father of mine [Ben//Open]

[Chance Del Rossi]

Chance wasn't used to being yelled at. It happened so rarely, and not in years since Chance wasn't there to be in trouble. And when he was a child, it was hard for him to find trouble at all. And when he did, there was a lot of carefulness taken not to push Chance as far as humanly possible from them. It wouldn't have taken a lot either. In the beginning, his trust was incredibly limited. His biological parents had taken away every ounce of control he might have wanted over himself when he was small and he needed to cling to what little he had in order to trust. Even yelling was difficult for him to comprehend back then, mostly because from an early age he knew yelling very well and it was never accompanied with anything good. So, to be yelled at now left Chance feeling like sinking into the seat of the car. The young man felt so small, as if he could disappear if he wished hard enough. He wanted to yell at him not to scream, to tell him to keep his eyes on the road and forget it. It wasn't his fault that he made the comment he did! His hand gripped the arm rest next to the seat and his eyes were focused intently on his lap. "It's not my..." The car had gone out of its specified lane and Chance's eyes widened. "Dad!" He raised his voice this time. Sure, he heard him keep going on about telling him, but he didn't even attempt to acknowledge it.

"You're going to get us in a wreck! And I really, really don't feel like dying!" So, Chance made a bold move and reached over, grabbing the steering wheel to force him to steer away from oncoming traffic. This was madness! All because he refused to break the law. Well, he wouldn't be breaking any laws himself but it was the same concept. He was aiding him. And Chance wanted nothing to do with that. He was aware that he got himself into that mess and it was being worked out the legal way. He had no will to go chase down the guy that did it and beat him up or to let his father do it. Vengeance wasn't on his mind. All that was was surviving and getting home... Wherever that was now.

[Deleted]

"hey! Don't you ye-" his voice broke off when he realized what had happened. "oh shit!" he turned the wheel at the same time that Chance grabbed it and the car went too far back over. Ben tried to straighten up, but the car came to a sudden stop. His head jerked forward and slammed into the wheel. Ben felt blood seeping out of his nose. Slowly, he put his hand against it. His breathing rapid, he looked at his son before getting out to look at the damape. It wasn't like it was a brand new car, or even one that he liked. Actually, the car wasn't even his. It belonged to Jonathan. Still, he couldn't help but wince when he saw the damage.

The car had driven right into a pole that was four feet tall and very small. It hadn't exactly totaled the car. But it left a nasty dent in the center of the hood, and steam was hissing out of it. Ben scratched his head. "Chance. Step out of the car, son" he called to him, his voice gentle and soft. It was amazing how crashing his boyfriend's car calmed him down immensely. Ben walked over to the passenger side and leaned against it. "how about we go have tea with grandma?" Ben wasn't particularly fond of tea with his mother, but he knew he would need her help, especially if he was going to get the car fixed without Jonathan noticing.

[Chance Del Rossi]

Abruptly, Chance let go of the wheel and squeezed his eyes shut until the vehicle was stopped by the pole. His body was thrown forward, but with no injury to speak of, the inertia pulled him back into his seat and slowly his eyes opened to peer over at Ben. He couldn't say a word. He was scared, confused, and wishing that he had never said a word. He looked down at his lap, not saying anything. He already voiced his opinion. At least now he had more things to worry about than what happened the night before. It wasn't until Ben was out of the car and telling him to come out that he shakily unbuckled the seatbelt and climbed out of the car. He was still quiet, his arms folded at his waist and his eyes on the ground.

Tea with grandma? He looked up, perplexed. He had just been so angry and now he was as calm as ever. It was making him feel a little dizzy and confused, but he wasn't going to argue with it. "Sure... Tea sounds nice." He breathed, finally finding his voice again. Anything sounded better than this right now. At least the accident didn't turn out to be ten times worse. And it would have been had they continued on in the wrong lane. It was only a matter of time before a crash left them wounded or worse. And Chance shuddered to think of what worse was.

[Deleted]

Ben took hold of his son's arm, to usher him away from the car "Come over here. We don't want you getting hurt." He said as he reached in his pocket for his phone. "shit" he muttered, not feeling it. Where was it? Ben looked in the passenger side of the car, and spotted it on the floorboard under his seat. Heaving a sigh, Ben began to go back around to the driver's side, only to be honked at as a car went by. He waited, but the cars just kept coming. It was too dangerous.

Ben looked back at Chance. "You got your cell phone on you?" Ben was going to call his mother, and see if they could get a lift. Ben knew he was being shameless, wanting to call his mother for help. He had not been very nice to her lately. Actually, he had been arrested for egging her car. But still, the only options were his mom, and Marco. And really, as upset as Marco was with him, Vivian was the lesser of two evils. Not that he could blame him. He knew he couldn't.


As he waited for Chance to respond, he heard a young, female voice. "Everything okay?" Ben turned around to look at Grace. She had been on her routine, when she spotted the wreck and pulled over. Ben looked her up and down, in her dark blue uniform with her badge, radio, and holster. She looked so...so grown up.

"We're fine," Ben assured her. "But we could use a tow." he knew she could help them out. Isn't that her job, as a police woman? As he looked at her, he noticed something about her. She had noticed Chance and was biting her lower lip and smiling bashfully.

"Hi, Chance" Grace sounded like a little girl with a crush when she greeted his son. Ben looked at Grace, then over at Chance, then back to Grace. Ben wasn't stupid. He had seen that smile before. Hell, he used to wear that smile, when he was younger and around Marco.

[Chance Del Rossi]

"No, couldn't have that, could we?" Chance mumbled under his breath. Almost getting in a head on collision was ample reason to be shaken up, so Chance didn't feel apologetic for the mumbling at all. It seemed just a little funny to be worried about their well being after he nearly got them both killed. He knew that it wasn't what he meant to do. He was just too angry to pay attention, but that didn't make Chance any less shocked or uncertain. He walked to the side of the road, tucking his hands into the pocket of his coat and watching his dad quietly. He was stunned. They were going to have tea? Tea? That kept playing on his head. Social situations like that didn't typically come up after something like this. Actually, he would have appreciated that reaction in the restaurant to begin with. Instead, he was mortified, scared, and he didn't want know what to say. At this point, he wasn't even counting facts in his head. There was nothing logical to comfort him and he found himself slightly intimidated by his own emotion. Chance understood emotions and he wasn't absent at all, but he had ways of coping that didn't come out of him this time. It took him several seconds to register what Ben said and slowly he nodded. "Oh, yeah," he began to reach into his pocket when he heard a familiar voice and looked up.

Something changed just then. Chance's embarrassed nature changed slightly and he smiled at Grace. He couldn't help it, actually. He was starting to really like her and while he didn't think it showed, there were few reasons to go from panicked to smiling in a few seconds. "Hi." He replied, and didn't say anything else. It was weird how one person could take away all of those layers of maturity and make him feel kind of like a kid. It wasn't that he was all that old and by all means he should still be capable of crushes and sounding as young as he was. But, he wasn't used to it. The last few relationships he had had been very mature and very adult. There weren't really 'crush' stages for him. Although, he knew adults to have crushes. It was just everything started to be based around science and psychology mixed together. Everything was thought out and this wasn't.

[Deleted]

Grace would have been content just standing there and looking at Chance. If she had been closer, her hand would probably be wandering through his hair. This was odd for Grace. When she was in high school, she didn't do relationships. She did bracelets and booze. The only other crush had been Ashton. And that did not turn out well at all. So what she felt with Chance, it was new.

Grace's train of thought was interrupted by the words, "Grace? A tow?" Snapping out of her trance, she nodded "oh. Y-yeah. Absolutely." She pushed the button on the radio that rested on her shoulder but didn't say anything. Instead, she melted into a smile again for just a moment. God, he was so cute!

Her heart jumped a few beats when she heard the dispatch talking with another officer. Jumping with a start, she cleared her throat. "I have an 11-82 on the highway near exit 33-" She stopped and looked at Chance, even though her next question probably should have been directed to Ben. Looking at him, her thoughts were suddenly consumed by the fact that Chance was in an accident and she released the button and rushed over to him, cupping his cheek with one hand and resting the other on his chest. "Are you okay? Do you need an ambulance?"

Suddenly, she was pulled back by Ben, who had her arm. "He's fine. We're fine. All we need is a tow," he said, not letting go of her arm. Ben was getting pretty irritated by her. It wasn't like the two were making out or anything. But she wasn't being all that professional. He didn't want her around Chance a whole lot, either. She was Jay's kid, after all. She was bound to be trouble

[Chance Del Rossi]

Chance kind of forgot where they were. Thirty second ago and it was all that he could think about. He was stressing over the minutes before and the present. But, Grace was there and suddenly his thoughts were surrounding her. It was ridiculous and unfounded, but he didn't notice that. His mind shut off logic for the most part, at least in determining how to react to her. When she rushed to him, he couldn't help but smile as her hand touched his cheek. "I'm fine, I'm not hurt," He assured her, but before he could say any more he felt her pulled away and heard Ben's voice again. He blinked, coming back to the present to look at his dad. Chance folded his arms, but he kept his attention mainly on Grace. Despite how Ben had just informed her that all they needed was a tow, he spoke up again.

"Maybe we can hang out this weekend," he suggested. He didn't see why he shouldn't make an offer. After all, he really liked her and wanted to hang out more. Chance didn't have any idea that his father didn't like the idea of him being around her too much. It never so much as occurred to him. He never talked to Ben about relationships because he never had them when he lived under his roof. And the last one he had six months prior had been a little twisted, at best. There was no heart in it. Chance didn't know he was capable of that kind of relationship before, but he had proven that he knew how to be objective and think from a scientific standpoint rather than actual love. That ended about the same time he'd received that phone call. Brushing off the thoughts, he waited for Grace's decision.

[Deleted]

Grace had been trained in situations like this one. Being grabbed no longer phased her; after all, she was used to far worse scenarios. She easily got out of Ben's grip when she heard Chance. Grace looked over at the guy and smiled. He was actually asking to spend time with her? Grace never got offers like that! "I-I'm not working th-this weekend." She stumbled over her words, something she had never done. Grace Yorke didn't always know the right words to say, but she said them loud and clear. She had too strong of a character, and the fact that she was doing it now showed quite a bit about what she thought of Chance. Just to make sure he knew her answer was yes, she nodded.

Ben's answer, however, was no. "I don't think so," he said, getting between the two. He knew enough about the nineteen year old child and planned to share what he knew. Chance was already going downhill with his stupid drunken act of giving away his car like he was on some damned game show. Adding Grace in the mix would not do him any good. Turning to Grace, he said, "With your history? The two of you would end up passed out in some van overdosed on heroin."

The words came out cold and harsh, and made Grace blink back shock of having that thrown in her face. "I...We-" she looked over at Chance and swallowed. "That was a really long time ago." She had been sixteen. Three years was a long time for her. She had changed drastically since that night. Her words were addressing Chance, because he was the one who mattered. He needed to know that she didn't still do things like that. Otherwise she could end up watching him walk away. She still drank occasionally, but that was it. Grace searched Chance for a glimpse of hope that he was believing her, when she heard what Ben said next.

"Ok, I'm sorry. So, Grace, how's your daughter?" Grace gazed up at Ben. Was he doing this on purpose? He had to be. Why else would he be bringing up every big mistake that Grace had made? Grace couldn't even look back at Chance now. She couldn't imagine what he could be thinking. She was starting to feel like the worst person alive, but maybe Ben meant for that to happen. "I don't have her anymore," she whispered.

"Oh, that's right. You took her to Edmonton and dumped her off." Ben shook his head and looked at his son, giving him a look as if to say 'see what you'd be getting yourself into?' He scoffed and watched Grace, whose eyes were focusing on the dirt that her feet were kicking at. He didn't really want to hurt her feelings. But as a parent, he would do anything to protect his son. "You two don't need to do anything this weekend."

Grace felt her throat go dry as she kicked at the dirt. She was sure that Ben had just blown every chance she had with his son. Fighting back tears, her mind pleaded with Ben to give her one reason to flip him. Just one. God, where was Jay when she needed him? He would have stepped in by now and punched Ben or something. Punching the older man seemed like a fantastic idea, but Grace was on duty. stupid uniform, she thought.

And then she was saved by the sound of a tow truck arriving. She looked up and barely glanced at Chance. "There's your tow," she said quietly and walked back to her car as fast as possible. She stood against the hood for a moment, filling out the paperwork for the two. She would have sat in her car if she thought there was a chance the guy she liked was going to come over and talk to her. As it stood, she could hear Ben saying "Let's go" and figured that was that. With her back facing the accident, Grace allowed a few tears escape her eyes. It was nothing compared to what she felt like doing. She felt like sobbing. But Grace hated to cry. However, after what was just said, she couldn't keep all of her tears in. God, she was glad she wasn't working with a partner today.

Ben watched as the guy hitched the car up to the truck. "Perfect" he said cheerfully, slapping Chance's back. "Let's go." Someday, he figured, Chance was going to thank him for intervening, And maybe someday Grace would understand. Ben didn't feel the least amount of guilt for what he said. It was for their own good, he knew.

[Chance Del Rossi]

Ben not only had a keen ability at upsetting Grace, but he also at mortifying Chance. The young man gaped at his father, and at almost every new fact about Grace looked at him in horror. "Dad!" He exclaimed more than once, but it didn't help in the conversation. No, instead he was stuck waiting on the sidelines for it to finish, hoping that he didn't trample all over any shot at a relationship he had. He didn't care about her past and figured that it was ten times more risky than his own. After all, she always seemed like kind of the bad girl to him before. Of course, bad girl could have been relative given how much of a good boy he was. Chance didn't need Ben hovering over his shoulder and protecting him from girls. He was twenty-three! Not to mention, he had had relationships before, ones that were probably ten times more unhealthy. This wasn't even unhealthy. He was crushing hard and she was good now... And a cop. He couldn't wrap his mind around his father's logic. By the time it was over, Grace was walking away and Ben was telling him to go. Staring over at where Grace was, the dark haired boy glared at Ben.

"What the hell, dad? I like her you... jerk." He didn't raise his voice, and instead sounded frustrated and annoyed. The minute the insult passed his lips though, he frowned. Jerk? That was the best he had? Damn you, Aidan. Damn you. "Just. Just hang on a sec." He jogged over to Grace, and put a hand on her shoulder before rounding her quickly. "Still on for this weekend?" He asked in one breath. He knew he needed to, because he really didn't want to piss Ben off further. He already nearly got in a wreck before and Chance had seen enough of Ben's anger for one day. But, he couldn't just let Grace take off and think that he disliked her. The question was his way of letting her know that everything was cool and that nothing had changed. The only thing that Ben's spiel did was make him think his father was being a complete jerk. Even the smart kid couldn't fathom that he was trying to protect him. If it was anyone else, he probably would get it. But, logic liked to shut off when he was the one dealing with parental issues. Because, then he wasn't an objective observer, he was the kid that didn't want his relationships toiled with. And who did want that?

[Deleted]

Grace felt the hand on her shoulder, and had she not heard Chance's voice immediately, the boy would have been flipped onto his back. She looked up at him, the tears glistening her eyes. His question left her perplexed. "huh?" she was completely shocked. After everything he was just told, why was he still being nice to her? She didn't deserve it.

Grace shook her head and looked down for a moment, trying to figure out his logic before looking back up at him. "A-a-are you sure? I-I mean, I thought..." she trailed off. She had thought that everything was ruined. But obviously it wasn't. She didn't get why it wasn't, but it wasn't. God, she could kiss him right now. But that would probably not result in anything good from Ben's side.