I wasn't sure if to put a trigger warning for the panic attack near end of the chapter but I'm doing it just in case.

Hope you enjoy the chapter ❤

Chase's POV

I stretch and open my eyes. I actually slept well and didn't have any nightmares! I look over at Jesse and Shawn who are still fast asleep and wrapped up in blankets. I'm really glad they agreed to camp in our backyard last night! I know neither of them are huge fans of camping but I think we all had fun.

Last night was the most I've smiled in what felt like forever. The most free and the least broken I've felt since that night. I enjoyed it so much that Jesse even convinced me to go have another 'outdoor adventure' as he put it at Bryan's house today.

He assured me that there will only be a total of 6 people there, myself included and I agreed to go since I'll know most of the people and I think I want to meet Diego. He has been randomly popping into my head and dreams since I saw him on that video call two weeks ago. Besides, Jesse and Shawn assured me that we could bail at any time if I wanted to.

I very carefully climb over the sleeping boys and very slowly unzip the tent. The noise causes Shawn to stir but doesn't wake him. I quietly exit the tent and walk towards the bathroom, stretching my arms above my head on the way. Once I'm finished, I decide to make breakfast for Jesse and Shawn as a thank you.

I obviously make pancakes! And Shawn loves baked beans so I open a tin and heat up some of those and fry some eggs.

"Good morning," Shawn's still drowsy voice sounds from behind me as I'm turning off the stove.

"Hi Shawn, breakfast is ready," I reply with a smile playing at my lips. "Is Jesse already up?"

"He's in the bathro-" Shawn is cut off by our landline ringing and I frown at the noise. We almost never get calls on our home phone.

"Hel-" I answer but am immediately cut off by Mason screaming in my ear.

"Aerial's going into labour!! We're on our way to Summerdawn Hospital!"

"Ok, we'll meet you there," I say and hang up.

Mason and Aerial got married a year and a half ago and they are such a cute couple! They met at work and Aerial was Mason's boss. Mason had the biggest crush on her but didn't want to jeopardize their working relationship so he never asked her out. It turned out that Aerial was just as infatuated with him and she ended up making the first move.

"Who was that?" Jesse asks, shovelling a whole fried egg into his mouth.

"Mason called, Aerial went into labour." Jesse's eyes widen and he almost chokes on his egg at my statement and Shawn gasps before grinning excitedly.

We quickly finish breakfast and get dressed before saying goodbye to Shawn and promising to keep him updated.

********************

"Hi bros!" Justin greets us as we enter the waiting area in Summerdawn Hospital. Justin holds up his foot and I lift my own and tap it, giving him an amused smile. Justin suggested it a week ago and because there was no skin to skin contact it didn't trigger one of my panic attacks; so this is how we have started greeting each other.

"Hi," I say to Chloe who pops up behind him. Justin pulls Jesse aside, probably to ask him how I've been doing, leaving me standing there with Chloe.

I flinch as Chloe reaches out to hug me and she flashes me a guilty look. Her gaze softens and she asks, "Chase, how are you holding up? I'm so sorry about what happened. I knew-"

"I'm ok Chloe," I cut her off. She's well intentioned but not the most sensitive person and because she talks a lot, I'm sure she will ramble on and say something that will upset me.

"That's good! You haven't seen-"

"Chloe, why don't we go over there and stop bombarding Chase, yeah?" Justin says, guiding Chloe away from me and I let out a sigh of relief.

I sit next to Jesse, lean my head against the wall and stare up at the ceiling. I'm actually excited to meet Aerial's baby girl when she's born.

After a few minutes Mason comes out to greet us. "Hey everyone, thanks for coming. Aerial is still in labour, you can come in and see her briefly if you'd like."

"Hi family!" Aerial beams as we enter her private hospital room. She looks completely frazzled. Her curly dark brown, almost black hair is pulled up into a messy bun. Beads of sweat are gathered around her forehead and her olive skin has a slight yellow cast to it.

"I can't believe you're finally having your baby!" Chloe screeches, rushing over to embrace Aerial. "I'm so excited! Justin and I will..."

"Chase, how was your day yesterday?" Mason asks, drawing my attention away from an excited Chloe.

"It was alright but last night was fun! We did a mini camping thing in the backyard with Shawn!" I did really have fun so a soft smile spread across my face as I detailed how we spent our night.

"I'm sorry I haven't been camping with you in a while," Mason says with a guilty look once I'm finished telling him about last night. "I'll try to go camping with you sometime next month!" He adds, flashing me an excited smile.

As much as I would love that, I'm certain that with a newborn, he won't have any time to pick up and leave for a camping trip. "No, it's ok, I've been a few times on my own and it was fun. And you most likely won't have much free time and I understand that. It's not a big deal."

I have been camping alone a few times and it was fun. Not as fun as when I went with Mason but enjoyable enough. I just don't want him to feel obligated to go with me.

Mason opens his mouth to reply when Aerial elicits an ear-splitting scream. Concern immediately envelops his face as he rushes to her side.

We decide to give them some space and head back to the waiting room.

"I'm going to get a snack from the vending machine," I say to Jesse a few minutes after we get back to the waiting room. I am so bored and some chocolate from the vending machine sounds amazing right about now!

"Ok, let's go," Jesse replies, pocketing his phone.

"I'm not a child, I can go alone," I reply, maybe a little too harshly since I see Jesse flinch. The vending machine isn't far but I guess I understand his concern. I haven't actually been anywhere public on my own since I left the hospital and though this hospital isn't crowded, it isn't empty either.

"I just meant that I need to start doing stuff on my own again," I say in a softer tone and Jesse nods and flashes me a smile.

I look at all the yummy selections in the vending machine. Oh why do all these snacks look so amazing! No, I came for chocolate, let's just get that. Now which chocolate should I have? I definitely have to get some M&Ms! My hand freezes as I go to punch in the code to get the M&Ms. A cold shiver runs down my spine prompting me to turn to the side.

That's when I see him. One of the guys from that night. The one that threatened to hurt Jesse.

I stumble a few steps backwards. My hands start to tremble and my throat feels like I swallowed a giant mango seed. I breathe in deeply but no air seems to fill my lungs. I try to take another step backwards, so that I can put some distance between me and the crazed man stalking towards me.

His lips curl up in a cruel smirk and I stare into the cold, almost black eyes of one of the nameless guys that I encountered for the first time that night. The sound of my heart pounding is so loud that all the noise around me seems muffled.

No. He can't be here! This must be something my imagination conjured up. I blink furiously, trying to get the image of the man striding towards me out of my head. Except that he doesn't disappear! Instead he just gets closer and closer. The smirk on his face grows into an unsettling grin and I start to feel nauseous. NO! This cannot be happening again.

Sweat collects on my forehead and my chest feels like it is being crushed by a meat grinder. I can't breathe! I open my mouth gasping for air that won't come.

"Chase?" a distant, calm, sweet and vaguely familiar voice calls me. "Chase!"

The room starts spinning. The man breaks eye contact shifting his gaze above my head. My legs give out under me and my eyes roll back as I lose consciousness. The last thing I remember is being engulfed by warm, strong, safe arms.

I came across this collection by quixotic_cat called 'Rise'. One of the short stories titled 'Balloon' really reminded me of Chase's journey especially the paragraphs near the end about supporting the balloon. It's a really good read! So feel free to check out the book or the chapter while waiting for the next update which will be posted on Sunday!

I also want to thank you to those of you who have continued to stick around to witness the brothers' journey! It means a lot to me and I love you all ❤

If you enjoyed the chapter, don't forget to vote and/ or leave comments! ❤