Give me Michael - Malum AU

.13.

After school, Ashton walked to Michael's house, he had decided to follow Luke's advice. It took him fifteen minutes to get there. He knocked quickly and waited for someone to answer. He hoped Michael would open the door. He didn't feel like being face to face with his mother. His prayer was executed when the blue haired boy opened the door. However he didn't let him in, nor did he look up. The blond frowned, understanding something was up.

"Ashton. What are you doing here?"

His voice was cold. He wasn't smirking. Something was definitely wrong; he was always wearing a smirk on his lips.

"I... hum... I..."

"Since you don't seem to know..." Michael began to close the door but the older blocked it with his foot.

"I heard your mother yesterday, when she yelled and then I heard the loud noise and you weren't at school today and I was wondering if you were alright?"

"Everything is fine here, I'm just ill and had no motivation to go to class today. Now if you could let me close the door... I'd like to go back to my bed."

Ashton began to turn away, but blocked the door once more. He wouldn't give up that easily. If he wanted Calum and Michael to speak, then he had to do the same. Besides, he was still not convinced that Michael was fine. He hadn't even looked at him! 'That way, I could protect you from my parents and — as selfish as it sounds — i could protect myself from them as well'. That was the blue haired boy's words and that's when Ashton understood.

"Michael, look at me please." He asked with his softer voice.

"I've asked you to leave." He still sounded rude, but the blond also felt the panic of the youngest as if he knew he had understood.

"Michael, please."

The pale boy didn't answer. He waited a few second and being sure the blond would not give up, he raised his head, looking Ashton in his eyes. The older almost gasped but contained himself. Michael's left eye was blue, purple, red and black at the same time. He wanted to ask how he got that, but he was scared oh what the younger would respond. He was scared he knew the answer already.

"Can I come in?"

The teenager didn't discuss there was no point in it since he already knew about his eye, and probably how he had got it. He opened a little bit more the door and Ashton stepped in. They went straight to his room and sat on his bed. The blond put off Michael's hair from his face, stared at his left eye again and noticed the deep cut on his eyebrow.

"Have you disinfected the cut?"

When the younger shook his head, Ashton went to the bathroom of Michael's room and took everything he needed while Michael was telling him where he could find it. He came back into the bedroom and began to disinfect the blue haired boy's eyebrow.

"How did you get that?"

Silence.

"I have a pretty good idea of what happened you know... but I don't want to believe it because that would mean that I've screwed up, a year ago, when I chose Calum over you. That would mean that I didn't see what you were going through and... And that you were all alone against it since the beginning. I refuse to believe it, except if you're the one who tell it to me."

Silence once again.

"Tell me Michael. I'm not here as your enemy, even if that can be surprising. Today I'm here as someone who once cared about you. I'm here as someone who realized he still care about you."

"My mum. She's the one who did this to me. She was angry because I had been at Calum's a few days ago and she learnt that I went to see him at the hospital as well. I don't really know who told her, she wasn't even supposed to know he had been there! but she knew and... she was really angry, Ashton... so she began by yelling at me, and I didn't know what to answer her! I therefore didn't answer anything and one thing leading to the other..."

"Was it the first time?" Seeing the pale boy laughing bitterly broke Ashton's heart. "For how long has she been doing that to you?"

"The first time was when I was twelve. Then, the more I was growing up, the more frequent it became. It had been two months that neither of my parents had done anything so it just had to happen again at one point."

"Your dad does that too?"

"He's way more violent than my mom. It's almost nothing when it's my mother whereas when my dad does it..." Ashton hesitated before asking thing about him and Calum but he just had to know the truth.

"That's why you wanted to protect Cal' from them, right?" The younger just nodded. "Had they threatened him?" He nodded again. "Had they threatened you as well?" Once again, he nodded. "Is that why you told everyone about Cal' sexuality?"

"I never told anyone Ashton! You have to believe me! That wasn't me! We were at the park when he told me, lots of people could have heard." The blond see the flash in his eyes. He knew who it was.

"Who was it then? I can see you're not telling me everything."

"Bellamy. Bellamy told everyone. He was passing there, and he heard, I don't know how because we were talking quietly, but he did. The next day, everyone knew. He had also told his parents who told mine since our mothers are best friends. He first promised me that if I told anyone it was him who began the rumor, he would tell my parents. Then , seeing that I was trying to make up with Calum, he said that if I stayed anywhere near him, he would tell my parents, and believe me I didn't want my parents getting involved in it. They were so out of their minds when they learnt I was friend with someone gay! I had never seen them like that. I still don't know why Bellamy want me to stay away from Calum. And, i know that don't excused me for everything I did to you and him but... the very first time I said something the Calum, Bellamy had forced me. I just learnt to get along with it and do it by myself, as awful as it sounds."

"You had never had no bruises though, you even were at school after Calum's sexuality had been exposed to everyone..." Ashton didn't know how it was possible. Michael had never skipped school more than a day. If he had an eye like today, he would have taken way more than just a day for it to disappear.

"My parents knew they couldn't touch to my face if they didn't want anyone to know. Yesterday, my eye was just an accident, you know."

Without thinking, Ashton reached for the hem of his black shirt and lifted up. He gasped, seeing bruised on his torso. Some looked older than others. There were scars as well. He was living Hell and no one had ever noticed.