The Boy Band Who Adopted Me!

Chapter 28 - Rabbit Trap

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As I rounded the gates to the main campus, I wondered what Will was doing. He was usually actively involved in songwriting and the band, so I was extremely concerned. I didn't know if I was going to have to continue not knowing the full truth of what had happened to him, either. I was just hoping that things would end up working out for him.

At the boys' dorm, I asked a guy who I'd seen Will talking to before if he'd seen him.

"He hasn't left his dorm today. It's 203; be careful, you'll get in trouble if you're in there too long," the guy said, before turning and skateboarding away.

Girls weren't allowed in boys' dorms and vice versa, but I was desperate to see Will. I jogged up the stairs, ignoring the gazes and "Ooooooh, you're in trouble"s in the interest of making sure Will was okay.

201... 202... 203. Here we go.

I knocked on the door lightly.

"Will?"

There was a long silence.

The door opened.

"Alex? You're not supposed to be in here," he said. He was in pajamas, his hair was messier than usual, and he wasn't wearing his glasses. I'd only seen him without them once before; his eyes were the richest shade of brown I'd ever seen. They were beautiful.

"I don't care. Can I come in?" I asked, trying to show on my face that I was concerned. Will looked around the doorway, then nodded and let me in.

"Will, please tell me what's up? Everyone is worried." Will sat down in a hanging chair in one corner of the room.

I looked around. Band posters were everywhere, string lights were hanging between the posters of the two beds - one with a black bedspread, and one with a galaxy-printed one. Polaroids of the guys were pinned to the wall. A bookshelf with a desk built into it held a laptop and a ton of Carroll library books.

"Who's your roommate?" I asked Will.

"Jamie," he replied. "Listen, Alex, I'm okay. Really. I just have a lot going on. If you want me to take you over to Emmett's, I will, but after that I'm coming back here."

I sat down cross-legged on the floor in front of Will. "Please, please tell me why going home is such a big deal."

Will took a long breath, then began: "Look, my older brother, Michael. He used to beat me up all the time, bully me, mess with me. I was almost grateful for the fire because it prompted Michael to move out and finally leave me alone. I haven't seen him since then, so I don't know what's making him come back home now, but I really don't want to see him because I know it'll just pick up where it left off."

I reached forward and put a hand on his knee. "Will..."

"I don't know if you know this, but I'm bisexual. That was just one more reason that Michael loved to beat me up." He turned his wrist and rolled up his sweatshirt sleeve to reveal a series of faint, silvery scars I'd never even noticed - long, slender ones - that all ran width-wise over a larger, light pink scar. How did I somehow miss this?

"That's a burn scar from Michael pouring scalding water over my wrist once in an attempt to kill me. He's so dumb, he didn't know it doesn't exactly work like that. I did have to go to the hospital, though. Then I started cutting, but that's over and done with."

I stood up and hiked my shorts up a little. "What are you doing?" Will asked.

"Do you see that underneath my tights?" I asked, blushing. I needed to show this to Will, but I was feeling rather embarrassed that I was doing it... I pointed at the front and sides of my thigh. I myself had several very old scars in that area from cutting.

"Oh, Alex..." he said.

"I used to do it, too. Don't worry. We both know what it feels like to be pushed around until we can't take it anymore, remember that." I sat back down and smiled. I wanted Will to feel better.

"I'm sure we'll be able to do something about it," I said. "I'm absolutely sure."

Will smiled at me, softly at first, then a wide smile. He reached for his glasses on a nearby shelf, and put them on.

"I guess I'll put some actual clothes on. Uh..."

"Oh, right! Sorry!" I buried my face in my hands. "Go ahead."

I heard a few minutes of rustling and a drawer opening. I curiously peeked through two of my fingers.

I saw the silhouette of Will's shirtless form in front of the glowing light from the window. He had the faintest hint of toned abdominal muscle. I felt so embarrassed at this that I immediately closed my eyes again... I don't have feelings for Will, but I feel guilty that I just looked. I was going to try and scrub that image out of my mind for Gavin's sake.

"Alright, let's go," he said. When I opened my eyes, he was wearing a dark red flannel, sleeves rolled up, and a pair of skinnies and black Converse. As always, he wore several necklaces. He ran a hand through his chocolate-colored hair and put out a hand to help me up.

"I think we're going to have enough songs to release an album now," Will said excitedly. It made me happy how much the band meant to him. We stopped for smoothies on the way to Emmett's, drinking from each other's so we could have both flavors. When we got there, the guys had just finished dreaming up a set of chords for a new song.

"Aly! Will! You're here! Come hang out!" Cody was upside-down on the couch. Jamie was throwing gummy bears into Cody's mouth from across the room.

"Aren't you guys supposed to be working?" Will said with a small smile. Everyone seemed happy to see him, and I'm sure it made him feel much more confident.

"We are, listen to this." Emmett gave Gavin a thumbs-up, who began strumming a new song.

"We don't have words; that's where you come in," Gavin grinned widely. "The ever-important Will Woodbury."

Will's smile just got bigger. "Let's get down to business, guys," he said.

We hung out at Emmett's for the rest of the night, and ended up working out one new song to be recorded later. Gavin wanted to write in a part for me, but I refused, saying I liked Gavin's voice as it was, alone. It was so beautiful that for me to sing along with him would almost be disgraceful.

"Remember, we're playing shows every Friday this month," said Gavin. "We've got to be ready. There's a lot going on."

When we went back to Carroll, I realized I only had a page of room left in my diary. I'd been writing a lot, because my life with the boys was never boring at all.

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AN:Poor Will. hopefully things will turn out... right?