The Same Heartbeats Chapter 3
#3 of The Same Heartbeats
Before can anyone read the chapter, I here to tell you that this pretty much more of a drama story than a romance one. So please, I hope you understand that I don't have bad intentions with my characters.
Besides, this is not going to be the last time that Zhane and Tony will appear, i got some plans to them on next stories.
And the bad guys, they'll get their comeuppance soon, I'll promise.
Warning: The following chapter is rated "T" due to looks of homophobia and abuse.
Viewer description is adivsed.
Chapter 3: Broken Bodies and Broken Drawings
The school gym was mildly filled, Tara and Zhane were near the first rows of the bleachers. Tara was putting attention on the field when Zhane was drawing like usual.
Tony was wearing a visitor's shirt and shorts trying to dribble around the ball: he was dodging everyone, but had a hard time when Rick was on front of him, later Tony pass around the ball to Chris and dodged the husky, and the sheperd slam dunked the ball, getting a point.
"WOOOO!" shouted Tara to her boyfriend "That's it baby, slam dunk it, that's my puppy"
"Nice going Chris" says Tony, high-fiving the captain
"Thanks" and the two go with the coach
"That stupid fag is gonna pay, nobody dodges me" mutters Rick
A whistle was heard...
"O-right rookies, listen up" says Coach Reynolds, a 1.78 brown bear wearing a white shirt and pants and a cap with the school colors: crimson red and ocre.
"Now, just few of you will make it to the team. If I don't mention your surname, you must know that I don't mean you're bad, you did good but I don't think is enough for the team, now here are the results: Andrews, Walker, Bakers, Vega, Johnson, and Carson. Welcome to the team" and the members cheered after being accepted "The rest, better luck next year"; but Rick just growled impatiently after hear that Tony was accepted. The tiger nears to the group
"What do you think? I made it on the team!" says Tony
"Congratulations, Tony" sayed Tara excited
"Told ya you'll do great" says Zhane and the tiger sit beside the drawing rabbit, drawing basketball players
"Well, I think Chris will help me to fit on the team..." but later notice a bruise on his arm, but later he decide to leave
"Hey, where are you going?" says Tony "I thought everything was fine between us"
"No, it's not that. I...got art class"
Later the tiger tried to grab the white rabbit's hand, but he only spout a "OW!"
"Zhane...what happened to you?" says Zhane worried
"No, it's nothing" says the rabbit trying to brush it off
"His father again" adds the red panda
"Tara!" responds the rabbit frustrated, not wanting that he known
"Sorry but he must know: his father growed to dislike his own son: I mean he wasn't like that, he was nice and all that when I met him, but something happened during Middle School. When he started to have doubts, he grow impatient and even wanted that I was his girlfriend. But he liked me as a friend, and I was meeting Chris on that time anyways"
After a pause, Zhane add up
"...and he told me that he will hit me again if I was near of you"
Tony listened everything and told his story
"Well, I think I open up a little: When I told my parents that I was gay and they took me with a 'therapeutist' that just give me anxiety-controlling pills, he told them that I'll go back to normal, he was just taking our money
"That is awful" says Tara on shock, later Tony put his paw on his friend's shoulder
"Zhane, you must know that this isn't a choice"
The rabbit leaned down his head and sighed
"I know" says quietly
"Carson!" shouted the coach "You didn't hear me, I say everyone to the showers"
"Oh...sorry Coach" and Tony took his stuff bag and joined the rest of the team, Zhane put his drawing stuff in order and decide to leave the gym
"Zhane, where are you going?" says the red panda
"Sorry, I told ya I have Art Class" says the rabbit
"Really? Oh yeah, I forgot it's thursday...OK see ya, stay out of trouble" and the rabbit nodded and runned towards the exit, leaving the red panda waiting for her boyfriend on the bleachers
"I got some really odd friends" thought Tara as she sighed
Once again, Jeff got ahead on going home, Tara was picked up by his father and the boys decide to walk and go to the park near of their houses. They sit on their usual spot on the park as they were chatting
"So, you have no trouble on the showers?"
"No, I decide to stay near the captain if there's any trouble...and just between us, I think Tara is lucky, his boyfriend has a hot body"
"Yeah, that's not much of a secret, almost every girl on the school knows"
"Thank god I'm not the only one"
And the two laughed as they keep talking, later Tony watched the rabbit's sketch pad looking some of the drawings of his friend
"Wow, you're a really good artist" says Tony impressed "These drawings can put you as the 'Next Stan Lee'"
"Oh please" answered flattered "Don't exaggerate"
"No really, you should show anyone about this and maybe you'll do your own comic"
"Well, just give me some years and I'll come up to something...now come on, I should go home before my mom worries too much" and the two decided to grab their stuff and go to Zhane's home...
.....
but little did they known they'd been follwed
"There they are those nasty ones, everybody prepare"
It was Rick, his lackey and a bunch of other schoolmates all prepared with bats, all ready to bash them.
Meanwhile, with Zhane and Tony...
"Tony"
"Yeah?"
"Remember when I told you I can't picture myself kissing a girl"
"....uh-huh"
"Well...I can picture myself....kissing...you"
"What?" sayed a little nervous and surprised, he never expected that a boy, let alone someone kiss him, since almost no one can told him that since he was gay, but he could take what he can get.
"Yeah, I kinda have a crush on you and...if there wouldn't be any problem if you were my first kiss"
"Well, sure I..." sayed the tiger a little nervous and blushing "But what about your father?"
"He doesn't have to know about it, and besides...I don't think it's nothing wrong, as long as it comes from the heart" say the rabbit as he put one of his heart
"OK, that sounded beyond corny" says the tiger joking, but he decide to get a grip and get close to him, and later Zhane put one of his paws to his partner's cheek and give him a deep peck to the maw, Tony just looked nice to him and he decide to kiss back. The kiss lasted for a moment who was quick but they feel that it lasted long enough. The two stepped back for a moment
"Not bad for my first kiss" sayed the tiger sighing lovingly to the rabbit
"That means we're like boyfriends now?"
"As long as nobody knows...maybe Tara and Chris but come on, they nice people...they'll understand" and the two decide to kiss again, the little rabbit moaned softly as the tiger licked his lower lip, he was just hoping that later reached his tongue, he did and it was a electrifying feeling, he tought that this was the best moment of his life and nothing would ruin it
"YOU DISGUSTING FAGFUCKS! How can people like you exist" says Rick angry at them, caughting them kissing.
"Fuck's sake Rick, leave us alone" says Zhane frustrated as they got surrounded by the group
"Just tell me how can I see you guys making out and slurping each other... do you know what my father thinks about people like you?"
"Dunno, don't care" says Tony trying to defend himself and his friend/now boyfriend "And just leave us alone, we got the same rights to live"
"No no, not in my house, so do you guys a favor and go away, stupid queers"
the tiger just scoffed "Guys like you are just not my type, so if you want to declare, don't even think about it"
"Oh hardy har" responded to the snarky comment "I'm not going to declare you, I just want to erase that fucking smug on your face" and the husky give him a punch to the stomach
"TONY!" says Zhane seeing the tiger on the ground, he decided to grab Rick from the neck of his shirt
"I'm going to sue you"
"Sue this" and he knock him out and later the entire group begun to kick them, and some of them use bats to bash them, while all of that happened, a crow that was on the group took his cell phone and begin to record every second of the bashing.
"Come on, faggots!" says Rick as the group keep torturing them "I'm just warming up"
The torture continued for a while which seemed like forever, until Rick was tackled by someone
"That's enough Rick!" says growling a familiar german sheperd: it was Chris
"What are you doing here captain" says Rick with a hypocrite smile
"I was about to give you back some notebooks you left on the gym and I found you here: you and your friends hurting a newcomer"
"It was for a good reason: they're fags! I saw them kissing on the bushes, you must thank me that I didn't escalate to something else"
"That's not an excuse, are you blind? We respect anyone on our team, regardless of age, species or sexual orientation"
"You're not defending them, arent' you?
"Yes I do, And If you mess with a teammate, you're messing with me" and he give him a punch to the jaw
"Chris!" shouted the rabbit trying to step up
"You just go to your homes, I'll distract them" the boys had a hard time standing up and go away
"See what you did? You mess with our fun, you're so dead as much as those fags"
"Tara was right, you're a bunch of jerks" and Rick punch him in the stomach, but Rick endured it and the fight started, the fight soon escalated to choking and biting. The fight had an abrupt end when the sheperd knocking out the husky with a punch and took him to the ground.
Chris just panted of angryness and shouted to the rest "What are you looking at? Show's over, go home" says the sheperd growling. George and Patrick took his fallen leader as the rest retreated
Zhane was come home, with blood in many parts of his white fur: on his forehead, on his ears, and having a pair of broken fingers
"Oh my god! Zhane, zhane" says his mother worried running to him, helping to sit on the living room
"Who did this to you?"
"It was horrible mom" responded Zhane with the pain "Rick and his friends started to attack us"
"That's horrible, Jeff, bring me the first aid kit, quick!" and later the silver rabbit watched his brother with wounds, he dashed to find the first aid kit giving it to his mother. Paula recieved the kit and took his backpack, trying to clean the excesive blood on his fur.
"Me and Tony were attacked by them, but please don't tell them, If I spoke, they swore it will be worst"
"Oh, don't listen to them"
"Look, this is what happens when he doesn't know how to defend himself" says his father after entering the living room seeing his son wounded
"Why don't you just shut up" says angry to her husband "This is not just a prank between friends, this is serious, look how they left him...come on, let's take you to the hospital"
"No, nobody's going anywhere. I don't want anyone of my surname walking on the streets looking like that, imagine the embarrassment of seeing my son, defeated and humilliated like that"
"Calm down Ernest, you're not gonna stop me to take my son to the hospital"
"Don't talk to me like that"
"Dad, calm down" says Jeff trying to calm his father "I'll go with you"
"What, don't tell me that you feel to be on their side"
"This is not about feelings dad, it's about common sense; he needs a doctor, we'll be right back" and Jeff opened the door to take Zhane to the hospital. Ernest, feeling alone on the house he go upstairs, and then watched the open door on his son's room, looking at all the drawings on the walls; he took one of them and rip it apart, and later with other one, and with other
Mommy, mommy, look
Wow! This is beautiful, who are they?
This is my family: This is daddy, this is me, this is Jeff and this is you
Oh, how beautiful, oh and it says "I Love my family" awwww, and your family loves you too, Zhane.
"Mom, please don't cry" says Jeff trying to comfort her "He'll be fine"
"But not his dad, he'll never gonna accept him" and she hugged his elder son. In that moment, Jeff started to realize that he was wrong, maybe didn't acted like the elder brother he was supposed to be.
The doctor, who was a mountain lion appeared to them
"Doctor, how is my son?"
"Well, forunately he just has some injuries and two broken injuries, at least none of his ribs were broken or an organ fell of, he'll be fine"
"Oh thank god"
"I'm going to give him some painkillers in order to low his harm, and...I think he'll need some psychological assistance"
"What do you mean?"
"Well, we saw some marks of what it looks like a belt...and some punches, kickes and some bat marks, for what I see, I think he is a bullying victim"
"Yes, my son told me there were some classmates of him attack them he and his friend, and well, his father..."
"I think what you need is to denounce your husband for underage abuse"
"Maybe, after what happened..."
And later, two nurses were gentle enough to help him, his fingers were protected and he had a band-aid on his forehead
"Oh Zhane" says Paula to later hugged him again, relieved to see him safe and sound. Jeff only looking at everything and for the first time, feeling guilt
....