[Content warning: Cheating, reference to prostitution, reference to abuse, self-destructive behavior, alcohol abuse]
 
He felt disgusted with himself. He had promised himself he wouldn’t go back to Hurley. He hated Hurley. More importantly, what would Zech think of him if he knew? He didn’t want to hurt Zech. He didn’t want Zech to hate him. And he didn’t want to be that anymore. And yet.
 
After his father had spent all day trying to bully his son into sharing what was wrong and why he kept drinking and staying out at night and talking back, they had finally gotten into a big argument. Simon had left home. He could have gone to Zech. He wanted to go to Zech. And yet he had gone to Hurley.
 
Hurley, whom he hated. Hurley, who humiliated him, mistreated him, told him he was worthless. Hurley, who was only interested in his own pleasure. Hurley, who made him feel less than human. Hurley, who would throw the money on the ground for Simon to pick up when he was finished, rather than give it to him.
 
He hated Hurley so much he feared one day he would strangle him. And yet after a few weeks of struggling and reminding himself that it was Zech he loved, and Zech who loved him and was good to him, that it was Zech he wanted to spend the rest of his life with! … he would go back to Hurley.
 
He needed the money.
 
The very money he was now wasting in the pub, right after the sickening act. If Zech ever found out, he would lose everything that mattered. He was an animal.
 
When he left the pub, he was too drunk to stand. At least the taste had finally left his mouth. One day he was going to get out of here. He stumbled and fell, and the next moment he was on his hands and knees, vomiting.

"What's this? Simon?" Constable Elijah Crane, he liked how that sounded and he was happy to be home, sort of. He wanted to help with big problems in a big city, save people and put away bad guys. But he couldn't. He wasn't made of stone like he had to be to work there, they said. Go to a small town where you'll usually deal with drunks and chicken thieves, they'd said. He had no choice, but it did feel good to be walking familiar streets, the stones under his shoes were almost as familiar as the floors in his home.

The job certainly wasn't easy though when you knew almost every face by heart. He saw the guy on the ground and it took faster than he wanted to admit that he recognized him. He knelt down and patted his back to help the guy clear out his stomach.

"Now why are you here trying to forget your problems?" The man spoke softly and trying to sound sympathetic. He knew him, this guy was almost like a baby brother as he'd grown up close to the Wards, especially after his parents died. Standing up, his hand stretched out to offer to help him up. "You want to talk about it?"

Simon coughed and wiped his mouth with his sleeve before looking up. It took a moment for him to recognize the man and he stared at him vaguely. Then he let the man pull him up, though he stood swaying. "Whadda you doin' ere?" he muttered. He fell back.

Elijah was about to answer but stepped forward to catch Simon in his arms. He righted him and then looped an arm around his shoulders. "I'm keeping you from bashing your face on the road right this moment. But don't worry about me. I think we need to get you home. Unless, you don't want to? I have a sofa that might be comfortable. If you promise not to vomit on it." He smiled weakly trying to lighten the situation. He didn't want Simon to think he was making light of his problems though. "You seem like you could use a friend right now. Come on, one step at a time." He tried to help him move forward slowly.

"'F ye dake me home me fadder will kill me." Simon said. "Well he can suck cock." Just because sucking cock was on his mind right now. He leaned over and vomited again.

Elijah almost made a comment as his insult made his face turn a slight shade of red. Luckily for himself, it immediately left as he gasped jumping to the side to avoid the mess splattering on his shoes the best he could but he wouldn't let go of Simon. He didn't want him to fall again. He frowned deeply at the mess that covered his shoes and pants, he figured it had been a matter of time though. "To my place, it is then. I think I got some bedclothes you can wear so you don't have to sleep in this. You can clean up in the morning and Ben doesn't have to know. Are you sure you don't want to talk about it?" His concern was genuine but he also feared pushing him into talking. He knew so well how it made people shut up more.

"Dank you... Sowwy..." he managed to mutter. He didn't want to talk at all. He felt like crap and he wanted to stop feeling like crap.

"It's fine. At least it was a friend who vomited on me and not a stranger." Elijah laughed weakly as he tried to navigate him down the dark street in a beeline to his house. "Take it easy. I'll get you a glass of water, you'll feel much better. " He didn't want the way to be too awkwardly quiet and he was curious. "So um.. how've you been? Besides today, I mean..."

He stumbled along. "Same.... On the boat... always." Every day, and unbearable sameness. But then he remembered that wasn't true. "Tom drowned jus' afder you left." Tom had been his older brother by two years. Tom might have bullied him at times, but he had always been there to look out for him when things got bad. Tom had encouraged him to behave. Tom had always managed to appease father when Simon was in trouble. Everyone had loved Tom. And everything had started going down when they lost him. "Modher died. Maggie got married though."

Elijah was quiet but nodded. "I'm so sorry to hear that. Tom was a good man. Your mother was a wonderful woman as well. I'm going to miss them. Congrats to Maggie though, I'm sure she found a nice guy. Things at home tough, then?" He knew Simon was the odd one out in the family. He spent most of his time around Ben and Tom than the others when he hung around them, but he got along great with Simon and always wanted to look out for him when he could. He sighed heavily and rubbed his shoulder. "Guess I picked a crummy time to leave, eh? Well, I'm home now. So you got me, understand? I don't want you to go back to drinking if things at home are hard. I don't have answers but... " he didn't know what to say. "I want to help you, Simon."