Chad walked out of his new bedroom to see Mike sitting on the couch, head propped up on a hand staring blankly out the front window. "What's goin on in that head of yours?" Chad asked, heading over and sitting on the other end of the couch from the other man. "You're lookin' kinda doom and gloom."

"So, is this how it's gonna be from now on?" Mike asked bowing his head and looking down at the floor. "I try to help Jen, and Jared punishes me by banishing me to the far reaches of the earth?"

"Is that what you think this is, Mike?" Chad asked quietly. "A punishment?"

"Isn't that what it is?" Mike snapped, then turned back to continue staring out the window.

"No," Chad replied softly studying the other man's face. "Not really anyway and it certainly isn't a punishment for anything you see as 'helping' Jensen."

"So, what, you don't think I was trying to help Jenny?" Mike asked sharply glaring at the other man hotly.

Chad dropped his gaze to his hands briefly before answering. "I think that's what you're telling yourself, but I think we both know that the Detox wasn't some selfless act, Mike. I'd like to hope that somewhere underneath all this bullshit that you're spewing these days that you know the truth. I think, as I said before that you saw an opportunity to improve your position with Jensen and you took it."

"I'm not Tom," Mike spat standing and pacing across the floor.

"I never said you were, Mike," Chad answered, his eyes following the other man's path.

"I do however think that protecting yourself has become so instinctual that you just do it. I think that you felt so guilty over your part in all this that you just jumped on the first chance you had to make things better without truly and honestly considering Jared. If I thought you were Tom, then I wouldn't believe this was anything other than outright manipulation. See, Mike, the thing is though, there's no reason for you to need to do that anymore. There isn't anyone here that is your enemy. We all, including Jared, have your best interests in mind."

Mike snorted hollowly. "Yeah, Jared has my best interests in mind, so he threw me out of the cabin and is making me stay in this one all alone."

"First off," Chad replied patiently, "Jared didn't throw you out; in fact it wasn't even his idea."

"Dr. Ross suggested it. Secondly, you aren't alone. I'm here with you, or did you fail to notice that I moved my shit into the other bedroom? So, if you use your banishment theory you'd have to say I was banished too. And, lastly we, and by we I mean Dr. Ross, Jared and myself, thought it was a good idea to move you out before Jared snaps and beats the fuck out of you for your part in this Jensen mess."

"Or did you think that Jay would just conveniently forget that you just stood by and watched what Tom did to Jen?"

"I… I don't know what you're… What you're talking about," Mike said stiffly, but the stuttering though the claim of innocence proved that even he didn't really believe his words.

"Oh, so what Mike, you didn't know Tom was manipulating Jensen into using? You didn't know he was more or less raping him on a regular basis? You just what, were some naïve bystander who had no idea what your BEST FRIEND and the fuckin' love of your life was doing? I call bullshit."

"There wasn't anything I could do," Mike tried insisting, but again gave himself away with the way his hands were twisting together.

"Again, I call bullshit." Chad insisted firmly. "You coulda backed Jensen up. You coulda told him that he had other options. You coulda let him know that you knew what was going on and given him someone to turn to. Hell you coulda told any one of a dozen people and let them know what the fuck their star was doing, but cha didn't. You just… let it go. You cared more about your dick and about upsetting that bastard than you did Jensen."

"I shoulda known that touch this morning didn't mean crap," Mike spat back and Chad found himself having to pause before answering. He knew what this was. He'd had enough experience to know when someone was searching for his buttons, searching for his breaking point. He refused to prove whatever was going on in Mike's head right.

"This morning doesn't have anything to do with this conversation, Mike," Chad finally responded softly. He knew he was on shaky ground and was not sure how to proceed. "But if you insist on dragging it into this, then you're wrong. This morning did mean something. But, I don't think that either one of us is ready to take a step toward something personal between us yet. If you keep using it to try and manipulate me into siding against Jared, Mikey, it won't become anything either."

"I realize you don't believe this Mike, but we aren't trying to punish you. We all, Jared included, love you. We all, Jared included, recognize what kind of hell Tom put you through. We all, Jared included, want to do whatever we can to help you get better. And, where you and Jared are concerned, Mikey, putting you two under the same roof right now is a really fuckin' bad idea. 'Cause Jared is itchin' to get his hands on the first person he can find and make them pay for everyone's sins, and you are obviously not ready to admit even the smallest amount of your part in this to prevent that."

"The last thing either any of us want to do is see either of you have to suffer anymore."

"So you're what, my babysitter?" Mike asked something between anger and despair in his voice.

"No, I'm just here to help, and they don't need me around either." Chad offered gently. "I've said this more than once, and I'll say it a million more times, man. This is NOT about me or you or Chris or anyone other than Jensen and Jared. THIS, this place we're in, this is about them getting themselves and each other back. You and I are just passengers on the ride."

"So you're saying Jared doesn't hate me?" Mike asked, his voice small and afraid.

"No, man," Chad replied softly standing and stepping towards the man. "If he didn't love you so much, he woulda had them throw you out. He just, damnit Mike, he's at the end of his rope and I WILL NOT just watch him crumble. Because neither of them will make it out of this if he does."

Mike nodded hesitantly looking at the floor. "You guys are all I got left, ya know? If you leave me…"

"Not gonna happen," Chad insisted and reaching out pulled Mike toward him. When the stiffness that showed itself the second he touched the other man relaxed, Chad smiled thinking maybe this was a better idea than he'd imagined.

Maybe Jared and Jensen wouldn't be the only ones who had time to connect.