Devil May Love

Gaibriel was sitting in the same place Judy usually sat when she waited for a cab to pick her up. This struck Jullien as funny and he was smiling as he approached the younger boy.

"Hey there, stranger," he said when he got within a few feet of him.

Gaibriel jumped a little but returned Jullien's smile with a small one of his own. "H-hey..."

Taking a seat beside him, Jullien nudged him with his elbow and grinned. "Come on, stop being so shy. We're friends, right?"

This was apparently the wrong thing to say. Gaibriel's shy smile faded and he cast his eyes down to the concrete below them. Jullien was worried he was going to clam up and opened his mouth to say something, nothing coming to mind. After a few seconds of silence, Gaibriel spoke softly, still not looking at him.

"Sometimes... I think you're magical."

Jullien blinked and closed his mouth. That was certainly not what he had expected to hear from him. He was sure to keep his voice soft when he spoke again. "Why would you think something like that?"

"You know things." His response was immediate but just as confusing. Jullien was completely lost. Gaibriel started speaking again before he could ask him to clarify. "It's funny... you mentioning friends. That's why I called you."

Jullien smiled brightly. "You met some friends? That's wonderful, Gaib!"

Gaibriel shook his head just enough to make his hair move a little, the long dark locks falling from behind his ear and blocking Jullien's view of his face. He didn't push it back. "My dad found out. He punished me, forbade me to talk to them anymore." He paused, then shrugged a little. "I don't have a choice."

Jullien was torn. He wanted to hug Gaibriel, tell him it was okay and at the same time he wanted to shake him and demand he get himself out of that house. He decided to avoid both, mainly for fear of running into the other. "Gaib... Is there something I can do?"

Another soft shake of his head. "I... I shouldn't come see you anymore." Gaibriel's voice dropped to almost a whisper. "I should throw away your number and forget I met you."

Jullien wanted to interrupt him and tell him he was being ridiculous, but Gaibriel's words were steadily getting faster and he couldn't get a word in edgewise.

"After he beat me... I was going to. I was going to go in my room and get rid of everything... the pictures I drew in class, your number, the letter Amanda passed to me in school, all of it. I found Amanda's letter first; the one with your cell phone number on it. I even balled it up."

He paused here but Jullien didn't speak. Gaibriel brought his hand up, tucking his hair back behind his ear. There was a light blush on his cheeks that Jullien couldn't help but find endearing. It made him want to touch it just to feel the slight heat. He didn't.

"The more I held it," Gaibriel continued, slower now, "the more I wanted to hear your voice... and to keep my friends... The more I wanted to... to get out." He looked up at Jullien finally and there were tears in his eyes. "You're my only way out."

Jullien couldn't have been more shocked if Gaibriel had slapped him. He knew that Gaibriel was more than just an average angsting teenager. His problems were serious; dangerous even. He hadn't been stupid enough to overlook that. What he had overlooked was the possibility that Gaibriel would start needing him like that... depend on him. Look up to him, even. He was thunderstruck. He knew he should say something, knew that Gaibriel was waiting on some sort of answer but he didn't have one to give.

'I've gone completely stupid,' he thought, a small part of him slightly amazed. Jullien was social, to say the least. He was the type that always knew what to say, how to act, when to move. No one had ever managed to catch him so off guard that he went speechless. No one except a seventeen year old boy with a blush on his cheeks, tears in his eyes, and a whole heap of problems.

Gaibriel finally looked away, blinking a little faster. "I'm sorry," he said, his words a little unsteady.

Jullien was aware that his silence had most likely caused him to start crying. Mentally kicking himself, Jullien forced his brain out of its stupor and into action. If someone was crying, you comforted them. Jullien reached out, placing his hand on Gaibriel's shoulder softly. "Hey, Gaib... Don't cry. Please."

Gaibriel didn't answer or look at him. Jullien cursed a little under his breath, afraid he'd caused the boy to lock up again. He moved closer to him, slipping his hand off his shoulder and around his back, holding him a little. "Gaibriel... Listen I'm -"

"Don't call me Gaibriel." A quick pause. "Please. I... I like it when you call me Gaib."

Jullien nodded, glad that he was talking again. "Gaib, then. Don't be sorry. You just took me by surprise. That's all." Jullien wanted to say more, but he had nothing to say. Beyond comforting him a little, he knew he wouldn't be able to assure him of anything without lying. And he refused to lie.

He gasped a little when Gaibriel turned suddenly in his arms, wrapping his arms around Jullien's waist and hugging him tightly, crying almost silently. Jullien froze again, then slowly brought his arm around the shaking boy, patting his hair a little awkwardly, unsure of what to make of the sudden outburst. They stayed like that until Jullien felt Gaibriel's shaking fade. He moved, pulling back to see his face, wanting to know if he was still crying.

His face was wet, but there were no new tears rolling down his cheeks. Jullien gave him a small smile and, slowly, Gaibriel returned it.

Time seemed suddenly to be going impossibly slow to Jullien. Gaibriel's cheeks still carried that soft blush and the tears made his eyes sparkle in the lamp light. Some of the hair around his face had gotten wet from his tears and it fell in a few strands over his eyes. Jullien reached up to brush it back. He'd meant to put his hand down right after but somehow, he was trailing his fingers slowly down Gaibriel's cheek. A rational part of his brain yelled at him to stop that nonsense but too much of him wanted to somehow help Gaibriel, to make him feel just a little better... Gaibriel's eyes had closed and his soft lips were parted just a little. This close, Jullien could feel his breath. Warm and slightly faster than his own.

When he started to lean in, that rational part yelled again. Gaibriel was seventeen, jailbait by all standards. It didn't matter that he was probably more mature than even Jullien himself or how much he needed something good in his life. But Jullien barely heard it. He'd never wanted to protect someone like this. The closer he got, the more he wanted to just hold Gaibriel forever, keeping him away from all the abuse and hurtful words. Maybe he could even show him life. Fun. Maybe even love.

Gaibriel sighed softly just before Jullien's lips touched his. When Jullien hesitated just a moment, Gaibriel lifted his head, pressing his lips against Jullien's softly but intently. There was no denying he wanted to be kissed and that was suddenly enough for Jullien. Nothing else mattered. Laws or beliefs or standards... They disappeared as soon as Gaibriel's lips were on his.

Jullien could feel Gaibriel's hand gripping his shirt as the dark haired boy tightened his arms, pulling them closer. Jullien was barely aware as his own hand slipped into Gaibriel's dark hair, tilting his head a little. When he felt Gaibriel's lips part, the world was gone. He didn't feel the cold concrete steps he was sitting on, or hear the traffic. There was only Gaibriel's soft kiss, tight embrace and warm body. Jullien had parted his lips as well and his tongue slowly ran along the inside of Gaibriel's lips. Taking the hint, he opened them wider and Jullien moved to push his tongue into his mouth. Gaibriel made a small noise when their tongues touched and pressed himself even harder against Jullien.

And then, someone exited the building, letting the door slam behind them. The sound seemed to slam Jullien back to earth and that rational part of his brain was throwing a hissy fit. Jullien jerked away from the kiss, his eyes wide.

'What the fuck am I doing,' he asked himself even as he apologized to Gaibriel. "Oh god, I'm sorry... I'm so sorry." He moved out of the embrace, putting a few inches of space between them.

Gaibriel's blush was deep red now but he was still smiling. "No, Jullien... Please. It was oka-"

Jullien just shook his head, not letting Gaibriel finish. "No, I really shouldn't have. Oh, god what I am doing? Judy's gonna kill me..."

Gaibriel's smile faded slowly and his voice was soft again. "I thought you were gay?"

"Huh? I am."

"But... you're talking about Judy like she's your girlfriend."

Jullien laughed. "She acts like it. You'd have to meet her." And then he remembered what Ma had said. He could take Gaibriel there while he tried to figure out what the hell to do. He was in desperate need of a distraction and this was perfect. "You want to meet her," he asked, doing his best to make his smile look genuine. "Her mother really wants to meet you. Amanda's there too. You can talk to her and explain what's going on. You know, why you can't talk to her at school."

Gaibriel's eyes widened a little, taken by surprise at the sudden turn of events. "I- Jullien, I'm not so sure I should..."

"Oh, come on. Gaib!" Jullien was silently begging every force in the universe for help. "Her mom is the nicest lady. She's almost like my own mom. I even call her Ma."

"Will she... you know, try to go to the police?"

Jullien shook his head. "Not unless you ask her to. I was at her place eating supper when you called. She asked me to bring you over so she could meet you. She assured me that she'd never do anything to put you in danger."

Gaibriel glanced down at the watch on his wrist. It was almost midnight. He took a shaky breath, gathering his courage before he nodded to Jullien. "Okay but I can't stay long. It's going to take me at least thirty minutes to walk home from here and I need to be asleep by two."

Jullien nodded and stood up, offering a hand to Gaibriel. "Got it. Come on, let's get going. If you're really nice, she might even let ya have some of her cookies." Jullien winked as he pulled Gaibriel to his feet and led him to the car.

The ride there was silent and even though Jullien knew it was most likely because Gaibriel was scared, he was grateful for it. His mind raced in circles and he almost missed the turn into Judy's driveway. He parked right behind Judy's father's car and turned to face Gaibriel. The boy was sitting with his head bowed, his hand clasped in his lap. Jullien smiled and tucked his hair behind his ear again. "Don't be so nervous, Gaib. C'mon, let's make you some friends." Without waiting for his answer, Jullien got out of the car.

'Probably shouldn't have done that either,' he thought as he rang the doorbell. Gaibriel was standing behind him. When he slipped his cold hand into Jullien's, he didn't pull away and even gave it a little squeeze as they waited.