Harsh

♡ dix-sept♡

He sat in his office to wait for Troye to shower, but he didn't have to wait long. Troye was stumbling into Jacob's office after about ten minutes of waiting, and Jacob briefly wondered if Troye could have gotten all the shampoo and conditioner out of his hair before he focused on the younger boy. He seemed to be trembling, his back pressed to the door as he breathed heavily. When Jacob spoke, his voice was soft and gentle so he wouldn't spook the already panicked boy, "Come here, pet." Troye scrambled over to where Jacob sat at his desk, clambering onto Jacob's lap and leaning against his chest, "Thank you."

"Was your shower alright?" Jacob tried to avoid asking if Troye was alright, he most likely knew the answer. He didn't want Troye to even have to think about how he felt. "It was.... no," Troye sighed. "I didn't like it. Being all alone." Jacob considered being firm, to not dwell too much on what he was trying to do, but he decided to just come right out with it, "I've been talking to Luke and he thinks it's for the best. I've been worried about you these last few days, sweets. What you went through... I don't wish that upon anyone, especially you. You've got so much light in you, Troye, I see it every time I look at you. But it's been dulled these past few days. I want to do as much as I can to get that light back. You're my sunshine." Troye breathed in a surprised breath of air, and Jacob felt Troye's hand touch his cheek, "Oh..."

"I'm going to keep you safe now," Jacob promised. "What happened- it won't ever happen again. So we have to try to get back to normal. I'm going to help you, okay?" Jacob considered himself lucky. Troye could have been shying from touch, he could be pushing Jacob away. Instead, Troye seemed to be craving Jacob's touch as a comfort. He hadn't wanted Luke's, really. His lip had required two stitches, and he shook the entire short amount of time that Luke comforted and carefully stitched it up. Afterwards he'd gone straight back to Jacob's arms and trembled violently until Jacob wrapped him up in a blanket and held him tight. "What is normal?" Troye whispered. The question made Jacob terrified, because it made it seem as if Troye could never be okay again, "I'd say back to before you moved in, but we weren't close then. You were mine, but you weren't my Troye, if that makes sense. I want... everything that has happened. Without the bad parts. I want that normal." Troye kept his face pressed against Jacob's neck, but Jacob could feel as the boy nodded his head,

"I love you." "I love you, too, pet," Jacob replied softly, and he cupped the back of Troye's head as he tried to softly move the boy away from his neck. Troye went willingly, much to his relief, but Troye's eyes were hesitant, and he seemed jittery. "May I kiss you?" He hadn't kissed the boy since the incident, or not on the lips at least. Simply forehead and hair kisses. Troye's brow furrowed, and he nodded his head, "You don't have to ask? You're my Dom, I'll do whatever you want me to." Jacob cupped Troye's face in both of his hands, leaning in to kiss his boy. His kiss was soft, barely brushing their lips together to avoid hurting Troye's lip. He smiled at Troye when he pulled back,

"You're such a good boy." Troye smiled as well, and it didn't quite reach his eyes the way Jacob liked, but it was a start, "For you, sir." The Dom kissed Troye's forehead once, and then he stroked over Troye's back gently, "I really do need to work. You may sit here for a bit, but if I have to skype you'll have to sit on the couch." "What do you want me to do?" Troye squeaked, clearly trying to let Jacob dominate, but his body language spoke otherwise. His small hands had clenched into the fabric of Jacob's shirt. The boy didn't want to leave the safety of Jacob's lap.

"I want you to stay here," Jacob told him. "I'll tell you when you can move." "I could do something," Troye suggested bravely, sitting up a little. "I haven't- these past four days I haven't been-" "And I don't expect you to," Jacob said immediately. "I know I said normal, Troye, but don't push yourself for my benefit." "I'm okay when I'm with you," Troye insisted. "I'm not scared with you, please sir, I want to. Can I do it?" The Dom gazed at Troye, trying to figure out if Troye genuinely wanted to or if he just thought that Jacob wanted him to, but after several moments Jacob came to a decision,