Primary Target - 11. Chapter 11

I was silent the entire way home, even with Conner and Mason’s attempts to engage me in conversation. I didn’t even want to think, but my brain kicked into overdrive naturally. Did Bates go to our school and I just never saw him? Was he a date for someone? And how did Evan Jones fit back into the picture? I haven’t heard from him in nearly a month! Granted I never saw Bates again until tonight. That look on his face… Pure, unfiltered rage and hate… all directed at me. I shuddered violently and almost cried, but I stopped it before questions were asked. I knew I needed to talk to both Conner and Mason about this but I needed some time to myself first – it was too fresh, too painful.

We climbed out of the Santa Fe and I brushed past both of them and sat in the living room with the door left ajar. I could hear Mason and Conner talking.

“What’s wrong with him, Mace? He should be happy about the homecoming thing, right?”

“I don’t know, Con,” Mason sighed a bit frustrated. “The only thing I know is that he stiffened up real bad in my arms during a hug. Then he took his phone out – he lost all the color in his face when he looked at it. I know something’s up, Conner. I just don’t know what it is.”

There was a pause in their conversation. I knew they were heading here, about to confront me about it. Was I ready to deal with this again? I laughed inside my head – fuck no! I thought I was done with Bates and his crew back on our first day in town! I hated thinking about what could have happened in the mall that day. Hell, I still have a bit of a scar on my neck from that damned blade! Calm down, Xan, I told myself. Maybe talking it out with Conner and Mason might help things.

The door opened slowly after a knock rapped from its surface. Both Mason and Conner entered. Mason took his dutiful seat next to me as Conner slid the rocking chair over. I used to sit in that chair for days at a time after Mom passed – it was the chair she used to help us sleep when we were babies. She used to always sit in that chair when we had family discussions or get-togethers. It was her chair. Mason took my hand into one of his and he looked worriedly at me, rubbing my back slowly with his other but didn’t say anything. Neither did Conner. I sighed as I pulled my phone out, knowing I had to get this over with sooner or later. I thrust it into Conner’s hands.

“What’s this?” he asked as he eyed my phone.

“Open it. You’ll see,” I said blandly. Conner stared at me for a few moments before he flipped my cell open. I didn’t clear the screen when I saw Evan sent me the text. I braced for my brother’s reaction.

“What’s so important that Evan needs to talk to you now, Xan?”

“I saw him, Conner.” I tried to keep the fear out of my voice, but it was seeping its way into my words. I started shaking again – his evil face flashed in my mind for but a moment. It was all that was needed to scare me to my core.

“Evan?” Conner asked with an eyebrow raised. I could sense Mason looking between us, not understanding the problem. He remained quiet, but pensive. His hand on my back stopped rubbing, just resting on my spine.

“N-No, not Evan,” I replied shakily. “I-I-I saw… him.” Conner’s eyes almost bulged out of his sockets.

“We need to get Dad here now and tell him too!” Conner stood, pacing in frustration and… something else. I couldn’t tell if it was anger or fear – he was there that day. He knows what he can and will try to do.

“Babe, what’s wrong?” Mason asked softly as I tried to hide my fears. “Talk to me. I want to help. Just like you helped me with Eddie.” Eddie. I wanted to laugh, but I kept it in – Mason’s issues with the man are his own demons. It’s not my place to belittle him in that way, but Eddie was a small fish in the grand scheme of things. No, Bates had powerful connections. Almost too powerful.

I almost didn’t register Conner talking. “Evan? It’s Conner – Xander’s brother? Good, you remember. He got your text…” He listened as Evan was telling him something. “Whoa, slow down, man. You’re talking a mile a minute.” Again he listened. “Come over if you can. You have our address right – from when you had Xan’s phone? Okay, we’ll be here. See you in a few.” Conner closed my phone and tossed it back to me.

“Can either of you please tell me what’s going on?” Mason asked calmly but with a hint of angst in his voice. He didn’t like being left in the dark and I don’t blame him. Conner started to talk, but I held up a hand. I wanted to tell him myself.

“Mason, babe…” I started, trying to think of how to say this. “When I first moved here, Conner and I went to the mall. He wanted to check out the girls and I wanted to scope out the guys before we would go shopping. We never did go shopping as we ran into a group of… creeps. Assholes. Bigots. Whatever you want to call them. Their leader – a guy named Bates – approached us, acting all friendly. Then… he tried to kill me. All because he thought I was gay. He didn’t even know for sure!”

“No! No kill Xander!” My head whipped to the door to see Richie standing there, tears in his eyes. I smiled warmly at him and motioned for him to come into the room. He quickly closed the gap and latched onto me tightly.

“Shh… it’s okay bud. He wanted to but of course he didn’t, right?” I felt him nod. I turned back to Mason as Richie settled into my lap, still holding me. “Conner knocked him down before he could do anything. Unfortunately, he was too fast for me to follow, since I was stunned after I alerted Conner to the danger. Conner had Bates pinned but one of his goons put a knife to my throat. But that’s about when Evan stepped in. He knew things about Bates and manipulated him into leaving me alone – for the moment, anyway. Evan talked to us for a bit, but I just wanted to get the hell out of the mall, but I found out later I left my cell on the table in the food court. Luckily Evan got it and he gave it back.”

“O-Okay?” Richie asked me, forcing me to look at him with his hands to my face.

“I-I thought I was okay,” I said as I started to shake again. “U-Until I saw him again at the dance.”

“He was at the dance?!” Conner’s voice escalated. “I thought you saw him like on the road or something!”

“N-N-No, he w-was by the e-exit while M-Mason and I had the last dance.” I was really shaking bad – I couldn’t stop it. Richie stood up and gently pushed me towards his brother.

“Cry. Go,” he gently pressed. That’s all I needed before I buried my face into Mason’s shoulder as he swiftly enveloped me. I wailed into his shirt, afraid for my life again. How… Why would that evil bastard be doing this to me? I realized that this could only be the start of his plans for me and I cried even harder.

“What’s wrong with the little one?”

Evan’s voice. I haven’t heard it in a month. Only a month? It feels a lot longer ago than that. “He’s really upset. He saw Bates at our high school dance tonight,” Conner sighed. “It’s really got him spooked.”

“I was afraid of that,” Evan said sadly.

“W-What do you m-mean?” I asked from Mason’s shoulder. I felt the couch depress as he sat on my other side. He brought a hand to my back. I sniffled, hoping to get back under control. I wasn’t really succeeding.

“Bates was put in holding the day he attacked you. Security saw the whole thing but I intervened before they could. The police took him in and he and his crew were supposed to be held for sixty days in juvie. He was released this morning on ‘good behavior’.” The air in the room was thick with tension. “Little one… there’s no easy way to say this, but… I can’t control him any longer. He grew some balls while in lock-up it seems. The old boss is dead – he’s the new one.”

“What?!” Conner shouted.

“Today, Bates went back to the boss of the gang and found out he was being excommunicated from the organization. The old boss accused him of being too reckless, left too many clues behind. Before anyone could do anything, Bate shot him point-blank. No one tried to stop him.” I felt Evan stand up. “Naturally, the one with the most support inherits the control, which is pretty straightforward if you ask me. He does; he has that support. Before I was released from my duties with them thanks to Bates, my informant told me he only said one thing when he sat down in the old boss’s chair.” He swallowed. “Xander Jacobs. You’re his biggest target.”

Why? Why me?! Damn it! I didn’t even do anything to him! All I want to do is to live like a normal kid doing normal things! I worry about the same shit and get happy over the good things in life just like he does! I’m fucking human! I just happen to love boys, not girls! I can’t help that! God, why does he have to be such a fucking close-minded fuckwad?!

I felt Mason slide away from me a bit and I turned to him. I couldn’t read his face, but I could guess why he did. But just as quickly as he slid away he closed the gap again and held me to him tightly. “We’ll get through this babe. He won’t get you, I promise. I don’t know how I’ll manage it, but I won’t let him get to you. Do you hear me, babe? I’ll protect you.” I broke down again, the vibrations of my mixed fear and anger gave way into despair once more. A wave of emotional and physical exhaustion slammed into me like a fully loaded semi. I slid my way down Mason’s chest and settled my head into his lap, crying the whole time. He gently stroked my head until I felt sleep beckon me. I didn’t hesitate to answer the call… the sooner this day is behind me, the better.

Slowly, I awoke to the sun’s incessant rays drilling through my eyelids. I groaned and pushed the covers back on my bed. Bed? I thought. I remember falling asleep on my boyfriend’s lap… oh God! That wasn’t a dream! I was hoping that face was just me recalling it from the mall. But it wasn’t! I remembered everything that happened; all the good – and the bad. I started crying again, feeling totally helpless. I felt a hand gently touch my bare shoulder. I almost jumped but I turned and saw Richie standing next to my bed. He looked so sad. I glanced behind me and saw Mason still dead asleep. Dead… I could be dead at any time. Bates had that power; he could exercise it at any given moment. That thought alone terrified me and I started crying again. I… I don’t want to die!

“Xan…” Richie whispered sadly. “Come.” He held a hand out. “Please?” I took it and he helped me to my feet. He leaned into me, propping me up. I actually kind of needed that – I was feeling really drained from all this crying. He led me out of our shared bedroom and down the stairs.

We walked into the kitchen and I saw Dad talking to someone, someone I didn’t recognize. I looked down and saw both Richie and I were only wearing boxers – not a good thing. But I didn’t care at that moment. Why should I? Bates could send his goons here any moment and just blow the damn house up. I gently released myself from Richie and sort of stormed into the living room, again the door being left open a bit.

“Richie, what’s up?” I heard Dad said calmly.

“Fine. Worried. Xander not self.”

“Oh?” Dad asked.

“Conner or Mason tell?”

“No, I don’t think so. Care to share?”

Suddenly things changed in the kitchen. I heard a growl. “That son of a bitch that tried to kill him when you moved here is back and Xander saw him at the dance last night! Your son is scared shitless right now!” I gasped as Richie swore in front of my dad. There are some things I’ve never been stupid enough to do and that’s swear in front of Dad like that. But Richie is different, I know. When he gets mad like that, he can’t filter the swear words out – he just can’t. Every time I remember him getting mad when I was helping him or sitting in on his legit sessions, he swore like a sailor each and every time. Even when he was only a little mad, like he is at the moment.

“What?!” I heard Dad shout.

“Dad, why are you shouting?” Conner’s voice filtered into the conversation. “And who’s this?” Conner paused. “Conner, nice to meet you. I’m Dad’s oldest.”

“Pleasure,” the unknown man spoke. He had a pleasant demeanor in his voice. “The name’s Sam Jones. You might know my son, Evan. He’s told me a bit about you.” Evan’s dad? Why is he here? “I only arrived just as your other two brothers here came down the stairs. One of them went that-a-way. Guess he’s the one that Evan’s worried about.”

“Richie,” Dad started. “Can you go get the cordless and bring it here please?”

“Sure, pops,” Richie said. I heard his feet pad across the kitchen tile before they hit the carpet in the living room. A moment or two later, I heard him say, “Here.”

I heard heavy footsteps approach me, but I didn’t look up – my head was resting on my palms, my arms propped up against my knees. I held a blank, emotionless mask on my face. What’s the use in feeling sorry for myself? Bates will find me somehow. He’s made it his mission to screw me over.

Dad held the cordless in my face. I briefly glanced up at him before I went back to staring at the device. “Call.”

“Call? Call who?” I asked. What was he doing?

He took my right hand off my head and thrust the phone into my hand. “I want you to call each and every one of your friends. Right now. I want you to get them here today. I don’t care if they have other engagements – if needed I’ll talk to their parents. But get your friends over here as soon as they can.” The doorbell rang. Dad stepped to the doorway. “Conner could you get that?”

“Sure, Dad.”

Dad came back and sat down next to me. I stared blankly at the phone in my hands. I shoved the phone back at him. “What’s the point? No one fucking cares about me. Bates is going to see to it–”

Dad was back up in front of me in a flash. “Alexander Montgomery Jacobs!” he bellowed. I flinched – my full name, even my hated middle name. I just threw myself to the wolves – it was probably the f-bomb that did it. “You are so wrong it’s not even funny! You’re blindly fucking stupid if you think your friends are going to abandon you when you most need them! If they do, then they weren’t true friends to begin with!”

“Xan you’ve really done it this time.” My heart stopped. I must be crazy – I’m hearing voices I shouldn’t. It can’t be?! “I haven’t seen your old man this upset since we trashed his baseball card collection when we were six.”

“I’m still pissed about that, for the record,” Dad said but a lot softer. “Glad you could make it, Jared. God, it’s good to see you! You’ve grown since July!”

“Thanks Dirk. Can you give me a moment with him?”

“Sure thing.” I wanted to turn to look, but I was afraid it would be an illusion. Jared Petersen… here, in my house, in Vermont? Impossible. I turned to see Dad leave the room and there he was – in the flesh. God he’s fucking gorgeous! He grew about four inches since I last saw him, but his arms were a ton beefier – thanks, no doubt, to the home gym his own father had in their basement back in Ohio. I could visualize it now, in the corner across the way from their washer and dryer and otherwise alone – their basement was never finished. He also seemed a bit more tan than the last time – tanner than I’ve ever seen him.

Reflexively, I stood as he approached. His jet black hair made his lush, green eyes stand out – one of the things I loved about this boy. “J-Jared? When… how… why?” I couldn’t even think; I had too many questions trying to vie for prominent display in my mind, all becoming a train wreck of thoughts. Once he was in front of me, I realized that he was quickly getting way too tall for me – he was already five nine before I left. I’d be lucky if I grew half an inch over the summer.

Like a small child, Jared picked me up and held me in the crook of his left arm. “Dude, have all you been doing is eat? Damn you’ve gotten heavy!” He used to always say that if he held me this way. Even though were the same age, our size difference makes it seems like he’s my older brother and I his younger by about five years. “Seriously, Xander… God I’ve missed you, bud!” He wrapped his free arm around my back and held me to him in a hug. I started crying – in happiness that he was here, sadness that this may in fact be the last time I see him, frustration and anger for even having that last thought before this one thanks to Bates.

I heard the door open to the living room. “Babe, what’s wrong? I heard you…” Mason finally stopped, realizing something was definitely different in the room. Quickly, but gently, Jared set me back on the couch. Before Mason could react to the situation, Jared held his hand out. “Mason, good to finally meet you in person. I’m Jared – Xander’s friend from Ohio. Remember, we talked on the phone that one time?” I saw my boy visibly relax as he took Jared’s hand. “I had to say that quick – it looked like you were about to jet because you got the wrong impression.”

“Y-Yeah,” Mason struggled to get out. His eyes wouldn’t leave Jared’s face.

“Jared, it looks like you’ve gotten another gay fan,” I quipped. “My boyfriend is practically drooling over you.”

Jared just laughed. “Hey, he can look, but like I told you – you’re not getting in my pants no matter how hard you try!” I stood for a second, grabbed Mason, and pushed him onto the couch. I really needed to cuddle with my guy – I was feeling really confused and depressed about everything. I needed him to feel safe. I felt like my world was unraveling around me and I didn’t know which thread was causing the destruction.

I knew one primary thread was Bates. But something told me that there were other, less noticeable ones working to do almost the same level of damage to my life. Once Mace got comfy, I crawled between his legs and pressed my back against his chest. I pulled his arms around me again and I felt him hug me close like a teddy bear. Even with us stretched out on the sofa, there was still room for Jared to take the other end.

I nuzzled my head against Mason, really needing to feel him against me in almost every possible way. “So what really brings you up our way, Jared? I wouldn’t think Tom would put you on a plane just for shits and giggles.”

All the smiles faded from my best friend’s face. “Xander, I was originally supposed to come up as another surprise ‘gift’ from your family, but Conner called me and told me what’s going on in a sense. I feel there’s more going on than you told me or that he told me yesterday before I flew out. Now, I’m just here, concerned about my best buddy – the one I grew up with.” I quickly recapped the entire night when, at the end, I broke down and started crying again. God, why am I always in tears nowadays?! I’ve cried more in the last eight hours than I feel I did when I buried my mother.

“Xander, shh… it’s okay,” Mason soothed as he rubbed my forehead and ran his fingers through my hair. “We’re here for you. We’ll always be here for you.” I really liked that he said “we”, meaning him and Jared. He gave me a few reassuring kisses on my cheek, sending a calming wave through me. That act of compassion really comforted me and I started to melt back into Mason’s hold.

“You two look really good together. Has anyone told you that?” Jared said sincerely.

“A few of our friends at school,” Mason said. “Usually it’s the girls.”

“Of course,” Jared chuckled. “Now’s probably not really a good time to tell this, but I can’t resist – sorry, bud. In any case, it’s a bit relevant. But I still remember when I had Xander spend the night at my house just before he came out to me…”

“Oh, not this story!” I groaned. I really didn’t want to hear this, so I turned and buried my face into Mason’s chest trying to hide from Jared’s words. Mason giggled a bit but lovingly wrapped an arm around my head, snuggling me even closer to him. I took in a deep breath of air through my nose and I caught Mason’s scent – his pure scent, unmasked by soap or other items. It made me hard instantly. It didn’t help I just sat there in my boxers. I turned my body a bit more, hoping to hide it in between me and my boyfriend.

“Anyway,” Jared continued. “I’m telling him about my latest date after our evening of video games wound down. As I’m telling him about Linda – the girl’s name – I would normally suspect him to get excited and be all like, ‘Yeah, and?’ or ‘What else?’ right? Because my other guy friends did, so I figured my best friend would be the most excited for me.”

“I wouldn’t know,” Mason laughed. “I’m gay, remember? But I guess I can see your point.”

“Oh right,” Jared laughed at himself now. “Anyway, as I’m telling him about this girl, instead of being happy for me, all I could read on his face was both disappointment and a bit of jealousy. I’m still talking to him about her but I’m mentally taking notes as I do, a bit confused. I could also tell that he eventually started to force a happy smile onto his face, just to try to make me happy, nodding along, trying to be a good friend. But I could also tell he checked out, you know? So as I finished telling him about my date, I ended the story in a way to see if he was paying attention – and this is no lie – ‘So at the end she let me feel up her dick and I sucked her off until she came in my mouth. Then she fucked me with her huge penis.’” Jared paused as he started laughing really hard now. “Mace, you should’ve seen the look on his face when I ended it like that! He was all like, ‘Wait, what? Huh?’ I barely kept a straight face telling him that as I saw that look you get on your face when you get really horny, right?”

“I know that face!” Mason laughed. “Xan’s wore it a few times after we’ve made out.”

I sat up. “Hey, for the record I know you were all hot and bothered after our kisses too. You had that same face.”

“I know – I’m not denying it, babe. I’m just telling Jared I know what he’s talking about.”

“But,” Jared went serious again. “After he realized what I had said and how he responded to it, I realized I almost made a mistake.”

I watched Mace’s face twist into worry. “What do you mean?”

“He looked the exact same way only a few moments ago when I arrived just now. Hopeless. Feeling like the world’s against him and he’s here only for everyone else’s amusement or as a punching bag.” Once he said that I sobered up for a moment. I remember Jared talking to me a bit later that night once I calmed down, telling me how utterly devastated I looked when I slipped up. I did feel that way and I vowed to him I’d never get that depressed again – I’d talk to someone about how I felt. “Suddenly, I realized my joke went too far and Xander flew out of my room before I could stop him, but I chased after him. He bolted out of my front door. He wasn’t thinking straight and was getting ready to run across the road. It was pretty late and the road wasn’t busy then, but a speeding car would’ve decked him in a nanosecond since they wouldn’t be able to see him. I managed to grab a hold of his wrist just before he stepped into the street.

“‘Leave me alone!’ I remember him shouting at me. ‘I-I thought you were my best friend!’ He tried to shake out of my grip but I held on and actually pulled him back towards me. I didn’t grasp how badly I had hurt Xander when I said what I said. He thought I was making fun of him, but I just wanted to see if he was really paying attention to me, just joking around a bit. I had some suspicions at that point and needed to see what I really thought was right without realizing how I said it. I had to make sure, because if I found out, I could help him. I wanted to. Back then, I could care less that he was gay. He could’ve told me he was a goat trapped in a human’s body and I’d still love him. Xander’s like my little brother.”

“At the time,” I picked up the story for a second. “I felt like Jared stabbed me in the heart with a boiling, red-hot knife. How could my best friend first of all, say that when I thought at the time I was doing a really good job of hiding it, even from him? Like he verbally attacked me. Secondly, I felt betrayed that, for a moment, he was like all the rest of the world – they hate anything that’s ‘different’. That’s why I ran out of his house that day. When he stopped me from running across the road, I felt like he wanted to take me back to his room so he could beat me up now that he knew. I didn’t know what to do… what to say. Jared’s always been stronger than me. Hell, Richie’s probably stronger than me. I couldn’t get away, I said a few things, hoping he’d let me go. Once I realized he wasn’t, I just gave up. There was no use fighting it – it was going to happen whether I wanted it to or not.”

“I was really surprised when you stopped resisting.” His gaze shifted from me to Mason again. “Xander didn’t even complain when I hoisted over my shoulder in a fireman’s carry. He just stopped responding.” I looked over at my friend and I actually saw his face wet with his tears. I know I hurt him when I tried to run away like that, but I never seen him so upset about this event. Or… maybe it’s the more recent event that has him upset. I didn’t voice my opinion. “When I got him back to my room, I set him in my computer chair. I knelt in front of him and I almost cried. His eyes were so… dull. Dead. I’ll admit it; I love my bud’s eyes – and they were gone. A lifeless gray overtook them. I tried to get him to speak to me, to do anything. But he just sat there like a doll.”

“What did you do to get me out of it?” I asked. “I don’t really remember.”

Jared thought about it. “I think it was when I eventually said I loved you and always would, but probably not in the way you really wanted me to.” He looked at Mason. “May I?”

“Uh, sure,” Mason assented. To what, we both didn’t know.

Jared stood and picked me up again. “So, this is now why I’m here for you, bud. I’m going to help you in any way that I can, with the help of your friends here, your dad, your brother. Your boyfriend. I heard you tell your dad you felt like no one cares about you. But you’re wrong. Dead. Wrong. Promise me again. Promise me again and promise you boy here that no matter what, no matter how badly you feel, you’ll talk to someone. Anyone. Talk to your Dad, talk to Conner. Shit, call me at three in the morning near the end of the school year if that’s when you need to talk to someone. Grades are recoverable – your life isn’t if you do something stupid. You’re my brother, even if not by blood. I love you too damn much to see you do that to yourself.” He set me down as I heard Mason stand up. Jared’s speech touched me and again, I felt like crying, but this time almost in relief that someone understood my pain, my anguish, but I managed to keep my tears in check. He had that way about him that he could always help me shoulder my torments. Jared turned me around and gently pushed me towards Mace.

Mason started off with a deep, sensual kiss as he grasped my head. He held me there forever, just about when I felt my knees weaken. “Remember that kiss, Alex. Please. Remember how much love there is in it. Whenever you’re in your darkest place, hopefully the memory will help guide you home, back to your friends and family. If not for yourself, please… remember it for me. I… I-I can’t be without you now. I love you too damn much too!” His misty eyes faded from my view as he pulled me tightly to him, holding me like if he let go, I’d float away to never return.

I sat at the kitchen counter, contemplating a few things as both Mason and Conner called around to the rest of my group of friends while Jared was updating the gang from back home in Ohio. I realized that I had a really good support network in Dad, Conner, Richie, Jared, and of course Mason. The others were good too, but so far the ones I’ve named seemed the most consistent. Maybe it’s only due to the fact that I live with all but one of them. These five were my first line.

I went upstairs and finally threw on some clothes at Dad’s request. Mason came with me as my body still felt a bit unresponsive. He helped me pick something out and was just really there for me. I tried really hard to push these stupid thoughts from my head, because… I mean, Bates will win if I just stop living my life all due to him and his influence. I didn’t want to give him the satisfaction of beating me before he really did. But I really couldn’t do it. The images of seeing me dead, my blood pooling around me while Conner or Mason freaked out when they found me was too much to shake just this moment.

Once that was finally taken care of, Mason walked with me down the stairs and there were a few more additions to the house. Josh and Jess were talking with Conner while Ben was laughing with Jared. The only person missing was Eric. Maybe he was running a little later than he intended. Maybe he met with his brother today and couldn’t break that. Or… maybe he wasn’t coming. At all. I don’t know why, but his absence was hurting a bit more than I thought it should.

Jared saw me first and set off a chain reaction of all of them turning to face me. Ben spoke up first. “Hey man… I talked to Eric before I came over but he’s got a really bad cold or something. I even went to his house to see if was legit and he looked really bad. So, I don’t think he’ll–” Just then, someone knocked at the door. Ben was the closest and, with Conner’s approval, he answered as I took a few steps down to try and see who it was. “Holy crap dude! You shouldn’t be here!”

I rounded the corner and saw that it was Eric and he looked like shit. His face was both pale and reddened somehow, his eyes were a bit bloodshot and looked like he could barely stand. “Ben, get him in here!” I urged. “He needs to sit down… take him to the living room. I’ll get him something. He shouldn’t be on his feet if he looks like that.”

I started walking towards the kitchen, but a hand stopped me. A hot, clammy hand wrapped around my forearm. Eric spun me around. “I… couldn’t not… be here. I needed to… show you that… I’m on your side…” He struggled to talk and sounded pretty nasally, the voice of a truly sick person.

“Thank you, but if I cause you to die or something…”

“Quiet… just… get me… some tea?”

“Sure,” I nodded. “Get him comfortable on the couch or something.” Ben and Jared guided him towards the living room. I heated up some water in the microwave and started steeping a bag of Earl Grey for Eric. While that was settling a bit, I also got Eric a cold compress – it looked like he had a bit of a fever going, so hopefully the compress would help cool him off. I brought all the items with me to the living room where everyone else was gathered. I handed Eric the tea and placed the damp cloth on his forehead. He looked fairly comfortable reclining in the easy chair.

“Thanks…” he said weakly.

“Quiet… you need your rest,” I said as I felt his cheek – it was a bit warm to me. Eric took a few sips of the tea before I took it and set it down on the end table near him. Everyone from earlier was in the living room with an addition – Evan. “Okay, looks like everyone’s here.”

“Right,” Dad said. “I asked you all here because of a situation. I’m not sure what all you guys know, but someone is hell-bent on trying to… t-to kill Xander. A guy named Bates.” Evan quickly summarized all he knew on Bates and the new organization. “That… fiend is after Xander mostly for one reason: his orientation. The only thing I ask of all of you, as his friends or family, is that you help keep an eye on him. Make sure he’s never left alone for too long and if you see something odd, report it to me or the police immediately. This isn’t a game, kids. And of course, don’t try to insert yourselves into the situation – it might make things worse for either Xander or yourselves.” As he spoke the last part, he looked strongly at both Conner and Mason. “Any questions?”

“We’ll need to work out a rotation to make sure Xander’s not by himself,” Mason brought up. “Are we all in your classes first of all? I have his Art class covered. And we all know lunch is okay – we’re all pretty much there.”

“I got homeroom with him,” Jess spoke up. “As does Mason.”

“I have English with him,” Ben said. He chuckled slightly. “By the way, if he gets in trouble from the English teacher… it’s probably because of me. So, sorry in advance.”

“I’ll accept that as long as my boy stays alive and out of Bates’s way,” Dad said. My other friends listed what classes they share with me and I, for the first time, fully realized I had at least one of them in every class. I even shared one class with Conner which was a relief. Evan of course didn’t – he was already college-aged and didn’t go to our high school. If Bates goes to my school, I’d have to guess that he’s a senior – he didn’t look much younger than Evan if at all.

“But what about school events?” Ben brought up. “I know he has both soccer games and some GSA-related activities. Conner, I know you’re with him at both, but are there situations where you as VP shouldn’t be with the President?”

My brother thought about it. “Not that I can think of. I usually stick by Xan at all the GSA functions. I also usually go in with him when he’s requested for a mentoring session. I think there was one time I didn’t as there were a few requests for mentoring, so I was needed to help out – the other officers sat with us in that case.”

“Okay,” Ben nodded.

Dad stepped in. “Son, I know it seems like we’re planning your life right now almost to the second you have to hit up the head, but you know it’s for you own safety, right?”

I sighed. “I don’t like it, to be honest. But,” I drew out. “I know it’s necessary. We’re all just going to have to be careful – watch for odd behaviors from people, look for little clues like someone stopping by my locker slipping a note inside. Things like that. Granted, I or Conner will have to look at the notes first if there are any – there have been a few notes from people who want to remain anonymous in regards to the GSA dropped off at my locker.”

“Make sure that no one leaves my boy’s side,” Dad said. “At least one other with him, preferably more. Safety in numbers and all that. I think that’s all I had for all of you. Now, why don’t we turn this into a slightly happier occasion and I’ll grill us up some steaks or burgers. Who’s hungry?”

Two weeks passed without incident from Bates. Since I saw him at the dance, I’ve heard nor seen nary a peep from anyone associating with him. It’s made me suspicious, but hopeful. I know I’m nowhere near out of the woods just yet with him, but so far our plan with my friends has seemed to paid off. No one has left my side since our meeting with them. I wake and go to sleep with my Mason… man, I love that boy! He’s been rather clingy as of late, but I can’t blame him. I even find it… cute. He spends the most time with me, even if I have a different escort. The only time he’s not with me is when his class is completely on the other side of the school. Even then he stays with me until he practically has to run across the campus to his class. I’ve told him not to be late on my account if someone was with me, but he heard none of it.

The only thing missing from my escort schedule is Jared. Man, he was able to stay up for almost an entire week. Granted, we had to go visit some educational site as Jared’s only way to miss the school was for his dad to tell them he was heading this way for that reason. He didn’t mind – he said it was worth it to see me again. He mentioned he might be able to come up on some of the longer holidays. I looked forward to his visit over Thanksgiving.

The last bell rang and Mason was out of his chair behind me and on my arm in a heartbeat. He didn’t do it with a suffocating thought, just a protective one. I just smiled and rest my head on my boyfriend’s shoulder as we walked the halls. After a bit, Conner joined up with us.

“Ready for the game today?” Conner asked. “I think we have a chance to take Lexington High – their record isn’t so hot.”

“You’ll need to do it without me – I can’t make the game today.”

Both Mason and Conner frowned. “Why not, babe?” my guy asked me. “If what Conner says is true, you’d probably get more field time. I wanted to watch you play for once and not warm the bench. You’d look sexy running around in your soccer kit.” I laughed a bit at the British reference.

“Yeah, what Mace said, minus the sexy bit.” I laughed even harder.

I shook my head. “I’d love to hopefully play, but I need to take care of something for the GSA. Someone wanted to talk to me, because her sister came out to the family and she’s having a hell of a time accepting it. She wants to, but for some reason she can’t get around it. Her only available time was today.”

Conner’s face became stone. “Mason, you stick to–”

“–Xander like glue. Like I haven’t already?” he laughed. “Conner, don’t worry. I have the clearance to help out anyway, since I signed up to your guys’ program.”

“I’m so glad you did,” I said brushing my hand across Mason’s cheek. “We get to spend even more quality time together.”

Conner rolled his eyes at that. “Yeah, not living together doesn’t give you enough time. Right. And I just received that deed for all of Greenland. We can move anytime now!” All of us started laughing.

“Too bad Denmark owns Greenland and not France – you could trade the deed for Jeanne,” I teased back.

“Hey, I’d do that in a fucking heartbeat and you know it,” Conner laughed a bit too, but there was a tinge of sadness to it.

“Jeanne?” Mason asked.

“Exchange student-slash-girlfriend from Ohio,” Conner said as I assumed his thoughts went to her. “Damn, I miss that girl.”

“Didn’t she tell you to keep in touch? She had to have given you her European number or something? An email address?” I asked.

“She did,” Conner said as he looked at the floor. He made the motion of kicking something down the hall. “It’s not that I don’t want to talk to her again. I’m just… afraid she’s already gotten someone else, you know? I don’t know if I could take that still…”

“Aw, Conner,” I said sympathetically. “I really hope Mason and I haven’t hurt you with our relationship – you know, reminding you of what you had and all.”

“No, you two are fine,” Conner looked up, his devilish smile plastered on his face. “I don’t need to be making kissy faces with boys.”

“Funny,” I said as I stuck my tongue out at him. I glanced at my watch. “Damn, I got to get to room two eighteen – that’s the room hosting this girl I need to talk to. And you, sir, have a game to go win. Tell the coach for me?”

“You got it… Mr. President,” Conner said as he performed a perfect military salute, about-faced, and walked towards a stairwell, out of sight.

Mason laughed. “He really gets a kick out of that. I swear he’s done that to you about fifty times now – the salute.” The hallways were deserted, no one that didn’t need to stick around long since bolted from the building. Suddenly, I started getting an eerie feeling. I looked at Mason – it seemed like he was a bit weirded out too. “Let’s… get going. The sooner we get you home, the better.”

“Right,” I nodded. We quickly walked up to room two eighteen. As we entered, the girl was leaning against the teacher’s desk. Out of habit by now, both Mason and I did a quick check of the room for anyone else – both for the girl’s privacy as well as my own safety. Satisfied no one else was in the room, I had Mason shut the door. The girl finally looked towards us and I was surprised – it was the junior from the dance. Marissa I think. “Hello, you left me that note you wanted to talk to me?”

“Y-Yeah, but I thought it’d be a one-on-one thing,” she said a bit nervously.

I smiled. “Mason is here because I asked him to be. He’s okay – he’s actually one of the other mentors in the program, so our conversation stays here. And I can guarantee it because he’s my boyfriend.” She jumped a bit when I called Mason my boyfriend, causing me to look towards him. He stood behind her and he had a frown on his face. I quickly turned back to her. “Plus, we’ve never done just a one-on-one with anyone – it’s for everyone’s safety.”

“O-Okay,” she said as she tucked her hair behind her ears. “How do we do this?”

“First,” I said calmly. “Why don’t we all sit down, get a bit more comfortable? I know what you have to talk about isn’t easy for you – I can see it on your face. I recommend that and taking a few deep breaths and just start from the beginning – your sister came out to your family you told me. Let’s start there.”

She nodded and proceeded to explain how her sister seemed to slowly growing a bit more distant over time and grades started dropping. She went on to say that her sister looked a bit nervous, after the dad made a comment about homosexuals – nothing bad, the girl reassured. But it shifted the dinner conversation to gays and lesbians, both parents expressing their sorrow about society making it harder for them to make it. That’s when the sister took a deep breath and made the plunge – she told everyone she was seeing a girl from her gym class. Both parents were a bit saddened but ultimately happy for their daughter and expressed their commitment to her.

I watched her the whole time as she recited the story, as something felt a little odd. How is it that this junior that danced with me at homecoming suddenly has a gay sister and needed to talk to me about it? I couldn’t quite place my finger on what I felt was wrong – I could just be overly paranoid – but something told me to keep on my toes. I scratched my forehead as she wrapped up.

“I-I didn’t say anything – I just stared a bit blankly. I just didn’t see it coming. I was blindsided by it.”

“Are you angry with her? Disappointed? If you can figure out what emotion her coming out is bringing out in you, we can address the issue.” She kept glancing around the room, mostly at the clock. Why was she staring at the clock? Did she have to be somewhere soon?

“C-Can we take a break? I need to take a Xanax. I’ve been anxious since this all happened and my doctor prescribed it for these events.”

“That’s fine,” I said standing. I held my hand out for her to help her up. “Let’s go get you some water from a fountain.” As soon as she tried to stand, she slipped back into the seat.

“C-Can you go get it for me?” she asked. “I guess I’m too shaken right now to stand.”

“Okay, Mason and I will–”

“N-No! I… I need one of you to stay with me. I was told until I take my medicine and get into this state I shouldn’t be left alone.”

I felt the hairs on the back of my neck prickle. Something seemed a bit… more off. I couldn’t place it nor did I have evidence to the contrary, but I guess it was just a gut feeling. I looked over at my boyfriend. I think he was having a similar experience. With great reluctance, he nodded as he headed for the door. “Okay, Mason will get you water. I’ll stay with you.” I heard the door shut behind Mason. I stood up, stretching my muscles a bit and strolled around the room. I glanced at my watch and saw we’ve been here for about forty-five minutes. I would have to remind her that this session would be over in about twenty minutes at most – the school would get closed down in thirty. I peeked through the small window in the door, seeing if Mason was on his way back. It was taking him a bit longer to get a small glass of water. What could be keeping him?

My arms were snatched behind me and zip-tied together before I knew what was happening. A funny smelling cloth wrapped around my mouth and nose. Panic started setting in – this was a set-up all along! I struggled to reach for my cell phone in my back pocket, but this girl held my arms up and away from my pants. I tried to hold my breath for as long as I could, kicking and flailing hoping to knock her off me.

“Just relax,” she whispered in my ear, almost lustfully, as blackness slowly filtered into my mind. As drowsiness filtered in, my burry eyes saw someone else enter the room. Was it Mason? Or was it… him? He seemed too tall to be my boyfriend.

“It’ll be all over soon,” Marissa whispered again into my ear. I felt her hand distantly feel up my back.

Too soon, I wanted to scream, but by then it was too late.