Feelings are Over-Rated (KyleXZac)

CHAPTER NINE

"Okay." She says, reluctantly. She hugs me and I hug her back. "I love you."

"I love you, too, mum." We pull away and I make a big decision in the matter of two seconds. "Mum, while I've got you in a somewhat good mood and as I'm telling you all these things, there's something else I might as well tell you."

"Oh you've got me all nervous now." She laughs, trying to ease the tension.

"No, no it's not bad, just... Important. So, you know my friend Kyle, right?"

"Yes. The lovely young lad. I do wish you had more friends like that, sweetheart."

"Well, see that's the thing. Kyle isn't exactly my friend, mum." I shift uncomfortably. "Kyle's my boyfriend."

"Oh. Wow. I certainly didn't expect you to say that, Zac. I-I just had no idea!"

"Yeah I didn't either." I choke out, nervously. "So...?"

"It's great, Zac! I'm glad that Kyle makes you so happy."

"Really?"

"Yes, really! Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"So you're not mad or anything?" I confirm.

"Mad? Oh honey, I'm not mad! I-" At that moment, something clicks in her head. "Oh, Zac. Don't tell me that boy hit you because of you and Kyle!"

"Mum-"

"Don't you dare lie to me!"

"Okay! Yes, he did. I'm sorry." I look down. Mum stands up, starting to get angry.

"You are not going back to that school!" She yells.

"What?" I yell back. "Mum, I have to! I can't just leave Kyle like that!" I stand up to meet her stare

"You can still see him, just not at school."

"No, you don't understand. If I leave, I can't protect Kyle. They'll hurt him!"

"But, Zac-"

"Can't you see how much I care for him?" Tears start silently leaking from my eyes.

"I can, but-"

"Then you understand why I can't leave him."

"Zac, I don't want you to keep getting hurt!"

"I don't want Kyle to keep getting hurt, either!"

"Zac, Kyle isn't worth getting hurt over."

"Kyle is worth everything to me!" I scream louder than either of us have screamed yet. We both stay silent for a minute, unsure of what to say or do. My mum sniffles, breaking the silence.

"Zac-"

"I'm not leaving that school." I say, calmer than before. "I'm not letting Kyle get hurt. I promised him I'd be there for him and protect him."

"I just don't want this happening to you."

"It won't happen again. And I'll tell you if it does. Please just don't make me leave him. Please?" I plead. She thinks for a minute, examining my eyes, which are begging more than I am.

"If you ever come home with a black eye again, you're never seeing the inside of that school again."

"So I can stay with Kyle?"

"As long as no one hurts you. I can see how much Kyle means to you."

"Thank you, mum." I hug her. She kisses my head and wipes her eyes.

"Well, I'm going to go up to bed. Do you want to tell your father?"

"About my black eye? No thanks."

"No, silly. I meant about Kyle." She smiles softly.

"Oh. Um not really. Telling you was hard enough."

"If you want, I could always talk to him. That would be easier on you. Then you could talk to him more about it later."

"Yeah. Thanks, mum." I say as she leaves my room.

As she closes the door, I fall back on my bed and sigh, content. I just came out to my mum. And she's okay with it. What will dad think? Or my brother? Surely, he must have heard something. He goes to the same school I do. They'll both find out soon enough anyways. I take out my phone and ring Kyle. Hopefully, he's still awake.

"Hello?" I hear a groggy Kyle.

"Did I wake you up?" I ask, feeling bad.

"Yeah, but I don't mind. I love hearing your voice." He giggles.

"You're so cute when you're tired."

"You're cute all the time." Kyle retaliates. I laugh.

"So I kind of just told my mum about us. You know, that you and I are together."

"Oh. How did she take that?"

"She was fine with it. She really likes you, so she was actually pretty happy." I leave out the other half of the conversation.

"That's great! What about the rest of your family?"

"I'm sure they'll find out pretty soon."

"I should probably tell my mum and dad soon." Kyle says, a yawn escaping from his lips.

"No rush. Whenever you need to." I tell him.

"Thanks. That means more than you'd think."

"You're welcome."

"I'm going to go back to bed before I pass out." He yawns again. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight to the most beautiful person on the planet." I say, hearing the smile in my own voice. Kyle giggles and mumbles another goodbye before hanging up.

I get up from my bed and make my way to the bathroom. As I open my door, I am greeted by a falling teenaged boy. My brother, Adrian. I push his off of me and we both stand up. We lock eyes before he tries to run away to his room. I grab his arm before he could go anywhere.

"What are you doing?" I ask, my voice stern.

"Nothing." He says, although it's clear that he was eavesdropping. I push him against the wall, trapping him.

"How much did you hear?" I ask through gritted teeth.

"A- a lot." He stutters. "Who were you talking to?"

"None of your business."

"Who?"

"No one."

"Obviously someone." He says, not dropping the subject.

"My friend, Kyle." I say, letting go of him.

"Wait, so the rumors are true?" He asks, surprised.

"Shut the fuck up." I growl, not wanting him to be part of this, even though he should probably know.

"I heard the rumors, I just didn't believe them. So are you actually dating Kyle?" Adrian asked, following close behind me.

"I said shut the fuck up." I push him away from me and walk off to the bathroom.

When I finish in there, I go back to my room, take off my shirt, and put on pajama bottoms. I lay down in bed, thinking about my family. Mum's okay with it, I didn't even give Adrian the chance to express any sort of opinion, and I have no idea about dad.

I close my eyes, just wanting to forget the world around me and wanting to see Kyle. Seeing Kyle meant going to school though. But, like I told mum, Kyle's worth all of the pain I go through.