Soft beeping. That was the first thing Melanie registered as she slowly drifted back into consciousness. A steady, rhythmic sound cutting through the fog in her mind. Then, the sensation of something cold against her skin—an IV taped to her hand. The faint smell of antiseptic lingered in the air, sterile and sharp.

Her eyelids felt heavy, like weights had been placed on them, but she forced them open, blinking against the bright fluorescent lights above her. It took a moment for the blurry world around her to come into focus.

A hospital room.

She wasn't in the dark anymore.

Her chest rose and fell in shallow breaths as her mind struggled to catch up. She was alive. Here. Not trapped in that suffocating void.

But the fear was still there.

Movement beside her made her turn her head slightly. Max. He was slumped over in the chair next to her bed, his head resting against the mattress, his hand still wrapped around hers.

Melanie swallowed thickly. Her throat was dry, her mouth like sandpaper. She tried to speak, but her voice cracked. "Max...?"

His grip on her hand tightened immediately, his head snapping up. His eyes were bloodshot, dark circles shadowed underneath them. He looked exhausted.

"Melanie," he breathed, sitting up straight. Relief washed over his face, but it was quickly replaced by guilt. "You're awake. Oh, thank God."

She tried to sit up, but a dull ache in her abdomen made her wince. Max quickly reached out, pressing a hand against her shoulder to ease her back down. "Easy, okay? You scared the hell out of me."

She blinked, confused. "What happened?"

Max exhaled, running a hand through his messy hair. "You overdosed. You were dizzy, you took too many pills, and then... you passed out." His voice wavered. "I found you too late, Mel. I should've—" He broke off, shaking his head. "You could've—"

He couldn't even say it.

Melanie stared at him, her heartbeat picking up. The memory was foggy, but pieces of it started coming back. The dizziness, the exhaustion, the moment of pure disorientation where she couldn't even remember how many pills she had taken.

She had scared him.

She had scared herself.

Before she could respond, the door creaked open. A doctor stepped inside, followed by Barb and Hank, their faces lined with worry.

"You're awake," Barb said, relief flooding her voice. She quickly moved to Melanie's other side, brushing her hand over Melanie's forehead. "How are you feeling, sweetheart?"

Melanie forced a small, tight-lipped smile. "I'm okay," she lied.

Max scoffed beside her, clearly not believing her for a second.

The doctor cleared his throat. "Melanie, we're going to keep you for observation for another couple of days. You were extremely dehydrated, and we need to monitor your vitals." He paused, glancing at his clipboard. "There's also another matter... We ran some tests and found that your appendix is inflamed. It's not an emergency, but we do recommend surgery soon before it becomes serious."

Melanie's stomach twisted, but she barely reacted. Surgery? She should've been terrified, but after what had just happened... everything else felt numb.

The doctor continued. "We also noticed signs of severe anxiety and depression in your medical history. I'd like to discuss adjusting your medication to something more suited to your current condition."

Melanie nodded absently. It wasn't like she could argue. Clearly, what she had wasn't working.

The doctor gave her a reassuring look before turning to Barb and Hank. "We'll keep monitoring her, and we'll talk more about the next steps later. For now, she needs rest."

Barb squeezed Melanie's hand. "You just focus on getting better, okay?"

Melanie gave another weak nod, her throat tightening. She could feel everyone's eyes on her—concerned, worried, maybe even disappointed. She hated it.

She just wanted to go home. She was discharged a few days later.

The house was the same, but everything felt different. The weight in her chest hadn't gone away. It was just... there. Heavy. Suffocating.

Max had barely left her side since she got back. If she moved too fast, he was right there. If she sighed too deeply, he was watching her like she might disappear. She knew he was just worried, but it only made her feel worse.

She wasn't fine, but she had to pretend she was.

She smiled when she was supposed to. She laughed at the right times. She told everyone she was okay, that she felt better.

But at night, when the house was quiet and the lights were off, she lay awake, staring at the ceiling.

And all she could see was the darkness.

☆

The warm afternoon sun filtered through the windows of the Thunderman house, casting a golden glow over the living room. The air buzzed with a mixture of concentration and chaos as the family gathered around for a rare moment of downtime.

At the center of it all, Billy was hunched over a precarious tower of wooden blocks, his tongue poking out in deep concentration.

"The key to Stumbly Stacks is concentration," he announced, his voice low and serious. He raised his hand, steadying himself. "Now, everybody quiet... while I—"

Before he could finish, the front door burst open with an excited BANG!

"Mom! Dad!" Phoebe called, running in with Melanie and Max close behind her.

Billy yelped, his hands jerking, and—CRASH! The entire tower of blocks tumbled down in a noisy mess.

"Shh!" Billy groaned, throwing his hands up. "We were playing Stumbly Stacks!"

"You were playing Stumbly Stacks," Melanie teased from the couch, lounging with a small smirk. "The rest of us were just waiting for you to lose."

"Not the point!" Billy shot back before turning to Phoebe. "What's so important that you had to interrupt greatness?"

Phoebe ignored him, her eyes shining with excitement. "You know how Mom and Dad always say they've never had a real vacation?"

Hank and Barb exchanged amused glances, clearly intrigued.

"And how they never took time off back in Metroburg because of the whole superhero thing?" Max added.

"And how we could never afford it because—"

"—Dad's way too cheap?" Nora finished with a grin.

Hank gasped in mock offense. "Excuse me! I am not cheap."

"Dad," Phoebe deadpanned, "you built this game out of spare ceiling beams."

Hank looked down at the remaining wooden blocks. "...Resourceful. Not cheap."

Melanie chuckled from the couch, shaking her head. It was good to see the family in high spirits after everything that had happened. She was feeling better—really better this time. Still recovering, sure, but she wasn't stuck in her own head anymore.

Phoebe continued, pulling out a colorful flyer and holding it up. "Well, since Dad is 'resourceful,' how about a free vacation?"

Hank perked up immediately. "Now you're speaking my language."

"It's a school fundraiser," Phoebe explained. "Families compete in a bunch of challenges. The winner gets a dream vacation anywhere in the world!"

Barb's eyes lit up. "That sounds amazing! A chance to get away together as a family, have some fun, make some lasting memories..."

"I don't know," Hank said, rubbing his chin. "'Lasting memories' sounds expensive."

Max smirked. "What if I told you there's a way we can do it for free?"

Hank's eyes narrowed. "Go on."

"We can win the vacation."

Billy gasped. "To a giant bird sanctuary?!"

Phoebe sighed. "No, Billy, there's no giant bird."

Billy frowned. "Then what's the point?"

Max rolled his eyes. "Look, winning will be easy for a team of superheroes."

"We're not going to cheat and use our superpowers, Max," Phoebe said firmly.

Max crossed his arms. "Totally agree... unless we're losing."

The family all started talking at once, excitement bubbling up at the idea of their first-ever vacation.

"Come on, Dad, it'll be fun!"

"We never go anywhere!"

"Think of the memories, Hank!"

Hank looked around at his family, their eager faces practically begging him to say yes. Finally, he sighed, shaking his head with a smile. "Alright... bring it in, team."

A cheer erupted as the family huddled together.

"GO, THUNDERMANS!" they shouted in unison, throwing their hands in the air.

And then—RUMBLE!

CRASH!

The ceiling beams that Hank had resourcefully repurposed came tumbling down, scattering across the floor.

Max sighed. "Spare ceiling beams?"

Hank sheepishly scratched the back of his head. "...I'll go put these back."

As the dust settled from the fallen ceiling beams, Melanie sat up a little straighter on the couch, stretching her arms with a thoughtful look. The idea of a vacation actually sounded... really nice.

"You know what?" she said, rubbing her temples. "A break sounds amazing right now. I could use a vacation."

Max turned to her, his smirk fading into something softer. He knew she had been through a lot lately—physically, emotionally, everything. If anyone deserved a chance to get away, it was her.

"See?" he said, nudging Phoebe. "Melanie gets it."

"Yeah, yeah," Phoebe replied with a smirk. "I just don't want to spend half the trip watching you scheme your way into a five-star upgrade."

"I would never—" Max started, before pausing. "Okay, I would, but only because you all deserve luxury."

Melanie laughed, shaking her head. "We don't even know if we're going yet."

"Oh, we're going," Max said confidently, throwing an arm around her shoulders. "We just have to win first."

Barb clapped her hands. "Alright, if we're doing this, we need to start training. The competition is in just a few days!"

"And we need to pick a destination!" Billy added.

"I already know where I want to go," Nora said proudly.

"I still vote for the giant bird sanctuary," Billy muttered.

"There's no giant bird sanctuary, Billy!" the whole family said at once.

Billy crossed his arms. "Not with that attitude."

Melanie laughed again, feeling lighter than she had in a while. Maybe a vacation wouldn't magically fix everything, but it would be nice to breathe, to be somewhere new, to be with Max and his family without all the weight of everything that had happened.

Max must have noticed her expression, because he squeezed her hand under the table and leaned in. "We're gonna win this, Mel. And you and I? We're gonna have the best vacation ever."

She smiled, squeezing his hand back. "I'll hold you to that, Dr. Thunderman."

The Thundermans' backyard was buzzing with energy as the family finished their run. The sun was high, casting a warm glow over Hiddenville, and everyone was catching their breath—except for Billy, who barely looked winded.

"Good run, everybody!" Hank said, stretching his arms.

Max groaned, placing his hands on his knees. "I've never run that slow in my life. How do you people live like this?"

"You have to practice running slower like normal people," Phoebe reminded him.

"Because that's what we are in Hiddenville: normal people," Barb added with a pointed look.

Just then, there was a loud metallic clank as Billy absentmindedly kicked a garbage can across the yard. Everyone froze.

"Starting now," Phoebe corrected quickly.

Max rolled his eyes, straightening up. "Well, get used to the slow life, Billy, because soon we'll be kicking back on the beach, working on our thunder tans."

Phoebe immediately groaned. "Oh no. You're not deciding where we're going on vacation."

"Actually," she continued, "I thought we could use our vacation to tour all the great castles of Europe!"

"No way," Max shot back. "A vacation is supposed to be fun, not learny."

Nora nodded. "Yeah, I don't want to go to the beach. Jellyfish are creepy."

Melanie, who had been quiet up until now, smirked. "Tell me about it. Is it a jelly? Is it a fish? Pick one, creep."

Hank let out a laugh. "Good one, Melanie!"

Max threw an arm around her shoulder. "See? Mel's got the right idea. A beach is the way to go."

Melanie shrugged. "I mean, I guess castles are cool, but let's be real—who wouldn't want to be lounging on a beach, sipping something cold out of a coconut?"

"Exactly!" Max grinned.

Phoebe gave Melanie an unimpressed look. "Melanie, castles are full of history, adventure, and—"

"And no WiFi, and a ton of stairs," Melanie interrupted. "I don't know about you, but after everything that's happened? I'd rather be on a tropical island, lying in the sun, doing absolutely nothing."

Billy nodded. "She makes a good point."

Phoebe sighed. "Fine. If we can't agree, then we're going to have to take a vote."

Max immediately raised his hand. "Who wants to go to a beautiful tropical island?"

Melanie and Hank's hands shot up alongside his.

"And who wants to go see some majestic castles?" Phoebe countered, as she, Nora, and Barb raised their hands.

Billy hesitated—then raised both hands.

Phoebe narrowed her eyes. "Billy, you voted twice."

Billy grinned. "Voting's fun."

"Billy," Max said, stepping forward, "do you really want to spend two weeks in castles? Have you ever even been to one?"

Billy paused, considering. "Good point. Be right back." And in a whoosh, he zoomed away.

Phoebe crossed her arms, smirking. "I know Billy. He's going to love castles."

A second later, there was another whoosh as Billy reappeared, shaking his head. "Castles are lame."

Max threw his arms up in victory. "Looks like we got one more vote for the beach!"

Phoebe groaned. "Then it's tied three to three. Now what?"

Max smirked. "Well, I have at least a dozen ways we can solve this—"

"No explosives or wild animals, Max," Barb cut in.

Max sighed dramatically. "I've got one way we can solve this."

The Thundermans stood in a circle in the backyard, tension thick in the air as the family vacation debate reached its final showdown. The castle lovers stood on one side, the beach-goers on the other, waiting for Max to unveil his latest idea.

Max dramatically held up a silver sphere, his grin widening. "I hold in my hand my latest invention: The Thunder Ball."

Billy's eyes widened. "Thunder Ball!"

Max twirled it between his fingers. "I built it to melt the polar ice caps, but without plutonium, it's just a fun children's game that's gonna break our tie."

Billy gasped excitedly. "Break our tie!"

Phoebe folded her arms, skeptical. "Question—why is Billy dressed like a cat?"

Billy beamed, fluffing the tail of his costume. "Because Nora said we were all dressing as cats."

Nora smirked. "Sometimes it's just too easy."

Melanie, who had been standing beside Max, burst into laughter. "Honestly, I wish I had thought of that."

Max rolled his eyes but smirked. "Anyway, as I was saying, here's the plan—"

Phoebe cut him off. "Oh, let me guess. This is some totally fair, not-at-all-rigged game that just so happens to give you exactly what you want?"

Max gasped dramatically. "Why is it so hard for you to trust me?"

Phoebe raised an eyebrow. "Because you can't go a day without putting a 'kick me' sign on someone's back."

She turned slightly, and sure enough, there was a piece of paper on her back that read Kick Me—Love, Max.

Melanie burst out laughing, while Barb quickly pulled it off. "Classic."

Max smirked. "Okay, okay, but I promise—the Thunder Ball is not rigged. The rules are simple: We try to steal the ball from each other, and whoever has it when the timer goes off wins."

"Can we use our powers?" Billy asked eagerly.

Max nodded. "Any means necessary."

Hank grinned. "This is going to be fun."

Melanie cracked her knuckles. "I'm so ready for this."

Max turned to his family. "All right, before we begin, let's all take a moment to acknowledge that I look fantastic in stripes."

Barb smiled. "You look amazing."

Max smirked. "Thank you, Barbara. You don't look so bad yourself."

Hank rolled his eyes. "Can we start now?"

Max lifted the ball, eyes gleaming. "On 'go.' Ready... Set... GO!"

Billy immediately zoomed forward but miscalculated, slamming into a tree before collapsing to the ground.

"Billy out," he groaned.

Nora snickered. "Don't you mean me-ow?"

Max lunged for the ball, but Phoebe was faster, catching it mid-air.

"Lights out, Maxie." Nora smirked before flipping the switch to the backyard lights, momentarily plunging the area into darkness.

"Huh?" Max yelped, disoriented. "Whoa!"

There was a crash! followed by a pained groan.

Melanie turned on the flashlight from her phone and burst into laughter. "When did we get a cactus?!"

Max groaned, rubbing his arm. "Phoebe, catch!"

Hank threw the ball across the yard, and Phoebe caught it with a victorious laugh. "Got it!"

Max charged toward her, but Nora blasted lasers at his feet, forcing him to stumble.

Just as Max was about to recover, there was a small zap!

"Ow! Daddy, my leg!" Nora cried out, faking a hurt expression.

Hank immediately stopped, rushing to her side. "Ooh, sweetie, I'm sorry! Are you okay?"

As soon as Hank looked away, Nora smirked, holding up the ball.

The alarm buzzed loudly.

"I am now," she said triumphantly.

Max's jaw dropped as Phoebe, Nora, and Barb cheered.

"WHOO-HOO! We win! Castles, here we come!"

"WHAT?!" Max threw his arms up. "You tricked me! You played the Daddy's Little Girl card!"

Billy gasped. "Yeah! You cheated!"

Nora grinned, tossing the ball in her hand. "Oh, come on. You're just mad because you didn't think of it first."

Max sputtered. "Yeah, but you didn't—I was—Colosso, say something!"

From the house, Colosso cackled. "She used his love against him! Hilarious!"

Melanie shook her head, still laughing. "Honestly, I respect the move."

Max pouted as Phoebe and Nora started chanting.

"♪ Win by any me-eans! ♪"

Billy quickly joined in. "♪ Win by any me-eans! ♪"

The girls kept the chant going, dancing in victory.

Max groaned, burying his face in his hands as Melanie patted his back. "Don't worry, Max. We'll find another way to get to a beach."

Max sighed dramatically. "Yeah. A way that doesn't involve emotional manipulation."

Phoebe smirked. "Oh, you're one to talk."

As the victory chants finally died down, the Thundermans began to settle, all still riding the high of their win—well, everyone except Max. He stood off to the side, arms crossed, glaring at the group as if he had just suffered the greatest injustice in history.

Phoebe, still grinning from her triumph, turned to Melanie, who was standing beside Max, looking amused. "Hey, you know, you can still come with us. It's a family vacation, but you're basically part of the family."

Melanie let out a small chuckle, shaking her head. "Thanks, but I think I'll pass. Castles sound cool and all, but it also