Bad Boys Don't Cry

e p i l o g u e

* • * • t h i r d p e r s o n p o i n t o f v i e w • * • *

Parker drove in silence as he looked ahead on the traffic filled road. No one was in the car with him. He was alone with his thoughts as the silence consumed him in the lonesome of his car. Parker's face was still puffy from the tears he shed not even an hour ago as he left behind the only people who kept him grounded for the passed year. Now that they were gone, he was left to his own devices as he drove to his brother's new apartment in Los Angeles that Luke had bought when Parker told him that he wanted to get away from everything.

He knew he was close to the edge and he knew being around Bailey, Grayson and Bennett would have quite literally pushed him off and killed him if he stayed any longer.

Nearing his destination, Parker begins to slow down as he drove towards the garage below the housings that were provided for homeowners of the apartments. Pressing the button on the remote Luke had given to him a few weeks prior, the garage door opened, letting him and his car inside the garage. Parking right beside his brother's black BMW, he turns off the engine then exits the car.

Parker decides to head up with two of the suitcases he had decided to bring that were filled with clothes and essentials and a duffel bag that had a few of the pictures that he wanted to bring from the his old home, the teddy bear that Bailey and him had gotten at the mall and his favorite blanket that he refused to leave back home to collect dust with the rest of his furniture he had left behind to sit where Bailey, Bennett, and Grayson were.

I'll get the rest later.

Parker thinks to himself, locking his car before picking up his things and walking out of the garage and heading towards the apartment building. With a forced grin and tired eyes from crying, he greets the security at the front desk, earning a pitied glance as he passed by. All he wanted was to get to sleep at this point. Quickly shuffling into the fortunately empty elevator, he began to recall moments before he left.

"You better call." Bailey says, placing the duffel bag down in his trunk with a huff.

Parker rolls his eyes at the girl that stood in front of him, thinking how she could think so little of him, "I will." Parker answers, lightly smiling down at the older girl in front of him as he leans on the side of his car, "I'll call as soon as I set foot in the apartment."

Bailey looks up at him and tilts her head, squinting as if she couldn't see what was right in front of her. She felt as though her younger, but taller friend was just giving an empty promise like what her step sibling would have done when he was being kidnapped by Parker's friends' father,"Promise?" She asks, sticking out her pinkie finger.

Parker seeing no need for pinkie promises rolls his eyes once more, but links his pinkie with hers anyway, "Promise."

From his gesture, Bailey's eyes light up then pulls him into a tight hug which catches him by surprise, "I'm going to miss you." She whispers.

"Me too."

Letting go of him, she looks up at him one last time before moving towards the two boys by the front porch of his house. She wanted to keep that moment imprinted in her mind. Bailey didn't want to forget her colorblind friend nor was she ever going to.

Bennett and Grayson seeing Bailey come join them by the porch stop their quiet whispers and give their younger friend matching sad smiles. Bennett is the first to come down to hug him and Grayson soon followed, "Stay safe and remember to smile, Lynn." Grayson says.

"Remember although we're not there beside you, we'll always be behind you and have your back. If anyone bullies you at your new school, you know who to call." Bennett says with a wink.

Parker shakes his head at Bennett's words, knowing he meant every word. Taking a step back, Parker looks at the three of them taking a big intake of air before exhaling it, breathing, "Thank you for everything. Really."

"It's no problem Parks. No problem at all."

A ding coming from the elevator brought him out of his thoughts. Slowly trudging out of the encasing box, he dragged his feet to the entrance that led to the hallway.

Walking in front of a door in a foreign hallway, he takes a key and shoving it in the doorknob. With his bags set beside him and a phone in his hand, Parker scrolls through his contacts and searches for the contact. Finally finding it, the seventeen-year-old picks up the suitcases, opens the door with a shove, presses the contact and awaits for an answer. Not even two rings later, the receiver picked up and the comforting voice was heard greeting an eager hello on the other side. It was as if everything was still and the voice washed over him like a warm wave passing over the cold sand on the beach. It takes a moment for him to answer, causing the person on the other line to repeat their greeting twice, their tone unsure and differing from the first excited acknowledgement.

Finally, the boy answers the girl's voice who's two hours away from where he currently was, "I'm home." He breathes, almost sounding like a sigh of relief.

I'm home.

*•*•*•*
(A/N)
Hey peoples!

I know that you guys were expecting a 48th chapter, but I had decided to end the book right where Parker has told them that he was leaving to live with Luke.

I believed that at that point in the story it would have been a much more appropriate ending than continuing it on for another chapter because I knew no one would want to read a chapter about Parker packing up his crap and leaving. Plus I didn't want to leave this story on a sad note. Literally majority of the time writing this book was me not exactly knowing that my writing actually impacted people enough to make them feel something for fictional characters...

Anyways, staying from that topic, I'd like to thank the ones who decided to go through the whole emotional roller coaster that was in this book.

I know that this book is a mess and please just excuse that.

To be completely honest with all of the ones reading this author's note, I began writing this book during a seriously dark time in my life. I was never happy with myself and I contemplated my whole existence during the writing process of this book. The lack of updates towards the last half of the book was due to me trying to help myself, however nothing seemed to work. Writing this book, however, has helped me get certain things off of my chest in a very weird way.

I am not saying that any of these events or characters are true. I'm just saying that some of the small and actually logical events are based upon some of the things that had occurred in my own life.

Now that I am several years older, I feel I am slowly, but surely improving my outlook on life. I just wanted people to know that before I continue on from this book to another.

Speaking of other books, I am currently working on several other book plots so stay in tune for that and there may or may not be a sequel where we continue on with Parker's point of view and him possibly getting a love interest...?

Maybe...? BUT WHO KNOWS?

God this author's note is all over the place, but OH WELL.

Oh yeah. Keep this book posted because I'm going to be possibly doing a Q&A type thing that you guys want to ask me and I'm probably gonna just post updates about books I'm going to be posting.

Questions you'd like answered, comment here. ---->

Thank you to the ones who have stayed, to the ones who've read the whole book and kept up with this book and all the characters' problems. I hope you have enjoyed the rollercoaster of emotions that you have embarked when you began this book and I hope to see and hear from all of you in the near future.

I love you all and stay alive, my friends.

Loving and supporting you from afar,

the author xxx <3