Boy Meets Beast

✧ 45 ✧

Every suffering cell of Ilya's mortal being wept from his unfortunate situation. After hours of running from the shriekers, getting stabbed by a screamer, played with by a maniac that called himself Beast, and collapsing from hypoglycemia, Ilya eventually let it out.

He tried to hold his tears inside like he used to do since his mother died; since John took custody of him and raised his hand on Ilya every time he got drunk. Ilya was used to bottling up his emotions, but not after he became a guest in this horror town.

The town itself changed him. The corrupt atmosphere drilled a sense of doom deep within Ilya's soul. It made it harder for him to tame the tears, to keep them hidden between his lungs, burning and screaming but well hidden in his heart.

As soon as Ilya sat foot into this town, he felt it; he was never getting out of there alive.

Ilya's sobs quieted down. A bitter taste reached his mouth. Salty tears streamed down to his reddening lips. The color had gradually returned to his face, only to turn it red from crying. He moved his undamaged arm across his face to wipe his tears.

A sniffle here, a hiccup there, and he finally calmed himself enough to remove his arm from his eyes.

The face that greeted him made him yelp, "Ah!"

"Were you crying?"

Ilya crammed himself into the couch's cushions, staring at those sharp brown eyes before him. Billy was inches away from his face, concern drew his bushy eyebrows together.

"No!" Embarrassed, Ilya quickly denied. "I wasn't!"

"Are you hurt?" Billy inched closer, scanning Ilya's face, arms, and the rest of his body. "Where does it hurt?"

The wolf man in his strong muscular human form crumbled when he saw the boy's face; two colorful gates to heaven surrounded by tears, dark circles beneath those eyes meeting at brimmed black lashes, flushed cheeks, and puffy lips. These were all signs of a person in pain.

Billy was worried.

"Is it here?" He gently lifted Ilya's broken arm and examined it. "Or here?" Then he rested his palm on the bandages on Ilya's shoulder. "Do you need more painkillers? We have plenty. Just tell me what's wrong?"

Ilya felt his skin crawl when Billy touched him, but then his body registered that it wasn't a dangerous touch. It was kind. The thoughtful new personality of the same horrifying monster Ilya knew stunned him. Then he snapped out of it.

"Nothing." Ilya lowered his head. "It's just..." For a second, he wanted to share his thoughts, to let Billy know he wanted to leave this town as soon as possible. "Nothing." Ilya shook his head. "It's nothing."

Ilya found it useless to waste his breath on something that would never change. Billy didn't care about his wishes, and he never will. No one would. Ilya was on his own, and it made that burning lump in his throat burn more.

"That wasn't nothing," with a strong tone, Billy replied. "I heard you. I heard everything."

Ilya hesitantly peeked at Billy; a stern but caring look was on his face. He was squatting to meet Ilya's eye level. The warmth of his eyes, that protective scolding voice, and the comforting words that came out of Beas—No—Billy's mouth. He wasn't scary at all.

"Your voice. The sound of your heartbeat. The way you're breathing... It's pain." Billy backed away to point at Ilya. "You are in pain."

At that moment, something changed in Ilya. He felt he could tell Billy anything.

"Whatever's bothering you—" Billy leaned closer and, with a nervous smile, he whispered, "I can fix it."

Ilya's gaze faltered and fell. Tears pricked his eyes once more and he didn't know why. Billy's words worked on Ilya like a magic spell; it touched him. He tried with all his power to stop himself from crying in public. However, the more he held the tears in, the more they stung. The growing lump in his throat felt like lava. The breaths that came out of his lungs were burning.

Everything hurt.

"I just..."

Ilya stopped to rub his eyes. He cleared his throat and forced himself to speak, but a swollen pain blocked his voice. The very act of breathing was painful itself.

With a little tremble on his lips, he whimpered, "I just wanna go home."

From that moment, Ilya felt broken. His voice. His heart. The dam he built to prevent his tears from escaping. Everything broke.

Ilya took his head into his hand and sobbed. Tears came out as if, at last, his buttled-up emotions found a path. Shoulders shook. Whines escaped between unsteady breaths. And the spirit of the almighty man in front of him was crushed.

Billy was devastated but didn't know what to do. His gaze went to Greg then back at Ilya, as if asking Greg for help with the situation. Greg gestured something with his arms; he wrapped his arms around himself.

Billy squinted his eyes and mouthed, "What?"

Then it finally hit him.

Greg was suggesting a hug. Just hug the damn boy!

Hot flashes and sweat covered Billy from head to toe.

A hug? He gulped. When he's wide awake? And in front of Greg?

He moved his arms to comfort the crying boy, but his hands just hovered above, stuck in chaotic feelings that made him feel more human, more miserable.

"It's OK. It's OK."

Billy slowly let his hands rest on Ilya's shoulders and patted him. To touch that delicate skin sent tingles through his spine. His cheeks blushed and he was about to abort the mission, but suddenly, he pulled Ilya in for a hug.

Ilya cried harder in Billy's embrace. Then came the words that he desperately wanted to hear.

"I'll take you home."

Sorry for the long break ^^' Life happens, you know?

Anyway, I hope you loved this chapter :D

Billy seems like the opposite of Beast, and I think our boy Ilya is slowly warming up to him, don't you think?

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