Love Maybe? (BoyXBoy)

Chapter Five

Chapter Five

I awoke to a warmth that I had never felt before. Dazed and confused from just waking up, I slowly opened my eyes only to see a well-toned naked chest. I jumped up, fully awake now. I glanced at Jeremy's face. Thank goodness, he's still asleep. I let out a relieved sigh. It could have been terrible if he had woken up first. He probably would have freaked out a bit.

I looked down at his face again. He looked so peaceful. It almost made me forget about the situation I am in. I know Jeremy said I won't be going back to my mother, but I can't help but feel like I have to. I need to distract myself from these thoughts. I'm making myself depressed and confused. As I came out of my own mind, I noticed that Jeremy's eyes were open and staring straight at me. Have I been staring this whole time?

"Kind of. It's kind of creepy actually," Jeremy replied.

"Did I say that out loud? Sorry though, I kind of spaced out there," I felt a blush working its way onto my cheeks. I really hope he won't notice it.

"It's alright. I figured you did," he then reached up to my cheek. "What I can't figure out is why you started to cry. You're safe, Christian. Like I told you, she won't be able to touch you anymore. I promise."

My hand moved to my cheek on instinct, and it landed on his. We both froze for a moment, then I quickly pulled my hand back, looked away, and mumbling a sorry. I then reached up once again and wiped away my tears. Damn, I need to think before I do things. That could have been bad.

"You hungry?" Thank goodness. Jeremy switched topics. I nodded in reply and we quickly got changed and went downstairs to his kitchen, where we found his mother already cooking eggs and bacon.

"Good morning, boys!" A huge smile lite up her face.

"Morning, Mom," Jeremy returned the smile and I waved. Martha's gaze landed on me, to be more specific to the left side of my face. I noticed how her smile began to fall. She forgot all about cooking and walked up to me, her hand lifting up my chin in order to see my cheek better. I forgot about the bruise that was there.

"Was this here last night? I don't remember seeing it. Jeremy, you better not have caused this. What happened, Christian?" Martha was clearly upset. I know she considers me to be like a son.

"Oh, it's nothing. We were just horsing around and I tripped. I landed face first on the floor," I shrugged. I didn't want anyone else to know. I still can't believe that Jeremy knows everything. I looked towards him. He looked a bit shocked at my smooth lie. What did he think? I was going to tell his parents about my home life? Never. It would just put worry and extra stress on them. They didn't need that.

"Well then, you two must be more careful. It doesn't look too bad, but it will probably be there for a few days," His mother then returned to the food. Thankfully, nothing was burning.

"Would you mind calling us when breakfast is ready, Mom? We are going to watch TV in the other room," Jeremy asked. When his mother nodded, he walked into the living room which was just around the corner from the kitchen. We sat on the couch and Jeremy turned the TV on to a random station. This told me he wanted to talk. "Why didn't you tell me about that?" He was referring to my bruise.

"I didn't think it was that important. I already told you about the beatings," I mumbled. He only looked away towards the TV. I looked to the floor. I was a bit embarrassed that someone had seen the bruise. After all this time of successfully covering it, it feels weird for people to know it's there.

"I think we should tell my parents what is going on," Jeremy rushed the words from his mouth moments later. I looked towards him quickly, shaking my head.

"No way, Jeremy! No one else can know. Please," I ended in a whisper, close to tears. Damn, I feel like I'm weak. I barely ever cry, and now I am close to tears every time I turn around lately. It's frustrating!

"But I really think they could help. I mean, they might know what to do. And I'm sure they would allow you to live here! Why don't you want to tell them?" I could tell he was getting a bit frustrated with me. But that was a good question. Why didn't I want them to know? Was I really planning on going back? Did I really want to go through everything again?

No. I really, truly didn't want to go back there ever again. My mom wasn't my mom anymore. I knew that. Suddenly I was glad today was Saturday. I couldn't go to school with so much on my mind. Maybe I should tell them today. Maybe everything could be done with by Monday. Maybe I could start to feel safe again. I looked to Jeremy again.

"Okay... I guess... I guess we can tell your parents. But there is one more thing I need to tell you beforehand. Then you can decide if you still want me to stay here." I couldn't believe I was going to tell him. After years of hiding it, after years of pretending, I was going to tell him I was gay. Please let him accept me. I don't know what I would do without him in my life, even if it is just as best friends. Please, let him stay with me. I found myself shaking with worry, "Please don't hate me."

"Dude, you're my best friend. I could never hate you," he was confident with his answer. You might after I tell you this. Okay, here we go. You can do this.

"I've been wanting to tell you for a while now... I mean... I've known since about middle school. What I'm trying to say is... Well, it's that I.... I'm... Gay," I let the word fly from my mouth. Almost instantly, I began to regret telling him. I watched as his worried face took on confusion, then a bit of anger, then finally it relaxed to be almost completely emotionless. Please don't let him hate me now!

"I can't believe you thought that would change my mind about helping you. About keeping you safe. No matter what, Christian, you will always be family to me," With as much happiness that those words brought me, they brought that much hurt as well. They shouldn't have. I mean, I knew they were coming, but it still hurts that I love him and he only sees me as a brother. I shake off those feelings and focus on the topic at hand. "Now come on. Let's go talk to Mom and Dad."

We walked back into the kitchen, finding not only his mom, who was still cooking enough food to feed a village, but his dad as well. His dad sat at the kitchen table where he was reading a magazine. Jeremy cleared his throat. His dad's attention focused onto his only son, and his mom stopped cooking once again to look over at the two of us. Noticing the worried expression that was on my face, and the determined one on her son's, she grabbed the plates of food, placed them onto the table in front of four separate chairs, and sat down, waiting for what was going to come next. "Okay, let's hear it. I can tell there is something that you need to tell us. We are all ears," She said.

Is this the right thing to do? I sure hope it is. But how will they react? Will everything work out for the better?