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.Blake gripped hard at his book and let out a hard breaththrough his nose.He let out a guttural noise of frustrationand threw his novel against his thigh, shoving his shouldersback against the couch as he ran his hands through his hair.Anger and helplessness burned hot in his chest and hebreathed through it, scratching hard at his scalp andshutting his eyes.God, he fucking hated this guy so much.He damn near jumped out of his own skin and let out asoft sound when he heard a voice say,  Hey, close to his leftear.His head snapped up and his eyes widened before herealized it was his best friend.He relaxed a little with ashaking breath, the helplessness lessening now that he hadan anchor.Ethan always knew how to calm him down evenwithout saying or doing anything, he thought with a surgeof loving affection deep in his chest. You okay? Ethan asked, concern evident on his face ashe settled down beside Blake, one hand moving to his knee,86Phoenixgripping bracingly like he already knew the answer.Blake just shook his head and moved his hand, curling itgently around Ethan s on his knee, needing to touch him insome way. Dominic, was all he said. Oh shit.What d he do this time? Ethan asked, his voicefull to the brim with protectiveness. Called out my worst fear and called me a freak, Blakesaid, shaking his head and swallowing hard with a heavysigh.He hated going over what had just been said, because itmade it feel all the more real. He asked if& if I wasembarrassed to be pretending to be something I m not. God, he is such a fucking asshole, Ethan muttered, andBlake shot him a look of slight confusion.It was very rare forBlake to see a flare of temper in his best friend because hewas always so peaceful. Do I detect some anger? Blake asked with a small smileon his face.Ethan shot him a look with his eyebrow raisedbefore shaking his head, even though by all intents andpurposes, it should have been a nod. Well, yeah, he is a fucking asshole and he shouldn t havesaid that to you, Ethan replied, looking completelyaffronted.His nose wrinkled ever so slightly as the disgustrolled through his system, and Blake couldn t help but findit cute.Completely adorable was probably the correct term. Yeah, I know, Blake said, his voice quieter than beforeas he picked up his book and started to fiddle with thepages, dog-earing them in his anxiety.He hated everythinghe was feeling right now.He felt like Dominic wascompletely right, that he was pretending and he should goback to being a girl.The idea of that created even moreanxiety, though. God, my head s a mess, he sighed after amoment. It s gonna be okay, B, Ethan said, any trace of theannoyance he d felt gone from his voice.Blake felt his back87Joey James Hookrelax as he felt his best friend s hand bracing his shoulder,and he leaned into the touch with a faint nod. I just wish he d fucking go away, he murmured, lettinghis head fall into his hands, fingers curling into his hair,movement laced with a tangible frustration. I feel awfulenough about myself without him targeting every single oneof my insecurities. That s what he s best at, B, but you can t let him get toyou like that, Ethan said, frowning deeply and gripping athis shoulder. I know it s easier said than done, but yougotta let it roll off you.Getting to you is what he wants, andI know you don t want to let him win, especially not withthis.He doesn t know what he s talking about, he reallydoesn t. I know, Blake groaned, scrubbing his face with hispalms until his cheeks flushed pink. I wish I knew how toshut him up without getting thrown out of school forkicking his ass. Be the bigger man? Ethan offered, and Blake lifted hishead.A slow smile came onto his face as he slowly nodded,licking over his lips. Maybe.That ll show him.Right? Blake asked, a flickerof doubt clouding his deeply furrowed brows.Ethan justgave him a small smile and nodded. Well, my dad always said a real man doesn t fight withhis fists, but deals with it in a mature way.Boys fight andthey ve got a lot of growing up to do.Dominic s not a man.He s a little boy who doesn t know what to do with thestrength he has.He s probably pretty insecure, too, probablymore than you.Show him what a man is, hmm? Ethanoffered, nudging Blake s shoulder gently with a soft smile. Yeah, you re right, Blake murmured, settling back intothe couch [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]