Lachlan's P.O.V.
I eyed Preston suspiciously out of the corner of my eye, having noticed the way that Rob's body language had changed as soon as the younger but arguably more overbearing boy had entered the room. Before he had been chatting happily to me, laughing and joking and as soon as Preston entered the room he slumped over, his shoulders curling and his voice trailing off.
I sipped on my coffee and tried not to show that I was watching Preston while Rob played with the spoon that he was holding. There was a half eaten bowl of cereal on the bench in front of him but he didn't seem to want to finish it, not now Preston was there.
Preston got a bowl of cereal for himself and sat on the other side of Rob and although I didn't think he knew that I knew, I saw the death glare Preston send Rob when he thought that I was looking.
I was confused at first. The two of them were best friends, boyfriends, and had been for years, so why was Rob suddenly cowering around Preston and why was Preston acting like he hated Rob. But the more I thought about it, the more I realised how stupid I had been.
I had been with them in Texas for just under a week and I was hitting myself because I hadn't noticed what was going on. I had noticed that Rob cowered any time someone yelled or there were any sudden loud noises, I hadn't noticed the bruises on his arms and legs that he kept making up excuses for like he bumped into the coffee table or fell down the stairs.
I didn't see the abuse.
20 minutes after I realised what was going on I decided to go out for a walk to clear my head and make a plan of action. How was a going to ask Rob about it, how I would get him out of there, where we would go. There was no way in hell that I was leaving him there.
I ran upstairs to grab everything I needed and then headed back down, yelling to Rob, in the living room, and Preston, in the kitchen, that I was heading out and I would be back in about an hour. Rob didn't reply but Preston yelled back that it was all good.
I stepped out of the front door and was about 100 metres down the road before I pulled my phone out of my pocket and reached my hand back in for my headphones, but they weren't there. I cursed to myself, I honestly couldn't go for a walk without music playing so I turned back around to try and find, they were probably still in my room.
I kicked off my shoes at the front door and pushed it open gently, just wanting to go up the stairs and get my headphones without disturbing Preston and Rob, but instead I heard-
*smack!* "You're such a fuck up!!!" I heard a cry of pain from Rob and I rushed into the living room to see Rob cowered on the floor with Preston standing over him.
The sleeves of his sweatshirt were slipping down and I could see the purple and blue bruises on his arms that were in the shape of fingerprints and handprints. He didn't see me.
"WHY CAN'T YOU DO ANYTHING RIGHT!!! YOU'RE SUCH A FUCK UP!!!" Preston raised his hand to smack Rob in the head again but I rushed forwards, catching his hands and pulling him away.
"What the hell is going on!!!" Preston fell back to the floor and then picked himself up, fleeing the room.
Rob let out a strained choking noise behind me and started crying, the tears falling down his cheeks and his body shaking. I pretty much collapsed to the ground, trembling and burying my head in my hands, in shock.
It took a few minutes before I looked up again and crawled close to Rob, where he was lying with his hands over his head, and picked him up and pulled him into my lap. I hugged him close, feeling him press his face into my neck.
"Robby?" He didn't even bother to lift his head. "Why did you never tell me?" I spoke softly, carding my hand through his hair, gently running my fingers down the side of his face and over his beard.
"I- I couldn't. He... he wouldn't let me. He would hurt me." I hugged him close.
"Robby you need to get out, it isn't safe for you here. It isn't healthy." He sighed, closing his eyes as two more fat tears rolled down his cheeks. "I have to get you out of here now. I'm not letting you stay while he's here."
There wasn't any option for him to say no, I was asserting my dominance and telling him that there was no way in hell that he was staying as long as I was alive. He thought for a few seconds but nodded, he knew there was no choice.
"Good. Pack your stuff, I'll pack mine and then we're getting the first flight out of here to Australia. I'll apply for your Visa and book a flight as soon as we're out of here and into a hotel." I sniffed, scowling as I heard the front door slam after his footsteps had run down the stairs. He was fleeing, the coward.
"Lachy?" I looked down when I heard my name, spoken softly and his voice shook.
"Yeah?"
"Thank you."
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We stood at the gate to our flight, it was only a few minutes to go before it took off and we could get the hell out of there. The two of us had stayed in a hotel for 5 days while everything was sorted out, our flights were booked, Rob's visa was approved.
We had spent a few hours in the house packing everything Rob needed as it wasn't hard for me to pack because most of my stuff was already in my suitcase. He knew that he wasn't coming back so he took the most important things but even then we still had to leave a lot behind.
There were six suitcases between the 2 of us, both of us had paid for an extra bag each (the airline allowed us 2 each) and I managed to squeeze some of his stuff into my bag. We took his entire computer set up and got it shipped back to my house, as well as some other things too big to take in our bags.
And so there we sat, waiting for the gate to open. Rob had been silent, he wasn't much of a talker, and his hand was curled into mine for comfort, a book open in his lap.
"First class and business class on flight 17AA9 to Brisbane, Australia is now boarding at gate 32." I cringed slightly at the way the announcer pronounced Brisbane, it's Bris-bin not Bris-bane, and tugged on Rob's hand.
I had paid for the two of us to fly home on business class, away from the noise of economy class where we could be more separated from other people.
"We're almost there Robby, you're almost away."
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Rob didn't fully relax until the flight had taken off, worried that Preston would still find a way to get him back. I had reassured him the whole time, letting his head rest on my shoulder and his hand press in mine until he finally realised that he was safe.
Once back at home in Australia he finally settled down into a rhythm where he felt comfortable. His stuff was all in the guest room but after the first night when he awoke screaming from a nightmare, he slept in my room like we had shared the bed in the hotel. He simply didn't want to be alone.
He got back into recording, really only recording with Vikk and I as I had told Vikk what was happening, but he uploaded. It took a few days, but things started to change as he got more comfortable around me and showing his vulnerability.
He clung to me constantly, but I didn't mind and he kind of became my cuddle buddy even though nothing was official. It would have been too fast, too soon and I would never want him to feel like he was pressured to do anything, especially after what he went through.
"Hey Robby?" He looked up, slightly startled, from where he was sat on the couch beside me. He was editing a video. "Are you okay?" He thought for a few seconds.
"I don't know." He said, softly. "I want to be, but I know I'm not and probably won't okay for a long time."
"At least you're admitting it, it'd be worse if you tried to deny it." I smiled to myself. "You don't need to be okay right now, I just need to know if..." I thought, I couldn't find the right word.
"If it's better?" I nodded. "Yes. It's better, everything is so much better."
"Good." I was about to lean back on the couch when his hand reached out to grab my forearm, pulling me close to him. I blinked, surprised.
"I just want to say thank you. For-" He stumbled. "For everything."
I leaned in and hugged him tightly, squeezing his shoulders and burying my head into his shoulder. I was just so happy that he was out of that relationship and in a safe and calm environment where he could recover from the abuse.
When I pulled away I smiled at him and was again about to lean back when Rob's hand caught my cheek and pulled me back in close to him. He was eyeing my lips and I suddenly got his meaning.
"Are you-" He cut my off my leaning and kissing me, hard. His hand was still resting on my cheek and it was only a few seconds before I relaxed into it, our foreheads coming to rest together.
When he pulled away the both of us were a fiery red.
"That's want I meant by thank you Lachy." His voice was barely above a whisper. "You showed me how wrong it was and you got me out. So... thank you."
"You saved me."