Always (Boyxboy)

Chapter Four- Pierce

A/N All I can say before putting this out there is that this chapter makes me very sad. (It's also written like shit- sorry. I didn't have time to rewrite the whole thing like I did chapter three, so I apologize for shotty work. Maybe one day it'll get fixed when I go edit all the books I've already written like I've been saying I was gonna do for years).

Tyler-Sophomore

Pierce- College Freshman

**SEX SCENE REMOVED***

They were in the middle of it when Tyler began to sob. 

If it was anyone else crying uncontrollably before him, he would have frozen, but it was Tyler, who Pierce cared for more deeply than he should have allowed himself to, so he moved quickly, wrapping his arms around Tyler's body, pulling him against his chest and hugging him tightly. "I'm sorry," Tyler cried into his shoulder, hands curled into fists in his shirt.

"Hey," Pierce said softly, threading a hand through the hair at the back of Tyler's head, holding him gently. "It's okay".

"No," Tyler protested. "Nothing's okay". Pierce didn't know what to say in response to that, so he brushed a hand soothingly down the other boy's back. "I- I just can't believe he's gone". His gasps began to come out in quick pants then, as if he couldn't catch his breath, and Pierce didn't know what to do except to whisper in his ear.

"It's okay. Breathe. Just focus on breathing. You need to calm down, babe. Deep breath in, deep breath out".

Pierce didn't know if his words helped, but Tyler eventually calmed down, his breaths slowing and coming out in steady gasps. Gently, Pierce shifted Tyler away from his chest enough to glance down at his face, and then sighed in relief at the sight of him sleeping. Thank god.

Him and Tyler had known one another for many years at this point, and they had been through quite a bit if you asked Pierce. Sex, fights, Pierce getting arrested for assault, but never had he seen Tyler cry. It was terrifying to him that there was something in Tyler's life that was able to upset him that much, but he reminded himself that he wasn't supposed to care, that he shouldn't have.

What was going on in Tyler's life shouldn't have concerned him, but it did. He cared too much for it to not.

It must have been happening for years, but he hadn't noticed it until about four months before, when he had called Brad a clever but crude name in response to Tyler's question, "why are you so worked up?" And the boy had paused, hand still wrapped loosely around Pierce's cock, and threw his head back to laugh. At the time, Pierce had just looked at him and thought, oh shit, because suddenly everything clicked into place. Why he spent so much time watching Tyler, why he spent so much time thinking about him. He liked him.

As gently as he could, because Pierce wasn't a very gentle person, he lowered Tyler back down onto the table . Then, he took to straightening Tyler's clothes. He paused then with his hands on the waistband of Tyler's pants, gaze shifting up to look at his knees.

They looked like they hurt. Pierce had his fair share of injuries throughout the years— he had gotten in a lot of fights— but he had never had anything that needed stitches before. He couldn't even imagine what it felt like, especially in a place used as much as the knees. Carefully, he brushed his thumbs over the wounds.

"I just can't believe he's gone," Tyler had cried. Who? Pierce wanted to know. And why? Why was he gone? What had happened?

"What are you going through?" Pierce whispered, his hands moving from Tyler's legs to brush the tears off of his cheeks. Beneath his fingers, Tyler stirred, a small noise of distress leaving his lips before he settled again.