How to stitch wounds

12. Truth

Nathan POV

Rape! His father raped him!
That man better hope I don't see him or he's gonna wish he was never born!

I thought as I quickly got out of my car. I opened Micheal's door and unbuckled his seatbelt.

I want to kiss him.

I cleared my throat and helped him out, leading him up to my house. After introducing him to my siblings, I showed him up to my room and laid out the spare bed. I got out some clothes for him and left, heading back downstairs.

"So, is he your boyfriend?" Jason whispered, nudging my shoulder.
I quickly shoved him away, not wanting to deal with his jokes.

"I had a girlfriend." I huff.
"No one said you had to pick a side." He says, holding his hands up in defense.

I roll my eyes and head to the kitchen to make Micheal some food. He doesn't look like he eats often so I thought he would appreciate it.

"What's your problem dude?" Jason asks, following me and sitting on one of the countertops.
"Nothing." I mumbled.
"Bullshit! You don't usually act like this." He now had a concerned look on his face instead of his usual smirk.
"Like what? Im not acting like anything."

Jason stares at me, contemplating what to say.
"Like a hero. You got a weird call, ran outside and drove off in a hurry, then you come back with some kid,by the way I noticed all the tears and shit, and make him a bed and now you're making a sandwich for him. Is there something wrong with him? You don't even hang out with kids his type, then you get all cocky when I start making jokes about him, which before you never cared. What's going on with you? I'm your big brother, you can tell me anything and I won't think any less of you."

He stares at me, waiting for an answer.

"Listen, Micheal's going through something rough right now. He doesn't have anybody else to turn to so I was there. I don't want you making jokes like you were earlier, at least not in front of him." I explain.

"Fine, but are you gonna tell me if you two are a thing at least?" He asks with a smile.
"I-I don't know, no, w-we're not." I say quickly dismissing his question.
"Do you want to be, something?" He pries.
I glare at him but he doesn't back down. Sometimes, I forget he's my older brother and not my best friend.
"M-maybe? I don't know! I-I like him, I think, but I'm not sure. I don't want to hurt him. I want to be there for him."

"Have you tried to talk to him or does he not roll that way. Is that why you haven't-

"Jason! We've brought up the subject, but it doesn't stick around long enough. I've never even felt this way before, not for a guy! I don't know how to talk about it." I sigh.

Jason wraps his arm around my shoulder.
"Nathan, you just have to talk to him, but you have to be sure before you do. You'll both get hurt if you're not."

"And you're okay with this?" I ask, slightly confused.
"I told you, I'm not gonna think any less of you. These are valid feelings, ya know."
I stare at my brother. When has he ever been so smart?

"I-I had these feelings at one point." He says with a sigh. "Really?!" I say surprised.

"Yea, there was a time in high school when me and Shia were on a break because of these feelings. She told me to find who I was before coming back, and I did. I experimented and I found out I was bi. I told her and she asked if I still loved her." He takes a deep breath before continuing.
"Even though I had met a great guy and I loved him too, he couldn't beat Shia. I told her I still loved her and I wanted to stay with her. She told me that she would love me even if I was gay, that there was no one who she would rather be with than me. After that, we became closer. I knew I was gonna marry her too. I was more understanding of how I felt and because of that, I could talk to her and she could talk to me. If you're having these feelings, you shouldn't bury them. Explore, figure yourself out. That's what high school is for." He says, patting my back.

"Thanks bro. Did you tell mom and dad?"
"Oh hell no! They would kill me!"
We both laugh and I decide to take his advice. I go back upstairs with some food for Micheal.

I knock softly on the door before opening it.
"Hey, I brought you something to eat." I say as I set the plate down on my nightstand.
"Oh, you didn't have to." He says with a shy smile. "Course I did. You're my guest." He laughs a little and I sit down beside him.

"Do you want to talk about your dad?" I ask carefully. "Yes, just not now. I-I,"
"It's okay. We don't have to. You can tell me when you're ready." I give him a bright smile before turning on the tv. Out of the corner of my eye, I see a faint blush spread across his face, making me smile more.

"So, this morning. I should have been a little more specific when I answered."
I start nervously.
Micheal looks up at me. The expression on his face was a mix of surprise and concern.

"I don't know, Micheal. I had never thought about it before, but I really like you. I understand if you want to be just friends, but I hope that we could maybe be something more."
Micheal stares at me with a blank face.

After a few minutes of uncomfortable silence, he quickly looks down into his lap. I could see that his face was a red as a tomato.
"Uh, okay." He muttered nervously.

After that, neither of us said a word for the rest of the night. We continued to watch movies until Micheal finally fell asleep, then i went back downstairs to find Jeremiah and Jason in the middle of The Conjuring.
I sat down next to my older version and stole some of the popcorn that was now room temperature and not fresh.

"Did you talk to him?" He muttered softly.
"Yep." I continued, popping the "p".
"And? Details, I need details!" He huffed, annoyed at the lack of drama I had given.
"And, nothing."
"Seriously, nothing? There had to be something. You didn't have a heated make out session or cuddle or anything?" He sighed.
"We watched tv?" I said, trying to satisfy my brother's need for drama.
"Lame!" He scoffed. I nudge his shoulder angrily. "Shut up dude!"

"What about Shia? She was supposed to be here today?" I ask, trying to divert the conversation. "Bad weather. Her plane got grounded in a few towns over. I'm gonna steal dads car and surprise her. I told her to stay at a hotel for a few days." He explains with a smirk.