The air in the room was stiflingly tense. No one wanted to break the relative silence that had overtaken them ever since they'd arrived at the house and so they each sat or stood listening to Nick pace back and forth in seething anger. Finally, a voice cut it's way through the suffocating atmosphere. Everyone quickly wished it didn't.

"Where's George?" Clay asked quietly, still recovering from Nick's initial outburst at the café. Nick rounded on him with a fire in his eyes.

"Where's George? You didn't seem to care before, don't start now just because you've been caught." Nick scoffed in return, standing still but tapping his foot rapidly. Jethro shuffled minutely to sit on the edge of the couch, preparing in case Nick chose to lash out again.

"Nick, I-" Clay tried but Nick was quick to interrupt him.

"No. You don't get to pull this shit. After everything you put him through you have the audacity to act like you have always cared." He snapped, stepping towards Clay. Jethro shifted his weight to his feet in anticipation of Nick's next move. "All because George loved you so much that he'd take a nine hour plane just to make sure you're okay when you ignored him for a week and now you feel guilty. Well too fucking late." He growled lowly. Clay kept his mouth shut but his heart ached loudly.

"Can you go someplace else? Another room? And take her with you, I can't stand to be around either of you right now." Nick more instructed than asked, pointing an accusing finger at Keres. The two all but scurried from the room.

Geo stood, taking the few steps it took to reach Nick, and gently rested his hand on Nick's upper arm. Nick looked down into Geo's calm brown eyes and took a deep breath, focusing on dampening down the fire that threatened to engulf him from his lungs outwards.

"You better have one damn good explanation." Nick said, turning to analyse the three remaining band members, who were tucked tightly together on one of the couches, pretending they weren't cowering. Vincent was the first to speak up.

"Do you remember the nights I used to complain to you about a man called Damien?" He asked tentatively. Nick nodded, unsure of how that was in any way related to what he'd asked.

"He's our manager- was our manager." Vincent explained when Nick didn't speak up. "And he got it in his head that George was a distraction to Clay and, therefore, a distraction to the band as a whole." He continued.

"So, what, you just dropped the both of us because Damien didn't like George? Wow, glad to know how much I mean to you." Nick bit, crossing his arms and glaring.

Vincent shook his head profusely, standing and taking a step towards Nick. "Damien is the kind of person to never stop until he gets his way. He threatened consequences if he found that anyone had talked to George or anyone George knew."

"Oh no, not consequences!" Nick pretended to tremble, voice a mocking few octaves higher, as he took a step away.

"You don't understand, Nick. This guy knew his way around everything, there was no telling what he'd be able to get away with." Vincent tried, desperate for Nick to just understand.

"So, what, if you hadn't listened then he'd get rid of George himself like some kind of mob boss?" Nick joked sarcastically.

"Yes." Vincent replied earnestly. "The man was a psychopath with no sense of humanity. I wouldn't doubt that he'd hurt George if he thought George was in the way of his income." Vincent saw something shift in Nick's slightly blown eyes.

"The only reason we could come talk to you was because Damien is in the hospital." He admitted quietly and Nick looked mildly alarmed. "Not because of us." He added quickly. "He got into an accident. They won't tell us the details but it's bad enough that we're under temporary management."

Zak and Darryl watched from the couch, praying Nick would believe them. Nick stood silent for a while, looking between Vincent's warm brown eyes in search of some sign he may be lying. There was none.

"So.. Damien forced you to stop talking to us?" Nick finally asked and Vincent nodded solemnly. "And he may have hurt someone if you didn't listen?" Vincent nodded again, chancing a step towards Nick. Nick didn't try to move away.

"Did you... did you at least try? To find a way to talk to us?" Nick asked in the barest voice, his crossed arms looking more and more as though he were holding himself to find some comfort. Vincent threw all caution to the wind and reached to place both of his hands on Nick's shoulders.

"There wasn't a second I spent not trying to find a way to get to you." Vincent promised. Zak and Darryl watched him in shock and wonderment. They had never seen him like this before, not for anyone.

"And.. I know you hate him right now but if you had seen the way it effected Clay then you'd know he never stopped loving George. For a while, I was so sure we'd lost him." Vincent remembered the dozens of skipped meals and the tens of hours lost to him simply... staring.

"If he loved George so much then why did he cheat on him? Did you forget the first day Clay ignored him? The way he broke in front of us and questioned what he had done wrong, what about him wasn't enough? Can you imagine what finding out Clay had cheated on him did to him?" Nick bombarded, feeling the anger begin to bubble up under his skin again.

"That's something for Clay himself to explain." Vincent decided, gently massaging his thumbs into Nick's shoulders. Nick uncrossed his arms to hold onto Vincent's wrists. There was a pause in which Nick let his eyes slip closed and Vincent studied his face quietly.

"It's going to take so much self restraint not to knee him again." He growled and Vincent felt a wave of relief crash through him.

"So you'll hear him out?" He asked and Nick huffed out a sigh before nodding. Vincent couldn't stop himself from pulling Nick into his chest once again.

Nick relaxed minutely in Vincent's arms, wrapping his own around him in return. He would hear Clay out, if only to decide whether it was acceptable to punch him again.

////:\\\\
6/10/20

bff stealer
[an image of George walking with Boobies in his arms, a small smile present on his face]
4:12pm
We're gonna get this cutie s o d r u n k tonight
4:12pm
Clark has just gone off to acquire the devils juice
4:12pm
George seems better but he's still a little spacey so we're gonna cheer him up high school style B)
4:13pm
Hope you haven't killed anyone off yet
4:13pm
Seen

////:\\\\

Clay was a nervous wreck under Nick's searing glare. He and Keres had replaced the other band members on the couch, looking very much like two children in trouble. In many ways, that's exactly what they were.

"Explain." Nick demanded. Geo and Jethro had agreed, after many long moments of convincing, to let the three of them have the conversation alone. They had led the other three out of the sitting room and into the kitchen with one last pat to Nick's back and shoulder.

"Damien-" Clay began, only to be cut off.

"I know about Damien. Explain why you cheated on George." Nick bit. Keres flinched but Nick couldn't find it in himself to care.

"I didn't- I didn't cheat on him-" Clay tried and Nick barked a fierce sounding laugh.

"Oh, didn't you? So those photos of the two of you, that's not you?" Nick asked sarcastically.

"No I- Nick, Keres kissed me." Clay pleaded, missing the way Keres curled in on herself guiltily.

"Oh, because that makes it so much better!" Nick laughed, a sound usually bright and clear now turned dark and heavy. "I don't care about who kissed who, I care about why."

"George trusted you and he loved you with everything he had, Clay. He is the best fucking thing in our lives, the best thing to have ever happened to this world. And you cast him away." Nick accused protectively. "Now I want to know why."

It was silent for a moment as Clay desperately gathered his words and Keres sat shaking. "Before that photo, I was having a panic attack. George had messaged me saying he was on his way and I was so fucking scared about what Damien might do to him. Keres was panicking because I was and she tried to help the only way she remembered. It stopped right after the photo and neither of us would do it again." He explained earnestly.

"You don't just kiss someone because they're panicking!" Nick exclaimed in exasperation, throwing his arms up. Keres curled into herself further.

"It was the only thing I could think of to snap him out of it. It was the only thing I could remember someone doing for me." Keres explained shakily.

"Okay, but that doesn't explain why you didn't just say that to everyone. Why you didn't deny it when everyone said you were together. Why you let George go on believing he was losing you if you're so sure he wasn't."

"Damien wanted the two of us to have a contracted relationship, the only way we could refuse was if we didn't deny anything publicly. If we let people believe what they wanted to." Clay mumbled and Nick could feel the simmering heat in his stomach burn at Damien.

"I promise, Nick. I wanted nothing more than to talk to George. To tell him what was happening and tell him that I still love him. To have him there, at my side like he always is." Clay pleaded. "I texted him last night, when we found out Damien was gone so we could finally talk to you both again, but he hasn't responded. He hasn't seen it." Nick sighed deeply.

"Ophelia and Clark have his phone right now, otherwise we all know he'd be tearing himself apart wondering what he'd done wrong. They're keeping him distracted." Nick explained before padding towards the kitchen and calling for Jethro and Geo. Clay watched nervously as he returned with the two in tow.

"I don't forgive you, I still think you're fucking stupid for everything you did... but George deserves to know the truth if he decides he wants to." Nick stated and Clay swore he could cry.

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1.8k words

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Yours, Dandelion