Boys Will Be Boys

School hasn't let out yet, which is a good thing. That's where I'm headed. It's the only place I know where to find Kevin and I do need his help. I have an idea about what I'm going to do for Raegan and I think it's a pretty awesome idea. I figured since my father's always wanted another son, and due to my mother's absence he couldn't have one, that if a situation arose where Raegan needed to be 'kidnapped', we could just take him under our wing. Of course that means Raegan and I would have to be extra careful. Although my father is far from a homophobe, he's not exactly accepting of it either. So I'll say Raegan is my "dirty little secret".

I round to the corner to the school and take out my phone. It's 1:30. Third block lets out in another fifteen minutes. I quickly walk my way up the front entrance, being thankful that once I enter the school, no one acknowledges me. So I just walk my way to my third block class that I share with Kevin and Raegan. Once I'm outside the door, I stand the side where I can;t be seen. Looking at the clock, I have about five minutes till the bell rings. So I wait.

The bell rings and students start filing out of the classroom. I watch them until I find the kid I'm looking for. I spot him and pull him aside. He freaks.

"Whoa! What the-"
"Kevin."
"Oh, lord. Afton, you scared the living daylights outta me, man!"
"Sorry, bro. But listen, we need to talk."
"About?"
"Raegan."
His eyes widen in shock. "You went to go see him, didn't you?" I nod, he gulps. "H-how did he look?"
"Horrible. His dad really got him good. But this isn't about how he looks at the moment. This is about this future safety. Do you understand?" I listen to the words flow out of my mouth and realize how much I sound like a commanding general.
His pierced tongue snakes out to glide across his lips. "I do."
"Well come on and drop that crap off in your locker so we can go. I need to run a few things by you that I don't want others to hear." He nods his understanding and leads the way to his locker.

When he's finished, I stop by mine and grab what little crap I know that I need. Then we head outside to his car. I get in the passenger side and he revs up the engine. We wait through the normal after school traffic. Within ten minutes of pure silence we arrive at what I assume is his house. We get out, he walks me through his house and into his room, then we take a seat on his bed.

"Spill it." He demands, turning to me.
"Well, you and I both know how bad Raegan's got it at home."
"Yeah. His dad's a real "B" if you know what I'm saying."
Yeah. I know all too well. "I want Raegan to come stay with me if it happens again."
"Are you serious? You barely know him."
"Yes, it's true. But I care for him."
"Well if you're sure that's what you want, then what does it have to do with me?"
"I'm going to need your help. Raegan's father can't know a thing about this. And if it happens again and for some reason Raegan can't get to me, but he can get in to or in touch with you, I need to know that I can trust you'll keep him safe and bring him to me. Okay?"
"I'm Raegan's best friend. If you can trust anyone with that, it's me."
"Okay, Kevin. My trust lies with you."

I hope I haven't made a huge mistake. Raegan's my baby. I can have him hurt any longer. But now that I'm done with Kevin. The next stop is.... My dad.

Raegan

When I wake up, I'm alone. Not that I expected him to be with me. God only knows what would have happened if my dad come home. I get up out of bed and find some clothes. It takes a bit of effort to get them on. Once I'm fully dressed, I get situated on my bed. I plug my iPod into the radio and let the music play. Before long, my phone rings. I don't recognize the number, but I pick answer it anyway.

"Hello?" I ask.
"Hey." I hear Afton say.
"Whew, it's only you."
"What do you mean?"
"I thought it was a prank caller or my dad."
"Oh." He laughs. No babe. Just me."
"So what's up?"
"Not much."

And it goes about like that for a little. I don't mind. Just hearing his voice makes me happy. I lose track of time as I become more engrossed in the conversation. We're basically just saying things about ourselves and life. We've talked about school, friends, our mothers. Although conversations like that are like putting salt in a wound, Afton makes it so much easier to deal with. He understands.

But if I hadn't been talking to him for so long, I would have heard my dad come in. If I hadn't been laughing I would have noticed my door opening. If I wasn't dating a guy, I could have prevented the next event.

My dad hits me again. Afton can hear everything. My shouts and pleas for him to stop. But he doesn't. My cries are helpless. And in addition to the pain I feel from taking blow after blow, I feel humiliated. I cry out Afton's name in the process, hoping he's hung up. And daddy doesn't like that. So he kicks me in the ribs, telling me what a worthless queer I am. And it doesn't stop. How many more times is he going to hit me?

Afton, save me.