｢a.b｣ To Break A Boy

Andy had found himself a place to sleep that night, which was a park bench with his luck. He had curled in on himself to keep from the harsh winds, though that didn't help much. By morning, the boy had been freezing, pale skin agitated and red. His fingertips were tinted with blue, eyes dry.

Few people began to enter the park later that morning, just as Andy had begun to wake up. He watched as people passed, packed in warm clothing. He shivered as the wind began to pick up, pulling his knees to his chest and wrapping his frail arms around himself, a poor attempt to get warm. He felt a buzz in his pocket, the sudden motion surprising him with a jump. He shakily reached into the back pocket of his jeans, pulling out the device.

After staring at the screen for a bit, Andy's eyes adjusted to the bright screen. He read the small text.

1 Missed Call - Ashley

Andy felt his face relax as he tapped on the notification, and dialed the number. Yeah, he wanted to be alone, but it was better than going back home to Claire. He wanted to give her an hour or two to calm down, it was for the best.

After a few seconds of a buzz like ringing, the sound was cut, and a voice replaced it.

"Hello?" Andy smiled sadly, hearing his best friend's voice. He sounded so happy, so content. And to be quite honest, he envied it.

"Hey... What's up?" He responded quietly, coughs mixing in between each word.

"Nothing really. What's up with you, you sick or something?" Andy shook his head, then mentally slapped himself for being foolish and not taking the fact that Ashley can't see into account.

"No- just um, cold." Ashley hummed in response.

"Uh- you mind if I come over? We can hang out, have a few drinks if you want."

"Of course! Alcohol is my middle name, after all." Ashley chuckled, making Andy laugh softly with him.

"Last time I checked, Abroket was your middle name."

"Shut up," Ashley responded quickly, chuckling afterward. "Just get your ass over here so we can have a good time."

"Okay okay, I'm coming."

"See you later." Andy heard the sound cut out, indicating that Ashley had hung up. He lifted himself from the park bench, shoving his phone into his pocket and quickly wrapping his arms around himself. His shivering had never stopped, and he was quite proud of himself for only coughing at the beginning of the conversation.

Andy took a deep breath as he began to walk out of the park, and into the direction in which Ashley's house was. He had known that it wasn't very far, considering the park was only ten minutes away from his house, and it usually took him ten minutes by car to get to Ashley's.
Which could be ten to twenty minutes as of right now, since the park was on the way to his.

Andy looked up at the sky as he walked, wind blowing his hair into his face. His arms were wrapped around his freezing body as a snake would to kill a bird by suffocating it. It amazed him how he had even survived the cold the night before.

It wasn't long before Andy saw Ashley's house come into view, smiling softly. He was happy to see his friend, but he was even happier knowing that he was about to enter the, hopefully, warm house.

He walked as fast as his numb legs could take him, getting to the front of the house in about five minutes. He knocked on the door eagerly, wanting to get into the heat of the home. His teeth chattered violently as seconds turned into hours in his blurred mind, his vision was hazy, lips chapped. He could vaguely hear the sound of floorboards creaking as someone wandered around the house, he knew it was Ashley, why wouldn't it be?

Andy's thoughts were clarified when the dark mahogany door opened to reveal his friend. He could feel the confusion radiating from Ashley, however, he had rather much wanted to feel the warmth his body held. The warmth that he'd kill to have, even if it was just a small amount he'd be satisfied.

The two stood like that for a few seconds; Andy looking down and freezing half to death, Ashley just standing in utter shock at the sight of him. Those seconds seemed to process as minutes in the freezing boy's head. Very, very long minutes.

"Can I just come in," Andy started, his voice horribly shaky and dry. The words came out impatient and annoyed as he kept his head down, the last word coming out as a mere whisper, "please."

That seemed to knock Ashley back to reality. He shook his head to himself before nodding, "Yeah, of course."

Andy rushed into the house the second Ashley stepped out of the way, urging him to close the door. His body continued to shake in its frozen state as he walked over to the sofa just in front of a fireplace.

"What the hell happened Andy? You're fucking freezing!" Ashley exclaimed worriedly as he closed the door, restricting the cold from invading the warmth.

Andy stayed quiet as he shook in front of the fire, arms still wrapped around him. He took deep breaths in his frozen state.

"I-I slept a-at the park..." Was all he could mention after a moment of pure silence, the older man staring at him. He couldn't really say what else happened, besides it's not like anyone else would care.

"Why the fuck did you do that?" Andy flinched at the sudden burst, biting his lip nervously as he thought of an excuse.

"Claire had friends over. I wanted her to have some fun alone without a guy there..."

"So you slept in the fucking park with nothing but a damn tank top? Common sense would've told you to grab a jacket or-or something! You're so fucking stupid!"

Andy shut up at that, any thought of an excuse canceling out. Instead, it filled with the countless time Claire had called him stupid... For breaking something, not pleasuring her enough. Having to go on tour when they were meant to have a day to themselves.

But he deserved that, right? They were good reasons.

He was pretty stupid for not being less of a klutz. And for not checking in ahead of time for anything band related before scheduling some type of date...

He stared at the floor as he thought more and more of Claire. How she would treat him. She loved him though, he knew that for sure. She was just mad every time he fucked something up. It was understandable.

The love he had for her was so strong... he couldn't stand the thought of her upset with him. He would do everything for her, even if it meant him hurt in the end. Every fiber of his being wanted her happy. He wanted her-

"Andy!"

Andy was startled at the sudden call of his name, instantly looking up at Ashley.

Ashley examined his face, his blue eyes dull and bloodshot and cheeks a faint red as they warmed slowly. Lips chapped and nose runny. He was a mess.

Sighing softly, Ashley sat down on the couch next to Andy. "Why did you sleep in the park?" he asked quietly.

Andy shook his head, dismissing the question. "I came here to hang out and have fun, Ash. Can we just forget about it? Come on — where's your beer?"

Ashley was hesitant before standing from the couch, heading towards the kitchen with Andy following shortly after. He took two beer bottles from the refrigerator, setting them on the counter. Andy instantly grabbed one.

"You know we're talking about this later, right?"

Andy simply nodded, shrugging it off as he took a drink of the alcohol after opening it. His goal was to get pretty prepared for when he got home, just in case of Claire.

Pity how he had to be drunk to pleasure her enough. But he'd do anything for her, even if it means waking up with a blasted headache the next morning.

Oh, how much of a pity that was.

Notes