Phew! Sorry disappearing off the face of the earth, everyone. Lots of stuff has been happening, and things aren't the best right now, plus I'm unsure about debuting the other stories I've been working on. But enough about that, it's time for some fanfic drama! Hope you like it~ this chapter is the first of…two, I think? Two sort-of flashback chapters that accompany their stories. These chapters will rely on memories and dialogue instead of plain description, so I apologize if it gets hard to tell who's speaking! There is some strong language as well as some suggestive language, and I'll also put a trigger warning for bullying/abuse for this chapter.

"So…I guess I'll start."

"Excellent performance, Kosmotis!"

"There's no doubt you'll earn that scholarship."

"You're going places, kid!"

"Oh, and he's just a gem around the house. Stays on top of his schoolwork, too!"

"Such a good boy."

"I guess you could say I was a model student. High school was full of AP classes and ROTC practice. I stayed ahead and did whatever was asked of me, you know?"

"Oh my gosh, he's coming this way!"

"Are you gonna ask him?"

"No, I can't, I'll freakin' DIE!"

"I didn't have many friends, really. Pretty sad. But it is hard to bring others close when you're that focused on being perfect."

"Kosmotis, your English grade is dropping. Is there a reason for this?"

"Report cards will be home soon. I expect to see those straight A's again."

"Kosmotis, have you submitted your applications yet? You know when they're due."

"Kosmotis, put away those lyrics and finish your work! That scholarship will be given to a scholar, not a songwriter."

"You know that music isn't my LIFE thing, right? It's just my hobby. Well, WAS just my hobby. I liked to sing…with no-one around. And I liked to write poems and songs."

"And that was my life for most of high school. It wasn't until I met Ferin that things just…nosedived."

"Why do you let them push you around?"

"Well, you sure don't look happy to be so successful."

"Ooh, gettin' gutsy, are we? And here I thought you were just a perfect little toy soldier."

"You're middle name's Pitchiner, huh? Mind if I call ya Pitch? It sounds cool…Pitch Black."

"It was like, every middle class mum's nightmare. Her perfect boy starts hanging out with some 'toxic', rotten hoodlum and suddenly wants to throw everything away for him."

"But of course, my mother was convinced that it was a phase, or some sort of rebellion against all of life's expectations. You know how most parents will bargain or find middle ground? That didn't happen."

"Kosmotis, I don't want you to see that boy again. Do I make myself clear?"

"Your grades are slipping again. How do you expect to earn the scholarships like this?"

"Kosmotis Black, you are NOT leaving this house to go fraternize with those hooligans!"

"Do you want your phone taken, too? Have you given up on seeing your computer again?"

"Kosmotis, believe me. It's a phase and you'll be back to normal when you stop all this nonsense!"

"She scolded me, yelled at me. My dad grounded me and locked up my laptop. I felt so estranged that when Ferin began making passes, I just…fell into it, I guess. He was the only one there to fall into when my parents lost their patience with me. But…he wasn't like what I thought. He just…he was off."

"I'm going out with some friends, Pitch. You gonna ditch your family time?"

"Don't worry about it. Ain't nobody gonna tell~"

"Before I knew it, I was in far more trouble than I'd thought it worth."

"Damn, Pitch, I didn't know you could sing! You're so good to listen to."

"I wonder what other sounds you can make…how 'bout it, babe?"

"Aw, fuck yes! Why didn't we do last night sooner?"

"Why don't you sing for me again? You know I love your voice."

"Kosmotis, you WILL sit down and you WILL explain this. How did this happen? You were the top of the unit!"

"Kosmotis, we do NOT slam doors in this house; you get back down here while your father speaks to you!"

"What's wrong? Need a drink? I know, rough week for all of us."

"This weekend's gonna be NUTS, man! You gotta come with us."

"Kosmotis, you are FORBIDDEN to leave this house outside of going to school!"

"You brought this upon yourself."

"All that we've done for you and this is how you repay us?"

"You're coming, right?"

"I can get you out of there."

"Sniffle…th-thanks. Sorry, can- can I stop for a second? Sorry…"

"Okay…y-yeah, I think so…I'm okay. I'm okay."

"He wanted a lot from me, and I was willing to give, but it just made everything worse. I didn't feel comfortable with him. I was making myself fit into his life, and my parents just kept insisting that it was some stupid rebellion. And then…then I just got angry. At a lot of things, I guess. I got myself kicked out of ROTC because my grades were dropping and I had a poor attitude about everything. I got in a couple fights, too. But in the end I disappointed everyone to go with Ferin."

"Yeah, it ain't that far away. We'll head out Friday night."

"It's about to get wild, come on!"

"Look at 'im, he's fuckin' wasted!"

"You drank the beers but you're too pussy to try a smoke, eh?"

"Aw, I'm sure he'll try it soon enough."

"He'll try it if he wants to keep hanging with us."

"I don't know, he don't look so good. Aw, what's wrong, Pitch? You gettin' sick?"

"You don't wanna go home now, do ya? C'mon, why don't we go back to the hotel?"

"And in the end, I…"

"Aw, Pitch, what're ya cryin' for? Thinkin' about your folks again?"

"C'mon, forget about them for five minutes, will you?"

"Why the hell do you always do this? Shut up! Stop whining!"

"I said SHUT UP!"

"Sandy, I…I'm not that old, but I have never met a person more horrible. Ferin, he…I don't want to force the details on you. Huh…? No, i-it's just…it's just that he…the things that he…did…"

"You done crying yet?"

"Oh, hush. It didn't hurt that bad."

"Now, now, Pitch, don't cry. Want me to kiss it better again? Haha…"

"I know, sing me a song. Singing makes you feel good, right?"

"S-sorry…ugh…I just k-keep remembering…and I…w-when I do, I…I feel like I can't breathe…s-sorry…"

"Sorry…"

And here's my own sorry to all of you. I'm coming back to this story, and I think that I'm going to expand my other story Temperate Relations, because I got a very nice review from a reader who wanted to know more about Julius :3 and it'd be fun! Mind, updates for this story might still go slow as school weighs down on me. But I won't give up! Thanks so much to all you guys!