Chapter Text
Tivoli, New York. Originally known as Upper Red Hook Landing. Founded in 1872. Population is 1,118, according to the 2010 census. It's not much to think about, just a small village at the northern end of Red Hood, New York.
But then two teenage boys witnessed a triple homicide in a cabin. Lukas Waldenbeck, a Tivoli native who was on his way to becoming a motocross star, and Philip Shea, a foster kid who was recently taken away from his drug-addicted mother, hid as three men were shot dead. Was that what put Tivoli on the map? Oh, no. The story didn't end there. You see, the boys didn't tell a soul what they had seen. Why? Well, no one knows why they didn't tell. Not yet.
Only, there weren't just three strangers in that cabin. There was a fourth man. The man who committed the triple homicide. The man who would do anything to make sure that the two boys who had seen him in that cabin would never say a word about it. The man that went on to kill four more people and shoot one of the two teenage boys before being gunned down by Tivoli’s sheriff Helen Torrance as she saved her foster son Philip after he was kidnaped by the man. This man was FBI agent, turned pervert and serial killer, Ryan Kane.
The media was all over this story.
After the stand down with Ryan Kane was over, Philip and Lukas were quarantined to the hospital. Well, actually, only Lukas was, as his gunshot wound never properly healed and his stitches were ripped out by Ryan Kane in an attempt to have him bleed out. Luckily, he was found by Helen and officer Tony Michaels and they were able to get him to the hospital on time. Philip was fine physically, just some scrapes and bruises from being locked in the trunk of Ryan Kane’s car and being dragged through the woods. He also had a nasty bump on his head from where Ryan Kane knocked him out with the butt of his gun, but he was in better physical shape than Lukas.
Neither boy was fine mentally.
Lukas was lying on the hospital bed, passed out from the amount of painkillers he was being fed through a small tube. Philip sat next to him, the chair pulled as close to the bed as he could get it. He was playing with Lukas’ fingers, and he had no intention of letting go. Lukas fell asleep holding Philip’s hand, and Philip was making sure he would wake up the same way.
Philip and Lukas had been inseparable since they were reunited at the hospital. Both thought the other was dead. Helen had told Philip that Lukas was being rushed back to the hospital, and despite her constantly reassuring Philip that Lukas would be okay, Philip couldn't help but assume the worst. Then when Lukas woke up, the last thing he remembered was watching Philip get smacked in the head with a gun before the same thing happened to him, so he assumed that Ryan Kane had killed Philip. It wasn't until Philip sprinted into Lukas’ hospital room that they both knew for sure that the other was alive.
Philip stared at Lukas, who finally appeared to be peaceful from sleep, and intertwined their fingers while he still could. He didn't know where their relationship was going from here. Only Helen, Gabe, and Bo knew about their relationship. Helen and Gabe appeared to be accepting of it, but Bo seemed to still be on the fence. He kept giving Philip looks that he couldn't understand.
Philip looked back down at their hands. What were they? Philip didn't know. Would Lukas now want to come out? Or would he want to stay buried in the closet and lock the door? Did Lukas want to keep seeing Philip or break it off? Philip hoped that Lukas would at least want to continue their relationship. At this point, Philip didn't care if Lukas wanted to keep it quiet for the moment. Philip didn't want to leave Philip’s side for a long time, and he hoped Lukas felt the same.
What was going to happen to them?
Lukas shifted, and Philip felt his fingers tighten around his. Philip whipped his head back up to Lukas’ face. Lukas was blinking his eyes open, trying to shake sleep.
Philip smiled, running his thumb along Lukas’ hand. “Hey.”
Lukas looked at Philip and grinned, making Philip’s heart flip. “Hey.”
“How do you feel?” Philip asked.
“Tired,” Lukas muttered in response as he turned to the window. “Are they still out there?”
Philip stood, not letting go of Lukas’ hand, and glanced out the window. Outside was a swarm of news trucks, cameras, and reporters. Philip sighed as he sat back down. “Yeah.”
Lukas groaned. “I thought that this was going to be over when he was dead.”
Philip squeezed Lukas’ hands. “I don't think this will ever be over.”