The Music In Me (boyxboy)

5

Song: The Prayer (cover by Jessica Sanchez)

Check my comments on the side for translations

**

"Talk to me, Riley!" Ryan urged me as I stormed my way towards the restroom at dismissal. He'd been trying to get me to fess up all day and it was making me mad.

"I'm fine," I mumbled.

"You're not fine. Nathan did something to you, didn't he? That's it; Ricky and I should've never kept this secret. I'm telling Papa."

This was why I was mad.

I whirled around, glaring at him underneath my full head of hair. "Let it go, Ryan. You promised you wouldn't say anything."

"What good is that promise if you're still being bullied?"

"Jesucristo, déjame en paz."

"Leave you alone- are you serious?"

"Just... get to the bus. I'm going to Nathan's house."

"What?" His eyebrows furrowed.

"Papa already agreed to it so don't argue with me. Hablo en serio." The firmness in my tone silenced him. In my family, we respected those older than us. As I was the eldest of my siblings, they all did as I said. "Go find Ricky and go home. I'll be back soon."

He sighed in defeat, turning on his heel and striding away. I entered the restroom where I waited for Nathan. I was leaning against the sink for a few minutes before he came inside. I didn't bother to look up, but some other boy came in and Nathan snapped at him to beat it. The boy scurried away.

Nathan approached me. "You can look up."

So I did. I tried my best to avoid his eyes because I didn't want to see the lingering anger in them from this morning.

"We definitely need to wash your hair as well," he commented, lifting his hand to touch it. I flinched, as I always did, and he retracted his hand. He paused for a couple seconds, then proceeded to touch my hair. It was funny; whenever there was a single strand sticking out of place, or whenever my hair was down, it seemed he had this urge to tuck it behind my ear. He moved my hair away from the right side of my face, his fingers accidentally grazing my throbbing cheek, a remnant of his sharp slap. I hissed under my breath and he moved his hand away. We were silent.

I let out a breath, but didn't say a word. It was times like these where Nathan couldn't hurt me. I didn't know why, since he had absolutely no qualms about hurting me at any other given moment.

I sincerely hoped there wasn't a mark on my cheek. If Momma saw it...

"Here." Nathan brought out a plastic bag with his clothes in it and thrust it into my hands. "Go change. And hurry! You got three minutes."

Not wanting to make him mad again, I rushed into a stall, giving myself some privacy as I undressed. I wiggled myself into his jeans and he knew my waist was smaller compared to his because he brought a belt. I put on his shirt. It was a casual, button-up shirt and it smelled really good. I would never tell him that though, since that was the way he always smelled. That would flatter him, something I couldn't do. I slipped my feet into his shoes, and they seemed to fit just right.

I felt a small pang of jealousy. His clothes were just perfectly expensive... why couldn't my family be like his? He had so much at his disposal.

But a part of me rejoiced, that I wasn't like him. And that I wasn't like my brothers. They can have all the charm in the world, and be as smart as they wanted to be. But I knew pain. I knew suffering. When I grew up, I vowed to help children who knew my burden.