• It wasn’t long until the fist connected with the delicate skin on Jake’s face. The predator laughed at him as the punch sent the scrawny blonde kid to his knees. Jake tried to get up onto his feet, but the foot of the predator met his stomach. Blood spat out of his mouth as his body fell to the ground, hardly able to breathe. His school uniform was ruined by the blood, but Jake didn’t care about that at the moment. The struggle to survive from this onslaught from the alpha male of the school was more important.

    Day after day Jake was bullied on because of his small size. For a sixteen-year-old he was shorter than his class. Not to mention he was scrawnier than most boys. One thing that stuck out about him was his bleach blonde hair. The other students at his school had dark brown or black hair. He was the odd duck of Saint Helena’s Academy.

    Jake wasn’t always picked on; in fact when he first came to Saint Helena’s he was quite popular. That was all because his parents were incredibly wealthy. The older students wouldn’t dare pick on him because they were afraid his parents would sue them. Kids in his class just stuck around him, hoping that he’ll slip them a fifty or a twenty. Everything changed when the car crash happened.

    In an unfaithful tragedy Jake’s parents got into a car crash when their limo was struck by a drunken truck driver. His parents were found alive, but they were brought into the hospital. A few days later they passed away. They most of their money with Jake’s uncle, while Jake got only some money so he could live on his own in an apartment. When the school heard of this death the students turned on Jake and picked on him. There was nothing holding them back.

    The bell had rung and Jake wearingly rose to his feet, it was time for his next class. There was a slight limp in his step as he walked to his class. He arrived to his geometry class to find out he was late. The teacher scolded him and whacked his hand with a ruler. Jake trudged up to his seat while rubbing his hand. Two bad things in a row, what a streak of bad luck. He thought it wouldn’t get any worse until he was brought down to the floor once more when an upper-class left behind tripped him on his way towards his seat. Jake slammed his head onto his desk as he finally took his seat. For the third day in a row Jake has had multiple ‘accidents’ happen to him. Sulking he looked back at the front of the class. Something caught his attention, a boy he did not recognize stood in the front of the room.

    “Class,” everyone turned their heads towards the professor, “We have a new student joining us today. His name is Shawn Faux.” The professor turned to Shawn, “Tell us a little about you.” The teacher stepped aside and let Shawn talk.

    “Well, as you know, my name is Shawn Faux,” his voice was light and had a child charm to it, “I moved here from San Diego California because my dad’s business company moved to a better location.” Jake didn’t listen too much that Shawn was saying, he got distracted just by his presence. Shawn had vivid red hair that went down past his shoulders; it was kept in a ponytail so it would stay out of his eyes. Since it was his first day Shawn wasn’t wearing the school uniform of black slacks and grey button down shirt. Instead he wore regular tight grey jeans, a plain purple hoodie, and black and grey stripped arm warmers. It seemed to clash with his hair, but to Jake didn’t mind. The teacher let Shawn take his seat, which was a few away from Jake’s.

    Throughout class Jake couldn’t help but take a few peeks at the new kid. Something was just pulling him towards the boy. He sighed trying to focus on the history work in front of him. After a few minutes passed he took another long look at Shawn, before he noticed the staring. Shawn turned his head to meet Jake’s eyes. Jake noticed that Shawn’s eyes were a deep green, while his were a dark grey. A slight blush flushed across Jake’s face as he whipped his head around. There was a slight crack in his neck as his head moved so fast. Shawn just raised his eyebrow with a slight smirk and paid attention to the teacher once more. Jake, even in his pain, noticed, it only made him blush more.

    A half an hour later the bell rang, and the students pilled out of the room. The only ones left were Shawn and Jake. Shawn was putting his new text books into his bag while Jake just stared at him. Just as Shawn was ready Jake left the room in a rush, trying to be noticed by the red haired boy.

    Flashes of white and black raced past Jake as he rushed towards his next class, anything to get away from Shawn. There was something magnetic about the boy. No matter what Jake tried he always ended up being pulled towards the other by a mystical force, and Jake had no say in it.


    The hands on the clock ticked slowly as Jake sat in his seat in his English class; it was the last class of the day. He thought he was safe for the day, but he was wrong. Just as the bell rang for class to begin Shawn stepped through the door way and into the crowded class room. The Professor pointed to his seat, which was right next to Jake’s. Shawn took his seat and gave a small wave to Jake, apparently recognizing him from the first period. Jake gave a small smile back before turning towards the teacher, hoping to hide the sudden blush forming across his nose.

    During the class Jake could feel a pair of eyes staring holes into his side. He looked in the corner of his eye and saw Shawn stealing quick glances at him. Jake’s cheeks turned pink and he ducked his head into the neck of his shirt. A slight chuckle was heard from Shawn when he tried to hide his blush. Is he laughing at the blush, or his he laughing at me? Many questions ran through his head during class. Luckily he wasn’t called on during class, or else he’d make a fool out of himself.

    When Jake was under pressure, and when he had something on his mind, he would usually blurt out what ever he was thinking about. If he was called on he would’ve embarrassed both himself and Shawn. That would not be good for either of them; Jake is already picked on enough while Shawn is the new kid. Which will lead to some teasing.

    As the class ended Shawn leaned in close to Jake, his mouth was a few centimeters away from Jake’s ear, “Meet me in the parking lot once you gather all of your books. I need to ask you something.” His voice was quiet, like when he first introduced himself. Jake nodded and shoved all of his books into his backpack. He then followed Shawn to the parking lot.

    Shawn was parked out in the far off corner of the parking lot, away from the other cars. He drove a sleek black Jaguar, the sun shone vibrantly off of the hood. Inserting the key into the lock Shawn tossed his bag into the passenger seat and leaned against the now closed door. A slight smirk played on his lips as he looked at the boy in front of him. After a few seconds of a stare down between the two Shawn spoke, “You like me don’t you?” Jake’s face instantly flushed red. Dry air filled his throat as he scrambled his mind for words.

    “W-What p-possibly gave y-you that i-idea?” Jake’s voice came out in nervous stutters, only to have his face redden more from embarrassment. Shawn just flicked some hair out of his eye, the smirk growing wider from each of Jake’s little stutters. Before Jake could make more of a fool out of himself Shawn placed his finger over Jake’s lips.

    “You were staring at me with a dream like look on your face. I’ve gotten those looks from many people before. I can notice when someone likes me,” Shawn’s smirk turned into a smile.

    “Just because I was staring doesn’t mean that I like you,” Jake defended, trying to drag this conversation out longer. That way the longer it was the more time he could spend talking to Shawn, even if it wasn’t a friendly conversation.

    “Why else would you be staring then?” Shawn walked over and poked Jake in his sides. A slight squeak came from Jake; luckily no one else was around to hear it. Rubbing his chin Jake came up with a come back. A few minutes passed and he was still silent. “I’m taking that you don’t have an answer, do you?” He lifted Jake’s chin with his finger, examining the blush on the shorter kids face. Jake just stood there, not able to move. He’s never felt like this with anyone else before. It felt nice.

    It wasn’t until a car passed by honking its horn that the two boys separated, it was probably a faculty car. Students never paid attention to PDA since they were always too busy with their own mate. Jake stood their with his knees feeling like jelly, while Shawn headed back to his car. Before he left he looked back at Jake, “Meet me at the park tonight, we’ll finish our conversation there.” Then he drove off in his car.

    Jake, with his legs still numb, slowly walked over to his own car. Pressing down on the gas pedal Jake pulled out of the parking lot and drove home. In his mind he was debating on whether or not to meet Shawn in the park later tonight, if he did, what would be the outcome of it? If he didn’t, what would Shawn think? Wait, why do I care what Shawn thinks? Idiot, it’s because you like him. Do not. Denial isn’t just a river in Egypt. Shut up. You can’t tell yourself to shut up. Whatever. Jake arrived at the apartment house and parked his car in the parking lot. The apartments were too classy for his taste, but it was better than apartments with bug problems. After greeting the other people living in the building he headed up to his apartment room.

    Jake’s apartment was well kept. It had three rooms to it, a bedroom, a master bath, and one huge living area. In the living area there was a kitchen attached to it. There were just the necessities, just the items to survive, nothing more or less. His phone rang and he tossed his backpack on the brown couch nearby and answered the phone. On the other end was Shawn. How did he get my number? “I found your number in the phone book if that was what you’re wondering,” his voice had a joking tone to it, “Anyways, I just wanted to make sure you were coming to the park tonight.” Was he going to the park? Jake never really thought if he should or shouldn’t. The talk had to be finished however.

    “Yeah I’ll be there,” Jake finally said after a few moments of silence. Even though he couldn’t see Shawn, he could tell the boy was smirking, “Get that smirk off of your face.” There was laughing on the other line.

    “Good, I’ll see you around seven,” The phone clicked and Jake hung up as well. His heart was racing a mile a minute. How could he agree to that? To meet some guy he just met today in a park to discuss on whether he liked him or not? It was the strangest day Jake ever had.


    It was seven as Jake arrived to the park. He had no idea where Shawn was going to meet him so he wandered around for a while. Kids were returning back to their homes with their parents holding on to their hands. The playground was deserted and so where all the park benches. All except for one. At one park bench by a fountain Shawn sat with his left knee up to his chest with his hand resting on it. He turned his head to the side and saw Jake standing there, just looking at him.

    “Glad you could make it,” Shawn’s voice sounded deeper than it normally did. Probably because they were alone and no one else was around to hear them. It was an awkward silence between the two, neither of them had any idea of what to say. Jake sat down next to Shawn on the bench. Shawn turned his head and stared into Jake’s eyes.

    Before the two boys knew it, they were leaning in closer to the other, as if some magnetic force was drawing them together. Slowly their lips met, Jake put his hands on the sides of Shawn’s face while Shawn put his hands on Jake’s shoulders. Their lips moved in sync, completely alone in the park. Or so they thought.

    Behind some bushes a few members of the school football team watched the two boys kiss on the park bench. Disgusted looks spread across their faces, not used to seeing boys like the same sex. The biggest one smirked, “This is the ultimate baggage, and the little blonde’s life will be ruined for good.” The other jocks just quietly chuckled before leaving the park.

    Jake and Shawn’s lips separated, blushes formed on both boy’s faces. “I guess that answers my theory,” Shawn giggled. Jake nodded his hands still on the side of Shawn’s face. His hands slowly fell from the red-haired boy’s face and placed them in his lap. I guess it is official; I’ve fallen for this new kid. It’s happening really fast though, but I don’t mind. I’m happy for once.

    “Does this mean we’re together?” Jake looked down, only to have his face brought back up by Shawn’s finger. A smile replaced the smirk on his face.

    “Only if you want to be,” he answered. Jake nodded as a form of saying yes. The two boys got up from the bench and walked out of the park together. Shawn pulled Jake aside and pressed him up against the park gate. He gave Jake a quick peck on the lips before moving his mouth closer to his ear, “Goodnight.” With that Shawn disappeared to his car and drove home. Chills shivered down Jake’s spine and his face reddened. Is he trying to make my face melt? ’Cause it’s working. Jake then returned home.


    The next day when Jake got to school there was the usual bashing from the bullies. However a surprise waited for him once he got to his locker. Covering in bright red spray paint the words ‘Queer,’ and ‘f*****t.’ Jake’s eyes grew wide as the leader of the football team came up to him. “I saw you and the new kid in the park last night, I found quite a surprise,” he sneered in Jake’s face. Jake just backed away towards his locker. The leader wound back his hand and let it loose upon Jake’s face and chest.

    By the time he was done with the onslaught Jake was bleeding from his mouth and nose, hardly able to breathe. Students passed by him, but they just laughed at him like usual, adding in an occasional insult here and there. Shawn eventually heard the commotion and knelt down next to Jake. He wrapped the blonde boy in his arms, protecting him from the others view. “What happened?” He whispered in Jake’s ear.

    “They know,” was all Jake said and he collapsed from the pain. Shawn scooped Jake up into his arms and rushed to the nurse. Worry bashed around in his head. What’s going to happen to Jake? I knew something like this would happen soon, but I didn’t know this soon. I was hoping to take him away from here before it happened. It’s all my fault. All my fault…

    At the nurses office she patched up Jake who was still unconscious. She informed Shawn that he would be awake soon, and she said that they could stay in there for the rest of the day. Something seemed strange about her though. Why was she being so nice?

    “Excuse me, ma’am?” Shawn tried to get her attention. The nurse turned around and faced the boy with his hair in a ponytail.

    “Yes?”

    “Why are you being so nice to us? I mean, the other kids are teasing Jake and me for… well… being gay. How come you aren’t judging us?”

    “That’s simple. No one should be judged for what gender they’re interested in. Whether it’s a girl liking a girl, a boy liking a boy, or a person liking both genders, they are still human. Besides, a body is just bones and skin; there isn’t much difference between a boy and a girl. There isn’t a law that guys can’t be with guys, or girls can’t be with girls.

    However, some people get scared when they see someone of their own gender seeking the companionship of the same gender. Either because it’s strange to them, or because of the Bible.”

    “The Bible?” The nurse turned her head towards Shawn.

    “The Bible states that homosexuality is punishable by death. So humans tend to stay away from liking the same gender.” The nurse turned away, and went into the back room. A picture on her desk perked Shawn’s interest. He walked over and picked up the picture, it was of the nurse and another woman. They were holding hands and holding each other. So that’s why she isn’t judging us, she’s a homosexual as well. Glad to know we aren’t the only ones around here.

    Shawn looked over to Jake who was starting to wake up. He smiled and sat down on the edge of the hospital bed Jake was laying on. “How you feeling?” Jake rubbed where the jock punched him. A bruise formed over the spot. Shawn leaned forward and kissed the spot on Jake’s cheek. A blush now covered his face, earning a stifled laugh from Shawn.

    “I’ve been better,” Jake sighed, “How did I end up here?”

    “I carried you,” Shawn answered.

    “Oh.”

    “Yeah, oh.” Shawn rubbed his hand through Jake’s hair. It was soft, Shawn noticed, and messed up the shorter kid’s hair. Jake whined and pushed Shawn’s hands away.

    For the rest of the day the two boys were left alone in the nurses office, they mostly talked, a few kisses here and there, but nothing serious. Shawn found out that Jake loved the color green and wanted to be a psychiatrist. He wanted to be able to help with making people’s lives sane again. He wanted to help other’s emotional pains. Jake found out that Shawn wanted to be a singer, which surprised him. Since he didn’t know that Shawn could sing. The two realized that they didn’t know each other that much. So they took this chance to get to know one another. It was probably one of their best days yet.


    A few weeks passed since the school found out about Jake being a homosexual. Day after day the teasing and the beatings got worse. Jake had to start wearing make up to cover the bruises and cuts. The jocks didn’t just punch him, they some how smuggled knives into the school. After each day they would strip Jake of his clothes and carve words into his skin.

    Sometimes Jake got so terrified of the beatings he had Shawn come over at night to hold him. It was hard on Shawn; he hated seeing Jake in pain. When Jake wanted to heal other’s pain. How could he do that when he was too wrapped up in his own?

    One day, Shawn went to go check up Jake. He parked his car and walked up to Jake’s apartment.

    Opening the door all the lights were out. Sun leaked through the blinds and papers were thrown across the floor in a huge mess. There was the clattering of steel in the kitchen. Shawn though that Jake was preparing lunch, but why in the dark?

    “Jake?” Shawn ran over to the kitchen to see Jake holding a butcher’s knife up to his neck. His eyes widened, and he ran over to Jake and snatched the knife out of his hands. Jake looked up with an emotionless expression.

    “Why did you do that?” He asked with an innocent tone in his voice. Shawn started to tear up.

    “Why would you try to kill yourself like that?!” Jake looked down and sniffled.

    “I’ve had enough of this Shawn. I’m sick of the crap I have to go through just because I’m gay!” Shawn grabbed Jake by his shoulders and made him face his eyes.

    “Look me in the eyes Jake!” Jake looked up meeting Shawn’s blazing green eyes, “As long as we have each other we’ll be fine! You have your dreams to aim for still! How can you do that if you dead?” He paused for a minute, “How can you be with me if you’re dead?” Tears were dripping out of Shawn’s eyes, his voice started to crack, “I know we’ve only known each other for a short time Jake, but you’re the best thing that’s happened to me. How can I live if you’re not with me? Jake…” he stopped when Jake pressed his lips onto Shawn’s for a brief moment.

    “Then do as I do, that way, we can be together and no one can judge us anymore. We’ll be free,” Jake murmured softly. Shawn knew what he meant, and he released Jake’s shoulders. His head was hung low as he thought about the options. He could follow Jake to the end, or live life without him. The answer to that was obvious. Shawn would follow Jake to death. The two boys stared at the other, then at the knife.

    They sat down on the floor, in each others arms. Shawn covered Jake’s arms with his own, and he placed his feet on the outside of Jake’s. He grabbed the knife and pressed it to Jake’s neck. Blood dripped onto the edge of the blade as it made an imprint on the blonde boy. Jake tried to cry out, but Shawn covered his mouth, tears flowing out of his eyes. Soon, the blonde boy’s breath went from frantic, to nothing. Shawn checked Jake’s pulse, there was none. Shawn then took the blade out of Jake’s neck and pressed it into his own. No cries were made from him, only tears. Blood stained the sides of his neck and chest. Soon, his breath became the same as Jake’s. His body collapsed onto the other boy’s. Their hands were intertwined, their faces only a few centimeters away from the other.