Wren

Part 15

Matteo anxiously waited for Wren to wake up, pacing the room back and forth. He was getting on the others' nerves.

"Would you just sit down? He'll wake up soon since it's already been an hour." Leo scolded.

"Yeah," Dace chimed in, "You're drivin' me crazy with all your stompin' and sighin' back there."

Matteo walked to the window, sitting on the sill and gazing out at the rolling green hills of their property. Did Wren like summer? Did he like to go out and do things or prefer to stay at home? He wondered why he'd become so curious about Wren over the past few days. Maybe because he'd finally admitted to himself that he liked him?  He shook his head to clear his thoughts.

Wren stirred a bit and rolled over, rubbing his eyes. Matteo held his breath as he watched him sit up in the bed, the covers slipping off his small shoulders. He glanced at Dace and Leo and seemed fine, but when he caught sight of Matteo near the window, he froze.

"Wren, it's okay," Leo said calmly, standing slowly from his chair. 

Wren blinked a few times, and everyone else waited for him to panic. But all he did was scoot back in the bed until he was pressed up against the wall, his eyes never leaving Matteo. 

"Why?" He whispered only loud enough for the two closest to hear him. "Why is he here?"

"He's not going to hurt you anymore, Wren. It's okay. He's been helping us take care of you." Leo soothed, slowly moving closer and then sitting on the edge of the bed, somewhat between Matteo and Wren, as if to block Wren from seeing him. "He feels horrible about the way he treated you, and wants to try to make it up to you."

Wren shook his head, peeking over Leo's broad shoulders. "No. I don't want to be near him. He's lying. He's just gonna hurt me again." A tear slipped out of his eye and he turned away, pulling his knees to his chest and burying his face in his arms. "I don't like him." He said simply, like a child afraid of a monster.

Leo turned to Dace for help, but he just shrugged. They both looked at Matteo, who hadn't heard the whispered conversation. He'd been so anxious to make up with Wren. . . How were they going to tell him that Wren wasn't going to give him a chance? 

Matteo looked at them hopefully, his face falling when Leo slowly shook his head. It was okay. He'd expected this. That's what he told himself, but he still felt his heart crumble in his chest. He'd find a way to prove to Wren that he was sincere, not just trying to hurt him more.

Matteo decided that his presence was too stressful for Wren right now, so he quietly slipped past them and left the room. 

Wren peeked up, wiping his teary eyes. Leo got up from the bed and walked over the cabinets that lined the opposite wall, digging through them. "You need to eat, Wren." He said, trying to distract from the tension. 

Wren didn't argue. The last thing he remembered eating was an applesauce cup, but that was, what, three days ago? He didn't know. 

Leo returned with a cookie and a banana. "You had the feeding tube, but I want you to eat some real food. Your body has been under so much stress. . . You've lost even more weight." He was right. Wren was far too thin. 

Leo helped him eat, and they chatted with Dace about this and that, each of them carefully avoiding bringing up Matteo. Wren's stomach swirled when the food hit it, but his body was so desperate for sustenance that even though it made him nauseous, he was able to keep it down. 

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Matteo roamed the halls of the huge mansion, sad and lonely. he knew he deserved this treatment from Wren, as he'd done so much worse, but it still hurt him. He knew he could only be mad at himself. His thoughts were a strange mix, going from wondering about this or that about Wren, (Did he like this activity? What was his favorite color?) to hating himself ('I'd know if he liked that if instead of beating him, I'd spent time talking to him. God, I'm a horrible person.'). 

It'd been about an hour since he'd left the infirmary, and he was growing anxious. He wanted to be with Wren. Protect him and care for him. How could he do that if he couldn't even get near him? He decided to call Leo and see if he would be able to come back and try again.

"Hello?" Leo picked up.

"Hey. Do you think. . . Would you be able to maybe talk to him. . . I want to come back and try again." Matteo didn't quite know what to say.

"Umm. . ." There was a long pause on the other end. "I can try, but I'm not sure it'll work. He was pretty shaken up earlier when he saw you." There was rustling on the other end.

"I know. I hate myself." Matteo's voice cracked. "I need to let him know that I didn't do that because of anything he did wrong, just that it was me. I was horrible to him because I was hurt. I want to be with him." 

Another pause. "Come." Wren's voice said quietly form the other end. The call was ended. Matteo's heart pounded as he started to rush toward the infirmary. How long had he been listening? Had he heard everything? Leo, that bastard!

This was it. His only chance to convince Wren that he was truly regretful of his actions. He had to get through to him.

                               Part Sixteen Coming Soon