Micah rolled up on Jeff's house, putting down the kickstand of his bike and taking off his helmet. If he timed it right, they would have some alone time before he had to pick Sasha up from Jason's. As he walked up, though, the door was ajar and Bandit wasn't anywhere to be seen.
It gave Micah pause, his mind jumping to conclusions about what we would find. Jeff was home by the car sitting out front—and its not like anyone would try and rob the sheriff. And if they did, hell, Jeff was the sheriff, it wasn't like he was defenseless.
"Jeff?" Micah called out, carefully pushing the door open further.
Jeff was sitting on the floor of the living room with his head cradled in his hands. There was a small bit of relief that he wasn't hurt, but something was still wrong. Micah stepped on something looked down, his breath catching at seeing himself and Jeff reflected back at him. "Where are these from?" Micah asked quietly as dread settled in his stomach.
"My dad," Jeff rasped, his head sinking lower as he dug his fingers into his scalp.
Micah slid to his knees and wrapped his arms around Jeff's shoulders. "Are you okay? What happened?"
Micah was already running through the fallout in his head—he had his apartment still. He might be able to afford one with rooms if they needed it, and if Jeff was able to help pay.
"Sasha's dad," he muttered. "Hired a local PI. He's in tight with my dad. He... he showed these to my dad."
Micah tried not to freeze at the mention of Sasha's father and the implication that he might know now, too. Micah swallowed a lump in his throat. "Do we need to leave?" he asked simply, prepared to take his things—and Jeff, if he had to.
Jeff shook his head, sniffling loudly. "He doesn't want to interfere with Sasha's custody," he admitted. "He said this would have to wait."
"Does Abram know?" Micah felt sick at the thought.
"My dad took care of it," Jeff explained. "He won't know."
Micah pulled Jeff in tighter, nestling Jeff's head under his chin. "We'll still be okay. This means we have some time to figure it out."
Jeff crumpled into Micah in defeat. He still couldn't comprehend that his dad knew; that someone had found them and taken pictures. He buried his face in Micah's chest, trying to keep the burning in his eyes at bay. This was supposed to be his one safe place, and now even that felt like it was gone.
Micah sat in silence, ignoring the discomfort of his legs as Jeff leaned into him and didn't let go. He clutched the back of Jeff's head with one hand and rubbed soothing circles on Jeff's back with his other. Micah didn't know how long they stayed like that, only that eventually Sasha tried to call him, and then Jeff.
Micah tried not to swear, remembering that he was supposed to be picking Sasha up. He carefully dislodged himself from Jeff and answered his phone. "Sasha," Micah paused. "Can you stay at Jason's tonight?"
"I dunno," Sasha hesitated. "Zach's mom doesn't like me that much."
Micah pinched the bridge of his nose. "Let me talk to Jason then."
"Is everything okay?" Sasha asked, worry creeping into his voice.
"It's—" Micah sighed. "Jeff's dad found out."
"Shit," Sasha hissed. Micah could hear muffled voices in the background before someone else took the phone.
"What's up?" Jason asked through the phone.
"Can Sasha stay at your place tonight? It's kind of, uh, a personal emergency thing going on," Micah explained badly. "We need some time here."
"I'll work it out with the wife," Jason assured him. "We got a few extra tooth brushes lying around I think."

YOU ARE READING
Our Little Nowhere [mxm]
RomanceMicah has not had an easy life. Being raised by adoptive parents and having a criminal record are bad enough in a small town that talks, but Sheriff Jeff Rolland also keeps a close eye on him. As Micah's life gets complicated in a custody battle, it...