“They found out that Val had been cutting,” I whispered.

The silence from the other line choked me, and I could practically see the frown on Avery’s face. I could no longer here the clanking of pots and pans and who knows what else, which made me ache even more for the familiar sounds of a happy Avery, bouncing around the kitchen in his bright green apron as he cooked some hard to pronounce food and hummed in a wonderfully off key way. I missed that. I missed him.

When he decided to break the silence, it had been nearly five minutes. I wanted to doze off and finally earn the right to stop thinking about what had happened, but it kept replaying in my mind, fresh as it had been moments after it occurred. “My baby brother never was a very smart one, was he? Damn. I told him he would end up being the center of attention, but he didn’t listen,” he muttered angrily, going off into a string of angry French. “What happened this time, Ryan?”

I had wondered if he’d want to know. It made me ill, to tell him. Which was strange, because I had no problem keeping it in my memory and watching it happen over and over. I’d always been off, I guess. As I told him what happened, I closed my eyes and imagined it.

The day couldn’t have been more normal. In fact, if you had asked Val, he would have said it was the best day he’d had in a while since Avery left.

We were having an assembly that day. Homecoming Week, I think it was for. Turns out, tiny Val was in symphonic band, the band that would provide some music for the festivities, standing out in his bright pink and green shirt. But he looked happy and he smiled at me when I waved from my seat. He played the clarinet; he told me often enough it was the only talent he could be proud of.

Our school president announced that they’d be playing the fight song for the cheerleading routine. I should’ve noticed something was off then, but Val had my attention. He was my best friend, after all. I was only there for him, to make sure he was alright.

When it began, everyone’s eyes were trained to the cheerleaders, but I was watching Val. God, he’d look so happy. Until I heard it; the stomping of feet and the yelling. I watched as a tall boy who I knew as one of Val’s ex-boyfriends storm on to the court and over to Val, his fists clenched at his sides. The whole school watched as he walked over, ripped all one-hundred pounds of clarinet player out of his seat, and shook him hard. Shouting in his face. I could see his fear.

Then he pulled Val’s shirt, the blinding pink and green he loved so much, right over his head and yelled something a long the lines of, “Let’s see what the beautiful queer has to show the audience!” I don’t remember. My heart was thrumming too loud in my ears for me to hear anything as I saw the angry ex punch Val once hard across the face and him curling in on himself, arms protecting his stomach. But the larger boy, Jacob, as I remember now, pulled him up and showed everyone his stomach.

It was criss-crossed with deep gashes.

I can’t exactly recall what I thought or did before I hauled back and aimed a blow at Jacob’s head. Between Val’s sobs and the sickening crack of bone I heard when my fist connected with his ex-boyfriend’s nose, I was in a complete and total rage. One that Val couldn’t bring me out of, because he was on the verge of completely shutting down. I was afraid of what I might do to Jacob, but whatever I did he deserved it, that lousy bastard.

Two of my knuckles had been broken. But I grabbed Val and brought him home with me. Regardless of anyone who tried to stop me.

“Well, aren’t you the brave little hero, love?” He laughed softly. I couldn’t see the humor in it. “Where is Val now?” he asked.

“In my bed, sleeping. It took quite a while to get him to calm down,” I replied, staring at the ceiling. The phone was beeping. Probably the school trying to call. “What am I going to do, Avery? We can’t go back there now.”

“This isn’t really my place to say anything, Ryan. You and my brother have always been very good at getting out of tough situations, however. I’m sure you’ll figure something out,” he said thoughtfully. “However, if you’re honestly that worried about it, transfer out of the school.”

I sighed and threw a hand over my eyes. “Transfer to where, exactly? Who’s going to take us now?”

“Well, you could always go to a private school. A Christian school, perhaps?”

“You can stop reminiscing now, Ave-baby. Not all Christian school experiences are as wonderful as yours,” I teased. We’d heard of the Avery in highschool. It wasn’t a pretty four years.

“I wasn’t that bad!” he shrieked. I snorted. Yeah. “But really, Ryan, maybe public school just isn’t right for my baby brother and best Danish friend ever.”

I nodded, then remembered we were talking over the phone. It’s easy to do that these days. Maybe I’m just going fucking loopy. “It’s our last year, we’ve only got seven months of it left, maybe this switching schools thing could actually work. I’d just have to get my mom, who’s currently missing in action, to arrange things with yours.”

Hey, how bad could it be? A private school would keep Val safe. I’d have time to let my knuckles heal. I examined them. The doctor had practically come right out and asked me if I had been in a gang fight recently when he was looking me over. Fucker. Who’s ever heard of a one-hundred twenty pound Danish gangster that wears eyeliner and mascara? That’s as stupid as saying, “Hey! I just saw Barry Manilow, dressed in a thong, blow some guy away with a magnum! Neat!”

I worry for the intelligence left in the world. I also worry for my sanity.

“Oh, please. You’ll just need to get them to say yes and you’re there, Mr. Trust Fund Baby,” he paused and then yelled, “No, you great oaf! Put it out before your burn down my shop! Sorry, Ryan, take care and tell Val I love him a bunch, too. Bye, hun!” Click. Well, that’s the end of that conversation.

“Ryan?”

I sit up on the couch, looking around the dimly lit living room slowly, searching for the only thing that could have whispered my name. Unless I really am losing my marbles, which is becoming a sure thing these days. I fall back on to the couch and test it just to be sure, smiling.

“Who’s there?” I whispered back.

“Your imaginary friend.”

“Oh? And what is it that you want?”

Val’s head poked over the back of the couch and I looked at him expectantly. “Well?”

He reached out his arms and I pulled him over and on top of me, like we’d done since we were kids. I held him close and tried to tell if he was trembling at all. He wasn't.

“I’m sorry,” he said in my ear, my own blonde hair fluttering in front of my eyes. I heard my mother’s terribly ugly clock ticking on the wall. This is where I need to be all the time, like this, forever. Away from the people that make my head explode on a regular basis and close to the one person I love most in the world.

-

Wow, my first story on fictionpress. I don't expect anyone to give it the time of day, but it makes me deliriously happy to have this idea out of my head.