#abiroux

Zane stopped still and watched Ty’s eyes as he let Ty fuss. He wanted to say so many things: to call Earl a liar, to tell Ty he was the bravest man he’d ever met. He just didn’t know what Ty would believe in the aftermath of Earl’s words or what he himself had the courage to tell him. It was hard to open your heart to Ty; you never knew if you’d get a sincere response or a joke in return. There were some things Zane wanted to say that just couldn’t be met with a joke, and so he kept them to himself.

I can’t,” Ty finally told him with an uncharacteristic show of emotion. He sat down hard on the top step and bent over, placing his hands on each side of his head and squeezing his eyes shut as if he were trying to block out everything. He began to rock back and forth slowly as he spoke. “I can’t concentrate on anything, not when all I can think about is you. And now with this fucking headache,” he ground out in frustration, not finishing his thoughts as he closed his eyes once more and held his head in his hands. “I feel sick,” he finally added pitifully.

Are you … are you feeling this, too?” Ty asked against his better instincts. There was a hitch in Zane’s movement that gave away his reaction to Ty’s words, and his hand stayed jammed into his pocket as he shifted his weight and then his eyes returned to Ty. Zane searched the other man for some clue, some sign, as his mild apprehension was overwhelmed by want. Want for something of Ty he couldn’t define. Zane didn’t say yes … but he didn’t say no.