Closed Run Away

[Zeke Carnahan]

Zeke didn't know how quickly his world could fall apart. It had all been going well. He was having fun at school, he was dating a great guy that he adored. And then his dad had decided they were too settled. So, he'd uprooted them. Again. Pulled Zeke out of school completely for a 'proper military training'. He'd been running Zeke from dusk till dawn until the day he'd finally had enough. It took him too long to figure out how to get away. But, eventually, he'd had enough. Zeke threw his things into his backpack, just enough to get by, and took off. It was easy enough getting away, back to the states. He only needed to make it away for two more weeks, before he turned eighteen and his dad wouldn't be able to force him to go home.

Zeke had made it back to the states, and he'd messaged Dominic and asked the boy to meet him at the playground. Zeke was worried- for all intents and purposes, Zeke had just taken off without a goodbye. He wouldn't be surprised if the other boy hated him now. Zeke was worried he had lost the older boy. He sat at the bottom of the backpack, his foot bouncing and his head in his hands. He had his bag between his legs, and he could feel his heart pounding furiously. This had a high probability of going very, very wrong.

 

[Dominic Torres]

Dominic had long since stopped expecting Zeke to call or write, so when he finally did he thought he might be hallucinating it. But the message was till there after he turned his phone off then back on again. When the reality of it set in he went through a whole range of emotions but mostly angry and sad. They had plans, for the summer and how they would manage with Dominic in California and Zeke still at Ilvermorny. But his instead his boyfriend had just vanished with out a word, ghosted. He had almost convinced himself it had all been a weird dream or something and that he had actually spent his last year at school falling for some kind of figment of his imagination.

Yet Dominic found himself agreeing to meet up with Zeke. When he arrived he felt angry all over again, that Zeke would have picked such a sentimental place to talk. Was he really trying to manipulate him like that? He crossed his arms over his chest as he spotted the other boy and approached him. “Hey.” he said bluntly but faltered slightly when he actually got a good look at him. Zeke looked exhausted and a lot thinner then the last time they had been together. Dominic could feel his hostile mood falter and he managed to bite his tongue before he said anything too harsh. “You look rough.” he finally choked out but kept his distance.

 

[Zeke Carnahan]

Zeke nearly jumped out of his skin when he heard the familiar voice. He stood automatically, shifting nervously. "Dom," He breathed, biting his lip. He felt awful, wincing as Dominic immediately called him on it. "Dom, I- I'm so sorry," he started, his voice breaking. "My dad, he- he pulled me from school, took us off to this backwoods property, pretty much right after the year ended. He said I needed a 'proper military training'." Zeke sighed, dropping back down on the playground equipment and sighing. "I ran away. Everything I have is with me," he spoke softly. "I have an aunt in Wyoming, I... I can crash with her I guess, I turn eighteen in two weeks and my dad can't make me go back after that. I just..."

Zeke ran his hands through his hair, trying to hide how upset he was. "I just... my dad was running me from dusk to dawn, he took my phone, I didn't... I couldn't... I know I just took off on you. I... I didn't want to, I just..." he let out a shaky sigh. "I know you probably hate me. I... I understand. I... I'll go if you want, I just..." Zeke rubbed his arm, staring at the ground. "I just needed to see you, tell you... it wasn't my choice. It probably doesn't matter, I just... I don't know, I had to." he sighed.

 

[Dominic Torres]

Dominic felt his heart break at the way the other boy jumped. He stood silently as Zeke started to explain himself, the words coming wave after wave. He hadn't said a word yet but he still felt out of breath when there was finally a pause. "Geeze Zeke...." he sighed and looked down at his feet and tried to collect himself. All of this felt so unfair. Part of him wanted nothing more than to take Zeke in his arms and tell him that everything would be ok but there was still a part of him that was still so angry. "Why didn't you tell me? A letter?" he asked, exasperated and his voice hoarse. "Maybe I could have done something." he added but he wasn't sure if that would have even been possible. Dominic frowned as Zeke began to apologize some more and he knew Zeke was trying but it wasn't helping. "No. Don't go." he sighed but his voice sounded sharper then he intended. Dominic didn't want to loose Zeke but things just couldn't snap back to where they were before. They were different people now, for better or worse.

 

[Zeke Carnahan]

Zeke felt a tiny little glimmer of hope as Dominic told him to stay. His shoulders slumped and he ran his hands over his shorter hair. "He gave our owl to my aunt before I got home," he replied quietly. "He said I needed to focus so I could start my 'military career' as soon as I came of age." Zeke sighed heavily. He ran a hand down his face, barely noticing as silent tears started to fall. "I knew if I let him get me into the service I'd be stuck," he curled in on himself. "I'm just... I'm so tired, Dom..."

 

[Dominic Torres]

Dominic almost felt like Zeke’s story was too hard to believe but he was trying very hard to remain rational even if he wanted to melt down completely himself. If it was a lie it was too big and specific for it just to be an excuse for why Zeke hadn’t contacted him for over six months. And he couldn’t ignore how rough the other boy, technically still his boyfriend, looked. Dominic had about a million questions and had no idea where to start, or even if his questions were worth asking. It wasn’t like anything he did now could change things. The tension in his shoulders fell when he noticed tears on Zeke’s face and he reached out to wipe them away with his thumbs. Dominic left his hands cupping the other boy’s face and sighed. “So what’s the plan now?” he asked. “Because you are not going home.” he said, his voice uncharacteristically harsh at the idea of Zeke having to deal with his father again. That would not happen if he had any say in the matter.

 

[Zeke Carnahan]

Zeke almost melted as Dominic put his hands on his face. Zeke brought his own hands up, pressing them to Dom's and letting out a shaky sigh. "Aunt. My aunt in Colorado. She's a bit of a hippie, she and dad don't get along." He sighed, brushing his thumbs over the backs of Dominic's hands. "I turn eighteen in two weeks, if I can just hold out he can't make me go back,"

Zeke sighed heavily, his hands drifting down to Dominic's wrists. He looked up to the other man from under his lashes. "Dominic, I... I know we can't go back. And I know it's my fault." He looked down, feeling ashamed. "I'm hoping maybe- maybe we can start again?" He asked, peeking up again. "I know I have no right to ask..." He spoke softly, biting his lip.

 

[Dominic Torres]

Dominic was slipping into full problem solving mode and listed carefully as Zeke explained the situation a bit better. He found him self nodding the more he talked. “Good. That’s good.” he said still wrapped up in his thoughts and hardly realized he had spoken at all. “You can go there and wait it out. Wait it out and we can go from there.” he added, his head moving on its own at this point while his mind raced hardly able to process anything else. He finally came back to himself when Zeke said his name. Dominic had nearly forgotten he was holding Zeke's head in his hands and blushed when he saw the way the other boy was looking at him. "You're right. We can't." he agreed, his voice barely more than a whisper. He had thought the same thing but hearing it said out loud hurt more than he expected, as he rubbed a finger over Zeke's cheek. "But I think we can...or at least try."

 

[Zeke Carnahan]

Zeke didn't realize he was holding his breath until he let it out. He relaxed, a few tears slipping unbidden down his face. "I, um... I'm not sure if I have the right to ask for a kiss," He gave Dominic a shaky smile, rubbing his thumbs over the boys wrists. "But can I have a hug?" He asked, his heart stammering in his chest. Zeke wasn't sure what his future looked like, but he really hoped Dominic would still be a part of it.

 

[Dominic Torres]

Dominic couldn’t help but crack a smile when Zeke asked about a kiss. The initial rush of emotions was starting to fade and the bluntness of the statement finally made the rest of hostility fall away. It would still take some time for him to trust the other boy again but he couldn't deny there was still a flutter in his chest when Zeke touched his wrist. "I think that's reasonable." he whispered with another smile tugging at the edge of his lips. Dominic gave a weak laugh before leaning down and kissing him on the cheek and wrapped his arms around him.

 

[Zeke Carnahan]

Zeke's breath caught as Dominic kissed his cheek. He shut his eyes, tears slipping out again as the other man pulled him closer for a hug. Zeke practically melted against Dominic, shutting his eyes and wrapping his arms around his waist. For the first time since Zeke had been pulled out of school, he felt his heart flutter with just a little bit of hope. If Dominic could really forgive him, if they could start over, then maybe Zeke might have a shot at that future he had dreamed of. He sighed, nuzzling in closer. The first thing Zeke wanted to do was grow his hair back out. He smiled at the thought and cherished the warmth of Dominic that surrounded him.