Scott ran into the house, running in multiple groups of teenagers who were drunk, high, or both. Music blasted loudly from upstairs from Mitch's room.

Mitch's room.

Scott widened his eyes and ran upstairs, pushing a kissing couple out of the way. In Mitch's room, a boy and laid on the youngest Hoying's bed, making out intensely. Scott stomped up to them and got the boy up. Sure enough, the girl was Kirstie. She glared at her brother and crossed her arms.

"What the heck, Scott?" Kirstie yelled after Scott turned off the music. Teenagers began to groan in protest and demanded to turn the music back on. "I was in the middle of something!"

"You were not going to do it on Mitch's bed," Scott scolded, pushing the boy out of the room. "Party's over! Go away!"

The boy rolled his eyes and muttered something about a 'high-strung older brothers ruining everything' and walked out. Teenagers left, possibly breaking some stuff on the way. When they all left, Scott glared at his sister.

"What in the world, Kirstin Taylor?! I went out for a just a couple hours and you do this? You're grounded! No parties or anything like that! You are to come home right away every day after school!"

"Okay, I don't care," Kirstie scoffed, taking out a cigarette. Scott took it from her and threw it out of the window. "That was my last one!"

"And it's always going to be your last one," Scott finalized, shaking his head. "Where's Mitch?"

"How should I know? It's his fault that he's missing. Maybe the shooter found him again and made him blind this time."

Scott glared at his sister once more and was about to scold her some more when the doorbell rang. A bright light turned on too, which was Mitch's way of knowing when the doorbell rang or not. Scott went downstairs, being careful of red solo cups and food. He kicked a cup, staring at it angrily.

Kirstie is going to clean this up.

He opened the door, taking a sigh of relief. Mitch was on the other side, shaking a lot. Avi and Kevin stood there too, scared looks on their faces. The brothers shared a hug, Mitch's tears making Scott's shirt wet. Scott rubbed his back gently, hoping to calm him down while trying not to cry himself. Kevin cleared his throat, catching Scott's attention.

"We thought that we had to take him to the hospital, but he's fine now," Kevin informed Scott, smiling when the older brother held the younger one closer. "He's lucky, Scott. Also, I am a doctor. I work with deaf patients so if you ever need anything, come next door. I'll be more than happy to help."

Scott nodded as he watched the couple walk off, closing the door behind him. He refused to let go of Mitch, afraid of losing him again. Scott smiled at him softly, brushing the brown hair back. When he was younger, Rick and Connie used to called Mitch the 'surprise child' because when Scott and Kirstie were born with blond hair and blue and hazel eyes, Mitch was born with brown hair and brown eyes. Nobody knew how it happened, but he was called the 'surprise child' because his looks surprised everyone. He doesn't get called that anymore, but Scott will secretly call him that to his friends.

Scott walked upstairs, his hand connected with Mitch's. Kirstie walked out of Mitch's room, glaring at the brothers. Mitch looked down at the floor, afraid of Kirstie's stare. He was about to walk into his room, but Scott stopped him. He nodded at him, wondering why he did that.

*Sleep with me tonight. I'm sorry, Mitch. I don't want you to get triggered or anything like that. Did that guy hu-*

*I don't want to talk about it.* Mitch replied, signing quickly. His eyes looked scared for some reason. *He just did some things that I don't want to talk about. Not right now, anyways.*

*Okay.* Scott nodded, smiling sadly. Mitch has always been so strong for someone who's been through a lot. *Let's go to bed. You look tired.*

Mitch nodded as he walked into Scott's room. He jumped onto his brother's bed, giggling softly. Scott smiled as he got ready to bed, hearing his brother shuffling in the bed. Scott then laid down, smiling at Mitch sweetly.

*I love you.*

*I love you, too.*

And for the first time in six years, Scott did not cry himself to sleep.

~~~

Monday came quickly and Scott got ready for his job. As he examined himself, he looked at Kirstie's room. The blonde has not come out of her room all weekend and it made Scott angry. He shook his head, removing himself from the front of the mirror. He walked downstairs, smiling when he saw Mitch working on his last papers of homework. Scott tapped his fingers on the piece of paper and Mitch looked up, smiling.

*Are you ready for school?* Scott asked, laughing when Mitch shook his head in disgust. *I know. You have to go to school though.*

*I know.* Mitch replied, finishing his homework. He then looked at Scott and tilted his head. *What does this mean?*

Mitch then sighed a four letter word, not knowing why Scott widened his eyes (a/n: If you have no idea what Mitch is signing, watch Santa is a Daddy Bear and you'll know exactly what he is signing, lol). He looked at Scott innocently, not knowing why his older brother looked shocked.

*Is it bad?* Mitch asked, his innocence brighter than the sun. *One of my friends taught me it! I wanted to show you!*

*Never sign it again.* Scott scolded playfully. Mitch nodded as he got his stuff together, ready for school. *Kirstie is walking so we don't need to worry about her.*

Mitch nodded as they went to the car. Of course, the car ride was silent, but Scott didn't mind. Mitch's presence always made him happy. They went to Mitch's school, Hansen's School for Hard of Hearing Students and they shared a hug, smiling brightly. Mitch waved goodbye to Scott, signing one last thing.

*I love you.*

Scott smiled as he signed back, watching Mitch's retrieving back lovingly.

*I love you, too.*

~~~

Avi looked at the Hoying house, wanting to know more about the family. If Tori was here, she would scold Avi for doing such a thing. He shook his head as he saw a picture of her. He sighed heavily as he began to cry, hugging it tightly.

"I miss you so much, Tori. I miss you, honey."

He kissed the photo gently, setting it back down. He looked at Kevin's office, wanting to see his husband work less. Kevin pushed himself a lot now. Avi sighed as he looked up at the ceiling, hoping that Tori will answer in some way.

"Tori, I love you. I can't wait to see you again."

Avi kissed the photo once more, letting more tears run down his face. He just wants Tori back. He wants his family back more than anything.

~~~

(Drugs are mentioned in this part, just a warning)

"1,1-2-1,1-2-3-2-1," Scott sang while playing the piano. He smiled when everyone sang on perfect pitch, loving his job." 1-2-3-4-3-2-"

His phone began to ring and he stopped playing, looking at it immediately. He shook his head as he answered it quickly, letting the students sit down. He walked into his office, sighing loudly.

"Is it Kirstin again?"

"Yep. She was caught smoking weed in the bathroom. She is suspended."

"Okay. Make her wait her please. I don't care how long it takes for me to pick her up. Thank you."

"You're welcome, Mr. Hoying."

Scott then hung up, look back at his students. He put on a fake smile, putting his music away.

"Have free time. Just don't go on your phones or I'll send you to jazz band."

Everyone laughed as they went off to hang out with their friends. Scott went off to his office, his frown permanent. He feels like he could never make Kirstie happy. He allowed a tear to run down his cheek, wanting the happy day to end already. He looked up at the ceiling, trying his best not to cry.

"Mom, Dad? What am I doing wrong?"

Scott closed his eyes, allowing more tears to escape. He just wants to be happy again.

A/N: Angst is all over the place, lol. Also, there is not going to be another character death in this. I'm not that cruel, lol. Anyways, I hope you all enjoyed the chapter and remember that I love you all very much.:)

-Maddie🐧🐧🐧