As usual, I'll come back later to edit my mistakes.

Part XVI

They were silent during their trek back to the dorm. Minho's rage continued to simmer beneath his skin, the tension between them so thick, Thomas could cut it with a knife. Newt's jaw clenched, the muscle ticking underneath his skin like clockwork. Thomas watched them as they walked, the urge to comfort them, to say something just to make them laugh was strong, He wished everything would go back to the way they used to be, before either of them were swept up by love and desire. Life was simple then.

Minho felt like a ticking time bomb. Every step they took felt like they were drawing closer to the athlete's explosion. Thomas didn't want the boy to lose his cool and do something ridiculous on impulse, especially in public. (He didn't want him to lose his cool in private either, but Minho couldn't hold back his rage when he was so far off the edge already.)

Thomas was the last one to enter the dorm. He shut the door behind him, hearing the loud click of the lock sliding into place before he turned back to the others in trepidation. He was barely out of the hallway when Minho whirled on him, black eyes sharp and wet.

"Damn it Thomas! You don't have to keep saving us whenever we're in trouble with Rat Man! I already told you leaving this stupid school would be a godsend to me."

"And have him ruin your record with cheating?" Thomas frowned, jaw clenching. "Minho, that's a serious accusation! Janson would've done anything to keep you from going to school if you let him."

"It would've been better than watching you agree to be his bitch!" He spat vehemently.

Thomas recoiled, horror-struck. His chest clenched in pain but rage washed over him in a wave. Newt was by Minho's side in an instant, holding the boy back for the second time that day. But unlike in the classroom, Minho didn't resist the blond's touch. He stood rooted in place, dark eyes clouded with a torrent of emotion; guilt the strongest one there.

"We have to report him." Newt suggested, his voice quiet as though he were worried about disturbing the uneasy peace between them. "What he's doing is illegal."

"We can tell the Dean." Thomas suggested weakly.

"Yeah? And then what? He's friends with the Dean you slintheads!" Minho dropped himself on top of Newt's bed, looking as though he carried the weight of the world on his shoulders. "Face it guys, Rat Man's got us fucked. He has power over us. It doesn't matter what we do, he can get rid of us with no problem and keep Thomas for himself."

Newt joined him. He wrapped an arm around Minho's shoulders and leaned into the boy for comfort. Thomas stood off to the side, feeling awkward and out of place, though he wasn't sure why. He felt guilty for everything, like he was the worst piece of klunk to ever set foot in WCKD U. And he wondered, not for the first time nor the last, if things would have been better off had he remained back in their home town. He shouldn't have followed his friends out here.

His chest constricted. His face felt warm.

He released a shaky breath, physically blowing out the anxiety running rampant in his body and fought the urge to join them on the bed. He wanted to comfort them; wanted to apologize for all the trouble he'd cause them thanks to his stupid slip of the tongue, but…

He didn't.

He let them sit there in silence, too ashamed to do anything else.

Thomas woke up with a pounding behind his eyes that followed morning. His body yearned for him to go back to sleep as his night had been rough and plagued with nightmares, but Thomas had a mission to do today. He'd meant to do this a week ago, but the guilt of keeping his decision from his boyfriends kept him from going into the University's enrollment office. Now that Janson waited for him to sign the appropriate paperwork, Thomas felt he had no choice but to go through with his decision.

He knew Newt and Minho wouldn't appreciate it. They'd probably yell at him, call him slinthead or a shank. Hell, they might even disown him after this – at least he figured Minho would – but it was the only solution left on the table he knew for certain would work.

After all, no one could make him stay once the semester was over. Not even Janson and all his useless threats.

He sat in the enrollment office, leg bobbing up and down as he watched the secretary type away on her computer. The room was silent save for the loud clatter of keyboard keys and his skin pimped from the freezing cold. He wished he brought a coat, his sweater was doing nothing to keep him warm.

He glanced down at the sheets in his lap, all filled out as neatly as he could with his boyfriends' information for the next semester. The words "ROOM REGISTRATION/EXCHANGE" stared back at him in big, black letters. His leg bobbed faster.

It would only be for a semester. He'd come back in the fall once he was assigned to a new counselor and avoid Janson like the plague. His scholarships would still be there – he was sure they were renewable – but in the off chance he lost the opportunity he could easily replace it with another. His only regret was not telling his boyfriends. (And the idea of going back home alone for four months depressed him greatly.)

He waited in silence, gnawing the skin on his lip with his teeth. His leg bobbed erratically; his fingers tapping silently against the side of the chair. He was a nervous wreck. He half expected Janson to pop around the corner and whisk him away before any of the paperwork could get processed. It'd be hell to come back to the enrollment office again if Janson found out what he planned on doing. Dear God, he hated the man.

He jumped a mile when his cell phone vibrated. One glance told him it was Newt inquiring of his whereabouts.

He didn't respond.

At that moment, a woman opened the door to her office and gave Thomas a tender, polite smile.

"Thomas, hello. It's good to see you again. Please come in."

He heaved a heavy breath then followed her into the office.

Hey so we're going out to eat. Grab Min and I'll meet you guys at the café down the street. My treat. Don't fight me on this.

What's the occasion Tommy?

Just wanted to celebrate

Uh, okay, be there soon.

Thomas tapped his fingers against his phone, his leg bobbing up and down in nervous energy. He had already ordered food for his boyfriends', aware of what they liked in this place. He hoped it wasn't too suspicious, dragging them out spontaneously and ordering their favorite meals.

He bit his tongue.

Fuck, it was so suspicious. It was unmistakable he'd done something wrong, he should have invited them out to the movies or something!

The guilt he'd been trying to stave off since this morning came back to him at full throttle. He felt like an absolute ass for going ahead with his choice, and it didn't matter how many times he tried to convince himself that this was the only way, he knew he had done wrong. He didn't tell them. He didn't trust them enough to tell them he planned on withdrawing from school and was too much of a coward to tell them now.

He groaned, falling head first onto the table. He buried his hands into his hair, using his nails to scratch his scalp in a weak attempt at self-punishment.

I'm so fucked. I'm so fucked.

He pulled himself together before Newt and Minho spotted him. They joined him in their usual table at the same time the waitress brought their ordered meal. Minho peeled away his coat and scarf with the grace of an ecstatic child and slipped into the booth to claim his meal.

Newt slid into place beside him. He eyed the cheeseburger with a raised brow before glancing Thomas' way, one brow quirked in an arch.

"You already ordered."

Thomas smiled as innocently as he could. "Yeah, just thought I'd surprise you two. Because I love you."

Thomas tried not to kick himself.

Newt's eyes narrowed suspiciously.

"What's the occasion Tommy?"

"None. Is it a crime to want to spoil my partners?"

"No, but it is suspicious considering what happened yesterday."

Minho groaned obnoxiously. He elbowed the blond harshly and said, "Newt, just take it at face value. Tommy wants to spoil us, now let Tommy spoil us." He turned to Thomas with a languorous grin. "Consider me spoiled."

Thomas beamed.

"Fine." Newt sighed in defeat. He leaned back into the booth, a smile stretching his lips. "I'll let you spoil me today, but if there's something wrong, I want you to tell us."

"Okay," Thomas chuckled lightly. His palms felt sweaty. "That's fair."

Newt dived into his meal without another word.

Thomas picked at his French fries, his stomach sour.

Minho met up with Newt for another night of strolling later that evening. Thomas' had been true to his word and spoiled them rotten with dinner, desert and a quick movie at home until the poor boy fell into a fitful sleep before the movie's end. They tucked him into bed then took off for a walk despite the bitter bite of winter nipping at their noses. They continued around the dorm pathways, Newt's cold hand tucked into Minho's pocket, both boys mulling over today's events.

Newt heaved a heavy sigh, his breath bellowing out in a puff of mist; his cheeks and nose rosy red beneath the lamp lights.

"He did something stupid, didn't he?"

"Oh yeah, big time." Minho nodded. "So stupid that he needed to treat us to feel less guilty about it. I'm more surprised our night didn't end in sex. I would have pinned him down until he confessed."

"That's probably why it wasn't offered."

"Smart kid." Minho grinned.

Newt groaned. "I swear Minho, if the bloody idiot did what I think he did, I'm going to kill him."

Minho's jaw clenched, all humor from earlier drained from his face.

"If he did it because of Janson, I'm going to punch that asshole right in the nose."

"I won't hold you back."

Minho wrapped an arm around the blond's bulky frame and pulled him closer than their linked hands could.

"Let's hope Thomas isn't that stupid."

"He is, Min. He would and he probably already did."

"Can you at least try to act optimistic here? Like, is that too hard to ask right now?" He grumbled.

Newt chuckled weakly. "I'm not the optimistic one in the relationship, Min."

"Fine then I'll do it. I have complete faith Thomas didn't drop out of school or next semester because Rat Man is the world's biggest asshole with the world's biggest boner for our Tommy."

"You don't sound convinced."

"Yeah well, blind hope isn't my thing either. C'mon, let's go to sleep. We'll deal with it tomorrow."

They followed the path back to their housing complex, all thoughts of attending school without Thomas flooding their minds.

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