=Normal POV=
[Friday, 6/1/2018; 2:30 pm]
[Berk High School]

The bell rang as the mad rush of students piled into the hallways, mostly cheering and having a blast because as of right now, Finals Week was finally over. It had been crazy, and stressful, but now it was over. By the middle to end of next week, about the time for Junior Prom; final grades would be in and Junior Year would be at its end. There was one more week until the school year ended, but technically, the students didn't have to go. Some did because it was Berk High Spirit Week, just five days of people having fun. Most teachers would throw a pizza party; some would do a movie or games. If students had permission by Friday the 8th from their parents in a written note; they didn't have to attend the last week of school. Tonight was the talent show at 6 pm, so the group of friends had one more practice to make sure it was perfect.

"Alright, how we doing this last practice?" Bryan asked when the group was outside.

"No idea," Tyler shrugged.

"None of us have all the gear to do a full practice," Syrus informed. "And my bass is in the shop,"

"I don't have a way to get my drums anywhere," Bryan added.

"We don't have microphones," Alyssa mentioned.

"Guess we're just gonna have to hope we have it down," Trayden informed. Hayden knew a place they could go with everything; he didn't know if he could handle it. Finally, he sighed.

"Sy…Gimme your keys, and the rest of you grab your vehicles and follow me," Hayden held his hand out. Syrus blinked but handed Hayden the keys to his car.

"Where we going?" Evan wondered.

"I know a place we can practice…Carpool as much as you're able," Hayden stated as he opened the driver's side door to Syrus's car and climbed in, buckling himself.

"My siblings are taking the bus home, so I've got the room for four extras," Trayden offered.

"We got the room for two more," Alicia stated.

"My car is out, I came with Devon," Evan informed.

"We took the bus because my car is uninspected. Dad missed the deadline by accident," Bryan grumbled. "Can't use it until Monday,"

"Bryan, Alyssa, Katie, Mindy; go with Trayden. Devon can take Hailey, Ford, Miya, and Evan. Rylee and Tyler can ride with Syrus, Alicia, and me. Just follow and don't ask questions…" Hayden mumbled. Trayden and the others noticed the extreme mood change; they wondered why, but Hayden said not to ask questions, so they loaded up and followed Hayden out of the parking lot and onto the main road.

. . .

[3:10 pm]
[Archian City; Haddock Household]

Hayden took them the only place he knew that had a full band set up to practice with; his house. Despite the absolute hesitation and worry of freaking out; Hayden brought them to the Haddock Home. At first, nobody knew where Hayden was leading them, but it became painfully apparent upon pulling up to a house that looked lifeless almost, and on the mailbox was the family name; Haddock. Hayden shut the car off first, and stepped out; he watched the others do the same. Everyone was about to go forward when Hayden put his arm out.

"Wouldn't do that," Hayden advised. "Unless you want the cops to show up," he crouched down, scanning his the license in front of a black machine. "Alright, you're good now," he informed, heading up the driveway. Reaching the door, Hayden stopped.

"Hayden? Hey, you don't have to do this," Mindy said softly.

"Yeah, we've practiced enough; we got it down," Ford informed.

"And even if we screw up, we gave it our best," Syrus offered.

"We're already here," Hayden said quietly as he pulled a necklace off and found a black key with blue lightning strikes on it. Hayden shakily neared the handle, stopping again when he felt a hand on his shoulder and glanced over to see Alicia standing there, smiling softly.

"We're with you," Alicia said gently.

"Thanks," Hayden nodded.

Everyone remembered from the first sleepover Hayden was invited to join in with them on the 18th of April; Gabriel said that Hayden flipped out, screaming and crying. Trayden wanted to make sure he was there as Hayden's cling-to form of comfort. This was new for everyone; they'd never been with Hayden to the city. Trayden had gone to Gabriel's but not Hayden's old house, none of them had seen this. The Haddock Home was huge, even from the outside.

Pulling up on Strike Street, there was a beautiful large home before them with a three-car garage attached to the right side of the house. Hayden nervously inserted the key to the top lock and turned it, then after the click; he did the same motion to the handle lock. Shaking a little, Hayden opened the front door and looked in. It took everything he had not to yell out; Mom! Dad! I'm home! It was like so many other times when Hayden would get back from school and call to them while walking in the door with his backpack on his shoulder.

Hayden closed his eyes sadly, sighing as he walked in. Past the front door was a long corridor, walking up a bit revealed a staircase to the second level on the right. On the left was a small area with a bathroom across from the main hall, but another room to the left of the bathroom. Farther in was the living room, kitchen, and dining area. However, Hayden seemed to freeze coming to the living room; he was shaking and looked terrified.

"Didn't Tray's dad say that Hayden's dad had been…You know, in the living room?" Bryan whispered to Syrus.

"Oh, shit; you're right…" Syrus bit back. "Hayden…Hayden, come on, cuz…" Syrus tried, putting his hand on Hayden's arm carefully, pulling a bit. Hayden shook his head a little, but it Syrus's attempt seemed to work. Hayden turned away from the living room and took a deep breath. "Are you sure you wanna do this?" he asked, concern in his voice.

"We don't have to. We can leave right now, go back to Berk and chill the next couple of hours," Mindy offered.

"I-I'm…F-Fine," Hayden managed as he headed up the stairs and glanced around for a moment. Off to the left; there were three rooms with the doors closed. There was a bathroom across from the place closest to the stairs. Across the staircase was a small hallway. There was a door on the left, and directly ahead. Off to the left; there was another room, which would be considered along the left side of the stairs, and finally, another place next to the one across the stairs.

"Wow…A lot of rooms up here," Tyler mentioned.

"Four-bedroom house, but could become five if we used this room as one too," Hayden motioned to the room across the way, but slightly in a corner too. "This was my art room," he informed. "And across the way here was my bedroom," he added softly.

"Is…That the Master Bedroom?" Alyssa wondered, pointing to the space across from the stairs. Hayden only nodded, trying his best not to look at it.

"Are…These rooms guest ones?" Trayden inquired.

"Yeah. Gabriel used one of them if he was staying with us overnight," Hayden replied. "And that room there across from this first one is the main second-floor bathroom. Then this door here is to the laundry space," he mentioned lightly.

"It's…A lovely home," Miya complimented.

"Thanks…I'm glad other people still see it as something nice," Hayden looked down a little. "For me; it's just a house where two murders occurred, ending two lives and began a nightmare that will never fade. As soon as I graduate; I'm selling it. I know they left it to me, but I can't live here again…I'd probably snap at some point,"

"Why'd we come up here? Didn't…Gabriel say your music room was in the basement?" Hailey asked.

"I don't know,…Force of habit I guess," Hayden said slowly. "I used to get home from Gamer's Club after school around this time, yell to my parents I was back, then make my way up here," he stated.

"Nothing wrong with that; it's just familiar to you," Devon said. Hayden sighed as he headed back down the stairs, leading them towards the living room/kitchen/dining room space. Hayden didn't even glance at the living room; he knew what he'd see if he did. Hayden opened the door to the right of the kitchen and stepped inside while getting his phone and walked down the few steps in the darkened room.

"Mad creepy in here…" Rylee said.

"It's just because the power is off…Gimme a sec," Hayden mumbled as he reached around on the wall. "Where the hell is that damn fuse box…" he groaned. Finally, he felt the cold metal and big lever on the side. "Aha, there you are," Hayden flipped it upward as there was a rumbling; then the distinct sound of something powering on. After giving it a second, Hayden flipped the switch on the wall, lighting up the room.

"Ah, so we're in the garage," Evan mentioned. Hayden sort of stayed put for a minute or two; his eyes were on the two vehicles sitting before him. His mother and father's cars.

"You alright?" Trayden asked, coming beside Hayden now. Hayden managed a small nod as he continued forward towards the far side wall. Hayden opened the door, flipping on another light. "What's in here?" Trayden wondered.

"My car," Hayden replied.

"Wait…You have a car?" Alicia asked.

"Yeah…It was my 16th birthday present from my parents. I've had my license since I was 15, though. Well 15½," Hayden shrugged a little as everyone made their way inside the room to see a covered car sitting in the single garage bay.

"What, uh, what kind of car do you have?" Ford questioned. Hayden pulled the cover off as the friends' eyes widened.

"DUDE!" the males exclaimed.

"Hayden…This is a…" Alyssa blinked.

"2016 Alpha Night Fury Convertible. Yes, I know. It's an automatic, full touchscreen system, neon blue undercarriage glow, and headlights. Red brake lights and backlights for the buttons. All black exterior with custom somewhat lighter scale style detailing, dark gray and black leather interior, temperature controlled seating, and seats five people comfortably," Hayden explained.

"That is a sick ride!" Trayden blinked. "Odin above,"

"That would make any man excited," Devon stated.

"Fucking tell me about it…" Syrus stared. "Dude, why wasn't it one of the things you brought when everything happened?"

"Didn't have the insurance on it anymore. It's also overdue for registration and inspection right now…And I was terrified of something happening to it with all the foster families," Hayden sighed. "So I elected to leave it here along with mom and dad's cars. Everything incredibly valuable or with sentimental value stayed here, locked up and protected by the motions sensors and cameras that Trayden's dad issued to be installed to keep it safe until I could come to claim it all," he added. "But yeah, this is my baby. Least that's what I call it," he smiled a little.

"Hayden, mom, and dad would put you on their insurance and get this thing legal for you again," Alicia said.

"I can get it legal too, and I just haven't had the time. And I don't exactly like coming here…" Hayden sighed. "But anyway…We came here to practice. I only came in here to get the key to the music area," he moved to the workbench and scanned the tools for a second; then grabbed the hammer's handle, pushing it to the right. There was a click before the tool board shifted; splitting in half and revealing a secret opening behind it.

"Okay, that was cool," Tyler grinned. Hayden grabbed a set of keys from inside before setting the hammer right once more, closing the small space back up. Hayden recovered his car before ushering everyone out, turning off the light and closing the door. Hayden found a key on his ring; then unlocked the door between his parents' cars. Hayden flipped on the light to that room to reveal a music space.

"Holy…" they looked around.

"Gabriel was overseas when I moved everything from the basement to here. Drums, guitars, microphones…Everything you could ever need for a music room," Hayden stated. "And entirely soundproof," he added. The walls were riddled with awards, pictures; it looked amazing.

"Hayden, this is incredible…" Trayden admired. "It's like a small music studio,"

"Yeah…It's pretty awesome I guess," Hayden shrugged.

"How are you not happy in here? I mean…I get the house, but this is like…Your element," Bryan pointed out.

"I'm too close to someone I don't want to be," Hayden muttered as Trayden looked at him quickly.

"Who?" Trayden asked.

"Olivia and her family…They live just a five-minute walk from here on the next street over…" Hayden grumbled.

"She's not allowed anywhere near you, Hayden, and on house arrest. You're safe; I will personally see to it," Trayden huffed.

"How did I know you'd say something like that?" Hayden tried to laugh a little.

"Because you know I won't let anyone hurt you," Trayden reminded as Hayden nodded.

"Neither will we," Syrus added with a nod from Alicia.

"You have us too, and we promise to prove that to you," Ford mentioned firmly as the other friends nodded in agreement.

"I…Appreciate that," Hayden replied softly, his eyes looking around slowly and sighing.

"What's wrong?" Hailey inquired.

"Nothing…It's nothing," Hayden shook his head. "Come on; we gotta get some practice in and leave by 5 pm to get back to Berk in time for the show at 6 pm. It's already about 3:30 pm," he added.

. . .

[4:45 pm]

After a couple of practices and tweaking to what would be considered perfection; the group was cleaning things up a little. Hayden was sitting in his chair, reclined back and keeping his eyes focused on the computer. However, there were tears resting in his green eyes, and slipping down his cheeks. The friends finished the cleanup, setting everything back the way it was. Alicia was first to turn towards Hayden to tell him they were set and ready to leave, but she saw Hayden crying silently.

"Hayden?" Alicia asked, quickly moving beside him. "Hey, what's wrong?"

"I-I just wa-want to get o-out of he-here…" Hayden sobbed a little. Alicia wrapped her arms around him, frowning towards the others. "C-Can't han-handle being h-here fo-for long…"

"We just finished cleaning everything up, let's go," Bryan offered. Hayden wiped his eyes, getting up as Alicia let go of him. Shockingly, but then again, perhaps not so much; Hayden found his way over next to Trayden, who instantly hugged him tightly.

"Ssh…It's alright. I know being here for extended periods is saddening and uncomfortable," Trayden said gently as Hayden held onto his shirt, crying a little more now. "Come on, let's get going. Would you like to ride with me in my car? Mindy can go with Syrus; I'm sure she wouldn't mind?"

"No, not at all," Mindy agreed.

"A-Actually…I was wondering if you'd ask your dad i-if he'll let me dr-drive m-my car back to Berk despite it being uninsured and unregistered?" Hayden sniffled, wiping his eyes again.

"Sure can. I'll call him right now," Trayden grabbed his phone, deciding to text his father instead.

4:47 pm
Dad, Hayden wants to know if he can drive his car back to Berk from the city even though it's uninsured and unregistered right now? We're all in the city at his old house; he let us come to use the music equipment for talent show practice.

Not more than three minutes later, the phone dinged with a reply as Trayden looked down.

Dad's Cell, 4:50 pm
Yes, but straight to his aunt and uncle's house with it. I'll inform highway and Berk patrol not to pull over his car. What's his license plate #?

"Dad wants to know what your plate number is." Trayden inquired.

"It's NYT-RDR1," Hayden replied. Trayden sent it to his father and waited. "Sorry, that I started crying out of nowhere…"

"Hayden, it's okay," Hailey said.

"I-It's…The last time I-I was in this room w-was the night before they died…I-I was showing them t-the song I ma-made. After dinner, we all came in here, and I played it fully and live for them with music…And then…just a few hours later…" Hayden closed his eyes tightly. Trayden hugged him again.

"I know, I know; it can't be easy to doing things you did when they were here," Trayden assured.

"You wrote your own song?" Tyler blinked as Hayden nodded, staying quiet. Trayden heard the ding for his text message alert; he lifted the device to look.

Dad's Cell, 4:55 pm
Hayden's all set to take his car back to Berk, but nobody rides with him for safety reasons until it's legal. See you at the show!

"Dad says you're good to drive to Berk with the car, Hayden. But no passengers until it's legal. Highway and Berk patrol have been informed so that you won't get pulled over," Trayden mentioned.

"Thanks," Hayden nodded, clearing away his tears again.

"Could you show us?" Alyssa asked.

"Later…We gotta get back, or we'll be late. It's a rush hour right now, and it takes 45 minutes to get from here to the school," Hayden reminded as he let go of Trayden. "File out," he said. The group did so as Hayden shut everything down in the music room, closed and locked the door. Hayden sent the friends out of the house through the front door, and Trayden made sure he secured it with the key that Hayden gave to him, asking if he wouldn't mind locking up. The group stayed out in the driveway as Hayden opened the garage door where his car sat.

Hayden pulled the cover off once more, folding it up and setting the object in the trunk. Hayden opened the hood and reconnected the battery, shut the hood and then slid himself into the driver's seat slowly, taking a moment to breathe and run his hands over the black steering wheel.

"Think he's okay?" Mindy wondered.

"Probably not. This is likely the longest he's spent in this house since last when everything happened, but I bet he missed his car too; it was a gift to him from his parents on his 16th birthday," Trayden mentioned softly. Hayden finally leaned forward a bit, inserting the key to the ignition as the car started to ding repeatedly. Hayden took a deep breath as he turned it; the vehicle instantly powered on with a roar almost. After the initial startup, the car gave a low purr.

"Atta boy…" Hayden smiled a little. Hayden shifted the car to reverse, and backed out of the driveway slowly; he did a three-point turnaround to get the car facing the street. After, Hayden left the car running to get out, get inside and shut the garage door. Hayden also pulled the lever to cut power to the house before exiting through the side door and locking it back up.

"Gods, that car sounds good…" Bryan stated.

Hayden got back in his car, bucking his seat belt and then pressing a button to flip the top back. "Should see how it feels," he mentioned while getting his sunglasses from the center console, and slipping them on. "Load up, let's get back," he added. Not being able to argue or want to waste time; the group loaded into the cars they came in. Hayden shifted the car to drive as looked back at the house a moment. "I'll be back soon…" he whispered as he wiped a single tear that slipped. It was hard to enter and leave the house all the times he'd come since that horrid day.

Hayden knew he had to be here to clear it out and prepare it for selling, but he would wait one more year when he could properly pack it up and take what he wanted to Gabriel's when the man found an apartment or house of his own. Hayden sighed as he let off the break and moved to the gas to get out of the driveway. Hayden motioned for the others to follow him and they did so. Now, they were on their way back to Berk for the talent show.