Title: What He Has To Do
By: angstytimelord
Pairing: gen - Ryan Wolfe
Fandom: CSI: Miami
Rating: PG-13
Table: 3TP Challenge, tv_universe
Prompt: Family
Author's Note: Standalone fic.
Disclaimer: This is entirely a product of my own imagination, and I make no profit from it. I do not own the lovely Ryan Wolfe, unfortunately, just borrowing him for a while. Please do not sue.

***

"Mom, moving to Las Vegas is something that I have to do."

Ryan sighed as he leaned back in the kitchen chair, pushing his plate away. His mother always cooked when she was upset -- or when she wanted to talk him out of something.

But she wasn't going to talk him out of this. It was already a done deal. The transfer had gone through, he'd quit his job at the Miami crime lab, and he was leaving within the week.

He knew that his mother didn't want him to leave Miami -- she wanted to have her son near. His sister had gotten married and moved far away; she didn't make it to Miami from Chicago more than a couple of times a year, in the summer and at Christmas. So he was the last kid left here.

And of course, now his mother felt as though she was losing him, too. But he couldn't stay in Miami. He had to break free, had to live his own life.

Not that his parents tried to live his life for him. They were both proud of his accomplishments, both as a cop and as a CSI. They supported him in his choice of career.

No, it was the crime lab itself that he had to break away from.

He was tired of being treated as though he was always second-best, tired of being the one who was always blamed if the slightest thing went wrong.

It seemed that he was always the team's scapegoat for every little thing, even if whatever mistake had been uncovered hadn't been his fault. The people who were at fault could always find a way to blame him, and come out of any kind of incident with their own records spotless.

He was tired of being the red-haired stepchild, Ryan told himself. As much as he had enjoyed working with the Miami CSI team, it was time for him to leave.

He was more than ready to cut those ties, but leaving his family behind in Miami when he moved to Las Vegas was going to be much harder than leaving the CSI team.

He'd always been close to his parents, even though he hadn't lived at home since he'd graduated with honors from the police academy. But his paernts liked having him here in Miami, and he had always enjoyed knowing that they were near, and that he could see them any time.

But still, as much as he loved his family, it was time for him to move away, to live his own life. And he had to make them understand that this was something he had to do.

Ryan took a deep breath just as his mother sat down.

"I know this something that you need to do for yourself, Ryan," she said, her voice as she reached out to take his hand. "Just don't forget to come home sometimes, okay?"

"I won't forget, mom." Ryan could feel a lump forming in his throat as his mother put her hand over his. "I'll be home a lot more than just twice a year."

He knew that it might be a hard promise to keep, but somehow, he would manage to do it, even if he could only be here for a couple of days. It was the least that he could do for his mother, for his family. All of his aunts, uncles, and cousins would want him to visit, too. They had always been a close family.

This was what he had to do, and the people who loved him would all understand that. Just as they understood that his family as important to him, and he wasn't abandoning them.

"You make sure to take care of yourself in Vegas," his mother told him, her tone one of admonishment. "I'll be calling to make sure that you are."

Ryan couldn't help but laugh at that; she called him here, too.

"Okay, mom," he said, laughter in his voice. He felt more relieved than he could say; this had gone so much better than he'd thought it might.

His mother got up and went back to peeling apples for the pie she was making, and he watched her, happy to be here in the bosom of his family for a while before he moved away.

***