Strawberries and Cigarettes (lashton au)

Chapter 17

"Luke, you're gonna do whatever these men tell you, and if they aren't satisfied, the little cocksucker gets it, got it?"

Luke nodded, fearing his voice would fail him if he tried to respond.

"He's all yours," his dad said as he left the room, leaving Luke with strangers, older men he didn't know.

One started to unbuckle his pants. Luke felt sick, but he had to do this. For Ashton.

——-

A few hours later, Luke was back in his chains in the basement. He felt exhausted and violated and used.

"Ashton," he whispered. "are you awake?"

A rustle was heard from across the room. "Yeah." He sounded sad. Out of it. This made Luke hesitant to ask, yet he had to know.

"A-are you okay?"

Ashton paused. "Yeah."

Luke rethought his question. "Did he hurt you?"

Another pause in the dark. "Yeah."

Luke's breath hitched. No, no, no, no, no.

"Did he hurt you?"

Luke was about to cry. "Y-yeah."

"D-Did he, um-"

Luke cut him off. "Yeah."

Ashton knew this. He could hear Luke's sobs and screams and whimpers every so often, but he was hoping he was wrong. He wasn't.

"Lukey, i'm so sorry."

"I-I just never thought he'd go this far. I feel disgusting."

"Help is on the way."

The two boys sat in silence, each minute shattering their already broken spirits.

——

What could've been minutes or hours later, Luke's father returned down the steps.

"It's your turn you little shit," he mumbled as he went to uncuff Ashton to drag him upstairs. Ashton fought back only to be punched in the face.

"Stop fighting or there's more where that came from!"

Luke was fighting back as well. "Let him go! I was good! He didn't do anything! Leave him alone!"

Luke screamed, pulling his arms as far as they'd go, trying to save his boyfriend. Luke broke into sobs as he struggled some more, not wanting Ashton to go through what he had to.

"Luke, it's okay! Don't hurt yourself, I'll be okay," Ashton said as calmly as he could manage while slightly fighting back against Luke's father.

If it were any other time, Luke would've laughed at Ashton telling him not to hurt himself. But all Luke could do was scream and fight and kick and try his damn hardest to get out because no one deserves this.

Ashton was about to be dragged up the stairs when- "Police! Put your hands in the air!"

The next few hours felt like a dream. Luke was brought back into sunlight, which was a bigger deal than you'd think. He was brought to the police station, with Ashton, to make statements to get his dad locked up.

He saw his brothers. It was a messy reunion, full of crying and hugs, but it was real. Luke knew that his brothers would never want to leave him alone again.

And Ashton. Ashton was okay. His mom ran up to him, muttering profanities through the tears, just happy her baby boy was okay. As okay as he could be. He was a little beaten, no where near as bad as Luke, who was ignoring the pain in his broken ribs, arm, and collar bone.

But they made it. Luke would never have to get hurt by his dad again. Ben and Jack supported him, he had his best friend, Michael, who would be thrilled that he wouldn't have to worry about Luke anymore, and he had Ashton, the love of his life.

———-

After Christmas break, Michael came back, and just like Luke thought, couldn't be happier that he was living away from his father. Ben, Jack, and Michael's mom arranged for Luke to stay with Michael for the rest of the year so Ben and Jack could stay in college.They would still be Luke's guardians, but he would live with his best friend.

It was a little awkward at first. Luke felt like he needed to hide and make his presence as unnoticeable as possible. But as the days past, he began to love his new home.

Luke was sent to therapy, recommended by a trauma councilor, his brothers, and Michael's family.

It had been five months and Luke was about to graduate. He still flinched at loud noises, but he was doing better. He spoke openly about his emotions, still wary of conflict, but not as scared of it. Luke was also diagnosed with depression, that he had gotten under control. Ashton had been a huge help in his life and Luke couldn't love him more.

He was planning on going to university with Ashton in the fall, which solved all of his living problems. He'd be close to Michael, his brothers, and his boyfriend.

Liam left him alone. Turns out he was just going through some mental issues, and was a nicer person now that he got help. He apologized to Luke profusely.

Ashton still smoked, but he insisted that he was going to quit soon.

Finally, it was graduation day. As they threw their caps up in the air to celebrate graduating, Luke looked out of the corner of his eye, seeing a smiling Ashton staring back at him.

They kissed, and Ashton tasted just as he always did: like strawberries and cigarettes.

A/N: lmao this was kinda shit and it feels kinda rushed but i had psat today and i thought a lot about this story while waiting and i think this is the end????