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The cold rain beat against Michael’s face as he walked through the dark. It was probably close to midnight, but Michael didn’t care. He just knew he had to get out of that place.
His father was especially hard to deal with on nights like this. Coming home late with the smell of whiskey under his breath was William’s favorite pastime, and Michael couldn’t stand it. His father targeted him the most, choosing to throw insults and screams toward Michael rather than his siblings who were usually tucked asleep around this time. Michael wouldn’t run away if he thought his siblings were in any danger. It was always just him.
His mother never did anything to stop either of them. She would sit quietly on the couch, flipping through channels on the TV while William screamed at Michael. She never said a word when Michael would grab a coat and venture into the dark to escape his father out of fear for what the man would do next.
So, here he was, walking down a street through the silent suburbs with no clear direction. Michael would sometimes go visit Uncle Henry when William got like this, but he didn’t like bothering the man at this hour. He always felt guilty. Instead, he wandered through the neighborhood in search of a place to stay. That was when he came across a familiar house.
-
Michael anxiously stood outside Jeremy’s window, hands hidden in his pockets. He tried to convince himself that this was the right course of action, that this was actually Jeremy’s house, that his friend would let him stay the night no questions asked. Michael had been over to Jeremy’s place a few times in the past, so it wasn’t like this was the first time. He never let Jeremy come to his own house, fearing intrusion from his father and the disappointment and shame that came with it.
Michael finally worked up the courage to make a move. Jeremy’s window was a story above him, and luckily Michael knew his parents’ room was on the other side of the house.
“Jeremy,” Michael started in a hushed shout. He didn’t want to wake the neighbors. After no reply, Michael looked down at his feet. He bent down, picked up a small rock, and threw it at Jeremy’s window. The rock didn’t break anything (thank god), and instead landed against the glass with a thud.
Once again, Michael whisper-shouted. “Jeremy! It’s Michael.”
After a beat, Michael saw a head poke inquisitively out from Jeremy’s window. Michael stared in awe, fascinated by the way his black hair was illuminated by the moonlight peaking through the storm clouds. It had stopped raining a while ago. When Jeremy saw Michael he practically leaned his entire body out of the window, waving and gesturing for Michael to notice him. That idiot, as if Michael hadn’t seen him. Michael couldn’t fathom taking his eyes off of him.
Jeremy realized that he was, in fact, a whole story above Michael and it was unlikely that the boy could just waltz inside. Michael watched Jeremy’s form disappear from the window only to return with a bundle of spare bedsheets tied together. Jeremy threw them down and Michael shook his head, sighing as he begrudgingly started to climb up to meet his friend.
“Dude, you didn’t tell me you were stopping by! What’s the occasion?” Jeremy asked as Michael finally tumbled through the window into the room.
“Family stuff. My dad, he uh… I just don’t want to see him right now,” Michael answered, looking to the side. He didn’t want to have that conversation.
Jeremy shrugged. “It’s cool, man. I don’t need all the details,” he said as he plopped down on a bean bag chair beside him. Michael walked over to stand by him. Jeremy smiled and gestured for Michael to take a seat in the chair with him. There was only room for one. Michael felt his face heat up and instead chose to sit on the floor.
This didn’t bother Jeremy. He simply shrugged and grabbed his TV remote. Michael thought it was really cool how Jeremy had his own television in his room, and sometimes had to fight to push aside his jealousy. Michael himself had a drab old room, walls filled with stolen posters and drawings Elizabeth made for him. His father didn’t appreciate self expression in his house. Michael looked around, admiring Jeremy’s room. It was covered with rock n roll posters and had all kinds of knickknacks covering the shelves across his room. His bed was pushed to the side across from the small box TV hastily set up on the floor. He even had an Atari console hooked up.
“How about we watch a movie? The night is still young,” Jeremy said, getting up to look through a bin of VHS tapes. Michael eyed the now empty bean bag chair and decided he deserved a little comfort. While Jeremy was distracted, he made a beeline for the spot. Michael eased into the chair, sighing as he went.
“D’ya like slasher flicks? I got a lot of those,” Jeremy continued. He seemed to find exactly what he was looking for and pulled out a small tape with an “aha!”
Michael peered at the tape, looking at the name scribbled across it. He had never seen any horror movies before, so he didn’t recognize the title. His father was strict about what Michael and his siblings were allowed to watch, which was little to nothing. Jeremy turned back to Michael, waving the tape eagerly in front of his face.
“Yeah, sure. I’ll try not to fall asleep but it could be tough,” Michael said with a laugh as he watched Jeremy pop the tape into the VCR. Michael’s laughter died out as he noticed Jeremy now standing over him, looking down at his now stolen spot. Jeremy used his foot to nudge Michael’s legs apart and Michael tentatively obliged, spreading them as far as they could go. He then felt Jeremy sit on the chair between Michael’s legs, facing the TV and leaning his body against Michael’s hips and chest. Michael wasn’t sure what to do with his hands until Jeremy grabbed the both of them, wrapping them around his torso. Michael was holding Jeremy now. Michael’s face was bright red as he tried to control his breathing. Jeremy was so close.
It was hard to pay attention to the movie. Jeremy, that bastard, was hanging on to every line of dialogue as if it were a lifeline while Michael panicked. He was sure Jeremy felt every single hitch of his breath, every time his hands twitched against his chest. But Jeremy didn’t show any signs of caring, instead focusing on the movie.
Michael finally composed himself about halfway through the film. He decided he’d make Jeremy take his eyes off the movie, one way or another. Michael moved his hands across Jeremy’s torso and up into his hair. He toyed with the locs, scratching Jeremy’s head idly. He felt Jeremy jolt a bit on top of him, but he continued staring at the screen. Michael wrapped his hands back around Jeremy’s chest, leaning down so his head met with Jeremy’s.
“So what’s happening now?” Michael whispered into Jeremy’s ear, his voice quiet and low. He could feel Jeremy’s face heat up by the second.
“The, uh,” Jeremy began, swallowing to compose himself. “The killer is in this house but the characters, they…” he trailed off as Michael placed his lips on Jeremy’s neck.
Michael lifted his head slightly, making his way back to Jeremy’s ear once again. “Go on,” Michael muttered.
Jeremy shuddered. “The characters don’t know, they don’t know that he’s there,” he said as he tried to keep his eyes on the screen. Michael saw his blush deepen as he bit Jeremy’s neck.
It was too much for Jeremy to take. He grabbed the remote and frantically turned the television off. He turned around to face his friend, his legs now interlocked with Michael’s. Jeremy grabbed the sides of Michael’s face and kissed him roughly. Michael’s eyes widened for a second, only for them to close as he melted into the kiss. He allowed his hands to roam across Jeremy’s back as they kissed, savoring every moment. Jeremy bit Michael’s bottom lip, dragging a soft sound out of the man.
Jeremy pulled back and looked at Michael, his eyes half lidded. Michael realized what he had done and went to cover his mouth with a hand, suddenly embarrassed.
“Where’d that tough Mikey from earlier go? Don’t tell me you’re embarrassed now,” Jeremy said with a smirk. He tried to lean back in to kiss Michael again, but the man kept his hand firmly to his mouth. Jeremy looked back at Michael.
“Do you want to stop?” Jeremy asked. Michael shook his head, his face bright red. A smile found itself on Jeremy’s face yet again. He leaned in, this time skipping Michael’s covered mouth in favor of his neck. Jeremy mimicked Michael’s movements from earlier, this time sucking down on the skin there. He heard Michael let out a choked groan and looked back up at him. Michael’s eyes were screwed shut and he was panting. He seemed to be biting down on his hand now, trying to muffle any sounds he was making.
Jeremy returned to Michael’s neck, now determined to hear his friend. He left a trail of marks along Michael’s neck and collarbone, pulling down the collar of his shirt to get better access to the space. He could hear Michael’s shallow breathing and muffled moans. Then, when he got to his friend’s chest Jeremy bit down. Hard.
“Ah!” Michael exclaimed, his hand removing itself from his mouth. He made a low sound as Jeremy sucked down on the spot. Jeremy pulled back and smiled in triumph down at the marks he had left on Michael. Michael himself was still panting through slightly parted lips, eyes shifting away from Jeremy in embarrassment.
“You’re really cute, yknow?” Jeremy asked, leaning back to fully appreciate the view.
Michael buried his face in his hands. “Don’t talk like that or I’ll literally leave right now out that window.”
Jeremy laughed and took Michael back into his arms. He pet Michael’s hair and held him close.
There was a sudden knock at the door.
“Jeremy? You alright in there? We thought we heard something,” the voice of Jeremy’s mother yelled from the other side. Michael shot up, his face red to match the marks on his neck. He shot an angry look at Jeremy, embarrassed that he managed to let his guard down that much. Jeremy just shrugged and put a finger to his lip, effectively shushing Michael.
“All good, ma! Just a dream,” Jeremy shouted. He winked at Michael and chuckled as Michael scoffed. They heard Jeremy’s mother return to her room after that.
“How about we get to bed? Don’t want anymore close calls, right?” Jeremy said. Michael nodded.
“Where should I sleep? You don’t have any extra blankets, do you?” Michael asked.
“Nah, just sleep in my bed. I’ll sneak you out the window tomorrow morning, no biggie,” Jeremy said, making his way back to his bed. Michael nervously followed him. The two slept together and the following morning, Jeremy made sure Michael made it out of the house unseen.
-
“What’s on your neck?” William asked at breakfast the next morning. Michael froze, dropping his spoon into his cereal.
“I fell into a bush last night. You should see the other guy,” Michael replied, laughing nervously.
William raised an eyebrow but didn’t push it further. Michael found himself looking forward to the next time he had to run away.