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03 - A Bond So Deep (1)

Preview:

I set him down gently on the leather couch, kneeling beside him. He glanced up at me, his hazel brown eyes deeply shadowed. My heart was breaking. Cave looked so small in that moment, so destroyed; I just wanted to wrap him up in a blanket and tell him how loved he was.

Summary:

Cave has an abusive boyfriend and his bandmate Christian just wants him to feel loved.

TW: Abuse, Eating disorders/negative food thoughts, Slurs

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- Christian's POV

The whole band was currently lounging in a dressing room behind the main stage an hour before going on. I was playing on my phone lazily, but inside my heart was racing all because of my best friend who still had yet to arrive. I could tell Zach, Cave's older brother, was worried too, his leg nervously bouncing up and down beside me from our places on the couch. Cave was supposed to be here one hour ago so we had plenty of time to get ready before the concert, but one hour later and he was still a no show. Everyone had tried texting him, but nothing was getting delivered and we were all on edge.

The door to the dressing room burst open suddenly, and we all looked up hoping to see Cave standing there safe and sound. Our hopes diminished when we saw our manager, Kyle, standing there with a very pissed off expression on his face.

"It's been an hour since Cave was supposed to be here. Where the fuck is he?" His yelling put us even more on edge, and I glanced towards the band who all had the same lost expression as I did.

"We don't know. We've all been texting and calling him but nothing's—"

Zach was cut off mid-sentence when Cave pushed through the open doorway, breathing heavily. His braided hair was falling down his face, his eyes dark and heavy. I immediately shot up from the couch and rushed over to him, bringing him into my chest in a gentle hug.

"And where the fuck have you been? You were supposed to be hear an hour ago," Kyle said to him, his arms crossed over his chest and his eyes narrowed. I looked back over to Cave, his small frame swallowed by his oversized orange hoody and black ripped jeans. That's when I noticed it. Bruises on his neck, but not like ones a hickey would leave. Ones like fingers would.

"Sorry, I was just.. caught up with stuff," Cave replied, his eyes cast down, his small fingers wringing together.

"'Stuff'? Really? You were going to miss your own damn concert, Cave!" I watched as he visibly flinched at Kyle's loud tone, and thankfully Zach saw too.

Zach stepped in front of his brother, giving Kyle the death glare. "Leave him alone Kyle. You're fucking scaring him for christ sakes!"

I caught Cave's gaze once more, his eyes glazed over.

"Can I talk to Cave alone for a sec?" I requested, to which everyone agreed and left the room.

I slowly walked over to the couch, gesturing for him to follow. He gingerly sat beside me, his fingers wrung together and picking at his skin.

"Cave? Where were you?" I asked softly, almost in a whisper as to not frighten him even more.

He was staring at the ground, his braids blocking me from being able to see his eyes completely. I sighed, shifting so I was facing him and tilted his chin up with my finger.

Looking down, I saw the bruises that I had seen earlier, all five of them shaped around his neck like he had been choked.

I brought my hand slowly down, grazing my fingers across the bruised flesh. He immediately flinched back, his hands shooting up to cover his neck. "It's not what it looks like Chris, okay? I just... had a rough night. I'll be fine to perform, okay?"