It All Started At Midnight

//Twenty Four//

Tw// mentions of the attempted r*pe scene throughout, nothing graphic, but still, don't read if it may trigger you, feel free to message me if you gotta skip this chapter and I'll tell you what happens💕.  Stay safe lovelies. read the a/n at the end for a happy announcement!

It was Saturday and both boys were exhausted. Issa stayed the night with Josh and Tyler couldn't sleep so he tried to catch up with work, to distract his mind at least just a bit. However, both boys had things plaguing their mind and heart. Josh didn't have much sleep either, he kept having nightmares and had to seek comfort from Issa. His best friend was still confused as to what could have caused such trauma in Josh.

That was until, Saturday morning.

Issa was in the bathroom taking a shower and Josh sat on his bed, wearing a gifted pink hoodie he found new comfort in, white knee-high socks with matching pink bows on them and black shorts that were covered by the hoodie. He was hugging his legs to his chest, resting his head on his knees. He was playing with his sleeves, in deep nervous thought. His chest felt like it could explode, and his mind running with thoughts. Sun peaked through the blinds, but it offered no real sunshine, the room felt muggy and thick from his own anxiety. His room felt so cloudy. this was probably the worst Josh has ever felt. The past few months, he's never had the chance to properly heal or process the incident so it's all catching up to him, every part of processing and accepting hitting him all at once. He's never been more thankful that the night of the incident didn't escalate all the way and that his reflexes were on his side.

However, the nightmares kept showing what would happen if he wasn't able to escape...

The first days following the incident, Josh wanted to stay inside forever, however, being a student clearly didn't let him. So instead of giving himself time, he occupied his mind with schoolwork, and eventually, hanging out with Tyler as well, he even joined the prom committee a few months again, all to distract his mind. The nightmares started the day he broke up with Eric but they were fuzzy and didn't happen often. Now it was like a new darkness has come and consumed Josh of self-hatred, intense anxiety, and never ending hell in his mind, he had nightmares almost every night. Though whenever he was with Tyler, it temporarily went away, almost as if his light cleansed Josh's aura for a bit. It was an instant, relieving feeling. That's why his behavior never concerned Tyler, because Josh seemed perfectly fine with the angel. Josh never spoke of it because he still wants to believe it never happened, because deep down he feels like he's just being dramatic and it was somehow his fault. Maybe for the first few months, Josh still loved Eric so he blamed himself because, Eric was so good to him, so it must have been Josh's fault to cause this behavior. Josh never would have predicted this sudden darkness.

He knew if he kept this to himself any longer, he'd never escape the feeling. For now, he needed help in carrying this weight.

It was when the shower turned off that Josh fell out of his deep clouded thought. His eyes snapped to the door that was being opened by his closest friend. Issa walked in with boxers already on and looked at the smaller boy in concern. He knew Josh didn't get much sleep at all and desperately needed comfort. He's been wanting to catch up with Josh but he didn't realize just how much he's missed.

"How you feeling J?" Issa spoke quietly. Josh let go of his legs and let them lay down, letting out a big sigh in the process.

"I-I...it's all too much.." his strained voice answered. Issa simply sighed an "okay" and proceeded to put on the rest of his clothing.

"Though I think I'm ready to tell you.." Josh continued, his voice more clear, causing Issa to pause in his movement, giving his best friend a look of uncertainty.