Work Text:
“I swear to God, Jake, I’ll punch you in the fucking throat-“
The noise that filled their small apartment were atrocious. Those thuds and bangs were enough to drive any man mad, not to mention the agony-filled screams that clearly ripped from Marina’s throat.
He could see Bill’s desperation.
“I’m sorry, Bill, I’m sorry but you can’t-“
And the screaming stopped, only silence hung in the air.
“See? It stopped. It stopped.”
Jake’s hands continued to grip Bill’s shoulders, but his grip significantly loosened. Their faces were pressed close enough together for Jake to see the tears welling in Bill’s eyes.
A beat.
“You’re okay.”
Bill’s eyes darted around before he forcefully pushed himself out of Jake’s grasp. He paced around the kitchen, still a bit frenzied like a wild animal, running his hands through his mussed hair. The tension radiating from him was enough to fill the room. He could hear the small sniffles from across the room as he tried using the palms of his hands to scrub away tears.
It pained Jake to see.
“Bill, settle down-“
“Leave me alone!”
Jake sighed, putting up his hands. He began to approach Bill slowly, hands still raised like he was nearing a wounded animal.
“Bill...”
A haughty silence rang in the air and Bill stopped pacing. He took a shaky breath.
“The way she screams- She sounded exactly like Clara when Frank... She would cry and yell and he said he’d kill me if I told anyone what he was doin’ to her.”
Jake didn’t know what to do. There were mandatory child protection courses Jake had been put through before he became a teacher, but none of that was any use when Bill was no longer a child nor were they in 2016 where Jake could simply call services. He was never taught how to comfort someone who had been abused.
“It’s fuckin’ stupid. Now piss off, asshole.” He spat, voice shaky and filled with fear. There was no true malice behind his words, Jake knew he was only being defensive - like he was protecting himself the only way he knew how.
“Come on, don’t be like that-“
“Shut up! You don’t- You wouldn’t ever get it-!”
“BILL!”
Jake immediately regretted raising his voice when Bill’s entire body tensed and the room went silent. The colour drained from Bill’s face and he glanced at the door as if he was planning to run but stood still nonetheless.
His fists clenched by his side, fear taking the form of tears in his eyes.
“Bill...”
There wasn’t a response and in some ways, that was the scariest.
His hands were still up when he neared Bill who was still frozen on the spot.
“It’s okay. It’s okay.”
Carefully, he pulled Bill into a hug. Jake’s hand made it’s way to his hair, softly caressing the back of Bill’s head. He could feel the tension leaving Bill in waves, melting into Jake’s embrace.
“I’d never hurt you. You know that, right? You’re here with me now.”
Bill was silent, his whole body shaking with tremors and trying to bite back sobs. He couldn’t cry in front of Jake - Jake who was calm and collected and so much more incredible than he could ever dream to be. If he cried in front of Jake, would he still love him or only view him as weak?
“It’s okay, Bill.”
Jake would never hurt him. Jake would never hurt him because Jake wasn’t Frank or his dad, and he wouldn’t hurt him (or his sister if she were still around) because they were friends. More than friends - partners, in more ways than one.
It was going to be okay.