confessions on the wall - lashton

32: Interlude 3.0

"Thank you so much for coming." Mr. Irwin breathed a sigh in relief when Luke showed up only twelve minutes after he has called him.

The man was desperate, not wanting to leave his son alone while he was in so much pain. However, he knew that calling into his job yet again could land him in some serious trouble. Luke, being his son's friend/boyfriend/whatever wasn't exactly ideal to him as he was afraid of what the two would be up to once he was gone, but since he had no other choice, he was delighted to see the teenager nonetheless.

"Of course." Luke replied, brushing it off. "Is he in his room?"

Ashton's father nodded, grabbing his keys from the end table by the door. "Leftovers are in the fridge, please help yourself to anything. Ashton can give you my phone number so call me if anything happens. I should be back by ten. And again, thanks." The man said in a rush before bidding Luke goodbye and swiftly walking out the door.

The blond felt a bit awkward, but he knew that once he saw the honey haired boy, he'd feel right at home. He walked down the hallway, stopping when he reached Ashton's door. Because it was wide open, the boy opted to knock on the white frame of the door, not wanting to barge in on him.

Ashton was on his side, back turned to the door as he laid on his bed. The poor boy was curled up into a ball, both arms wrapped around his abdomen. "I-I thought I told you to go to work, I'm fine."

"Uh." Was all that Luke could force himself to say. He instantly felt foolish for momentarily forgetting how to form a sentence, or even a single word, but what could he say? He was weak around the older boy.

Ashton craned his neck to the side, his hazel eyes peering back at the tall boy. "Oh, you're not my dad."

'No, but I could be your daddy.' Luke thought, but he kept those words to himself, not wanting to freak the poor boy out. Instead he just shook his head.

"I guess he called you then, huh?" The older of the two asked.

Luke nodded, mentally cursing himself because of his silence. No one had ever made it so hard for him to speak. In fact, he never had an inability to speak, he rarely ever shut up.

"So, I guess that makes you my babysitt-- ugh." Ashton joked, but he cut himself off with a groan when he felt yet another sharp pain in his stomach. He hated when this happened. It wasn't often, but it still drove him insane.

His illness caused him severe stomach pain every once in a while, along with other issues he dealt with on a day to day basis. Because his spleen had ruptured and been removed when he was younger, he didn't have quite as many stomach problems as most people with CML do, but he still suffered from them sometimes.

Luke felt powerless. He wanted to help his friend, but he knew that he wouldn't be able to. So, Luke moved over to Ashton, slowly crawling onto the bed and taking the boy in his arms. If he couldn't bring himself to speak, he was at least going to try and comfort him another way.

Ashton closed his eyes tightly, nuzzling his head underneath Luke's chin. A single tear slipped down his cheek, and he felt ashamed for being so weak. "Don't look at me."

"Why not?" Luke asked, surprising himself that he had gained the courage to talk again.

"I look disgusting." The boy replied as if it were obvious.

And sure, maybe Ashton hadn't done his eyebrows or covered up his bald head with a bandana. Hell, he was even still in his matching purple pajamas from the night before, but even still, Luke genuinely thought that he was beautiful.

"Nonsense." The blond said, shaking his head. "Don't talk like that, you look fine."

Ashton kept his head down, not wanting Luke to see the tears that fell from his hazel eyes. The younger boy, on the other hand, pulled back, placing his hand on Ashton's chin and forcing him to look up at him.

"You're still so beautiful." Luke whispered softly.

"Don't-Don't lie to me. Don't you dare fucking lie to me just because you pity me." Ashton tried to defend himself, even though there was nothing to defend himself from. He didn't believe a word Luke was saying, how could he? Ashton was aware that he looked like shit and he knew that Luke was just too nice to say it.

"I'm not." Luke started, brushing the pad of his thumb against Ashton's pale cheek, wiping softly at the teartracks. "Lying, that is. You're hurting. You're in pain, and I swear to God, I wish I could take the pain away, but I can't. And I would never lie to you, especially about your looks. I know that you're insecure for whatever reason, but don't think for a second that I would decive you."

"I didn't say that you look amazing." He continued, his words quiet and gentle. "For your tears and the pain on your face makes my heart ache for you, but you do look beautiful. You will always be beautiful to me, no matter what."

Ashton blushed, instantly regretting snapping at the younger boy. He was just hurting and frustrated, but he was glad that Luke understood that.

However, before he could even begin to apologize, Ashton felt Luke press his lips against his own. The older boy closed his eyes, kissing him back just as passionately.

And for the first time in a long time, both boys felt at bliss. They didn't care about the issues that each male had to deal with on the daily, they only cared about now. Wrapped in each other's arms on Ashton's bed, not knowing about their future, and not caring. The present was all the mattered, and they both loved the moment that they were in.