What If..?

Chapter Twelve

One foot off the bus, followed by the other. Chihiro considered bringing another student with to calm his nerves. But Mondo's mother never mentioned bringing a companion. And if his mother didn't tell him to, Chihiro didn't do it. But now as he stared up the dirt covered road leading towards the quaint home in the distance, he wished he at least had someone's hand to hold. The bus pulled away, leaving him standing alone at the foot of the path. He stared at the home in the middle of nowhere. It was no wonder Mondo drove a motorcycle. The bus ride from the city was a miserable one. At least out here, he was free to speed about in the back woods before zipping onto the highways. With a long inhale, Chihiro pushed off towards his destination. His well packed rolling suitcase dug into the dirt behind him.

One uneasy step after the other. Each inch up that road got much heavier. His suitcase began to feel like he was collecting rocks on the way to his destination. He couldn't wait to see his boyfriend. Hold him in his arms. Tell him he loved him. But the thought of Mondo no longer being with him terrified him. That the biker realized he wasn't strong enough for the pressure and criticism that the world had to offer. That running away at that crucial moment gave him the perfect scapegoat right out of this relationship. Chihiro clenched the handle of his rolling suitcase. If he wanted out, Mondo wouldn't have told his mother about Chihiro.

The boy had faith the request to visit wasn't just to make up homework but because Mondo wanted him there.

Finally, he arrived at the front step of the small home. It looked old, built generations ago. Some of the side paneling cracked off and there were weeds growing in what used to be a garden by the porch. There were a few flowers, some that had just bloomed. Only a little, though. The back yard was humongous, a small, beaten down swing set perched in the grass. It was weather worn, the swing dangling lopsided by one chain. Chihiro imagined the rowdy Crazy Diamond brothers destroyed it as children doing something unnecessary. The photograph Mondo showed him popped into the boy's head. Mondo standing at a pitiful height, a wide somewhat toothless grin plastered on his face. Thinking of that rascal tearing through this back yard made Chihiro wish he shared their childhood.

He lifted his hand, laying into the doorbell. And then he waited for what felt like centuries. Who would come to the door? His mother, ready to glare down on him with the look of a fierce amazon tribe? Or Mondo, who may slam that door in his face and cower back to his room. Was this even the right house? Would this be the day he died? Either by the hand of his potential mother in law, or from the ever increasing beating of his heart. Just when he was about to whip around and high tail it back down that dusty road, the door jerked open.

There he was, half hunched in the door frame with both a shocked and uneasy expressing masking his features. Mondo frowned, silence and disappointment wracking his body. Chihiro couldn't tell if his sudden appearance upset his boyfriend, but Mondo looked taken aback. His hair was a slicked back in a tangled mess, revealing his blackened right eye. Fresh skin was reforming over the raw scrapes that tore into his forehead. It looked like he had a pretty nasty meeting with the pavement. "Oh, Mondo," he breathed, outstretching his tiny hand. The other one let go of the suitcase, fleeing to his own agape mouth. For a moment, his tender fingers rested against Mondo's healing skin and a familiar warmth filled his body. Mondo leaned his cheek into his boyfriend's palm, but remained silent. An expression of guilt washed over his intense eyes. "Are you alright...?"

Heavy silence lingered between them and Mondo closed his eyes as Chihiro's tiny fingers grazed his temple. They traveled into his hair, avoiding the bruises spattered around his eye. And then, all the sudden, Chihiro gathered into his boyfriend's strong arms. Mondo swept him up, lifting his heels an inch from the ground. The embrace was tight and Chihiro could just feel the fear pouring from the man's body. Chihiro felt as though he should be angry. After all, his partner had fled when he needed him the most. Left him in the aftermath of their decision to open up to their fellow students. Abandoned him with the nagging, incessant lies of the beautiful model. He had every right not to be here and completely ditch his boyfriend out of hatred. But now, standing here wrapped in his lovers strong embrace, he understood that Mondo just wasn't as strong as him at the moment. He was scared. Leaving him would only make it worse.