- 6 hours ago
Uncle, Deeper Than That EP
Category
🎥
Short filmTranscript
00:00Uncle Gideon fixed my coach problem. Then he came home and opened my guide. The belt lies across the sheets
00:05beside my fist. I bite down on the wand massager, shaking all over.
00:09Take it. Mouth or ass? His voice drops over my shoulder. Your guide, Tate. Demonstrate.
00:17My eyes snap open outside Coach Hollis' office. Tonight came faster than expected. The package had Jude Loss' name on
00:24it.
00:24Inside was a wand massager and a printed guide telling Jude exactly how to use it. Jude never opened it.
00:31Someone found it in the equipment room first. By lunch, half the roster had photos.
00:37By practice, Coach had the box, the guide, and the group chat on his desk. I was the only suspect.
00:45Coach taps the paper. You brought a sex toy. Into my locker room and wrote Lawson a full cock gobbler
00:55training manual.
00:58Scouts arrive tomorrow.
01:01The door opens behind me. Gideon Mercer walks in from a board meeting. Black suit. Top button done.
01:08My honorary uncle, my emergency contact, and the man whose money paid for half this facility. I am done for.
01:15Coach pushes the screenshots towards him. This is a roster problem now.
01:20Gideon scans one line from the guide.
01:22It's a misread. Tate skips practice and picks fights. He does not ruin seasons.
01:30Coach does not look convinced. Gideon takes off his watch.
01:35That watch could buy half the baseball team. He pushes it across the desk.
01:39Then we keep the room quiet. Agreed?
01:43Coach pockets the watch. He waves me toward the door.
01:46Head back to class.
01:47For one second, I think I survived. I stand too fast.
01:51Gideon uses my full name. Usually, he sends Walt with an apology check.
01:56Today, he came himself. He loosens his tie and pops two buttons.
02:01Gideon gathers the mess, the wand massager, and the guide full of filthy instructions.
02:07His eyes move back to me.
02:10Tonight, you explain every word.
02:14By the time I step back into the lecture hall, half the room is already staring.
02:19A guy in the back waves his phone.
02:21Walsh! That guide really teaching Jude Lawson how to suck your dick?!
02:25I give him the finger and slide into my seat.
02:29Get in line, dumbass.
02:31Electra hall bursts out laughing.
02:33Riley Park leans across the empty seat beside me.
02:36Let me tell coach, I wrote the guide.
02:38Those girls found it and sent it to the locker room.
02:42This isn't on you.
02:43I flip up my notebook.
02:45Too late. I already took the hit. Let it die.
02:47I pull my practice t-shirt over my head and sleep through class.
02:51Even in my dreams, I am still stuck on the whole mess.
02:54I am an MLB draft prospect.
02:56People already talk every time I strike out, party too late, or breathe near the wrong person.
03:03The roster laughing is nothing.
03:05Coach does not think I harassed Jude.
03:08He thinks the rumors make the team look bad before scout day.
03:12That is manageable.
03:13Uncle Gineon showing up himself is not.
03:15The dismissal bell wakes me.
03:17The room is half empty.
03:19Jude is gone.
03:19A granola bar sits on her handwritten notes pushed close to my elbow.
03:28I shove both into my bag.
03:33Outside the classroom window, Walt's black car is already at the curb.
03:39I shove everything into my bag and step out.
03:47Walt is waiting in the hallway.
03:50Uncle Gideon is almost never home before midnight.
03:54Half the time Walt picks me up.
03:56Because Gideon is still at work.
03:58How mad is he?
03:59So I ask Walt the only question that matters.
04:02Walt looks at me in the mirror.
04:04Good luck kid.
04:13The car goes quiet again.
04:15I try one more time.
04:17What time is he coming home?
04:19Walt stops the car.
04:20We are already in the driveway.
04:22He gets out and opens my door.
04:24Through the front windows, I see Uncle Gideon's shadow moving inside the house.
04:28Walt checks his watch.
04:31About 10 minutes ago.
04:34Dinner is already on the table.
04:36Every other chair is gone.
04:38Only one seat is left.
04:39Right beside Gideon.
04:41He cuts the stake.
04:43The cheap birthday watch I gave him sits on his left wrist.
04:46It looks wrong against the rest of him.
04:48I pick at the corner of my napkin.
04:51Uncle Gideon.
04:52I respect Jude.
04:54Okay?
04:54I won't send him anything like that again.
04:56Again?
04:57What else?
04:58He keeps cutting his stake.
05:00Batting gloves.
05:01Gum.
05:02Protein bars.
05:03Normal stuff.
05:05That's all for someone you like?
05:07Uncle Gideon.
05:07I don't actually like him anymore.
05:09You're 20.
05:10Wanting someone is not the problem.
05:12He sets the knife down.
05:15His hand closes around the back of my neck.
05:19The thumb rubs twice.
05:21Calloused and slow.
05:22I try to lean away.
05:24He pulls me into the crunk of his arm.
05:27What are you flitching for?
05:28His hand loosens on my neck.
05:30It slides lower and brushes down my back.
05:33Then he pushes the stake toward me.
05:35Eat.
05:35You're too skinny.
05:37You're too skinny.
05:37Gideon looks like he has already moved on.
05:39He grew up in foster care.
05:41Got pulled into the Mercer family business.
05:43And clawed his way to the top.
05:44Compared to that, my stupid locker room scandal is nothing.
05:48The plate goes empty fast.
05:50I touch my stomach and lean back.
05:52Gideon's chair is empty.
05:54His voice comes from behind.
05:56I sit up straight.
05:58Done eating?
06:00Gideon leans on the door frame with a belt.
06:04Get in here.
06:06Kneel.
06:11My knees nearly fold under the table.
06:13I grip the marble corner until my palm hurts.
06:15I take half a step back.
06:17Eighth grade.
06:18The only other time Gideon used a belt on me.
06:20Someone said they knew where my parents were.
06:22I was stupid enough to follow.
06:24By the time I understood, I was already bait.
06:26Gideon's rivals used me to force him off the Riverside deal.
06:30It was his first big deal at Mercer.
06:32Losing it meant starting over from nothing.
06:36Gideon brought me home that night.
06:38Then he picked up the belt.
06:39Uncle Gideon, I really changed.
06:41I don't like Jude anymore.
06:43His face gets colder.
06:44I am Westlake's draft prospect and its biggest headache.
06:47But every loudmouth knows when to shut up.
06:50I lower my head and walk into the bedroom.
06:52The lights are off.
06:53The hallway light cuts a pale square across the floor.
06:56Gideon stands inside it with the belt in his hand.
06:58I kneel by the bed before he tells me twice.
07:00The velvet pillow smells like him.
07:03And like me.
07:04I slept here last night because he was not home.
07:08I'm sorry Uncle Gideon.
07:10A Gideon pulls the belt tight.
07:11He pulls the belt straight in the dark.
07:14The leather slaps against itself.
07:15Loud and ugly.
07:16The folded belt touches the back of my neck.
07:19It slides down my spine.
07:20Slow and hard.
07:22Until it stops at the base.
07:23He taps twice.
07:24My back goes stiff.
07:26I shift my knees on the carpet and brace myself.
07:29If he needs to hit me, fine.
07:31Let him get it out.
07:33But the belt does not fall.
07:34Paper rustles behind me.
07:37Gideon's voice drops.
07:39Get on all fours.
07:40The arch for me.
07:42Let me hold your waist.
07:45This angle works for the wand.
07:47And for anything else you want inside you.
07:53That is the guide.
07:56The one Riley wrote.
08:00Riley was way too good at writing filthy fantasy.
08:03Shit.
08:07Footsteps move closer behind me.
08:10One hand wraps around my waist.
08:13Gideon is actually following the guide.
08:15Like this.
08:16Hips higher, Tate.
08:18This is your guide.
08:19His grip tightens.
08:20The belt lands hard across my raised ass.
08:23I flinch once.
08:24Gideon drags me back by the waist.
08:26He kneels behind me.
08:28His chest presses against my back.
08:30It is a position meant for sex.
08:32This is not punishment anymore.
08:34Page one, Tate.
08:39His knee presses harder into my lower back.
08:42Or does he get the whole guide?
08:45Gideon waits behind me.
08:47I do not answer.
08:48His knee leaves my lower back.
08:51I grip the carpet harder.
08:54A lighter clicks.
08:56Smoke slides over my shoulder.
08:58Take the t-shirt off.
09:01I reach for the hem.
09:03The t-shirt drags up my stomach.
09:05Then catches under my shoulder blades.
09:08Gideon stops moving.
09:10No.
09:11Bite it.
09:12I freeze with the shirt half off my body.
09:16Now.
09:17I bite down on the hem.
09:20The fabric pulls tight, leaving my back bare.
09:23The rough cotton drags over my back.
09:24It catches on the scratches Reese left in the locker room.
09:27Gideon's fingers spread over my side, slow enough to make it worse.
09:31Then his thumb finds the scratch.
09:35He laughs once.
09:37Your little boyfriend plays rough.
09:39Gideon leans closer.
09:41Did he hold you like this?
09:44His fingers tighten.
09:47I shake my head.
09:49The shirt keeps the answer trapped in my mouth.
09:53Gideon reaches past me.
09:56Coach's confiscated wand hits the sheets.
09:59My whole body locks.
10:02Gideon's voice drops over my shoulder.
10:04Take it.
10:06Mouth or ass?
10:07The shirt stays between my teeth.
10:10He leans closer.
10:11Your guide, Tate.
10:13Demonstrate.
10:14Mouth.
10:15Obviously.
10:16If that thing went in my ass, Uncle Gideon would basically be fucking me.
10:21I lift my head.
10:23The wand massager still in my mouth.
10:24My stomach is bare.
10:26My back is open.
10:27His hand is still on my waist.
10:28Gideon stares at me too long.
10:30Then he presses the cigarette into the door frame.
10:32The ember jumps twice and dies.
10:34He throws the printed guide onto my face.
10:37Read it.
10:37Out loud.
10:39One hundred times.
10:40You don't sleep until you're done.
10:41He turns and walks out fast.
10:43The door slams behind him.
10:47I'm late, no surprise.
10:49My knees are bruised from kneeling last night.
10:52My ass burns every time I sit.
10:55Gideon is already gone when I leave the house.
10:57The end.
11:03My eyes.
11:04I'm late.
11:04I'm late.
11:05I'm late.
11:05Tell me he didn't actually hit you.
11:07I straighten my back.
11:09Wasn't bad.
11:10Average.
11:11Jude Lawson came looking for you earlier.
11:14Riley lowers her voice.
11:15My hand stops on the protein bar wrapper.
11:17Jude Lawson is my teammate at Westlake.
11:19He is also the team's academic freak.
11:21He keeps his head down better than I do though.
11:24No wonder Coach only came after me.
11:26What did he want?
11:27Riley shakes her head.
11:28He just asked if you were here.
11:30The classroom door clicks.
11:31Jude lost his stands in the doorway.
11:33A Sabermatics folder is tucked under his arm.
11:36His Westlook gear is washed thin at the seams.
11:39Jude knocks once on the doorbrain.
11:41Step out.
11:42I follow him down the service hall.
11:45He stops at an old supply closet and opens the door.
11:50Whatever this is, say it.
11:52I stay in the hall.
11:54In here.
11:56I step into the closet.
11:58Judy shuts the door.
11:59The room is tight.
12:01All stacked chairs, old binders, and dead fluorescent light.
12:05Jude drops the folder behind me.
12:07It lands on the desk.
12:09Dust jumps into the air.
12:11I back into the desk.
12:13If this is about the package, I already took the hit.
12:17I know.
12:18His arms come down around my waist.
12:20I go still.
12:22Judy's fingers catch the draw ring of my training pants.
12:27Then he looks at my mouth.
12:30You like me, right?
12:31My hand clamps around his wrist.
12:34Oh.
12:37So that is what he thinks this is.
12:44Jude's arms tighten around my waist.
12:46I'll let you have me.
12:49His hand slides to my drawstring.
12:53Can you loan me some money?
12:55The drawstrings tug toward him.
12:58I slap him hard.
13:00My palm tingles and my voice still shakes.
13:02Loan?
13:03Yes.
13:04Ass?
13:04No.
13:05His cheek swells up high in seconds.
13:07The bruise gives him a broken, pretty look.
13:09He doesn't fix his hair or step back.
13:11Jude's face reminds me of Uncle Gideon.
13:13Foster system.
13:1417 years ago.
13:16Gideon came back to the Mersens with a buzz cut.
13:18He said the right polite words at the door.
13:20His eye stayed sharp, even when he said thank you.
13:22The Mersens had left him in foster care his whole life.
13:24The second they needed him, they dragged him back and threw him into the family business.
13:29He clawed his way out of that mud.
13:31Back in high school, he was good enough for D1 baseball.
13:34He never got there.
13:36The Mersens yanked him out before he had the chance.
13:39Sometimes I think he should hate me.
13:41That family ruins everyone it touches.
13:43Jude smooths the seam of his pants with shaky fingers.
13:46Thanks.
13:47A hundred grand.
13:48I'll pay you back.
13:49I shift back against the desk.
13:51The drawstrings still dangle in my fist.
13:54Riley once said his dad has gambling debts.
13:57I won't tell anyone.
14:01I used to crash on campus sometimes, after the package mess.
14:06Gideon started sending Walt to pick me up every day.
14:15I pushed through the front door on an empty stomach.
14:19Mrs. Castro is still in the kitchen at this hour.
14:22She has a pan going on the stove.
14:25She glances at me over her shoulder with a soft look.
14:31You back to staying home now?
14:35I drop onto the couch with my book bag under my head.
14:39Yeah.
14:41Every night.
14:43My cheek presses into the bag.
14:46She wipes her hands on a dish towel.
14:49Good.
14:50Two grown men, nobody home.
14:52This house had no warmth.
14:58She stirs the pan again.
15:01My mother used to live in this house with us.
15:08My father chased her down a freeway and forced the marriage.
15:13Mrs. Castro never saw any of that.
15:16My mother already had a boyfriend back then.
15:20My father forced her to break it off.
15:24He used me as the chip to keep her from running.
15:32From the day she had me, she couldn't look at me straight.
15:35I was the evidence of her ruined life.
15:38He broke his leg in that crash and never walked again.
15:42He killed himself a year later.
15:48She vanished the same week he was buried.
15:51Nobody's has seen her since.
15:54I was still a kid when she walked out.
15:56My eyes are heavy already.
16:00The front door rattles open and wakes me up.
16:05I sit up halfway and squint at the dark.
16:09The shadow stepping in isn't Mrs. Castro.
16:13Gideon is back, drunk and swaying.
16:16I push myself up.
16:18He pushes me back into the cushions.
16:25His weight settles drunk on my chest.
16:29His breath presses down like a low cloud.
16:32I push at his shoulder.
16:34Uncle Gideon.
16:36I need to buy something.
16:38About 30 grand.
16:40Gideon has never been cheap with me.
16:42Last season, Westlake won the conference title.
16:45I used his card to feed half the team.
16:47The money left over bought him a cheap mall watch.
16:49A birthday gift.
16:51Buying me a gift with my own money.
16:53Bold.
16:53He laughed when he said it.
16:55Gideon presses his face into my chest.
16:57My birthday isn't here yet.
16:58His hand wanders down my back.
17:00His fingertips hit the scab from yesterday.
17:02They stop dead on the spot.
17:04Gideon says my name quiet.
17:05Tate.
17:06Cut it off with your little boyfriend.
17:08His voice catches at the end.
17:09Gideon looks up at me.
17:11His cheeks are still flushed.
17:12Cut it off with your little boyfriend.
17:14I'm not promising I won't do something insane.
17:16I shove his shoulder.
17:17Look who's talking.
17:18He is drunk enough to take that literally.
17:21Let me check if you do.
17:22His hand drops to my waistband.
17:24I clamp both fists over the drawstring.
17:26My voice shoots up.
17:28I am so sick of this.
17:29Why do both of you want my pants off?
17:32Trying to fuck me now?
17:33His fingers slide between my cheeks.
17:36Gideon!
17:36My voice almost breaks.
17:38I shove him hard.
17:39He sits back and rubs his face.
17:41The drunk red drains out.
17:42His face goes cold.
17:44Both of us?
17:47I bolt for the stairs.
17:49He's slow from the drink.
17:50I make it to my room and slam the door.
17:53His steps land on the landing after me.
17:55Don't argue with a drunk.
17:57He told me that himself.
18:01I lean my back against the door and hold my breath.
18:04Gideon's footsteps stop on the other side of the wood.
18:07He pounds the door once.
18:09He knocks again, slower.
18:11I don't answer through any of it.
18:13The knocks slow down, then stop.
18:16I flop onto the bed and pull out my phone.
18:19The screen lights up on my chest in the dark.
18:21I scroll my texts.
18:23Jude messaged an hour ago.
18:25Sports analytics notes you left in class.
18:27Quiz next week.
18:28Want me to drop them off?
18:29He has been lending me notes since I wired him the loan.
18:32I do not care about quizzes.
18:34I just need my game stats clean enough to keep Coach off my back.
18:37Riley begged me to pass the notes to her after, so I let it ride.
18:41Before I can answer, another message comes in.
18:43Is this your place?
18:45A pin sits under the question.
18:47He's outside.
18:49The doorbell rings downstairs.
18:52Crap.
18:52Gideon is still down there.
18:53I jump off the bed.
18:55The phone slides off my chest onto the comfort it.
18:57Jude doesn't know what Gideon is like.
18:59He thinks Gideon is just family.
19:03Gideon has sobered up since I ran.
19:05He won't have forgotten anything.
19:06I see Gideon downstairs with Jude in my head.
19:09My grip tightens on the phone.
19:11I jump off the bed and run for the stairs.
19:15I come down the stairs one step at a time.
19:18Jude and Gideon are already on the couch, facing each other.
19:22Jude sits straight with the notebook on his palm.
19:25Gideon has finished the black coffee on the table.
19:28His tie is back on, knotted clean.
19:31His eyes are closed, fake asleep.
19:35Jude, I told you, he's not coming out.
19:38Call him, see if he picks up.
19:40Gideon keeps his eyes closed and slouched back.
19:43My phone is always on silent.
19:47I used to miss Gideon's calls all the time when I stayed on campus.
19:51He figured that out fast.
19:53After a while, he stopped calling.
19:56Jude has never dealt with someone like my uncle.
20:00He does not hear the threat in Gideon's voice.
20:03So he actually calls me.
20:04I freeze on the third stair down.
20:07My phone is in my hand.
20:09My thumb slides across the screen by accident.
20:14The accept icon lights up green.
20:19Shit.
20:24Both of them look toward the sound.
20:27I freeze on the stairs and give them an awkward smile.
20:32Gideon's lips press into a flat line.
20:35Drunk redness has dreamt out of his face.
20:38The chill coming off him could put out a fire.
20:41I fumble the phone and hang up.
20:46Jude stands from the couch.
20:50And hands me the notes.
20:54I clear my throat low.
20:58Uncle Gideon.
20:59I'll walk him out.
21:01I don't meet his eyes.
21:04Jude points across the lawn at his bike.
21:08Bike.
21:09You don't have to.
21:12He stands up from the couch.
21:18Before I can figure out what to do, I need to get out of Gideon's line of sight.
21:23I follow him to the door anyway.
21:27I walk Jude out past the front gate to the curb.
21:29He stops and turns around to face me.
21:31His face has no expression.
21:32Tate.
21:34Your uncle's in love with you.
21:39The phone slips out of my fingers and falls.
21:42I pull a smile across my face.
21:44It comes out wrong, too wide.
21:46Jude's is a book word.
21:47He didn't even know Riley liked him.
21:49He doesn't know shit.
21:51I use my toe to flip the phone over.
21:53What are you talking about?
21:55My voice scrapes coming out.
21:57Jude lifts his chin toward the house behind me.
22:00Through the window, Gideon is alone in the living room.
22:03I said, your uncle's in love with you.
22:05I try to laugh it off.
22:06On what basis?
22:07Because I am.
22:09Jetty doesn't blink at me.
22:11He pauses, like making sure I caught it.
22:13And so are you.
22:15Aren't you, Tate?
22:19The streetlight buzz.
22:20Jude swings onto his bike and rolls down the street.
22:24I stand under the light with the cracked phone at my feet.
22:27I am a piece of shit.
22:29He said it plain.
22:31I bend down and pick up the phone.
22:34The screen is dead, but the shape still fits my hand.
22:38I turn around.
22:39I walk back across the lawn to the front door.
22:41I walk back into the house with my cracked phone.
22:43The lights inside are off now.
22:44I get pinned against the door before I can move.
22:47Gideon kisses me without aim or rhythm.
22:50His palm cradles the back of my neck.
22:52He forces my chin up to meet him.
22:54His mouth tastes like whiskey.
22:56Our tongues collide like jelly.
22:57I lift my hand and close it around his throat.
23:00Gideon laughs into my mouth.
23:02He pulls back just enough to talk.
23:03What, saving yourself for your little boyfriend?
23:06His voice is trembling at the edge.
23:07He is still half drunk on whiskey.
23:08I drag in a breath through my teeth, voice steady.
23:11No.
23:12I'm saying I pick you.
23:14The wand or your cock, Gideon.
23:18I pick yours.
23:20The guide is still upstairs.
23:22You want to try it on me?
23:24Gideon stops dead for one beat.
23:26Then he kisses me again, harder.
23:27His hand finds my waist in the dark.
23:29His fingers dig in through my shirt.
23:30Our hips grind together.
23:32He is hard for me.
23:33He lifts me off the floor.
23:34My legs lock around his waist.
23:36His hard cock presses against my ass.
23:38Gideon whispers low in my ear from behind.
23:40Don't think I'm drunk.
23:42I tip my head up.
23:44I bite his jaw instead of answering.
23:47In the bedroom, he pins me to the carpet.
23:52He drops the printed guide beside me.
23:55And he starts reading from the guide.
23:59Put lube on my fingers first.
24:02I open you slowly.
24:07You do not get anything until you can take my fingers.
24:10Keep your knees open.
24:14Keep your hands where I can see them.
24:16Do not touch yourself unless I tell you.
24:19Hold still.
24:24If you move away, I hold your hips down.
24:29Tell me what you want inside you.
24:32Take my fingers first.
24:37Then take my cock.
24:38Do not hide your face.
24:43Look at me when you come.
24:46Say my name.
24:49Again.
24:50Good.
24:51Now take me.
24:55Gideon makes me follow the guide exactly.
24:58Every time Pleasure blanks out the next instruction, he catches it.
25:01His palm cracks against my ass.
25:02Tate.
25:03Wrong.
25:03Start over.
25:04His mouth presses against my ear from behind.
25:06His teeth catch my earlop.
25:07Is it him?
25:08Or me?
25:10Hmm?
25:10I grip my teeth and don't answer him.
25:12I'm gonna kill him.
25:14Goddamn Gideon Mercer.
25:15He hits the same beat over and over.
25:17I grab the collar of his shirt with one hand.
25:19I don't let go through any of it.
25:21He growers low into my shoulder when I tighten my hold.
25:24He fucks me all night.
25:26The next morning, I sit up in his sheets, alone now.
25:29My practice shirt is on the floor in a knot.
25:32The collar is split right through to the seam.
25:34He wrecked my practice t-shirt.
25:37I pull a plain t-shirt out of his drawer.
25:39It's clean and a size too big on me.
25:41Whatever.
25:41It will work for today.
25:42I haven't skipped practice in weeks anymore.
25:44Both times I skipped this season, it was Gideon.
25:46Both times.
25:47I push the classroom door open.
25:49Riley's pen almost rolls off her desk.
25:51I give her a tired grin from the doorway.
25:54I drop into my seat and lean forward on the desk.
25:56The cushioned seat does nothing for my ass today.
26:00Riley puts her pen down slow.
26:02She gives me a long look.
26:04She lowers her voice while she watches me.
26:07Gideon holds grudges, huh?
26:09How long ago was that thing?
26:10He's just settling up with you now.
26:12I drop my forehead onto my arm and groan.
26:14Gideon is a snake.
26:16A sneaky little snake ass.
26:18I trail off and bite my lip.
26:20My phone buzzes between my arms on the desk.
26:22A bank push from Gideon Mercer hits the screen.
26:25He wired me 300k dollars.
26:29Pay after fucking.
26:31Where the hell did Gideon learn that?
26:33Hooker school?
26:34I read the bank push twice over.
26:37Okay, fine.
26:38He's got a conscience.
26:40I open Gideon's thread and forward 30k.
26:43He'll have a hundred grand clean by tonight.
26:45I send one message.
26:47Ten paid in full.
26:51Gideon doesn't reply for the rest of the period.
26:54The thread sits open with my message at the bottom.
26:56The blue check never turns to red.
26:59He has my hundred grand and nothing else to say.
27:01I drop the phone into my desk drawer.
27:03Reese walks by my desk, bouncing a baseball in his palm.
27:07He taps it twice on the wood.
27:11Hey Walsh, you good?
27:12His eyes settle on me.
27:14Cage time?
27:15Reese taps the ball once more.
27:17He flicks his hair back and grins at me.
27:18Come on, I barely grabbed you last week.
27:20Let me see if it healed.
27:21He yanks the hem of my t-shirt up halfway.
27:23The bruises are from Gideon.
27:24So are the bite marks.
27:26Reese freezes mid-laugh.
27:27I clamp his hand down against my back.
27:29I slap my other palm over his mouth fast.
27:31Reese, shut up.
27:32His eyes go wide above my palm.
27:34He pulls back enough to talk through his teeth.
27:35Bro, your girl is feral.
27:37I shove him into the hallway with my hand over his mouth.
27:40He keeps talking through my fingers.
27:44How come you didn't tell me?
27:48He leans on the railing of the second floor hallway.
27:51I heard you got caught last week.
27:53Was it that Jude Laws guy?
27:54It was him, wasn't it?
27:56I follow his line of sight into the parking lot below.
28:01Jude is pinned against the chain-link fence.
28:07Drake stands at the front of the group.
28:09His left hand is still wrapped in white tape.
28:12Charity case, bastard!
28:15Drake called me a charity case bastard last spring.
28:18I put a key through his left hand.
28:21Drake's old man is a debt collector.
28:23Of course he came for Jude.
28:30Jude's a math kid.
28:32He can't even take a slap.
28:34He's not gonna live to pay me back.
28:36I grab my book bag off the desk and stand up.
28:39Reese moves to follow me at my elbow.
28:42Walsh, wait.
28:43Call Mr. Murphers.
28:47Jude is pinned against the fence.
28:49His notes are scattered on the asphalt.
28:52Drake turns around when he hears me.
28:54I bait him.
28:57Drake, hand healed already?
29:00Drake rolls his neck once.
29:01He drops Jude and comes at me hard.
29:04I block the first swing.
29:05The second one lands across my draw.
29:08I yell up at the open sky above the alley.
29:11Drake catches the look and laughs flat.
29:13Reese, get down here!
29:17Who you fooling, Walsh?
29:19Nobody's coming to help you.
29:21School doesn't give a shit about us.
29:23You took out my left?
29:25I'll take your left leg.
29:27We'll call it square.
29:28He raises the blade and points the tip at my left calf.
29:31There's a hard click of bone.
29:33Draken's wrist drops where it shouldn't bend.
29:36The knife clatters on the asphalt next to my foot.
29:38Gideon stands between me and Drake.
29:40His face is dark.
29:42Useless.
29:43Reese comes up behind him.
29:45He looks at Drake's guys, who suddenly forget how to move.
29:50Yeah, Walsh.
29:52Since when can you not handle one guy?
29:58Gideon turns his head.
30:02I was talking to you.
30:04Took you long enough to find the alley.
30:08Mr. Merson, I called you.
30:11That was me.
30:12Even Drake knows when to run from a worst problem.
30:14His guys back off first.
30:15Gideon holds out his hand.
30:17His fingers are thick.
30:18I learned that last night.
30:20I take his hand.
30:21Gideon pulls me the rest of the way up.
30:24Get checked.
30:25Maybe you caught a hero complex virus.
30:29My phone got taken.
30:33I got the money.
30:34Thanks for that.
30:35And for today.
30:36Reese walks Jude over to the campus clinic.
30:39The passenger door slams shut on me.
30:42Gideon and I are the only ones left inside the car.
30:44He locks all four doors.
30:46Gideon undoes his right cuff button.
30:48Calm as anything.
30:51Money.
30:53You gave it to him?
30:54I clutch the seat belt across my chest hard.
30:56I loaned it.
30:57The money was mine to give.
30:59How much?
31:01A hundred grand.
31:02Gideon undoes his own seat belt and climbs into my lap.
31:06He pats my cheek twice with two fingers.
31:08All of it to the pretty boy?
31:12You got anything left to eat with?
31:16The passenger seat is too narrow for two grown men.
31:19My knees hit the console.
31:21Uncle Gideon, what are you doing?
31:23We're outside.
31:26Did I say I was doing anything?
31:29Or are you hoping I do?
31:32I try to lock my knees together.
31:34His knee comes up between them.
31:35He pries them apart.
31:37This is the school lot.
31:38Anyone could walk past us right now.
31:40His mouth hovers right over my face.
31:42Last time, Tate.
31:43Cut it off with your little boyfriend.
31:46Don't push me.
31:47He bites the underside of my jaw.
31:49Not soft.
31:50Then stop calling me uncle.
31:51I keep my wrists where he put them in front.
31:53The tie squeezes tighter when I flex my hands.
31:55My jaw is wet where his teeth landed.
31:57He and my dad share half a bloodline.
31:59The half that just takes what it wants.
32:01Gideon takes me to the hospital anyway.
32:03He makes them run a full checkup.
32:06Gideon left the hospital wing to pull the car around.
32:09I sit on the lobby bench by the check-in desk.
32:11I look up at the crowd moving through the lobby.
32:13My eyes lock with a woman across the room.
32:17My mom.
32:18At Marlene Walsh.
32:21I do not remember the last time I saw her.
32:23Marlene Walsh walks across the floor.
32:26She sits down on the bench next to me.
32:28She keeps her eyes on her own hands.
32:30Her knuckles are white at the joints.
32:32How are you?
32:33My throat goes tight.
32:34I lick the inside of my lip to stall.
32:37Routine physical.
32:38You.
32:38There are so many things I want to ask her.
32:41Why she disappeared on me.
32:43Why none of them wanted me.
32:44Whether I'm worth being loved at all.
32:45Her head dicks forward over her lap.
32:48Two tears drop onto the back of her hand.
32:50She lifts her head and looks me in the eye.
32:52Her bottom lip is shaking around the words.
32:55You look like him.
32:57Him?
32:58Nobody ever told me I looked like my father.
33:00She watches my face for a long second.
33:02They always said I had her face.
33:04Has it never crossed your mind?
33:06Why the Mercys never groomed you to inherit?
33:10I pinch the inside of my palm hard.
33:14Her answer comes without a pause.
33:18Because you were never theirs.
33:20I was already pregnant when I married him.
33:23I didn't know it then.
33:24Like them, I assumed you were his.
33:27From the day you were born, I couldn't look at you.
33:29He was controlling from the day I met him.
33:31The wheelchair was just a matter of time after the crash.
33:33Of course I ran.
33:34Marlene gives a bitter little laugh.
33:36She tilts her chin up and wipes the tears.
33:39I do not blame her for running.
33:41I just do not understand why she never thought to take me with her.
33:45She bites her lip before the next one.
33:49Even if I'd known you weren't his,
33:53I still wouldn't have taken you.
33:55I stare at her.
33:56I do not even notice Gideon standing by the door.
33:59She blinks and more tears fall.
34:01Tate, I shut you out for years.
34:03I do not know how to fix that.
34:04So I kept being wrong.
34:06I was part of the life she could not look at.
34:08Her child with the man she loved.
34:10Left behind with the Mercers.
34:12Then I remember the first time Gideon got called in by my school.
34:15He walked in late with his hair a mess.
34:18Unlit cigarette in his teeth.
34:20He tapped my just passing test.
34:23Hey, passed.
34:25Steak tonight, then.
34:26He asked how I liked steak.
34:27I said, medium.
34:29He cooked it medium every time after.
34:32That night, I asked him over the bloody plate.
34:35I fight.
34:36I skip class.
34:37You don't think I'm a bad kid?
34:39Gideon undead one button.
34:41Why the fights?
34:43They said my parents didn't want me.
34:46Fair.
34:47If you can't beat them, train until you can.
34:50What about skipping class?
34:52Where do you go?
34:54The cemetery.
34:55Then the police station, asking if anyone found my mom.
34:58Go.
34:59Want the car?
35:00Oh, you can't drive yet.
35:01Gideon was the one who kept showing up for me.
35:04And he was never blood.
35:06The PA calls her name over the speakers.
35:08Marlene Walsh to check in.
35:10Marlene gets up to take the call.
35:13Goodbye, Tate.
35:14Take care.
35:15I shake her cold hand at the bench.
35:19I lift my head toward the lobby doors.
35:23Gideon is there, leaning against the frame.
35:26His left wrist is bare where the watch used to sit.
35:29He doesn't say one word the whole ride home.
35:32I walk in ahead of him.
35:34The second we get inside, I slam him against the door.
35:37My hand closes around his throat.
35:39My teeth sink into the soft skin under his jaw.
35:45Gideon, you fuck me and you walk?
35:48My grip on his throat tightens hard.
35:53I dig my elbow harder into his collarbone.
36:03Good thing I redshirted.
36:05I'm 20 now.
36:07Otherwise, I could put you in prison.
36:10You know that, right?
36:11He lowers his head to kiss me.
36:13I turn away.
36:14You knew I wasn't a mercer, didn't you?
36:16His eyes close for half a second.
36:20Yes.
36:21I yank his tie down hard with my other hand.
36:24Then why play uncle in my face for years?
36:26Handling me takes nothing out of him.
36:28One move, and both my legs are off the floor.
36:31The couch hits my back.
36:32His weight follows.
36:33Then his teeth sink into my collarbone.
36:35I didn't play.
36:36You called me uncle for years, so I tried to be one.
36:39You wanted me to be your uncle.
36:41Fine.
36:41I was.
36:42Now you want me to be your man.
36:44Is that it?
36:46Now you want me to be your man.
36:48Is that it?
36:49Yes.
36:49I say.
36:50He bites the curve of my throat, deeper than before.
36:53You know what kind of man your father was.
36:55You should know what kind I am.
36:57You picked a fight with me.
36:59Don't try to leave now.
37:00Don't make me lock you up.
37:02The study at the end of the upstairs hall.
37:04You don't want to see what's in there.
37:05I look up at the locked study door.
37:09He stops behind me with his breath on my neck.
37:12Tate, last chance.
37:14Do you want to go with her?
37:16So that's what he was worried about this whole time.
37:18He is afraid I will chase my mother.
37:21Afraid I will leave him behind.
37:23But I was abandoned a long time ago.
37:25I only have him.
37:26I pull his tie loose and wrap it twice around his neck.
37:29I yank him close to my face by the silk.
37:34Do you want me to?
37:36My teeth scrape his lip.
37:38He asks me, truth or comfort?
37:41Comfort.
37:44I hope you go.
37:45Have a normal life.
37:47Stay far the fuck away from me.
37:49I tip his chin up.
37:50He has to meet my eyes now.
37:52Truth?
37:52He doesn't blank at the question.
37:56Lock you up.
37:57Drug you every day.
37:59So your eyes only ever land on me.
38:03Just me.
38:05I do not know when my clothes come off.
38:07I come crying.
38:09My body shaking around his cock.
38:11He grips me and drives into me a few more times.
38:14Then Gideon pulls out.
38:16Cum spills across my lower stomach.
38:18I keep twitching in his arms.
38:20We move from the couch to the kitchen counter.
38:23Then back toward the entryway.
38:27Nothing we do
38:29Is ever enough for either of us.
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