Trigger Warnings: mentions of abuse and rape
When they got home they warmed up the rest of the pizza and sat down at the table to eat. Aiden was in pain and Ashley could tell but he wasn't sure what to do about it. When they were done with dinner Ashley jumped up to clear the table.
“Do you want to finish that movie?” Aiden wondered.
“Sure,” Ashley agreed as he rinsed the dishes and set them in the drying rack. As Aiden went to get up he twisted the wrong way and he hissed as the corner of the table pressed into his bruised side. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, I'll be fine. The guys were just a little rough on me today at practice,” Aiden sighed, pulling up the hem of his shirt to take a look at his blackened torso.
“Oh my god!” Ashley gasped, “Do you need an Advil?”
“No, but there's an icepack in the freezer, how about you grab that and come lay with me, hmm?”
Ashley nodded and grabbed the icepack and they went into the living room. Aiden stretched out on the couch with his head cradled in Ashley's lap and the icepack pressed to his ribs, and they watched the rest of the movie. By the time the movie was over it had gotten dark out and Aiden was ready for bed, but he wasn't ready to leave Ashley.
“I do trust you,” Ashley spoke unprompted as the credits rolled. Aiden dazed up at him, not understanding where this was coming from. “Earlier, in the store, you said that you hoped I'd trust you enough to tell you about what happened, and I do.”
Aiden sat up then, and turned to Ashley, “Are you sure?” Ashley gnawed on his lip mercilessly and nodded. “You don't have to.”
“I want to, I've never told anyone before. Not even Andy knows.” Aiden kept quiet and nodded for him to continue. “My father was very controlling. After I was born he stopped letting my mother leave the house. He controlled everything she did to the point of being abusive. He would beat her into submission and around the time I turned two he started beating me as well. He would control what and when we ate and what we wore and where we slept. He didn't let me leave the house, even to go to school. I wasn't allowed any friends or toys. Most of the time when he wasn't home mom and I would spend doing house work together. Every day, as soon as he got home from work he would take me into the bathroom and give me these scalding baths. I was never clean enough. Sometimes he would scrub so hard that it gave me blisters and if I complained he'd beat me. Once, while he was out, mom ordered a pizza for us but we forgot to hide the box and when he got home he made us throw it up and beat us terribly.”
Ashley was quiet for a long time after that and Aiden thought that surely he was done. There couldn't be anything else so horrible, but he was wrong.
“When I was fourteen, Dad came home drunk one night and tried to force himself on me. Mom stopped him and he beat my mother to death. She was dead for three days before the neighbors complained of the smell and the police found her body.”
Ashley was dry eyed and stoney faced as he said this, no emotion shown through. It was as if he had detached himself from the situation, like this hadn't happened to him, but Aiden cried for him. He cried for the unfairness of it all. He cried because he didn't know what else to do. How could a child, especially one as beautiful and kind as Ashley, go through so much and still be asked to suffer more? Aiden was sure he didn't want to hear anything else, but he was also sure that Ashley needed to say it, that Ashley was never going to heal unless he said it.
“Her name was Ashley and she was the most beautiful, kindest and strongest woman I have ever met. Even when Dad beat her again and again, she stayed to protect me. She died protecting me.” Aiden pulled Ashley to him and held him tightly, reassuring himself that the boy was truly there. “My dad never gave me a name, so when DCF came and asked me, I told them my name was Ashley. Every time I hear it I'm reminded of her,” he spoke into Aiden's shoulder.
“I'm so sorry. I didn't know. I'll call you Ash,” Aiden replied, holding him tighter.
“No, I like it when you call me Ashley.” Aiden pulled away then, just far enough to place a kiss on the smaller boy's cheek. “And I like it when you kiss me.” Their lips met then, and stayed pressed together innocently for a few seconds before Ashley pulled away, a crimson blush staining his cheeks.
“Let's go to bed, yeah? Maybe tomorrow I'll take you to the mall,” Aiden offered after a few quiet minutes of just sitting together.
“I have nightmares, that's why I can't sleep,” Ashley admitted sheepishly. “When I was little my mom would lay with me. I got used to having her there.”
“Well there's plenty of room in my bed, if you want to join me,” Aiden offered, pulling Ashley up from the couch. Ashley blushed but nodded and went up to his room to change and grab his stuffed moose before going down the hall and knocking on Aiden's door. It opened to reveal Aiden in just his boxer shorts.
Aiden's room reflected what anyone would expect of a teenaged boy. It was a bit messy. The laundry basket in the corner was overflowing and his gym bag lay forgotten in a corner, but the desk was tidy and uncluttered. There were shelves lined with sports trophies and the walls were painted a soothing shade of blue. The floor was hardwood but covered by a soft area rug. Aiden stepped aside, allowing Ashley to enter and they both went to sit on the edge of his bed.
“Are you okay?” Aiden wondered. Ashley only nodded and leaned in to press his lips to Aiden's. They kissed languidly for quite some time before it escalated to Aiden pushing the smaller boy back against his pillows. His tongue prodded at Ashley's lips and they parted, hesitantly allowing Aiden to explore. His hands found their way to Aiden's shoulders and held on tightly. When they broke apart it was to breath, and Aiden sank down to the bed beside Ashley and pulled him against his chest.
“I’m not gay,” Aiden said once again, still holding him close. Ashley had no question in his mind that it didn’t matter, Aiden was there to take care of him and whether or not he wanted to be ‘gay’ wasn’t going to change that.
“It’s okay.”
“Ashley I really like you, I’m just not ready,” He sighed.
“I know,” Ashley whispered, snuggling closer to Aiden’s warm chest.
“If we’re going to do this it needs to be a secret, no one can know.”
“It’s okay,” Ashley repeated. They just laid together in Aiden’s dark bedroom and before long both of them had drifted off to sleep. When Aiden’s alarm went off the next morning Ashley woke feeling more rested than he had in a very long time.
Not sure how long it's been, it can't have been too long but I'm sure we're due for an update. I really hate the formatting on this site. Hopefully one day soon I'll have the time to sit down and figure it out. I hope you liked this chapter. Ashley's past was rough. There are still a few tidbits about it that he has yet to share. I'm leaving for Myrtle Beach in about half an hour and I'll be away for a week. I'm not sure if I'll have access to the internet while I'm there, or if I'll have time to write and upload as I'll be visiting with family.
~Dantae
