The Life of Matt Summers, Part 1

by Flaming Matt

Chapter 1

July 2012

"It isn't fair, why are you doing this to me?" Matt asks his parents. who are sitting opposite him at the dinning room table. "What did I do wrong, why am I being punished?" He then adds whilst looking at them with red and puffy eyes, Matt looked every bit the child he was and at just nine years old he just didn't understand what his parents were telling him and why they were doing this to him.

Taking a moment to look at each other, Matt's father David and his mother Sarah looked very sad, but they give each other a reassuring look before turning back towards their upset son. "We are sorry Matt, we really are but we have no choice, you have done nothing wrong and this isn't a punishment." David tells his son. but Matt still doesn't understand and looks on the verge of more tears.

"Your Dad is right Matt, if we could change things we would but we have no choice, we know how much this is going to upset you and it's upsetting us too but we will get through this as a family and..." before Sarah can finish though, Matt startles both his parents by jumping up and knocking his chair backwards to the ground and before either David or Sarah can react Matt loses control and the floodgates open as he screams at them.

"I HATE YOU BOTH... WHY DO YOU HATE ME... WHY ARE PUNISHING ME AND RUINING MY LIFE?" Matt storms out of the room and runs upstairs to his room, slamming the door as hard as he can before diving onto his bed face first and begins to cry his little heart out.

Sitting stunned back in the dining room Sarah drops her head with a sad expression, she then lets a few tears drop before leaning into her husband who embraces his wife into a loving cuddle. "David I can't bear to see him like this, will he ever forgive me?" Sarah asks, as she finally breaks the silence and cuddle as she looks deep into her husbands eyes.

"This is not your fault, you have nothing to feel guilty about, once he calms down and has time to think clearly he will calm down, just give him time and I promise everything will be okay." David replies sincerely to his wife, who manages to calm down and relax back into his arms.

Laying down on his bed sobbing his heart out, Matt just can't understand how his life has been turned upside down and destroyed, he tried running over recent events as he desperately tries to find out what he did so wrong that his parents would do such a cruel and nasty thing to him, until he finally succumbs to his exhaustion and falls into a deep sleep, where recent events continue to play on his mind as he dreams about how happy he had been.

One Week Earlier

Waking up was never an issue for Matt Summers, unlike most kids his age Matt couldn't wait for his days to begin and he happily stretched out the kinks of his body with a smile on his face, before turning on his side to look at his clock, he then smiles to himself as he sees that is was only five in the morning and almost jumped out of bed before remembering that the last time he did that he fell flat on his face and woke his parents up, he had found it amusing as they ran into his room with a look of fear he had never seen before and giggled as that look of fear turned to a look of annoyance once his parents saw what had happened.

So holding himself back, he slowly gets out of bed and walks over to his school bag, although School was now over for the summer holidays, he still had homework and assignments to do over the summer and there was no time like the present to make a start on them and while Matt would never admit it to his parents how much he loved school, his teachers were kind and caring, the subjects came almost naturally to him although he was not a genius by any stretch of the imagination, he was just good at learning, the best thing about school though were his friends and how he loved his friends and how much fun they had together.

Pulling out his maths book he smirked to himself, as he thought about his friend Tobias. "I just know he is going to be begging me to copy this when I'm done, I can't wait to see how much he begs for me he just has the funniest face when he thinks I won't let him." Matt says out loud, even though there is no one around and even awake at this time in the morning as far as he knew.

Tobias and Matt had been friends since either could remember, their parents were themselves childhood friends and have lived near each other their whole lives, Tobias had the darkest black hair Matt had ever seen, but what Matt loved about it the most was that it had blue streaks going through it, Matt had always envied how stylish Tobias was and wished he had the guts to express himself as much as Tobias did.

Tobias and Matt were both the same height and the same weight, both were a little below average but not in an unhealthy way, they just looked like two normal healthy active nine year old boys, who loved the outdoors as their tans would tell you, Tobias's eyes were something else though and Matt often got lost in them trying to figure out what colour they were, some days he would swear on his life they wear dark blue, but so often when the light hit them he could have sworn they were sky blue, much to the amusement of Tobias who loved Matt's curiosity with his eyes.

Tobias wasn't quite as natural with school as Matt was, but he was no idiot either and seemed to have an understanding of the world that was well beyond his age, he often surprised the adults with his maturity and ability to hold a conversation about most subjects an adult would struggle with, but at heart he was a young boy and he wasn't afraid or embarrassed to show it.

Finishing his maths homework Matt looks over to the clock with a smile, he notices it is almost 6:30am and places the book into a tray on his desk that he has for completed homework, wondering if either of his parents were awake yet, he then decides he needs to take a shower and swiftly removes his tighty whiteys that he always sleeps in, throwing them into the dirty laundry bin near his door, before walking over to his chest of draws, he removes a nice soft towel and wraps it around his skinny frame before making his way out of his room and into the hallway, the bathroom is only across from his room and he goes straight in shutting the door behind himself.

Carefully he folds the towel and places it on to the cabinet beside the sink, he then walks over to the shower cubicle and walks straight in and shuts the door, before turning the water on without worrying about the temperature, he had always enjoyed the shock to the system that the almost ice cold water provides and it really removes any lingering feelings of tiredness from his body, he then sighs in complete bliss as the temperature slowly warms up to a more comfortable level.

With out even realising it, he starts humming a tune and within a few minutes he is singing his little heart out as the water washes over him, even though he seems unaware of it himself Matt is always either humming or singing when he is happy and relaxed, those close to him enjoyed listening, but never interrupted or mentioned it to him because he seems completely oblivious and they worry that he may get embarrassed and self conscious.

Matt really enjoyed his early morning showers and loves feeling so clean, especially when he knows he is going to spend the day with Tobias, he just wanted to always be at his best for his beast friend in the whole world and couldn't ever imagine not being with him.

Being nine years old, his feelings for Tobias where completely innocent and it was just the purest kind of friendship that anyone could have, they would tell each other everything and had complete trust that the other one would always listen and be there when it was needed, they seemed to always know just what the other needed and just radiated happiness whenever they were together, which in turn filled those around them with a nice warm feeling in their heart, knowing what was happening today Matt wasted no time in getting out of the shower and bathroom drying off as he went to get changed into a cute little outfit that Tobias always liked.

Checking over at his clock once again, Matt gets an idea that produces an evil smirk on his face and without hesitation quickly storms out of his room and heads for his parents bedroom, but after bursting in Matt suddenly comes to a complete stop and looks at his parents bed in confusion and before being able to react Matt suddenly hears giggling behind him, but is too late to react as his parents jump out and grab him before flinging him onto their bed, when he bounces as he lands Matt didn't stand a chance when his parents jumped on top of him and started tickling him relentlessly and making him cry out in hysterics.

"STOP STOP... HAHAHA... STOP IT... HEHE IT'S... IT'S NOT... STOP HAHAHA... YOU'RE GONNA... HAHAHA... MAKE ME... PEE." Matt cries out to his parents, who reluctantly let go of their son and stand up looking at him triumphantly.

"Well we can't have our little baby boy making a mess of our bed can we honey?" David says with a ear to ear grin on his face to his wife.

"No we can't and besides I would have to buy him some more nappies if he can't control himself." Sarah then says and both she and her husband burst out laughing when they look back their son, who is giving them both his trademark pout.

"You cheated!" Matt then moans in mock anger, causing his parents to burst out laughing again at his theatrics, but can't help feeling a little guilty as they can't resist when that adorable pouting face looks directly at them.

"Us cheat, how dare you young sir, you dishonour us." David then says in mock surprise, that this time leaves his son giggling on the bed and after he composes himself Matt slowly sits up onto the bed and looks at his parents with an almost too adorable serious look on his face.

"You two are found guilty of cheating, you're sentenced to work in the kitchens to supply much needed nutrients for the traumatised victim you so dishonestly attacked." Matt says straight faced and without missing a beat, he quickly adds. "A full English breakfast is expected and don't hold back on the OJ, now chop chop I have matters of great importance to attend to today." Clapping his hands together and standing up from the bed, but his look of joy is short lived as both his parents dive on top of him and push him back on to the bed before tickling him into submission once again.

This time however they let him up before Matt cries out with the threat of urinating all over their bed. "Okay your majesty we accept our punishment and will provide much needed nutrients for our poor innocent victim, but we do request he take another shower due to a strange but strong smell coming from his direction." Sarah responds before both she and David head out of their bedroom and downstairs to the kitchen, leaving there son in their bedroom with a confused look on his face.

Quickly snapping out of his thoughts, Matt just smiles to himself. "I really do have the best parents ever." he declares to no one in particular, before smelling his arm pits and deciding maybe he does need another shower and definitely a new outfit to wear, which leaves him feeling a little disappointed.

After taking another shower Matt decides to eat breakfast before getting dressed and just slides some tighty whiteys on and heads to see what his parents have cooked for him, when he walks into the kitchen he is not left disappointed and takes a seat at the table.

"I really do have the best parents ever." Matt then says, repeating what he said earlier but this time making sure his parents heard him and a warm feeling enters his heart as he looks up to see both his parents looking at him with the proudest look on their faces.

Walking over to her son, Sarah messes his hair up before declaring. "You may have the best parents ever, but we have the greatest, most intelligent and thoughtful son in the whole universe and not to mention he is just the cutest thing ever." Which causes Matt to blush in pride and embarrassment before he quickly stands up and embraces his mum in a tender hug before breaking off and heading towards his father, who whilst seemingly enjoying the hug looks somewhat uncomfortable with this display of affection.

Finishing his breakfast and enjoying the conversation with his parents, Matt finally notices the time and makes his exit from the kitchen and heads straight to his room to get changed into something a little less revealing before heading out to meet Tobias at the park.

"Wake up Matt, Matt wake up I need to talk with you please." Sarah says softly as her son slowly comes around from his deep sleep, Matt then rolls onto his side revealing his tear stained face and painfully red and puffy looking eyes, which brings a horrible sharp painful feeling straight into Sarah's heart. "I'm so sorry my little prince, I love you so much and can't bare too see you like this, but there is nothing..." Sarah begins to say, but to her surprise she is suddenly pushed back and looks at her son and realises he just pushed her away, but before she can say anything Matt unloads his anger and frustration with venom.

"GET OUT OF MY ROOM... I HATE YOU AND I HATE DAD AND NEVER... WANT TO SEE YOU AGAIN... YOU ARE HORRIBLE AND ARE MEAN... I HAVEN'T DONE ANYTHING WRONG AND YOU ARE PUNISHING ME... WHY DO YOU HATE ME SO MUCH..." Matt screams at his surprised looking mum.

Quickly interrupting her son, Sarah tries her best to get through to him. "This isn't your fault, you haven't done anything Matt, it's just out of our hands and we have..." Sarah manages to say before she stops and watches as her son gets out of his bed and moves towards the door, managing to stay out of her reach.

"YOU'RE A LIAR AND I NEVER WANT TO SEE YOU AGAIN... EVERYTHING WAS PERFECT AND I WAS SOO HAPPY AND NOW YOU HAVE RUINED EVERYTHING.... I HATE YOU..." Matt screams and before leaving the room, he slams the door behind him and runs down the stairs, all Sarah can do is kneel down beside her sons bed with tears in her eyes, she then hears her husband shout something before hearing her son scream "I HATE YOU BOTH" before hearing the front door slams shut.

As Matt makes his way down the street and towards the park, his mind goes back to the last time he ran this hard and fast towards the same destination and sniffles as he remembers how different he felt on that day.

Two Months Earlier: May 2012

After running down the stairs, Matt only just remembers to give both his mum and dad a hug and a kiss before he leaves the house, smiling to himself at the difference between his dad's almost awkwardness at the closeness and how his mum's beamed with happiness at the show of affection, but just as quickly as those thoughts enter his head they leave and he shuts the front door behind himself to meet up with Tobias.

Matt takes in the scenery in front of him and takes in a deep breath of fresh air before taking off at full speed towards the park, he had already convinced himself like every previous occasion that this will be the best day of his life and like every time before this one, it really was every thing he thought it would be.

Not being able to hide his excitement as he approaches the park, he spots Tobias leaning against a tree looking into the distance not quite facing him. "TOBIAS, TOBIAS OVERHEAR IT IS ME, TOBIAS LOOK IT'S ME!" Matt shouts out and smiles when Tobias turns around looking a little startled by the sudden intrusion into his peaceful thoughts, Tobias quickly starts to grin when he realises who it is as he sees Matt hurtling towards him shouting in excitement, If it was anyone else, even his other close friends he would have sighed and rolled his eyes, but this was Matt and there was no one, not even his family that he loved more and although he didn't understand why, he always got the strangest yet incredible feeling when he was around his friend.

Although feeling happy that his friend was finally here, Tobias couldn't help but worry as he was closing the distance very fast and didn't look like he was slowing down at all, in fact if anything in Tobias's mind it looked, if anything that his friend was running even faster and before he could react in any way, he found himself flat on his back with the dorkiest most goofy smile looking down on him.

"Hey Tobias, didn't you see me?" Matt asks, while trying hard not to giggle.

"Of course I saw you, how could I miss such a big fatty thing like you charging at me?" Tobias teases, before quickly pushing his friend off and sending him half flying on to his side.

"Hey no fair, I wasn't ready." Matt shouts out as rolls over and gets to his feet.

"Not my fault you weigh less than a feather." Tobias retorts, lightly taunting his friend in the hope he shows of his adorable pout, that just gives him the warmest happy feeling inside..

"Make up your mind butt face." Matt retorts, but to Tobias's disappointment doesn't pout.

"About what? Tobias asks in a confused tone.

"Well one minute I'm a big fatty thing and the next minute I'm lighter than a feather, so which is it butt face, I can't be both can I? even in your dumb head that wouldn't make sense." Matt states as he sticks out his tongue, before making a run for it before his friend reacts and tries to grab him and as Matt gets a decent head start, Tobias quickly realises what just happened and starts to chasing after his friend.

"Why you little git, wait till I get my hands on you Matt, you're so dead." Tobias shouts out.

Both boys laugh and giggle as they finally stop messing around and land in a heap beside a tree, it's actually where they were going to go any way because it was one of the more secluded areas of the park and a good place to just talk.

"I can't believe how lucky I am Tobias." Matt then says after catching his breath and Tobias looks over to his friend with a smile.

"You're?" Tobias replies curiously and Matt turns his head and stares deeply into his friends eyes.

"Yes I am, not only do I have the best parents in the whole world, but I also have the friend in the whole galaxy and he is going to be my friend forever and ever, so yeah, I am the luckiest boy that ever lived." Matt says genuinely meaning every word, Tobias though could have sworn his heart missed a beat, but he didn't understand why and breaks eye contact with his friend before rolling on to his back and lets out a small happy sigh of content.

"You know what Matt?" Tobias then asks almost whispering.

"No... Know what Toby?" Matt asks as he rolls onto his own back and stares upwards.

"Well first thing is, you know how much I hate you calling me that and secondly you aren't the luckiest boy in the world." Tobias states with a smile and Matt raises himself up by his elbows so he can see his friend, who is still looking to the sky with a contented look on his face.

"Yeah I know sorry, I don't like it either, Tobias sounds much cuter and better anyway, I love your name." Matt responds as if it is the most natural thing in the world, however Tobias heart misses another beat and he can't help but smile to himself. "Hey anyway what do you mean, I'm not the luckiest person alive?" He then asks his friend in confusion, he then watches as Tobias sits up on his elbows and turns his head to face him.

"Because I have you as my friend, so that makes me the luckiest boy that ever lived, so you will have to settle for second because there is no way you can beat that." Tobias explains with a cheeky smile and sitting upright flicks his friend across the nose, he then jumps up and runs away giggling, closely followed by his red faced friend as they spend the next few hours chasing each other around while occasionally taking short breaks to talk, but as the hours pass the sun begins to set and darkness settles in they know they can't stay much longer.

"We should be heading back now Tobias, it's getting late and I don't want my parents to worry." Matt tells his friend as they walk along the path to head home, until Tobias notices something bright in the bushes towards their left.

"Hey what's that Matt?" Tobias asks his friend as he begins to move closer to the bright object that caught his eye.

"What? I don't see anything." Matt replies while he slowly movies in the same direction as his friend. "Hey Tobias come on it's getting late and I don't want to get in trouble... please come on." He then says and Tobias looks back at his friend and sighs, he knows his friend is right but just as they both turn around they walk straight into someone and jump back in surprise.

"Oh er... sorry sir we didn't mean too.." Matt starts to say, but pauses for a few seconds when he looks up. "Dad? What.. why.. what are you doing here?" He finally manages to ask before looking towards his friend, who looks just as surprised as he is.

Trying to not appear as surprised as the two boys in front of him, David clears his throat and looks between the them before finally settling his eyes on his son. "Isn't it obvious young man?" He then asks his now even more surprised looking son.

Matt tries to think of something to say but comes up short, he was just too stunned and his dad's tone had made him nervous, luckily for him though his friend is not quite as shocked as he was.

"Hey Mr Summers, sorry we are still out here, it's my fault because I got distracted by something and didn't realise how late it was." Tobias manages to say, somehow sounding a lot more confident than he felt.

Standing in front of the boys, David lets a smile creep out which instantly relaxes the boys. "Relax boys I'm not out here to drag you back kicking and screaming, I was on my way home and your mum called to say you weren't home yet Matt, so I just thought I would see if you were here and needed a lift, so what do you say boys, fancy a ride or do you want to use those little legs of yours and walk back on your own?" He says with a now warm smile as he ruffles both boys hair.

"We will take the ride Dad, these little legs have had a busy day and we could do with a laugh watching you try to drive." Matt teases and quickly jumps back giggling, just in time to avoid the playful swat from his dad and is joined by his friend who is now feeling a lot more relaxed.

"Oh David... I mean er... Mr Summers, I saw something in the bushes over there, we were going to take a look but Matt was to scared to look in case he had a little accident." Tobias then says with a big grin, but unlike his friend he doesn't anticipate the playful swat and lets out a mock cry of pain before giggling after his friends hand swats the back of his head.

"Was not scared... I wasn't scared Daddy, I just wanted to get home so you wouldn't be worried... I wasn't scared." Matt then says, as he does his best to defend his honour, whilst giving his friend an evil glare.

David looks at the two boys and brings them into a close playful hug, but when he looks past them he sees something bright that catches his eye, slowly releasing the giggling boys he quickly changes the expression on his face, from a serious one to a playful one, he then looks both boys in the eyes.

"Okay you little detectives stay close behind me and we will go see what treasures you have found." David then says, before turning to Tobias with a evil smile. "Oh and get ready to catch the little baby over there, just in case we find a scary plastic bag and he faints or wets himself." He says teasingly and receives a light punch to the arm from his son and then sees the adorable pout only his son seems to be able to pull off, leaving both him and Tobias in a fit of giggles, he then composes himself and gets serious again and continues his way towards the bright mystery object.

Although as David gets close enough to see what it is he suddenly stops and tell the boys to turn around and head to his car quickly, without letting them see what he has discovered and as they reluctantly walk away talking between themselves, David pulls out his phone and dials. "Yeah it is David Summers, I'm in the park...."

As he finally snaps out of his thoughts, Matt realises that he has already made it to the park and is surprised to see no one else is there, even at this time of the day it was a strange experience for it to be completely empty, but he is too upset and confused to give it any more thought and makes his way over to his and Tobias's favourite spot and just sits down before bringing his knees to his chest and starts to cry, after a while and having no idea how much time has past since he got there, he is suddenly brought back to reality by someone clearing their throat and without looking up, just assumes he knows who is standing in front of him just lets his anger and frustration out.

"GET OUT OF MY FACE... I TOLD YOU TO LEAVE ME ALONE... I HATE YOU BOTH AND I DON'T EVER..." Matt begins to shout,but before he finishes, he feels a small hand on his shoulder and hears the sweetest voice that quickly washes all the pain away.

"Hey, Matt what's going on? You know you can tell me anything, I hate seeing you like this." Tobias says as he quickly sits beside his crying friend and before his friend can say anything or move away, he places his arm around his shoulder and pulls him closer. "Come on Matt calm down, I'm here now and nothing bad can happen while me and you are together." He then adds, but without having time to react, Tobias finds himself being shoved to the ground sideways and can only look on as his friend jumps up and bolts away from him.

"MATT WAIT PLEASE.... WAIT!" Tobias shouts as he finally manages to pick himself up, he then starts to run after his upset friend, but he is already almost out of sight. "MATT PLEASE... I WANT TO HELP... MATT!" He shouts out, but by the time he has managed to get up to full speed, it's too late and he loses sight of his friend who disappears into the wooded area, but he isn't willing to give up because of the obvious distress his friend was in though and doesn't even slow down and continues in the direction he saw him go in.

After ten minutes of searching, Tobias almost takes out his phone to call his friends parents, but just as his hand reaches into his pocket he hears a low almost silent sob coming from a bushed area to his left, leaving his phone in his pocket he slowly edges towards the almost unbearable sounds of crying, which he guesses are coming from his friend.

"Hey buddy... hey Matt it's me Tobias... please don't run away, I just want to be there for you... please don't run." Tobias almost whispers, he is so scared his friend will bolt and doesn't want to startle him or scare him.

"Tobias I hate them so much, they are punishing me and I hate them so much." Matt states in a sad tone.

"Sshh, I'm here now Matt please don't run... I'm just going to sit down next to you okay." Tobias says as softly as he can, trying to hide his confusion at what is happening.

"It's okay Tobias... I won't run... I just hate them so much and don't understand why they are doing this to me." Matt softly says and somehow managing not bursting into tears, there is just something about his friend that gives him a warm safe feeling.

"Sshh, Matt it's okay I'm here now, but I don't understand who do you hate and what are they doing to you, is someone hurting you Matt because you can tell me and you can trust me." Tobias then says sincerely, he was really scared for his friend and wanted to help him.

"My parents, I hate them Tobias they have ruined my life, I hate them and I never want to see them again and they hate me, I didn't do anything I swear and they are punishing me and I don't understand why." Matt explains, but is now sobbing again after losing his composure, Tobias however just doesn't understand what his friend is trying to say.

"Matt are your parents hurting you? Did they hit you or something, what did they do to you Matt?" Tobias asks in a concerned tone, but is left even more confused when his friends red and puffy eyes lock onto his with it's own confused look.

"Hit me? They haven't hit me, but they hate me and they are punishing me and I don't...." Matt tries to explain, but breaks down in tears again and buries his face into his knees.

"Matt calm down please, everything is going to be okay, your parents don't hate you and you probably just misunderstood..." Tobias begins to say as he tries to reassure his friend, but flinches in surprise as his friend pushes him away and glares at him before slowly standing up.

"NO I HATE THEM AND THEY DO HATE ME... THEY ARE HORRIBLE AND MEAN AND THEY ARE PUNISHING ME FOR NO REASON... YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT THEY ARE DOING AND... AND I HATE THEM... THEY HAVE RUINED EVERYTHING AND..." Matt shouts, but doesn't finish what he is trying to say and instead makes a run for it, this time though Tobias is too stunned to follow his friend and just sits there trying to think about what was happening.

Tobias has never seen his friend like this, in fact he has barely ever seen him cry, so slowly getting to his feet he decides that he will walk the same way as his friend ran but not to find him, he knows it's in the direction that leads back to the main park and he needs to get to the bottom of this before trying to talk to his friend again.

At Matt's home both David and Sarah are sitting at the dining table looking at each other sadly. "He should be home by now, David you saw the state he was in and we need to call the police, anything could have happened to him." Sarah says pleadingly to her husband.

"It's still light outside Sarah, just try to relax because he needs time to get his head around this, we all do right?" David responds, trying his best to reassure his wife but fails.

"No something has happened I just know it, we are being punished for doing this to him, it can't be to late, I can make some phone calls David, I can make it right." Sarah says desperately trying not to hurt her son.

"No Sarah pull yourself together, this won't help Matt at all, it's too late and it's going to happen, we can't give him any false hope or it will crush him and we will lose him forever." David says a little more sternly than intended, but it seems to have had the correct effect as his wife nods in agreement. "Look I think I know where he went and just to put your mind to rest, I will call Tobias and see if he has seen Matt okay Sarah? If anyone can find and calm Matt down it's him Honey, you know they might as well be twins." He then says as his wife looks up with a forced smile on her face and wipes the tears from her eyes.

"I just hate this so much but thank you David, Tobias will look after him, it just makes me sad how close they are now and what is going to happen, it's just not fair and it's all my fault, even I don't understand why this is happening or even how, so how am I supposed to make Matt understand David?" Sarah then states in frustration.

Knowing he doesn't know the answer, David just stands up and moves around to his wife to comfort her before standing back up and pulling out his phone. "Okay I'm going to talk to Tobias now, why don't you go upstairs and take a long hot bath, you need to be relaxed for Matt." David suggests to his wife, but she doesn't reply, she just stands up kisses her husband lovingly and makes her way upstairs, then when he hears the bathroom door close, David looks down at his phone and flicks through the names until he finds what he is looking for.

"Yeah it's Mr Summers, I need to talk to Nick now Carla." David states as he gets through to his friends secretary.

"Is it important, he has asked not to be disturbed Mr Summers." Carla responds.

"Yeah it's important, he knows I wouldn't call if it wasn't." David states in a frustrated tone.

"Okay, if you can just wait a few minutes, I will tell him you want to speak with him." Carla then says.

"Yeah I can wait, but my wife is in the house so I can't be too long." David answers, but doesn't get a response and just waits impatiently.

"Hello, David?" Nick asks and startles David as he wasn't expecting him to answer so quickly.

"Oh hey Nick." David responds, deciding to be polite.

"How are things?" Nick asks making small talk, he wants to get straight to the point, but he knows David well and he will say what he wants in his own time.

"Hey, yeah I'm fine thank you how about yourself." David responds as he looks to the door.

"I'm good, but very busy David." Nick responds, already losing the little patience he had, he liked David and they went back many years, but he was really busy and this is just slowing him down.

"That is great to hear, I'm not going to beat around the bush here but I need to know everything is set in stone." David then asks, he knows Nick can be impatient, even more than himself, so doesn't want to drag this out to much.

"Yes David, we have been over this already and nothing can go wrong." Nick answers, he knew his friend was nervous about this plan and knew he had every reason to be, the alternative was not desirable for anyone.

"Yeah I know, but I can't have anything go wrong okay and my wife is very emotional right now and in that state of mind can be unpredictable." David then states, he has genuine concerns and needs to be one hundred percent sure everything is in order.

"David do I need to be worried?" Nick then asks, Sarah had always been the biggest concern, they all knew she was the one person who could wreck the plan and they had done all they could to make sure that didn't happen.

"No nothing for you to worry about, I just need the plan to go through and for there to be no way it can not happen." David says half reassuring his friend and himself.

"If you keep Sarah from doing anything stupid, then nothing can go wrong and you have my word on that." Nick then states, when it came to these matters, no expense is spared and even more so when it is someone as highly respected as David Summers.

"Okay thank you so much Nick, I needed to hear that and Sarah won't be an issue, I will handle her." David responds in relief, this had been just wait he needed to hear.

"This is for the best David, you are doing this for your family and you know what the alternative is and no one wants that to happen." Nick then states sincerely.

"I know it's for the best, I understand that, remember this was my idea." David answers, there were a few options available to him, but he had decided to come up with his own plan and it was almost complete.

"You know I'm going to miss you around David, only you could get worked up over your own plan falling to bits and I know we will see each other again, but I just want to say good luck and I hope it all works out in the end." Nick then states, he was genuinely going to miss his friend, although they would see each other again in the future.

"Yeah okay Mr Smart ass, it wad good to speak with you mate and good luck with everything over here." David responds with a smile, he was going to miss Nick a lot.

"Good luck David, I have to go now though." Nick then says, he really did need to go and couldn't put it off any more.

"Yeah we will speak soon, bye Nick" David says and hangs up the phone, they never did long goodbyes and it suited them both fine.

Hanging up the phone David slowly walks towards the front door and opens it, he takes a quick look up and down the street before quickly retreating back into the house and closes the door just enough to hide when he notices his son slowly walking towards the house but instead of coming home, David notices his son turning towards their neighbours house where he heads towards the door and knocks, smiling to himself in relief David then closes the door and makes his way to his wife in the bathroom knocking gently.

"Honey are you okay?" David says softly but loud enough to be heard.

"No I'm not okay David, I'm still worried about Matt, I have never seen him like that before... what if something." Sarah begins to reply before David decides to interrupt her, to stop her from getting upset again.

"Darling everything is okay, Matt is safe and he is in one piece." David tells her truthfully.

Sarah lets out a sigh of relief. "Tobias found him? How is he? Where was he?." She asks and David takes a deep breath.

"No I didn't have to phone Tobias, I went outside first to check down the road and saw him, he looked so lost and upset that I almost ran out to him, but I didn't want to frighten him." David starts to answer, but this time Sarah interrupts him.

"I didn't hear him come in David, where is he?" Sarah asks sounding increasingly agitated and David lets out a quiet sigh before finishing his explanation.

"No Sarah he didn't come home, he went straight to the Steven's house, I thought it would be best to leave him instead of trying to force him to come home." David finishes explaining with a soothing tone, he really wanted to keep his wife as calm as possible.

David then steps back from the door, slightly surprised by the door opening as Sarah steps out in a towel. "You did the right thing, seeing us will just upset him and they will look after him, I love you Honey." Sarah states before kissing him.

"I love you to Sexy, everything will be okay he just needs time." David then says and takes her hand before heading to their bedroom.

A few days later Matt is laying in his bed, he hasn't left his room apart from using the toilet and picking the tray of food his parents left outside his door, so looks up curiously towards the door when he hears a soft knock and just when he thinks it is just his parents, he hears that sweet voice that somehow always brings warmth to his heart.

"Matt it's me Tobias... can I come in please?" Tobias asks as he waits for his friend to answer and Matt can't help but smile for the first time in days and quickly sits up.

"Come in Tobias, it's okay." Matt responds with a smile as he watches his friend walk in and Tobias can't help but smile himself, he wasn't sure what to expect, but his friends smiling face is definitely a good sign.

"You had me so worried Matt, it scared the life out of me, seeing you like that." Tobias tells his friend honestly.

"I'm so sorry Tobias I didn't mean to upset you, I just, just...." Matt begins to say, but the smile drops from his face and he can feel tears in his eyes, Tobias notices his friends change in mood and quickly moves over to his friend and embraces him.

"Sshh Matt, it's okay please don't get upset, I like happy Matt because he isn't quite as ugly as red eyed Matt." Tobias teases as he smiles to himself, then hears his friend trying not to giggle and he knows he has at least helped a little already.

"You're are so lucky I don't have my hands free Tobias or I would knock you into the next town for that." Matt replies jokingly and Tobias grins as he looks at the now smiling boy in front of him.

"You see, I told you I was the luckiest boy in the whole wide world, now do you believe me?" Tobias states to his friend, then notices the sad look on his face. "Will you tell me what is wrong Matt, I spoke with your parents, but they told me to ask you, they are sad too and asked me to tell you they love you." He then adds as his friend looks up at him with a forced smile on his face.

"Tobias I know they don't hate me and I don't hate them, I understand now but it is still not fair and I can't forgive them, it's just not fair." Matt then says and mumbles the last few words. but Tobias understood him clearly.

"If you tell me then maybe I can help you understand Matt, you can trust me and I lo... I will never lie to you or hurt you." Tobias starts to say but his face turns red, he then breaks eye contact with his friend, leaving Matt a little confused but he doesn't give it any more thought.

"I'm scared you will hate me, it isn't my fault though and there is nothing that can change what is happening, I begged and cried and shouted but I couldn't stop it Tobias, I'm so sorry I have let you down and you will hate me and I hate myself because it isn't fair." Matt says with tears running down his face, but he manages to keep his composure enough to avoid breaking down completely.

"Whatever it is Matt, I would never hate you and we will get through it together." Tobias says from the heart but, Matt just looks into his friends eyes with a sad look.

"No we won't Tobias, that is why I hate it and why you will hate me, please don't hate me I can't handle you hating me." Matt says trying to avoid making eye contact with his friend. Tobias eyes begin to fill with tears as somewhere deep in his soul something breaks, he doesn't understand the feeling or what caused him to feel that way, but he knows something bad is about to happen.

"Just tell me please Matt... please." Tobias pleads to Matt who sighs before composing himself.

"Tobias I'm sorry but...."

As Sarah is preparing dinner with David sitting across from her reading the local paper, they look towards the hallway in surprise as they hear their son shout out.

"TOBIAS PLEASE.... NO... PLEASE DON'T GO... YOU PROMISED... TOBIAS NOOOO!!" Matt screams out and both Sarah and David can hear the sound of his bedroom door slamming and footsteps rushing down the stairs, but before they even can react they both see Tobias in floods of tears running past them and out the front door slamming it behind himself.

Without moving David and Sarah just look at each other sadly with a knowing look, before nodding towards each other and making their way to their sons room and even before they reach his door they can hear him crying his heart out and mumbling incoherently, so instead of going inside they both without needing to speak know that there is nothing they can do and reluctantly leave their son and return to what they were doing.

Two weeks later things are a lot more calm in the Summers house, Matt has almost come to terms with the situation and has tried his hardest to not get upset, apart from the odd outburst and arguments he and his parents return to how they were before the big announcement and even share a few jokes, although things have improved within the family he is still devastated by Tobias reaction, which was almost as extreme as his own to the news and while he has tried his best to talk with his friend, apart from a few words Tobias has avoided him as much as possible.

"I knew he would hate and blame me Mum, I miss him so much why won't he talk to me, he knows what is going to happen, so why is he making it harder... he promised." Matt asks his mum with tears rolling down his face, he looks up hopefully to his mum for all the answers, just something that will make everything okay, but all he sees is her sad face looking back at him and he just looks back down at his plate of food,

"I'm sorry Matt, he will come around he just needs time, this is going to be so hard on the both of you, please don't give up, do you remember earlier this year when your Auntie Amy last visited and you and Toby had a little falling out, but you and him were so happy to see her that you just forgot what happened and made up?" David suddenly says from the doorway, causing both his son and wife to jump in surprise.

Four Months Earlier: March 2012

"So Honey what happened?" Sarah asks her son, who was obviously looking very angry.

"Tobias is being an idiot and I'm never talking to him again... ever." Matt coldly replies.

"Oh I see, what did he do though, you two are two peas in a pod normally." Sarah says as she tries to get to the bottom of what happened, the two boys never fought and she couldn't help but be more curious than concerned.

"Mum don't be silly, we don't pee in pods we use the toilet like you do." Matt innocently replies, sounding confused by his mothers words and Sarah tries not to laugh and keep a straight face as she really wants to get to the bottom of this fallout, more than she wants enjoy her sons innocence.

"I know you do sweetheart, I'm sorry but please just tell me so I can help." Sarah calmly states, she knows with enough probing, she can get her son to open up.

"Okay but don't laugh okay... promise you won't laugh or I will never talk to you again as well, you hear me?" Matt states totally serious with the look to support it and it takes everything Sarah has not to burst out laughing at her sons words and seriousness, it was just the most adorable thing ever.

"Honey I would never laugh at you and I'm your mum, I will always put you first, I promise okay, now tell me what happened please?" Sarah tells her son sincerely and looks into her sons eyes and can almost see the clogs turning in his mind as he weighs up his options.

"He laughed at..." Matt begins to say, but quickly pauses to study his mums face, looking for signs of her laughing but seems satisfied and continues. "He laughed at my hair and made fun of me by saying It made me look cute, he said the same about my clothes, he was looking at me funny and smiling... he was making fun of me Mum and he was being a meanie and I'm never talking to him again." He then adds with the cutest little humph sound Sarah has ever heard, Matt then just sits quietly whilst looking directly at his mum waiting for a reply.

Not quite sure what to make of this whole thing, Sarah was desperately trying not to laugh at just how ridiculous this fallout is and isn't helped when see notices David standing in the doorway out of her sons sight, silently laughing his head off, but somehow she manages to restrain herself from laughing before turning back at her son.

"It does sound to me like he might have been making fun of you Matt, but I'm sure you have made fun of him too, it seems like a silly thing to fall out over." Sarah tells her son, but as she is fully focused on her son, Sarah misses the looks and signals David is trying to give her and is totally unaware of just how wrong her approach to this and David can only look on as their son suddenly stands up and glares at his mother.

"I knew you would take his side, you promised me and you lied, this is serious mum and you are meant to help me when I need it not hurt me." Matt says almost hissing in anger as a few tears roll down his face, which takes Sarah by complete surprise and she is momentarily frozen and desperately trying to think of something to say, but every time she looks up she sees her sons red angry face looking at her as if she betrayed him deeply.

Suddenly before Matt is about to storm out and carry out his promise of never speaking to her again, Sarah lets out a grateful sigh as she notices who now standing beside her husband.

"So what do we have here then, all this anger and tension is not healthy you know, it almost makes me want to take all these gifts back with me." Amy says and smiles as she watches her nephew suddenly turn around, he is about to shout at the person who rudely interrupted his big exit, but all of his anger and frustrations magically disappear when he recognises the person speaking to him.

"Aunt.. Auntie Amy... it's you, it's really you." Matt cries out in happiness, he then runs and almost knocks her to the floor as he jumps into her arms. "I missed you so much and I love you so much Auntie Amy, tell me everything." Matt says as he bombards his auntie with affection and questions, Amy smiles and looks over towards her sister and nods as she mouths the words "Thank you" silently at her.

"Right young man, why don't you go get us a cup of water each and you can tell me all about this silly little argument you had with Tobias." Amy tells her nephew without breaking a stride, she then takes a seat next to her sister and watches her nephew obediently pouring two glasses of water and bringing them over without even complaining, Sarah just looks on in amazement at just how much her son will do anything her sister tells him and can't help but feel a little jealous, but is more than grateful for the timing of her sisters visit as things were about to go downhill fast.

"Now my little bold brave man, why don't you sit down and apologise to your mum and then sit and listen to what I say about this silly little fight okay." Amy then instructs her nephew, looking him straight in the eyes and smiling.

"I'm sorry Mummy, I just got so mad and I thought you were laughing at me, just like that meanie Tobias was and it made me go all red and I kept forgetting to take breaths and it was like my head was going to explode and my brains were..." Matt starts explaining and clearly getting carried away, so Amy decides to interrupt her nephew before he actually explodes or something, but can't help marvel at how a young boys mind comes up with this stuff.

"Okay I think we get the idea you special little guy, now come on and apologise to you mum, we don't want to fall asleep before we die of old age now do we?" Amy tells her nephew and smiles as he lets out a little giggle and nods his head.

"Sorry I know I was being silly, I didn't mean to say those things, I could never not talk to you again because then I... well .. I would starve to death wouldn't I." Matt then says as he attempts to apologise again, but his attempts cause both Sarah and Amy to look at each other in bemusement, they then both turn back to Matt who still has his serious face on, which almost causes them both to laugh.

"Starve to death? What?." Sarah then asks in a mixture of confusion and disbelief, but she can see her son is very serious and almost giggles as he jumps straight back into his explanation.

"Well if I can't talk to you, then I couldn't ask for dinner and breakfast and I don't know how to cook and that would leave me with only dad to make my food, I think I would rather starve to death because his food is icky and horrible, even dogs wouldn't dare eat his food." Matt says still being serious and both Amy and Sarah can't help but laugh at his adorably cute, if not somewhat bizarre explanation, whilst David, who had been standing in the doorway turns a interesting shade of red.

"Hey, it's not that bad." David states before moving over to his son and ruffling his hair up and smiles as his son starts giggling.

"You're right Honey it isn't that bad, it is worse, much worse." Sarah blurts out causing all four of them to cry out in laughter. Amy then taps the side of her glass of water with a spoon to gain the attention of the others and everyone settles down.

"Now why don't Mummy and Daddy go talk somewhere else, while us intelligent people have a serious conversation Matt?" Amy then suggests with a warm smile and she can tell her nephew is enjoying the attention and she watches as her sister and brother-in law make there way upstairs, with knowing smiles on their faces.

"Okay Matt, let's get down to business okay." Amy then says with a warm smile.

"Okay Aunty, well Tobias is being a meanie and he..." Matt begins to explain but Amy cuts her nephew off, who can't help but look at his auntie in surprise.

"Honey I know, I heard everything earlier okay?" Amy informs her nephew, who looks at her curiously, but decides to just nod his head in response. "Now I'm not going to laugh at you or treat you like a child, you're too smart for that so I'm going to be honest and tell you exactly what I think, whether you like what I say or not okay?" She then states and again watches as her nephew nods in agreement."Right good, well first up Tobias was not laughing at you or making fun of you..." She begins, but is quickly interrupted by her nephew.

"Yes he was, he said..." Matt begins to say but just as quickly as he interrupted her, Amy stops him from talking by leaning across the table and holding a finger over his lips and he gets the message.

"Don't interrupt me again Matt, now listen to me, Tobias was paying you a compliment, now I know you're smart enough to know what a compliment is, so don't say anything else until I have finished." Amy then states and smiles as he nods without speaking. "He said your hair looks cute and well it does, he said your outfit looked nice and cute and well it does Matt, you always look nice and cute, so learn to take a compliment and lastly he smiled at you because he meant what he said, a smile is not the same as a laugh. So I want you to think about that okay." She then says and waits for her nephew to process everything she has just told him.

Amy takes a deep breath and smiles at her nephew who nods his head, she then grins as the clogs turn around inside his mind trying to work through what happened. Eventually a massive grin appears across his face and before Amy has any idea what is happening, he is already up and around the table embracing her in one of the warmest loving hugs she has ever experienced, as she looks up she notices both Sarah and David smiling at her sticking their thumbs up, which makes her let out a small happy laugh, this causes Matt to look up at her face, then in the direction she is staring and his smile somehow gets even bigger.

"Mummy, Daddy guess what?" Matt asks, still beaming with happiness.

"What?" They both say in unison, but before they can even look at each other to acknowledge each others response, their son jumps straight in.

"Mummy, Daddy I'm so happy, you see Tobias wasn't making fun of me and being a meanie, he doesn't hate me at all, he... er... he loves me... he is the friend ever and he thinks I'm cute looking." Matt states and is almost jumping for joy andd barely manages to contain himself, although he has no idea just what he said and what those words actually meant.

Whilst Sarah and Amy both look over the moon and almost cuddle Matt to death, David's face almost drops as he takes in his sons words and has to quickly pull himself together when his son breaks free from his mum and auntie and latches on to him.

"Isn't it great Daddy, Tobias doesn't hate me, we are going to be friends forever and ever and we are going to make each other so happy... isn't it great." Matt blurts out and he is too excited and happy to notice his dads discomfort and annoyance which also goes unnoticed by both Amy and his wife, then suddenly as if it is the single most important thing in the world Matt releases his dad and looks at his family smiling. "I have to find Tobias and tell him that he isn't a big meanie and then I'm going to tell him how cute he is and that I love him too, isn't this great, I'm going to find him now, I just know where he will be... bye everyone, bye Auntie Amy, thank you so much bye, bye." He adds as he is already half way out of the house and even as he gets further and further away from the house, they can still hear him shouting away in happiness,

Sarah then turns to her sister and hugs her tightly thanking her on a great job and for her great timing, David however just stands there looking extremely aggravated, but he manages to hide it as he thanks his sister-in law for her help, before excusing himself from the room and heading upstairs, pulling his phone out of his pocket as he walks away.

"I remember Dad, but Auntie Amy isn't here is she and she isn't going to be, so unless Tobias has a magic auntie of his own to make him see sense, then it's over and I have to er... it's just not fair I need to see him, it can't end with him hating me I er... I don't think I can li... er I don't think I can..." Matt tries to say before he trails off, he just isn't able to express what he is feeling as he doesn't understand them himself and before he can try to speak again, tears start to rolling down his face.

David himself was not handling things any better, although not for the same reasons as his son, this is definitely not something he wants to be hearing from his son, but he again manages to control himself, he has worked to hard to let something like this spoil things and he loves his family too much, so he glances over to Sarah and excuses himself and makes his way outside to clear his head, deciding to get into his car, he pulls his phone out and dials as he drives away.

"Where is Daddy going Mum?" Matt asks, as he watches his dad leave.

"To work little man, he had to be there earlier, but you are more important than work and he loves being around you" Sarah says lying to her son, as she had no idea why her husband just left like he did, but before she can give it any more thought, she is stunned into silence by her son.

"I wish you put me before work, then this wouldn't be happening, but you lied to me and now everything is ruined." Matt states, although he now knew the real reasons for why his life was being ruined, he couldn't help but blame his mum for lying to him and before she gets the chance to respond she can only watch as her son walks out of the house, he knew it would upset his mum but he just had to have some time alone, so just started walking with no idea where he would end up.

After almost thirty minutes of wandering around, Matt found himself sitting under the tree in the park that he and Tobias had often ended up together, he didn't know why he went there, but he just guessed it was a safe place and he knew that it was rare for anyone else to walk by, after another twenty minutes he suddenly feels someone watching him, normally he might be a little scared but he doesn't even have to open his eyes to know who it was, he knows that feeling of warmth in his heart only happens when a certain someone is near him, even if he doesn't understand what it means he knows that it is a good feeling.

"Hey Tobias, you okay?" is all Matt says, still keeping his eyes shut.

"I love it when you sing Matt, it always makes me happy." Tobias says smiling, but there is sadness in his voice, this time Matt does open his eyes and smiles at his friend.

"I wasn't singing, I was just humming you know." Matt states matter of factly, still not breaking eye contact with his friend, he really does love looking into those dark blue... no sky blue... blue, hell even now he can't make up his mind what kind of blue they were, they seem to change every time he looked into them.

"Yes you were, your voice is beautiful, you always sing Matt, you just don't seem to notice is all." This time it is Tobias who is speaking matter of factly and causes his friend to break eye contact briefly, trying to work out if his friend is being serious or not.

"No I don't, I think I would know if I was singing Tobias." Matt then states trying his best to sound confident, but can't help but wonder if he does sing without realising, but no one else has ever said anything, surely someone would have said something or made a comment about it.

"You don't do it everywhere you know, just when you're in a safe place or totally relaxed or in deep thought, everyone thinks it's adorable and cute and they just don't want you to stop doing it by being embarrassed, so no one mentions it, you're really good you know so don't be embarrassed, I don't want you to stop singing." Tobias then says, as if he read his friends mind.

"Oh well er... why have you never told me though, we always tell each other everything Tobias, why tell me now?" Matt asks nervously, Tobias just sighs and looks his friend directly in his eyes.

"Because it felt like you were singing to me, it made me feel special, I didn't want you to get embarrassed and stop doing it because I would miss how it made me feel, I know I should have told you but I was being selfish and I'm sorry." Tobias answers honestly, but pauses as he sits down next to his friend. "I guess I'm telling you now because there isn't long left before you go away and we will never see each other again and it makes me hurt inside to know I will never hear you sing again either." He then adds before a tear roles down his cheek and before he can say any more he starts crying into his hands.

Matt shifts over closer to his crying friend and embraces him "I'm not angry, I just wish you had told me and I would have sung to you any time you wanted, I would do anything for you and I'm so sorry I'm leaving you, I can't even think about not seeing you everyday without crying, I don't think I can do it Tobias, it has always been you and me and now.. I just don't know how I'm going to cope when it happens and there is really nothing I can do about it." Matt then says from the heart and sniffles a few times

"I know, I know it sounds bad and I don't mean it as a bad thing, because I don't want you to go, but a part of me wants it to happen quickly because then I will know it isn't just a cruel joke and I won't wake up every day thinking it's just a dream... you know I hate the waiting it... just hurts and... you know?" Tobias responds honestly as he looks towards his friend in sadness.

"I know, we can keep in contact but we both know it won't last, I won't ever forget you Tobias or what you mean to me but we aren't stupid are we, I will treasure every day we stay in contact, but I know one day it will end." Matt then states honestly, he can't believe it's actually going to happen, but it is and there is nothing he can do to change it.

"Will you sing to me Matt?" Tobias then asks softly.

"Sing for you? Now?" Matt asks in surprise.

"Yes now and once again before you go." Tobias responds, Matt then sits up and reaching out with his hand wipes the tears from his friends face.

"Of course, anything for my friend in the whole wide world, but why once later?" Matt responds curiously.

"Because I want to record you singing, so I will never have to go a day without hearing your voice." Tobias answers truthfully and without even thinking about it Matt leans in and kisses his friend on the lips, before pulling away in surprise and not quite understanding what just happened, but as they make eye contact again they both smile.

Unknown to the boys though, they were being watched, out of sight and looking on with smiles across their faces Matt's mum and auntie are looking directly at them, fearing they may be spotted and embarrass the boys they turn around with a knowing look on their faces and walked away and just as they disappear from sigh,t Matt suddenly looks across to where they were standing only moments ago, he could have sworn he saw something in the corner of his eye, but as he looks around he can't see anything.

"What's wrong Matt?" Tobias asks as he looks in the same direction as his friend and doesn't see anything out of the ordinary.

"I don't know, nothing I just had a funny feeling but it's nothing, really, anyway what do you want me to sing?" Matt answers with a half smile, Tobias looks at his friend with a sad expression for a few moments before smiling.

"Something from the heart, whenever you sing from the heart it's beautiful Matt." Tobias says, causing his friend to blush, Matt then stands up holding out his hand for Tobias who doesn't even hesitate as he lets his friend pull him to his feet.

"Okay just for you, my friend in all the world." Matt then says sincerely.

Matt looks into his friends eyes one more time and quickly kisses him again before moving backwards a few steps with a shy smile and Tobias just looks at his friend happily as he waits for him to start singing.

"The other night, dear, as I lay sleeping
I dreamed I held you in my arms
When I awoke, dear, I was mistaken
So I hung my head and I cried

You are my sunshine, my only sunshine
You make me happy when skies are Gray
You'll never know, dear, how much I love you
Please don't take my sunshine away

I'll always love you and make you happy
If you will only say the same
But if you leave me to love another
You'll regret it all someday

You are my sunshine, my only sunshine
You make me happy when skies are Gray
You'll never know, dear, how much I love you
Please don't take my sunshine away

I'll always love you and make you happy
If you will only say the same
But if you leave me to love another
You'll regret it all someday

You are my sunshine, my only sunshine
You make me happy when skies are Gray
You'll never know, dear, how much I love you
Please don't take my sunshine
Oh, my sunshine away"

Tobias can't help but let his tears fall as he watches his friend sing his heart out, everything around them seems fades away and it is just him and his friend in the whole world by themselves, he then reaches out and takes his friends hand into his own and just enjoys the rest of the song.

"You are my sunshine, my only sunshine
You make me happy when skies are Gray
You'll never know, dear, how much I love you
Please don't take my sunshine away

You are my sunshine, my only sunshine
You make me happy when skies are Gray
You'll never know, dear, how much I love you
Please don't take my sunshine
Oh, my sunshine away

You are my sunshine, my only sunshine
You make me happy when skies are Gray
You'll never know, dear, how much I love you
Please don't take my sunshine away

You are my sunshine, my only sunshine
You make me happy when skies are Gray
You'll never know, dear, how much I love you
Please don't take my sunshine away"

"That was beautiful Matt, just perfect." Tobias says with tears running down his face, Matt who is now opening his eyes looks at his friend and smiles before wiping his friends tears away before kissing both his eyes and then on his lips.

"You really mean that Tobias?" Matt then asks nervously after breaking the tender kiss, he still has no idea why he has this sudden desire to kiss his friend and has no idea what it means, he just knows it feels right.

"I want that to be the song you record for me, it was just so perfect, I'm going to miss you so much, I just wish we had more time." Tobias answers honestly and this time it is him who leans forward to kiss his friend briefly, before they just stare into each others eyes.

"Me too Tobias but we only have a few more days." Matt responds as tears roll down both their faces, they then lean in for another kiss beneath their tree in a loving embrace...

Two Years later: July 2014

"How was school today Honey." Sarah asks as her son walks into the house and Matt can't help but be startled by his mums question, he hadn't expected anyone to be home yet.

"Er, oh hey Mum, what are you doing home so early?" Matt asks as quickly composing himself, although he can't help but look nervous standing half in the kitchen door and half still in the hallway.

"So how was school today Honey?" Sarah then asks again, deciding to ignore her sons question for now.

"Oh er... yeah it was cool mum, just the usual really, er can I go to my room now?" Matt asks, looking and sounding even more nervous as each second passes.

"Okay son, I'm just happy you're doing so well." Sarah responds with a smile and just as he moves out of sight and starts to go up the stairs, Sarah can't resist embarrassing her son. "Oh and hello to you too Ben, I hope you had just as much fun as Matt did at school today." Sarah calls out with a satisfied look on her face and can't help but laugh as her son replies in his typical annoyed tone, when she catches him out.

"Mum don't embarrass me, how did you even know he was here?" Matt calls out in a half embarrassed and half annoyed tone.

"You really want to know?" Sarah replies.

"Mum just tell me, don't be mean." Matt responds in a pleading tone.

"Okay then you and Ben better come in her and let me get a proper look at the state you're both in." Sarah than instructs the boys, causing both of them to look at each other, wondering how she could know.

"But why, what? How did you..." Matt mumbles out and Sarah couldn't help but smile to herself before carrying on.

"Come on both of you in here now, before I call your dad Ben and see what he has to say when he comes to pick you up." Sarah states sternly, which does the trick and both boys almost crush each other trying to get through the kitchen door at the same time.

"So how did you know Mum." Matt quickly asks curiously as he stands in front of his mum.

"Yeah Mrs Summers, how did you know?" Adds an equally intrigued Ben, both boys sounding amazed and confused as to how she could possibly know how dirty they were.

"Well boys if you both turn to the left and look out of this magical thing that we call a window, I think you could answer you own question, don't you?" Sarah says with a big smirk, as both boys look out the window and then at each other before looking at Sarah and back out the window, the look on both their faces is priceless and Sarah doesn't even bother to hide the fact she is finding this hilarious and gets rewarded as she sees her son pouting at her. "So are you boys going to tell me what happened or do I not want to know?" She then asks, looking directly into her sons eyes.

Over the years Matt and his Mother have developed an understanding and a respect for each other, Matt knows that unless he has been in trouble or done something he shouldn't be doing, that his mum doesn't need to know the little fun things only boys his age seem to be able to get up to, so he smiles sheepishly at him mum.

"Mum you wouldn't believe me if I told you, so can me and Ben go get cleaned up please." Matt asks and gives his best puppy dog face, Sarah just smiles at her sons cuteness and tells the boys to scram before she gets a hose and washes them down herself.

"Your mum is so cool Matt, you're just the luckiest boy in the world." Ben says after sitting down on his friends bed.

"Second luckiest boy in the world Ben." Matt says correcting his friend, like he does every time someone tells him he is the luckiest boy in the world, earning a knowing if not slightly annoyed look from his friend in the process.

"Oh not that again, are you ever going to tell me why you're only the second luckiest boy in the world?" Ben then asks in response and just knows he is going to get the same old response when he sees the grin on his friends face.

"Maybe one day, not today though my cute haired minion." Matt states, which earns him a light punch on the arm and the sight of his friend sticking his tongue out.

"If anyone is a minion here it's you, you singing nerd, I'm clearly the brains of the operation." Ben says with mock arrogance and even puts his hands on his hips, which looks even more ridiculous since he is still sitting down.

"Sure what ever helps you sleep at night butt face." Matt retorts and both boys just laugh at each other.

"Man we are so lame." states Ben after a few moments of laughing.

"Ha, well at least we are lame together." Matt replies smiling at his friend.

Matt still can't believe the boy sitting on his bed was his friend, when he first got to his new home he was so scared and lonely, everything seemed... well it was just so different, apart from the odd big name store or fast food chain nothing looked like home, even the houses looked different, who would thought that not all houses were made with bricks, but it became clear on the drive from the airport to his new home that houses in New Zealand were not the same as those back in England.

He then started to remember his first few weeks, how his parents had settled in quickly and how they tried to encourage him to go outside and try to find some new friends, but he was still too upset and couldn't stop feeling empty inside, as the reality of him never seeing Tobias again set in and all hope that it wasn't all going to work out disappeared and remembered crying himself to sleep looking through his private box of photos he had taken with Tobias on his last day, they had made a pact to stay in touch as long as possible, but also that they had to accept this wouldn't last forever and not be angry at the other person if they did stop staying in contact.

It had been almost 6 months now since he had any contact with Tobias, Matt wasn't angry with his friend when he stopped making contact, he knew this day was going to come and whilst it made him sad he wasn't going to break the pact he made with his friend and found comfort in the knowledge that if it is meant to be then they will find each other again and even though he still misses him every day and tried to make contact again a few times, he knows that it was over for now and if and when the time was right it would happen if it was meant to be and he found peace and strength in that. He then started remembering the first time Ben knocked on his front door and it brought a big smile to his face, as he watched his friend make his way out of his room to use the bathroom to clean himself up.

Twenty Three Months earlier: August 2012

Still in his bedroom refusing to even speak to his parents, Matt had just finished speaking with Tobias on the phone and was feeling a little happier then he had been a few hours ago, he laid back on his bed staring at the ceiling and slowly feeling himself falling into a deep sleep before a knocking sound gets his attention and he opens his eyes with interest and sits upright, to listen to what is going on.

After hearing a few more knocks at the front door, Sarah finally takes notice and stands up from the couch to see who is at the door and opens the door and a small happy smile appears on her face, when she is greeted by a very cute looking boy with blonde hair and stunning blue eyes standing in front of her.

"Hello, can I help you?" Sarah asks in a friendly tone, she can't help but admit the boy was very cute and striking and wondered what he was doing at her front door.

"Er... er hello Miss... sorry to... bother you... but... my names Ben and I.. er... live nearby and I.. er..." Ben responds shyly, he had been rehearsing what he was going to say for hours, but now he was here he was starting to lose his composure and confidence, which Sarah notices....