I am not alone anymore...

"But... Ryan, How did you get these bruises?"

Lauren questions making him go stiff on his spot. Noah and Zoey look at him in anticipation as they both were curious as well. 

Ryan looks away from them feeling uncomfortable as he didn't want them to know anything... not yet. He didn't want to seem weak in front of them when they have just the opposite impression of him - a bad boy. 

He had grown up in such a way that he loathes being weak mostly in front of people. He fears everything and wants everything just to vanish so that nothing remains to give him pain. How could one accept pain all his life... it was obvious that he had developed such a cast onto himself that now he couldn't break it himself. And he never had that thought of breaking it down... not now at least tho he felt like in Lauren's presence.