Defying Dominance (MxM) (18+)

30

CW: Short discussion of attempted assault + mentions of actual assault and abuse. (Non-Detailed)

Chapter 30: Daniel

"Daniel, why are you in such a hurry? And in the hall closet?"

"Jace is staying with us," I say shortly, brushing past Dad with an armful of blankets and clean pillowcases.

Dad doesn't say anything immediately, but I hear him following me to my room. "What? Why?"

"His dad tried...started to...Was going to have someone do something really bad and I don't want him staying there." I drop the blankets on my bed, then step over to my laptop to unmute my mic. "Sorry about that, Avery. Something's going on with Jace. What were you saying?"

"Oh, do I need to go?"

"No, no. I wanna hear about how you've been. I know I've been really focused on Jace lately, and I miss you."

"Daniel," Dad says firmly from the doorway. "I need more information."

"If I had permission to tell you, I would. I really can't. Not until I make sure Jace is okay with you knowing. I just...I don't feel comfortable leaving Jace there with that man. Please...We can talk about it later."

"...Alright. I'll go tell Char."

I sit down in my desk chair to focus on Avery. "So you...met a guy?"

Avery nods, chewing softly at his nails. "Online. He...He likes my photography. We started talking and we've now been talking for a little over a week. He's...really patient with me, Daniel. He understands me. He's a dom, but he doesn't scare me. He makes me feel...safe."

"I'm glad."

"He...wants to meet in person. I told him I'm not ready and he's fine with that. I do want to meet him, but...what if he's different in real life? I'd rather not know. I'd rather just know about his online persona."

I nod, and roll my desk chair over to my bed to grab the pillowcases to start putting them on pillows that are piled on the floor. "Not that you have to meet him in person, but...If he is a shitty person, you need to know that so you can stay away from him. I don't want you to get hurt."

"I know...I just...I like him, Daniel. I don't want him to...What if he's too different? What if he is bad? I want him to be good."

"I understand that. It's not like you have to decide right now. You haven't been talking to him for that long."

"I know...I just...I don't want to talk about it anymore. What's going on with Jace? What did his dad do?"

"I don't know if Jace wants me to go into detail about it. I'll ask when he gets here." I put the pillows on the bed once I'm done.

"Do you want me to leave call when he gets here?"

"You don't have to. I'm sure he would be happy to talk to you as well."

"Do you know when he's going to get there?"

I shrug. "He said he'd text me when he's on his way and he hasn't texted me yet. So I have no idea. I hope it's soon. It's stressing me out that he's still at his house."

"Well...Hopefully he texts you soon." Avery glances down, typing on his phone. "It's Roman...He was asking if I ate today."

"Well did you?"

Avery nods. "I did. I had gluten-free pancakes my mom made me." He turns away from his computer, and he has a controller in hand once he turns back to me. "Wanna play Minecraft while you wait for Jace to show up?"