Max doesn’t answer me as Trip helps him inside the house. Trip deposits Max gently on the couch while my head continues to spin. Why would Jackson do this to my best friend? I thought he liked Max. They always seemed to get a long so well. Did he do this because he was angry at me?

Anger builds inside of me and I fight the urge to jump in my car and find Jackson myself. This isn’t right. He needs to be punished for what he’s done to Max. No one should be allowed to get away with something like this.

“Holly, can you get some towels and something to clean him up with? We need to know how bad this is. If he needs stitches, we have to take him to the hospital whether he likes it or not.”

Max sighs through his fat lip. “No hospitals.”

Trip shakes his head. “No promises, buddy.”

I run upstairs and grab some towels and then head back to the kitchen. The first aid kit under the sink is dusty. The last time we had to use this was when Grace showed up here stoned out of her mind with cuts all over her body. Dad freaked out and went to work, cleansing and covering all her wounds, yelling at her for coming around here like that. It was one of the only times I can clearly remember him raising his voice to her. For some reason, her showing up here bleeding all over the place pissed him off far more than when she shows up in her regular state, begging for drug money.

I wipe the dust off and carry the box into the living room where Trip is sitting on the coffee table across from Max. “You should tell her.”

I hand Trip the towels and the box. “Tell me what?”

Max shakes his head. “Nothing.”

Trip narrows his eyes at Max. “Don’t act like this isn’t a big deal. Either you tell her, or I will.”

Fear creeps down my spine as I sit down next to Max. The fact that Trip knows something about my best friend that I don’t can’t be good. I take Max’s hand and cradle it in my lap. “What is it? I thought we told each other everything?”

Tears fill his eyes and when he blinks they stream down his face. “Not this. I never wanted you to know this.”

My vision begins to blur with tears of my own and I take a ragged breath. “Please, Max. Tell me. I don’t like seeing you hurt.”

Max bursts into full-blown sobs and I instinctively wrap my arms around him and pull him into a hug. I glance over at Trip. His face is marred with concern. I stroke the back of Max’s head and mouth to Trip, “Tell me.”

Trip takes a deep breath and says, “This has been going on for a while. Jackson apparently saw fit to use Max here as a punching bag whenever he felt the need.”

My eyes widen. “For how long? And why am I just now finding out about this?”

Max pulls back and wipes his tender face gently. “I didn’t want to lose you, Holl. I knew you thought Jackson was some great guy and I couldn’t risk telling you that he liked to beat me up on a regular basis. I didn’t want to lose your friendship. You’re my only friend. It would’ve killed me if you took his side over mine and never spoke to me again.”

My heart cracks and I fight back my emotions to keep from bursting into a million tears. I’m such a terrible friend. If this is my chance to attempt to make this situation right, then I’ve got to take it.

“So you allowed him to continue to do this to you right under my nose and not say anything? Max, I would’ve dumped his ass and encouraged you to go to the police about all this,” I tell him firmly. “Please don’t ever be afraid to tell me the truth about something. I love you. You’re my best friend.”

“You say that now, but if I were to tell you about this a year ago when it started, would you have been so willing? He had you snowballed for so long. It was scary how much control he had over you.”

I take one of the towels from off the table and open the first aid kit to pull out some peroxide. I soak the corner of the towel and go to work on cleaning Max’s face. As much as I hate to admit it, Max is right. It’s hard for me to believe this is real when I have the blatant proof right in front of my eyes. I can’t imagine how difficult it would’ve been for me to fathom my sweet, loving boyfriend being such a monster. But there’s no point in admitting that. It won’t help anyone to worry about anything other than the here and now.

Max winces as I clean his split lip. “I’m sorry this happened to you. It wasn’t because of me, was it?”

He frowns. “When you called and told Trip that Jackson just left you stranded, something snapped in me. I had to confront him, so I set out to find him and tell him what a piece of shit I think he is. He can treat me like shit all he wants, but not you, Holl. You don’t deserve that.”

A tear falls down my cheek and I shake my head. “Neither do you. We should go to the police. We can’t let him get away with this.”

“I don’t want people to know. I’m ashamed I allowed him to bully me for such a long time. Plus, if I go, I’ll have to give the details. Everyone—my parents—will know that I’m…”

I pat Max’s leg. “I’ll be right by your side. You won’t be alone. No one is going to love you any less when they find out you’re gay.”

“And I’ll go with you,” Trip adds beside me. “You shouldn’t let this get swept under the rug, man. It’s time to fight back and stop being that asshole’s punching bag.”

I finish wiping up Max’s face and he leans his head back and closes his eyes. He’s struggling. I know more than anyone how hard coming out to the world will be for him. Turning Jackson in for what he’s done will get not only everyone in this town involved, but the press too. A star motocross rider assaulting a gay man will make headlines for sure. I can’t imagine how hard this must be for him.

Max takes a deep breath and then opens his eyes. “I guess it’s time I stop hiding who I really am.”

I grab his hand and squeeze it. “You’re making the right choice. Let’s go.”

TRIP

Inside the police station, Officer Jones stares me down for a long moment before turning his attention back to Max. It’s the tattoos that make them all nervous. The artwork on both my arms tends to have that affect on some people. I stand behind Max while he works on filing a police report and applies for a restraining order against Jackson. Holly is right by his side, just like she promised.

“So tell me, Mr. Moore, where did the assault take place?” the heavy-set officer asks Max.

Max runs his hand through his brown hair. “It occurred on the street outside of Jackson Cruze’s house.”

The cop twists his lip, making his mustache crooked. “You said you drove yourself away from the scene. What were your intentions when going to Mr. Cruze’s residence?”

Max shuffles his feet. “They were to tell him off, I guess.”

The office nods and writes a couple notes down. “So you went over there with a preconceived plan to start trouble with your assailant?”

Max shakes his head. “No, I didn’t. He hurt my best friend and put her in danger. I had to confront him about that. He couldn’t just keep getting away with hurting her.”

“Is this young lady whom you’re referring to?”

“Yes.”

He eyes Holly and returns his gaze back to Max. “Was she involved with Mr. Cruze?”

“Yes, but I don’t see what that has to do with this,” Max replies.

The officer sighs and sets his paper down. “This appears to be a domestic dispute over this girl. My advice to you, son, is to not get involved in other people’s business—even if you are interested in pursuing the lady yourself.”

Holly shakes her head. “It isn’t like that, officer. Max and I are best friends. There’s nothing going on between us.”

The cop chuckles to himself. “You might want to let Mr. Moore know that—looks like he took quite the beating defending your honor.”

Holly folds her arms across her chest. “I’m glad you think that someone like Jackson beating up my gay best friend is amusing. I’m sure the media would love to know about the cop that didn’t take the matter seriously, especially since Jackson is sort of a celebrity.”