The tension in Mason’s living room was palpable. Mason, Jake, and Damien sat in a triangle of awkward silence, the weight of their past actions pressing down on them like a suffocating cloud. Each of them was struggling with their own emotions—anger, guilt, confusion—but none of them could deny that something had to change.

Damien cleared his throat, breaking the silence. “I know I’ve been a terrible person. I know I’ve hurt people—both of you included—and I don’t expect forgiveness to come easy. But… I need to make things right.”

Mason, sitting across from him, nodded slowly. “You’re not the only one who feels that way.”

Jake’s eyes flicked between the two of them, his expression tense. “So what, we’re all just gonna admit we’re trash and move on? You really think that’s gonna fix anything?”

“It’s a start,” Damien said quietly. “We’ve done a lot of damage, and we can’t erase that. But we can try to make things better, at least.”

Mason leaned back, letting out a long breath. “I’ve been thinking about this a lot… about the people we’ve hurt, and how we let ourselves get caught up in all of it. But I don’t want to be that guy anymore.”

Jake scoffed but didn’t argue. The truth was, despite his defensive attitude, he had been thinking the same thing. After Damien’s near-death experience, it was clear that their lives were spiraling out of control.

But where did they even start?

After a long moment of silence, Jake finally spoke, his voice uncharacteristically soft. “I’m sorry. For everything. To both of you.”

Mason blinked, surprised by the sudden confession. He’d never expected Jake to be the first to apologize, but hearing it made something inside him loosen.

“I’m sorry too,” Mason said, his voice low. “I’ve been part of the problem for so long, and I should have spoken up sooner. But I was scared… and angry.”

Damien looked between the two of them, his own guilt weighing him down. “I was the worst of us all,” he admitted. “I let the power get to my head. I thought that if I controlled everything, I wouldn’t have to deal with my own insecurities. But all I did was destroy everything around me.”

The room fell into another heavy silence as the weight of their admissions hung in the air. For the first time in what felt like forever, they weren’t pointing fingers or making excuses. They were just three broken people, acknowledging the pain they’d caused.

It was a start.

“So… what do we do now?” Jake asked, his voice hesitant.

Damien ran a hand through his hair, his mind racing. He had no idea where to go from here. Apologizing was one thing, but changing was another entirely. How could they undo all the damage they’d caused? How could they even begin to heal?

“I don’t know,” Damien admitted, his voice raw. “I’ve been asking myself the same thing. We can’t just pretend like everything’s fine and go back to the way things were.”

Mason nodded in agreement. “But we can’t just sit here either. If we want to change, we have to start doing something about it.”

Jake sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. “Easier said than done. It’s not like we can just flip a switch and suddenly be good people.”

“I know that,” Damien said. “But I think there’s someone who might be able to help us figure things out.”

Mason raised an eyebrow. “Who?”

Damien hesitated for a moment, unsure if they would understand. But he knew he had to try. “There’s this guy… Leo. I don’t know how to explain it, but he’s different. He helped me when I was at my lowest, and I think he might be able to help us too.”

Jake questioned. “Who's that? ”

"Someone you owe an apology " Damien answered.

Mason exchanged a glance with Jake, skepticism clear in both their expressions. But at this point, they had nothing to lose.

“Alright,” Mason said slowly. “If you think he can help, we’ll go.”

Jake shrugged. “Can’t hurt to try, I guess.”

Damien stood up, a sense of determination settling in his chest. “Let’s go.”

As the three of them walked out of Mason’s house and into the cool evening air, the tension between them slowly began to dissipate. They weren’t friends, not yet, but they were no longer enemies either. They were three people trying to find their way out of the mess they’d created, and for the first time, it felt like they might actually succeed.

The streets were quiet as they made their way toward the park where Damien had last seen Leo. Each step felt heavy with uncertainty, but there was also a strange sense of hope lingering in the air. Maybe, just maybe, this would be the beginning of something new.

When they arrived at the park, the sun had just begun to set, casting long shadows across the ground. Damien scanned the area, his heart pounding in his chest.

Then, in the distance, he spotted Leo sitting on the same bench where they’d first met.

“This is it,” Damien said, nodding toward the figure.

Mason and Jake exchanged another glance, their skepticism still lingering, but they followed Damien toward the bench.

As they approached, Leo looked up, his piercing eyes locking onto them with a knowing gaze. A small, almost amused smile tugged at the corner of his lips as he leaned back, seemingly waiting for them to speak.

Damien took a deep breath, steeling himself for whatever was about to come.

“We need your help,” he said, his voice firm despite the uncertainty swirling inside him.

Leo’s smile widened slightly, and for a moment, the air around them seemed to shift, charged with an energy they couldn’t quite explain.

“Well,” Leo said, his voice calm but carrying an undeniable weight, “I was wondering when you’d show up.”