Nevermind, Neverland

Gay

Note: story takes place in a kind of modern au where gays are labeled as 'mentally unstable' and homosexuality is considered a mental disorder/illness and are put into psychiatric hospitals/mental institutions.

It was dark and it was rainy, but Hayden Grey could not see it. He did not see the droplets of water falling from the sky like tears. His eyes were trained on the white tile floor beneath him. Even if he looked up he could not see the outside, he had not seen it in so long, so he continued to look down. The floor matched the empty room around him, white windowless walls, fluorescent white lights, shabby white uniform. The only difference was the wooden chair and table. Hayden himself matched the dreary demeanor, his complexion was pale, his sky blue eyes looked soulless and his black hair was shaggy and matted. It hadn't always been like this.

Hayden sat in the grass. The sun was shining down in magnificent golden rays, the long green grass was blowing in the warm breeze and there wasn't a cloud in the sky. It was almost picturesque. Hayden looked to his right, there lay the most important person in his life, Lake Mallas. His eyes were closed, concealing their brilliant green hue. A small smile played on his lips as his sandy blonde hair blew with the grass. Hayden took the time to admire his boyfriend, taking every feature from his perfectly shaped nose to the way his dimples stretched as he smiled.

"I know you're staring, Hayden," Lake chuckled, keeping his eyes closed. Hayden blushed at being caught.

"I mean, it's hard not to when there's someone so beautifully stunning laying right next to you," Hayden defended.

Lake opened his eyes and sat up. His eyes scanned over Hayden before he leaned in and kissed his boyfriend's lips lightly. "I can't argue with that, can I?" he humored.

Hayden breathed a laugh, still enchanted by Lake's every move. You didn't need to hear a word they spoke to each other to know they were deeply in love. Hayden gently took Lake's hand in his own. As the summer sun illuminated their skin, making it look like golden honey, they were lost in happiness. For them, everything was perfect.

But that was what seemed like a lifetime ago. Hayden hadn't seen Lake in months. Hell, he didn't even know if his boyfriend was still alive. They had been separated when they were taken away, banned from ever seeing each other again. That was the day Hayden had been broken, the day he looked into the pained eyes of the one he loved and was helpless. It wasn't the seemingly endless days of captivity and therapy sessions that drove him mad, it was the knowledge that Lake was alone somewhere where Hayden could never get to him. Thinking of Lake not only brought back the beautiful peaceful memories, but the painful ones too.

"Gay!"

"Homosexuals!"

"I've seen the way they interact! They're as gay anyone in a crazy house!" The hateful words and accusations never ended. It was like they were in a spotlight that wouldnt turn off, attracting unwanted attention from all who passed.

Lake turned shakily to Hayden, "W-what do we d-do? They h-have us figured o-out," he stuttered out.

Hayden glared out at the crowd of people they had once considered friends, family, and neighbors. Lake was right. They did have them figured out. "There's not much else we can do, Lake. It's best to just come out I think," Hayden whispered back to the shorter boy.

That, was when Hayden single handedly made the worst decision of his entire life.

"You're damn right!" he shouted back at the horde of homophobes, "We're fucking gay and proud of it too!"

Lake straightened up to yell out, "That's right! I love Hayden Grey with all my heart! And none of you can change that!" Lake grabbed Hayden's neck and turned him so they were face to face before pressing his lips passionately against his boyfriend's.

"There they are officers!" the voice of a small old lady split them apart. Scanning the crowd quickly, Hayden saw the three officers in their black and white uniforms making their way through the mob of angry citizens. Hayden hadn't realized he was zoning out until Lake squeezed his arm. They stared into each other's eyes for a moment before embracing each other in a hug. Strong hands gripped Hayden's sides and pulled. He could feel Lake being pulled away so he held on tighter. It was no use, they were slipping. Hayden looked deep into Lake's eyes. They were filled with sheer terror. They were clinging to each others forearms for dear life.

"Hayden please...don't leave me."

It was too late.

Hayden sat down, his therapist would be in any moment. Back to prescribe him a new medication or a different treatment plan. The therapist was the only person he had seen in these months. There were no visitors for Hayden, there were never visitors for people like him. His mind wandered to his family. They were all probably in shame, they had a gay son, how shameful indeed. He remembers their faces as they disowned him, right before he was taken away. Tears began to subconsciously gather in his eyes.

"Hey, are you ok?" the voice was different. One Hayden had never heard before. Looking up, there was a man. Hayden couldn't see him very well but from what he did see the man had nice styled brown hair and was wearing a suit. That was about it. The man walked up to the table and sat down.

"Hello, I'm Doctor Rocette. You may call me Quinn if you wish." The man, 'Quinn', seemed nice enough, Hayden didn't care. To him, Dr Rocette was just another dumb therapist they hired to tell Hayden that he was crazy and prescribe more treatments and medications to eventually kill him. Noticing the way Hayden was staying defiantly silent, Quinn decided to say,

"Listen Hayden, do you know why they hired me?" Hayden looked up, shook his head and looked away again.

"Because I'm the most successful therapist in this country, I've been able to cure every gay patient I've ever had. They've all been able to walk out of these places alive. Do you know why?" Quinn continued. Hayden perked up when he heard the word 'alive'. Everyone knew that if you ended up here for being gay you're already on death row. No one makes it out alive, usually.

"It's because I know being gay isn't a mental disease."