A/N – Glad you liked the last one. Enjoy this one!

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Chapter Twenty-Three…All You Ever Had

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Tom's mouth hung open, his eyes wide in shock. He looked at Chaz, cocking his head to the side. "You and Mason?" His friend smiled shyly and glanced at the floor.

"Yeah, I mean—"

"Wow," he muttered, shaking his head in disbelief.

"Look, Tom. It's not that big a deal. You always knew…about me, right?" Tom had always had ideas. He's always wondered. But never once did he think, 'Yeah. Chaz is definitely gay.'

"Uh…not really," he admitted, still feeling a little uncomfortable. "I mean, this is great though."

Chaz smiled warmly. "It is. Mason's wonderful. He's so sweet and caring. I've never felt this way about anyone before. It's weird."

Tom thought back, remembering how he first felt about Jude. Not knowing what love really was until he met her. He never wanted to settle down until her, and he never only wanted one girl before her. It was a scary, but amazing feeling. He hoped that's what Chaz felt for Mason. "Yeah, it's great, isn't it?"

"It is." Tom reached out and gave Chaz a brotherly hug.

Flora clapped her hands together, smiling at them. "Aww, look at you two! Tommy, if you weren't with Jude, I'd have to worry for poor Mason." The two men shared a look and then burst into laughter, taking a step away from each other.

Tom put his hands up in defense. "Don't worry, Flora. I love Jude."

"And I love Mason," Chaz added, a dreamy look in his eyes.

Tom smirked, eyeing his friend. "Hey, guess who's finally getting married?" He raised an eyebrow.

"You and Jude?" Chaz asked in disbelief and his friend nodded. "Congratulations, man. It's about damn time."

Tom chuckled. "That seems to be the general consensus."

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Jude and Mason settled into a comfortable silence, both of them watching the news on the television. There wasn't really anything for them to say. They had reached an agreement, of sorts. Mason would remain strong and Jude would remain silent. It seemed to be working.

A soft knocking startled the two. Jude's eyes flew to the door and Mason looked up, smiling at his sister. "Hey, Flore."

"Hey, Mase. You have another visitor." Mason gave her a look and she motioned someone in.

"Chaz!" Mason exclaimed, his face lighting up.

"Chaz?" Jude raised her eyebrows, eyeing the newcomer suspiciously.

"Hey, Jude," he greeted, walking over to his boyfriend's side. "God, Mason. What happened to you?"

"I got beat up, didn't you hear?" he joked, smirking.

"Jude?" Flora waved her over, and she followed. "Tommy wants you. Out in the hallway." The two women shuffled out of the room, a perplexed look on her face.

"Flora, what's Chaz doing here?"

Mason's sister chuckled. "All you people who say you know my brother, you don't even know his boyfriend?"

"His what!" Jude exclaimed, voice raspy.

"Boyfriend. Chaz?" Flora shook her head. "You people."

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Chaz sat in the chair next to Mason's hospital bed, eyeing his boyfriend. "Are you okay?" he asked tenderly, taking the young man's hand in his.

"I guess," he murmured.

"I wish I'd been there."

Mason gave him a pointed look. "What would you have done, Chaz?"

"I don't know." He sighed, resting back in the chair. "Things like this shouldn't happen. Especially not to you."

"Aww, are you getting soft on me now, Chaz?"

"I guess," he muttered. "Look. Mason. I'm not good at this. I'm not someone who settles down. I never have been. But I want to. With you. And it's scaring the hell out of me. I want to be there for you. I don't want things like this happen to you. I want to be able to protect you."

Mason titled his head a bit, lips pressed together. "Chaz…"

"I mean it, Mason. I want to be with you." He glanced up, locking eyes with his boyfriend. "Forever."

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Jude and Flora walked into the waiting room down the hall, joining Tom. Jude walked over to him, throwing him a look that said 'Did you know Chaz was gay?' He shrugged and hugged her tightly.

Flora coughed, kind of uncomfortable. "You guys, I'm gonna run over to the restaurant across the street, you wanna come?"

Tom glanced at Jude, then nodded at Flora. "Sure. It'll be nice to get out of here. Jude's gotta get home soon anyway. We have…something to do in the morning."

"Cool. I'll go tell Mason. Be right back." Flora bounced off down the hall, disappearing in the door.

Jude sighed, leaning against Tom. "I'm not ready for tomorrow."

"You'll be fine," he reassured, kissing the top of her head. "You'll be fine."

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A/N – Okay, what did we think?

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