Chaney had expected Edward to disappear in the night. Yet every time the nurses woke him to check on his concussion, he could feel the prickling stare that let him know that the vampire was still there. Even if he couldn't see him. When he woke the next morning it was to see the bronze haired boy sitting in the visitor chair in the same position as the night before. His amber eyes fixed on him in the grey morning light. The colour vivid and animal. Unblinking and all seeing.

"Do you not sleep?" Chaney grumbled as he tried to rub the sleep from his eyes and almost hit himself with his cast. Edward chuckled at the clumsy attempt. "It's the drugs", Chaney tried to excuse.

"Keep telling yourself that. And no, I don't sleep". A pale hand pushed gently on the cast covered arm until it was pinned carefully to the bed. Cold fingers brushing against the injured boy's sore ones.

Chaney didn't shy away from the touch. It had been so long since someone had touched him comfortingly and even longer since he had accepted such touch. The coldness of the monster's skin reminding him that this boy was not human. Strange, but he preferred this cold touch over a human one. It could not hide it's nature. "Ever? Sounds exhausting". He rubbed his eyes with his good hand, voice a tired mumble.

The door opened and he watched as the mask of humanity fell over Edward once again. The vampire blinked and his limbs took on a forced stiffness that reduced his natural grace. He began breathing again, chest moving and air inhaling and exhaling with a calm rhythm that was almost convincing. Almost, if Chaney did not know the glimpses of the monster underneath.

Charlie and Carlisle entered. The chief in his uniform while the doctor was out of his scrubs and dressed in a long grey trench coat over his jeans and jumper. He looked like a catalog model and Charlie looked worn and scruffy next to him. The chief glanced Chaney over, eyes lingering on the hand Edward had rested on his cast and the bronze haired boy himself in the visitor's chair. "Charles", he grunted. "How are you feeling?"

Chaney shrugged. He was still sore but not as much as he had been the night before. The busies had coloured and he was sure that he was decorated in them, but he could deal with those.

Charlie held up a canvas bag. "I brought the rest of your things. School books and such". He placed the bag next to the backpack at the end of his bed. Chaney looked at the two bags containing all that he owned and sighed softly. "Dr Cullen will take good care of you kid. Sorry you couldn't stay with me".

Chaney flicked his gaze over the two vampires in the room. "I am sure he will". He knew by the look of Carlisle's eyes that the blonde understood the connotations of his words.

The man's face twisted into a gentle smile. "You are ready to be discharged. My wife, Esme, has set up the guest room for you. You have the rest of the week off school to get settled in and to meet the rest of my family properly and recover. Edward and I will take you home once you're ready".

Chaney nodded. Charlie sighed and came round the side of the bed to clasp a hand over Chaney's shoulder. Only to back off as Chaney flinched violently at the impact. His hand hesitated before falling to hang at his side awkwardly. "Don't get into trouble. Come to me if you have any problems. I will see you around". Then Chief Swann turned and left the room. The door shutting behind him with a snap that felt far too much like a sound of doom.

"I have plans with my friends on Saturday", Chaney announced as soon as the Chief was gone. "So don't kill me until after".

"We are not going to kill you", Carlisle replied, the unheard 'yet' echoing around the room. Chaney let the echo fade without acknowledging it. "Edward seems quite taken with you", this was spoken in a more teasing tone that had the bronze haired boy rolling his eyes. It was almost fatherly teasing and so unexpected that it made Chaney's head spin.

Carlisle smiled at the expression fondly, almost lovingly, before turning his attention back to Chaney. "Edward has brought some clean clothes for you. Get changed and we will take you home. I'll be downstairs in the reception". With another smile, this one back to being charming and fake, Carlisle turned and left the room. This snap of the latch was nothing more than the reminder of what awaited.

-----------------------

Chaney changed in the bathroom of his little hospital room. He had taken the clothes Edward had handed him without complaint even though he had another outfit in his backpack. He was about to go and play house with vampires. If they wanted him to wear their clothing then he would take it. The clothing itself as a soft pair of sweats and a large hoodie sweatshirt that he pulled over his head. Each item easy to put on even with his cast covered arm. They had even given him a pair of vans without any straps to try and bend down to tie. He wondered where they got his size but guessed that it was a product of all Edward's stalking.

"First you steal my hoodie, then you dress me in your clothes?" He spoke as he left the bathroom. A slight smirk tugging on his lips as he tried to find some sort of amusement in this situation. "Staking a claim?"

Edward had the bags containing Chaney's belongings slung over his shoulders and was standing by the door. Golden eyes taking him in slowly in a way that made him almost shiver. "What if I am?" He murmured.

Chaney's smirk fell and he met the amber gaze head on, lifting his head to match the stare with his own dominance. He maybe playing along with this game but he was not going to be their passive pet. "Try your best".

He grabbed the door handle and went to pull the door open when a hand thudded against the wood right next to his face. Edward leaned closer and the back of his prickled and every hair stood on end as the vampire bracketed him with his body. Second hand resting on the doorframe near his hip. Chaney froze, heart thudding in his ears as the cold presence leaned closer. Winter breeze brushing his hair and jaw as Edward spoke. "You have no idea what you are doing to me. I can bury my teeth into your neck right here and now without anyone being able to stop me".

Chaney swallowed as he felt Edward inhale deeply, nose almost brushing against the soft skin. "You could", he whispered as that addicting thrill shot through his body. It was almost missable under the heavy fear beginning to kick in. The presence of a predator far too close to comfort kicking his body's instincts into hyper. "That is definitely a choice you could make".

"Are you not afraid of death Chaney?" Even with the vampire's teeth far too close to his jugular for comfort, the sound of his name from those lips still made him feel giddy.

"I am. But we all die and I have made peace with that. Wether I die today under your teeth or two years from now from a drug driver. I think I would choose you. Living is the scary part".

There was a sharp intake of breathe and Chaney knew that he had shocked the monster encaging him. A second ticked by. Edward chuckled, the noise breathy and loose. Chaney could feel the tremors of it passing through the boy's body. "Fascinating", the monster exhaled through an audible grin. He rested his chin on Chaney's shoulder and the human jolted at the sudden touch. Cold arms leaving the wood to wrap loosely around his waist. They felt as cold and solid as iron bars, immovable and unescapable.

Chaney sagged into the hold with a bone weary sigh. "You keep on calling me that", he grumbled. There was unknown strength in the body behind him, yet Edward was holding him with the tender gentleness of something precious. It was terrifying because all he had to do was tighten his hold and Chaney would be dead. Terrifying because he also liked it, and that might be the scariest prospect.

"That's because you are. I have never met someone like you". It sounded almost happy.

"How old are you?" It was general curiosity.

"Seventeen".

Chaney rolled his eyes and huffed. He could feel the answering grin against his neck. "How long have you been seventeen?"

"Around a hundred years give or take a few", was the hummed reply. "Carlisle is waiting for us".

The arms withdrew and Chaney tried to disguise his breath as a sigh of relief. Edward leaned away and he missed the coldness even as his fear died down again. Instead, he turned to the door and pulled it open, the rest of the hospital falling around them as the little bubble they had been in popped with surprising suddenness. Still, he could feel the presence of the vampire at his back like a guard marching him towards his fate.

-----------------------------

Carlisle drove a black BMW away from Forks General. Chaney in the passenger seat watching the tow flick past in the windows. Edward a silent but reminding presence in the backseat with the bags. "You should go faster", he complained, breaking the silence.

"Not with Chaney in the car", Carlisle replied calmly.

"He can take a bit of speed. Haven't you noticed? He's an adrenaline junkie with depression. The only time he feels alive is when he's doing something actively dangerous". Chaney did not have to turn around to know that Edward was smirking at him. He could hear it in the vampire's words. The exposure hurt but he didn't deny it. It was true after all. It was what had driven him to dive headfirst into this whole mess in the first place. Trust him to find the most dangerous things in Forks.

"Edward", Carlisle chided lightly. "Don't be rude. We're fostering him now. Treat him like a part of the family".

Edward sniggered. "I will treat him as much a family member as Rosalie treats Emmet".

That caused the blonde man to chuckle. "I guess I should have expected that".

There was a pause for a moment as Chaney watched the town's diner flash by the window. Then Edward spoke up with the tone of answering a question, yet no question had been spoken. "No. He is not into self harm. You don't have to worry about that".

Chaney turned around in his seat and narrowed his eyes at the bronze haired boy. "What the fuck?"

"Sorry. I just wanted to make sure that you wouldn't trigger Jasper", Carlisle explained in a falsely apologetic voice.

Chaney frowned and watched as Edward nodded at him. The boy wanted him to catch something, figure something out. His mind began whirring as he replayed the conversation in his head. Then he went further back in his mind, picking out all the comments Edward had made about his mind. How fascinating he was, how much he wanted to see inside his head. As if his was the only one the bronze haired boy could not see into. Like Chaney was unique and hard to read. "You can read minds", he voiced slowly as soon as the hints all came together.

Edward beamed at him and it was torture how pleased that look made him feel. "I told you he was clever".

"It seems you were right". Carlisle's voice held a tone that was hard to place. It was not pride, yet it was not threatening either. Still, it made Chaney twist back round in his seat to face forwards. The town having been replaced by forest as the car drove onwards.

"Are you going to kill me?" He asked simply.

Carlisle glanced at his face for a second. Gold eyed taking in his facial expression and the calm beat of his heart. "You know about us. For our safety we cannot let you go. Your foster care position was just an opportunity. But the rest of us will not harm you. Edward has laid claim to that". His words sounded like truth and Chaney had no choice but to believe him.

He twisted around in his seat again so he could stare into amber eyes. "You did say you were going to be the one to kill me", he muttered.

Edward smiled and this one was all predator. "I was not joking about staking a claim".

"Why?" Chaney blurted, frustration colouring his tone. "If you can read minds then why the fuck would you want me?"

"Language", Carlisle chided.

"Because the only time I can read your mind is when you sleep. I get flashes occasionally when you are particularly tired or emotional. It's like trying to tune into a radio station. What I get is fragmented and distorted. That is why you are fascinating. You never react the way I expect", Edward explained. "You're also too clever for your own good Chaney. As soon as I realised you had noticed me, I knew that I just had to figure you out".

"Great. So I am a bored vampire's hobby", Chaney grouched as he sat back in his seat. He was so irritated by the situation that it took a second for him to realise what he had said. Vampire. He had not spoken the word aloud before. It was both startling and relieving to verbally acknowledge the type of monsters around him. Edward had admitted that they were not human, but he got the sense that the vampire had just been waiting for Chaney to speak the word aloud.

"Told you he knew", Edward's smug tone broke the silence.

"I know", Carlisle sighed. The car turning off the road and onto a dirt path into the woods.

"Chaney". He turned at the sound of his name to see Edward watching him with a suddenly serious expression. "Did you forget what I told you last night? I want to know your mind, heart, body and soul. You are not just a simple hobby".

"We do not invite hobbies into our home", Carlisle stated firmly as the tress began to thin out. Glimpses of a property flashing between the trunks.

Chaney turned back into his seat as the house finally came into full view. It was a beautiful modern construction of wood and glass. The ground floor was a garage. The metal doors of which were open to show multiple cars and jeeps stored inside. Above which was the living space. Floor to ceiling windows showed snapshots of couches and a grand piano. The last floor must contain the bedrooms but they were too high up for Chaney to see properly. The house looked like it could house an entire sports team and their partners comfortably.

He blinked at it. When he had joked that the Cullens were rich, this was not what he imagined. It was beyond it. His car door opened and Edward, bags slung over his shoulders again, held out a hand with a smile. "Welcome home", he stated as Chaney stepped out of the car, ignoring the offered hand.

Home. It was a funny word. Home was anywhere that you felt safe and comfortable. Chaney had not felt safe or comfortable for years. Here, surrounded by a family of vampires, he wondered if he ever would. Not after how alluring the trap looked. It was still a trap with redactors lurking in the corners waiting for feast on him the moment he lost his guard.

unedited

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