The Sheikh's Rebel (gay) ☑️

28. Pushed out of the closet.

The rest of the night Tyler acted on autopilot. Back in the cab, he didn't say a word. Upon entering the hotel, he walked out in front of Jared and asked at the counter for the key to his room. Jared grabbed him by the arm. "Where do you think you're going?"
"To my room."
"Don't lie to me, Tyler. I can see it in your eyes. You plan to run."
Tyler turned his face away.
"Stay. I promise I won't bother you," Jared said calmly. "We'll fly home tomorrow."
Tyler looked at his shoes.

"We have to leave around 10:00. Do you want to have breakfast together tomorrow?"
Silence.
"I'll wake you up at 8:30. Then you have time to eat," Jared said with difficulty maintaining his self-control.
"Is that all?" asked Tyler briefly.

Without really waiting for an answer, he ran away. Ignoring the elevators, he ran up the stairs, and he didn't stop until the door was locked behind him. Defeated, he collapsed against the door.

Tyler knew he couldn't make a claim on Jared, but there was always a glimmer of hope in him that their relationship would develop. A cruel twist of fate made this impossible. Not only was Jared engaged to Fleur, it was an arranged marriage with profound consequences for the family's safety and future.

When they flew home tomorrow, he should finally put an end to his feelings for Jared. Just because he had to do something to keep his mind away from Jared, he took his papers and continued working on his report for school.

The cover service would not have been necessary. He was ready. The breakfast was nicely catered for, but he wasn't hungry. An apple and some orange juice were all he ate. His work on the school assignment had given him a new purpose. Finish school as soon as possible. I'm sure there were more opportunities to earn extra credits.

At five to ten, there was a knock on the door."Mr. Reed? Your taxi is ready," said a hotel employee.

Jared was in the lobby. Tyler walked out without greeting him and got into the waiting taxi. He put his backpack next to him like a shield. Jared slid next to him in the back seat and looked sullenly at the backpack. "You're going to have to tell me why you're acting like this, Tyler," Jared said as if he was talking to a child.
"It all hit me hard yesterday. Especially that dinner was just a little too much," he said more calmly than he felt.
Jared didn't seem convinced, but he took the answer.

Purely because Tyler wanted to practice in how to speak normally with Jared, he took the opportunity to ask him some questions about Bolivia during the flight home. It would give his paper a little more depth. Luckily, Jared cooperated and provided him with the information he needed.

"Tomorrow I was going to spend on school, so I'll see you Monday," Tyler said exiting the cab that had brought them home.
Jared nodded. For a moment, Tyler thought he wanted to say something, but as soon as his front door opened, he walked away.
Marion was waiting in the doorway. "Hi, Jared," she waved to him.
Politely, he greeted her back. "Marion."

She was startled by the face of her son who came running towards her. He looked like he'd reached his breaking point. She quickly brought him in. Tyler dropped his backpack.
"Where's Naomi," he hiccups his tears back.
"At Germaine," Marion said, and she opened her arms. Like a little boy, he crawled into her embrace. Marion took him to the couch they collapsed in together. That's where all the pent-up tensions of the past few days came out.

Her heart broke with the grief her son had. She rocked him and rubbed his back. So many questions tumbled in her head. Tyler was lying with his head on her lap. She was comforting stroking his hair. As soon as she noticed that his breathing became more regular, she asked her first and most pressing question:

"Did he hurt you?"
"In every way except physical," Tyler sobbed.
"Did you have a fight?" she asked, not understandingly.
"Something like that," he said vaguely.
"When I heard you were staying in New York, I thought you might want to spend some time together for a few days," Marion said cautiously. When it remained silent, she asked: "Where did you sleep?"
"In each our own room," Tyler said. "And we weren't together," he added wryly.