..."The bully.___"...

  He wokes up hearing the fading echos of his dream. He peered on the open wide window that refract the sun setting behind the surrounding shadow on the horizon.

He glance at him sitting on the corner of the wall by the window curtain. He was watching him sleeping on his desk in that late breezy afternoon.

He glance at him again confuse and oblivious. He rubbed his teary eyes gently, sweeps his hair from his face and take a final look.

"What are you doing?" he mumbles.

Bryan bend towards Andy and gradually touches his face and take a gentle caresses to the boy's nape.

He was lifted up high inside. Flip up side down and finally get back his consciousness.

He abruptly hunched himself against the table, that makes his creaking chair tilted up and hit the wall on his back.

"why are you avoiding my touch?." Bryan asked to him.

"no I don't!."Andy said with his heated look.

  He groan and gradually let the half body of the chair fall back to the ground,he fumbles for the papers on the next table(of questionnaires that ask students about what they want to happen after they graduate senior high school .) he took four piece of paper draw them, and saw  Bryan's name appeared on his second draw.

Andy stand in front of him, read the paper in his mind and nodded.

"hmm". He murmured as he was nodding.

"Bryan Malcom, 18, wants to be an architect and painter.

And getting married with(?). Why is this empty?" he ask.

"why? What did you write in your paper huh? Tell me and I'll tell you what that means."

"I'm not playing kiss and tell bro.!"

He said with one of his eyebrows is tilted up and a provoking smile is on his strawberry-red face.

Bryan knows that,the blush on his face was a tacit answer and he likes that idea.

Andy knows for a fact that no one is in the school on those times. And a provoking smile and phrases will trigger one of them to do the" thing"  one of them had in mind. And Bryan bite the sweet bait Andy prepared for him.

Bryan slowly bend over to him,that almost make his chair slip off to the slippery white tiles,he anchor his hand into Andy's chair supporting his balance. And he whispered-

"close your eyes!."

The brown almost transparent hairs in his ears and nape feel the airy words he's speaking of as he breath, But Andy didn't. He wants to feel everything and see his face at the same time. Bryan cover Andy's face with his  left hand while his right arm is holding the table supporting his body.

  It wasn't just about the butterflies in his stomach or the hyperventilation he always feel everytime Bryan accidentally touched him or or the electrifying brush of touch or when Bryan used to run away from him when Andy tries to touch his arms or get closer to him. It wasn't about how proud he was, that he was Bryan's secret boyfriend or how Bryan is the most popular man in the school and he was his boyfriend it wasn't about that for him. Back when they were in junior high school.

Andy was bullied that day four seniors versus one soft junior sophomore.

  He was sitting on the wet grass, his bent umbrella is laying on the ground, his polo shirt tightly tucked in to his fitted navy-blue pants darkly stained with rain. on that rainy afternoon at the  school-botanical garden. holding tightly on his bag. His face is drenched, the rain water is slowly flowing down like tears on his pale nose and cheeks. He was staring emptily at the ground,heavy with agony.

"hey gay…if you don't want me to put this fist on your cheek, just give me what you've got!"

"what are you guys doing?"

He said, Looking at them furiously.

"I didn't know that he was your boy... Let's go guys! What a bad day for us guys.. You'll pay for this.."

They said before running under the pouring rain.

" anytime assholes. Anytime." Bryan said with furiously looking at them.

"he looks rich."

The other man mumbled running slowly, covering his head with his hands.

Bryan gradually walk in front of him, get down on his knees and put his hand under his chin. Smirk to him and look at him so sharply.

"since you like to be robbed then.. Give me your money!."

  Andy was shocked, confused and upset. But instead of giving his bag to him willingly he fumbles for his broken umbrella, immediately stand on his knees and stand still,throw the umbrella on his hands,and makes him stumble and fall into the wet grass. He run so fast hoping to never saw him again...

But sometimes fate can be so playful..

  The day began at 09:44am when Bryan's alarm clock (from abroad, given by his mother when he transferred.) starts to rang so loud until he fumbles and quench it.  He launched himself against the old, creaking bed to stand and stretched his body, groaned, heaved over and start to walk through the bathroom door unwillingly; he hates going to school since then. He always skipped three to four days of school every first week,to avoid the "introduce yourself thing" and the attention from new students.

But that break umbrella in front of his bathroom door makes him reminisce about that meek and careless little hare...

He went to school wearing his white bottom-down shirt with folded sleeves, dark denim jeans and pare of Oxford.

His uniform is in his backpack along with his student ID card. The guard ask for his identity when he tried to pass through the gate.

"can I get your information sir.?"

"ohh I'm a student here."

He said, trying to pass along with the uniformed students.

"your ID. Sir."

The old man said again, sharply looking at him with so much suspicion.

"okay.. Okay... Fine..."

He pulled his black-leather-bag from his back, put it in front of the coffee table in front of him and took his ID out of the bag,scan his ID on to the scanner and snatch his bag back.

"hey!!"

The guard yelled.

"Come back it's not finish yet" he added.

He raised his hand, wave as he run away from him and said.

"I'll treat you someday." before smiling and and rush out.

In front of the art class..

Bryan stand in front of the classroom, listened to the bustles of dozens of people inside muttering to each other, he squint to a small window on the door and watch the students playing with their teacher.

The art teacher looked him displeasure with a fierce frown, walk to him, opened the door and ask him confusedly.

"it's been three days. I'm about to drop you today, did you know that?"

  He was looking down with his teary eyes, his hands are clasped as though in prayer.

"I'm so sorry madam it will never happened again. I promise. "

  He doesn't move, but slowly his eyes lift to hers. Those precious, chocolate brown-teary-eyes,prominent, pointed nose, kissable lips and alluring voice of him makes him look so harmless and desirable for the eyes of many. And as he expected, the whole class fall in to deep silence just to see him, hear his voice louder and clear for once more. He glanced at them and slightly bow his head to greet them.

"okay guys sit down!"

The teacher said to the standing students gazing on Bryan's adorable look.

" come in and introduce yourself!''

  He gradually walk to the teacher's table while looking for a chair to sit on. And he saw" him" the "little rich guy"; that saved a sophomore student like him, sitting on the corner at the back, looking into the open wide window that refract the morning sunlight and the white floor to ceiling curtains on the side of it.

"good morning I am Bryan Malcom, 18."

He stop, look into the teacher's eyes and ask.

"ma'am.... Where should I sit?"

"ahhh..."

"Can I sit there?"Bryan said pointing at the chair at the back of the room next to the window.

"ohh... Okay go on..." the teacher said reaching her arms out, looking at him with confusion.

He gradually walk to towards him, followed by the eyes of many, slides the chair against the floor to catch his attention, looked at him in the eyes and smirk at him.

Andy looked at him pretending like nothing had happened and he don't know the boy.

But Bryan is  still ruminating about that day when he saw Andy in the school garden fighting for a small girl and afterwards being bullied by the same guys.

'Did he just fight them to impress the girl?'

Andy turned around and their eyes meet. Andy and Bryan immediately shove their eyes away from each other.

'he was the same guy. The bully. Is he the leader of those bullies? Possible.'

He knows for a fact that he was a bad person not only by the way he looks. That kind of harmless look,earing-holes, piercing eyes, manipulative moves and words and for having that bad boy look.

He just know and he hates him for that, those years.

.

.

.

However..

Bryan kiss Andy's wine-red, juicy, kissable lips for the first time,reminiscing that day.

Andy was surprised, 'cause Bryan's lips are softer and more gentle than what he had been imagined. It's still feels like a dream for him. Bryan was hot and attractive, indeed! Imagine yours school's most loved person. A talented guy, with the most delicate, harmlessly looking face, messy, dark brown hair, six pack abs,fairly milk-white skin, six feet tall and a touch of roughness, bad boy... Which was loved by girls and even the teachers.

"Secret boyfriend" ___

"After so many years of chasing you, you finally kissed me." Andy mumbled against Bryan's velvety-soft-red lips, taking a gentle kissed after another with tears in his eyes.

Bryan stopped, move his hands up to Andy's cheek in firm caress, remove the tears streaming down on his cheeks and said.

"I'm just waiting until you're finally ready to give this opportunity. And now that you are...

Will you come with me?"

"come with you? Where?"

Andy ask,staring, blankly-confused in to Bryan's eyes.

"it's your birthday today right?!" Bryan gazed intently into his eyes.

He wokes up today completely forgotten that it's his birthday. Before it is the most important day on their family;as the only son of their family, and successor of his father's company Andy's relatives used to celebrate his birthday gran​di​osely,lively and massive as publicity for the company. But that's the problem about being rich, money, fame, power becomes more important and appreciated more that the reason, why you are hardly working for something.

"I forgot"

Andy whispered as he Look down with heavy anguish. The papers slipped on his hand He turned, around to picked them up and the arousal between the two of them eventually fade out.

Bryan knows exactly how he feels. So he layed his hand into Andy's shoulder, take a gentle up 'n down  caresses to Andy's back, stand and walk to Andy's back, wrapped up his arms around Andy's collarbones and kissed his neck after one another..

"let's go home.. Let's celebrate your birthday together. I' ll pick you up at 07:00 o' clock... Okay?."

He whispered while kissing on Andy's nape.

"I'll try."

  I'll try.. As the one who will take over the company's name and assets, Andy must stay safe and secure until he finished his studies and ready to take over the company. Andy is not allowed to travel without his father and his bodyguards, he's not allowed to walk outside without someone spying on him, he's not allowed eat anything nor wear anything he wants. His father enrolled Andy into the school which he can monitor him. As the secret founder of the school Andy's father put up his own school just to monitor Andy's performance, behavior, and Andy himself.

  So he can't be so existed about anything, 'cause in the end of the day something is vivid and embedded in to his mind. Some things are out of his control... Or should I say.. The most part of his life is not actually his..

"but I promise I will make ways."

  It's 07:00 o' clock.... Andy is all prepared to go with Bryan. He is wearing the cheapest clothes he buy himself on the mall before his 17th birthday (a black Adidas shirt with a white stripes on it's front to the back and a black fitted jeans.) his favorite black-Nike-Air, and the cap Bryan gaved him when they were in tenth grade and a mist of Calvin klein perfume that his mother gave to him when he was in eight grade.

He was in a constant battle with himself...

  Will I be able to go?

The biggest question he keeps asking to himself. He was walking back and fort, walk in circles when he hears something clunking on the sliding-glass-door to the balcony of his room. He draw the heavy fading color black curtains open, he slid the close floor-to-ceiling door open, look around and had a glimpse of him standing over the high railings while throwing pebbles in to the windowpane of Andy's room.

"wait.. I'm coming. "

He whispered to him.

He is decided. He will go with him no matter what happened, he will go.

He reached for the staircase, slide his finders against the banister and slide half way down,stumbles, recovers, hurried to the hall and immediately stopped in the hall to the kitchen, He was in the kitchen. He knew he was. His father. He stopped immediately after he saw one of his father's guards standing under the arch to the kitchen.

"do you know where he was?" Mr. Norman asked

With his furiously mad voice.

"No sir."

"how could a teenage boy fool you!!"

"sir... I.."

"shut up and find him now!!!"

Norman yelled to them as he thump the large dining table.

Andy is not heartless. No he's not. He knows that it's his fault. He knows those guards since pretty much the beginning of time, he knows how much they risk for him. They act like his own father more than the legitimate one.

Now it's time for him to act as son for them.

He walk to the kitchen slowly, looking down on his feet, hiding his shaking hands into his back completely closed..

" there's no need to find me. I let them leave this afternoon because I don't want them to follow me." he said.

"we need to talk.."

Andy said looking straight into his father's eyes.

Mr. Norman moved his hand and they walked out of sight.

The guards knows the truth and what Andy said is the opposite of what they know.Andy  never let them in to the school. They only have to wait for him in front of the school gate to bring him back every afternoon. Andy let them be with their family every time he's at the school, cause he knows exactly how it feels, that your parents is absent while you are growing up, and he doesn't want other kid experience the same way he does, just for his own sake. That's why they are still in complete silent, tongue-tied and confused about why Andy had said that.

"what is he doing?"

One of the guards ask.

"I.. Don't know let's go, let's give them some space to talk."

The sharp,pierced looks on Norman's eyes give Andy the  shivers, he was standing still. Norman looked at him ask

"where are you going? And why are wearing that kind of clothes? ". Andy answered.

"to a friend's house. "

"why don't you invited them instead?"

Norman asked to him. "go back to your room and invite them here instead!."

"no way!."

He shouted with a crack voice. The heavy footsteps of him is a tacit answer. This time he's on his own.

Bang... Norman slammed the table, stand up, took the bottle of champagne and throw it in front of him, the broken glass bounce back from the floor to Andy's elbow, he immediately hold it with his right hand, walk to him and said" I'm leaving with my friend. Goodbye.. "

"who?!! The same scrupulous guy from last Time..the bully?"

   The bully... The first day of Bryan in school was the fourth day of Andy's nightmares. Everyday Bryan's day cannot be complete if he's not going to  tease him off.

7th grade, section:atom.

After the bell rung students run to the school-canteen except for him. Andy used to have his own lunch prepared by his profetional chefs at home. Andy was siting at the corner preparing his black bentobox and water bottle. Bryan was standing at the open doorway surrounded by his new girl-friends. Bryan glance at bim turn around and turn back

"what's up with the luch box?"

he asked. The girls laugh so hard and mumbled to each other.

"never mind about him. Rich people like him, eats the best hahaha.. Alone" Amanda said rolling his eyes to Andy, turn around and walk away asking-"aren't you going with us?"

"after you girl"

But Bryan stayed for a while, let them walk away and then walk towards Andy. Bryan bend over to Andy, look down on the delious food in Andy's bento box, took a piece of the slice green apple and take a bite. He glare at  him with disinclination and said "It just taste the same." Andy knows what he is thinking. He might think that he is a show-off for being distant to other, that's why Bryan don't like him and always tries to cast him out. "I'm sorry.. But I prefer eating this alone." Bryan smirk at him, walk away, leered over and stand under the open doorway-

"since you like eating alone stay that way."

He said before shutting and locking the door.

Andy was staring at him as he fade away from his sight.

Andy was looked for almost three hours, keeping his tears in the corner of his eyes gazing at the luminous clook on top of the hygiene cabinet near the teacher's table,waiting for the next teacher to come and unlock the door.

Everyday on that same school year Bryan come to the school with new ideas to bully Andy.

Bryan hide Andy's air-nike shoes in the girls bathroom. Hide Andy's 'LV' bag on the trash bin. Throw Andy's lunchbox out of the window. Lock Andy inside the bathroom the whole day until Andy's bodyguards search for him. Pull down Andy's pants while reciting a poem in front of the class and more until 9th grade. Andy figured out a way to shake him off out of his sleeves.

I like him...

"how did you know about him? Did you investigate about him?"

Andy ask to his father with his worried eyes. "

" and, what if I did? Get away from him! That's what I told you before, do I always have to remind you that."

"Pa!!!. Enough!!! I like him..I love him..I can't imagine my life without him."

"enough!!! You know nothing! About love!!"

He punched the table, shove all the things above, and settle.

The things that he's been afraid to accept from the moment he knew, that his son is different from what he imagined, slapped back to him. It's like a kaleidoscope of memories and realization that passes by again and again when he's start being a good father for him. Norman loves Andy. He did. Thus he began to crate a high-up walls for him to be safe. That's why's he's always at work,working so hard so that Andy will never have to be judge by other people for being gay. He loves him that he needs to locked him away from the eyes of those who can't accept him. He loves him very much that he wants him to be as safe as a bird in a cage.

He's just scared... Scared to show Andy, what's the behind the scenes of his love... Afraid for his son to see what the world over the walls looks like... Cause the world outside often do and think bad on the things that they cannot fully understand.

"what do you know about love for you to tell me what I know and what I don't huh?!"

Andy asked back...

"is this what you called love?"

Andy's face is drenched from the tears, falling in to his rosy cheeks, he sweeps his hair from his face, remove  the tears in his cheeks with his tightly closed hand, gasping for air.

Norman hold the falling tears in the right corner of his eye while looking at him,he abruptly stood up and turn his back against his son, longing to be understand. For Andy it was a yes. A go. Andy turn around, immediately walk outside of the kitchen. Andy run back to his room. Closed the door shut and sit upright against the door. He knows for sure that his father already locked all the exits there is in their house. Just like he always did to chastened him.

"I just wanted to see Andy. Let me in!. Please."

Andy heard Bryan's long loud cry,so he run to the balcony  to check if he was still waiting for him at the same spot where he leaved him. But he's no longer there. "where is he?" Andy ask to himself.

"do what you want to do to me...but please let me atleast see him."

"hit him!."

"oh my God no...way! Bryan!" Andy shouted out so loud.

'What are you doing?.. You idiot.'

He run to the stairs, sits on the banister and slide down,stumble and fall in the ground, recovers and run  around to find him...

"Stop!!! Please... Stop..." he screamed out loud.

He was drenched with his own sweat and tears rushing down to his pail skin.

Three guards and one old man versus a19 years old kid trying to be strong and brave to see his secret lover. They are holding him on his both arms, one is pulling on his hair pulling his head steady, and one is heating him with all he got.

"hi..." Bryan said. He was smiling at him, with a new expression. He's worried, afraid and now determined to see him. The blood on the corner of his lips darkly stained the red, wine lips of him, the red patches on his right eye and cheek ruined the perfectly peachy looking skin he always wear. Bryan lowered his head seeing him crying.

"Pa!!! Please stop!.. That's my only wish for my 18th birthday.. So please.. Leave him alone." he run to him and shove the guards that holding him." Let him go! "

"he's no good for you. His mother is a money laun​der​er. Don't you ever wonder about him getting in to a prominent school. I don't want to see with him any longer."

"you investigated him? How dare you!?"

*laugh..*

"you've investigate about me and yet all you got is pointless accusations. My mom is hard working woman,so don't you ever talk something bad about her. She was just an another victim of people like you who uses other for their own sake. And I am working at 12 to 7 in the morning In a bar to pay for my own tuition fees in your school. It's funny that you payed someone to get that wasted information to make you feel better about yourself. "

No other words comes out from his mouth.. Norman was muted,by the courage of him to speak over fear and pain.

Bryan slightly lift his head and looked directly at Norman's eyes, hold tightly on Andy's hand and said.

" I am respecting you as Andy's father and as a great person, but what you did today proves how arrogant you are. Someone said, someone could be a father/mother but not anyone could be a parent."

"Hahahaha"

Norman laughed so hard trying to think of what to say next..

"do you think you could insult me with your deep parable? Well.. Let me tell you kid... You know nothing on how this world works,now get out of my sight before I and this three kills you!"

"Andy hold tight on his hand, lift him up and lead knoser to him and whisper something in his ear.

"will you run away with me?"

"huh?"

Bryan turn his head to him, peered on Andy's face with confusion.

Andy drag Bryan with him and run.

"Andy!!! What are you doing?!! Come back here!! Now!!!"

Norman screamed out to him.

"if you'd dare to get out from this place don't you ever come back!!!"Norman knows his son well.. When he is decided about something no one could stop him. But Norman knows him well, enough to make him go back without using any muscles in his body.

Bryan know how Andy feels right at that moment . Not because of the tears gradually falling down the ground from his face, or the hissing and shaking of his body. He is trembling. The vibration coming from every part of him is passing through Bryan's arms, Bryan can also hear the cracking of his teeth colliding against each other, the tightly closed mouth and Jaws and by the way Andy grips on his hand so tightly.

"get out from our way! Open the gates! He shouted to the guards standing on their way.

" yes sir" they replied. they opened the gate for him, and let the two run out.

Bryan looked Andy, traight in his eyes. Stopped all of a sudden, grab his hands,draw him close and hugged him tightly and say-"thank you. But let's stop running."

^^^Next>^^^