A/N: Uh, h-hey guys! Long time no see! I promise this story is alive and well (honestly it's probably the one I think about the most). Thanks for sticking with me! Merry Christmas a couple days ago and I hope you enjoy!

The walk home was awkward to say the least.

"I'm sorry about what I said last night," Ferb finally said. "You aren't stupid."

"I'm sorry too," Phineas said quietly. "I know you're not doing it on purpose; life is just busy, especially with starting middle school and having so many classes and all that. And you have your own life, that I don't always have to be a part of." He was jerked to a stop by Ferb who then bent down to look him directly in the eyes.

"I'll always have time for you Phineas. You're my brother and nothing should ever come before you." Phineas reached out and quickly wrapped him in a hug.

"Thanks Ferb."

"You're welcome," he said, hugging him back. "Now," he said, pulling away. "Are you gonna tell me what happened?"

"It's just some bullies. It's no big deal. You know I've dealt with them before."

"Well yes, but that was before-"

"You were here. I know. They pushed me around a little and said some stupid things. I'll be fine."

"You're downplaying it," Ferb stated directly. Phineas couldn't help but smirk.

"Maybe a little. But if I ignore them, they should just go away." Ferb doubted that, but didn't say anything. Instead he ruffled his brother's hair.

"Let me know if they don't. Now let's get home. We have some time if you want to go over those mechanics books."

Phineas couldn't help but grin.

"Race you home!"

::::

Working with Ferb did wonders to Phineas' mood. He managed to keep his positivity up until Friday when things happened.

Phineas wheeled over to the lockers to grab his and Grace's project. He had it in his hand and was on the way back when Cooper bumped into him and Marcus slapped it from his hand.

"Oops," he said, obviously not serious.

The robot was in pieces. They hadn't got the exoskeleton on yet, so it was just the bare bones and electrical wiring; it wasn't meant to be smashed on the ground.

Caring about their project more than his dignity, Phineas dropped to the ground and began collecting the pieces before someone stepped on them. He reached for his chair, but it wasn't there. Bryant was taking it for a ride around the classroom while everyone laughed. Mr. Roberts had left the classroom for a moment, so it appeared there was no one to help.

"Hey!" Phineas turned and saw Grace marching over to Bryant, phone in hand for some reason. "Get off and give it back to him!"

"Why doesn't he come and get it?" he laughed and others joined in.

"Get off or else."

"Or else what?" he taunted.

She held up her phone.

"Or else I'll show Mr. Roberts this whole recording."

His smile fell and with a sneer, Bryant got out of the chair and shoved it in Phineas' direction. He managed to stop it from running into him and pulled himself up without dropping any of the robot parts. Thankfully at that moment, the teacher returned and everyone settled down.

"Here, let me take those." Phineas gratefully handed the parts to Grace and they returned to their lab table.

"Thanks for standing up for me," he said.

"They're a bunch of jerks. The only decent guy in here is you," she whispered vehemently. "Sometimes I'd really just like to punch them."

"Violence doesn't solve anything," Phineas replied and got to work rewiring. "Were you really recording?"

"Oh yeah. As soon as class is over, I'm showing it to Mr. Roberts."

"But I thought you said-"

"There's no way I'm letting them get away with that stunt. That was not cool, in the slightest."

Phineas couldn't help but feel a bit flattered.

"Well, thanks again."

::::

That night, he got his homework done early and decided to call up Isabella.

"Hello?"

"Hey Isabella!"

"Oh, hey Phineas! Whatcha doin'?"

"Nothing much. I'm done with homework so I was wondering if maybe you wanted to hang out?"

"Oh Phineas, I'd love too, but I've got a test tomorrow and a presidency meeting, so I'm kind of swamped."

"That's okay!"

"I can talk for a minute though. How's it coming with your head?"

"Heh, slower than I'd like, but I'm making progress."

"I'm glad to hear it. Oh, my mom's calling me. Better go. See you!"

"Bye!"

Phineas hung up and tapped his phone on his chest as he laid on his bed. Maybe Baljeet? Nah, always doing homework. Buford? Phineas inwardly cringed. He wished he could figure out what to do about how Buford had been treating him. He was pretty sure he didn't mean any harm, but, well, he was harming. Maybe he'd try to talk to him tomorrow. Yeah, that was a good idea.

::::

The next day during lunch Phineas wheeled around nervously outside the lunchroom, hoping he could catch Buford without the others. No such luck.

"Outta my way Dinner Bell," Buford said, pushing past him.

"Wait, Buford! I was wondering if we could talk really quick."

"Didn't you hear him?" Marcus said. "Or did your brain get messed up too? He said, outta the way," emphasizing it with a kick to his wheel. Though Phineas could feel his face flush at the comment, he was not one to be deterred easily.

"Buford-"

"Look, does he have to spell it out for you?" Cooper asked, giving a tug on his handles. "He doesn't. Want. To hang out. With. You. He told us about all the great stuff you and your brother built over the summer, but we know what you really are. An idiot who can't build a stupid robot! And if you can't do all those cool things anymore, what's the point in hanging out with you?"

Phineas had to admit, that hurt. There was lots more to him than just inventing things, right?

Right?

"Is that true?"

His eyes plead with Buford, begging him to prove them wrong, but Buford just shrugged.

"Sorry Phineas, but…"

He didn't say anything else. He didn't need to. The others followed him into the lunchroom, buffeting Phineas as they went by.

No. No, that couldn't be right. Buford didn't mean it. H-He was lying or… something. Unbidden tears started to blur Phineas' vision. He turned around and raced down the now empty halls as fast as he could and somehow, a bit to his surprise, he wound up in one of the music practice rooms. Hot, angry tears slid down his face and he was grateful that the walls were mostly sound proof as the tears turned to sobs. In the corner sat his guitar, where he'd left it, meaning to come in and practice after school for a bit. Now was as good a time as any though. What had he told Baljeet? To use music as a way to let your emotions out?

Yeah. He could use that right now.

::::

"Hey Ferb." The green haired boy looked up and waved at Isabella as she sat down next to him in math class. "How's it going?" A quick thumbs up, then an inquisitive nod. "Okay." Skeptical look. Isabella laughed quietly. "Okay, you got me. I'm a bit tired. And… I'm worried about Phineas." Ferb nodded. "You too huh? I'm glad I'm not the only one. He's seemed so distant lately, always distracted or working on something."

Ferb nodded in agreement. Phineas had come home from school on Tuesday and had seemed really off. He kept looking like he wanted to ask something, but never did. Ever since, he had seemed distracted, always with his nose in a book or tinkering with something or both at the same time. Ferb had tried to work with him on his chair and they'd made some progress, but Phineas had gotten frustrated so easily. It was unlike him and worrisome to say the least. Ferb had woken up around midnight and found Phineas passed out of his mechanics book with the desk light still on. He managed to get him into bed without waking him up.

"I mean, I guess the only thing we can do is be there for him if he needs us, right?"

Ferb nodded. Until they knew what was going on, what else could they do?

A/N: Sorry I keep forgetting to end on a somewhat happy note. But OH HO buckle up kids because the angst train is just getting started! Thanks for reading and reviews are always appreciated!