Torn in Two (yaoi story)

(ch 23) What Now?

"C'mon Jen, let's go play on the play ground!" Rachel said, a calm and happy expression on her face.

"Okay!" Jen said, nodding quickly. She grinned and ran over to the slides, followed closely by Rachel.

"I'm glad you two decided to help me with Jen. She's been really upset about Jason and Jacob both leaving."

"Yeah, no problem. She's young so she shouldn't have to deal with all of the stress that you're going through now..."

"I... I just wish I could have seen something, or done something to help them..."

"It's not really your fault. No one knew anything like this would happen. They weren't acting any different before they left, so no one could've suspected anything..."

"Thanks, Danny... Thank you for helping; Rachel, too. I'd hate to leave you guys, but, without either of my boys to help out, I'll have no choice but to go back to my mother's and stay with her... I should take Jen and start packing..."

With that said, the grieving woman stood and walked over to the play ground, calling out for the little girl, Jen. The two left shortly after, stopping to wave before moving onward until they were out of view...

Danny's eyes opened slowly. Somehow, the events from earlier that day had managed to run through his mind like a broken record, over and over, the same scene, nothing changing. He sighed and shook his head.

Across from him on the other couch, Rachel slept, the tear stains still visible on her pale cheeks. Occasionally, she would stir and let out soft whimpers. Probably thinking about earlier, Danny assumed.

Why had things turned out this way? Why couldn't things be good for him? Even if it was just one little thing.

Danny laughed at the thought, not because it was funny, but because it seemed impossible. School, friends, family, nothing was right. Everyone at school hated him, he had three friends, his parents hated him and didn't care for him. Everything was wrong, nothing was right.

With a groan, then a sigh, Danny stood up, trying to remember where he was. They left Jason's house, went to the park, went to Rachel's house, then here. "Oh yeah... We figured her parents would be suspicious..." he muttered to himself, as he walked into the kitchen. "So we came to Danielle's house..."

"Hey, is that you Danny?" A whisper came from the pantry.

Danny glanced around the corner to see who it was before whispering, "Yeah, it's me Tiff."

Tiff turned and smiled at him, then went back to looking in the pantry. "You guys weren't looking too good, so I decided to make something to cheer you guys up. I just don't know what to make..."

A small smile appeared on Danny's face. "That's nice, Tiff," he said, sitting on the counter. "Anything would be fine, really. Just knowing that you care about us enough to actually try making something for us is enough."

"Thanks, I appreciate that. How do cupcakes sound?"

"Sure, I'll go wake Rachel up and ask her." Danny hopped off the counter and walked back into the living room where his best friend slept. Quietly, he knelt down next to her and gently shook her shoulder while murmuring, "Wake up, Rachel."

Groaning softly, Rachel opened her eyes and rolled onto her stomach. "But I don't want to get up," she muttered, rubbing her eyes.

Danny chuckled at how she was acting. No matter how many times he'd woken her up, this would never get old. She was just like a little kid that didn't want to get up for their second day of school because they realized that it wasn't as good as people made it out to be.

"Too bad. You have to. Get up and come get something to eat."

Rachel sighed and sat up, still rubbing her eyes. With another sigh, she stood and went into the kitchen, Danny following a few steps behind her.

Tiff glanced at the two of them, then looked back to Rachel. "Well, welcome back to the living," she said, then grinned. "I'm making cupcakes for you guys. I hope you feel better soon..."

Rachel nodded and sat on the counter, as far away from the oven and stove as she could get. She patted the spot next to her, motioning for Danny to sit next to her. He did so, and sighed.

"Things have been terrible since he came back," Rachel muttered, shaking her head.

"Yeah, but we can try to make things better... Can't we?" Danny's voice sounded doubtful as he spoke. It was obvious enough that even he could tell.

"Well, you still have Cam. He could help us with this. Especially you."

Danny smiled weakly and nodded. "Yeah. He knows how to make me feel better, that's for sure."

Tiff put the cupcakes into the oven, then set the timer. "You know, you guys can stay here for as long as you need. Rachel, just don't forget to tell your parents. I don't need your mom flipping out again."

Rachel chuckled softly and nodded. "Yeah, I'll tell her later," she said, then looked at Danny. "Want to go put your stuff in the guest bedroom?"

Danny nodded and hopped off the counter, then went into the living room to grab his bag, Rachel right behind him. Then, then two of them went upstairs and into the guest bedroom that Danny stayed in the past few times he'd been here. Sighing softly, Danny dropped his bag at the foot of the bed and fell back onto the bed. Rachel stared down at him, a small, sad frown on her lips.

"Do you want Cam to come over so he can make you feel better?" she asked, sitting next to him on the bed.

"No, not right now," Danny muttered, putting his arm over his face. "Maybe later after I get more settled..."

Rachel nodded and stood up again. "Well, I'm going to go back downstairs. When you feel a little more sociable, you should come down. Oh, and the cupcakes will be done by then. I'll come back up to talk to you later, Danny. Bye."

With that, Rachel walked out of the room, closing the door behind her and leaving Danny alone in the dark room.

"You have to come back... You can't leave me again," Danny murmured, tears filling his half lidded eyes. "We were best friends then, and we are now. You can't just leave and forget all of that..."

Danny stood and went over to the window, blinking away the tears that were threatening to come. He stared at the sky as the sun began to fade. It'll probably end like this again, he thought. I'll fade from your memory, and eventually you'll fade from mine...

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Hey everyone! So, I finally uploaded another chapter. Sorry it took so long :( I was lacking motivation, and for a while I forgot about this, and then I forgot my password, so I couldn't get on here... Yeah, a lot of stuff's been going on... But, hey, I got another one uploaded, so things are good for now! And, I only have four more days of school!

Anyways, I think I might end this story soon, and I might possibly make a sequel to this. Maybe... Also, I'm working on another story. It won't be out anytime soon though... But, yeah, so that's pretty much it. I have four more days of school, finals on Wednesday and Thursday, then it's summer and I'll try to work on this more. So, yeah. Bye everyone!