Chapter 93
“Let’s eat.”
Nolan followed him to the table and sat in the chair Leo indicated. “This looks good.”
Leo smiled a little. “Hope you like it.”
They ate in silence for a couple of mouthfuls, and it really was good, and Nolan waited for Leo to say something. He guessed Leo would bring up his burn scars.
“Your dad—”
“I know what you’re going to say,” Nolan blurted.
“You do?”
He nodded and looked down at his plate, not so hungry now. “Yes, my dad is an abuser. Has been all my life. I try to avoid him when I can, but it’s not always possible. He does…unspeakable things.”
Leo’s hand covered his. “Has he sexually abused you?”
“No. Not directly. He mocks my own sexual status and he brings home women and has sex with them in front of me. And he hits me.”
“And has burned you.”
“Yes,” he whispered.
“You’re almost twenty now, Nolan. Why are you still living with him if he does all this?”
Nolan closed his eyes, feeling shame wash over him. “It’s not as easy as it sounds. You know, it’s something I’ve always known and I think, maybe, I deserve it. I am a waste of space, or I think so sometimes.”
“Nolan, open your eyes and look at me.”
Reluctantly he opened his eyes and was mortified when a tear fell on his cheek. He didn’t want to cry, not in front of Leo.
“What your father has done to you is not your fault.”
“How can you be so sure?”
Leo’s gaze burned into him. “I know. You are not a waste of space or anything else he’s said to you.”
He nodded, though he wasn’t altogether convinced the stuff his father said about him wasn’t true. “The other thing is money. It costs a lot to get my own place. Even here in Sutter’s Bay, let alone some place like San Francisco. I don’t have a degree yet or even a part-time job right now.”
“Who pays for your school?”
“My dad. Every time I’ve tried to get a job he uses his influences to either make me quit or get me fired. And now, I know when I go home he’s going to go ballistic over me being out all night and he’s going to ask all kinds of questions.”
Nolan picked up his coffee cup and held it in front of his face. He didn’t want Leo to see the shame he lived with. Leo, no doubt, thought him some sort of whiny brat or something.
Leo didn’t say anything at first but took a couple more bites of his omelet. Nolan could tell he was thinking though. It was almost like he could see the wheels turning in Leo’s brain.
“I don’t think you should go back there,” Leo said into the silence.
“What?”
“Look, Nolan, you’re not a minor. Your dad doesn’t have to have anything to do with you anymore. Or really, you don’t have to have anything to do with him. What’s the worst that could happen? He stops paying for your school. This semester is already paid for, right?”
“Yeah.”
“Okay. So you have to make some adjustments. Get that job and pay for classes yourself. You might have to take a semester or two off while you save but you can do it.”
Nolan shook his head. “I still need to find some place to live and I don’t have money, Leo.”
“You can stay here.”
“Excuse me?” Nolan asked. “Leo, you don’t even know me. You met me like a few days ago. Yeah, we had sex, but you don’t know anything about me.”
Leo shrugged. “You don’t know much about me either.”
“All the more reason. And what about your brother? Isn’t this is house?”
Leo sighed and stabbed at his omelet. “I’m not asking you to move in as my boyfriend. We’ve got empty bedrooms. You’d have to get a job and pay some rent and expenses.”
“Oh.” Nolan wasn’t sure whether he felt disappointed or relieved to hear Leo tell him he’d have his own room. Yeah, he was an idiot. “Still. Don’t we have to ask your brother?”
“Yes, we should do that. I’ll call him after breakfast and then we can go to your dad’s house and pick up your stuff. If you think he’ll stop you, we can go when he’s not home.”
“Leo.”
“Nolan, I’m not going to just casually let you go back to being abused. That’s not me. I’m not trying to take over your damn life just because we fucked, but we’re friends now and what happens to you matters to me and I can’t just sit by and not try to help you.”
Nolan bit his lip and after a while, nodded. “Okay.” 6
Leo called Galaxy while Nolan showered. He was pretty sure his brother wouldn’t have an issue with it, but it would be awkward to be arguing with Galaxy in front of Nolan if he did. Plus it would just be easier to be able to talk about the situation if Nolan wasn’t in the room.