During the prank war, Sam and Colby make the mistake of going out to get food, leaving Elton, Aaron, and Corey at the house. While they're out, Elton gets an idea for a prank; Elton sabotages a game of Fortnite for Aaron, and Aaron gets so pissed off he knocks Elton unconscious. Then, he gets into a "fist fight" with Corey, who tries defending Elton. When Sam and Colby arrive home, and naturally fall for the prank and try to intervene, Sam gets pushed down by Aaron quite hard. This unexpectedly triggers memories of Sam's childhood, where he and his siblings would get hit by his mother while their father was out. Sam breaks down screaming. Elton, Corey, and Aaron are shocked to find out why.

TRIGGER WARNINGS: PHYSICAL ABUSE/VERBAL ABUSE, Swearing, Panic Attacks, Crying Sam, Very Pissed and Protective Colby

I don't own anyone mentioned in the story, I only own the basic plot line. Everything written here is fictional, Sam Golbach has not released any information claiming to have been abused at all by either parent, and is perfectly fine. IF YOU OR SOMEONE YOU KNOW IS BEING ABUSED, IN ANY WAY, PLEASE PLEASE TELL SOMEONE AND GET HELP. YOU ARE NOT ALONE. YOU ARE LOVED. DO NOT BE AFRAID.
RESOURCES:
(800) 273-8255-Suicide Hotline
1-800-799-7233-National Domestic Violence Hotline
1-800-787-3224-National Domestic Violence Hotline (TTY)
1-800-944-9622-Women's Health Hotline
1-800-4ACHILD (1-800-422-4453)-Child Help National Child Abuse Hotline
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Colby stood up from his desk and walked across the hall to Sam's bedroom and knocked on his door. "Yo, Sam?" He said. "Brother!" Sam called back. Colby opened his door and walked in. "Hey, I'm gonna go get food in like fifteen minutes. You wanna come?" Colby asked. Sam glanced back at his computer. "Uuuuuh yeah! This should be done in like ten." He said, looking back to Colby. "Cool." Colby said, tossing his phone in the air and catching it. He left Sam's room and returned to his own. When he sat down, he texted Elton, Corey, and Aaron to see if any of them wanted to tag along with him and Sam. All three declined; Aaron was streaming, Corey had eaten with Devyn a little while ago, and Elton wasn't hungry. Colby went back to editing his video for a bit.

Sam and Colby ventured downstairs, where they found Corey and Elton playing Rocket League in the living room. "Hey guys. We're gonna head out. You want us to bring you back something?" Sam asked. "Uh, no thanks, I'm good." Corey said. "Um. Fries? Where are you going?" Elton asked. "Chipotle." Colby told him. "Ah, okay. Then um...Oh, damn someone blew me up. Corey, watch the goal! Uh, no thanks I'm fine." Elton said. Sam and Colby chuckled. "Okay. We'll be back soon." Colby said, and the two friends headed out.
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The boys had only been gone for a bit when Aaron went to the kitchen. "Hey guys." He said. "Hey Aaron." Corey said in a goofy voice. "What's up, Aaron?" Elton said. Aaron walked in the room and looked at the tv. "Just finished streaming. Are you winning?" He asked. "We were for like a second." Corey laughed. Aaron smiled. "Nice." He commented. "Hey, do all of you guys have pranks up for this week?" Elton asked. Corey and Aaron both nodded. "Damn. I need to step up my game. I haven't filmed anything for this week." Elton said, boosting in the game and hitting the ball. "Sam and Colby are out. You could prank them." Aaron suggested, taking a drink of his protein water. Elton shrugged. "With what?" He asked. Corey and Aaron were both quiet. Aaron sat down on the couch and watched the other two play.

After losing one game and starting another, Elton suddenly smiled. "Whoa, I do not like that smile." Aaron said, making Corey look over to Elton. "He's either possessed or he just shit his pants." Corey said, looking back to the game. Elton paused the game, making Corey frown. "Hey! We're winning!" He said. "No, fuck the game. I just got a brilliant idea for a prank on Sam and Colby!" Elton said. Aaron sat up. "This should be good." He said. "Aaron, you know how we pranked I pranked Corey by messing him up during Rocket League?" Elton asked. "Yeah?" Aaron said, confused. "It's kinda like that. We'll say I 'pranked' you by pulling the wifi out in the middle of your stream. You'll get all pissed and come downstairs yelling at me. When I tell you I did it, you hit me and knock me out." Elton explained excitedly. Aaron and Corey looked at each other, laughing. "Whoa-ha-ha-ha! That's good! You don't think it's too far?" Corey asked. Elton frowned. "Have you ever met me?" He asked. "True." Corey said. "What do I do?" Elton hesitated. "You can just run at Aaron and try to, like, hold him back. But then you two just start going at it, and Sam and Colby will try to intervene. Just push them aside and keep fighting." He said finally. Aaron laughed again. "Oh my god this is great. We have to hurry though! They'll be back soon!" He said. They shut off the game and turned the tv to a show, and Elton ran to get his camera. He hid his camera by the stairs, and Corey grabbed his camera to film another angle. Elton texted Colby asking where they were, claiming that he changed his mind on wanting food.

"Okay. Colby just texted me that they're leaving now. That should put them here in like eight minutes. Aaron, when they get here, just start screaming. When they open the door, swing at me and I'll go down. Then, Corey, you just try to tackle him. It's gonna be chaos!" Elton told the other two. Aaron and Corey agreed. "I'll watch the window to see when they pull up." Corey said, racing to the piano room. Aaron paced a bit. "I'm kinda nervous. Like, I don't wanna hurt anyone!" He chuckled. "You won't, its all good! But you gotta be mad. Like, really mad." Elton assured him. Aaron nodded. Now, all they had to do was wait.
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"Oh, wait, Sam. Elton texted me, he wants something." Colby looked down at his phone. Sam smiled. "Typical Elton." He said. Colby nodded. Sam finished ordering his food, and Colby ordered his own food along with Elton's. Then, they went and stood off to the side while they waited. "What'd he say?" Sam questioned. Colby grabbed his phone back out of his pocket. "Uh. He said...'Hey Colby, you still at Chipotle?' And I said 'yeah, why?'. He said 'can you bring me something back? I'll pay you when you get home.'" Colby read the messages to Sam. Sam nodded. "Nothing from Corey or Aaron?" He asked. "Nah. Corey ate with Devyn like an hour ago, and Aaron's streaming." Colby shook his head. "Oh, Aaron's streaming?" He asked. Colby nodded. They called Sam's number, and he went to collect his food. A little bit later, they called Colby's number. As they walked to Colby's car, he texted Elton that they were leaving Chipotle.

"Dude, how have you never seen 'Bug's Life'? It's a classic!" Sam asked Colby for the fourth time in three minutes. The boys had been talking about their favorite older Disney and Pixar movies. When Sam brought up "Bug's Life", Colby told him he'd never seen it. "I just never saw it. Plus, I don't like bugs. They're weird." Colby said, pulling into their driveway. "But it's so big! They even have a whole area dedicated to it at Disneyland!" Sam said, smiling. Colby laughed. "I know! But I never saw it!" He said. They got out of the car. "I don't understand how you could've gone 21 years without seeing that movie. I'm showing it to you next chance I get!" Sam told him. Colby held up his hands in a surrendering motion. "Okay! Alright!" He said. As they walked closer to the front door, they could hear yelling. "They must be filming a skit or something." Sam suggested. Colby shrugged. They stood at the door listening for a moment.

"I hate when you do that!! I don't get why you think it's so funny!!" They heard Aaron yell.

"Dude, it's a joke! Chill!" Elton retorted.

Sam and Colby exchanged glances. "He was streaming Fortnite." Sam recalled. "Uh-oh. Elton must have pranked him again." Colby said. He unlocked the door and opened it.

"Fuck off!!!" Aaron screamed. He punched Elton in the face, and Elton went down like a ton of bricks. Sam and Colby froze in the doorway. "Aaron, what the fuck??" Sam yelled. "Dude! Aaron!" Colby shouted. "Aaron! Chill!!" Corey yelled, rushing over to Aaron. He grabbed Aaron's arm, but Aaron retaliated quickly, pushing Corey back. "No!! I'm so tired of this fucking bullshit!" He screamed. Colby haphazardly set down their food and rushed to Elton on the floor. Sam stood still, kind of in shock. "Oh my God. Elton! Elton, can you hear me? Elton!! Dude, you knocked him out!" Colby said, shaking Elton's shoulders. "Good!" Aaron yelled. Corey tried grabbing Aaron again, and Aaron tackled Corey. "Aaron! Dude, stop!" Colby tried, standing up. Sam woke up from his trance and ran at them. He pulled on Aaron's shirt. "Dude! Get off of him!!! Aaron!!" He yelled. He pulled at Aaron's arms. Colby ran around and tried to pull Corey off of Aaron. Corey just shook Colby off. "Guys!! Corey! Stop!! Aaron! What the fuck?!" Colby yelled. Sam kept pulling at Aaron, yelling at him as well. Out of nowhere, Aaron turned on Sam. He let go of Corey entirely, and Colby stole the opportunity to grab Corey and hold him back. Sam, caught off guard, was shocked when Aaron pushed him. Hard. Sam fell backwards and fell over. "Go away!" He screamed at Sam. "Hey!! Aaron! Don't touch him!" Colby yelled, unintentionally letting go of Corey. Aaron just stared at Sam, and then at Corey and Colby. Sam stood up quickly. He moved back to Aaron and tried to grab his arms to hold him back. Aaron spun around and pushed Sam back, harder this time. Again, Sam fell backwards. "Aaron!!!" Colby yelled. Aaron looked to Colby. "I'm sick and tired of these stupid pranks!!! I was streaming!!" He yelled. "Sam are you okay?" Colby asked seriously. Aaron turned back to him, and Sam suddenly cowered back. "N...no! I'm sorry!!" He said. "You should be! You've done this too!!" Aaron yelled. "Aaron fuck off!! What the fuck is wrong with you?!" Colby yelled.

Small tears prickled in Sam's eyes as he stared at the figure towering above him. He no longer saw his goofy, sweet friend Aaron Doh. He saw someone completely different. Someone much more terrifying to him.

Sam saw his mother.

*Flashback* (TRIGGER WARNING: PHYSICAL AND VERBAL ABUSE!!!!)

12-year-old Sam sat in his room working on homework when he heard it...Screaming. It was her mother's voice, and her sister's voice.

"What the fuck is wrong with you?! Wait until your father sees this!!" His mother yelled.

"Mom, please! It's one test! Ow-ow! Stop!! You're hurting me!!" His sister yelled back. The second he heard that, Sam sprinted down the stairs. His older sister was on the ground, in tears, staring up at their mother. "Mom! Get away from her!" Sam yelled. Their mother swung around to glare at the pre-teen. "Don't talk to me that way!" She yelled, slapping Sam across the face. Sam fought back tears as he looked back at her. "Mom!!!" His sister cried.

From upstairs, Sam's little brother's voice could be heard. "Don't hurt Sammy!" He said. Before his mother could yell at him, Sam whirled around. "Benny! Go to your room! Lock the door!" He said. Little Ben hesitated before obeying. Their mother took a step towards the staircase, but Sam blocked her way. "Don't hurt him!!" He said, trying hard to sound tougher than he was. Their mother laughed in his face, the smell of cigarettes coupled with alcohol made Sam want to gag. She pushed him down, hard, and Sam fell back on his butt.

"Stop it!! Please! He didn't do anything!!" Sam's sister yelled. She got up quickly, rushing over to her little brother, and hugged him close. "Pathetic piece of shit." Their mother mumbled. "No she's not!" Sam yelled. Their mother went to grab Allison, but Sam stood up and blocked her. "Don't touch her!" He yelled. Their mother grabbed Sam's arm tightly. "How dare you speak to your mother like that!" She yelled. "Allison, go! Go upstairs with Ben!" Sam said quickly. Allison stared at the small boy, shaking her head. "GO!" Sam yelled at her. "Don't you fucking move!" Their mother bellowed. Allison sat there a moment, and finally stood up. She ran upstairs. Their mother threw Sam aside, and he fell to the floor. "HEY! What the fuck did I just say?!" She yelled. Sam was back on his feet quickly, and he grabbed his mother's arm, preventing her from following Allison. "Don't! Stop!!" He yelled. Their mother turned on her heels to look at her son.

She slapped him in the face so hard, he stumbled back. "What are you gonna do about it? Huh? Twerp!" She mocked, pushing him twice before tripping him. Sam wiped at his eyes harshly. "You know you're a mistake, right? Your dad and I never wanted you. We should've given you up when we had the chance." She nagged him. Sam stood back up. "Dad will be home soon." He said. His mother looked at him. "Are you threatening me?!" She yelled. Sam's heart lurched. He shook his head. "N-no! No! I-I didn't mean that! I-I'm sorry!" He tried.

But it was too late.

His mom hit him. She knocked him to the floor and kicked his stomach. The wind was knocked out of him. As he struggled to breathe, his mother laughed. "Worthless rat." She said, pushing him down again.

Finally, his mother walked away and wandered into the kitchen. Sam stole the opportunity and staggered upstairs. He ran to the bathroom and shut the door, locking it behind him. As he looked at himself in the mirror, lip bleeding and eye swollen shut, he started to cry.

*End Flashback*

"S-stop! Please!" Sam squeaked, cowering away from Aaron. Colby's face darkened. "Sam, go upstairs. Please." He tried. Sam didn't seem to hear him."A-are you crying?" Aaron asked. He took a step towards him, and Sam lost it. He jumped back, screaming. "N-no!!! No p-please! I'm s...sorry!! Please, please I'll be good!! No!!!" He sobbed. Corey stared at him. "Elton get up." He said. But the oldest male was already sitting up. "Sam?" He said. Colby moved slowly closer to Sam. "Sam, look at me okay? Can you hear me-" Colby was cut off by Sam sprinting up the stairs. He turned around and glared at the other three. "Elton, you're awake?! What-What the fuck is going on?!" He yelled. "It was just a prank! What-" Corey started, but Colby cut him off. "That was a prank?! Do you have any idea what you've done to him?!? I fucking told you guys, no physical pranks on Sam! What the fuck is wrong with you?!" He yelled before taking off up the stairs.

Elton, Corey, and Aaron stood there in shock. "I-I forgot he said that...I pushed him twice..." Aaron said, starting to freak out. "Aaron, calm down. It's not your fault. We all forgot." Elton said. "What the fuck happened?" Corey asked. The others shrugged.
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Colby rushed down the hall to Sam's room. He could hear shuffling coming from behind the door. "Sam? Sammy?" He knocked. Sam screamed. "No!!! No, please!!" Colby sighed. "Fuck..." he mumbled. He opened the door. "Sam? Sam it's okay. It's Colby." He tried. Sam jumped back and pressed his back against the wall farthest away from the door, still screaming at Colby to go away. Sam wrapped his arms tightly around himself, sliding down the wall and curling up into a ball. He was crying uncontrollably. Colby walked over to him and sat down two feet away from him. "Sam? Sammy, look at me. Please? It's okay. It's me, it's Colby! She's not here, Sam." He said gently.

Sam shook his head. "I didn't mean it...I'm...I'm s...I'm so sorry..." He cried quietly. "I know, I know, Sam. She isn't here. You're safe, Man. Nobody's gonna hurt you. Okay? Can you look at me?" Colby asked quietly. Sam shook his head profusely. "P...please, just let me go." His voice cracked. "I ha...I have to get Ben out...Allison too...Make sure they're s...safe." He sobbed. Colby felt his heart begin to race. Sam was rocking back and forth slightly. "Sam. Please, can you look up at me? She isn't here. Your mom isn't here, Sammy. Ben and Allison are totally safe." Colby said gently. Sam didn't say anything. "Ben and Allison are safe, Sam. You're safe too. You're here with me. It's Colby. Sam, your mother isn't here. Please, can you look at me?" Colby pleaded. Sam slowly looked up. Colby smiled at him. "Hi. Hey, that's good Sammy. It's okay. She's not here." He said. Sam looked around the room slowly. "She's not here. You're completely safe. Okay? Come here." Colby repeated, and he opened his arms. Sam hesitated before crawling forward and letting Colby hug him. Colby lightly placed his hands on Sam's back. "It's okay. It's okay." He soothed. Sam nodded, trying to stop crying.

Sam and Colby sat in the floor for over an hour and a half, trying to get Sam to calm down. When he was finally able to control his breathing, Sam thanked Colby. "Of course, Bro." Colby replied. Sam sniffled. "That hasn't happened in a long time." He chuckled sadly. Colby shook his head. "You're doing so good." He said. Sam rolled his eyes, shaking his head. "Yeah, clearly." He said, sarcastically. "Don't, Sam. You're doing really great." Colby defended him. Sam wiped at his eyes. "What even happened?" He asked. Colby immediately went from calm to furious. "Corey, Elton and Aaron happened. They thought getting into a fight was a good idea for a prank. Fucking idiots..." Colby said. "Don't swear." Sam said, sniffling. "Sorry. But they are so dead." Colby said. "No they're not. They don't know." Sam said, taking a deep breath. "That doesn't matter! I told them not to do any physical pranks on you. I fucking told them not to do exactly what they just did." Colby said.

Sam looked at his taller friend. "You told them that?" He asked, too exhausted to really be mad at Colby. Colby nodded. "I didn't tell them why. I just made it very clear that that was off limits." He said. Sam didn't say anything. "I'm sorry." Colby said. Sam shrugged and shook his head.

A knock at Sam's door made them both jump. The boys met eyes, and Sam nodded. Colby stood up and walked to the door. He opened it. Elton, Corey, and Aaron stood in the hallway. "What?" Colby asked harshly. "Colby." Sam said. Colby sighed. "Is Sam okay?" Elton asked. Colby blinked. "Yeah, he's fine." He said flatly. "Colby!" Sam repeated. "What? I didn't tell them to fuck off like I want to!" Colby said, looking to Sam. Sam couldn't help but smile. "They can come in." He said. "That's nice." Colby said. Sam rolled his eyes. "Tell them to come in." He said. Colby sighed again, but he stepped aside. Elton, Aaron, and Corey ventured inside the room. "Sit down." Colby told them. The three obeyed, knowing they shouldn't push Colby. Sam started to get up, but Colby blocked him. "Hey, hey. It's alright." He said gently. Sam obeyed, and stayed down.

"So, um. What happened downstairs...It was a prank. And, we're really sorry. It was too far. Colby, we completely forgot what you told us. But, we shouldn't have done that." Corey said seriously. Sam and Colby nodded. "Sam, I'm really sorry I pushed you. That was way outta line, I'm so sorry." Aaron said. Sam and Colby could tell he was scared, and Colby's expression softened. "It's okay, Man." Sam said. "No, it's not. Sam...I don't know what happened to you. But-it's not okay. The whole thing was my idea. I told Aaron to push you guys off if you tried to intervene." Elton said. "He said it's alright." Colby said. Sam smacked Colby's leg. "What?" Colby asked. Sam smiled at him. "Be nice, dumbass." He said. Colby sat down on the side of Sam's bed. Sam stood up slowly, and sat down in his desk chair so he could see everyone. After a few minutes of silence, Aaron asked the question he, Corey, and Elton were all dying to ask.

"So um...What happened, to you?" Colby and Sam exchanged glances. "Nothing. He got freaked out and he panicked." Colby said. Even he knew it was a bullshit explanation. Corey, Elton, and Aaron were silent, though. "Colb." Sam said. Colby looked to the blonde. "We can tell them." Sam said. Colby turned to look at Sam properly. "Sam, are you sure?" He asked seriously. Sam only nodded. "Tell us what?" Elton asked nervously. Colby looked back at them for a moment, before turning to Sam again. "You or me?" He asked. Sam licked his dry lips. Sniffling, he shrugged. "Both?" He said. Colby nodded. "Okay." He sighed. He turned back to Corey, Aaron, and Elton tentatively. "Um..." Colby stuttered over his words. Sam butted in unexpectedly. "My mom used to hit me." He said straight out. Everyone looked at him. "What??" Aaron said. Colby nodded. "She tried to get to Allison and Ben too, but Sam protected them a lot, so he took most of the beatings." He said. Sam nodded, confirming what Colby had said. "Oh my God...Sam...I'm so sorry!!" Aaron said. "Fuck, Dude...How old were you?" Corey asked. Sam shrugged. "It started when I was probably, like, ten? Nine?" He said. "Jesus Christ." Elton said.

"That's why I said no physical pranks..." Colby said. "Colby back off. It's fine." Sam said, taking note of Colby's tone. "I don't blame him, Sam." Elton said. Colby chuckled sarcastically. "You have no idea what I wanna do to that..." Colby cut himself off before he could get too angry. "Anyways. It got pretty bad. She drank a lot." Sam continued. "Did your dad know?" Corey asked. Sam shook his head. "We never told him. I wanted to, but...She was our mom, you know? One day, he saw the bruises and everything. He asked us about it, and we tried to lie. The only reason anyone found out was because of Colby." He gestured to the brunette sitting on the bed. "Colby?" Elton said. Colby nodded. "He told our English teacher, Sophomore year." Sam told them. "He would come over to my house crying, scared out of his mind...He never wanted to go home. I hated it. He made me promise not to tell anyone. One day, he didn't show up to school and I got scared. I told our teacher and she reported it. Sam came back to school two days later. He didn't talk to me for a week. I thought I...I thought I'd lost him." Colby said, his voice cracking. He cleared his throat. "I was scared that if we told anyone, we'd be taken away from our dad and separated. Thank God, that didn't happen. He was allowed to keep us, but we were put in foster care for three days while they investigated." Sam explained.

"You never told us." Elton said. Sam glanced down, suddenly uncomfortable with having all eyes on him. "Why?" Elton asked. Colby noticed Sam curling into himself and cleared his throat loudly. Corey, Aaron, and Elton looked to him. Sam wrapped his arms around his middle tightly. "Sam? You okay?" Elton noticed Sam's nervous movements. "Elton." Colby said. Elton looked to the brunette. "One, two, three, all eyes on me. Not Sam." Colby said seriously. Elton nodded, understanding. Aaron struggled to not look at Sam. "He just doesn't like talking about it. Sam, can I tell them about the diagnosis?" Colby asked without looking at Sam. "Mm-hmm." Sam mumbled. "Okay. In 10th grade, Sam was diagnosed with a mild form of PTSD." Colby said. Everyone was quiet.

The silence was worse than the talking. Sam couldn't take it. He stood up quickly and rushed out of the room. "Sam." Colby tried. "No..." Sam mumbled, closing the door behind him. Colby sighed. "Sh-should one of us go after him?" Elton asked. Colby nodded. "Yeah." He said. "Who?" Aaron asked. Colby sighed. "Obviously Colby." Corey said. "He knows Sam best." Colby looked to Elton. "Your call, Dude." He said. Colby nodded. "I'll be right back." He said. Colby stood up and rushed out of the room.