FreeFall

Captivity?

Shane's POV:

"Noah, honestly, I like you as my best friend, but are you crazy?!" Damien yelled throughout the entire apartment.

But if I'm being honest, I share his sentiment. Faking a kidnapping? Just so I don't have to go back "home"? That's too much...

"Noah, I have to agree with Damien, this is too much. It only makes everything worse than it already is," I calmly spoke to my older brother.

"Guys, it's really simple. Shane can focus on himself here and-" but Noah didn't get far with his idea.

"No, Noah, Shane doesn't want to stay here, and as much as it has been in the past, we have to respect the nerd's decision," he looked at me when he said "nerd." Damn it! I'm not a nerd. Nevertheless, I nodded at him. Exceptionally, he seems to really understand what I mean. Incredible when you consider that just two days ago, I wanted to commit suicide. Now, all of this...

"Fuck, my phone is vibrating," Noah glanced at it and his expression became extremely upset. "It's Mom." He got up and left the kitchen. Then we could only hear him speaking very softly. He's probably gone to the bathroom to talk to her in peace. Haha, what am I saying... talking to that woman in peace? Impossible! They're our parents, but they treat Noah like a king while I suffer alone in the corner.

"Hey there? Nerd? Earth to Shaane?" Damien looked at me intently.

"What? Sorry."

"Seems like you've drifted off, huh?"

"Guess you could say that."

"Listen, I have a suggestion for you, and then we can decide what to do next, unless your idiot of a brother actually goes through with the whole kidnapping story."

"Okay, shoot." He thought for a moment, then grinned quite peacefully.

"You can have the couch in the living room all to yourself. We don't have to talk or pay any attention to the others in any way. You can do your own thing, except, well, you-know-what." He emphasized that with air quotes, or rather, with his fingers. It surprised me how quickly he can adapt. I don't know him like this. Well, actually, I hardly know him at all. But it sounded good... too good...

"Okay, let's say I accept that, what's the catch?" And?????

"There's no catch. You wanted to jump off a bridge, and I still feel guilty about it. You don't have to trust me, by God, I even think it's good that you don't, but it's a way to make up for all that... and it lets me know that you're okay."

My mouth dropped open, no catch? No underlying evil? Am I really in heaven?

"Uh-uh, okay, I guess?" I was quite overwhelmed. Where does this deep understanding in him come from? Where does this 'caring' come from?

"You guess? Like I said, you don't have to. It's entirely up to you." And with that, he stood up to leave the room, but I stopped him.

"Okay, I'll do it!" I almost shouted. And then he turned around with the dirtiest grin of all time.

"Great, knew you'd come to your senses, nerd."

"I'M NOT A NERD, YOU JERK!" Maybe I was sitting there pouting because of that, and maybe he laughed because of it and is now talking to Noah. Just as he was speaking of him, he walked in. Alone. With the "best" mood.

"Listen, Leah was at our house, of course, I ignored her because you were, well, more important. I brushed her off with family problems, and, well, she told Mom. Let's just say, I was able to wiggle out of the whole thing a bit."

"But?"

"You should really stay here, Shane. If you can't trust him, then trust me, okay? I don't want you to come back and have to expose yourself to the whole situation again." He put on a crooked smile. His desperation was written all over his face. There will definitely be a lot of trouble because of me.

I spoke calmly to him as I looked into his eyes. "I'll stay here for now. But Noah? Please don't get into trouble because of me, okay?"

"Never, little brother, not me, Big Noah." And there it was, that awkward hero's smile. It made me smile myself, no matter how empty I felt. That smile always brought me joy. Because then everything was always okay.

"So, what's the final plan?" Damien leaned into the kitchen and looked at us alternately.

"I'm staying for now," I said while my brother grinned even dumber and bigger. Damien caught my eye roll towards Noah and started laughing, but strangely...

I couldn't help but laugh along...

Noah and Damien discussed how they would handle the money for food and my clothing. It was evening when Noah left us alone, and as a result, it was quiet. Too quiet. I sat on the couch, scrolling through Instagram, finding a few cool photos with quotes and saving them. In the next moment, Damien came in.

"Uh, hey, is everything okay?" he spoke calmly to me and sat down next to me.

Was everything okay? Not really. I messaged Noah, but there was no response. I was definitely worried...

"It's okay..." I whispered, social media may distract me, but not that well.

"Are you hungry, Shane?" I looked at him and saw him staring at the ceiling. His entire presence somehow scared me. Sure, I'm grateful to be allowed to stay here, even though he was my biggest problem just a few days ago. I don't want to lie. He scares me and makes me angry at the same time. With Noah here, it was bearable because I knew nothing would happen, but now?

"Shane?" I didn't even notice how he had been looking at me the whole time. It was only when he said my name that I turned away quickly, and I don't need to mention that I blushed intensely.

"S-sorry, uh, don't go through any trouble because of me," I stammered like a nervous child.

"Never, but Noah will kill me if he finds out tomorrow that I didn't give you anything to eat. But you can certainly help yourself and make something that you like." I felt his gaze on me the whole time. Look somewhere else, you jerk. His kindness somehow made me shudder and tremble slightly. Maybe I'm just too sensitive or something, but after all this time? I think anyone would be in the same position as me.

"Are you trembling? Are you cold?" he gently touched my chin with his fingers and turned my face towards him. It felt as if I were sick. Was I really panicking? It felt like I was dying under his touch. I moved away from him slightly and looked down at the floor.

"No, everything's fine."

He sighed deeply, stood up and walked towards the hallway, but glanced in my direction again.

"I'll make some food for us. I'll let you know when it's ready." He sounded somewhat disappointed.

This might be something... I wonder what school has in store for me.