On Contract • Lashton AU

Part Thirty Seven

Luke was sitting on the couch staring into thin air, his knees brought up to his chest. He had begun to spend a lot of time doing that, when he wasn't in his room. And Ashton didn't blame him, it wasn't as if there was much to do - he couldn't go outside and Ashton completely refused to let him watch TV now. Luke had become almost totally disconnected from reality and Ashton wasn't about to mess that up. The only real source of mental stimulation Luke got was an occasional newspaper talking about having insufficient evidence to continue the case. Luke didn't care.
"Hey Luke, come sit over here," Ashton prompted, and Hemmings couldn't help but look at him, more than a little confused. Ashton had never asked anything like that of him before.
But he stood up and carefully stepped over to the other couch, in which Ashton was seated.
He nervously sat down beside Ashton, not sure what to expect. It took a few moments to Ashton to respond to the blonde boy sat awkwardly beside him. He did, though.
Ashton sat up a little straighter and put his arm around Luke. He hadn't wanted to admit it but he had begun to feel almost sympathetic for Luke. He wanted to tell Hemmings that it would be over by next week, but it had become difficult for him to say that - especially to Luke.
He wasn't good at closeness.
Luke's initial reaction was to pull away from Ashton. He stopped himself. Instead, he just let Ashton put his arm around him.
He hadn't had any contact with anyone in the past two weeks that hadn't been violent or aggressive. Conversations with Ashton were different, but it still felt as if he were walking on eggshells. This was a moment he wanted to keep fresh as best as he could.
It took him a long while, but Luke did eventually lean into Ashton and forced himself to relax. This was okay, it was okay to get close to Ashton in this way. It wasn't like he had anyone else.
Luke wanted someone to be close to as well.