The Web I Spin for You ~ Richpez & Rosenwalker

Chapter 14

CW/TW brief mention of sexual harassment.

"Whatever you want." Joe responded, laying down on his bed.

Brian grabbed the remote, sitting down next to him. "You know how indecisive I am, why do you do this?" He asked, before clicking on Disney+. He scrolled for a minute, before putting on A New Hope. He placed the remote down, glancing over at Joe sadly. He was curled up in a ball, hugging his knees to his chest. Brian reached over, gently stroking his hair. "Shirts on or off for cuddling?" He asked, noticing a slight smile finding its way on to Joe's face.

"Whatever you're comfortable with." He responded, rolling over on to his back so that Brian could curl up with him.

Brian smiled happily, curling up against Joe's bare chest. "Only problem is that I will not be paying attention to the movie." He admitted, running by his hand up and down Joe's abs. "You are really attractive. You can't blame me for feeling self-conscious around you."

"Shut up, so are you." He leaned down and kissed the top of his head, resisting the urge to cry. He still couldn't shake the horrible idea of hurting him. "You really do mean so much to me." He whispered. "You know that, right?" He even sounded like her—that was exactly what she used to ask him.

Brian glanced up at him, their eyes meeting. "I do." Brian answered honestly. "It's an insane concept for me to comprehend, but you've really gone above and beyond to prove it to me." He craned his neck up, their lips briefly brushing against each other. "You make me feel safe."

"I hope I do. I don't, I don't ever want to be a toxic person in your life." Joe bit his bottom lip, trying to hold his tears in. Brian sat up all the way, pulling Joe into his chest, and pulling his blanket up over them. They stayed still for a few minutes, Joe crying quietly while Brian held him. For not the first time, Brian's arms were the only source of comfort and safety Joe could find. Meanwhile, he couldn't help but feel horrified that he'd just created a feeling of  danger for Brian. "Do you wanna, do you wanna maybe go sit down on the couch?" Joe asked, suddenly desperate for them to no longer be in his bed.

"Whatever you want." Brian responded sweetly, not questioning his actions. As they sat up, Joe wiped his eyes. "Sorry I cried all over your chest; maybe we should put our shirts back on."

Brian wiped his chest as he stood up, offering Joe a hand. "It's all good. How many times have I cried with you?"

"Definitely less than I have." Joe commented, accepting Brian's hand up. The two boys reached for their T-shirts' and threw them on, Brian unable to stop himself from taking in Joe's body one last time.

They settled on to the couch, Joe wrapping his arm around him as Brian pulled a blanket over them. As Joe rested his head against his, Brian reached over and grabbed the hand on his shoulders, bringing it to his lips and kissing it softly.

Joe turned his head, nervously kissing the side of Brian's head. "Thank you."

Brian shrugged. "What for?"

Joe shook his head. "Just... thank you."

As they watched the movie, Joe was unable to stay focused, his mind traveling through space at a million miles per second. He held onto Brian tightly as they cuddled, terrified that he was never going to get to again.

Was he a predator? Was he a villain? Was he someone to be feared?

It was all so unreal. For weeks, almost months now, he'd been trying to wrap his head around the fact that he was a victim; he'd never considered the possibility of the reverse. How could this have happened? He was a victim. He'd experienced being forced to do sexual acts he didn't want to complete. He'd felt the horror of his former partner forcing herself onto him. He'd experienced the embarrassment, the unbearable terror, the horrible sense of powerlessness, and for months he'd been worried that he would never forget the feeling of it all.