LOVE BOUND - JJ MAYBANK

CHAPTER 2 - THE SUPPORT OF TWO GIRLS

Oak biked quickly, his chest heaving as tears streamed down his cheeks. He prayed he had kept his mouth shut. Things wouldn't be weird it would just be... he shook his head as he rolled into John B's driveway and skid to a stop.

He exhaled and covered his mouth as sobs became muffled in his palm. John B wasn't home, and The Twinky was not in sight. He could have a moment to breathe. He breathed heavily, his hand gripping his shirt as he pushed his bike to the side of the house and walked inside.

Inside was quiet, the windows open and a soft breeze flowed through the space. He plopped his bag on the ground stumbled into the bathroom and closed the door. Oak peeled his shirt off and hissed at the fiction burn on his chest. The bandage wraps he used to bind hurt like hell, his ribs screaming in agony from the pressure. Oak stared at himself in the mirror.

It was wrong. Everything he stared at was wrong and he hated it. His facial features he didn't mind. They could be... more androgynous but... he didn't mind how his face looked.

His hair brushed against his shoulder and he hated it. It was too short to put up out of his face but too long to be... anything close to what he wanted. His hands found the drawer with the scissors and grabbed them without thought.

Oak couldn't do anything with his chest, his breast tightly bound to be as flat as possible. There was nothing that could be done without surgery or... or him having an episode... He turned to his side and groaned as he ran his palm along his chest. Every muscle in his torso screamed at him to take it off while every once of himself forced him to keep it on.

The front door opened and Oak didn't hear as Sarah and Kie called out for him. He didn't realize till they knocked on the partially opened bathroom door and saw him.

"Oak?" Sarah asked softly, her jaw dropping as she saw him fully. Kie stood beside her in a similar state. "Are you okay?"

Oak looked at them, his eyes wide and full of tears as his trembling hand-held scissors. He shook his head weakly before crumbling onto the ground. Sarah and Kie ran to his side and pulled him close, just holding him and making sure he was okay.

Sarah brushed his hair from his face as he buried his face into her chest. Kie rubbed his bare shoulders, careful of the raw spots she easily spotted. They looked at each other, concerned equally painting each other's expressions.

"W-where is everyone else," Oak whimpered, shaking against Sarah. His head spun.

"John B's out with Pope on the water, I don't know where JJ is," Kie said gently. "Oak... you don't have to say anything but... what is... why are you doing this to yourself?" she asked softly. Oak sniffled, leaning into Sarah more.

"I... I hate what I see..." he whimpered. "I... I wanna..." he let out a hard sob, wincing in pain as his hair fell into his face.

"You wanna be a boy Oak?" Sarah said softly, cupping his face. Oak looked up at her and sniffled, nodding his head.

"I... I told JJ and he... w-we kissed last night and now... n-now I'm scared he won't" he rambled, his breathing quickening.

"Hey hey hey," Sarah said, looking at him right in the eye. "Right now, let's focus on you okay?" she said softly, smiling gently.

"We wanna make sure you're okay Oak," Kie added, her hand rubbing circles between his shoulder blades. Oak sniffled and hesitantly nodded his head.

"You..." he paused looking between the two. "You two don't care that I'm..." he whispered.

"You're still Oak. And you're family, of course, we don't care." Sarah smiled. "I mean, we care but in the way to make sure you're doing whatever you need to safely," she corrected herself, a big bright smile gracing her features. Oak sniffled and nodded his head, a weight off his chest lifting.

"What can we do?" Kie asked, brushing his hair from his face. Oak snickered a tad, wiping his face.

"A haircut?"

Oak sat in a chair facing a shitty mirror, pieces cracked and some missing. He watched Kie behind him, brushing out his hair and parting it for cutting.

Sarah convinced him to take a small break from binding, snatching a large t-shirt from John B's closet and forcing him into it. Sarah sat on the ground in front of him, typing away on her phone.

"What are you looking at?" Oak asked, adjusting the towel on his shoulders. Sarah's eyes darted up at him and she smiled.

"Well, I don't want you hurting yourself anymore," she said, turning her phone around and letting him see the screen. "How does the blue one sound?" she asked.

Oak blinked, looking at the screen with bug eyes. "Are you serious Sarah?" he asked slowly, his heart racing. He stared at her screen, the binder in blue ready to purchase.

"Yeah, why not? Is it not the right size?" she asked, completely clueless about why he would hesitate.

"I... what if your dad sees it on your card statement-"

"I will deal with that if he has a problem with it," Sarah insisted, placing her hands on his knees. "I want to make sure you're okay and with this, it'll be one less thing to worry about," she said softly.

Oak exhaled and smiled, nodding his head. "Blue is perfect," he whispered. Sarah's eyes lit up and she squealed.

"Perfect, and I will get you another in black so you have an extra," She chuckled and ordered away. Kie chuckled and squeezed his shoulders.

"Are you ready?" she asked, hugging him tight from behind. Oak smiled and held her arms, exhaling deeply.

"Cut it off," Oak smiled. "Just like the photo I showed you," he muttered.

Kie smiled and nodded. "On it boss," She smiled and started cutting his hair. Oak watched the hair fall and smiled, watching Sarah's smile grow even more.

This was gonna be okay. Everything was going to be alright. I've got my girls. I'll be okay.

Kiara took a good hour doing Oak's hair, making sure it was perfect before deeming it finished. Oak got up and looked at himself in the mirror.

Behind him, Sarah and Kie waited in suspense. Oak finally turned around, tears rolling down his cheeks as his smile lit up the room. "I-its perfect," he whimpered, a sob leaving his lips.

Kie smiled brightly and ran over, hugging him tight. Sarah quickly joined in. "We love you so much Oak," she said softly. Oak smiled as he hugged them both.

"I love you guys..." he whispered, nuzzling into the warmth of the hug. "Can... can we keep this between us? Just till I tell John B and Pope?" he asked hesitantly.

"Of course, we're following you," Kiara smiled and kissed his cheek with a big mawh.

As if on cue, they turned their heads as The Twinkie rolled up the gravel driveway and parked.