Barefoot (by sapere Aude)

4. complications

he moon shone dimly into the department through the small window covered in dust. The dread-locked man stirred, opening his eyes slowly, letting them adjust to the dim light.

The black-haired teen was still sleeping, drawing audible, slow breaths through his slightly parted lips. Tom smiled at the image before him. Even though it was exhausting having to care for another person than just himself, Tom couldn’t help but enjoy having a little company. It felt so good to have somebody who trusted you 100%. Bill didn’t care what kind of job Tom had, or whether he even had a job, he didn’t care how much money Tom owned nor where he was taking him and what he was planning on doing next. All Bill wanted was to be with Tom, no matter what mood Tom was in. Bill neither expected nor demanded anything from Tom, except for his closeness. It was nice to have someone appreciate your presence.

The door to their department opened noisily, pulling Tom out of his thoughts.

“Tickets please,” the conductor asked.

Tom’s breath hitched in his throat; they were fucked.

“I’ve got it,” Bill’s voice, heavy with sleep, turned the conductor’s attention on him.

Tom blinked at him, his heart racing. Bill surely wasn’t going to… oh yes, he was.

“Here,” Bill smiled, handing the conductor his old bus ticket.

Tom suppressed a snort at the conductor’s face, and Bill dipped his eyebrows in confusion.

“Is something wrong?”

*

The train drove off before their noses, leaving them outside a deserted train station with nothing but Bill’s little suitcase.

“Why was the man angry?” Bill asked.

Tom looked around, trying to find some kind of travelling opportunity. “He was mad because there was already a hole in the ticket and he wanted to put one in himself,” Tom answered off the top of his head, spotting a parking a few metres away.

“Oh, poor man, I would have let him put another hole in it though, I don’t mind,” Bill told the dread-head.

“Hm,” Tom answered, not really listening. “Listen Bill,” he started. “Sit down here,” he manoeuvred Bill to a little bench behind them. “And wait for me; I’ll be right back ok?”

Bill sat down, a tinge of panic flashed through his eyes. “Where are you going?” he asked, curling his bare toes.

“I’ll be right there, by the cars,” Tom pointed at the parking place. “I won’t take long,” he smiled.

Bill nodded, “Ok.”

“Ok, good. Don’t move,” Tom warned him, before turning around and heading to the parking.

Bill sighed, looking around. This place was boring, there was nothing to see and there were no people around. Besides, it was late and dark, and he was tired.

“Oi! Get off!”

Bill flinched, clutching onto his suitcase tightly. An old, dirty man wearing ragged clothes approached him with a limp. He pointed a finger at Bill, “Get off there, that’s my bed!”

Bill stood up hesitantly, this man was scaring him, but he didn’t want to occupy this stranger’s bed.

“You’ll catch a cold you know, walking around barefoot at night,” the man scoffed, sitting down onto the bench. “Piss off! Go away! Find your own sleeping place!” The man shooed Bill away, lying down onto the bench.

Bill gasped at the man’s rudeness and backed away, watching him. He soon turned around and tiptoed away hurriedly, he wanted to get away from this place as quickly as possibly.

Why was Tom taking so long?

*

Tom inspected and old, white car. It looked pretty run down and seemed to have no alarm system on it. At least Tom was almost sure it didn’t. However, he couldn’t turn up to his brother’s wedding in a car like that. He had to find something decent.

So he carried on looking.

*

Bill padded along the moist sidewalk nervously. He had rushed passed the car park Tom had told him he’d be at without realising, and now he was lost. He came across three women who were scarcely dressed, one of them sucked at a cigarette seductively.

“Hey,” one of them called.

Bill whipped around, looking at the woman through big, frightened eyes.

“You sure as hell won’t find a punter in that outfit,” she laughed, sucking at her cigarette forcefully.

“Piss off, go find your own space, this is ours!” Another called, waving her hand in a dismissing gesture.

Bill turned around and hurried away, he longed for Tom, as much as ever. The dread-head seemed to be the only person who put up with Bill’s company and treated him nicely; everybody else seemed to be mean to him even though they didn’t know him. He felt lost and lonely without Tom, and he was scared.

The black-haired boy noticed a big, black car slow down beside him. “Psst,” he heard a man’s voice coming from the big car.

Bill glanced at it from the corner of his eye and carried on walking.

“Hey, stop,” the man said, driving by him at an impossibly slow pace.

“I can’t, it’s their spot,” Bill apologized, slowing down a little and pointing into the direction of the three rude women he had come across a few mere seconds ago.

The man glance back at the three women, they were watching him intently. He scoffed, “If they are as old as they look, I’d suggest them to apply for pension as soon as possible.”

A pair of brown orbs stared back at him in confusion.

“Never mind,” the young man said. “Wanna get in?” He grinned, opening the car door for Bill.

Bill shook is head. “I- I don’t think I should,” he said quietly.

The man patted the seat beside him. “C’mon, you’re safe in here,” he assured.

Bill looked around, hoping to spot a certain dreadlocked head, but there was no sign of Tom. Bill sighed, looking back at the car. The man patted the seat once more, and Bill climbed in.

The car door closed behind him as he settled down, placing his suitcase at his feet.

“What you got in there, kinky toys?” The man chuckled.

Bill furrowed his eyebrows, “Kin…kinky…? I don’t have any toys,” he told him, obviously confused.

The man cleared his throat, a little confused at the way this, according to him, young girl was acting. “Um… ok then. So, how much do you take for a blowjob?” He asked bluntly.

Bill dipped his eyebrows, “Blow…?”

The man nodded, “Yeah, do you even do that?”

“Um… yeah,” Bill shrugged. He took a deep breath, and slightly pouted his lips, softly puffing out a warm stream of air.

The man arched a brow, “Um…”

“More?” Bill asked, taking another deep breath and repeating the action.

The man gaped at him incredulously for a few seconds; then he laughed, causing Bill to stop abruptly.

“Acting all innocent are we? You’re cute,” He grinned, wrapping his arms around Bill’s waist and pulling him closer. “But let’s get down to business now,” he groaned into the black-haired boy’s ear, pulling Bill’s white nightgown up his thigh slowly.

Bill gasped, grabbing the man’s wrist and digging his nails into it desperately. His breathing became short and quick, he was about to hyperventilate.

“Yeah, you like that don’t you,” the man breathed hoarsely, obviously reading Bill’s reaction wrongly.

Bill’s breathing increased even more, he was panicking, and he couldn’t hold it back any longer. A loud, high-pitched scream escaped his lips.

“Shut up,” the man complained, holding Bill down by the wrists.

Suddenly the car door on the driver’s side was pulled open forcefully. A strong hand grabbed the man by the collar und pulled him out of the car roughly.

“Undercover police!” Bill recognized Tom’s voice.

Tom pressed the man’s front against the car, holding his wrist together behind his back.

“I don’t usually do this! This is the first time I pick up a prostitute, I won’t do it again!” The man pleaded.

Tom scoffed, “Yeah right, pervert.” He let go of the man and quickly climbed into the car, shutting the door behind him.

Before another word could be said, he sped off.

*

“Bill, Bill calm down,” Tom told him, forcing himself not to touch the young man beside him.

Bill was still in a state of shock, the man’s touching had gone way too far. The young teen couldn’t get his breathing back under control and his body was trembling. Soft whimpers escaped his lips now and then as he tried to calm himself down.

“Hey,” Tom said softly. “Shh, Bill.”

Bill turned to look at Tom. His eyes were wide and his chest was rising and falling rapidly. “I- I-” he hiccupped, unable to form a proper sentence. His eyes darted to his suitcase, and he vaguely pointed a trembling finger at it.

Tom followed his gaze. “Suitcase?” He asked, pointing at it.

Bill nodded. Tom pulled the suitcase onto his lap and opened it. He rummaged through the few possessions Bill had stored in there until he found a little box which contained two round pills. He held it up questioningly for Bill to see. Bill nodded stiffly, eyeing the pills hungrily.

Tom gently placed a thumb to Bill’s chin and pulled down softly, opening his mouth. He slipped the pill between Bill’s parted lips and retrieved his hands immediately as soon as Bill swallowed the white, round pill. He didn’t want to touch him longer than necessary.

Bill’s breathing calmed down almost instantly. He swallowed harshly a few times, before turning to look at Tom. “Thank you,” he whispered, his eyelids drooping.

Tom nodded, swallowing audibly. Soon after, Bill’s eyes closed completely and his head went limp, falling against the car window with a soft thud.

Tom blinked at him. “Fuck,” he breathed, shaking his head almost unnoticeably.

The dread-head turned away from Bill and turned on the ignition. He noticed his hands were trembling as he manoeuvred the car back onto the road to continue their journey.

joycie_ke schreef:gehe xD
als Tom da tewetenkomt is die zen reactie geniaal xD
zal ik ng wat posten? ja hea ^^
*gaat zoeken*

xxx

ich weis nu ook^^
kben het gaan leze tot waar het al geschreven is

xx
t'is echt cute da verhaal

gott, ik hoop egt dat er een nieuw hoofdstuk komt van dit verhaal *op fiction.tokiohotelfiction he xD maar post hier gerust nog een hoofdstuk *
ik ben weers hypernieuwsgierig hoor ^.^

xx Chi

ma echt eh
ma da meisje heeft exaam tot de 18 Juni en ga wrs nie meer posten tot dan
*valt dood*

xxx

*valt mee dood*
das waar ook
en haar laptop was tog ook kapot? *herinnert iets vaags daarover*

xx Chi

ikke ook exaam hebben tot den 18de =D

btw mijn exaam godsdienst ging goe vandaag in tegenstelling van wak ervan verwacht had, normaal zijn da niet te beantwoorde vragen...

morge aardrijkskunde en esthetic o_O

jeez, als da maar goe komt

5. The Nicest Things

“And you say he was kidnapped?” The chubby police officer asked, pen and notebook in hand.

“Yes, most definitely,” the head doctor replied with a nod. “I can’t imagine him to have escaped by himself, that’s impossible! Someone must have taken him.”

“Any idea who it might have been?” The police officer asked bored, scratching his belly.

The doctor shook her head sadly, “I really don’t know, maybe a visitor?”

“Ok then,” the officer yawned. “We’ll have to go through the visitor list from that day, check them through and stuff. Probably was one of them,” he concluded, scribbling something down in his notebook. “What was the boy’s name?”

“Bill Trümper,” she told him. “Eighteen years old, slim, tall, black hair-”

“Um yeah, that’s enough,” the officer interrupted her, shoving his notebook and pen into his pocket. “I’ll see what we can do.”

“Please find him,” the doctor pleaded. “He’s not able to live outside these walls, and he’s only eighteen!” She was getting frustrated by the lack of interest the officer was showing, if they didn’t find him soon, she’d have to contact a detective.

“Like I said, I’ll see what we can do.”

*

Tom stretched and yawned as he opened his eyes slowly. His back and neck were aching from the uncomfortable position he had slept in. He looked around and remembered that he had parked the car by a beach last night. It was light outside now, probably morning, Tom never slept in too late.

A soft sigh reached his ears and he turned his head to look at Bill, who was sleeping in the passenger’s seat beside him. He was curled up in a ball; his head leant against the window. Probably not the most comfortable position either.

The ringing of Tom’s phone caught his attention and he quickly got out of the car before it woke Bill up. He stretched thoroughly as he came to a stand and observed his surroundings. The sea was glistening from the sun and he could make out a few seagulls circling above the area.

With a sigh, he flipped open his phone and brought it to his ear. “Yeah?”

“Thomas.” He heard his stepfather’s voice.

“Gordon,” Tom sighed. He hated the fact that his stepfather refused to call him Tom.

“I hear you are coming to the wedding?”

“Yes, I am,” Tom told him with a hint of annoyance.

“Have you got a present for David yet?”

Tom rolled his eyes. Was this why his stepfather was calling? To make sure he’d get his brother a nice expensive present.

“No,” Tom answered honestly through gritted teeth.

“I hope you’re planning on getting him one, and you better not turn up with something ridiculous such as hedge shears, he wants a 5000 euro worth fridge, but I guess you can’t afford that.”

Tom could perfectly picture Gordon with a smug smirk on his lips right now, and all he wanted to do was punch it right off his face.

“Of course I can afford that,” he told him defensively.

“Great, then I don’t have to ask somebody else to get him the fridge, I’ll see you tomorrow, and don’t be late.”

Tom growled into the phone when he was met by a dial tone, and hung up angrily. How could his mother have married such an asshole?

The dread-head shoved his phone into his oversized jeans pocket and opened the car door aggressively. He slammed it shut behind him and gripped the steering wheel tightly. What the fuck was he thinking? How the hell was he supposed to buy a fridge for 5000 euros?

“Nghn… no you… yeah,” Bill mumbled beside him.

Tom turned to look at him; he had almost forgotten Bill was still there. The black-haired boy seemed to be fast asleep, probably in the middle of a vivid dream.

Tom exhaled noisily, attempting to calm himself down. He reached out to stroke a strand of hair, which had found its way into Bill’s mouth, out of his face and behind his ear.

“Hey, Bill,” he shook his shoulder lightly, trying to wake him up. “Bill,” he repeated softly, stroking his cheek.

Bill mumbled something incoherent but didn’t budge. Tom decided to leave him be and explain to him where they were going when he had woken up.

Having calmed down, Tom turned on the ignition and drove off.

*

“Where are we going?” Bill asked, finally having woken up.

“A car dealer,” Tom simply told him.

“Oh,” Bill replied. He had no idea what a car dealer was, but Tom didn’t seem to be in the best of moods, so he wasn’t going to press any further.

Tom turned a right, into a big parking lot. “Fuck,” he mumbled when he found no free space. He stopped the car in the middle of a driveway that ran through the parking lot, deciding that he wasn’t going to take long anyway.

“I’m gonna go in there,” Tom told Bill, pointing at the building in front of them. The entire side was made of glass. “You’ll be able to see me through the glass, ok? Don’t run away, I’ll be right back.”

Tom got out of the car and turned back around when he heard Bill giggle.

“You see,” Bill said, “Now you don’t want me to leave anymore,” He smiled brightly, obviously happy about, according to him, Tom’s change of mind.

Tom stared at him a little perplexed. He had no reply to that, he really didn’t.

“Just, don’t run off, ok?” Tom simply repeated, and shut the car door.

“As if I would,” Bill snorted, watching Tom disappear into the building.

Tom had been right; Bill could perfectly watch him through the glass. He could see him talk to a fat man who stood behind a counter.

*

“How much do you want for it?” The man asked Tom uninterestedly.

“20,000 euros.”

The man snorted in reply, spitting on the counter as he did so. Tom pulled a disgusted face and backed away a little.

“Do you realize, how many used cars we have here? The maximum I’m paying for that,” he pointed at the car through the glass, “Is 8000 euros.”

Tom sighed, rubbing a hand over his face. “10,000?”

*

Bill jumped in his seat, startled by a loud honk somewhere around him. A big blue truck came to a halt behind him, obviously wanting to pass.

Bill could see the driver wave at him in the rear-view mirror, but ignored him, not knowing what to do. The man gestured for him to move out of the way, but it only confused Bill. What did that man want from him?

Suddenly a head popped in through the rolled down window on the driver’s side.

“You gonna move the car or what?” The young, chubby truck driver asked him. “I need to get through.” He was obviously annoyed.

“Where’s Tom?” Bill asked the man shyly, wondering why Tom was taking so long when he had told him he’d be right back.

The man pulled a face. “I don’t know or care who the fuck Tim is, I need the car out of the way, now.”

“Tom,” Bill corrected him quietly.

“Look,” The man growled in annoyance. “Get your ass over here,” he pointed at the driver’s seat.

Bill gasped, but quickly climbed onto Tom’s side of the car.

“Now turn the key in the ignition.”

Bill furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. “The- the key in… what?”

The man exhaled loudly and reached for the key, turning it until the car came to life. He then reached for the hand gear, pressing it down carefully.

“Now…”

*

Tom had tried to bargain, but it was no use, the man wasn’t even sure whether he was ready to pay 8000 euros for the car. At least that’s what he had told Tom.

“Will you shut up and leave me alone if I pay you 8000?” He asked, overly annoyed by Tom’s stubbornness.

Tom sighed with relief. “Yes, yes that’s all I’m asking for.”

“Fine, where did you say the car was again?”

Tom pointed out the car through the glass. “Right there, just by… oh fuck!” He pushed himself off the counter and ran outside. “Bill!” He yelled, stopping a few metres before their car. “Bill! Stop the fucking car!” He waved his hands around frantically.

Bill’s eyes widened, he had no idea how to stop the thing. Out of fright he pressed down harder on the gas pedal with his delicate, bare foot. He screamed and swivelled the steering wheel around frantically, just missing Tom as he did so.

The car crashed loudly into another, causing Bill to bang against the steering wheel since he wasn’t wearing a seatbelt. The car honked until Bill sat back; his eyes were wide, his chest heaving. He had almost run Tom over.

The frail eighteen-year old opened the driver’s door forcefully and got out of the slightly damaged car. The car he had crashed into had gotten more damaged than the big, black car Tom had practically stolen.

He ran towards Tom, the dark tar of the street hot underneath his bare feet.

“You stupid… stupid… shit!” He yelled shoving his hands against Tom’s chest as hard as he could.

Tom stumbled back a little. “Bill, hey, calm down!”

“No!” He screeched. “How could you just… just stand there and let me almost run you over!” He yelled, tears pricking in his eyes.

Tom stared at him, taken aback. He opened his mouth to say something but didn’t know what. He looked like a fish, Bill thought, opening and closing his mouth like that. But he didn’t find it funny, the black-haired boy was way too angry to laugh right now.

“Bill… I-”

“My car!” A piercing screech interrupted Tom.

The fat car dealer Tom had been speaking to ran towards them, his hands clasped over his head.

“It was him, dad!” The chubby truck driver joined them, pointing an accusing finger at Bill.

Bill gasped at the chubby guy’s rudeness. The young man’s father turned his attention to Bill, his eyes narrowing dangerously. “You!” He hissed.

“No,” Tom stepped in front of the delicate boy. “It was my fault I-” His head flew to the side when a rough fist collided with the side of his face.

Bill screamed, hiding his face in his hands.

*

Tom hissed when Bill dabbed a wet tissue against the cut on his bottom lip carefully.

“Sorry,” Bill pulled back hastily.

“S’ok,” Tom told him with a sigh.

Luckily the two men had been satisfied enough with beating Tom up, Tom had been worried they’d ask him to pay for the damage. They had simply told him to fuck off and take his fucking car with him and to never show up at their place again, which he had gladly done. The damage on neither of the car’s had been too bad, but the men seemed to have had fun beating the dread-head up anyway.

Tom had driven them back to the beach, which wasn’t far from the car dealer. He had made sure to drive carefully, since he was suffering from a severe headache which prevented him from driving flawlessly.

Bill had forgotten his anger towards Tom for jumping in front of the car when Bill had no idea how to stop it. Tom hadn’t realised the danger of the situation at that moment, all he had wanted to do was to make Bill stop the car. Now that he thought back it had been a pretty stupid move to simply stand before an approaching car which the driver didn’t know how to stop.

Bill and Tom were now both sitting on the beach, in the sand. Tom was so close to giving up on everything. He didn’t want to go to the wedding, he didn’t want to get his brother a fucking present and he didn’t want a job. All he wanted to do right now was to hide underneath the covers of his bed in his shithole of an apartment and never come back out.

Another hiss escaped his lips when Bill continued to dab at his wounds, but this time Bill didn’t pull back.

“I think they’re clean now,” Bill told him, sitting back when he finished.

“Thank you,” Tom smiled, squeezing Bill’s shoulder. He immediately pulled back. “Sorry,” he apologized quickly, before Bill threw another tantrum.

Bill lowered his head, hiding behind a curtain of hair. “It’s ok,” he said quietly, shaking his head a little.

Tom creased his forehead. Bill was a mystery to him, he had noticed that Bill touched other people and wouldn’t freak out; he only freaked out when other people approached and touched him. Bill didn’t touch other people much though. Tom himself had only received a shove or gentle touch to his face from Bill, the black-haired boy never seemed to get much closer to anyone than that.

Bill lifted his head and let his eyes roam over the ocean. He inhaled the salty breeze and closed his eyes with a faint smile adorning his lips.

“This is one of the most beautifulest things I have ever seen,” he said quietly.

Tom grinned amusedly. “Beautifulest?”

Bill nodded and looked up at Tom. “I haven’t seen many things in my life and very few nice ones… most of them since I met you,” he told him happily.

Tom smiled at that, a satisfactory feeling spreading in his stomach. Bill was probably the first and only person to be happier since he spent his time with Tom. Everybody else seemed to feel he was a burden, wasting people’s time. No one wanted to spend much time with him, since he was such a failure. But not Bill, all Bill wanted was to spend time with Tom. It was so weird, Tom thought, but it felt good.

Bill turned back towards the ocean, taking in the view before him. It was true, the nicest things he had ever seen in his life, he had seen since he met Tom, and there was not a single doubt in his mind that Tom was one of them.

~

nog 1. Omdat eht zolang egleden is ^^
6. On The Edge
“Where are we going?”

Tom sighed, how often had he heard that question since he had met Bill? Too often, way too often.

“You need new clothes; you can’t wear that… thing at a wedding,” Tom told him, manoeuvring the car into a narrow street.

Bill gasped. “We are going to a wedding?” He asked excitedly.

Tom nodded. “Yeah, my brother’s, he’s marrying the woman you saw on the pictures on my fridge,” he told him coldly. He still hadn’t gotten over it, he simply couldn’t understand how his brother could do something like this to him.

Bill gasped again. “But… I thought she was your girlfriend!” He turned to look at Tom with big eyes.

“Yes, was,” Tom reminded him, coming to a halt before a small store. “And now she is my brother’s girlfriend.”

Bill blinked. “Is your brother nicer than you?” He asked curiously.

“No,” Tom scoffed. “He’s an asshole.”

Bill frowned, turning back around to look ahead. “Well then she’s stupid,” he said almost angrily.

Tom looked at him, his eyebrows raised in surprise at the sudden spark of anger in Bill’s eyes and tone. “Maybe…” He said, opening the car door. “I’m gonna go in there and get you some clothes, I’ll be right back ok?” He got out of the car and looked at Bill expectantly.

“I won’t run away,” Bill told him with a smile, wriggling deeper into his seat. He was happy Tom always made sure Bill wouldn’t leave him; finally Tom wanted him to stay.

Tom smirked in amusement and closed the car door. Bill watched him disappear into the store and looked around the car with a sigh. He hoped Tom wouldn’t take too long.

*

Tom did take long, at least Bill thought so. He was a little angry but decided to forgive Tom as soon as he climbed into the car.

“Ok.” Tom handed Bill a plain white plastic bag. “I bought you a pair of dark blue jeans, a black shirt and a white shirt, a pair of boxers and some shoes and socks.”

”No,” Bill shook his head immediately, throwing the bag into Tom’s lap.

Tom dipped his eyebrows in confusion. “What? I-”

“I’m not wearing socks, or shoes. I’m not locking my feet up.” Bill cut him off, shaking his head stubbornly.

“Bill,” Tom laughed incredulously. “You’re not locking your feet up; you’re simply keeping them warm.”

“No!” Bill yelled, hitting his thigh with his clenched fist. “I don’t like it, I don’t like my feet being covered. I don’t want to, I don’t like it!”

“Ok, ok. Jesus, calm down. No shoes then, but you’ll wear the other clothes?” Tom asked, controlling the anger bubbling up inside him. He knew it was no use getting angry at Bill for acting this way since it wasn’t really his fault. But it was annoying him; he simply wasn’t used to taking care of a person like Bill.

Bill nodded shyly, suddenly feeling stupid for freaking out like that. He could have just explained Tom that he didn’t want his feet to be covered- no need to throw a temper tantrum. But he couldn’t help it, it simply happened sometimes.

“Sorry,” he mumbled, grabbing the bag and placing it back into his lap.

Tom exhaled audibly, calming himself down. “It’s ok,” he said, gripping the steering wheel.

But really it wasn’t. Tom didn’t really mind having to take Bill along, but these small break outs Bill had once in a while frustrated him, he didn’t really know how to handle it. It had however been the first time Bill apologized for freaking out; maybe he was starting to control himself a little.

“Look,” he broke the uncomfortable silence. “I need to get David a present; I’ll just be in that store across the street.” He pointed it out. “I’ll be right back, ok?” Tom sent him a questioning glance.

Bill nodded, but didn’t look at him. He felt embarrassed and misunderstood, maybe even a little angry. He noticed how Tom was silently annoyed at his behaviour and although he knew he had no right to be angry at Tom for it, he was- a little. He felt misunderstood, and that made him angry; and the fact that Tom was leaving him alone again kind of annoyed him, why couldn’t he come with him?

This time Tom took longer to return. He was holding a big, white, plastic bag in his right hand, which he carelessly threw onto the backseat, before climbing onto the driver’s seat.

Bill stubbornly stared ahead, his arms crossed over his chest and his bottom lip sticking out childishly.

Tom raised an eyebrow at the image before him. “You ok?” He asked, closing the door and starting up the car.

Bill simply turned his head away from Tom, and stared out of the window ignoring him. Tom furrowed his brows in confusion, but decided to leave Bill be. If Bill wanted to be a sorehead, then he’d let him be a sorehead. He’d get over it eventually.

*

“So what happened to your dad?” Bill asked interestedly.

Just like Tom had predicted, Bill had gotten over his huff after only a few minutes of silence. He seemed to be determined to find out more about the dread-head beside him, and had started to pelt him with questions. By now, Tom’s family was the topic Bill was most interested in. He wasn’t even asking where they were going.

“He died,” Tom told him. “Heart failure.”

Bill nodded, understanding. His parents were both dead too. “I’m sorry,” he said quietly.

Tom shook his head. “It’s ok, I just wish my mom wouldn’t have married Gordon,” he sighed.

“Why?” Bill asked, a crease forming on his forehead.

“He’s so stuck up,” Tom narrowed his eyes at the thought of his stepfather. “He’s got a stick shoved up his ass or something.”

Bill gasped loudly, covering his mouth with a hand. “Poor guy,” he whispered sympathetically.

Tom snorted.

*

“I need you to do this for me Bill, alright? Sell this car for me.”

They had stopped by another car dealer. Tom had no money left after having bought Bill some clothes and David a present. He had no choice but to sell the car. Nevertheless, he looked like crap right now. He still had a blue eye and a wound on his lip that hadn’t healed yet. It wouldn’t make a good impression.

Bill, however, looked fantastic in his new clothes, Tom had to admit. The jeans fit him perfectly, a little tight, since Tom had bought the smallest size, but definitely not too tight.

The dread-head reached for the buttons on Bill’s black shirt hesitantly, hoping Bill wouldn’t mind, and opened the three top buttons.

“You look good,” he told him, eyeing him up. “They won’t even care you’re a guy, as long as you look good, they’ll buy it off you immediately.”

Bill blushed, ducking his head a little. “Thank you.”

Tom smiled, opening the last button on Bill’s shirt too. “There,” he said. “You remember what I told you?”

Bill nodded; he was starting to become a little nervous. He was worried he’d fail; he didn’t want to disappoint Tom.

“Good,” Tom smiled at him encouragingly. “I’ll hide behind those containers, alright?” He pointed at three containers aligned next to the building they stood in front of.

Bill nodded once more, inhaling audibly.

“You look great,” Tom repeated, before backing away and crouching down behind the containers.

Bill took a deep breath and strolled into the building, just like Tom had told him to do. He tried to maintain a straight, confident posture, and Tom thought he was doing great.

“‘Ello there.”

Bill spun around, entwining his hands nervously. “Hey.”

The man eyed him up approvingly, cocking a brow when his eyes reached Bill’s bare feet, and gave him a questioning look.

“I, um… I want to sell my car,” Bill told him, pointing outside.

The man nodded, leading the way outside the building. He was pretty good looking with his dark hair and blue eyes, but Bill didn’t pay attention to any of that, all he wanted was to sell the car, and quick.

“Wow, nice car.” The man circled it, inspecting it closely and turned the key in the ignition. “Why would you want to sell that? You’ve still got over 5000 kilometres on it,” he observed, leaning into the opened window. He turned the motor back off. “It’s pretty dirty though.” he ran a finger along the side of the car and pulled a face.

“Um, we- we bumped,” Bill explained nervously.

The man raised a brow questioningly. “You bumped?”

Bill nodded hastily. “With a chicken!” He blurted out.

“A chicken?” The man asked, obviously amused.

“It- it was a big chicken and it… it dirtied…. the car” Bill crossed his legs, curling his toes into the ground.

“Okay,” the man drew the word out, possibly in mock, and Tom couldn’t help but chuckle quietly at the scene before him.

“So, 5000 euros?” The man tried, expecting Bill to argue for a higher price, after all the car seemed to be in pretty good shape.

“Yes!” Bill agreed immediately, nodding frantically. 5000 was all Tom had been asking for.

The man narrowed his eyes suspiciously. “How come you’re agreeing so quickly?” He wasn’t used to that. “Is something wrong with the car?”

Bill bit his lower lip, entwining his hands behind his back. “5000 is ok,” he said quietly, hoping that was all the guy wanted to hear.

The man ignored Bill and circled the car once more. “5000 euros isn’t ok if the car is damaged,” he cocked a brow at Bill, stopping in front of him.

“Oh?” Bill furrowed his eyebrows.

The man shook his head. “It would be a waste of money, and that’s not good.”

“N-no?” Bill asked unsurely. The man once more replied with a shake of his head.

“Um…” Bill lowered his gaze to the ground, eyeing his toes nervously and then looked up at the guy through his eyelashes. “Well…” He started, and walked to the front of the car.

Tom could see the guy stare at Bill’s ass and rolled his eyes. His palms were sweating, he was worried what Bill was about to do or say.

“Um… well, here um, here is a bump,” Bill pointed at a dent in the car door.

”Seen that,” the man nodded.

“And… it’s a little scratched… all over.”

“Yep,” the man agreed, crossing his arms.

“Um, well…” Bill exhaled nervously.

Tom squinted his eyes, trying to get a better look at what they were discussing. He couldn’t hear everything that was said, but enough to know what the conversation was about.

He slapped a hand in front of his eyes when he saw Bill crouch down and kneel on the ground, to show the man the damage they had both recently found underneath the car, from the crash at the previous car dealer.

“Oh,” the man said, standing back up. “Now that’s not good is it,” he gave Bill a look.

“No?” Bill asked hesitantly, staying on his knees.

The man shook his head. “Anything else?” He asked.

“Well…” Bill crawled to the front of the car and pointed at the bumper. “This is broken… I think,” he told the man.

“Is it?”

Bill shrugged, and lay a hand on it. “Tom said if you don’t touch it, it stays in place so-”

Tom groaned, covering his eyes with his hands. The bumper had just come off at one side where Bill was touching it.

Bill gasped, pulling his hand back rapidly, as if he had touched fire. “Oh…oops” he said quietly, throwing a worried glance at the containers; he couldn’t see Tom though.

The man crossed his arms and cocked a brow. “Now that’s interesting,” he smirked.

*

“580 fucking euros, what the hell am I supposed to do with only 580 euros?” Tom complained, throwing his hands into the air.

“It’s better than nothing,” Bill said quietly, stepping along. He kept a safe distance between him and Tom; he knew Tom was in a mood right now, especially since Bill had revealed a few other damages, which had been caused by the crash, to the car dealer.

Tom scoffed. “Better than nothing,” he muttered, shaking his head in disbelief. “580 euros is nothing. It’s not enough for two travelling people who have nothing except for a bag full of clothes size S and a stupid present for a stupid brother!”

Bill ducked his head, watching his feet as they walked along the rough, deserted road. “Sorry,” he mumbled, feeling a little ashamed for having failed at such a simple task.

Tom sighed, slapping a hand onto the back of his neck and rubbing the heated skin. It was warm, hot even. The blazing sun was shining down onto their heads, Tom felt like his brain was boiling.

“Tom?”

Tom groaned, he knew that tone- Bill was going to complain.

“My feet hurt,” Bill whined, rubbing a palm over his soles. The road was hot and rough under his bare feet and the little stones kept sticking to his soles, making it painful to walk. “And I’m tired, and hungry. I haven’t eaten anything all day!” He tried to keep up with Tom’s pace.

“Me neither,” Tom simply told him, staring stubbornly ahead.

“Why don’t we eat?” Bill asked in a whining tone.

Tom turned around. “Do you see food anywhere?” His arms flailed around. “No? Well that’s why we’re not eating! Besides, we don’t have enough money to waste it on food.” He turned back around and continued walking at a quick pace. He was in no rush, not really, but he simply felt like giving Bill a hard time to keep up. They still had a long way ahead of them and they needed the money to pay for a place to stay over night, and possibly for a taxi.

“But… we need food!” Bill called after him, hurrying along painfully.

Tom released a yell of frustration towards the sky, startling Bill who stopped dead in his tracks.

“If you would have stayed at your fucking mental institution, instead of following me, you wouldn’t be fucking hungry now!” He spun around, staring at Bill angrily.

“But I-” Bill gasped, his confused eyes following Tom as he sped off into the field of high, dried grass on the side of the road, jumping through the tall grass, attempting to dodge it. “Where- what are you doing!” Bill called after him, hurrying to follow the dread-head. He whimpered at the pain in his feet. Some plants he was stepping on hurt, but he didn’t care, he couldn’t lose Tom out of sight. “Tom!” He screeched desperately.

“I’m running away!” Tom yelled at the top of his lungs, his voice going hoarse. He tripped over his jeans which he had been trying to hold up whilst running, and fell to the ground face first.

Bill saw the dread-head disappear completely in the tall grass and stopped, his eyes darting around the place hastily. “Tom?” He yelled, he’s knees and hands trembling from the effort of the day.

“Fuck!” He heard Tom curse, and saw a dreadlocked head appear in the tall grass as Tom sat up.

The black-haired teen exhaled in relief, hurrying towards Tom. He fell to his knees next to the dread-head and yanked at his oversized t-shirt. “What are you doing?” He hissed out of breath, his heart racing from the running and fright Tom had given him by rushing off.

“I’m giving up!” Tom growled loudly, pulling his t-shirt free from Bill’s grasp. “I don’t want to go to the fucking wedding! I don’t want to go anywhere! We’re not going to the fucking wedding. We are going back, I just… I just fucking can’t!” He fell back into the grass, laying down onto his back and rubbing his hands over his face. “I can’t, I don’t want to. I’m giving up.”

Bill blinked, watching the dread-head rub his eyes in distress. “You can’t not go,” Bill told him softly.

Tom lowered his hands slowly and looked at Bill in disbelief. “Are you kidding me?” He snapped.

“You promised your mom you were going to go, you can’t break a promise!” Bill told him, inching nearer. “You can’t do that.”

Tom snorted. “Oh, and who says that? Your mom? Your doctor? The fucking nurses? Who Bill?” He hissed, his eyes forming threatening slits.

“I do.”

Tom stared at him, his eyes slowly returning to their normal size. He inhaled sharply, turned his head to look at the sky, and exhaled with a sigh. “Ok, fuck- Ok! Fine! You win.”

Bill squealed and jumped to his feet, clapping his hands excitedly. “I win!” He smiled brightly, and stopped abruptly. He dipped his eyebrows, sending Tom a questioning look.

“What do I win?”

~

meersel!

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