Take Me From This Pain, Brian's story
folder
Angst › General
Rating:
Adult ++
Chapters:
39
Views:
8,698
Reviews:
80
Recommended:
1
Currently Reading:
1
Category:
Angst › General
Rating:
Adult ++
Chapters:
39
Views:
8,698
Reviews:
80
Recommended:
1
Currently Reading:
1
Disclaimer:
This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance of characters to actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental. The Author holds exclusive rights to this work. Unauthorized duplication is prohibited.
Echoes of the past
Brian pushed his cart around the grocery store with a now-practiced ease. He was looking for the fresh vegetables that would make his stir-fry something he hoped Matt would rave about. In the months they'd moved to Boston, he'd become quite skilled at making delicious and healthy meals for his love. Tonight Trent would join them again. Brian liked having the other boy over for dinner as often as possible. It was clear that he couldn't find too many healthy choices in his school cafeteria and he wasn't good in his own apartment kitchen, and Brian also wanted to make sure he wasn't by himself.
Trent had made some friends at school but he'd told Matt and Brian he didn't feel comfortable telling them the truth about his sexuality, so he didn't feel like going out with them much, especially since they liked to frequent rowdy sports bars and strip clubs, using fake IDs to get in. Hence, Brian made a point of having Trent over as often as possible, and he even slept on the couch on many Friday nights so that he and Matt could get an early start on their regular ice hockey activities. Brian smiled to himself as he thought about how good Matt was getting at the game. He'd never thought the two would fall into such an easy friendship, but Trent and Matt seemed to like hanging out together.
"I said get over here you little FREAK!"
The sudden outburst jolted Brian out of his peaceful musings and he peeked around the large pile of grapefruits to see what was going on. A dark-haired boy as small as himself was staring nervously up at a large Latino male who held him by the front of his shirt. The man looked much older than the boy, probably in his early thirties, Brian judged quietly. The boy was shaking and sweating in the man's grip and Brian could feel the fear he emitted.
It took him back to the days when he'd still lived with Gary. The fear felt as strong and powerful to him and Brian wanted, for a moment, to curl up into a cowering ball. Funny how he'd been able to put Gary out of his mind once he'd died. Ryan had told him that it was natural for the mind to block out unpleasant memories, but that he'd need to confront them eventually. Brian guessed he hadn't really thought about what would happen when something triggered them though. Now he could see he'd been a little naïve to believe he was past it all just because his abuser was dead.
"Hey!" a balding middle-aged man, presumably a manager as he wore a green blazer with the store's logo embroidered onto the pocket. "We don't allow that kind of behavior in here, buddy. Let the kid go and get out of here!"
The man looked up at the manager with malice written all over his pinched face then back down at the boy. "Seems we're not welcome here, Nicky! Let's go!" He started walking away dragging the boy behind him.
"I said YOU," the manager called after him as he motioned to the security guard to stop him. "Let the kid go."
"He's with ME!" the angry man growled turning back around to face the manager again.
"Not anymore!" the boy piped up in a nervous and heavily accented voice.
"No?" the man looked back down at him with a hard glint in his eye. "Fine. Sleep on the streets tonight, bitch! I'll deal with you tomorrow!"
He roughly pushed the boy down and walked out of the store without a backwards glance. The boy sat where he'd dropped, silently letting fat teardrops fall down his tanned cheeks.
"Can we call anyone for you, kid?" the store manager asked kindly.
"No," the boy replied as he slowly rose to his feet.
He began heading for the door when Brian stepped out from behind his hiding place and stood in front of him.
"Hey," he said gently.
The boy drew back startled for a moment. He looked worriedly at Brian then just nodded his head and looked down.
"I couldn't help overhearing . . ."
"Yes," the boy interrupted with a wave. "I guess everyone heard."
"He called you Nicky?"
"It is Nikodemos, actually," the boy sighed. "But that name is too "˜noble' for me. Or so HE says." The boy gestured sadly to the door.
"Walk with me," Brian smiled at him as he pulled the boy by the wrist into the produce department.
"Why?"
The boy looked even more nervous now and glanced around him uncertainly. The store manager had gone back to work, but the security guard smiled at him as he walked with Brian.
"I want to get to know you," the small blonde explained. "And I don't like the idea of you leaving the store alone."
"O-okay."
Brian smiled at him again as they reached the leafy greens area. He began picking over the veggies while the boy watched him in confusion. Finally, he couldn't take the wary gaze any longer.
"Look, I know you don't know me, but trust me, I know you."
The boy's mouth dropped open and he stared at Brian with wide, fear-filled obsidian eyes.
"Relax," Brian said softly. "It's okay. I know exactly what you're going through."
"Y-you do?"
Brian nodded.
"B-but?"
"But what?" Brian asked as he finally chose a decent-looking head of Chinese cabbage. "I know what it's like to be at someone's mercy. Someone who couldn't identify "˜nice' if he stepped on it."
"Huh?"
"Nevermind," Brian smiled again as he led the boy over to the onions. "Where's your family?"
The boy looked down sadly again and fidgeted with his hands. "They are still in Greece."
"Ah, that explains the cool accent!" Brian teased. "You came over by yourself?"
"Um, no. Manny brought me with him."
"Manny?"
"That man," the boy explained in a soft voice. "He was on vacation in my homeland when we met. He told me I could find many more employment opportunities here and he would help me."
"When was that?"
"Last year," the boy shrugged. "I have not seen my family since."
"Have you called them?"
The boy shook his head and another tear found its way down his cheek. "Manny would not let me. He doesn't have a phone in the apartment and I don't have any money for a phone call outside. He doesn't let me work, and I don't have the papers anyway."
He seemed so lost and alone that Brian couldn't help but identify with him. He knew he should ask Matt first, but he couldn't just leave the poor boy here by himself, especially if that Manny character came back for him.
"Well, you could call them from my place, if you like."
The boy looked up at him with a mixture of disbelief and hope. "Really?" he asked softly. "You wouldn't mind?"
"No," Brian said cheerily. "In fact, you can stay tonight, if you want."
He noticed the troubled look on the boy's face and sighed.
"I figured from what he said as he left that you didn't have anywhere else to stay," he explained. "I know he called you "˜Nicky' but I'm guessing that's not really what you like to answer to. What did your family call you?"
"Niko."
"Well, Niko. Let's get checked out. My boyfriend should be here to walk me home any minute now."
"You . . . you have a boyfriend?"
Brian nodded with another teasing grin. "Surprised."
"A little, maybe," Niko laughed. "Does he always walk you home?"
"Most of the time and every time I go shopping," Brian shrugged. "He says he doesn't like it when I struggle with the bags."
"He sounds concerned for you."
"He likes to take care of me," Brian shrugged.
"You are very lucky."
"He's not the only one of his kind," Brian smiled mysteriously. "You could be lucky, too."
-------------------------------------
"Hey, man!" Matt greeted Trent as he opened the door that night. "Before you settle in, I need to warn you about something."
"What?" Trent asked warily as he shrugged out of his coat.
"Well, you remember how Kevin tried to match you up with Brian so hard?"
"Yeah, but we've been through this, Matt. I would never try to come between you two!"
"I know," the light-haired boy grinned. "That's not what I meant."
"Oh. Then what?"
"It runs in the family. Brian's got a surprise for you tonight."
"What?!" Trent cringed as he sat on the couch. "I told everyone I was off the blind date circuit for good!"
"Yeah, well, Brian doesn't listen."
"What am I in for?" the brunette sighed.
"Well, he's not blonde, but he is small and scared."
"Scared?"
"He trusted the wrong guy and has basically been held hostage over here for a year," Matt shrugged. "But don't get too attached yet. He'll probably want to go home when he can."
"Home?"
"He's from Greece."
"Hey, Matt, is that Trent?" Brian called from the kitchen.
"Yeah," Matt called back.
"Good, I need to talk to him."
The small blonde came bustling out and marched straight over to the couch where Trent sat nervously.
"Matt, can you go check on the, um, stir-fry? I mean it's done, but it needs to be put in a, um, serving dish."
Matt gave Trent a commiserating smile as he headed off to the kitchen where Trent assumed his "date" was stationed for the time being.
"Brian? Matt mentioned a surprise."
"He ALWAYS ruins my surprises," Brian grunted.
Trent couldn't help but smile. Brian reminded him more and more of Kevin every time he saw him. The younger blonde would have reacted the same way, had he been here.
"Look, Niko is probably way too shy to talk to you anyway," Brian explained.
"Niko?"
"The surprise," Brian went on. "And he's just coming out of a bad relationship, so it's not like I'm asking you to date him."
"You're not?" Trent was puzzled. "Then why all the hush-hush crap?"
"Because I want you to give him a place to stay for a while," the small blonde sighed. "He wants to go back home to see his family but can't go back right away because his ex burned his passport. Matt's dad is arranging things with the consulate, but you know how long goverments can take."
Trent nodded mutely.
"And I asked him to stay here tonight, but he thinks he's getting in the way. Matt and I both said he wasn't, but he's stubborn."
"Does he know I can take him?"
"He does," Brian nodded. "But we'll need to get his things tomorrow. You and Matt will probably need to be there, too. That guy's scary."
"You MET him?"
"Not personally, but I saw what he was doing to Niko in the store."
Trent's anger was slowly simmering inside him. He hated when guys picked on smaller victims.
"No problem, Bri."
The small blonde smiled appreciatively before heading back to the kitchen.
Trent had made some friends at school but he'd told Matt and Brian he didn't feel comfortable telling them the truth about his sexuality, so he didn't feel like going out with them much, especially since they liked to frequent rowdy sports bars and strip clubs, using fake IDs to get in. Hence, Brian made a point of having Trent over as often as possible, and he even slept on the couch on many Friday nights so that he and Matt could get an early start on their regular ice hockey activities. Brian smiled to himself as he thought about how good Matt was getting at the game. He'd never thought the two would fall into such an easy friendship, but Trent and Matt seemed to like hanging out together.
"I said get over here you little FREAK!"
The sudden outburst jolted Brian out of his peaceful musings and he peeked around the large pile of grapefruits to see what was going on. A dark-haired boy as small as himself was staring nervously up at a large Latino male who held him by the front of his shirt. The man looked much older than the boy, probably in his early thirties, Brian judged quietly. The boy was shaking and sweating in the man's grip and Brian could feel the fear he emitted.
It took him back to the days when he'd still lived with Gary. The fear felt as strong and powerful to him and Brian wanted, for a moment, to curl up into a cowering ball. Funny how he'd been able to put Gary out of his mind once he'd died. Ryan had told him that it was natural for the mind to block out unpleasant memories, but that he'd need to confront them eventually. Brian guessed he hadn't really thought about what would happen when something triggered them though. Now he could see he'd been a little naïve to believe he was past it all just because his abuser was dead.
"Hey!" a balding middle-aged man, presumably a manager as he wore a green blazer with the store's logo embroidered onto the pocket. "We don't allow that kind of behavior in here, buddy. Let the kid go and get out of here!"
The man looked up at the manager with malice written all over his pinched face then back down at the boy. "Seems we're not welcome here, Nicky! Let's go!" He started walking away dragging the boy behind him.
"I said YOU," the manager called after him as he motioned to the security guard to stop him. "Let the kid go."
"He's with ME!" the angry man growled turning back around to face the manager again.
"Not anymore!" the boy piped up in a nervous and heavily accented voice.
"No?" the man looked back down at him with a hard glint in his eye. "Fine. Sleep on the streets tonight, bitch! I'll deal with you tomorrow!"
He roughly pushed the boy down and walked out of the store without a backwards glance. The boy sat where he'd dropped, silently letting fat teardrops fall down his tanned cheeks.
"Can we call anyone for you, kid?" the store manager asked kindly.
"No," the boy replied as he slowly rose to his feet.
He began heading for the door when Brian stepped out from behind his hiding place and stood in front of him.
"Hey," he said gently.
The boy drew back startled for a moment. He looked worriedly at Brian then just nodded his head and looked down.
"I couldn't help overhearing . . ."
"Yes," the boy interrupted with a wave. "I guess everyone heard."
"He called you Nicky?"
"It is Nikodemos, actually," the boy sighed. "But that name is too "˜noble' for me. Or so HE says." The boy gestured sadly to the door.
"Walk with me," Brian smiled at him as he pulled the boy by the wrist into the produce department.
"Why?"
The boy looked even more nervous now and glanced around him uncertainly. The store manager had gone back to work, but the security guard smiled at him as he walked with Brian.
"I want to get to know you," the small blonde explained. "And I don't like the idea of you leaving the store alone."
"O-okay."
Brian smiled at him again as they reached the leafy greens area. He began picking over the veggies while the boy watched him in confusion. Finally, he couldn't take the wary gaze any longer.
"Look, I know you don't know me, but trust me, I know you."
The boy's mouth dropped open and he stared at Brian with wide, fear-filled obsidian eyes.
"Relax," Brian said softly. "It's okay. I know exactly what you're going through."
"Y-you do?"
Brian nodded.
"B-but?"
"But what?" Brian asked as he finally chose a decent-looking head of Chinese cabbage. "I know what it's like to be at someone's mercy. Someone who couldn't identify "˜nice' if he stepped on it."
"Huh?"
"Nevermind," Brian smiled again as he led the boy over to the onions. "Where's your family?"
The boy looked down sadly again and fidgeted with his hands. "They are still in Greece."
"Ah, that explains the cool accent!" Brian teased. "You came over by yourself?"
"Um, no. Manny brought me with him."
"Manny?"
"That man," the boy explained in a soft voice. "He was on vacation in my homeland when we met. He told me I could find many more employment opportunities here and he would help me."
"When was that?"
"Last year," the boy shrugged. "I have not seen my family since."
"Have you called them?"
The boy shook his head and another tear found its way down his cheek. "Manny would not let me. He doesn't have a phone in the apartment and I don't have any money for a phone call outside. He doesn't let me work, and I don't have the papers anyway."
He seemed so lost and alone that Brian couldn't help but identify with him. He knew he should ask Matt first, but he couldn't just leave the poor boy here by himself, especially if that Manny character came back for him.
"Well, you could call them from my place, if you like."
The boy looked up at him with a mixture of disbelief and hope. "Really?" he asked softly. "You wouldn't mind?"
"No," Brian said cheerily. "In fact, you can stay tonight, if you want."
He noticed the troubled look on the boy's face and sighed.
"I figured from what he said as he left that you didn't have anywhere else to stay," he explained. "I know he called you "˜Nicky' but I'm guessing that's not really what you like to answer to. What did your family call you?"
"Niko."
"Well, Niko. Let's get checked out. My boyfriend should be here to walk me home any minute now."
"You . . . you have a boyfriend?"
Brian nodded with another teasing grin. "Surprised."
"A little, maybe," Niko laughed. "Does he always walk you home?"
"Most of the time and every time I go shopping," Brian shrugged. "He says he doesn't like it when I struggle with the bags."
"He sounds concerned for you."
"He likes to take care of me," Brian shrugged.
"You are very lucky."
"He's not the only one of his kind," Brian smiled mysteriously. "You could be lucky, too."
-------------------------------------
"Hey, man!" Matt greeted Trent as he opened the door that night. "Before you settle in, I need to warn you about something."
"What?" Trent asked warily as he shrugged out of his coat.
"Well, you remember how Kevin tried to match you up with Brian so hard?"
"Yeah, but we've been through this, Matt. I would never try to come between you two!"
"I know," the light-haired boy grinned. "That's not what I meant."
"Oh. Then what?"
"It runs in the family. Brian's got a surprise for you tonight."
"What?!" Trent cringed as he sat on the couch. "I told everyone I was off the blind date circuit for good!"
"Yeah, well, Brian doesn't listen."
"What am I in for?" the brunette sighed.
"Well, he's not blonde, but he is small and scared."
"Scared?"
"He trusted the wrong guy and has basically been held hostage over here for a year," Matt shrugged. "But don't get too attached yet. He'll probably want to go home when he can."
"Home?"
"He's from Greece."
"Hey, Matt, is that Trent?" Brian called from the kitchen.
"Yeah," Matt called back.
"Good, I need to talk to him."
The small blonde came bustling out and marched straight over to the couch where Trent sat nervously.
"Matt, can you go check on the, um, stir-fry? I mean it's done, but it needs to be put in a, um, serving dish."
Matt gave Trent a commiserating smile as he headed off to the kitchen where Trent assumed his "date" was stationed for the time being.
"Brian? Matt mentioned a surprise."
"He ALWAYS ruins my surprises," Brian grunted.
Trent couldn't help but smile. Brian reminded him more and more of Kevin every time he saw him. The younger blonde would have reacted the same way, had he been here.
"Look, Niko is probably way too shy to talk to you anyway," Brian explained.
"Niko?"
"The surprise," Brian went on. "And he's just coming out of a bad relationship, so it's not like I'm asking you to date him."
"You're not?" Trent was puzzled. "Then why all the hush-hush crap?"
"Because I want you to give him a place to stay for a while," the small blonde sighed. "He wants to go back home to see his family but can't go back right away because his ex burned his passport. Matt's dad is arranging things with the consulate, but you know how long goverments can take."
Trent nodded mutely.
"And I asked him to stay here tonight, but he thinks he's getting in the way. Matt and I both said he wasn't, but he's stubborn."
"Does he know I can take him?"
"He does," Brian nodded. "But we'll need to get his things tomorrow. You and Matt will probably need to be there, too. That guy's scary."
"You MET him?"
"Not personally, but I saw what he was doing to Niko in the store."
Trent's anger was slowly simmering inside him. He hated when guys picked on smaller victims.
"No problem, Bri."
The small blonde smiled appreciatively before heading back to the kitchen.