Beneath The Surface

Chapter 2

Adrien

Jamie sits beside me on the swing at his favorite park. He stares at the calm lake, the water reflecting the blues, pinks, and oranges of the blazing sunset, across his face.

I watch him as he watches the things swimming beneath the surface.

The light plays tricks with the contours of his neck and his icy blue eyes shine like the stars peeking through the dark end of the sky.

I take his hand. He turns to look at me, distracted.

I can't read his face but I guess I don't have to because he leans forward, closing his eyes and presses his soft, smooth lips against mine.

☼

I'm woken up by the sound of dogs barking and I can't help but smile at the dream, though I couldn't tell you why.

A wave of guilt washes over me as I remember my girlfriend, Julie.

Th- that shouldn't matter anyway, because I'm not gay, I think to myself dismissively.

I quickly shoo away all thoughts of him and look around tiredly.

It's still dark. I check the alarm clock on my bedside table and see 12:58AM spelled in a bright red font.

I sigh heavily and rub my eyes. Stretching, I stand and yawn. The dogs keep barking and I peek through the blinds to see a short, thin figure jogging toward the house.

I snort at the irony of my previous train of thoughts as he approaches, but then it hits me.

Jamie.

Realizing what happened, I anxiously open the window and step back as Jamie pokes his head through. I help pull him into my bedroom and he steps barefoot onto the thick, shaggy carpet.

Once inside, he falls to his knees. I flick on the lights and find him sobbing into his hands.

I'm so worried about this kid. His dad beats him all the time and every time he does, Jamie comes over and spends the night at my house. That's basically every other week now.

I gently grab his arm and help him stand.

God, he's so weak.

He looks up at me and I see the fear in his eyes and the constant tears falling down his face.

I pull him close and let him cry into my shoulder. After a minute, I can't help but begin sobbing, too.

He's just a kid...

After enough crying to fill an ocean, we both finally run out of tears.

I get up and open one of my drawers, pulling out a pair of shorts and a white t-shirt to hand to him. I go to help him out of his shirt and gasp as I see the glass sticking out of his back.

Just as I'm met with that realization, he falls over against me, unconscious.

Fuck.

Jamie

I wake up slumped over the tank of the toilet in Adrien's bathroom, hearing shuffling coming from the other room.

A rag is laid out on the porcelain beneath my crossed arms and a towel covers the floor behind me.

Adrien somberly steps into the small room with an array of tools in his hands. I watch motionlessly as he sets out the tools across another rag on the counter beside the sink. He takes a damp cloth in his right hand.