Motorcycles and Lies (Anxceit)

Baby Don't Dance

Janus lied there with Virgil, determined to not move in fear of upsetting the sleeping boy. He watched as Virgil’s chest rose and fell with each breath, enjoying how peaceful the younger boy looked in his arms. Janus leaned his head back against the sink, closing his eyes gently to calm down from the insanity of the day and enjoy the quiet moment with just the two of them. Though the quiet could not exist in Janus’s mind, he had too much to think about and process.

    At the forefront of his mind right now was Virgil’s confession. In all honesty, when reading Virgil’s explanation, he reread the sentence over and over, hoping the sudden speed in his heart rate wasn’t noticeable to any of the others in the room. He had memorized it by now, reading over it once more after hearing Emile’s story and explaining their course of action to him. Janus couldn’t stop himself as he found the words slipping, almost silently, from his lips, “After you had given me the jacket, I wanted to repay you by asking you on a date.”

    He would have accepted the invitation in a heartbeat, he knows that. Especially now, after the whirlwind of emotions he’s experienced, there was no doubt in his mind that he would have done on that date. He has never given a whole lot of thought to a romantic relationship for them, but he could not deny he was attracted to the man who had gathered up the courage to hand Janus his number. He now knew how hard that was for him to do, especially with someone Virgil had barely seen around the school. Janus was grateful, though. Without the courage, they might have never been friends; he may have never fallen in love.

    But, of course, the elephant in the room still was there. Haunting Virgil’s memories and lingering in all of their minds. Janus had no doubt that they would come for Virgil again if he was so valuable. He couldn’t just lock up the poor boy, but he had to do something to ensure his safety. He came up with a mental list in his mind, just precautions to keep everyone safe. A phone tracker, always been in public if you’re alone, put Janus as an emergency number, and no more leaving the house without a phone. Janus nodded gently to himself, satisfied with his list. 

    Carefully, he adjusted his body weight to rest on his other hip, but the movement still seemed to wake the sleeping boy up, his purple hair lifting up so just Virgil’s eyes could be seen under his bangs.

    “We need to talk, don’t we?” Virgil grumbled, his voice still heavy with sleep.

    The exasperation in his voice made Janus chuckle softly, the air making Virgil’s flyaways wave around in mild enthrallment. Janus brought out his phone and wrote, “Only if you want to now. We can talk and get you fixed up or talk after.”

    Virgil read over it and held up one finger before gently flopping off of Janus’s lap and to the floor. Janus stood, grabbing Virgil by the waist, and after making sure he was not in any pain in that position, lifted him, so he stood on his good foot. He led Virgil to sit on the edge of the tub before turning the water on and testing the temperature.

    “Take a bath and if you need me, I will be right outside the door, just call for me. I don’t need any more dirt getting into those cuts.” 

    Virgil contemplated following what Janus had written down but decided, ultimately, that he did not have the energy nor the strength to fight against it. After the tub was sufficiently full and warm to the touch, Janus left, leaving the door ajar before returning with a pile of clothes in hand, which he sent on the sink next to the towel before leaving once more, shutting the door this time around.

    With a sigh, Virgil ran the tips of his calloused fingers through the surface of the water, watching as the ripples slowly dissipated further from the source of the movement into nothing. He hated being alone again, but he needed to bathe before allowing himself to be so close to Janus again. 

    He got undressed, the cold, bathroom air seeping through his skin and chilling him to the bone. Virgil grimaced as he caught sight of himself in the slightly fogged mirror, cringing as he messy hair and deep eye bags. He turned from the mirror and slipped into the bath, the feeling of the water hugging his body doing wonders to relax his aching muscles out of their tension. As much as he wanted to close his eyes and rest once more, he knew better than to do such a thing and set to work cleaning himself, so he didn’t keep Janus waiting. 

    After cleaning himself, minus conditioner which he felt was unnecessary, and he didn’t want to wait for it to set, he patted himself try with the old, matted towel. He looked back at himself in the mirror, not as spooked by what he saw this time. Virgil was clearly still exhausted, not having slept for several hours, and going through a panic attack was pushing his body to the limits. His shoulders and chest were bruised and littered with scrapes, his nose colored red and purple. His fists clenched in a flurry of emotions but before he could lose control of himself, he grabbed the t-shirt from the pile and slipped it on, followed by his underwear and black basketball shorts. He felt exposed, not used to showing that much skin, but Janus knew that; he must have given them, so he could treat Virgil’s wounds. 

    With a noise of exhaustion and a stomach-turning feeling of fear of what was to come, Virgil slowly turned the handle of the bathroom and looked out to the hallway of his home.

A/N 
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