Black & Blue & Blood All Over (Oriel)

[Deleted]

Phoenix was so close to being done at Hammel! So close... All he needed to do was wait a few more weeks of training and he would finally be finished. Not that he disliked Hammel necessarily, but he'd already been there for two years longer than he should have, one for education and one for training, and he was ready to try to make something of his life. He really wished Oriel would be graduating with him too, but unfortunately it didn't look like that would be the case.... and Phoenix thought they would likely wait until the younger boy graduated before they actually got married.

But that was okay... As long as he still wore the ring, and got to see his Squishy on a regular basis, everything would be alright. Phoenix couldn't wait until the day they could afford a place of their own, though, which was why he was looking into finding a second job once he was graduated. Maybe at that art store, or the Asian market... He knew his boss would give him a great recommendation letter, so he felt somewhat confident in finding more work.

Speaking of Oriel... When was he gonna get here? Phoenix was fairly certain he was supposed to be at his dad's place by now, but he had yet to show up. He frowned and looked at his phone, wondering if he had missed something, but he didn't have any texts or missed calls. He wondered if he should call him... Maybe he'd wait another ten minutes or so. He probably just ran into a friend or something... Yeah.

So he busied himself with tidying up his room a little, and entertaining himself with the kitten that his dad had finally let him get - an adorable little fluffball named Haru (for no specific reason... nope). Come on Squishy~

[Deleted]

Oriel got plenty of looks from people as he passed by them on his way to Phoenix’s place. Who could blame them? It’s not every day you see a kid stumbling down the street trying to hold his face together. Because at the moment it felt like it was about to fall off, after the abuse it’d just gotten from a certain anger management problem….

….Oriel didn’t really have the right to judge, though, considering how many people’s faces he’d bashed in for pissing him off at just the wrong time. Most of the time, they deserved it…or at least he’d like to justify it that way. This time, with Oriel on the receiving end….well, he probably deserved it. No, he definitely deserved it.

What’s worse is that Oriel could see it coming. The moment that switch was flipped, Oriel could see it in the bastard’s eyes, that same rage that Oriel himself had spent so much time trying to keep in check. And yet, Oriel still poked. He still prodded. Why? Morbid curiosity. To see what happened. Considering how skull-fucked he was looking right now, Oriel was surprised that that was all Rue did to him.

Fucker….

Not like Oriel blamed him, but he did…and didn’t. Fuck, why was Oriel such a fucking asshole? Then he could have prevented having to scrape and crawl his way from that empty alley all the way to his fiancee’s place. Oriel had laid in that alley for a good while before finally trying to push himself up. He’d tasted iron and spat out a good bloody wad onto the concrete. He tried to wipe the dirt and grime that had caked around his eye, but the slightest brush had him wincing. Oriel was too disoriented to do much more than shakily pull himself to his feet and start walking. And glare at anybody who dared get close. He didn’t want anybody else involved.

Heh…reminded him of his days in New York. Being beaten in an alley. They still left him in worse condition then than he was now. At least, he liked to think so.

Oriel gripped onto the gate and pushed it open with a creak that no doubt his fiancee would be able to hear from inside. He looked up and felt the world tilt. No….that was him. Now that he was almost there, it figured that was when his strength would give. His sight went black for a moment and when they refocused, he was blinking at an ant crawling across the sidewalk. “P-phoenix…!” he called, though he wasn’t positive what he was uttering wasn’t just an incoherent gurgling.

[Deleted]

Another five minutes passed by, and Phoenix started to get a tiny bit concerned. He would have been more so if he didn’t know he was apt to forgetting things and wondered if maybe he was wrong about what time he was supposed to come over or something. It wasn’t like he kept a calendar, though; Oriel just came over whenever he said he would and that was that. But still… Hmm…. “Haru, do you think I should call him?” he asked the kitten as he flipped a string back and forth for the fluffball to play with. The animal ignored him and pounced, pinning down the string and getting a small giggle from Phoenix. “He’s not usually late… Maybe I’m just being paranoid though….”

A few moments later, he heard the tell-tale creak of the front gate from his open window, and squealed as he hopped up and ran to the front door to greet his Squishy. He flung the door open and prepared to leap into the boy’s arms when he realized… Oriel was….

“ORIEL!?” he shrieked, rushing towards the collapsed teenager. “Oh my God, oh my God, what happened to you!?” Phoenix gingerly tried to lift the boy’s face, only to see it covered in blood and grime and who-knows what else. “Oh my God!!!!” Frightened tears welled up in his eyes and began streaking down his face as he cradled his lover in his lap, panicked that he was in critical condition. “DAD!” he wailed back towards the house. “S-something’s wrong with Oriel, he’s bleeding so much…!”

Phoenix turned back to Oriel and brushed some matted hair out of his fiancé’s face, stroking the back of his head with a shaking hand. “It’s g-gonna be okay, Oriel, dad’s comin’, we’ll get you some help…” He sniffled and wiped his nose with the back of his hand. “What happened? Wh-where else are you hurt??” Blood was probably staining his clothes by this point, but he didn’t care; he just kept Oriel’s head in his lap until his dad got help or something.

[Deleted]

If Oriel hadn’t just had his face rearranged, then he might have had the cognizance to remember that he actually had a cell phone and could have called to have Phoenix and his dad pick him up where he lay. But as usual, Oriel was beaten and broken and stupid, and thought that trekking across Pilot Ridge(it wasn’t really that far) to the house was the best course of action. Obviously it was, considering he collapsed on the front walkway into the house after just passing through the gate.

He heard Phoenix’s voice scream, no doubt from finding his fiancé in such a dilapidated state. He felt hands on his face try to lift it up. “….ow….that hurts…” he grumbled. There was a reason he hadn’t wiped the grime from his face. It fucking hurt. “M’fine tho…” Lies.

Who was he calling for? Dad? That…. “N-no…M’okay….” Oriel’s lip had swollen such that his words weren’t coming out right either. So maybe he wasn’t as fine as he thought he was. But he didn’t want to be taken care of by the old man…the old man would probably just let him rot….yeah…that made sense…

Derek, in the meantime, came out quickly at the sound of his son’s horrified scream. Even he wasn’t a dick enough to just let this alone. “Shit…” he hissed. “What have you gotten yourself into.” His voice was annoyed, but colored with concern nonetheless. Derek knelt down beside Phoenix and started inspecting the injured boy. “Has he said anything?” he asked Phoenix. What a fool to be trying to walk around in this state. “We should call for an ambulance,” he determined. It wasn’t that Derek didn’t know how to take care of Oriel here - he did, even with limited supplies - but he could list about ten different liability issues regarding that.

Oriel didn’t agree though. “F-fuck no…no ambulance…don’t you…fucking dare…”

After a moment of consideration, Derek sighed in resignation. “Fine,” he relented, though was none too happy about it. “Phoenix, help him up, bring him inside. I’ll get the first aid.” He lingered behind a moment to help Oriel get to his feet, then disappeared inside.

[Deleted]

Phoenix didn’t quite realize he was hurting the younger boy until Oriel voiced his complaints. “I’m… I’m sorry…!” he whimpered, trying to be as completely gentle as possible. But… At least his fiancé was awake and clear-headed enough to respond, right? That had to be good, right? “You’re not fine!” he replied, half-exasperated, half-terrified. “You’re c-covered in blood, it looks l-like you have a black eye and… Y-your nose is crooked…” Or maybe that was just his imagination, making things worse than they were. Maybe.

“Shh…. He’s gonna help, I promise,” he murmured when Oriel tried to protest. “He used t’be a doctor, he’ll know what to do…!” At least, Phoenix hoped so. Then again, he was thinking that it might just be best to get Oriel to the hospital to make sure he wasn’t more seriously injured elsewhere…

Phoenix looked up when the man appeared, his cheeks still streaming with worried tears. “He’s gonna be okay, right??” he begged to know, as though Derek would be able to tell with a glance. The pixie sniffled and wiped his eyes. “H-he’s said a little, but I think his lips are all swollen up… And he d-didn’t tell me what happened…” Though Oriel barely looked capable of talking much at all at the moment. Phoenix was reaching for his phone as soon as Derek suggested they call an ambulance, but he froze when Oriel protested. “B-but Oriel… You could be really hurt…!” he whined, conflicted.

His dad surprisingly agreed, though, so Phoenix hesitantly put his phone away and continued to hover near Oriel. “O… Okay….” He mumbled. Phen put one of Oriel’s arms around his shoulder and carefully tried to get him to his feet, letting the boy continue to ease his weight onto the older pixie as they went inside. He struggled not to stumble, but managed to get past the door without too much trouble. “Here, sweetie,” he murmured, helping Oriel lay back on the couch. Hopefully that was where Derek wanted him. Once done, Phoenix kneeled down beside the boy and gingerly kissed his bloodied cheek, continuing to brush hair from his face. “You really should get this trimmed,” he joked weakly. Phoenix looked back, waiting for his dad to get there with the supplies. “I’m gonna be right here, okay? I’m not goin’ anywhere.” He reached down and squeezed Oriel’s hand for support – he just wasn’t sure if it was more for him or Oriel.

[Deleted]

Of course it hurt…how could it not hurt…then again, this was Phoenix they were talking about, so it wasn’t all that unexpected that Phoenix’s attempts to help would do the exact opposite. Oriel tried to smile…but that hurt too much too. Damn, everything hurt, was there a place that didn’t hurt?

……his pinky toe, maybe?

“Is it?” he replied when Phoenix pointed out his crooked nose. “T-there goes my b-beautiful…face….damn.” Yes, he was making jokes. It was all his brain could manage to do at the moment. He wasn’t entirely confident when Phoenix said his Dad was coming to help. Why would that guy give a fuck about a delinquent like Oriel? But…there he was, just the same, looking him over and telling Phoenix what to do and demanding a call to the ambulance, to which Oriel mustered all his energy to speak against.

There were two reasons for that. The first was, fuck hospitals. Oriel spent time there when he was pumped full of snake-venom a little over a year ago, and that had been full of nothing but horse-shit. Oriel wasn’t sure he could take another anxiety-producing trip there only to be confined for who knows how long. The second was…..if he went, they were no doubt going to ask him for details about what happened…and the last thing Oriel wanted was to go into detail about what happened and especially not about who it was who reduced Oriel’s face to looking like ground beef. Rue, Phoenix’s ex…..somehow, Oriel didn’t think it was a good idea to bring that guy up, especially in this context. It just…he didn’t think Phoenix would take the news well. Oriel knew it was stupid, but considering the last time that guy was brought up Phoenix had a full on panic attack….yeah, Oriel didn’t want to see that again.

Oriel felt himself being lifted…about as much as Phoenix could manage to lift him, pathetically, before stronger arms grabbed him from the other side until the boy was finally on his feet. He must’ve really been out of it, because the next thing he remembered was being laid out on the couch with Phoenix hovering over him with his usual worried expression. “Mm…thanks…” he muttered, then smiling at Phoenix’s lighthearted comment.

Derek returned after a bit with a handful of supplies that he deemed inadequate for the purposes of treating the boy, but sufficient to clean him up while Derek went out to get better supplies from the store. “Just…do it like this, gently,” he instructed Phoenix while demonstrating what to do. “Do as much as you can, I’ll be back soon. If anything happens, call me.” Pause. “And if anything serious happens, call an ambulance.” He didn’t care how stubborn Oriel wanted to be, there were limits to that kind of stupidity. “And keep him conscious.” After that, Derek left the two boys alone for the moment. Hopefully they’d be okay.

[Deleted]

Phoenix grimaced. “M-maybe… Just a little… But you’ll always be beautiful, Squishy, don’t worry about that!” He very lightly kissed the tip of his broken nose, far more concerned about the actual damage than how it would look in the long run. It’s not like he was going to be repulsed by something so little and unimportant (to him). Phen could understand why Oriel was hesitant to let Derek take care of him, but he knew (at least, hoped) that his dad cared enough about the boy through Phoenix that he would do his best to make sure Oriel would be alright. He wasn’t that big of a jerk!

He did still think that Oriel should go in and make sure he didn’t have something serious, like a concussion, but… But his dad should be able to tell that, right? Somehow? It was just… Just a few bruises and scratches, he’d be fine! Phoenix was dying to know how this had happened and who had done this to his precious fiancé, but he knew it was more important at the moment to just make sure he would be okay. Details could come later.

Phen was grateful that his dad helped lift Oriel up, because it would have been very hard for him to do it by himself. He hated how heavy the boy felt against him, like he was too weak to even carry his own body weight the short distance to the couch. But when Phoenix laid him down and the boy managed a tiny smile at him, he felt a tad bit of relief. He was going to be okay. He had to be.

Phoenix looked up when his dad came back, seeing the supplies in his hands and feeling more relief. “Okay…” He watched carefully at what the older man was doing, and nodded as he took the rag and other things in his hand and began to gingerly repeat the motions. “You’re leavin’?” he mewled at Derek worriedly. “… O-okay….” Phen wasn’t sure he liked being left alone with the seriously injured boy, but he figured there was no other choice. “Thanks, dad….” He gulped and went back to work, trying to wash the dirt and blood and grime from Oriel’s face. Slowly, the boy’s skin began to show underneath all the muck. “Oriel… Keep talkin’ t’me, okay? I can’t let you sleep, otherwise… Otherwise I’d have t’call an ambulance, and you don’t want that, right?” Hopefully that would work as some incentive for his fiancé to stay conscious. “Who… what happened, Squishy?” he murmured as he wiped off the blood under his nose and chin. His nose was definitely crooked, now that he could look more closely. Phoenix wondered how much of a problem that was. “W-why would someone do this t’you? Was it an accident?” He wanted to think it was, but his gut told him it wasn’t. Haru hopped up on the couch and began nosing around Oriel’s legs; Phen glanced at him. “Hey, see, even Haru w-wants t’make sure you’re okay,” he joked weakly.

[Deleted]

Ahh….Oriel thought he heard something crack when his face was being mashed into a brick wall. He managed a smile - at least he hoped it looked like a smile - when Phoenix kissed his broken nose. “Y-you’re just…biased,” he said with strained laugh. At least his sense of humor was intact. That was always a good sign, right?

It’d been a long time since Oriel had been beaten this bad though. Last time, half of it he did to himself, the other half…Oriel still hadn’t told Phoenix that Gryph was the one who punched him. Three times. Oriel wasn’t sure Phoenix could handle that sort of news. Just like he was certain that Phoenix couldn’t handle hearing any sort of news about his ex-boyfriend, much less that the guy was the one who beat up his current boyfriend, or rather, his fiance.

He was going to have to tell Phoenix something, though…sometime…

Oriel felt something wet on his face which seemed to snap him out of a drift he didn’t realize was happening. He tried to blink his eyes open, but only one would. It was kind of hard to stay awake when your eyes were forced shut, just saying. “Mmm?” he grunted at the sound of Phoenix’s voice. “M’not sleeping,” he muttered, then he tried a smile. “How can I sleep…when I’m being taken care of…by someone so…goddamn…beautiful…” Oriel might have been a little disoriented as well. But no, Phoenix was right. Oriel didn’t want that ambulance, for reasons stated before. He tried to keep his mind focused, but now that he didn’t have to force it to stay awake to get home, it just wanted to shut down for a bit. “Nuthin happen’d.” Huge lie. “…okay, sumthin happen’d…f-fucked with the wrong dick this time. Heh, look wut happens. My poor face~” At least not all was lost, not with Phoenix on the job of making him beautiful again. Suddenly there was the weight of a tiny thing around his legs. A tiny thing with tiny claws. And Oriel smiled again. “Aww….s-stupid cat….lemme see her…?” Maybe a good kitten cuddling would give him a good recharge. Yeey, the magical healing of kitties~

[Deleted]

Phoenix winced slightly at the bloodied smile that Oriel gave to him. He hoped none of Oriel’s teeth were broken too. Maybe he should worry about that later. “No I’m not,” he pouted, glad that his fiancé was still talking and joking around. That was definitely good. “Well… Okay, maybe a little, but it doesn’t matter!” he huffed, worry making him defensive.

Truth be told, it seemed like Oriel did get hurt awfully often. Not usually this badly, but still, he must be prone to injury (or just reckless and stupid and too bold for his own good, which Phoenix wouldn’t admit). He’d never believe that his pacifist bff Gryph would ever lay a hand on his precious fiancé; Rue was a different matter, though Phoenix had no reason to believe the two were even seeing each other at all, so he was oblivious to that as well. If he did find out…. Phoenix might have a fit. Rue did have a temper, after all, and though Phen had never seen it first-hand, he’d heard a couple stories that always made his blood chill and were hard to believe, given the older man’s calm, comforting demeanor.

He noticed now that one of Oriel’s eyes seemed to be swollen shut too. “You’re probably gonna have a nasty black eye there….” Phoenix murmured, being extra gentle as he cleaned around that area to avoid hurting him. At least he was talking, though; he hoped as long as he kept Oriel talking, he would be alright. No chance to pass out. “Good,” he murmured, dabbing around his forehead. Then Phoenix blushed at what Oriel was saying, pausing a moment in order to give him an embarrassed smile. “I would tell you to shush and stop if I wasn’t worried about you passin’ out,” he finally replied as he went back to work. His brow furrowed when the younger boy tried to say that nothing happened, but Phoenix wasn’t buying that for a minute, so he felt a little better when he ‘explained’ what happened. “… You gotta stop doin’ that, Oriel,” he sighed worriedly. “I’m really afraid one day you’re gonna get into a fight you can’t get away from and…” Phen didn’t want to think about that, no way. “Promise me you’ll try to avoid it, okay?” His face was the least of the pixie’s worries at the moment. He’d rather him be ugly and alive (impossible but whatever) than pretty but… not alive.

After a bit, Phoenix thought he’d cleaned off about the best he could with his supplies, just in time for the furball to appear. “You wanna?” he smiled down at Oriel, then gently reached over and snagged the kitten to put on Oriel’s chest. “Just be careful, okay? She’s still fragile and you’re a bit… Well, I think your brain’s just a tad rattled,” he admitted meekly. Hopefully it wouldn’t last. Haru clambered on the boy’s broad chest, mewing loudly from being moved. “It’s okay, Haru,” he murmured, holding onto Oriel’s hand tightly as he waited for his dad to get back. “Oriel’s gonna be just fine, wait and see.” Phoenix really hoped he was right.

[Deleted]

Oriel might’ve chipped a tooth. He might have to go through the rest of his life with an ugly chipped-tooth smile and a perma-dent in his nose. But neither of those were important right now. Well….maybe he was a little worried about losing his gorgeous beauty. Vain much? When one was this beautiful, it was allowed. (Besides that, the author says his teeth are fine because #yolo).

Maybe it was something he should talk to Phoenix about sometime? About why he kept getting hurt like this? He found it hard to believe that Phoenix didn’t realize just how big of an asshole his lover really was. But…maybe it’s because Phoenix continued to keep believing in him that he loved him so much? And tried so hard to never hurt a single hair(non-consensually) on his pretty little head again. This time too, it was because he was being an asshole that he ended up bloodied and left to rot in the street, like he always feared would happen to him back in NYC. Oriel didn’t expect it here, but when/if it did happen, Oriel was sure it was because he deserved it. Because he was an asshole…

Sheesh, this train of thought was depressing…

Oriel tried to smile again. “Mmm…probly,” he muttered. His eye felt huge and like it weighed a million pounds. How long would it feel like that, he wondered vaguely. Oriel really wanted to sleep, though, so he whined a little when Phoenix outright said he couldn’t. “Fine….I’m ‘wake…you’re so mean. Meanie~” Oriel would’ve stuck out his tongue at that point, but even that was sore. He must’ve bitten it when his head was slammed. The humor vanished from his face, though, at Phoenix’s scolding and he slid his one good eye to look upon his fiancee. “I know….sorry,” he mumbled guiltily. He tried to shrug a shoulder, but even that hurt. Damn, where was it he decided didn’t hurt right now? His left pinky toe? Or was it the right one? Whatever… “C’n try….’s hard tho. How else’m I s’pposed t’get my fun?” It was supposed to be a joke. It wasn’t very funny though.

“Mmhmm,” he hummed affirmatively. Yes, Oriel wanted the kitty. That poor, stupid little ball of fur that would still be cute and lovable no matter how beat up and ugly Oriel was. “M’okay,” he mumbled, trying to sit up slightly for a better angle of kitty-playing. Watching this thing, Oriel couldn’t help but smile. And he chuckled, picking up the kitten in his large hands and turning the twerp around to look at ‘daddy’ Phoenix. “You know who this guy reminds me of?” he posed with a silly half-grin. “You, my squishy-squish. Guess it’s true what they say, like-mother-like-daughter.” Oriel was being a dope. That may have been the concussion talking.

[Deleted]

It was true that Phoenix had an inkling of why Oriel got hurt so often. What normal, non-aggressive person got beat up as much as his fiancé? Still, he was stubborn in believing that Oriel was a good person, and so he wouldn’t voice these thoughts out loud. Call it brainwashing, if you must… All he cared about was that Oriel would be alright. He didn’t even stop to consider if Oriel had fought back and hurt whoever had hurt him. They probably deserved it anyway if they did.

He let out a sound of exasperation at Oriel’s complaints. “I’m tryin’ t’keep you alive, you dummy!” he whined, finally feeling his eyes really dampen up and spill tears from worry. Even if Oriel was kidding around, Phoenix still didn’t know just how badly he was hurt. “You know I can’t live if you…!” He couldn’t finish that thought. “So just shut u-…. No, keep talkin’ whether you wanna or not!” Phen very rarely ordered Oriel around, but this wasn’t something to be meek over. His shoulders went a little limp and he stifled a sob when his fiancé apologized. “That’s not funny,” he accused with no humor in his voice. “You’re goin’ t’make me worry sick if you keep it up. We n-need t’find better hobbies for you.” That didn’t involve physical contact with anyone. Or the potential of verbal abuse, too.

Phoenix’s hands hovered over Oriel as the younger boy tried to move. “Careful…” he mumbled. He watched his lover interact with the kitten as his tears slowly dried, and managed a tiny smile when Oriel turned the kitten towards him. “She looks nothin’ like me,” he snorted. “She’s way cuter. Your…. You’re just out of it.” Phen looked towards the door, wondering when his dad would come back. He couldn’t tell if Oriel was getting any better or worse. “D’you need some water?” he asked, turning back to his lover. “I’ll get you some if you promise not t’try and sleep while I get it.” His fingers still fiddled with Oriel’s hair.

[Deleted]

Oriel didn’t even have a chance to fight back. Rue hadn’t given him one, not even to run away which was his usual M.O.. How much of an asshole was he, though, that he knew that the shit he spouted out to people would upset them enough to want to beat in his face? That he provoked these people on purpose? He even made it a game at times.

To be honest, Oriel was trying to avoid these situations, but old habits die hard. Hopefully he didn’t in the process of trying. Oriel wanted to be the good person that Phoenix believed he could be, but…compulsion was a hard thing to work past. Impulsiveness too. And….that fucking kid was the exact kind of person he hated. Hate was another thing that was hard to work past, and Oriel had a lot of it for a lot of different things, himself included.

That was even more depressing….

Well, now he’d done it, he’d gone and made his darling Phoenix cry, and while Oriel took sadistic pleasure from seeing the pixie fluster and tear up, even his heart ached to see Phoenix seriously upset and overcome with worry for the ink manipulator. “M’not gonna die,” he muttered, attempting to reassure his lover with his usual arrogant smirk. “You know I’m too stubborn for that.” Stubbornness only got you so far, but Oriel didn’t want his Squishy to be wracked with worry over him. The boy would be smiling warmly now if he could. Oriel tried anyway. Phoenix really cared so much for him, didn’t he? He lifted his hand(ow ow ow ow ow) and stroked the side of his darling fiancee’s head. Maybe the physical contact would work? “Mmm,” he hummed, looking upon his love with a million kinds of affection in his eyes. “Maybe I should take up…basket weaving?” he tried to joke, subtly trying to change the subject. Hey, at least he was talking! “You know they offer that…as a whole major at some colleges?” Oriel told Gryph that before, and he’d been equally surprised as Oriel was.

Oriel chuckled softly(any more and he risked hurting more, ow ow ow), and turned Haru back to face him. “You think? I think it’s a perfect likeness.” Maybe he was out of it, but it was still true that Phoenix could be as adorable and innocent as a kitten sometimes. Oriel considered the offer. Now that he thought of it, his throat might’ve been hurting because it was so dry… “Yeah, sounds…yeah,” he said, nodding. He really was out of it if that was the best he could come up with. “I won’t.” He held up the kitty again. “I got a guard-cat watching over me.” Tee hee hee~

[Deleted]

It was best if Phoenix remained ignorant of the exact details of the fight, at least for now. He knew that Rue was around somewhere, but had no idea that he’d been interacting with Oriel. If he found out that it was his ex-boyfriend behind this, there was no telling what sort of worry and panic Phen might spiral into. No, it was for his own good to be oblivious.

“You’re right, you’re not,” Phoenix mumbled stubbornly, even through the tears. “Because you know you can’t leave me here alone.” Okay, so he had his dad now, and Haru, but nothing could replace what Oriel was to him. The younger boy had filled the hole that Phoenix had before tried to pack with hallucinogenic dust and apathy; if he were ripped out now, the damage would be unfixable. That was why he was so panicked over making sure the boy stayed awake and focused. Phen tilted his hand into Oriel’s touches, sniffling pathetically and wiping the back of his hand over his eyes. “M’fine,” he mumbled. He would be. Hopefully. At least he managed a weak chuckle at Oriel’s joking around. It was a good sign, at least. “You do that,” Phoenix replied with a small smile. “I’m sure you’ll be great at it. Basket weaving. Yeah.” No, Phen was thinking something more active, like martial arts or track and field. Something that would help healthily release the tension and energy that Oriel built up. “What about volunteerin’ at the animal shelter?” he suggested instead. “Kittens seem t’help make you relax.” Haru sure did, at least.

“I think you’re half-blind right now,” he retorted with a snort. “Haru is so much cuter. And fluffier.” Maybe not squishier, though. Still, Phoenix didn’t get it, but he supposed he wouldn’t argue any more with the bruised and broken boy. “Okay,” he chirped, hopping to his feet. “I’ll be back in like twenty seconds!” The pixie hurried to the kitchen and quickly filled up a glass before rushing back and returning with said glass. “Just drink slow,” he advised as he handed it over. There was a pink bendy straw placed inside. Phoenix plopped back down on the floor beside him and tenderly stroked Oriel’s arm. “My dad’ll be back any minute,” he promised, reaching in to give Oriel a smooch. “He’ll know what t’do better than I do.” Phen could only give him love and support, really.

[Deleted]

The more the two boys talked, the more Oriel was feeling effectively distracted from his desire to flop and close his eyes. It was still there, but being engaged certainly helped prevent it from happening. “You think so?” Oriel chuckled, then winced as something else decided to hurt. “Don’t…know what I’d do with it, though.” Who the fuck would hire him with a basket weaving degree? Oriel needed something more practical than that. And as for a new hobby… “Mmm…might be nice,” he said with a subtle shoulder shrug. Oriel thought seriously about that for a moment, throwing a different spin on the idea. “Volunteering, huh….I can do that.” He did it before, last year when he needed a distraction from being forcibly separated from Phoenix. “Maybe….maybe down at the old people’s home. Think they’d take a thug like me?” Oriel gave Phoenix a pathetic gaze and pointed to his face. “With an ugly mug like this?” His poor gorgeousness!

“Nahhh, my eyes’re workin’ fiiine,” he insisted, snorting back and attempting to raise a hand to ruffle Phoenix’s head of fluff. “You’re fluffy-wuffy too.” Oriel knew it was true. He was Evil Overlord, after all, and Overlords were never wrong! Of course, the moment Phoenix left the room to go get his water, Oriel immediately felt like passing out. The only reason he didn’t was because Haru decided to start playing with his hair. “Oww…hey, that’s miiiiine~” he whined, trying to reach over and pull her from the curly strands. “Maybe I should cut my hair…but then, what would you play with? Huh, pretty Haru?” Kitty~

Oriel was battling with a tiny kitty claw when Phoenix finally came back with his water, distracting him just enough to get a teeny slash across his finger. “Owwwwww,” he whined again. “You’re meeeaaaan~ I don’t like you anymore.” Baby. He struggled to sit more upright, and leaned forward to sip at the straw. Mmm, water was heaven. Oriel didn’t get the appeal of carbonated drinks. There was nothing more life preserving than precious water. Well…maybe Phoenix’s lips, but that was debatable. Oriel hummed into the light kiss. “I’s okay, I’m fine….I’ll be fine,” he corrected himself. No, he was not fine now, definitely now, but he was still certain that he’d been through worse.

As if on cue, the man in question ‘dad’ pulled open the screen door and stepped back inside the small house with a bag of supplies hanging off his arm. He gloomed down at the pair of boys, taking things out of the bag and setting them on the coffee table. “Well….the good news is you aren’t dead yet.” Which meant he probably wasn’t going to die. Then again, boxers had been known to drop dead several hours after an intense match, so the former doctor decided it’d still be best to keep him under observation. At a hospital would be preferable, but he’d only resort to that if things took a turn for the worse.

[Deleted]

Phoenix just continued to nod encouragingly at nearly everything his fiancé was saying. He figured encouraging any of these thoughts was a good thing, so he would do his best to try and get Oriel to do at least some of them. “You could… uh…” Okay, even Phen couldn’t figure out something useful with that degree. “Well, I’m sure you’ll figure somethin’ out.” Or maybe just choose another degree, that might be a better idea. The volunteering thing, though, brought genuine enthusiasm. “If that’s where you wanna do it, then why not?” he replied, wondering how old people might react to the snarky boy. “Or… or… What about a place for homeless kids?” he suggested thoughtfully. Phoenix wasn’t sure how Oriel would feel about helping homeless youth, but maybe he’d be interested because of his own past? “And you’re not ugly! You’re just as beautiful as ever, Squishy.” The pixie tenderly kissed Oriel’s nose, just to make a point.

Phen pouted and looked up as his hair was ruffled. “Okay… I guess I am a little fluffy…” he admitted sheepishly. “I should probably get a haircut soon…” His dad and boss would probably approve. But he wasn’t as fluffy as Oriel! Phoenix would have ruffled his hair, too, if he wasn’t injured. And needed water. He trusted the kitten to keep the younger boy awake for the short time that he was gone, and he was not disappointed.

“Haru! Bad kitty!” he disciplined the kitten, seeing the huge, gaping wound on Oriel’s finger from his ginormous claws. Phoenix gently scooped the kitten up and placed him back on the floor as he handed over the water. “Little fiend,” he chided with a shake of his head as he watched his fiancé drink. “How’s that?” he asked worriedly. “Are you feelin’ any different? Better? Worse?” No, Oriel definitely wasn’t fine, but Phen hoped that would change soon. “I’ll… I’ll kiss your owwies until you’re all better,” he promised. And Phoenix was about to start doing so when-

Whoops, dad was home. Good! Phoenix quickly stood and turned as he heard the front door open. “Did you get the stuff you need??” he asked worriedly, watching Derek take things out. “I kept him awake! That’s good, right? He’ll be fine?” The pixie was giving pleading eyes to his dad. “Just let me know what I need t’do, okay? I can help!” Hopefully. Phoenix really didn’t know the first thing about healing his bloody pulp of a lover. But surely just him being there would help, right?