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MAX COSTELLO
PAST
SEPTEMBER 2019
Oliver was fast asleep in my arms as the morning rolled around, light seeping through his sheer curtains. I sigh silently and brush the back of my knuckles over his soft cheek, my eyes float from the freckles that covered his nose to the septum piercing firmly between his nostrils. Then I glance down to his parted lips, pillowy and pouted.
I grunt quietly, he's the most gorgeous person I have ever laid my eyes on. Without a doubt.
My hand raises to brush away the strands of his curly mousy brown hair from his eyes, gently caressing his forehead.
Oliver stirs for a moment and I pull my hand back, he squeezes his eyes before opening them to look directly at me.
His pale green eyes flick between mine slowly before closing them again, he stretches out in my hold and snuggles closer to me. "Were you watching me sleep?"
"Yes," I state instantly.
The corners of his lips twitch up into a smile as his beautiful eyes flick open to me again. "Weirdo," he says playfully.
"Sorry," I say as I press a kiss to his forehead. "I can't help it. You're just a sight to look at."
Oliver's eyelashes batter open as he looks at me with an unsure look. "Not sure what you're looking at but I am certainly not," he shakes his head firmly.
I sigh and nuzzle my forehead against his. "You are so beautiful Oliver," I whisper to him. "And you deserve to be told it everyday."
His cheeks begin to flush with a deep pink, the action making my heart miss a beat. Oh he was too innocent and I couldn't deal with him.
"So I'm going to tell you that, everyday." I repeat as I slip my hand under his chin and force his gaze up to mine.
Oliver hums and presses his lips to mine. "I love you," he murmurs.
"I love you more," I say against his mouth as I kiss him gently.
He pulls back and shakes his head. "You can't say more when that's not true," he says quickly.
I raise my eyebrows at him before smiling. "Okay, I won't say more but I love you a lot."
"I love you a lot too." Oliver says as his eyes remain on mine.
My hand cups the side of his cheek as I grin down at his breathtaking face. "I still remember the time that I saw you at Bailey's Lounge. I will never forget that night."
"The night you harassed me?" Oliver jokes.
"I didn't harass you," I roll my eyes. "I saw what I wanted and I got it."
Oliver snorts quietly. "You certainly did. Not after I made you work for it."
I laugh and roll onto my back, my eyes glancing up at the ceiling. "Oh you made me work super hard. Worth it though." I grin, tilting my head towards him.
"Maybe I gave in too easily," Oliver ponders for a second as he shuffles backwards slightly.
"Too easily?" I repeat.
Oliver smiles brightly at me which sends my stomach into a tsunami, I couldn't help but lean forward to cup his face. Brushing my thumb across his cheekbone and down to his plump lips.
"You couldn't have made me work any harder because you were already falling for me," I say smugly.
He rolls his eyes in my direction and I can't help but chuckle. "Maybe," he grumbles out.
I pull his body back into mine and place my face into the crook of his neck, peppering kisses across his collarbone and towards his shoulder. "You were smitten with me," I mumble into his skin.
Oliver laughs and shuffles between my hold, his legs colliding with my skins. "No," he says stubbornly.
My hands pinch the sides of his ribs and he jolts suddenly. "Admit it," I demand with a soft laugh.
He screams out, I knew that he hated being tickled but I'd do anything to hear that laugh.
"Fine!" Oliver yells with the biggest smile. "Stop, stop, okay? I was smitten."
I grin back at him and wrap my arms around his back, feeling the warmth of our skin against one another. "I knew it," I breathe into his skin.
Oliver settles into my arm and inhales deeply. "Can we stay in bed today?"
"All day?" I question. He hums and pulls back, our faces a few inches from each other. "Anything for you, baby."
PRESENT
SEPTEMBER 2021
Working at a bar certainly isn't my main goal in life but it helps pay for my rent and my bills which in turn allows me to be closer to Oliver. We only lived twenty or so minutes from each other on the overground which made me happy, I could see him whenever I wanted. I just had to endure hours of drunk customers first.
It wasn't awful but it didn't challenge me, I wanted to be away drawing animations for stories, comics and games. The kind of job that stimulated my brain and my creative side, the side that I had lost whilst I was out in Australia.
I got good at bartending and neglected my talents for drawing. A part of me didn't even want to try, not when drawing reminded me so much of Oliver. No matter how hard I tried to push him to the back of my mind, I couldn't. So I couldn't draw.
But now I'm back in the UK and back with my gorgeous boyfriend, the idea of drawing didn't seem as daunting anymore. I certainly wanted to give it another go, desperate for another chance at working with companies that produce comics and other animated products.
Oliver would be proud, he's always been the one who has pushed me to do my best. He's always hyped up my work and made me believe that I was good enough. Without him I doubt I would have even graduated university. He really is good for me, he's too good for me and sometimes I feel like I don't deserve him. But I can't stay away from him, everything about him intoxicates me and I don't want to be without him.
That might be selfish but I know he wants to be with me just as much as I want to be with him.
We are soulmates without a doubt. I didn't even think about another guy whilst I was in Australia, I couldn't. The thought made me physically sick because no one could compare to him. He didn't deserve how I left him but I couldn't bear seeing him hurt, I had to sacrifice our relationship to keep him safe.
He might not have understood but I knew I did it for the right reasons. If anything happened to him, I would have never forgiven myself.
Oliver is the most innocent person I have ever met, the thought of him being punished for something I had done haunts me. Even though last year was one of the most painful things I have ever experienced, it washes me with relief when I realise that it's over.
We can be together and I can have my Oliver back, my Oliver.
These thoughts race through my mind as I watch the clock, a few seconds before my shift ends. I nod towards the guy who takes over from my shift and I say goodbye to everyone. I happily grab my belongings and take off down the street.
Breathing in the deep September air, now it was slowly turning to autumn. The weather was still slightly warm but you knew that summer was well and truly over. I quickly jump on the overground that takes me straight to where Oliver lives.
I couldn't wait to give him a hug and eat pizza until our stomachs burst. God, I was such a fucking weak person for him.
My eyes glance down his street, noticing a police van that sat opposite his block of flats. I crease my eyebrows as I take one look at them and proceed up the stairs to the building.
I dart up the stairs to the second floor where I noticed Oliver's door had been kicked in, yellow tape with 'do not cross' stuck around the rim of the frame.
My heart stops inside my chest as I rest my hand down onto the banister, turning to find anyone around but it was dead silent. What the fuck happened?
I quickly dig out my phone and dial Oliver's number instantly, it goes straight to voicemail which only increases my panic. Feeling my body begin to sweat from underneath my clothes.
The sound of flip flops echoes against the floor, my eyes finding the source of the noise as I watch a woman walk down the hall. "Excuse me?" I call out to her as her dark eyes flick to me. "Do you know what happened?"
She takes one glance at the door and shrugs. "Not sure what happened but an ambulance came and police were everywhere. Said something about it being fatal." She says casually before walking down the steps.
No words form in my mouth as I watch her walk away. I follow her lead, attempting to look down at my phone and ring Oliver's number again but no luck.
I curse to myself as I walk out onto the street, taking off towards the nearest hospital. That was my only choice, I didn't even have Jamie's number.
My arm extends to a black cab which was sitting on the side of the road. Almost slamming my body into the passenger side as I attempt to open the door. "Can you take me to St. James Hospital please?" I pant out.
The driver looks back at me in the rear mirror and nods. He starts the engine and begins to drive towards the hospital. I sit in the back, finding that my knee was non-stop jigging and my nail had made it into my mouth as I chew in anticipation.
What if something had happened to him?
Said something about it being fatal.
A wave of nausea hits me like a tonne of bricks. The journey not making me feel any better as he drives slowly, well keeping to the speed limit. But when you're in a rush, thirty miles an hour feels like five.
I tried my hardest not to bark demands at him because that might make him drive even slower, so I sit back in the seat and keep my mouth shut. Looking out the window in an attempt to distract myself but it was no use, all I could think about was him and what happened.
The car pulls up outside the hospital and I race to open the door, digging into my wallet and pulling out all the money I had. "Keep the change," I say before dropping it into the front seat and running towards the hospital.
Blood was rushing around my body aggressively, anxiousness creeping up in my veins. Praying that nothing had happened to Oliver, that he was okay and this was a big misunderstanding.
As I jog towards the reception building I could spot Jamie sat on one of the steps, his head buried into his hands.
Fuck.
It was Oliver, Oliver was the one who got hurt.
Jamie glances up just as I approach him, his eyes looked sore from how much he had been crying. Dark red circles around his eyelids and into his waterline, he looked exhausted and devastated and his expression didn't fill me with joy. It filled me with fear.
"You fucking done this!" Jamie shouts as he presses his hands to my chest and pushes me away aggressively.
I blink back at him in shock, not able to find any words. Jamie's eyes flick between mine frantically, he looked heartbroken and I was sure my own expression reflected his.
"Where is he?" I heave out as Jamie wipes away his tears.
He purses his lips for a moment and glances down at the floor, stopping my breathing completely. No, no, no. This couldn't be real.
I shake my head over and over, Jamie's silence making me want to collapse on the floor and never move. "Oh my God," I whimper out pathetically. "Please don't tell me he's dead." I begin to sob. "Jamie!"
Jamie glances up at me. "He's in the ICU, he barely didn't make it. He still might not make it. They almost killed him, they're back and they're back for you. Or have you been fucking around with all the drugs and money again?"
"What?" My voice bellows angrily. "Of course I haven't. I haven't done anything, I'd never go back to that shit after what happened before. I didn't want anyone to get hurt."
"Well they did, Max! He got hurt because of you, because you couldn't hide from these thugs and now they're punishing Oli."
My lips tremble at his words, unable to explain the sheer pain that soared through my chest at his words. Barely able to keep my body standing, the weakness in my knees was about to make me give way any second.
"Fuck!" I curse out loud.
"Do you even know what they fucking did to him?!" Jamie steps up towards me as our noses were merely inches apart.
I watch him with hooded eyes, taking one step back before he knocked me clean out.
"They fucking forced his hands onto a piping hot tray, third degree burns. Beat him to shit that his face is barely recognisable then tried to drown him in the bath. This shit isn't going away Max, this shit is serious." He spits angrily.
My eyes blink back rapidly, not realising how heavy my breathing had become.
Just the thought of him going through any of those things was making me want to cry, shattering my heart into a million pieces. He got hurt, they hurt him and he could do nothing but sit there and take it.
I quickly wipe away a tear that escapes my eye, my throat beginning to throb in an unbearable pain. "I'll sort it," I say bluntly.
"What before or after they kill Oli?" Jamie's voice cuts through my heart.
He cared about Oliver so much, so fucking much and I understood why he hated me. But I thought this had gone away, I thought that it was safe to resume my life here. There were no signs they were back and looking for me, not one single sign.
They just went straight for him knowing full well I'd have to do something about the situation because seeing him hurt is more painful than anything else they could do to me.
Playing their game so they get exactly what they want from me. Not giving me a chance to run off this time, they went straight to the person I care about the most.
Fucking cunts.
"They won't lay another finger on him. That is a promise. I am going to end this." I ground out to Jamie as I turn my attention back to him. "I won't let him get hurt again."
Jamie scoffs at my words and adjusts the bun on top of his head. "I can't believe a single word you say when my best friend is laying there fighting for his fucking life!"
I shake my head. "I need to see him," I mumble out as I walk past Jamie, his eyes turning to me in disbelief.
My feet carry me up to the reception, my eyes falling on the woman sat behind the desk tapping away at her computer.
"Oliver Fletcher," I barely make out as the receptionist blinks back at me in shock. "He's in the ICU."
"One moment sir," she nods before tapping away at her computer. "Who are you in relation to the patient?"
"He's my boyfriend," I state instantly.
She hums and leans over to the clipboard laying on the top of the desk. "Could you sign in and I'll have someone to escort you to the ICU." She smiles before tapping the paper.
I grab onto the pen and jot down my details as quickly as possible, my handwriting barely readable but I didn't care. I had to see him now, I had to see that he was okay before I broke down.
. . .
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Ughhhh this part of the story is going to destroy me
Did you enjoy Max's POV?
Finally switching it up! The rest of the book is going to be in Max's POV apart from one chapter
This book will have 48 chapters and an epilogue so we've got a few more to go!
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See you all on the next one, love Sav x
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