First off, I'd like to dedicate this chapter to @Vrtheworld ! Thank you for your support, comments, and giving me a little kick in the butt to update a bit more frequently. I hope you're happy with the update! It didn't take weeks this time! (;

A happy Whittney is in the media because my baby needs to smile more. The song is a slowed-down version of  War of Hearts, performed by Ruelle, because it just seemed so fitting.

Content warning: This chapter deals with drug abuse and suicide so it may be triggering for some. 

***

My mom loves Bradley. There wasn't a single moment during dinner where she wasn't under his spell. She probably asked him a billion different questions, and he gave the perfect answer for each one. Bradley is almost too perfect. Too nice.

Too safe.

There wasn't a single thing that went wrong. Not one. And now, laying on the couch in Bradley's arms, it feels like I'm missing something. I try my hardest to ignore that nagging in the back of my head as he rubs my back, his fingers tracing around in circles. We are watching some black-and-white movie that he really wanted me to see. Honestly, I'd much rather be watching Anime.

After the movie, we take a small walk around my neighborhood before I walk him over to his car across the street from my house. He wraps his arms around me, but I quickly pull away.

Bradley sighs. "Harry, come on. There's no one around, and I wouldn't care if there was." To prove his confession, he kisses me, the streetlight acting as a literal spotlight shining down on us. After he pulls away, he says, "So, now that I met your mom, are we boyfriends? We, uh, never made it official or anything."

"Yeah." I grin widely, loving the red tinting his cheeks. "We're boyfriends."

For a moment, he looks down, seemingly deep in thought. When his eyes find mine, he looks determined. "I want to come out to my family soon."

My eyes widen. "Seriously?"

"I've been thinking about it and I want my parents to know who I really am. And Rodney needs to know that he can't pick on you anymore." He frowns at the mention of his cousin. "He's family, and my best friend. I want the two of you to get along, for my sake."

"But . . . what would Rodney think of you being gay? Doesn't he hate gays?"

Bradley smiles. "He's not a homophobe. I know he comes off that way, but it's just-" He sighs, taking a moment. "His dad left his mom for another man. There's just a lot of resentment that has been built up over the years, you know?"

"Oh." I look down, surprised by this sudden reveal. Rodney never told me anything about that when we were friends.

"Shit. I wasn't actually supposed to tell anyone that. But," he sighs and reaches for my hand. "I trust you."

I smile and cup his cheek, pulling him in for a kiss. "I trust you, too."

When he slips into the car, there's a wide grin on his face. "I'll see you later then . . . boyfriend." He winks at me before closing the door behind him and taking off down the street.

I'm practically beaming the whole way up the driveway. Warmth spreads all over my body even though the autumn air nips at my fingertips. I get to my room and fall on my bed with an infatuated sigh.

"Sounds like someone had a nice night." My mom leans in the doorway with a smile.

I perk up my head and move to sit at the edge of my bed. "Yeah. I honestly was terrified about how tonight would go, but it went really well, actually."

"Well, you scored yourself a real gentleman." She sits down beside me, pulling me into a side hug. "You know you deserve to be happy, right? You've been pining after guys who haven't been treating you the way they should, and you have a real chance to get it right this time. So don't mess it up."

I chuckle. "Wow. You really like him, don't you?"

She squeezes my hand. "I just want you to be happy, sweetie. Bradley seems like he can really give you that."

"Thanks, Mom." I squeeze back and close my eyes as she kissed my forehead.

"Alright." She pats my leg and gets up. "I have to be at the office early tomorrow so I'm going to bed. Don't make it too late, okay?"

I nod. "Of course not. Night mom."

Fifteen minutes later, I'm about ready to slip into bed when I start hearing a ticking on my window. I frown and my mouth drops when I glance outside to see Whittney down there, throwing rocks as if we're in some early 2000s rom-com. I quickly drop down and sit against the wall under my window, hoping he didn't see me.

"Harry, open up!" I hear it faintly through the glass. His voice is slurred and it sounds like he's crying. "Please? We need to talk!" When I don't move, he just continues. "I'm sorry. Please talk to me?"

I slam the back of my head against the wall to resist the urge. Every muscle in my body aches to get up and let him inside, but I force myself to stay down. It's killing me, though. It really is.

"W-well, um, I just came to say goodbye."

After that, I don't hear anything else. I jump up and then I see he isn't there anymore.

Goodbye.

In a flash, I'm throwing on a sweatshirt, slipping on my shoes, and rush to my car. I scan around the neighborhood on the way to Whittney's, my shaking hands gripping the wheel. He couldn't have gotten that far yet. That's when I see a hooded figure on the sidewalk, lying motionless halfway to Whittney's house.

"Oh, fuck." I slam on the breaks and get out of the car. When I kneel down next to him and he's breathing, I sigh in relief. I wrap his arm around my shoulder and pull him up, setting him gently in the passenger's seat before speeding to his house.

Jeremy's van isn't there and their dad usually works nights at the bar, so the only one who's home is their mom. I half carry, half drag Whittney into the house and into the bathroom where I turn on the water of the shower. I don't bother taking my clothes off or even my shoes before pulling him with me under the water. When he isn't waking up, I start freaking out.

I slap his cheek in an attempt to wake him. "Come on, Whitt. Please?" I whimper, shaking him. "What did you take?"

Then I glance at the sink and it all comes together. A half-drunk liter of cheap whiskey, a knocked over bottle of pills, the goodbye.

This isn't an overdose.

My shaky fingers reach into his mouth and down his throat, as deep as they can go until I hear gagging. Then, he's throwing up. Undigested pills and vomit spill from his mouth and I watch in horror as all of it collects in the drain. He took a lot, more than enough to kill himself.

When I see his eyes are open, a wave of relief washes over me. He leans his back against my chest, breathing heavily. I wrap my arms around his torso, pulling him close. Tears spill over my cheeks as I lean my head against his.

"I'm sorry." My voice trembles as I hold him tighter. "I should have been here. I should have been here."

Whittney's hand grips my arm weakly. "Don't be." His voice is barely above a whisper. "I hurt you."

"We'll talk about that later. Let's just get you to bed, okay?" I help him out of the tub and get him into some sweats before tucking him in bed.

He's asleep in minutes, while I'm wide awake. Thinking. I wanted to take him to the hospital, but he begged me not to, claiming there would be too many questions and that he'd be put under suicide watch. The last thing I want to do right now is to push him.

I give up on sleep. There's no way I'm letting him out of my site. I lay on my side, watching him intently, while my hand rests lightly on his cheek. Even though I know Whittney could get down sometimes, I never thought it was bad enough that he'd try killing himself.

Now, I'm afraid to leave him.

The next day, I give Whittney a ride to school. I make sure to text Bradley early that I don't need a ride, but leave out the part where I stayed over at Whittney's. I don't want him to get the wrong idea or for him to worry.

On my lunch break, Sabrina practically ambushes me in the hall.

"Harry, you have to talk to Austin. He won't listen to me, and he's going to do something stupid and—" She's close to tears as she grips my arm.

"It's okay," I assure her. "It's okay. I'll find him, yeah? But you have to tell me what's going on."

She sighs, hopelessly. "Dax showed up again. At first, it was just about money, but he changed his mind and now he wants Austin to come back."

"Come back?"

I remember Dax. He was this sleazy teenager who got tangled up in some Mexican gang that rivaled the guys that Jeremy sells for. Now he'd be in his mid-twenties.

"Yeah. He'll get mixed up in some heavy, illegal shit. Plus, being surrounded by all those drugs, he might start up again."

I shake my head. "I don't think so. Austin's only addictions are alcohol and nicotine. I'm honestly surprised that he cut back on the alcohol."

"Will you just go find him? I feel like he's avoiding me."

Irritation tugs at my lips. "If I see him, I'll do my best. But I'm not missing class to chase him around."

"Harry, he's your friend."

"Is he, though?" A heavy frown settles on my brows. He chased after me when I ran off days ago, but after that, I've seen little of him.

"Look, I know that Austin has been an ass lately, but you still care about him."

It's the truth, more than I'd like to admit. Which is why I agree to find him, but after school. I even ask my last period teacher if I can excuse myself five minutes early, and since I was able to build up enough teacher's pet cred last semester, she actually gives me the okay. And at three o'clock, I'm already leaning against the hood of Austin's car.

"You're going back to them right now, aren't you?" I cross my arms when I see Austin walking towards me, my brows raised in accusation.

"I'm guessing Sabrina filled you in on everything," he replies, stiffly.

"You can't seriously think this is a good idea."

"What are you, my mother?" he snaps, but the frown on his face slowly subsides. "Look, Harry. I'm sorry. It's just, there's no right way to do this unless I go alone. Then no one else gets hurt."

"And what if you get hurt, huh? What will you do then?" A small whimper escapes my throat, surprising me. I had no idea I still care this much. "What will I do then?"

"There's no other way." He clears his throat, his expression growing distant. "I promised myself that I won't let anyone else's lives get fucked up because of my mistakes. So, please get off my car, and let me do this."

Without a second thought, I push myself off the car and wrap my arms around him. After what feels like an uncomfortably long time, Austin finally hugs me back. I hold him tightly, hoping it will give him comfort. I finally let go when I feel him start to pull away.

He grabs his keys from his jacket pocket and pulls his door open before turning back towards me. "Could you tell Sabrina . . ." He pauses. "Tell her I'm sorry."

Before I can think of anything else to say, he's already behind the wheel, slamming his door shut. Then, he's speeding out of the parking lot, leaving me standing alone.

This isn't going to end well.

***

Here we saw another dual parallel scene that's also in BMR, right before Austin leaves for Dax's place. For those of you who have already read BMR, know that Harry is indeed right about things not ending well. 

Do you think Harry could have done more to stop Austin, or more to help Whittney? And are you still more on Team Bradley, or are you starting to warm up to Team Whittney? If you have any other comments, please leave them down below! I love reading your thoughts and commentary. They always make my day. And, as always, if you loved the chapter and think it's deserving of a vote, tap that little star in the corner!

Until next time,

TheWriterD