Grian didn't like this. He had been on edge the entire day. He couldn't get any sleep last night, but who could blame him, some crazy guy was coming after one of his boyfriends and despite how that may sound, none of them were willing to share.

He'd been in his room all day; only going out to eat and assure the others that he was fine. Currently, he was sitting on his desk. Yes, sitting on his desk. Snowcone was clutched in his arms as he stared out the window, watching as people scurried by on the sidewalks. Their dorm was too far up for him to recognize people, not that he minded - he just liked watching them. Most were heading towards the parking lots, heading off for Spring Break. Others stopped at benches, watching as the sun started slowly setting over the horizon.

Grian wondered if the school had tightened security. If they had told the other students that someone broke into campus. He felt like they should, there were a lot of wealthy, important kids going to the school and even if they weren't going to be here for the next week, their parents should be notified. But, his mother hadn't shown any signs of knowing so he assumed they were keeping it on the down-low. A part of him was grateful for that; he didn't want her to worry about him, nor demand that he come home for the break.

A light knock on his door made him turn. J peaked his head in, "Can we talk?"

Uh oh. Grian nodded.

J closed the door behind him and moved to sit beside Grian on the desk. "Before I even begin, is there anything you want to tell me?"

Grian hugged Snowcone tighter, "You sound like a parent."

J smiled, "I suppose I do."

Grian could feel him studying the side of his face before he sighed, "Why didn't you tell us?"

"Tell you what?"

"Don't play dumb. I know you're not. Granted, I should've seen the signs much sooner and I was going to talk to you about it yesterday, but obviously other things happened."

Grian nodded, "Which is why you shouldn't worry. There are other more important things to focus on right now."

"Grian. Look at me."

Grian peeked up from behind Snowcone to meet J's gentle gaze, "You are important. You're just as important as the others. Your safety and happiness are both things that none of us take lightly. I guarantee you that if I had told the others about your little bullies, they would have stormed down to the school today and taken care of them. Crazy stalker or not."

"Yeah, but-" "Grian, you're hurt," J lifted up his shirt carefully to look at the bruise on his side, "This is serious."

"I know that but-" "I'll wait until Spring Break ends. If you haven't told them, then I will."

Grian nodded, knowing there was no point in arguing, "Fine."

J dropped his shirt and leaned his head against his shoulder, staring out the window. "You know, we're supposed to have all the curtains drawn."

"Shh. I wanna watch the sunset."

They watched as more orange streaks filled the sky.

J hummed, "It is really pretty."

Grian thought about yesterday and the story Sam and J had shared with them. He didn't want to ruin the peaceful moment, but if J could worry about him, then he could worry about J too.

"You said you lived near your grandmother before, right?"

J sat up, "Yes."

"And that your parents lived somewhere else."

J gave a small smile, "I was wondering when you'd pick up on that. You seem to pay a lot of attention to minor details."

"Your parents didn't want a kid," Grian didn't have to guess like J had told him before, they were told they couldn't have one and then -bam- a bouncing baby boy.

"No, they didn't. My grandmother was ecstatic though. She had always wanted a grandchild. She made them move me closer to her when I started going to school, especially after she found out the nannies were basically raising me. You know, neither of my parents have even held me."

"J-" He cut him off again, "It's not that bad. Most of the students here have similar stories, I assure you. Besides, my grandmother and nannies gave me more than enough attention. I was always an easy child, I don't require much."

"Is grandmother still around?" Grian cringed at his wording, he should have found a better way to share the question.

J shook his head, "She passed not even a week after Sam and I left. She went in her sleep. It was almost like she knew I would have my hands full. I wouldn't be alone."

Grian set Snowcone aside and wrapped his arms around J, who smiled at him, "It's fine, really. My parents aren't the most attentive, sure, but I prefer that to hovering. They let me do whatever I want and they're really lucky all I ever do is study."

"And make out with your four boyfriends," Grian teased.

"Sure, but I've never really had any of you over. And Sam and I only started dating when we met Taurtis and Dom."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Sam was... very cautious about things after Justin. Sure, I had liked Sam for a long time, but I knew that he needed a friend, not a lover. I was surprised when he met Taurtis and got so attached. I thought it would take him years to be able to trust like that again."

"That's why he doesn't like to be restrained. Why he likes to see us. It reminds him of..."

"Yeah. It's also why he's sensitive about his back. He has scars. Justin carved his name into him. That's how I know who it was."

Grian felt sick. He couldn't imagine what Sam must be feeling. This guy tormented him for years and just when he thought he was safe, he showed up again. Grian was angry that he thought he could get away with it. That they wouldn't do everything in their power to protect Sam.

Grian wished that he could do more. He wished that he could call someone and get it all sorted out, but he didn't have that power. His mother had money, but not that kind of money. It made him realize just how far above them Taurtis was. He was so far out of their league that it wasn't even funny.

The Music's had it all; power, money, beauty, even fear. They sat high above towering over everyone else, daring them to make a mistake or try to step out of line. They built their empire to never fall, ensuring that no one could tarnish their reputation. They were gods in every sense of the word. If Taurtis called them, Justin wouldn't know what hit him.

"You have to let Taurtis help," Grian's voice was small, but J heard him.

J sighed, "The Music's can't win, it won't work."

"That's bull and you know it, J. They're powerful and I'm sure it's not just because they're smart business owners."

"This could destroy everything for them."

"You saw how much Alice loved her son. She took Dom in because he needed help. I'm sure she'd be more than okay with risking everything for Sam. Besides, it's their decision. If they want to help, we should at least give them the option."

"I'm still waiting a week," J crossed his arms.

Grian shook his head, "You're so stubborn."

"It's a gift, truly."

Grian smiled and leaned further into J. He was still scared, and for a good reason, but he was more hopeful that they'd be able to deal with this. Sam would be fine. They all would be fine. He just had to hang on to enough hope to believe that it would be true.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Hey guys, I adore J. He's so great. I love all of them, really. But J's wonderful. A bit of a hypocrite with giving Grian the whole "you're just as important as everyone else speech" but we're all hypocrites at some point in our lives. It was my great grandmother's 95th birthday this past week. We all met up in a video call to sing her happy birthday and watch her eat cupcakes. My aunt also drove down to deliver us some cupcakes since we live just four houses away. They were really good. Anyways, I hope you all have a wonderful day, I hope you're all doing well and keep doing well, and I'll see you all in the next chapter, Bye~!
~PinkBoss