"What?...where...where am I?"

Doc jolted upwards, looking around in confusion. A minute ago, he was in his bed, asleep. Now he was in, what appeared to be, the Locker Rooms...but they weren't.

The paint on the lockers all looked different, and there were names written on small pieces of paper just above them. Names of folks who had long since left the WVBA. Names like Flamenco Flores, Bailey Blues, The Archangel, Angus Macintosh...Mr Macho Man...Pete Zapasta...Kid...Quick...

He looked to one of the lockers to his right. His name was formally written on a piece of paper just above it. He was back in the 80s...but how? Did he time travel? Did Tiger whisk him backwards in time? No, that wasn't it...but what other reason could there be?... Unless-

'What's going- OH MY GOD, KID QUICK HAS BEEN KNOCKED INTO THE ROPES BY HIS OPPONENT!!"

"HELP MEEEE!! I-I-I CAN'T BRE-E-EATHE!!"

The loud cries of pain echoed through the halls. In an instant, a clamour of voices had erupted around him, but there was no one there. The strained gasps for air, the calls for help.

"No...No, NO, NO, NO!! NOT AGAIN!!"

Doc immediately rushed out of the locker room, almost bashing himself against the wall. He dashed down the long hallway, reaching a hand out for his friend. "JORDAN!!" he called. "J-JERI?" a strained voice called back. He ran closer and closer, the edge of the ring nearing. Doc shoved past the security and to the ropes where his friend was stuck.

He...he made it...he made it...no...that wasn't right...

"Jordan! It's ok! It's ok, I'm here bro!" Doc said, grabbing his friend's arm as he lay tangled in the ropes, dangling only by his neck. The man didn't move, his breathing was ragged and slow, "J...J...Je-e-r-ri?" he called, softly.

"Y-Yeah it's me, Jordan, it's me!"

"J-Jer...J...D..D-Doc?"

"Wh-...No, no, it's not Doc, it's...it's me!"

"Doc...Doc"

"No, no, no, h-how do you even know that name anyhow? It's not Doc it's-"

Doc grabbed the man by his shoulder and turned him around in the ropes. He stumbled back in shock as he saw, in the ropes, instead of Jordan, was a young teen boy. His hair was frizzy, his limbs were long and his face was pale and drained of breath. Tears streamed from his eyes and weak sobs escaped him as he gasped for air.

The older man grabbed at his chest with his right hand. He paused, squinting as he slowly moved closer. As he neared, his heart dropped as he began to recognize the boy. He gasped sharply and brought both hands to his mouth. He brought them back down slowly as small tears pricked his eyes.

"...D...Dean...?"

The boy only stared with misty eyes as more sobs escaped him.

"...W-why didn't you save him, Doc?..."

"Dean...Dean no, no! I...I tried to...I-"

"Doc?"

Doc quickly turned to see Mac standing behind him. His eyes were wide in shock and horror. "Mac, Mac baby, I-I...I can explain..." he stammered, trying to find an answer. But Mac was already backing away, shaking his head as he backed further and further into the dark hallway. Soon, he quickly turned and ran off, faint sobs echoing as he ran away.

Doc's heart sank as he tried to run after the boy, reaching a desperate hand out. "Mac! MAC NO! PLEASE-" he cried, before finding himself unable to move. His feet were frozen to the spot. A bright light shone suddenly on him, causing Doc to shield his eyes. "What...is...HAPPENING!?"

"HOW COULD YOU LET HIM DIE!?"

Doc looked to his left to see Joe, pointing an accusing finger in his face. Soon a clamouring of yelling reached his ears, as fellow boxers swarmed his left and right. Faces of anger from Bald Bull, Soda Popinsky, and even Bear Hugger were in his face, yelling and demanding an answer from Doc.

"WHY WOULD YOU LET HIM DO THAT!?"

"WHY DIDN'T YOU STOP HIM!?"

"YOU COULD'VE PREVENTED IT! YOU COULD'VE STOPPED IT!!"

"YOU WERE TOO SCARED OF LOSING YOUR STUPID TITLE!!"

"WHAT? DOES A TITLE MEAN MORE THAN YOUR FRIEND'S LIFE!!"

"IT'S YOUR FAULT HE'S GONE!!"

"IT'S YOUR FAULT HE'S DEAD!!"

"IT'S YOUR FAULT!!"

"IT'S YOUR FAULT!!"

"YOUR FAULT!!"

"YOUR FAULT!!"

Doc covered his ears as the words rang through his mind. He felt himself grow weak as he tried to stand, only for his knees to buckle and meet on the ground. He let out a desperate scream of frustration as the words became louder and louder.

"YOUR FAULT!!"

"YOUR FAULT!"

"YOUR FAULT!!"

"ENOUGH!!" He cried. Suddenly the clamouring stopped. The room was empty, only he and the spotlight were still there. Doc's heavy breathing was the only sound heard for a while until faint footsteps reached his ears. Doc turned to where the sound was coming from, his jaw-dropping in horror as he saw the ghostly, mangled figure of Kid Quick standing in front of him. His whole body, clothes and features were coloured a faint blue, only just visible. His eyes were lifeless, dead...like the rest of him.

He looked at Doc and sighed, "Jeri..." he began, his voice strained and tired, "...why did you let me die?..."

"No...no...Jordan I...no...no, no, no, no, No, NO, NO!!"

--------------

"NO!!" Doc cried, shooting upwards from the bed. He looked around the room in a panic and sighed. Doc let his head fall into his hands and fell back onto his pillow in annoyance. This week has been nothing but painful, and now tonight he was living his worst fear. It was all because of that stupid accident on Monday.

He wasn't mad at Mac though. Was this situation frustrating because of him? Without a doubt. But he knew the boy didn't know any better. He just wanted to know...he wanted to help...he's always wanted to help...but he didn't know how. Doc certainly didn't help in any way...

...But that changed now. Doc grabbed his phone and flicked a message to Sandman.

"Hey Mason, can u run training today? I need to talk to Mac"

A few seconds passed before a message popped up on his phone.

"Algudz"

"Thank you"

Doc chucked his phone to the side and sighed. This was gonna be a long day.

--------------

9:00 dawned in New York. Yesterday's training went much better once most of the steam was out of everyone's system. Lost and wasted on the bags. The Friday night bout lingered around the corner, and everyone needed to focus. It was increasingly difficult for Tiger, however. He was without his friend, his consult, his comfort. He was getting more and more irate as the morning went on, and it had no signs of getting any better. His gem was flashing more and more, it was giving Tiger headaches. A frustrated groan escaped him. He wiped away angry tears and grabbed his phone, dialling Hugger's number.

The buzz of the dial tone rang, and it only took five seconds until Tiger got fed up with it. "You better bloody pick-up, you BETTER pick-up!" he growled lowly, marching back and forth within his room as he held the phone. The buzz continued until a tired voice picked up on the other end.

"Y'ello?"

"Don't you fucking, Y'ELLO, me you asshat" Tiger said, "You bloody went off to Michigan, didn't you?"

"Call the police! I went to Michigan, oh what a felony~" Hugger's voice jokingly whined. A huff was heard on the other side, "Look, Vihaan, I'm tired, physically and emotionally, all of us are"

"All of us?"

"Yeah, me, Haru, Devon, Kaiser-"

"OH, SO YOU DRAG POOR KAISER OUT ON A DAY TRIP TO MICHIGAN BECAUSE YOU MISSED YOUR FRIEND? I can understand Hondo, MAYBE Disco, but FUCKING KAISER!?"

"THERE'S MORE BEHIND IT!"

"LIKE WHAT!?"

"I..." Hugger began, but he paused. Tiger waited for a response, but the next few seconds greeted him with silence before Hugger sighed in annoyance, "...I can't tell you...pretty sure if I did you wouldn't believe me anyways but...look I just can't tell you, but there was"

"WELL, THAT CERTAINLY HELPS, ELLIOT!" Tiger screamed back, his gem flashing more violently than ever. He gave a frustrated roar as he leaned back onto his bed, "I JUST HAD THE SHITTIEST DAY YESTERDAY, I COULD BARELY GET ANY TRAINING IN AND ALL I HAD ON THE MIND WAS THAT STUPID MATCH FROM 10 YEARS AGO....A-AND KNOWING THAT THE ONE MAN WHO COULD GIVE ME ANY FORM...OF COMFORT...OR EASE...LEFT TO GO TO MICHIGAN...."

Tiger's voice went quiet as he began to feel tears well up in his eyes, sobbing softly to himself. He gave a shaky gasp of air and sighed as he whispered into the phone, "...I needed you...a-and you...yo-ou left me..." he spoke.

Hugger sighed on the other end, "I-I know...and I'm sorry I left without saying anything..." he said softly. "...the thing is...after Monday it had been on my mind all day...and then I...I found out something...that changed...everything I thought I knew about Jordan..."

A short pause was heard on the other end before Hugger spoke up once again, "...and going to Michigan...taking that time to go and see him...and that his mom looked after him well, gave him a nice burial...he deserved it after everything..."

"After....after everything?" Tiger asked, softly, "...W-what do you mean?"

"...He had...probably the worst upbringing in the world...he was lost...broken...addicted..." Hugger explained, pausing now and again to let himself breathe, "...he found a home with the WVBA...like you and me..."

Tiger gave a small laugh. Granted it sounded weary and sad, but his lips were slowly turning upwards into a smile. "That's...reassuring at least..." he said. Hugger simply hummed in agreement, "...a-and you know what?..." he said, "...coming here and seeing him...it finally gave me something good..."

"Yeah? And what's that pray tell?"

"...It gave me closure..." Hugger explained, "...and now that I found it...I can remember all of the good things that he brought us...rather than the one bad night...all of the happy times...all the laughs..."

Tiger chuckled happily, wiping his eyes. Hugger could be so damn sentimental, it was almost impossible to not feel emotional yourself when you heard him ramble on.

"I was sick and tired of being sad every time we brought him up...I didn't want to keep crying, I DON'T want to keep crying anytime I hear his name...I don't want to think about the night of him leaving us...I want to remember the time he WAS here...with US!... I want the good memories to outweigh the bad every time...no more tears just...smiles..."

The magical man simply sighed, "I wish I had those memories too..."

"Had them or not...I know that night would've been hard on you too...just as it was on everyone else..."

"Hm, well you'd be one of the only ones who'd think that..."

"...He knew you too, Vi...you know?...he cared about you just as much..."

"....I would like to think he did..."

"Well, don't think...know because it's true..."

"...Oh Elliot..." Tiger whispered, "...I...I am so sorry...I have been so insensitive to your feelings...to everyone's feelings....especially poor Mac..."

"What happened with Mac?"

"I...uh....I'll let you know later...point is...I've felt angry and...and annoyed at others for not acknowledging my feelings...that I forgot to show any care for others' feeling's too...I...I am so sorry for what I did on Tuesday..."

"...V...look I...I was mad before but..." The voice on the other end paused before sighing and speaking once again, "...I don't want to be mad now...I don't want to EVER be mad about this...ever..."

"...I don't want to be either...but I-I don't...know...how to..."

"You have a brain, Vihaan...don't focus on the bad that came with the night...and just try and remember the good things you DID manage to see...however big or small..."

Tiger felt his eyes well up once again as he sighed with a smile, "...Bless you, Elliot..." he said, "...Just...just come home already, you bastard!" he laughed. The voice on the other end laughed with him.

"We'll be back soon...The train driver offered us a ride back on the 10:00"

"Didn't you drive down?"

"Yes, and I'm exhausted...they loaded it up in one of the container things...it'll be fine"

Tiger winced silently, somehow doubting that, but he chuckled to himself regardless. "Well...alright then..." Tiger said with a smile, "...I'll see you when you come home...Goodbye, Eli...and thank you..."

"...I'll see ya soon, bub...Buh-bye..."

Tiger pressed the red button on the phone before placing his phone gently onto the bedside dresser next to him. He looked up to the ceiling and sighed, smiling. He closed his eyes and let the faint memories of Jordan enter his mind. Even if they weren't particularly close, Tiger still laughed in remembrance of such an amazing friend. The times spent talking outside of the ring. The times when Jordan would encourage him to try new spells and tricks. Tiger could vaguely remember when Jordan had insisted on him trying to get him to try making a giant star show with his powers. He remembered declining the notion. God, he regretted it now. All these memories, might not have been nearly as many as any of the others had. Certainly didn't top Joe's. But he remembered more than he previously thought. Happy times...good times...fun times...

Was he mad before? He might've been. But at this moment? He was just happy. Happy to finally no longer look back on him in anger, fear, or pain. He finally had closure...just like Hugger.

He giggled lightly to himself. Maybe he knew him better than he thought he did.

-------------

"....Why...why did you have to go...?" Joe whimpered, sitting on the floor of the hallways. In front of him, staring down with a happy smile, from behind the framed portrait, was Kid Quick. In his prime. Happy, smiling...free. Certainly wasn't doing any of that now.

He knew it was pointless moping. It wouldn't bring Jordan back. It wouldn't change anything that happened. If anything it just made his mental state worse than it already was. He didn't even cry. He just stared at his old friend. This was the only thing he had of him.

He didn't want to be sad. He didn't want to be sad around him. He knew Jordan wouldn't want him to be sad. But every time Joe tried to think about Jordan, in any way at all, all he could see was his silhouette, dangling within the ropes, pale face, dead. It frightened him. Was that the only coherent memory he had of his friend? Surely not!

He knew there would good things...there always were...but it was so hard to remember them sometimes. Today, it only seemed they were getting harder and harder to see. Was he forgetting?

Was he honestly forgetting about the person who helped him be who he is today? Was his memory slipping that much?

God, he was terrible. He sighed shakily and wiped at his eyes. "Pourquoi ne t'ai-je pas sauvé?" he whispered to himself as tears streamed down his cheeks, "Why didn't I help you?"

"Joseph"

Joe quickly sat up and turned as he saw the figure of Mr Desire standing above him. He shot up off the ground and brushed himself off. "Monsieur Désir!" Joe said, panicking "I-I was just...um...talking to...to myself..."

"...I understand you miss him, Joey" Desire said, patting the man's shoulder, "...I know it's hard for you to...move on from the night-"

"It isn't hard! Who said it was hard?" Joe protested, flinging Desire's hand away, "Did Bull say it was hard I can assure you it isn't hard at all! I can forget! I can...I can forget ALL about that night!" he said. He began flinging his hands around in a very defensive manner. His foot constantly tapped on the floor, with the constant snapping of his fingers. He paced up and down the width of the hallway. Desire simply watched, and sighed, "Joe...you don't need to forget..." he said.

Joe stopped in the middle of the hallway, turning his gaze to Desire in confusion. "W...what?" he asked, softly. Desire grabbed Joe's hand gently and lifted it, he brought his other hand a top of it and grasped it tightly. He smiled at Joe. A soft, fatherly smile. It was a smile you didn't always see, but whenever it came out you couldn't help but feel happy.

Only one other had a smile quite like it. Joe almost felt his eyes well up in tears. "Joseph..." Desire began, "...I didn't want this brought up because I knew how much it had impacted you...I used to believe that...it hurt you to speak about it...but not speaking about it...seems to be driving you apart even more than before...Doc told me about yesterday, with you and Okan and Vihaan...and poor Mac..."

"Oh...do not remind me, please?" Joe asked, "I hated how I acted towards him...my behaviour all week has been nothing short of despicable-"

"...Doc has said he's been...out of it...this whole thing with Quick has shaken him...and I haven't helped by forcing you into silence around it...I thought it would help but it only made it worse...I want you guys to look back on him in fondness... joy...and if talking about him...sharing his memories can help you to look back on him in that light then...go for it!"

Joe's eyes widened in surprise before his lips curled upwards into a thankful smile. "Do...do you mean it?" Joe asked, quietly. Desire nodded, "We've kept quiet about him for too long...no more...no more grieving in silence... let's smile and remember the good times...the good things about our fallen brother, yeah?"

"...Of course, Jeremiah...of course," Joey said with a smile, he wiped at his eyes again and brought his and Desire's hands close to his face. He closed his eyes and sighed in contentment, "Merci Mon Ami" he said, thankfully, "Merci beaucoup"

Desire smiled back happily, patting the man on the shoulder as he sauntered down the hallway, past Joe. Joey smiled and huffed in confidence, striding forward into the main lobby. Desire smirked as he continued down the hall in the opposite direction.

As Joe entered the warm sunlight of the lobby, he caught sight of Bull and Soda standing in the middle. Soda looking particularly...unbubbly, was a way to put it. He didn't dare to make eye contact with Bull, his face was drawn in a quiet annoyance. Bull tried desperately to get his friend to look him in the eyes, but it wasn't working.

"Nicky! Nicky please, I-" Bull started trying to look at his friend, Soda simply turned away. Bull's face was drawn in sadness and concern. "Let me help!" Bull tried again. No response. "Nicky, I...I'm sorry...if this is about yesterday-" Bull said, his voice becoming softer. Soda simply shoved his friend out of the way and made a good 5 feet apart from him.

"You're being unreasonable! I said I was sorry!" Bull said, "Please...say you forgive me, say it's okay! SAY SOMETHING!" he begged. Soda refused. He simply turned his back on his friend. He sighed, "If I said anything, you would hate me" he explained, "You would be angered...like you have been all week," he said through grit teeth. "There is no point," Soda said bluntly.

"Nikolai, look I know, behaviour was unacceptable!" Bull said, "But please, I don't want to lose you too..."

Soda didn't say anything, his shoulder simply tensed up as he took a shaky breath. Bull felt his heart sink, he gripped at his head and roared in frustration. Joe quickly made his way towards him and placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. "Okan...breathe," he said, softly, "Let me try..."

Bull looked at the older man with sad eyes. Sad, curious eyes. Joe simply walked towards Soda, strong strides in each step. The sound of his footsteps against the linoleum floor caught Soda's attention, "Joseph" he warned, "Do not bother trying-" and then he froze.

Soda looked down to see a pair of Spindly arms wrapped around his back. Joe leaned his head into Soda's back, his eyes shut tight. He gave a wavering sigh and spoke, "You're ok now...I know you miss him...and we have neglected how you may feel...out of fear...but it's ok..." he said softly. He grabbed Soda's hand and brought him around so Soda was facing him. He held his hand tightly and looked up at the man with a smile. "...You're ok..." he said.

Joe watched as Soda's eyes widened, tears slowly welling in the corner of his eyes before soft sobs overcame him. The Russian man leaned into Joe's embrace and buried his face into his shoulder. His tears and sobs became muffled in Joe's Turtleneck. Joe sighed and chuckled lightly, he would clean it out later. Right now, he wrapped gentle arms around Soda and brought him gently.

"I...I-I just...I..." Soda tried to speak between sobs, Joe shushed him. "I know...I know...we all miss him..." Joe said, he turned around and held a hand out to Bull, who gently took the smaller hand on his own.

With a small tug, Joe brought Bull closer to Soda and placed their hands together. Bull looked at his friend with worried eyes, "I'm...I'm sorry I upset you...I've been doing that a lot lately..." He said.

"More than just lately" Soda grumbled. Bull sighed, "I...I know...but I promise, I don't mean to hurt...I'm just scared...I don't want to keep thinking back to that night...Lütfen beni bağışlayın...Nasıl davrandığım için çok üzgünüm" he whimpered. He wiped at his eyes and turned his gaze to the floor.

Soda saw this and shook his head with a smile before yanking his friend into a tight embrace. "It's ok...Все будет хорошо..." He said softly, "...I forgive you..."

Bull felt himself relax and ease into the embrace, his eyes closed and he smiled as he let himself relax. The man growled softly, "...I don't know what I can do to make it up to you, Nikolai, but-"

"Okan, I already said I forgive you..." Soda said, "...but please...no more yelling, no more anger..." He asked, "I don't want to be angry thinking about him...I just want to...remember the good things..."

"...I do too" Bull said, smiling as he parted the hug and looked at his friend. Joe soon came between the two, placing a reassuring hand on each of the boy's shoulders. He looked at them each with a smile and chuckled, "...If we are going to miss him, then we can...but let us do it together...not alone...in silence...we do it as one..." Joe said, confidently.

"We do it as a family...we move on as a family...as brothers..." He continued. Soda and Bull shared a nod between each other and smiled, "...as one..." Bull whispered.

Soda nodded and chuckled, "...like he would have wanted?..." He asked. Joe smiled as he leaned in to hug him again, "...Oui...just like he would've wanted..." He said softly. Soda laughed as he hugged the spindly man back, Bull joining in the hug from behind.

The hug was definitely awkward, but not one of them could deny that it was very much needed. Bull growled happily as he lifted both of his friends into the air and swung them around happily. All three laughed as they spun around. They were no longer bound to secrecy. They didn't have to hide anything anymore.

The laughing soon settled as Bull's spinning came to a stop. He set his friends down and held his head, the dizziness had set in. Joe shook his head with a smile, "I know it was a rule that caused us to not talk about him...but I realize now we could've talked about him whenever..." He said, "...we were just scared to...scared of what though is the question..."

"I don't know..." Bull said, before putting a firm hand on Joe's shoulders, "...and I don't care..., "...but I don't care...I just want to focus on now...and only now"

"...Ever the poet, Okan?" Soda joked

Bull shoved him playfully and rolled his eyes, "sessiz ol"

---------------

The Mid-day traffic was bustling in the streets, Mac and Jared had managed to slip out of school during break and catch a bite at one of the food stalls down by the piers. They had a fair amount of time before they had to go back, and Jared was a reasonably safe driver, so they were certain they'd be back in time. Jared was currently munching on a dirty water dog while Mac just ate a pretzel. Mac was still rattled from yesterday, even if it was seemingly better once he got back, he no longer felt the same ease going into that gym as he had when he started there.

He knew the guys had their reasons, but it was hard to forgive them. He just wanted them to be open with him, it was a simple request, and yet none of them would ever want to share anything with him. Not even Doc would share anything. Mac sighed, he was starting to really doubt his idea at this point.

"Maybe this whole plan was a mistake," he mumbled. Jared took another bite of his dog before he turned to look at Mac, "Hmm? Whut do you meawn?" He asked, mouth full. Mac chuckled dryly and shook his head, "It's like...I did this to try and help them...but now I just feel like I'm making it worse" he explained, "...a-and now I'm gonna go into the fight of Friday feeling like shit, I'll lose and let Doc down...all because I couldn't keep my nose in my own damn business..."

Jared shook his head, "Nah bro...look what you're doing..." He began, fumbling his hands around, "...what you're doing is trying to help people...you're trying to gather these small broken crumbs of information, to make a giant loaf of bread...you're breaking yourself trying to fix everyone else..." He said.

"Why do you do that?" Jared asked. Mac shrugged, "I dunno..." He said, "I guess...I just..."

"Go on?"

"...I came from a broken family...the WVBA has such a tight bond...they're their own little family...and I don't want there to be any tension between us...I don't want my family to be broken...not again..."

"Families break sometimes, Jay...there's never NOT gonna be tension...but you gotta learn that you can't fix everything...you can support them...you can help them...but you can't fix them..."

"...I'm not trying to fix them though!" Mac protested, "I'm trying to help them!"

"How? Learning about Kid Quick and then telling them 'Oh! I know now so I can sympathize! You don't have to be sad anymore!'...It doesn't work like that Mac...you can't just tell them to get over it..." Jared said, "...that would be like...if I told you to get over your parents leaving you...not nice, hm?"

"...I...I guess I didn't really think about it that way..." Mac said, scratching the back of his head. He sighed and took another bit of his pretzel, "...What else could I say though?... There are only so many ways to say ''I'm sorry, I just want to help..."

"I don't know bro...but you'll find a way..." Jared said with a smile. Mac gave a weak laugh as he took another bite of his pretzel. The two continued walking down the pier when a familiar figure came walking toward them. Mac felt his lips turn upwards into a smile and raised his hand up high to wave to his friend. "Dean!" he called.

The tall boy gave a soft smile as he made his way over. "Hey, Macky boy" he greeted, "What's poppin'?"

"Nothing much really," Mac said, kicking the ground. Dean's eyebrows furrowed, "Are...are you okay?" he asked, "I saw you yesterday and-"

"YEAH! Yeah, um...I'm great!" Mac exclaimed, "I just...just needed a mental reset I think..."

"You...think?"

"It's not important"

Dean went to say something, but he didn't want to. He knew Mac was probably still riled up from yesterday, and he didn't want to risk throwing him into another tizzy. So he tried to change the subject, "Oh...um...where's Li Mei?" he asked. Jared laughed slowly, "Oh she stayed home today," he said bluntly, "Said she wasn't feeling well"

"Oh, shoot" Dean exclaimed, "Why? W-what happened?"

Jared simply shrugged, "I don't know, she said after her call with Oscar she wasn't up to really-"

"JARED!?!" Mac cried. It took a few seconds but once the realization hit, Jared quickly brought his hands to his mouth in a panic. Dean's eyebrows immediately shot up, before twisting in confusion. "Wh...why was she talking to Oscar?" he asked in a low tone.

"What? She wasn't talking to Oscar Levington! Definitely not to get an inside scoop on your dad because you wouldn't tell us-"

"JARED!!"

"....I...I think I'll shut up now"

Mac turned with a worried look toward Dean, whose face was filled with shock at the news he had just heard. His eyes strained as if he had just been stabbed in the chest, which might as well have been what had happened. In his mind now, this feeling was just the same.

"You...you went snooping around...about my Dad...behind my back?" Dean asked, his voice quiet, a whisper, but it was filled with anger and resentment. Mac turned to Jared, who was slowly backing away in fear, "I...I'm gonna go to the car..." he said as he walked backwards a few inches before turning around and sprinting down the pier.

The boy sighed. "I...I was...yeah..." Mac confessed, wringing his hands together. "I didn't want to go behind your back, honest! I just...I was sick and tired of being left in the dark about your past, about the guys past! I wanted to...I wanted to know!"

"And so you think, instead of maybe just respecting the fact that I DIDN'T WANT TO TALK ABOUT IT or BRING IT UP, you go and ask people who don't even know the half of the fucking story!?" Dean yelled.

Mac's eyes widened in shock before he clenched his fists and pointed an accusing finger in Dean's face. "I WAS TRYING TO HELP YOU!!" He yelled back.

"IT WASN'T NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS!! I TOLD YOU WHAT I WANTED TO TELL YOU BECAUSE I HATE HAVING TO RELIVE THROUGH THAT NIGHT, OVER AND OVER AGAIN!! I TRUSTED YOU!! I TRUSTED YOU TO NOT GO DIGGING, TO NOT BRING IT UP TO PEOPLE!! IS THAT WHY THEY WERE SO MAD AT YOU YESTERDAY!?"

"NO!!....Well, Kind of...BUT YOU GOTTA UNDERSTAND HOW FRUSTRATING IT IS FOR ME TO HIDE THIS! WHAT GOOD IS IT, BEING PARKER IF IT DOESN'T SOLVE ANYTHING FOR EITHER OF US!?"

"I DON'T FEEL SAFE GOING IN THERE! DO YOU KNOW WHAT THOSE GUYS WILL DO TO ME IF THEY EVER FOUND OUT I WAS HIDING AWAY FROM THEM!? THEY WILL HATE ME! FORCE ME TO TRY AND BE ONE OF THEM! THEY DON'T MISS ME, THEY DON'T CARE! THEY JUST WANT JORDAN BACK!"

"THAT'S NOT TRUE! Dean if you let me take you back there, as you, then you'll see-"

"I don't want to go back Macky, PLEASE, JUST LISTEN-"

"BUT WHY!? WHAT ARE YOU AFRAID OF!?"

"I JUST-" Dean took a deep breath before groaning and flinging his hands around in frustration. He stomped the ground and gripped his hair before sighing. "There is SO much that you don't understand, with how it affected them- WITH HOW IT AFFECTED ME! I don't want you to hate me, but if you don't want to keep the secret anymore then...that's fine..."

Mac looked at his friend with concerned eyes, "W...W-what do you mean?" he asked. Dean smacked his forehead in annoyance before turning to Mac, "I mean that if you don't want to keep this up anymore, be my guest! TELL THE WHOLE WORLD! LET THEM KNOW THERE'S A CHILD OUT THERE RUNNING AWAY FROM THE LIFE HE SO DESPERATELY WANTED BUT CAN'T HAVE BACK ANYMORE!"

"DEAN! COME ON! YOU'RE BEING IRRATIONAL! I-I'M SORRY BUT-"

"NO, NO MORE APOLOGIES, NO MORE SECRETS. YOU WANNA GO TELL EVERYONE, GO AHEAD, I'M DONE"

Dean pushed past Mac and continued down the pier. "Wait! WAIT!" Mac called, chasing after his friend. He reached his hand out and grabbed his friend's hand as it dangled from his side, "Dean, we can talk about this please-"

"DON'T TOUCH ME!!" Dean yelled, turning back and glaring daggers at the boy. "You went behind my back, you snooped into my family's business that you had NO RIGHT to even look into! You're just getting yourself deeper and deeper into the shit and for what!? So I could come and watch your match which I WOULD'VE WATCHED ANYWAYS!?... Clearly, the world doesn't think we can be friends, so...why even bother..."

"...No...no come on Dean, I said I'm sorry..."

"Goodbye, Mac..."

"NO DEAN, PLEASE, COME ON!"

"JUST...Leave me alone, Jay..." Dean said. The tall boy turned away and continued walking down the pier, he glanced back at Mac with sad eyes before turning his gaze forward and grabbing his elbows tightly. Soon the tall boy got further and further out of sight, leaving Mac alone on the pier.