Love Conquers All
by Flaming Matt
Chapter 8
November 2015
"Why can't I go home?" Peter asks in a surprised and confused tone, it had been a day since his friend had said he couldn't go home after he had told him that he could the night before, so now that he was doing it again, he was starting to get frustrated and suspicious.
"You can go whenever you want to Peter, you just have to go outside and walk home." Jarred responds in a measured tone, as one the part of him wanted to just knock the other boy out or something, while the other part of him wanted to follow through with the plan, which to his ever growing concern, was not turning out to be as easy as he thought it was, especially after hearing some things from his friends and knew that he needed to keep the other boy thinking that he was a good friend.
"I know, but you keep telling me that it's not safe, but how can it not be safe?" Peter then states in a frustrated tone, after deciding that he didn't want to keep hiding how he was really feeling anymore.
"Because people are distracted Peter, you know, because of that guys funeral that I told you about and it's a big deal to a lot of people and Alex is better now, well enough to take advantage of people being distracted and I just think you should wait until after the funeral." Jarred answers with a reassuring smile, while trying his best to sound genuinely concerned for the other boys safety.
"I don't want to spend another three days here though Jarred, it's boring and scary when you go home, I don't like it." Peter then states, before getting up and stretching his legs a little bit.
"Scary? You aren't a fucking baby Peter." Jarred then quickly snaps in response, before flinching a little as the other boy looks at him in shock and he couldn't help but worry that he had just ruined the entire plan.
"I er..." Peter then starts to say, before trailing off for a few moments. "I forgot that you're a prick sometimes, even though you keep reminding me." He then decides to say, after sitting back down and sighing in frustration.
"Huh?" Jarred quickly responds in a confused tone, after hearing the other boys words and couldn't help but wonder how he had somehow avoided ruining the plan a few moments earlier.
"I don't know, it's just I want to go home and I still don't see why I can't, but I trust you and well if you think I should wait, then I will, but I still think er... well I don't know." Peter answers as honestly as he can, he was a little scared of his friends harsh response a few moments ago, but he had made it clear since he woke up, that he was a prick and not that great a person, so decided that he wasn't in any danger and it was just his friend being himself.
"I just want to make up for not believing you in the first place Peter, I mean I don't apologise for believing my best friend over you, because friends trust each other, but I'm sorry that you got hurt because of it." Jarred then decides to state in a quiet tone, before looking down at the floor and when he feels his knee being squeezed, he knows that he has somehow managed to get away with his slip up earlier.
"I don't blame you Jarred, but I still can't believe he would do that to me." Peter then says in a thoughtful tone, he had remembered a lot in the past few days and while he was still not clear on his friendships, he knew what Alex looked like now and despite being afraid of him and not wanting to ever see him again, he remembered a few things that were a little confusing to him now.
"What do you mean you can't believe he would hurt you?" Jarred quickly asks in a surprised tone and can't help but worry that the whole plan might have been for nothing and with the things he had heard from his friends, he was starting to get nervous about what will happen to him, especially since the older boy who had helped him with the whole plan, was being very distant now.
"Well er... I don't know, we were friends and well er... you know, if he like loved me and stuff, why would he hurt me?" Peter responds as he looks at his friend to see what he says and while he trusts him, he still couldn't help but be a little confused by the things that he had been remembering about Alex.
"I thought this would happen." Jarred then decides to state in a slightly frustrated tone, after somehow composing himself enough to realise that the other boys confusion could work in his favour.
"Thought what er... huh?" Peter quickly asks in a confused tone and just stares at his friend wondering what he meant.
"You're remembering things about Alex and some of the stuff he made you do together." Jarred answers with a sympathetic look, that he hopes will help him twist the other boys memories to suit the plan and make whatever trouble he knows he is going to get in, still worth it.
"Oh." Peter states in a subdued tone and while he knew that his memory was almost completely back now, it had confused him and especially how he felt about Alex, because it was going against what his friend had been saying.
"Just because you felt good Peter, doesn't mean you enjoyed what he made you do, you came to me for a reason and he did hurt you." Jarred then says in a caring tone and again could only hope that he somehow got out of this mess, because he knew that he was in deep trouble if the other boy realised that he had been lying to him all this time.
"I know, but how could er..." Peter then begins to respond, before pausing for a few moments, after realising what he was just about to admit. "It felt fun." He then says in a slightly meek tone and can't stop himself looking down at the ground in embarrassment.
"Well yeah, you're just remembering bits of it Peter and well naked stuff is a little fun, it doesn't mean you enjoyed what he made you do though, because you didn't." Jarred quickly responds with a nervous look, which he doesn't bother to hide since the other boy was looking at the floor.
"But if I thought it was fun, then why didn't I like it?" Peter then asks in a confused tone, before looking up at his friend again.
"You mean why didn't you want to be his boyfriend?" Jarred asks in a serious tone, after deciding to change tactics a little bit and could see that the other boy still seemed to trust him.
"I guess so, I mean I know he hurt me and I don't like him Jarred, but if he was being all nice at first and it was fun, well I don't get it." Peter answers honestly and while he didn't want to see the other boy ever again, he still wanted to understand his memories and what they meant.
"Just because it was fun, it doesn't mean you have to be his boyfriend and be in love with him Peter and he didn't like that and he hurt you." Jarred responds in a serious tone, while having to work hard to hide his relief at coming up with a way out of this conversation.
"Sorry for being stupid Jarred, I know he is a bad person, but the things I remember are really confusing sometimes." Peter then admits in a frustrated tone and while he trusted his friend and knew that he'd put himself in trouble to help him, his memories were just so confusing and he hoped that by talking about it, it would help him understand them.
"Do you like me, I mean do you like think I look good and stuff?" Jarred then states in a serious tone and has to try his hardest to not make and mistakes and give away his true intentions.
"Huh?" Peter quickly responds in a confused tone, as he looks at his friend, wondering what he is talking about and how it has anything to do with what they were talking about.
"Well you're confused about your memories, so let's play strip poker and you will see that just because it's fun, it doesn't make you gay or mean that you have to be someone's boyfriend." Jarred responds in a confident tone, after deciding to take a bit of a gamble and hopefully stop the other boy from remembering the truth about what actually happened.
"Like er... well er... you want to play for real?" Peter then asks in a surprised and unsure tone, although it would definitely help him figure his confusing memories.
"Well it will be a little weird and I've never really played it before, but if it helps you believe that Alex hurt you, then I will play." Jarred responds partially honestly, he hasn't actually played strip poker before, but he has seen a few videos and even though he didn't really want to play, he needed to do whatever he could to keep the other boy believing that Alex was a monster and a creep.
"Okay." Peter then says in a slightly quiet tone and while he did believe his friend about everything, he wasn't quite sure that he wanted to play and there was something in the back of his mind that was bothering him, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it and assumed that it was something to do with Alex and the horrible things that he had obviously done to him.
"Right, put some other clothes on, so that we have the same amount on and I will get the cards ready." Jarred then quickly states in a slightly more excited tone than he was going for and can't help but blush a little bit, after realising that he was actually looking forward to this, but quickly shakes off those thoughts and finds the cards, before waiting for the other boy to put some socks on and a jumper.
"What are you doing?" Tobias asks in a curious tone, after walking out the back door and seeing his brother sitting on the side of the pool looking a little upset. "Ben?" He then says in a concerned tone, after getting no response the first time and quickly looks around to see if his other brother was around.
"Aren't you meant to be with Lily?" Ben asks in a subdued tone, after seeing his brother sitting down a few feet away from him.
"I'm going to go in a little while." Tobias answers in a thoughtful tone, before glancing at his brother for a few moments. "Is it about your mum?" He then asks in a caring tone, after thinking about the day before and how sad his brother had looked when he was talking about his mum to their friend and couldn't think of any other reason that he might look this sad for.
"What? How the... oh." Ben then states in a surprised tone, before sighing in defeat and although he couldn't believe his brother had guessed right, he was feeling too down to even smile at how intuitive his brother seemed to be.
"I didn't like talking about my family either, but it's worse for you and well, I can text Lily to say I will be late, you know, if you want to talk about it." Tobias then offers in a sincere tone and while he was looking forward to spending the day with his girlfriend, his brother was more important and especially since he didn't know where his other brother was or why they weren't together right now.
"What? How is it worse for me, you lost everyone." Ben then quickly states in a surprised tone, before seeing his brothers face drop a little. "Oh shit sorry, I didn't mean to... shit..." He then states in an apologetic tone, before trailing off and putting his head in his hands.
"Where's Matt?" Tobias then asks in a slightly strained tone and while he knew his brother didn't mean to say what he did, it still hurt a little to be reminded that he lost everyone, even if he did mention it a few moments earlier himself, it was different to actually be told that he lost everyone.
"I don't know, probably just worrying about anything other than how I'm feeling." Ben responds in an almost bitter tone and despite knowing that he was being harsh on his fiancé, he was still annoyed and frustrated with him for not picking up on the fact he was hurting inside and just needed some love and attention from him.
"Just because you're feeling sad, doesn't mean you're allowed to say stupid things Ben." Tobias then states in a serious tone, after thinking over his brothers words and deciding on the best way to approach this conversation.
"You've been spending too much time around Wesley." Ben then states with a little shake of the head and despite wanting to snap at his brother for what he said, he was just too down to get angry at him and instead, he decided to let himself get distracted by how much his brother just reminded him of their friend.
"Matt loves you though and you're getting married, so you're still being stupid Ben." Tobias then states, after deciding to push the issue and not let his brother brush his comment off, even if it did help him cheer up a little bit.
"It's not stupid to want your fiancé to see that you're hurting and talk to you about it Tobias." Ben then says in a frustrated tone, before sighing and kicking the water with his feet.
"Where is he then?" Tobias decides to ask, after trying to think of how to respond to what his brother just said and coming up with nothing.
"In our house, I've been out here for ten minutes and he still hasn't come out to see me." Ben answers in an annoyed tone, although he couldn't help but wonder why his fiancé hasn't come out, he had stormed out and was obviously upset, so he thought his fiancé would have at least come out by now to see where he was and if he was okay.
"Maybe he saw you here from the window and just wanted to give you some space or something, you know, to cool down and stuff." Tobias then says in response, before tensing up a little bit, after his brother turns and glares at him.
"Cool off? Fuck off Tobias, I'm upset and he should..." Ben begins to retort in an angry tone, before feeling his brothers finger against his lips and despite wanting to carry on, he can't help but stop talking, his older brother had done it so many times it had just become a habit to stop talking when someone put a finger to his lips.
"Sorry, but I'm here and I want to help." Tobias says in a sincere tone, before removing his finger from his brothers lips and giving him a loving look.
"Thanks, but you have a date and I just want Matt to hold me Tobias, I need him." Ben responds in a sad tone, before looking back down at the water and sighing.
"I'm going to go get him." Tobias then says in a firm tone, before getting to his feet and turning towards his brothers pool house.
"If he wanted..." Ben then quickly begins to say, before just as quickly being interrupted his brother.
"Maybe he is just being stupid like you." Tobias states in a serious tone, before turning back towards the pool house and while he knew it was a little mean, he thought his brother would respond better to a bit of tough love.
"Fine." Ben then states in a quiet tone, as he watches his brother walking towards the pool house.
"Tobias, time to go Honey." Sarah calls out, after walking out the back door and seeing her son walking towards the pool house.
"I just need to..." Tobias then starts to respond, before being interrupted after turning to look over to his mum.
"No excuses Tobias, get your cute little bum over here now, you're already going to be late, so get a move on." Sarah states in a firm tone, before turning and walking back into the house and while see would normally let him have a little longer, he had been talking about this date for days and convinced her to make him a picnic for it, so she wasn't going to let him get distracted and end up being late for it.
"You should go Tobias, she wasn't messing around." Ben then decides to say, after looking up to his brother and seeing the hesitation on his face.
"You should just go and see him, you two never fight." Tobias suggests as he gives his brother a sympathetic look and knew that he should do something, but he also knew that his mum wouldn't come out and drag him to the car if he didn't get a move on and just felt useless.
"Just go Tobias, I'm going to swim for a while and then I will think about going and talking to him." Ben then says in a tired tone, before getting up and slowly stripping down to his underwear.
"I'll call you later." Tobias then says in a worried tone, before reluctantly walking back to the house and again, while he knows that he should stay, he just had no choice and just had to hope that his brothers would be okay.
"You could at least say sorry." Carter states in an angry tone, after picking himself off the floor and staring coldly at his boyfriend.
"And you could fuck off and give me some peace and quiet." Wesley retorts in a pissed off tone, before sitting down on his bed and looking down at his feet.
"I could, but you're being such a pathetic prick, it would just be doing you a favour." Carter quickly retorts himself and despite what happened and the way his boyfriend was talking to him, he can't help but find his expression now slightly amusing.
"Just go home Carter, I'm tired of seeing you and you just need to go." Wesley then states in a frustrated tone and while there was a big part of him that was happy his boyfriend wasn't listening to him, he really did just want to be alone and was hoping his boyfriend would just go.
"If you want to be alone, go take a bath, it will give me a chance to clean your room." Carter then decides to suggest, after giving his boyfriend a long stare and realising that maybe he did need to give him a bit of space.
"For fuck sake Carter, why can't you just go home?" Wesley asks in a fed up and frustrated tone, although as soon as he looks up at his boyfriend, he knew that he wasn't going anywhere and quickly sighs in annoyance.
"You seriously want me to answer that?" Carter retorts in a firm and serious tone, while giving his boyfriend an unimpressed look.
"Fine, but I need space Carter, I don't like you crowding me." Wesley responds in a slightly calmer tone, before sighing again at his boyfriends expression. "Seriously Carter, I just need some space and just... please Beautiful?" He then states in a pleading tone, before wiping his eyes and sniffling.
"Okay, but you owe me an apology later for what you just did, I know you're hurting, but if you do that again, you'll be sorry." Carter responds in a serious tone, with a look to go with it, before rubbing his side a little and while he knew his boyfriend wasn't trying to hurt him, he was starting to pick up a few bruises and grazes and he was worried that someone might see them and get the wrong idea.
"Oh god, I didn't hurt..." Wesley then begins to say in a horrified tone, after seeing his boyfriend rubbing his side, before being quickly interrupted.
"Not now Wesley, have your bath and then your space, then you can apologise and you better mean it Wesley, because it's not the first time you've hurt me, even if it is accidentally." Carter states in the same serious tone that he had been using for most of this conversation, he was still annoyed with his boyfriend and despite knowing he needed to be careful not to upset him, he wanted him to know that he was going too far.
"Sorry I keep pushing you away." Wesley then says in a meek tone, before getting up and walking towards his bed room door.
"Just go Wesley." Carter responds a lot more harshly than he intended. "Look, I love you Wesley and I'm here for you, but go get your head sorted okay." He then quickly says in a sincere tone, after seeing the hurt in his boyfriends eyes and knew that he had to do some damage control and avoid causing him any more grief than he was already feeling.
"Sorry." Wesley responds in a meek tone, before turning and walking out of his room and towards the bathroom.
"You look pretty." Tobias says with a big smile, after waiting for his girlfriend to walk over to him and despite his concern for his brothers, he couldn't help but be amazed at how pretty she really was.
"You're so sweet Toby." Lily responds with a sweet smile, which quickly turns into a slight frown, after seeing his expression and she couldn't help but wonder why he seemed annoyed.
"My name is Tobias, I don't like any other names Lily." Tobias then decides to say in a serious tone and while he knew people shortened names and some people liked it, he didn't like people doing it to his name and he wanted her to know that and not do it again.
"Oh, well I like Toby, but I like Tobias more, it's a really nice name." Lily responds with another sweet smile, before giving him a quick peck on the cheek and couldn't help but find the way he always blushed when she did that adorable.
"This is a nice place." Tobias then says with a shy smile, before looking around and despite it just being the park, it was a special part of it that his friends had showed him and he was hoping she would like it too.
"I like all the flowers and it's nice and quiet Tobias." Lily responds with a smile, before reaching out for his hand and then looking at the basket he had with him.
"I have your favourite sandwiches and cakes." Tobias then says in a shy tone, after noticing her looking at the basket and while he didn't make them, he was hoping it would still impress her.
"I've never been on a picnic date before Tobias." Lily then says with a smile, before watching as he starts to unpack the basket and just like he had said, she could see that they were her favourites and couldn't help but be impressed that he had remembered her telling him.
"I asked my mum and she said picnics are romantic." Tobias responds with a smile, before quickly blushing after realising what he had just said and while he liked her and they were boyfriend and girlfriend, he knew what romance was and what it meant and he was a little worried that she would think he was trying to tell her something, especially after both his brothers and friends had told him to not do or say anything stupid.
"You don't have to be shy or blush Tobias." Lily then says in a caring tone, before leaning across the blanket and giving him a quick kiss on the lips. "Is that apple juice?" She then asks in a surprised tone, after noticing what else he had taken out of the basket and again, she couldn't help but be impressed that he would remember what her favourite drink was.
"It's my favourite too." Tobias answers a little sheepishly and although he knew that it was stupid to be embarrassed, he couldn't help it and was just hoping that he would start relaxing soon.
"What else do you like?" Lily then decides to ask, after realising that maybe she hadn't been trying as hard as her boyfriend had obviously been doing, to get get to know more about him.
"You really want to know?" Tobias quickly asks in a surprised tone, after thinking about all the things his brothers and friends had told him about girls and wondering if this was some kind of trick.
"Of course, why wouldn't I?" Lily asks in response, while giving her boyfriend a curious look and wondering why he was questioning her sincerity.
"Because you're a girl and girls only like talking about themselves." Tobias answers honestly, before looking at his girlfriend in confusion, after seeing her starting to frown and again found himself wondering if this was some kind of trick or joke.
"Let me guess, Jordan told you that right?" Lily then asks in a less than impressed tone, after taking a few moments to think about what her boyfriend had just said and decided that it would be unfair to be angry at him, especially given everything he had been through.
"Did I er... me say stupid thing?" Tobias then asks in a meek and embarrassed tone, before blushing as he realises how he just sounded.
"Hey, it's okay Tobias, I'm not angry." Lily then quickly says in a soft tone, before quickly moving over and embracing her boyfriend, she knew how self conscious he was about how he talked and wanted to reassure him as quickly as possible.
"Me not er... stupid, stupid, me stupid..." Tobias then starts to answer, but as soon as he realises how he is talking still, he starts to cry and just felt pathetic.
"Sshh, Sshh Tobias, it's okay and I'm not angry and I don't care if you mess up your words." Lily then says in a sincere tone, while rubbing his back soothingly and despite being surprised at just how quickly he had gone from happy to this, she also knew that there was a lot going on and that wasn't just about the way he was talking. "I love you and..." She then begins to say, but trails off after feeling him trembling and knew that she just had to let him calm down himself.
"Still no sign of Matt then?" Sarah asks in a half curious tone, after walking into the kitchen and looking out into the back garden to see Ben still swimming on his own.
"I know they don't fight much, but I think something must have happened." Mike responds in a calm tone, after looking up from the table and seeing her looking out of the window.
"Do you think we should get involved?" Sarah then decides to ask, after turning around and giving him a warm smile.
"I think if it was serious enough, then you would never have been able to get Tobias to leave Sarah and besides, they're engaged now and they don't need us getting involved." Mike responds honestly and while he didn't like seeing his youngest son unhappy and upset, he didn't think that it was a serious falling out and they were probably just cooling off before they made up.
"I still can't believe they got engaged though Mike, at their age I was only just starting to notice boys." Sarah then says in a thoughtful tone, before looking back out of the window to watch the young boy swimming lengths.
"And there was me thinking you girls had your weddings planned out from the moment you could start talking." Mike responds teasingly and can't help but smirk a little bit at her expression, after she had turned around to look at him.
"Careful Mr Walker, I would hate for your sons to somehow become aware of a certain collection that their father has..." Sarah quickly starts to retort, before being interrupted and she can't help but smile at how quickly she had turned the tables on him.
"Okay, okay Sarah, you win." Mike quickly states with a slightly embarrassed grin. "But in all seriousness, I'm happy for them Sarah and it's still at least five or six years away, so it's not like they're rushing into anything." He then decides to say in a warm tone, before standing up and joining her by the window.
"And they love each other so much Mike, I know it was a shock for you to find out that Ben was gay and that he already had a boyfriend at first, but just seeing them together is enough to know that they belong together." Sarah responds with a smile, before frowning a little bit. "I wish they wouldn't swim in white underwear." She then says in a slightly frustrated tone, after seeing Ben lift himself out of the pool and realising that he wasn't wearing speedos.
"Well at least he wasn't skinny dipping Sarah." Mike responds, before frowning a little bit. "Okay, I get your point." He then says with a shake of the head, after watching his youngest son walking away from them and seeing just how transparent his white briefs were, as they get a clear site of his bum in all it's glory.
"I think after yesterday, we're safe from that for a long time Mike." Sarah states in response, before deciding to walk over and sit down at the table.
"Maybe from those two, but we still have to talk to the budding nudist about that Sarah." Mike then points out, before grinning at the look on her face and knew that she had forgotten about Tobias and his behaviour when it came to the use of the pool.
"Ah, Tobias, I don't think I will ever be able to work out what goes through his mind sometimes." Sarah then says with a shake of the head, as she thinks about her son and just how unpredictable he was.
"I think you're making the right decision about going to see Maggie by the way." Mike then says in a slightly hesitant tone, after deciding that while they had the house to themselves, this was a good time to talk about it.
"I just hope it doesn't backfire Mike, with the letter and the phone call, I'm still worried about the consequences." Sarah then says in response, as she watches him sitting down opposite her at the table and while she didn't want to talk about it, she knew that this was probably the only chance they would get without being interrupted.
"Gordon wouldn't have said what he did, unless he believed her Sarah and we both know that he isn't being biased." Mike responds in a serious tone, after thinking about what their friend had told them and despite being just as worried about the threat that they received, he felt like they had to talk to Maggie and get her help.
"I know, but I still don't like it." Sarah responds in a frustrated tone, before sighing and looking towards the back door, which then suddenly opens and she can't help but be a little surprised.
"What are you doing Ben?" Mike quickly asks in a confused and concerned tone, after seeing his youngest son walking through the door with his clothes in his arms.
"I need a shower and these need to be washed." Ben responds in an almost robotic tone, as he starts to walk past the table and towards the hallway.
"Here?" Mike then asks in a surprised tone, it wasn't like neither of the boys ever showered in the house, but it was rare and knowing that they had obviously had a falling out, had him a little worried that they might need to intervene.
"Yeah." Ben responds quickly, after giving his dad a quick glance, before carrying on towards the door and walking out of the room.
"Okay, now I'm a little more worried." Mike then says in a concerned tone, after watching his youngest son disappear from the room looking so unhappy.
"Me too Mike, but we can't interfere every time they have a fight." Sarah then says in an understanding tone. "Don't look at me like that Mike, you were right earlier and we have to just give them both space." She then states with a wry smile, after seeing the surprised look on his face and knew what he was thinking.
"I just hate seeing them unhappy Sarah, especially with everything going on..." Mike then begins to say, before looking up in surprise as he is interrupted.
"Mike, let's go in the living room and talk about something else, there is nothing we can do and I would rather have a little while where we can sit and relax for a change." Sarah decides to suggest, after having enough of the serious talks for one day and wanting to relax for a little while, while they had the chance.
"Well budding nudism aside, I wouldn't mind talking about his girlfriend and what they're up to right now." Mike then suggests in response, after getting the hint that she would prefer to talk about something more light hearted and he thought Tobias would be the perfect subject for that, especially since he was on his first ever real date with his girlfriend.
"He was so adorable when I suggested a picnic and I'm actually a little surprised that he seemed to know so much about her." Sarah says in a warm tone, before getting up and following him into the front room.
"I still can't believe after spending so much on your present, he went and upstaged me with a framed picture." Wesley states in a warm and loving tone, after walking back into his bedroom and seeing his boyfriend sitting on his bed and looking at the gift their friend made him for his birthday.
"You know I loved yours the most." Carter responds in a slightly tense tone, after being a little startled by his boyfriends voice, as he hadn't heard him walking into the room.
"I know, but he pretty much nailed it with that and the fact he made it himself, it's just awesome." Wesley then says in the same kind and caring tone, before edging over to his bed and sitting down a few feet away from his boyfriend, who he could tell was a little tense and knew that it was his fault.
"He still wears the elastic band I gave him the first time we met most of the time." Carter then says with a sigh, before slowly looking over to his boyfriend and couldn't help but take note of how far away he had sat from him.
"I'm sorry for..." Wesley then begins to say in an apologetic tone, before trailing off for a few moments. "For everything and even though I know you won't, I wouldn't blame you for going home." He then finishes, after looking into his boyfriends beautiful violet eyes and seeing the sadness in them, which actually worried him and made him realise that he had really messed up this time.
"You pushed me to the floor Wesley." Carter then states in a sad tone, before looking away from his boyfriend and back to the framed picture his friend had made him for his birthday.
"I don't want to be a monster." Wesley responds in am ashamed tone, after realising that even though he had every right to be angry and upset, he had no right to take it out on his boyfriend, especially in a physical way and he could tell that his boyfriend wouldn't keep putting up with it for much longer.
"You aren't a monster Wesley, you're just hurting and I should give you more space than I have been giving you." Carter then responds in a reluctant tone and straight away he can see the worry in his boyfriends eyes after glancing up at him and while he wanted to reassure him, he wanted to hear what he had to say for himself first.
"I don't want you to go though, I know I keep pushing you away, but I don't really want you to go Carter, I need you." Wesley then quickly states in a panicked tone, after realising that he might have actually made his boyfriend give up on him and he could feel himself starting to shake, before suddenly feeling himself being embraced.
"I'm not going anywhere you moron, I just meant that I need to give you a bit more space when you're upset and not try to crowd you so much." Carter states in a serious but caring tone, after seeing his boyfriend jumping to the wrong conclusion, although he couldn't really blame him for misunderstanding and kicked himself mentally for not being more clear.
"I love you Beautiful." Wesley then says in a sad tone, before sniffling a few times and while he didn't like crying, he couldn't stop himself.
"I know and I love you too and I'm not going anywhere, so just try not to keep taking it out on me okay." Carter responds in a caring tone, while gently rubbing his boyfriends back with his hands.
"I'm going to try talking to my mum and dad again later, you know to give them another chance." Wesley then says in a less than convinced tone, after managing to compose himself enough to talk again.
"Want me to be with you?" Carter asks in response, after remembering what he had said about giving his boyfriend more space and not crowding him so much.
"Yeah, but I er... can you just like er... hide outside the room and just come in if they start er... you know, doing what they normally do." Wesley responds in a hesitant tone, after trying to figure out if he wanted his boyfriend with him or not and hopefully not upsetting him in the process.
"Well I'm not hiding, but I will wait at the bottom of the stairs and only come in if they start acting like idiots." Carter responds with a caring smile, before leaning in for a quick but loving kiss.
"Love you." Wesley then says with a little grin and despite the fact he didn't deserve it, he was hoping his boyfriend will give him some affection and was hoping the fact he had just kissed him, was a good sign.
"Love you too, but we're not going to do anything Wesley." Carter responds with a genuine smile. "We can kiss, but nothing more okay and I mean it." He then states in a serious tone, after seeing the look on his boyfriends face and even though he knew he needed a little affection, he was still a little annoyed and hurt by his boyfriends earlier behaviour, to do anything like that for a while, well at least until tonight anyway.
"Thanks for not hating me." Wesley then decides to say from the heart, before letting himself be pushed on to his back and despite wanting to be in control and ripping his boyfriends clothes off, he was more than aware that he had hurt his boyfriend and was happy to let him set the pace and decide what they would do together.
"I don't like crying." Tobias says in a slightly embarrassed tone, it had been a while since he stopped crying, but even though they had started eating, he was still feeling a little self conscious about breaking down like he did, especially in front of his girlfriend.
"I would rather have a boyfriend who showed his emotions, than one who hides them and pretends to be all er... well er... like a arrogant person or something like that Tobias." Lily quickly responds in a sincere tone and even though she didn't quite say it the way she wanted to, she could see him starting to smile and knew that she had done enough to at least reassure him a little bit.
"Really? You don't think it's silly for boys to cry?" Tobias then decides to ask in a hopeful tone, because although he knew crying was natural and something everyone did, he couldn't stop himself worrying that she would think that he was stupid and pathetic.
"Everyone cries Tobias and besides, I think you're perfect just the way you are." Lily quickly responds sincerely, before leaning forward to give him a quick kiss on the lips.
"More juice?" Tobias then asks with a shy smile, while also blushing after being kissed like that and even though he had been kissed loads of times by his friends, they never made him blush like his girlfriend did and he couldn't help by smile even more.
"Yes please." Lily responds with a smile, while staring at her boyfriend affectionately, she just loved how polite he was and she really loved how unpredictable he was as well, which surprised her a little bit, as she normally preferred to know exactly what was going to happen, but there was just something about him, that made her smile and feel happy.
"Lily?" Tobias then asks in a nervous tone, after pouring her some more juice and putting the bottle back in the basket.
"Yes?" Lily responds in a curious tone, before taking a few sips of her drink and wondered what he was going to come out with this time, as she had come to learn that whenever he said someone's name like that, he could come out with anything and it was more often than not, pretty funny.
"You won't show anyone that photo will you?" Tobias then asks in the same nervous tone, because he knew that even though he had a right to ask, he also knew that he might upset his girlfriend and he didn't want her to think that he didn't trust her.
"I already told you that I wouldn't Tobias, you can trust me." Lily responds with a smile and while this wasn't quite what she was expecting him to ask, she was happy to reassure him, although she had already told him that she wouldn't show anyone else, after accidentally letting slip that she hadn't actually deleted the picture he had sent her of himself naked.
"Not even Ashleigh? I don't want her to see my willy and stuff." Tobias then asks in a more serious tone and even though they had already had this conversation, he was still a little paranoid and knew that the picture could cause him a lot of problems and embarrassment.
"She won't, I wouldn't do that to you Tobias, I promise." Lily responds honestly and while she could just delete it and put his mind to rest, she just couldn't quite bring herself to do it and she really liked the picture and he hadn't actually asked her to delete it anyway, so until he did, she was going to keep it.
"You er... well er... you like my willy and..." Tobias then begins to say, before blushing brightly and holding his hand over his mouth, after realising too late what he was going to say.
"You're so adorable when you blush." Lily decides to say in a bemused tone, after taking a few moments to compose herself, after yet again hearing her boyfriend coming out with something completely random and embarrassing. "It's okay Tobias, I won't tell anyone what you just said, not even Ashleigh, so let's have some of that cake, because it looks really nice." She then says in a warm and caring tone, after seeing the look on his face and knew that she needed to reassure him as quickly as possible.
"Me not like saying stupid stuff." Tobias then says, before sighing again at the way he was talking, but when he feels his knee being squeezed, he quickly relaxes and smiles appreciatively at his girlfriend.
"Everybody hates saying stupid stuff Tobias, but I'm your girlfriend and you don't have to get embarrassed around me okay." Lily quickly responds with a reassuring smile, while gently rubbing and squeezing his knee affectionately.
"We can go for a walk and feed the ducks after we eat, I have some bread for them." Tobias then decides to suggest, after realising that he really didn't need to be embarrassed around his girlfriend, who knew all about the things he had been through and even had a naked picture of him and she still wanted to be his boyfriend.
"That sounds nice." Lily responds with a sweet smile, before watching as he cuts her a slice of cake and places it in front of her on a plate. "Thank you." She then says, after seeing him smiling at her and again just found herself feeling impressed with how sweet and caring he really was.
"We can do some kissing too, I like kissing." Tobias then states with a straight face, although he can only manage to stop himself giggling for a few seconds after seeing his girlfriends expression.
"You're so funny." Lily states in a half sarcastic tone, after hearing him giggling and realising that he was trying to be funny and despite her best efforts, she couldn't help but start giggling herself and after seeing him breaking down earlier, she was happy to see him having fun and she really thought he looked handsome when he was happy.
"Everything all right Ben?" Mike asks in a cautious tone, after seeing his youngest son appear in the doorway and not quite being able to read his expression.
"Where are you going?" Ben asks in a curious tone, as he ignores his dads question and focuses on why they were both dressed like they were going out somewhere.
"We're going to the Gilmar's for a couple of hours Ben." Sarah answers in a soft tone, after noticing the look on the boys face and knew that he had noticed how they were dressed.
"Why?" Ben then asks in a slightly surprised tone, not only because he couldn't see why they would go there, but also because that would mean that they were leaving himself and his fiancé home alone, which they had made a point of avoiding since the weekend, well for long periods of time anyway.
"We have to talk to Gordon about some important things and we both want to see how Alex is doing." Mike answers as honestly as he dared, after giving Sarah a quick glance and seeing that she wasn't sure how to answer either.
"Did Mitch come home?" Ben then asks in a curious tone, after thinking that his brother must be home, otherwise they wouldn't be going anywhere and leaving them home alone if they were going to be gone for more than a couple of hours.
"Oh right, well no Ben, but we called Erica and she will be here in a little while, so you won't be alone for long." Mike answers in a slightly surprised tone, after being caught off guard by the question and taking a few moments to respond.
"Why not wait until she gets here?" Ben then asks in a suspicious tone and while he didn't see why they needed an adult with them during the day, it was a little odd that they were going to be doing that now, even if it was for a short time and he couldn't help but wonder what was going on.
"Because we've been a little over the top these past few days Ben and we know you don't need someone watching you all day and you will be fine on your own for a little while." Sarah quickly answers in as confident tone as she could manage, after realising how strange it must look for them to not wait for Erica to arrive before leaving, especially since they had been over protective of the boys since the weekend.
"Why ask Erica to come over then?" Ben then retorts and while he didn't want to start an argument or anything, he was suspicious and wanted to find out what was going on.
"Like Sarah just said Ben, we've been over the top, but at the same time, after what happened to your friends and Jim, we would just feel a lot better, if we knew someone was here with you boys." Mike answers honestly and this time he doesn't have to bend the truth and could see that his youngest son seemed to be happy enough with that answer.
"Fine." Ben then states with one last curious look, before turning back around, but as he starts to walk down the hallway, his dads voice stops him in his tracks.
"Is everything okay Son?" Mike asks in a concerned tone, after giving Sarah a quick glance and seeing her looking just as confused as he was by his youngest sons behaviour.
"Yeah, I'm just going to make some sandwiches and a couple of drinks." Ben answers without looking back into the room, before edging further down the hallway and then out of sight.
"Maybe we should wait until Erica gets here." Sarah suggests in a thoughtful tone and while she knew they had to talk to Gordon, the tone and body language Ben was giving off, was worrying and she didn't want to leave him alone.
"It's fine Sarah, he's making sandwiches and some drinks, so he's obviously going to take them to Matt and you know them, there is no way they can stay angry at each other for long." Mike responds in a more confident tone than he was actually feeling inside, although after saying the words, it did reassure him enough to stand up and hold out a hand to help her up to her feet as well.
"I know, but come on let's go before I change my mind." Sarah responds with a small smile and even though she actually wanted to go and check on her son, she knew that they needed to leave now and she knew that she had to stop being so overprotecting, otherwise the boys would definitely start asking questions that she didn't want to answer.
"They will be fine." Mike then states again, before leading her towards the front door and opening it.
"You did something didn't you?" Wesley asks in a suspicious tone, after walking back to his room with his boyfriend walking in behind him.
"What are you on about?" Carter asks in response, as he gives his boyfriend a genuinely confused look and really had no idea what he was talking about.
"My mum and dad, you talked to them, didn't you?" Wesley asks in response, before giving his boyfriend a loving smile, after seeing him frown a little bit and getting his answer already.
"I talk to them all the time Wesley." Carter answers in a slightly tense tone, after realising what his boyfriend actually meant and even though he seemed to be okay, he knew how unpredictable he was at the moment and decided to stay standing after his boyfriend had sat down.
"I'm not mad at you, you moron, but you did, didn't you?" Wesley then asks again, as he reassures his boyfriend that he wasn't going to get angry with him, after seeing him standing a little awkwardly and quickly working out why.
"Yeah, but it wasn't a big talk or anything, I just sort of talked about things and tried not to be too obvious." Carter answers honestly, before slowly stepping between his boyfriends legs after he had opened them and held out his hands, which he took as a good sign and despite still being a little nervous, he wasn't going to let those feelings stop him from being there for his boyfriend.
"I don't think I would be gay for anyone else Carter." Wesley then states with a loving smile, before frowning as he thinks over what he just said and couldn't help but blush, especially after seeing his boyfriends expression.
"I love when you're being a moron." Carter then says in a bemused tone, after deciding that his boyfriend was trying to say something romantic and just messed it up completely.
"And I love being your moron." Wesley quickly responds with a big smile, before feeling himself being pushed down on to his back and knew that he didn't mess it up that time.
"And I'm never letting you go." Carter then says from the heart, before kissing his boyfriend deeply and passionately.
"You're so adorable." Lily says in an amused tone, as she watches her boyfriend trying to pat himself dry and despite not wanting to laugh at him, she was really struggling to keep her composure.
"It's not my fault, it attacked me." Tobias states in an annoyed and frustrated tone, as he tries in vain to dry himself and salvage whatever little dignity he had left.
"It was a duck Tobias, they don't attack people." Lily responds in amusement and she couldn't help but giggle at the look on his face and despite knowing it was a little mean, she just couldn't help herself, it was just too funny.
"It flew straight at me." Tobias protests in a serious tone, before realising that she was laughing at him and despite feeling a brief moment of hurt, he couldn't help but start giggling himself, after taking a look at himself and thinking about what actually just happened.
"I can't wait to tell your brothers and friends about this, it's going to be so funny." Lily then teases with a grin, after managing to compose herself and almost loses it again when she sees him somehow turning even more red than he already was.
"You can't, please, you can't." Tobias quickly responds in a pleading tone, after realising how embarrassing it would be if anyone else found out what happened and he knew they would tease him relentlessly.
"I don't know, it's really funny and your brothers and friends would really want to know about this." Lily states in a playful tone and while she was a little worried that he could get upset, she could tell that while he was clearly embarrassed, he was also taking it well and seemed okay.
"But, but er... please?" Tobias quickly pleads in an almost desperate tone, before changing tactics and quickly gives her his best puppy dog eyes instead, in the hope of convincing her not to tell everyone what happened.
"Oh wow." Lily then says in a slightly stunned tone, after seeing her boyfriends expression and despite already thinking he was handsome and adorable, he just looked like a little angel now and she could feel her heart beating faster and faster.
"Yey, I love you and thank you." Tobias then quickly states in a relieved and happy tone, after thinking that he had done enough to convince her, although as soon as he steps forward to give her an appreciative and loving cuddle, her hand on his chest stops him dead in his tracks and he quickly realises that he had celebrated a little too early.
"No, I'm not falling for that, no matter how adorably cute and sexy you're Tobias, you're going to have to do something better than that to convince me not to tell anyone about this." Lily states in a serious tone, although she was again struggling to hold herself together after seeing his face drop and while it wasn't quite as adorable as his expression a few moments ago, it was pretty close.
"I er... I will er... please?" Tobias says in a pleading tone, after trying and failing to think of anything to convince her to keep it a secret.
"Come on Tobias, don't worry, I'm sure they won't tease you that much." Lily then decides to say with a small grin and while again she was worried that he could get upset, she also wanted to see if she could get something from this and was secretly hoping he suggested something like kissing, because she definitely enjoyed when they kissed.
"I er... I will let you see me naked, like really naked." Tobias then offers in a desperate tone, before quickly holding his hands over his mouth after realising that not only were there people nearby, but also how inappropriate that was and he could almost hear his brothers lecturing him already about not saying or doing anything stupid like he had just done.
"Really?" Lily responds in a surprised tone, although half of the surprise was the fact she wasn't telling him that he didn't have to do that, because that is what she had intended to say and she couldn't help but be a little confused as well, because these new feelings she had been having recently, were getting more and more intense, especially when she was around her boyfriend.
"Er... well er... I'm not meant to do that, but er... if you want to er.. you know..." Tobias then begins to respond in a confused and awkward tone, before trailing off for a few moments. "But not here, I'm not getting naked where people can see me, not again." He then adds with a shy smile, after remembering not only what his friends and family had told him, but also what had happened with the girls in the park all those months ago and knows that he has to not let that happen again.
"Oh wow." Lily then says in a quiet tone, before looking at her boyfriend carefully for a few moments. "But you don't have to get naked for me Tobias, I was just messing around with you and I won't tell anyone about what happened, I promise." She then says in a sincere tone, after deciding that while she definitely wanted to see him naked in the flesh, they were only twelve and she didn't like the idea that he was only doing it because she was practically blackmailing him into it.
"I don't?" Tobias quickly asks in a surprised and relieved tone, after taking in his girlfriends words and while he would have gotten naked for her, he knew what his brothers would say to him and he was glad that she was giving him an out.
"Well one day, but we're only twelve Tobias and well it's really okay, we can just enjoy sitting down somewhere nice and you can dry out in the sun." Lily suggests in response, after hesitating for a few moments, as she feels herself being tempted to take him up on his offer, but she knew it was wrong and she really wouldn't be able to forgive herself if she took advantage of him, he was too special to do that to and seeing the relieved and happy smile on his face now, made her decision even more worthwhile.
"Is it okay if I take my top off?" Tobias then asks, after relaxing a little bit and while he knew he had almost done something stupid, he was happy to move on now.
"You don't need to ask my permission Tobias, but let's find a nice spot to sit down for a little while first, we still have some more food and drink in the basket and we don't want to waste it." Lily suggests with a warm smile, before holding out her hand and smiles when she feels his hand wrapping around it.
"Next time, I'm going to make everything myself." Tobias then says, as they start making their way to a more comfortable and private place to sit down together.
"You're going to try and make a cake?" Lily asks in a surprised tone and while she doubted it was rocket science, she was still surprised that he wanted to make it himself, she didn't think many kids would want to do that, let alone a boy.
"Mum said that she will show me how and help me." Tobias responds with a smile and a slight blush. "Matt and Ben cook for each other sometimes and I want to do it for you too." He then adds in a shy tone, as they continue to walk around the lake and despite being a little distracted by the way his girlfriend was looking at him, he couldn't help but notice how quiet it was and could only see a couple of other people around.
"Oh my god!" Lily then call out in a scared tone, after stopping in her tracks and pretending to be afraid when she sees what is in front of them.
"What? What's wrong?" Tobias then quickly asks in response, before looking around for anything dangerous and getting ready to defend her.
"It's... it's... it's a duck, Tobias run, it's looking right at you, run!" Lily quickly calls out in response, before playfully running away from the duck with her hands in the air.
"You're not funny!" Tobias states in an unimpressed tone, after seeing his girlfriend stopping and turning back towards him with a big grin on her face and even though it was annoying, he was struggling not to grin, especially at how happy his girlfriend looked, which always made him feel happy inside.
"It's still looking at you." Lily then states in an amused tone and while she could see him trying not to smile, she knew that he was finding it funny as well and couldn't resist teasing him a little bit more.
"No it's..." Tobias begins to respond, before suddenly crouching down and swatting his hands around his head. "Go away, get away, you stupid duck, go away." He then calls out repeatedly, as the duck continues to fly around and dive at him.
"Oh my god!" Lily states in a stunned tone and while she knew it was mean, she couldn't help but begin to laugh at her boyfriend again, especially when the duck lands and begins to peck at his legs and feet.
"I gave you bread." Tobias then calls out in a frustrated and embarrassed tone, as he tries to fend the duck off, while at the same time trying not to hurt it, which was proving harder and harder to do as his embarrassment begins to rise even more.
"Tobias, be..." Lily then suddenly starts to say, before trailing off and giving him a sympathetic look. "Careful." She then finishes, after seeing him slipping over and ending back up in the lake for a second time and just sitting in the water and looking defeated.
"I hate ducks." Tobias states in an annoyed and mortified tone, as he continues to just sit in the water looking sorry for himself.
"I don't think they like you much either." Lily then says in as serious a tone as she could manage, after walking over to the side of the lake and offering her hand to help him back to his feet.
"My clothes will never dry now." Tobias states in a self pitying tone, after letting his girlfriend help him back up to his feet and looking down at himself.
"Let's find a quiet place to sit and you can take your clothes off and let them dry out on a branch or something, it should be hot enough for them to dry out quite quickly." Lily decides to suggest with a reassuring smile and despite still finding the whole thing hilarious, she could tell that the time for joking around was over and she just wanted to make sure he didn't get upset now, which as she looked at his expression, was definitely a risk.
"I don't want to get naked in the park though." Tobias quickly protests in response, after realising what his girlfriend had just suggested and despite offering to let her see him naked a little while ago, he was definitely not going to get naked in the park, no matter how wet and miserable he was feeling.
"No you idiot, just take your jeans and top off, you don't have to get naked and you can use the blanket to wrap around yourself if you're cold." Lily responds in an amused tone, before giving him a sympathetic look, after seeing the concern on his face and knew that he had good reason to be a little nervous.
"You have to promise not to laugh." Tobias then states in a serious tone, although he couldn't help but blush as well, after remembering what underwear he had on right now and couldn't believe his girlfriend was going to see them and even though he had offered to let her see him naked not too long ago, he had only just remembered what underwear he had on and couldn't help but feel embarrassed.
"Why would I laugh?" Lily quickly asks in a surprised tone and while she knew he was probably mortified right now, for several reasons, she didn't see why he would think she would laugh at him, she did have a picture of him naked after all and she definitely liked looking at that, so seeing him in his underwear wasn't going to make her laugh at him.
"My er... I'm wearing er... I have Batman briefs on." Tobias answers in a quiet tone, that was barely above a whisper as he looks down at his feet and waits for her to start laughing at him.
"So? I bet they're cute and they're only underwear Tobias, so come on, let's go find somewhere where no one will be able to see you." Lily quickly suggests in response and while it was a little surprising, they were still kids and she actually thought it was kind of cute that he was still a kid at heart, especially since he had been through so much and she definitely wasn't going to make fun of him for it.
"Really?" Tobias then asks in a surprised tone, before letting her take his hand into hers and walking towards a more secluded part of the park.
"I'm your girlfriend Tobias and I have a naked picture of you, so do you really think I would make fun of you for wearing cartoon underwear?" Lily responds with a reassuring smile and again, while someone else might have teased him for it, she was beginning to realise that she actually did love him and the more she found out about him, the stronger her feelings were getting.
"You can tell them about the ducks if you want to, it's a little bit funny." Tobias then says, after deciding that he didn't need to worry about his girlfriend laughing at him any more. "Hey! I should be carrying those." He then states as he stops walking and moves in front of his girlfriend, after realising that she was carrying the basket and blanket and while they weren't exactly heavy, they were on a date and he wanted to be the perfect gentleman.
"You're amazing, you know that." Lily states in response, before letting him take the basket from her. "I'll hold the blanket though, we don't want it getting all wet." She then says, after he reaches for the blanket and despite knowing that he was trying to be a gentleman, she knew that it would just get wet if he held it.
"I just want to be a good boyfriend." Tobias responds with a smile, before taking her hand again and walking towards the area that his brothers had shown him a couple of times.
"You're perfect." Lily responds sweetly and despite it being a little awkward because they were holding hands and walking, she manages to give him a quick peck on the cheek.
"As if you're asleep." Ben states in an annoyed tone, after managing to open the door despite his hands being full and couldn't help but sigh in frustration after seeing why his fiancé hadn't answered the door after he had tried knocking and calling out to him. "It's a good thing I love you." He then mutters to himself, after walking past his fiancé and over to the kitchen table to put everything down.
"Hey, wake up Dumb Ass." Ben then decides to say after looking over and seeing that his fiancé still hadn't moved and quickly sighs in annoyance. "Fine, but you better be awake when I get back, or I'm going to strip you and throw you in the pool." He then half threatens in a more light hearted tone, after remembering that he had come in to try and apologise for walking out on him earlier and almost walks over to shake him awake, but his bladder quickly reminds him that he needed the toilet and quickly turns towards the bathroom and closes the door behind himself.
"Okay Dumb Ass, time to get..." Ben begins to say in a slightly amused tone, after walking back in the room and seeing that his fiancé still hasn't woken up, but trails off for a few moments after edging a little close to him. "Have you been sick?" He then asks in a slightly concerned tone and while he felt a little stupid talking to him while he was obviously still asleep, he was hoping that the sound of his voice would wake him up.
"Matt?" Ben then says in an increasingly worried and nervous tone, after kneeling beside his sleeping boyfriend. "Oh shit." He then says, after pulling his boyfriend around a little bit and seeing the sick on his top and around his mouth. "Matt? Matt wake up." He then states in a now scared tone, after seeing that his eyes were actually open, but he could tell straight away that he wasn't awake and begins to try and shake him awake in panic.
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