Vulnerable
As if things hadn't been fucked up enough as of late, Grady's best friend was starting to lose it. "Something is trying to get into my body," he had hysterically claimed. Now the little jerk was in a chair across his room, squirming and whimpering in his sleep – it was really distracting from what was on TV. The jock still didn't fully comprehend what the hell it was he was supposed to be surveying…
An exasperated sigh escaped him when he looked over to see beads of sweat rolling down Jesse's temple, and his body's tremoring reaching Chihuahua-in-the-middle-of-winter level.
What the fuck is wrong with him? Grady thought as he shook his head. He hadn't been this perturbed by Jesse when they were pummeling each other in the dirt at school; that scenario had been more imaginable that this shit. Now their leather-fairy coach was dead and his buddy was going bonkers.
This was one majorly fucked up school year.
A wave of fatigue suddenly rolled through Grady. He shut off the TV and settled into his bed, staring silently at the bedroom's ceiling for a few minutes before his eyelids slid shut.
"G-Grady..." he heard Jesse whimper. Only he sounded closer. Much closer. Like…right next to him?!
Grady's eyes popped open when his senses registered the extra weight that had sunken into his mattress. Weight that had come with a head topped with honey-blond hair positioning itself under his chin. With incredulous eyes, Grady gaped down at Jesse, who had crawled into his bed and desperately clung his shaking arms around him as though his torso was a lifesaver, or something.
"WHAT THE FUCK, WALSH?!"
He quickly composed himself, knowing there was a chance his parents could hear him – and this situation would be pretty damn hard to explain if they were discovered.
Grady began to silently thrash against Jesse's hold and hiss vehement threats to him, but Jesse only tightened his hold around his waist. Grady had seized Jesse's shoulders and was about to push him out of his bed when Jesse's blue eyes looked at up him. And Grady just froze.
The look in Jesse's eyes was so vulnerable…so pleading. "Please…I…just…I need to hold onto someone…so I know I'm not dreaming."
Something unexplained was creeping its way into Grady's psyche. Girls were his thing – the porno stash under his bed served as certification. But had Jesse always been this…cute? All fragile and shaken, he was almost like a girl. He clearly wasn't…but…
"Fuckin' Christ," Grady grumbled, pushing the comforter from his body and sitting up, managing to pry himself free of Jesse's arms.
Still frightened of being alone under these lurid circumstances, Jesse experienced a pang of dread. His own family thought he was crazy, and Lisa wouldn't be safe around him should what had nearly happened in the cabana – or worse – occurred again.
"You're all I've got, right now, Grady," Jesse whispered. "If you knew what was happening…if I could somehow explain it all to you, I–"
"Just shut up."
Jesse experienced a mixture of light surprise and silent relief when Grady pulled the comforter over the both of them, sporting a halfhearted glower as he settled onto his back, now acquiescent to the weirdo enveloping him again if he wanted to. In no state of mind to in any way question Grady's change of heart, Jesse rested his head against Grady's bare chest and allowed his eyelids to flutter shut.
Needing to keep his masculinity conserved and uncompromised, Grady grumbled to the top of Jesse's head, "This better not be spoken of when we're at school, you fucking freak."
Jesse didn't respond. Grady couldn't tell if it was because he had fallen asleep or if he was just ignoring him.
There's a guy in my bed, Grady groaned internally. I've let a fucking guy in my bed.
Jesse stirred slightly against Grady, a crease in his brow portraying a modicum of his dismay. Grady's glare softened. What he was about to do next…It would have made no sense spoken aloud, but: he knew what he was doing, and at the same time he didn't.
His hand hovered with uncertainty over the back of Jesse's head; this was one of the few moments of hesitation the jock had experienced in his lifetime. He soon relented and gingerly raked his fingers through Jesse's soft locks. Grady felt his unbidden guest's anatomy go still, and his hand froze. But instead of waking up, Jesse snuggled closer to Grady.
Realizing it had calmed him down, Grady continued to comfortingly run his fingers through Jesse's hair, wondering how his superficial, teenage fantasies of banging some hot broad became postponed in favor of cradling a male classmate like a baby.
"Jess? Jess, you awake?"
Jesse's light snoring was the only response he received.
Grady sighed and put his arm around Jesse's shoulders, pulling him closer.
"Sweet dreams, pal," he murmured as his eyes finally closed.