27
1636 Words
The flash of silver caught his eye in the darkened room. Crippling pain struck him, bringing him to his knees as he fought against invisible restraints. Another flash of silver came from his left, closer this time. He fought harder as footsteps reverberated in the darkness.
"Mine! All mine!" A deranged voice laughed.
Jonah's face was suddenly in front of him. The grin twisted his face into an unrecognizable mask of evil intent. His eyes were no longer green. They were black, echoing the man's deepest, darkest desire.
Him.
Fight back, he heard a gentler voice whisper. Hit him in the nose. Kick him in the balls. Do something, anything! Just. Fight. Back!
******
Jaxon woke up drenched in sweat. His entire body trembled as an involuntary scream tore from his lips. The door flew open, and his father rushed to his bedside. "What happened?"
Jaxon’s lungs burned as he frantically looked around. David took one look at his son and knew what had occurred.
"Breathe, baby boy," David whispered, pulling Jaxon into his arms. "It was a nightmare. I'm right here, Jax. Dad's here."
David smoothed the black locks from Jaxon's forehead, gently rocking him. Clutching his father's forearms, Jaxon sobbed, the burning in his lungs intensifying. Hot tears streamed down his face as his father's powerful presence surrounded him, providing a sense of peace and strength.
"Do you want me to call Markus?"
Jaxon recognized his father’s voice, but his anxiety was pulling him in different directions. His head pounded, and he closed his deep brown eyes to stop the room from spinning.
"Jaxon, talk to me, kiddo," David murmured against his son’s hair.
Hiccupping, Jaxon nodded. "M-Markus is sleeping."
"He already said if you need him to just shoot him a text," David argued softly. He kissed the top of Jaxon's head, grabbed the teen's cell phone, and sent a quick text to Markus. Less than five minutes later, the doorbell chimed. Detangling himself from Jaxon, David rose to answer the door.
Disheveled, barefoot, and still in his pajama bottoms, Markus stepped into the apartment. "What happened? You said it was urgent."
"Sorry about this, but the nightmares are getting to him. It's been a month, but he's still plagued by it," David said, stepping aside. "Just go to him. Help him sleep for the night before he ends up falling asleep beside your brother again."
"What?" Markus asked in surprise.
Smirking, David said, "He fell asleep in class yesterday. Apparently, your brother has the same habit."
"And still manages to haul passing grades out of his ass," Markus grunted.
Stopping outside Jaxon's door, he put his hand on the knob. Taking a breath, he walked inside and shut the door behind him. David watched, waiting quietly.
Then, he heard Markus's gruff voice. "Hey."
The bed squeaked under the added weight, and he heard Jaxon give a slight giggle. "You almost fell on the floor again."
Markus groaned, "Be quiet, would you? Hey, no! Come here. I know you're having nightmares, baby. Do you want to talk about it?"
"I don't know why I've been so scared since that day. It's like it was a wake-up call for me that I'm not as strong as I thought. I can't focus anymore, and I feel like I'm falling behind in school. I don't want to do online learning, I don't want to leave Lukas like that, so I'm trying to brave it."
David leaned against the wall by the door, his heart breaking for his son.
"Jaxon, what gives you strength when I'm not around?"
Now that was a loaded question, David thought in surprise.
"I keep hearing you and my father's voices telling me to fight back. Telling me that I'm better, stronger, and smarter than this,” his son replied.
"Then remember everything Russell taught you, and use it. I know it's hard, but we'll get through this," Mark said.
There was a short pause, then Jaxon's calmed voice reached David's ears. "We?"
"Yes, we. What? Did you think I'd let you fight this on your own?" Markus said with a breathy laugh. "I know I've f****d up on more than one occasion, but I'm still here, Jaxon. I'm not leaving."
Nodding, David went to his own room, and shut the door. He picked up his cell as the call from Trace came through. "Yeah?"
"He there?"
"Yeah," David replied. "He's talked Jaxon down, so my kid might actually get some rest tonight."
Trace sighed, "Poor boy got a bad scare, man. Glad Mark's doing his part to help, though. How are you holding up?"
"Well enough, I guess," David yawned. "I'm heading back to bed now."
"’M’kay, well, keep me posted, and let me know if you need anything,” Trace told him.
"Will do."
******
Jaxon woke the next morning to the sound of his alarm clock going off. The weight on his stomach lifted, and his phone appeared in front of his face. He smiled, grateful that Markus didn't complain about being woken in the middle of the night. The bed dipped as his boyfriend got up to make his way to the bathroom. A few minutes later, Markus walked back in and kissed him before reaching for the hidden duffle bag of clothes he kept at David's place.
"Morning, babe," Markus chirped. Ever the morning person, he watched as Jaxon smiled lazily.
"Come on, Erika finished her training yesterday, so she's going to be tailing you and Lukas until you two graduate. Time to get going before my brother beats down your door."
Someone banged on the door frame. "Morning, guys, let's go. Phoenix called a team meeting to introduce us to the new guard."
"Who let you in?"
Lukas grinned. "David. Who else?"
Jaxon laughed, relaxed for the first time in weeks. "Guys, don't fight. Lukas, can you toss me a clean shirt?"
Without a word, Lukas opened the dresser and threw a light blue shirt onto the bed. Moving to the color-coded closet, he grabbed a pair of black jeans and threw them at Jaxon's head.
Hard.
"Imagine my shock this morning when I found out he was here snuggled up with you for the night. Did you lose my number or something?" Lukas asked Jaxon jokingly.
Markus frowned at his brother's attitude. "Lukas!"
Lukas scoffed, "Chill out, bro, I'm too straight to be remotely interested in your man. It’s just that he normally calls me, so I’m a little put out."
Jaxon rolled his eyes. Shoving his legs into the jeans, he stood to do them up. "Lukas, I didn't message him. My father did. I didn't want to bother either of you because it was so late."
Snatching the throw pillow he always grabbed, Lukas whacked his best friend with it. Markus snaked a muscular arm around his brother's waist to pull him off his feet. "Let me go, Markus! I gotta teach him a lesson! Didn't want to bother us, my ass. You just didn't want us to see you in a moment of pure weakness. Admit it, Jaxon."
The tips of Jaxon's ears burned as he looked down at his feet. "You're right."
Both brothers stopped, staring at Jaxon in awe. Jaxon looked up, resigning himself to his fate. "I didn't want you to see me messed up like that. I didn't want you to know how bad it was for me because I didn't want you to worry. You're one of the few people who can read me so well that you don't even need to try."
Markus let his now calm brother go and stared disbelievingly at his boyfriend. "You realize how genuinely stupid that sounds coming from someone with a 140 IQ, right? I'm your boyfriend, he's your best friend. It's our job to worry, Jaxon."
"Yeah, I know. Can we go now? Dad's probably got breakfast served."
After breakfast, the trio made their way to their group, who were all standing next to Phoenix's Jaguar in the parking garage. Hugging the girls, Jaxon smiled at Erika.
She looked so nervous, but it was her first day. Wiping her hands clear of the clamminess, she forced a smile, and said, "I was told to introduce myself to your team, Sir."
Phoenix laughed, "Calling me 'Sir' is for formal meetings, not get-togethers in the garage. On that note, guys, this is Erika. She's going to be tailing Luke and Jax while the rest of us get through our hectic lives. Red, behave."
"I'm not doing s**t, Boo."
"No, but you're thinking about it. You’re my bestie, and I know you almost as well as I know myself," he replied with a smirk.
Kennedy rolled her eyes, “Yeah, whatever.”
Jaxon grabbed Erika by the arm, hugging her close. "I never got to say thanks for what you did."
"I wasn't expecting any kind of thanks, to be honest. Um, how are we getting to school?"
"My car," Jaxon answered, jingling the keys in front of her face. "Luke, your turn to drive, man."
Erika bit her lip, "Jaxon, I just wanted to let you know that I am sincerely sorry that Jonah wasn’t stopped before things went down the way they did. He’s dead, and I no longer have to deal with death threats from him or my step-mother. In reality, I should be thanking you for setting me free of that gilded cage I was living in."
As they walked to his car, Jaxon breathed a little easier knowing that she wasn’t pissed at him for how her life turned out. “You’re welcome to hang out with us anytime, you know.”
“Sure you won’t mind?” Erika asked.
“Did you need an engraved invite?” Lukas countered as he slid into the driver’s seat.
- Writer
