Page 45 of Beck

BECK: I wasn’t there to protect you, but I’ll make sure you never go through that again.

Kole’s heart skipped several beats as he read the messages. As far as Kole was concerned, Beck rarely drank a lot, but he must’ve drunk a fair amount to be messaging him. Was it wrong for Kole to be considering messaging back while Beck was under the influence? Maybe. But was he going to do it, anyway? Hell, yes. He’d take Beck whichever way he could have him.

KOLE: There is nothing to forgive. You didn’t do this. Drake did. Don’t take his responsibilities onto your shoulders.

KOLE: Now, tell me, what do you need?

He waited. Would Beck reply or not? When the dots danced across the screen, he held his breath.

BECK: I have everything to be sorry for. If I had told sooner, Drake wouldn’t have done that to you.

KOLE: You said you did tell, and no one believed you. That wasn’t your fault.

He tucked himself into bed, dragging the cover over him as he waited for the next message.

BECK: I could’ve tried harder.

KOLE: Do you really think it would’ve worked?

He waited, then followed it up with another.

KOLE: Really?

BECK: I want to believe it would have.

KOLE: The world is cruel sometimes. A lot of times. But we can survive it all. With family. With friends. With partners. With anyone who means something. If we have that someone, we can fight our way through to the other side.

BECK: How did you get so wise?

KOLE: I blame my mother.

There was a long few minutes where Kole thought Beck had fallen asleep or something, but the dots appeared again.

BECK: I’m sorry.

KOLE: You only have something to be sorry for if you pull away, Beck. I’m here. Don’t push me away.

BECK: I’ll try.

BECK: I’m going to try to sleep off this alcohol. Night.

KOLE: Night, Beck.

Nothing else appeared, so Kole set his phone on the bedside table and slid onto his back, staring towards the ceiling. His entire being felt lighter after their conversation, but whether Beck would remember anything the following morning was the question. It depended on how drunk he truly was. He’d seemed fairly sound of mind.

Kole rolled over to his side, tucking his hand beneath his pillow. The next thing he knew, his body was protesting the need for more sleep when it needed the bathroom as well. He dragged himself to the toilet before splashing his face with cool water to help the discomfort of gritty eyes. When he sat on the edge of his bed to check his phone, he found another message waiting for him, but he startled as the current time caught his eye. He hadn’t slept until eleven in the morning for years. Clicking on the message, he grinned at Ethan’s words.

ETHAN: I’m assuming you’re asleep, and that’s why you’re not at work, and that’s a good thing. I’m also a little worried that something else has happened, but Joey has told me to stop being a mother hen, as did you last night. I’m trying. So I’m not tearing around to your apartment. Yet. If you’re not in touch by noon, all bets are off.

Kole snorted and typed a message back, letting Ethan know he was alive and would be in after lunch. Then he scrolled through the messages he and Beck had shared and chewed his lip. After a few minutes of deliberation, he sent one.

KOLE: Hope your head doesn’t hurt too much this morning. Let me know if you need any paracetamol. Or breakfast.

KOLE: Or rather brunch at this time of the morning.

Once he was satisfied that he’d kept the conversation open, he went for a shower. His body still ached from what had happened, but it was easier to move around than it had been the previous day, even if his bruises belied that thought. After his refreshing shower, he checked his phone again, shaking his head at how much he used the damn thing, but then that thought flew out of his head at a reply from Beck.

BECK: I’ll be at The Cuckoo if you’d like to join me for breakfast/brunch/lunch all rolled into one. Say half twelve?

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