Weight of the World

Click. Click.

The sound of a computer mouse was the only sound in the silent house. The grating atmosphere in the office was making it difficult for the redheaded singer to work, since the sound was so unnatural. All he wanted to do was finish editing this video, but without the other boy here, that one task was nearly impossible.

It hadn't been this quiet in so long, nearly three years. Even in this hour, a quarter past midnight, Travis would always hear Danny doing something in the background, either practicing or watching TV. And now, without him, sitting there alone in the office just felt so wrong.

Seeing a video of the whole band having fun was a bit difficult to watch, considering the current situation. Even though it was filmed before the...incident, editing it together and watching the two best friends on their day off was hard to get through without breaking.

And there had been breakdowns. At the time of the accident, when he got that first call from the hospital, at about two in the morning, saying that his best friend, the drummer of his band, Danny Duncan, had been in a bad car crash, that was the first time. The redhead had not been able to sleep that night, and spent the rest of that day unable to work on anything.

He tried, though. The singer attempted to edit the tour videos, as they were supposed to come weekly, and they had fallen behind. He tried to practice songs from their new album, but each time, he would look over at the drum set, where Danny should be, and not focus on what he was doing. He knew that nothing would be the same for a long time.

He just wanted his friend to be the way he was before the accident. Everyone at the hospital was telling the singer that the drummer wasn't the same. The brunette was a lot more quiet and anxious now, as he thought the car crash was his fault. And Travis understood. One of the victims of the crash had nearly been killed, and that could hurt someone in every way: physically, emotionally, and mentally. Travis wanted to have Danny back in his house and tell the brunette that it wasn't his fault, that everything was alright, and it wasn't caused by the other boy doing anything wrong.

Travis just wanted his best friend back.

xxxxx

TWO WEEKS LATER

Danny dropped a stick.

The brunette froze when he heard the sound of it hitting the floor. Normally, he would just pick it up again or grab another, but in his state, he just couldn't bring himself to do it. In that moment, he felt like the whole world was against him.

The crash replayed over and over in his head, and he reached to the floor, trying to pick up the stick he had dropped.

The drummer looked up to see the entire band staring. He tried to pick it up again, but couldn't quite hold it, since his hands were shaking so much.

"I-I'm sorry, I...I just..." Danny stammered, still trying to hold the stick.

"It's alright." Travis assured, handing the stick to the brunette.

"N-no..." Danny whispered, face in his hands. "I-I did s-something wrong. L-like always..."

"You didn't do anything wrong." the redhead told his friend, putting a hand on Danny's shoulder. "Everybody makes mistakes."

"Y-you...you don't get it..." the brunette muttered, his long brown hair covering his face.

"I do." the redhead put in. "I know what you're going through. We all do."

"I-I just..."

At that, the drummer suddenly stood up and ran out of the sound check, leaving the four boys standing there watching the way he left in a rush.

"Should we...?" Charles began, assuming the others knew the end of that question.

"Let's leave him alone." Travis suggested. "Let him go where he wants. He's going through a rough time right now."

The three others nodded, knowing the state that Danny was in right now. The best they could do for him was give him time.

But did time really heal all wounds?

xxxxx

ONE HOUR LATER

"Is Danny still gone?" Scooter asked.

"Yeah." Travis told the tour manager. "I haven't seen him since..."

The redhead trailed off as he remembered how the brunette had run away. He had been so anxious, and felt like everything was his fault.

Travis had tried to find Danny. He had called, but it went straight to voicemail. He had tried to use the "Find my Friends" app, but nothing had turned up. The drummer really did want to be alone.

However, the singer was worried about his friend. With the state Danny was in, Travis had no idea where he could be.

"Travis!" someone called. The redhead turned towards the voice, meeting the frantic form of Alli, who had run down the hall.

"I just saw Danny running down the street!" she panted, clearly out of breath from running to the redhead.

"Which direction?" Travis asked.

"He was running to the bridge..." Alli told her friend.

"Skyway Avenue..." Travis stated quietly, the song playing in his head. He mentally kicked himself for writing such a sad song, knowing the story behind the bridge.

"You have to find him." Alli put in. "He needs you."

"Right." Travis began. "Danny's my best friend. With the state he's in...."

The singer grabbed his car keys, running out the door of the venue. As he started up the red vehicle, he couldn't help but wonder if his friend would do something like that.

Travis sighed. Why did the tour life have to be so complicated?

xxxxx

A slight gust of wind flew along the bridge, blowing through the young man's long brown hair. He was sitting on the ground, staring out into the water, which moved in waves below him.

Danny sighed and brushed a flop of hair back. He wasn't going to jump, he had just come to this bridge to think about his current situation. Was it really the right thing to do, to run away from the venue like that? Especially to here, where, if anyone found him....

Meanwhile, Travis was driving down the freeway in search of his friend, knowing where the brunette could have gotten to. Once he reached his destination, he was greeted with the sight of the drummer sitting on the ground, looking out over the water.

"Danny!" the singer called. Danny didn't look up; it seemed like the other boy didn't even hear the redhead.

"Danny?" Travis walked over to his friend, who didn't acknowledge his presence. He wondered if the drummer even knew he was there, as it seemed like the young man was lost in his own thoughts.

The singer sighed and sat next to the brunette, placing a hand on his shoulder. Danny stared at the ground, his hair hiding his expression.

"I-I know it's m-my fault..." Danny began, face in his hands.

"It's not." Travis explained. Danny looked up at the redhead. "I get that you feel like everything is your fault, but, you have to understand, it could have happened to anyone. If you want to blame someone, blame the person that actually crashed your car: the other. Besides, you didn't kill them. They'll be fine, but I don't know what'll happen then. The point is...it wasn't your fault. All that stuff that you're blaming yourself for...why?"

"B-because..." Danny didn't know what to say. He honestly wasn't sure why he kept thinking everything was his fault. He knew that not everything was his fault, but he was still feeling guilty about the whole crash thing. However....

"Dude...I just want my best friend back." Travis admitted, standing up. Danny followed suit, looking out over the water.

"But..." the brunette began, not sure what to say. "I...I just...*sigh* I guess you're right...."

"Do you still wanna play the show tonight?" the singer asked, watching the water wave below.

"Yeah..." Danny replied, not as anxious as he was. "I'll...I'll do it."

Travis smiled and pulled Danny into a friendly bro hug. The drummer returned it gratefully, realizing that even if he did things wrong, the others wouldn't care, as they were some of his best friends.

The two looked out over Skyway Avenue, both of them thinking of the song that had brought them here. After a few moments, the boys got into the car, where Travis drove away from the bridge, and down the freeway in silence.

Cuz if you jump, I will jump too
We will fall together from the buildings ledge
Never looking back at what we've done
We'll say it was love
'Cause I would die for you on Skyway Avenue

Travis hadn't even realized he had started singing until he heard Danny hitting the dashboard along with it, drumming to the song.

Both boys smiled, realizing that things would be okay. Danny knew that not everything was his fault; he would try to stop blaming himself for all the difficulties. He felt like he was no longer carrying the weight of the world.

They drove along the freeway, away from Skyway Avenue, and away from all the hardships that they had faced.

THE END