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Diesel Patrick lay in his bed at 16 years of age. He was waiting on his best friend, Draco Blaiz to get to his house. He had a lot on his mind and he knew that the dragon was the only one he could trust, and would always be there for him. He fiddled with his cordless house phone in one paw while scratching at his furry chin with the other.

His tail came up between his legs, a fluffy black and white appendage that on most huskies his age would be wagging with content while at home, but to Diesel, home was no happy place. It didn't matter how hard he tried, his parents were never happy and were convinced that he was on the road straight to hell.

He's pretty sure they thought he was some sort of Satanist or heretic because he had shown interest in getting a couple tattoos and spent most of his time with another male of a different species rather than trying to find a nice husky girl to date and marry.

They didn't seem to be able to understand that just because his best friend was a dragon and male, that it didn't mean he was gay. He was, however; and tried to hide it from everyone, including the dragon, that he's had a crush on Draco ever since freshman year.

He looked anxiously at the clock on the wall and considered calling Draco back to see if he had left the house yet, but decided against it.

***

The husky thought back to his early childhood. He had been born in Dallas Texas in 1990. His mother was a stay at home mom, his dad was a Baptist preacher. Of course this meant that his father would look at everything he did and yell at him saying that he was going straight to hell if it didn't match his ideas of acceptable or perfection, which was often.

Diesel was only a kid, he never understood why his daddy was always yelling at him and his mommy. Of course his mom would always back her husband up. She wasn't as strict as his father was, but still pretty hard on him.

When he was eight years old, they moved to a new town called Lubbock, Texas where things started to get worse as far as his parents being religious nut jobs.

His mother had to get a job just to be able to afford the house she had picked out, and his father was always at one church or another where he spent all his time with other religious nuts.

This ensured that his father's mind was always closed to anything that the Holy Bible might condemn, there was absolutely no wiggle room to this lifestyle.

Because of how he had been raised, he couldn't stand going to church on Sundays, because his father was one of those "fire and brimstone" kinds of Baptist preachers. He knew how to make an entire congregation feel like the scum of the earth and yet still want to come back the next week.

By the time he turned 12, his father had whipped him with a switch because he had been caught masturbating.

"I had better not EVER catch you touching yourself again!!" his father would yell as he swung the switch. His reasoning had something to do with how it leads to "sexual immorality" or caving into "lustful desires" which are all sins in his book, that damned "Holy Bible."

Things continued to get worse as the more his parents tried to shove that damn book down his throat, the more rebellious he became.

This brought him back to the events of that day. He had been hiding out in the bathroom with the exhaust fan running to clear the smoke from the room as he enjoyed a cigarette when his dad pounded on the door.

"Boy you had best not be in there touching yourself again! How many times do I have to tell you what that blasphemous activity leads to??"

After the initial shock of his dad's pounding, he managed to calm down enough to answer in a decent amount of time.

"Dad, I'm just using the bathroom, I'll be out in a minute."

"Bull!," the older husky yelled "if you don't unlock this door right now, i'll knock it in!"

Diesel's temper was rising fast as he finished the last dregs of the cigarette he had talked an older student at school to buy for him.

"Dad, im sitting on the toilet taking a crap! Ill be out in just a second!" He had disposed of the cigarette in the toilet and flushed, but before he could get the remaining cigarettes hidden in his pocket, there was a loud bang and the bathroom door flew open, his father looking angrily from him to the pack of cigarettes in his paw and back again.

It wasn't the switch that time, it was the thick heavy wooden board that his father had for just such occasions. The one that left bruises every time it was used. He knew better than to fight the punishment, that only made it worse.

He stood there and took each lick, which stung painfully, bringing tears to his eyes. His father then took the pack of cigarettes from him and locked him in his room. A short time later his father took off for one of the many churches in town.

After the old husky had plenty of time to get far away from the house, Diesel picked up his phone and dialled the number he knew by heart.

So that's how he got to where he was at, laying on his bed waiting for his best pal to show up. He continued to stew in his seething hatred and anger when something small hit his bedroom window, making a loud tap and interrupting his thoughts.

Draco had shown up in his father's F150, here at last to rescue him from the prison that he was forced to call home. He grabbed another pack of cigarettes and an extra lighter from his hidden stash, a loose floorboard under his bed, and hopped out the window, climbing down the rain gutter and hopped inside the pickup.

He waited until they were a decent ways away from the house before Diesel and Draco both lit a cigarette and Diesel started to pour out his heart and soul about what he had just been through to the dragon.

****Two Years Later****

It was the big day, graduation day. Everything was perfect, except for a couple of things. The first thing that probably had him bummed the most was the fact that Draco wasn't there, he was in the hospital unconscious.

Of course it didn't help matters much that his own father never bothered to show up either. His mother was there, but not for him. She was only pretending to be interested in her only son's graduation, but her expression made it plain that she didn't really want to be there.

She was there because "Oh what would that fat bitch at church say if she didn't show up to her satanic son's graduation?" Not that anyone in this particular town actually cared who showed up to a high school graduation and who didn't.

The graduation ceremony went off without any problems, there weren't any pranks or interruptions like you might expect at any other graduation.

On the way home after graduation, there was no talk. Diesel's mother said nothing, even when he tried to initiate conversation with her.

When they got home, his father was there waiting for them. He looked Diesel in the eyes upon entering the house and offered a genuine handshake. This confused Diesel, he couldn't remember a time when his dad had been so civil and sincere with him, all his memories were of his pops yelling at him and beating him, condemning him to hell.

"Congratulations, son. I know you want to go see your friend in the hospital, but do you have a second for your old man?" the old dog asked.

"Uhm. Sure, what is it dad?" Diesel answered, still confused. The family of three sat down in the livingroom, the old pastor had a thick envelope in his paws with some fancy writing on the front.

"It's time we talked about your future," the old man started "I know how you wanted to go to school and get your business degree, start your own gym, but there's something else you need to do first." He paused, as if he was trying to figure out how to tell the Big Man upstairs that he scratched his brand new car.

"Ok? What is it?" Diesel asked, not sure why his father, who had always been very straight forward, was beating around the bush now.

"Well," the older gentleman continued "I took the liberty of sending in an application on your behalf to the Monastery. You're going to become a preacher like me and my father before me."

Diesel's jaw dropped. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. His old man went and just decided that he would become a preacher without even considering to ask him how he felt about this.

His shock started to fade as he was filled with rage. "What... What the FUCK??" Now his parents were starting to get angry.

"WATCH YOUR MOUTH YOUNG MAN!!" they both shouted in retaliation to his outburst.

"No! No you both are going to listen to me for once! This is my only voice, so please pay attention, because I'm only going to say this once! You can't just go around making such big decisions for me, especially without talking to me about it first!" Diesel shouted "I'm 18, I should be able to decide for myself!"

"You don't have the maturity to make your own decisions, boy!" the old geezer shouted "You can't make good decisions! If I let you have your way, then you'll go to hell for sure, and I'm trying to save you from that eternal damnation!!"

Diesel struggled not to punch the man in the face. He had enough common sense not to physically attack someone unless in self defence, especially in their own home. No, he wouldn't stoop to that level.

"When are yall going to realize..." he started as he forced himself to calm down "that you have to let me live my own life?? For the last 6 years I have tried to make you realize that this is my life! So I hope someday you understand what I'm saying here. I don't want to become a preacher, or a minister, or a deacon, I don't even want to go to church anymore! All my life you have made God out to be this angry being who damns you to hell if you commit even the smallest sin!"

His father cut him off before he could get any further. "You'll keep going to church, for as long as you live under my roof, you'll go by my rules!"

A kind of calm peace washed over Diesel at that moment as he made a decision. He didn't voice this decision yet, and he knew it might be a bit quick and hasty, but he was leaving. That night.

Without saying a word, the young husky stood up and started up the stairs for his bedroom. "Where are you going?? I'm not done talking to you!" his father shouted at him as he walked off.

"I am..." he thought to himself as he closed the door behind him. He immediately started to pack his large gym bag with things he'd need. He wasn't sure where hed go, he might could stay at Draco's house, but how long would that last? The dragon's old man wasn't much better than his own, he was abusive and often drunk, though he was still a breath of fresh air compared to Pastor Patrick.

He opened the window and dropped his bag out, taking a last look at his unusually tidy room, the desk now empty of his laptop, dresser drawers empty of his clothes and walls stripped of the pictures he cared about. He left only a few posters, and the only picture of him and his parents he had hanging there.

With no second thoughts he hopped out the window, climbing down the rain gutter as he had done so many times and started walking. He took one last look at his childhood hell hole, knowing that he was likely to not ever see it again.

He had lived out in the country with his family, a single two story house by itself surrounded by trees of different kinds.

He walked until he came to St. Bernard's Convenience store where he asked if he could use their phone. He dialed a number that he had to search his memory for, but pulled it up easy enough. A rough growling voice answered. "Hello?" Zapherion Blaiz answered, his voice sounded tired and distant.

"Mr. Blaiz? Its Diesel. How's Drake doing?" he was hoping for good news, only for his hopes to be dashed when he was told his friend was still unconscious.

"Hey, can I ask you for a favor? Can you come pick me up at St. Bernards? I had to leave home..." the conversation was short when he hung up the phone, releasing a sigh of relief as he passed the phone back to the associate behind the register.

"Your parents will come looking for you, you know that right?" the cashier stated, having dealt with this all before.

"Yeah they will, but there isn't anything they can do now, I can't take their insanity anymore. My eyes are open, and by some miracle I made it this far. After watching the rest of the world, I can see that life can be so much better than what mine has been. I'm leaving, there's nothing either of them can do to stop me, and they can't force me to come back."

The cashier, Haily, a nice border collie, just smiled softly. "I've been through this a lot with you, and it seems like you've just been running in one place and not getting anywhere, but i'm glad you're finally getting out. Just be careful, OK Diesel?"

The husky smiled. "When they do come looking for me, tell my parents that I did everything I could to make them see that this is my life and I have to be the one to live it. I don't want to be a preacher like my dad, and he's trying to force me. I won't do it. I hope they understand that I'm actually not mad or upset with them, I understand where they are coming from, but I hope they understand..."

He paused, taking his words into consideration. "I'm not upset with them, I'm just saying that sometimes goodbye is like a new beginning for everyone, sometimes goodbye is what it takes to make everyone see things clearly."

There was a long pause. He asked Haily for a pen and a sheet of paper, and wrote down everything he wanted his parents to know.

"Dear Mom and Dad,

I know what yall wanted of me, but please understand that what yall want of me is just not who I am. Please don't cry for me, Im not afraid of what I have to say. Sometimes, you just have to let go and let people live their own lives and learn from their own mistakes. Sometimes, you just have to say goodbye.

• Diesel"

He handed the note to Haily to give to his parents just as a white pickup truck pulled into the parking lot and honked its horn. With that, he said farewell to Haily and walked out the door to leave with Zaperion.

He couldn't wait to see Draco again, even if he was still unconscious, it would be a breath of nice fresh and free air.

***

When they got to the hospital, Draco was still unconscious, but at least he was still alive.

Little was known about what happened to the dragon, all they knew is that he was found naked in a wooded area of a park with broken bones, but doctors have yet to say anything else.

They suspect that he had been raped, but the only person who could say what had happened was lying unconscious right now.

Diesel almost felt guilty, occasionally the thought had crossed his mind that maybe his father was right, maybe Draco was here because of his personal feelings for the dragon and this was God's way of punishing him.

He certainly felt alone and isolated. As much as he wanted Draco to wake up, he wasn't sure he could face him when he did.

Yet another goodbye he had to say, for Draco's own good. Perhaps distancing himself from the dragon would make God happy enough to allow Draco to wake up finally.

He waited until he was alone with Draco, then left a farewell note and left into the sunset.

It seemed like all he managed to accomplish that day was say goodbye to everyone, but he reminded himself that it was the best thing for them.

He had done everything he could to make people see that this was his life. Sometimes goodbye's all you have left, it can sometimes be a new beginning. It doesn't mean forever, just a fresh start. A second chance

Song chosen: Second Chance by Shinedown

Lyric video: https://youtu.be/0SgjcNwwHwM

Lyrics: http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/shinedown/secondchance.html