Under The Covers {joshler}

junior year - part ten

a/n: hi so this is heavy and potentially triggering so please proceed with caution! (i will put a "🙈" symbol to flag this bit tho) also i stole/re-edited some of this from my other fic sillage (shameless plug!) so feel free to check that out. 

-x-

Josh's phone buzzed loudly, waking him up. He rolled over to eye his clock to see it was two am, he scrambled for his phone. He pulled the charger out as he saw the caller ID, answering quickly.

"Tyler?" He rubbed his eyes, voice lazy with sleep.

"J-josh?" Tyler's voice was too far away, his breathing ragged.

"I'm here what's wrong?" Josh immediately sat up, worried and wide awake.

"I-I made a mistake. I-I didn't know who else to call." Tyler sounded strangled.

(🙈)

"Where are you? What's happened?" Josh began pulling the covers off himself, getting up and rushing to get dressed.

"Jos-Josh I- there's so much blood, oh god, there's so much-" Tyler sounded weak and distraught. Josh didn't even bother lacing his vans as he shoved his feet in them, hearing the word 'blood' and immediately rushing to his car.

"Tyler, hang in there, baby, okay?" Josh wanted to slap himself as the pet name slipped out.

Tyler let out a shaky breath. Josh fumbled to put the phone on speaker and in the holder so he could keep talking while he drove, his hands shaking.

"I missed that." Tyler said sadly and Josh's heart hurt.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah, I like it when-" He trailed off and Josh panicked.

"You like it when I call you baby?" He prompted desperately.

"It makes m-me feel safe." Tyler choked out.

"Good. Now keep talking to me okay? Tell me- tell me something that makes you happy?" Given there wasn't much distance from their two houses Josh was already pulling up to the curb. He fumbled to pull his keys from the ignition and get out, pressing the phone to his ear again as he ran.

"Y-you, you make me," Tyler said as he took a deep breath, "so happy."

Josh sniffed, tears filling his eyes, trying to swallow the panic. Tyler whimpered, his voice sounding far away again.

"I'm climbing up to your window is it open? Where are you?"

"Y-yes. I'm in the bath-bathroom." Tyler struggled to say as Josh stuffed his phone between his teeth and scaled the house, lifting the window enough to sneak in.

He didn't care if he woke Zack, but it didn't matter because Zack wasn't there. He quickly walked to the bathroom.

"Tyler?" He said opening the door, not caring if any of Tyler's family were home, if they were, they deserved to know.

He wasn't prepared for the sight. Tyler was lay on the floor trying to hold back blood that was soaking into his shirt; his hands covered in it, a large gash on his stomach seemingly the cause. Josh took a deep breath, he scrambled for a towel, pressing it to the wound. Tyler dropped the phone from where he was weakly holding it to his ear. He attempted a weak smile but his eyes were fluttering.

"It h-hurts Josh, there's so much-I'm sorry. I slipped." Tyler sobbed. Josh felt adrenaline pump through his veins, as he moved Tyler into his lap. He carefully lifted Tyler's t-shirt to see the nasty wound.