Back To Our Roots, Book One

LXVII. The Sass Is Real With This One

When Matt woke up, Wes and David were already awake.

"Oh, about time. We were just talking about how we're going to get our report cards soon," Wes told him.

Matt yawned tiredly. "Yeah, that'll be fun. Did the semester already end?"

David laughed. "Yeah, astronaut."

"Astronaut?"

"Your head is always in space."

"Real clever," he said dryly.

"I try."

Wes rolled his eyes fondly. "Anyway, I'm kind of curious as to the whole report card thing. Like, we get a copy and they send one to our family, but will they just send one to me or send one to an empty house?"

"That's a good question, actually. I suppose you could ask, or just wait and see," David said.

"How do you think you did in Health, Matt? We were just talking about it, we don't know how the new teacher grades things and we haven't really been given any assignments, just a–"

"Hold that thought," Matt interrupted. He rushed to the bathroom and lost the food previously in his system.

Morning sickness is a bitch. He quickly gargled some mouthwash and left the bathroom. "Sorry."

"Are you okay?" Wes asked worriedly.

"I'm fine. Anyway, you were saying?"

David frowned worriedly. "You're not fine. I thought you went to a doctor about this?"

Matt just couldn't lie to them. "I did, I just have to let it run it's course."

Technically, it wasn't a lie. The course was just longer than they thought.

"Why do you still go to classes, then? You'd feel better much quicker if you rested."

Matt looked down, tracing a pattern on his sheets. "Let's just see if the others are awake, okay? I don't want to talk about it."

They didn't say anything and Matt grabbed a random shirt and pants, moving to the bathroom to change.

When he pulled off his sleep shirt, he saw himself in the mirror.

"Fuck," he whispered, running a hand over his usually flat stomach.

It was small, unnoticeable if you weren't looking, but it was there.

That curved bump.

He couldn't take his eyes off of it. It seemed to make all of this so much more real.

A voice broke his trance.

"Matt, are you okay? You've been in there a while."

"Yeah, yeah, fine," he said quickly, pulling on his shirt and his– well, previously Sebastian's– sweatshirt.

Somehow he felt this urge to be careful, some protectiveness over someone who didn't exist yet.

He walked down to breakfast with Wes and David, seeing that Thad, Jeff, and Kurt were already up.

"Is Sebastian still asleep?" Matt asked as he sat down.

"Hello to you too," Thad said dryly.

Matt chuckled. "I'm sorry. Good morning Thaddeus, prince of Dalton and king of all greatness. Is thy Sebastian asleep?"

Thad laughed. "I swear, you're so extra. But he was just waking up when I left."

"Thank you for the information, your majesty," Matt said, grinning.

Thad rolled his eyes fondly. "You're welcome, m–"

"Which one of you nosy shits stole my paper?"

They all looked over, seeing a furious Hunter.

Matt, whom he was uncomfortably close to, stood up so he could step away. "Look, Hunter–"

"It was you, wasn't it? Just had to make me look like some– some lunatic. Because of Sebastian, wasn't it? Do you feel threatened or something?"

Matt was backing up as Hunter stepped towards him, arms wrapped protectively around his stomach. "You left the paper behind, nobody stole it–"

"Is that a confession? You self-obsessed, needly little–"

"HEY!"

Hunter turned around. "Oh, you're just in time! Your fucking boyfriend–"

Sebastian didn't let him finish that sentence. "Leave him alone."

Hunter looked shocked but quickly covered it up with anger. "What did you say to me?"

"I think you heard me perfectly clearly." Sebastian took a step closer to Hunter, stabbing his chest with his finger. "I said leave him alone."

Hunter was petrified. "What are you doing?"

"Oh, what? You can't deal with me talking back to you? You can't handle me finally doing something? Well get used to it, because I'm not letting you bullshit your way through life like an asshole. You're going to leave my boyfriend– well, all of us, for that matter– alone and fucking accept the help you need. You're messed up, and you need to accept it."

Something sparked in Hunter's eyes. His posture became straighter, head a bit higher. He nodded. "Yes s–" he cut himself off, but they all knew he was going to say 'sir.'

He left looking mildly confused but determined.

"How did you do that?" Matt asked, in awe. Nobody could control Hunter like that.

"I needed to protect you." He smiled, before softly adding, "Both of you."

Matt hugged him and they headed to the table.

"He won't be bothering you guys again," Sebastian told them.

"How did you do that?" Jeff asked, as if he had melted concrete.

Sebastian shrugged. "He's a military boy. Tell him to do something, he won't. Give him an order and he won't give up until he succeeds or dies."

"How did you know? Have you done it before?"

Sebastian laughed. "Oh, hell no. He's terrifying. And I learned from observing, I guess."

"Wait, if he scares you, then how did you just do that?" Thad asked, confused.

"I would look my father in the eye to protect the people I love."