Alex tapped his pen against the desk lightly. It was currently 3 am and he was finishing up an essay. Empty coffee cups littered his work space as he scratched his pen against the paper, words forming from the ink. "—in conclusion, I believe that no matter what age, race, gender, sexuality, or religion, everyone should be treated equally. Being Lgbtq does not diminish someone's ability to work and achieve their goals. Sincerely, A. Hamilton"
As soon as he finished writing his essay, he tidied up up a bit before immediately starting on another one. It was the only way his mind would shut up.
"Alex..?" Alex jumped at the sudden noise coming from John.
"You scared me," he said.
"Why are you still up?" John asked, sitting up from his bed.
"I'm writing," He responded, going to work on the one he just started.
"Babe, you need to rest," John got up and rested his head on Alex's.
"I'm okay Jackie," He started scratching down some words.
"No, Lex, you've been like this for weeks. You never rest, or take a break, or anything like that," John sighed, "You overwork yourself."
"How can I not? There's so much work to be done, I need to keep my grades up, and I can't do anything else because I'm such a fucking buzzkill." Alex replied nonchalantly.
"Lex, you know that's not true—"
"Yes it is," He interrupted, "I see how they look at me."
"How who looks at you?" John asked.
"Everyone. Laf, Hercules, literally everyone. I'm not stupid. Nobody want's an orphan boy with bad PTSD and anxiety as a friend. I still wonder how you put up with me all the damn time." Alex kept writing.
"Nobody does that and you know it," He reassured.
"You don't know that, nobody does, and I'd rather not take my chances."
Beat.
"Okay, that's it," John took the pen from Alex.
"Hey! Give it back!" He reached up for it, John being taller, so he was unsuccessful.
"No, come lie down. You have bags under your eyes so big they can carry milk gallons," John remarked with a small chuckle.
"Hnnnn, nooo!" Alex complained. "I need to keep writing!" He kept reaching up for the pen.
"Lex, look at yourself love! You're always exhausted, you're getting thinner by the day, and I've seen the blades and cuts."
Alex's blood ran cold. He knew?
"How long—"
"A long time," John already knew what he was going to ask.
Alex paused and thought for a minuet.
"Fine..."
Score. John picked Alex up bridal style, earning a quiet yelp from him. He lied them both down, holding Alex close to him.
John started to doze off before Alex spoke.
"I'm sorry..." Alex whispered.
John heard his voice break a bit, just now noticing he was crying.
"Don't be sorry, I'm not mad," John reassured.
"Are you sure..?"
"Yes Lex, I promise. None of this is your fault."
"Alright..."
By now it was 3:45 am.
"Let's get some rest..." John said, earning a small noise of agreement from the shorter man. They both drifted off to blissful (and much needed) sleep.
Sorry, this one was kinda angsty. It's 5:30 am and I haven't slept all night thanks to my anxiety, and believe it or not, writing helps, so here's this oneshot book for whenever I wanna write random shorts. Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this little chapter. If you're up late like me, get some rest. See y'all next time.