Chapter 6
Anakin snatched at his phone as he heard it ping.
"Eager, are you?" Padme grinned at him.
"Is it Obi-wan?" Rex asked.
Anakin quickly opened the message, disappointed to find that it wasn't Obi-wan.
Anakin
Our dear friend Maul is insisting on another night with you. He's a good client and I don't want to disappoint him. Please let me know your price and a time of your convenience.
Sidious
Anakin choked violently on his sip of soda.
"Anakin? Are you alright?" Padme was looking at him in concern, and Anakin did his best to compose himself.
"F-fine. Just – I just swallowed wrong, that's all."
Thankfully, Padme and Rex seemed to accept this excuse. It was a good thing Obi-wan wasn't here. Obi-wan would know at once that something was dreadfully wrong, and he would insist that Anakin tell him what it was.
Anakin typed out a quick response.
I don't want anything to do with you or Maul. Please do not contact me again.
He was just sitting down in his next class when his phone pinged again. Anakin opened the message and was suddenly grateful that he was sitting, or his legs would probably have given out.
There were pictures of Ahsoka, walking home from the bus stop, chatting with her friends during lunch hour, even a couple that looked like they had been taken from outside her bedroom window at their apartment.
Do reconsider. Such a sweet girl. I'd hate for anything to happen to her.
Anakin was going to be sick. He grabbed his bag and bolted to the bathroom, getting there just in time to empty his stomach into the toilet.
His fingers were already navigating to Obi-wan's contact on his phone. Obi-wan would pick him up and take him home. He'd hold Anakin close and somehow make everything ok.
Anakin was just about to hit call when he hesitated.
He couldn't risk Ahsoka. Not for anything. What if Sidious found out that he'd told Obi-wan about this? Anakin could take the risk for himself, but not for his sister.
He tried to breathe slowly like he knew Obi-wan would tell him if he was here.
Anakin had no choice, really. He couldn't risk going to the police. Sidious knew where he and Ahsoka lived. He wouldn't risk Ahsoka, no matter what it meant for him.
I'll be there tonight at seven. This is the last time, Sidious. If you contact me again, I'm going to the police.
Anakin leaned over the toilet to throw up again.
The rest of the day passed in a blur. He got a message from Obi-wan but didn't respond. If he talked to Obi-wan now, he was going to confess everything, and he couldn't have that.
His feet felt like they were weighed down as he trudged to his car. He remembered the way to Maul's house all too well.
Anakin stood outside Maul's door, trying to control his panic. He wanted to scream. He wanted to run into Obi-wan's arms and never leave.
But he had to protect Ahsoka.
He knocked on the door.
Maul grinned as he opened the door. "Glad to see you've come around."
"I'm not coming again after this, Maul. I will go to the police if you keep pursuing me after tonight."
Maul didn't seem bothered by Anakin's threat. "Take your clothes off."
Anakin gritted his teeth and did as he was told.
"On the bed. Hands and knees. Ass up."
Tears started to leak out of the corners of Anakin's eyes. He realized too late in that in his panic he'd forgotten to prepare himself. This was going to be brutal.
Maul grabbed his hips so hard that Anakin was sure they would bruise. He felt Maul's hardening cock rubbing against his ass and bit the inside of his lip, fighting a sob. He had to do this. Hopefully, it would be over quickly.
Anakin screamed as Maul pressed into him. He had changed his mind. He couldn't do this. He wanted Obi-wan.
"No! Stop, I've changed my mind. Please, stop."
Maul ignored him, tearing up Anakin's insides as he kept thrusting. Anakin struggled, but that only made it hurt worse. Eventually, he went limp, crying weakly into the mattress.
It seemed to go on forever. He was in so much pain that he barely noticed when Maul pulled out. The next thing he knew, he was being tossed out of the front door, like the trash he was. His clothes followed and Maul slammed the door behind him.
Anakin pulled his clothes on. He was in too much pain to stand up, so he crawled, all the way to the street. He propped himself up against the side of the building and fumbled in his pocket for his phone.
"Hello, my dear. How are –"
"Obi-wan."
"Anakin, what's the matter?"
"Can you pick me up, please?"
"Of course. Send me a pin. I'm leaving now."
"Please, hurry," Anakin whispered. He hung up and sent the pin.
Barely five minutes later, Obi-wan's car came screeching onto the street. Obi-wan parked messily and bolted to Anakin's side.
"Ani, what happened?"
Anakin shook his head. "Please, just take me home."
"Of course. I – Anakin, you're bleeding."
Anakin winced and closed his eyes. It wouldn't take Obi-wan long to figure out what had happened. His pants were soaked with blood.
"I'm taking you to the hospital."
Anakin's eyes flew open. "No! Please, no hospitals. They'll call the police…"
"They'll be right to. Did Maul do this to you?"
Anakin nodded. "Obi-wan, please. We can't tell anyone. He knows where I live. He has pictures of Ahsoka. I had to protect her. Promise me you won't tell anyone!" Anakin was aware of the rising hysteria in his voice, but he couldn't seem to calm down.
Obi-wan pulled him into a crushing hug. "I won't do anything you don't want me to, dearest. Let's get you home."
Anakin lay down on the back seat while Obi-wan drove them home. Once he had parked, Obi-wan came around the side and tenderly lifted Anakin into his arms.
Anakin sobbed into his chest, clutching at his shirt. "I'm so sorry, Obi-wan. I never meant to – but I didn't know what else to do. And by the time I changed my mind, it was too late."
"You have nothing to apologize for, sweetheart. I'm so sorry he hurt you. I'm not going to let that happen again, I promise you."
Anakin didn't know how Obi-wan could possibly accomplish that, but for now, he let himself believe it, soaking up the comfort Obi-wan offered.
Obi-wan laid him gently on the couch. "I'm going to run you a bath."
Anakin nodded eagerly. He wanted to wash Maul off him.
When the bath was run, Obi-wan undressed Anakin, kissing him tenderly on the forehead before leading him to the bath. Anakin lay back in the hot water, closing his eyes, trying with all his might to forget what had just happened.
He reached for the soap, but his hands were shaking so badly that he dropped it.
"Here, let me help you."
Anakin closed his eyes again, letting Obi-wan wash him. Obi-wan's touch was achingly gentle. Anakin flinched when Obi-wan got to his ass.
"It's ok, dearest. You can tell me to stop at any time."
Anakin knew that, of course. He breathed deeply and let Obi-wan keep cleaning him. When Obi-wan was done, he helped Anakin out of the bath and wrapped him in a fluffy white towel. He dried Anakin tenderly and then helped him into a pair of Obi-wan's sweatpants and an overlarge t-shirt.
"Let's get you to bed," Obi-wan murmured. Anakin let Obi-wan lead him into bed and crawled under the covers.
Obi-wan lay down next to him, pulling Anakin into his arms. "Do you want to talk about it?"
Anakin shook his head. "Just want to forget," he mumbled.
"Would you like me to read to you?"
"Not yet. Just… just hold me?"
"Of course, dearest. Whatever you need."
Guilt was eating Anakin up from the inside. Obi-wan was being so sweet and Anakin didn't deserve it. He'd literally just had sex with another man. It didn't matter that he'd changed his mind halfway through. He had gone into it willingly. He had cheated on Obi-wan, and Obi-wan hadn't said a word about it. He had done everything to comfort Anakin, despite his betrayal.
Anakin realized he was crying again when Obi-wan started wiping his tears.
"You can talk to me," Obi-wan cooed in his ear. "Whatever you need."
"I – I'm so sorry, Obi-wan. I can't believe you're being this kind after I cheated on you."
"What?" Obi-wan's voice was no longer calm. It was sharp and almost angry. Anakin flinched. "I'm sorry, Anakin, I didn't mean to scare you," Obi-wan said in a gentler tone. "I just – do you really think that?"
"I went to him willingly, knowing what he'd do. You've been so good to me and I messed everything up –"
"Anakin, no. You didn't mess anything up, sweetheart, and you certainly didn't cheat on me. You were raped. That is not cheating. The only reason you went to Maul was because he threatened Ahsoka. That's not consent, that's coerced consent. It's not cheating. You were scared, and you had every right to be. You didn't do anything wrong."
Anakin wished he could believe Obi-wan, but what did Obi-wan know about it? Maul had it right, after all. Anakin was nothing more than a hole to fuck. Obi-wan was the only one who didn't seem to realize this.
"Anakin, I can tell that you don't believe me. Please, tell me what you are thinking."
"I'm not worth it," Anakin mumbled. "I'm not worth any of this. Maul had it right. I'm just a hole to fuck, and I can't even let you do that. I don't know why you put up with me."
Obi-wan's arms tightened around him. "Please, never think that, sweetheart. You are worth everything. I know you can't see it right now, but you are so bright and beautiful. You deserve the world and I want to give it to you."
Obi-wan had the patience of a saint. Anakin sniffled and snuggled further back into Obi-wan's embrace.
"I'm sorry," he whispered.
"I'm going to have to start extracting a sorry tax at this rate."
Anakin frowned. "A sorry tax?"
"Every time you apologize for something you don't need to, you owe me dinner."
Anakin rolled his eyes. "I'll cook for you any time. I enjoy it."
"That's not the point. The point is to show you that you truly don't need to apologize for things that are outside of your control."
"I chose to go to Maul."
"Because he threatened Ahsoka. As I said, that's coerced consent, which is not consent. It's not your fault, Ani, I promise you."
Anakin sighed and closed his eyes. He was tired and he hurt. He just wanted to sleep. He was content in Obi-wan's arms and felt himself starting to drift off.
"You and Ahsoka are moving in with me."
That brought him awake. "What?"
"Maul knows where you live, and frankly, you're not in the best neighborhood anyway. You'll be safer here. I'll hire security to patrol outside the property. Even if Maul does realize where you've moved to, he won't be able to touch you."
"I can't impose on you like that, Obi-wan."
"You wouldn't be imposing. I love having you here, dearest. I thought you knew that."
"What about Ahsoka? She's fifteen. She can be moody, not to mention loud when she's having a bad day. You never signed up for raising a teenager."
"Well consider this me officially signing up. I like Ahsoka, Anakin. I'm not saying it'll be easy, but we'll figure it out."
"I can't."
"Yes, you can," Obi-wan said firmly. "I'm not letting Maul get to you again. Do you think he'll stop at just once? He'll keep threatening Ahsoka, and you'll have to keep going back to him."
Anakin would rather die. He couldn't do that again. But he needed Ahsoka to be safe. He knew that Obi-wan wasn't joking about hiring security. He knew it wasn't being fair to Obi-wan to take him up on his offer, but he had to prioritize Ahsoka's safety.
"Ok," he said softly.
"Really?"
"Yeah, really. I mean, I'll have to talk to Ahsoka about it, but she likes you too. I think she'll be ok."
"Thank you." Obi-wan sounded so relieved and happy, Anakin could almost believe that this was as real for Obi-wan as it was for him.
Of course, he knew better than that. Obi-wan felt responsible for him, nothing more. It wasn't like Obi-wan wanted a real relationship.
I love you.
He battled back the traitorous words trying to escape his lips. There was no surer way to scare Obi-wan away than revealing just how inappropriately attached he'd become.
"Can… can you read to me now?"
"Of course, dearest. Wait just a moment."
Obi-wan got Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, having finished reading the Philosopher's stone to Anakin about a week ago. He sat leaning against the headboard and Anakin eagerly rested his head in Obi-wan's lap. Obi-wan used his free hand to stroke Anakin's hair.
Anakin was afraid to close his eyes. He knew that as soon as he fell asleep, he would have nightmares about his latest experience with Maul.
But Obi-wan's soothing voice was too much for him. Against his will, he drifted off.
