Silent Cry (BoyxBoy)

Twenty-Two

This chapter is dedicated to thatdamnpan thank you so much for reading and voting.
*****

Mitchell was wrong. He was scared. He was so scared of Ethan that he wanted to cry. What happened in school was proof enough that he was in no shape to be that close to someone. When Ethan started fighting the other boy, Mitchell panicked. His first instinct was to run and hide. Where that boldness came from, he had no idea but he managed to talk himself through a panic attack and ask Ethan to stop fighting.

For Mitchell, it took more than just being morally upright and not wanting a friend to get into trouble - it took a whole new sense of courage that he had never felt in his life before.

Of course, there was the part where he had been called a faggot. A very derogative term for someone like him and yet Mitchell realized it didn't bother him that much to be called that - having been called worse. What bothered him was that someone had dared use it on Ethan. A pure and beautiful soul like Ethan didn't deserve such an atrocity. Mitchell was furious, and yet, he had done nothing to defend Ethan's honor. That in itself was scary because, Mitchell thought, what if Ethan realized that I'm in no shape to be there for him like he always is for me?

He threw his bag to the floor after locking the door and sat down on the couch. He didn't even turn the TV on as he he laid down, his back flat on the couch. It was uncomfortable but Mitchell didn't feel good enough to get up. He tried his very best to rid himself of the negative thoughts that flooded his mind but they were always there no matter what, always reminding him that he would never be good enough for someone like Ethan.

Mitchell watched the clock in silence, counting the seconds at they ticked until it was 5PM and time for him to go to work. Ethan hadn't called yet and he wasn't sure why that was. Maybe he was running late. Mitch sent a text to him to ask if he was on his way. He wasn't going to allow his insincerity get in the way of his very first friendship. He knew that it will always be something that he will be plagued with, but this time around, having come so far, Mitchell was ready to fight it. Until Ethan made it clear that he wanted him no more.

When Ethan hadn't arrived after ten minutes, Mitchell got up from the couch, took his bag and left the house beginning the walk to the diner.

By the time he got there, it was almost six in the evening, given how slow he was walking. Tatiana gave him a hard time for it and shoved him towards the eating area.

Mitchell said nothing however and began cleaning the tables. He was used to that kind of behaviour. He wasn't even sure why he had thought Tatiana was a nice girl before. The place was swamped so he tried to understand why she would be frustrated with him for coming late.

"Oh Mitchell, there you are," Karla said, rushing to the boy. She gave him a half hug, ruffling his hair and took the basin from his hands. She shoved it in Tatiana's hands and then turned to Mitchell. "I need you to be a waiter today. We're swamped at you can see, school just let out and we're missing a worker," she said.

Why was she giving him that job, the boy wondered. He didn't want to be a waiter. He would have to talk to people and he wanted to do nothing of that sort. When he went to shake his head, Karla gave him a pointed look as if daring him to disagree with her.

"Wh-where's Ethan?" he asked instead, because his friend's presence was needed right about now.

"Oh, haven't you heard? Ethan's grounded for fighting in school" she stated as though it were no big deal. "Oh and sweetie, I am so sorry for what that boy said to you. I'm glad Ethan actually kicked his ass. I don't condone that kind of behaviour," she said and kissed the top of Mitchell's head before walking away, with Tatiana following her and complaining about a whole lot.