Wings of a Butterfly

Chapter Four

The grip of winter persisted into April. Snow no longer fell, but icy rain and slush continued to drop from the sky, adding to the miserably cold weather that should've already been replaced with spring.

Sebastian watched the grey sky from the classroom, smiling to himself as he thought of his main source of warmth in this period of coldness.

Ciel had been in a rather good mood the past couple days, and Sebastian wouldn't exchange that for anything in the entire world. News that the younger student's braces would come off at the end of the year had been part of Ciel's happiness, but the rest eluded Sebastian. Every time he'd start to ask, he'd be showered with loving affection and cheesy butterfly kisses.

The school day was halfway done and Sebastian could hardly wait to meet up with Ciel. Although they'd been spending an awful lot of time together as of late, Sebastian could never get enough of his boyfriend.

His current class was still ten minutes short of starting, and the senior looked up as some of the more rowdy students made their usual entrance, purposely tripping one another through the doorway and insulting each other.

Sebastian usually took to never minding these guys; most of the "intelligence" that spewed out of their raunchy mouths hardly ever entertained his interests. Yet today, it seemed that one out of the bunch was terribly upset with an underclassman.

"I have P.E. with him second to last period; I could…"

"…had the nerve to correct me in my goddamn presentation. I don't give a fuck if it was a group thing."

"That's pretty bold of him, isn't it?"

Keeping his face forward so he wouldn't appear to be eavesdropping, Sebastian tensed, blocking out all other noise as he tried to confirm who they were talking about.

"Wait, which class was it?"

"Pre-calc. The little shit's in there only because he's in the advanced group of second-years."

It could be any sophomore in the advanced group, Sebastian told himself. His memories recalled the various stunts this particular group participated in over the course of their high school careers. Detention, suspension…

"Ciel-fucking-Phantomhive, haha! What a brat, thinking he's hot-shit because he's from England with his fancy accent and crap."

One of them kicked another. "You said he's in your second to last class?"

"You want me to…?"

"His locker's not far from mine, you know."

The urge to stand up and confront the now whispering group nearly overwhelmed Sebastian, but he managed to remain glued in his seat. There was absolutely no reason for him to be acquainted with Ciel Phantomhive and sticking up for the sophomore in front of a whole classroom would only lead to petty rumors. Sebastian didn't particularly care if their relationship became known, but he had promised Ciel to keep quiet. It was the least he could do.

Only half of their pathetic plan to get at his boyfriend was thought out before the instructor started class, silencing them. Earlier Sebastian would have force once been ready to pay attention to the lecture, but as minute after agonizing minute ticked, his gut began to squirm.

Getting up from his knees and slinging his backpack over one shoulder, Ciel thought his day to be finally over. However, a weight he wasn't familiar with landed on his shoulder the second he closed his locker.

He should have seen this coming.

"Why don't we take a walk, hm?"

Blue eyes shifted as his nerves bundled into a tight ball. There were too many people and he was never one for making a scene. Being physically bullied rarely happened, but it wasn't an unusual occurrence for Ciel. The student who walked beside him wasn't the one he had corrected in his earlier class. Glancing every now and then for Sebastian as they continued down the hall, Ciel wondered how many were waiting for him.

Part of him wanted to call out, to fight back. How could this guy become so riled up over a small correction of how to pronounce a word? Surely someone's pride couldn't be that bloated. However, Ciel wasn't stupid. He knew he was physically weak and could never hope to hold his own against these types of guys, no matter how ludicrous their reasoning.

They reached the entrance and went outside and along the sidewalk, passing all the rumbling buses loading with students. Although it was overcast, it was bright out, making Ciel squint for a moment. The instant they were about a block from the school, his arm was roughly grabbed, and he was dragged forward.

His only luck would come from not fighting back. They would see him as pathetic and grow tired of him. Ciel took a large gulp of air as they crossed the street, treading overgrown grass just starting to stand and rounding an empty store.

Three others waited for him. Two of them smoked, and the one he had apparently insulted kicked off the wall he leaned on. Without warning, Ciel's backpack was torn from his shoulders and he was thrust forward.

Resigning himself to remain silent and try not to breathe in the nasty fumes around him, Ciel was caught by the senior and lugged forward. "Think you're hot-shit, huh, Phantomhive?" the senior growled with a detached chuckle. Ciel was shaken roughly. "We'll do you the honor of screwing that mouth of yours shut."

Thrown back, Ciel was only able to brace himself on the heels of his hands, which immediately scraped against the uprooted concrete ground. The student who had escorted him here was quick to grab the back of his shirt and yank him up. In the process of feeling his back grazing against the sharp stone, Ciel heard the soft sound of fabric ripping.

Then suddenly everything went very still. The students had become a little noisy when he was pushed back, but now they all were silent. Cracking his eyes open, Ciel was flustered to find that they were all merely staring at him in shock.

It didn't take long for Ciel to realize why they were staring. His shirt had been drawn up half way, revealing his overly-bruised stomach. Black and dark blue and purple dotted his light skin, almost as if he had painted some kind of horrific masterpiece upon his body.

His breath gushed from his mouth as Ciel finally focused on the senior, whose lips were moving with inaudible astonishment. Clutching the hem of his shirt, Ciel made to scoot back, hoping for escape. Yet he was interrupted.

"Hey! What the hell do you think you're doing?!"

Time resumed and the four seniors huddled together. One raised his hands and narrowed his eyes. "We're leaving; this kid's messed up, man, showing us that disgusting crap," they turned to go, "What a queer." Then they were out of sight.

For a moment Ciel sat, stupefied. Then familiar hands found him and helped him up. Red eyes bore into his own blue, checking him over like a protective mother. With a half cough, half gasp, Ciel finally came to.

"Sebastian-!" Smushing his face into the other's front, Ciel melded into the warmth before him, biting his lips from making any other sounds. Arms tightly wrapped around him, lips caressing words against his ear, reassuring him until he felt safe once again.

Sebastian entered his bathroom, phone in hand. Ciel sat in the tub, warm water and bubbles surrounding him and making Sebastian smile at the display. Wagging the phone, he informed, "I just called your house and didn't get an answer."

Blue eyes meandered their way to him. Ciel had been very quiet the whole way back to the apartment, but Sebastian knew he didn't have to worry too much. A sudsy arm reached out. "I'll leave a message, then."

Handing the phone to his boyfriend, Sebastian lowered himself to sit on the bathmat beside the tub. As Ciel dialed his number, Sebastian took to silently looking at the cut on his boyfriend's upper arm. He knew it was deep and partly sewn up with stitches Ciel had started to pick out. He inwardly sighed, knowing he'd have to clear away the crusted scab and dried blood. It would be painful for Ciel, but it had to be done.

"…staying the night at Sebastian's. He's helping me with a school project. I'll be back tomorrow before noon. Love you, bye." The phone beeped and Sebastian tore his gaze from the injured arm to take the device back, setting it along the sink's counter.

Ciel sunk until the surface of the water separated his lips and wetted the tips of his hair. Sebastian watched him with a calm smile, hoping his boyfriend would lighten up. Eventually blue eyes caught his crimson. "What?" the boy asked defensively.

Sebastian shook his head. "You look cute."

The younger student blushed profusely, immediately looking away and sinking down to his nose. Sebastian chuckled and went to his knees, reaching out to cup the side of Ciel's head. Leaning over the clean porcelain and warm water, he placed a kiss to Ciel's temple.

"Ciel…" he whispered, purposely lowering his voice, as well as his hand until it slipped into the water. Little by little his kisses started to coax Ciel out of the water, and Sebastian took to lightly nipping at his boyfriend's lips. But the younger started to squirm as his wandering hand began to lightly trace his chest.

Suppressing a squeak, Ciel shifted against the slippery porcelain beneath him. Fingers tweaked at his nipples, the heat of the bath becoming hazy around him as Sebastian finally captured his mouth, tongue intent on exploring.

Ciel quivered beneath him as he allowed his hand to delve further underneath the bubbly water, gently roaming over a taut stomach and stroking the sophomore's inner thighs until Ciel finally cried out with a buck of his hips.

Water sloshed against Sebastian's face as Ciel jerked away with a breathy moan. His face was pink with arousal, his lips puffy from their long kiss. Sebastian leaned down to peck a wet shoulder, Ciel's cloudy blue eyes watching him before closing altogether.

Ignoring his own hardness, Sebastian concentrated on what he could not see below the water. Ciel whimpered incoherently as he gripped his boyfriend's length, slowly stroking it to full life and relishing the sounds Ciel made.

He wanted so badly to take away everything that hurt Ciel. He hated seeing Ciel so sad all the time, so helplessly alone in his struggle to remain on his own two feet. Closing his eyes, Sebastian could care less about whether or not he got soaked as he rested his head against his boyfriend's trembling shoulder, moving his hand faster and adjusting the pressure until Ciel squirmed with pleasure.

"Ahm…ah-ah, Sebast-iann…"

If he could piece his little butterfly back together, maybe, just maybe he could bring back a small part of the boy who had been so happy and carefree. Gently Sebastian planted a damp kiss to Ciel's neck, feeling the body beneath him curling in.

His thumb rubbed the head and he slowed down his pace, making Ciel pant with want. Then suddenly the smaller twisted violently, throwing his left arm around Sebastian's neck and pulling him in for a firm kiss. Pressing back passionately until he was out of breath, Sebastian pulled away after a moment until their gazes steadied on one another. Flicking his fingers, he whispered with all sincerity, "I love you."

Ciel's toes curled and with a whimper he came. Sebastian cradled his head once more, feeling the other slowly melt in his hands. Seeing the haze still settling in those blue eyes, Sebastian took it upon himself to clean what he could, murmuring sweet nothings to his boyfriend and even drawing out a smile.

Biting back the pain was something Ciel had learned to do. Yet he still clutched to the mattress' edge for dear life as Sebastian applied the hated alcohol to his open wound before tightly bandaging it up.

"You need to stop picking at your cuts," Sebastian chided lightly, bracing himself against the open wince Ciel purposely displayed. The younger said nothing as he finished up with a particularly harsh tug, hoping to make his point. "Seeing you covered in bruises is hard enough as it is…but scars?"

Pouting, Ciel pushed away from his boyfriend, knowing clearly what Sebastian was trying to do. Flopping back, he rolled to the middle of the bed, trying to escape the guilt which was starting to creep on him. He hated seeing that pained look in Sebastian's eyes.

Because of his situation, he always felt as if he were battling himself. Ciel didn't know where or when it happened, but something had broken inside him, urging him to not care so much about his injuries. A soft voice was constantly whispering sweetly to him that things would get better, and it was something he wanted to believe. Yet in the long run, Ciel knew that the line to cross which would cascade him into even deeper despair and numbness had yet to come before him.

At some point Ciel had promised himself never to cross that line. He couldn't let it all spiral out of his control, he wouldn't allow it. But sadly, the battle was becoming more and more difficult to stand against.

The mattress lifted as the senior exited the bedroom to replace the first-aid kit. Sighing into the comforter and curling into a ball, Ciel merely concentrated on the pulsating sensation in his arm, hoping to forget everything else.

He was nearly dozing when the overhead lights were shut off, dimming the room. Turning immediately into the warmth that encompassed him, Ciel replied quietly, "I love you, too."

A/N: Hope you liked the chapter! Feel free to tell me what you think~!