You guys did it! You made it through the toughest part of the book (as in the saddest). Congrats! :D
Well, at least I think you did :3
Now the rest of the book will pretty much be Mitch's road to recovery, which is why it still might not be as long as Disgrace.
Also this chapter took me a while so you better enjoy it ;)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I stand in silence as Scott approaches me, his eyes wide. He reaches out his hand and gently caresses my face. "You're alive," he breathes, and I nod. "Y-yessir." Scott pulls me into his arms, hugging me tighter than he ever had before. I hesitantly wrap my arms around him too, blinking back my tears.
Scott is already crying as he hugs the life out of me. "I thought you . . . I thought you left me forever," he murmurs, and I shake my head. "N-no, sir." Scott pulls back just to kiss me, his lips moving against mine almost urgently. I let my eyes flutter closed as we kiss, savoring the almost-forgotten feeling.
When we break apart, Scott envelops me in another hug. "I just can't believe you're actually back," he whispers, and I stay silent, unsure how to answer.
It's about now that Scott realizes my condition. "Oh my god, you're not wearing a shirt! Come on, we-" he notices the long, thin scars that run along my back and falters. "What . . . what happened to your back?" I hesitate, unsure if I want to tell him and have him worry or not. I choose the latter, and whisper, "I- I don't kn-know, sir." Suddenly, Scott freezes, and looks at me in the eye. I shrink back, slightly scared. "Why are you doing that?"
"D-doing wh-what, sir?"
"That. Calling me that. Why are you calling me 'sir'?"
"Wh-what would y-you l-like me to c-call you, sir? I can c-call you 'master' i-if you'd l-like."
"No. Call me Scott."
"B-but-"
"Call me Scott."
"Yessir. I- I'm sorry."
"Why?"
"I argued w-with you."
Scott stares at me for a moment before shaking his head and grabbing my arm, pulling me to our bathroom. He rummages around in various drawers while I sit in silence, eyes running over every detail in the familiar place. I even hesitantly reach out and run my fingers over the cool tile. Scott turns to me and I flinch, bringing my hands back to my sides. "S-sorry." He smiles gently. "It's fine, Mitchie. You were just reminiscing," he says as he sorts his items and prepares to use them.
"Turn around," he commands, and I immediately obey. I can feel Scott's eyes on my back as he takes in all of my injuries, from various burn marks to whip scars. "You poor baby . . ." Scott murmurs. "Did- did Gordon do this to you?" Slowly, I nod. "Yessi- I mean Sc-Scott."
The next thing I know, my back is on fire again. It feels like the wounds have been reopened. I inhale sharply, much more used to it now so I don't scream like I used to. I grit my teeth but keep silent, allowing Scott to do whatever he's doing back there. "Am I hurting you?" Scott says, sensing my tenseness. "N-no," I lie, not wanting him to go out of the way to try not to hurt me. Surprising me, I hear Scott chuckle softly. "Liar." I flinch. "S-sorry, sir."
I feel Scott's gentle hands leave my back. "There," he says softly, "all better." I hesitantly raise my hand. "P-permission to sp-speak, sir?" I ask quietly, and Scott frowns, nodding. "You don't have to ask for permission, though, Mitchie. What did you want to say?" My eyes dart around nervously. "H-how long have I been g-gone?"
Scott stares at me as my question sinks in. "Oh," he says, almost to himself, "I guess you didn't have any way of knowing, did you?" I shake my head. "N-no, si- Scott."
"One year."
As he says this, I can see his eyes fill with tears. "I- I've been gone for a wh-whole y-year?" I murmur, disbelief evident in my voice. Slowly, Scott nods, a single tear dripping down his face. I get the overwhelming urge to wipe it away, and I do so instinctively. Realizing my mistake, I immediately yank my hand away and bow my head. "I- I'm sorry, sir, I d-don't know wh-what came over me. Pl-please don't hu-hurt me," I stutter, feeling tears in my eyes as my hands start to shake with fear. Scott envelops me in a hug, causing me to tense. "I would never."
Scott brings me into our old bedroom and tells me to go to sleep while he makes some calls. He closes the door, and I look around the room, soaking it in. Then, I curl on the floor and go to sleep.
+++
Scott rushes downstairs, almost tripping over his feet in his excitement. He grabs his phone and dials a number really quickly, his thumbs occasionally hitting the wrong number.
"Scott?"
"Kirstie. I have some great news."
"Did you finally start dating someone else?"
"No, this is even better!"
"What could possibly be any better than that? Scott, Mitch has been gone for a year. I hate to break it to you, but chances are he's not coming back. I know it's hard. I miss him too. But-"
"Kirstie! Mitch is back!"
It's silent for a moment before Scott hears Kirstie's disbelieving chuckle. "Wh-what? He's back?" He nods excitedly before remembering that she can't see him. "Yes. He came back today, about two hours ago. Poor thing was shirtless and he had so many injuries. He kept calling me 'sir' and thought I was going to hurt him when he wiped a tear off my cheek. I don't know what Gordon did to him, but I'm going to murder him."
"Can . . . can I speak to him?"
"He's sleeping right now, but you can in the morning. Kirstie, he's so . . . broken. I just- ugh, it makes me so mad! What did he do to deserve this, Kirst? He never hurt anyone."
"I know, Scooter, I know. With your help, he'll be better in no time. He loves you, Scott. Never forget that."
+++
Scott silently trudges back up the stairs, not wanting to wake Mitch up. He peeks into their room, and his heart breaks when he sees Mitch curled into a small ball [ hey that rhymes ] on the floor. Scott gently places a hand on Mitch's still-bare back, shaking him awake.
Mitch blinks groggily as he tries to wake himself up, but he sits up anyway. "Wh-what would y-you l-like me to d-do f-for you, sir?" he asks easily, almost as though the phrase was said a lot back with Gordon. It probably was. Gordon probably used him as a slave of some sort. Scott shakes his head, offering Mitch a hand.
"Why are you sleeping on the floor, Mitchie?"
"I- I thought you w-wanted me t-to."
"Mitch, this is our bedroom. You can sleep on the bed."
"Oh."
Scott grabs Mitch's small hand and gently picks him up, landing him on his feet. He watches as Mitch cautiously inches towards the bed, uncertainly sitting down on it. Scott turns and gets something from the closet, handing the clothes to his fiancé.
"Here. Put this on."
Mitch takes the long t-shirt and slowly slips it on. "Now take off your pants." Mitch stares at him for a second before he shakily pulls his pants down, leaving him in his boxers. Scott's heart breaks even more as he sees Mitch shake, as though he's absolutely terrified. Scott does the same, except he pulls on some sweatpants. He gets in bed beside Mitch and lays down, watching as Mitch slowly does the same.
"Sir?"
"Scott."
"S-Scott?"
"Yes, Mitchie?"
"D-do you still l-love m-me?"
"Why would I not?"
"I- I d-don't know. It's just . . . I've b-been gone f-for a year. I- I just thought that y-you might've gotten with s-someone else."
Scott shakes his head, gently pulling him to his side. Mitch instinctively presses himself as close to Scott as he can get, feeling safe in his arms. "I will always love you, Mitchie."
It's a couple seconds before Scott speaks again. "Why? Do you not love me anymore?" he asks quietly. Mitch immediately shakes his head. "I- I n-never stopped."
The fiancés lay in silence after that, Mitch finally allowing his eyes to close and his muscles to relax. Scott tightens his hold on the smaller man, kissing his forehead.
"I love you, Mitchie. I'm so sorry."