This idea was suggested to me by @HannahMartin795! Sooo sorry it's taken me so long to get this done!! I hope you like it!!

Sam, Colby, Elton, Corey, and Devyn are attending a New Years Eve party when Devyn notices Sam's ex-girlfriend Delaney with a new guy. (If you haven't read my story "What Best Friends Are For" in this book, go read that to get some context as to who this Delaney chick is and why we hate her lol) ((DELANEY IS A FAKE, MADE UP CHARACTER!! SHE IS NOT BASED OFF OF ANYBODY REAL SHE IS COMPLETELY MADE UP!!!)) Madness ensues as the friends try to prevent Sam from seeing her, but she ends up seeing him and making her presence known to Sam. Sam puts on a brave face in front of her, but as soon as she leaves, he crumbles.

TRIGGER WARNINGS: Anxiety/panic attacks, mentions of cheating and breaking up, heartbroken Sam, Over protective Colby
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"Okay, turn left at the next light." Sam told Colby, looking at the navigation app on his phone. Colby, who was driving, nodded.

"This one here?" He asked.

"No, the next one." Sam clarified.

In the back seat, Corey, Elton, and Devyn joked around. The gang was on their way to a New Year's Eve party in downtown L.A. They rode together, knowing that none of them wanted to stay terribly long. They had agreed to leave just after midnight. It was 8:45 currently.

They arrived making fairly decent time. Colby locked the car and the group walked in together. The venue was a mansion in a huge neighborhood. They walked in and mingled their way downstairs to a basement roughly the size of a warehouse.

"This place is huge!" Colby yelled over the music. Sam nodded.

They danced, talked, and laughed for over an hour before Devyn suddenly pulled Corey aside.

"Ow! What?" Corey asked.

"Look over there but don't be obvious..." Devyn whispered. Corey glanced in the direction she was pointing. He frowned.

"What?" He asked. Devyn rolled her eyes.

"Pink crop top, brown hair, jean shorts." Devyn said. Corey looked for someone with that description. When his eyes fell on the girl, his jaw dropped.

"Is that...?" He looked back at Devyn, who nodded. "Fuck. Colby!!" Corey yelled. Colby turned around. When he saw Corey and Devyn's concerned expressions, he rushed over.

"What's up?" He asked. Corey and Devyn pointed.

"Delaney's here." Devyn said. Colby's eyes widened.

"What?!" He asked.

"Shh!! We can't let Sam see her!" Devyn said. Colby found her with his eyes and instantly he was seething. She was grinding on some random guy. Delaney was Sam's ex girlfriend. They'd been dating for over a year until she cheated on Sam and he broke up with her only a few months ago. Sam was still reeling from the breakup, and this party had been a ploy to get him out of the house and interacting with people again.

"Fuck what do we do?!" Colby asked.

"What do we do about what?" Elton asked, approaching the group.

"Delaney's here." Colby said.

"Sam's ex?? Where?!" Elton asked, looking around.

"Over there." Colby pointed. Elton saw her and nodded.

"Sam know?" He asked.

"Fuck no. And we wanna keep it that way." Colby said. Elton nodded.

"Where is Sam anyway?" Corey asked.

"He's by the food table. I just left him." Elton said.

"Okay. No one leaves him alone tonight. We cannot let that bitch ruin his night." Colby said. They all agreed, and rushed off to find Sam.
____________________________________

The plan was working, for the most part. Sam was never left on his own, and anytime someone spotted Delaney they'd instantly turn Sam away and distract him with something. The night was going fairly smoothly for a while.

Until it wasn't.

Sam was laughing, they were all dancing, everyone was having fun. They we're completely blindsided when Delaney randomly walked over and tapped on Sam's shoulder. Sam turned around and his smile vanished instantly before a fake one reappeared just as quickly.

"Delaney...Hey! I didn't know you were gonna be here." Sam said.

"Hey you!!" Delaney said sweetly. She pulled Sam into a nonconsensual hug that Sam clearly wasn't expecting. Colby took a step toward her, but Elton grabbed his arm.

"Don't make it worse." Elton whispered. Colby shook him off.

"Hey Colby! Elton, Devyn, Corey! How are you guys?" Delaney asked. She had a huge plastic smile on her face. Colby moved closer to Sam, and the blonde instantly leaned into Colby's shoulder. He had his arms wrapped protectively around his middle as his fake smile remained in place.

"Good. How are you?" Corey asked politely.

"Good! I'm doing good! Oh! Have you guys met Dylan?" Delaney asked, gesturing to the guy now approaching them. It was the same guy Colby had seen her dancing with earlier.

"I don't think so." Sam said.

"Hi. I'm Dylan." Dylan introduced himself, holding his hand out. Sam shook it awkwardly. He was instantly intimidated. Dylan was a full foot taller than him, super muscular, with brown hair and green eyes.

"Sam." Sam introduced himself.

"Sam's an old friend." Delaney said a little too sweetly. Sam nodded awkwardly. The others were haphazardly introduced and the new couple struck up a random conversation. Listening to Delaney talk about how fantastic she was doing and how happy she is made Sam's heart twist painfully. He felt his chest go tight and his throat begin to close up. He leaned further into Colby, who took the hint.

"Well it was great running into you." He said.

"Oh, are you guys leaving?" Delaney asked. Colby froze. He glanced at Sam and saw that his eyes were sparkling with tears. He was keeping his head tilted down, which made it harder to see his eyes.

"Yeah we're heading out soon. We have another friend's party to be at for midnight." Devyn spoke up, saving Colby.

"Oh okay! Well it was awesome seeing you guys again! We should all meet up sometime and grab lunch or something!" Delaney said. The group nodded, smiling politely. Delaney gave a small wave and she and Dylan walked away.

The group instantly huddled around Sam.

"Are you okay?" Colby asked. Sam snorted.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Why wouldn't I be?" He asked without looking at Colby.

"We had no idea she was gonna be here." Elton said. Sam shrugged casually.

"It's fine guys. I'm gonna-run to the bathroom real fast. You guys wait here." Sam's voice broke as he pushed through Colby and Corey and made a beeline for the restroom. Colby was instantly following him, with Corey, Devyn, and Elton following close behind.

Sam made it to the bathroom and slammed the door shut, locking it. He leaned against the door, feeling dizzy. Moving quickly had made his throat feel even more closed up, and it was harder to breathe.

Colby was pounding on the door, talking to him, but Sam couldn't make out his words clearly. They ran together. As his breathing picked up speed, Sam started to cry. His mind raced through every happy memory he and Delaney had shared, right up until their breakup.

He remembered hearing her say 'I love you' while on the phone with somebody else. He remembered her lying to his face. He remembered her throwing her phone at him. What if Dylan was that guy on the phone that day?

Sam leaned against the wall for support, his vision swimming. He felt nauseous and dizzy and shaky. One look down at his hands showcased just how badly he was shaking. Slowly, he dragged his eyes up at the door, which was shaking with every bang Colby gave.

Outside, Colby and Elton stood at the door knocking and desperately trying to talk to Sam. Devyn stood behind Colby, and Corey stood behind Devyn. When Corey noticed someone approaching out of the corner of his eye, he turned. His expression turned to rage when he found Delaney.

"Is everything okay?" Delaney asked, looking at the group.

"Everything's fine. Go away." Corey spat at her. Devyn turned around upon hearing her boyfriend speak so harshly. When she saw Delaney, she also felt anger surge through her, but she swallowed it and smiled.

"Everything's fine." She said kindly.

"Is Sam in there? Is he okay??" Delaney asked, noticing that there was one missing from their clan.

"He's fine." Corey said even harsher than his previous statements. Devyn put her hand on his shoulder and squeezed.

"Corey!" She whispered. "He's fine. Just not feeling well." Devyn said, still forcing her fake smile.

"Is there anything I can do?" Delaney asked, taking a step forward. Now, both Corey and Devyn stepped in her direction and blocked her path. Corey looked her dead in the eyes.

"You've done enough. Go back to your boy toy and leave us alone." Corey said quietly and seriously. As if by magic, Dylan walked up and put his arm around Delaney.

"What's going on, Babe?" He asked her. Corey pushed down the urge to gag over dramatically.

"Nothing. Everything's fine. Thanks for checking in!" Devyn says sweetly. Delaney and Dylan looked at her. "It was great seeing you again!" She said, waving.

"See you guys around." Corey said, forcing his tone to be nicer. Dylan and Delaney left awkwardly, looking from each other, to Corey and Devyn, to the ruckus going on behind them. When they were gone, Devyn turned and punched Corey in the arm.

"Ow!" Corey said. Devyn smiled, and leaned up and kissed him.

"Okay, I'm confused." Corey said.

"When are you not?" Devyn asked. Corey's jaw dropped in fake offense. Devyn mimicked his expression and they both chuckled.

"You're a really good friend, Corey." Devyn said seriously. Corey smiled.

"Thanks." He said. Devyn nodded, and they both turned back to Colby and Elton.

"Sam! Sam open the door!" Corey called.

"Sam, come on! We're gonna go home, okay?" Colby tried. They could hear Sam hyperventilating through the door.

"Sam? It's Devyn. Can you open the door for me, please?" Devyn tried gently.

Nothing.

"Fuck. Corey can you go get him some water?" Colby asked. Corey nodded and took off.

"What should we do?" Elton asked. Colby shook his head.

"I don't know." He put his ear to the door and listened. "He's crying." Colby said. Devyn and Elton sighed. Corey returned quickly with the bottle of water.

"Is that sealed?" Devyn asked. Corey checked it.

"Looks like it hasn't been opened." Corey said. Devyn glanced at the others.

"It's okay. We'll get him water on our way home." Corey said, setting the bottle down on a table in the hallway. Everyone glanced at Colby. The brunette was staring hard at the doorknob, clearly deep in thought.

Out of nowhere, the group saw his eyes flicker, and he looked up and knocked on the door.

"Yo Sam? Someone needs to use the bathroom. He's waiting out here." Colby called. The group waited, listening. They heard shuffling and sniffling.

The door opened slightly, and Colby instantly pushed his way into the bathroom and grabbed Sam's arm. He pulled his counterpart into a tight hug. Sam collapsed into his friend's embrace, crying into Colby's shoulder.

"I know. I know, Sammy. I'm so sorry. We're going home right now, okay? We're gonna go home right now. Come on. Come on. Let's get you out of here." Colby said calmingly. He pulled back, but kept a hold on Sam's wrist. Sam immediately ducked his head low. Colby turned to the gang. They all nodded, and immediately turned on their heels and speed-walked to the exit.

They raced to the car, letting Sam in the passenger seat first. Colby dove into the driver's seat and turned the car on for the air conditioning, knowing that by now Sam was sweating. Sam had his face hidden in his hands.

"Are you nauseous?" Colby asked pragmatically. Sam nodded. "Would you rather stay here until that subsides or go home? Or go half way and park somewhere? One, two, or three?" Colby asked. Sam didn't move. Colby glanced back at Corey, Devyn, and Elton.

"Let's just get him out of here. Go home." Devyn said. Elton and Corey nodded. Colby looked back at Sam, who nodded slightly.

"You got it. Everyone buckle up." Colby said. He waited until everyone had buckled their seatbelts, and then put the car in drive and sped away from the house.

Colby pulled up to their house, and Sam was instantly out of the car, rushing to the front door. He tried to open the door, but it was locked.

"Sam..." Colby said, just managing to get out of the car. He closed his door and walked over to Sam, who was struggling with his house key. Corey, Devyn, and Elton cautiously approached the two as well.

"Sam, stop for a second." Colby said. Sam tried again to unlock the door, but his hands were shaking so badly that he dropped his keys.

"God...Fuck!" He said. He was crying again, and he slammed the side of his fist against the door. He was starting to hyperventilate again, so Colby intervened. He took Sam by the shoulders and said his name clearly.

"Sam!"

Sam paused, looking at Colby. Colby sighed, and he pulled Sam into another hug. Sam cried into Colby's shirt.

"I'm sorry." He muttered quietly.

"Bro, you don't have to apologize." Corey said.

"Yeah, dude, you're fine." Colby said. Sam pulled away. Colby bent down and picked up Sam's key and used it to unlock the door. He opened it for Sam. Sam walked in slowly. He started to head for the stairs, but Colby grabbed his shoulders and turned him towards the kitchen.

"Nope, nope, nope, nope. We're not leaving you alone right now." Colby said.

"I'm fine." Sam said.

"Last time you said that you took off hyperventilating and locked yourself in a bathroom in a strange house." Elton said. Sam glared at him with absolutely zero harshness in his eyes. Elton smiled. Colby walked him to the couch in the tv room, the others in tow. Elton took a detour to the kitchen.

Corey, Devyn, Colby, and Sam all sat down.

"How are you feeling?" Colby asked.

"Fine." Sam said, wiping his eyes. Elton walked in and held out a bottle of water to him. Sam took it sheepishly.

"Thanks." He said.

"Sam I swear we had no idea she was gonna be there. I'm so sorry." Devyn said.

"It's fine, Devyn." Sam said.

"I feel horrible." Devyn pressed. "I'm the one who got the invite from all of us, I should've investigated more. I'm really sorry, Sam." She said.

"Devyn it's okay. I don't want you to feel guilty." Sam said.

"Let's not blame anyone, okay? Nobody knew she would be there. It just happened. She lives in LA, we live in LA. It was bound to happen eventually." Elton said, once again taking the comforting-authoritative role. Everyone else in the room nodded.

"I'm sorry I made everyone leave the party." Sam said, finally beginning to calm down.

"Dude you're fine. To be honest I was getting kinda crammed." Colby said.

"Yeah, same here. It was way too loud for me. I'd much rather chill at home with you guys." Devyn said. Elton and Corey also nodded their agreements. Sam sniffled.

"I don't know why that hit me so hard. Just like...My mind started racing between all these different thoughts and it just..." Sam shook his head, not knowing how to finish.

"You went into overwhelm." Colby offered.

Sam nodded. "Yeah. Everything just came back to me all at once." He confirmed. Everyone nodded.

"I'm sorry you had to deal with that, Sam. I'm really sorry." Colby said. Sam shook his head again.

"It's not your fault. It's not anyone's fault." Sam said quietly.

"We still feel bad." Devyn said.

"Yeah. You really freaked out." Corey said.

Sam looked down. "Was anyone staring?" He asked.

"No. No one bothered us at all." Colby said. Devyn and Corey made eye contact, and Elton noticed.

"What?" He's asked. Colby and Sam looked to Elton, and then followed his gaze to look at Devyn and Corey. The couple looked at each other again.

"Um...Delaney, kinda came over to us while you were in the bathroom." Corey said carefully.

"What?" Colby said.

"You guys didn't notice. Corey kinda blocked the way, and then I came over and we got her to go away." Devyn explained.

"Did she-What did she say?" Sam asked. Corey and Devyn both hesitated. "It's okay, I can take it." Sam said.

Nobody believed that, but Corey continued. He explained their encounter with Delaney and eventually with Dylan as well. When he'd finished, Sam only nodded. He looked to Corey and Devyn.

"Thank you." He said. Corey and Devyn both nodded.

"Of course, Man. I wasn't gonna let her anywhere near you." Corey said.

"Me either." Devyn agreed.

"Thanks you guys. All of you. Seriously. You're all amazing." Sam said, looking from one friend to the next.

"Of course, Sam." Colby said.

"Anytime." Corey echoed.

"No man left behind." Elton said Sam smiled.

"Are you feeling alright?" Colby asked.

Sam nodded. "Yeah. I'm a little tired." He said.

"Tired enough to want to go to bed now?" Colby asked.

"What? No! It's New Years eve! We've still got a couple hours before midnight!" Sam said, looking at his watch-less wrist. Everyone chuckled.

"Sam if you're tired you can go to bed. It's okay." Devyn said.

"I know. I don't want to go to bed. I wanna party it up with you guys until midnight!! If you're all cool with that." Sam said.

"You're sure?" Elton asked.

"Yes I'm positive. Plus I wanna get my mind off of things, you know?" Sam said.

"Alright! Well you heard the man! What do we do?" Elton asked. Everyone looked around.

"Family game night?" Corey asked.

"Family game night!!" Colby, Elton, Sam, and Devyn all echoed in excitement. They all got up and scrambled around the house, looking for every board game and deck of cards they owned. In the end, they managed to locate Sorry!, Trouble, three decks of cards, Uno!, Jumanji, Don't Pop The Balloon, and Hungry Hungry Hippo.

They set everything up on the tv room floor and all sat in a circle around their first game, Sorry!. They let Sam go first, and he drew an 11 and was able to get out of the start on his first turn.

They played games until 11:30. At that point they stopped and turned on the tv to watch the countdown. Around 11:45, Elton suddenly stood up and ran into his room.

"You okay?" Sam asked.

"Yeah! I just remembered I have something!" Elton yelled back. They heard rustling from his room, and he returned quickly holding several bags of balloons.

"When did you get these?" Laughed Colby as Elton passed the bags out to everyone.

"I got them for a prank a while back but then I realized the prank was shit so I never did it. Let's blow them up and then at midnight we can all pop them!" Elton explained. Everyone liked that idea, and they started blowing up as many balloons as they could in fifteen minutes.

When the clock struck midnight, they all yelled and danced around and tried to see who could pop the most balloons the fastest.

They stayed up for a little while longer before they all started getting tired. Corey was the first to crash, followed shortly by Devyn. Sam, Colby, and Elton all decided to go to bed around 2:00am, per Elton's request. They'd all had a long day and needed sleep, especially Sam.

The duo walked up the stairs together, and Colby followed Sam into Sam's room.

"How are you feeling?" Colby asked, closing the door behind him.

"A lot better. Really tired though." Sam said honestly.

Colby nodded. "I can imagine. I'm surprised you lasted as long as you did tonight. I thought for sure you'd be the first one to crash." Colby said. Sam chuckled, changing into a sleep shirt.

"You gonna be okay in here on your own?" Colby asked. The question was platonic, and Sam knew that. He was always extra jumpy and nervous after a panic attack. The boys were also used to sharing a bedroom and had only very recently gotten their own rooms by moving into the Trap House.

Sam was very used to Colby being there in the room with him after a panic attack. Tonight wouldn't be the first night he'd spent alone after one, but he always hated being alone after them.

"I think I'll be fine." Sam said after a minute.

Colby looked at him. "I can spend the night in here if you want. Or you can crash on the couch in my room. It's up to you." Colby said seriously. Sam thought, taking a deep breath.

"I'm tired. I'll be out soon. I'll be okay." He said finally. Colby cocked his head at Sam.

"You sure?" He asked.

Sam smiled. "Yeah I'm sure. Thanks though." The blonde said.

"Okay. If you need me at any point I'm right across the hall, okay? Sam?" Colby's tone went serious, making Sam look up at him.

"If you need me at any point in the night, come wake me up, okay? I'm serious." Colby said in a low voice.

"I know. Thanks Colby." Sam said equally as seriously. The two smiled at each other, and said their goodnights. Colby left for his own room, leaving Sam's door open a crack upon Sam's request.

Sam crawled into bed after turning out the light. He was tempted to go through his camera roll and look at all of the pictures of him and Delaney, but he heard Colby's voice in his head telling him that was a really bad idea. So instead, he watched YouTube videos until he fell asleep, which was pretty quickly. He was exhausted. However, he fell asleep with a smile on his face, thinking about the fun night he'd had at home with his friends.

Despite having just moved into this house, Sam already loved it there. 

A/N: Ayyyyyyyy I haven't forgotten about this one shot book!! I also have a very fun surprise (hopefully lol) coming soon so be on the lookout for that!!! In the meantime, I'm posting a lot of Slimecicle fanfics lately for some reason hahah so go check those out while you wait! I hope you guys liked this part! So sorry it's been so long since I've updated! I have a couple more requests in the works for parts in this book though so more updates are to come!! I hope you guys liked this part, particularly @HannahMartin795 as you did request this idea! Again I'm so sorry it's taken me so long to get it done! I hope you like how it turned out though!!! As always, thanks so much for reading and I hope you have a great rest of your day, whatever time it is for you! Stay safe!! 😊✌🏻♥️