Frat Boys (Lams) [COMPLETE]

Chapter 8

John woke up in Alex's arms the next morning. He smiled at the sleepy boy next to him and yawned. John was trying not to think about Thomas. Or the fact that he had agreed to break up with him today.

"Hey," Alex said, stretching his arms and rubbing his eyes, flashing John a sweet smile. That smile could distract him from anything.

"Hey," John said. "Sleep well?"

"Absolutely," Alex said. "You're better any teddy bear," he teased, sitting up and yawning. John blushed and smiled at him.

"Uggghhhh."

There was a groan from the bunk above Alex. Laf sat up with bags in his eyes that could've held gallon milk jugs. Alex laughed.

"Have a bit too much to drink last night, did we?" he said, grinning, as Laf glared at him. Herc was still snoring in his bed, loudly.

"Want to grab a coffee while we let these two wake up?" Alex asked John, who nodded.

"Um, Alex, can I borrow some clothes?" he asked shyly. "I really don't want to go back to my room right now." Alex nodded and searched through his bag, tossing John a hoodie and shorts.

"These work?" he asked.

"Absolutely," John said, glowing at the realization that he would be wearing Alex's clothes. They smelled just like him too- coffee and books and lavender.

After putting on the clothes, which left Alex blushing at the adorable sight, John checked his phone. There were quite a few missed texts from Thomas. He longed to read them, but knew he needed to be strong today. He ignored the messages and just sent a text saying that he wanted to meet Thomas in the nearby park at 11am. It was 9:15am now, so they had time.

"Ready?" Alex asked, grabbing his wallet.

John nodded, then stopped.

"Hold on," he said. He went back and looked under the bed that he had stayed in the night Alex arrived. He pulled out the hairbrush Thomas had thrown at him- that one that wasn't even his- and pocketed it. "Now I am," John said, following Alex out the door.

They went to a small mom-and-pop coffee shop and sat down. John got ginger tea and Alex got black coffee.

"So," Alex said, "here's the plan for today. You and him will meet in the park at 11. Me, Laf, Herc, the Schuylers, and Maria will be nearby but out of sight. We'll be in earshot, so if you need any backup, we'll be right there." He tried to give a reassuring smile, but he knew this was going to be very difficult for John.

John nodded nervously.

"I can't believe this is actually happening," he whispered. "I'm finally going to be free of him," he said, looking up at Alex with tears in his eyes. Alex smiled back.

"No one deserves happiness more than you do, John," he said. "I'm so glad you're finally getting what you need." He paused. "Also, I want you to know that I'll protect you. I promise. And so will everyone else. I know it's gonna be hard today, but now's the time you can finally speak your mind."

John smiled back.

"Thank you," he said. "I really, really appreciate you for getting me through this."

Alex nodded. He couldn't be more proud.

*time skip *

It was 10:56am. John and the others were at the park, waiting for Thomas to show up.

"I think I see him over there," Maria said, pointing to Thomas, who was walking over and rubbing his forehead in the distance. She turned to John and gave him a tight hug. "You can do this," she whispered, kissing him on the cheek.

John smiled and turned to Alex.

"You've got this," Alex said, pulling John in for a hug as well. "Don't forget, we're right here to back you up. I'm so, so proud of you already."

John blushed, but couldn't get a word out. He couldn't tell what was going to come out of his mouth today, stuttering and an apology to Thomas, or yelling and finally saying what he wanted to say. He turned around and, taking a deep breath, headed towards Thomas.

"There you are," Thomas said, glaring at John as he approached. "Thought I told you to meet me in the room last night."

John felt himself flinch as Thomas stepped closer towards him. But he knew this wasn't the time to back down. He cleared his throat.

"Um, you did," he said, "but I didn't."

"And why's that?" Thomas asked in a dangerously low voice.

"Because I don't like when you're drunk," John said quietly. He felt a jolt of confidence as Thomas looked taken aback. "And I'm tired of being a toy that you feel you can just play with," he said louder.

"Since when do I care about what you think?" Thomas said. John could tell he didn't know what to say.

"You hurt me," John said. "I put my trust in you and you hurt me. You've abused me. You've used me. And you've made me feel like I deserve it. But I don't. I've never deserved that. It makes me feel sick that you actually think it's okay to treat another human being this way." He smiled and laughed. "You tried to break me, and for a while there, you did," he said. "But not anymore. I'm done with you and I'm done taking less than I deserve. We're through." John turned to walk away, but Thomas grabbed his shoulder and roughly pulled him back.

"You think you can talk to me that way?" Thomas said angrily. "You don't deserve any of this shit you think you do. Why the hell do you think I treat you the way I do? You brought this upon yourself. Now come on, let's go back to-"

At that moment, Thomas was knocked to the ground by Alex, who had come up behind him and slugged him right in the face.

"Not anymore, dipshit!" Alex yelled. The group cheered for both Alex and John and they turned around to go back to the frat as Thomas sat up groggily on the ground. Suddenly, John turned back around. He felt in his pocket and pulled out the hairbrush.

"Oh, by the way, give this to Madison next time you hook up," he said, throwing it and hitting Thomas on the forehead, immediately leaving a red bump. John turned around, walking away with confidence as he exchanged a grin with Alex.

It was a good day.