she had meant, but damn. If this was morning sickness, then he was so glad that males didn’t have to suffer through it.

-----It wasn’t morning sickness. She threw up several more times, Ty working up to being able to hold her hair back for her until they got smart and she just pulled it back in a ponytail. He still went with her, though, to make sure that she was okay. He brought her toast and flat coke when she requested it, and was just the perfect dad with his sick child. That’s what he joked about with her, at least. Anna did finally suggest that the move upstairs, where they would be closer to a bathroom from her room and more comfortable. Tyler agreed, and they both went up the steps. Poor Anna. She had just made it to the top when she was darting into the bathroom, sick again. Tyler cringed as he heard it. God, he prayed, please don’t let me get it. Even though he probably would, anyway. They did go to her room then, Anna curling herself up on her bed and Tyler taking a seat beside of her. He turned on the TV, and Cars was still on. He relaxed back into the pillows, still sitting up but very comfortable. “I hate having the stomach flu.” And little Hunter Michael probably wasn’t enjoying it too much, either. “I’m sure you’d much rather be spending time with Molly instead of taking care of me. Sorry.” Ty looked down at her, seeing that Anna had been looking up at him. He could tell that she genuinely felt bad for keeping him here. ”Babe, don’t be sorry. You know that I never care to stay and take care of you.” Tyler would come rushing over in the middle of the night if Anna ever called him and needed him. That was just the type of guy that he was. ”And right now, things with Molly aren’t so….great, so you really don’t have to be sorry about that. I’d rather be here and expose myself to the stomach flu than be home with her.” That was a little harsh, and Anna called him out on it. She then ventured to ask him why it was so bad, what had happened.

-----He sighed. ”I just told her how I felt about all the shit that’s going on with Jocelyn. I mean, I understand Joce has had it hard, but so has everyone else and we’re not running away. And she left Ava with Jared and Mackenzie, which maybe was a good thing, but they’re going through a lot, too. Kade would have taken care of that baby, and she didn’t even ask him.” Kade wasn’t really being the best example of father material at the moment, but Tyler knew that had Jocelyn asked, Kade would have taken Ava in a heartbeat. Hell, it probably would have been really good for Kade to take care of his daughter for four months. It would have straightened him up and given him something to really live for again. Kind of like Anna with her baby. ”I know Molly is just taking up for her sister, and I’d do the same thing, but I can’t help how I feel about it. Hell, I know she doesn’t care for my brothers, but I don’t go around having a fucking cow or three about it.” Ty looked down, and it was quiet for a moment before he spoke again. ”Shit, now I’m sorry. Didn’t mean to unload all of that on you.” He looked back to her with a sheepish grin, knowing that after all she had dealt with and was still dealing with that she didn’t need anymore stress in her life. But, he had needed to vent, and she had been the one that was there to listen.

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[anna trent-orsino]

ANNA MARIE TRENT

AND I DON'T KNOW HOW MUCH I CAN KEEP LETTING YOU UNRAVEL ME
'CAUSE THE MORE YOU LEARN THE MORE WE SHARE

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THERE WERE TIMES WHEN TYLER’S optimistic, lecturing, everything will be better point of view drove Anna absolutely nuts. There were times when she was tired of hearing that things would get better, and that everything would be alright. Because everything wasn’t always okay, and bad things tended to happen all around this town. She wanted him to be realistic some days, and not so damn upbeat. Anna had problems, she knew that she did, and the fact that Tyler also had things to say that she didn’t always want to hear just made it worse. Anna was stubborn, like pretty much everyone else in her family, and it was incredibly hard to get her to hear what you wanted her to. That was probably why Tyler repeated his little lectures so often, and still watched her like a small child who was bound to get into something she shouldn’t. Anna hated feeling like a child. It was how everyone made her feel anymore. There was always someone there to baby-sit her, and she seemed to never get a chance to just be alone with herself. Anna had never been one to like being alone, but now she would have given anything even for just a few minutes. Anna remembered a time a couple weeks back when she had gotten mad that Ty wouldn’t leave her for even a second, and she had stormed into the bathroom and locked the door behind her before sitting down in front of it. Ty, of course, had pounded on it and shouted for her to come out or he would break down the door. Had she really been using the bathroom he wouldn’t have been so persistent, but at the time, that had not been her reason for leaving the room. Anna had known that because she was in front of the door that Ty wouldn’t bust it down, and she had pointed it out very thoroughly, also saying that she was not going to strangle herself with a towel, cut herself with a bar or soap, or drown herself in the toilet. She didn’t think he had been reassured, but he gave her at least a little while to herself.

BUT THEN THERE WERE DAYS when Anna wanted Tyler there more than anything. On days when things were really bad, and she started to slide downhill because she wasn’t on her medicine, he was the one that kept her head above water. She couldn’t deny how close the two of them had gotten over the past couple months, and though she had never said it out loud, she knew that she also needed him. She needed him more than she had probably ever needed someone before. He was easily her best friend, and having someone like Tyler around that she could count on was more than Anna could have ever hoped for. Because Anna didn’t have that many people that she could easily depend on. Outside of her family, which consisted of about seven people counting her grandparents, she had maybe three otherwise that she had put her trust in. Tyler Orsino, Amy Orsino, and Mykayla Trent were the only people she counted as friends. She knew other people. Kade, Jared, and Jacen had been constant people in her life sibling because of her being with Hunter and friends with Mykayla, and because Brit was interested in Jacen. She had never really considered them friends, though. She didn’t confide in them or call them when things got bad for her. After Hunter had died, she hadn’t even talked to those that she did trust. She hadn’t talked to anyone. She still didn’t talk about. Tyler and Brit had tried once or twice over the past months, thinking that talking about it would be the best thing for her, and even help her, but she refused. She would change the subject or she would flatly tell them to drop it. Mykayla and Amy knew better than to try. Hunter was just a subject that was off limits to anyone and everyone. Because Anna couldn’t talk about him. She couldn’t talk about what they had had together or the fact that he was no longer there. Anna didn’t deal with things. To be able to move on to other things, and start putting her life together, Anna had to ignore it, and do anything but face it head on.

TODAY ANNA WAS GRATEFUL THAT Tyler was there for her. She was miserable, and he was doing a good job with taking care of her. Her mother and her father would have fussed and babied her, which was not what she wanted. Jace was faint about sickness, and the minute he found out she was sick, he would probably go somewhere else for the night. Jace had never been able to see people throwing up. He had passed out one time, Anna could remember, and she had never let him forget it, either. So Tyler was definitely her best option for this, and she was so glad that he had been coming over for the day anyway. But that didn’t mean that she felt any better about keeping him from his other enjoyments. Tyler didn’t seem to mind, but that didn’t really make her feel any less guilty. ”Babe, don’t be sorry. You know that I never care to stay and take care of you.” Yeah, she did know that. Those days, and sometimes nights, when she had lost her footing and started sliding into that dark place in her mind, she had always called Tyler, and he had always come without a bit of complaint. She knew that she was lucky to have someone like him in her life, and she was grateful, even if she didn’t always act that way. ”And right now, things with Molly aren’t so….great, so you really don’t have to be sorry about that. I’d rather be here and expose myself to the stomach flu than be home with her.” That was definitely a new development and Anna sat up a little upon hearing it. Tyler and Molly had always seemed so happy together. They had been so sweet that it was almost sickening at times, though Anna was pretty used to the lovey dovey stuff. She knew that she and Hunter hadn’t been much better a lot of the time. When couples were genuinely happy together, sometimes it was hard to keep a handle on it all. But hearing that Tyler would rather be here, with sick and sometimes unagreeable Anna, instead of with sweet and loving Molly… well, something had to be wrong.

THAT CAUGHT HER CURIOSTY, AND she couldn’t’ stop herself from asking about it. “That’s a little harsh, don’t you think? And I doubt that you’ll catch it. Mom never has.” Since when was Anna the sensible one? She was usually the one using the harsh words, not contradicting them. “Why’s it so bad? What happened?” It had to be something big, or maybe it was just something stupid. She was curious all the same. Tyler sighed. ”I just told her how I felt about all the shit that’s going on with Jocelyn. I mean, I understand Joce has had it hard, but so has everyone else and we’re not running away. And she left Ava with Jared and Mackenzie, which maybe was a good thing, but they’re going through a lot, too. Kade would have taken care of that baby, and she didn’t even ask him.” Oh. Anna would have been the first to tell you that, like most everyone else, she never would have thought Kade to be a good father. Most of the people in town would probably still testify that he was a piece of crap, and they might be right, but Anna had once saw him with his son, and ever since then he had changed her mind. Her own ability was what she doubted. Kade was going through a lot too, though, as it seemed everyone else was. She could understand Tyler’s view, but fighting over whether what Jocelyn did was right or wrong was a waste of breath. It wouldn’t change what she did. Anna didn’t say anything on that, though. She didn’t really know if there was a response. ”I know Molly is just taking up for her sister, and I’d do the same thing, but I can’t help how I feel about it. Hell, I know she doesn’t care for my brothers, but I don’t go around having a fucking cow or three about it.” Hardly anyone cared about Tyler’s brothers. They were drug dealers and into really bad things. But they were his family, and Anna knew that Amy loved them all. She still stuck up for them, even though she knew they did stuff that was very much wrong. Anna could understand that. She would have beat up anyone, male or female, who spoke harshly about her brother, or even her family for that matter. Sticking up for your family was definitely something that Anna understood.

THAT DIDN’T REALLY HELP THINGS, though. Molly stuck by her sister, and Tyler stuck to what he thought. She didn’t see a middle ground in it all. Tyler looked down at her then and was silent a moment before he spoke. ”Shit, now I’m sorry. Didn’t mean to unload all of that on you.” Anna smile softly. Smiles were rare for Anna, and laughing was even rarer. Tyler had been the firs to get her to do both after Hunter had died, and they always seemed to come more often when she was around him. That is, of course, when she wasn’t completely angry with him. Without even thinking Anna closed the space between them and gave Tyler a small kiss on his cheek before she snuggled close, resting her head on his should and taking his arm. From anyone else that probably would have been a really, really big deal, but for Anna, it was absolutely nothing to even think about. Anna was the kind of person that was comfortable with that sort of thing. It was a casual thing for her, and only meant in the friendliest of ways. Tyler had been around her so much, that he shouldn’t have been at all surprised. They’d been much closer than this many times before, though that was no where near the same as Anna’s little move. “Honey, after all the harsh things I say to you that you put up with, you’re welcome to unload whatever you damn well please on me.” That everything, of course, excluding anything that had to do with Hunter. She sighed softly, feeling her eyes start to close again. Anna hated how exhausted she felt. Throwing up every hour or so took a lot out of you, and the fact that she had so far slept very little didn’t help the fact. Anna was starting to fall asleep again when something else came to her. With her eyes still closed, she spoke again. “Hey Ty?” She waited for the sound that told her he was listening. “Would you mind staying here tonight?” She felt like she was asking a lot, but she realized that she really didn’t want him to leave while she was still feeling like crap. She didn’t want her mother perched in the chair beside her bed like she always did when Anna or Jace was sick. Not only that, but they were having a fairly good day between them, neither arguing with the other as of yet. She opened her eyes and glanced up at him. “If you don’t want to that’s okay,” she said hurriedly. “I’ll understand.” Of course she would. Who would want to stay there with a sick, pregnant girl anyway? He might want to go home and try and make things better with Molly. But it couldn’t hurt to ask. The worst he could do was say no, right?

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[tyler orsino]

tyler orsino.
___________________________________



-----Tyler was definitely not the type of person that went around, whining and complaining about everything that was going on in his life. Sure, he might whine just a little bit to annoy someone, but that was about his limit. He didn’t see the point in doing either because really, it got a person nowhere at all. And it certainly didn’t fix or help anything, either. When there was something worth whining or complaining about, Ty was more likely to gripe about it to himself, often talking out loud to himself and probably sounding/looking like a crazy person if and when he got caught doing it. It was his way of venting and getting it all out without annoying the hell out of someone else, and it worked for him very nicely. It was only when things were a little bit bigger, a little bit harder to handle that Tyler chose to keep things bottled up. When Hunter had died, he had kept it bottled up inside for awhile until it had all finally just came pouring out, Ty unable to stop it or control it at all. It had probably been a little scary, at least enough so that Tyler knew how bad it had been. Keeping things inside was how they got to be ugly, and the longer you kept them buried there, the uglier it was when it finally got out. This thing that was happening now with Molly was a pretty big deal to Tyler, too. Not nearly as big of a deal as death, but Molly was also someone that Ty cared for deeply. Tyler wasn’t the kind of person that shied away from a fight, and would use words, fists, or both depending on who it was that he was facing, but this was Molly Hart. This was the girl that he had had a huge crush on for the longest time. This was the girl that he knew he was damn lucky to have.

-----In a town like Grace, everyone knows everyone else from a young age. Ty and Molly were no exception, and he had always had something of a crush on the girl. She was always that pretty, quiet little thing that was sweet and the girl next door type. A lot of the boys had liked her back when boys weren’t supposed to like girls because of those damned cooties, and then they were supposed to like the pretty girls that flaunted themselves. Ty never really forgot Molly, though, as they were always best friends. He told her almost everything that went on in his life, probably more than what she would ever really care to know. She was just one of those people for him, and all along he still had those feelings for her. Molly Hart was like that unattainable girl, though. She got with another guy, and Tyler kept going on in his own way. He was able to put his feelings for her on the backburner, having his fun with other girls in town, letting her be with her boyfriend, and keeping their friendship as strong as it had ever been. It wasn’t until recently that things had started to change. Tyler and Molly moved in together, just as friends, and had ended up as boyfriend and girlfriend. It was an easy transition for them to make, and one that both were happy about. He finally had that dream girl of his, and their love came fast and easy. Tyler had been her first, that step taken in their relationship not too long ago and thoroughly enjoyed by both parties since. Well, right up until this stupid fight had started over something that they really shouldn’t have been fighting about in the first place.

-----And now he had let it all out, venting to Anna and feeling kind of shitty about it. Like she didn’t have enough to deal with, now let’s add Tyler’s stupid little issues to it. He rolled his eyes at himself. Stupid. That’s what it all was. Ty loved Molly, he really did, but there had been moments lately when he could see the started of the unraveling. They were started to cave, slowly but surely. It was something that he didn’t like to admit, him always thinking that he and Molly were bound to work out because of how close they were and how easy things had been. Guess that wasn’t the right way to think. I mean, look and Kade and Jocelyn; they had also been best friends before their relationship had started. Now it had literally gone to hell. Maybe that wasn’t a fair comparison, but it was what came to Tyler’s mind. He had apologized for unloading all of that on Anna, really meaning that he was sorry for it. He was dealing with one little fight. She was still dealing with her young husband dying and the fact that she was pregnant with his child. He felt dumb for even thinking that he had issues after looking at it like that. His green eyes looked in time to see a smile come to Anna’s lips. Those were a rare thing anymore, but Ty could almost always manage to do or say something to get her to smile at least once in a day, if not a few more times. Hell, he even got her to laugh if he was really on a roll. Or, you know, did something so completely stupid that she just had to laugh at him. This wasn’t really a laughing moment, so a smile was just fine. She moved closer, and let her lips come to his cheek in a small kiss. Anna then snuggled in closer, and let her head rest on his shoulder and took his arm. Ty was the kind of guy that actually kind of liked to cuddle, and very willingly let Anna get as close as she wanted to. Of course, he had done that several times before, but that had been under totally different circumstances with completely different results. This was harmless, and done in the most friendly of ways. “Honey, after all the harsh things that I say to you that you put up with, you’re welcome to unload whatever you damn well please on me.” This was true. Ty did put up with some pretty foul moods from Anna, but still. Oh well. He couldn’t take it back now.

-----A small smile touched his lips as he pressed a sweet kiss to the top of her head. ”You’re the best.” He said it in a kind of joking tone, like what was usual for him, but Tyler also meant what he said. Anna had her days when he liked nothing more than to get away from her when her family came home, but she was still a close friend to him. Even before Hunter had died, the two had always had a good friendship, and he confided a lot of things in her. She was one of the best that anyone could ask for. They were quiet after that, Ty watching the movie on TV for a little while before he started to feel his eyelids grow heavy. He let them close for what seemed like only a few seconds before he heard, “Hey Ty?” ”Hm?” He didn’t even bother with opening his eyes. He was awake, and if she needed him to get up and get something, he supposed that he would do it for her even though he was damn comfortable the way that they were. “Would you mind staying here tonight?” Anna had never asked him to spend the night before. Well, not now. For how they were in the present, this was a new request, but not one that was enough to even get him to open his eyes. “If you don’t want to that’s okay. I’ll understand.” That’s when he opened his eyes, looking down to see her looking up at him with those brilliant blue eyes of hers. ”No, I want to. I don’t mind.” Molly was probably going to mind, though. She was probably going to mind very much, but that was her problem and she would have to get over it as far as Tyler was concerned. Maybe that was part of the problem, Tyler being so unwilling to bend at all in this, but everyone has their faults.

-----Ty pulled out his cell phone and sent Molly a text message. Calling her would have probably been better, but the two seemed to avoid real conversations a lot anymore. Sending a text message was safer, and when he got no reply, he figured he was safe because she was asleep or in deep shit because she had gotten the message and was ignoring him completely. Either way, he was staying, and he hadn’t had to get up from the comfy position he and Anna had found themselves in. They were quiet again, him moving his thumb along her arm where his hand rested without even realizing it as he started to doze off again. Ty could have been fully asleep within another minute or two, but then his name was said, Anna’s voice louder and excited. His eyes flew open as she was taking his free hand in hers, Tyler not knowing what the hell was going on as she was placing his hand on her swollen abdomen. He had been about ready to ask her what the hell she thought she was going to do with his hand, but then the words died on his tongue. Against the palm of his hand, he felt a small bump, and then another. Ty felt his eyes get big, staring at her stomach. ”Oh my God.” His eyes looked to Anna once again. ”He’s kicking…” It was rather obvious, but Tyler was in awe. He knew that he had felt Amy kicking while she was still in their mother’s womb; there were videos of it as proof, but Ty couldn’t remember it because he had been so young. This was a whole new experience for him, and it was just amazing. Anna and Hunter’s baby was right there, moving around. Alive. Healthy. Amazing.

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[anna trent-orsino]

ANNA MARIE TRENT

AND I DON'T KNOW HOW MUCH I CAN KEEP LETTING YOU UNRAVEL ME
'CAUSE THE MORE YOU LEARN THE MORE WE SHARE

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ANNA WAS PERFECTLY COMFORTABLE WITH staying and laying where she was for the rest of the night. Anna had lain here like this with Tyler many nights, though it had always been under different conditions. Now it was just meant in a purely friendly way. Tyler was a comfortable person that Anna had always enjoyed cuddling with, though Anna liked to just cuddle in general. Apparently some people found that fact very surprising. Many didn’t see how loveable of a person she really was, and she was close to certain that there were rumors running around that didn’t hold a single ounce of truth. Anna and Tyler had a history together, and it was a very physical history at that. People didn’t seem to see, though, that Anna was the last girl that would sleep with someone else’s boyfriend, even if she weren’t pregnant. Anna did have limits, and no matter how much she might want something, she would never go after someone that was taken by someone else. Though no one would ever believe that. Anna was the girl that mothers didn’t want their sons around, though it was those sons that always came looking for her. She knew that she wasn’t high on many people’s list, and few had great opinions of her, but after Hunter had died, those same people had all shown up and treated her nicely. That was just life in a small town. You acted civil when it was expected, even if you absolutely hated the person. One minute people were smiling at you, and talking really nice, and the next they were talking behind your back and spreading terrible rumors. Anna was used to it by now.

ANNA MIGHT HAVE BEEN OVERSTEPPING bonds and lines by asking Ty to stay, but she really wanted him to be there. She couldn’t even totally explain why, but the thought of him leaving once her parents got home just… upset her. She really wanted him to be there. So she had spoken up, and just asked the question. Of course, she wouldn’t have been mad or upset if he had said no. She could understand Ty wanted to go home and trying to fix things with Molly. Today had been a pretty good day for the two of them, and those didn’t always come along too often. Anna had been sick, and pretty miserable, and the last thing she had wanted to do was fight with Tyler, especially since he was the one that was there taking care of her. She had expected him to say no. She had expected for him to tell her that he really should go home. But he didn’t. ”No, I want to. I don’t mind.” Anna moved so she would look up at him, ginning. She watched as he pulled out his phone, and was actually a little surprised when he sent her a text instead of calling her. Things must have been worse than she had originally thought they were. Anna wasn’t going to say anything on that, though. She knew that calling Molly would have been the best thing, but she wasn’t going to lecture Tyler. She was the one that had ran out on Hunter and then avoided him. She had done worse than texting instead of calling, and Anna was the last person that would ever lecture anyone on anything. Anna had a long list of screw ups and mistakes, and though Tyler had lecture her on just about everything that wasn’t always in her control, she wasn’t going to return the favor.

ANNA SETTLED BACK DOWN NEXT to Tyler, holding his arm because that was Anna’s alternative to holding him, which she didn’t totally think was within the lines of friendship, and so she wasn’t about to move there herself. She was much more comfortable there than she probably should have been, but Anna hadn’t been sharing her bed with anyone for a long time, and she was actually glad to have someone there. She was extremely comfortable, so she was starting to relax and her eyes drifted shut without her even wanting to. She felt Tyler’s thumb moving up and down on her arm in a very soothing way and she found herself falling closer to sleep. But then she felt something, something that she hadn’t felt before. She was still for a second, and just as she was starting to think that she had imagined it, she felt the feeling in her stomach again. Her eyes flew open, and just before she started freaking out, she understood what was happening. The baby was kicking. He was kicking for the first time. Excitement immediately filled her, and she couldn’t contain it. “TYLER!” She grabbed his free hand before she even realized herself what she was doing and placed it on her stomach where she could feel the baby kicking. She looked up into his face, seeing the surprise there, and she also watched whatever protest he might have had die as he felt it against his hand. She watched his eyes widen. ”Oh my God. He’s kicking…” She couldn’t keep the grin from spreading across her face. This was her baby, her son, alive, well, and functioning. Anna couldn’t even believe her own excitement, but this was definitely the happiest that she had ever felt.

ANNA HAD NEVER THOUGHT THAT she would be so excited about being a mother, especially at sixteen. She hadn’t even foreseen herself being married at sixteen, either, but that was what had happened. She was reaching adult milestones at such a young age, and she didn’t even know what to think about all of that. She did know that she was excited about her child. She wanted him more than she had ever wanted anything in her life. Most people didn’t see her as being a capable mother. They had so little faith in her, and she was extremely surprised that no one had yet showed up at her front door to question whether she would be fit or not. She wouldn’t be at all surprised if such a thing would happen after her son was born. But Anna knew that she would do anything for the little boy that was currently growing inside of her. She knew without a doubt that she would do anything to make sure that he was okay, that he was taken care of. If it meant giving herself for him, she would do it. She wouldn’t hesitate. And she knew that she wasn’t alone. Her parents were there, Brit was there, and she knew that Tyler was there. He had made it this far, looking after her, and she didn’t really think that he was going to walk away just because he was born. Tyler was good with kids, and Anna had very little experience with it. She did know, though, that she would do anything for her son, and that she would do her best to make sure everything was okay. “I know!” she said excitedly, unable to contain any of it. She watched Tyler’s face, her hand still holding his, though she didn’t totally realize it. It was then that another question came to her, one that she had been thinking about for a while now. “Ty, do you want to be there when he’s born?”

IT PROBABLY SOUNDED LIKE A really random question, but Anna had been thinking about it for a very long time, actually. Her mother had told her that it was an important decision for her to make, and she had always thought that Hunter would be that person. But Hunter wasn’t here, and he couldn’t be there when their son was born. Anna was slowly realizing that she was slowly and subconsciously substituting Tyler and Hunter’s place. It wasn’t fair for Tyler, and he had never asked for her to do it, but that was what she was doing. She felt almost bad for it, but she just couldn’t stop her mind from doing it. She wasn’t about to tell him, that, though. Anna did know, though, that if she couldn’t have Hunter there, she wanted someone who she was comfortable with, someone she trusted, and someone who would want to be there. She didn’t want her parents or brother, because that would be weird. She wouldn’t ask Brit or someone else for the same reason. But she didn’t want to do it alone. Her mother’s stories were enough to make her not want to go through it, but she did want to bring her son into this world, and Tyler seemed to be the only one that she actually wanted to be there, and to experience it with him. He was allowed to say no, of course. She would be perfectly fine with that. But even Tyler would understand how important and significant it was for her to ask, and one look at her face would tell him that she was serious, and that she had thought about it, that she wasn’t just asking on a whim or in the moment. She truly wanted him there, and it was his choice whether he wanted to be there or not.

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[tyler orsino]

tyler orsino.
___________________________________



-----Tyler and Hunter had been very close friends. The Orsinos and the Trents were all close in age, and they had all run in the same crowds since they were very young. They had been friends from the start, but eventually, Brandon and Micah chose their path in life and strayed away from what they had always known before. That left Tyler as the one that was the closest with the Trent boys, and he was the same age and grade as Hunter. Ty, Hunter, and Jacen were all confidants of one another, Ty and Jacen like adopted children of the Trent family. Jacen was always closer, having his own chair at the Trent table and basically living there for a large part of their shared childhood, but that didn’t mean that Ty wasn’t just as much of a friend, or wasn’t as loyal. Tyler is the kind of guy that once you have a friend in him, you have a friend for life. He might not have the best set of morals in the world, but he was loyal to a tee and he would do anything, literally, for those that he cared about. The Trents, and Jacen, made that list with Ty. No matter what it was that was asked of him, Tyler would try to find a way to do it, or to make it all work out. He had a big heart, which no one could deny even if they were not fond of the kind of reputation that he and his family had. However, it was not only out of loyalty to his passed friend that he was there with Anna tonight. It was a very large part of it, but there was definitely more to it than that.

-----He had always liked Anna. She was a girl that was always easy to get along with, extremely easy to like, and damn if she wasn’t beautiful. Her looks had been what had first drawn Ty in, him being the typical guy and a typical Orsino. Their friends with benefits with relationship had been no secret, and it had been a good thing while it had lasted. But, that had ended. During that time, and after, Tyler had gotten to know Anna well, and the two of them had remained friends. Ty had been there when Anna and Hunter had been together the last time around. He had been there to watch Anna fall apart and push Hunter away. He’d seen her suffer, and then he had been there when she came back when Hunter and her were together again. Ty had been there at their wedding. He had been there when Hunter had died, and he was the one that had found Anna when she had tried to commit suicide. Since then, he had been the one that was there for everything. Ty witnessed every up, and down. He was there to be with Anna on good days, and he had been there through all the bad. It only seemed fitting that he was there now, feeling this baby kick from inside of her. Thinking about it that way made it weird, but Tyler wasn’t really thinking about it like that at all. He was thinking about his two friends, Hunter and Anna. He was thinking about how Hunter wasn’t there, and that he should really be the one experiencing this with Anna. But, if Hunter couldn’t be there, Ty would rather that he be there than have Anna go through it all alone.

-----Tyler was so completely amazed with what was going on that he almost missed what Anna asked him next. He came in on the last few words, and those were enough to tell him what she has asked. He looked up, his dark eyes meeting her blue ones as the question ran through his head again. “Ty, do you want to be there when he’s born?” Wow. The baby quit moving underneath Ty’s hand, almost as though he were also waiting to hear the answer. And really, it shouldn’t have been a hard question to come up with an answer to. As has already been said, Ty had been there for a lot of things in Anna and Hunter’s lives. He was connected to this baby because of that, and Ty was going to be apart of the child’s life no matter what. Naturally, one would think that he would jump at the opportunity to see the birth, to be there and share in that experience. So, why hadn’t he already agreed? There were a couple of different things running through his mind at that point, some sad, some extremely happy. Tyler was confused, and took a second to figure it all out for himself before he tried to put it into words for Anna. He knew that she wouldn’t be all that upset if he told her no, that he didn’t want to be there when her son was born. Anna was the type of person that wouldn’t hold it against him, but worrying about hurting her feelings wasn’t adding to his confusion. He sighed, looking down for a moment before he looked back into Anna’s face again. How did he say this so he didn’t set her off and ruin the good day that they had had together? ”You know I really do want to be there,” he said, his voice in kind, even sweet tone. The way that he looked at Anna then wasn’t just as a friend, but something more. The only thing was, was that he didn’t even realize it himself.

-----Ty puzzled over the words just a second longer before deciding to just say what was on his mind rather than hold back and tip toe over the issue. That wasn’t him at all. ”It would be amazing to be there, but…I don’t know. I feel like you’re making me be Hunter’s replacement, and that’s not who I want to be to you.” Bringing up Hunter to Anna was never really a safe thing to do. Sometimes it was okay, if what was said had nothing to do with the fact that he was no longer here. Reflecting on a memory that involved him briefly seemed okay, and just some small things like that. Tyler didn’t know how this was going to go, and he really hoped that he had worded it so that she didn’t go off on him. ”I can’t be him for you. I’m just me,” he added even more softly. His mind was starting to fire up, shooting new and interesting thoughts at him left and right. Sadly, none of them brought a smile to his lips just yet.

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