Dear Mr. Pessimist,

Don't ever give up on yourself or the world. As much as you may believe that you don't have anybody, I'm right here. I don't care if it's the middle of the night, I'll be there for you to talk to if you need me.

With Love,

Sydney

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxooxoxoxoxoxo

I laughed as I laid my head back against Tristan's arms, staring up at the sky.

"I bet Bennett would think this is pretty cool." I said. I felt Tristan sigh before I heard it.

"Syd, all you've been doing all night is talk about Ben." He replied, gently pushing me away and standing up.

I glanced up at him, warmth starting to spread through my cheeks as Tristan ran his hand along the stubble along the bottom of his face.

He was right, I had been talking about Bennett all night, and it scared the crap out of me. Sure, he had started to warm up to me a little, it was a tiny step closer to getting him to believe in himself, but his expression when I had climbed out of his car was imprinted in my mind.

"Look, beautiful." Tristan knelt back down and took my face in his hand, brushing his thumb along my cheek, "I know you aren't used to relying on men. That you believe that you can do everything yourself. And I'd be lying if I said that wasn't one of the reasons I like you." I watched as his eyes fluttered slightly, his thumb still caressing my cheek.

"I know that you're used to being the one to find good in the guy you're dating, but Syd, love, you don't have to do that with me. I like you, a lot. You're sweet, smart, and probably the strongest woman I know. You don't let anything get in your way and you want to prove that women can do things just as well as men can, and babe, you're so right." He finally let out a shaky sigh before continuing.

"That's why I believe that this, us, we aren't going to work. Not right now, and maybe not ever." He said, "Because no matter how hard I'm going to try and tell you that I don't need fixing, I know you'll still look for it. And honestly, right now I'm not the one that needs fixing."

I stared at him as he spoke, at the way his eyelashes were fluttering against his cheeks, at the way his hazel eyes were shining in the moonlight.

"Bennett needs your right now, romantic feelings or not, he needs you. For now, I want you to focus on trying to help my best friend. If, by the end of the summer, you want to try to spark this relationship back up again, then great." He stood up again, holding his hand out as he came to the end of his speech, "If not, then I understand. I don't want you to act like someone you're not for me, even if that means waiting for you to come around again." I hugged him, burying my face against his jacket.

My whole life I'd lived doing everything for myself, for my mom. I had been able to do things that even my Dad wouldn't have if he had stuck around. Men hadn't ever really been there as a light in my life, most were problems or people I was trying to help out.

But Tristan, he was different. He was a wonderful person inside and out.

"I'm always going to be one call away, or right next to you at work. I want you to know that you can always rely on me, Syd. I won't leave you." I could feel my eyes stinging as I tore myself away from him and met his beautiful, warm and greeting eyes.

"Thank you, Tristan." He wrapped his arms around me and kissed my forehead.

"Just help him, please. I know you can do it." It was then, despite all my promises to myself, that I knew for sure I was going to do absolutely everything in my power to help Bennett Banks understand how great he really is, how great the world is. Even if it meant losing him as a friend in the long run.

*

When I pulled up to Doughboy the next morning, I sat in the car for a few minutes to try and clear my mind so I could focus on work.

Tristan had brought me home shortly after the date, but we had been greeted by my father in front of the house. Tristan had refused to let me talk to him, and my Dad had eventually given up and drove off without a word, but he had a familiar look on his face.

Rodger Hale was a powerful man, and I had no doubt in my mind that even if I tried to run from him, he'd catch me.

"Hi." I nodded at Mr. and Mrs. Banks when I walked in, looking around the room for either of the boys.

"Where's Bennett?" I asked, knowing that they'd probably know where he was rather then Tristan.

"He's visiting someone at the hospital." Mrs. Banks responded, "Today isn't terribly busy, I'm sure he'd like it if you would head down there and keep him company." I was about to tell her that he'd want the exact oppsite, but decided against it and started to back away, moving toward the door.

"Are you sure you don't need me here?" I questioned them. They both waved me off, smiling.

"No, hun. Go ahead and take a break."

**

I had texted Bennett the minute I walked out of the bakery, he had responded with nothing but saying I could come to the hospital if I wanted to.

Now, standing in the waiting room, I looked down at my phone again, ready to turn it off so I could go find Bennett. I looked up once I had slid my phone into my pocket, my eyes falling on the devil himself as he leaned against the wall with a coffee cup in his hands.

"Hey." I waved at him, pushing a lock of my red hair behind my ear. He nodded, gesturing for me to follow him.

"Why are you here?" I said without thinking, "You don't have to tell me if you don't wan-"

"This is Hannah." He stopped in front of a small room, about the size of the kitchen back at the bakery. My hand flew over my mouth when I saw still girl in the bed, hearing the monitor beeping through the closed door.

Even from out here, and with the cuts on her face, I could still see that she was beautiful. She had small features, reminding me of a fairy.

"She lost the baby right away." He said, "But she went into a coma soon after and didn't wake up. It's been almost a year now and. . . and her parents want to pull the plug. Even if she did wake up, she'd be a vegetable." He laid his head against the glass, avoiding my sympathetic and surprised look.

"Bennett, I'm-"

"Don't." He breathed out, crushing the empty coffee cup in his hand, "Please, don't."

He slid down the wall outside the room, his eyes on the white wall in front of him. I hesitated before sitting down beside him, staring at him for a second.

"My mom lost my little sister." I whispered, "When I was ten, my Mom was dating and she got pregnant. She was happy, ecstatic. I was happy too, I was going to be a big sister." Bennett turned to look at me, his eyebrows drawn in confusion.

"A couple months before her due date, she was driving home from work and a drunk driver hit her and left." I turned my own head away from him, clenching my shaky hand into a fist.

"And all my dad did was offer her money. Because somehow in his fucked up mind, he thinks money can replace a child. I guess. . . I guess to him it can." Bennett stared at me for a long moment, then let out a deep breath.

"Mom hasn't been the same since. She tries to smile whenever she's around, but she's usually at work or out on dates, and when she is home, she's going over paperwork." I felt his hand brush against mine, almost as if he were going to take it and tell me it was going to be okay.

"That sucks. At least my parents just tell me to fuck off to my face." He ran a hand through his thick hair and laid his head back against the wall, "What a screwed up couple of people we are." I nodded, smiling bitterly.

"Are you still in love with her?" I asked him, wanting to take it back once I had asked it. He shrugged, crossing his arms over his legs.

"I don't know. It's not like she gave a shit about me. She thought I was a spoiled prick, that I would have just hurt her." He turned to me again, this time a haziness had formed over his eyes.

"And I was ready to be a father. I was going to raise the child, teach him or her how to walk, then ride a bike, then to play sports. But it was gone in the blink of an eye, every thought of ever being a father was gone." I finally felt a tear escape my eye and slide down my cheek as I stared at the broken boy beside me.

"I'm here for you, you know. If you need me, I'll always answer." I said, laying my hand on top of his with a gulp. He glanced sideways at me, before shaking his head and laughing coldly.

"Yeah, I know, Syd. That's what I'm scared of."

***AN***

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~ChasingMadness24