AN: This should have been out days ago! Just stuff got in the way of things. And I hate that. So you guys finally get some answers on things! And there is still so much left to happen in only two chapters! I hope you guys enjoy.

WARNING: Panic attack and minor violence, domestic, emotional and mental abuse

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The first thing that Mitch registered was the feeling of comfort and safety. The second was the tell tale remnants of Scott's natural scent. Lastly was the sound of a ticking clock nearby. He tried to open his eyes but it was like they were glued shut. After some minutes his eyelids finally started to flutter open. It took a few seconds for the fuzziness in his vision to clear. He saw that he was in a large room. He looked down to see that he had a comforter that had been tucked in on him and a shirt on that was much too large to be his own. Definitely the work of his best friend. He saw a couch nearby that had Scott's clothes laying on them. He looked around to see three doors. None of them were open. So...where was Scott?

Mitch pulled the comforter off and got to his feet. He grabbed the edge of the bed as his legs almost gave out on him. They felt weak and as if he had been bedridden. He also felt this dull ache in the back of his head. Mitch held onto the bed as he worked to keep his legs stable. He needed Scott. He had to be around here somewhere!

It was not an exaggeration that it took Mitch far too long to be able to get out of the room. He looked both ways as soon as he was out of the room. Which direction? He heard noises below. Scott! Mitch used the wall to keep him up as he hurried as best he could. He wanted to call out for Scott but his throat was scratchy and sore. It was like he had come down with a flu over night.

He gripped the railing for dear life as he took the stairs one at a time. He felt like a child still learning to walk! Hearing Scott was the only thing that kept him going. He wanted to see him! Why did no one actually invest in having stairs that turned into a slide? It would be so much easier than dealing with this right now. How many steps did he have left? Mitch checked. He groaned to himself. He still had five to go before being relieved of this torture. That was easily going to take him like three or four minutes. He rolled his eyes. Stupid legs!

Mitch followed the sounds of Scott. He was in the living room. With more will than strength he got over to the room on both legs. It was a miracle really. His legs burned with every step of his foot. He didn't understand why his body felt this way. He felt so heavy. Every little thing. It didn't matter, though. All he wanted to do was get to Scott. He could worry about everything else once he was with him. Scott was his priority.

Once he was in the living room, he immediately spotted who he was looking for. Scott was hyper focused on cleaning and organizing. Too much in fact. Those were the signs of him trying to control his mind by keeping his body busy. He was turned away from Mitch and hunched over as he kept rearranging the pillows. Mitch took advantage of Scott being turned away to admire him. He was so tall. He towered over most people and it made Mitch feel so safe with him. He had such broad shoulders that enhanced how big he looked. They also felt so good when he would tuck his head into Scott's neck and lay his head on one. Those arms were so well built. They swallowed him up when Scott wanted cuddles. And Mitch loved it. But nothing beat the one thing that was inside. That beautiful heart. The heart that belonged to his big boy.

"Scott," he called to the man a few feet from him. Scott stopped what he was doing, stood back up, and whirled around in what must have been only two or three seconds. His eyes were wide and alert. He was staring right at Mitch. There was this recognition in his blue eyes.

"You're back," he breathed out. The weight behind those two words were not lost on Mitch. After a few seconds of Scott still staring, as if he was trying to be sure this was real, he spoke again. "Are you okay? Does your head hurt? Is there a bump or a bruise? I knew I should have gotten those baby monitors yesterday!"

Mitch gave him a small crooked smile. "Scott, calm down. I need you to call Austin. I want him here."

Scott looked conflicted. "O-of course. Whatever you want. But please don't stand. Come over here, baby. You need to sit down," he finally replied, holding out his hand for Mitch to grab. Mitch obliged. He knew if he didn't do it, Scott would only get more insistent and worked up. Scott was extra careful when he guided him to sit down and rest his back against the couch. He made sure Mitch was comfortable before stepping away. "Let me get you some medicine. There has to be painkillers. Now don't move." Mitch rolled his eyes as Scott ran off to get the things as quick as possible.

-------

Austin came in like he was a track star, throwing the door open. "What happened!? Is he okay," Austin asked in a hurry. He spotted Mitch sitting down. After giving him some painkillers, Scott had made food which he was feeding to him. He was acting like one wrong move and Mitch would break into tiny little pieces. He wasn't a doll!

Thanks to the sandwich in his mouth, Scott answered. "He remembers. And I'm not sure. He doesn't want to say anything. He was waiting for you."

Austin checked him over as if to be sure he had no bruises or broken bones. "Are you sure? Can you see how many fingers I am holding up?" He held up two fingers like the peace sign.

Mitch rolled his eyes at the dramatics. "Two," he grumbled and sipped from the straw that Scott held up for him. It was some fruit juice that they had in the fridge from shopping the week before. "I'm fine. The back of my head just hurts a little is all."

This had Austin freaking out in...quite frankly a very Scott manner. "You're fine!? You passed out yesterday when coming to the living room! And we couldn't wake you up! We were almost sure you had a heart attack. Your heart beat was so faint." Austin's voice was small and he looked near sick. Mitch was torn about how upset Austin was.

"You really scared us. We were going to get you to the hospital but figured it might not be a good idea with the whole memory loss thing."

Mitch saw all the pain and worry in those blue eyes. "Scott...".

Scott looked away to him and back to Austin who was keeping a close eye on Mitch. "We got the bedroom all cleaned and settled you there. You've been out for almost a whole day. You didn't even feel when I got in next to you," Scott said and turned his eyes back to Mitch. "It was like you weren't really there. Austin and I figured if you weren't up after a day was up that we would just take you to the hospital. You might have a concussion. That fall was so loud...". Silent tears rolled down Scott's face as he lightly touched the back of Mitch's head. A shock of pain consumed his head for a split second.

"Don't," Mitch snapped to keep Scott from rubbing the spot. "I get it. You two were worried. It was probably what I needed because I remember the fight."

The two worried men instantly froze. "Do you mean the fight," Scott clarified. Mitch nodded. "What did that bastard do to you? I'll kill him," Scott growled, already murderous to Mitch's boyfriend.

"Scott, don't assume he was the reason," Mitch chastised the enraged baritone.

Scott glared at him. "So you're saying he isn't at fault at all," he questioned. Mitch looked away from Scott, not able to lie to him. "See. Just let me get my hands on him."

Mitch grabbed his hands to stop him from flexing his hands. "You might want to hear the whole thing before getting locked up for murder over it."

Scott looked to Austin. He saw the two nod. "Okay. So, tell us what the fight was about."

Mitch took in a large breath. This was the scariest thing he had to face. He focused straight ahead, afraid to look at either of the men. "Well.....".

......Flashback

Mitch was so excited to see his boyfriend. They didn't get to see each other too often while he was on tour. The first few days back had been difficult. He had closed himself off, trying to adjust to being in one place again. This was the first time they would have time to themselves. He had originally wanted a group get together but Scott wanted to go out with Mark and Mason. He didn't need him anyway. HIs boyfriend was better than Scott. He didn't need that laughter, the relentless jokes and teasing, the loudness, the lack of space, all the cuddles....Mitch shook his head. He needed to focus on his number one.

-------

"I can't believe how cute they were," Mitch gushed as he showed Beau the photos of the puppies from early on the tour. He swiped to the left to show the next photo. "This one just absolutely loved Scott. We jokingly named him Cookies and Cream. He swiped to the next one. "Ooh, the goat was precious! Scott tried to speak to it. Look, isn't it adorable?" Mitch played the video he took of Scott up close and personal with the baby goat. It was one of the highlights of tour.

"Sure is cute. Uh what else did you take a photo of or video?"

Mitch flicked through a few less impressive photos. "I have some stuff that Ben didn't put into the PTXperience videos. Like this. See? Scott gave me this ridiculously big birthday card that he had set up with a recording of himself singing me happy birthday. It was literally the sweetest thing. And here is Kevin trying to stuff his food in his mouth. We were trying to get to our next tour stop. Scott gave himself a brain freeze from the slushie he got." Mitch went through more. "Here are Scott and Kirstie living their best lives. It turned into a trio dance somehow. This is when Scott and I tried to replicate Kirvin's matrix moves from stage. We forgot we aren't as coordinated as them, ha ha. I got Scott sleeping. He was mumbling about eating festival food. It was too ridiculous. Ooh! Here is where the guys tried to see who could win a race when prepping for the show. Kevin tripped over Matt whose shoe got untied. Scott jumped right over them! He looked like such a track star. This one is us living for the new album from Beyonce.We were so pumped that night. I got a few clips of Scott when he was working on the Christmas album. He's sounds so good in this one. Listen!"

He played the clip of Scott's runs and the soft voice he had for the song. "...Nice. Uh....".

Mitch quickly went to another one. "And this one, too! His voice is like butter. So smooth and this subtle richness. I could literally listen to him sing all day. There are a few of Ben and I. Scott and I were pretending to wrestle in this one. I swear Scott has gotten so cut thanks to the diet we were on. This is when Austin and Kelly came to see the band. Austin and Scott look so stupid! Trying to see who could stare without blinking. I think Scott lost on that one. This one is the best one! Austin caught Scott off guard. He went down like a log. He's soaked. He looks like a wet puppy. His eyes were like jewels. He was such a happy mess. Jerk then captured me in a bear hug. He ruined my top."

Mitch was interrupted. "Are there any photos not about Scott?"

Mitch looked up from his phone to the younger man. "What do you mean? I'm just showing you some of the stuff from tour."

Beau rolled his eyes and crossed his arms. "No. You were showing me photos of Scott. Did you take photos of anything else or is your camera roll filled with like 200 photos of him?"

Mitch pulled back to look up at the man standing next to his bed. "Of course I did. But me taking a photo of some sign or a funny thing I saw while on the bus isn't really that interesting. What is the problem?"

Beau narrowed his eyes. "The problem is that you won't shut up about Scott. This whole night you keep bringing him up. 'Oh Scott was too busy to come'. 'I think Scott liked this venue the best'. 'Scott has such pretty eyes'," Beau shot back, imitating Mitch's high voice. "With the way you are talking about him I am starting to think that you love him or something."

Mitch's mouth dropped at the words that came out of his boyfriend's mouth. "You can't be serious right now. Scott is my best friend. Of course I am going to have stuff with him in it. We were with each other pretty consistently for two months. How can you think that?"

This resulted in a snort from the twenty two year old. "Oh I don't know. Maybe the fact that you said you wanted us to stay in because Scott didn't want to hang out with you. You act like you didn't see him on Saturday when you went to see Beyonce with him and your friends!"

Mitch got up from the bed, knowing that this was turning into a fight. "Don't put words in my mouth! I said that I didn't feel like going out and it would be more romantic for it to be the two of us instead of around others. You are taking that one thing and blowing it out of proportion."

Beau sneered at him. "More like you talking about how his body looks and how strong he is. You are fawning over him."

Mitch had his arms crossed now, his body stiff. "So, what? I can't appreciate someone's physique without there being an ulterior motive?"

"Not your ex, you can't," Beau almost immediately fired back with venom.

Mitch couldn't believe this! "That's what this is about? Our relationship is ancient history. I'm with you. I love you."

The taller of the two stepped closer to him. "Doesn't seem that way. The way you get so thirsty for his attention. I knew I shouldn't have trusted this to work!"

Mitch stepped up to him. "I am not some desperate slut. And what are you talking about?"

He received a glare in response. "You practically sully yourself when you have his eyes on you. Don't think I don't notice how you can't keep your eyes off each other. As for that, I'm sure you know better than me." He was smirking at him as if challenging him to refute his claim.

Mitch stabbed his finger into his chest. "You are paranoid and delusional! I am not after Scott!"

Hot air wafted down to Mitch's face from the flared nostrils above him. "Am I? Tell me to my face that you aren't attracted to Scott." Beau was looking down at him....waiting. Mitch stared into his eyes, silent. He couldn't say a thing."You can't even try. You're in love with him, aren't you?"

"NO," Mitch cried out, tears coming free. "No, i-i-it's not true." His voice was small and quiet. "I-I love you. You're the one I want."

Mitch latched onto Beau. Trying to use him as an anchor. Just as he had always done with Scott when he knew he was falling. When the pit was swallowing him up again. "Then say it! Open your mouth!"

Mitch held tighter and bit down on his bottom lip, tears running down in a rush. "P-please," he croaked out, his heart racing. He wanted it to stop. Why wouldn't his boyfriend help him!?

"I don't hear anything! Come on, Mitch! SAY IT!"

It was like his mouth wouldn't allow him to speak. "I-I-I c-cant," he breathed out, the tears burning as they escaped from his eyes.

He looked into those green eyes. He tried to find that sense of connection. That safety he craved. All he saw was a wall of fire and anger. In the blink of an eye he saw the warm and loving eyes of his best friend, there for him. It was gone the next second, replaced by the eyes of his boyfriend. "What makes you think I'll believe you love me then," he snapped, pulling Mitch's hands off of the front of his shirt. He pushed the tenor away. Mitch stumbled back, almost falling over the edge of his bed.

He held himself strong as he glared at the man he had taken a chance on. "Get out! Get out! GET OUT," Mitch screeched.

Beau snarled. "Can't face the truth." He scoffed. "How pathetic. Call me when you get over your obsession with your ex," he stated and stormed out of the room. Mitch heard the front door slam shut, his house seeming to shake at the force.

Once he was alone, Mitch let everything out. He screamed as loud as he could. The glass rattled ominously around him from his high voice. The tears gushed out, fast as a rampaging river. The tears fell down, wetting his feet and the hardwood floors underneath him. He pulled at his hair, his screams shrill. Why! Why was this happening to him!? Why!? WHY!?

He searched for something to tie him down. To ground him. He couldn't find anything. Not even that old tattered shirt that he had kept of Scott's from their brief days of bliss as one. He looked about him at the room he had destroyed. This room...this house was so empty and cold. He was all alone. He needed him. He needed Scott! Mitch ripped his phone off the bed, it unlocking at his face. "Siri! C-c-call Nic-Nicholas Lemons!"

......End Flashback

"T-that's when you called me in hysterics....He accused you of emotionally cheating on him," Scott roared, holding back tears. Mitch nodded, feeling sick at the memories of that awful night.

"He purposely egged on your attack," Austin said darkly from his other side. "He wanted to hurt you." Austin's brown eyes were harsh and his lips were curled into a grimace.

Mitch shook his head at the anger that radiated from the two. "I know...That's why he acted so strange when I went to speak to him. He thought that I was coming to grovel for his forgiveness," Mitch hissed out in disgust of it all. "Except he mentioned about me being with Scott so much....he thought I was two timing him....This a real life soap opera."

Scott put his hand on his shoulder. "You are not at fault for his mistrust. You have never done him wrong. You are right. He was paranoid and was looking for anything to back up what he believed." Scott was so somber and serious. His eyes were two cerulean pools versus the sky blue beauty that Mitch was so acquainted with.

He caressed Scott's cheek. "Oh Scott....Can you do something for me?" He knew his voice was soft and sweet. It always got that way with the man he had before him.

Without any hesitation, Scott answered. "Of course. Anything for you."

Mitch's heart could melt at those words. "Can you get clothes ready for us to go out?"

This question obviously threw Scott off. It wasn't like him to let Scott get free reign of his clothes. "Yes. Um...yeah. Whatever you want." Scott scrambled to his feet and rushed to do what Mitch requested.

"I can't believe he hurt you like that. You were begging him to help and he just kept making it worse," Austin grumbled, his mind still stuck on what Mitch told them about the infamous fight.

Mitch got up, feeling more like himself than he had in so long. "How ironic. You two have something in common I guess."

"I'm sorry, what? Mitch, what are you talking about?" Mitch heard him get up from the couch.

Mitch snapped his head to face him, his eyes burning holes through Austin with despise. "I heard you and Scott yesterday."

Austin stepped back, his mouth agape. "W-what?" Mitch couldn't deny the pleasure he got from this.

He gave Austin a devilish smirk. "I didn't pass out when going to the living room. I came down when you questioned what "game" Scott was playing."

Austin's face blanched. "Mitch...I....".

Mitch's faux nonchalance dropped. He was in front of Austin now. He glared at the person that he swore would always be on his side. "You told Scott that I would never love him! After I told you myself that I was still in love with him back during tour," Mitch shouted as he took his hand and slapped Austin right across the face. "You had no right. No right at all!"

Mitch congratulated himself in not crying again, just thinking about the pain that his best friend caused to the person he loved most. Austin was holding his left cheek, which was quickly reddening from the hit. The sting in his hand felt good. Gave him an idea of how much the slap must have hurt."I'm sorry. I'm so so sorry. Please forgive me," Austin begged.

"Why should I? You thought he was manipulating me to fall in love with him! You don't get to make decisions for me! I have always been in love with him!"

Austin looked away, tears smearing his hardened persona. "I didn't know what was going on! You two were suddenly so close and I know he was so eager to be with you. With the memory loss, I didn't know what would happen once you were back to your usual self."

Mitch shook his head at Austin trying to explain away the agony he brought Scott and in turn Mitch. "Why didn't you tell him that I loved him back!? You knew! You knew about how both of us felt! But you kept it to yourself. Why!?"

Austin rubbed his arm as a way to calm himself. "And risk it going to shit!? I couldn't be sure that you would get back together with him! You told me in July about how you were still in love. That you were confused! But you did nothing! You stayed with Beau! That sent the message that you weren't serious. That you loved Scott but wouldn't take the chance. I was protecting you! And him! I was not going to assume that you wanted me to tell anyone. You had me keep it a secret. What would have happened if you didn't want him to know? I couldn't risk it. Both of you hurting because you knew the truth but that nothing would change."

Hearing Austin's words, the anger deflated some from Mitch. Why was he so rational? "I...get what you are saying. So your logic is that you would rather Scott believe that it was all the same instead of getting his hopes up? So that he wouldn't be crushed."

Austin nodded. "Y-yeah. I couldn't deal with myself if he had it all and it was taken away from him. At least with the memory loss, he knew that it was limited....".

Mitch looked down at his feet. He knew that he couldn't imagine having that happiness and it taken away. He couldn't go back if he had Scott. He wasn't making that mistake again. "I guess my reluctance to talk about everything was why you lost it on Scott. I told you about the meetings with the exes. I was so messed up after that. I was sure that I was tricking myself into the idea that Scott loved me. Teenage me....wasn't good at love. But when I went on that hike with Avi...We talked and he told me about something. That he believed Scott and I were truly soulmates. He called it bashert. It's this old Jewish belief that many still stand by. It is this idea that everyone has this one specific person that was pre destined for them. We never talked about that kind of stuff before. I never....really talked to Avi like that at all, actually," Mitch said, ashamed of himself.

Mitch finally looked back at Austin. "He gave me this sense of calm and trust about what I have with Scott. Scott felt it. That change in me. And we got closer so naturally. It felt so right. Like it was meant to be. The only thing was my memories. But I have them now. And that feeling is only stronger."

Austin grabbed Mitch's hand. "Hon...I can't apologize enough to express how much I regret what I said and did. I was afraid. I should have known to not get involved. I think it is a given that it is best to not get too dragged into the ongoing circle of Scomiche insanity. I felt like I had to solve it. You two were so caught up in your emotions that you don't think clearly. I didn't want you to make some mistake because you let your hearts override your brains."

Mitch squeezed his hand and guided the man to the couch so they could sit down. "You were trying to keep everything from going to hell. None of us knew what would happen once my memories came back. All I wanted was for things to go back to before. When things weren't so complicated."

Austin's brows furrowed. "To go back to before? I'm...not sure I follow."

Mitch giggled. Little by little, everything was coming back. "That's something for Scott to hear. You won't really understand. But I want to say I am sorry for being so angry. Not only now but yesterday and questioning you and who you are as a person. I really am an emotional person."

Austin rolled his eyes. Just like his usual self. "Emotional doesn't even cover it. And I get it. I would be feeling some type of way, too, if you were saying that kind of stuff to Kelly. To have the autonomy on your own body and your relationship. That's important. I forgot that. No one can play God."

Mitch let go of Austin's hand to touch his cheek that was still a little red. "I know that you put up too much with me and I am endlessly grateful that you continue to subject yourself to this rollercoaster. I can't imagine having anyone else to rein me in when I jump over the edge. Scott is only so good at that. He's normally the one getting me to jump. And the others don't know me so well or are too wild. You are my brother. I love you." Mitch leaned forward and kissed Austin's cheek.

The two crushed each other in a painful hug. "I love you, too," Austin whispered into his ear. He felt a few tear drops fall onto his shoulder. They let go of each other and Mitch righted himself. "You sure have a lot of brothers," Austin said sarcastically, trying to subtly wipe the tears away. "Is Scott your brother, too?"

Mitch snorted. "Oh yeah. He's my incestuous brother. Always loves me in the most intense way possible," he replied sarcastically.

Austin's face scrunched up in disgust. "Ew. You are wrong for that."

"You wanted an answer. Speaking of, let's make sure Scott isn't trying to secretly throw away any duplicates I have." The two got up, their arms linked together. "Y'all can ask any questions about the past few weeks. Neither of you get to make fun of me for getting lost on the set last week, though." Mitch said as they walked towards the stairs to get to Scott.