=Normal POV=
[Friday, 6/21/2019; 11:00 am]
[Archian City; Archia Hearts Hospital]

It had been a long week, but Hayden was finally getting released from the central hospital in Archian City. The chest tube got removed on Tuesday, and thankfully, everything went stellar with his lung reinflating and staying that way. The wound was healing nicely, and Hayden had been getting sponge baths from nurses, or at least, they attempted to do it, but Hayden refused and said he would take care of it. Although, Trayden helped on Monday and Wednesday when he came to visit. Gabriel was up every day with Spencer, Trayden usually went with Gabriel. The others picked different days to go in smaller groups, so not to overcrowd the room again.

Hannah Grimborn explained that the visitor capacity in once room was about six people max, and she only allowed all of them on Sunday morning, the 16th of June, because it was the day after Hayden had been shot, and she knew all of them wanted to visit and make sure he was alright. Now, it was Friday, the 21st; six days since the shooting and Hayden was getting released with home care instructions for the remainder of his recovery. Gabriel, with Spencer, and Trayden had gone up at 10 am to retrieve Hayden; they would have gone for 8 am, but Hayden told them not to bother since he was having tests done and wouldn't be in the room anyway.

Now, at 11; Hayden had gotten told how to deal with his wound at home, and what to expect. Hayden got a prescription for pain medication and finally was able to sign his discharge papers and leave. The nurse disconnected the IV and monitors; then the male nurse and Trayden helped Hayden up to find his balance after mainly being in bed for the last five days except using the bathroom and a few quick sponge baths. Trayden made sure to stay next to Hayden while they were walking to exit the hospital and get to Gabriel's truck.

Hayden, unfortunately, still suffered some pain and shortness of breath, but Hannah promised that would fade as Hayden healed more. After all, Hayden still had about three to five weeks left. It depended on how well he was recovering at home; he had a post-operation check-up before being discharged, but Hannah said to follow up with his physician during the first week of July, and that would let Hayden know how much longer he had to go before he was considered fully healed.

"Hanging in there, lad?" Gabriel asked once they reached the truck and Hayden got in the back to sit with Spencer, who was in his car seat already. Trayden was up front in the passenger's seat, and Gabriel, obviously driving.

"Yep, I'm good," Hayden replied. "Get me the fuck out of here, please?" he said. Gabriel and Trayden laughed a little. "And on the way into Berk…C-Can we stop at Hooligans…? I'm dying for a Viking Single with bacon, ketchup, lettuce, and cheese…"

"You got it, kiddo," Gabriel nodded. After that; Gabriel backed out of his spot in the lot, and they were headed back to Berk.

. . .

[11:50 am]
[Berk; Haddock/Forger Home]

"You know all our friends are gonna be there, right?" Trayden inquired, looking back at Hayden who was eating a few fries and taking a sip of his soda.

"I assumed; they weren't able to come up to the hospital a lot this past week," Hayden nodded.

"You know they wanna have that graduation party/sleepover, don't you?" Trayden smiled. "They're gonna ask,"

"I do, but maybe…Next week…" Hayden looked down a bit.

Trayden and Gabriel shared a look, understanding what this weekend was. Sunday, the 23rd, was the two-year anniversary of Hayden's parents being murdered. On top of that; it had only been five days since he was shot by Dimitri Bludvist; the man who ordered that murder on a mere accusation with no evidence whatsoever, saving Trayden from being hit.

"You don't have to do anything you don't want to, laddie," Gabriel reminded.

"I-I know…" Hayden replied as he sighed, wrapping up his food and putting it back in the bag; then sitting back with his eyes closed.

"Something wrong with the food, baby?" Trayden inquired.

Hayden shook his head. "No, just…Not hungry anymore…" he informed. Reaching the house, the friends were waiting with anticipation. Gabriel's truck pulled into the garage, and parked; then shut off. Hayden booked it out of the truck, through the garage door that led into the house, and went to his room.

"He…Sick or something? Ford wondered.

"No," Gabriel shook his head. "His depression is hitting a little harder this time of year,"

"The two-year anniversary is on Sunday," Trayden stated. "He was alright in the car until the graduation party/sleepover got brought up,"

"He doesn't want to see anyone, does he?" Bryan asked.

"I…Am not sure. I mentioned you'd all be here, and he seemed fine with it since you guys couldn't get to the hospital while he was there," Trayden shrugged. "Worth it to try, if that's okay with you, Gabriel?"

"Go right ahead. I prefer him not to be alone anyway, not after last year…" Gabriel sighed heavily. "Go on," he motioned with his head as Trayden led the others inside through the garage door while Gabriel grabbed Spencer since Hayden probably would have, but he wasn't allowed to lift a lot of weight due to his chest wound, and the broken wrist. Also the cracked and bruised ribs. Nobody wanted Hayden to do anything that could hurt himself and make his recovery longer. The poor teenager was already on restricted activity until mid-July. The 15th of July would mark four weeks since Hayden was shot, and six weeks would be on the 29th of July. Hopefully, by the start of August…Hayden would be entirely healed from everything.

Now, inside the home; Hayden hadn't meant to rush off from everyone. After eating something; he started to feel nauseated, so he stopped to try and keep himself from puking in Gabriel's truck. As soon as the car stopped with a minor jolt; the vomit rose into Hayden's throat, and he quickly moved to get into the home and throw up. This is what Trayden and the others heard as they neared Hayden's room, where the door had been left open to the bedroom.

"Babe?" Trayden asked. Hayden threw up again, hard, and coughing.

"Fucking…Odin above that hurts…!" Hayden panted. Throwing up made his chest hurt bad, so much that he wanted to cry.

"Baby, are you okay?" Trayden asked, knocking on the bathroom door a bit.

"Y-Yeah…Gimme a sec, babe," Hayden coughed and groaned. The toilet flushed, and Trayden heard the sound of the sink running a moment, but then it turned off, and Hayden opened the door.

"What's wrong?" Trayden asked gently, and with a bit of concern.

"Got a little…Motion sickness after eating in the car," Hayden admitted.

"I-Is your chest okay?" Trayden hoped.

"Yeah, hurt like hell when I threw up a few times and then trying to catch my breath," Hayden sighed as he held Trayden's hand and moved more into the room where the others were waiting.

"You look a lot better than you did five days ago," Hailey complimented.

"Thanks, wish I felt better, but it's been about the same. The only upside to things was losing that chest tube…" Hayden brought Trayden over to his bed and gently pushed him to sit; then lay down. Trayden blinked as Hayden semi-crawled over him and laid down as well. "Hold me…"

Trayden chuckled a little, holding his boyfriend close and kissing his forehead. "You've missed cuddling, haven't you?"

Hayden only nodded. "You two are so cute," Alicia giggled.

"I should have asked the doctor when I'm allowed to have sex with you again…" Hayden said tiredly as Trayden blushed furiously. "I've missed that too…" he looked up at his boyfriend. "You've missed it too, haven't you,"

"Your health is more important, babe," Trayden sighed, he needed to start remembering his lover was a pervert and didn't care who knew they were having sex.

"Probably when your stitches come out or dissolve. Not sure which ones you had," Miya pointed out.

"Dissolving ones. The hole isn't that big; it was a small bullet," Hayden said.

"Well, it's been almost a week. Most types of dissolvable stitches begin dissolving within a week or two; others can take longer. You'll have to watch them, but even with those dissolving, Hayden. Take it easy…There's still your cracked and bruised ribs on both sides, and the broken wrist that requires healing," Miya stated.

"Oh, good…My ass is safe for another week or two then…" Trayden relaxed.

"Oh, stop complaining. Your ass is always safe, and you love what I can do to it," Hayden smirked.

Trayden sighed. "Yes…Yes, I do," he admitted. "You're such a perv,"

"You're just noticing?" Hayden looked at him. "Don't hate because I know how to give you a good time,"

"I don't hate it…" Trayden blushed more, embarrassed. "I hate that I love it…" he muttered. Hayden leaned up a bit and kissed his boyfriend softly, but quickly pulled back and winced. "Ribs?" Hayden groaned, laying back down.

"This…Fucking sucks…" Hayden hid his face against Trayden's chest, but he yawned.

"You're still recovering; you need rest, Hayden. Your body needs to rest, so you should sleep as much as you can," Miya offered.

"I know…" Hayden nodded. "I-I promise we'll get together soon for that…Probably now very late graduation party/sleepover…" he said.

"Don't even worry about, bud. You worry about you; we'll celebrate when you're a bit more recovered. It's only been a week after all, a full one tomorrow," Devon waved it off.

"Besides, we always got the End of Summer Bash in August! Some of us are going back to school, well…College, and will have jobs to start…" Alyssa stated.

"Right, definitely," Hayden yawned again, starting to fade off against his boyfriend, who was exceptionally comfortable. Not only that, Hayden slept better in Trayden's arms or his bed.

"You rest up; we'll keep updated by text and Skype…When you feel up to it, you let us know, and we'll get to planning," Syrus said as the others nodded in agreement.

"Thanks, guys. You're the best…" Hayden said, drifting off. "Y-You're staying, right, babe?"

"If you'd like me too. Besides, you seem pretty comfortable right now," Trayden replied. Hayden smiled, finally letting sleep take him away. The others smiled and waved to Trayden before exiting the room; they updated Gabriel and then left the house. Trayden got himself adjusted in the bed and continued holding Hayden; he smiled down, glad his boyfriend was back home, and more importantly, alive.

. . .

[Sunday, 6/23/2019; 10 am]
[Berk; Raseri Home]

"Tray? Is everything alright, son?" Dustin asked as he saw Trayden's leg bouncing up and down, and it hadn't stopped for the last hour.

"I'm worried about Hayden," Trayden stated. "He's been too quiet since Friday night after I left his house,"

"It's the anniversary of his parents' deaths," Rachel said.

"I know, that's what worries me…" Trayden sighed. "I'm gonna go-," he began, but there was a knock at the door, and Trayden got very nervous. Rachel got up and went to answer the door. "Hi, kids. Tray, you're friends are here!" Trayden got up and went to see them.

"Hayden's been too quiet. We're worried, so we're gonna go over and check in," Alicia said gently.

"I just had the same idea," Trayden nodded.

"I'll come; he is my patient after all," Rachel said.

"The kids aren't here, so I'll come as well," Dustin stood up, powering down the TV. Wasting no time in grabbing shoes, wallets, and keys; they all left to walk a street over to check on Hayden.

. . .

[10:15 am]
[Berk; Forger/Haddock House]

"Tray…Deep breaths, son," Dustin stated as he knocked on the door. A moment or two later, Gabriel opened it.

"Well, ya came sooner than I guess," Gabriel smiled some.

"You…Knew we would?" Syrus asked.

"I had guessed by lunch," Gabriel stepped aside to let them in.

"Where's Hayden?" Trayden forced himself to ask through the worry.

"Outback," Gabriel replied calmly.

"Is…He okay?" Rachel inquired.

"He's upset, but handling it surprisingly well. Which makes me worry more," Gabriel admitted.

"How is he handling it?" Mindy questioned.

"I don't know; he's just…Calm, but quiet," Gabriel shrugged. "He went outside about twenty minutes ago for fresh air, or so he says. I've left him alone but watching through the glass doors,"

"Mind if we…?" Rachel hinted.

"Nope, not at all. Please do…His quiet calmness is starting to creep me out," Gabriel invited.

"Says the guy who is basically stalking my every move…" Hayden stated, making Gabriel jump and put a hand over his heart.

"Gods almighty, Hayden! Are you trying to give me a heart attack!?" Gabriel said quickly, panting. Hayden just laughed at him.

"Oh, Gods! It hurts to laugh…But that was so worth the pain," Hayden held his sides, smiling, and leaning against the wall.

"Oh…If you weren't already injured, boy…" Gabriel growled at him. "What's with you today? Ya've hardly said a word since Saturday morning when you got up…You were crying last night; you didn't want to get out of bed this morning…And now you're a sarcastic, giggly, thing…"

"I'm a thing now?" Hayden arched a brow. Gabriel shrugged a bit. "You could have said severe mood swings,"

"That's what I was going for," Gabriel snapped his fingers.

"Okay…But why question what's with me today then?" Hayden inquired, crossing his arms over his chest. "And to explain all that stuff…I was quiet Saturday because I was thinking about something. Cried last night because of what today is, figured that might be obvious. I didn't want to get out of bed this morning because in case you forgot…I was shot in the chest, have a broken wrist, and several cracked or bruised ribs on both sides, so I'm ridiculously sore and hardly sleep as it is, so tired and recovering still…And as for the sarcastic, giggly remark…I just happen to be in a good mood right now…Why you gonna question it?" he stared. "You know mood swings are pretty common for someone with depression, right?"

"Well, yeah…But…And not to bring up the past here and risk your good mood, but I'm going to take that chance and beat myself up later if I fuck this up…But you weren't like this at all last year on this particular day…" Gabriel reminded.

"That's…What I was thinking about all day Saturday…Trying to figure out why I wasn't freaking out, or falling apart. Don't get me wrong; it hurts, and I am upset…But I guess I just…Don't feel like breaking down. Rather, I don't feel the need to…Not sure if that makes any sense," Hayden said.

"Why…Don't we go sit down, and try to make more sense of it. If you don't mind; I'm rather intrigued," Rachel suggested.

"Them too?" Hayden pointed to the others. "Sure," Hayden nodded, turning and going to the living room. Nobody understood, and everyone was confused. Now, in the living room, and everyone having found a spot. "I really don't wanna go into…Session Mode today…I feel like I figured things out,"

"Care to explain, lad?" Gabriel hoped.

"Last year, things were still…Bad, I guess. That was when I'd just started to open up, trust others…But I still hadn't gotten any help. I didn't talk to anyone. I tried to deal with everything by myself when it was still eating away at me. And in the end…I couldn't do it. I snapped, and…Uncle Gabriel had to admit me because I couldn't control how I felt. Just like everything else that happened when my parents died. I couldn't control things, so I fell apart," Hayden started, his hands were folded in front of him, his arms on his knees while he was looking down.

"Not gonna lie…It's been hard to deal with this time of year again. I knew it months ago; it's been hard…Probably since May, when I got attacked at the cemetery. A lot was happening this year…I got jumped while trying to mourn, there was graduation and knowing my parents weren't here…There is today, marking two years since they were taken from me…" Hayden paused a moment. "Since the morning of graduation…I didn't think I could handle things again. I worried that just because I was calm then; it wouldn't hold. And that became more apparent when I snapped at the principal, and found myself in one of the out of order bathrooms, telling myself I couldn't do it," Hayden sighed.

"That I couldn't walk the stage; couldn't deal with all these emotions and pain again. I didn't want to freak out again…I know I scared Uncle Gabe, and the rest of you too…And as today drew closer…I…Almost considered admitting myself, just to prevent any…Slip-ups…Yeah, that's the word for that," Hayden confessed.

"Do you still feel that way?" Rachel questioned.

"I…Don't know. It's only 10:30 in the morning, there's a lot of day still to go. That's being entirely truthful, mind you. Last year, it started on the 22nd, I lost it on the 23rd, and by the 24th…I'd snapped. So I don't know how this is going to go. Especially with all the mood swings. Last year, it was just straight sadness, anger, and flashbacks. And again; I thought about all this yesterday…And…There is something different between last year and this one…I mean I could still freak the hell out, but…I'd like to think I'm doing pretty good for now.." Hayden said.

"What's different between this year and last, babe?" Trayden asked now.

"Okay…Honest reply and I hope no one takes offense to it or gets jealous…But you are the difference, Tray," Hayden looked at him now. "That doesn't mean that you guys don't…Make a difference in my desire to live or die…But…Friday night…After you left, babe…I was worried about how the next couple of days would go…How I'd be for today…Saturday morning; something you said came to mind as soon as I woke up,"

"And that was?" Dustin pushed lightly.

"In May 2018…When I'd recovered from Appendicitis, and returned to school…We were talking about fears. I said I used to be fearless but now feared everything. Tray told me to take back control of my life because that's what I was scared of. That my life spiraled out of control, out of my control and there was nothing I could do to stop it…Trayden told me to take back my life, live it my way and I'd see what a difference it made," Hayden informed.

"I…Remember that day," Ford nodded, so did the other friends.

"You decided to take control of your life, not let today destroy you?" Gabriel questioned.

"It wasn't today that I took back my life…It was last week when I faced Dimitri," Hayden looked at him. "Dimitri is the one who took everything from me two years ago today. He killed my parents…And everything was beyond my control. All my fear, worry…Everything keeping me from moving on from what happened…It was because of him. Granted…I didn't know it was him that night…I don't remember seeing him…But I guess when I realized it was him last week…I don't know…Something just…Clicked," Hayden lifted his head more.

"I don't know what happened. I don't know where it came from. But something switched on, and I couldn't stop it. Learning it was him who caused everything; I realized that he was my greatest fear. Knowing it was him, knowing he'd been on the loose for two years, knowing he came back to finish me off. But seeing him at the house, the same place everything began…It was like going back in time. I watched my parents get killed…I watched my dad die for me and mom, and the mom for me…While I was helpless to stop it because I was scared…" Hayden put his head down again.

"But last week…It was like seeing it all over again, but with all of you instead. I felt like I was right back there, and I had the choice to be scared and do nothing or fight back for what's mine. I was given the choice of repeating my past or changing my future. If I had done nothing…If I hadn't fought…I would have lost everything again. And my sanity wouldn't have been able to take it; I would have killed myself. Then and there. It was like my life was right there in front of me, and I took my chance to take it back. I lost one family; I couldn't lose another, so I fought…Because I refused to lose control again. I wanted my life back…I wanted the control again…" Hayden informed.

"That's why I did everything I did," Hayden said now. "The moment I realized I could take back control was when Dimitri had the gun to my head. I said I wasn't scared, but I was. I felt like that was where my decision was. The little voice saying; you can let him win again, or you can take back what is yours. Is it his life, or yours. If it's yours, fight back. Don't let him take away what is yours. I took my life back. I faced my fears, and I took back what is mine. And I feel like that's why today is different than last year. Dimitri is gone, there is justice for my parents…I made sure Dimitri couldn't hurt me or anyone else I care about again…"

"I took back what is mine; I'm in control. I fought for it. I almost died doing it, but I took back my life. Is everything better? No. My parents are still dead. Does it still hurt like a bitch where the pain threatens to drag me to my knees? Yes. But I fought for this life, so I'm not going to give it up or lose it again. And knowing that, despite how I feel about today; I just don't wanna break down. I feel like there's no need. It's just…Another hard day. Maybe a couple of them, I don't know…But I do know that there will always be bad days. And I know that the hurt I feel those times won't last forever and that I can't let my emotions control me. It's my life…I want to keep living it, and I'm going to because I chose to. That's just the way it is because I say so," Hayden said.