Sup guys, Merry Christmas eve! This chapter is my gift to you guys (and a way to make up for those horrible four months of waiting). Before you read this, I will have to clear something up. I love Melanie and Melian. Their relationship is amazing and he looks so happy with her. The way I portrayed her in this chapter has nothing to do with my feelings about her, just something to add to the plot. There will be abuse here, so if you can't handle it, here's your warning. Also I'm going to try and write as many chapters I can for you until my break's over (Jan. 13th), so keep looking out. Thank you again for all your support. I love you all, and please enjoy.

Please pick up Mel…

"Hi, this is Melanie. If you're hearing this, I'm probably too busy to answer. Please leave a message after the beep." Ian hung up his cell phone in defeat. He was beginning to feel worried about Melanie. This was the 4th time he got directed to voicemail, and the dozens of texts within the past two hours weren't being answered either.

Why isn't she answering?

This wasn't the first time Ian went through this with his girlfriend. It became a frequent reoccurrence as of late and this terrified him. The missed calls, ignored texts; none of this was his main concern. Not even that she has been out later and later each night this happened. Ian knew that something far worse was going to happen the moment she stepped into their door.

Like every other night similar to this, Ian gathered whatever energy that was left inside his trembling body to plop onto the couch. He needed to distract himself from his fears and worries. He quickly glanced at his phone one last time before shutting it off. Not sure of whether to sit there in silence, or watch TV to drown out overwhelmed thoughts that kept circulating in his head. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the first coin he could find.

Alright, heads I'll watch TV; tails, nothing but quiet.

Ian flicked the coin up above his head, and caught it with ease on his first attempt. He plopped the coin-contained hand over the other, and hesitantly pulled it away. His eyes were glued shut as anxiety took over. What if he makes the wrong choice or what if he was over-reacting the entire time? Maybe this night would be different, and perhaps Melanie was just too busy to answer his calls. As much as this denial took a bit of pressure from his troubled mind, he knew that this situation was going to turn out the same as always. He slowly inched his eyes open and peered at the coin in front of him.

Tails… here goes nothing I suppose. Ian repositioned himself on the couch so he would be lying down on his back. He only looked up towards the ceiling fan, using its rotating blades as a distraction from his thoughts. It was a calming feeling, watching the blades moving above him. He wasn't quite sure why, but it had always helped him in times like this. He eyes lingered for a few more seconds before turning their attention to the DVR clock. It was nearing two in the morning, and as tired as he felt, he knew he had to stay up to wait for her. After all, it's better to face the problem that's ahead, than to hide or sleep through it.

Time moved slowly as Ian lied there in silence. While it felt like several hours, he had only been there for an hour and a half, and who knows when Melanie would show up. Ian forced himself to speed up time by daydreaming. He thought about the years where their relationship felt like stars in a calm sky. He always enjoyed spending every waking moment with his perfect girlfriend; even when working on Smosh videos prevented it. He thought about the first day he asked her out, their first kiss, the day they moved in together, and every moment that she made him feel happy about just being together. Those years meant everything in the world to Ian, but all he could do now is cherish them when he can.

Those happy years slowly dissolved as their relationship moved forward. Sure, he was still happy that he was with Melanie, but it seemed like his smile faded more often than not. For the past two and a half years, Melanie began distancing herself from Ian. Whenever they were at home together, she'd try her best to avoid eye contact, or even sit in the same room. When he proposed going out on a date, she would claim she was too busy, or she had already made plans with her friends to go out. During Ian's downtime from recording and editing videos, which lasted days or even weeks long, Melanie did her best to stay out of the house. She would always leave notes in their bedroom about traveling for her photography job, or visiting loved ones.

Ian made every attempt he could to get close to Melanie again. He would offer to spend day-long quality time with her, or allow her to get some space between them for a few days; in which he would either camp out at the Smosh house, or sleep over Anthony and Kalel's house for a weekend. He would try to discuss the problem, offering to change for her, or perhaps ask why she always acted like this. Despite all the separation, all the lonely downtime, Ian could handle it all. He would do virtually anything to save what was left of their relationship.

Unfortunately none of his attempts were futile. Beginning months ago, Ian started seeing an even more drastic change in Melanie's behavior. One night, less than two years later, Melanie came home, after hanging out with friends until about midnight, with alcohol-stained clothing and strong vodka under her breath. It was a side of her that Ian could not have ever imagined. She was wasted right before his eyes, and he was helpless to do anything about it. While he tried getting her to bed, she would only kick and complain about how bad of a boyfriend he was, or how she didn't want him to touch her. While all these horrible remarks got thrown into his face, Ian remained strong and got her to bedside. He loved her no matter what, and he clearly thought it was just the alcohol talking. He figured that she never meant any of it, and this was going to be a one-time thing.

That night marked the beginning of a string of drunken Melanie nights. It started off only occurring once every two weeks. Slowly these nights turned into a couple of days every two weeks, then once a week, all until she would be out for a couple of nights in a row. As the nights lead on, Melanie started to get worse. While in the beginning she'd only hurl insults at Ian and their relationship, words turned into shoves and kicks. When Ian tried leading her to their bed, she pushed and screamed at him to stop, even managing to land a punch or two on occasion. She was turning into a monster before Ian's eyes, and with each occurrence, he grew more tired and scared. He loved her too much to give up, and he still knew that alcohol was the reason behind her violence and recklessness.

Suddenly Ian was awoken from his daydream of horrible memories to the sound of a door slam. He peeked over the couch to find Melanie stumble into the moon lighted living room. As if an enormous wave of energy just hit him, he stood up and cautiously walked over to his girlfriend.

"Get away f-from me." Melanie slurred. As Ian expected, her body reeked of beer and vodka. His face was stern, yet exhausted, holding his hand out for her. He wanted to cry out to her, assure her that he was there to help and everything was going to be okay, but he knew from experience that pleading out to her would do nothing and that staying silent was his best option. He stared at her with desperation in his eyes; he just wished things could go smoothly this time.

"I said stay away from me!" She screamed, this time slowly wavering back towards the door. Ian stood there, mustering strength and determination behind his feelings of terror and fear. He wanted to break down and cry, or grab her and hold her until she sobered up. He wanted to do anything to get his girlfriend back. He wanted Melanie, not the monster that consumed her.

"Ian, I'm s-serious." Melanie quickly reached out for the lamp right next to their door and held it out in front of her.

"Put the lamp down Mel." Ian broke his silence, trying to calm her down before she hurts either one of them.

"Get away from me!"

"Melanie, calm down please." At this point the strength that Ian had left faded away. His voice resembled the fear he felt inside, finding himself slipping away from her. He took another step towards her, hoping that she would relent, but she remained strong.

Everything that followed became a blur. Ian found himself on the ground with broken glass mangled in his hair. He looked up at Melanie, who stared down at him in horror and the lamp loosely in her grasp. She saw something that he couldn't, blood. It stained a portion of his head, as it slowly streamed down his neck and into a pool right beside him.

"I-Ian..?" He could faintly hear her pleads. The world around him was slowly fading to black, and for once in hours, he was finally at a state of peace.

This isn't Melanie. This isn't the same person.

Ian spent years trying to pick up the pieces of their broken relationship. All this time, he blamed himself for the distance between them. He spent his time trying to become the perfect boyfriend, yet here he was lying in his own blood. It gave him time to realize that he can't save her anymore. That love for her isn't reciprocated. He was chasing after a person that had long ago decided that the relationship wasn't worth saving. He's endured her avoidance, her insults, her drunken nights, her kicks and shoves, and now this? Ian wasn't sure if he was going to make it out of this alive. Is saving Melanie really worth possibly experiencing this again?

Ian's peace of mind ended as he opened his eyes to find himself surrounded by men with badges and people in ER uniforms. He surveyed his living room, which was converted into a crime scene. The front door plastered with yellow tape, a blood stained lamp laid on the floor marked off with evidence tags, groups of officers, crime scene investigators and EMTs scattered about. Ian slowly pulled himself up; his head plagued with sharp pains, and made his way out the door and towards the group of police cars. He spotted his neighbors off to the side explaining the situation to two lanky officers. Several doctors would run up to him on occasion and demand that Ian should not move, but he shrugged them off like the stubborn person he normally is. All that was on his mind was reaching those police cars. One of them contained a familiar person which he had to go see.

"You're okay!" Melanie yelled, pounding on the car window. Ian stared at her for a while. He couldn't imagine seeing someone he loved so much, handcuffed and in the back of a police car. Then again, he couldn't imagine seeing that same person bash his head with a lamp.

"Save it Mel." Ian sternly replied. He was exhausted from staying up to wait for Melanie to come home. He could just go back inside, and pretend this night didn't happen, but he knew deep down that he had to face her. He couldn't live in denial much longer; he couldn't stay in a relationship that almost cost him his life. Ian stopped inches from the police car Melanie was in. His normally gleaming blue eyes full of life were now dull and dark. He wasn't going to deal with this anymore.

"I'm done. You wanted out of this relationship a long time ago? Well you got your wish." The tone in Ian's voice hit a new low, even surprising her. "I'll pack up your shit, and take them to your parents. They can bail you out when they can." Ian turned away before Melanie could respond. He could feel her eyes beginning to water behind him, and for once, he didn't care. He gave her love for six years, and this was the first time it affected her in almost three.

He started walking off back towards his house, leaving behind his past, leaving behind the hurt, leaving behind her. With each step, Ian found the pain in his head numbing down. The world around him started to change. While in one moment he was outside ending his ties with Melanie, he suddenly found himself inside on the couch, confused and lost about what was happening. The windows shone bright sunlight onto him, despite it being nighttime just a second ago. He turned around and scanned the room; no sight of people, no bloodied lamp, no large group of officers or medical staff. Suddenly he saw a familiar man walk in from the guest bedroom, holding half a bowl of popcorn.

"Glad to see you up, babe," the person chimed. Ian widened his eyes, still perplexed over what had just happened.

Did he just call me "babe"? Did David really call me babe..? Ian stared at the man, as he plopped onto the couch, wrapping his arm around Ian's shoulder.

"Want some popcorn? You've had a hard night." David held out the popcorn in front of Ian, who was reluctant at first to grab a handful. The two would then stare at the TV as Star Wars began playing.

Is this all a dream? Ian was distraught. One minute he was saying goodbye to his past, and now he's greeting this strange kind of future?

That blood, the pain in my head, there's no way. It couldn't be a dream! There's no freakin' way. That was way too real just like last ti-, a light bulb suddenly went off in his head. It was all a flashback playing in his mind. That pain, down to the moment Melanie hit him, he was reliving every second of that night. It was a daunting thought that gave Ian chills.

"Are you alright Ian? Need a blanket or something?" David looked over at Ian, his eyes showing genuine concern towards him.

"Um, I'm good man." Ian answered, reaching out towards the bowl of popcorn. David shrugged him off, pulling Ian closer to his body as he continued watching the movie. Ian was still trying to sort everything out in his mind. He had questions about everything. Why was he dreaming about David? Why was he calling him "babe"? Why does he feel so safe and comfortable now, despite just facing his ex-girlfriend just moments ago?

Stop thinking and just go with it. His head was now sending him messages. There was a reason why he was dreaming about this moment. After re-experiencing the toughest part of his life, there David was trying to make him feel at home. He could have dreamt about those days where Ian and Melanie's relationship was perfect, but instead it's just David sitting here with popcorn and a movie. Ian soon realized that maybe this could be a glimpse of something he truly wanted. Maybe this is a future that Ian should actually make happen.

"Ian," David lightly placed his palm on Ian's cheek, and turned his head to face him. "Forget about her and the past." Ian found himself drawn to this side of David. His dark, brown eyes showed love and compassion. He was facing a man who showed him an amount of emotion that Melanie stopped showing a long time ago. His breathing had slowed down immensely, as his eyes slowly lowered from David's eyes down to his lips.

"Dave-"

"Ian, shut up." David interrupted him, his hand now finding a place in the back of Ian's head, playing and tangling his hair. "Unfortunately you're stuck with me for a while," David smirked, earning a small grin from Ian. "But in the meantime, we might as well have fun, right?" The two boys found themselves leaning in, drawn in towards each other like a magnet. Their eyes slowly close, allowing the moment to be more than special.

Their lips softly met, closing the gap between them. Ian moved his hand to the back of David's head, allowing him to further indulge into the kiss. Ian began to slowly push David down onto the couch, positioning himself on top of him. Their lips never parted for a second, as things became heated among the boys. Blood was rushing towards Ian's face, as he explored his partner's mouth in every way he could. The way his lips tasted like salted popcorn, how his tongue collided with his own perfectly, the way David's face felt rubbing against Ian's stubble; everything felt amazing to him.

Ian never wanted to stop, only wanting to continue like this until they ran out of oxygen. It all felt real to him, often forgetting that this was all just a dream. He wanted to take things further, explore every inch of his body. He was hungry for David, just like he was the morning before. Ian wanted to experience this with the real David, not just a desire playing out in his dream. He was going to make this relationship happen, no matter what it took. He just needed to wait it out for a bit until they were both ready. After all, Ian cared about him too much to be his rebound.

…

Ian's eyes shot open as his head jolted from the pillow. He was back in his room, and found himself breaking out in cold sweats in his comfy bed. The first thing that hit him was the loud ringing in his ears, which caused him to groan in annoyance. It was an awful siren-like sound that played throughout the entire house. Ian pulled himself out of bed and slowly made his way to the doorway. As he opened his door, a thick, cloudy air suddenly hit Ian and filled up his bedroom. Still groggy from the sleep, Ian rubbed his eyes. It was then terror filled his head as he raced out of the room. That awful noise was the fire alarm, and there was smoke filling up the house. Ian didn't care about that, there was one thing on his mind; one thing that concerned him at that moment.

"D-David?!" Ian screamed, the alarms drowning out his concerned voice.

Whoa, bet you guys didn't see that one coming. I really hope you guys liked this chapter, I know I loved writing it. Please review this or share it with friends. I'm just here to cater to your Iancorn needs, so please enjoy it as much as you can. Also I wish you all a Happy Holidays, and Merry Christmas.

Love you all, and I hope you have an awesome day. =D