Chapter 45: New Directions

ARTIE

Artie stared at himself in his bathroom mirror. He put on his glasses. Then he took them off.

Today was his big day: the day he'd be sitting on stage before his entire graduating class and their families, reading his Valedictorian speech before receiving his long-awaited diploma and moving his tassel from one side to the other- officially signifying the end of his time as a high school student.

Artie's palms were clammy, causing him to wipe them on his black dress pants. He adjusted the collar of his white shirt before tightening his red necktie. He chose red to match with his cap and gown, of course.

For the last couple of months, he'd been hesitant about celebrating the title he'd earned, based on the fact that he'd tied for the spot instead of being the single most well-rounded student in their class. After his chat with Quinn at The Lima Bean, however, Artie's thought process had changed completely. She'd reminded him not to sell himself short, and that even tying for the title is still quite the achievement. It'd taken hearing those same words several times, from various people, for its message to sink into Artie's stubborn mind, but he finally got it. Instead of discounting himself for tying for the title, he should be celebrating Tina, who worked just as hard as he did for the last four years and also earned that position, but graciously stepped down and gave it up for her best friend. With that on his mind, Artie had made it a point to amend his Valedictorian speech, including a line recognizing Tina for her achievements as well. Only now, as he prepared to wheel across the auditorium stage for the final time, was the gravity of her selfless act beginning to sink in.

Tina and Sebastian- Artie's harshest, but also his most trusted, critics- had given their input on his speech, each suggesting their own little edits here and there. Artie had taken their advice and tweaked his words little by little, with the main point of his message staying the same: high school may have sucked, but it was in these halls that he'd had some of the great joys of his life with the best people he'd ever known.

Even though Artie had written this speech months ago, he still wasn't completely confident in his decision to divulge the story of his injury to the hundreds of people that would be in the audience. Being vulnerable was uncharted territory for the boy who found comfort in keeping everything bottled up. He'd worked for years to make sure that nobody saw him any different, just as Artie: the always-nerdy, overly opinionated, caffeine addict who just happens to use a wheelchair.

But in reality, he is different. And what makes him different from his siblings and his friends isn't bad or taboo, but he didn't want his speech to evoke the dreaded "Oh my gosh, look at how this boy overcame his limitations to become number one in his class!" reaction. He didn't want to be anybody's inspiration porn- or worse- for anybody to pity him. But if his goal for his speech was to be transparent in sharing his experiences, then being disabled is a huge part of his identity. So, in the end- even with his hesitations- Artie decided to go ahead and leave it in. All of it. For himself, though, not for anybody else.

Now, here he sat in front of his bathroom mirror. The colors of his outfit paying homage to McKinley High, his speech perfected… all he needed to do now was decide: glasses or no glasses?

Artie stared at himself a moment longer, before shoving the black frames back onto his face. Maybe he'd experiment more at college with wearing daily contact lenses in their place, but as far as High School Artie goes, his glasses were just as much of a trademark of his as the chair was.

All of the nit-picky anxiety over every tiny detail- from his speech to his glasses- was beginning to subconsciously take a toll on Artie's body. As he twisted in his chair, the middle of his back twinged with a striking pain that shot down his lower extremities, causing his eyes to bug out a little bit with surprise.

The neuropathic pain was nothing new. Actually, it was there most of the time; just a dull, tingly feeling that Artie had trained himself to ignore, for if he didn't, it would surely drive him crazy. However, every once in a while- usually when he's stressed or anxious- the nerve pain acts up and feels like he's getting tasered, catching him off guard and sidetracking him from whatever else was going on in his day.

From a scientific standpoint, it made sense, Artie supposed. The nerves in his spinal cord had been damaged in the crash, and the pain was a symptom of misdirected or amplified electrochemical nerve impulses. When the electrical signals his brain was trying to send the rest of his body got to The Spot- the place where his spinal cord had been severed- they'd have nowhere else to go, so the little ball of electricity would go haywire, completely spazzing out, and causing Artie to double over in pain in the process. It was his central nervous system's way of giving him the finger, even when things were going well in his personal life.

The sensation is not something he'd ever explained to anybody who didn't have a medical degree, not only because it wasn't anybody's business but his own, but rather because they just wouldn't understand. How could they? He could hardly rationalize it himself. If he can't feel his legs, why can he feel the sharp, agonizing, fiery pain that originates at The Spot, and travels down to his toes and back up again?

Artie pulled out the bottom drawer to the left of his bathroom sink and was met face-to-face with his extensive stash of prescription bottles. The collection may have been overwhelming to the average person, but it didn't faze Artie in the slightest. His mini-pharmacy of sorts was just a part of his daily life that nobody really needed to know about. These various drugs were another thing that had become part of his daily life to keep him going after the accident, just a little secret between him and himself. It really wasn't a big deal.

Artie ran his index finger over the white caps of the semi-identical pill bottles, in search of Neurontin, the medication that would reduce the excitability of his central nervous system, therefore lulling the constant white noise of pain traveling throughout his body. He shook out the correct dosage- enough to get him through the first half of the day- before popping the little yellow capsules in his mouth and filling up the Dixie cup next to the faucet with water to wash them down. Artie planned on taking a second dose later in the afternoon, just in case the sensation didn't subside.

He'd been down this road before. He knew how it usually went. He just didn't have time for this bullshit. Not today. Today was his day. He'd worked his butt off over the last four years to get to this point, and he'd be damned if he let himself get sidetracked by something as inconvenient as spontaneous nerve pain.

Artie glanced at the silver watch he was wearing on his wrist. They needed to leave soon or else they'd run the risk of being late.

Sebastian must have been thinking the same thing because he appeared in the doorway of Artie's bathroom just then. In his pain-induced haze, Artie hadn't even heard him come in.

"Looking professional, Valedictorian Arthur John Abrams," Seb praised him using his full title, causing Artie to smirk. "Ready to go?"

Artie glanced at himself in the mirror one more time and let out a deep breath before replying.

"Ready as I'll ever be."

…

Graduation went off without a hitch. Artie recited his speech without tripping over his words, and all of his loved ones were able to watch him close this chapter of his life.

Artie's father, from whom Artie had inherited his love for film, had come to Lima for the occasion and brought along his fancy camera to record the day so that they could look back on it for years to come. Nancy put her DSLR camera to good use, snapping photos of Artie and Sebastian with their friends and their diplomas, as well as some of the four kids, Art and Artie, and one of Sebastian and Harrison. She handed the camera to Sebastian, who took some of the three Abrams kids with their parents, and, finally, Art stepped in to snap a photo of the blended family. In every picture, Artie was proudly sporting his Valedictorian medal.

Immediately following the ceremony, the Abrams and Smythe families headed out for a celebratory lunch. In honor of the special occasion, Harrison had made a reservation at the restaurant at the country club that he belonged to. It was much more classy and fancy than the restaurants that the family was used to eating at, and Artie could see that his father seemed a little out of his element. It was no Breadstix, that was for sure.

"Um… What's this for?" Artie wondered out loud when they reached their table, pointing at a high chair that was positioned between two of the other chairs. "Please, dear God, tell me that this isn't a pregnancy announcement."

"Arthur John!" Nancy hissed at him, which got a good laugh out of the siblings. "Good lord, no." She turned to her husband, who looked a little bit less confused by the high chair's presence than the others, for answers.

"When I called to make the reservation, I asked for space for a wheelchair. The hostess must've misheard me and written down that we needed space for a high chair instead," he explained. "I'll go find someone to get that taken care of."

"Hey, no, it'll work," Sebastian insisted. "Artie, you've got some skinny chicken legs. I bet you can fit in it anyways."

Artie appreciated his sense of humor.

"Only one way to find out!" Artie quipped as he started to wrap his arms around Sebastian's neck and the taller boy prepared to lift him into the seat made for toddlers. They were certainly beginning to draw stares from the other patrons in the restaurant now, but Ella, Griffin, and Art seemed amused. On the other hand, Nancy and Harrison were horrified.

"Hey! Boys! No!" Nancy snapped at them. "We'll just call the hostess over to take it away. Quit acting like six-year-olds. You just graduated high school, for God's sake."

After a very embarrassed-looking host came to take the high chair back to where it came from, Artie locked his wheels in place in between Sebastian and Griffin. It wasn't long until the waiter came to take their drink orders, and when he returned, Art Abrams did something very uncharacteristic of him: he made a toast.

"So, I'm not the best with words," he began with a laugh, making eye contact with his younger son who was seated across the table from him. "But today's a big day in the lives of Artie and Sebastian. High school isn't easy for anyone, I don't think, but you boys faced that challenge head-on, all while participating in sports and Glee Club, and getting good grades in the process, too."

Artie glanced at where Sebastian sat beside him, flashing one another matching tight-lipped grins.

"In the fall, you'll both head off to some fantastic schools to further your education, and I can't wait to see the great things you'll do in the future. I'm very proud of you both." He raised his glass in the air before saying, "To Sebastian and Artie!"

Everyone else at the table raised their glasses in cheers as well.

"To Sebastian and Artie!"

…

SEBASTIAN

Spencer and Kitty had been the first to arrive at the Abrams-Smythe family's home that afternoon to help set up for the party. Artie and Kitty had tasked themselves with setting up the food, which was an assortment of fruit, chips, cookies, and a few boxes of pizza. That left the decorating up to Sebastian and Spencer, which would have been an easy job, had it not been for Artie's self-proclaimed "directorial point-of-view". He sat back and watched those two do all of the manual labor, directing them as to where the decorations would look best ("Trust me, Seb! I'm a director! This is my forté! Now, you need to fix that banner. It's off-center," he'd not-so-subtly pointed out).

Once they were ready for their guests to arrive, the two couples had all gone to change into their swimsuits before meeting up back outside.

"Cute suit," Sebastian complimented his boyfriend with a guilty smile on his face that he tried to hide by biting his lower lip.

Spencer was wearing aqua blue swim trunks that ended a few inches above his knee, tastefully showing off his buff quad muscles. He had a towel slung over his shoulder, and his lightly defined abs were just barely visible under his sunkissed skin. Even though they'd been dating for the better part of the school year, Seb still got butterflies when Spencer was near. He supposed that was a good thing.

"Thanks. You don't look so bad yourself," Artie joked before Spencer even had a chance to respond, wheeling up from behind the blonde boy with Kitty by his side. Sebastian stuck his tongue out at his step-brother, who just grinned, clearly pretty proud of himself.

Artie set his brakes and carefully transferred down onto the edge of the pool as the others laid their towels out on the patio. The pool's heater had been on all morning, ensuring that it was the perfect temperature for Artie's body. The foursome hopped into the water, accompanied by Buck, Artie's father's black lab. The elder Art Abrams had brought him along for his weekend stay in Lima, and the dog had taken a running start before leaping into the pool, effectively splashing the two couples and causing them to erupt into a fit of giggles.

It wasn't long before their multitude of friends began to show up, and soon, the pool and patio alike were both densely packed with bodies.

Hosting a "small" get-together wasn't exactly possible where the New Directions were concerned. Or, rather, where Artie Abrams was concerned. He was friends with everybody, which meant that even those who were only on the team for a short amount of time (a la Lauren Zizes, those three band guys whose names Seb didn't know, and even some dude he'd never seen before named Matt Rutherford) were still invited to celebrate the Class of 2013 with a pool party. Sebastian loved the attention of having everyone around to congratulate him on his graduation, and Nancy Abrams loved hosting, so nobody minded that Artie seemed to have invited everyone he could possibly think of.

Just when it seemed like all of their friends were in the backyard already, two more familiar faces showed up to join the party.

"Oh, yeah, I forgot to tell you," Artie began, paddling over to the edge of the pool where Sebastian was sitting, taking a break from swimming for a minute. "I invited Watson and Betty."

Sebastian rolled his eyes and shook his head, not surprised that Artie had broken his own rule that only current and former New Directions members were invited to the party.

"Hey, guys! Glad you could make it!" Artie exclaimed, beaming up at his friends.

"Oh, um, yeah! Thanks for having us," Watson replied, appearing a little distracted as he scanned the crowd while looking for Tina, who was currently swimming in the deep end of the pool with Blaine and Sam.

Sebastian had to admit that he was surprised that Watson and Betty had both made the trip to Lima for just the party, with one living across the state in eastern Ohio, and the other down in central Ohio. This then prompted the follow-up question of why these two had shown up together when they live so far away from one another… Unless…

Watson was wearing that goofy grin that Seb recognized immediately as the one that came along with being a little hot and bothered. Sebastian knew that glow. Sebastian was a frequent wearer of that glow. Glancing at Betty, Sebastian noticed that she had her usual self-satisfied smirk on her face, which all but confirmed his suspicions. These two had clearly just gotten it on in the car before coming here, and it was evident to everyone. Everyone except for Artie, apparently.

"Wait, did you guys drive together?" Artie asked with a confused look on his face as he cocked his head to the side. It seemed as though he was the only one who had yet to connect the dots. Even Tina had swam closer and looked a little bit jealous. "What's that about? I mean, it's not Wheelie Wednesday."

Watson cringed a little bit. Everyone's eyes were on him and Betty now. They had certainly made a grand entrance, whether they had wanted to or not. The others tried to make themselves look busy, as Artie's fingers still gripped the pool's edge waiting for an answer.

All of a sudden, it appeared to have dawned on him.

"Oh!" He let out in surprise. "Oh, ew! You two are… Ew." He stuck his tongue out and shook his head before addressing Betty pointedly. "Betty, whatever happened to you not dating losers in chairs?"

"Are you calling me a loser?" Watson joked.

"What can I say?" Betty shrugged, the smirk still plastered on her face. "I made an exception."

"Gross," was Artie's response before rolling his eyes and swimming away.

As Watson and Betty went off to start spreading their belongings out onto two free lounge chairs across the patio, Sebastian couldn't help but think that Wheelie Wednesdays were about to become a lot more awkward now. If those two were planning to become a couple, then that made Artie the third wheel… in addition to the twelve wheels that were on their chairs, collectively, already.

"Ugh. Can you believe that?" Tina asked, nodding toward Watson and Betty before hoisting herself out of the pool and sitting next to Sebastian on the edge. She ran her fingers through her long black hair, which was all tangled from the pool's salt water, before tossing it back over her shoulder. "It's like the last six months haven't meant anything to him."

"Wasn't it your idea to take this break in the first place? You could have waited until the end of the summer before making it official," Sebastian reminded her. "And don't think that any of us have forgotten that you kissed Sam in the astronomy classroom, because we haven't. And we won't. Not for a very long time."

"Okay, okay, shut up! I get it. That doesn't mean I have to like it, though," she said, still staring at Watson as she crossed her arms over her hot pink bikini top before speaking up again. "I do want him to be happy, and if he finds happiness in Betty, then good for him. But he didn't have to come in here, flaunting her around, you know? I mean, they came in here and, right away, everyone knew that they had just done it in the car."

She glanced over at Artie, who was now with Santana and Brittany in the shallow end, judging their handstand contest having apparently already forgotten about being bothered by the pairing that was Watson and Betty.

"Well. Everyone except for Artie, but then again, he's clueless. Seriously. Did you know that he thought that condoms were only for preventing pregnancy until, like, last year?" She shook her head. "Anyways. Yes, I'm jealous."

"Well, you're still technically together aren't you?" Sebastian asked, to which she shrugged and nodded. "So go over there and claim what's yours! Show Betty that she's got competition. Until you leave for Rhode Island in three months, at least."

Tina looked at him for a minute, as if considering his idea.

"Just think about it," Sebastian said, rubbing Tina's shoulder. "I'm going to get a refill."

He grabbed the Solo cup that he'd been sipping on and stood up, wrapping his towel around his waist. He was desperate to escape the awkwardness of watching Tina stare daggers at Betty from across the backyard, even if only for a moment. Sebastian had just begun pouring more lemonade in his cup when he realized that Spencer had followed him over to the snack table.

"Hey, babe," Spencer said, coming up from behind him, wrapping his strong arms around Sebastian's midsection and hugging him from behind. "I got you something. For graduation. I want to give it to you."

Sebastian spun around so that he could look his boyfriend right in his bright blue eyes.

"You didn't have to get me anything," Sebastian insisted, to which Spencer shook his head.

Spencer took Sebastian by the hand, dragging him out of the backyard and up the driveway, towards where his Jeep was parked along the curb in front of the house.

"Okay, I didn't have wrapping paper, so you're going to have to close your eyes."

"Spence, I don't-"

"Close 'em!"

"Ugh! Alright!" Sebastian closed his eyes and held out his hands. He was handed something that felt kind of like a book of some sort.

"Okay, you can open them!" Spencer said excitedly. Sebastian found his giddiness about the surprise just adorable.

As Sebastian opened his eyes, he could see that his suspicions about the gift being a book were correct, but he just couldn't have predicted what kind. In his hands, was a scrapbook with a big picture of the two of them on the cover.

Sebastian set the book on the hood of the car as he began to flip through it, Spencer looking over his shoulder the entire time.

"You made this?' Sebastian asked, glancing from page to page at pictures of them from throughout the school year. There were photos of them from Grease, from various Glee Club performances, funny-faced selfies, and even some sneaky candid pictures of them at the carnival, in the school cafeteria, and on the baseball diamond (that Seb was nearly certain had come from Artie's camera roll). Spencer had clearly put a lot of work into it, selecting just the right pictures to utilize, and placing fun captions and multicolored stickers on the pages.

"It was actually kind of fun. It gave me something stress-relieving and creative to do over the last few weeks. I figured you could take it to school with you," he said with a shrug. "Actually, that's not the only thing I got for you."

He ducked in the backseat of the car and retrieved a small white box.

"Spencer…?" Sebastian began shaking his head with an expression that could only be described as surprise with a side of panic.

"Just open it," Spencer insisted.

Sebastian accepted the box and removed the lid, his breath hitching a little when his eyes landed on what was inside.

"It's a bracelet," Spencer explained as Sebastian admired the gift in the box.

"You bought this? With what money?" Sebastian asked in disbelief. A gift as nice as this one must have been out of Spencer's price range. Sebastian knew that Spencer's budget was usually tight, so he'd help him out where he could, such as buying both of their coffees every morning. How Spencer could have afforded this baffled him.

"The money I earned from babysitting Peyton and mowing lawns all spring," Spencer laughed. "I wanted to buy you something nice. To show you how proud of you I am."

The bracelet was just masculine enough, made out of woven cords with silver accents. Sebastian slipped it on his wrist, and only then did he notice the writing on either side of the silver plate in the middle.

"It's engraved. On the front, it has the coordinates of Paris, so you always have a piece of home with you, no matter where you are. And, um, on the back, it says 'Sebi'. I remember you saying once that that was your mom's nickname for you. I wanted you to have a piece of her, too. I know how much you miss her." Sebastian was at a loss for words, and judging by the way that his boyfriend was wringing his hands together, his uncharacteristic silence was making Spencer nervous. "It's simple, but-"

"No, it's perfect," Sebastian said, cutting him off as his heart swelled with love. It was just the most touching gesture; easily one of the nicest things anyone had ever done for him.

Sebastian placed the now-empty box beside the scrapbook on the hood of Spencer's car before embracing his boyfriend and taking his soft pink lips in his own. Moments like these- spent just between the two of them- were what he was going to miss the most when he headed off to Ohio State in the fall. Luckily, he'd only be a short drive away.

Spencer had been right: Paris was home. But if there was anything that Sebastian had learned over the last few years, it was that home could be plenty of different locations. It was wherever you felt safe and had found your people. Sebastian considered a bunch of places to be home: Paris, Lima, and soon, Columbus.

And right here on the sidewalk in his boyfriend's arms, that was home, too.

…

After the sun went down, a few kids stayed later into the night. This crew would take advantage of any opportunity to gather around the fire and sing together, always accompanied by Sam and Artie on their acoustic guitars.

The "small" graduation party had turned out to be a smashing success. Nearly every present and past New Directions member had made an appearance at some point during the afternoon, even Quinn, which surprised Sebastian. She and Artie looked quite comfortable around one another, how, Sebastian didn't know. He could never imagine being so close with one of his exes. But then again, Artie was Artie: a friend to everyone.

When the crowd had dwindled down to the usual suspects of Sam, Spencer, Ryder, Tina, and Blaine (even Kitty had gone home, for she had to babysit in the morning), Harrison came outside and offered to let the friends sleep over, if they wanted to. It was getting late, and he knew that there was a good chance that somebody had brought along some alcohol to share (or that his own son, who had been drinking a glass of wine a day since he was fifteen, was planning to break into the alcohol cabinet later, which was also true). Ever the cautious parent, Harrison wanted to do all he could to prevent any kind of accident from happening. In this household, you drove stark sober, or not at all. This was a family who knew too well the dangers that alcohol could impose on one's ability to drive.

It had gotten a little bit colder as the hours grew later, and Artie, always cognizant of the changes in temperature, excused himself to go throw on a hoodie. When he didn't return for a while, Sebastian assumed that he was probably taking this opportunity to use the bathroom. Regardless, Seb went looking for him, stopping in the kitchen on the way to Artie's room and taking time to craft them each a drink.

"Are you halfway decent?" Sebastian asked before pushing the door open all the way.

"I'm clothed, if that's what you mean," Artie replied with a small laugh as he emerged from the bathroom to find Sebastian standing in his bedroom with a champagne flute in each hand.

"Oh, I shouldn't," Artie shook his head, declining the offer. "I took meds for some nerve pain not too long ago."

"Relax, Hot Wheels, I figured as much," Sebastian said, knowing that Artie wasn't the biggest fan of underage drinking in general. "It's sparkling cider. Yours is, at least. Mine's Veuve Clicquot."

Artie smiled and accepted the glass from the other boy, who took a seat on the bed. Artie pulled his chair up beside him and set his brakes before taking a sip of his drink.

"You know, I still remember my dad coming home and telling me he'd proposed to your mom," Sebastian said, shaking his head. "He showed me a picture of you and Ella and I think I almost choked on some Frosted Flakes."

Artie smirked.

"At least you had time to mentally prepare yourself for that God-awful dinner at Breadstix," Artie said back. "I rolled through the door and was in for the shock of my life. Then you moved into my house and still refused to talk to me until I beat your ass at Dance Dance Revolution. And I wouldn't even say that you began to tolerate me until after Watson tried out for The Warblers and I had to go on one of my anti-ableism rants."

"So, I guess we have Watson to thank for our ability to coexist, and he doesn't even know it," Sebastian said.

"Yeah, but don't tell him that. That'll go to his head real fast," Artie replied, knowing his friend. Another moment passed before Artie spoke up again. "You know, last year when we were fighting, I went to visit my dad in Akron. I told him about what was going on between us, and he assured me that we'd work it out. At the time, I didn't know if I believed him. Our teams were feuding, we were feuding… I didn't think it would ever get better."

Sebastian shook his head at the memory that the other boy had shared. Those days felt like years and years ago, not just a measly eighteen months. He was grateful that he and Artie had finally turned that corner and started getting along, though it hurt him that it took them such a long time to get there.

"I know we started off on the wrong foot and that we wasted a lot of time hating one another's guts, but…" Sebastian sighed. "I guess, what I'm trying to say, is thank you. I didn't grow up with siblings, and before I met you, I hardly had a personality that didn't involve being a jerk to people. So, thank you for teaching me how to be someone's brother and for making me a better person."

Sebastian could see that his sudden outpouring of raw and honest emotion had taken Artie by surprise. Such shock that the other boy didn't even know how to adequately form a response.

"For what it's worth, I'm really glad we don't hate each other anymore," Artie said with a trademark grin of his that made his small dimples pop.

"Even when we were at odds… I didn't hate you," Sebastian admitted. "I've never hated you, Artie. I've actually always admired you. The way that you have high expectations for yourself and those around you, your drive, your loyalty… I look at you like you hung the moon and the stars in the sky. Nobody's perfect, but you're as close as they come."

"Sebastian…" Artie started to say, his face flushing red in the dim lighting of his bedroom. It wasn't like Sebastian to open up emotionally like this, and Artie wasn't used to being on the receiving end of this kind of admiration.

"No, I'm serious. I think the world of you, Artie. You're everything I want to be. Having a role model like you… it's changed me. I'd probably still be tossing rock salt slushies into people's eyes if it weren't for you." Sebastian's last comment elicited a giggle from Artie at poor Blaine's expense. "Being your brother has been one of the greatest joys of my life. You're gonna do great things. In California, sure, but in life, too."

"I'm not really going anywhere you know," Artie joked to cover up the fact that his eyes were watering. "I plan on being your brother for, like, seventy more years."

"No, I know that. It's just going to be different," Sebastian acknowledged. "And I don't want it to be. I don't want anything to change between us."

"It won't," Artie promised. "I won't let that happen."

"We should probably get back," Sebastian said after a moment, standing up. "We've got, like, five of our friends waiting outside, and I told them that I was coming to check on you, but it's been a while. They probably think something's happened."

"You're probably right about that," Artie laughed, glancing down at his own empty flute, as well as the one Seb was holding.

Sebastian noticed the sight faraway look in Artie's eyes. Placing a hand on his shoulder, he asked, "Hey, you good?"

Artie glanced up at Sebastian, giving him a tight-lipped smile and a nod. "Yeah. I'm just really happy that everything worked out between us in the end."

Sebastian matched his smile before kneeling down to envelop the other boy in a huge hug. Tucking his head in the crook of Artie's neck, he could vividly smell that fragrant anti-dandruff shampoo that he uses.

"Me too. And nothing- no time or distance- is ever going to change that."

THE END

I hope you all enjoyed this story! It was (by far) the longest one I've ever written. I had absolutely no intentions of making it this long, but it never seemed to slow down! I am glad that so many readers have read and reviewed this story (and the first one). I received such sweet messages, reviews, and suggestions from all of you that I loved getting to read. I am so happy that so many of you loved my OCs, specifically Griffin and Ella. That's always a gamble, when you bring your own characters into a story, how well they will be received by your readers. It warms my heart that they seemed to be fan-favorites! I'm glad so many of you got behind this random idea I had, to make Sebastian and Artie step-brothers. I can't un-see them that way anymore, and I can't help but hope that some of you are the same way! ;)

Special thanks to my OG writing buddy and sometimes ghost-writer, gigundoly, for being the best person to bounce ideas off of and get suggestions and feedback from! Also, thank you to the readers who have consistently reviewed and messaged me with their ideas! You know who you are! ;) I truly appreciate you!

This isn't the last you'll see of me on this website! I have plans for another (much shorter!) story or two before the end of the summer. Make sure you're following me on here so that you get update alerts when I post! Please leave me any reviews, thoughts, and messages that you have regarding this story! Reading your feedback really motivates me to continue writing. Thank you so much for reading, and I hope you all liked reading this story as much as I liked writing it!

~QuinnAbrams