I can’t even refuse because she’s already moving, she has me in her arms, tucking me comfortably against her. I hide my face in her neck as everyone on the hallways stop to stare at us.
"Mom!" I whine, "I’m not a baby anymore," I sniffle, secretly enjoying the free ride. "Besides, aren’t I heavy?" I ask shyly, wrapping my legs around her waist.
"No." She says firmly and I know she’s not trying to make me happy, I truly weigh like a feather, Shana takes advantage of this and my small size to randomly pick me up like a child.
I’m lulled to sleep by her rhythmic movement and I’m in a light doze by the time we reach the car.
I’m switched over to Shana’s arms who gingerly gets in the back, cradling me like her baby sister. I’m really not that small and tiny, Shana is a beast, I mean she broke a guy’s arm.
"Wake up baby, we’re home." My mom taps me, when the car stops and I blink blearily.
It was early evening and the sun looked like it would set any moment now.
I yawn and close my eyes again, wondering why I was woken up, they would carry me in anyway.
"What’s wrong with him?" Virgil’s voice floats over to me as we walk in the front door, Shana still carrying me like I weigh nothing - it really sends a hit to my ego.
"Why does he look so sick? Did you check him out too early, Renee?" He asks, hovering over me, his shadow blocking out the light, I still keep my eyes shut, ignoring his ranting.
"Good afternoon, Miss LeBaron." A silky voice greets and my eyes fly open in a panic to meet Virgil’s pissed off electric blue eyes and my breath hitches - again.
I really just want to be left alone, I don’t want hot as hell teenage boys hovering around me, making me question my bloody sexuality.
"I think you opened your eyes for the wrong voice." Shana whispers to me adjusting me in her arms. I just try to hide from Virgil’s melting glare.
"Oops! I might have forgotten to add that Dale will be here." My mom says in a fake ass voice, moving to the hangout room - just a spare room we converted for all the endless nights my friends sleep over.
"We’ll all have a mini sleep over." She announces like she’s still our age but I know she just wants to study Dale some more for her scrapbook.
I choke at this, curling into myself when I’m dropped onto a very fluffy cushion.
Virgil crouches in front of me and I gulp, this is the part where he gets mad.
"Dale, why don’t you help me set up snacks so we’ll watch some TV?" She invites. "Shana, get Virgil a stress ball."
"I don’t need a stress ball, Renee." He says convincingly.
My mom scoffs. "Last time someone made Hayden cry, you broke my Louboutins."
"It’s not my fault they just happened to be there beside me, it was either that or the glass table." He defended and I sneak a peak at Dale’s reaction to the craziness I’m surrounded by, he’s just smiling softly, obviously enjoying our interaction.
"Then who left them out?" She demands, a hand on her waist. "Was it you Hayden?" She narrows her eyes at me.
"What?" I exclaim, "How did you even remotely think it might be my fault?"
"Well as girlfriends, who’s to say you didn’t play dress up with my shoe collection." She continues smugly and I’m disappointed, I really thought she was going to let this one slide.
"Mom, go get your snacks." I say dryly.
She giggles, going out with Dale and Shana.
"He still thinks I’m a girl?" I whisper in horror to Virgil, who’s smirking at me.
"I don’t know," he shrugs indifferently. "I didn’t try changing his mind."
I level him a look, unsurprised when he picks me up and sets me gingerly on my feet. "You didn’t kill Tyrone did you?" I can’t help asking, peering up at him.
He places both hands on my shoulders and pulls me into a gentle hug, his jaw finding it’s home on my curls. "Did you want me to?" He rumbles, breathing deeply like he’s finally calming down when he’s seen me safe and with him.
"W-What?" I get all flustered. "N-No, o-of course not." I grumble.
"Then no." He rubs my back. "I didn’t kill him, I can’t say the same about Dale though." He says coldly, approving Dale’s attitude but still not liking the guy.
"Can I see what they did?" He asks quietly with that tone that tells me I can say no whenever I want to but I won’t say no, I never say no because it’s Virgil.
Plus I really need to show him if I want to heal emotionally from it as well, I’m just terrified of his reaction.
"I’m scared, you’ll be mad." I say in a tiny voice, feeling each and every ache and stiff joint.
"I can’t promise I won’t be Hay but I’ll try to be calm about it." He says seriously, like it’s a life or death matter and I want to laugh but I don’t, because it is a life or death matter to Virgil.
"Just promise me you won’t do anything to Tyrone and his gang anymore, no matter what."
"Of course I won’t, I promise." He accepts quickly, too quickly.
"Dale too." I add, watching his eyes darken.
"Fine." He bites out, after a tense pause. "Now, let me see."
I step back a bit and grab the ends of the ridiculous thing I have on, I feel a little self conscious which is ridiculous because Virgil still helps me scrub my back whenever I take a bath and he’s around, I bite my lip and yank it up to reveal my belly.
He comes forward carefully like he doesn’t want to terrify me, pushing my shaking hands away to map out every bruise on my body.
His hands grow colder as he trails higher, pushing the shirt off one arm to check out the vicious bruise that sprouted from where Tyrone grabbed me, it really doesn’t help my case that I bruise way too easily.
My shirt is nearly half off when he gets to the strangle marks around my neck and that’s when he loses it, tearing out of the room in a rage.
I’m stunned, standing and shivering there in his wake before I realize that he’s probably going to go find Tyrone and put him six feet under, efficiently putting himself in prison.
"Virgil!" I exclaim in a panic, dashing after him so harried that I forget to readjust my clothes. I rush out to see Shana holding on to a furious looking Virgil.
"Hayden what did you say to..." She cuts herself off as she takes a good look at the bruises littering my body. "What the fuck did that bastard do?"
"Y-You are a boy?" Dale asks, his voice trailing off as his eyes remain fixed on my exposed chest.
I blush down to my bare toes, grateful for my bruises for the second time today. "Umm... I-I t-told you, Y-You j-ju-just w-won’t believe m-me." I stutter, holding onto my ears.
Virgil pauses his mission to go after Tyrone, momentarily to snicker at Dale’s obvious discomfort. "Not going to ask for that date again because he’s a boy, Dale?" He asks cruelly.
Dale trails his heated bright green eyes down my body then cuts a glare at Virgil. "Who said I was changing my mind?" He snorts and Virgil looks like he swallowed his tongue, my mom and Shana look like they’re about to die from excitement.
"As soon as Hayden is recovered enough, I’m still taking him out on a date." He re-affirms, bringing his burning eyes back to me. "If he’ll go with me?"
Everyone turns to me, my mom and Shana with supportive expressions, Dale with hope in his eyes while Virgil looks like he’s about to pop a blood vessel.
"U-Um --- o-okay." I stutter in a tiny voice.
Virgil walks over to me as if to rub in Dale’s face that... ’He’s mine’. He pulls me into a hug and starts to arrange my clothing.
His blue eyes start to glow again as he remembers my bruises and he pauses. "I’m going to dismember Tyrone the next time I lay my eyes on him." He growls lowly, still continuing his journey out.
"V-Virgil?" I whisper out.
He pauses. "I promised Hay." He says darkly without sparing me a glance before going out.
Dale walks closer, still staring at me like he expects I’ll pull off a suit and shout surprise that I’m actually really a girl.
"You’re really a boy aren’t you?" He sighs when he’s close enough to confirm that --- Oops! No boobs.
"Yeah." I say thickly struggling to straighten my oversized shirt.
His eyes darken as well when he takes stock of my bruises, it’s actually not that bad, it’s nothing that a couple of hot soaks won’t ease but I’m just too sensitive so I look like I was spray painted with dark colors by street artists.
His hand reach out to trace the dark hand shaped bruise around my slender neck and I freeze, my eyes going wide.
He mutters a slew of colorful swear words underneath his breath which makes my ears bleed, he snatches his hand back like I’d burned him, veins straining in his neck.
I’m worried now and reaching for him but he quickly steps back, muttering a vague excuse me and stumbling out.