=Normal POV=
[Friday, 10/26/2018; 10:20 pm]
[Berk High School]
The night had been perfect after the talk Trayden and Hayden had outside the school on the side of the building where no one except their eavesdropping friends could hear them. Also; the dance was a million times better now that Trayden and Hayden were officially dating, which nobody had expected to happen. Hayden just saw the opening and was entirely calm, so he went for it, and things worked out great. Most of the night, Trayden and Hayden just enjoyed the Halloween Homecoming by themselves. The friends were hesitant to approach and possibly make things worse since Trayden made it clear to Hayden that he'd come to be with Hayden tonight, not the rest of them since there would be a sleepover to follow. The friends decided after being called out by Hayden for listening in, and he knew they were there that they should leave the boys alone until later.
Trayden and Hayden had a blast dancing to fast and slow songs; they stepped out now and then to get a drink or snack, but sometimes it was for the bathroom. The end of the night was upon them now; Homecoming King and Queen would be announced along with the Costume Contest; there were a lot of categories for it.
"So we still having this sleepover?" Trayden asked Hayden while the announcements for winners were being made.
"Of course. Why? Did you think I wouldn't because of earlier?" Hayden chuckled. "I'm not petty," he stated.
"I figured," Trayden kissed his cheek. "Wasn't for me that I was asking," he mentioned motioning with his eyes towards the nervous group of friends who weren't standing that far away.
"If I was going to call off the sleepover; I would have done it hours ago," Hayden informed with a smile.
"And finally, the last winners of the night for best design, originality and historical accuracy with the depiction of the Viking and Dragon Age when the two worlds became one and lived in peace…Hayden Haddock and Trayden Raseri!" Amy Mayden called out smiling.
Both Hayden and Trayden froze, shocked. They won? Slowly, and holding hands, they made their way towards the principle to accept the certificate they would share and the two ribbons that got pinned to their shirts. "Wow…" Trayden said.
"Didn't expect we'd win for our costumes; it wasn't even planned," Hayden laughed a bit.
"I guess we're just good like that," Trayden shrugged.
"And that concludes the night! Please, everyone, have a safe drive home and we'll see you all Monday morning at 7:00!" Amy smiled. Trayden took Hayden's hand as they walked back to their spot where the friends were. Alicia nudged Tyler a bit as he stepped forward, but as he was about to apologize; Hayden put his hand up to stop him.
"I already know what's coming, from you, Tyler, and the rest of you who are thinking the same idea. I don't need an apology or an explanation; I need you to understand everything I said earlier that you evesdropped on and prove to me that you understood. I forgave you hours ago, so let's drop it and get to my house to keep this fun night going," Hayden remarked calmly.
"You're so good sometimes," Trayden chuckled.
"Would you prefer me to be bad?" Hayden inquired.
"Depends on what bad is, babe?" Trayden winked.
"That's for me to know and you to find out," Hayden replied.
"Oh, I can't wait," Trayden grinned. "Let's get going. I wanna check on my siblings if that's okay?"
"Of course. Meet you guys at the house," Hayden told the friends as he and Trayden walked out to get to Hayden's car.
. . .
[10:50 pm]
[Berk; Haddock/Forger Home]
After Hayden and Trayden checked on Dex, Aria, Eliot, and Cole; the two made their way to Hayden's house, parking in the garage. Hayden and Trayden made their way into the house through the laundry/mud room.
"Uncle Gabriel, I'm back!" Hayden called.
"Hi, lad. Hello, Trayden. I let your friends in; I think they are in your room. Remember, you can't use the basement tonight because the heat isn't working downstairs and I don't want anyone to be cold," Gabriel informed. "Someone is coming on Monday to fix it,"
"No problem," Hayden nodded.
"And I said Devon and Miya could use the spare guest room since Miya is pregnant; I know the hard floor will probably bother her back," Gabriel added.
"You know, I completely forgot that Miya was almost three months pregnant…" Trayden admitted.
"Same here…" Hayden agreed.
It was true, Miya and Devon were expecting their first child as Miya conceived at the beginning of September and learned when she was five weeks after her period was a week late. A home test confirmed the pregnancy, and then a doctor's office visit did the same a few days later. Currently; Miya was nine weeks, and six days along today and tomorrow she would be two weeks out from being twelve weeks, which translated to three months pregnant. Miya was due for May 25th, 2019. Hailey was very excited about becoming an aunt.
"I happen to hear that you are no longer single…" Gabriel grinned a little as Hayden blushed, nodding. "Told ya to just go for it,"
"Yeah, yeah; you were right…" Hayden replied. "See ya in the morning," he waved while walking with Trayden towards his room. Getting down the hall and standing before the master suite door, Trayden caressed Hayden's cheek lightly while smiling and looking into his green eyes.
"You have no idea how happy I am that you and I are together now," Trayden said.
"About as happy as I am that we are," Hayden replied, smiling back as Trayden leaned in and pressed his lips to Hayden's in a gentle kiss. A few seconds later; they broke it and turned to head inside Hayden's bedroom.
"Hey!" Katie greeted.
"Sup?" Trayden responded. "Sorry for the delay; I had to check on my brothers and sister," he stated. "It's almost 11 at night, so I had Dex lock up and alarm the house,"
"It's no problem," Mindy smiled.
"Gabriel said we're saying in here tonight?" Andrew asked.
"Yeah, the basement heat isn't working right, and it gets below thirty degrees down there; he doesn't want us to be cold," Hayden nodded.
"Fair enough," Evan shrugged.
"I see you've moved everything around from back in August," Bryan stated.
"Actually; I just moved all this around tonight before the dance," Hayden admitted. "I ditched one of the dressers and put it in the walk-in closet with the rest of the clothes, to leave more space for you guys to sleep in here," he added.
"You did all this by yourself?" Trayden blinked.
"It's not hard to move furniture around," Hayden chuckled. "Besides, I kind'a like it this way," he informed.
"All you need is a mini-kitchen, and this could be considered a studio apartment," Devon laughed a bit.
"I have a mini-fridge, microwave, and Keurig over there in my reading/snack corner," Hayden pointed to the space that was on the right side of the room in the corner across from his queen-sized bed. There's Chaise corner couch, small center table, bookshelf, and cabinet with some drawers and two doors. "One of those cabinets is nothing by dry foods, coffee pods, and extra drinks that will get moved into the mini-fridge once it starts running low. I also keep bowls and some utensils in here too,"
"I love that couch," Alyssa admired.
"It was my mom's favorite piece in the entire living room at the old house," Hayden smiled a bit. "Big enough to sit five people, but only three if one person takes advantage of lying down on the part that comes out more against the wall. I love it under the window…" he said. "I don't know how many times I used to fall asleep on while reading,"
"I'm digging the TV. What is that? Fifty-five inch?" Tyler asked.
"No way; it's gotta be around sixty," Syrus stated.
"It's sixty-five. That was the TV in the living room at the old house," Hayden mentioned.
"Well, it's a nice setup, Hayden," Rylee complimented.
"Thanks," Hayden replied. "Alright…I'm gonna go change," he said before going down the hall a bit and entering the bathroom. Not more than five minutes later, Hayden exited and sat on his bed wearing black sweatpants and gray long sleeve shirt, though; it was a bit baggy on him. "Okay, it's about 11:15 pm. What do you guys wanna do?"
"Are any of your systems up here?" Ford asked.
"Uh…I don't think so. The old Nintendo ones might be," Hayden stood up and went through the small cabinet under the TV. "Yeah, the Wii U is," he confirmed. "I have Mario Maker, Smash Brothers, and a few others," he added. "Or we can just watch Hulu, Netflix, or YouTube; I can access them right on the TV," he suggested.
"It's late, let's sit up and talk a bit?" Miya offered.
"You know, that sounds like a nice idea," Hailey agreed.
"But we should put on some music for background noise," Katie suggested.
"Alexa," Hayden said as there was a beep. "Play Late Night Tunes,"
"Playing Late Night Tunes from Hayden's Phone."
Not long after, music started playing softly. "You have the Echo thing?" Evan asked.
"Echo Dot; it's on my desk over there," Hayden motioned to the left side of the room where was a corner desk.
"That's so cool. I love that thing," Alyssa chuckled. "So, what are we gonna talk about?"
"Have you and my brother thought of any names for the baby yes, sis?" Hailey asked Miya.
"No, not yet, Hailey," Devon replied.
"We're saving it for the gender reveal," Miya smiled. "We'll let you know when it is when we plan it. You know your brother, and I are busy trying to buy a house before I hit six months," she giggled.
"Any luck with that?" Trayden wondered. "Finding a house?"
"A few possibilities; the viewings are set up for next week," Devon said. "We're looking around in Berserker. If nothing there, we're going to try Caldera Cay,"
"Well, best of luck searching. And when the time comes to move; we're happy to help," Hayden smiled.
"We appreciate that," Miya beamed.
"How are your psychiatry appointments going, Hayden?" Andrew asked.
Hayden shrugged his shoulders a little. "They're going, not very far, but…" he trailed off sighing.
"Hey, you'll be able to tell Dr. Anderson everything with time," Trayden said, putting his hand on Hayden's back.
"Tray, it's been over a year…Despite what little progress I've made, or how much better things have gotten…If I can't do it by now; I don't think I'll ever be able to," Hayden muttered.
"Don't put yourself down like that, Hayden," Bryan said.
"You've made phenomenal progress," Alyssa nodded.
"When we met, Hayden; you never said a word. You'd curl yourself up, refuse to eat…Now, look at you," Mindy smiled.
"And what do you mean you can't talk? You've told us some stuff," Syrus reminded.
"I told you things that came out on their own due to certain situations…" Hayden said. "New things, or going into detail about some already mentioned is hard," he added.
"Hayden; it was difficult, unfair time in of your life outside of your control. You can talk about it; you just have a bit of trouble getting over that first bump," Trayden chuckled. "Come on; you didn't talk to me so easily either. Not until after the Olivia thing," he added.
"That was different…You caught what she was doing," Hayden muttered.
"But you didn't have to tell me anything. I asked you to tell me the truth and promised you'd be safe. The same thing happened with Brad. And any of the other things you've told, Hayden. All I do is give you my word you'll be safe, and everything will be okay; then you start a bit shy and gain your confidence as you talk more," Trayden stated.
"Only with you," Hayden remarked.
"So? Gotta start somewhere. I don't mind being your starting point," Trayden chuckled.
"You've been a lot more than that for me, Tray," Hayden smiled a bit.
"Yeah, I guess I'm pretty great, huh?" Trayden stuck his tongue out.
"You are to me," Hayden replied.
"I will take that!" Trayden drew Hayden in for a hug. "Buck up, babe. You'll be fine, and we're here to make sure of it on the days you don't think you will be," he added.
"Thanks," Hayden blushed as Trayden kissed him. There was scratching at the doors in Hayden's room as he got up and went to open them up finding Skullcrusher and Cloudjumper waiting patiently. "Uncle Gabe left you outside again, didn't he?" The dogs huffed a bit and came inside as Hayden checked around. "Huh…Where's Toothless?" The two dogs moved to the main bedroom door to be let out so they could eat. Hayden opened that door. "Uncle Gabe?!"
"Yes, lad?" Gabriel replied.
"Where's Toothless?" Hayden wondered.
"Thought he was outside with the dogs," Gabriel stated.
"He didn't come in with them," Hayden informed.
"Try calling for him. Sometimes he falls asleep in the tree," Gabriel suggested. Hayden went back to the outside doors.
"TOOTHLESS!" Hayden tried. Nothing. Hayden went to the cabinet and found a can of cat food and clicked the tab a few times. Seconds later, Toothless rushed into the house and jumped up into Hayden's arms. "There you are, bud," Hayden giggled a bit as the black cat kept rubbing its head under Hayden's chin. Toothless climbed up and onto Hayden's shoulder, sitting there and nuzzling against his face. Hayden got a small styrofoam bowl and opened the can, pouring it into the bowl as Toothless licked Hayden's cheek before jumping down and starting to eat.
Hayden chuckled a little as he went to close one of the doors. "Did ya get him?" Gabriel wondered, poking his head into the room.
"Came to the sound of the wet food can," Hayden said.
"Always does," Gabriel smiled. "Oh, was wondering since I forgot to get them earlier…Mind lending your uncle a cigarette for the night?" Hayden went into his backpack and grabbed his pack.
"Last two," Hayden handed him one.
"I'll get us both new packs tomorrow morning," Gabriel said as he took it from Hayden. "Thanks, lad. Wouldn't happen to have an extra lighter would you?"
"Nope, just the one. Though, I'd love to know how you lose them so easily," Hayden grabbed his lighter next as Gabriel placed the smoke between his lips and Hayden lit it for him.
"I'm telling ya; they just vanish," Gabriel remarked.
"I've had the same lighter since I turned 18…" Hayden rolled his eyes.
"Hush you. I see your sarcasm, and snide remarks are still strong as ever…Didn't your parents teach you to respect your elders?" Gabriel huffed.
"Of course," Hayden nodded. "Respect your elders, but family is fair game," Hayden grinned a bit. "Quoted from Spencer Haddock,"
"Your father would say that," Gabriel sighed.
"He only said it about you," Hayden laughed.
"God…Damn it," Gabriel stated, defeated. "When I finally die; I'm kicking your father's ass," he mumbled.
"Can ya wait til I get there too? I'd like to see who wins," Hayden chuckled.
"You're impossible…" Gabriel muttered. Hayden shrugged as he placed his last cigarette between his lips, cupped the top and lit it before sliding his lighter into his pocket. "But you're the perfect mix of your folks. Stubborn and strong like your father, big heart and smart like your mom, and all my sarcasm," he added. "Good to see you smiling again, kiddo. I was starting to think that kid I've known since birth wasn't coming back," he ruffled Hayden's hair a bit.
"Someone found his hiding from the cruel world spot, pulled him out, and showed him that there is light in the darkness," Hayden chuckled.
"Oh, and that someone would be?" Gabriel wondered.
"Do you want a lie or the truth?" Hayden asked.
"Truth, please?" Gabriel stared.
"Well, before everyone else joined in…It was Tray," Hayden admitted.
"Wait, really?" Trayden blinked.
"Why did you think it wasn't you?" Hayden inquired.
"I-I thought it was Gabriel, to be honest," Trayden confessed.
"As much as I love my uncle, Tray, and all he's done for me…You were the one around before he returned from Iraq…" Hayden stated as he took a drag, then released the smoke out into the air near the outside doors. "I showed up at Berk High at the end of October, right around this time last year. You were the one who helped me in January when Olivia showed up, and you've been around to offer whatever I seemed to need until Gabriel came. And even after he was back…You didn't stop what you were doing to help me," Hayden explained.
"You've always made others back off, gave me a shoulder to cry on, listened when I talked, assured things would be alright," Hayden continued. "You've even started coming to my sessions with me, and though I still don't do much; it helps keep me from curling up and breaking down. The point is; it's always been you, and…I kind'a hope it always will be. Not to say that I don't have others, but…" he trailed off, blushing.
Trayden got up and stood in front of Hayden now. "You don't have to hope; I promise I'm with you always. Whether we're dating or not; you're stuck with me in your life," then Trayden leaned in and kissed Hayden deeply, making the auburn-haired teenager blush deeply. After the kiss, Trayden pulled away as both smiled lightly. "Like you,"
"Like you too," Hayden replied as he brought the cigarette, and offered it to Trayden, who took it and enjoyed a drag before giving it back and Hayden did the same.
"Oh…Oh, what's what I hear in the distance?" Gabriel teased as Hayden and Trayden looked at Gabriel like he was crazy since there was nothing other than music.
"What?" Trayden asked.
"I swear I hear wedding bells," Gabriel smirked. Trayden's eyes widened as Hayden blushed furiously while a few others snickered.
"Gabriel!" Hayden yelled with embarrassment. After that, everyone just laughed leaving Hayden and Trayden standing there, shocked, slightly bashful about the comment, and blushing.
"Could be the couple of beers I've had, but I hear 'em," Gabriel shrugged.
"IT'S THE BEERS!" Trayden and Hayden said together, only causing the friends to laugh more.
