"Dallon. Dallon, wake up."

Dallon blinks blearily, turning his head to the sound of Brendon's voice, the other man gently shooks him to consciousness.

"Are we here?" He asked groggily, letting out a yawn as he rubs on his eyes.

"Yeah, we are."

Dallon turns to the window to see a familiar house that brings warmth to his chest just at the sight of the old house full of memories. He hasn't been in that house for years. As a child, always visits his Aunt Grace every holidays. He skipped a lot of those visits ever since he left for the city to start working.

The house is just as he remembers. The color of the reddish roof seems to have faded due to years of exposure. He should probably help repaint that roof when he gets the chance. The walls of the house seems to be covered in vines. It looked rather nice, adding color to the plain white walls of the home. The garden looks more lush than he remembers. He wonders if Aunt Grace has been teaching Nathan and Jordan with her amazing gardening skills. Christmas decorations are already up for the holidays.

"It's a pretty house." Nikki says, as she stares up at the nurtured home.

"I should ask your Aunt for gardening tips. Those sunflowers look wonderful." Nikki's mom adds as she turns to her husband.

"We should probably get ready and meet them." Weston prompts.

The moment Dallon left the car, he was hit with the scent of familiarity to his surroundings. He closes his eyes, grasping on the feeling of having to return to old memories. While the place he once considered home has changed drastically throughout the years, it's still the place he can find solace to.

It makes things less nerve wrecking at what's to come.

"You okay?"

Dallon opens his eyes and turns to the younger man beside him, staring up at him with concern. He smiles, looking back at Brendon with warmth.

When the other man returned the smile, Dallon isn't sure if something changed, or it's just his surroundings, but he could leave his gaze at the sight of Brendon smiling back up at him, his eyes crinkling with the same warmth as his hair is being gently swept by the breeze passing between them.

He's beautiful.

Dallon's always been conscious of his actions, so having this urge to hold the younger man's hand would be too bold of him. And yet, the closest thing he could do is hold against the sleeve of Brendon's jacket, tugging it in his grasp as if it's a life line.

Brendon just looks at him confusedly at the gesture, but Dallon just shook his head with a chuckle.

"I will be. I'll be okay. Thanks for coming with me."

Brendon smiles again, and it seems like something really did change if his heart keeps starting to beat a bit faster than it usually does just by the sight of it.

"You're welcome."

With a clearing of someone's throat, they both turn to see Nikki's mom smiling at them knowingly. Dallon lets go on his hold of Brendon's sleeve and blushes. Though he's aware there's nothing he should be blushing about, it just seem like they were caught doing something... just something.

"Mind if one of you boys help me with some bags at the trunk?" She says, the knowing smile never leaving her lips.

"I-I'll help." Brendon volunteers, giving Dallon a somewhat apologetic look before following Weston's wife with the bags.

"He's a good kid."

Dallon turns to Weston standing beside him with Nikki in his arms. There's nothing to deny about his statement.

"I think he's good for you." Weston adds, his gaze glued to Brendon. "If it wasn't obvious enough, you should know he likes you. A lot."

Dallon tries to keep the warmth on his cheek, but it was pointless stopping it anyway. With a shrug, he responds. "I know."

Weston looks to him incredulously, an eyebrow raised in disbelief. "You knew and you're not doing anything about it?"

"I-It's too soon, okay? You know we talked about this issue before." Dallon says anxiously.

Nikki just watches the two of them, and he wonders if it's really the right thing to have a child hearing their discussion.

"Okay, okay. I get it. But how long are you gonna wait?"

"A-A few years, I don't know."

"Why take years? Even for a little date?" Weston questioned, who looks a bit frustrated at the answer. "Well, luckily for you, that kid seems to be willing to wait for you.

"What?"

Weston smiles at his disbelief. "He's willing to wait for you. He told me so. I'm impressed, really. It's just as if..." Weston trails off, as if there's some realization in his words.

Feeling annoyed by the pause, Dallon tries to force the words out of him. "As if what?"

"It's as if he's in love with you."

Dallon tightens his jaw at the words. "He's not. He's just infatuated. He'll grow out of it. He's not gonna wait for me. No one in their right mind would wait that long!" He says rather harshly that made Nikki flinch in Weston's arms. Dallon forces an apologetic smile at the little girl.

He's contradicting himself. He hates how his mind is making a conflict within him. Dallon told himself he would try. But he never really said that any chance he had with Brendon would work out in the end. He would try, but he knows Brendon would get tired of him in the end. Brendon is going to leave one day. What makes him have that hope that Brendon is going to wait for him? For the both of them? This isn't a fairy tale.

He sounds like a hypocrite. He believed in this right time thing but the way he thinks right now also shows he doesn't believe in it. Dallon hates that he thinks so negatively.

Thoughts are so often cruel if you let it be.

"Sorry. Can we not talk about it?" Dallon says rather tiredly. He feels drained.

"Fine." Weston concedes with a huff. "I just don't want you to have regrets. I know I've had those, and I doubt it would ever leave no matter how long it's passed."

His older brother gently bumps against his shoulder, a gesture equivalent to his usual hair ruffles that he gets from the other man.

"You've always given others a chance. Why not give one yourself and see? It might end up better than you expected." His brother says before he goes beside his wife with his child wrapped around his arms.

Chance. The word still holds uncertainty, not assurance. Aside from that, he still has things to worry about, just like what he's about to face as he meets his younger brothers again.

Any chance he'd get would either pick between yes or no, with both unforeseeable outcomes in both ends.

How he would rather not choose at all, if both conclusions lead to heart break in the end.

*****

Brendon couldn't help but notice some tension that appeared when they were greeted by a man--probably close to his age--just by the door.

He looks a bit like Weston, really. It's probably his younger brother. But he's not sure which one.

Without a word, he just opens the door for them, signaling them to enter the house.

"You guys can just, uh, sit there. I'll call Aunt Grace." He says awkwardly, his eyes not really looking at all of them.

"Is your brother okay?" Brendon asked, once the younger Weekes was out of earshot.

Dallon just smiles at him sadly. "He's trying to get used to it. Nathan's always been a shy kid."

Before he could ask more, a woman with a kind face--probably in her late forties--appears from the kitchen holding a tray of baked pastries. "Would my guests like some of my muffins?"

"Aunt Grace!" Weston greets warmly, as he approaches the lady and engulfs her in to a hug.

"You silly boy, my muffins might fall!" She says, holding out the tray with her free hand, and pats on his nephew's back lightly.

They all laugh at the sight, including Nathan, watching the little scene from the kitchen with a fond smile in his face. The tension has lessen, it seems. Grace is a wonderful, motherly host. And it's apparent that sass is in the Weekes' bloodline. It's nice to marvel such fact about Dallon's family.

Nathan seems rather reserved, but he seems to be warming up to everyone. He's getting in touch with Weston again, which hopes it's enough to lessen Dallon's worries.

He knows that the brunette frets about his brothers meeting Weston again. But it looks like it's getting along just fine, as he watches Nathan and Weston laugh over something they were talking about.

"I don't think I've seen you before, dear." A soft, motherly voice says beside him. He turns to Grace, looking up at him curiously.

"I'm Brendon. I'm a friend of Dallon's, m-ma'am."

Grace squints up at him, looking at him from head to toe. He's not sure why the inspection unnerves him.

"So, you're Brendon." The lady says with a hint of amusement in her tone. "Dallon doesn't have a lot of friends. I only know Matty and Dan from his letters before."

"He talked about me?"

The grin that Grace gives him just confirms it.

"Oh, did you know this boy just barges in the car and called himself Satan?" Grace mimics in a deep voice as if she's trying to impersonate Dallon's voice. Brendon just couldn't help but blush at the description.

Satan. Seriously? Way to make an impression on his family, Brendon.

"S-Sorry."

Grace just heartily laughs at his flustered expression, giving him a pat on his shoulder. "Aw, don't worry about it. It's quite charming to think about, now that I've seen you personally."

Her expression shifts into something fond. "And besides, he seems to be very fond of you, according to his letters. I'm just glad Dallon's been making good friends while he's away. I always worry about that boy."

"He doesn't have a lot of friends here?"

"Well, he did have a close friend. It was a boy named Ryan Seaman. But I haven't heard from that boy in years after he left here. I'm not quite sure if he still keeps in touch with Dallon." Grace sighs, her gaze turning to Dallon talking to Nikki as he watches the little blonde draw.

"That boy needs to forgive himself for the things that are not his fault." She mumbles out of the blue, rather to herself than a direct response.

"If you don't mind me asking, what do you mean by that?" Brendon inquires. While he doesn't want to pry in Dallon's personal thoughts, he just needed to understand what makes the brunette so hard on himself.

"Oh, it's nothing--"

"Please?" Brendon wants to know the root of Dallon's demons. He wants to know how to help him. "I want to help him."

Grace gazes at him, as if she's searching for something. He stares back unflinchingly, giving her a look that conveys that she can trust him.

"His mother Leanne was diagnosed with cancer, years after Weston left their home." She explains solemnly as she leads Brendon to the gardens, making sure Dallon and the others are out of earshot. "Weston's departure might have made her condition worse. She constantly worries about him."

"She never told the kids and her husband about her sickness. Leanne never wanted them to worry. At that time, I offered to help my sister with her medication, but she refused each time I offered. She just told me to watch over the boys ever they need it. But of course the boys still knew something was wrong. The hair loss was there, and she became more fragile, but my sister is just too stubborn."

Brendon gulps, feeling like he knows where this story is going for Dallon.

Grace's eyes seems to have glisten once she continues. "Her condition got worse one day, and she fainted. It was Dallon who found her and she was taken to the hospital. He was so traumatized, seeing her mother like that. He never deserved to see that."

"His father and I told Dallon about the situation. But he just... he just thinks 'If I brought her to the hospital sooner, then she would have been okay. She wouldn't get sick. If only I didn't let Weston leave then maybe she'd be better. It's all my fault, it's all my fault."

"'It's all my fault.' It scared me, how he muttered those words all those years ago. No matter how we tell him otherwise, he wouldn't believe us. And then, the thing with his father..."

Grace clears her throat, wiping away the tears that fell from her eyes. Her voice becoming shaky as she resumes. "And then his father died from an accident. His father became alcoholic, after Leanne's death. Dallon had an issue about it, so they fight a lot regarding his drinking habits. Out of frustration, his Dad went out for a drink that day. He was driving home drunk when his accident happened. Dallon never stopped blaming himself."

Brendon sighs shakily, feeling a heavy lump on his throat. "But it wasn't his fault."

Grace shook her head, smiling at him sadly. "It never was, but I fear he never saw it that way."

"Has he considered... asking for help?"

She shook her head in response. "He's just as stubborn as his mother!" Grace huffs at that, but then, she softens with a fond smile. "But the thing is, once you've gained his trust, he's going to give you the ends of the earth just to see you happy. He's too selfless, that silly boy."

Grace gives him a gaze, it's a stern look, but with a message: "I just hope he finds someone who would do the same for him."

With that, they both stood, letting the silence envelope them in their thoughts, and that's enough.

It's enough.

"Let's go inside, shall we?" The older lady says with an charming smile, wrapping her arm around Brendon's own.

"Yeah--"

Brendon was cut off when he heard a hard slam from the living room that made him and Grace flinch. They both look at each other with concern.

Without hesitation, Brendon's mind immediately led him to find Dallon and see what happened.

He only hopes it's something to be fixed.

*****

"Why are you here?"

"Jordan, please calm down--"

"Why are you here!?"

Dallon closes his eyes, trying his best to calm himself. His hands are clenched to his sides, trying to keep them from shaking. Jordan is still screaming, and Weston's voice is beginning to raise. He could hear Nathan trying to ease them, but to his ears, their words are gibberish, and the only sound he hears is the loud beating. Whether it came from his heart or his head, none of that matters; it hurts.

It hurts.

Nikki and her mother thankfully aren't seeing this. This isn't something for them to see.

"How dare you come back?"

"Look, Jordan. I just want to make amends, to everything. Please--"

"You have no right--"

This has to stop. It has to stop.

"Would all of you please shut up?"

Dallon remains keeping his eyes closed tightly, even though he's aware of his brothers looking at him in shock at his outburst. He just didn't want to see them fighting. Not now, not ever.

He's too tired for that.

Trying to regulate his breathing doesn't seem to work in making him calm down. The silence that falls into the room just makes it worse.

It's all too much.

Despite the calls that his brothers make, that didn't stop him walking out of the house, slamming the door hard than necessary. Despite the coldness of the outdoors, he walks away from all of them.

He blinks away the tears that begin to form in his eyes as he keeps his stride forward, to the one place he knows someone will listen.

And after some years, it's finally time he visits his parents.

*****

[A/N: It's the holidays and this seems rather sad I'm so sorry but hey, I'm typing up something for the next chapter hopefully ready for tomorrow!

Dallon responded to my tweet(s) yesterday and it's still unbelievable to me. I was at work back then and I'm trying not to squeal and die in front of my coworkers ahaha!

This chapter left me drained again hahaha so it might not be my best, but I hope you guys like it. Thanks for reading, sorry for the mistakes, and happy holidays!]