{heart} in {chains} semper

When the moon fell in love with the sun
All was golden in the sky
All was golden when the day met the night
When the sun found the moon
She was drinking tea in a garden

Lyanna had said he was in the hospital. It was the first time -and maybe the last- he had ever meet Lyanna. She was a pretty enough girl, long hair, a sweet face, she looked like him. She looked a lot like him. It was the first time he had ever stepped into Klaus’ Hopper’s house. Granted it had not been for more than a few seconds. The house was big; it was clean and richly decorated, at his first glance he could tell that it was a rich person’s house. He hadn’t seen many rich places, but that house had been grand, it had been the absolute edge of brilliance. There was nothing that showed the signs of poor. There was nothing that showed the signs of a struggling family. But then that was to be expected, after all Hopper was the older brother of a victor. Lyanna had had no clue who he was. She had stared at him suspiciously, her eyes flickering backwards and to the house as though she had been preparing herself to call for help. She had tried to avoid talking to him, her suspicion growing with each question Tiberius had dared to ask.

But he hadn’t been able to stop. It had been a whole two weeks since he had last seen Hopper and that was unusual. They normally talked every single day. They normal saw each other at least every day and after a few days without seeing any sign of Hopper he had begun to worry, but he had shoved it away, knowing that Hopper was free to do what he wanted, he didn’t have to talk to Tiberius, in fact Hopper had no need to even look at Tiberius ever again. After a week he went looking, just here and there, because he wouldn’t let it settle, he couldn’t just believe Hopper would walk right out if his life without even a single good bye. That thought made him ache deep within his chest, it made him hurt to even think that that was true. And two weeks later he was at hopper’s house. It had been just over two months since Hopper had actually moved out of his house and back into the Victor’s mansion. It had been two months since Tiberius had spent every morning with Hopper, waking up to see him at breakfast, spending the whole day with him, making sure he got through his depression, making sure he got past drugs. And six months since Hopper had tried to kill himself.

Tiberius had changed him, Tiberius had taught him to realise how valuable his own life was. He had stuck to hopper’s side when no one else would; he had kept him standing when he was falling he had lent him a hand to hold onto when there was no one, when everyone in his family had left him and spat on him. Sometimes Tiberius couldn’t even understand. In return he had agreed to give up selling drugs; he had taken a whole new job in a little shop. He had made that promise to Hopper when hopper had promised him he would never delve back into drugs, he had promised he would never try to kiss Klaus again, he had promised that he would never do what he did again. By the end Hopper had become the single most important person in Tiberius’ life. He, without Tiberius even realising it had helped him to overcome his own problems. The small things about his mother and about Shadow. He had forgotten for over four months now that Shadow even existed and he loved it. He loved being able to wake up with a smile lingering on his lips. He had been there for him for six months and slowly, slowly he was sure he had fallen for the boy.

It wasn’t something he had planned; it wasn’t something he had wanted in all honesty. When he had first seen Hopper he had been disgusted by the boy, he had been broken, weak and destroyed. But as he became better and as he slipped away from the frail, vulnerable boy that had made him want to end his life Tiberius found a boy that was truly likeable. Fun, artistic and always, always happy. There was a smile on his face that always made Tiberius smile, and there was always something to it, a tiny little cheeky sparkle that just made Tiberius’ own smile broaden. And he did smile and laugh every time they talked. There was always humour under toning everything they said to each other. And in the space of a few short months he had fallen in love with a boy he would never have dreamed of falling for. Hopper was everything he was not. He was weak and vulnerable where Tiberius was not, but it was that weakness that seemed to show more around Tiberius then anyone that made him want to protect him. It made him want to hold him and tell him everything would be okay. He was someone that just needed a helping hand, someone to just guide him and tell him from right and wrong and Tiberius had become that person.

The hospital was clean and that sterile smell clung to the air. It smelled as cleaned as it looked. Everything was white and the floors gleamed from the reflection of the white lights. It was bright, and it looked like daylight within the confines of a room. The place looked as though it would never darken, as though night could not even stop the light that poured tirelessly and endlessly onto the stained white floors. Tiberius didn’t think it looked like a happy place. And it only increased the worry that gnawed painfully at his stomach. Each step that he took closer to Hopper made his chest pain; his worry grew and grew as he fretted over what he was going to see. Lyanna had been reluctant to even give that tiny little bit of information away. Yet as she had said those few words at was as though Tiberius knew something insanely bad had happened. Hopper had done something, he had done something bad. He knew it. There was no other reason as to why he would be in the hospital. Tiberius was truly scared. He couldn’t imagine a lifeless Hopper lying on a bed, he couldn’t imagine a dozen tubes slipping from his tanned skin and beeping machines that hooked him too life.

And in his heart he hoped he wouldn’t see that. He hoped that it would be nothing; he hoped that hopper would be sitting up and laughing at his own foolishness. And he would comfort Tiberius and tell him nothing was wrong. Oh how wrong he was. He slipped silently into the room, his heart clawing its way up his throat. He didn’t know what to think and he didn’t want to think anything as he rounded the corner. What he saw made his heart stop, what he saw made his legs shake and his head spin. Hopper was alive. He wasn’t dead, he wasn’t dying he was alive. Dozens of tubes protruded from his arms and chest, his skin that had once held the kiss of the sun looked pale and sickly, his eyes were open, but he didn’t even look as if he was seeing anything. They were riddled with pain and Tiberius heart seemed to break into two.

It made him physically hurt to see the man he cared so much for like this. And he loved him, he loved Hopper Goravich. But seeing Hopper just lying there was an all too familiar memory. Just like the day they had first met. Hopper falling to the ground, the pain that had been on his face. The need to do, the desperation and the self-loathing. Tiberius had truly believed he had changed Hopper, made him into a man that could hold his head high through it all. Someone who was strong, someone who he could admire. For those few months he had lived with Hopper he had watched a man he could love, but looking at Hopper right now he wasn’t so sure. Yet he loved him. And he couldn’t leave; he couldn’t just back away because he was scared. He had to tell Hopper. Stepping forwards he walked into the room. His legs felt like jelly and he was almost certain that he might fall at any moment. His chest ached and he just wanted to hug Hopper and tell him it would all be alright, like he had done before. But he didn’t. He wanted to tell him he loved him, he wanted to just say those three words and let Hopper know what he felt and he opened his mouth, the words balancing on the tip of his tongue.

”Why?” And suddenly he was angry.

”Why did you do it?” He asked, the words slipping from his lips before anything else could come out. His fists were clenched tightly at his sides, and his eyes flickered dangerously, all sympathy and worry had disappeared from his expression. His eyes burned into Hopper’s and for a moment he didn’t care that Hopper was lying in a hospital bed, he didn’t care that he could be dying, he just didn’t care. Hopper was never supposed to do this to himself. He had promised to never try to kill himself again; he had promised to Tiberius that he would never try to end his life again.

Tiberius had believed him. He had believed him with all his heart.

He just didn’t understand.

”Did you do it because you could? Were you trying to prove a point? Was it to spite me?" His voice rose with each sentence, the accusations flying from his lips. His mind spun, his hands shook, he was angry. He was furious and hurt, he was hurting so much on the inside and it was making him angry and it was making him want Hopper to hurt and he didn’t care. ”ANSWER ME.” He spits venomously. His eyes blazed and they drilled into Hopper’s, begging for an answer, begging for a reason, because no matter how hard he searched within his own heart he could find none, he could find no reason as to why hopper should be lying on this bed. He shouldn’t be, he should be with Tiberius in their house. This… This wasn’t supposed to happen. It made Tiberius so made and he hurt more than he had hurt for a long time. ”I thought you were better than this Hopper Goravich. I was wrong.”His shoulders sagged, he felt completely and utterly at a loss, he felt defeated.

In the middle of summer
When the moon found the sun
He looked like he was barely hanging on
But her eyes saved his life
In the middle of summer (summer)