In the few short months that Bel had been living with Squalo, it had quickly become apparent to everyone who knew them that it didn't matter that Squalo was getting in between Xanxus and Bel and directing the oldest teen's attention onto himself; simply watching day-after-day as Xanxus would beat and rape and torture Squalo was still enough to traumatise the boy. Squalo knew that Bel was extremely unhappy with Xanxus around, but he was selfish; he was prepared to keep the boy in an abusive household as long as it meant he still had the younger with him.

Squalo knew it was cruel what he was doing, but he just couldn't help himself; was it so wrong he felt as if Bel was the only thing holding him together? Truthfully, he was afraid of what he would do without the child by his side.

"I'm going to be a little late picking you up today." Squalo adjusted the school jacket that was too big for Bel's scrawny body before he knelt down and tidied his charge's clothing. They were standing out the front of Bel's school, and the boy was hesitant to leave his guardian's side; he was very clingy to Squalo, and he always found it hard to be away from the other. "I have to see the doctor, but I promise I won't be too long."

Bel frowned. He lifted his arms up into the air to hug Squalo's neck. "I don't wanna go to school… Can we go into town instead…?"

"You've got to go to school, Bel; I won't be home to look after you, otherwise."

Bel pouted. He hated school because he was bullied so often, and with the environment he was living in, it didn't help his anxiety at all; instead, it only put him more on edge than he already was. "But it's my birthday…!"

"I know it is, but it's your last day of school for the year, brat; you have to go." Squalo threaded his fingers through soft golden locks before he let out a sigh. "I tell you what; I'll pick you up early, and you can come to the doctor with me. Okay?"

A small smile crossed Bel's face at this; he was just glad that Squalo was finally compromising with him. "Can we get ice cream, too? And sushi? And can we stay at Dino's house so we don't have to go home? Please~? It's my birthday~"

Squalo didn't have the heart to argue against the boy when Bel simply wanted to have a happy birthday – and truthfully, Bel deserved having one; he had to put up with so much as it was. "Sure, Bel. I'll talk to the Bucking Horse soon. Now go to class, alright? I'll see you soon."

Bel nodded, doing as told; he loved Squalo too much to argue with his guardian. Leaning up onto his tiptoes, he kissed Squalo's cheek, a habit he had developed shortly after always having Lussuria kiss his cheek during greetings and farewells. "I love you, Squ~!"

"Yeah, brat." Squalo didn't know how to tell Bel that he loved the boy in return, so he settled for an awkward pat to his charge's shoulder. "Now go. Bye, Bel."

"Bye-bii~" Bel smiled brightly to himself as he turned to run to his class. He looked forward to his time with Squalo after school; today was going to be a good birthday – or so he thought, at least.

For a boy as young as Bel, the little blond could never have guessed what was in store for him in just an hour or so.

~~XX~~

Bel sat in class, decorating the Christmas cards he had made for Squalo and the teen's friends. He was content, glad that the other students were leaving him alone; he liked being allowed to work by himself because he was bullied for being different. Bel didn't know how he was different; just that the other kids didn't like him.

The boy was happy, humming to himself as he put the finishing touches on Squalo's Christmas card; once he was finished this one, he would start on a card for his newest friend, Mammon. He liked the young woman Squalo had introduced him to a while ago, finding that she reminded him of the mother he so dearly missed.

But then, the classroom door opened and a note was delivered to him, with instructions to gather his belongings and meet his guardian in reception for a dentist appointment. This confused Bel greatly, knowing he didn't have a dentist appointment, but he figured that perhaps it was just Squalo coming to get him earlier than planned.

The boy gathered all of his belongings from his desk and then wandered out into the corridor to put them inside his bag, wondering if he was going to get sushi or ice cream first; he was looking forward to lunch with Squalo because he always loved eating out in town where he felt safer than at the teen's home. He was absentminded as he walked to reception, and once he entered through the door, he was about to smile and run to Squalo to hug the other tight – however, he faltered and donned a look of fear when he found Xanxus scowling at him with the same look of loathing he had long-since grown accustomed to on the other's face.

Bel gulped. As much as he didn't want to, he moved closer to Xanxus; he had already learnt that if he did anything to make people stop and look at them twice, he would get a beating when they were out of the public's eye. He was tense as he whispered, "…W-where's Squalo…?"

"Not here, scum." Xanxus grabbed Bel's wrist with crushing force. When he felt the younger trying to back away, he growled. He shook the boy violently before he hissed, "Walk, trash."

Bel felt tears well up in his eyes as he followed Xanxus, too scared to disobey; he didn't want to be hurt like Squalo always was. "…"

Not another word was spoken between them as Bel was dragged home by the wrist with Xanxus roughly jerking him along whenever he felt the boy falling behind. Bel couldn't remember ever being so scared before; he had never been around Xanxus without Squalo with him, and now he understood why the silver-haired male had never left them alone; the scarred teenager was terrifying, and Bel just wanted to go back to school and never leave until Squalo came to get him.

It was when the front door to their home had been slammed shut behind them after what felt like an eternity did Bel finally break the silence with the most frightened whimper he had ever made. "Please d-don't hurt me…"

Xanxus' sneer morphed into a twisted leer at this tiny plea. "I'll do more than just 'hurt' you, scum. I'm going to make you regret having ever been born."

Somehow, Bel knew deep down that he was right to burst into tears of terror.

~~XX~~

Squalo had left school early due to his current illness. He had skipped lunch and instead planned to go home and try to get a bit of sleep before his doctor's appointment; he didn't see the point in pushing himself through classes when he felt too sick to learn what was being taught, so he might as well try and rest for a while instead. It was early afternoon by now, and hopefully Xanxus would still be asleep by the time he got home.

When he got home, Squalo didn't hesitate to unlock the door and step inside. He dropped his bag in the entrance hall before he trudged further in to curl up on the couch; there was no way he was going anywhere near Xanxus by trying to sleep in his own bed – that would just defeat the purpose of trying to rest, after all. However, the closer he walked towards the living room, the more he noticed soft noises coming from upstairs, ones that sent a wave of panic through him; while he couldn't hear the noises properly, it sounded almost as if Bel was crying in distress – but was that even possible? The boy was at school.

Knowing he had to investigate because he couldn't put it past Xanxus to have not done something, he walked past the couch and towards the staircase. His steps became more hurried as he realised that he was hearing Bel cry out – but why? Why was the boy not at school?

"Bel?!" Squalo ran up the stairs and to his bedroom. He froze the second he passed through the bedroom doorframe; what he was seeing… "Belphegor!"

The sight before Squalo made the silver-haired teen feel sick to his stomach. He doubled over, holding his stomach as he gagged; all that blood… And what Xanxus was doing…

Xanxus turned around at his boyfriend's voice. He sneered as he stilled his erratic movements deep inside in the boy's inside Bel's bloody anus. The silver-haired male wasn't oblivious to the knife in the older male's hand that was stained with the sticky red fluid and little specs of something Squalo didn't want to know about. The whole mattress beneath him and Bel was saturated in blood, and the clothing Bel had gone to school in looked as if it had been dyed completely red, his naturally pale skin covered in his own life fluid. "The fuck are you doing back here so early?"

Squalo couldn't stop himself from vomiting as he caught sight of Bel's mutilated genitals; so that was what was on the knife… It was rare for him to cry, but listening to his charge's weak whimpers and cries for help brought tears rolling down his cheeks; why hadn't he just listened when Bel said he wanted to do something for his birthday…? His birthday, damnit…!

Xanxus looked back and forth between the younger two before a cruel sneer crossed his face. He pulled himself from Bel's body carelessly, eliciting another cry of pain from his victim, before he got off the bed. He cared nothing for the mess that was clinging to him; he instead said, "He's your problem now; I was just about to slit his throat when you walked in, but he's going to die soon anyway. He won't survive the trip to the hospital."

Squalo came to his senses at this, and he wasn't sure he had ever came to someone's side so quickly before. When he dropped onto the mattress, he was almost too scared to pull Bel into his arms and move him off the bed; there was no telling what had been done to him, but one thing was for sure; Bel needed a hospital now.

"It's okay, Bel." The teen adjusted Bel so that he was held comfortably in Squalo's arms before he turned to run back downstairs and out of the house. "It's okay."

Bel continued to cry and scream a little more before he fell completely silent, limp in Squalo's arms. The silver-haired male almost assumed the worst, but he could still hear the other's laboured breaths; Bel had just passed out from his injuries.

"Please be okay…" Not sure he had ever ran so far and so fast before, Squalo did his best to get to the hospital as soon as possible – he could only hope he was in time to save the boy, however.

~~XX~~

Not sure how long he had been pacing back and forth in the hospital wing for, Squalo finally stood still when a nurse approached him. He had no idea what to say, so when the woman asked for his name, he could only respond in a confused manner.

The nurse gave a sympathetic smile before she glanced over her clipboard once more, not wanting to break such bad news but knowing she had no other choice; it simply broke her heart to think about that poor little boy she and her comrades had continuously resuscitated. "I'm afraid there is no good news in what I am about to tell you. His injuries are horrendous, and for such a young boy… He has been raped, and from the damage, we believe it must have been happening for an extended period of time. He has stab wounds and gashes all over his body, and one of his genitals has been cut off. There is physical bruising all over him to suggest physical violence beforehand, and some of his back teeth are missing. His head was bleeding quite a lot, but we can't find any evidence of head trauma, and both of his legs have been broken."

Squalo felt as if he could throw up at this news, and he couldn't stop himself from crying; why hadn't he tried harder to protect Bel…? Why hadn't he… allowed Bel to have the day off school so he would be safe…? "…Can I see him…?"

"Now is not a good time; he has slipped into a coma, and there is no telling when he's going to come out of it."

Squalo rubbed at his eyes; what else could he do…? Nothing. It was his fault Bel was in his situation, and…

Quite frankly, Squalo was glad he couldn't see Bel right now, because he had no idea how he would react upon seeing the child.

Instead, thanking the nurse for her help, Squalo turned around to leave the hospital. He pulled his phone from his pocket and dialled for his best friend, knowing there was only one person who could help him.

"Bucking Horse…" Sniffing back tears as he heard the older male answer the call, Squalo tried to ignore the way his voice trembled so much.

"Squalo? What's happened?" Dino sounded worried, knowing that hearing his friend like this could only mean something terrible had happened. "Are you okay?"

Shaking his head despite knowing the blond wouldn't even know, Squalo simply said, "I should have listened… I need you to take Bel…"

"What?" The other didn't hesitate to agree; if it would get Bel away from Xanxus, he would agree to anyone that was asked of him. "Yeah, of course. I'll come and get him right away."

"Don't… He's not at my house…"

"Where is he?" Dino felt sick at this; he had his suspicions as to where Bel was – and when they were proven, he could almost cry; why did Squalo have to be so stubborn?

"Hospital… In a coma…"

"Squalo… Squalo, come and stay the night with me. It's going to be okay; I'll take care of Bel from now on."

Squalo nodded to himself. He dropped to his knees as he cried his heart out. He couldn't care less about the people who stopped to stare at him; he needed to cry, and he was doing it.

If Bel died… Squalo knew it was all his fault for being so selfish. He should have listened to his friends when they told him to keep Bel away, but he hadn't done so. Now, the child was in a coma he might not even wake up from.

And everything was his fault.