“I’m here now,” said Tally, and he held Sam close.
Chapter 26
Thehospitalwantedtokeep him for observations. Tally refused to leave and the nurse gave up arguing with him. Clearly resigning herself to the fact that Tally was going to stay the whole night.
Deirdre brought them both some clothes as well as snacks and toothbrushes. She fussed over both of them for a while, but the nurse was adamant about shooing at least one guest away when it was long past official visiting hours. So Deirdre left with a promise to be back first thing in the morning.
Sam felt guilty for not telling his friend everything, but consoled himself that the gangster stuff was scary enough on its own. She didn’t need to know about hellhounds and demons. It would only keep her up at night.
It felt a lot quieter after Deirdre left, and Sam realized how tired he was. Tally pulled a chair over to his bedside and continued to hold his hand as Sam fell asleep. As he drifted off, Sam mused that despite being in hospital after being kidnapped by gangsters, he had never been happier.
He awoke with a start in the pale dawn light. He glanced around, confused for a moment about what had woken him up before acknowledging it was probably just the unfamiliar surroundings. He was getting old and far too used to the comfort of his own bed, as well as spoiled by the delight of being snuggled up with Tally.
He looked over at Tally. The young man was curled up on his chair, knees tucked into his chest, arms around his legs and chin resting on his knees. He was wearing a black hoodie, with the hood up, and his blue eyes gleamed from the shadow.
Sam met his calm gaze and blinked. The hairs on the back of his neck prickling. He was suddenly certain he wasn’t looking at Tally.
“Benji?” he asked nervously.
The young man nodded.
Sam’s heart started to race, and he scrambled to a sitting position. “Is Tally…?” he blurted, panic spiraling through him.
“He hasn’t gone,” reassured Benji, “Just meditating or something.” He explained in a voice so like yet unlike Tally’s.
Sam shuddered, it was incredibly unnerving. He wondered what Benji wanted? Was the young man angry, was he seeking to take back control of his body?
“He didn’t mean to steal you,” Sam blurted in a pathetic attempt to appease. His chest tightened with anxiety. He did not know how to deal with this, yet dealing with this successfully was the most important thing in his universe. Sam needed Tally, needed him more than anything.
Benji smiled, “I know, it’s okay.”
Benji’s eyes portrayed calm, with a hint of wry amusement. He didn’t look angry or vengeful. Sam held his gaze for a long while, searching, making sure he wasn’t missing anything. Eventually he released a breath he hadn’t realized he had been holding, and his fear started to trickle away.
“Are you in there all the time?” Sam asked uneasily, as the new thought took over.
“No, it’s like dreaming or being super high. Sometimes I see glimpses,” said Benji, not sounding the slightest bit concerned.
Sam wasn’t sure what to say to that. “We will figure something out, I’m sure,” he said, thinking the young man surely wouldn’t want to stay trapped like that forever. It seemed a cruel and unusual punishment, one Benji can’t have deserved.
Benji shrugged, “I don’t mind, my life was shit.” Then he grinned, “I like that my body is getting railed by you.”
Sam could only stare, trying not to completely freak out. It was a deeply unsettling idea. It made his stomach flip over. The thought of Benji somehow being there whilst he made love to Tally, was very uncomfortable. As was the reminder that it had been Benji’s body first.
“Tally will fix this,” Sam blurted, though to comfort himself or Benji, he couldn’t say.
Benji just shrugged again, “Don’t sweat it. I get to be high all the time for free and when I get glimpses of what Tally is doing, it’s all good. It’s fine. You have my blessing or whatever.”
Sam opened his mouth to try and say something, though he had no idea what, but Benji closed his eyes and when he opened them again, Sam found himself looking at Tally.
Sam whimpered a little from the disorientation of it all. Tally frowned, “What’s wrong?”
“I was just talking to Benji,” said Sam.
Blue eyes filled with dismay and grief, “Oh,” muttered Tally, sounding so sad and so guilty that Sam wanted to get out of bed and hug him. But he didn’t want to set the monitor he was connected to off beeping, so he grabbed Tally’s hand instead.
“He says he is fine with it. He is happy.” explained Sam.
Tally bit his bottom lip, “It’s not good though. It’s not fair to leave him trapped.”
