The month of January went off without a hitch. The number of freak blizzards was minimal, and the teachers had cut the kids some slack due to the fact that midterms were only a few weeks away. Danny had urged Dash to start studying a few weeks in advance, but the blond was stubborn, and waited till last minute. A week before the first test Danny answered his phone to the sound of a frantic Dash begging him for help. Danny did eventually help him, but not without lecturing him first.

It paid off though, both teens taking away straight 'B's on all the exams. The second semester started on a good note, just as the year had. The mood of the school, particularly that of the seniors, was unusually high, given that it was only February, but everyone recognized the year was going by quickly, and they couldn't complain. Winter cold soon gave way to the spring, and eventually spring break was on everyone's heels.

"So do you guys have any plans for the break?" Danny asked the dynamic duo of Sam and Tucker as he placed a few books in his locker.

"Not really." Tucker replied.

"No family vacation plus Tucker this year?"

"That's usually in the summer, Danny." Sam pointed out.

"Whatever. So you guys aren't doing anything special?"

"Not really." Tucker repeated.

"What about you, Danny?"

"What do you think he's doing, Sam?"

"I don't know, that's why I asked."

"You know he's gonna be spending all week with Dash."

"Did someone mention me?"

Tucker turned around, bringing himself face to face with the aforementioned jock.

"Yes, as a matter of fact, we were just talking about you."

"Were you now?"

It was worth noting that lately Danny's friends were getting along with Dash much more easily, engaging in banter like this quite frequently. It was nice, almost reassuring. Danny closed his locker and turned to face the trio.

"Okay, so, the day is almost over, and then we have a week off. There has got to be something you guys have planned." Danny insisted.

"Well, I did want to go see this new slasher flic that's playing at the movies."

"Slasher movies are so boring though." Tucker tried to point out to his girlfriend.

"Tucker, how could you say that?"

"Because it's true. They always end up the same way, the plot is always so predictable and the characters are so bland and flat."

"Famous movie critic Tucker Foley, everyone." Danny teased.

"I bet Dash agrees with me, don't you?"

"Who me?" Dash questioned.

"No, the other Dash, yes you. Don't you think slasher films are the same?"

"I've ne-I don't-I mean… I don't actually watch those kinds of movies."

"You don't?"

"N-not really."

"Too scary for ya?"

"NO, I just-they don't entertain me is all."

"Dude if they scare you it's okay."

"Just drop it, Tucker." Danny butted in.

"I'm not making fun of him or anything."

Danny glared at his loudmouthed friend, who got the message surprisingly fast, shutting his mouth.

"Okay, maybe I'll wait until it comes out on DVD." Sam thought out loud.

"I'll still go with you, Sam." Danny told her.

"Nah, it's fine."

Tucker leaned in closer to Danny and whispered, "You realize that means I'm going to get dragged to the movie theatre to see it anyway."

"Well since you volunteered." Sam said, clapping her hands together enthusiastically.

The first few days of the break had gone by a bit too quickly. Sam did drag Tucker to the movies, and Danny spent one of the days by himself while Dash was with his mother, who he thought might benefit from some mother-son bonding.

"Speaking of parents." Danny said to himself.

His parents were slowly coming to terms with their son's sexuality, not that they had a choice at this point. Danny, however, tried his hardest to avoid them, not wanting to take the chance of something causing a scene.

By Wednesday, Danny was back at Dash's house, the pair sitting on the sofa in the basement, speakers blaring some Dubstep song, accompanied by the roar of car engines as they raced against each other. Dash had finally found a genre of video game that he could beat Danny in every time, but Danny didn't mind. The way Dash's face lit up when he crossed the finish line in first place always made Danny smile.

Thursday was one of those days that was most likely responsible for the saying about April showers bringing May flowers. It wasn't a heavy rain, but it was a constant It was also cold that day, and the combination of rain and cold was enough to keep Danny curled up on Dash's couch. Dash, of course, took this as an invitation to cuddle, which the raven haired teen did not dispute. The silence covered them like a blanket, not awkward, not smothering, just comforting. But Danny had had something on his mind for a while, itching at the back of his brain.

"Hey Dash?"

"Hmm?"

"What made you decide to change?"

"Huh?"

"I mean, why'd you stop bullying? It seems weird that halfway through high school you just stopped out of the blue."

"People change."

"Yeah, but there's gotta be a reason, right?"

"I-I really don't wanna talk about it."

"Oh-okay."

"Yeah."

"Well if you ever want to."

"I'll be sure to let you know."

Truth be told, Dash did want to talk about it. It was something he wanted to get out, something that had been there taunting him since he decided to ditch the bullying act, and two years was a long time to hold on to something like this. He let out a sharp exhale and sat up.

"Dash?"

"I'll tell you."

"You don't have to if you don't want to."

"No, I want to, just-just give me a minute."

Danny sat up as well, scooting over and giving Dash some space.

"Okay, this whole thing really started back when I was maybe two or three, I don't quite remember, point is it was a long time ago. My dad was a police officer, a good one too. My mom always told me how many people he had helped, and how brave he was. She said he always felt bad about not getting to spend more time with his family, but would always be there when we needed him. One day he was responding to an armed robbery, and he-he went in to try and diffuse the situation. H-he never made it out. It's easier to think about it now, since I didn't get to know him too well. But my mother took it hard, not just because she was upset, which of course she was, but because she was worried about me growing up without a father. She waited about a year, so I was probably about 5, when she started dating this man. She said that it was love at first sight, and that they were perfect for each other. But after they got married, he turned out to be a miserable bastard."

By now the tears had come. Danny wanted to console the boy, but he resisted.

"He beat us, both of us. Usually she got it worse than I did, because she would always try to protect me. I remember her trying to tell me about my father, how he wasn't like this, and that I would grow up to be like him and stop men like my step-father. She tried her hardest to make it work, but by the time I was about 8 she had finally gained enough courage to have the motherfucker locked up. That's also around the time we moved to Amity Park. I guess the thing she had feared the most, me becoming an abuser, had come true. At first I didn't think about it, I just got absorbed by the feelings that hurting people gave me, the power, the control. I guess other people noticed it too, and that's what got me into the popular group. I was an abusive jerk, who had the fear and respect of the entire school and it felt so good. But as I got more and more physical, and the more trouble I got in, the less respect I got from the people that actually mattered."

"Your mom?"

"Y-yeah. Her most of all, but you too. At first, when I figured out my feelings, I was mad, mad that I wasn't "normal". I took it out on you because I couldn't accept it. I guess part of me deciding to stop being a bully was the realization that these feelings weren't going to go away, and that hurting the people I love most made me just that the asshole who used to beat me when I was a child, not the police officer father I had to look up to."

"D-Dash." Danny was on the verge of tears as well. The thing that happened next was the most worrying, shocking, uncomforting thing he had experienced. Dash had broken down, clung to Danny's chest and sobbed like a child.

It was the first time Danny had ever seen him so emotional, and all he could do was try and comfort his sobbing boyfriend, tears silently falling down his own cheeks as well.