"It's not that easy," Ty finally spoke, breathing deeply through his nose. "There are only three people I consider family that are still living, and each life was threatened when I botched that job, okay? I don't know HOW to reach two of them...Tses probably wants me dead for this stunt anyway, Chloe probably thinks I'm dead, and the third is you. I know. I ****ed up. Bigtime..."

The ginger took a deep breath, looking off into the horizon. "I thought by leaving town I was saving everyone. But maybe I was just trying to save myself. I don't KNOW what to do from here, where it goes now. That's kinda why I pretended to be Phil on the fly."

He brushed a tear from his face. "Maybe I just need to face the facts. I'm past the point of no return this time. Thanks for lunch, though."

Tses? Christmas tree through the window throw your ice cream off the roof Tses? Noel bristled until Ty got to the part about her.

Blink. She was... on his list? Her phone arm drooped.

She didn't have the heart to tell him off for cursing now. "Why am I on your list?" He wasn't Phil... Or... no. Noel had felt comfortable about Ty because of the person he was, not because of the name, right? That meant that on some level she remembered him. They'd spent that much time together?

When he put it like that... "Okay. Seriously. Stop trying to walk out again. We're having a conversation." She caught his collar just in case he had any brilliant ideas there.

"Second? Dude." She raised and then lowered her eyebrows. Was he... crying? "I'm serious. You got a problem you can't handle? That's what the people you love are here for." Idiot. She bit back the insult. Seriously. Were all gingers so emotional?

She closed her eyes and heaved yet another sigh. "I have to admit, not just anybody could have duped me like that. That cheezes me to no end. I don't want to add a layer of doubt to what I can do. But... on the other hand, if you weren't someone I hadn't spent a lot of time with, I don't think it would have worked either. So I'm going to call that one a wash." Something occurred to her then.

"You saw my list. You saw your name on my arm." It wasn't cancer. It was hurt feelings.

"We've been through more together than you know. Once, I didn't have anybody...except you. I don't want to leave...but it's always my first instinct..." he sighed as his voice trailed off. "I don't want to lose the ones I love, and instead...I drive them away." Ty shook his head, giving a dry laugh.

"Yeah...I'm surprised it worked as long as it did, but...I'm by no means proud of it. Nor will I do that to you again." Biting his lip, he finally managed to calm down. "Yeah...I saw my name. It...well, it was quite the wake-up call. I don't know why I feel this need to do things on my own...because, I never really had to." If he trusted the people who loved him in the first place, maybe he wouldn't find himself in half of the messes he did.

"I can't undo the past...but my main reason for coming back was to face the music, and to try to make amends with those I'd hurt by being stupid."

> "We've been through more together than you know."

That was a give-in, but Noel was willing to hear Ty out.

"You're kinda bad at this." Her tone wasn't unkind, just blunt as usual. "Look, we're thick as thieves, okay?" Absolutely no pun intended. Noel was not about to start up a life of crime. She just meant that if they were friends before, they could easily be friends again. "You start a new habit by making a choice. Say it with me now, 'I will not run away.'" Noel fully expected Ty to follow suit here. "'I will ask for help if I need it.'" She nodded her encouragement. "'Those other guys are going down.'"

Did she believe that he magically wouldn't run off again? No. Tattoo laser therapy couldn't convince her otherwise. But the guy was floundering and he needed somebody in his corner. Noel was willing to be his cornerman. Again. Apparently.

"'If I run away again without telling anyone, Noel will hunt me down on behalf of anyone who wants to punch me in the face.'" She fished out her phone and made a note. A weekly recurring note.

Message Ty. If he does not message you back within 3 days, hunt him down and punch him in the face.

"Yeah, I realize that," he murmured. Taking a breath, Ty repeated after Noel, word for word, and this time, it was a promise he intended to keep, no matter what. After the little oath was finished, Noel pulled out her phone and started typing something. It was probably a warning that he was prone to running away or something like that.

"Well, I'm at least feeling better now," he said, smiling softly. "Thanks. For everything." Well, that wasn't so bad. Now she knew basically the whole story, and she still didn't hate him. But something told him at least one of the other two wouldn't be so forgiving.

"So, you still up for the park?" he asked, sort of a hopeful, puppy-dog like look in his eyes.

META bots. Roland turned up his nose in disgust as he read the entry in the newspaper about how humans were once again upping the ante and how no one would do a thing about it. In fact, should they consider doing something about it, enter META bot, It looked like they had one of every flavor for every kind of mutant. Shock cuffs. They weren't collars, at least. Easily dispatched, should one feel alright with the momentary jolt to lose the contraption. It was a development that would really curdle the milk of Isabel. Bones versus metal wasn't a great outcome. Might tame her a bit, though. Nah, just keep her inside more.

The suspicion began to tickle at his nerves that he was being watched. As he turned the pages for no real reason, he was able to shoot a glance at a middle aged man holding a phone in a manner that would suggest that he was using the device to film Roland. Looking both ways from his park bench vantage point, there were only some children and probably a nanny running around nearby. It meant quiet, but he was certainly one who could be effective in such a case.

The moment he made eyes with his voyeur, the man looked down over his mustache and started to put his phone away. Started was quickly finished as the phone appeared in Roland's hand. Looking down at it, he noticed it had been locked. He would need the code to see just what his exposure had turned out to be. Surprise was so evident on the man's face that it was clear he was probably not an agent or a rival. Standing from the bench, he tucked the paper beneath his arm and smiled over at him. A little flourish came as mouthed the word.

"Code."

Still up for the park?

"Yeah. Sure." She stuffed her hands in her pockets and kicked her heels as they walked. Whatever had made him leave had spooked him pretty bad. Messed with his confidence. There had to be a way to get that back. Everybody needed an easy win sometimes. Noel wracked her brain for what that might be, but without context of what Ty liked or... what Ty even did with his life beyond being a dirty thief, she hadn't a clue where to start.

"Okay. Maybe we play 20 questions or something because my head's still back in Phil-land. I know you're a... morally defective individual who knows me well enough to be able to lie to me. But. You were feeling guilty enough about it that you came clean anyway." That right there must have been why they'd been friends before. He had a silver lining in there.

"So what's your job? Do you have a job? Do I want to know what you do to make money?" Noel kicked a rock once they'd reached the park. It bobbled up and tapped the back of an occupied bench. Oops.

Ty chuckled as Noel talked; it was never a dull moment, her getting to know him all over again. When they got to the park, he took in the sights, still listening to his old friend; he was used to the game by now, so it wasn't a strange thing to him.

"Morally defective? That's one way of putting it. Just know that my intentions are the best and I never hurt those I care about," he gave a pause after this statement, then added, quite sadly, "On purpose, anyway..."

Luckily, the people occupying the bench just sort of shrugged off the rock that hit their seat, so Ty continued. "Well, let's just say most of my means of income are...less than legal, and leave it at that. Though I do still follow a very strict moral code."