[TIER 10] IATL: Chapter 1 (part 2) (Patreon)

Warning for prostitution, forced prostitution of minor (barely legal, almost 18), rape, violence, drug abuse and killings.

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Chase shakes his head in resigned embarrassment. He had made a fool out of himself in front of Gabriel. He squeezes his eyes tight in shame. Did he actually ask him for advice on how to prepare for a gangbang? God, he wants to hide his face and never let it out into the open again. He'd totally made it up too. Lucas hadn't even told him to speak to Gabriel.

When Chase found out that he'll be doing the session tonight with Gabriel, he thought he might puke a little. He was so nervous. The reason being is that he's nursing a crush the size of Texas on the guy. Ever since he came to Lawrence two months ago and started school at Lawrence High.

He had seen Gabriel around school with his too blue eyes and messy hair. He would fit right in with the mysterious broody type yet his sadness seems real. Too real. Chase just can’t put his finger on what it was. Gabriel intrigued him. And he’s pretty to look at too. Every English and Biology lesson was spent surreptitiously watching him. The dude is often alone, and he keeps mostly to himself.

Chase just thought he might be shy or something, but then he noticed the bruises. It wasn't exactly like a neon sign, in fact, it's subtle. If Chase hadn't been stalking or staring at him as much as he had, he probably wouldn't have noticed.

Gabriel always wore loose fitting sweaters to school. Which isn't abnormal. It was winter after all. But sometimes, the too big sweater collar would move, and Chase noticed the hand shaped bruises around his neck. At first he was shocked. Part of him wanted to ask, help but another part of him was unsure. He didn't know what to do or what to say so he chose the ignorant way out. He kept quiet.

The bruises continued to show up but not frequently. They don't seem to be the bad kind of injuries either. Sometimes, they looked like hickeys. Other times, rope burns. Maybe Gabriel just has a kinky sex life. Except one day, he saw Gabriel limped out of a van. He looked like shit. A man, whom Chase now knows as Lucas, helped him out. He saw him kiss Gabriel on the lips and felt his heart soared and plummeted at the same time.

Gabriel is gay! But he also has a boyfriend. Who probably was the one marking him. And judging from the way Gabriel’s walking, fucked his brains out Chase thought, burning with jealous rage. At least, that’s what he imagined happened at the time. How was he to guess the truth?

Then of course, things had gone to shit. His dad didn't come home. He was away for almost a month. The rent was coming up. There was no money left. The food in the cupboard was dwindling. Towards the end, it had gotten so bad that Chase had to go out and steal because it's been two days since they'd last eaten. It was just his luck that on his second attempt, he got caught.

The whole story came out then. Social services came and dragged them out of their house and then they had accused dad of negligence. When Chase tried denying, they told him that he'd taken off. They had seen many cases like this before. Chase wanted to tell them bullshit. They don’t know his dad. They don’t know his reasons for leaving. He was not a flight risk no matter what they said. He always came home.

Something must have happened. He found something or- someone found him. Chase tried to file a missing person report but all his attempts were ignored. They don’t believe that his dad was missing. He was not there because he wanted to not because someone made him.

Next thing he knew, he was thrown into this hell hole. That was three weeks ago and everything about Gabriel made sense then. The fact that he never made eye contact, always staring at the ground and flinched when someone got close. Chase was surprised to see him at the home. And Lucas. He didn’t know Gabriel was an orphan. Or that Lucas was responsible for him. How is it ethical to sleep with your charges? It’s not. Frankly, the group home gave him the creep the moment he stepped into the threshold. Something was definitely off.

At least, he got Sam with him. He was so afraid social services would separate them. Sam's still young. He has a higher chance of adoption. But Chase's been told that it differs per case. In theirs, it was in Sam’s best interest to be with family.

On second thought, though maybe Sam would be better off someplace else. Because what happened behind closed doors at the group home is an atrocity. The first night he was there, he overheard a conversation between Lucas and Gabriel. The gist of it was enough to clue him in on what's happening. That same night he had heard the moans and beds creaking throughout the home. His heart burned when he saw the old farts exiting Gabriel's room. Moments later, Gabriel limped out, his head bowed, and he saw the marks on him. The bruises. And fuck it all.

Not two days later, Lucas had forced him into the scene. Like hell. He fought with everything he had. He punched and kicked like how dad taught him, but it was pointless. He only managed to stem off his fate for another two days before a man named Alastair came and turned his life into a living hell. That night, he was raped for the first time. And it wasn't by that one man either. He had brought along his 'friends' and they had all taken a turn with him like he was some kind of meat.

His back tingles with phantom pain as he thinks about it. What happened next was something he rather forgets. He sighs and closes his eyes. How is he going to survive the night with Gabriel right there with him? It's been two months now. A month since he figured out Gabriel is with Lucas, and yet, his crush had not dimmed in the slightest. He's hopeless. Chase bangs his head twice on the door to his room, groaning frustratedly before he lets himself in.