Travis's eyes fluttered open and the first thing he saw as his vision refocused and a new feeling of numb pain overcame him, were his friends, Jack and Vic, who were sitting beside him, Vic's head lying against Jack's shoulder.

At first, Travis didn't quite know where he was, almost wondering if he were dead, but as he saw he was lying in an unfamiliar bed in an unfamiliar room with unfamiliar walls, he recognized he was in a hospital.

Jack and Vic quickly sat up when they saw him awake, suddenly looking hopeful, Jack reaching out to grab ahold of his hand. "Hey Buddy, you're awake…."

"Travis…." Vic breathed out in relief with a tired smile, her eyes seeming lit up with happiness.

Travis managed to grin at them tiredly, happy to see them. "Hey guys, you okay?" He was glad to see Vic's face was now cleaned up and bandaged, relaxed to see she no longer appeared hurt.

"We're fine, buddy."

"Vic, you're-you're okay?" He asked just to be sure, looking at her with guilt, still feeling terrible about it.

"I'm alright, Travis." She just smiled at him.

"Good, because Ripley woulda killed me if you weren't." He sighed in relief, earning some soft chuckles from them.

"And am I okay?" He blinked, frowning a little, struggling to remember what had happened after leaving the warehouse.

"You are now. The doctors found nothing serious, don't worry. Except for some cracked ribs and major bruising, but Travis, you are going to be fine." Vic was smiling down at him, it now her turn to be holding his hand. "I just wish we would've known sooner so none of this would've happened…" She frowned a little and Travis remembered all that had happened, realizing the truth now had to be completely spilt.

"I got her caught up for you, Trav," Jack said quietly, looking serious. "Though I don't know if I should've been the one to tell her."

Travis frowned a little, suddenly feeling bad, sighing. "I-I know, I'm sorry I didn't tell you, Vic. If I woulda just said something, none of this would've happened and you guys wouldn't have gotten hurt. This is all my fault…." He frowned deeply, looking sad and his friends frowned at him.

"Hey, no, don't blame yourself," Jack said to him. "This is not your fault. Now look, we don't have to talk about this now, alright? I called everyone from the station, they're gonna stop by soon, okay?"

Travis smiled a little to hear that, wanting to feel comforted by all his friends, it feeling like the first time in forever that he actually felt like himself and that people loved him again. "Mmmm, good. Is-Is Jace here?"

He probably shouldn't have asked the question so soon but Travis was curious to know, after what had just happened with Jace confessing his love to him.

Jack quickly scowled and Vic's posture quickly shifted too. "He's right outside. I told him I wasn't going to let him see you." Jack huffed with a nod towards the glass window where Travis quickly looked to indeed see Jace right outside, watching them with a sort of sad look.

Travis just remained calm. "I'd like to talk to him."

"What?" Jack's eyes went narrow, both of them frowning at him. "Why would you-"

"Jack, it's alright, I'll be fine."

"No, I'm not letting him near you, not after what he did to you!" Jack protested and Travis just continued to frown at him.

"Jack. It's alright." He just stated softly with a calm look and Jack looked away with an angry huff, clearly annoyed, not wanting anything more to do with Jace.

But nevertheless he stood up and slowly walked out to gesture for Jace to come in, watching him with narrow eyes.

Jace looked at him a little wearily with a frown and as he passed, Jack hissed into his ear so Travis couldn't hear. "Don't try anything with him or you're dead."

Jace just frowned and ignored him, going over to the other side of the bed, feeling Vic and Jack's hard gaze on him as they remained in the room with them.

As Jace sat down and got to look at Travis up-close, his expression quickly morphed into concern. "Travis, are you alright?"

He tried to take Travis's hand into his but Travis moved it away, looking at Jace with a kind of neutral expression, not looking at him happily but not angrily either. "Yeah, I'm okay, thanks."

"Oh, I am so sorry, for-for all of this. It should never have gotten that far, I-I had no idea Zack was going to try to kill you! I-I should've killed him a long time ago, I-I should've killed him the minute he hurt you, the-the minute he touched you…." Jace frowned deeply, his face etched with concern and a look of innocence, but it was all genuine, as he truly did love Travis, he had this entire time, even before Zack had gotten involved.

On the other side of the bed, Jack and Vic's eyes narrowed as they listened to what Jace said, Jack's hands on his hips as he stood close to Travis's feet, practically trying to peer over Jace's form to keep a close eye on him.

Travis swallowed as he frowned at Jace. "I-I can't believe you actually killed him."

"I-I had to!" Jace frowned with big eyes. "He was going to kill you! Besides, he was an awful man and I never should've gotten involved with him to do this to you. I regret all those times I hurt you, Travis, I-I hate myself for it. But hey, now that he's gone, it's okay now, because you're safe and we can be together in peace." He smiled and Travis frowned a little, thinking.

"So-So you're saying, you were actually in love with me the entire time? This whole time?"

Jace sighed, his frown returning. "I know, I know, I hate myself for not telling you and playing the part all those times, I-I just didn't know how to tell you! I love you so much, Travis, I have never met another guy like you. And-and I wanna be with you, spend the rest of my life with you. And now that you know, we get to be together and you can be happy again and that'll make me happy cause I'll be with you." Jace practically beamed at him and Travis just frowned, his eyebrows furrowed.

"Jace, as flattered as I am that you fell in love with me…..I can't be with you." He shook his head no slowly, talking in a soft, serious voice, Jace's smile fading.

"What?"

"I can't be with you." Travis repeated. "Not after what happened."

Jace frowned, his expression slowly morphing into anger. "Is-Is this because I killed Zack? Is that what this is?"

"Partially, but also-"

"No, we're-we're supposed to be together! I-I finally confessed my love to you, I-I thought we had a thing. Wh-Why don't you want to love me back?" He searched Travis's face with wide eyes, looking half concerned and half angry all at once, Travis just looking at him with a completely serious face.

"I can't love you back, Jace, because you raped me." He spoke in a slow voice and the room quickly went quiet. Jack and Vic's eyes went wide, both looking shocked, unable to believe what they had heard.

Jace's eyes widened before flickering, almost looking betrayed. "B-But-But we had sex before that, I-I was just-"

"Jace, it's over." Travis interrupted with a frown, completely serious, shifting his gaze to the window where he saw police officers waiting outside his room.

"Officers," He called. "If you're looking for the man who killed Zack, this is him, right here." He nodded to Jace, watching them come in and head towards him.

Jace was just staring at Travis with a shocked look, unable to believe this was happening. "B-But-But Travis," He started as the officers came and grabbed him by the arms. "I love you."

Travis didn't answer but just watched as they took Jace outside without another word, handcuffing him. Jace stared back at him with a betrayed look, eyes narrowed, staring back with a new fire in his eyes before the cops took him, the room now silent as it was now just the three of them.

"Finally, he's gone." He heard Jack huff under his breath and Travis just closed his eyes a moment, letting out a sigh, feeling like all the weight on his shoulders had just been lifted.

"It's okay, Travis, he's gone now." Vic said quietly, taking his hand in hers as Jack sat down again on the opposite side.

"Yeah, that sorry son of a b**** won't be able to bother you ever again."

Travis opened his eyes, frowning softly as he nodded slowly. "Yeah."

"Travis, is-is what you said really true? Did he really….?" Vic's soft voice trailed off as she looked at him with worry and Travis just nodded slowly, knowing exactly what they were thinking.

"Yep." Was all he could say, not knowing any other way of saying it. "It's true."

They seemed to look shocked all over again, though Jack looked more angry if anything, but Travis wasn't really watching them, instead watching out the door, lost in thought.

Now that this was all over, with Zack dead and Jace now going to jail, his life would be able to go back to normal and not having felt like his life had been normal in a long time, Travis wasn't sure how he should feel. He hadn't been able to feel happy for so long now, would he really be able to go back to how things once were?

3 Days Later

Travis looked out the window of Jack's truck, gazing at his house anxiously, frowning as he stared a good long minute.

Jack watched him from the driver's seat as they were parked right outside. "Should we wait?"

"No no, it's alright, I-I just need a minute." Travis said quietly, trying to prepare himself mentally.

The last few days had been hard; even though Zack and Jace were gone, that didn't mean Travis had fully recovered from what he had been through. Physically maybe, but not mentally.

Even though his friends had all came to see him at the hospital and spent a lot of time with him, Travis still felt discouraged and mildly depressed, feeling just as lonesome as he did before, just as sad.

He assumed it was mostly because all his friends had found out what had happened to him and now he nearly felt ashamed that they knew, not thinking they were able to understand what had happened, that they would just pity him for the sake of it instead.

He still had the lingering sense of whether or not they were actually friends who cared about him, having thought that for so long now, he wasn't sure if he could otherwise. He knew he shouldn't think of his friends this way, but by now it was completely engraved in his mind and he couldn't help it.

Travis had went through something so traumatic, the second hardest thing he's ever went through in his life, having spent most of those days feeling sad and completely alone, it was going to take a lot of time for him to be able to recover.

"Remember, we don't have to do this if you're not ready," Vic's voice from the backseat met his ears, her voice soft and gentle. "You can still stay over at my place if you'd like."

Travis sighed quietly, hanging his head a little. "No no, it's alright, I-I'm ready." He got out of the car and Vic and Jack walked up beside him, Jack placing a gentle hand on his shoulder when he froze before the door again.

Travis frowned, but his friends were all going to be there soon to welcome him home and he knew this was something he had to do, even though the thought of being in his house again was paining him, the memories of what happened there being what haunted him, hurt him.

But nevertheless, he tried to put on a brave face, as he knew Jack and Vic beside him were waiting, opening the door slowly, finally entering inside.

He expected everything to be the same as how it had been when they had left, but Travis was surprised to see a huge banner hung up that said, 'Welcome Home!' with a table of presents just below it, also decorated with balloons and streamers.

He couldn't help but grin as he started to go over. "Wha-you guys! When did you manage to do all this?" He smiled at the banner as Jack and Vic joined him.

"Oh it wasn't a problem. We just wanted to make this special for you." Vic said happily as she smiled at him.

Travis admired the banner with a grin but as he looked over the pile of presents and decorations, looking at where he was standing in his dining room, thinking of the fact the banner said 'Welcome Home,' remembering what had happened to him here, seeing the walls were still bare where all of his pictures of Michael once were, Travis quickly began to start crying, suddenly overwhelmed with sadness again.

Jack and Vic quickly frowned at him worriedly, it not the first time Travis had cried since the hospital, as he still seemed miserable most of the time, crying often, and knowing all of what he had been through and what with being with him for so long now, they just wanted to be there for their friend and help him.

"Travis, what's wrong?" Vic frowned at him in concern, talking to him in her soft, caring voice, putting a hand on his shoulder gently, Travis's hands at his eyes as he let out a sniffle.

"I-I just….I just still feel terrible…" He whimpered out in a broken voice, tears running down his face, shaking his head as he cried, looking heartbroken.

Vic frowning, she glanced at Jack. "Uh Jack, why don't you give us a minute?"

Jack nodded wordlessly with a frown as he glanced again at Travis before he stepped out, allowing them to be alone, Vic able to do a much better job at comforting Travis than he could.

"Don't cry, Travis….tell me what's wrong…." Vic rubbed his back in circles, keeping close.

Travis sniffled, trying to stop crying, embarrassed, looking at her with a frown. "I-It-It's just….I-I can't, I-I'm still upset and I know the others would rather be anywhere else than here. They don't want to see me….plus, I'd just make them all sad and I don't want to make them sad…."

"Travis…." Vic grabbed him by the arms gently, looking him in the eye. "You're not going to make everybody sad. And of course they want to be here, they want to be here for you."

"No, no they don't…." Travis shook his head sadly. "You don't have to pretend, Vic, I know they don't care."

"Of course they care, Travis. We care about you so much, we love you. You're our friend and we would do anything for you. Please, you have to understand there are so many people who care about you…." Vic spoke slowly and with a soft voice, showing him she was honest, watching him sniffle again.

"It's just, when Zack and Jace were here, I-I was so lonely and all alone, it-it still hurts, so much…"

"Oh honey," Vic pulled him into a careful hug, swaying with him slowly. "You're not alone anymore, Trav. We're all here for you. And it's okay if you're still hurting, we're going to stay with you and help you until you get better again."

Travis was comforted by her hug, glad to be held by her, frowning. "B-But what if I don't get better? Th-They hurt me so bad, Vic, I-I dunno if I can be happy again."

"I know they hurt you, honey, but you're going to get better, okay? Jack and I and the rest of us, we're going to help you get better, okay?" She pulled out of the hug to offer him a small smile, Travis wiping at his eye, slowly nodding, trying his best to believe her.

"I-I want to get better. I wanna be happy again so bad…" He started in a quiet voice, frowning deeply, his eyes sad. "But I guess crying all the time doesn't help. I'm sorry."

"Hey, don't be sorry for feeling sad, okay?" Vic frowned at him. "There is nothing for you to be sorry for, alright? None of this is your fault."

"But-But you guys got hurt 'cause of me. And-And I still miss Michael. I wish he were here with me, Vic, I miss him so much."

"I know honey, we all wish Michael were still here with you. But he's still in your heart, Trav, and in your memories, that's keeping him alive. And I'm sure he'd be proud of you for that. And don't you ever forget how much he loved you, don't you ever think he didn't love you, alright?"

Travis nodded slowly. "I know he loved me, Vic. It's just that all this happening made me miss him even more now," He was trying to look at the walls to see Michael again, forgetting the pictures weren't there, frowning as he looked away again. "I think what I really need now is to have someone here for me, to-to be my friend, so I won't be lonely anymore."

Vic took his hands in hers, smiling hopefully at him. "We are here, Travis. Your friends are right here with you and we are never going to let you be alone again, or let anything happen to you. Understood?"

Travis nodded, managing to give a faint smile. "Okay. Thanks, I-I know this can't be easy for you guys, to put up with me being such a sad sack. I really appreciate you two sticking around." He glanced at Jack, who came back into the room, coming over with a nod.

"Of course, Travis, we're always here for you." Vic said gently, looking him in the eye. "We're going to cheer you up, no matter what it takes."

"Thanks, Vic." Travis smiled at her as he wiped the rest of his tears away, Jack putting his hand on his shoulder.

"You feeling better, buddy?"

Travis nodded. "For now. I just really wish I could have all my pictures of Michael back." He was glancing at the walls again with a forlorn gaze. "It'll take forever to go through them all and buy new frames."

Jack and Vic were glancing at each other with a grin. "No it won't." Jack huffed. "See those presents there? Open 'em."

Travis frowned a little and eyed them a little curiously, slowly going over to the table, picking up one of the bigger presents, ripping off the wrapping paper. He soon saw it was a large picture frame, one that could hold several pictures, assuming the others were all frames also, appearing similar.

Surprised, Travis held it up and looked at them in wonder, as if he didn't understand, Vic and Jack just grinning.

"We all pitched in and bought you new frames, figured you could use 'em." Jack grinned proudly and Travis looked touched, feeling honored.

"Wow," He looked over all the presents, grinning and shaking his head all at once. "You-You guys did all that for me?"

"And we're going to help you hang 'em all up too." Vic was beaming at him, Travis's eyes glowing with a smile. "Aw you guys, thank you."

He came up and hugged them both, a warm feeling in his chest, suddenly grateful and happy to be with them, making him smile. "This really means a lot."

The doorbell suddenly rang and Travis looked up, Jack patting his shoulder. "Come on, let's have some fun."

"Wait." Travis stopped and frowned, second-guessing himself. "I-I dunno if they wanna-"

"Travis, they're here for you. Alright?" Vic smiled at him hopefully, a gleam in her eyes, trying to show him it was okay.

Travis still wasn't entirely sure but he let out a sigh and nodded, watching Jack go to the door to let everyone in.

Maya and Andy came in first with happy smiles, the rest of the guys following after them, a chorus of warm welcomes filling the air as they all filed inside, Maya heading towards Travis with a smile as she carried a frosted cake.

Travis greeted them with a polite smile, shaking his head a little when he saw the cake. "A cake, ah, really, you guys didn't have to…."

"Well she's got the cake, and I have the surprise present." Lucas Ripley came in last with a smile, a white ball of fur in his arms as he carried Milo.

Travis's expression quickly became surprised as soon as he saw him. "Milo? Oh, Milo!"

Ripley brought him over and gave him to Travis, Milo already yipping and wagging his tail excitedly, licking Travis's face everywhere, making Travis laugh, happy to see him and hold him close again. "Oh, I missed you, too!"

"Now that you're back home, he's all yours again," Dean nodded with a grin as he watched, having been watching over Milo for him this whole time. "And please do, because he is quite the handful." He said with a raised brow, Travis just chuckling, Milo still in his arms.

"I will gladly take him back, Dean. I've really missed him…" He smiled as he looked his dog in the eyes and nuzzled him, holding him close, already feeling so much better to be with him again, it feeling good to smile and be surrounded by all his friends.

"Okay, everyone come and get a slice of cake!" Maya called, having already taken the liberty of going over to the counter where she and Andy were cutting up the cake together, Jack also already starting to hand out some beers. Everyone headed over and began chatting with one another, having a good time.

Travis looked around him, at all his friends there with him in his house, pleased to see everyone together and looking so happy, not even flinching when Ben or Dean would pat him on the shoulder and tell him they were glad he was alright, feeling at ease for once, happy actually.

And with that, Travis smiled, because he knew everything was going to be okay again.

A/N: Stay tuned for the sequel!