Let me be...

Your only hope

You can't miss something that is no longer yours.

This is the reason why Mark has found himself missing his angel now more than ever. Because those crystal blue eyes do not belong to him anymore. They might have never been completely his and that is what hurts him the most.

Because, after all the warnings he told himself, he ended up falling anyways.

The emptiness makes him wonder how his life was before meeting his angel. Was it really this bad?

Corey asked him to give him some time.

And he could give him just a couple of days to think about it. Hell, we would give him his whole life, even if the Irish never came back.

Because, even though he wishes that wasn't a possibility, he still knows that it could happen.

Will he let a relationship crumble his dreams again? He doesn't even know.

If you had asked him months ago, he would have a very different answer.

He takes a deep breath before knocking on the door in front of him.

To his surprise, the man who opens it for him isn't the one he expected.

"Hey, Mark. Come in." A tall, blond greets happily, inviting him in after shaking his hand.

It's unbelievable how a simple scene can slowly fix his heart, but it happens.

Luke's child is playing video games against Ohm and another kid in the living room, all of them laughing fondly and cherishing the moment.

However, he can't stand by the doorway much longer. He is here for a different reason this time.

"Bryce, where's Luke?"

"Oh, he's in his studio." The other male informs, his smile not showing much happiness as before.

"Thank you." Mark says, getting nothing but pursed lips and a sad nod in response.

He pats his friend's skinny shoulder and heads to the stairs, trying not to get the child's attention.

Once he gets to the room, his knuckles hit the wooden door softly. He hears some paper creasing through the cold surface and then, a tired, low voice asks him to come in.

He cautiously opens the door, his squinted eyes slowly adjusting to the darkened environment inside.

There's only a small lamp by the desk lightening the sight, bright enough for the bearded man to read the closest files.

"Are you ok, Luke?" Mark's questioning voice rings between the four walls, forcing the Irish to look up at him, black, thick bags decorating the wrinkles under his eyes.

The taller shakes his head and organizes some folders with shaking hands, "Too much work lately, that's all." He reassures, clearing his throat right after.

Mark furrows his eyebrows, leaning backwards on the closest wall and running a hand through his unruly hair.

He wants to try and make his friend to vent on whatever is bothering him, but the hypocrisy of that action would sink him in guilt. Instead, he swallows harshly and puts his s**t together for a second.

"What was the favor you wanted me to do for you?" The red-haired man finally asks, referring to the text he got from Luke earlier today.

"Oh, it's simple." Luke admits with a shrug. "You'll probably hate it though." He adds, roughly rubbing his eyelids with his fists.

"Just tell me."

The brown-haired man sighs heavily.

"There's this meeting at John's school in two days."

The American curses in silence as his heart aches. There's no way he's saying no to him, at least not when he looks so... Defeated.

"Can't your wife go?"

"She's busy and so do I." Luke responds plainly, looking away from his friend immediately.

"Ok, I'll do it." He mutters unconvincingly. He knows perfectly that his friend would do the same if it had been the other way around.

"Thank you, man."

"No problem."

"I'm really busy right now. You can stay for as long as you want with the guys." Patterson states as a polite request for Mark to leave him alone in whatever hell he has buried himself into.

Terell closes the door and walks downstairs, now with his mind focused on the reason behind all this sudden darkness that seems to surround the people he cares for the most.

"Hey, Mark. Do you want to join us?" A hazel-eyed man asks from the dining room.

It is until now that the little Johnathan notices Mark's presence. And, as expected, he gets up and runs towards him.

The older smiles, picking him up gently from the ground and approaching the rest of the guests at the room nearby.

They eat dinner together, listening to every word the kid has to say.

He is excited to say the least about Bryce and Ryan. The boy had the same reaction when he found out his uncle is homosexual.

"Mark, he's the friend I talked about! Evan, he's my uncle."

The brunette kid smiles shyly. "Nice to meet you, sir." He whispers awkwardly, drinking a sip of water right after.

The topic is not touched though, as the blue-eyed kid just keeps rambling about amusing things that have happened to him recently.

Once they all finish, Ryan takes the children upstairs and readies them for going to bed soon.

Meanwhile, Bryce and Mark clean the kitchen.

He finds it weird, the oldest of them, how his previous worries about his friend have been easily replaced by old ones.

The blond notices that invisible cloud pouring a wild storm over his shoulders and he immediately snaps his friend out of his thoughts.

"What is it, man?"

Mark shakes his head, massaging his temples with his cold fingers.

A shiver runs down his spine as he tries to find the words to explain his situation.

He would normally keep everything to himself –and vent to his best friend a week later.

Experience tells him, nonetheless, that he would only kill himself by doing that.

Therefore, he takes a deep breath and mutters the first thing that pops up in his brain. "I was in a relation and they just asked to give them some time."

Bryce nods, motioning for him to sit by the bar and pouring some water in an empty glass.

"You're thinking about the worst thing, don't you?" He says with a tired chuckle in an attempt to lighten the mood.

"He doesn't answer my messages. I even checked on him today. . . He wasn't home." Mark answers, drinking half of the water he was offered.

The tall male sits next to him, resting his elbows on the white tiles of the bar.

"How were they doing the last time you saw them?"

"Pretty badly." He accepts with a slight grin on his face.

"Maybe that's why they needed some time." Bryce says with a hum. "Don't blame it all on yourself. Hope must die last." He advises with a reassuring smile, placing his hand on the other male's shoulder before continuing, "Just remember the good times. Be there for them. Let whatever is going to happen take its course. But try to keep that light from the past. It will all be ok in the end. And if it's not ok, then it's not the end."