Flynn stumbled into his apartment. He only just managed to lock the door before he collapsed to the floor, coughing as he clutched at his side.
He wasn't sure, but it felt like one of his ribs may have been cracked...If this was what Yuri had had to go through every day for the last year, he wasn't surprised he'd gotten hesitant with people.
Flynn lay there for a while, then finally pushed himself up, limping over to the kitchen. He reached up, whimpering in pain as he jostled his injured side, and got the First Aid kit. He slowly pulled his jacket and shirt off, revealing the various bruises and cuts on his body. He began to tend to them, flinching any time he touched a particularly tender spot.
...Should he go to school tomorrow? He didn't really want to...Still, he had exams, and people saw him as a role model. If he took days off without a real reason, people might start getting suspicious. Plus, if he didn't go, they could turn on Yuri again. He didn't want to put the raven head back in that situation.
Finally finishing, he slowly lowered himself into the chair, relaxing and sighing. He couldn't tell Yuri. If he did that, he would make Flynn withdraw the complaint and fight those guys himself...That was the last thing Flynn wanted.
It was better to just keep Yuri in the dark if he wasn't already aware of the situation.
The next day, Flynn sat in the Student Council room. During free periods or times when everyone was just revising, he was allowed to come here and relax by himself. A privilege he didn't usually take advantage of, but now was an exception.
Estelle sat opposite him, looking the injuries over with a trained eye. Estelle's aunt - the person she lived with - was a doctor, so she was trained a little in more advanced first aid.
Gently probing over the injuries, she frowned worriedly. "I can't tell how bad it is, but you should get it looked at, Flynn. There's no need to stay here today, just go to the hospital and tell them what happened. Or the police."
Flynn shook his head, pulling his shirt back down. "I can't do that," he replied, turning to his paperwork.
"But Flynn, you could wind up seriously injured if you aren't careful!"
"I'll be careful. I'll fight back a little this time. But please, Estelle, don't tell anyone," Flynn begged, gazing at her. She hesitated, then sighed.
"Alright. But you should tell Yuri, at least."
"No. He's the last person who should know."
Yuri stood outside the door to the student council, blinking in surprise. He'd come at the end of the conversation, only catching Estelle asking Flynn to tell him something...It was really starting to irritate him now. What was so bad that Flynn wouldn't dare to tell him?
Sighing, he decided he could pretend he had just arrived. He reached up and knocked, waiting for Estelle to answer the door and let him in before excusing herself and leaving.
"Hey Flynn. How are you?" Yuri asked, taking a seat and grinning.
"I'm fine. And you?"
"Eh, same old. Are we having lunch here again?"
"If you don't mind."
"Yeah, sure," he said, reaching in and grabbing out the two lunchboxes. Flynn took the offered one, smiling gratefully at Yuri before starting to eat.
"So, did you do anything interesting last night?" asked Yuri conversationally.
"Not really. You?"
"Nah. Oh, hey, you said you were going to give me a note?"
"Right. Here it is," Flynn said, pulling it out of his pocket awkwardly and passing it over to Yuri.
Yuri took it, having noticed how Flynn gingerly moved around his side. He wanted to ask directly, but he was worried how Flynn would react. Deciding to try a more subtle approach, he took a bite then casually asked, "How are you feeling?"
Flynn stiffened slightly then looked up, seeming confused. "I'm fine. Why?"
Yuri shrugged, trying to think of a plausible lie. "There's been a cold going around. I just wanted to make sure you hadn't caught it. Can't have the prez being ill, after all," he teased, grinning.
"I didn't notice...Well, no, I'm fine so far. Unless you've caught it.."
"Nope. Don't worry about that," Yuri waved him off.
"I see. I must say, Yuri, you're cooking is quite delicious."
"Thanks," Yuri said, happy with the compliment. He blinked as he realised that Flynn was actually being pretty formal with him compared to how they'd been talking recently, though. "Hey, are you sure you're okay? You're talking all posh."
"Am I? Uh...Sorry. I guess I just get into a sort of persona as the President and I end up talking like it constantly."
"No worries. Seems a bit weird though."
"Well, it doesn't really matter," Flynn said with a shrug, then glanced at his watch. "You don't have any more exams for the rest of the day, do you?" he asked.
"No, I don't think so. The only one was first period."
"Why don't you go the police station now? There's no point staying if you're not going to be doing anything, anyway. Might as well spend your time doing something fruitful."
"But, um, shouldn't you come with me? I mean...How do you know that Raven guy will see me just because of some note?"
"It's sort of in the wording. Besides, it's my signature. He'll recognise it. Go ahead, it'll be fine."
Yuri nodded. "Okay...I'll go after lunch."
"Why wait around? You're finished, aren't you? May as well just head over there now."
A hurt expression flickered over his face briefly. It was almost like Flynn was trying to get rid of him...
"Uh...right. I'll...get going then," he murmured, standing up and grabbing his bag. Flynn nodded then went back to his paperwork, ignoring Yuri as he picked up his lunchbox and put it in his bag.
Yuri headed for the door, glancing back briefly at Flynn. The blond continued to ignore him, and he frowned before walking out.
Yuri soon reached the police station, walking up to the counter.
"Excuse me, I'd like to talk to Raven Schwann. I have a note from Flynn," Yuri said, passing it over.
The man glanced at it then got up, heading to the back. As the minutes dragged on, Yuri got more and more impatient. Just as he was about ready to storm to the back himself, the main door opened. He looked back, blinking as he caught sight of a dark haired man, looking a little rugged.
He grinned as he caught sight of Yuri. "Hey, nice to meetcha. What's the problem?"
"I wanted to speak to Raven Schwann...I had a note from Flynn, but the guy behind the counter already took it," Yuri explained.
"Well, here I am. Are you Yuri then?"
"Yeah.."
"Sorry, I'm afraid Mr Schwann is busy at the moment, so...Oh. Um..."
Yuri looked over at the man in confusion, while Raven frowned before striding over. He grabbed the note from Flynn from the man's grasp, shoving him to the door.
"I don't want you paid off scum trying to work with an emotionally scarred victim. Get lost!" he snapped.
'Paid off?' Yuri wondered as the man quickly hurried away. The meaning suddenly dawned on him and he scowled. "Are you guys all so corrupt that a little money immediately makes you incapable of doing your jobs?" he growled.
Raven turned back to him. "Not all. Believe me, no amount of money in the world can convince me ta turn my back on a client," he reassured.
Yuri gazed at him hesitantly, then nodded slowly. Flynn trusted this man...so Yuri would too.
Raven quickly read through the note. "Flynn's held up, huh? Wonder what by...Well, I guess it doesn't really matter. Anyway, Flynn said you have a few scars? I'll need to take a look at them."
"I know. I'm already fine with it."
"So long as you're sure. Let's go to a private room, no point standing out here like idiots," he said, leading Yuri away down a different corridor.
The two of them entered an empty room, Raven flicking the lights on as he entered. "Alrighty, this'll do. Just take a seat," he said, going to the blinds and closing them so that they had privacy, then locking the door. Yuri raised an eyebrow at the actions, and Raven shrugged.
"I dunno who's been paid off, so this'll at least hold 'em up. Don't worry, I only go for pretty ladies," he added with a wink.
"You're just a dirty old pervert," Yuri said, resting his chin in his palm before realising he might have been rude.
Raven laughed, however. "Yeah, maybe. Alright then, I'll need you to remove yer shirt."
"I thought you said you weren't interested?" Yuri jabbed as he pulled his shirt off. As it lifted away, Raven blinked before scowling as he saw the various scars on his body.
They littered his chest, back and arms. Raven guessed there would probably be a few on his legs too, but he wasn't going to ask him to remove his trousers.
"You got all those from that Tyler kid?"
"No...Most of them are him, but a lot are from the other kids in the group too."
"There's a gang of them? Who's in it?"
Yuri shrugged. "I only heard one kid say Tyler's name once...I'm not sure who the others are. There's loads of them, anyway, so I probably couldn't name them all."
"Alright. Stand up," Raven ordered. Yuri did so, watching as he walked round and began to look them over. Raven spotted a few healed cuts and fading bruises, and frowned. "These fresh?" he asked poking one.
Yuri nodded. "I got them when I was on the roof. But they've healed pretty well because Flynn had me under house arrest."
"You're lucky none of these got infected, kid," Raven said, looking at the scars.
"Some of them might have done. I can never really remember what each specific injury was like."
"Damn...There's some sickos out there. Alright, stand against the wall, I need to get some stuff first."
He headed out, locking the door behind him. Yuri hesitated, feeling a bit awkward standing in a room in the police station half naked and locked in. Half of him was worried Raven was just going to leave him locked in there.
His worries were abated, however, when Raven walked back in with a young boy at his side.
"You can't tell the higher ups," he was saying.
"I won't sir!"
"You can't even show them the photos."
"Yes sir!"
"Can I trust you?"
"Yes sir!"
"Alright. Karol, this is Yuri Lowell. Yuri, this is Karol Capel, an intern here," Raven introduced, leading the boy in. Karol grinned as he was introduced, before staring as he caught sight of Yuri.
"Woah...Why do you have so many scars?" he gasped.
"None of your business, squirt. I just need you to take pictures," Raven said, whacking him over the head.
"Oww...yessir..." Karol mumbled, lifting the camera.
"Not right this instant."
"Oh. Sorry sir."
Raven sighed then locked the door, walking over to Yuri with Karol at his side.
"Alright. Are you okay with us taking pictures of you?" Raven asked.
"Yeah, that's fine," Yuri said. He glanced quickly at Karol, smirking, before striking a pose. "Is this alright?" he asked.
Karol giggled, while Raven hid a smirk. "Get serious kid," he said, trying to retain some dignity.
Yuri shrugged, lowering his arms and standing facing them.
"Yeah, that's better. Okay, Karol, I need you to stand over here..."
A/N: It's a good thing I went back through my documents, 'cause I only just realised I forgot to but ANs on this one...Not that it really matters, I suppose. Also, I have no idea how things work in the police, so this may be the most inaccurate thing in the universe. (So sue me :/)
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