𝐓𝗼𝐠𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 | 𝐆𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐜𝐞 ✔︎

• Oɴᴇ Dᴀʏ •

| ᴏɴᴇ ᴅᴀʏ - ɴᴀᴛᴇ ᴡᴀɪᴛᴇ |

" ᴏɴᴇ ᴅᴀʏ ɪʟʟ ʟɪᴠᴇ ʙʏ ᴛʜᴇ ᴏᴄᴇᴀɴ, ɪʟʟ ɴᴇᴠᴇʀ ɴᴇᴇᴅ ᴀɴʏᴛʜɪɴɢ ᴍᴏʀᴇ  "

[ Italics - flashbacks ]
___________________________________

He lay awake as he stared at the ceiling, watching the fly buzz around the room in the defining silence. George's small snores echoed every once in a while, bouncing off the walls and blessing his ears. He felt strangely content as he lay on the uncomfortable couch, feeling the springs dent into his back.

Because George was lying on his chest, snuggled up in a ball as he wrapped his arms around him. He could hear his heartbeat in sync with his own, filling the comfortable silence that made him feel safe.

He could still feel his hair matted to his forehead, sticky with sweat and specks of blood still tinting his otherwise blond hair. He doesn't know how they got there, but he can't bring himself to concentrate on it too long. He could feel his brain start to shut the memories out, not wanting to replay them every night.

Perhaps that was the exact reason that he found himself staring at the dull ceiling above him, hours after George had fallen asleep. It was the middle of the night, but he didn't feel fazed by that. He was well used to staring absently into oblivion in the dark hours where everything was silent and tranquil.

Normally, it was because he dared to fall asleep, his body reminding him not so nicely that he didn't deserve such a privilege. To fall asleep without a slither of fear.

But no, tonight was no normal night. And he would never risk giving in to the temptation of sleep, he doubted he ever would again.

He could sense the familiar coldness seep slowly into his body, taunting him as his mind zoned out from the safe embrace of George, the misconception of safety. He couldn't stop it from replaying the scenes that had occurred only a few hours ago.

"Reece, you don't have to do this. I won't snitch, I'm not a monster. And I know you're not ready to become one." Elias spoke, eyes shining with an odd emotion he couldn't exactly place. It looked eerily similar to concern, but that wasn't a possibility.

The words registered in his mind, slow and steady as if even his brain couldn't process them properly.

"I-I don't believe you."

"Do whatever you want. Believe me, don't, I couldn't care less. But you don't have to do this, I know you're not made for this life. Go and...be with George. He's a nice boy, you're lucky to have found him. Maybe he can be your escape." He gaped like a fish, not believing a single word that escaped Elias' mouth. Be with George, well wouldn't that be the dream.

It was one he longed for, the chance to simply be with the sweet boy he loved. But that was a fairytale, one that parents would tell their kids before bedtime to hide them from the harsh reality. It wasn't for someone like him. No, he was a different kind of tale, the one filled with monsters and goblins that would take the children away if they didn't eat their dinner. One that parents used to scare their children into understanding the world around them. He never had someone to shield him from the harsh reality, and maybe that's why he turned out the way he did. It was written in the stars, shining brightly since he was an innocent child.

He blinked his eyelids a few times, the images slightly disoriented as he blinked away the awful memories, reliving every single feeling and thought that entered his body at the time. No matter how much he wanted to, be couldn't ever forget this. The scenes, the emotions, the blood that caked his hands.