Neighbour

29.

Eddy watched his neighbour's chest rise and fall with each breath in the quiet room. His reading light was still on, and the dim light made soft shadows on Brett's face. Somehow, he had convinced him it would be okay to take one side each of his double bed rather than sleeping on the rug on the floor, and the poor guy passed out the second his head hit the pillow. Eddy figured he must have been exhausted.

His gaze moved up to see how Brett’s burst lips were slightly parted, letting him breathe despite his swollen face. Eddy couldn't understand how anyone could hurt someone as precious as this. How the monster he shared a wall with could ever make marks like this on someone he claimed to love.
They barely knew each other, had barely talked, but Eddy knew he just had to do everything he could to keep Brett safe. There was nothing else he would rather do than to make sure he was okay.

He held his breath when Brett moved, laying as still as he could to not startle him. The man turned to his side, pulling the duvet tightly around himself. It looked almost like he was trying to hide under it, and a scared whimper escaped his lips. Eddy hadn’t even thought about it before he reached over and carefully stroked his pink cheek with his thumb.

"Shh," he whispered softly, wanting to soothe him. The poor guy flinched slightly when he was touched, but slowly relaxed as Eddy's hand was gentle. Eddy was careful to avoid the bruised areas, not wanting to cause him any pain. "It's okay, you're safe here with me. I got you for tonight."

Eddy watched as Brett slowly exhaled and relaxed again, and smiled just a little bit. It was impossible not to smile a bit back, his heart swelling ever so slightly from how adorable his neighbour was. The man was truly precious, and to think about what the evil man had done to him…

Slowly, he removed his hand from Brett's cheek to let him sleep in peace. He didn't expect Brett to whine quietly and blink his eyes half open, clearly asleep still. He looked around, seeming to be a bit confused.

"Nooo… it was nice," Brett mumbled, getting a small pout on his lips. He patted the bed, trying to reach for Eddy's hand.
Eddy let him take it, feeling his heart beat slightly harder than normal.

"Okay, Brett, I'm sorry," Eddy assured softly, giving the dainty hand a gentle squeeze. It looked so small in his, matching exactly how young the man looked in his sleepy state. "I'll hold your hand, okay? You're safe here, I promise."

Brett didn't answer, just carefully laid his head back down on the pillow and closed his eyes. In his sleepy state, he pulled Eddy's hand up to rest his cheek against it. Eddy found he didn’t mind, and slowly closed his own eyes to rest alongside his neighbour.