18

Inhale.

"No, he didn't say anything specific."

Exhale.

"No, he still won't." Beau glanced at Mitch's direction, his phone pressed to his ear.

Inhale.

"Yeah, that would be great. Would you mind-"

Exhale.

"-if he'd stay with you for tonight?"

Inhale. Exhale. Breathing was the only thing he should concentrate on. But Beau making a phone call was so distracting. He forced himself to fill his lungs with air again. In moments like this it was such a hard thing to achieve this that he couldn't believe there were times he was able to do more. Like smiling. Talking. Enjoying others' company and laughing.

His legs started to go numb and tingly in that weird position he was sitting, his back against the wall. He needed to move. But first-

Inhale.

Honestly? It sucked. Mitch has always felt like he was the weak one for having panic attacks since he was like... five or something. He did much better for years but being chased by a stranger definitely didn't help and here he was again.

The worst thing was that Beau saw the note and acted like it was nothing. Like someone leaving a message with his handwriting that he was going to kill Mitch meant nothing.

Mitch was wondering who did Beau call. Hopefully not Scott because then there were two people against him.

"Do you feel better now?" Mitch didn't notice when Beau ended the phone call but now he was standing by Mitch's feet, looking down at him. Mitch nodded. There was no point on explaining anything. "Look, we can show that note next time we go to the police station but it's most likely only a meaningless threat. He can't hurt you. Why would he do that anyway? Just think about it for a second. You're famous and he would be in prison in literally no time. He won't do anything."

Anything except coming into his private area, grabbing him, breaking locks, deactivating security systems and breaking things, right? Mitch wanted to laugh and cry at the same time. He was sure that if this guy said he was planning to kill Mitch, he was going to do it without hesitation.

"Anyway, I've been talking with Scott and he said you could stay with him as long as you feel like. Maybe it's better if you leave the house for a while."

Great. Scott. And Mark who had nothing to do with this whole situation.

"See? This is the problem. How could we help you if you're not talking? Whatever I say, you're always silent.""Because whatever I say, you never take it seriously," Mitch snapped, staring right into Beau's eyes. The boy held Mitch's gaze for a moment but then looked down. "You know that this is not true."

Mitch sighed. He looked away, too and that was the minute he realized that his phone's notification LED was on. 16 new messages? They were all from the same number.

Mitchell!

Do you get it now?

I love you, Grassi!

Tell me you need me.

Tell me you hate being away from me.

Tell me you can't live without me.

Tell me you're scared of me.

Tell me that I fulfill your needs.

Tell me that I'm everything you've ever wanted and needed.

Tell me why you love me.

Tell me you love me when I drive you insane.

Tell me the truth.

You have to want to talk to me.

You did this to me.

It's all your fault.

I hate you. I can't fucking stand you.

And he barely finished reading when the last one arrived.

I want you dead.

"What's wrong?" Beau asked, snapping Mitch out of his thoughts. He was blankly staring at the screen of his phone which didn't even show anything anymore. Mitch unlocked it again to make sure that the messages were real, not made up by his fuzzy brain."Mitch?" Beau was still waiting for an answer. Mitch only shook his head and slipped the phone into his pocket."It's nothing. I wanna meet Austin, not Scott.""Do you really want to drag Austin into your trouble? Scott knows enough. He's your best friend, Mitch, never forget that."

Best friend? These past weeks Mitch nearly forgot what having a best friend felt like. He's never been questioned that many times. No one has ever stepped on him and ignored his thoughts and feelings that many times as his best friends did in these weeks. His only hope was Austin now. This time he needed to step up for his rights.

"I want Austin," he stated, and with that he grabbed a coat."Where are you going?The car keys were in the bag he just grabbed. He felt the cold metal with his fingertips."To Austin," he answered. It was easier to leave the room than he thought. Maybe because Beau didn't really believe that he was going to leave for real. It was time to show him."Mitch, you can't- You don't- You don't know what you're doing!"

Mitch shut the door of the car. Beau's voice was muffled by the sound of the engine. He turned the radio on and left.

Austin didn't live far away from his place. He jumped out of the car and rang the bell without thinking. The man might wasn't even at home- The seconds passed painfully long, but then eventually someone turned the key in the lock and the door opened.

It was Kelly, Austin's wife leaning against the door frame, arms crossed, her forehead slightly wrinkled. "Mitch?""Hey! Is Austin at home?""Not yet. He's out grocery shopping. What's up with you? Where's Beau?""Do I look underage?! I don't need escorting."Kelly's lips slightly parted as she took a small breath. "Okay. Come in."

They've found place at the kitchen table. Kelly offered him coffee that he accepted immediately - he wasn't sleeping very well lately."So... You look a bit upset." The woman also poured some coffee for herself before taking a seat in the front of Mitch. "The guys told us everything. I hope you don't mind it.""Everything?" Mitch furrowed his eyebrows. He didn't know what 'everything' meant for them. It was only Mitch who knew the whole truth."Everything about- You know- These things with your mental health and stuffs. We wanted to call you but Scott asked us not to shake up anything yet. But since you appeared in our doorway, I guess we can talk. Do you want to wait until Austin arrives? You know that we both care about your well-being."

And suddenly visiting Austin didn't seem such a brilliant idea as before. He was late and no one will ever believe him.