A/N: Writing this chapter makes me really wish I could speak French. One of my pet peeves is reading bad translations in fics. So, I will try for a few phrases and hope they translate properly.

Da-Nuh-Nuh-Nay-Nuh-Nuh-Nuh

Da-Nuh-Nuh-Nay-Nuh-Nuh-Nuh

Dropkick Murphy's "Shipping out to Boston" breaks the peace and silence of the dorm room.

Nick glares groggily as his roommate fishes his iPhone from his bedside table.

"Bastian, Love," His mother's throaty voice fills the phone.

"Hi Momman," He tries not to sound sleepy as he answers. "Do you know what time it is here?"

He walks into the bathroom, running his fingers through his wild bedhead.

"Dinner time, isn't it?" She asks. "You weren't napping?"

"Ohio is six hours behind France," he reminds her, not for the first time.

"Merde." She swears into the phone.

They chat, idly, for a few minutes. Mother and son had a connection not enjoyed by most pairs. They speak in a mixture of English, French, and her native Quebequois.

"Honey, are you happy?" His mother asks after a while.

He wants to laugh. He doesn't know what happy is. He believes it a myth, like Santa Claus or the tooth fairy, made up to keep people in line. Happiness is an opiate of the masses.

He wants to say it, but he cannot. Not now. Not to his mother.

"I'm fine," he offers noncommittally. He cannot lie to her.

She sighs, the weight of years in the sound.

"I'm just worried about you, Bastian. I talked to your father last night. You could come back…"

He cannot return to France. Maybe she doesn't remember the humiliation, but he does. Ohio might be awful, but no one here knows awkward, bashful Bastian. No one ever will.

"I'm fine," he repeats, the words steadier than before. "Mom, I have to go. I need to get ready for class."

They say their goodbyes and hang up.

And, even though its 7 and it takes him nearly an hour to get ready and he has calculus at 8:05, sharp, he crawls back into bed.

He lies on his stomach and pulls the covers over his head.

One. Two. Three. Four. Five.

He counts his breaths.

Nick gets up, and goes to the shower. He will be disappointed the water is not yet warm. The pipes in the building are old, and it takes a few minutes for the hot water to flow.

His roommate remains in bed as the minutes tick by.

He finds himself falling asleep.

The exhaustion he feels is beyond his control.