TW: Yelling, Mentions of Francis, crying, and abuse,
Happy birthday, pineapplefritters!!! (It's not letting me do it,)
Thursday: 5:20 AM
Charles woke up slowly, feeling dried tears on his face. He looked around the room and saw the turtle tank before laying back down.
Suddenly, an unwanted memory slipped into his mind.
Francis was leaning against Charles's bedroom door. "Charles, come on, don't be a baby, just take it, or else," he said.
"But isn't that going too far? Maybe you could keep the turtle and use that to get John. Just removing the turtle and selling it will make John upset and I don't want him-" Charles replied.
"If he's upset, he'll come back to me. I'll be the 'hero'," Francis said.
"But if he's upset, he'll be mute again. And if he's mute again, he won't talk to anyone and stay in his dorm," Charles said.
That was a lie. Charles knew that John wouldn't go mute, not on Thomas's watch. But Francis didn't know that.
"And? That means he's easier to manipulate," Francis squinted his eyes. "Are you lying to me, Charles? Do you want me to tell everyone that you're-?" he asked, walking toward Charles.
"No!" Charles stood up defensively, backing into a wall. His breathing quickened, and his shirt felt too close-knit, suffocating him.
"So now you're raising your voice at me?" Francis cupped Charles's face.
Suddenly, Charles sat up again and placed his hand on his chest, trying to calm his breathing. He realized it was just a dream.
"You'll be okay if I manage to escape him, you will too, I promise," John's words echoed through Charles's head.
His thoughts were screaming at him, memories of all the bad things he'd done and all the things Francis made him do.
"Come on, Charley, it's fine. Just put the video in front of the class for everyone to see. He'll be mortified and crawl right back into my arms," Francis said.
Charles didn't just have to do the video. He had to email it and somehow post it on the school website without anyone finding out it was him,
just to make Francis happy and get him off of his back.
"But what about the turtle?" Charles tilted his head.
"What about it? I'll stay in a box. What do they eat anyway? I can feed them fish, right?" Francis replied.
"No, John has a red-eared slider turtle. They are aquatic, and he needs a tank. Not to mention, the fish can't be dead or he won't" Charles said.
"You sound like a nerd, just shut up," Francis kissed his lips, running his hands through Charles's hair.
"Of course," Charles replied, his words muffled from Francis's lips on his.
The door opened, making Charles flinch, and the aroma of pancakes filled the air.
There Charles was, sobbing as Francis yelled at him more.
"What's wrong with you!" Francis shouted.
"What? I thought I did a good job. Aren't you proud of me? I sent the video to everyone! And I-" Charles replied.
"You didn't project it to all of the classrooms!" Francis shouted back.
"I can't do that. It would take too much-" Charles said.
YOU ARE READING
-DISCONTINUED-ISH-Between the Lines, A Lams Fanfic-DISCONTINUED-ISH-
FanfictionJohn Laurens lived an uneventful life, devoid of any excitement or adventure. Though he tried to remember every detail from his high school and college days, his memories were fragmented and often failed to make sense. He was heavily reliant on his...
