Leaving home
His hand trembled a little as it held the small piece of paper tightly clenched in his fist. Tala closed his eyes and ran his free hand over his brow which had become lightly coated with perspiration. He opened his clear blue eyes and smoothed the crumpled up paper reading the two abrupt lines jotted down in the careless scrawl he well recognized.
"Leaving today. Will pick you up at six."
Just like that. Abrupt and to the point. Just like Bryan.
Tala had innocently walked up to his locker at the end of school to pick up his books and clean it out when he had found the piece of paper wedged up inside. He had not had the time to read it then because a few of his soccer buddies had come up and he hurriedly stuffed it in his pocket planning to read it later.
He had no doubt in his mind who it was from. After all who else but Bryan would actually go to the trouble of writing him a note when the rest of the school population could easily approach him and ask him anything they wanted? Of course it wouldn't do for Bryan to be seen together with Tala. After all he did have a reputation. Quite a notorious one in fact.
Bryan was the troublemaker of the school. The one each school had to have to be even called a school. He was always late for classes and had the uncaring attitude which attracts girls and guys from miles around. His homework would never be on time, if it was ever done at all, and he was usually found with his buddies at the back of the school smoking.
Yes Bryan was the ultimate badass and if anyone doubted it they had just to look at his appearance. He was mostly decked in black with his ever present spike bracelet and a couple of chains hanging around his jacket. His right ear has three piercings and he also had his lip pierced. If anyone looked closely they could see the beginning of a tattoo on his left forearm.
But that is not what set him apart from the rest of the wannabes. It was in the way he talked and the way his eyes followed your every move and the way you could feel the barely restrained energy just simmering beneath the surface. The way you could sense the power he controlled and the havoc he could unleash with just a glance.
He was the bad boy the teachers were afraid to touch and every girl fantasized about. The total opposite of school hottie and top soccer player, Mr. popular himself: Tala Ivanov.
Tala was everything Bryan was not. While Bryan had fair hair and the quiet, I-can-kill-you-but you-are-not-worth-it kind of personality to go with it, Tala had fiery red hair betraying his temperament of being open but very quick to flare up if provoked. Tala, though not a genius, was more than an above average student. Along with being the captain of the soccer team he was also class president.
He was the most popular student at the school and had more than his share of girls swooning over him and professing their undying love for him. He had never as such had the opportunity to cross paths with Bryan, and it could be quite the gossip column item in the school newspaper if they were seen communicating, so Tala using his first instinct, hid the paper in his shirt and made his way out of the school.
It was the last day of school and the students just came as a formality and to clean out their lockers. Exams were already over and it was just partying till college admissions opened and everyone started applying. Tala had been kept busy talking to teachers and chatting with friends discussing different options available so it was quite late by the time he got home with the contents of his now cleaned out locker in his bag and a few prospectus' from different universities held in his hands.
He made his way to his room throwing his stuff down and stretching. It had been a good day but he had missed a certain someone in particular. Suddenly remembering the paper he smiled and reached in his pocket to read it… At first the paper had fallen down from his suddenly numb fingers but he has scooped it up and clutched it in his hand as if to remind himself it was not a dream.
Tala was still in a mid state of shock at reading what had been written. His mind brought forth vestiges of memories: with him lying on the bed with Bryan lying on his naked chest, lazily taking a few drags on his cigarette, and Bryan with sweat coating his entire body but with the self satisfied smirk of someone who had finally achieved his goal, and Bryan with drooping eyelids valiantly trying to push sleep away and embracing Tala. A few words drifted up.
"Don't worry; we will get out of here together. You and me"
"Nothing and no one will be able to stop us and we will be free to live our own lives as we choose it"
"We will be with each other forever, I promise. We will leave this godforsaken place and you won't have to bear your mother any more"
But uppermost in his mind other memories started cluttering in. Bryan smiling at something, their hands entwined together as they lay in Bryan's lap, Bryan clutching his stomach and laughing at Tala who was comically spread eagled on the floor, Bryan's arm around Tala as he whispered in his ear.
"I love you. Nothing will tear us apart"
Tala suddenly jolted up as if he had touched a live wire. He looked at the clock. It was fifteen minutes to six. He jumped up and without hesitation opened his cupboard and took out the suitcase he had got three years ago from Bryan on their first anniversary. He opened it and started piling in his clothes helter-skelter. He just packed in the essentials and anything he would need.
He had gone over what he would do when this time came so many times in his head that it was almost like an automaton he piled in the stuff he needed and disregarded what he didn't. After closing the suitcase down successfully he grabbed his schoolbag, cleared it from all the junk inside and started throwing in anything he had left behind. Just as it struck six he heard the horn of Bryan's beat up car outside.
He hurriedly grabbed his wallet, cell phone and passport from his bedside table and snatched up a picture of him and Bryan he had hidden inside his math book and ran downstairs with the bags. He ran to the kitchen and wrote a note on a piece of paper explaining to his alcoholic mother that he was gone. He slammed the pen down with a satisfied smirk and after hearing another horn ran to the hall to pick up the bags.
He opened the door to a disgruntled Bryan climbing out of his car to see what was taking him so long. Seeing a much disheveled Tala standing on the doorstep with a massive schoolbag on his shoulder and trying to lug a huge suitcase behind him, he let a fond smile come over his face.
He grabbed the suitcase from Tala and dragged it to the car while Tala closed the door and locked it putting the key underneath a plant pot. Tala then came over and joined Bryan. He threw his backpack in the backseat and got in the passenger seat while Bryan leisurely sat down in the driver's seat.
For a second the two just looked at each other then Bryan said,
"You're late."
"Well you could have warned me sooner that we were leaving, you know. I didn't even pack properly. You can't expect to make decisions without consulting me and expect me to follow them."
"And yet you're here."
"Hmph, whatever. So are we leaving or not?"
Bryan just smiled, which was a rare occurrence except when he was in Tala's presence. He leaned over and tucked back a stray strand of hair behind Tala's ear. Tala looked at him a little startled. Bryan wasn't usually prone to show emotion especially in the day where they could be seen. He looked questioningly at Bryan who just shrugged
"You look as if you were ravished quite thoroughly and I'm enjoying the contrast with your clothes still on. Interesting and quite hot."
Tala blushed till his face was as red as his hair.
"Just drive" he said shortly, trying to hide his embarrassment at the unexpected compliment. Bryan started he car and backed out of the driveway. He cast a glance at Tala who was sill trying to hide his profile and act as if he wasn't blushing to the roots of his hair. Bryan chuckled quietly.
"I love you so much Tala," he said
Tala looked at him and smiled slightly then he leaned over and kissed him on the cheek.
"Love you too. And just for the record, I'd go with you to the ends of the earth if you ask me to."
"I know."