In one word, Cynthia Murphy was feeling guilty.

That's what seeing your son half dead in a hospital bed he put himself in does to you. Scratch that actually; she put him in it. She was the one who believed Larry when he said that Connor was seeking attention. She was the one who ignored his blatant calls for comfort.

She was the one who was a bad mother.

Connor was right to have been mad at her at the hospital. Just when everything went wrong, she realised how bad it was, but parents aren't supposed to wait that long to see that their child is suffering. He deserved the right to be angry because she didn't care. You're primary duty as a parent is to care for your child and shield them from harm. She didn't.

And now, she didn't know what to do. She knew Connor was damaged, and one wrong move could push him off the ledge he had just managed to hang on to. So, how could she make it up to him without making him hate her?

If she started showing she cared, he would think it was just another one of her fazes and she was just feeling guilty, but also she still had to look after him though. It was like she was at a crossroads. In one direction there was Connor alone and depressed and to the he was angry. Either way somebody would be harmed.

Being a mother is hard.

Ad Cynthia wasn't sure if she could do it.

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Connor was convinced he was going to go crazy. Whether it be because of the isolation from the human world, the nurses' sickly sweet smiles, or the constant beeping coming from the many machines he was hooked up to, he was going to go mad. Not only that, but the idea that Evan and Jared might return made him feel like he'd already lost it. Why the fuck would they come see him again, and if he knew they weren't going to, why was he expecting them to burst through the door at any moment.

In other news, he was moving to the mental wing in a few days. If it were any other person, they would just be able to go home, but because Connor had already been in twice this year and he was a minor, it was protocol for him to be kept there. He was going to be in the children's wing, which meant that it would probably just be other depressed kids like him, but it still made him feel sick that all the crazies have to be kept locked up. 

He would be kept for around a month before they accessed his mental state, and if they thought he had improved, he would be free. His parents couldn't get him out to keep the model family image this time though, because they had the past two times and here he was again on an uncomfortable hospital bed living of lukewarm tea (coffee wasn't allowed for some insane reason) and them biscuits with the raisins in them.

Maybe they could help him, but Connor wasn't counting on it. 'Just pretend to be fine,' he would tell himself 'then you can get out and try again. Maybe this time you'll suceed'. It wasn't what you would expect from a teenage boy's thoughts, but the more and more he thought about it, the more and more pointless life seemed.

The story of Adam and Eve springs to mind.

Everybody knows that the story focuses on how the first man and woman were punished by God for disobeying his rules, and so they were sent to earth as a punishment. That never seemed fair though. Connor knew that Adam and Eve are symbolic of all humans, but why should everybosy be punished for their actions? Why should Connor be suffering through his existence on this crazy, fucked up planet because of them?

Jesus Christ, he wasn't even Christian. Why was he thinking about this?

See what I mean about being driven crazy?

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The week after the boys had visited Connor was a constant game of avoidance on Evan's part.

He knew Jared wasn't looking for him. Why would he Jared hated Evan. He just used him for car insurance. But then again, he seemed to be around a lot less. They both knew why.

Evan had been avoiding him. Well, he wouldn't say that, but him and Jared both knew it subconsciously. He just didn't want to admit to it. No, he would never avoid his only... family friend for days with no reason.

But then again, he did have a reason didn't he. A pretty good one at that, because who wants the only person who talks to them other than their mum to find out that he had tried to kill himself during the school holidays? Yeah, not exactly top of his list of priorities.

Speaking of priorities, he still hadn't gone to see Connor again. Not that he didn't want to keep his classmate company, but that would mean that Jared would have to drive him to the hospital and would probably come in too. Meaning awkward car conversations... And asking why he had been avoiding him... And I'll be damned if Evan could have handled that.

Above all that, news about Connor's suicide attempt was spreading fast and nearly everybody knew about the 'freak senior stoner who tried to kill himself'. It wasn't fair on Connor. It wasn't fair on Zoe actually for that matter. She got plenty attention, but Evan was sure that's not what she wanted at the moment. She needed piece and quiet and maybe just a little comfort.

Then again, Evan did too. 

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Jared's week had been a weird one to say the least. Evan had been avoiding him and his parents had announced that they were coming home for a few days next week, which only happened once in a blue moon, so he decided that he should probably clean his house which was currently filled with dust and alcohol bottles from when he decided to throw a summer party.

He was scared though. Scared that if his parents returned, his cool demeanour would be lost and his flaws would make a reappearence. If his mum and dad came home, he might crack. And after years of creating a perfect image, he couldn't let that happen, because then everybody would see him for the messed up kid he really was.

It wasn't that he didn't love his parents. He could never stop loving them, even if they did something unforgiveable. It's just that they were never there for him and he had learned to cope without them. What would happen if they chenged everthing? He didn't know how to carry on his life with such a drastic change. Jared Kleinman could go through anything though, right? Nothing could hurt this seemingly perfect teen, and he needed to keep that image.

So, Jared, learned to cope with his parents visit came with and high-fived Jack Kelly. He continued to bitch about everyone with the Heathers. He kept his routine of playfully punching Spot Conlon on the arm. He kept his cool and sucked it up because everyone has shit in their lives. This was normal. Right?

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Short and not proofread as always. Sorry, I haven't been writing and did this in 2 hours. It's kind of a filler chapter because it's my birthday on Monday and I'm going to France for 4 days on Thursday, so I wanted to put something up before the school holidays. I promise I will upload at least 2 chapters in my school holidays.

Sorry for the wait, going through a load of shit right now.

Sincerely, The Shittiest Author You Know