Take Me Home

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Harry and Ashton decided to meet up the following weekend.

"When are you coming back to school?" Ashton asked, scuffing his worn converse along the floor as the two of them sat on the swings beside each other at the empty park. They had spent the whole day together, just walking and talking about conspiracy theories and funny stories and all the good but pointless things. Now the sun was sinking and most people had gone home, and that left the two of them alone to talk about the less pointless things.

Harry shrugged, twisting slightly on the swing to face Ashton. Neither of them were swinging any more, more like swaying slightly.

"I'm not sure," he replied, honestly. He chewed his lip and dipped his head, feeling his curls fall over his forehead slightly. "I don't know if I'm ready yet. My therapist said I had to wait until I know for sure..." he trailed off. Truth was, he was terrified of going back to school, terrified of being bullied again, terrified that nothing was going to get better.

Ashton reached across then, taking Harry's hand. Harry froze for a moment, but then he felt his cheeks warm up and he curled his fingers so that they were wrapped around Ashton's palm.

"Well, whenever you are ready...I'll be right there with you," he murmured, and Harry felt a little choked up at the words because they were filled with so much care, he could hardly handle it. "But just so you know, you shouldn't be scared. Everyone's on your side since all those other idiots got kicked out. All those things they said, they really weren't true," he added.

Harry lifted his head at that, green eyes watery. He couldn't help but admire the way Ashton's dark blond hair fell over his forehead, the way his lips curled up gently at the corners when he spoke, the way the dimples in his cheeks appeared when he smiled. It made his cheeks a little bit warmer.

Ashton's own cheeks appeared pink when he spoke again. "I know you don't talk about it much, what happened when you were a kid, but I think that those scars on your arms are battle wounds from that fire. And the new scars are battle wounds from life. And someday they're gonna fade and you're still going to be just as strong as you've always been. Trust me, you're going to get better. You have to," he said, and Harry was more than a little shocked when he saw the tears in his eyes.

He squeezed Ashton's hand gently and turned to face him more. "I will get better, I know. You don't have to be upset, Ash," he reassured, softly.

Ashton nodded. "Yeah. I know," he murmured.

Harry frowned, because Ashton looked as if there was so much more going on in his head. He figured the least he could do was offer to talk about it, especially since Ash had listened to him ramble on and on about the stuff going on in his head before now.

"What's going on?" he asked, gently.

Ashton shrugged, looking away. "I get it, you know? The depression stuff, I mean," he said, quietly. Harry kept on listening, wanting to help. "I kind of had to understand it, living with my dad...first time he tried to kill himself was after my mum died. I was three," he murmured.

Harry sighed, rubbing his thumb over Ashton's knuckles comfortingly. He had never questioned why the other boy had ever been in care, and know he knew.

"That was the first time I went into a home. Then they said he was better and I went back to live with him. Until he tried it again when I was seven. Again when I was nine. Again when I was eleven. Again at the end of last year. Every time, he promises me that it won't happen again. I've found him twice before, had to call for the ambulance too, had to watch them drive away, wondering if he's really going to die this time. He told me this time's different, but I'm still waiting for it to happen again - there's nothing I can do or say to make him stop," he said, then he looked up at Harry was tears on his cheeks. "But I can try and help you, Haz. Just, if it ever gets bad, even a tiny bit...you have to promise to call me or text me or come to my house. I don't want you to ever let it get that far," he murmured, looking up at him with wide, pleading eyes.