Love is a Dangerous Thing

When Zack woke up the next morning Alex was already holding him so close that it was hard for him to remember he felt bad. It was nice to have Alex wrapped around him when he went to sleep but it was even better to wake up to him still being there. He liked the days when he woke up first because at night he was always too tired to really enjoy how close Alex was but in the morning he could fully appreciate how great it was to have him sleeping right next to him.

The way Alex breathed into the crook of his neck made his heartbeat pick up a little. When the older boy would move a little and their bare toes would touch he found himself shivering despite the warmth of blankets and sheets and body heat. Sometimes he would murmur quietly and Zack found himself trying not to laugh and hoping he'd get to hear the small noise again before Alex blinked awake. Occasionally he'd gently roll over, a firm hand behind Alex's head, holding it still in an effort to keep his friend asleep, just so he could study his face. But even when all he could see was unruly blonde hair it was still the best thing he saw all day.

"Watchin' me sleep," Alex mumbled, when Zack rolled them over slightly to study his face.

"Is that okay?" Zack asked hesitantly, it was kind of a strange thing to do he thought.

"Mhmm," Alex slowly opened his sleepy eyes and Zack watched him yawn quietly. "Back to sleep though, I'm tired."

"Okay," Zack rolled back over and pulled the covers up around them more before following Alex's instructions and going back to sleep. The thought of having a bad day didn't even cross his mind as he closed his eyes and fell asleep to the quiet noises of their breathing.

He was a bit more soft spoken that day, or at least that's what Alex told him, but otherwise he felt fine. Alex said he did it on purpose just to mess up his theory about when he'd have bad days. Zack didn't reply but he thought it came as a direct result of the warm feeling that came from being around Alex.

"I gotta get us groceries, Zacky," Alex proclaimed the next day after he looked through the empty fridge and pantry. "Want to come with me? I'll let you push the shopping cart."

"You're so weird," Zack rolled his eyes fondly and went to his room to change. He made sure to pull on his new beanie before they left and then headed out into the cold with Alex by his side. "Can I get a prize?" He asked once they were inside the store, Alex raised an eyebrow and he just shrugged. "If you're gonna treat me like a toddler I might as well get a candy bar out of it."

"You're lucky I don't put you in the cart but yes, you can get a prize," Alex laughed.

Slowly they made their way down the aisles picking up food for the week or the month, Zack couldn't really tell. They got one box of cereal but three things of turkey for sandwiches so it could have gone either way. The store wasn't very crowded and it was warm inside so he didn't really mind being there too much.

"Shit," Alex cursed a little too loud for being in a store and pulled Zack back before he could walk down the candy aisle to get his prize.

"What's wrong?" Zack asked seriously because he could tell from Alex's tone and facial expression that he wasn't joking around like before.

"What's the worst thing that could happen?"

"Jack." Zack quickly pulled off his hat and shoved it in his sweatshirt pocket. "What are we gonna do?"

"Hold on," Alex peeked around the corner again and then looked back at Zack with a smile that faded when he saw Zack's pale face.

"How's it going Alexander?" Instinctively Zack moved to stand behind Alex and Jack laughed at him. He felt his heartbeat pick up in his chest as Jack and Alex stared at each other, silently he decided to never leave his bedroom again. "Not even gonna say hello, Zack? That's no way to win me over."

"Don't speak to him," Alex growled in a voice angrier than Zack had ever heard from him. "Just leave, Jack."

"What if I don't want to?" Jack smirked and took a step closer to Alex, who returned the move so that they were just inches apart.

"I think you want to, Jack, I really, really do."

"But I didn't even get to talk to my best friend, Zack."

Fortunately Zack had moved out from behind Alex, instead standing behind a chip display, because he definitely didn't want to get elbowed when Alex hit Jack. It would have been a great story to hear but actually witnessing the way he hauled back and punched Jack as hard as he could terrified Zack more than anything else.

Everything got too loud and too fast after that. Zack stayed where he was and squeezed his eyes shut while he waited for it all to be over. Even with his hands over his ears he could hear every punch that connected and every insulting word Jack hurled. He heard people breaking the fight up and pulling the two apart but still he kept his eyes firmly shut. He did his invisible thing and blocked out everything to the point that he wasn't even sure how him and Alex got home he just knew the next time he peeked open his eyes Alex was wincing as he tucked him into bed. Quickly he went back to pretending to be asleep in an effort to avoid talking about what happened.

"I'm sorry, Zacky baby, I know you didn't like that," Alex whispered and then Zack felt a set of lips press against his forehead and of course Jack would ruin what could have been a great moment for him. The door to his room opened and closed a couple times and then he felt Alex lay down next to him with a pained groan and another apology. "I'll never let that guy hurt you again."

Zack laid awake long after Alex had fallen asleep beside him and stared at the bruise on his jaw. A few times he reached out a hand and traced the outline of the blue and yellow shape that stretched from under the right corner of his mouth down to the edge of his face. He ran his finger softly along the edges of the bruise until Alex would frown in his sleep and turn his head away. It looked like it hurt a lot, which led to him deciding to revoke his previous statement of liking Alex beating people up for him. He now thought that they should stay inside forever or at least until they saw an obituary with Jack's name because he never wanted Alex to get hurt again.

The time also gave him a chance to get rid of the memory of Alex looking so angry and hitting Jack so hard. That memory was scary, that made him want to be very far away from his usually soft, gentle, kind boyfriend. He spent a long while watching him sleep and remembering with every soft murmur or quiet snore that it was still the boy that made him feel warm and safe and he didn't need to be scared.

"S'posed to sleep," Alex mumbled an hour or so later when he felt Zack touching his jaw again. "I'm fine."

"You're jaw looks bad," he commented quietly as he traced the bruise for the millionth time. "Does it hurt? I don't want you to hurt."

"Buddy," Alex groaned and rolled over to rest his head on Zack's chest. "That guy could never hurt me but I'm gonna have to punch him every time he talks about you and he's never gonna not hit me back. It hurts a little but at the end of the day he has no one to take care of him and I have you so I win, okay?"

"I think your prettier too, if that makes you feel better," Zack grinned and wrapped his arms around him as Alex laughed. "I won't let him hurt you either."

"Thanks baby, gotta have someone to keep me safe, huh?"

Alex fell back asleep a few minutes later and Zack got out of bed to grab his beanie from his discarded hoodie pocket. He pulled it on and instantly felt the slightest bit better as he laid back down because there were some things Jack just couldn't ruin.