Two Boys Learning

34. Is That Blood?

"One."

Ash's heart leapt into his throat as Will stood, his face grim and determined and angry. "Two."

"Will!" Ash squeaked. "No!"

Will ignored him. "Three."

As soon as the word left his mouth, Ash stumbled back, his heart thudding in his ears, watching Will step forward.

Ash's father didn't even flinch, his face red with fury, and slammed his fist into Will's stomach. "YOU TURNED MY SON INTO A FAG!" he roared, and Will gasped, stumbling back a step as if he hadn't expected the relatively smaller man to come on so strong. 

Everyone in the restaurant stopped and stared at them, and Ash's father bellowed again and slammed his fist into the side of Will's face. "YOU RUINED HIM, YOU FUCKING FAGGOT!!"

Ash hiccuped, tears pricking the back of his eyes, and backed toward the exit, not daring to keep his eyes off his father and Will, who's face was nearly as red as his dad's. Will straightened, narrowing his eyes to dangerous slits, and said something in a voice so low Ash couldn't make out the words, but his dad snarled and swung a fist at his boyfriend.

A hand caught Ash's father's fist before it connect with Will's stomach again, and Will looked just as surprised as Ash's dad when Tristan twisted Ash's dad's wrist behind him, effectively stopping his punch and making the older man cry out.

"Fag is such a dirty word," Tristan said mildly, and Ash's dad's eyes widened with rage. "Maybe you should use it less often, hm?"

Will straightened, catching his breath, and narrowed his eyes and the older man. "Your son," he snarled, "is the brightest, most amazing thing that has ever wandered into my life, and you will not break that. You will not break him, do you understand me?" His voice was vicious and angry, filled with the pain of a past heartbreak that Ash knew was probably still eating at him, still hurting him.

Ash's eyes welled up with more tears as his dad spat at Will, "My son is a failure. It's his fault my wife killed herself, wasn't it? He wasn't a good enough son. And now he's gay--" he snarled the word like it was some sort of disease "--and he's even more of a--"

Will punched him in the nose.

Ash gasped as a crack rang through the restaurant and blood poured from his father's nose. Tristan's eyes widened and he blurted a surprised laugh, gripping the older man's wrist tighter and twisting it farther, making him cry out in pain, his free hand flying up to his face to try to staunch the flow of blood. Ash covered his mouth with his hands and looked away.

"YOU DON'T GET TO SAY THAT!" Will roared. "YOU DON'T GET TO SAY THAT WHEN IT'S YOUR FAULT!"

Ash flinched, and his dad did the same, his chest shuddering.

Will was breathing hard, his fists clenched at his side, and he was clearly about to hit Ash's dad again when a restaurant employee jogged out, her eyes widening. "Hey!" he shouted. "No fighting in here! It's posted on the sign just outside the door. I'll have to--wait, is that blood?!?"

Tristan quickly let go of Ash's dad and stepped back, and the older man stumbled into one of the booths, gasping and scrubbing at the blood still pouring from his probably broken nose. Will stepped back, too, still looking furious, and turned away, his eyes snapping to Ash's.

His expression softened from one of rage to one of concern in less than a second, and he crossed to Ash, gathering him in his arms without another word, and they just stood there for a long time, Ash trying hard not to cry and make even more of a scene than they already had, and Will clearly trying not to march back to Ash's father and do much worse than simply punch him in the nose.