Another Story by The Head & the Heart

Daring stares into the brilliant orange flames, the sweet sound of Humphrey's voice distant, yet so near, in his mind. It's like a dream, that he's with the beautiful boy again; but the coldness outside the window reminds him that he's not. Humphrey is not here. Daring wishes what happened was a dream, that he wasn't alone. He remembers the bliss he felt with Humphrey, the warm summer days where they laughed and kissed under the sun. The snowy days where they curled together under blankets, flames in the stone fireplace dancing before their eyes. He remembers the softness of Humphrey's skin, the warm brown of his eyes, his gentle touches, the kindness in his heart. He remembers the shouts of Humphrey's father, hissing that Humphrey is a disgrace to his family, a filthy stain on their perfect lineage. He remembers Humphrey's tears, his misery that Daring couldn't' even begin to understand. How could a parent not love their son just because he likes boys? He remembers the blood on the knife as it lay, glimmering, on the tile. The cold of Humphrey's skin, the stillness of his chest.

Now, as Daring sits by the hearth, he turns a small picture of Humphrey around and around between his fingers. The gorgeous boy, big dimples, shining eyes. All that's left are memories, but they're beautiful ones, ones that nobody can ever take away.

Somewhere Only We Know by Keane

Humphrey sits on the blanket of fallen leaves, staring up through the tops of trees, at the golden sun. A river bubbles in the distance. Sweetly melodious birdsong fills the air. This was their place. The place they loved. He can picture it right now-Daring sitting under the oak tree, laughing as Humphrey tells one of his quirky jokes, listening intently as Humphrey divulges his deepest secrets. This place is where Humphrey opened up to somebody for the first time, to a beautiful boy whose exterior was tough but whose heart was velvety soft . It was so simple, so beautiful. Where did something so seamless go? They got older. They forgot to rely on each other.

"If you have a minute," Humphrey had said in his voicemail to Daring, late last night, "let's talk. At our special place."

But Humphrey is sitting here alone. Alone as the wind rustling the leaves, sweeping them from the branches. The ache in his heart is as expansive as the endless gray sky.

The Way It Was by The Killers
The tension between Daring and Humphrey is tangible, a pressure in the surrounding air. The silence in the room is deafening.

The desert was shrouded in black as Daring drove down the deserted highway last night. The weight of his and Humphrey's fight sat like a rock in Daring's chest. He hadn't known where to go, so he drove. He drove until the weight was painful, but not crushing.

"Do you remember those nights I'd sneak into your house?"
Daring says, his voice low. "Laying in bed together and just feeling so content, like anything we'd ever need was right there?"

"Yes," Humphrey says softly. "I do." He takes a shaky breath. "What happened?"

"I don't know," Daring admits, his voice cracking. "If we go on being together, can it...can it ever be the way it was?

Humphrey doesn't answer. He's too busy trying not to cry because he knows the answer. They're too far past the point of return. He can feel the absence inside him where Daring's heart used to beat along with his. It's gone. They're done.

Stressed Out by Twenty One Pilots

Humphrey wishes he had a time machine; so that he could go back to the days when he and Daring were young. Naive and blissful, immune to the struggles of the real world. When they built rocket ships and flew to outer space.
"Let's go to outer space!" Daring yelled happily, five years old and ready for adventure.

"I just finished the rocket ship, so let's go!" Humphrey exclaimed.

They saw the stars and planets, the swirling galaxies, the moon that is definitely made of cheese.

Now, as Humphrey sits at the kitchen table and tries to think of any way he could possibly pay all his student loans, he distantly notes how this much stress is probably going to give him an ulcer. Next to him, Daring groans.

"We need to make more money," Humphrey says, his voice downcast. "But how?"

"I know I look awful with this pimple," Daring laments. "But I can't use makeup to cover it because girls might be able to tell, and then they'd make fun of me!"

He rambles on and on about the inadequacies of his appearance, and Humphrey tries to think of when Daring started caring so much about what others think. Daring used to love his looks-too much, actually.

They've grown up, though, whether they wanted to or not. There's no turning back, so they just have to learn how to handle everything. At least they'll be doing it together.

Time After Time by Cyndi Lauper

"Humphrey," Daring whispers, slowly lifting his face from his hands, "what-what are you doing here? I-I thought you said you never wanted to see me again."

Humphrey sighs, sitting on the bench, keeping distance between them.

"I said I'd be there for you," he says. "Always. And I keep my word."
The overhang of the bus stop is the only thing sheltering the boys from the pouring rain. The sky is gray, and a biting wind whips past them.

"You sounded so desperate on the phone. I just can't leave you like that. No matter how angry I am. I just can't."

"Oh Humphrey, it was so horrible!" Daring sobs. "I just can't believe they don't love me! My own parents!" He gasps and coughs, choking on his anguish. "Just for being who I am! They hate me!"

He starts as warm arms suddenly wrap around him. His head is pulled gently to Humphrey's chest.

"It's okay," Humphrey whispers, as Daring clings to him and weeps. "I love you, okay? I'll always be here for you. I promise."

Birds by Imagine Dragons

Daring didn't expect Humphrey to be at his doorstep, but something about it feels right. It's meant to be. They're meant to be. Somehow, in that moment with the snow swirling outside, the porchlight illuminating Humphrey's wide brown eyes, Daring knows with a fierce certainty that this is the man he wants to spend the rest of his life with, no matter how much they argue.

"I made a vow," Humphrey says, his voice cracking with fear. "I promised to be with you through the good and bad times. I'm here because I love you."
Daring swallows, his mouth dry.

"I love you too," he says, sudden tears burning his eyes. "So much, it's like my chest is bursting."

Humphrey lets out a choked laugh, a smile lighting his pale face. It comes easily to Daring, the upturning of his lips, the hoarse chuckle that slips from his mouth. He reaches out, taking Humphrey's hands and pulling him into the warmth of the house.

"I know I let you down," he says, his voice low, "but I'll make it right. I'll always love you. Forever and ever."

Rollercoaster by The Bleachers

It's a hot summer day when Humphrey first sees Daring. The boy with windswept blonde hair standing on the high school quad, a big, cheeky smile on his face as he winks at the swooning girls who pass him. Humphrey rolls his eyes.

The next thing Humphrey knows, this boy, Daring, is his lab partner in biology class. He manages to mess up every experiment, even setting a glass phial on fire once.

"Just follow the instructions!" Humphrey snaps afterwards.

It's when Humphrey runs out of the room during the frog dissection and Daring follows that things start to change. Daring sits on the ground beside Humphrey and assures him that it's okay, that he understands. Humphrey looks into Daring's gray eyes and knows right then that there's something in Daring that he simply hadn't looked for. It's there, though-in his soft smile, his gentle voice, completely genuine, as he reassures Humphrey.

It only goes uphill from there. Long afternoons spent at the arcade-games and shared chocolate milkshakes. Lying beside each other on the football field, watching the sun set in a flurry of color. When they lock themselves in a bathroom stall one day at school, keen to get out of an especially dull history lecture, and their lips suddenly connect, Humphrey's stomach drops. He's never done this before. But Daring's lips are warm and soft, and suddenly they're rocketing uphill again, nearing the golden sun. The thrill leaves Humphrey breathless and flushed. He always wants to feel this way. The pumping adrenaline. The sweetness of Daring's lips. The love for this boy throbbing in his chest.

A Million Dreams from The Greatest Showman

"Are you okay?" Daring asks softly as he approaches Humphrey who is sitting on a pile of leaves.

Sunlight streams through the branches, dappling the forest floor with specks of gold.

"Just my parents again," Humphrey says quietly, picking at the ground with a stick.

Daring sits next to him, furrowing his brow in thought, when an idea suddenly strikes him.

"I have an idea!" he exclaims. "Come with me!"

He grabs Humphrey's hands, pulling him to his feet and speeding off down the path.

"Where are we going?" Humphrey asks.

"You'll see!"

They come to a house, small with an overgrown garden, clearly abandoned. Daring hops over the chipped wooden gate and reaches out to hold Humphrey's hand as he struggles over.

"Are you sure we can go in?" Humphrey asks nervously.

"Sure we can," Daring assures him.
The door swings open. Light filters through the windows, illuminating the dusty floor. Humphrey gasps as he looks around. The house is filled with beautiful things-old mahogany bookshelves, walnut desks covered with yellowed scrolls and feather quills, wardrobes standing tall in the corners. Cobwebs line the walls. Suddenly, candles flicker to life, in silver sconces on the wall. Humphrey gasps.

"How did that happen?!"

"Magic," Daring whispers. "This house is magical."

Humphrey's eyes are wide as Daring pulls him along. They run up the stairs, and Humphrey gasps as they reach the top. Light shines through a large hole in the ceiling. Small branches of a pine tree have grown through. The sunlight seems to sparkle on the floor as a bluebird flies in and perches on a branch. Beautiful melody fills the open, breezy space.

"This is magical," Humphrey says, taking Daring's hands.

Daring smiles.

"One day this house will be ours," he says, sounding confident as ever. "And we'll get to live in a magical world that we have all to ourselves. That's why you should never be sad, Humphrey; because soon we'll live here, and it'll just be us and the magic. It'll be amazing. Just wait and see."

Riptide by Vance Joy

Humphrey has been afraid his whole entire life. He feels small in his room at night, like he's being swallowed by the darkness. He feels small when he tries to talk to people, feeling like he's insignificant, that people are just thinking bad things about him anyway. He feels small when he meets Daring, a boy at his high school.

Humphrey gasps as a ball slams into his chest. The next thing he knows, he's on his back, staring up at the ceiling with blurry eyes.

"Hey! Watch it!" Daring yells.

A warm hand is suddenly gripping his.

"Are you okay?" the boy asks.

"Fine," Humphrey pants.
He's pulled up, and suddenly he's face to face with that boy. The boy all the girls fantasize about, the one who's always slicking his hair back and wiggling his eyebrows like he's some kind of model.

"Thanks," Humphrey stammers.

"No problem," Daring says. "I'll kick those boy's asses if they ever dare mess with you again."

Humphrey's mouth is agape. All he can do is nod. Daring smiles charmingly and walks away.

Suddenly, Daring is a part of Humphrey's life. Before he knows it, they're always together. At lunch, after school, at night when Daring sneaks into Humphrey's bedroom through the window; and they lie together in bed, speaking in hushed tones about every thought that pops into their heads.

One night, Daring sings. His voice is clear and soft. It isn't until Humphrey recognizes the song, though, that he realizes something is off. Daring is getting about half the words wrong. Either he says something else, or he mumbles. Humphrey can't fight the adoration welling in his chest; how much he wants to squeeze Daring close and tell him how much he means to him.

So he does. They hold each other and whisper what they feel until the sun rises.

Miss Atomic Bomb by The Killers

Daring is a blinding light, a smoldering flame, a deafening explosion. He knows this with a sinking certainty as he sits in the passenger seat, gazing out at the surrounding desert. He's impulsive, reckless, careless.

He remembers when he was the new boy in town, eager to fit in, to be liked. When he met Humphrey, though, the other people faded away. Suddenly, he only cared what this boy thought. And Humphrey has always thought that he's amazing; that he's strong, kind, beautiful inside and out. Humphrey has been his person for years; his friend, his confidante, his rock, the love of his life. But now Daring is leaving; moving to Hawaii where Humphrey won't follow. This is his town, and he won't leave.

This night feels like an ending; but Daring can't see a new beginning in sight. The lights of the gas station flicker as they park the car. They're sixty miles from home. They don't know why they're here. All they know is that they need each other right now. Music still blasting from the radio, Humphrey lunges at Daring, slipping onto his lap, straddling him. The lonely sound of the wind is a distant echo as they make out, experiencing the sensations that are so familiar yet so exhilarating and sacred every time. You're going to miss me when I'm gone, Daring thinks, as he savors the feeling of Humphrey's lips, so soft and warm. And I'm going to miss you. So much.