Please Don't Leave Me

Chapter Fourty Two

Sometimes progress wasn't sustainable. No matter how well it was coming along, sometimes a singular event could trigger something and set someone so far back that their progress becomes something of a distant memory.

This was the case for Remus, even though he didn't know it yet.

School had been passing by rather uneventfully for the following week until Thursday at lunch time. Logan was sitting at his desk, eating a peanut butter sandwich when he heard frantic banging on his classroom door. He immediately jumped up from his seat and moved to the door quickly, opening it to reveal the sobbing form of his son's boyfriend. "Dee?" Logan asked. Dee choked on a sob as he locked eyes with Logan. "M-Mr. Berry, you have to h-help," Dee managed out. "What happened?" Logan asked worriedly. "R-Remus," Dee choked out, unable to say anything more due to his harsh cries. "Can you take me to him?" Logan asked, attempting to mask his immense worry. Dee shakily nodded before walking away quickly, Logan right on his tail.

Logan's heart nearly stopped when he processed what was going on in the hallway. All of the students were standing around, some watching with concern while others were laughing loudly. Logan didn't take that in, however. He took in the sound of his boy screaming at the top of his lungs and banging on the locker door that kept him locked inside the small space. "Oh my god," Logan mumbled as he pushed his way through the students toward the locker. Just as he was about to reach the locker, he froze in place at his son's shouts.

"Father, I'm sorry! Please let me out!"

The entire hallway fell completely silent. The students who had been laughing and watching suddenly looked incredibly guilty, many of which left the scene immediately. Logan pushed everyone else out of his mind, focusing only on his son. "Remus, it's okay. I'm going to get you out," Logan said, keeping his voice as level as he could. His heart clenched as Remus yelled "Papa!" Logan watched helplessly as Remus banged against the door hard enough to most likely split his hands open. "I'm here, I'm here. You're going to be okay," Logan reassured. However, his words went unheard by the terrified boy, who continued to scream for his Papa and punch the door. Logan knew that he needed to take action right now. "Dee, can you please go get a janitor?" Logan asked, his jaw clenched tightly. Dee nodded quickly before turning and sprinting down the hallway. Logan continued to attempt to reassure his son, despite the lack of effectiveness in calming him. Remus' screaming was beginning to turn into heavy sobs, and it absolutely broke Logan's heart.

Finally, Dee returned with a slightly shaken janitor. "Please, can you unlock the door?" Logan asked frantically. The janitor nodded before grabbed a set of keys from his pocket, flicking through each key before landing on the right one. He quickly slid the key into the locker and twisted the lock, the door swinging open after. Logan lunged forward quickly as Remus' practically limp body fell out of the small space. Logan caught him in his arms, pulling him close and lowering them to the ground. "It's okay, you're with me now. You're safe," Logan whispered as he held the boy's limp body in his lap. Remus was breathing heavily and sobbing, his mumbling unintelligible. "Remus, I need you to take a breath with me," Logan said firmly. Remus didn't react to his words at all, his state continuing to worsen. Logan watched in horror as his son passed out in his arms from the hyperventilating mixed with his pure terror.

Logan looked up after a moment, shocked to find the hallway completely empty except for Dee. "Dee, I need you to tell me exactly what happened," Logan practically begged. Dee nodded shakily. "J-Jaden and his friends ganged up on us a-and kept calling us f-fags and harassing us. R-Re stood up for me so t-they beat him u-up and choked him and threw him in the l-locker. I-I tried to get to him b-but they held me b-back," Dee explained, quite obviously shaken from the whole ordeal. Logan stayed silent for a few moments as the gears turned in his mind. Finally, he let out an audible gasp as all of the information pieced together in his mind. "W-what is it?" Dee asked worriedly. Logan just swallowed and shook his head firmly, standing from his spot with his son's unconscious body in his arms. "I have to get him home," Logan muttered, turning to leave to his room to gather his car keys and belongings. He stopped when he heard a soft whimper from behind him, prompting him to turn back to the other boy. "Dee?" Logan asked softly. "I-I'm so sorry. This is my fault," he replied. "Oh, no. Dee, this isn't your fault at all," Logan said, pausing before adding, "Come on, I'll take you home." Dee sniffled and nodded, following Logan back to his classroom.

Once Dee was dropped off at his house, Logan finally took his son home. Remus had woken up during the drive, only to fall into another panic attack and pass out again. Logan gripped the steering wheel tightly the entire way home, only loosening his hold when he was parked safely in their driveway. Logan exited the car, moving to the back door and sliding his son out of his seat and into his arms once more. Although it was somewhat difficult, Logan managed to get the boy inside and into his bed, curled up under a blanket. Logan sat next to the boy, brushing his hair back from his eyes. As he watched his son's relaxed face, Logan let his pent up tears fall silently, two particular thought pulsating in his mind.

He couldn't rid his mind of the idea that the situation today had been far too similar to Remus' final interaction with his parents, and that the toll this had taken on his boy was more likely than not going to be incredibly detrimental to his progress.