Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

It was late July, just after the fireworks had fizzled out, leaving behind nothing but the warm embrace of summer's humid air. The world outside was humming with the low buzz of cicadas and the distant sound of cars passing on the highway, but inside the small house, the atmosphere was thick with the weight of unspoken things.
Lucas Noceda sat cross-legged on the couch, his fingers tracing absent patterns on the cushion, a nervous habit he had adopted when his thoughts became too loud to handle. Beside him, Ams Blight leaned back, resting his head against the armrest, eyes closed, trying to steady his breathing. There was no sound but the occasional rustling of pages as Gus flipped through one of his comic books, trying his hardest to hide the unease in his fidgeting. Vee was curled up in the corner, his eyes distant but alert, as if waiting for the next thing to happen.
After the chaos of the Boiling Isles, everything felt quieter. Too quiet. It was supposed to feel like a return to normal, but there was no going back. There were no more portals to magic worlds, no more grand adventures. Just the raw, painful work of piecing together broken things—selves, friendships, futures.
and inhaled deeply, trying to push the tension from his shoulders. But it stayed there, like a shadow, just out of reach. He was used to carrying the weight of other people’s expectations, but lately, it had felt like his own expectations for himself were too much to bear.
"What if we don't fit anymore?" Ams asked quietly, voice barely above a whisper. His words hung in the air like a question that had no answer.
Lucas turned toward him, concern flashing across his face. His hand moved to rest gently on Ams's. "What do you mean?" he asked softly.
Ams's fingers twitched, and he pulled his hand back slightly, as if unsure of his own feelings. "I don’t know," he said, voice shaking ever so slightly. "We’ve been through so much. I don’t even know who I am anymore…"
Lucas tilted his head, his brows furrowing. He understood—more than anyone else did. After all, he had been through the same things. He had been lost, too. He had been a mess of conflicting emotions and expectations. "Ams, we’re still here. We’re still—"
"But we’re not the same," he interrupted, his voice thick with emotion. "We can’t just go back to pretending like everything’s okay."
There was truth in his words, a truth that the others were all too familiar with. The Boiling Isles had been a place of wonder and pain, a place that had both shaped and broken them. The trauma they had left behind wasn't something they could simply leave in that other world.
"We don’t need to go back," Lucas said, his voice quieter now. He leaned closer to Ams, his shoulder brushing against his. "We just need to figure out who we are now. Together."
and looked up at her, his eyes softening. It was the kind of gaze that said so much more than words could ever express. "I just feel like I’m falling apart sometimes," he admitted, his voice cracking. "Like... like I’m too much for you. Too much for all of you."
Lucas's heart ached at the vulnerability in Ams’s words. He moved closer, wrapping his arms around him in a gentle hug, offering warmth and understanding. "You’re never too much for me," he whispered. "We’ve been through everything, and we’re still here. We’ll always be hee."
The room was silent for a moment as Ams leaned into Lucas’s embrace, his body trembling with the weight of his emotions. He wasn’t used to letting people in, not after everything he had gone through. But with Lucas, there was no fear. There was only the quiet promise of unconditional support.
Gus glanced up from his comic book, his eyes glinting with concern. "Is it okay if I say something?" he asked hesitantly, unsure of how to approach the delicate situation.
and nodded slowly, though he couldn’t quite meet Gus’s eyes. He was still processing the conversation, but he knew that Gus, despite his usually playful demeanor, was someone who understood the pain of trying to be something he wasn’t. He had his own struggles, and yet, Gus was always the first to offer support.
"I get it," Gus said softly, his voice low but steady. "You’re not alone in feeling like this, Ams. I mean, yeah, I joke around a lot, but... I still don’t always feel like I’m enough, you know? I worry that people only like me because I make them laugh, or because they don’t really know the real me. I don’t think anyone else sees how messed up I can get sometimes."
Vee shifted from his spot in the corner, his eyes flickering with something unreadable. "We’re all messed up," he said simply, his tone gentle but matter-of-fact. "But that doesn’t mean we’re not worth it. I’m a mess, too."
Hailey, who had been silent for most of the conversation, suddenly spoke up, his voice rough but resolute. "We’re all healing," he said, a slight tremor in his voice. "But healing doesn’t happen overnight. It’s a process. And we’ve got each other. We can’t just... pretend that it’s all fine, but we can face it together."
will, who had been sitting quietly beside Hailey, nodded in agreement. "I’m still working through a lot of things," he added softly. "But I know I’m not alone. Not anymore."
The weight of their words hung in the air, and for a moment, there was silence—a quiet understanding between them all. They had been through so much, more than anyone their age should have ever had to endure. And yet, here they were, still standing together, supporting one another.
and took a deep breath, finally allowing himself to relax in Lucas's arms. He was still unsure of himself, still questioning his place in the world. But hearing the words of his friends—his family—made something inside him shift. It was slow, but it was there. A faint spark of hope.
"I don’t know if I’ll ever be okay," he murmured, his voice barely audible. "But I want to try. For us."
Lucas squeezed him tighter, his chin resting on his shoulder. "We’ll try together," he said firmly. "One day at a time."

As the evening wore on, the friends sat together, the weight of their shared experiences becoming a little lighter. They didn’t have all the answers—far from it. But for the first time in a long while, they allowed themselves to feel something else: hope.
They weren’t fixed. They weren’t healed. But they were together. And for now, that was enough.
The soft hum of a school bell echoed through the quiet hallways of the high school as Lucas Noceda stepped into the building, the weight of his back pack barely noticeable again this shoulders. he could feel the familiar tension in his chest, the knot that seemed to appear every time he walked into this space. It wasn’t the school itself, not really. It was the weight of normalcy, the weight of being in a world that didn’t quite make sense anymore.
The Boiling Isles felt like a distant dream now, but the memories were sharp, jagged edges in his mind that never quite healed. Even now, in the cold, clinical halls of his school, he could feel the echoes of magic tugging at her. It was so strange—having to live in a world that didn't understand him, that didn't understand any of them.
He glanced around the hall way, his eyes catching sight of familiar faces—he friends—moving in and out of classrooms, adjusting to the new school year, the first one in this new, quieter world. He felt the smallest bit of reassurance at the sight of them. The familiarity of their presence was a balm to the discomfort that constantly gnawed at her.
"Lucas!" Will's voice broke through his thoughts, and Lucas turned to see his approaching. The sight of Will's warm smile made something in side his loosen, though it was still tinged with the heaviness that both of them carried. will was always a grounding force, even if he, too, was struggling.
"Hey, will," Lucas greeted ,his voice light but laced with something deeper. “How’s it going?”
Will smiled softly, but there was something behind his eyes—something Lucas had come to recognize as exhaustion. He knew it all too well. “You know, same old. I feel like the teachers are trying to pretend like nothing happened, but it’s hard to just slip back into this,” he said, glancing at the other students as they moved about the hallway, most of them unaware of the complexity of their own identities.
Lucas nodded in agreement. "Yeah. It’s like we’re supposed to just forget. Like we can just go back to... whatever this is." he gestured vaguely to the hallway. “Everything feels so... small now.”
Will sighed, brushing a strand of hair behind his ear. "I think it's because it is small. It feels so... I don't know, shallow compared to everything we experienced. But we’re here now, and we have to make the most of it, right?" he said, attempting to sound optimistic. But Lucas could hear the undercurrent of uncertainty.
"Yeah..." Lucas replied, but his thoughts drifted as he saw the clock on the wall. They were late. Again. "Hey, we better get to class before we get in trouble."
will laugh softly. "Right, let’s go before we get caught up in another one of our philosophical discussions about how much the human realm sucks."
Lucas chuckled, and they walked toward their classroom. It was strange, still, how often those discussions popped up in between the noise of their day-to-day lives. In some ways, they had never fully escaped the Boiling Isles. The magical world they had left behind had left its marks on them, in ways both big and small.

Hailey sat at the back of the classroom, eyes focused on the screen of his laptop, though his mind was far from the lesson. His thoughts were a mess—like a constant storm inside his head, a storm that had only gotten louder since they returned to the human world. It wasn’t just the memories of the Boiling Isles, though those were hard to ignore—it was the feeling of being adrift, of not knowing where he fit in this new reality.
He had been out of place in the Boiling Isles, too, but it was a different kind of out-of-place. That world was full of magic, and it had felt... right in a way. hee, though? hee, he just felt like a glitch in the matrix. It wasn’t just the PTSD or the anxiety—though those were things he had to fight through every day—it was the overwhelming sense that he didn’t belong.
At least he wasn’t alone in it.
Hailey glanced over at will, sitting a few rows ahead. They had been quiet lately, but there was something soothing about their presence. will understand more than anyone else could. They had been through the same chaos, the same trauma. They didn’t need to explain everything. The unspoken bond between them was enough.
His phone buzzed in his pocket, and his heart skipped a beat. He had learned not to ignore it, especially after the way his panic attacks had become more frequent over the last few weeks. He slipped the phone out of his pocket, keeping his hand low so no one could see. It was a text from Edric.
Edric: "You good, man? We’re all meeting up later, you in?"
Hailey quickly typed a response, his fingers moving more urgently than usual.
Hailey: "Yeah, I’ll be there. Just need to get through this."
He didn’t want to admit it, but he was struggling. Even now, in the relative safety of his school, there was a tightness in his chest. Panic lived in the background of his thoughts, constantly threatening to overtake him. The only time he felt a little bit of relief was when he was with will or Edric.
But the idea of being “okay” felt too far out of reach. He had always been the one who had to be strong, to fight, to endure. But who was he if he couldn’t even handle the simple, mundane parts of life?
"Hey," Will's voice broke through his spiraling thoughts, and Hailey blinked, looking up to findhisgiving him a curious glance. "You good?"
Hailey nodded quickly, though he could feel his hands shaking slightly. "Yeah. Just... tired, you know?"
will study him for a moment before nodding. "Yeah, I get that." he loweredhisvoice, so only he could hear. "We’ll talk later, okay?"
Hailey gave a small, grateful smile and nodded in return. He was right. They would talk later. When it was safe to be vulnerable.

The rest of the school day passed in a blur, each class blending into the next. The only thing that stood out was the steady ticking of the clock, reminding them that time was moving forward, no matter how slow it felt. It was the middle of October by the time school let out, and the world outside felt as cold as the weight in Hailey's chest.
Lucas, Ams, will, and Gus had gathered outside by the school gates. The air was crisp now, the first signs of fall showing in the changing colors of the trees. They lingered together, a silent comfort in each other's company.
Gus was the first to break the silence. "I still can’t believe we’re here. After everything... this is it. High school, homework, all that."
"Yeah," Lucas agreed,his voice tinged with disbelief. "It’s all so... normal. Almost too normal."
Will offered a small smile, though it didn’t quite reach his eyes. "Normal is overrated," they said softly. "But we’ve made it through a lot to get hee. And that counts for something."
Hailey shoved his hands into his pockets, glancing down the street. "I don't know," he said quietly, his voice thick with hesitation. "I don’t feel like I belong hee. It’s like I’m just... waiting for something to happen, you know? Like there's something more that I'm supposed to be doing."
Ams, who had been standing quietly, his arms folded tightly across his chest, nodded. "I feel the same way. Like... like we’re just supposed to get back to normal, but nothing feels normal anymore."
They all fell into silence, each of them lost in their own thoughts, but there was something comforting about knowing they weren’t alone in feeling this way.
It wasn’t easy. It wasn’t simple. But maybe, just maybe, they didn’t have to have everything figured out right now. Maybe they could just be hee—togethe.
And that, at least, was enough.

Chapter Text

The soft hum of a school bell echoed through the quiet hallways of the high school as Lucas Noceda stepped into the building, the weight ofhisbackpack barely noticeable againsthisshoulders. he could feel the familiar tension in his chest, the knot that seemed to appear every time he walked into this space. It wasn’t the school itself, not really. It was the weight of normalcy, the weight of being in a world that didn’t quite make sense anymore.
The Boiling Isles felt like a distant dream now, but the memories were sharp, jagged edges in his mind that never quite healed. Even now, in the cold, clinical halls of his human school, he could feel the echoes of magic tugging at her. It was so strange—having to live in a world that didn't understand him, that didn't understand any of them.
He glanced around the hallway,his eyes catching sight of familiar faces—he friends—moving in and out of classrooms, adjusting to the new school year, the first one in this new, quieter world. He felt the smallest bit of reassurance at the sight of them. The familiarity of their presence was a balm to the discomfort that constantly gnawed at her.
"Lucas!" Will's voice broke through his thoughts, and Lucas turned to seehisapproaching. The sight of Will's warm smile made something insidehisloosen, though it was still tinged with the heaviness that both of them carried. will was always a grounding force, even if he, too, was struggling.
"Hey, will," Lucas greeted,his voice light but laced with something deeper. “How’s it going?”
Will smiled softly, but there was something behind his eyes—something Lucas had come to recognize as exhaustion. He knew it all too well. “You know, same old. I feel like the teachers are trying to pretend like nothing happened, but it’s hard to just slip back into this,” he said, glancing at the other students as they moved about the hallway, most of them unaware of the complexity of their own identities.
Lucas nodded in agreement. "Yeah. It’s like we’re supposed to just forget. Like we can just go back to... whatever this is." he gestured vaguely to the hallway. “Everything feels so... small now.”
Will sighed, brushing a strand of hair behind his ear. "I think it's because it is small. It feels so... I don't know, shallow compared to everything we experienced. But we’re here now, and we have to make the most of it, right?" he said, attempting to sound optimistic. But Lucas could hear the undercurrent of uncertainty.
"Yeah..." Lucas replied, but his thoughts drifted as he saw the clock on the wall. They were late. Again. "Hey, we better get to class before we get in trouble."
will laugh softly. "Right, let’s go before we get caught up in another one of our philosophical discussions about how much the human realm sucks."
Lucas chuckled, and they walked toward their classroom. It was strange, still, how often those discussions popped up in between the noise of their day-to-day lives. In some ways, they had never fully escaped the Boiling Isles. The magical world they had left behind had left its marks on them, in ways both big and small.

Hailey sat at the back of the classroom, eyes focused on the screen of his laptop, though his mind was far from the lesson. His thoughts were a mess—like a constant storm inside his head, a storm that had only gotten louder since they returned to the human world. It wasn’t just the memories of the Boiling Isles, though those were hard to ignore—it was the feeling of being adrift, of not knowing where he fit in this new reality.
He had been out of place in the Boiling Isles, too, but it was a different kind of out-of-place. That world was full of magic, and it had felt... right in a way. hee, though? hee, he just felt like a glitch in the matrix. It wasn’t just the PTSD or the anxiety—though those were things he had to fight through every day—it was the overwhelming sense that he didn’t belong.
At least he wasn’t alone in it.
Hailey glanced over at will, sitting a few rows ahead. They had been quiet lately, but there was something soothing about their presence. will understand more than anyone else could. They had been through the same chaos, the same trauma. They didn’t need to explain everything. The unspoken bond between them was enough.
His phone buzzed in his pocket, and his heart skipped a beat. He had learned not to ignore it, especially after the way his panic attacks had become more frequent over the last few weeks. He slipped the phone out of his pocket, keeping his hand low so no one could see. It was a text from Edric.
Edric: "You good, man? We’re all meeting up later, you in?"
Hailey quickly typed a response, his fingers moving more urgently than usual.
Hailey: "Yeah, I’ll be there. Just need to get through this."
He didn’t want to admit it, but he was struggling. Even now, in the relative safety of his school, there was a tightness in his chest. Panic lived in the background of his thoughts, constantly threatening to overtake him. The only time he felt a little bit of relief was when he was with will or Edric.
But the idea of being “okay” felt too far out of reach. He had always been the one who had to be strong, to fight, to endure. But who was he if he couldn’t even handle the simple, mundane parts of life?
"Hey," Will's voice broke through his spiraling thoughts, and Hailey blinked, looking up to find giving him a curious glance. "You good?"
Hailey nodded quickly, though he could feel his hands shaking slightly. "Yeah. Just... tired, you know?"
will study him for a moment before nodding. "Yeah, I get that." He lowered his voice, so only he could hear. "We’ll talk later, okay?"
Hailey gave a small, grateful smile and nodded in return. He was right. They would talk later. When it was safe to be vulnerable.

The rest of the school day passed in a blur, each class blending into the next. The only thing that stood out was the steady ticking of the clock, reminding them that time was moving forward, no matter how slow it felt. It was the middle of October by the time school let out, and the world outside felt as cold as the weight in Hailey's chest.
Lucas, Ams, will, and Gus had gathered outside by the school gates. The air was crisp now, the first signs of fall showing in the changing colors of the trees. They lingered together, a silent comfort in each other's company.
Gus was the first to break the silence. "I still can’t believe we’re here. After everything... this is it. High school, homework, all that."
"Yeah," Lucas agreed,his voice tinged with disbelief. "It’s all so... normal. Almost too normal."
Will offered a small smile, though it didn’t quite reach his eyes. "Normal is overrated," they said softly. "But we’ve made it through a lot to get hee. And that counts for something."
Hailey shoved his hands into his pockets, glancing down the street. "I don't know," he said quietly, his voice thick with hesitation. "I don’t feel like I belong hee. It’s like I’m just... waiting for something to happen, you know? Like there's something more that I'm supposed to be doing."
Ams, who had been standing quietly, his arms folded tightly across his chest, nodded. "I feel the same way. Like... like we’re just supposed to get back to normal, but nothing feels normal anymore."
They all fell into silence, each of them lost in their own thoughts, but there was something comforting about knowing they weren’t alone in feeling this way.
It wasn’t easy. It wasn’t simple. But maybe, just maybe, they didn’t have to have everything figured out right now. Maybe they could just be hee—togethe.
And that, at least, was enough.
The week passed in a slow haze, each day stretching out like a rubber band on the verge of snapping. It was a strange thing, adjusting to a life that was supposed to be normal but felt anything but. It wasn’t just the memories of the Boiling Isles; it was the sense of disconnection that lingered, like static on a radio. They were back in the human realm, but none of them felt completely at home.
Hailey had tried to go through his usual routines, hoping that the rhythm of normalcy would bring him some peace, but it wasn’t working. School was unbearable. Every passing minute felt like an eternity, and the ache in his chest never truly went away. He had learned to mask it well, but the truth was that he was barely holding it together. The panic attacks had become more frequent, creeping up like shadows at the edges of his vision. It wasn’t enough to scream for help, but it was enough to make him feel like he was disappearing into himself.
He kept his distance from the others, not because he wanted to, but because he didn’t know how to ask for the help he so desperately needed. When he was with Will and Edric, he felt a sense of relief, but it was fleeting. Their love, their acceptance, was a balm, but it couldn’t fix the wounds that ran deeper than he could explain.
That afternoon, as the school bell rang signaling the end of another exhausting day, Hailey lingered at the back of the classroom, watching as his classmates filtered out. The hallway was filled with the usual sounds—the shuffling of shoes on the floor, the clatter of lockers being slammed shut—but he couldn’t shake the feeling that he didn’t belong in any of it.
“Hey,” a voice cut through his thoughts, and he turned to see Lucas standing in the doorway,his hair falling over his eyes. There was a softness in his expression, the kind that told him he knew exactly what he was going through, even if he didn’t always know how to help. “You good?”
Hailey hesitated for a moment before nodding. “Yeah, just... tired.”
Lucas’s eyebrows furrowed, and he crossed his arms over his chest. “Tired? You’ve been saying that a lot lately.”
Hailey didn’t know how to explain it. The truth was, he wasn’t just tired. He was exhausted in ways that went beyond the physical. His mind was constantly spinning, his heart always racing. He could feel the weight of his thoughts crushing him, the constant pressure to be something he wasn’t sure he could be.
“I’m fine,” he said, though the words tasted hollow. “Just need some space, you know?”
Lucas didn’t push him, but there was a concern in his eyes that made him feel even more exposed than he already did. “If you ever need to talk... we’re here, okay?”
He nodded, grateful for his words but not quite ready to let him. Not yet.

Later that afternoon, Hailey found himself sitting on the worn couch in the living room of the Blight household. He had agreed to hang out with Edric, but his mind was elsewhere, as it always was lately. He stared at the TV screen, the images flickering, but none of it registered. His thoughts kept circling back to the same place: to his past, to the Boiling Isles, to the parts of himself he was still trying to figure out.
Edric glanced at him from where he sat on the arm of the couch, flicking through his phone. He could tell that Hailey wasn’t really there. He wasn’t surprised. “Hey,” Edric said gently, drawing Hailey’s attention. “I know you’ve been quiet lately... but I want you to know, you don’t have to deal with everything on your own.”
Hailey opened his mouth to respond but paused. The words felt stuck in his throat, like they couldn’t make it out without breaking apart first. He swallowed, trying to steady himself.
“I’m fine,” he muttered, but it sounded more like a question than a statement.
Edric studied him for a moment before sighing. “Hailey, come on. You don’t need to hide from me. I know what you’re going through. I’ve been through it, too.” He shifted to sit beside Hailey on the couch, his eyes softer than they usually were. “You’re not a burden, you know? Not to me. Not to any of us.”
Hailey’s breath caught in his throat, and he quickly looked away, staring out the window. “It’s not that simple,” he whispered.
There was a long pause before Edric spoke again. “Maybe it’s not simple, but it’s not impossible either. You don’t have to carry all of this by yourself. We’re here for you.”
Hailey didn’t know how to respond. The truth was, he didn’t know what he needed, or even what he wanted. He just felt so... lost. There were days when he could feel himself slipping further and further away from everything, like he was standing on the edge of a cliff, unsure whether to jump or to turn back.
“I just don’t want to drag you down,” Hailey said, his voice so quiet that it almost didn’t sound like his own. “I don’t want to be the reason you have to deal with this... mess.”
Edric leaned over, gently nudging Hailey’s shoulder with his own. “Hailey, we’re all a little messy, okay? Nobody’s perfect. But that’s why we’re here for each other. To help when it gets too heavy.” He paused before adding, “And if you’re worried about dragging me down... well, you’d have to try really hard. You’re the last person I’d ever want to push away.”
Hailey’s heart twisted in his chest at the sincerity in Edric’s voice. It wasn’t easy to accept help, especially when all he had known was self-reliance and pushing through everything on his own. But for the first time in a long while, he allowed himself to relax, just a little, leaning into Edric’s presence. It wasn’t a solution, but it was something. Something that felt like it could help, even if it was just for today.

Meanwhile, across town, Lucas and Will were sitting together at a small café, their half-empty cups of coffee sitting forgotten on the table as they spoke in hushed tones. Will's fingers were tracing the rim of his cup absently, but his gaze was focused on Lucas.
“I can’t shake the feeling that we’re all just... falling apart,” Will confessed,his voice barely audible over the low murmur of the other patrons around them. “Like no matter what we do, we’re just... broken.”
Lucas looked at her,expressing a mixture of concern and understanding. He reached across the table, gently taking Will's hand in his own. “We’re not broken, will. We’re just... healing. It takes time, but we’ll get there."
will let out a shaky breath. “It doesn’t feel like it sometimes,” he murmured. “I feel like I’m constantly running on empty. Like no matter how hard I try, I’m not enough. I can’t be everything for everyone, but I still feel like I have to try.”
Lucas squeezed his hand tighter. “You don’t have to be everything for everyone. You just have to be you. That’s enough.”
Will's eyes filled with unshed tears, but he smiled softly, a weight seeming to lift just a little. “Thank you, Lucas.”
Lucas smiled back,heart swelling with a warmth that made everything feel a little less heavy. “Always. You don’t have to carry this alone.”

Chapter Text

The evening drew near, and the group of friends gathered in their usual spot—a small park near the outskirts of town. The air had turned chilly as the sun began to set, but they all lingered, basking in the comfort of each other's presence. Hailey was there, sitting next to Will, his posture a little less tense than it had been earlier in the day. Lucas and Ams stood by a nearby bench, talking quietly, while Gus sat cross-legged on the grass, fiddling with his phone.
It was moments like this, quiet and unremarkable, that reminded them of the power of just being together. They didn’t have to solve everything right now. They didn’t have to fix the world. They just had to be here, in this moment, with the people who understood them.
And for the first time in a long while, Hailey felt like maybe—just maybe—he could breathe again.
The weeks that followed had been both gentle and intense, a delicate balance between healing and tension, comfort and discomfort. The group, each carrying their own baggage, had come to a tentative understanding—one that wasn’t perfect, but was real. The world outside may have felt chaotic, but within the small bubble they had created for themselves, things were slowly beginning to make sense.
But even in the safety of their friendship, each one still carried the weight of their past, though some were better at hiding it than others. Hailey, for example, had begun to open up a little more to Edric and Will, but even they knew the cracks still ran deep. He was getting better at leaning on them, but there were times when he’d retreat back into himself, the shadows of the past pulling him back. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to heal—it was just that the scars ran deeper than he realized.
It was late October when things began to change again, when everything started to feel like it might tip over. The tension in the air was palpable, even as they all gathered in the Blight family kitchen for a quiet evening. The group sat around the large wooden table, mugs of hot cocoa in front of them, and a spread of half-eaten snacks scattered about. The familiar buzz of conversation was quieter than usual, the silence between the words telling a story of its own.
“I think we need to talk about it,” Lucas said quietly, breaking the stillness.hisfingers tapped nervously against the rim of his as he looked around at the others. “About how we’re all... doing.”
Will's eyes widened slightly, a faint blush creeping up his cheeks. “Are you sure you want to do that right now?” he asked gently. “I mean, things have been a little... rough lately.”
“I know,” Lucas replied,his voice calm but firm. “But I can’t keep pretending like everything’s fine. None of us are fine, and that’s okay. But we need to be real about it. We can’t keep hiding from what we’re feeling.”
There was a heavy pause, as if everyone was waiting for someone else to say something. Hailey shifted uncomfortably in his chair, his fingers nervously fiddling with the sleeve of his hoodie. He didn’t want to talk. He didn’t want to admit how much he was struggling. Not to them, not yet.
“I don’t know if I can do this anymore,” he said quietly, his voice so low that it was almost lost among the others. “I... I feel like I’m just dragging everyone down, and it’s not fair to you guys.”
The words hung in the air like a thick fog, and the silence that followed felt suffocating. No one knew what to say. Edric, who had been lounging back in his chair with his arms crossed, was the first to speak.
“You’re not dragging anyone down, Hailey,” Edric said softly, his eyes filled with understanding. “We’re all going through something, but that doesn’t mean we leave each other behind.”
Hailey’s heart twisted at his words, but he didn’t know how to believe them. He’d heard the reassurance before, but it never seemed to stick. The weight of his own self-doubt was like a lead blanket, suffocating him in its heaviness. “I’m tired of being broken,” he muttered, more to himself than anyone else. “I’m tired of feeling like I don’t belong anywhere. Not with you guys, not with my own family, not even with myself.”
Lucas’s expression softened, and he reached across the table,hishand gently touching his. “Hailey, you don’t have to be ‘fixed’ for us to love you,” he said,his voice gentle but firm. “None of us are perfect. We all have our struggles. But we’re not giving up on you. Not now. Not ever.”
“But what if I can’t get better?” Hailey whispered, the fear in his voice cutting through the calm. “What if I can’t fix all this... mess inside me?”
will lean forward,his eyes full of empathy. “You don’t have to fix anything,” they said quietly. “You just have to be yourself. We’re all hee to support you, even when things are hard.”
Hailey shook his head, not fully understanding. “I’m scared,” he admitted, his voice cracking. “I’m scared that no matter what I do, I’ll never be enough for anyone. Not for you, not for Edric, not even for myself.”
The room was silent for a long moment. The weight of his words settled heavily on the group, but it wasn’t a burden they weren’t willing to carry. Finally, Edric stood up, moving around the table to stand next to Hailey. He placed a hand on his shoulder, giving it a reassuring squeeze.
“Hey,” Edric said softly, “I don’t care if you’re ‘enough.’ You’re enough for me, just as you are. And for will. And for Lucas. And for everyone hee.” He gave a small chuckle, though it was tinged with sadness. “None of us are perfect. If we were, this whole thing wouldn’t be as special. We’re all a little broken. But we fit together."
Hailey blinked back tears, his throat tight. He didn’t know how to respond. The idea of being accepted, despite his flaws, was something he wasn’t sure he deserved. But hearing it from Edric, from all of them, felt like something new. Maybe... maybe he could believe it.
“I don’t know if I’m ready for this,” Hailey whispered. “I don’t know if I can do the whole ‘healing’ thing.”
“Hey, no one’s saying you have to be perfect right now,” Lucas said with a soft smile. “Healing isn’t something that happens overnight. It’s messy, and it’s slow, and it doesn’t always look how we expect it to. But we’re here. And that’s the most important thing.”
will nodded in agreement, their gaze soft and understanding. “We’re all hee, and we’ll keep showing up. Even when it’s hard.”
The conversation shifted, gently, into something quieter. They didn’t have all the answers. None of them did. But in this small, safe space, they had each other. And that was enough—for now.

The next few days were a blur of introspection and small steps toward healing. Hailey found himself spending more time with Will and Edric, letting their words sink in. He hadn’t fully embraced the idea of accepting himself, but he was starting to understand that it was something that could be worked on. Maybe, for the first time, he didn’t need to have it all figured out.
Meanwhile, Lucas and Ams were navigating their own complexities. They were no strangers to self-doubt, their mental health challenges often manifesting in different ways. Lucas’s anxiety flared up when he wasn’t able to controlhissurroundings, and Ams, while supportive of everyone else, often struggled to care for herself in the process.
One evening, as the autumn chill set in, the group found themselves gathered once more—this time in the park, their usual hangout spot. The leaves had started to turn, and the air was thick with the scent of impending winter. They had settled on a blanket, with hot drinks in hand, and the sound of leaves rustling in the breeze added to the comfort of being surrounded by friends.
“You know,” Gus said, breaking the silence, “I never thought I’d say this, but... I think I’m kind of glad we’re stuck in this mess together." He chuckled, his nervous laugh betraying the weight of his words. “Like, I can’t imagine going through all this alone. And I don’t think I’d want to.”
Lucas smiled,his eyes softening. “Yeah. Me neithe.”
“I think we’ve all got our own ways of breaking, but together, we’re stronger than any of us would be alone,” Ams added,his voice filled with a quiet, determined strength. “We’ll get through this. Not perfectly. Not smoothly. But we’ll get through.”
The others nodded in agreement, each of them feeling, for the first time in weeks, that maybe they could keep going. Maybe they could keep healing. One small step at a time.
And as the evening drew to a close, and the chill of the autumn air sank deeper into their bones, Hailey allowed himself to breathe. For the first time in a long while, he felt like maybe—just maybe—he wasn’t as alone as he once thought.
The autumn days were slipping by faster than any of them anticipated, and with each passing week, their lives seemed to inch closer to some kind of fragile equilibrium. It wasn’t perfect—far from it—but there was a steady undercurrent of connection that kept them tethered together. They were learning how to exist, not just survive, but live in their shared space.
Despite this, the weight of their struggles still hung heavily in the air, even on the good days. Everyone in the group had their moments—some were easier to see, some hidden behind smiles and half-hearted jokes. Lucas was often the first to laugh, but he couldn’t always hide the anxiety gnawing at her. Ams, who had once been so sure of herself, still battled bouts of uncertainty and guilt. Will, who had become the group's emotional anchor, often felt the pull of his own self-doubt. Gus, despite his humor and charm, hid layers of anxiety and frustration that he rarely let anyone see. And Hailey... Well, Hailey still had his demons, and they were harder to face.
It was on one of those quiet days, when the weather seemed to settle into the grey stillness of autumn, that Hailey found himself alone in the small park by the Blight family’s house. The others had gone to the local café to get their usual afternoon pick-me-up, but Hailey needed some time to himself. The cold had settled in the air, but it was the kind of chill that invited contemplation rather than discomfort.
He sat on a bench near the edge of the park, his fingers fidgeting with the hem of his jacket. His thoughts were a tangled mess—too many things demanding attention at once. One minute, he’d find himself thinking about the life he was building with Will and Edric, how that was his now, a family he could trust. And then the next minute, the weight of his trauma would come crashing in, making everything feel too much. He was so used to pushing things down, trying to ignore the shadows in his mind, but lately it felt harder and harder to keep them at bay.
His phone buzzed in his pocket, pulling him out of his thoughts. He pulled it out, his eyes scanning the message from will.
We’re on our way back. How are you holding up?
He smiled at the text, but the response didn’t come easily. How was he holding up? He wasn’t sure. He was alive, breathing, but was that enough? Was that all he was allowed to be?
I’m fine, he typed back, though even as he read the words, they didn’t feel true. I just needed some time alone, that’s all.
He hesitated before hitting send. It wasn’t a lie, but it wasn’t the full truth either. He couldn’t put into words the tightness in his chest, the constant hum of fear and uncertainty that followed him around like a shadow.
But he didn’t want to burden them. Not now. Not when they were all doing their best to hold it together. His phone buzzed again before he could put it away.
Okay, but if you need us, you know where we are.
Hailey felt a small warmth settle in his chest. He didn’t need to say more; he understood. The words "if you need us" meant everything. They were there. They would always be there. He knew that.
Still, even as he felt the comfort of their words, the familiar shadow of loneliness lingered in the background, lurking in the corners of his mind. And despite the reassurance he’d just given them, he couldn’t shake the feeling that there was something deeply wrong inside him that no one could fix.

Will could tell the moment they saw Hailey sitting alone on the park bench that something wasn’t right. The way he slouched, arms crossed tightly over his chest, his face turned slightly away from them—it wasn’t a position of comfort. It was the stance of someone who was trying to make themselves as small as possible, as if hiding from the world around them.
They exchanged a glance with Lucas, who gave a small nod, signaling that they should go over and check in. But the moment they started walking toward him, Hailey’s posture shifted. His head turned, and his eyes were already locking onto them as if he had been expecting them to come. The small smile he gave them didn’t reach his eyes, and that made their stomach twist. He was holding something back.
“Hey,” Will said softly, coming to a stop next to the bench. “You alright?”
Hailey didn’t answer right away. He glanced at the ground, his fingers playing with the edge of his sleeve, before finally speaking in a low voice.
“I don’t know,” he admitted, almost too quietly for will to hear. “I just feel... empty, I guess.”
will sit down beside him, their shoulders brushing against his. They didn’t say anything at first—thee was no need to. They just let the silence settle around them, the comforting presence of each other's company enough for the moment.
“You’re not empty,” Will said, their voice steady. “I know it feels like that sometimes, but it’s not true. You’re still here. You’re still fighting.”
Hailey chuckled bitterly, the sound hollow. “Fighting what, though? My own mind? My past?” He paused, staring out at the horizon. “I don’t know if I can keep fighting this forever.”
“I know,” Will said, their voices softening. “I know it’s exhausting. But you don’t have to fight it alone, Hailey. We’re here. We’ll always be hee.”
Hailey turned to look at them, his eyes filled with something too hard to read. But there was vulnerability there too, the kind that Hailey didn’t show very often. “What if I’m just too much for you guys?” he whispered, his voice cracking. “What if you get tired of me?”
will feel a sharp pain in their chest at his words. They reached out, gently placing a hand on him. “You’re never too much for us. Never.” They looked him in the eyes, their gaze unwavering. “We love you, Hailey. And we know that healing isn’t something that happens overnight. But we’re with you for the long haul. No matter what.”
For a long time, Hailey didn’t say anything. He just stared at them, as if trying to process what they’d said. But then, finally, his shoulders relaxed, and a quiet sigh escaped him.
“I don’t know if I deserve your love,” he said quietly, almost as if he were trying to convince himself as much as will.
“You do,” Will replied firmly. “You do deserve it. Just because things are hard doesn’t mean you’re unworthy of love. It just means that you're still figuring things out—and that’s okay.”
Hailey’s lips twitched, and for the first time in what felt like forever, a genuine smile touched his face. “Thanks, will,” he murmured.
will give him a soft smile in return, their thumb gently brushing over his hand. “Anytime. We’ll always be here when you need us.”

As the evening wore on, the group gathered together again. There was a sense of peace in the air, the unspoken understanding that they were each working through their own personal battles, but they were doing it side by side. There was comfort in that—knowing they didn’t have to do this alone.
Back at the Blight house, the sound of their laughter echoed through the hallways. For once, the weight of their struggles didn’t feel so unbearable. They had each other. And maybe, just maybe, that was enough to keep them moving forward.
Hailey, leaning against the couch beside her, let out a long, slow breath. His mind still felt heavy, but there was a small flicker of hope buried underneath. He didn’t know what the future held, but for the first time in a long while, he was starting to think that maybe he didn’t need to have it all figured out just yet.
And maybe, just maybe, he could learn to believe in the love they had for him.
The crisp winter air had crept in, bringing with it a sense of change that none of them could quite shake. Despite the warmth of their close-knit group, there was an undercurrent of tension, subtle and unspoken, weaving through their interactions. It wasn’t unusual for things to feel delicate—too many emotions were tangled up, and everyone was still navigating the aftermath of their individual struggles. But now, as the snow began to blanket the town in a soft white haze, something seemed to be building just beneath the surface.
Hailey could feel it more than most. The nights had started to stretch longer, and he found himself awake at strange hours, his mind racing through thoughts he couldn’t quiet. The pressures of his relationship with Will, Edric, and his growing feelings for Lucas and Ams had shifted from warmth to something heavier. It wasn’t a bad thing—it was just unfamiliar, and the unfamiliarity unsettled him.
As much as he tried to ignore it, the fears that had once felt like ghosts now walked beside him every day. He was afraid of being too much for his friends, afraid that the love he was starting to feel might somehow fracture under the weight of his panic disorder, his PTSD, and the constant self-doubt that plagued him.
He couldn’t help but think that maybe, just maybe, they would get tired of him, too. Or worse—maybe he wasn’t meant to be loved at all.
will notice the shift almost immediately. Hailey had always been good at hiding things, but after their conversation in the park, he had been quieter. Not completely withdrawn, but enough that I could tell something was off.
It wasn’t like Hailey to hide. He usually wore his heart on his sleeve, even when he didn’t want to. But now, he kept to himself more often, his gaze faraway, as if his mind were somewhere else entirely.
Will could feel the growing distance, and it gnawed at them.
“You’ve been quiet lately,” they said one evening, sitting beside him on the couch, their hand gently resting on his knee. “What’s going on, Hailey?”
Hailey flinched slightly at the touch, the sudden contact pulling him out of his thoughts. He blinked, then turned to meet Will's gaze, but the words he wanted to say stuck in his throat. Instead, he let out a long, steadying breath and gave a half-hearted shrug.
“It’s nothing,” he said, voice tight. “I’m just… tired, that’s all.”
will raise an eyebrow. They could see right through him. "Hailey, come on," they said softly, giving his knee a squeeze. "You’re not fine. I know that, and you know that."
Hailey didn’t respond immediately. His fingers drummed nervously against the side of the couch, and his eyes flickered between the walls and the floor. His usual defenses were up—he couldn’t let anyone see the cracks, couldn’t let them in too close. He couldn’t afford to be vulnerable.
“Why do you think you’re so tired?” will be pressed, their voice unwavering in its calmness.
Hailey glanced at them, his jaw tight. “I don’t know. Maybe it’s everything. Maybe it’s me. Maybe I’m just… I don’t know, tired of not being enough for people. Tired of feeling like I’m always the one who’s… broken.”
will’s heart tightened at the words. “Hailey, you’re not broken,” they said, voice firm. “You’re allowed to have bad days, you’re allowed to feel like this, but that doesn’t mean you’re not worthy of love or support.”
Hailey’s eyes darkened slightly, the storm inside him intensifying. He didn’t want to be vulnerable. He didn’t want to burden will with more than they already had to carry.
“I don’t want to drag you all down,” he muttered, his voice barely above a whisper. “You and Edric and Lucas... I don’t want you to get tired of me. I’m not the perfect partner. I’m not like you guys. I can’t just… be there for everyone like you can.”
Will's brow furrowed as they leaned closer, their face serious. “Hailey, you don’t have to be perfect. You don’t have to do everything, or be everything. We don’t want you to be someone else. We want you. You are enough, just the way you are. The love we give you isn’t about perfection—it’s about us.”
Hailey shook his head slowly, his thoughts spiraling. “I’m scared. I’m scared that if I keep feeling like this, I’ll push everyone away. I don’t know how to be good enough for you.”
Will's heart broke for him. Hailey had been through so much, and yet here he was, convinced that he was not worthy of the love they gave him.
“You are good enough,” Will said, their voice low but firm. “We don’t expect you to be perfect. I don’t expect you to be perfect. I just want you to be you.”
Hailey looked at Will, his eyes searching, as if he were looking for something he couldn’t quite find. He opened his mouth to speak but stopped himself, unsure of how to even begin.
“You don’t have to be perfect, Hailey,” he repeated softly. “And you’re never a burden to us. We want you with us, for better or worse. But you have to let us help you, too. We can’t help you if you keep pushing us away.”
The silence between them stretched out, but it wasn’t uncomfortable. It was a silence filled with understanding and the weight of things left unsaid. Will could feel the battle inside Hailey—he wanted to open up, but the fear of being rejected, of being too much was suffocating him.
Finally, Hailey spoke, his voice quiet and raw. “I don’t know how to trust that. I don’t know how to trust that you won’t get tired of me.”

Chapter Text

Will smiled softly, the kind of smile that was full of affection and empathy. They didn’t need to say anything more. The words had already been said—Hailey was struggling, but he was allowed to struggle. They were allowed to help him through it. And in time, they would show him, again and again, that he was worthy of all the love they had to offer.
They reached over, cupping Hailey’s face gently with one hand. “We’ll show you, every single day,” Will said quietly. “You’re stuck with us.”
Hailey let out a shaky breath, a small laugh escaping him. “Stuck with you, huh?” he muttered. “I guess I can live with that.”
Will smiled, pulling him into a warm hug. “We’re not letting you go, Hailey. You don’t have to do this alone. Ever.”
Hailey buried his face in their shoulder, the weight of his emotions pressing down on him, but for the first time in weeks, he allowed himself to let go, to stop pretending that everything was fine when it wasn’t.

Later that evening, as the group gathered for their usual movie night, there was a shift in the air—a quiet, unspoken sense of solidarity between them all. Lucas and Ams, who had been watching from the kitchen as Hailey spoke, exchanged a glance and a quiet nod. They had been there for each other through thick and thin, and they knew that no matter what happened, they would always stand by each other.
Hailey sat between Will and Edric, his shoulders no longer as tense as before. There was still a long way to go, but he felt lighter. He wasn’t alone. He wasn’t broken. And that was something worth holding on to.
The movie played on, but the quiet conversations between the group, the laughter and gentle teasing, spoke louder than any film ever could. At this moment, they were together. And together was enough.
Hailey couldn’t fix everything in one day. But for the first time in a long time, he was beginning to believe that he didn’t have to. The love of his friends, the love of his family—his chosen family—was enough to keep him going. For now, that was enough.
And maybe, just maybe, that would be enough forever.

The snow continued to fall outside, blanketing the world in soft, gentle silence. But inside, the warmth of their shared space wrapped around them like a comforting blanket, holding them safe as they took the next step in their journey together.
The following days were filled with quiet, steady moments that slowly unraveled the tension that had lingered in the group. It wasn’t a dramatic shift or a sudden revelation—it was something quieter, more gradual. A sense of calm had descended, and the friendships, the relationships, they all seemed to settle into something deeper, something sturdier.
But that didn’t mean the weight of their individual struggles had disappeared. They were still carrying their burdens—mental health challenges, trauma, self-doubt—but they were starting to share the load, piece by piece, until it didn’t feel as heavy anymore.
Hailey had started to make small changes in his routine. His panic attacks were still there, still sneaking up on him when he least expected it, but he was more willing to talk about them. He had made a promise to himself to be more open with Will, Edric, and the rest of the group, and though it wasn’t easy, he was trying. And every time he let them in, it felt like a small victory, like he was slowly reclaiming parts of himself he’d kept hidden for so long.
will, too, had made their own adjustments. As the group’s emotional anchor, they had learned to take more breaks, to step back when they needed to. They had always been the one to hold everyone else up, but now they were realizing that they needed support just as much as the others. The quiet moments with Hailey, where they could simply be together, had given them a sense of peace that was hard to come by in the whirlwind of their lives.
But for all the progress they had made, there was still a lingering feeling of something unfinished. Everyone knew that the next steps in their journeys were waiting for them—whethe it was addressing their mental health head-on, navigating the complexities of their relationships, or simply figuring out who they were as individuals.
And for Lucas, that uncertainty felt especially heavy.

Lucas Noceda had always prided herself on his ability to handle whatever life threw at him. The Boiling Isles had been full of chaos, magic, and challenges, and he had always faced them with a smile and a sense of determination. But now, back in the human world, there was a new kind of chaos—one that didn’t come with magic or epic quests. It came from within, from the depths of his own mind, and that was the hardest thing he had ever faced.
he had been struggling with anxiety for as long as he could remember, but it wasn’t something he ever really talked about. Not in the Boiling Isles, not with his friends. It was just another part of who he was, something he accepted but never really addressed. But now, living back in the human world, with the looming pressures of school, relationships, and self-identity, it was impossible to ignore.
he wasn’t sure when it had started to feel so heavy, but it had. The constant worries, the spiraling thoughts, the fear of failing his friends,family, heself—it was all starting to take its toll. And the worst part? He didn't know how to talk about it. How could he, when everyone else seemed to have their own struggles to deal with?
The relationship with arms and will was a source of comfort, but it also came with its own pressures. He wanted to be there for them, to support them the way they supported her, but sometimes it felt like he was barely holding herself together. What if, one day, he wasn’t enough for them? What if he was too much of a burden?
One evening, after a particularly stressful day at school, Lucas found herself lying on his bed, staring up at the ceiling. The weight of everything—his anxiety,hisfears,hisuncertainties—pressed down on him, and he felt suffocated. He was alone in his room, but he didn’t feel alone. The silence was deafening, and the thoughts in his head were louder than ever.
he reached for his phone, scrolling through a few messages from his friends. Everyone seemed to be going on with their lives, dealing with their own things. It felt almost impossible to be happy for them when he was stuck in his own head, struggling to keep himself afloat.
A sudden knock athisdoor snapped him out of his thoughts.
“Lucas?” Ams’s voice called gently from the other side.
Lucas sat up quickly, wiping his eyes before answering. “Yeah, come in.”
and stepped into the room,his confident demeanor softened by the concern in. “Hey,” he said, closing the door behind her. “Can we talk?”
Lucas nodded,his stomach tightening. He hadn't realized how much he needed this, how much he needed to be seen, to be understood.
Ams walked over to the bed and sat beside her, their shoulders brushing against Lucas’s. The quiet between them stretched out, but it was a comfortable silence, the kind that spoke volumes without the need for words.
Finally, Ams spoke,his voice soft. “You’ve been distant lately. I know things have been tough, but you don’t have to go through this alone. We’re here for you, Lucas. You don’t have to hide.”
Lucas felt his throat tighten at the words. He wanted to say something, to explain, but the words wouldn’t come. Instead, he let out a shaky breath and looked down athishands, suddenly feeling very small.
“I don’t know how to talk about it,” Lucas admitted quietly,his voice barely above a whisper. “Everything feels so... heavy. I feel like I’m drowning in it. And I don’t want to drag you down with me.”
Ams's expression softened, and they gently placed a hand on Lucas’s shoulder. “You don’t have to carry this by yourself, Lucas. We’re a team. I know you’ve been through a lot, and I know you’ve always been the one to help everyone else, but you’re allowed to need help too. You’re allowed to not be okay.”
Lucas sniffled, wiping away a stray tear. “I just... I don’t want to be a burden. I don’t want to ruin everything we have.”
“You’re not a burden,” Ams said firmly. “You’re one of the most important people in my life. You always have been. And you don’t have to hide your feelings from me. If you’re struggling, it’s okay. I’m not going anywhere."
Lucas let out a shaky laugh, the weight of his emotions lifting just a little. “I’m so lucky to have you,” he said,his voice thick with emotion.
and smiled softly, pulling Lucas into a tight hug. “You don’t have to feel lucky, Lucas. We’re family. And the family takes care of each other."
Lucas clung to arms, feeling the warmth of their embrace grounding her. For the first time in days, he felt like he could breathe.

Later that evening, the group gathered in the living room, the flickering light of the television casting soft shadows on the walls. The tension that had plagued them for weeks was still there, but now it was quieter, more manageable. They had all come to terms with the fact that their struggles were far from over, but they had each other. And that, in itself, was a kind of peace.
Hailey was seated next to Will, Edric leaning against the armrest, and Lucas sitting between arms and will, the group forming a loose circle. The movie on the screen played in the background, but no one was paying much attention to it. Instead, they were talking quietly—sharing stories, making light of their day-to-day struggles, and offering each other the kind of support that only came from people who truly understood.
There was no need for grand gestures or profound declarations. The comfort of simply being together was enough.
And as they sat there, surrounded by the people they loved, Lucas realized that maybe, just maybe, he didn’t have to fix everything. he didn’t have to have all the answers. But as long as they had each other, that would always be enough.
They didn’t need to be perfect. They just needed to be together.
And that, for now, was all that mattered.

Chapter Text

There was glitter in the toaster.
No one could figure out how it got there. Lucas claimed it was “ambient gender magic,” while Gus blamed Will for shaking out the decorations over the kitchen table. Will, of course, denied everything with a perfectly innocent expression as he dusted sparkles off his shoulders and adjusted a banner reading “TRANS RIGHTS & TRANS WRONGS—ALL CELEBRATED heE!”
“I didn’t mean to put glitter in the pancake batter,” Will said with a shrug. “It was an accident. A fabulous accident.”
Hunter poked at his half-glittered pancake suspiciously. “Is this edible?”
“It’s technically non-toxic,” Gus offered from the sink, where he was hand-lettering pronoun badges on a set of enchanted stickers. “So, probably.”
Ams, seated at the kitchen island with a box of safety pins and a stack of pronoun flags, muttered, “If I die from a glitter overdose, I’m haunting this entire house.”
“You’d look good as a ghost,” Lucas said with a wink, and Ams flicked a paperclip at him.
It had only been two days since Will’s idea was declared, but somehow they had planned a whole event: part block party, part spiritual cleansing, part chaotic fashion show. Lucas had sent out coded invitations to the queer kids and allies from Gravesfield High (coded because Principal Halver still thought “gender euphoria” was a video game expansion pack).
But mostly, this was about them.
Their space. Their stories. Their joy.
Hunter didn’t say it aloud, but he kept thinking about how quiet the house had been when he first moved in. How he used to flinch at every sudden sound, how he’d sit in corners with his knees up and his voice tucked into silence. How he hadn’t believed he could be anything but what Belos had told him.
Now, there was music playing from a speaker in the living room—Ams’s playlist, full of synth-pop and angry girl bands and trans artists screaming with joy. There were string lights taped around the doorframes and a communal closet stuffed with affirming clothes. Will had found a vest for Hunter and practically forced him into it, declaring it “elegant revolutionary chic.”
“You know,” Hunter said, adjusting the collar again, “I never thought I’d be invited to a gender celebration. Let alone wearing a vest.”
Lucas grinned at him. “Well, welcome to your coming-of-gender party.”
Gus raised a plastic cup in a toast. “To trans joy!”
“To trans rage!” Ams added.
“To trans messiness!” said Will, tossing a handful of sequins into the air.
Hunter just laughed—freely, without the usual tinge of guilt.
The doorbell rang.
“Oh my Titan,” Lucas muttered. “They’re early!”
Gus scrambled for the guest list. “Did anyone tell Skara not to bring the entire theater crew?”
Too late—Skara entered dramatically in a neon cape and fingerless gloves, followed by a trail of queer theater kids like an entourage of highly expressive peacocks. They cheered the banner. They whooped at the table of snacks. One kid pointed at the stack of pins and screamed, “PRONOUN STICKERS YESSS.”
Soon the house was filled with people: shy freshmen in oversized hoodies, older students with glitter-painted cheeks, a few nervous allies clinging to Tupperware containers of cookies. Everyone glowed. Everyone glittered.
Will stood near the front door with a clipboard and a paper crown reading Host King, checking off guests and offering affirming high-fives.
Hunter hovered near the snack table, talking to a soft-spoken trans guy named Caleb (unfortunate name, but sweet energy) who made zines about queer cryptids.
“I think Mothman is probably nonbinary,” Caleb said thoughtfully. “Or like, use he/they. Definitely has gender envy vibes.”
Hunter nodded. “He’s literally just a shadow with wings. Honestly? Aspirational.”
Ams and Lucas had set up a little Polaroid station with a backdrop of pink-blue-white streamers. People took turns posing with signs that read things like “I survived gender and all I got was this awesome self.”
Gus took over the music at some point and added a new track—something vibey and dreamy that made everyone sway a little. He danced around the room, offering stickers and affirmations, yelling things like “Your gender is valid and also incredibly powerful!” and “Trans people have saved the timeline!”
Someone had lit a cinnamon candle in the bathroom. The house smelled like sugar, spice, and unapologetic freedom.
Will drifted into the living room, where Hunter was trying very hard to look casual leaning against the couch.
“Hey,” Will said, handing him a soda.
“Hey,” Hunter replied. “This is… amazing.”
“Yeah.” Will glanced around. “You okay?”
Hunter hesitated, then nodded. “I’m just not used to this. People see me like this. And not questioning it.”
“They’re not just seeing you,” Will said. “They’re meeting you. The real you. That deserves celebration.”
Hunter looked down at his vest. “I don’t know if I’m ready to, like, ‘declare’ anything. I’m still figuring things out.”
“That’s okay.” Will sipped his soda. “Your gender’s a living thing. You don’t owe anyone a final form.”
Hunter smiled. “Is that your way of saying I’m like a Pokémon?”
Will snorted. “Sure. And today you get to choose your evolution stone.”
They bumped shoulders, quiet for a moment.
Then Will said, “I used to think the hardest part was knowing. But it’s not. It’s letting yourself change. Even when it’s scary. Even when people don’t get it.”
Hunter swallowed. “Do you think… will we ever stop feeling like we have to fight for every bit of this?”
Will looked at him with eyes like roots—deep, grounded, alive.
“No. But we’ll get stronger. And we’ll keep doing it together."
From the hallway came a yell: “WHO WANTS TO DO GENDER CHARADES?!”
“That’s our cue,” Will said, dragging Hunter toward the chaos.
The rest of the night passed in laughter and dancing, in awkward but affirming games (“Is that character trans or just really cool?”), in comfort food and casual affirmations and hugs that said I see you.
As the party wound down, Lucas and Ams slow-danced in the kitchen, bare feet on cold tile, whispering soft things only they needed to know. Gus sat curled on the couch with three theater kids, trading stories about dysphoria and dragons. Will passed out cups of tea, looking more at home in himself than he ever had.
Hunter stepped outside for air.
The night was cool, starlit, and very still. He leaned on the porch railing, sipping his tea.
A voice spoke behind him.
“You look happy.”
He turned—Ams, hair loose now, face soft in the moonlight.
“I think I am,” Hunter said.
Ams came to stand beside him. “I always thought being nonbinary meant I had to be perfectly in the middle. Balanced. But now I think it’s more like... I get to choose every day. Who I want to be. What fits.”
Hunter nodded. “It’s scary. But good.”
“Yeah.”
They stood there for a moment.
“Hey,” Ams said. “You don’t have to pick a name tonight. But when do you? I want to be the first to say it out loud.”
Hunter felt something warm bloom in his chest. “Deal.”
Behind them, the house was glowing—lights, music, joy. A refuge built out of pain, maybe. But it stood. And it was theirs.
Hunter looked up at the stars.
“I think I’m gonna be okay,” he whispered.
He didn’t need the stars to answer.
He already knew.
The house felt like the inside of a snow globe the next morning—still, a little hazy, and oddly magical. Someone’s jacket was draped over the kitchen light. A half-eaten pride cupcake was precariously balanced on the banister. There was a glitter trail leading from the couch to the bathroom like breadcrumbs of gender joy.
Hunter sat cross-legged on the back porch in a hoodie three sizes too big, sipping lukewarm tea. His Polaroid from the night before rested beside him on the steps: him, Will, Gus, Lucas, and Ams, all shoulder-to-shoulder and laughing so hard their eyes were closed. In the photo, he was smiling without tension. A real smile.
He stared at it like it might blink.
Footsteps approached. Not loud. Barefoot, maybe.
“Hey,” Will said, sitting beside him. They were wrapped in a hoodie too, sleeves covering their hands. “You sleep?”
“Some,” Hunter said. “Not really.”
“Me neithe.”
They sat there in silence for a while, letting the morning breathe around them.
“I think I had a dream about... flying?” Hunter finally said, squinting. “But not like how I used to in the Boiling Isles. This was... lighter. More free. I wasn’t running.”
Will glanced at him. “Do you think you were in the dream?”
Hunter nodded slowly. “Yeah. I think I was.”
They looked out at the quiet yard. The air smelled like sun-warmed leaves and leftover sugar.
“I was thinking,” Hunter said softly, “about names.”
Will still.
“Not... not changing mine,” he added quickly. “Just... the name I gave myself when I got hee. I don’t think I picked it because it fit. I think I picked it because I was scared. Of letting go.”
Will didn’t say anything, just nudged his shoulder gently.
“I want a name that’s mine. That I can grow into,” Hunter murmured. “But I don’t know what that is yet.”
“That’s okay,” Will said. “You don’t have to rush. There's no deadline on becoming one.”
Hunter looked down. “Do you ever feel like people are waiting for you to be... fully formed? Like they’re expecting a finished version of you, and you’re still under construction?”
Will gave him a soft smile. “All the time. But maybe I’m not a building. Maybe I’m a forest. Changing with the seasons. Still here. Still growing.”
Hunter swallowed. “That sounds nice.”
Will nudged him again. “It is nice. And you deserve that.”
Hunter didn’t cry. Not quite. But he leaned against Will’s shoulder and let himself exhale. Fully.