Our journey back home had been ridiculously risky. First, on the train, it had started funny. The train was packed with almost no breathing space but I liked it because I had Mark pressed against the door. He looked awfully uncomfortable but I didn't mind, I enjoyed the moment I had with his chest against mine. Well, that was the good part before I felt someone touch me. It was just occasional grazes at first so I ignored it. But then this man, grabbed my butt with his filthy hands and started to grind against me.

I had paled instantly, the joy I got from Mark's chest almost felt disgusting. The man's hands moved around my butt, groping it until it slid to the sides of my waist. Since I couldn't move, I could only pray we got to our stop before the man decided to dry hump me.

      That was a first for me. I had always known when to get on the train to avoid such harassments and my mum and dad always preached it to me before they left the house. However, Pizza Thursdays were the only days when I missed the right time to get on the train. But it never really mattered since Tom always took us home.

     Fortunately, the doors slid open at our usual stop and I rushed out with Mark, thinking I had lost the pervert, but when I looked back by the time we got to the street, he was right on my tail.

I had never walked so fast in my life back then. I felt like the universe was against me as I pulled Mark quickly behind me passed the stores that still weren't close, ignoring his yapping. My house was still a couple 100 yards down and I still felt the stalker on me. The hairs on my skin had risen at the thought of the stalker knowing where I lived. If he knew that, he wouldn't have to attack me today, he could attack me tomorrow or when I had already forgotten about it. Or my mum.

Just the thought of that had had my blood on fire and I pulled Mark away from the crossing line. There was no way he was going to know where my family and I lived. Over my dead body.

"Ian, damn it! Listen to me. Why are we running?" Mark had said.

I had slowed down my pace so I could talk to him, but my grip on his wrist, never left. "I was groped on the train and I think he's following us."

"Which one?"

"What? They are more than one?"

"No, I meant there are men coming in this direction. What is he wearing."

"I think a brown coat or something. I didn't get his face."

"Damn he's ugly."

"Oh my god. I was groped by a homeless man. I need to take a shower. Very very long ass shower."

Mark had laughed and I really didn't find it funny. He asked for me to let go of his hand but I had been too scared to. It had been my first pervert encounter; no one should walk alone after that kind of shit.

"Trust me. When we get to that alley, let go of my hand and wave me away. Let him think it's only you now."

I almost slapped him. And I wanted to just out of fear, but I didn't and let him have his way. Letting go of him, I took in a deep breath before walking straight. In no time at all, I had heard the man grunt and a thud followed after. I turned just as Mark dragged his body into the narrow alleyway.

When I noticed no one had noticed such an act, I ran after Mark almost screaming at him for doing such a thing in public.

"Relax, it's not like he's dead."

"Where did you hit him?"

"Head. Probably going to have concussion... That doesn't kill right?"

I had to run a hand over my face, my entire body jittered with fear, while Mark just stared at the body by his feet.

After taking another deep breath, I said, "Okay okay okay. Does he have a pulse?"

"Yup. Let's leave before the cops sees this. Would be hard to explain since we are both black, he's white and you are a dude." He shrugged then took my hand, pulling me out of the alley way just as a patrol car drove by.

It was safe to say I almost had a heart attack along the way because the cops in the patrol car came down just when we crossed the street heading to my house.

I had never felt so safe in my house before.
...

     My mum approached me when I entered the kitchen and freaked out when I recounted the whole event to her. She wasn't as freaked as I was, but she still freaked out.

"Oh my... Ian, what have I told you about trains as late as eight. Everyone is rushing home or somewhere so it is packed with all kinds of people."

"It was pizza Thursday."

"I thought you stopped having that. Oh baby." She came to cuddle me and I let her even though I felt like filth. She kissed my forehead then massaged my scalp with her fingers as she said, "Go take a bath and rest easy. That man didn't follow you here so you are safe and Mark made sure he was gone, right?"

I nodded weakly and my beautiful brown skinned mother smiled and kissed my forehead again before she took her purse from the counter. "Now, be a good boy and send little Tony right to bed. It's almost nine."

She walked past me to the living room where Mark stood behind the couch, watching Tony with an odd glint in his eyes. Tony was only four and living a happy life with two friends in his kindergarten school. At four, Mark was being bullied by his friends and went home to his mother spanking him because she got a low pay at her job.

"Oh Mark, how long has it been? Come give mama a hug." My mum gestured for him and he came, slowly.

My pretty mum knew all about Mark's issues and was normally the one I came to when it had anything to do with Mark. She was a nurse, so issues like this was something she had studied.

When Mark was within her grasp, she slowly slid her arms around him and I noticed him stiffen. His reaction still hadn't changed since my mum first held him six years ago.

"Thank you so much for saving my boy. I wouldn't know what to do if that man had gotten his hands on his him. Thank you so much Mark."

"I-It's okay. Ian's been taking care of me for so long, if I weren't able to protect him, I wouldn't know what kind of friend I would be to him."

My mum let go of him then kissed his forehead before smiling at him. "Again, thank you."

She took a step from him then went to pick up Tony as she said, "Okay. Ian, you are in charge since Prim isn't here to baby sit. I need Tony, here, in bed before nine. Don't worry, I've already given him a bath. Your dad and I aren't coming till morning so lock the doors. Got it?"

"Aye aye captain," Tony and I said at the same time and my mum laughed. She kissed his forehead then handed him to me.

"I'm going now." She waved at them, took her car keys out of her purse then closed the door behind her.

Mark released a deep breath then said, "I'll go lock the door."

"No." Tony shook his head then reached out with his hands to Mark. "Mummy said Mark needs big hugs. Big hugs makes people happy and loved."

I chuckled at Mark's confused face. "Relax, he wants you to put to sleep."

Mark gaped at me. "But I don't know how to-"

"You'll tell him what to do right Lil' Tony?" I asked my brother when he glanced at me. "He doesn't know how to take care of little kids. You see when he was little-"

"I get. Give me the kid." Mark hissed, slowly taking the kid from me and I smiled at how gentle he held him. Tony immediately hugged him tightly and Mark gave me a look before following Tony's direction to his room.

     Left alone, I remembered all the shit that happened to me again and a shiver went through me. I locked every door that a stalker might use to enter the house, double checked later to see if they were still locked before running to take a good shower to wash his filthy hands off. 

     Coming out of the bathroom after wearing my boxers, I saw Mark on my bed staring up at the white ceiling.

"There used to be something we always stared at, right? It can't be just white."

I shrugged, moving to my dresser to find a PJ bottom for him and myself. I tossed one at him before putting on the one I got for myself.

"Go take a shower and you might see what you've forgotten." I tossed a towel at him just as he sat up and he gave me a glare before walking into the bathroom and locking the door.

     Rolling my eyes, I slid against the door, taking a deep breath to calm all my nerves down. It had been a while since my life had ever been that exciting. Not that being groped was exciting but, it was an experience that had my heart beating louder and it had nothing to do with Mark. 

"You know what your brother said when I laid him on his bed." He said just as the shower went off.

"Nope. I'm not psychic."

"He said, 'Ian told me the reason he doesn't play with me anymore is because his sad friend needs him more.' And that when I was his age, I didn't have friends and I was lonely."

The door opened behind me and I turned to see Mark in my PJ bottoms. He frowned at me and I shrugged. "What? I only said it so he wouldn't feel sad when I left him. I needed to explain to him that if he were sad, your sadness was only going to grow."

He scoffed and walked past me. "Another sweeter example would be nice."

"Like what?"

"I don't know...Lie?"

Standing, I ignored him as I walked past to the bed and laid on it. I patted the other end, gesturing for him to lay there and he huffed before he joined me of the bed. Switching of the light, light green neon colored stars filled the blue room from floor to ceiling. Mark gasped and I smiled.

"What you were forgetting."

"It's beautiful."

I let him enjoy the view, something my father gave me as a present because I kept asking him for a telescope. Those were the days I thought astronaut was my dream job. Now, I was just confused.

"So, would you tell me why you were mad all day?"

"I was jealous." He admitted bluntly. "I know I shouldn't have been but I was. I normally had you all to myself so it was annoying when Vivian or Prim were all over you."

I laughed lightly. Vivian? Prim?... Prim? Really? I got why he was jealous of Vivian; he knew about our relationship, but Prim? That girl gave me the chills.

Mark continued, "It's not funny, Ian. Think about it. You aren't gay or anything like that and you were alienated by the girls for months. I thought you would realize your feelings for me weren't real and would leave me. And of course, I can't keep you with me forever; I'm supposed to be your sad best friend."

"Mark-"

"No, I know. But you can't blame me. I even noticed the space you gave me. I just didn't understand why.

"I like you, Ian." He confessed, looking at me. "And it's not the same thing I had with Tom. It's deeper but my guilt is riding me real hard for all the times I had hit you. For all the times I left you to be with Tom. Your brother also asked me, if you were makig me happy, if all the times you left him, you were making me happy and I said yes. Because it's true.

"You helped me control my anger -most of my anger, you showed me what it was like to like people, you gave me a better mother figure... Ian, you saved me." Mark propped his hand on the bed and turned to me, reaching for my face to wipe the tears that were leaking.

"You saved me Ian but all I ever did to you was-

I covered his lips with mine, knowing very well what he was about to say and I didn't want to hear it. All I wanted to hear was Mark telling me how much he liked me. I didn't care if he had hit me, he hadn't done it in a while. All he did now was ask me how to atone for all the times he had. But those times were a long time ago. The anger had drained right out of me.

I felt nothing but love for Mark. Why couldn't he see that?

Mark's hand slid to cup my head, slipping his tongue into my mouth and I gasped at the fact that he was kissing me. I let his tongue stroke mine as my hand grazed his cool chest, my thumb playing with a nipple.

He pulled away to moan and I came on top of him, kneeling on either side of his waist. Leaning down, I slid my hands up his chest until I was cupping his face in my hands. "Go out with me Mark. I really do like you. No, I love you."

Tearing up, Mark reached his hands up to touch my face but they fell back to cover his tear filled face. "Why do you have to be so good to me?"

He let the tears fall and I kissed his cheeks then placed a light one on his lips. Mark didn't stop crying but managed to hold me against him.

Mark was a terrible crybaby. Yet, I loved this crybaby.