Gazes Into You by Alex Jane

Author:Alex Jane [Jane, Alex]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: General Fiction
Publisher: Alex Jane
Published: 2017-12-15T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Sixteen

The following morning, John led on his back, feeling Jason’s steady breath moistening the skin on his neck. John’s hand covered Jason’s fist where it clung to his t-shirt, reflexively clenching with every twist and turn Jason’s dream was taking. John felt exhausted. He had taken what seemed like an age to settle, but when sleep had finally come, it was broken, filled with repetitive dreams that left him more tired than if he had stayed awake.

Trying to clear his mind and relax was impossible. There was so much at stake. Jason’s safety—Jason’s life hanging in the balance—Sophie’s life, maybe even his own. But after his confrontation with Chris, all John’s attention was overwhelmed with how he was going to tell Jason the truth about the twisted way he had ended up in Jason’s life. On some level it seemed so easy. Just say it. Rip off the Band-Aid. Do it quick and deal with the burn. Except John couldn’t quite figure out how to even start that conversation; couldn’t quite find the words to explain it to himself, let alone to Jason.

Jason suddenly stopped breathing, breaking John’s train of thought. Jason held it for a second then breathed out a deep sigh, his fingers relaxing their tight hold on John for a moment. John took the opportunity to slip fully out of his grasp and out of bed. He needed the space. Plus, if Jason woke up with him still there, doubtless he would realize that John’s head was filled with something other than Jason’s little problem. Better for Jason to wake up alone than wake up to that.

John finally heard Jason stirring about ten. He refilled the mug he’d been using and poured out another, placing it on the table just in time to find Jason clumping and swinging his cast into the kitchen.

“You’re up early,” Jason yawned through the words, as he settled down into a chair.

John shrugged. “Couldn’t sleep. I didn’t want to disturb you.”

Jason pulled the coffee towards him, regarding, what John hoped was his poker face. “You didn’t disturb me. Is everything okay, John?”

For a second, John’s brain recognized that he could easily slide into having the difficult conversation he was avoiding. He genuinely thought about taking the opportunity, before his sense of self-preservation clamped down on his good intentions, crushing them completely. He forced a smile and shook his head. “Yeah. Yeah, just tired.”

Jason paused before he smiled back, seemingly buying John’s explanation, and filling John up with the horror of adding habitual liar to his resumé of offenses.

By the afternoon, John had managed to bury the intense sting of guilt under the even more intense boredom of trying to run background checks on all the staff at Tornados, along with the security firm employees that worked there. By three in the afternoon, he was about ready to waterboard himself with bourbon, so he left the office to get more coffee, and check on his roommate.

Jason was lying out on the couch,

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