Nothing But Hate

Chapter Forty Five

a/n : second chapter in a day! don't miss out on chapter forty four before reading this one!

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"Here. Drink some water." Tucker said as he handed a bottle of water to Callum once they got back in the car. Callum took the bottle from Tucker's hand, not saying a word as he did so.

The funeral had just gotten over, and now the two were on their way back to Callum's apartment. Ever since his father was murdered a few days ago, Callum had barely said a word. Which was understandable, Tucker couldn't even begin to imagine how losing a father would feel like. It's a pain he didn't even want to think about.

The FBI was investigating who was behind the shooting, and till now they had zero suspects.

But it was clear who did it. It had to be either a common man whose life savings Christopher Kaufman stole, or a business partner that would rather have the man shot than be able to snitch. Christopher Kaufman had pissed off a lot of people in his sixty four years of life, and as a proof of it, he was now six feet under.

Both Callum and Tucker were bombarded with reporters whenever they stepped out, and their, especially Callum's, patience was now wearing thin. He was one more 'What do you have to say about this?' away from breaking their cameras.

But of course, he couldn't do that. No matter the storm inside, Callum was always calm and collected. Tucker was both scared and proud to see Callum like that. Proud because he maintained himself so well even during such a traumatic experience, and scared because he had no idea what was going on in his boyfriend's head. Whenever he tried to talk to the billionaire, the man just shut him down.

So Tucker waited, and stayed by Callum's side because that was all he could do. And he just hoped and prayed to whatever God was up there, that it was enough.

As soon as they reached Callum's penthouse, the CEO rushed to the bar to pull out a bottle of whiskey. He managed to take a sip from the bottle before Tucker snatched it from him, giving him a look before taking out two glasses and pouring both of them a drink. If there was one thing that Tucker knew, it was that good things never came from drinking straight from the bottle.

The two men stayed up till noise of the city died down, and the only thing they would hear was the ticking of the clock and the occasional clink of glass when they poured one drink after the other. No words needed to be said as the two passed out on the couch, so close together but their minds in two completely different worlds.

~~~

Tucker stayed with Callum for the next few days, not wanting to leave the man alone for even a single moment. But eventually, Tucker had to return back to work. Tucker didn't care for Christopher Kaufman, but he did care for Callum's father. Everyone in the office had a lot of things to say, but nobody said a word.

As the days passed, Tucker made as much time as he possibly could to stay with Callum, but it never felt enough. Despite being together, he never felt this far away from him. Callum, the man that never shied away from speaking what was on his mind, was now just a shell. All Tucker could do was wait. Wait and hope that the man he loves would be back.

"They found the murder weapon." Callum said randomly as the two ate dinner at Callum's penthouse. Tucker almost choked, now expecting this conversation.

"And?" Tucker asked.

"The serial number was wiped off. It was untraceable. Not a big surprise." Callum said so casually that it surprised Tucker.