Troy's POV

I looked up to see who I assumed were Charlie's mom and dad. "I- I'm sorry, Mr. and Mrs. Vega. I- I just needed to visit him. I'll leave," Halo said to the Hispanic couple.

"Damn right you will," Mr. Vega said. "And if I catch you here again I'll call security."

"Excuse me?" I asked. "I don't know what exactly your problem is, but Halo isn't doing anything wrong."

"He's the faggot that caused our son to become tainted and kill himself," Mrs. Vega said. "He has no right to be here."

"Um, no," I said. "Halo didn't cause your son's death."

"Troy, stop," Halo muttered. "It's clear that I'm not wanted here, so I'll go."

I ignored him as I continued with, "Halo told me what happened, and if he's telling the truth, which I full heartedly believe he is, he's innocent. Charlie died because he felt like he couldn't be honest with you about himself, and the pressure of that was too much. If Halo hadn't been there, I'm sure Charlie would have died much sooner, if I'm honest, because he wouldn't have had anyone that was there for him. So shut the fuck up."

Mrs. Vega stared at me in shock. "You're the Steel boy, aren't you? Imagine what your mother would say if she knew you were defending a murderer."

"Halo is not a murderer," I snapped. My blood was boiling now. "He is a kind, sweet boy that I know for a fact blames himself and has hurt himself because he feels so badly about your son's death. And for the record, my mom knows that I love Halo, because she's a proper mother that loves her sons no matter what they do. And Halo's parents are the same way," I said.

"That faggot should have been the one to die, Not Charles," Mr. Vega said, and I resisted the urge to punch him.

"Halo doesn't deserve to die, and Charlie didn't deserve to either," I snapped. "I wanted to avoid saying this at a fucking cemetery, but I guess it's the only way to get you to understand; if you're looking for somebody to blame for your son's suicide, then find a fucking mirror. Because you made your son feel as though he couldn't be honest with you about who he loved, and it stressed him out to the point that he couldn't take it. You are why Charlie is dead, you ignorant fucks." Mr. and Mrs. Vega stared at me.

"Young man-"

"Stop!" A voice said. "Stop, mom." I looked to the left to see a teenage boy a little younger than me and Halo walking up to us. "It's not Halo's fault."

"Mathew, what are you talking about?" Mr. Vega asked. "This fa-"

"Call Halo That again, and I promise you that you won't be seeing out of both eyes for a while," I assured Mr. Vega, shutting the shorter and less muscular man up quickly.

"Before Charlie died, he gave me three letters," the boy dubbed Mathew said. "I didn't understand why at the time, but one was to me to read a week from that day, one I was to give to you and mom if you hated Halo for an unreasonable length of time, because he knew you would blame Halo, and today makes four years, and he gave me one that I was supposed to give to Halo If he ever moved on, which he hoped happened."

"You knew he-" Mrs. Vega started, but Mathew Cut her off.

"Yes, I knew he was gay, I knew he was in love with Halo, and I knew he was terrified of you and dad finding out," Mathew said. "Charlie told me. And I hated that you made him feel that he couldn't tell you. I still do." He turned to me and Halo, and handed my boyfriend a letter. "I had a feeling you would be here, so I brought this just in case you'd moved on. Read it when you get home; if it's anything like the one he wrote me, it gets pretty emotional. Mom, dad, I want you to read yours now." He handed Mr. Vega a letter.

Mrs. Vega took it from her husband, and opened it. The couple read the letter in silence, and Mrs. Vega raised a hand to her mouth. I watched as the pair teared up, and looked at Halo.

"You... you'd tried to talk him out of it?" Mrs. Vega asked Halo. He nodded.

"Losing him was almost as hard on me as I'm sure it was on you," he said quietly. "I'm so sorry, Mr. and Mrs. Vega. I really am."

"No," Mr. Vega said. "We're sorry. We've blamed you all this time, we despised you and banned you from attending Charlie's funeral because we thought it was your fault, when it was really us. We should have realized that it wasn't your fault the moment we answered the door to see you sobbing."

"It's ok, Mr. Vega. You were upset, I get it," Halo said. "I just wish you'd been a little less harsh to Charlie when he was still here." Suddenly, there was the barking of a dog. We all turned to see a little German Shepherd puppy running to us, with a man chasing after it. The puppy ran up to Halo, and jumped up on his leg. Halo kneeled down and stroked the puppy, holding it in place. "Is this your dog?" He asked the man when he caught up.

"No," the man said. "The poor pup's owner died in a car crash last week, and he refuses to leave her grave. I'm a guard here, and I've been feeding the little pup."

"Aw," I said. "That's so nice of you. Do you know the puppy's name?"

"The tag says Charlie," the man said. "The dog has no other owner, and this is the first time he's left Ms. Laurel's grave. I think it's ok if you take him home, if you want to. Though I must ask you to please not fight here anymore."

"I think the problem's been resolved," Mathew said. "But that's weird, both parties here are visiting a boy named Charlie. He was my big brother, and he loved German Shepherds."

"Maybe it's no coincidence," the man said. "Maybe you were meant to meet this pup."

"Hi little Charlie," Halo said. The puppy yipped eagerly, then padded over to the Vega family. First he let Mrs. and Mr. Vega stroke him, then Mathew, then he ran over to me, and nuzzled me affectionately.

"Hey, cutie," I said. The puppy licked my face. "You wanna go home with those people right there?" I asked. Charlie barked, and ran to Halo, once more jumping into his lap.

"I think he should go home with Halo," Mathew said. The Vega adults nodded in agreement.

"We should get going, Mathew, honey. You have practice," Mrs. Vega said.

"First, I need to ask Halo and... I'm sorry, what's your name?" Mathew asked me.

"Troy," I said.

"I need to ask Halo and Troy something," he said. "Just, go visit Gramma or something, please." They nodded, and walked away.

"What's up?" Halo asked.

"I- I want to tell them that I'm gay too," Mathew admitted. "Do you think they'll be ok with it after that letter?" Halo nodded.

"And if they don't, let me know, and I can move Troy into my room, and you can take the spare room," Halo said. "You're Like family, Matty, so You always have a home with the Dawson's if you need."

"Alright," Matty said. "I think I'll tell them now." He followed after his parents, and we watched as he began to talk, and looked down. His parents said nothing back, and then he began to walk away.

"Once a pair of assholes, always a pair of assholes," I muttered, turning away in disgust at Mr. and Mrs. Vega. Halo nudged me.

"No, look," he said, and I did so. Mathew was hugging his parents, and then he turned to us, flipping a thumbs up our way. Thank you, Matty mouthed. We nodded, and then Charlie (the dog) yipped. I looked down at the puppy, who was seemingly trying to climb my leg, so I picked him up.

"Hey, Charlie," I cooed, "I'm Troy. You wanna come home with me and Halo?" The dog yipped and licked my face.

"I'll ask my parents if we can keep him," Halo said.

"Alright. Let them know I can help with any financial issues," I said. "My parents have plenty of money to spare."

"Ok," Halo said, then scrunched his face up. "Troy, you don't have to help pay for anything, ok?"

"Just tell them that I can help," I insisted. He nodded reluctantly, and texted his parents.

"They're cool with it," Halo said. "Let's go, please." I nodded, and we walked back to Halo's truck, with Charlie padded behind us happily. I helped the tiny pup into the car, and then we were home before we knew it. "I- um, I'm gonna go read the letter," Halo mumbled as soon as we were inside. I nodded.

"Take the puppy with you," I suggested. "He seems to really like you." Halo nodded, and went up to his room.

Halo's POV

I slipped up to my room, avoiding my parents, and sat on my bed. I almost locked the door, but remembered that I had a boyfriend that could want to come in at any moment.

With shaky hands, I slowly tore open the letter which had my name written in Charlie's perfect handwriting, choking up when I read what the letter said.

Dear Halo,

If you're reading this, we both know what it means. Please, please don't blame yourself. Don't say that you didn't try hard enough, don't say that you could have stopped me. Because in all honesty, I think I was destined to kill myself. I'd been thinking about suicide before I met you. But I just can't take the pressure anymore. If my parents blame you (like I know that they sadly will), don't take what they say to heart. I already know that my last thoughts will be of you. Of your smiling eyes, the grin I love to see plastered on your face. Don't let that smile die. Don't give up on yourself the way I did.

Hey, I also know that if your reading this, you've moved on. That's good. I hope he's an amazing guy, somebody who treats you right. Somebody who won't leave you. Hey, make sure Matty isn't an idiot, will ya? And help him to come out of the closet for me. I'm sure he'll be ok with me telling you that he's gay.

I will never stop loving you, Halo Dawson. Stay strong and don't forget me,
~Charlie Vega.

P.S. Stop crying, you predictable dork. Also, the second piece of paper is for whoever your new boyfriend is.

I chuckled, wiping my eyes. Charlie knew me too well. I reread the letter, and trembled as I broke down into tears.

"Charlie," I sobbed into my pillow. "I miss you so, so much. I felt something wet nudge my hand, and looked up to see the dog Charlie licking my palm. I began scratching him gently behind the ears, crying still.

"Are you ok?" I looked up at Troy.

"Yeah," I said, managing a smile. "I'm more than ok."

"Do you mind if I read the letter?" Troy asked.

"Yeah, he also wrote one meant for whoever I date, so you," I told him. He nodded, and read both letters. "Can I read what he wrote you?"

"Nope," Troy said. "He said not to tell you." I pouted.

"He's evil," I said. Troy smirked.

"Well, he's not all that bad. He did love you. However, I do wish he hadn't been an asshole and left you hurting," Troy said. He pressed his lips to mine gently. "But I'll help you to heal. I promise, Halo, baby."

I smiled at him. "Thank you." He stroked my hair out of my face.

"Of course."