Michigan would go on to win the NCAA Championship, defeating Colorado on Charlie's assist and taking University of New Hampshire to the mat in a nail-biter that ended 2-1 on a last second shot.

Months later, as Adam was packing up his things for the summer, he reflected on the roundabout way he and Charlie had gone in patching up their friendship. It took a lot of tears, a lot of pain, a lot of hurt and anger, and he still bore the scars of what had nearly been the end of everything in the most literal sense. He smiled, a little sadly to himself, tossing a few shirts into his bag. As he did, he caught sight of the faded, barely visible scars on his wrists. He stared at them, wondering how, in the past year, they had changed so much and whether they matched the change inside.

"Cut it out," said a calm voice. A familiar hand covered his wrists and pushed them back to his sides. Adam looked up into the same pair of eyes he'd been looking into for god knows how many years now, and he saw the difference.

"Don't dwell," Charlie said in the same calm voice, "Doesn't do you any good." He stepped away and moved to sprawl on his own bed. Adam shrugged his shoulders a little, reaching for the pile of neatly folded clothes on his desk.

"When's the shuttle coming?" he asked. Charlie leaned back against the wall.

"Couple hours or so." He and Adam were heading back to Minneapolis for the summer, planning to work as many hours as possible to come up with some money for the coming year. Somehow, Charlie had managed to finish all his packing before Adam, and the room looked unsettlingly bare, with just a few of Adam's things still lying around, waiting to be packed up.

"A lot happened here, you know?" Adam said after a moment, picking up some books from his desk and putting them in a box next to his bed.

"Yeah." Charlie pinched the bridge of his nose with his fingers. Just thinking about all of it made him wince.

"Charlie, can I ask you to do something?" Adam turned to face his friend. His face was uncertain.

"Sure." Charlie pushed himself up so he could stand.

"This is stupid, I guess…" Adam shuffled his feet a little, seemingly a little embarrassed.

"Just ask me, Adam."

"Can I give you a hug? I mean…I don't…I just think…" He trailed off, feeling utterly stupid. Before he could take it back, though, he sensed a presence in front of him, and then two arms were around him, holding him tight. His resolve failed him and he hugged his friend back fiercely.

"It's the only way I can think of to thank you," he mumbled, feeling lame and embarrassed and comforted all at the same time. Charlie smiled against his friend's shoulder.

"You're welcome."