CHAPTER TEN: the sound of your heartbeat

Dorian hadn't slept in a couple of days. Not properly anyway. He'd managed to snag a few hours at the hospital, napping on the plastic chairs in the waiting room, but it was shallow and disturbed. His eyes stung and brain ached. All he wanted to do was curl up in bed and forget the world. Forget the people who screw you over after pretending to care. He wanted to shut it all out.

But he couldn't miss any more school; one day off was enough. So, on Tuesday, he dragged his tired body away from the hospital, rubbing his weary eyes and trying to tame his unruly hair. He was late; the corridors were deserted and everyone was packed away in their respective classrooms. He took his time, dawdling to his locker, dragging his heavy feet behind him. The reluctance weighing down his consciousness was almost inexpressible. He didn't want to be here, but he had to be.

Because Dorian refused to be selfish for even a second. He lived for everyone but himself; too many people relied on him, trusted him, loved him. And he'd never pause to take a moment for himself. Maybe it was slowly destroying him, but he wasn't going to change. Dorian Price was just too selfless for his own good.

Corey hated himself today.

He hated himself everyday but today that emotion was just highlighted, emphasised, blown up a million times until it took over his entire life. Just for today.

He thought he looked ugly. He felt ugly. His busted lip and bruised eye. The marks, the scratches, the cuts and healed over scars painted onto his delicate white skin. His cotton jumper was tugged past his fingers to conceal as much skin as possible and the beanie pulled down almost to his eyes effectively hid the gash staining his forehead. His limp was harder to hide. He gritted his teeth and tried to walk normally, ignoring the sharp stab with every step.

He wanted to draw as little attention to himself as possible. He didn't need any more stares or murmurs of concern. He didn't need Velvet fretting or teacher's sending him to the school councillor. It would be difficult, especially with his swollen eye dusted in a dark bruise as evidence of his Father's brutality. But he would try. And the first step of his plan was to arrive at school almost twenty minutes late in the hopes that the hallways would be quiet and empty.

"What the fuck happened to your face?"

Dorian spotted Corey first.

Corey flinched at the sound of Dorian's voice, so sharp, harsh, demanding. There was something different in his tone. Something of indescribable exhaustion. He wasn't in need of sleep, it wasn't that type of tired. He just needed a break. A break from everything. Life was what exhausted him.

Corey glanced up through thick lashes and realised that Dorian appeared as tired as he sounded. Purple circles outlined his eyes, slightly puffy and tinted red from a lack of sleep. Dorian marched towards the shorter boy and grabbed his chin, examining his face in alarm. "It's nothing." Corey shoved him off and took a couple of defensive steps back.

It wasn't nothing. He was battered, broken, beaten. It almost split Dorian's heart right in two. He could only imagine the damage hidden beneath layers of clothes and self-loathing. The thought brew an almost unrecognisable force within him. Anger, pity, sorrow. He suddenly felt an overwhelming sense of protectiveness for the boy stood before him.

"Did he do that?" Dorian was angrier than Corey had ever seen him. His fists were clenched, his veins swelling, his eyes desperate and concerned. "Did that piece of shit—?"

"That's my Father!" Corey snapped, "Don't talk about him like that."

"Have you looked in a mirror recently? What type of fucking Father—?"

"Dorian!" Corey interrupted, grabbing onto his shoulders to try and steady his temper. "Calm down, what's wrong with you?"

His soothing touch was almost enough for Dorian's burning anger to boil away. He took a deep breath and focussed on his shoelaces in thought. "Sorry." He whispered. "I haven't gotten much sleep, I... I'm sorry, I shouldn't have..."

"Dorian." Corey mumbled softly, his gentle voice grounding the concerned boy in front of him. "What happened?"

Tears welled in his eyes but he blinked them away, shaking his head in dismissal. "N-Nothing." He lied. "You've got enough going on..."

Corey released his grip from Dorian's shoulders and gave his hand a small squeeze, weaving their fingers together delicately. "It's okay." He whispered, gently tugging Dorian into the boy's toilets and pushing him into the nearest stall. They were alone, but Corey locked the door anyway, just for safe measures. "Where were you yesterday?" He asked, leaning down to level their eye lines as Dorian sat on the toilet lid, his lip caught between his teeth.

"At hospital." His voice was raspy and his throat ached when he spoke. "It was my Mum. She...she overdosed. Again."

Corey's features softened, "I'm sorry." He said simply. "Is she okay?"

"Yeah, she will be." His dark eyes glossed over and his vision became foggy, but he held the tears back. Just about.

"C'mon, let me take you home." Corey urged quietly. "You shouldn't be here."

"I don't wanna get behind, I already missed a day and—"

"Hey, don't worry about any of that." He stood to his full height and extended his hand. Dorian took it gratefully, smiling sadly in appreciation. Before Corey could comprehend what was happening, Dorian had wrapped him in a tight bear hug, his arms holding his small frame carefully. Corey winced in agony as Dorian grazed his wounds, but he hid the pain and cautiously placed his arms around the taller boy in return.

"Thank you." Dorian managed to croak out, his soft voice by Corey's ear. He hesitantly released him, smiling in gratitude. "But what about lessons? I don't have time to catch up, and I've got training later—"

"Then do this for me." Corey tried a different approach. Dorian was selfless; he'd never give himself a break. But if someone else was in trouble, Corey knew he wouldn't hesitate to help. Now all Corey had to do was tread a fine line between making Dorian leave school guilt free and not making him too worried about Corey's well-being. "I was fucked up pretty bad last night. The only reason I came in today was to get away from my Dad. I really don't wanna be here, Dorian."

It worked like a charm. Dorian became a mush of sympathy, his eyes widening in concern and eyebrows twitching into a sad frown. "You can come to mine, you'll be safe there." He offered. "My Mum will be in hospital for a couple more days. C'mon, let's go now, before a teacher sees us."

Corey felt guilty for playing with Dorian's feelings like that, but he didn't lie. It was all true. His Father had been ruthless and cruel, not holding back a single punch. Corey woke up with aching limbs and worn out muscles. His skin was itchy with bruises and his eyes stung from a lack of sleep. After taking a couple of painkillers, he'd managed to lug his fragile, broken body to school. But Dorian was just as broken as he was, maybe this is what they needed. A day to mend themselves, mend each other. Put the pieces of their broken hearts back together.