DISCLAIMER: I do not own anything related to Skins.
Author's Note: Hi, so technically I should be studying but I'm taking a bit of a break and was thinking about this story so I decided to indulge myself and post the second chapter. It's a little short and more of a filler chapter than anything but I hope you guys enjoy!
Chapter 2
I dreamt of Tony.
He was crying. Actually, scratch that: he was wailing. Sobbing and letting out agonising wails that seemed to pierce right through me. I winced as the sound grew and reverberated around my head. I couldn't find him though. I was in the streets of London and it was raining. I was wet and freezing cold but I didn't, couldn't, care about myself because I knew that Tony was in danger. His cries were echoing from somewhere but I didn't know where. I ran up and down the streets and turned a million corners but I still couldn't find him.
"Maxxie!" I whipped around when I heard my name called out.
James stood in the rain behind me. His hair was plastered to his face and he was holding out his hand for me to take, "Come, Maxxie. We have to get inside and out of this rain."
I shook my head, "I have to find Tony. Can't you hear him?"
Tony's wailing strengthened and I was about to run off when James spoke again, this time more urgently, "No Maxxie. Forget about Tony. We have to get inside."
"I can't leave him out here! He's crying!"
"LEAVE HIM MAX!"
I was shocked by James' anger but I couldn't leave Tony. I turned to run toward Tony's wails but James caught my wrist in a stronger than expected grasp.
"Let me go, James!" I struggled against him and eventually tore my wrist out of his grip and sprinted away.
Tony's cries were getting louder and louder until I turned a last corner and found him lying on a couch in some side-alley. His eyes were closed as if he was sleeping. I ran up to him and tried to put my arms around him comfortingly, "Shh, Tone, it's okay."
He opened his eyes but there was fear in them, "MAX!" he shouted. But not from relief, it was almost as if he w-
"MAX!"
I woke with a start as I was wrenched awake. I could hear Tony wailing just like in my dream. I jumped out of bed and rushed into the lounge where Tony was thrashing around on the couch, the blanket I had placed over him was twisted around his legs and he was desperately trying to kick it off. His shouts of "Max!" interspersed with wordless wails rang through the small flat.
"Tony, I'm here. Relax, Tone." I quickly laid my hands on Tony's shoulders and tried to calm him down. He was awake and when he noticed that I was there, he calmed down. I untangled the blanket from his legs and wrapped my arms around his shoulders and he seemed to deflate into my side. He was still shaking though and I ran the fingers of my right hand gently through his hair.
"What happened Tone? Are you alright?" I asked quietly.
He took a shuddering breath and shook his head confusedly, "I don't understand. What's going on?"
"You're in London, Tone. In my flat. Don't you remember?"
"When did I-" he took another large gulp of air, "When did I get here?"
"A couple of hours ago."
I rubbed my hand comfortingly over his shoulder, "I can't go back, Maxxie. I can't."
"Go back where? To university? Why not, Tony?"
He shook his head fervently again and struggled out of my grasp, turned to face me and said as if it was the most serious thing in the world, "Max, I'm having trouble. It was too difficult so I needed to get away and you were the only person I knew I could trust. You have to promise me that you won't make me go back. I'm not crazy, I just don't want to go back. Okay?"
I stared at him for a while, trying to figure out what was going on in his head, what the hell he was thinking. But then I remembered that Tony was some special type of person. You were never truly sure of what was happening in his head. Even before the accident, his actions didn't make sense half the time and it wasn't until the completion of his so-called 'plans' that you realised that he wasn't crazy, but a bloody genius instead.
"Tony, you have to start at the beginning. Tell me the whole story."
"I will… not now. I'm tired. I just want you to promise."
I hesitated, not wanting to promise anything before I knew all the details, "Fine. I won't send you back. Now sleep. But in the morning you have to tell me everything."
"Yeah…" his voice was already weary and he lay back down on the couch.
"Promise me, Tony." I said, knowing that he was trying to get away with not giving me his word.
He gave a small grumble but relented, "Yeah, I promise Maxxie."
"Good. I'll see you in the morning."
"Mm…"
I left Tony on the couch and went to go and fill James, who had been waiting in the bedroom, in what was going on. I didn't know nearly as much as I wanted to, but at least I knew that Tony would tell me the next morning and that was something. I looked at the bedside clock and it read 4:46. Both James and I were supposed to get up six since we both had school the next morning. The problem was what we were going to do with Tony. Anwar had a job as a waiter at some cheap restaurant down the street for most of the day so he wouldn't be able to make sure Tony was okay. James had an audition in the afternoon so I knew that he would be too busy going over his routine all day. That left me. I had a couple of classes but there was no way I could leave Tony here by himself. Of course I would stay at the flat. Tony specifically said that I was the only person he trusted and I wasn't going to abandon him.
A/N: Short, I know. But the pace will pick up in the next chapter and things will become slightly more clear, so keep reading! -Cloey :)
