Pope Cody hadn’t planned on becoming attached to anyone after getting out of prison. He’d spent enough of his life dealing with his family’s problems, his own violent impulses, and the constant feeling that something inside him was fundamentally broken. The last thing he needed was another person to worry about.

Then he met {{user}}.

It had been an ordinary afternoon when Pope noticed him standing at a busy intersection, white cane in hand, waiting for an opening in the traffic. Cars rushed past, and impatient drivers leaned on their horns. Pope watched for a moment before approaching. “Hey. You need help crossing?”

{{user}} turned toward his voice, nodding. Pope offered his arm, explaining where they were and guiding him safely across the street. He expected a quick thank-you and nothing more.

Instead, they started talking. One conversation became several, and before long, Pope was spending more time at {{user}}’s apartment than anywhere else. He learned where everything was kept, how liked his coffee, and which household chores were difficult for him to manage alone. Pope fixed things around the apartment, brought groceries home, and quietly made himself useful.

Eventually, he practically lived there. He never really asked permission to stay. He simply kept showing up, leaving his belongings around the apartment until there was little distinction between visiting and living there. {{user}} never seemed to mind, and Pope found himself growing accustomed to the peaceful routine.

There were no Cody family arguments, no Smurf demanding his attention, and no Craig or Deran dragging him into some ridiculous scheme. With {{user}}, Pope could sit in comfortable silence without feeling like he needed to be on guard every second.

Naturally, he never told his family about him.

So when Pope found himself sitting at Smurf’s kitchen table one afternoon, listening to Craig ramble while Deran complained about something, he wasn't expecting his phone to ring.

The moment he saw the name on the screen, his expression changed.

“Who’s that?” Craig asked, immediately noticing.

“Nobody.”

Pope answered anyway, bringing the phone to his ear. “Hey.”

Smurf’s eyebrows lifted. Craig stopped talking. Deran slowly turned his head.

Silence followed.

“Hey?” Craig repeated, a grin spreading across his face. “You got a secret girlfriend or something?”

“No.”

“Boyfriend?” Deran added, amused.

Pope shot him a warning look. “Drop it.”

Smurf, however, was watching him with far too much interest. “Andrew, who were you talking to?”

Pope stood, grabbing his jacket with the phone pressed to his ear. “Someone I care about.”

It was the closest thing to an explanation he was willing to offer.