Noah.
My gut fell to the floor as I answered. There was one reason why my best friend would be calling at one in the morning. And there would be nothing good of it.
“Noah.” I had to clear my throat to get my voice to work. Stupid aftereffects of the anti-anxiety meds.
“Asher.” If I wasn’t on alert, I sure was now as he sobbed my name.
“What’s wrong?” His piece of crap boyfriend better not have hit him. His choices in that department were next to dog shit.
“C-c-can I c-c-ome over?”
“You never have to ask.” It took more work than it should have to keep my own emotions under wraps. “Where are you? I can come get you?”
“Outside.” He sniffed.
I pushed my way from the couch to head to the door. “Outside where?”
“You’re....place.”
“Do you want me to meet you, or can you make your way up?” I asked, unlocking the door and debating on putting shoes on or not. The stairs weren't the cleanest, but I’ve been through worse. Some dirty carpet was the least of my concerns.
“I....can...”
“I’ll meet you halfway, No-No.” his nickname slipped, which caused him to sob harder. “I’ll stay on the phone. One foot in front of the other.”
“K-kay.”
Neither of us spoke as I quickly made my way down the stairs. One stair had a sticky spot from when one of the neighbors dropped their six-pack of soda and one happened to explode. I skipped that one, letting my feet rush me down them as quickly as possible.
“Almost there.”
The only sound from Noah’s side was sobbing. At least I knew he was there, waiting for me.
We didn’t meet halfway. I found my best friend just inside the main doors, sitting on the floor with his head pushed against his bent knees.
My heart broke.
“I’m here, No-No,” I whispered, slowing my steps toward him. He was like a frightened animal, and there was no way I wanted to scare him more than he already was.
At my voice and shuffled steps, he looked up at me, his sobs catching in his throat. At the same time, I quickly took in his swollen eye and the black and blue bruises that covered his neck.
“Noah.” What the hell?
All he did was stare at me with a slow blink.
“Come on.”
It took him a moment to get back to standing. I ended the call, stuffing my phone into my pants pocket, then took it from his hand.
“There ya go. Good boy. Can you walk?”
He nodded, his sobs slowly stopping. Tears still fell, his chest still fighting for breath. I sure hoped he’d be able to walk because there was no way I could carry him up a flight of stairs. Not when he was taller than I was by at least three inches now that he finally hit his growth spurt. I would, though. I’d figure out a way to carry him.
He wobbled on the first step but then got his legs to hold his weight as we slowly made the way back up. Noah leaned against my side, his body shaking.
By the time we got back to the apartment, his phone was vibrating in my pocket. I ignored it, leading my friend to the couch before going back to locking my door.
Back in front of him, I knelt to be at eye level. It was then I saw the blood caked in his blond locks, thick and dark.
