Chapter Five

    Brian hunched over his biology book, reading the same paragraph he’d just read not even five mintues ago. He couldn’t recall a thing he’d studied over all night, his concentration completely gone. The only thing on his mind was what Howard, and what Alex had done to him for standing up for him.  And what Alex would in return to him now, for telling the secret he’d sworn he would never tell. So far, everything was peaceful. He knew though, that his beating was coming. He knew it would be happening that night. There was nowhere to hide. All he could do was wait.

    Every creak in the house caused Brian to jump, and it was that fear that made him wonder why he’d decided that he could trust Howard in the first place. He had felt that he could though, and it had felt good to get the secret out in the open. It felt good to have somebody understand. If something good had come out of it, it was that Alex and Howard were no longer on speaking terms because Howard now saw his brother for what he was.

    “Where the fuck are you, you little shit,”

    Brian froze, cowering down as if it would somehow save him, but knew that he was in trouble when he heard the angry footsteps thundering up the stairwell. Before he knew it, his door was being swung open and Alex stood before him. Although they were the same height, and Alex was a smaller man, he seemed enormous to Brian at that moment as he shook in fear.

    “Why the fuck did you tell Howard about us?”

    “I…I…I”

    “Answer me….now.”

    Brian opened his mouth, but no sound came out. Within a millisecond, Alex was in his face and lifting him off of his position on the bed. With one swift punch, he sent Brian plummeting back down. Brian could feel blood pouring out of his mouth, but he knew better than to whimper in pain.

     “I told you not to tell anybody.” Alex shouted, “If it gets out all over school, I swear, I’ll murder you,”

    “I’m….s…s…sorry,” Brian cried out, “Please stop….”

    The beating continued though, a punch in the eye, being knocked to the ground with a kick in the ribs. He felt the fabric being ripped from his body, and then more kicking and punching. Brian found himself swatting at Alex, without making any real contact with him. He didn’t have the confidence to fight back, afraid that he would only get it worse. He prayed for it to stop, without seeing the ending in sight.

    “You’re pathetic,” another kick in the ribs, “Howard just feels bad for you,” a punch in the face, “And because of you, our friendship is ruined,” another shove to the ground.

    Brian didn’t say or do anything. He continued to take the beating. He continued to feel himself being lifted off the ground, only to be brought back down in more pain than he’d been in before. He closed his eyes, imagining being anywhere else in hopes that he could block it all. And then, finally, he felt all of the air that had been sucked out of the room earlier slowly creep back in when nothing happened for a whole minute. He opened one eye, and then the other, to find Alex heaving in front of him. His knuckles were bloody, eyes bloodshot.

    “Get the hell out,” Alex seethed.

    “Wha?”

   “Out…get out. Don’t come back. Mom and Dad wouldn’t care. They don’t even realize you exist anyways.”

    Although Brian knew that this was true, hearing it aloud stung more than he would ever admit. He tried to stand, and pain surged through his body as he fell again. He saw Alex’s satisfied smirk, and got another kick in the leg. Brian tried to stand again, and although he was wobbly, he forced himself to stay upright. Cautiously, he made his way around Alex, getting another trip and punch on his way out.

    ‘That’s right…run. Run away like the pussy you are.”

    And that’s what Brian did. With all of the strength he had left, he forced himself to run to safety. He ran until he was in his care. He backed out of the driveway quickly and flew down the streets until he knew that he was a safe distance away. It was then that he slowed down. It was then that he realized he didn’t know where he was headed, or where he was going to go. That he had nowhere to go. All he could do was drive until he figured it out, because going home was not an option. The one place that he was supposed to feel safe, he feared the most.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  

    “Ohh, God…that feels amazing,” Howard moaned, leaning in to Heather’s kiss that was trailing up his neck. He shivered in pleasure, dipping his neck to the side when she hit a sensitive spot that made his body tingle all over.

    “I have to keep my boy happy,” Heather joked playfully, breathing into his neck, the air coming out hot.

    Howard rolled his eyes. Since Heather was a year and a half older than he was, she always called him her ‘boy’. He didn’t mind though, loving the fact that he had an older woman to call his own. Burying his face deep within her soft, honey blonde locks, Howard inhaled deeply, the scent of lavender filling his nostrils.

   “How do I love you so much?” Howard murmured into her ear.

    “The same way I love you so much.” Heather replied, “I can’t wait until next year…when we can be at college together.”

    Howard smiled at the thought. He was so close to graduating, and had already been accepted into the University that Heather attended. Although their majors and classes would be different, he knew that it would be better than the current situation, and they would get to see each other much more often.

   “I like the sound of that,” Howard grinned, “No parents…”

   “Speaking of…” Heather winked, toying with the buttoning of her boyfriend’s jeans, which caused an erection almost instantaneously, “You said they’re out of town for the weekend…”

    “Yes…I did…” Howard breathed out.

    “So, then…why don’t we go upstairs?”

   It took Howard no time at all to take Heather’s hand in his, pulling her in the direction of the upstairs. She laughed, following in his footsteps eagerly. It wasn’t until they got about halfway up that the doorbell chimed loudly, causing both Howard and Heather to pause, the distraction unpleasant and sour to their plans.

    “Who the hell is coming here at nine at night…” Howard murmured with a bit of a bite in his tone. His eyes were darker than they had been, clouded over with a look that Heather had never seen before, nor did she like it.  Then again, they’d never been interrupted unexpectantly before either, and she couldn’t even name the last time they had been alone.

    “Should you get it?”

    Howard paused for only a moment before he shook his head, “Nah…whoever it is can come back if it’s important.

    Heather giggled, obviously pleased with his decision as they continued up the steps, exchanging kisses on their way. When the doorbell called out to them again though, Howard pulled away angrily.

    “God damn son of a bitch…” he cursed, flying down the stairs so quickly, and with such force, that it seemed superhuman. He flung open the door violently, “What?”

    ‘D….did I come at a..a bad time?”

    Howard’s heart about stopped when he saw Brian standing in front of him. He was so stunned, that he hadn’t even noticed that Heather was now at his side again, her hand gently on his shoulder. What caused his mouth to drop open though wasn’t the fact that Brian was there at all, but the condition that he stood in.

    One of Brian’s eyes was black and blue, swollen shut. There was a large gash on his left cheek,  another on his forehead and his mouth had crusted blood surrounding it. Then there were his arms, which already had the hint of bruising forming on their pale surface.  His clothes were torn and tattered, hanging off of him in scraps of material which once fit him.  It was obvious what had happened, yet Howard found himself asking aloud anyways once he got over his shock.

    “What happened to you?”

    “C…can I come in?” he looked behind him with paranoia, as if he were expecting to be seen.

    “Yeah,” Howard stepped aside, letting Brian in. He closed the door behind them, “Did Alex do this?”

    Brian did nothing at first, but then answered, “I di...didn’t have anywhere else to go,” he confessed, but then his tone turned slightly accusatory, “I told you he would if you mentioned that we were brothers…I warned you…”

   “Do you need to go to the hospital?” Howard asked.

    Brian shook his head, “Nothing’s broken….”

   “I’m so sorry.,” Brian shrugged and Howard turned his head to look at Heather, who was eyeing him curiously, before turning back to Brian. He took in a deep breath “We were just about to watch a movie. You’re welcome to watch with if you want?”

    “I don’t want to impose…” Brian whispered, turning the door handle to leave. It was Heather who stopped him though, placing one of her hands on his

    “You wouldn’t be.” She assured him, offering a kind smile.

    Brian hesitated, not wanting to interrupt Howie’s time with his girlfriend. Would he be in for it tomorrow at school when they were alone? He bit his lip nervously; unsure of what the right answer was in this seeming trap. Was there a right answer? Was there a wrong answer? If he stayed, would Howie and Heather gang up on him for disrupting them?

   “I…I don’t know…” Brian mumbled, a slight limp in his step as he backed up which didn’t go unnoticed.

    “Brian,” Howard laughed, “It’s no problem…really. We want you to stay.”

   Another pause, and finally, “Okay…”

   ‘Great,” Howard took Heather’s hand in his, “We can go to the theater room.”

    The couple headed off, with Brian trailing a few steps behind them. As they settled into the comfortable leather sofa, Brian took a seat on the floor, his knees brought up to his chest protectively. Within minutes, the beginning credits started rolling to Good Luck Chuck.

    Every now and then, Brian would sneak glances backwards to find Howard and his girlfriend snuggled closely on the couch. He would watch them exchange kisses and loving gazes into each others eyes. Even within the darkness of the room, it wasn’t hard to read these things. And without meaning to, Brian felt jealous. He’d never had a kiss, or a girlfriend. For that matter, he’d never even been on a date. What did it feel like to have somebody care about you that much?

    His thoughts continued through the remainder of the movie, and before he knew it, it was over. The time was going on midnight now, and Brian stood, not wanting to overstay his welcome. He stood self-consciously, and tried to ignore the odd look that Howard gave him when the light flipped on.

   “I should get going….”

   “Are you safe going back there?” Howard asked with concern.

    “I guess so…” Brian mumbled, but Howard could read the fear within his eyes, burning so bright within them that he feared for his friend’s safety probably more than Brian feared for his own.

    “Why don’t you stay here tonight?” Howard offered, “There’s a guest room upstairs that you can stay in. You can go in my room and get a pair of pajamas to use for the night.”

   He could see hope in Brian’s eyes at the offer, but instead of accepting the offer right away, he declined just like Howard knew that he would, “I wouldn’t feel right.”

    “Just go upstairs,” Howard laughed, “I’ll be up in a little bit. Heather has a three hour drive back to campus tonight…unless she wants to stay too?”

    Heather gave him a cute pouty look, “You know I can’t. I have an eight o’ clock class that I can’t miss. I need to head out, like, now,” she smiled at Brian, “It was nice meeting you.”

    “You too,” he murmured with a small smile, “I’ll head up so you can be alone…”

   “I’ll be up in a few minutes.” Howard promised, knowing how awkward the timid male would feel alone in the unfamiliar environment.

    Brian just nodded, pausing for a moment before heading off wards the stairs. Moments later, they could hear the creak of each step as Brian ascended up them.

    “I’m sorry tonight didn’t go as planned.” Howard apologized once he was sure that Brian was out of hearing range.

    “It’s okay…he needed us.”

    Howard snorted, “That’s an understatement.”

    “What’s with him anyways?”

    Howard hesitated, trying to find the most delicate way to explain Brian to her, “He’s severely bullied at school.”

    “And Alex is the main one?”

    “Alex is his half brother,” Howard confessed to her, “And my former best friend. It’s a long story. Let’s just say that Alex beat on Brian extra badly for telling the secret of them being related.”

    Heather looked confused at this point, “Why is everyone knowing they are related such a big deal?”

    “Because Alex is in the ‘cool’ crowd…and Brian isn’t even considered human at that fucking school.”

    At last, Heather understood, and she smiled at the realization that Howard had befriended Brian so that the kid wouldn’t be completely alone in the world. She admired him for that trait, knowing that he did it because he truly wanted to, and not because he knew it was the ‘right’ thing to do. It was then that a thought came to her mind, knowing she had to bring it up to Howard right away.

   “I have an idea…” Heather mentioned, her eyes lighting up once all of the details were worked out in her mind.

    “Yeah?”

   “Yeah,” she was starting to smile, “There’s this girl in my lab class…my lab partner, actually…”

    Howard’s eyes widened at what he knew was coming, interrupting his girlfriend before she could get any further, “Heather…no.”

    “Why not?”

    With a laugh, Howard shook his head, “Brian can hardly take interaction with us. With me…the one person in school who gives him a chance. I don’t think he is ready for a set-up yet.”

    “It could do a lot for his confidence though,” Heather pointed out, “A girl…who isn’t bad looking…a real date…” when Howard didn’t say anything, she continued, “Her name is Rachel. She’s really nice. I think they would have a lot in common.”

    Howard sighed, “I don’t know…”

    “Promise me you’ll think about it?” Heather asked, “Promise me you’ll at least mention the idea to him?”

    With a shake of his head, Howard couldn’t help but smile at Heathers persistence and willingness to help the troubled kid she’d just met. It was part of why he loved her so much, knowing that he couldn’t refuse her kind gesture.

    “Alright, I’ll mention it.” he leaned in to kiss her, praying that this plan worked instead of backfired on them, because a botched blind date could just send Brian deeper into his protective shell instead of showing him that the world wasn’t so bad after all.