You're So Beautiful

To be completely this was hard, for the both of them.

Every small touch to Jack sent him into a fit of fear, he'd jerk away, cowering into himself and shrinking in his long limbs, pulling them into a sheild over his body because he's used to it. It's not like he wanted to. It was because his mind told him that he needed to. It was a self defense mechanism that set off in his brain every time someone went to touch him that told him "This person is going to hurt you, make yourself as small as possible.

Alex understood that, though. He was patient, oh so very patient. Especially when it came to Jack because he loves him so fucking much.

He knew about everything. Of course he had, they'd been best friends from the very beginning of high school, nearly inseparable throughout the four years and after that. And when Jack began to date the monster after high school, Alex had never had more of a bad feeling towards a person in his entire life. It wasn't that Alex was jealous, because, well, okay, he was jealous, but this was Jack's happiness and nothing mattered to him as long as Jack was happy and Jack was happy... at first.

In the beginning of Jack and David's relationship, everything was great, wonderful one could even say. But that was in the beginning. Before all the drinking and all the beatings and all the non-consensual sex.

Alex cringed as he blankly watch his lover do the dishes from his seat at the kitchen table where they just enjoyed a meal coocked by the elder. Memories from the first time Jack had admitted to Alex that David had been hurting him washed over him.
~

It'd been raining all day and all night and Alex's insomnia had gotten the best of him. As he laid awake in the living room of his flat with the television emitting a soft glow as his only light source he'd just began to doze off with an over exaggerated infomercial playing as a lullaby when he heard a knock on the door followed by the door bell and a few more hasty knock.

His eyes shot open and he glanced at the clock.

3:17

Who the fuck could possibly be knocking at his door at 3:17 in the fucking morning. Alex shrugged it off and had assumed it was his neighbours, they drank a lot and sometimes knocked on the wrong apartment door, but then he heard the distressed call of his name and he knew. He fucking knew that voice. That voice was his everything.

All off a sudden, Alex wasn't so tired anymore and he shot off of his couch, nearly tripping over his dogs as he ran to the door.

"Jack, what the fuck-" Alex cut himself off as he took a look at Jack and he wanted to throw up. There'd been blood smeared across his face as his nose bled and dripped on to his shirt. A blue black bruise was in the midst of forming over his left eye right above a long cut the reached from his mouth that stopped at mid cheek.

"I'm sorry Alex. I- I just didn't know where to go. I'm so sorry." Jack was shaking and sobbing. Alex stared at his best friend his heart breaking in the process.

He pulled Jsck into apartment and flicked on the lights. Getting an even better look at Jack and feeling his heart break even more.

He sat Jack down on a chair at the table in his kitchen as he ran to the linen closet to grab a clean rag. Rushing back to the kitchen, he ran some warm water and pushed the cloth under the running liquid dampening it.

He made his way to his best friend and kneeled down in front of him and began gently cleaning off his bloody face.

"He did this, didn't he?" Alex asked although it came out more as a statemet rather than a question. He pushed Jack's hair away from his forehead as wiped at a cut.

Jack averted his eyes, answering the question with his silence. Alex stood up towering over the younger man.

"Jack, how long has this been going on for?" Alex asked because there was a feeling in his gut that this wasn't the first time.

The younger boy remained silent, avoiding Alex's gaze which only made more anxious.

"Jack!" He begged making the younger boy twitch in fear as the tears thst he made a futile attempt to blink back began to flood down his face.

Alex kneeled down again grabbing Jack's hand feeling horrible for scaring him.

"Jack," Alex spoke much softer this time, afraid of scaring him any more than he already had, "Jack, please take to me." He pleaded but all Jack did was let out a sob as we went back into a fit of tears.

"I-I don't know Alex. A-a few months maybe. It- it's never been this bad Alex, but he was drinking- and I'd forgotten to do the dishes and- I'm so sorry for dragging you into this." Jack stumbled out. Alex shook his head feeling his throat close as he pulled his best friend into him and let him cry on him.

He gently pushed Jack away from him and tugged on his shirt lifting it up and gawking and the colourful array of bruises and cuts and scars the littered the younger's torso and Alex wanted to throw up. No one deserved this. Especially not Jack, not his Jack. Alex looked Jack into his sad eyes and pulled back into him.

Alex felt so bad because this had been going on for far too long and he didn't know and that scared the shit out of him. What if David had killed him? Alex woild have never been able to live with himself.
"I'll never let anyone hurt you again, Jack. I promise."

~
Alex was thinking about how well he'd done staying true to this promise until he was torn away from his thoughts by the sound of glass breaking. He looked up at a terrified looking Jack who stared back at him like a deer caught in headlight. A look of fear taking over his beautiful brown eyes.

"Fuck, I'm sorry. Oh my god. I'm so sorry." Jack immediately kneeled down and began sweeping up the broken glass with his hands probably cutting himself in the process.

"Jack, stop." Alex ordered, walking over to Jack and crouching down.

Tears were brimming his eyes as he tried to avoid Alex's gaze while he picked up the pieces of the now broken cup.

"I'm sorry I didn't mean too, it- it still had soap on and and I-I didn't realize. In sorry." Jack spoke, spewing a sting of profanity behind his apology.

"Jack, stop it." Alex said much softet now, pulling at his wrists, haulting them.

Jack looked up at Alex flustered and scared. He flinched away as Alex rose his hand. He slowly went to push Jack's hair out of his pretty eyes.

"Calm down baby boy. It's one glass. We have plenty more." Alex soothed pulling Jack over to him and sitting him onto his lap. "Let me see your hand." Alex mumbled pulling his hand and reveling the palm to himself. There'd been no damage aside from a small piece of glass that was now lodged into his boyfriend's hand. Alex gently pulled the glass from his skin earning a small whimper from the younger boy.

He looked Jack and the eyes and kept contact as he pulled Jack's hand to his lips and kissed the small wound. Jack smiled lightly, whiping way tears from his face and staring back at Alex

Alex pulled his hand slowly to Jack's face and caressed it. He bought Jack's face closer to his and kissed him softly on his lips.

"You're so beautiful, y'know that?" Alex mumbeld against Alex Jack's lips. Jack smiled softly nuzzeling his nose against Alex's.

"Only because you tell me everyday." Jack spoke back wrapping his amrs around Alex feeling an overwhelming sense of security from the older boy as he began to calm down.

"It's true Jack," he replied, "This world is such an ugly place, but you're so beautiful." He voiced seriously staring Jack deeply into his dark orbs.

Jack smiled and relaxed into Alex feeling so happy because he had Alex and everything was just so right.

Jack let the silence engulf him fearing that if he'd say anyting, it'd ruin the moment.

Jack felt a sense of calming belief in Alex's words even though it was hard for him to see what Alex saw. But he believed it anyways, because ever since the beginning, everything that Alex had ever said to Jack seemed to end up to be true in the end.