Life's a Dreamboat - 11. Chapter 11

It was the security guard who called it in. He had saw what happened on the cameras and had run out to the parking lot but had been too late.

He wasn’t the only one who called the cops. Zack feared the worst and called them too.

Now, it had been a while at the hospital but Zack has taken Thomas home.

Zack hasn’t been to Thomas’s apartment before. It is smaller than his, bit more cluttered, which Thomas is slightly embarrassed about Zack seeing.

It is a cheap place, with walls and carpets that still need repairs. It isn’t a bad place though, there is a homey vanilla smell along with comic books and random souvenirs that Thomas has collected over the years in his travels.

Thomas isn’t a decorating kind of guy, he never even planned to stay here that long. But then he got the job. The job Zack offered him.

As Thomas sits down on his small couch, Zack picks up one of the souvenirs from the table, a very small glass dog with one cent in it.

Thomas watches Zack roll it between his fingers, looking bemused.

He nods, ‘Lucky dog, apparently.’

‘I can imagine he’s very lucky,’ Zack replies, putting the glass dog back. He turns to Thomas, ‘Do you want a bath? Might help with the aching?’

Thomas still hasn’t seen himself in the mirror and doubts he even wants to see the swelling in his face, the large black bruises on his body.

He gave a small smile back, ‘Bubbles too?’

‘Rubber duck, too,’ Zack grins back as he walks about. He then paused, ‘Do you have…’

‘Bathroom is just next to the bedroom, there’s a small bath,’ giggles Thomas.

‘Right, right,’ Zack’s cheeks flush red as he follows the directions.

Later on, when the bath is full, Zack helps Thomas hobble to the bathroom on his good leg.

‘I can help you get in,’ offers Zack.

Snorting out laughing, Thomas turns to him, pulling a face.

‘What?’ Thomas nervously smiles.

‘Hey, man, if you want to see me naked and help me get in, that’s totally fine by me.’

‘You can have a towel around you, I don’t have to perve on you,’ Zack chuckles, softly.

Thomas bites his tongue. He really doesn’t mind if Zack wants to perve on him. But, instead, he nods at Zack holding a towel up and Thomas holds onto Zack’s arm as he slowly gets into the bath.

The bath’s warmness instantly soothes Zack body, he can’t help the groans that come out. He makes sure that his bad leg stays out the water, his bandaged leg hangs over the side. The bubbles float around him as he leans back and dips the back of his head into the water. He probably looks pretty ridiculous right now in the position he is, but he really doesn’t care anymore

Zack hasn’t mention Thomas’ physical appearances or winced at his bruises since the hospital, Zack obviously doesn’t want him to feel worse and Thomas appreciates that.

Probably looks like the elephant man right now with how tender his whole body feels.

Leaning his head up slightly, he looks at Zack’s who’s putting the towel to the side, ‘Surprised my teeth are still in, otherwise I could have joined the circus.’

Turning around, Zack sits at the side of the bath and instantly rolls his eyes, ‘You’ll never stop being handsome, so shut up.’

Thomas sticks his tongue and grabs at Zack. He grabs a little hard and a bit water splashes onto Zack’s shirt.

In an instant, Thomas lets go and Zacks pulls away a little, laughing.

‘Sorry about your shirt,’ Thomas says, meaning it.

Standing up, Zack takes his shirt off.

This is the first time Zack had shown his body without thinking. He isn’t as skinny as he was before, there is some muscles slowly coming back. some definition again. Not as much as he used to be before the cancer, but a lot more than when Thomas first saw Zack without a shirt on.

Thomas starts to beam as he realises.

Zack is getting confident in himself again.

Thomas can still remember Zack standing against the wall, with a towel, looking like he wanted to fold in on himself, the rant he made about how he hated how he was.

Thomas feels like saying Zack’s words right back at him. He will never stop being handsome despite being sick.

Zack smiles at Thomas staring, sits on the edge of the bath again and wiggles his eyebrows.

May it is the drugs that have been in Thomas’s body last few days or overwhelming feeling of being proud of Zack and knowing how far he’d come from months ago.

Thomas pulls him to him and kisses him.

Zack doesn’t pull away, instead he presses his forehead against Thomas’s.

‘That will hurt your bust lip, silly,’ Thomas murmurs against Thomas’s lips.

‘You’re absolutely worth it.’

Zack chuckles and pulls away. But he is smiling brightly now, ‘Enjoy the bath, Thomas.’

Later on, Zack has helped Thomas out the bath. With a towel wrapped around his waist, Thomas has hobbled to his room with the aid of Zack. On the bed, Thomas can see that Zack has sorted his clothes out for him.

‘I hope you don’t mind,’ Zack says as he helps Thomas sit on the bed.

Thomas shrugs, ‘I don’t.’

It is quiet for a moment.

Thomas says what he thinks. He has nothing to lose. ‘I know you care about me Zack and I know there are reasons I probably don’t understand as to why you can’t be with me. But I just want you to know if you ever can go out with me, all you have to do is ask me.’

‘You’re a great worker, Thomas, I don’t want to ruin anything for you. I don’t want you to have to quit your job because of me.’

‘That’s a shame.’

Thomas is surprised that Zack sighs at that response. He sits down heavy next to Thomas on the bed, clasping his hands together.

‘I’ve just finalised the divorce.’

‘I know.’

‘No. You don’t,’ Zack turns his head to look at Thomas. ‘I used the cancer as the reason but there was another reason I wanted a divorce from Billy and that was because of you.’

Zack looks away and stares at the floor, ‘Because of you, of um, my attraction to you. When we first met, I found you attractive. I was so embarrassed and I tried to play it cool, and our conversations on the phone made me really happy and then just …. Last few months have been wild. I never wanted to put you in any awkward situations,’ Zack pauses. He murmurs, ‘How can anyone stay married when they're falling for someone else.’

Thomas doesn’t know how to respond. He eventually says, ‘It must have been a shock when you found out about my past.’

Zack rests his head on Thomas’s shoulder, ‘That didn’t stop anything about how I feel.’

Thomas sits there enjoying the moment. He knows he will have to go to work in the future and face the backlash of everyone knowing about who he used to be, the way people won’t know how to react to him. Some will be positive, some will be negative, but all eyes will be on him. All the whispers. Thomas doesn’t know if he can be brave enough to face that.