Kieren sat with his head in his hands. Amy was gone, his parents still didn't know what to think of him, he was just so scared. He sat on a bench in the park. He didn't really want to be around his family. He still didn't want to forgive them. He pulled at his hair as he tried to calm down. He hadn't slept in four days, he felt sick, and didn't know what to do.
"Kier?" He heard an irish accent from behind him. He turned to look at Simon standing behind him, wearing his suit and looking as stunning as usual. Kieren sighed and leaned back against the bench.
"Hi." He replied, swallowing the pain he had been feeling.
"Is there something I can do?" Simon asked, clearly concerned for Kieren's safety. Kieren scoffed.
"Not unless you can take me back to before my life got fucked up." Kieren said putting his head in his hands again. Simon swallowed nervously. He knew too well that upon arriving he turned the town from bigoted to broken. He feared that he was one of the issues of the fucked up part of Kieren's life.
"How far back would you have to go?" Simon asked. Kieren scooted over so Simon could sit next to him. Simon sat down and looked at him, waiting for the answer. Kieren looked at the ground.
"I don't know. Some time before I killed myself. Before I was a complete wreck. Before I rose. I don't know." Kieren said, pinching the bridge of his nose.
"By before you rose, what do you mean? When you were just dead?" Simon asked, looking at him.
"I did kill myself didn't I?" Kieren said turning to look at Simon. Simon looked heartbroken, an emotion he tried to live without. Kieren was suicidal all over again. Kieren looked away from Simon, unable to look at the hurt on his face.
"I…" Simon started. He closed his mouth, not knowing what he could say to help him. "I told you once that when I was alive I felt like the world meant nothing. And that I took all those drugs to escape it."
"Yeah you did." Kieren said staring into space.
"That overdose was the biggest mistake I've ever made, Kier, but I can thank it for the beauty of the second life I've been given. Parts about it are fucked up but I'd rather be dead and happy then alive and miserable. You were miserable in life and now you can be happy in death. But you can only be happy if you chose to. You could kill yourself again, waste the second chance you've been given, let the assholes who bring you down win, and hurt the people who love you all over again or you could take advantage of your second chance, stand up to those fuckers and be with the people who care about you." Simon said, half pleading for Keiren to live and trying to empower him to do so. "You could," Simon continued, more quietly, "be with me." Kieren turned to look at Simon, staring into his eyes. He moved his eyes down to look at the hole in Simon's suit.
"Is that where you got shot?" Kienen asked looking down at it. Simon looking down at it too. He shifted his shoulder.
"Yeah."
"I'm sorry." Kieren said guiltily. Simon looked at Kieren confused.
"What do you have to be sorry about?" He asked. Kieren wiped his eyes and looked away.
"I got you shot. I'm sorry." Kieren's voice cracked, as he wiped his eyes again.
"You didn't get me shot. I got myself shot. I chose to take the bullet. It wasn't like it hurt me. I'm dead." Simon said sarcastically. It was ridiculous that Kieren felt responsible. Kieren sniffed. Simon cleared his throat before continuing. This time genuine. "But I would've taken it even if I was alive too. I chose to take the bullet for you." Simon reached out and placed his hand on Kieren's shoulder. Kieren turned to look at him, face wet and shining. Simon stared at him for a second then kissed him. His hands held onto both sides of Kieren's face as he moved his lips with Kieren's. Kieren's body relaxed as he let Simon pull him closer. They sat on the bench, Simon's fingers in Kieren's hair. Kieren had regained feeling in his lips so he felt as Simon's lips moved against his. Simon had gained feeling in his fingers so he held onto Kieren when they kissed, desperately taking in the touch. Simon moved his face away from Kieren's.
"You know," Simon said, running his thumb affectionately across Kieren's cheek, wiping some of the tears away, "I wouldn't change this for the world." Kieren looked at his lap nervously before leaning in and kissing Simon again. Simon returned the kiss, still not knowing what Kieren thought of his life. Kieren ran his hand along Simon's cheek, sliding his hand down until it was resting on his shoulder, keeping himself balanced. He moved his mouth, kissing Simon desperately. Simon held onto him, still scared for Kieren. Simon loosened his grip on Kieren as Kieren took his mouth away from his and went back to sitting next to him, slightly more awkward this time. Simon put his hand on Kieren's neck and pulled him so that Kieren was leaning against him with his arm around Kieren's shoulders. Kieren took a deep breath, leaning against Simon felt safe. He felt like he didn't have anything to worry about and that nothing could hurt him. Simon had saved him before and he knew that he would save him again if he needed him to. He shifted so that he was completely resting on Simon, laying his head on Simon's lap. Simon smiled down at him.
"What are you doing now?" Simon asked as Kieren closed his eyes.
"I'm gonna take a nap." He said, without opening his eyes. "I haven't slept in days."
"On my lap?" Simon asked, amused.
"Yep." Kieren replied. Simon shifted his body slightly, placing one hand on the back of the bench, and the other next to Kieren's head. He petted Kieren's hair, gently. Kieren took a deep breath, and he began to drift off. Simon looked at Kieren lovingly, watching over him as he slept, still playing with his hair.