Gill
I couldn't see anything. It was completely black everywhere I turned, until suddenly, a bright light appeared before me. Was I dying?
"No, child. You are not dying. You are very much alive." I spun around and saw a beautiful woman in front of me. She had long ginger curls and freckles across her skin. She was wearing a pearl colored dress that fell at her bare feet. She looked to be in her early thirties.
"Where am I?" I asked her.
"You're asleep. It took a lot for me to visit you. I'm actually not supposed to do this, but I had to see you." She stepped closer with a gentle smile.
"Do I know you?" She gave me a sad look.
"Sadly, no. We weren't able to meet properly. But I've spent many years looking for you. My name is Nina."
"I'm Gill." She pulled me into a tight hug, and even though I had no idea who she was, her embrace felt comforting.
"I know who you are. I'm your mother." I pulled back and stared at her with wide eyes. "Your real mother. Not that woman who calls herself your mother when she left you so young." I could feel tears in my eyes.
"B-but my dad said it was a closed adoption... How do you know where to find me? And how did you get here?" She shook her head.
"I don't have much time to explain. But I knew I had to see you. I had to give you some sort of explanation to why I had to let you go." She took a breath before continuing.
"I was seventeen when you were born. I was dating your father...he was very abusive. I would have kept you if I could have, but I knew he would hurt you if I did. So I had to give you to someone who could keep you safe. I tried to leave him many times, but he had a pretty tight grip on me." I looked down and saw that her feet were now transparent.
"You're disappearing!" I shouted.
"That means you're waking up. I love you so much, Gill. You are such a special boy, and I am so proud of what you've become."
"I'm gay..." I whispered.
"I know. That Tobias boy is quite a looker." She nudged my arm and I blushed. "Don't let go of him, okay? You two belong together, I can feel it." I nodded and watched sadly as she slowly faded away. The lights around me brightened and the sound of beeping and snoring filled my ears. My eyes soon fluttered open and shut again as I saw the bright lights above me. When I finally opened them, I saw that I was in a hospital bed. I looked over and smiled when I saw Tobias next to me, his head set on the mattress and his hand holding mine tightly. He had bags under his eyes and they looked puffy... he'd been crying. I lifted my other hand and softly ran my fingers through his hair.
"He hasn't left, you know. I think this is the longest he's slept since you got here." I looked to my other side and saw a man I didn't recognize. "I'm Paul. I'm Tobias' father."
"It's nice to meet you, sir, though I wish it were under different circumstances." I coughed loudly until a cup a water appeared in front of me. I took a sip and thanked Paul. "How long have I been here?"
"Little over a week."
"Do you know why I'm in here?" He nodded.
"I think we should get the doctor in here though now that you're awake." I nodded and he quietly left the room. Moments later, the door opened again and I heard liquid spill all over the floor before there were another pair of arms wrapping around me gently.
"Oh, Mijo I'm so glad you're awake,"
my dad cried into my shoulder.
"What happened in here?" Another voice asked. It was a woman this time, followed by a young teenage boy. I could tell by looking at both of them that they were related to Tobias.
"I saw that he was awake and kinda dropped my coffee in shock." My dad shyly rubbed the back of his neck. The woman turned to me and gave me a smile.
"Hello, sweetie. I'm Bethany, Tobias' mother. And this is Andrew, his younger brother." I smiled and waved at them. His family was all so nice, but I couldn't help but wonder why they were all there?
"Okay, so your pain meds should be kicking in soon." A familiar voice said.
"Maya?" Her head looked up from her clipboard and she smiled.
"Oh, Gill! It's lovely to see you. Although I wish it wasn't at work." She chuckled. "James can't stop talking about you." I felt Tobias stir beside me. I smiled at him as he lifted his head and yawned before slowly opening his eyes. He stared at me for a moment before seeming to realize what was happening. They widened and his grip on my hand tightened.
"Gill! You're finally awake? Oh my God, I missed you. I'm so sorry I left you downstairs and I was so worried and I'm just really glad you're okay and-"
"Tobias, breathe." I interrupted. He nodded and took a breath. He leaned forward and pressed a lingering kiss to my cheek, making me blush.
"You lied to me." I heard his mom say to her son.
"What, when?"
"He is much cuter than you said." It was his turn for his cheeks to turn red.
"Mom!" She just giggled.
"Anyway, I'll need a few of you to exit the room so I can examine him." Maya said. Toby's mom and brother left quickly and my dad stood as well.
"I'm gonna go get another coffee and find something to clean that up with." He said sheepishly, gesturing toward the dark puddle by the door of the room.
"I'll stay right here because there is no way I am going anywhere now that you're awake." Tobias stated, nuzzling his face into my neck.
"According to your dad you didn't go anywhere while I was asleep either." I laughed.
"Well, I didn't want to miss you waking up, but apparently I did anyway," he sighed. I looked back over to Maya who was smiling at the two of us.
"You two are adorable. I thought you said you just moved here? How long have you been together?" I blushed before stuttering.
"W-we aren't d-dating..."
"Yet." Tobias added. He wanted to date me? I felt him kiss my neck lightly. I swear, my face just kept discovering new shades of red whenever he was around.
"Well, you should. Anyway, what do you remember about the day you came in, Gill?" I thought back to the last thing I remembered. As I thought more, the events slowly came back to me.
"Tobias picked me up that morning and brought me breakfast. We ate it in the park before going to school. When we got there, I jumped out of his truck. The thing is gigantic and he usually has to pick me up to put me in or take me out. But this time, I jumped on my own and I hurt my knees pretty bad. I went to class and Jax took me to the nurse. Then Tobias gave me a pair of pants and took me back to my house. I left my keys in my backpack, which was still in my first period classroom, so Tobias climbed through my bedroom window. How did you do that by the way?" I turned to Tobias. " It's on the second floor."
"I climbed the tree next to it. Continue." I rolled my eyes and continued replaying the events.
"So he let me into the house and told me he climbed through the window because I left it open, but I told him I didn't. Then I got really scared because I thought there might be someone in the house. Tobias went to go look upstairs, and then I felt something hit me in the back of the head. I think I just dreamt the last part, but there was a giant silver wolf standing above me and then I blacked out and woke up here." I felt Tobias get tense beside me for some reason.
"Do you think the wolf did this to you?" I shook my head.
"No, he was standing above me like he was protecting me. He was growling at someone else, but I didn't see them. I saw that they were wearing big black boots, but that's it."Â Maya nodded again.
"Well, it's good you still have your memory. The damage isn't severe, but we did have to operate because you had a bit of swelling. The surgeon said your hair was too cute, so she shaved off as little as she could. The bald patch can easily be covered with a beanie, but for now, you'll have to keep the bandage on. The doctor also stitched up your knees. Other than that, just a couple bruises, I assume from you hitting the floor. As for the wolf, you might have been dazed for a moment from the blow before you blacked out, or as you said, it was a dream." I nodded. Suddenly, there was a sharp knock at the door. A chubby looking police officer stood at the door.
"Hi, I'm Officer Stanley. I was told you were awake and talking. I'm afraid I'll need a statement from both of you about what happened. Separately." For some reason I felt panic rise in my chest at the thought of Tobias leaving.
"Hey, love. I'll just be outside. I'll get you something good to eat, how about that? Anything you'd like?"
"Chicken wings," I answered quickly. Chicken wings were heavenly. "Boneless, garlic parmesan." He laughed and nodded.
"Coming right up." He kissed my cheek softly and stood from his chair before leaving the room, Maya following him. The officer shut the door and sat in the chair Tobias was sitting in.
"Alright, Gill. So what do you remember about that day?" I repeated what I said to Maya before, excluding the part about the wolf. I didn't want him to think I was crazy. "And you didn't hear his voice, see his face, anything?" I shook my head.
"I just saw his black boots and that's it." He nodded and stood.
"So this is none of my business, but I couldn't help but notice the chemistry between you two." I blushed. "I think my son is gay, but he hasn't said anything. I just want him to know I'll always be there, yunnow?" I nodded.
"Don't force him to come out when he's not ready. You should just sit him down and tell him what you just said. That you'll always support him and love him no matter what. He'll tell you when he's ready." He nodded and smiled.
"Thanks, kid. He doesn't even live here though. He lives with his mom in New Mexico."
"That's where I'm from!" He laughed.
"You know a Travis Montgomery?" My face paled.
"Y-yeah, I went to school with him actually."
"Small world, huh." He laughed again. There was a soft knock at the door and he got up to open it, ending the conversation. Even when he's not there, Travis keeps finding ways to scare the shit out of me. Tobias walked in with a big paper back and a paper cup.
"Hey, cutie. I got you lemonade, I hope that's alright?" I smiled at him and nodded.
"Thank you!" I giggled.
"Of course, love. I'm gonna go give my statement real quick while you eat, alright?" I nodded before Officer Stanley spoke up.
"Oh, you can stay here. It's against protocol, but I noticed he's a lot calmer next to you." I blushed and smiled up at Tobias.
"I kinda yelled at him when he came here a couple days ago," he said sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck. I gave him a playful glare. "Sorry! I was just upset because I missed you and you weren't waking up..."
"Aye, don't worry about it. So, Tobias. Can you tell me what happened?" Tobias nodded and opened the bag of food before speaking.
"Gill fell getting out of my truck and skinned his knees. His jeans ripped and I took him to his house so he could change." He took out a big box and the smell of the chicken wings filled my nose. He took out a plastic fork and opened the box before stabbing a piece and holding it up to my lips. I blushed and took a bite. It was amazing.
"The door was locked when we got there, and Gill left his key at school. So I climbed the tree by his open bedroom window and got in that way." He fed me another bite. "When I mentioned that he had left his window open, he said he didn't and his dad had already left for work. So I knew someone had broken in. I went upstairs to look and didn't find anything. When I came back down, I saw this huge guy all in black hit Gill with a metal baseball bat. When he saw me, he ran off and that's when I called my dad. He called 911 and came, along with my friend Ajax, because I was freaking out. I don't know why I didn't call 911 myself...I guess I was in shock and was freaking out too much." I smiled at Tobias, hoping to calm him down, as he was getting quite fidgety.
"Did you see his face? Or hear his voice? Anything we could use to identify him?"
"I didn't see his face. But I did see his eyes. They were grey. Silver almost. He was wearing head to toe black. He was white. I could tell that by his eyelids. He was also really tall. Couple inches taller than me." He finished, giving me another bite of the chicken.
"Well, both of your stories match up, so that's good. However, with little to go off of, it will take a while to catch him. We went over the house with Gill's father and he said there wasn't anything missing that he could tell. No footprints, no fingerprints, no DNA. Nothing. And the fact that he left when you showed up meant he was most likely going after Gill."
"W-what? Why would he want me? I just moved here. The day that happened was only my second day of school." I asked feeling panic settle in again. The officer shrugged.
"We're gonna try and figure that out. In the meantime, I suggest you and your father find another place to stay in case he comes back, or if he's working with others."
"You can stay with me." Tobias spoke up. He smiled down at me. "And I know Holly still wants that slumber party. Consider it an extended slumber party." I giggled and nodded.
"Thanks, Toby."
"Of course, love."
"Well, I'll leave you two alone. If you need anything, you know where to find me." The cop said. "And thanks for the advice, Gill. I think I'm gonna go call my son." I couldn't help but flinch at the mention of Travis. The officer shit the door behind him and Tobias set the food aside, taking my hand in his again.
"What's wrong, cutie?"
"His son...the cop's son is Travis."
"I won't let him hurt you again, okay?" He stroked my cheek. I nodded and calmed down a little. "Now, I need to ask you something. I was going to wait until we got to know each other a little more, this past week with you being asleep and me being so worried and freaking out, I can't wait any longer. So, Gill. Would you like to go on a date with me?" I blushed and giggled before nodding.
"I didn't know you were gay." He shook his head.
"I'm not. I'm not gay or straight or anything. The only person I have ever felt like this with is you. So I mean I guess I'm gay. But. Just for you." My cheeks grew darker. "You're the person I was talking about in the park. I like you...like a lot." I couldn't believe what I was hearing.
"I really really like you too. And I can't wait for our date." He smiled and leaned toward me.
"Is it okay if I kissed you?" I nodded again.
"Definitely." He chuckled and closed the distance between us, his lips pressing softly against mine. It was a simple kiss, but I could feel my entire body ignite. Head to toe, I felt unbelievably warm and fuzzy. I didn't just have butterflies in my stomach. I had fucking eagles. He pulled away, much to my disappointment. He laughed and pecked me one more time. I was kind of glad it was just simple kisses he was giving me. After spending a week in a bed and eating garlic covered chicken, my breath must've been horrendous.
"Now, why don't we finish these wings?" He continued to feed me, and ask me random questions, while answering a few as well. Eventually, my dad joined us, as well as Jax and Holly and they all laughed at my blushing face when Tobias kissed me in front of them all. And I was unbelievably happy.