Day 4 (September 19th)
"Illness"
*Injuries

-

Benjamin growled as he got tossed back into the fight, wiping some blood from his nose. He wasn't quite the man to get into fights, but when he did, he was quick on his feet and threw a hard punch.

He cast his arms to either side, squaring up with the other young man. The man brought his arms into a blocking position, ready for Benjamin to throw a punch.

Though, that's not quite what Benjamin had in mind. He swept his feet, knocking the man off balance, soon taking him to the floor. He drew his fist back, repetitively slamming it into the man's face.

"If I hear you talk about my family, Nate, or if I even catch you looking at me, I'll ensure that your fate is worse than death." The brunette hissed, bringing the half-unconscious man to meet his eyes. "Do you fucking understand me?" He spat in the man's face, some blood mixed in with the saliva.

He threw the man backward, satisfied with the sound of his head hitting the floor. And Ben stood; victorious. 

The men around muttered, some clapping Benjamin on the back for the fight, and a couple of lads dragged the boy to the side.

Nathan came hurrying down the hallway, hearing the word of a fight- or the threat there was to be a fight. Seeing Benjamin, he knew that it had happened. "Benjamin! Are you insane?" 

"He's been talking of a fight, and he found one," Ben murmured, staring at his bloodstained sleeves. "Pitiful... he caught me in my nice clothes."

"Don't even go there- you're bleeding still!" Nathan scolded, tracing his fingers over the bruised skin littering Ben's nose and cheek. "He busted you up... did he throw the first punch?"

"He started it; I finished it," Ben grit his teeth, glancing over at the guys still surrounding the unconscious man. "He had no right to be talking about us in any manner... surely you understand-"

Nathan took a deep breath, grinning a bit a Benjamin,  "At least next time you get into a fight, invite me to get a front-row seat. I should've beat his ass as well."

Benjamin chuckled a bit, tilting his head to the side. He could still feel the blood running from his nose, but that's the smallest of concerns. He hoped his nose hadn't broken from the impact, but he'd rather not touch it.

"Let's get you patched up, Benny," Nate whispered, backing away from the brunette. He snuck over, intertwining their hands. They walked shoulder-to-shoulder, ensuring their small moment of intimacy remained hidden from the view of judging eyes.

They walked for a long moment, turning down an empty hallway. Nathan chuckled, looking over at his lover. "You nearly beat the life out of that boy."

Ben sighed. "He's older than I am and behaves like a young teen. It's about time someone knocked some sense into his childish ass."

"You may have taught him a lesson. Knowing him, he'll be back to antics next week if he's not suspended by the time this blows over." Nate chuckled, brushing some hair from his face. "Well, if you're not kicked from the campus, dear."

"Let them."

"What would your father say?"

Ben's breath hitched. "He'd probably go on a long rant about how I should've turned to Christ to fix my problems."

"The disadvantages of being a preacher's son."

Ben chuckled. "That's not the worst part. He'd beat my ass for getting kicked out when he had to pay for course materials."

The blond inhaled sharply, nodding slowly. "Yeah. Its foolish education has to be goddamn expensive."

"Agreed."

-

As Ben and Nate arrived at their room, they hurried to get inside, giggling like school boys. 

"You, in a literal sense, swept him off his feet?" Nate chuckled. Ben shared with him what happened in the fight, and the blond has yet to lose interest.

"Yes! I then tackled him to the floor and beat his face in." The brunette smirked. Nate shook his head, leading the man to sit on his bed. 

Ben worked quickly to rid his bloody vest and shirt, tossing them absentmindedly across the room. He slumped back against the bed, resting his eyes. "My nose is stuffy," he complained.

"You got your nose busted; it's going to be stuff and sore for the next while."

Groaning, Ben stretched his arms, looking over to Nathan. "What are you doing?"

"Getting a cloth to wipe the blood off your face and neck."

"Lovely."

Nathan rolled his eyes, grabbed a small handkerchief, and moved to Ben. He hovered over top of his, straddling his legs around the man's waist. "Tell me if I start to hurt you," he smiled a bit.

Ben nodded, hands placed against Nate's hips. The blond leaned close, slowly wiping the dried blood away from the brunette's lips. 

He appeared so focused on such a simple task, his green eyes shining. It was a beautiful sight seeing Nate in such a way; brows furrowed, nose scrunched, and his tongue poked just past his lips as his concentration became his main focus. Ben smiled lovingly, leaning up a bit. "You're practically just teasing me by looking this robust."

Nathan rolled his eyes, pushing the man back down against the bed. "Stop flirting, and let me finish cleaning your wounds."

"Might I at least give you a kiss?" Ben pouted. Though, that little pout soon became a grin as Nathan leaned down, placing a gentle kiss on his lips. "Thank you," he chirped, fingers tracing into Nate's hair.

Nathan sighed, shaking his head, quickly working to clean the blood away from the brunette's neck. "If you get into more fights, I will have to knock sense into you."

"Do you bite your thumb at me, sir?"

"I do bite my thumb."

Ben snickered. "Their lines always seem to be the most entertaining of the play."

"Abraham's and Sampson's?"

"Yes, the two quarrel at the frequent."

There was a period of silence as Nate worked around Ben's nose, ensuring the slow brushes didn't cause discomfort. It didn't take long (due to his nose being numb), and Nate rose, smiling down. "All clean."

"Thank you," Ben lifted himself, keeping Nathan close in his lap. "I owe you, my lovely."

"You don't owe me a thing, for I love you."

Ben leaned close, smiling into the crook of his lover's neck. "Love is a smoke made with the fume of sighs. Being purged, a fire sparkling in lovers' eyes; being vex'd a sea nourish'd with lovers' tears."

"Fuck you," Nate laughed, ruffling Ben's hair. "I was about to quote the same thing-"

"Oh, I'm aware. Precisely why I stole it, my dear."

"Shakespeare must be rolling in his grave," Nate giggled, rolling his eyes in entertainment. "If not rolling, then certainly clanging to get out."

"I can imagine... but, since you've been so kind... I'll tell you properly."

"Is that so?" Nate tilted his head to the side, pressing a kiss to Ben's forehead. "I love you."

"I love you too."