Ghost (Second Edition)

Chapter Twenty-Three--Safe Harbor

Nathan

It was Sunday. Nathan was feeling much better. He had Luis beside him, a full stomach, a good night's rest the night before. All was good. The only problem was that this was Luis's last night here. Nathan could tell that Luis was scared, after all, he had been gone for a week. Luis's mother wasn't bound to let that go unpunished.

Right now though, Luis was the picture of ease. He was leaning against Nathan's side, as he tried to work out how the phone Nathan had given him worked. His pale face was lit eerily by the cold blue light from the newest model phone's screen. The phone was for emergencies, but they were both going to check their phones every hour for messages.

"Mine will always be on silent you know..." Luis looked up from the phone. "I can't risk Mother finding it."

"I know." Nathan wrapped his arm around Luis's narrow shoulders. "So long as you check it every hour." He kept his tone casual.

When Nathan had first seen the scars covering Luis's body, he had worried his mother had done it. When Luis had told Nathan that he self-harmed, Nathan gathered that Luis was unstable, even before Luis had told him he was suicidal. Nathan didn't want to lose him. The phone was going to be a lifeline for Luis.

"Mine will always be on sound or vibrate," Nathan continued, "so that way I will always know if you send a message," he frowned when he thought of something. "Luis, why don't you just move out? Move in with me, here? you're seventeen, it's legal."

Luis sighed and put his phone in his jumper pocket. He leaned his head on Nathan's shoulder and fiddled with Nathan's fingers. His hands were cold. Nathan found that Luis's hands were always cold and rough with scars. "Mother may be a piece of shit, but I can't leave her on her own. She can't survive on her own... and I've told you already, even though I hate her guts and I'm terrified of her, some part of me can't stop loving her. She is my mother. It's mandatory to love your mother it seems," he murmured, not looking up from Nathan's hand.

"I guess that's true," Nathan murmured, then brightened, "Hey, we have a pool in our backyard! Want to go for a swim? It's warm enough today! Plus, the pool is heated!"

"You have a swimming pool for a bathtub," Luis pointed out.

"Yeah, a small one. But, C'mon! This pool outside can do more than just sit there! It needs someone to use it!" Nathan urged.

"You forget, I can't swim," Luis murmured.

"We can find you some floaties!"

"I don't have swimmers."

"You can borrow one of mine!"

Luis sighed. "Alright, you win."

Nathan softened his gaze. He rested his hand on Luis's shoulder, feeling the sharp end of his colour bone under the jumper. "I won't let anything happen to you," he murmured, leaning down and kissing Luis's temple.

Luis looked up at him and gave a small smile. "I know, it's just... I'm scared of water."

"Why are you scared of water?" Nathan asked.

"Mother tried to drown me in the lake just outside of town when I was four," Luis said, deadpan, "if it wasn't for a group of game hunters, I would have drowned that day," Luis's voice went distant and haunted.

"She tried to kill you?" Nathan asked, adding that to the list of crimes that woman had committed. Child abuse, child neglect, attempted murder...

"Only in my early days. I learned how to clean and cook to save my ass, she kept me because I was useful," Luis muttered, flicking his gaze up to Nathan's for a moment before looking down again.