Overreach - 6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

The next morning the boys seemed to be in a little better spirits. Lucas got up a bit early, citing paranoia that Elliot would be found out, and went to work erasing any sign that he had brought another life into this world. The two ventured down into the basement, where Elliot helped his friend clean up the residue that was left over from his transmutation.

Elliot made his way over to the table to the left of the room and ran his hand along the smooth black box that made his jump possible. Feeling thoughtful, he asked, “Why did your dad not search for me when he had the chance?”

Lucas was knelt on the ground trying to take apart the base of the main device. He had gotten most of it disassembled, and many parts were strewn across the room and in various cardboard boxes. Swiping his slightly damp hair out of his eyes, he shook his head.

“I’m not sure. He went to the basement and saw what I did, I’m almost positive. Why they left us here alone…” He paused. “It is a bit dubious, isn’t it?”

Straddling the border of genuine concern and wanting to dissuade the blonde boy of any wrongdoing, Elliot made a noncommittal sound. “Maybe the… uh… Directors needed him right away. Your mom, too. That is, if it was such an emergency.”

Lucas raised up on his haunches. “I’m not complaining.” He sighed. “But it is odd. Why leave me with all my equipment? They must know the location of their picked-up signal. How else would dad know I had done something?”

Elliot shrugged, and continued his job of helping sort parts. Soon enough, the machine was disassembled and in 6 or 7 cardboard boxes. They were going to sell them for scrap. But that meant…

“Elliot, we have to leave.” They were both sweaty and tired from doing a fair amount of physical labor in the basement, and were both now in the kitchen drinking some water to cool down.

Instead of answering, Elliot finished his drink, burped, and said, “Damn, dude, I don’t remember water tasting this good at home.”

“Elliot…”

Elliot turned and supported himself on the counter with his outstretched arms, silent. Then, “In fact, most of the water we did get wasn’t even clear.” Lucas looked down feeling as though he had personally let his friend down. Elliot laughed coldly. “I’m sure it’s nice to have clear water.”

“Elliot!” Lucas returned to reality and was sharp. “Knock it off. We don’t have time for this. I know you’ve had it rough, but we have more important things to worry about!”

Elliot laughed again, incredulous. “More important?! I just fucking disassembled any chance of me going back to seeing my father again, dude. My father! And… and you just want to fucking prance out of here like a fucking dick! Show some damn respect!”

“Respect?!” Lucas bit back, sensing a challenge. “Like you’ve shown me any of that since you’ve been here, dickbag. You fucking knocked me out!”

Elliot winced, but continued strongly. “Yeah, well you fucking took me out of a damn computer simulation and now I’m on the lam with your asshole parents on our trail. Not to mention this batshit crazy government you have!”

“Dude, I--”

“Don’t you get it?!” Elliot yelled in an anguished voice. “I wanted to die! I didn’t just jump off that bridge for merry-happy-fun-time! I had no regrets. And you fucking saved me.” Elliot made it sound like the furthest thing away from a compliment.

A look of pure, radiant hurt collapsed onto Lucas’ face once he registered what Elliot said. Deep hurt. Quietly, he said, “You’re so fucking selfish. Do you not think I never have felt the same way? Huh? I told you my most well-kept - two of my most well-kept secrets yesterday. And you repay me by yelling and being all… cold.”

Elliot was silent, looking as though the gears in his head were turning faster than he was used to. “I’m… sorry,” he mumbled, making sure not to look at the other boy in the eye.

“What?” Lucas said testily.

“I’m sorry! I’m sorry! Ok? That’s what you want to hear, right? You want this to be some kind of movie or fucking play or something! All goody-goody and shit. Well, fine! There you go.” He slammed his glass in the sink, turned around, grabbed Lucas and kissed his so deeply that the other boy barely had any time to react.

“Mmmmpphhh!!” Lucas roughly shoved Elliot away from him, wiping his mouth. “Jesus! What the fuck?”

Elliot was pissed now, which he wasn’t quite sure if Lucas was going to like this more extended part of him. “That’s what you wanted, right?” He sneered. “Well there ya go. All fucking made up.” He hung his head and closed his eyes tightly, as if he was fighting off something mentally. He shuddered. Picking up the glass from the sink, he threw it as hard as he could against the opposite wall, which exploded. “FUCK!”

Lucas was at a loss for words. He just looked at his friend for a few seconds silently, and then turned around and went upstairs. Elliot could hear the door slam from the kitchen.

Elliot slid to the floor in utter defeat. After a while he started to come out of his rage and realized what he had done to poor Lucas. He was numb and unfeeling, though he did take the time to clean up the glass before he gingerly made his way upstairs.

He knocked on Lucas’ door. “Luke?”

He knocked again.

“Leave!!” It wasn’t a yell, but a scream. A command. A wish. “Leave my fucking house! Leave!!”

“Luke, stop. I… I--” He heard crashing around inside. Oh, shit. “Luke, fucking stop!”

“Nooooo!” It was one of those deep, incredulous ‘no’s that had a bit of delirious laughter behind it. “No! You get to break shit, so do fucking I!”

“Luke, stop being ridiculous--”

Maniacal laughter filled the room behind the door. “Ridiculous?! Fucking rich from you! You cowered at every damn thing!”

Despite his best efforts, Lucas was making the anger rise in him again. He pounded hard on the door in exasperation. “Fuck you, dude! Fuck you! You live here in this nice ass place and shit and leave the rest of us, like me, to rot in a fucking computer!” He chuckled mirthlessly. “No… you’re the real problem here. You and your kind.”

Suddenly the door was wrenched open and Elliot was so startled by the sight of a maniacal Lucas that he didn’t even try to defend the obvious oncoming attack. Lucas had been crying for a while, and he looked like a deranged ghost. Wild eyes. He ran into Elliot so hard they both crashed onto the opposite wall of the hallway and went down in a pile.

Lucas threw the first punch which hit Elliot right in the eye socket. Elliot was so stunned that Lucas got in a few more good punches before he even thought about reacting. He quickly halted another oncoming punch but was thwarted when Lucas acted out and kneed him right in the dick.

“FUCK!” Elliot said, reacting on instinct. He reached out and scratched Lucas - hard - across the cheek. Lucas howled in pain and fell backwards, crawling towards the end of the hallway. Elliot recovered as quickly as he could and started to mindlessly scurry after Lucas, grabbing his leg and roughly pulling the poor boy back to him. Squirming, Lucas tried to get free. But Elliot wasn’t having it.

Elliot’s next punch connected with the blonde boy’s nose, which resulted in a nauseating sound. Blood gushed from his nose as Elliot’s next punch connected. And the next. Lucas was squirming the whole time, but Elliot had expertly positioned himself over the kid so he had no chance of escape. For the next fifteen or so seconds, the only thing they could both hear was the fleshy sound of Elliot’s punches.

Elliot was still in the throes of his rage when Lucas hoarsely whispered something that jarred him back to reality. He was looking down at the bloodied, nearly deranged look of his friend, when Lucas whispered, “I... love... you.”

Elliot stopped his arm in mid-punch and, stunned, dropped it to his side. They both were breathing heavily, or at least Elliot was. Lucas was very quiet.

Elliot looked at the bloodied boy, whose eyes were closed and head was turned to the side. “What?” He said, a bit too sharply.

Lucas took a rasping breath. His eyes fluttered but didn’t open. “I… love you.”

It was as if someone had pulled the emergency brake on a car going 80 on the highway. Elliot’s mind spun, the situation too bizarre for him to even begin to understand.

Elliot stood up, wincing. He was hurt, but it was nothing he hadn’t been through before. He would deal. Suddenly, it felt like he was emerging from a dream, and a feeling of dread overwhelmed him. He could barely look at Lucas, and tears started to form. Fuck. He never cried.

“Shit, shit,” he whispered under his breath. Lucas was hurt pretty bad. Despite beating on the kid only minutes before, he knelt down beside him to survey the damage he had done. The boy was already bruising, and they both had blood all over themselves. Quickly, Elliot turned into caretaker mode; the only other person who had even got this particular treatment was his mother.

He knelt down and picked up Lucas, hauling the knocked out boy into his attached bathroom and setting him gently on the floor. He turned on the water to the tub and filled it up with warm, soapy water. Then, after stripping Lucas, he hauled him into the tub where he began to gingerly clean the blood from the boy. Somehow, luckily, most of the punches didn’t land right on his nose, because from what Elliot could tell it wasn’t broken. Fuck, that was a relief.

Once he was done, he took Lucas out, dried him off, and went to work dressing the gash marks on his cheek where Elliot had scratched him. Once that was done, he carried him back into his bedroom and put him in bed. When he knew Lucas was secure, he went into the bathroom to take care of himself and shower. He then went back to the hallway to clean up the blood.

Then he proceeded to sit next to Lucas for the remainder of the day to make sure the boy was alright. He had passed out earlier, but Elliot was pretty sure he was just sleeping, now. Crying and fighting will wear a person out, that Elliot knew.

A few hours later, Lucas stirred again, letting out a groan. He tried to sit up.

“Don’t touch your face, Luke,” Elliot said softly, not wanting to scare the boy. “Don’t move. It’ll start healing soon.”

Lucas whipped his head towards the sound of Elliot’s voice, then looked down as if he were ashamed. “I attacked you,” he said. “I deserve what I got.”

Elliot was taken aback. “Don’t you ever say that to me again, Lucas,” he said sternly. “I was wrong. You don’t deserve me for what I did to you. I don’t deserve you.”

Lucas looked up at that statement. Elliot looked at him with a steady gaze. A knowing gaze. “I love you, too, you know. From the minute I heard your voice.”

Lucas gulped in surprise. “You… you do?”

“Yes. And what a shitty way I’ve been showing it, huh?” Lucas could almost taste the rueful bitterness in that statement. He sighed. “You know what I’ve been through, Luke. I’d be the first to admit I’m not necessarily the most… stable person in the world. Hell, you’ve seen my mean streak.” He motioned to the hallway. “But I’m so scared. And I’m scared of losing you, and, I guess, in a way, I’m acting out because I feel like this is all too good to be true.” The tears that came surprised them both. In a wavering voice, Elliot said, “I’m so so sorry…”

“Stop, Elliot,” Lucas said softly, taking the chance to look at the unusually vulnerable boy in front of him in the eyes. “I love you. And I forgive you.”

“Really?” Elliot sounded hopeful.

Lucas looked at him and smiled slightly. “Yes, really. But,” he said, sternly. Biting. “If you ever hit me again, we’re through. Do you understand?”

Humbled and ashamed, Elliot responded with a quiet, “Yes.” He paused. “Lucas Weiler, will you be my boyfriend?”

Lucas beamed, and Elliot thought he looked like the hottest guy in the world. “Way ahead of you, babe.” Lucas chuckled. He shifted in his bed and winced, which darkened Elliot’s now happy face. “Now, none of that.”

“Sorry,” Elliot mumbled. “I love you.” He tried the phrase out again and a shot of lightning went through his heart.

“I love you, too, Elliot Kestle. Even if you are a maniac, you’re my maniac.” He grinned. “At least I know how the other guys will feel if you ever catch someone hurting me.” He chuckled at that. “Let me just say that I don’t think they would be moving anytime after that.”

Elliot was beyond happy, but that didn’t mean his demons went away completely. Deep down he was so embarrassed and angry at himself for hurting the very person he enjoyed being with the most. He couldn’t believe that he acted out like that, though it honestly didn’t surprise him. Growing up in his environment, it was merely a survival tactic. A tactic that Lucas could never understand.

“Yeah,” he responded, noncommittally.

Lucas shifted again, and then moved to sit up in bed. “We need to leave, Elliot. That’s what I was trying to say earlier. I don’t know why they left me here, but it’s probably not for anything good. We gotta get outta here.”

“Where are we gonna go? This place is modeled after my town, but it’s completely different. I won’t be of any help.”

“Well, I might have an idea.” He paused. “There are some people off the grid that I know. My friend’s brother joined some kind of cult that the government was trying to squash. I’m sure we can hide out there till we figure out what to do.”

Elliot looked dubious. “And where exactly is this place?”

“Nova.”

“Nova? Lucas - babe - uh, that like 300 miles away! On foot?!”

Lucas looked at his boyfriend testily. “Well, how else are we supposed to get there? We don’t have a driver; my parents took it the other day. And I have no money for public transport.”

“Won’t the government be looking for us?”

“I thought of that. But, if they think I’m stupid enough to stay here, then they won’t even start looking until they come back and find that I’m gone. I’m sure my parents told them what a doormat I was. That’s probably why they’re not that concerned.”

“Ok…” Elliot drawled. “Ok. When are we leaving? Tomorrow?”

Lucas cracked a grin. “How about right now?"