The Fall of the Aftons

167: Michael Afton

"Felicity?!" Michael exclaimed excitedly when he saw his Center sister and first-ever friend standing at the edge of the park. He rushed over to her, grinning.

"¡Ay, Michaelito!" Felicity practically squealed when she saw him. "Cómo estás, hermanito? Tú eres muy alto y guapo ahora... ¡Eras muy bajo y adorable! ¡Yo no lo puedo creer!"

"I missed you, too?" Michael said, laughter filling his voice. "I have no idea what you just said."

"He doesn't speak Spanish, City," Noah reminded her from behind him, walking over to the two.

"I demand a hug!" Felicity shouted, holding her arms out wide. "It's been almost twelve years!"

Michael laughed and hugged her tightly, resting his head on her shoulder for a moment. "I missed you so much," he said quietly, his voice only audible to her.

"I missed you, too, Michaelito," she mumbled in response, pulling away from the hug as she looked at him closer. "Ay, you've grown so much! It feels like just last year we were playing together on the playset with little Evan."

He grimaced at the memory and backed away, flinching when Noah wrapped his arm around his shoulders.

"I'm sorry, I must've forgotten to tell her," Noah murmured in his ear. "Do you want me to tell her as you go get the snacks?"

"No, I'll... I'll tell her."

"Tell me what?" Felicity asked worriedly, glancing back and forth between the two.

"Evan, he, um... He's dead," Michael said quietly, awkwardly putting his hands in his pants pockets. "He suffered a traumatic brain injury when he was ten and died of an aneurysm shortly after he came out of a coma."

"Oh. Wow." She awkwardly fidgeted with her thumbs, glancing away. "I'm so sorry. He was your brother, right? Didn't Mister Afton adopt him?"

He nodded, looking away when the memories of Evan's death started to flood his mind. He chuckled when Noah pulled him in close and kissed the side of his head, rubbing his back soothingly.

"Wait, are you two actually dating now?" Felicity asked, pointing back and forth between the two. "I remember you telling me you were going to ask him out the last letter you sent, Noah, but I forgot to ask if you succeeded or not."

"Yeah, we are," Michael answered, chuckling.

Noah simply kissed the side of his head again, confirming what he said without speaking.

"Good for you! How long have you guys been dating?" she asked, grinning.

"Since February," Noah answered, smiling softly.

"You two are so cute together," she mused, giggling.

"Thank you," he and Michael replied in unison, laughing at their sudden sync.

Felicity turned to Noah, her expression changing for a split second. "¿Por qué tiene muchas cicatrices? ¿Qué pasó, cómo las recibió?" she asked, motioning to Michael.

Noah sighed, frowning. "Esa no es una pregunta buena. Él es sensible de sus cicatrices."

Michael sighed, getting annoyed with all of the Spanish. Why is everybody speaking in Spanish today?

"Sorry, Mikey," Noah apologized, kissing his cheek. "She was asking me a question. She speaks Spanish better than English, so it's easier for her to ask things in Spanish sometimes. "

"Oh," he mumbled. "Well, I'll go get the snacks as you answer her questions." He stepped out of Noah's arm and started to walk away, but Noah grabbed his hand and pulled him back.

"I'll go get the snacks. You stay and catch up with your friend, okay?" he said with a smile. "She still knows how to speak English. She just happens to be better at Spanish because that's what her adoptive family speaks."

"O-Oh. Okay." He stood there awkwardly, watching as his boyfriend walked away.

Felicity sat down in the woodchips, grabbing Michael's hand and pulling him down to the ground with her. "How have you been, Michaelito? What have I missed?"

He chuckled nervously, gently dragging his finger through the woodchips. "You've missed a lot. Not that I'm saying it's your fault, it's just that... You've missed a lot since the last time I saw you."

"Did the bullying ever stop?"

"No, it, um... It actually got worse through middle and high school," he admitted. "I'm fine, though. I made it."

She laughed softly. "Yes, you did. You did make it. I'm proud of you," she said with a grin, ruffling his hair. "Gosh, ¡tú pelo es muy bajo! It used to be so long! What happened?"

"Huh?"

"She said that your hair is short," Noah said as he set the bag of snacks on the ground between the two. He sat down next to Michael, kissing his cheek and neck a few times.

Michael blushed and started to laugh, trying to push Noah away from him. "C-Cut it out!" he squealed, giggling. "Now is not the time for excessive kisses!"

Felicity started to laugh at the two's shenanigans as Noah backed off, a goofy grin on his face.

"You two are dumbasses," she mused, then turned to Noah. "¡Yo quiero preguntar de sus cicatrices! ¡Míralas! Sus cicatrices se van mecánicas. No es normal, ¡yo quiero saber!"

"Sí, yo sé. No sé por qué están."

"¿Puedo preguntar? ¿Por favoooooooor?" she begged, folding her hands in front of her.

He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Puedes preguntar."

She turned to Michael with an expression of curiosity and slight worry. "Why do you have so many scars?" she asked. "You're only seventeen and you have more scars than a guy that's been in both of the World Wars!"

Michael hesitated, anxiously rubbing his arms, wishing he had brought a jacket. He was slowly starting to become more confident letting his scars be visible, but he was still learning. He hadn't learned to talk about them, though. That was still nearly impossible since only Henry and Evan had known about it.

Noah dragged Michael into a sideways hug, trying to comfort him. "Yo te advertí," he told Felicity before kissing the side of his head. "Are you okay?" he whispered in his ear.

"I'm fine," he responded, his voice hushed. He turned to Felicity, leaning his head on Noah's shoulder. "My, um... My employees didn't like me very much. I'm fine, though. Every wound healed. No permanent damage was sustained."

"What did they do that caused the scars?" she asked. "You don't have to answer if you don't want to. I'm just curious because they look mechanical-y."

"I'd, uh... rather not talk about it."

She gave a small, sad smile. "That's okay."

"Aww, look at you, my handsome prince," Noah said sweetly. "You're making so much progress!"

Michael laughed as he pushed Noah off of him. "Oh, shut up already."

"You two are cheesy," Felicity said with a roll of her eyes.

Noah shrugged, smirking. "You're just jealous because you don't have a girlfriend."

"Hey! That's not fair!" she exclaimed as Michael laughed harder. "It's not my fault that I'm the only lesbian in my school."