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"Isn't he dead?" Star laughed.

Marco shrugged,"Well considering he was blasted into oblivion by a ray of narwhals and practically exploded twice," he recalled," I would think he's dead."

Him and Star proceeded to discuss their past summer adventures while Tom sat idly by, listening intently. At some points in the dramatically told stories, Tom would nod and smile or make a sly comment. But he was more focused on how content Marco looked at that moment; retelling old memories with friends while eating nachos seemed to relax him. He needed the break from 'double school', it seemed like it was literal hell for him (Tom would know).

The times he would call Tom, which were very rare during that time period, he would be complaining about how stressed he was. With every call Tom wished he could comfort his boyfriend and other times he wished Marco would comfort him. Seeing as he was becoming of age to take on the throne, his father was overworking him with royal duties and training sessions. Most nights, Tom would not sleep at all due to the twenty -four seven 'work-outs'.

But being with Marco, in person, seemed to wash away all the pain he had endured for the past year.

He had never been happier.

"So how was your summer Tom?" Star asked, now bouncing on her knees.

Tom and Marco quickly glanced at each other, a wave of memories flooded both of their minds, making them cringe inwardly. Over all, they had a total of two fights: one ending in screaming and the other ending in tears. At one point, they almost fell apart completely.

"It was alright, I guess," He rubbed the back of his neck, "but there were some...rough spots along the way. You know, getting ready to rule a kingdom and all."

Star nodded," Yeah I know how that is," she gnawed on her wand thoughtfully," but I can't imagine what it was like with your dad, Tom."

His smile wavered," My dad is the King of Hell, he just wants me to fill his boots per say." He adjusted himself on the couch," My whole summer was filled with excruciating pain because of him. My whole life is miserable because of him, I-"

He had, what people would prefer to as, 'daddy issues', and when someone brought his father up well, it doesn't always end well.

Tom's shoulders began to smoke as painstaking memories broke through the mental dam.

Pathetic.

You're not good enough!

You're no son of mine.

Worthless piece of-

"Hey Tom, calm down bud," Marco put his hand on Tom's shoulder. He looked up at the demon with a calm expression and a soft smile; Tom seemed to settle down at his touch. Tom grabbed Marco's hand, squeezed it as a silent thank you. He had missed this, he had missed Marco calming him down when he was about to lose it. It took merely a gentle tap on the shoulder to calm the, seemingly, uncontrollable anger that lay inside of him.

Star cleared her throat.

"I'm sorry I just-"

The Princess of Mewni smiled forcefully, "No, no I get it-"

"I, uh, I should probably cool off," with that said, he got up and hastily walked out of the room. A murmur of concern and impatience rose up behind him from the living room, Star and Marco talking in hushed voices. Tom rubbed his temples and opened the door to the front lawn, inhaling the fresh stench of fresh lawn clippings and fertilizer. Tom walked toward the side of the house, leaned against a wall and buried his face into his hands. A muffled sob shook his entire body, his joints began to ache as they remembered the beating they had taken, smoke seeped through eyes and mouth.

What happened to me?
Where did this come from?

Questions bombarded him, memories overtook him, past injuries started to throb and ache.

Why couldn't he just control himself for once? Why? Why? Why? Why-

"Tom?"

He looked up to see Marco, a look of concern painted on his face. The same look he was given by Tom a couple of months ago. He inched closer cautiously, eyeing the smoke steaming off of Tom's body," You okay?"

Tom rubbed his third eye with his palm and nodded," It's just, when he's always mentioned or something, I just lose it. I'm always so contained and I just-"

"You're triggered by him," Marco added," every time he interacts with you, he always hurts you someway. Whenever he's mentioned, you immediately think about those times and just-bwoosh!" He mimicked an explosion with his hands, making Tom softly chuckle.

Tom pushed of the wall to face his boyfriend," Marco Ph.D.," he sighed, changing the topic," I've always wondered what Ph.D. stood for."

Before Marco could answer, a voice from inside yelled," Pretty handsome dude!"

""¡Mamá! ¿Por qué me haces esto?" Marco shouted back, completely flustered and as red as a ripe tomato. Tom loved it when Marco spoke in Spanish, it was very rare he would hear it, and when he did hear it, he found it... Hot.

Marco turned back and shyly smiled at him," So, I was actually going to ask if, uh, you want to stay the night? You don't have to if-"

"I'd love to stay the night, Marco," Tom interrupted.

The Hispanic boy smiled, filled with joy, he grabbed Tom's hand.

"Mackie Hand marathon?"

"Mackie Hand marathon," Tom agreed.

With that, Tom and Marco strolled around the neighborhood until the sun set. Their fingers staying intertwined, hands perfectly fit together.

As Marco rested his head on his boyfriend's shoulder, he thought back to just a couple of years ago, when they were just mere rivals.

He would have never guessed they would be more than that.

More than friendenemies.