Darkness Rises [Tysh]

Unus

Tyler

"Tyler! Get down here right now!"

"..."

"Tyler!" Kelly marched up the stairs, furious with her son. "Tyler, for the love o–" She opened the door to Tyler's room. There was no one there. His room was clean and organized, untouched even. One window was left open, a draft flowing in. Where was Tyler? On the roof, laying on his back, looking up at the blue sky. He waved his hand around, watching and feeling the wind and clouds move from side to side. He wasn't trying to escape his mother. This was the first time she even noticed that he was gone. He could have been kidnapped by some murderer, and the only thing she would notice is that the dishes were piling up.

Tyler stood up and gathered some air, using it to lift him up and down so his feet touched the grass. He opened the back door and stepped inside. He heard his mother's angry steps down the stairs, but wasn't afraid.

"Tyler!"

"..."

"Where were you?!"

"Why do you care all of a sudden?" Tyler shot back with venom. Now it was Kelly's turn to be silent. She sighed and shook her head.

"Just...worried, s'all," she said.

"Whatever," Tyler sighs and walks back upstairs. "Just leave me alone, that's all you do anyways."

Josh

Slap. Hit. Kick. Josh has put up with it all. It's amazing how he hasn't set fire to the house to end it all, or killed himself. A Drunken Fist comes into contact with his jaw and to his gut. He lets out a groan before he sits back up. There's another slap to his cheek before he's being turned around and his pants are being pulled down. He lets out little grunts with every push of his body. His wrists are hurting as they are being pulled behind his back as he's bent over the table. Where's mom when you need her? Oh right, she's dead. It feels like it lasted hours, only being ten minutes before he's pulling out and there's a mixture dripping down his thigh. His wrists are released and he's pulling his pants up with shaky hands. His father zips up and walks into his room to pass out for hours. Josh didn't cry, he's cried before. It only made things worse. He just got up, ignored the pain in his lower back and the blood and cum that were drying on the back of his thighs, and walked out the door, limping a bit, to Tyler's house.

Josh didn't need to use the front door, all he had to do was whistle outside Tyler's window and wait for him to lift him up and pulled him into his room. Tyler sat back down onto his bed, pulling out his phone and scrolling through his Instagram.

"It...happened again," Josh sighed. Tyler put his phone down to hug his friend to his chest.

"Does it hurt?" Tyler asked. Josh nodded before burying his head into his friend's neck and sobbing. Tyler pulled josh into his lap and wrapped his arms around his waist while Josh held onto his shirt. Tyler kissed the side of Josh's head while running his fingers through his hair. He whispered into his ear "it's okay, it's okay. You're okay, there's nothing here that will hurt you. I will keep you safe." Josh whined, pulling away from Tyler's hand to rest his head on his chest. He listens to his heartbeat as he still cries into his shirt. Kelly hears every cry and sob from downstairs, where she was sitting down on an worn out couch, watching static on the television.

"You can use my bathroom to clean up and I'll give you some clothes to change into. You can stay here if you need to." Not want to but need to. Josh understands what he's saying and what he means. So Josh holds the black towel Tyler handed him to his chest as he walked into the bathroom. He locks the door for protection, but he unlocks it, knowing Tyler wouldn't hurt him. He's there to protect him. He turns on the water, touching it to check the temperature, before taking his clothes off with shaky hands and stepping inside the tub. The blood and cum washes off in the shower and Josh changes it to a bath, trying to relax. Once the tub is nearly filled, he turns the water off. He sits in complete silence before he's calling out: "Tyler?"

The door is pushed open and Tyler peeks his head inside the bathroom from behind the door.

"Is there something wrong?" He asks and he pushes through and sits on the toilet lid, sitting next to the tub that currently holds Josh.

"C-can you help me get washed?" A weird question but, Tyler is willing to help his friend. So, Tyler sheds his clothes, except his boxers, and steps into the bathtub behind Josh, pulling his back to his chest. Tyler picks up the shampoo and rubs it into Josh's hair in calming movements. Josh lays his head back and allows Tyler to play with his hair, washing it. After Tyler rinses Josh's hair and rids it of the soap suds, they both lay together in the tub as their fingertips began to prune and the air became chilly. Soon, they drained the tub of the water and stepped out and dried off. Tyler pulled on his old clothes while Josh pulled on a pair of boxers, basketball shorts, and sweatshirt that were provided by Tyler.

"You can sleep in my brother's bunk if you want to, I'll hand you a pillow and blanket."

"Um, c-can I lay with you tonight?" Tyler laid the folded blanket back down and looked at Josh. His eyes were red and glossy again and Tyler feared he was about to burst out crying once more. Tyler hesitated for a second before slowly nodding his head.

"Is there anything you want to eat?" Tyler asked as he stepped out his bedroom door.

"An Apple would be fine."

"You know what? I'll make you a soup. You need to eat a real meal, not a snack."

"Ty, it's okay. I'm fine—"

" 'I'm fine' my ass, Josh! You haven't eaten anything at all this week! I'm making you a soup and you're going to eat it all!" And with that, Tyler left downstairs to fix Josh a bowl of chicken soup. Josh curled up on Tyler's bed, hugging his pillow to his chest. It smelt like Tyler, a calming campfire. He hugged it closer.

"Hi Joshy!" Josh looked up to see Madison in the doorway. "Whatcha doing?"

"Nothing, Maddy. Go back to your room," Josh responded. Maddy was suspicious but turned around and closed the door. A few minutes later, Tyler returned with a bowl of warm chicken soup and a Sprite.

"Eat," he said as he placed the bowl on his desk. Josh walked over and hugged Tyler tightly for a second before sitting down and gulping down the soup; finally being able to eat a decent meal once more. He drinks the juice of the chicken soup and downs the can of Sprite. He wipes his mouth with the back of his hand before sitting up and laying on Tyler's bed. He hugs the pillow again, wiping his tears on the sheets. Tyler lays beside him, his arms crossed over his chest as he closes his eyes. Josh turns around to face Tyler's sleeping figure. He watches every individual eyelash flicker with every finch of Tyler's eyelids. Josh hesitantly leans over and placed his lips on Tyler's lifeless ones. Josh whines quietly.

"Go to sleep, Josh," Tyler mumbled against his lips. Josh whimpers before pulling back and turning over again to hug the pillow. Tyler threw an arm protectively over Josh. Josh sunk into the feeling of being safe. It's only rare for him to ever feel loved by someone who cares about him. Who would protect him from the worst.