Oakleaf Academy For Boys

twenty nine

Diesel couldn't help thinking about all the things wrong with his life whenever he was with Benji. To him, the Pup might as well have been the definition of perfection. He would never hurt anybody and the one person he ever intentionally caused harm to was merely for self defence purposes. He didn't belong in a place like this and he was scared he might spoil that innocence.

Diesel dealt drugs. He used people as currency. He hurt them. He had a tragic past and messed up memories. Nothing about his life was normal. Though nothing about Benji's life was normal either. But the difference was that Diesel had a choice - he chose this. Benji didn't, and at the end of the day, they were both in exactly the same position. It wasn't fair.

"Thank you for doing this." Benji said gratefully as he gathered a pile of paper and dust with his broom, wiping his forehead from the hard work.

"No problem." Elias promised. Sweeping was harder than it looked, his shoulders were aching and his back hurt from leaning down. They hadn't even cleared half the library yet. "Can we take a break soon?"

Benji chuckled and continued sweeping. Every bone in his body ached from the hard labour, but he didn't stop. "Go ahead."

"I said we." Elias rolled his eyes.

"I should carry on. I'm hoping to finish clearing this place up by the end of the week."

Elias rested his broom against a bookcase and marched over to where Benji was working. He snatched the broom out of his hand and dropped it to the floor. "You've been working nonstop for hours. Take a break."

Benji sighed and decided to comply with the request. They sat on the dirty floor, breathing heavily and enjoying the temporary rest their bodies were receiving. "Elias?"

"Hm?"

"Do you still...y'know...do you still do all that stuff with the guards and...and the drugs?"

Elias was taken aback by the abrupt question. He bowed his head and let out a long reluctant sigh - this was what he was dreading. Questions he couldn't answer. Reminders that he didn't deserve to be with Benjamin Cooper. He wasn't good enough. "It's complicated-"

"But it's not." Benji whispered. "Please, Elias."

"It's the only way to get the drugs into-"

"Then stop doing drugs."

Elias froze, his brows furrowing in confusion. "What? You think I do drugs?"

Benji watched him closely, "Well, yeah..."

Elias let out a deep breath and fiddled with his sleeve absentmindedly. "I don't do drugs, Pup."

"What? What are you talking about? You deal them to people-"

"I smoke weed. That's it. I'm a dealer, not a junkie."

"So...so, you've never done coke or heroin or anything like that?" Benji frowned in bewilderment.

"I did coke once when I was fourteen. I've done acid a couple of times - ket, too. But I'm not a junkie. I'm not addicted to anything."

Benji relaxed a little, the tension in his shoulders ceasing as a small smile graced his features. The knowledge that Diesel didn't take drugs on a regular basis made him happy. It was just weed. He could live with that. Everyone's done weed before; it was no big deal. "You should still stop." He murmured. "Stop using those boys, I mean."

"People rely on me as a supplier. Imagine if the entire school's drug supply was cut off all at once; there would be anarchy."

"Eli, it's not your responsibility to satisfy their addictions."