Lost boy ♡ muke

january issue ✧ 17

tw: this is sad; death is mentioned.

✧✧✧

"Okay." Luke carefully answered and fixed the blanket that fell of Michael's shoulder.

He presumed his boyfriend would then start talking but he didn't. Michael was staring at his hands that were resting on top of the blanket. Luke took one into his hand. "I won't leave you, Michael. I promised you that before you were even mine."

For a split-second, Michael smiled. "I was yours long before you even kissed me."

He kissed the tattooed knuckles and pressed his boyfriend's hand against his chest. "Then please don't hesitate. I'll listen and I promise I won't judge."

Michael nodded, squeezed Luke's hand and let their hands fall down on the curly haired boy's lap.

"There are two stories I need to tell you." He breathed in. "Not like two sides to the story just two stories to help you illustrate my miserable life a bit better."

Luke nodded and smiled but remembered when he'd call Michael from his grandparent's house and talk to him about his day. How his boyfriend told him he was jealous but Luke just laughed it off, clearly not understanding the situation.

"I already told you some of it. How it was me who wanted a sibling. My mum ran away from home with my dad and she was pretty young when she had me. When my grandfather died my dad inherited the dealership and his brother the shop, he was only fifteen at the time. They struggled and my parents were always working but eventually, the business hit off and they decided to try for another baby. When I was eight, Peter was born."

That was the part of the story Luke knew. He didn't tell Michael but he still kept a diary about him, not to snoop on his life but because Luke just wanted to know everything about the boy he loved.

The good and the bad.

"That was just about the time when my uncle, William turned eighteen and he revived the car repair store. I know he doesn't look like it but he is good with cars, he just has other people who repair them for him now."

"Like Kyle?" Luke asked. He never knew what Kyle's role was in the Clifford business.

Michael shook his head and looked up at Luke. "Didn't he ever tell you what he does?"

"I never asked."

"Well, when he first started uncle William did everything by himself. Then I don't know when because I stopped paying attention to him since I had Peter to play with and take care of the business started to grow. My dad's dealership is the only one in the area but there are at least ten repair shops so we were all a bit surprised."

It was my mum who actually figured out what William was doing. People would come to the shop with old cars but leave with brand new, with the same registration."

"Were they stolen?"

Michael nodded. Luke wasn't surprised because his mum did tell him that the car shop used to be related to illegal business.

"While she wanted to either tell the police or split all connections with my uncle my dad did the opposite. He wanted the money, more than he already made so he went behind my mum's back and helped him since that was the only way she wouldn't notice. My dad had the information about different car deliveries so my uncle and his guys could steal them. But they never did it with cars that were luxurious because that would be easy to get on the police radar."