BETELGEUSE

CHAPTER 5

John went to fetch a glass of water for him, then helped Sky sit up, leaning against his back to support his body. After John made him drink the water, he looked at him with deep concern and asked:

John: "Are you okay?"

Instead of answering verbally, Sky slowly lifted his shirt up and showed John the fresh marks left on his body, weeping quietly as he spoke:

Sky: "They are giving me pain. Do something."

John tried to calm him down and said, "Ok! You lay here. I will be back after one minute."

After saying this, John stood up from the bed, made sure Sky was lying down comfortably, and left the room. After just one or two minutes, he came back holding a tube of medicine in his hand. Sky was lying on the bed, feeling completely numb and not even realizing who was coming or leaving the room. John gently kept him shirtless and carefully started to apply the cream onto his painful wounds.

Sky winced and cried out, "Ahh! It is hurting more."

John tried to comfort him, saying, "It will be okay. I am with you."

To cope with the sting, Sky grabbed a piece of John's shirt and put it in his mouth, biting down hard so that he could bear the intense pain. After some time passed, John softly murmured that it was all done. Hearing this, Sky adjusted his body to rest in John's lap and quietly fell asleep right there.

The next morning, when John woke up, he noticed that Sky was still fast asleep beside him. He leaned down and gently kissed him, but the touch woke Sky up, causing him to panic from fear.

John quickly reassured him, saying, "It's me. Don't get scared."

Sky let out a heavy sigh of relief.

Sky: "I thought it was fatherAfter that, Sky got up, dressed, and went downstairs. He was relieved to find that his mother had already come back from her trip and was waiting for them at the table for breakfast. The rest of the morning felt like just a normal day. They left the house to go to school to study, but while they were preparing to return home later that afternoon, John told Sky that he had to go early to his job. Because of this, Sky would have to walk home alone. Sky nodded his head to show he understood, said goodbye to John, and parted ways.

Instead of going straight home, Sky went over to the lakeside, found a bench beside the water, and sat down. He put on his headphones and started to listen to his favorite song, but while he was listening, the calm atmosphere caused him to fall into a deep sleep. When he finally woke up, he looked at the time and realized with a shock that it was already 9:00 p.m. He scrambled up and hurried toward his house as fast as he could. When he finally reached home,he saw his father standing right at the door, while his mother stood nearby, looking at him with utter helplessness in her eyes. Before anyone could speak, his father grabbed collar and made him pushed inside the house. He started beating Sky.

Father: "I told you he spends time with boys and he takes money for his time."

Sky snapped back, "Then show me the money."

His father demanded, "Give me your bag."

Father took his bag and started to check it thoroughly. In the last pocket, Father found some money. He looked up at Sky and said:

Father: "Where did this money come from? I did not give it to you. Mmm. Tell me. See, I have told you, and I have proved it."

Sky turned to his mother, crying as he pleaded, "Mom, it is not true. He is just making you against me. He is so bad. Leave him."

His father flew into a rage and shouted, "How dare you to say bad about me!" He then started beating Sky with his full force.Meanwhile, John was just outside of the home when he suddenly heard the loud shoutings coming from inside. He rushed into the home and saw his father beating Sky while cursing him. Horrified, he ran straight towards his father and stopped him.

John: "Don't dare to touch him."

Father defended himself by saying, "Why are you defending him? See this money. Where did he get this money from? I did not give it to him. Then ask him."

John stepped in front of Sky and confessed, "I—I gave him money."

His father looked at him, confused, and asked, "Why?"

John looked him dead in the eye and declared, "Bcz I love him and we will get marry soon. So you both have no rights to ask him about where is ...he going and where is he coming from, and don't..."

By this point, blood was actively coming out of Sky's mouth and nose due to the harsh beating. John turned away from his parents and said gently, "Sky, come with me."

Right before leaving the room, John turned back to his father one last time and warned, "Don't you ever dare to touch him again."

After saying this, he took Sky along with him to his own bedroom. Once they were inside, John carefully cleaned Sky's face and asked him to get some rest. However, Sky told him that he wanted to go back to his own room instead. John respected his wish, helped Sky lay down on his bed, and left the room to give him space.

By 12:00, Sky's forehead was completely covered in sweat, his legs were shivering uncontrollably, and his eyes were heavily teary. Unable to bear it any longer, he jumped from his bedroom window.An hour later, John came into Sky's room to check on him, but after not finding him there, he immediately got worried. He quickly checked the bathroom, the changing room, and even the store room. After failing to find him anywhere inside the house, his anxiety grew, and he came outside with the thought that Sky must have gone out for a walk. John checked all the nearby streets but couldn't find him anywhere, until he finally reached the back street.

There, he found Sky lying motionlessly on the ground with blood coming out from his head and body. Panic-stricken, John lifted him up in his arms and urgently called an ambulance.

Later, when Sky finally woke up, he found himself in a hospital room. John was standing right by the side of his bed with his head resting down on the table, crying softly with quiet sounds.

Sky called out weakly, "Ja... Jagiya."

John looked up instantly and asked with a broken heart, "Sky, why did you do that? Why have....you tried to end up your life," John said, crying heavily.

Sky looked at him sadly and replied, "I know my mom will curse me for this. And I don't want it," while gently placing his hands inside John's hands.

John choked up and asked, "And what about me? You did not think about how I will live without you. You are..."

Sky interrupted softly, "Miyane (I'm sorry). I know I should not do that, but I was so confused and frustrated."John squeezed his hand and said, "I thought you have me. You can talk to me if anything was bothering you."

Sky nodded tearfully, "Yes, I can. But I was frustrated that I can't understand what to do, and I tried to sleep but I can't. All these things were revolving around my mind. I was—"