The week of bedrest had been extended to two, but it was finally over- Daxx had finally agreed I could return to school. My ribs were still a little sore, but they were greatly improved from what they were. I still had the remainder of a black eye, but I covered it up with some concealer I had stolen from Angel. I had also cut my hair yesterday, since it had grown pretty shaggy. 

I pulled on some skinny jeans and a black plaid shirt, with one of Daxx's black band tees underneath. I stilled at my reflection. Since when was I putting in an effort to go to school? I hadn't even heard from Jimmy since that conversation late at night. 

I grabbed my bag and headed downstairs, wolfing down some toast that Connor had made for me. Angel and Mary joined us shortly after, complementing my new hair. We set off for school together, Connor yelling he loved us as we left.

We piled into my car and I braced myself as I headed back to the place of my nightmares. I hadn't been here in two weeks and I hadn't missed it one bit. As I drove past Jimmy's house, I spotted his car still in the drive. He would be late. 

I pushed thoughts about Jimmy out of my head, soon pulling into the school carpark. I winced as I remembered what happened here just two weeks ago. They didn't have security footage, so the report was pretty much dropped. I was told to just consider myself lucky Jimmy was there. Huh...

"Want to walk in with us?" Angel offered, seeing me wince.

"Uh, sure." I accepted her offer, locking the car behind us. 

We walked up the steps and through the main doors, towards her little group of friends. Most of them looked at the floor rather than at me and I felt uncomfortable, shifting from foot to foot while Angel spoke, unaware as always. I stuck with them anyway, until first period bell. It was either this or potentially being beaten up again.

I waved farewell and wandered off to first period, avoiding goons as I went. I was extra vigilant now that they had reminded me what they were capable of. As soon as I arrived at period one, I was met with more bad news.

Mock exams were soon. In my absence, they had been preparing for them. I would be fine, but that meant that we had very little time before Jimmy had to have improved. I hope he's been studying independently in my absence. 

My day was particularly dull and I found myself being reminded of jimmy quite often, but I hadn't seen him yet. At lunch, I collected food for Daxx and I and headed to his office, per usual. 

As I arrived at his door I knocked and was met by Jimmy and Daxx. I furrowed my eyebrows at the sight and Jimmy looked equally as shocked to see me, his eyes softening as he scanned me over. I bit my lip as he looked over me, wondering what he thought. 

He said nothing. He simply pushed past me and made his way down the corridor. I looked at Daxx and he ushered me in, closing the door. I handed him his lunch and settled into my usual comfortable chair.

"What was that about?" I asked Daxx.

"I can't talk about patients, but he got referred to me last month. Started showing up to sessions last Tuesday. Must be because I met him at the incident." Daxx shrugged, taking a bite of his lunch.

He'd started art therapy? I wonder what his drawing were like- probably a big pride flag scribbled out with black... or a big question mark. I probably shouldn't mention this to him, he'd only retreat further. He better not talk about me in therapy, though. Daxx isn't clueless.

"Daxx?" I asked, getting his attention.

"What's up?" He asked, typing on his laptop while he ate.

"Are you and Connor considering adoption?" 

Daxx stopped typing, swivelling in his chair to face me. He pushed up his glasses and tilted his head. He was probably wondering how I knew and why I decided to bring it up now. Well, I've had two weeks to think about a lot of things and this subject was one of them.

"We were looking into it a little bit. The process is quite long." Daxx explained, studying my face for a reaction.

"I think you'd both make amazing Dads. You should go for it." I assured him, making a bright smile break out across his face.

"Thanks, kid." He grinned, coming over to give me a side hug.

I nodded at him, taking a bite of my sandwich. Daxx and Connor had been there for me whenever I needed them. I was older now, moving out later this year for University. I quite liked the idea of being an uncle- a kid would be good to keep them busy while I'm gone. It wasn't a replacement, just an addition to the family. 

"How are you feeling?" Daxx asked, checking me over. 

"Better." I assured him, truly meaning it. 

Daxx nodded and went back to work, leaving me to eat my lunch in peace. It wasn't long before the lunch bell sounded and I left, going to my final period. I hardly focused, staring out of the window the entire time. The bell rang again and it was time for detention. 

As I dropped into my seat, I wondered if Jimmy would even show up. He knew I was in school, because he'd seen me. He seemed to want to avoid me, though. After five minutes, I was convinced he was a no-show. 

"You look good today." A voice came from the doorway, making me whip towards it. 

Jimmy walked in and took his usual seat across from me, pulling out his books. I was expecting him to act as if nothing had happened, but he'd already made a pretty homosexual remark towards me. I didn't know what to make of that. I shrugged mentally, if he doesn't want to talk about what happened, that's what we'll do. Makes things simpler for me. 

"Mocks are coming up, how are you feeling for them?" I asked, flicking through his work book. 

It looked like he had been doing a lot of studying in his own time; he had covered a lot of content. I breathed out a sigh of relief. I really thought my two week hiatus would have screwed him for his exams, but he'd made a lot of improvement. 

"Yeah, fine." He shrugged, starting the work I set him. 

He was working through problems easily now, finishing them up within five minutes. I couldn't help feeling proud. That means that after exams we can stop these sessions. I leaned back in my chair, checking my phone. Felix had been texting me non-stop today, making sure I was okay. He'd threatened that if I didn't text him every hour he'd show up to make sure I'm okay. Drama queen. 

"Is that him?" Jimmy frowned, trying to peer at my phone. 

"Jealous?" I cocked an eyebrow, teasing him. 

"No. Why would I be?" He scoffed, avoiding making eye contact.

"He hasn't messaged me since it happened." I told him the truth, "It's just my friend Felix texting. He's worried." 

"His loss." 

I raised an eyebrow at Jimmy. Was he flirting? This entire conversation just made me feel uncomfortable. I promised Felix I would ease up on the hostilities, but I wasn't expecting this. He was so back and forth with his emotions. He was pretty tolerable when we were alone recently. We made eye contact and he held it for a few seconds before dragging his eyes down my outfit and back up to my face. I shifted in my seat, the atmosphere suddenly changing. 

"Now that you're back in school, does that mean you'll stop perving on me from your balcony?" He seemed amused, sending me a knowing smirk.

I blushed. I admit, I had been sort of creepy watching him get home everyday. In my defence, I spent a lot of those two weeks sat on my balcony, so sometimes I just happened to be out there when he got home. 

"Says the one who MI5'd into my bedroom." I shot back.

He chuckled and the sound made me still. It was weird to hear it coming out of his mouth. It was a nice sound, don't get me wrong- deep and natural. I bit my lip to suppress my own smile, relaxing a bit into my chair. This wasn't unpleasant. 

"Have they given you any trouble today?" He asked, suddenly serious.

"I've been avoiding them." I shrugged.

He nodded and picked up his pen, going back to work and I pouted slightly. I quite liked talking. I'm not sure whether it was because I had been trapped in my room for two weeks, with only Connor for company, or not. 

I noticed we were out of time and I started packing up. We had spent the last ten minutes in silence. I packed up quickly, giving him a short wave goodbye. I was walking down the corridor alone to go home to Mums when he ran up from behind me, slowing to walk beside me. I looked over, confused.

"I'm walking you to your car. They might be out there." He shrugged. 

I nodded and we walked in silence- side by side- to my car. Luckily, there was nobody in the car park. It was still a nice gesture on behalf of Jimmy, though. I slipped into my car, about to close the door when Jimmy put his hand there, stopping it. 

"Could you leave your balcony door unlocked tonight?" He asked, scanning my face.

I couldn't help the shock that spread across my face. I was planning to stay at Mums tonight, but guess I'm staying at Daxx's now. I felt nervous at the prospect at another late night chat with Jimmy, but also excited. Mostly excited. 

I nodded and he smiled softly, slamming my car door closed and making his way to his own car. I sat there for a second, watching him pull away. Did that really just happen? I called Felix immediately and told him what just went down, asking for his advice. 

"From what I remember, Jimmy's even hotter than Will, so I say go for it." Felix giggled, making me blush, "Who cares? You're only young once." 

I bit my lip and nodded, starting the engine. I said goodbye to Felix and headed to Daxx's. Connor seemed surprised to see me at the front door and I asked him to let Mum know I was staying here tonight. 

I headed to my room and dumped my stuff, going to take a shower. I unlocked the balcony door like he'd asked me to. I spent the evening studying, since exams are coming up, checking the balcony door every so often. I yawned, feeling tired after my first day back at school. It was more draining than I remembered. 

I decided to lay down and listen to music until he came, changing and getting cosy on the bed. I didn't even notice my eyes drooping closed. I woke up with a fright, hearing somebody clearing their throat across my room. Through my groggy eyes, I could see Jimmy awkwardly stood at the door. I rubbed my eyes and waved him in, sitting up in bed groggily.

"I can go? Sorry, didn't realise you'd be asleep." Jimmy was still stood half outside, ready to leave. 

"Don't be silly, come in." I shook my head, pointing to the chair. 

He closed the balcony door and headed to the chair. He saw Will's jumper on the arm and pushed it onto the floor, kicking off his shoes and tucking his feet underneath him as he sat. The room was silent. I twiddled with my thumbs, looking from him and back down again. 

"I don't know why I came here." Jimmy began, getting up to leave.

"No, stay." I frowned, grabbing his arm. 

He looked down at me and we made eye contact. His usual blue eyes looked almost grey in the moonlight. He scanned my face and nodded, sitting back down again. I let go of his arm and he looked down to where I had touched him, his face unreadable. Had I done something wrong?

"I wanted to come here to talk to you." He admitted, his voice shaking slightly. 

"Go ahead." I encouraged him, nervous about what he was going to say. 

He looked pensive and his usual cocky demeanour was gone. He didn't look confident anymore. Instead, he looked like a scared little boy about to tell his mum he broke an expensive toy. I reached out, taking a hold of his hand. Whatever he was about to say, it was difficult for him to express. His head snapped up, eyes meeting mine as he gulped.

"I think I'm gay." 

His voice was thick with emotion. I felt like saying 'state the obvious', but I kept quiet. That wasn't appropriate. It seemed really hard for him to say and I could tell he had been struggling with it for quite a while. Probably since his birthday party when we were kids.

"It's okay." I told him, letting my thumb run over his hand comfortingly. 

"No it's not. My parents are going to hate me." 

He burst into tears. My heart softened- this must be really hard for him. I was fortunate enough that my older brother was gay, so any shock Mum felt at him coming out was non-existent by the time I realised my sexuality. I hadn't even thought twice about coming out and I guess I was privileged in that respect. I couldn't imagine what Jimmy's dad would say about it. 

Suddenly what he did all those years ago made so much sense. 

I let him cry it out, squeezing his hand to let him know I was here. I remembered the party and how he had cried against my chest. I thought about offering him a hug, but I don't want to overwhelm him or scare him off. His sobs eventually turned to sniffles and I offered him a tissue from my bedside table, which he laughed at.

"Wonder why you keep tissues on your bedside table." He teased through sniffles, wiping his tears away. 

I cracked a smile at that. It was for my nosebleeds, but I didn't want to ruin his fun. He accepted the tissue and blew his nose, binning it. His cheeks were slightly red from crying, but he still looked really handsome, his eyes glistening. 

"Is it better for them to love you for who you aren't?" I asked softly. 

"I don't know. I see the way people treat you and it makes me hate myself. I just wish I was normal." He frowned, looking down at his lap.

"Normal? It's not 1960. Being gay isn't exactly rare. Those idiots are just looking for a scapegoat for their anger." I shrugged, "Besides, I'd rather have friends like Felix who love me for who I am- he's better than a meathead any day." 

Jimmy nodded. He looked solemn. We sat in silence for a few minutes more before he stood upright, slipping his shoes back on. I stood up with him, following him to the balcony door. He turned to look at me and I bit my lip. I couldn't help but think of what Felix had said earlier; he really is more handsome than Will. Considering I thought Will was the finest specimen on earth, it really says a lot about Jimmy. 

"Goodnight." Jimmy whispered, his eyes flitting across my face as he looked down at me, "And thank you. I've never told anyone before." 

"Anytime." I nodded, a slight blush growing across my cheeks. 

His eyes flitted over my face one more time before he stepped back and left over the railing, leaving me alone on the balcony.