A/N: Hiiiiii y'all! I know. I knoooow! It's been five weeks and three days since Chap1 was posted. I'm soo sorry! I didn't think it would take this long for Chap2 to finish. But alas, here is the long-awaited chapter! Hope you enjoy!

Months had passed and middle school had finally come to a close. Now it was time for high school.

Cole had made the decision to completely ignore the world. Putting on his cherry-red headphones and sticking to darker-toned clothing, he made it his mission to look as menacing as possible to avoid having to talk to anyone.

He already had enough on his plate. Working as a DJ for almost a year had given him enough money to pay the expenses and decorate his room to make it a little bit more livable. And taking care of his father was getting harder by the day.

His dad was wasting money (Cole had no clue where he was getting all that cash from and had no interest in ever knowing) on buying bottle after bottle, becoming more interested in the weirdly colored liquid than he was in Cole. Which Cole was thankful for.

There was no longer a need for him to lie to his father about when school was supposedly over. No need to worry about making it back home by 5:30 because his father was now too drunk to notice him. All Cole had to say was that was studying and he could come back home anytime. Anyway, the point was that he had no time for anyone and he most definitely wasn't going to try and make friends.

Or so he thought.

XXX

It was a regular school day with Cole just going through his classes.

It was 2:30 and the final bell had rung signaling that school was officially over. With his legs kicked back in his desk, Cule lazily put away his pencils, bobbing his head to the beats that were streaming through his headphones.

Thankfully he hadn't needed any harp melody for a while. With his dad drunk and most of the time passed out, he hadn't been triggered, so that was a plus.

But just before he was fully done packing up, an ear-splitting heavy rock blast of sound cut through his music. Cole jumped up, his heart lodged in his throat as he fumbled for his phone. He clawed his headphones off with his other hand and stared at the screen, letting the string of profanities and the deafening music (was it even considered music?) continue playing from his phone.

Cole had deliberately put this ringtone for this number because he was certain that he would never call. But sure enough, it was the number.

Sneaking a glance at his teacher - Ms. Minchem (?) he wasn't sure what her name actually was- he ducked his head and answered the call.

"Hello?" Cole winced slightly at the way his voice sounded. His fear and unhappiness had leaked in. His father's slurred, angry voice started immediately yelling at him.

Cole closed his eyes, wishing for the millionth time that his dad wasn't sober. For the majority of the time, his father was too drunk to even remember that Cole existed but at the rare times when he was sober and remembered, his father would try to control his life, asking where he was and other questions. Cole pinched the bridge of his nose, answering his dad's questions.

He hunched over his desk, his hand now pressed against his forehead as he sucked his lower lip, squeezing his eyes shut as he tried to squash the fear. "I'm going to study, all right?" Cole said, interrupting his dad.

The man on the other side only growled. "Why in the blasted world do you even study? Forget the - - - - school and get a - - - - -"

"Look, I have to!" Cole interrupted, not wanting to hear his dad continue to curse him out. But of course, his father only continued, spewing out more profanities.

Cole sucked in a breath. "Just stop," he pleaded, but his father didn't stop but continued. Knowing that he would continue on with his insults, Cole quickly interrupted him. "Yeah. Alright!" he blindly agreed, "Okay Dad. I will, Dad. I know, Dad."

He pulled the phone away and stabbed the 'end call' button, muttering some curse words of his own. Cole started to put his phone away but paused when he saw a pair of high-heeled shoes in front of him.

Looking up, he saw Ms. Minchem standing in front of him with a lot of emotions running across her visage. There was tiredness, frustration, disappointment, and... concern on her face. When he saw the last emotion, Cole dropped his gaze down at the floor. He didn't need her pity.

"Cole," she started. "You know we can't have strong language. Not from our devices, and especially not from our students." Cole said nothing, not wanting to provoke the lady. "Do I need to give you detention?" she questioned.

"I have to go to work," He quietly answered, edging out of his seat,

"Where do you work?" Cole slumped in his seat. He thought of lying but went against it. He did not want to get into more trouble than he already was in. "Coraco's " he mumbled.

Something flickered in Ms. Minchem's eyes. Cole squirmed under her gaze before looking back up at her. "I have to go, I'll get fired. I'll - I'll change my ringtone."

Ms. Minchem looked at him for a while, before she sighed, gaze softening. "Okay. Cole. You do that, alright? You can go."

Cole nodded politely, grabbing his bag and bolting for the exit, only to come face-to-face with a freckled teenage boy who stared at him in undisguised, raw fear.

He stared at the boy, and for a split second, Cole saw himself. The boy was looking at him with the same expression that Cole always looked at his dad with. Fear.

Not wanting to get any more late than he already was, he brushed past the petrified kid. As Cole ran towards Coraco's, he couldn't shake off the feeling that he was missing something. Like he had forgotten something important. He quickly dismissed the thought as he entered the building.

He greeted Moe, the bouncer, and quickly went to the DJ Station, plopping his bag beside the turntables. He slid behind the double turntables and started fiddling with the bass balance.

Flipping through records, Cole couldn't help but smile. He experimented with their speeds and pitches, trying to find the beats he liked the best. Looking out at the dance floor, he felt the smile on his face grow bigger as he watched the people below all dancing. After a while of doing this, an unusual movement caught Cole's eyes.

There was a person whose movements didn't look dancing, but rather stumbling. Cole watched as they were pushed around by oblivious dancers, their attempts to escape the dance floor all going in vain.

Cole chuckled quietly to himself. The chances for that person to ever escape the dancing mob were slim. He paused. Maybe he could help the person. He continued to stare at the person, watching as they were pushed deeper into the crowd.

After having an internal battle, Cole got up, letting the records continue to play, and made his way down to the dance floor. It wasn't hard to find them. They were just standing there as if they were waiting for the crowd to part for them.

Cole pushed through the mob of dancers, stepping in front of the person. He paused, squinting as he realized the person in front of him looked familiar. "Aren't you in my class?" he asked.

The boy in front of him only blinked. Cole squinted at him for a while taking in the boy's rigid appearance. He shifted his gaze from the boy to the surrounding chaos. It was clear that this boy did not feel the most safe here.

Cole then grabbed the boy's wrist, pushing through the mob of crazy dancers. Using his size and strength, the bodies finally gave way.

He pulled the kid over to a less crowded section before turning around to cross his arms and glare at him, unimpressed.

"What are you doing here?" Cole asked, eyeing the boy, as he racked his brain trying to remember the boy's name. 'Wasn't it Jay Walking or something along those lines?' The boy continued to stammer before he shoved a headphone in front of him at arm's length.

Cole's eyebrows popped up as recognized it. They were his headphones. "Hey! How did you- " The boy's- Jay? - eyes widened. "I-I didn't steal them!" he yelped. "I- you-n-no-"

Cole watched as the boy's breathing started becoming torn. He watched as the boy started struggling to take in breaths as well as to let them out. He watched as the boy dug his hand into his hair, tugging on the brown locks, struggling to breathe.

Cole recognized a panic attack when he saw one (he had way too many experiences to not recognize them by now) and the boy in front of him was very clearly on the verge of one. If Cole didn't do anything now then the boy would have a panic attack, and who knows how long it would take to calm him down.

Cole quickly, but nonchalantly, took the headphones from the panicking boy. "Right," he said, making sure the boy could hear him. "I left 'em behind, didn't I?"

The boy- Oh, screw it! He was just gonna call him Jay - let out a relieved sigh but promptly froze when he realized that Cole was looking at him. Cole only nodded, tucking his headphones under his arm. So this was what he had forgotten.

He then eyed Jay, taking in his appearance. The boy was wearing a blue jacket, with cuffs that looked like it had been picked on a lot. He had curly brown hair and bright electric-blue eyes with freckles dusting his face. He had an overall 'I-don't-want-any-attention' vibe and didn't seem like a person who was willing to return the headphones to a big menacing person like Cole. But, eh, don't judge a book by its cover, right?

"I, uh- I'll be… um…" Jay started, interrupting Cole's thoughts. The freckled teen glanced around before turning back to him. "...I-is there maybe another way out of here?"

Cole shook his head, realizing that he had been staring at the blue-eyed teen for a while. Talk about being creepy. "We'll have a break in the dancing after an hour," he replied. Jay's face crumpled with dismay at the prospect of staying in the club for another hour. Cole couldn't help but crack a dry half-smile. "Ah, but you can stay with me till then."

XXX

Jay was kinda fun to be around, not that Cole would actually admit it.

He was very easy to impress and his enthusiasm was hilarious. He would be excited about every small thing Cole did. It felt good to be admired for his skills.

It was kinda weird to let someone be so close to him, but regardless, Cole let him try a scratch, and… it was fun seeing Jay smile when he played with the records, the way his eyes lit up and how his smile widened, crinkling his freckles in a cute manner.

Finally, an hour passed and Cole grabbed the mike, announcing that it was time for a break. The crowd of dancers all groaned as the lights turned on. Cole went and locked up his records. After he finished that, he led Jay to the exit. "Have fun?" Cole asked.

"M-hm," Jay replied, nodding shyly. "Uhh… th-thanks for letting me stay. U-up with you, I mean. The, uh-"

"Sure, sure, no problem," Cole replied, sparing the boy from his stuttering state. They continued to walk to the exit where Moe was sitting. "Yo Moe," Cole greeted, sassily leveling a finger at the bouncer. "This one's with me, a'right?" he said, jerking his thumb at Jay.

Moe looked up and smirked. "Hmm. So he gets in on your ID card?"

Cole grinned before cheekily replying. "What ID card?" In a matter of milliseconds, both of them started laughing, with Jay looking at them weirdly.

"ID card?" the blue-eyed teen asked, bewildered.

"Ahh, in-joke," Cole replied, still laughing, as they walked outside. "You're too young to be in there," Jay's electric blue eyes widened in fear. "Eeep!" he exclaimed, a horrified expression crossing his face as he shrunk into himself.

"Geez, relax. Coraco's is pretty clean, for a club. Just has a really sloppy vetting policy. I mean, look at me. I'm underaged. They let me work here," Cole explained, digging into his pockets. He grabbed a cigarette and lit it.

"I-I-but-the police-" the blue-eyed boy stammered, fearfully.

"Nahhhhhh," Cole scoffed, leaning against a lamppost. "You're fine, man. Chill," he said, taking a drag on the cigarette. Slowly, Jay calmed down, his breathing returning to normal. He looked up only to freeze. "Are you-!" he started.

"Hmmmm?" Cole asked, lazily looking up and blowing out a cloud of smoke. Jay looked at him, opening his mouth and closing it, looking very much like a fish. They stood in silence for a bit.

"Why do you come here?" Jay finally asked, breaking the silence. Cole snorted, letting out a short, humorless laugh. "Because it's hard to find any other places that accept quote-unquote, 'child labor'. And I mean, I do like the music," he replied with a shrug.

"Oh," Jay replied. Cole looked down, recalling his conversation with his father back at school. Jay was there. He had heard his dad. "I mean…" Cole started. He sighed sharply, before looking up at the teen. "Well, you were there. After school today."

"Uhh- y-you mean your dad? He-he makes you-" Jay asked, his blue eyes widened.

"No, he doesn't make me! He doesn't even know." he interrupted. "In the afternoon I say I'm studying, and by the time I get home he doesn't even realize I'm there. Because- well- you heard him." Cole grabbed the cigarette from his mouth and tossed it on the ground, mashing it under his feet, his emotions getting a hold of him.

"It…it's not your fault. I, uh, I would want to get away too…" Jay stammered. Why he was venting to a random stranger, Cole had no clue. But for some reason, he couldn't stop.

"Sure, I'm getting away," he said, darkly. "All the way away. As soon as I turn eighteen-" He jerked his head abstractly into the beyond. "And I'll change my name, get an apartment, start a record company, I dunno. And that old - - - - can stay at home alone, and drink his worthless head off, and curse at someone else."

Cole panted, his anger and frustration leaking out. He took a deep breath, schooling himself. He glanced up to see Jay looking down at the pavement uncomfortably rubbing his hands together. Great. Cole managed to scare the kid. Great, just great.

"Ah, sorry man. Little too edgy?" Cole asked sheepishly, making sure his voice was gentle and not aggressive.

"I-it's okay." the blue-eyed teen replied, smiling shyly. Cole nodded, pushing himself off the lamppost. He sauntered back to the entrance. "Anyway, I've gotta get back to it. You gonna make it home okay?"

Cole didn't wait to hear his reply, speed-walking back inside the building. What was he thinking?! Venting to a random kid? He was supposed to be the 'tough, edgy loner'. He wasn't supposed to be telling his life story to the first person that had approached him.

Cole blinked. Jay had approached him. He had directly sought Cole out to give him back his headphones. A kid who was worried about the police had returned the headphones of a kid who literally screamed 'delinquent'. Jay had sought him out.

Cole froze, feeling a warm feeling spread throughout his chest. A rare smile slowly crept across his face. He hadn't realized how good it felt to actually talk to someone his age. "Hey, bro, you 'kay?" Moe asked, looking at him with a funny look and snapping him out of his thoughts.

"Huh? Oh, yeah. Never been better," Cole absentmindedly replied. He walked back inside, barely focusing on the records, his mind crowded with thoughts about a certain blue-eyed classmate of his.

XXX

Cole didn't know why he still stuck around with Jay.

Maybe it was because the blue-eyed teen constantly sought him out. Or because Cole was in desperate need of someone to talk to...

Either way, he really enjoyed spending time with the blue-eyed, mumbly, brainiac nerd. Cole noticed that whenever he flashed a smile or acknowledged Jay's presence, the freckled teen would light up in excitement. Based on what he had observed, it seemed that Jay was a loner as well. But unlike Cole, he didn't choose to be alone.

Which was something he couldn't understand. Why wouldn't someone want to hang out with Jay? He was sweet, kind, friendly, creative, smart- basically, everything Cole wasn't. And his parents were the definition of amazing.

Ed and Edna were just like their son or it was Jay who was just like them. When Cole had come over to visit, the elderly couple had welcomed him with arms wide, showing affection and care that was foreign to him.

But regardless, in school, Cole kept his distance from Jay. He had a reputation to uphold and hanging out with the blue-eyed teen would mess it up. But after school was over, Cole would meet up with Jay in the cover of Coraco's, where they would just chat and hang out. It was … nice to finally have someone to talk to. (His health teacher would be ecstatic that he was finally taking care of his social health!)

One day, they both were just chilling and Cole reached into his pocket, taking a cigarette and lighting it.

"Why do you smoke?" Jay asked out of nowhere. Cole paused. "What?"

"Well, um... why do you smoke?" he repeated.

"Well, it's… it helps calm me down, I guess."

Jay thought for a moment. "Does it really help you calm down or do you just think it does? Cole shrugged. "Eh, whatever. I like to smoke. Why are you asking all of a sudden?"

"Just curious," the freckled teen answered. "So when are you gonna stop?"

"What, smoking?" Cole asked. The blue-eyed teen nodded. "Uh... never?"

Jay blinked in surprise. "You mean you're gonna keep smoking all your life?"

"Yeah," Cole said, blowing out a cloud of smoke.

"But it isn't healthy!"

"It's no big deal, Bluebell. I'll live long,"

"But in health class, we learned that smoking will affect us badly in the long run." Cole waved his hand dismissively. "It's fiiine."

"How long have you been smoking?"

"Almost ⅔ of your life."

Jay's eyes popped open. "What?! I'm 14. ⅔ means about 10 years! You've been smoking since you were five?!"

Cole burst out laughing at the horrified look on Jay's face. "You should see your face! You look hilarious!" he said between laughs. The blue-eyed teen's face flushed with embarrassment. "Oh, you're just messing with me."

"Yeah, I was. Sorry about that. Couldn't help myself." Cole said with a smile. "And to answer your question: I guess I've been smoking for almost a year? Maybe?"

"That's great! That means it'll be a lot easier for you to stop smoking."

"Woah, woah, woah. Hold your horses, BlueJay. What do you mean by stop smoking? I ain't gonna stop."

"But it's not healthy."

Cole snorted. "You've already said that, Bluebell."

"I know, but please, Cole? It won't hurt to stop."

"Yeahhh, but I don't wanna,"

" Pleeease, Cole?" Jay said, widening his electric blue eyes, and making a small pout on his lips.

"Nuh, uh." Cole said, before quickly turning away."I ain't gonna fall for your puppy-dog eyes."

"Please, Cole?" Jay said once again, his voice small. Cole was completely determined to not look at the freckled teen, but the small voice got his attention, and he made a mistake: he looked.

The moment Jay realized that he had Cole's attention, he widened his eyes, making them even bigger. Cole groaned. "Fiiine. I'll stop."

"Yes!" the blue-eyed teen said excitedly, before beaming up at him. The brown-eyed teen looked away, growling. "That face is illegal" he muttered under his breath.

Jay only laughed. The audacity. "Who would have thought," the freckled teen started a cheeky. smile on his face. "The 'big-menancing-edgy-loner' Cole Bucket is a softie who's vulnerable to puppy-dog eyes."

"If you tell anyone, I'll do you in ponytails and pink ribbons," Cole said, giving an empty threat.

In a matter of seconds, both of them were laughing. "Sure you will," Jay said, mid-laugh. "Besides, it won't be that hard for you to stop smoking, right?"

XXX

Wrong.

Cole felt horrible. Withdrawal symptoms. That's what he was going through and FSM! It felt horrible!

He got up and started pacing, trying to control his emotions. Ever since he had decided to stop smoking, he started noticing some wacky things he was going through.

Sleeping, which used to come so easily to him, was hard to achieve. He'd find himself unable to sleep at night, the glow-in-the-dark shapes on his room's walls giving him the only comfort as he tossed and turned in his bed. The symptoms only increased as the days went by. From having trouble sleeping to feeling restless, Cole was grumpy.

Pacing in front of Coraco's, he gnawed on a toothpick, fingers twitching to the cigarette packet that he had refused to throw away. He let out a frustrated groan and pulled out the pack, glaring at it.

Cole took deep breaths, feeling Jay's eyes on him. He looked up and glared at his blue-eyed friend. Then he glared at the cigarette. He repeated the cycle, internally conflicting on whether or not he should let go of the cigarettes or take one to smoke.

Cole let out an irritated huff, before pocketing the cigarette pack. He then looked up and glared at Jay. Shaking his head, he said, "I gotta get back to work,"

The freckled teen nodded, "See you tomorrow,"

Cole grunted and brushed past him, feeling the symptoms getting even worse. Ugh... how much longer did he have to suffer? He grumpily walked inside- which was strange since Cole loved DJing, but he guessed it was just part of the symptoms. Hopefully, he would feel better when he came to work tomorrow- WAIT...

"Hey, Jay! The blue-eyed teen jumped, whirling around to face him. "I forgot," Cole continued. "I have a day off tomorrow. Wanna come over after school?"

Jay's eyes widened. "Whaaa- To your place?!"

Cole nodded. realizing a little too late how bad his plan actually was. "Yeahhhhh, I don't feel like being on my best behavior for your parents again. I mean, if you feel like you wouldn't mind, you know."

"Sure! Definitely!" Jay interrupted. Cole blinked, startled by the sudden outburst. He nodded before walking back inside, already dreading the next couple of hours.

XXX

Having Jay come over had proved to be not that bad of an idea.

Of course, with both of them coming over to his home immediately after school was dismissed, meant that his dad was. still conscience, if not a little tipsy.

Cole never came home that early. It was too risky. He couldn't risk getting hurt by his dad both physically and emotionally. He was a High Schooler now. There was no time for him to get hurt.

So he extended his work hours, doing his homework in the small breaks that he got. He only got back home around 10-ish. Around that time, his dad was effectively knocked out by the excessive alcohol.

Anyway, the point was that coming back home at 3:30 was a horrible plan. Thankfully, he narrowly managed to get Jay and himself to his room safely. Aside from that run-in with his father, Cole surprisingly had fun hanging out with his blue-eyed friend.

He showed him his room and played a few of his favorite records. They both teased each other. Horseplayed a little. Chatted. Just hung out.

For the first time in a long time, Cole felt... safe. He felt safe when he was around Jay. Free even. He felt like he could finally be himself. And it sure felt great!

They didn't realize how much time had passed until Jay's stomach let out a hungry growl. The said boy flushed with embarrassment.

"Sorry," the freckled teen said bashfully.

"It's fine," Cole replied with a dismissive wave, barely managing to stifle his laughter. "You hungry?"

"No, I'm fine." Just then his stomach growled again and Jay's face deepened into a tomato-red color. This time, Cole laughed, unable to stop himself. "I'm taking that as a yes," Cole said, smiling at his embarrassed friend. "Do you like peanut butter and jelly?"

"Yeah! I love it! It's my favor- wait." Jay looked up at him confused. "Does your dad buy food for you?" Cole let out a sarcastic snort. "As if. No, I buy it myself and take care of all the expenses.

"What?" Jay looked at him, his expression one of concern. Cole averted his gaze, not completely used to the concern and care he was receiving from his friend.

"Do you…" the blue-eyed boy started. "Do you need any help with anything?" Cole blinked, surprised. He then smiled softly. "Nahh. I'm fine. Anyways, how many sandwiches do you want?" Jay nervously picked at the cuffs of his jacket. "It's fine. I'm not that hungry. I don't want to be a bother,"

"Jay," The said boy looked up, surprised by the seriousness in Cole's voice. "You aren't a bother to me, okay? We're friends, and currently, you're also my guest. You aren't a bother, so deal with it." At the mention of the word "friend", Jay looked away, but not before Cole saw the smile dancing on his lips. "Alright, I'll take one,"

"Okay! One PB&J sandwich coming right up!" Coke said before getting up. He paused just before he opened his bedroom door and turned around hesitantly. "Uh... could you... just stay here? Just... to be safe.

"Sure," the blue-eyed teen said. Cole nodded and walked down the stairs. He paused listening. The TV was still playing. Taking a deep breath, he flipped the locks and opened the door, hesitantly stepping into the hallway.

On quiet feet, he made his way to the kitchenette. Taking deep breaths to steady his breathing, Cole quickly made three sandwiches. Two for both Jay and himself and one for his father.

He contemplated whether he should give the sandwich to his dad but decided against it. He would give it only after Jay left, to avoid any problems.

Soon, after he was done, he walked back up to his room. He handed Jay a sandwich and started munching on the one he was holding.

After staring at his homework for five minutes, Cole let out a frustrated groan, gaining the attention of his blue-eyed companion. "What's wrong?"

"I don't understand why we need to know this," he said, gesturing at his math notes. "I mean I understand that angles and segments stuff could be helpful in the real world, but why do we need to know these stupid proofs as well? No one needs to know about theorems and properties. It's just a waste of time!"

"Well... the proofs are needed for… uh…for you to show your work?"

"See, even you don't know what it's for!"

"Still. Math is an essential topic to know about. It is needed in many fields, like engineering or-

"Okay, okay! Spare me the lecture!" Cole interrupted. "I keep forgetting that you're a nerd." Jay only stuck his tongue out, unable to think of a comeback.

Cole laughed and pulled out his phone only to pause when he saw the time "Jay?" The said boy turned towards him sharply, startled by his tone. "When were you supposed to be home?"

"7:30, why?" Cole turned his phone so the freckled teen could see the time, 8:25 PM.

"Oh shi-" Jay's electric blue eyes widened comically. "-iiiny tortoises." he corrected quickly.

Cole let out an overly dramatic gasp. "Did my ears deceive me or did I hear The Jay Walker almost curse?"

"Oh shut up," the blue-eyed muttered, face flushed with embarrassment. "Not my fault. You're- you're a bad influence," he hesitantly teased. Cole only laughed in response which encouraged a hesitant smile on his face. "Sureee, Bluebell, sureee,"

Jay decided to ignore him and instead called his parents, answering all their questions. ("Yes Dad, I'm okay." "No Mom, I wasn't kidnapped." "Yes, Cole's here as well. He's okay." "We both are okay." and so on and so forth)

As Cole listened, pretending to focus on his notes to look like he wasn't eavesdropping, he started feeling an emotion bloom him.

Jealousy.

Why couldn't he have parents that fret over him? Who actually cared about him enough to know he actually existed? What was so different about Jay and him? Why couldn't he have parents like Jay did?

Cole bit the inside of his checks, refusing to let his emotions be displayed on his face. After 10 minutes, Jay finally finished the call. "Sorry about that," he said ruefully, running his hand through his hair. "My parents can be a little overprotective," he said, looking a little embarrassed.

"It's fine. At least they're way better than my parents," At that statement, Jay looked away, a guilty expression on his face. Cole inwardly cursed. Why did he say that? All that did was make the atmosphere awkward and tense.

"Um... anyways, my parents want me to come home now, sooo..."

"Yeah, sure!" Cole said, jumping up and helping his friend pack his belongings. After that was done, they walked down the stairs, both quietly making sure that Cole's dad didn't notice them. When outside, they stood awkwardly in front of the house, none of them not wanting to be the first to talk.

"Um, so... uh... sorry about the last comment," Cole said, nervously.

"No, there's no need to apologize," Jay said, playing with the cuffs of his jacket. "I'm the one who should be sorry." At that statement, Cole looked up, confused, but his blue-eyed companion continued. "Here I was complaining about my parents, and you were… your dad-" he looked down. "I'm sorry if I made you feel upset or anything. Sorry if I made you feel anything negative. I didn't mean to rub it in or anything. It wasn't my intention. I promise, Cole."

"It's fine, Bluebell," Cole said, letting an easygoing smile fall on his ups. "I'm used to... you know. It's no big deal."

Jay looked up at him, a look of turmoil on his face. He looked as if he was fighting himself about something. Before Cole could even blink, a pair of arms wrapped around him.

Cole froze at the contact, brain short-circuiting. But just as quickly as it came, the touch disappeared as Jay pulled away from him. Cole blinked in surprise, staring at the teen in front of him whose face was growing red with embarrassment by the second.

"Um... if you need me or just want space from your dad, you could... um, a-always come over to my h-house," Jay nervously stammered. He glanced up, saw the expression on Cole's face, and averted his eyes. "Sorry about the hug," he muttered. "I don't know why I did that." Cole blinked in realization.

That was a hug.

Jay had hugged him.

A warm, fuzzy feeling spread all over him. It had been so long since he had been hugged. Huh. It felt kinda nice.

Cole shook himself and patted his friend's shoulder. "It's fine BlueJay", he reassured. "Anyways, at the end of the street, there's a bus stop," Cole said, pointing. "You do know what your address is, right?"

"Yeah, of course!" Jay replied.

Cole nodded "Do you want me to wait for the bus with you?"

Jay shook his head. "No, thanks," he then paused and turned around. "Hey, can we do this again?"

"Do what?"

"You know, come over to your place after school."

"Why?" Cole asked, genuinely confused. Jay stared at him as if he had grown two heads. "What do you mean 'why'?! Your place is AMAZING! And your room's the coolest. And- and your things are the epitome of cool! And-"

"Okay, okay! I get it," Cole interrupted, feeling flustered with all the compliments. "I'll... I'll think about it, okay?"

"Yes!" The freckled teen said, pumping his fist. "Alright! Bye, Cole! See you tomorrow?"

"Yeah, sure "BlueJay," Cole replied, leaning on the doorframe.

"Thanks for everything!" Jay said, waving. Cole stood there, watching until the bus finally came. Only when the bus was out of his vicinity did Cole get up. "No Jay," he said to no one in particular. "Thank you for everything," With that he closed the door, stepping inside his prison once again.

XXX

Cole was grumpy, to say the least.

The entire day was going out of plan, thanks to the stupid withdrawal symptoms. To make matters worse, today was an off day, meaning that he didn't have any work.

Cole marched inside his home, ignoring his father and refusing to acknowledge his presence. He grumpily slammed his bedroom door and collapsed on his bed, burying his face in his pillow.

Cole knew that he was wasting valuable time, but he didn't care. He just wanted these - - - - symptoms to get the - - - - out of his life! After an hour of doing nothing, Cole finally rolled over, grabbed his bag, and pulled out his Chromebook from his backpack.

Thankfully all of his homework was digital today. FSM only knew what he would have done if his homework was on paper. (He probably wouldn't have even done his homework, tbh)

Placing his computer on his chest, Cole pressed 'play' and started watching the EdPuzzle videos he was assigned. After those were completed, he started working on his essay.

He grabbed his headphones and put them on, hoping that the harp instrumental would help calm him down and keep the symptoms at bay. It helped. Kinda. He was still kind of angry and frustrated for no apparent reason but he did feel less grumpy, so that was a plus.

Soon, he finished his homework, leaving him grumpy and restless. There were a lot of things that Cole could do, but that all meant that he had to get out of bed and all of those things were too much work.

So he resorted to just playing the video game Jay had installed on his phone. ("What do you mean you've never played Subway Surfers? That's illegal! Gimme your phone, we're gonna change that.")

Cole didn't admit it then but the game was kinda fun. Of course, it wasn't fun now.

Every single time, Cole kept crashing into subways and getting arrested. It was like he couldn't concentrate. After failing for the 24th time, Cole let out a frustrated growl, tossing his phone across his bed, and curling into himself.

Stupid withdrawal symptoms, ruining everything.

He grabbed his pillow, smushing his face into it. After a while of doing this, his stomach growled hungrily. Cole sighed and got up, reaching for his phone. Based on the quick mini-research Cole did, he guessed that the hunger was caused by the symptoms. He turned his phone, looked at the time on his lock screen, and abruptly froze.

7:37 PM.

Oh FSM, no. It was way too early to be hungry. It wasn't safe for him to go downstairs now. His dad wasn't unconscious yet and with Cole experiencing crazy mood swings, who knew what could happen.

He placed his phone back on his bed and tried to distract himself, but in a matter of minutes, his stomach growled once again. But this time, it came with an immense feeling of hunger. Cole closed his eyes, trying to compress the hunger but all it did was increase the feeling. He let out a frustrated growl.

Stupid, STUPID withdrawal symptoms.

After a while, Cole got up and snuck downstairs, hangrily muttering to himself. The sound of glass shattering snapped him out of his emotions. He bolted towards the kitchenette, thoughts flying through his head. What was that? Was Dad okay? First Master, was he hurt?

Cole stopped when he saw the kitchenette. His father was at the sink holding a bottle of alcohol and was opening it. On the ground were shards of broken glass.

"What happened?" Cole demanded, his hangry emotions returning now that he knew that there was no danger. His father turned to look at him, his eyes unfocused as he stood, wobbling slightly. "Nothing," his father replied as he took a swing at the bottle. "Clean it up."

A flare of anger shot through Cole. "What?! But you're the one who dropped it!" His father glared at him, eyes narrowed into slits as if he was challenging him to argue back. Cole took a deep breath and went to get a broom.

He marched back to the kitchenette and started sweeping the shards. Now that he was close, he noticed that the shares were from a bottle. It seemed that his dad had dropped the empty bottle when he had gone to take another one.

Another wave of anger rotted over Cole and he gripped the broom tighter. "Why are you like this?" he growled, directing his question to his father. The said man froze and turned towards him, but didn't respond.

Cole took the silence as a cue to continue. "Why do you just waste your life sitting on a couch drinking who knows what?! Huh?! Why are you such a - - - - retard who can't even take care of himself?!"

In the back of his mind, Cole knew that spewing insults and getting mad at his dad was not a wise decision, but he was just mad.

(A/N: WARNING- Child abuse is mentioned a lot in this next part. Skip if it triggers you)

"You're supposed to take care of ME, Dad. Not the other way around. You're supposed to be taking care of the rent, the food, the expenses- everything! I'm not the one supposed to be doing it! YOU ARE!"

Cole stopped to catch his breath, angry tears blurring his eyes as he glared at his father. "I'm not the one meant to do everything. You're my dad! You're supposed to be looking after me. Making sure I'm safe. Checking to see where I am or if I'm okay.

But instead, you spent hour upon hour drinking that stupid liquid all day apparently thinking. Thinking?! About what?! About how your how - - - - up your ridiculous life is?! HUH?! Well, heads up, Dad. You're a father. You have a son. You're supposed to be taking care of me." Cole stopped, his breath coming out in ragged, torn breaths.

He then tossed the broom at his father. "You know what? YOU clean up your stupid mess! I'm done doing everything for you. You're not worth my time." Cole turned his back to the man he called "Dad", not seeing the way the older man gripped the broom tightly, his eyes blazing with anger and rage. "I can't believe it took me this long to finally figure it out. No wonder Mom left. You're just a waste of space. You're a selfish, cruel, manipulative person. And I - - - - HATE YOU! I wish you weren't part of my life! I wish you weren't my father! I wish you never existed!"

Cole gripped the countertop, heart slamming against his ribcage over and over. Tears blurred his vision, making it difficult to see. After more than four years of burying his emotions, stress, and anxiety, the dam had finally broken. He squeezed his eyes shut, shoulders shaking as he struggled to hold back his sobs. With his eyes closed, he failed to see the blow aimed at him.

A sharp crack sounded as the wood slammed against his ribs. Cole gasped in shock, stumbling, as pain erupted in his side. He looked up to see his father towering over him, holding the broom, looking like he was about to strike him again. And that's exactly what he did. Cole cried out in pain as the wood once again struck his side.

He stumbled again, missing his footing, and fell painfully on the ground, pain blooming throughout his side, completely at his drunken father's mercy.

"Dad! STOP! Please!" Cole begged, crying out in pain and fear. But he didn't stop, instead, the man continued his onslaught of abuse as the broomstick rained down upon him. His father didn't reply or give any indication that he even heard Cole, too busy being caught up in a blind drunk rage.

Cole realized a little bit too late that he could at least try to block the blows. He tried to defend himself, wincing as the wood hit his arms. He crawled away from his father trying his best to shield himself from the raging man. He wasn't paying attention to where he was heading and accidentally placed his hand on a shard of glass. Cole shot up, hugging his wounded hand to his chest. Doing this action left him unprepared as the broom rushed down and hit him in the head. With a sharp crack, darkness took over Cole's vision and he finally fell unconscious, oblivious to the world around him.

(A/N: Scenes depicting child abuse is over)

XXX

When Cole came to, he was in pain. His head throbbed slightly and his side ached with pain.

He got up from the floor, wincing, and found himself surrounded by broken shards of glass. He gingerly held his side and looked around. The TV in the living room was playing and there was no sign of the broom.

Cole shook himself and went to grab a cardboard box. He then gingerly picked up the shards and placed them in it, wincing as the pain in his side intensified. After the broken bottle pieces were all in the box he closed it and quickly wrote; 'WARNING: BROKEN SHARDS OF GLASS INSIDE'. His stomach growled as he taped the box closed

Cole squeezed his eyes shut, knowing that he had no strength left to make himself a sandwich. He quietly crept up to the stairs, the pain in his side intensifying with each step he climbed. Finally, after almost five minutes, Cole made it to his room.

He closed the door, leaning on it. He let out a pained hiss as his back hit the door, aggravating the bruises all over his side. He stood in that position, listening to his breathing, feeling tears of pain fall down his face.

After a while of doing this, Cole opened his eyes and slowly started cleaning up his room and getting things ready for the next day. With much difficulty, he finally packed his bag. As he was doing that, he spotted the pack of cigarettes that he hadn't discarded yet.

He picked it up and stared down at it, feeling his cravings return. Thankfully, though, the pain was much stronger than the temptation. As he stared at the pack, Cole felt anger blossom inside of him.

Why had he taken that cigarette from Moe? Why had he started to smoke in the first place? Moe was wrong. Smoking didn't help his life, it ruined his life.

If he hadn't ever smoked, then he wouldn't have ever experienced the stupid withdrawal symptoms. If he had never experienced the symptoms then he wouldn't have gotten overly angry with his father. If he hadn't gotten angry at his father, then he wouldn't have been beaten by his father.

Cole let out an angry frustrated sound and threw the pack of cigarettes across his room. That action only resulted in more pain. Cole doubled over in pain, clutching his side, which only caused more pain. He stumbled, tears blurring his vision.

His father had hit him. His father was the reason why he was in so much pain. Cole had been slapped, punched, and kicked by his dad before, but he had never been beaten this hard. But… he deserved it… right?

Cole shook his head and took a deep breath. He then walked into the shared bathroom, refusing to turn on the light. He didn't want to see the broken, beaten, abused boy in the mirror. He didn't want to look at his bruises. He already knew they were bad, he didn't have to have a visual image of how badly his father had beaten him.

And it was just his luck that tomorrow he had gym class.

After brushing his teeth in the dark, Cole walked back to his room. He went through his drawer and pulled out a painkiller. He never had to use it, but he kept it just in case he ever needed it.

After swallowing the pill, he flicked the lights off and collapsed on his bed. He let out a pained cry as his body hit the bed, his battered side screaming at him in pain.

A small whimper escaped from Cole's lips as he reached for his phone. He scrolled through his admittedly small list of contacts and let his finger hover over Jay's phone number.

He internally battled with himself, wondering whether or not he should call his friend. He decided against it. Jay didn't need to know. After all, he would find out tomorrow in gym class.

Cole placed his phone beside his pillow and curled into himself. He let out a pained hiss and quickly changed his position so that he was lying on his back looking up at the ceiling. He stared at the glow-in-the-dark squiggles that he'd decorated his room with.

When Cole had decorated his room, he had deliberately placed the squiggles in a way so that it spelled out a word: HOPE. It wasn't noticeable. It was only able to be seen by eyes that knew it was there.

Cole closed his eyes. Hope was the last thing that he had. He moved his hand letting his fingers run over the bumpy surface caused by the amount of cash stuffed in his mattress. Four more years. Just four more years of living like this and he'd be free. He had to stay strong. He had a future just waiting for him. A life where he could finally do whatever he wanted. All he had to do was be patient. Just four more years.

Cole let out a tired sigh as the painkiller finally kicked in, the pain reducing to a quiet hum. After a while, he let himself drift off, a much-needed sleep finally taking hold of him.

A/N: Hey y'all.

Sorry for the super sad ending! I know, I was crying as well. 😭

Sooo... sorry about the implied curse words. DS!Cole does curse so I had to add the curse words. But... I barely know any curse words myself since I was not raised in a household that speaks curse words. In fact, I was only introduced to the concept of curse words at my public school! So that's why there are dashes instead of the actual word. lol!

Anyways, that was a lot of writing! I'm gonna take myself easy with Chap3. I ain't gonna rush myself like I did with this chap. No clue when it'll be done, but luckily I have started it!

So I understand that smoking/vaping is a big thing nowadays, but y'all. IT IS NOT WORTH RISKING YOUR LIFE! If you vape, keep in mind that one vape is equivalent to one pack of cigarettes. Vaping/smoking is not healthy, and it is not worth your life. I am aware that ads and social media make it seem cool, but I'll repeat, it's not worth the risk. Whether you're smoking or vaping, they both will eventually lead to death!

Please, y'all, don't fall into this temptation. Steer clear of these things and other substances. Make sure you surround yourself with people who are against smoking/vaping. Surround yourself with people like Jay, who urge you to be a better person and try to help you overcome addictions. If you want to know more about vaping and its effects watch this video: PBS. c om ./ video/nic-sick-uesfxt/ (remove the spaces)

There is also another video I recommend watching if you want to know the effects of tobacco on your body. (Cigarettes contain tobacco, btw) It is called The Totally Gross Out Tobacco video. I didn't link it due to the fact that this video is definitely not for the fainthearted people. You can find it on YouTube if you want.

Anyways, enough of the lecture! I hope y'all enjoyed reading! Feel free to comment but please, please, please use CLEAN and APPROPRIATE language. Keep in mind that there are some younger audiences on this platform. Please be considerate of their innocence.

That's all I have for now! Remember that God loves you, I love you, and JESUS IS LORD!