24 Floors.

Alex was the first to leave the car, simply because Jack and I could do nothing but look in horror. I was suddenly regretting leaving my window open in the cool summer breeze. "Get the fuck off of my property." He growled, not even trying to ask nicely, instead going straight for the attack.

"Not until I get my son back." When her eyes met mine, I couldn't move, couldn't breathe. There was no way I would survive going back with her. Not now, no matter how much I missed her. It was my past, and there was no choice for me but to move on if I didn't want to be suffocated by her morals and ideals.

I didn't even see(or hear) Jack get out of the car and approach Alex's side. "Our child is not going anywhere, and the only place you're going is the Baltimore police station. I should have guessed he was your kid, Diana."

Alex gasped. "Fuck, that's her?" He whispered to himself.

"Like hell I'm going anywhere!" She scoffed. "If I go in, you're going in too."

"Fine! I will if it makes you go the fuck away!" Jack exploded. From the corner of my eye, I saw a neighbor's light turn on.

"Hey! Can we all calm down a second? What good is going to come from both of Jayden's parents getting in trouble with the law? It's not gonna be pretty for either of you, and I can almost guarantee it will be ten times worse for Jay. So why doesn't everyone come inside; I can make us some tea and we can talk about this like adults and not temperamental five year olds fighting over a goddamn toy. Your child is not a fucking toy. They're a human being as much as we are, and I think they'd really appreciate it if you treated them as such." Alex tried to get them to simmer down.

"I'm his mother. I've raised him for almost seventeen years and I think I know damn well what's best for him. And I'll tell you what: it's NOT being raised by homosexuals and being forced to act like a girl! Don't think I haven't been keeping tabs on you all. I saw the interview, and I knew then I had to come get my boy away from such an improper place." Maybe the guys didn't notice the way she was slowly swaying closer and closer to the car, trying to get closer and closer to me, but I certainly did. "Jayden, honey. Come on. Give your father back these ridiculous outfits he forced you into and we can leave. You can forget this ever happened." She made a grab for my door handle and nearly threw the door off its hinges.

"What, so you can drop me off with some other dude?" I spat. I hadn't been aware I could talk, let alone jump out of the car and push past her. We stood in a triangle, the four of us: Jack and Alex near the hood of the car, my mom - no, Diana. She had lost the title of mom the second she dropped me off with All Time Low - still by the backseat, and me in the middle of Jack and Alex's yard. "If you were keeping tabs on me this whole time, why the fuck didn't you just keep me? Why did you make me go through the worst pain in my life? You abandoned me! Don't stand here and act like you give a single fuck about me."

"I love you, honey-"

"NO! DON'T YOU DARE TRY THAT. IF YOU LOVED ME, YOU WOULD CARE MORE THAT I AM HURTING THAN YOU DO ABOUT YOUR DAMN REPUTATION." Lights were flickering on one by one around us, but no one came outside. I'm sure if we looked hard enough, we could see at least thirty faces in windows. But I didn't care. I couldn't care about anything except making sure I never went anywhere with her again. Before she left me with Jack, I could deal with her. Now, she had broken my trust and crushed me into something that seemed more and more like depression every day. She had dug my grave and was entirely ready to bury me in it. I knew that would be the result of her taking me again. I could feel it.

I refused to let it happen, and I had an army behind me to support me at my all time low.

"Jayden Zachary Barnes! You get your ass in my car this minute." Diana was fuming; even in the dark of the early morning, I could see her face reddening.

"How many times to we have to tell you he isn't going anywhere?" Jack threw his hands up, exasperated. They were stepping closer and closer to each other, and Alex was doing nothing to stop it. In a minute, they would be throwing punches. Alex glanced at me, and I shot him a look telling him to stop Jack. His response was him holding his hands up. We were silent, staring each other down and begging the other to break. However, neither of us budged before Jack shook me out of my trance.

"You stay the fuck away from them!" He yelled, voice somehow low and threatening. Alex and I were too focused on each other to notice the way Diana was once again inching her way toward me. She froze at Jack's voice, though. "You don't get to take them away again! That's as much my kid as it is yours! I deserve the same rights to them as you."

Her eyebrows raised into her forehead. "Are you serious right now? Do you see him? He's wearing girl clothes. What kind of sick father makes their son into a daughter?"

"One that cares about the comfort of their child more than the comfort of myself. I wish you could see how happy Jayden is when they don't have to worry about hiding parts of themselves. Even though they've hidden a lot from the both of us, I think if you took the time to let them be themselves, you would be so proud of our child, no matter what they're wearing. They're a fantastic person, but all you seem to do is antagonize them." Jack was crying harder than I was now, voice cracking every few words. "Please, don't do this to them. I think they're old enough to know at least a little about what's best for them."

"But that's where you're wrong, Jack." Her voice held no emotion. Did she ever feel anything other than irritation and anger? When was the last time her smile wasn't forced? "Don't you know why I bought him to you in the first place? He's worse than you were at that age. He's uncontrollable."

"Did you ever think that maybe they were acting out as a result of your parenting? Because since they've been here, we haven't had any big problems that required outside involvement."

And then they were one.

She clawed his face as he pushed her torso back. Alex and I flew into action at once. He went to Diana, pulling at her flailing body. "This isn't going to help you in any way to get Jayden back!" He shouted at her. I couldn't tell if he was saying that to get her away from Jack or because it was true.

I tried a different approach than Alex. Instead of going to Jack's side, I ran to them. I sprinted faster than I thought I could and caught them both my surprise. "Stop, STOP!" I screamed. I didn't care that I was hysterical, I didn't care that I might be going into shock or that my heart was palpitating so much that I could barely breathe. All I wanted was for this to be over.

I fell to the ground as pain blossomed in my cheek and the world fell silent. Not even the wind dared to breathe. I couldn't tell who it was that hit me, but I didn't care. All eyes on me, I held my right cheek and stood up slowly, checking that I didn't feel dizzy. Finding no damage, I looked back at all three of their horrified faces. All was still as they waited for me to break the silence, but now, I couldn't find my voice. When this became evident, Jack took step towards me.

And then I was gone.

Jack's movement unfroze me, and in a second my back was turned to them and I was running, thankful that I decided to wear converse with my outfit. The dress flew in the wind I made, fluttering around my legs as they pushed me around the corner of the block. "Jayden, stop!" Jack howled from down the street.

"I've got ‘em!" Alex's voice was much closer, almost sending shivers down my neck. In an instant, my knees clashed to the cement, tiny rocks digging into the palms of my hands. Alex had a hand on the back of my dress, holding me captive.

When I fell down, I took him with me. Now, he watched me with cautious worry as his fist full of dress told me to get up.

I wasn't going back there. My parents needed some time without me, and I needed time without them. Things would only escalate again the second I walked back.

I'm not proud of what I did, but hopefully Alex will forgive me once the bruise heals. I couldn't think of any other way to make him let go, and honestly, he made it too easy with his head hung between my feet. It was only a kick to the temple, and it wasn't nearly as hard as I could have - and possibly should have - made it. It was only enough for him to cringe away from my long enough for my feet to catch up with my head and find their way through the alleys of Baltimore.