Chapter Seven: Look After You 2/3

It took longer to reach the mall than either of us wanted.

There was an accident at the Town Square. From what I could see, no one was really hurt, but both of the cars were definitely totaled.

“Have I ever told you what my least favorite game was?” Benny asked.

I shook my head, I never heard her really talk about games that she liked.

“The waiting game,” she sighed, “I hate it.”

If I didn’t know her, I would think that was rude. Unfortunately, I agreed with her. Gus really needed us right now.

This could have happened any other time, but right now, we needed to be somewhere.

It was hard enough with me already being as tired as I was, but now we had to wait longer while the Tram made its way to the mall.

After what felt like forever, it stopped, and everyone onboard poured out.

Benny went from looking bored out of her mind to being obviously worried, and it made me start to worry.

“It’s going to be fine,” I told her, “Gus needs a break, so why don’t you go spend some time with him and I’ll keep an eye on Michael for a while.”

She looked at me, confused, but I saw her finally relax.

“I got this,” I stated, “Besides, it would be far more suspicious if we all crowded around him.”

“I see your point,” she made a face, “Are you sure?”

I nodded, “We’re in this together, remember?”

She grinned wide at me, “Yeah, together.”

She took my right hand as we made our way closer to the food court.

Michael would sit and talk with me. I knew I could buy her time alone with Gus. They both just needed to be together. I didn’t mind staying with Michael anyway.

We reached the main entrance, and I realized just how many people were at the mall right now.

A few people looked at our linked hands and made disapproving faces. I didn’t care though, Benny could hold my hand forever, and I could handle all the hate with her next to me.

I did feel some anxiety once we got closer to our destination. I hated large crowds of people. They made me nervous.

We walked quickly, and occasionally I was bumped into. The food court was too close to really worry about anything else.

Once I saw tables and chairs, I allowed myself to cruise.

“I see them,” Benny said to me.

I followed her finger with my eyes to a table near the juice stand.

Michael had his back to us, but I could clearly see the bright yellow shirt he was wearing.

Gus looked exhausted, and I knew we made it just in time.

“Come on,” I told her.

We weaved through the screaming children, and finally, we made it.

“Hey guys,” Gus said with a wide grin.

Benny released my hand to place a quick kiss on his lips before sitting next to him.

Gus was wearing black sweat pants and a shirt that complimented Benny’s.

It was light gray, and it said, ‘You had me at tacos.’

“Hey,” I said back as I took my place next to Michael.

I glanced next to me to see Michael staring blankly at the full cup in front of him.

“So?” I asked Benny and Gus.

They both looked at me strangely.

“Get out of here,” I shooed them with my hands.

Gus looked completely lost, but he got up once Benny started to pull at his arm.

“You sure?” he asked me.

“Yeah,” I nodded, “Go on.”

Both of them hesitated.

“Whatever you do,” Gus told me, “Don’t let him eat anything.”

I looked at Michael, and still, he stared blankly at the cup.

“Got it,” I said, “Don’t get him wet, and don’t feed him after midnight.”

Gus looked confused, but Benny laughed and pretty much just dragged him away.

It took a few minutes before I could no longer see either of them.

“Hey,” I said, “How are you feeling?”

He didn’t respond.

“Seriously?” I asked before nudging his shoulder with mine, “Are you okay?”

His jaw tightened, “Don’t you guys have better things to do than babysit me?”

I shrugged, “I don’t consider this as babysitting, at least I get paid for that.”

He glanced at me before he smirked. I could see how tired he was.

I felt tremendously better, and I could finally relax.

He took in a deep breath, but let it out unevenly.

Part of me felt strange, just staring at him, but he really did look like crap.

He had significant bags under his eyes, and he was extremely pale. He didn’t seem all that happy to be here. His clothes seemed pretty loud too.

The yellow shirt said ‘hugs not drugs’ in large white writing, and part of me found it funny, but the other part of me just wanted to smack him. He also wore baggy black sweatpants with black Converse.

The yellow shirt looked a good size or two bigger than what he usually wears.

The sweatpants had words written over the crotch, I just couldn’t make them out while he was sitting down.

“So?” I asked him, “How are you feeling?”

He let out a groan and put his head on the arm he had on the table, “Are you really going to listen to him?”

“About what?”

“Are you going to starve me too?”

I shrugged, “I don’t care if you eat anything, it’s up to you.”

He didn’t respond.

“Do you want me to starve you?” I asked him.

He sat up to finally look at me, “He took my wallet.”

“Ah,” I said, “What do you want?”

“Meatball sub,” he said, sounding slightly hopeful.

“Alright,” I said, getting up, “But if Gus asks… never mind, just make sure it’s done before we see them again.”

He nodded quickly.

I made my way over to the actual restaurants, and when I reached Subway, there were a couple of people in line already.

Part of me wanted to glance back to see if Michael was still at the table, but I couldn’t. I didn’t have a good view of the table from here.

I ordered food for both of us and made my way to the table.

When I got back, I made sure to set his sandwich down first and place the Sprite in front of him.

It was a good thing to drink in case he did have a stomach issue.

“Thank you,” he said.

“I’m just glad you didn’t run off while I was gone,” I said, “So thank you.”

He didn’t touch the food at all.

“Aren’t you hungry?”

“I thought about ditching you,” he stated, “But to be honest, I’m too fucking tired.”

I just smiled lightly and drank my own soda while he ate.

Maybe he will finally get some color back.

“So, was I right?” he asked, “Gus asked you two to come down here?”

“So, what if he did?” I asked.

He sighed, “He knows Benny completely loses her shit when I do this kind of stuff, so why does he ask her to help?”

“Because it’s for him too,” I stated, “Maybe you need to stop pulling shit like this.”

He didn’t even bother to glare at me.

“They’re better off without me,” he stated, “So are you.”

“And it’s up to you to decide that for us?” I asked.

His gaze dropped, but I knew it was what he needed to hear.

“We make our own choices, and we decide the kind of people we want to be around,” I said, “You are our friend.”

His jaw tightened, and I knew he wanted to say something back, but he held his tongue.

“I know I haven’t earned my membership badge yet, but you guys are all I have right now,” I said sincerely, “It’s pretty fucking pathetic, but it’s a big deal to me.”

I was used to the Michael that would always say something harsh back, or call me on the stupid stuff I said, but this Michael just seemed lost.

“I’m tired,” he stated, “Too fucking tired to argue with you.”

I suppose that is a good thing.

“Should we go?” I asked him.

“I can’t go back to campus yet, Gus would flip.”

“Do you still have your motel room?” I asked.

He looked at me strangely, “Yeah.”

“You aren’t the only one that needs to go to sleep,” I stated, “Just keeps your hands to yourself.”

“And you’re sure this is a good idea?” he asked me.

It was already getting dark outside. I needed to sleep.

“You threw up the pills,” I said, “So I think you’re fine, unless you did something else.”

He shook his head, “I don’t get much harder than that.”

I couldn’t help but smile at his joke, at least I hoped it was a joke.

“Pun intended?” I asked.

“Oh,” he said a little awkwardly, “I guess so.”

“We’re going,” I said as I stood up.

He folded the other half of his sandwich in the wrapper, and he put it in the bag.

I took the bag and placed the bottles in the bag too before grabbing the full cup of juice.

“Is it that bad?” I asked.

“It’s all I’ve had today,” he said, “It gets gross after a while.”

I took a drink of it and shrugged, “Mind if I take it?”

He just looked at me before shrugging.

It’s good, it almost tasted like an orange cream bar. Maybe a hint of strawberries too.

“Come on,” I said, strolling away from the table.

He caught up with me, and we slowly walked through the mall.

“Is that why you told them to go away?” he asked me.

I looked at him, confused.

The silence lasted a long time since we left the table.

“You knew she couldn’t handle it.”

I nodded slowly, “I saw her this morning, and I knew then.”

He nodded this time.

“She deserves a friend like you,” he said after a couple of minutes.

“You say that now,” I stated.

“I mean it,” he practically snapped, “All she’s ever really had is me and Gus. We aren’t girls in case you haven’t noticed.”

“Friendship doesn’t require a specific gender,” I stated, “As long as you love and support each other.”

“Speaking from experience?” he asked.

I didn’t answer his question, and surprisingly he didn’t press me for one.

I managed to finish the juice before our ride got here. I tossed the cup in the trash at the bus stop.

We got on the Tram, and he was quick to sit at the back.

I stood next to him and held on to the support bar.

It isn’t full, but there are several people packed in here.

Michael’s eyes were on me for a good minute before I spoke.

“What?” I asked, feeling a little self-conscious.

“It’s bigger than I thought it was,” he stated.

I wanted to make a joke about it, but I decided it wasn’t the right time.

“What is?”

He looked a little awkward, “Your birthmark.”

It felt strange that he brought it up. I wasn’t sure how to respond.

“Yeah,” I said flatly.

His eyes went down to my hand before ascending my arm.

I didn’t want to see that from him. I was too used to seeing people look at me like that. I was feeling a little upset about it.

The longer I stared at him as he studied my skin, I realized he didn’t make a face. It looked like pure curiosity. That felt different.

“How big is it?” he asked before finally meeting my eyes.

It felt strange meeting his gaze.

“That’s a little difficult to answer,” I stated, “I think it takes up a little less than a third of my body.”

He looked surprised.

“Does it hurt?” he asked.

That is a first.

“No,” I said, “Does it look like it does?”

“Not really,” he said, “Does it hurt when someone touches you?”

I shook my head.

His eyes went to my hand.

I held my hand out to him.

He glanced up at me quickly to see if I was serious or not.

“Go on,” I said.

His hand came up slowly before the tips of his fingers made contact with mine.

His fingers tentatively moved closer to my palm. It tickled.

My breath felt caught in my throat as I watched his middle finger reach my wrist.

His eyes locked with mine again.

“So?” I asked.

“I thought it might feel different,” he stated.

It did feel different. It felt a little smoother than the rest of my skin.

I’d be lying if I said I didn’t enjoy the feel of his hand on mine. Slow and deliberate.

His fingers reversed back up my palm to touch my fingertips again before he retracted his hand.

An awkward silence settled between us, and it remained there until we reached our stop.

We got off the Tram, and the motel was only a block away.

We walked for a couple of minutes before I could see the motel.

“I have to ask,” I said, “What’s with the shirt?”

He glanced down, and I could see his frown, “Gus thought it would be funny.”

A smile spread across my face, “He wasn’t wrong.”

His frown deepened.

We reached room twenty-six, and he opened the door.

It felt a little cold in here. It was hard to believe what happened this morning.

We both stood there for an awkward minute. I glanced over at him.

I could see just how tired he really was.

“Alright,” I said, “You get that side, and I get this one.”

I pointed to each side as I spoke.

He nodded but just continued to stand there.

I kicked my shoes off and moved them towards the door. It made me frown when I realized what I would be sleeping in, but I guess that’s what I get for wearing ‘real people’ clothes.

“Something wrong?” Michael asked after he did the same with his shoes.

I shook my head as I removed the see-through black shirt I wore. The jeans would just have to stay.

I sat on the bed and looked at Michael near the door.

Was he planning to ditch me now?

“Hey,” I said, “You aren’t planning to leave, are you?”

He shook his head, and it didn’t take long for him to remove the yellow shirt he was wearing.

I had to avert my gaze. I already knew he didn’t want me looking at his scars.

He dropped the shirt on my lap, and I looked up quickly to meet his gaze.

I could actually see the words on the crotch of his sweatpants. ‘Stop looking at my dick.’

“It’s big enough,” he said, “You won’t have to wear the jeans.”

How did he see through me like this? Was I so obvious?

“I’ll keep the sweats on,” he stated, “So you don’t have to worry.”

I nodded slowly, and he moved around the bed to take his place on the other side.

The bed shook as he got himself comfortable.

I hesitated before pulling off the black tank top I wore and quickly replaced it with the oversized shirt he gave me.

It wasn’t as warm as I thought it was going to be, it was barely even room temperature.

I stood up to see where the shirt ended. Mid-thigh was enough for me, I decided it was alright if I removed the pesky denim.

“Why is this shirt so big?” I asked.

He sighed behind me, “Gus enjoys my humiliation.”

Well, you did kind of put him through hell. I refrained from saying that out loud, though.

Once the jeans were on the floor, I let out a sigh and decided to kick my socks off too.

“Better?” he asked from behind me.

I nodded, “Thank you.”

I moved the blanket back before I got on the bed too.

He laid facing me, and I wasn’t sure if I could lay facing him too.

I rolled over to face away, and then I pulled the blanket over me.

Again, a sigh left me once I stopped moving.

“All good?” Michael asked.

“Yeah,” I said, snuggling into the pillow.

Everything felt calm now, and I could feel myself starting to fall asleep.

The bed moved again, and I felt his arm wrap around me, and his chest pressed against my back.

I instantly went stiff, and I hoped that he didn’t.

“What are you doing?” I asked awkwardly.

“You’re warm,” he stated.

“You said I didn’t have to worry,” I countered, “You lied.”

“This is making you nervous?” he asked back.

“Yes,” I nearly gasped.

“I’m not letting go,” he said simply.

What the hell was he thinking?

I moved a little, and his grip tightened. His hand was flat on my stomach over the shirt, and I felt myself start to shake.