Without a Sound

Disclaimer: I definitely own nothing but the plot… and Brian.

Chapter 28

BEEP B-SMACK!

I really hated it when I didn't turn my alarm clock off. I sat up and looked to Sora.

"Sorry if I wo-" I paused. "He can't hear…" I reminded myself and leaned back down onto the bed.

Sora was still sleeping peacefully. He must like sleeping curled up because I found him in that familiar position for a third time this past week.

And that's when I noticed his back.

His shirt had ridden up in his sleep and was now revealing almost the entire spread of his pale back.

Scars and all.

There was a large one going across his left shoulder blade and a bunch of tiny ones randomly scattered about his back. I had to wonder how and why he had gotten these scars.

And also… why nobody prevented them from happening.

I gently traced a trail of scars down to his lower back. I couldn't help but chuckle at the fact that his jeans had slid down from the movement in his sleep and the tiniest hint of behind was peeking from the top.

Did scoping Sora's body while he was unconscious make me a pervert?

I shook that thought from my head and rescanned his back. Hoping I wouldn't catch any more scars that I had overlooked.

Unfortunately, that was not the case.

Right above the waistband of his jeans were two small scars that crossed. I frowned and very gently lifted the waistband to see what it was.

It was the letter T.

"I'm sorry Sora." I said before lowering the jeans a little more to examine the scars.

I found an R.

An A, an S, and an H.

TRASH was what the scar had spelled.

On his buttocks… I could feel the anger flow through me as I looked at the scar again. Someone, no, some monster stripped him and carved the word trash on his butt. There was no erasing it… and I would never be able to tell if this monster did more than just mark him.

I grumbled at that thought and rubbed my face. I wanted to know. Needed to know really… about how these scars came to be.

I pulled Sora closer and rubbed his arm. I was tempted to say 'Sora wake up.' But it wouldn't have worked.

I watched as Sora turned to face me and looked at me with sleepy, blue eyes.

He smiled drowsily before snuggling closer. I put an arm over him.

"Good morning." I said.

Sora let out a swift exhale with a small smile as if to say. Good morning to you.

"I know you just woke up but I want to ask you something." I said.

He looked at me, puzzled.

"You know that I'm here for you and that you can tell me anything right?" I said.

Sora blushed a little before nodding.

"Even about bad stuff?" I continued.

He looked confused again.

"When I woke up, I saw the scars on your back." I said.

Sora's eyes widened before he covered himself with the comforter.

"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to… but I really want to know how and why you have them." I said and ran my fingers through his hair.

A hand peeked out from under the covers to form the letter Y.

Why?

"Because each one is a part of your life that I don't know about. I just want to know more about you." I said.

Sora looked away and thought for a few minutes. He looked at me and sat up.

He spelled. 'Y-O-U H-A-V-E T-O P-R-O-M-I-S-E Y-O-U W-O-N-T H-A-T-E M-E'

I took a second to register what he was saying. "I won't hate you Sora, I promise."

Sora nodded before getting up and moving to the living room. When he came back he had his notebook and a pen.

He wrote:

Which one first?

"The big one on your shoulder blade."

When I was ten… Roxas and I were in the park, playing hide and seek. I had a really good hiding spot behind the bushes next to the building by the park. I was waiting for Roxas to find me but he must have given up. I was about to go and find him when someone pushed me over the park gate and I fell on a broken piece of glass. I remember crying and running to mom and dad, when they asked me what happened… I told them I was running backwards and I tripped. I was afraid that if I told them they would get hurt too. The guy who pushed me was a man who lived in our neighborhood and I was always afraid of him…

I read his words… I couldn't believe someone would push a small child onto a piece of glass.

"What about the small ones." I asked.

My family went on a camping trip with a friend of the family and their nieces and nephews. They didn't like that fact that I wouldn't talk to them so they pushed me and I fell down a slope with a lot of pointy twigs and thorn bushes. When they realized what they had done. They ran and got my parents and acted like they found me down there and immediately went to go get help. All of the adults were so proud of them as if they had been heroes. I didn't go outside anymore after that.

"Fucking brats…" I grumbled and Sora smiled sadly.

"Sora?" I said.

He nodded.

"What about the one that spells trash?" I asked.

He immediately frowned.

"What happened Sora?" I asked.

He gave me this helpless look before writing:

I was always hated wherever I went. Before we moved… the people in my neighborhood must of thought that maybe I did something wrong? Maybe I somehow deserved my disabilities and that it was their job to remind me… that's what I always thought. I don't think they ever injured me without actually telling me why they did it. It was like they knew I could understand but still treated me as if I wasn't human and couldn't. So when I was thirteen… my parents had to go on a trip and asked the Johnsons to watch us… they never liked me. So when Ms. Johnson and Roxas went grocery shopping, I was left alone with her son Charles… he was eighteen at the time. But I decided I would take a bath before Roxas got home… so I was washing when he opened the bathroom door. I didn't know if I was supposed to be embarrassed or alarmed… I remember him pointing to me and curling his finger, he wanted me to get out. I did as I was told and moved to grab the towel but he took it away. I read 'Let me dry you.' I walked closer… he didn't really look like a bad person… He started with my shoulders and worked his way down… but I didn't like the way he was drying me. He would move slowly and sometimes I felt a cold finger grazing my skin. I jerked away when he started to dry my inner thigh… it didn't feel right… He pulled on my arm and I pulled to get away from him even though it hurt. I kept pulling until I finally slipped from his grip and fell back into the tub. He picked me up and threw me out… he-

Sora stopped writing. He looked away for a second and I rubbed his arm comfortingly. He picked the pen up again:

Started screaming at me. He kept telling me that I was worthless and inconvenient and that my parents didn't love me. He said that was why I was hurt all the time… because no one cared about trash…. And that's what I was. I kept shaking my head thinking it was just another nightmare… but it never is…

He covered his face and I watched his shoulders shake. I pulled him closer and handed him the pen. He wrote:

He grabbed my ankle and flipped me around. He sat on my legs and held my arms together with one hand and cut me with a pocketknife. It hurt and I couldn't do anything… I really did feel useless after that.

I read his final words on the page and took him into my arms. Rocking gently while rubbing his back as he cried. I was so angry with the people who can believe that others are less human because they are incapable of doing something. It was wrong! Sora is beautiful and worth more than any of the people who hurt him.

Sora stopped crying after a few minutes and I kissed his forehead. I pointed to him and I moved my hand down my throat as if I was swallowing something.

You hungry?

Sora immediately smiled after that. I watched his big, shiny blue eyes turn bright and he nodded.

'What do you want?' I signed.

'E-G-G-S!' he spelled happily.

I chuckled and put a hand to his face. "Just so you know… You could have a giant scar on your face and no hair and I'd still think you were the most beautiful person on the planet." Isaid.

Sora smiled brightly before blushing. He tentatively held up a hand with his middle and ring finger down.

I love you.

I smiled at him and put his hand in my own. Sora really meant everything to me… without him or Tifa, I really wouldn't have any color in my life.

"I love you too." I replied knowing it was the truth.

Sora's eyes widened and his face lit up brighter than the sun. He lunged towards me in a tight hug.

I held him close, enjoying the warm feeling in my chest. I moved to stand but Sora wouldn't let go.

"Sora aren't you hungry? I can't make eggs if I can't go to the kitchen." I said.

Sora continued to hold on to me. I picked Sora up and I carried him to the kitchen. I sat him on the counter. When he let go of me he seemed to wiggle around as if he were doing some sort of happy dance. I watched as Sora happily swung his feet back and forth while tilting his head from side to side. It was almost as if he was listening to a song in his head.

'How do you want your eggs?' I signed.

I watched as Sora grinned goofily and placed his hands on either side of his face. He then wiggled his fingers before pointing to the sky.

I smiled. "Sunny side up?" I asked.

Sora nodded.

"Is that really how you sign it?" I asked.

Sora shook his head with a silent laugh. I took four eggs out of the carton in my fridge and placed them on the counter. I took out a frying pan and placed it on the stove.

I greased the pan before putting the eggs on it to let them cook. Sora watched with amazement, as if he'd never seen it done before.

"Are you okay?" I asked.

Sora blushed before looking away.

I shrugged and continued to let the eggs cook. When they were finished, I slid them onto two plates. I took a couple of forks from the drawer and placed them on each plate. Sore returned to watching me in awe. I decided I wouldn't bring it up.

I handed a plate to him. He blushed again before taking the plate and sliding off the counter. He immediately moved to the living room where the coffee table was.

I wonder what's gotten him all embarrassed.

I took my plate and walked into the living room. I sat on the sofa next to Sora, who was eating with a smile of his face. He was still bobbing as if singing a happy tune in his head.

I smiled before picking up my fork to eat. My food was halfway in my mouth when I caught Sora staring again.

Sora blushed for the hundredth time and I knew he was gearing to look away. I put my food down and grabbed his chin.

"What's got you all embarrassed? I'm pretty certain you've made eggs before and there's really nothing special about the way I eat. What's up with that?" I asked.

Sora looked around for something. I assumed it was his notebook and pen. I walked over to my living room cabinet and pulled out a pencil and piece of paper.

I handed them to him and he blushed… again.

He wrote:

Sorry.

I shook my head. "You don't have to be sorry. I'm not asking for an apology, goof, I just want to know why." I said.

Well… everything looks so much cooler when YOU do it… I like the way you cook and I like the way you eat… even though it's really not any different form everyone else… I just… I can't help it!

"Are you crazy about me, Sora?" I asked with a smirk.

Sora blushed bright red before continuing to eat. I chuckled when some egg yolk found its way on the side of his mouth.

"Sora… you have a little…" I trailed off pointing to the side of my face.

Sora wiped at the wrong side.

I laughed. "No, wrong side, here." I said and leaned forward and licked the yolk from his face.

Wait… did I really just do that?

By the look on Sora's bright red face, I definitely licked him.

Well, that's strange.

I coughed at the awkwardness of the moment before continuing to eat. When I had finished my eggs, Sora was still frozen in a stupor.

I put my plate down and took his face in my hands. "You know… if you react like this to every out-of-character thing I do, we definitely wont get anywhere." I said.

Sora blinked a little before nodding and finishing his food. When he was finished, I took his plate and brought them to the kitchen to wash later. I walked back into the living room where Sora was looking at his feet.

I waved to catch his attention and he looked to me. "Would you like to watch a movie or something… there's really not much to do here…" I said.

Sora smiled and nodded excitedly. I pointed to where the movies were and he stood to look through them.

I sat on the sofa and after about seven minutes, Sora came back to me and handed me a movie.

I frowned… I certainly don't remember buying this film.

Lilo and Stitch.

Oh right… Tifa forced me to watch it because she said that my taste in movies was bad. There were probably only action or horror films on my collection. I wasn't one for color nor was I someone who enjoyed drama. Tifa made me watch that kids film and must have left it here.

I smiled inwardly. Leave it to Sora to find the brightest and most light-hearted movie in the cabinet.

I took the movie from him and started it. I pressed the play button and when the movie started I moved back to the sofa.

After about two minutes, Sora tugged on my sleeve.

I looked at him. He looked slightly upset. I frowned. "What's the matter?" I asked.

He looked away from me and wrote:

I need you to put on the sub-titles… I can't read the lips of cartoon characters…

I frowned at my own lack of consideration. I signed an apology before returning to the main menu to turn on the sub-titles. I kind of felt like an asshole for not thinking about this.

When that was done and the movie started to play, I looked to Sora. I watched his eyes light up in excitement when the first sub-title came onto the screen.

I probably fell asleep the minute the movie started when I watched it with Tifa… I don't remember this movie being about aliens.

When the Hawaiian music came on and the sub-titles read the lyrics. Sora immediately sat up and intently watched the screen.

Sora gasped at all the colors of the fish and the waves. He laughed silently when a little girl took a picture of an over-weight, sunburned man. I smiled.

I think I might like this movie…

I looked to the screen and when the little girl was being teased by her so-called friends, Sora pouted and furrowed his brow.

As the movie went on, Sora's reactions to the movie provided me with much entertainment.

When the blue alien through a book at the social worker's face, I couldn't help but chuckle as Sora shook with laughter. He threw his head back and put his hands on his stomach.

I could tell that Sora was easily amused. But it was still adorable.

When everything seemed to go bad for the characters in the movie, I turned to Sora to see him wiping at his eyes.

Seems that the blue alien didn't belong and ended up wrecking the little girl's family. The social worker was going to take the girl away from her older sister. It all seemed pretty tragic.

I turned to see Sora crying as the older sister watched the clock tick by.

I rolled my eyes before pulling Sora closer to me. Sora immediately wiped his face and watched the screen with a newfound lack of emotion.

I smiled before kissing his damp cheek and placing him on my lap. When the movie started to pick up again, Sora started to smile and gasp and react to the action in the movie.

He laughed silently when they were tossing the plasma gun back and forth like a hot potato. I hid my smile in his hair.

By the end of the movie, the aliens and the humans made a happy family and Sora was beaming with happiness.

I turned off the TV and looked to Sora. "Did you like the movie?" I asked.

Sora nodded before placing a kiss on my cheek. I ran a hand through his hair before our lips connected. Sora wrapped his arms abound my neck and I deepened the kiss. I nipped his lips softly and he gasped. With an inward smirk I let my tongue slide along the roof of his mouth. Sora gasped again and held on to me a little tighter. I continued my kiss and let my hand slip up the back of his shirt. I wanted to test the waters.

Sora jerked a little before continuing to hold me, our lips still connected.

Was this the green light? I let my fingers trail over the small scars on his back.

He pulled from the kiss to gasp. I moved my kisses to his neck. Sora put his hands in my hair and panted in my ear.

I traced the large scar on his shoulder blade with my index finger. He shivered in my hold before arching his back at the touch. I could feel his heat below rub against me so I pivoted and laid him down across the sofa before climbing over him.

Sora's face was flushed and his breath labored. I looked in his eyes. "Is this okay?" I asked.

Sora covered his face with his arm but I saw him nod. I frowned and moved his arm from his face. He looked away, his eyes watering.

Don't look at me!

I planted kisses on his face and moved to his neck. I trailed kisses to his ears. I kissed those too. My hand moved its way up his shirt. He squirmed a little before relaxing again. I tugged the shirt to let him know that I wanted to take it off. He shook his head and covered his face ashamedly.

I frowned. I took his arm again. "Look at me." I said.

Sora slowly moved his eyes to me.

"I love every part of you no matter how many scars it has. I won't take off your shirt, but I want you to know that I love anything and everything that's underneath that shirt." I said. "You're beautiful."

Sora covered his face for a second before signing. 'W-H-Y?'

"Why? I'm not looking at just the scars on your skin, Sora. I'm looking at you. You're strong and you don't break. Sure there are marks on your skin, but I don't care. They aren't ugly. I never said I wanted someone with delicate un-marred skin, nor did I say that dainty, white skin was attractive. I love you because you're bright and sweet and kind. I think you're beautiful for all of the reasons why you think you're ugly. You don't seem to understand that not everyone is the same. Not everyone thinks the same things are beautiful or unattractive." I explained to him.

Sora signed something and I tried to see if I could understand. It was something about changing my mind.

I shook my head. "Sora… I'm not sure what you are asking but I won't ever change my mind about how beautiful you are even after I've touched every inch of you. You need to trust me Sora." I said.

Sora looked at me for a second before sitting up. He took of his shirt and looked down.

I grabbed his chin and kissed him before pushing him back down gently. I let my hands slide down his chest slowly. He shivered under my touch and closed his eyes. I moved over him and kissed at his collarbone. Sora grabbed onto me and I continued to kiss all of his scars. Sora lifted his hips and I put a hand under him and bought him up to me.

Sora gasped and panted and opened his mouth as if he were moaning but made no noise.

Then the fucking phone rang and I was stupid enough to whip back and look at the phone for a second. I quickly decided to ignore it, but when I turned back to kiss Sora again…

He was already sitting up… he pointed to the phone.

Pick it up.

I frowned and shook my head before kissing Sora's neck again. He put a hand on my shoulder and pushed me away.

He had a strange look on his face as he pointed to the phone for a second time.

I sighed before getting up and answering the phone. "Hello…"

"Squall"

"Tifa" I said in quick reply.

"I'm… sorry…"

"I'm sorry." I replied.

"I didn't mean to sound so cruel… you know how I worry. I was worried that you might have had the wrong intensions and that Sora might get hurt… and I was upset because you didn't tell me about him… I hate it when you keep secrets from me…" she said.

"I know… I'm sorry. I wasn't trying to hide him from you but it's hard to just say 'Oh! By the way, I'm dating this boy who can't hear or speak… he's also my student at school.'" I said.

"That's true… I'm really sorry… I don't think you and Sora are sick… he seems like a really sweet boy and I feel really terrible about yelling at him…" Tifa said.

I smiled… I could picture her right now. She's holding the phone to her ear while worrying away at her bottom lip. "It's alright." I said.

"Could you tell him that I'm sorry? Is he still there?" she asked.

"Yes… he was really upset about what happened yesterday… he thought it was his fault we were fighting so I think it will make him feel a lot better to know that we made up." I explained.

"Good… we're cool right?" she said.

"Yes Tifa… we are cool." I said with a chuckle.

"Well, I gotta go. I'll see you later." Tifa said.

"Bye." I replied before hanging up.

I hung up the phone and walked back over to Sora. He had put his shirt back on and I sighed before plopping onto the sofa.

Sora crawled over to me.

"That was Tifa. She says she's sorry for yelling and scaring you. She was just angry with me because I kept you from her." I said.

Sora nodded and gave a small smile.

I smiled back before snatching him up and carrying him back to the bedroom.

Sora huffed and pounded on my back until I plopped him on my bed.

He looked at me.

'Sign language?' I signed.

Sora smiled and nodded before beginning the lesson.

A/N: I could not figure out how to end this frikkin chapter… but anyway, review!