The Trip

Sorry for the delay in this chapter. Summer just got away from me and I lost all track of time and I had to buy a new computer since the old one went. Here is my disclaimer. This is story is not real, any person portrayed in this story are completely fictional and any similarities are coincidental. Always practice safe sex and use condoms. This story is not a short quick read it has many details so you can get to know the guys better. And I would like to thank my awesome beta/editor Shell for helping me out giving me tips and guidelines to help better enhance the story! Again sorry for the long wait I promise chapter 4 will not take this long! So here is Chapter 3 of The Trip The Storm Fury!

Everyone in the house jumped when they heard the tree crashing to the ground. Josh and Jason quickly ran back into the house to get away from the storm, which was releasing its full force. Jason walked over to the kitchen and grabbed the flash light that was sitting on the counter.

Shane came down the stairs guiding Justin, who was still shaken up from what had just happened.

"You guys to stay here in the living room while I go turn on the generator, it should only take me a few minutes." Jason replied as he opened the door to the basement.

"Should we go and get Steve?" Mark asked.

"Leave him in the room till I get the lights on, I think he'll be okay till then," Jason replied.

While Jason was down in the basement Josh turned on the battery powered weather radio to try and find out what was going on with the storm. Initially he had trouble getting good reception but he finally did.

This is a message from the National Weather Service. The hurricane has intensified in the listening area and we advise that everyone get to the lowest level of your home or building. Please stay away from all windows and doors do to the high winds and debris. High winds could cause severe damage, downing trees and power lines. Please stay away from any power lines that are on the ground. The eye of the storm will reach the listening area around midnight EST. Stay tuned to this station for any further development of the storm.

"Holy shit! I can't imagine this getting any worse," Mark exclaimed.

"Don't say that. You know what happens in the movies when people say that, it gets a lot worse." Josh said trying to ease the tension.

It only took Jason about five minutes to get the power back on to the house. When he got back upstairs Josh relayed to him what the radio station had said about the storm.

"Why don't you guys head down stairs? I'm going to go and try and get Steve to at least come to the living room. As much shit as he is in right now I don't want anything to happen to him up there." Jason suggested.

Josh took Justin by the hand, who appeared to be retreating further inward by the minute, and carefully walked him down to the basement. He sat Justin on the couch and looked over the work Shane had done on his injuries.

"He really did a number on you; I'm sorry love. I never in a million years thought Steve would ever do a thing like that." He assured him.

Justin sat unresponsive and studied the floor. He had withdrawn so far into himself he really didn't hear a word Josh spoke to him; he started to close his eyes.

Shane moved and squatted in front of Justin, meeting his eyes, "Justin, I want you to try and stay awake for now, you hit your head hard on the bed post and I want to make sure you don't have a concussion. Do you think you can stay awake for me?"

Justin mutely nodded his head in agreement.

"Do you think he's going to be okay?" Josh asked as Shane straightened to move back to his seat.

"I think so, but as a precaution I want him to stay awake, to be sure," Shane gave his worried friend a smile for encouragement.

"Okay, I'll try and keep him awake."

As Jason descended the steps Josh noticed the look of frustration on his face.

"I take it Steve is going to be stubborn and not come down," Josh guessed.

"Nope, he told me that he didn't want to be bothered by anyone. I think he might still be a little drunk so I wasn't going to try and set him off." Jason replied as he looked over at Justin.

"Is he going to be okay?"

"Yeah we just have to try and keep him awake for a couple of hours to make sure."

"Hey Justin, do you want to watch a movie or play a game?" Mark asked as he walked over to him.

He just shook his head. Josh was really starting to worry about his little angel; he had never seen him like this before and it was starting to weigh on his heart. He knew that he had to try and help him feel better; he knew Justin's favorite TV show was the Golden Girls and they always made him laugh.

"Do you guys mind with we watched the Golden Girls, it's Justin's favorite."

"Anything to help man," Mark answered as he turned on the TV. Grateful for whatever he could do to be useful.

"I'm going to go and get Justin a change of clothes." Josh remarked and he looked at Justin's torn and bloody clothes. "Would one of you sit next to him so he feels safe?"

"I'll sit with him," Shane said as he walked over.

"I'll go make some popcorn and get some drinks and whatever other snacks we have, I'm kinda hungry." Mark suggested.

"Justin I'm going to go and get you a change of clothes from the room, Shane is going to sit here with you till I come back." He probably didn't need to repeat everything to Justin, but he wasn't showing any sign he was aware of what was going on. Josh needed him to feel safe enough to rejoin him.

Josh made his way up the stairs pondering only the now hollow blue eyes of his love. When Josh entered the room he again took notice of the mess, but this time it really hit him hard. Seeing Justin's blood on the floor was just too much for him to handle; he finally broke down and cried. He body was wracked by his tears, so hard it felt as if his lungs were going to burst.

His world up until this point had pretty much been easy enough to navigate. When he set his mind to something he accomplished it, football, academics, even girls. Now when it really mattered he was helpless. He hadn't protected his angel from Steve, he wasn't sure how to keep him away from his father, and what was he to do if the cancer succeeded; taking his love away. Josh wept for his lack of control over anything wallowing in his sense of helplessness, surrounded by the evidence of his incompetence. He had cried himself out and begun to pull himself together when Mark knocked on the door.

"Hey, snacks are ready." He announced as he opened the door, "Are you okay?" Mark asked seeing Josh's tear stained face.

"Not really." Josh said trying to stop the tears as a new crying jag threatened to overtake him.

"Why not? I mean being in hurricane is bad, but this place seems alright... and Shane says Justin should be fine," Mark sat next to Josh.

"I promised him back at the motel that no one would ever hurt him again, and now look what happened. I let him down he won't even talk to me. What if he thinks I set this whole thing up?" Logically Josh knew there was a slim possibility of that, but slightest chance Justin would think him responsible for his injuries weighed on his mind.

"Whoa, I really doubt he is thinking that. You saved him before Steve could really do anything worse. You saw the look in his eyes when he was on top of Justin; if you didn't get there when you did.....ugh I don't even want to think about it."

"But you don't get it, I made him a promise."

"What are you one of those psychics from the TV shows? You have ghosts whispering warnings in your ear? Tingles up your back when dangers lurking? No, nothing like that?" Mark's brown eyes took on their usual mischievous glint as he queried his guilt ridden friend. "None of us ever would have thought this would happen. You ran up those stairs the moment you heard a noise and you stopped Steve. You kept your word." Mark said as Josh allowed some of his guilt go. "And what did you mean by hurt him again?"

Josh sighed; he had already mentioned it so there was no use in denying it. He had only been carrying Justin's secret for little over a day and it was proving to be a difficult confidence for him to keep, "His dad, he beats him."

"I'm going to ask a question and I know I'm going to regret it but is that were that scar came from?"

"You saw the scar?" Josh's eyes widened in disbelief.

"We all saw it when he was getting outta the lake," Mark admitted. It was easier to pretend not to have seen it, especially since he was the one who had pushed Justin in the water.

"Shit, I thought I was the only one that saw it." Josh was immediately worried over how Justin would react to everyone having seen his scar. The memory of the shame in his eyes as he showed him rocked him to the core.

"No, we all did cause Steve came up to me when you guys where in the house, and asked if I saw it, but I lied and told him I didn't."

"Damn. Yeah his dad carved that into him. It's a long story and it's not my place to go and tell it." Josh looked around, intent upon completing his original errand. He moved to stand up, but Mark seemed to have something more he wanted to say.

"Um, so you and Justin are together?" Mark ventured, feeling foolish for asking the obvious.

"Yeah, is that going to be a problem for you?" Josh's emerald green eyes hardened.

"No, not a problem, not in the way you'd think. I mean this means you're gay, and Justin's gay, and apparently so is Steve. If I had a problem with gays I'd have to instantly hate three of my best friends. I'm not that big of an idiot." Mark shrugged his shoulders and paused, gathering his thoughts.

"I'm not all that good with the emotional stuff, but whatever you need let me know. Justin's downstairs and he's really hurting, not just the outside. From what you told me I kind of see why and, if Justin ever feels like telling us then it's up to him. But I hope you're not going to let him go back to his dad?"

"Hell no! Jason and I were talking about that before the tree crashed. I'm trying to figure out how I'm going to bring it up to my parents."

"Well, I would just tell them as soon as you can. You don't want to let Justin go back to his house even for a night; god only knows what his dad would do to him." Relief showed in Mark's face.

"I know but the cell phone reception out here is horrible. The only place I can get decent service is outside and I'm not going out there now."

"Maybe there's a land line here? Your parents have to know before we all come back so they can get things taken care of."

"It's not as easy as that. You see, Justin's sick. He has cancer, and the wonderful friend I am I didn't even ask what kind he has." Josh couldn't stop himself from inventorying the ways he was a not what he needed to be for Justin.

"You still need to tell your parents. Tell them that he is sick too, they need to know so they can help him."

"I know I do. I just hope Justin isn't too mad at me for telling my parents. He made me promise not to tell anyone."

"There comes a point when you have to break a promise to someone, especially when it comes to them being in danger."

Josh regarded Mark for a moment; he wasn't the 'thinker' in their group. "You're right. I'll ask Jason if there is a phone here and if not I'll have to call when the storm is over."

"Good. I know everything is going to turn out okay. Justin is lucky to have you fighting in his corner. You have always been there for him, since he moved here you protected him. Now he's your boyfriend and you guys can openly ogle one another I guess you'll be twice as protective." Mark said as he gave Josh a playful nudge as they stood.

Mark's frame was disappearing through the door when Josh called out, "Thanks Mark... for everything."

Mark turned, nodded his acknowledgement and closed the door behind himself.

Mark's words gave Josh a boost of confidence and reassurance that everything was going to work out. Josh got a pair of pajama bottoms and a clean shirt for Justin to wear. When he got back to the basement he saw that Justin was on the couch watching the TV and Shane was still sitting next to him.

"How's he doing?" Josh asked as he walked over to Shane.

"He really hasn't said anything, but I think he's still in shock."

"Thanks for sitting with him."

"Not a problem."

"Hey love, I got you a change of clothes." Josh said as he moved toward Justin. "Do you want me to help you or do want to do it yourself?"

"Y-you can help i-if you want." Justin stuttered as he tried to get up.

He grimaced when he put weight on the leg he had fallen on, Josh slipped his arm around him, helping him up and walked him to the bathroom in the basement. Justin was having a hard time bending and moving his arms which made changing clothes a grueling process. As he helped take off Justin's bloody shirt he took notice to where the bruises were going to form. He lightly kissed the big red mark on the side Justin had landed on. Justin let out a small gasp when he felt Josh's lips touch him.

"I love you. I'm sorry I wasn't able to protect you from Steve. Can you forgive me?" Josh asked as tears started to fill his eyes.

"T-there is nothing t-to be s-sorry about, it's n-not your f-fault." Justin leaned in and gave Josh a sweet little kiss. "I-I love y-you t-too."

Some of the guilt Josh was carrying eased with the revelation. As they made their way back to the couch each step with Justin in his arms lightened his mood. Josh invited Justin to lay his head on his lap, and he smiled as Justin did just that. While Justin was laying there he felt Josh's hand come up and start to stroke his hair, he was back in the arms of the one who made him feel safe. Justin tried to stay awake but he was drained and with Josh stroking his hair he couldn't help but fall asleep.

"Shane is it okay that he fell asleep?" Josh whispered so as not to wake Justin.

"Yeah I think enough time has gone by and he didn't show any signs of having a concussion."

Josh nodded and went back to rubbing Justin's hair. He watched his sleeping angel as he lay peacefully on his lap. He couldn't understand how anyone could hurt someone as beautiful and innocent as Justin. He knew that he had to do everything in his power to make sure Justin was going to be okay.

*****

It was about 6:15 in the morning when Josh started to wake up. He had a horrible ache in his neck from the way he had fallen asleep on the couch. He looked down and noticed that Justin was still sound asleep on his lap. He gingerly lifted Justin up and slid a pillow under his head trying not to wake him. Once he crept across the room he made his way up the basement stairs and into the kitchen when he saw Jason sitting at the counter.

"Would you like something to eat?" Jason asked.

"Yes. I'm starving."

"I can make some eggs with bacon if you'd like?"

"Whatever is easiest for you."

"It's not a problem. How would you like your eggs?" Jason asked as he walked over to the fridge.

"Hmmm, how about scrambled?"

"Coming right up." Jason said with a humorous tone. "How's Justin doing?"

"He's still sleeping. He didn't get up once all night."

"I'm sure the poor kid is drained."

"You remember yesterday when we were talking, and you told me that I need to tell my parents what's going on with Justin?"

"Of course I remember, right before that tree came down and scared the crap out of me."

"Well, I want to call them and let them know before we get home. But for the life of me I can't get any reception out here."

"The storm might have knocked down a cell tower. The reception out here was never the greatest, 98% coverage and we are right in that 2% that isn't covered." Jason laughed. "Use the land line here, the phone is over on the wall in the dining room."

"Thanks, I was going to ask if there was one here. Is it going to work without power?"

"Yeah it pulls its power straight from the phone line. As long as the phone lines weren't knocked down it should work."

" I won't be on it long since it's going to be long distance."

"Dude don't worry about it, that phone never gets used."

Josh was very nervous as he dialed his home phone number. When his mother picked up the phone she knew right away that something was wrong.

"Hi mom, how are you doing?"

"Josh it's so good to hear your voice. Your father and I were worried, we have been following the hurricane on the news and it is a massive one. How are things with you?"

"Not bad. We lost power yesterday afternoon but the generator is on so we have some lights and can cook food. Other than that everything is fine." Josh was starting to chicken out, but his mother knew otherwise.

"Joshua, it is not good to lie to your mother. I carried you for nine months, you think I don't know you better than that. Now why don't you tell me what is going on." She said firmly.

Josh sighed, he wasn't sure if his mother's ability to peg him so well was a good or a bad thing. It really didn't matter all that mattered was Justin and his need for protection. "Is dad there? I think he needs to hear this at the same time you do."

"I don't like the sound of this but he is right here."

"Hi son. What's going on?" He could hear the worry in his father's voice.

"I have something very important I need to tell the both of you, and please don't do anything till we have talked it over."

Both parents agreed and waited for Josh to tell them what was going on.

"You know my friend Justin? Well he's having problems at home."

"What kind of problems?" His mother asked.

"Well, he's gay and his dad is not so happy about that. He has been taking it out on him."

"What do you mean taking it out on him?" His father spoke deliberately.

"His dad beats him."

"Josh are you sure? I'm not doubting you, but the accusation of abuse is something you have to be completely sure about." His mother questioned.

"I think the words 'faggot slut' carved into his back is proof enough. Please excuse my language."

Silence greeted the revelation.

"How long has this been going on, and why hasn't he said something to anyone?" Cindy asked.

"I'm not real sure how long mom, I only found out the night we left. I guess a long time, but it's getting worse. I do know he's scared to death of his dad. The man has told him many a times that if he ever told anyone that he would kill him, and I really think he would."

"He cut those words into his son's flesh and beats him using the excuse that he is gay. No man would do that to his own son! There is absolutely no reason to hurt someone just because they are gay. I think it is perfectly clear that Justin is not going back to that house!" Jeff exclaimed.

Josh was relieved his parents were now on Justin's side, but he had to finish explaining why Justin was in need of more than a safe haven. "Wait there is one other thing. Justin has cancer and he's afraid that if he leaves his father won't pay for the treatment."

"What kind of cancer does he have?" Cindy asked.

"I'm not sure, I never asked him." Josh was instantly embarrassed he did not know that detail.

"Don't worry about that. We will deal with that as well, but when you guys leave there you come right here. Even if his dad calls and tells him to come home first you don't. When you come home your mother and I will have worked out as much as we can."

"I wouldn't tell Justin what is going on. If he is that afraid of his father, then God only knows how he will react. I know it seems wrong to hide it from him but if he knew he might try and get out of it. Don't say anything to him, try and act like you don't know anything." Cindy added.

"Thanks mom and dad," the words seemed so inadequate for how Josh felt. His realized again how amazing his parents were. "You have no idea how much this means me that you are going to help Justin."