After a few minutes of useless arguing, the two banged up ex-footballers decided that it was best if they didn't go back to the hospital, as being there twice in one day would probably spark police attention. In a smaller town like theirs, any police involvement in any way would definitely not be good. The rest of the group agreed, and Amy and Signe went to work, caring for and cleaning up their poor boyfriends.

"Ow! Amy!"
"Stop moving around so much and it won't hurt as bad!"
"Oh, quit bein' a big fookin baby, Mark."
"Hush, Sean."
Tyler had sat down on the couch, taking his phone out of his pocket while doing so. There were a few missed calls from his mother and a message from an unknown number. After texting his mom to let her know he was okay and just staying at Mark's, he opened the other message. What he read made his heart drop into his stomach.

Unknown Number
I'm back, darling. :)

With a sudden jerk, Ty threw his phone away from him, startling everyone when it smacked the wooden floor and skid into the wall. A tense silence fell upon the group for a moment, but it was quickly broken by Ethan's quiet murmur. "Tyler? You okay?" The taller boy was dead silent, unable to move and barely able to think above the thousand screaming voices in his head. Kathryn waved a hand in front of his face, catching his attention for a moment before everything caught up to him. He abruptly stood up, wincing in pain at the quick movements, and walked over to his phone, picking it up and shoving it back in his pocket.

A small shake of his head was all he could muster as a form of response, his vocal cords failing him when he tried to speak. His face was pale when he looked at everyone, a new thought now on a constant replay in his head: Why now? Ethan slowly approached Tyler and took his hands gently, smiling with a small reassurance towards his crush. "What's wrong?" He could feel the normally stoic and strong boy shaking under his grip, and concern rose on his face as he wondered what was scaring the taller teen so badly.

"Daniel is back." Immediately, Mark and Jack froze. They looked between themselves before getting to their feet and walking over to Tyler. "My room. Now." was all Mark said, and Jack gently pried Ethan off of Tyler before ushering the group away. The three girls and Ethan stood there and watched as Mark's door closed behind the three of them, confusion riddling their expressions.

"Um... Who's Daniel?"
"I thought they were joking..."
"He's real?"
"Oh, he's real. I've met him before."
Amy walked up to Ethan, sighing softly. She ran a hand through the small teen's blue hair, forcing a small smile. "Daniel was Tyler's first love. He was obsessed with Dan. Never stopped talking about him. It was so cute. They did everything together, and I mean everything. That was before Dan moved away. Suddenly, days would go by where Ty wouldn't hear from him. He became more distant and ruder until one day, he told Ty that he hated him, never loved him, and even said he hoped he died. It was terrible, and it destroyed Tyler for his whole 8th grade year. Whatever Dan's coming back for, hopefully he stays away from Tyler."

The thoughts running through Mark's head were very, very dark. If he saw himself in a mirror, he wouldn't be looking back. His blood was boiling at the mere thought of Dan's twisted, revolting face. Seeing him in person would not end well for anybody.

"What do I do? I can't.. I can't see him again. It's like he's haunting me all over and I can't."
"Tyler, you aren't gunna be dealin' with him this time. Me and Mark are."
"You don't want me in a room with him."
"Okay, I don't want him dead, but I don't want to see him."
"Like I said the first time, I will put him six feet under if he decides to breathe in my direction."
"He's a fookin' piece a shit that doesn't even deserve death, dude. Don't waste your time."
"Both of you stop. I just want to avoid him, not scream him to death and especially not beat him to death, okay? I just want to avoid him."
"It's Dan; you can't just avoid someone like him."
At that point, Tyler was starting to scratch, a nervous habit he'd formed in the first few weeks of his long-distance relationship with Dan. He couldn't help it now; every time he ever got even remotely anxious, he would start to scratch his wrists like he had the plague. The very first time he did, he raked his skin so raw it wouldn't stop bleeding for weeks. Now it was starting like that again, old scars threatening to split at the seams if he didn't stop. Jack tried and failed a few times at grabbing Ty's hands, only making him scratch worse.

Then, there was a little knock on the door, catching their attention. "Tyler? Mark, Jack?" Ethan's higher pitched voice sounded softly from the other side of the wooden door, the worrying tone carrying farther than the words did. "Can I come in?" he added, standing outside of the quieted room and patiently awaiting an answer. Mark and Jack looked at each other, and Tyler sighed, forcibly pulling his sleeves down and walking to the door. When he opened it, Ethan smiled slightly, hoping to make Ty feel even a little bit better. Rather than a little bit, the sound of the bluebird's voice before he approached him calmed him down almost instantly, and opening the door made him at total ease. Ethan definitely had a way of making Tyler feel much more comfortable with his surroundings.

"Um... So I know who Daniel is now. And I just wanna say that I'll... I'll hurt him if he tries to hurt you!" The last part came out a little higher pitched than he wanted, only making his innocence magnified. The other boy practically melted onto him, his long arms wrapping securely around his bony chest and taking him by surprise. "Thank you, Ethan," Tyler replied, his voice muffled due do his head being stuffed into Eth's neck. The blue boy's face broke out in red, and he gently moved his arms around Ty's waist.

Silence filled the room. A settling feeling came down upon them as the tension started to fade away. Yeah, their problems weren't solved, but they at least stopped worrying for a moment or two.