You & I [Kier/Shane]

Chapter Thirty - Kier

Kier’s POV

I know I was being pushy; it was wrong of me to ask so much of Shane in such a small amount of time, but if he had been feeling this way for such a long period of time, nothing else appeared to have worked. From my own assumptions, Drew seemed too gentle with him, and although I’m eternally grateful for how much the man had cared for my boyfriend in the past; things needed to change. Shane can’t live like this forever; He’d only get worse. I had to do something.

Holding Shane close I kissed his forehead, not caring that I mostly kissed his long wet hair as I smiled gracefully in his direction. “Shall we go now?” I asked softly, not feeling comfortable forcing him into anything until he was absolutely sure; I wasn’t going to be the enemy.

He nodded glumly, removing himself from my hold and took a deep breath. “Y-Yeah...” He could only stutter in response before shuffling from the bedroom.

I followed closely behind, slipping my hand into his and squeezed it supportively as we treaded down the stairs. I could tell he was completely against my idea, which admittedly made me feel slightly guilty, but I had no choice; I cared too much to let him destroy himself like this.

Upon entering the kitchen we were met with Drew, bending over so his head was resting on his folded arms on the counter, watching the kettle boil as he yawned. Turning to look at us, he welcomed Shane politely, yet merely stared at me, causing me to roll my eyes as I led Shane towards the garden door in the corner of the room.

“What are you doing?” Drew mumbled as he watched me, a slightly sharp tone in his voice while Shane ignored him; too busy staring at the wooden door. “Seriously, what…” He trailed off at his own accord, meaning I glanced over at him and watched his eyes boring down at our entwined hands. He sharply turned his back to us moments later.

“K-Kier, I-I don’t…” Shane stuttered, his hand squeezing mine painfully as I approached the door, my hand curled around the handle.

“Shaney, please don’t worry…” I whispered, releasing the door in favour of embracing the trembling blond, shushing him softly. “I’m right here with you; I won’t leave you for even a second.”

I felt him nod in my hold, resting his head on my shoulder while breathing a little heavy against my neck. I allowed him time to calm, running a hand through his slowly drying hair while we stood in silence. I felt Drew’s presence still in the room, but didn’t bother looking for him; He didn’t appear to have a positive opinion on me anyway – there was no point wasting my time on someone like that. Shane was my only priority.

“I-I’m ready…” The man in my arms eventually whispered, causing me to nod and smile, pulling back to meet our lips for a soft second before releasing him completely.

I didn’t say another word as I moved over to the door, pulling it open as gently and quietly as possible, my heart instantly breaking as the sound of whimpers came from the man behind me. I sped back over to him once the door was fully open, taking him in my arms while assessing every reaction the man had. He was trembling viciously, releasing small gasps each time a calm gust of air breezed through the room. My arms wound around his waist, pulling him flush against my side while I affectionately kissed his head on repeat.

“I-It’s cold…” He whispered as his whimpers gradually began to die down, causing me to giggle a little. “I-It’s k-kind of calming…”

My smile widened, squeezing him comfortingly while I happily kissed his cheek.  I didn’t want to think about how long Shane had gone without experiencing this. Taking a glance over at Drew I recognised his expression as a harsh scowl immediately, causing me to almost timidly look away; I had no idea why Drew seemed so against the idea of Shane and I being in a relationship – or why he appeared to hate the idea of Shane getting better.

“C-Can we shut it now?” I heard my boyfriend stumble over his words, causing my eyes to widen in concern as I nodded and quickly slammed the door shut, keeping him in my support as his form became a little heavier. I feeling of guilt caused my stomach to tingle, having not paid attention to the one that mattered most.

“K-Kier… I-I don’t f-feel well…” Shane mumbled, his head resting against my neck as I moved him over to the breakfast bar and sat him on the closest available stool. His expression was dazed as his postured was slumped against the table, staring over at me with pleading eyes as he paled drastically.

“Shane…” Drew murmured as he approached us, handing him a glass of water which he took in his trembling hands, successfully managing to sip from it.

I didn’t understand what was happening, my mind running amok as I stared in fear over at my boyfriend and his friend; my opinion of Drew slightly changing as I was eternally thankful for him being so calm – I can’t handle it when people are ill.

“Why did you do that?” Drew growled, turning to me while Shane placed a shaky hand on his chest, a silent plea for him to stop. I could only stutter a small ‘I-I…’ in confusion before he continued. “Don’t you think we would have helped him sooner if it was just as simple as opening a fuckin’ door?” I learnt my lesson and remained silent, shrinking into myself as I allowed him to rant at me; he was right after all. “He panics and gets lightheaded-” He turned to Shane. “You should have known better to.”

“It was my fault.” I mumbled, trying desperately to both protect Shane and remain calm. “Don’t blame him.”

“He’s not a child; stop babying him!” Drew suddenly spat at me, causing my eyebrows to rise; all previous traces of composure leaving.

“You’re the one who isn’t allowing him to recover in the first place!” I retorted, arms folding against my chest for protection.

“You don’t know him!” Drew growled, and I watched as Shane’s hand which was previously resting on his chest, curl around the fabric of his shirt to make a fist. “He’s vulnerable; you’re going to make him worse.”
“I’m trying to help, which is more than you’re doing!” My form shook with anger, unable to stop my body as a wave after wave of frustration washed over me; I was doing more than he ever did. I couldn’t bring myself to listen to Drew’s selfish spats any longer, meaning I turned on the heel of my shoe and left the room; not so much as glancing in the direction of the pair beforehand. I wasn’t the enemy. I was doing the right thing; I know it.