Chapitre 56: Chapter 56 - The circus invasion
— I couldn't believe it when they said you was a fag, I needed to see it with my own eyes. I should have brought Patrícia along to have this vision!
Leonardo didn't feel as agitated as he imagined he would feel. Before, just the mere sight of that guy, or the knowledge of his presence was enough to make him nervous. However, now he felt absolutely nothing. It was as if his presence was like that of any unknown person that would be passing by the park.
Always being provoked, Leonardo imagined that if he showed any emotion whatsoever, it would be interpreted as a reaction to the provocations of the ex-vocalist. Alex kept that malicious expression on his face that seemed to wait for Leonardo's annoyance.
However, the brunette wasn't willing to play that game.
— So, you just wanted to see me making out with another guy? It seems your tastes are peculiar.
Benjin stifle his laughter as Alex let out an affected chuckle.
— I'm not like you.
— But you spent your time looking for me. In fact, every time you see me, you seem to find a way to get my attention. Isn't that supposed to mean something?
For the first time Leonardo returned the provocations, and in a certain way, he felt powerful and confident. Not that he was afraid of Alex punching him before, but it just seemed like a waste of time to argue with someone who only wanted to get explosive reactions out of him.
If he reacted the way he wanted, it was like admitting that Alex was dominating him. That Alex had some effect on him.
There was no way Leonardo could let that happen.
Redness rose in the face of the brute, who looked around confusedly for help from the rest of the boys with him. But none of them dared to say anything, either out of disbelief or wisdom.
— You think I'm like you? You're asking to get hit in the face, aren't you?
— If I wanted to, I'd have done something about it, don't you think?
— Stop playing the good guy! You're a shit, Leonardo! You always have been and always will be a worthless sack of shit! Not even Patricia wanted to keep you, leaving you for someone who's worth more...
Alex's screaming called the attention of the park's visitors. Before things got out of control, Leonardo looked at Vicente and Viola, who were just watching. Nothing new under the sun. To his left Benjin was also standing still. Now that was news.
— What's going on here?
Giovani's voice among the crowd seemed to worsen the situation, which was already gaining its small crowd of curious onlookers. Mainly because of the instinctive policeman strapped to his belt. Leonardo raised his hand in greeting, being relieved to have a way of not getting into any more trouble.
— Hey there, detective. Do you want to arrest some troublemakers? There's a group here.
Alex paled when he heard the word "detective" come out of Leonardo's mouth, but the others in the small group also showed their nervousness. They looked at each other without hiding in any way the anxiety of being in the presence of a policeman.
Although Giovani could give such an impression at first sight. He always walked seriously, and his huge body only made such a feeling worse. If he breathed outside the law, that detective could break the suspect's neck with just a squeeze. He seemed to have no effort to fight physically.
— You know that if you do anything I can arrest you and we can talk at the police station.
— Tsc, besides giving the ass to the circus guy you also decided to open your legs to the police?
Leonardo arched his eyebrow at Alex's audacity, a little stupefying. He didn't need to reply to that provocation, because the detective himself was annoyed. Slowly approaching the boy, Giovani lifted his chin, revealing the difference in height and, possibly, strength between them.
— Disobedience to authority could be the beginning of your record, kid. Care to give it a try?
Alex swallowed and denied it with his head.
Leonardo even wanted to applaud Giovani for using only his presence and profession to frighten Alex. A feat that unfortunately Leonardo himself could never achieve. But that wasn't even something worthy of his attention anymore.
Turning to the others that were with him, Leonardo moved his head towards the circus.
— Come on, Ben needs to go to rehearsal. Do you want to come with us, Giovani?
The policeman arched an eyebrow at the troublemakers before turning his back and following the young master through the park. And so the five of them seemed to emerge unscathed from the provocations, leaving Alex and his troupe behind in complete disgrace among the visitors.
— You look much better, boy. How do you feel?
— Refreshed and ready to roll up my sleeves. I look forward to continuing my project with Mr Barley.
Giovani let out a muffled laugh, patting the university student on the shoulder.
— Well, that's good.
— Ah, then you can tell me how the investigation goes. Soon the winter holidays will start, so we'd better prepare ourselves for the casualties.
— If you like.
So that morning, Leonardo had survived his encounter with Alex.
For the time being.
When he arrived at the circus, he made sure Benjin went to rehearsal without throwing a tantrum. He also asked Giovani and Vicente to come up with some plan for the safety of the park during the winter break. Despite his anxiety to know if the detective had made any progress in his investigation, he had to deal with the disappearances even before the high season.
Being alone, the boy returned to the foreman's hut at the back, where he had to explain to Barley the supposed illness that had left him bedridden for a week. He was surprised by the excuse Vicente created, which made him sure his internship would continue as soon as he returned.
Well, Leonardo loved working with Barley. And once he got his hands on the tools and continued with the project, he could feel at peace.
The cars were ready, and soon the foremen would have to work on the stage structure. Fiddling with lighting, sound equipment, safety equipment and other details. Barley's schedule was full, and having Leonardo as his trainee, the two of them would barely have time to rest. It was enough for the brunette to occupy his mind and forget the world around him.
On the one hand it was good to have that level of concentration.
But on the other hand...
— Kid, I'm gonna go get the blueprints for the sound equipment. And stay tuned because we're expecting a delivery.
— Yes, sir.
And as soon as Mr. Barley left the stage, Leonardo continued checking the amplifiers. Trapped in his own world, he didn't even hear another foreman warning about the arrival of a package or that such a package was positioned next to the other instruments. It was only when he finished working on the amplifier that he realised. And then he smiled as he recognised the brand.
It was an acoustic drum set.
It had been a while since he had advised to change the batteries. He didn't imagine that Vicente would take his advice seriously and buy the acoustic drums for the instrumentalists. It was smart to wait until the puppet show was over, otherwise the customers would notice the difference in the sound of the presentations.
Leonardo opened the package and began to assemble the drums. Once again he was stuck in his world, looking at the cymbals and drums with a smile on his face.
He wanted to play.
Just to test.
Leonardo sat in the stool and held the drumsticks, spinning them between his fingers. He looked at his right hand where he could see the scar.
Wouldn't be a problem, right? It was already healed, so maybe he could get some sound out of it just to test it.
Straightening up, he began to play. The sound of the drums echoed through the circus with splendour. It sounded a bit clumsy, as it was a little awkward to pick up and move his hands, but it wasn't that bad or disastrous. He messed with heavier tools every day, so maybe he had gotten used to moving his hand.
And there, trapped in his musical world, Leonardo played the drums without noticing the arrival of someone unwanted.
The thug who stepped on stage just focused his angry eyes on Leonardo. And seeing him sitting there, playing drums, having fun, only increased his rage.
Leonardo was glowing.
As he always did.
No matter what he did, that boy always did well. He always conquered the people around him, making them become his personal wall. Leonardo was that person who could conquer everything and everyone with just a smile.
To Alex, all that calmness was a facade.
Nobody could be perfect like that.
Isn't that how he managed to steal his girlfriend? By giving her the attention that that brat wouldn't give?
For Alex, it was natural to want to take everything away from Leonardo, like peeling back the layers that shrouded him until he found his true self rotting away.
Stopping in front of the drums, he finally got the boy's attention. Leonardo had stopped still holding the drumsticks, staring at him the same way he always did. Serene.
— You can't come in here.
— We still have a bill to settle. Is it that good to sleep with several guys and be protected by them?
— Sleeping with several...? Wow, I think your head's getting filled with my fanfiction.
— Just that could explain why they always like you. There's just no way.
Leonardo peered into the dark eyes realising that Alex wasn't listening to him that much. I mean, maybe he would listen to what he wanted, the rest would be discarded by his small brain.
Looking around, he found that he was still alone. Getting up, the brunette pointed to the backstage exit.
— If I were you, I'd get out of here before I got caught.
Opening a sneaky smile, Alex clenched his fists.
— If I were you, then I'd get picked too?
— What are you talking about?
— After all, that's what she told me, that she still liked you. That's why I couldn't wait to show Patricia what a fag you are. You're not good enough for her, you know?
Oh, so that's what it was about.
Leonardo crossed his arms without even knowing what to say, if anything. Was his reason for coming here about her? Leonardo didn't care anymore what had happened, he had already moved on. He was even interested in another person, who didn't have any resemblance to her.
— Dude, really, go away. This is no place for people like you.
The indifference was there again, as if all Alex's frustration was nothing. It was the last straw.
— Look at me! — Alex shouted, pulling Leonardo by the shoulder — Stop running away like it's not your fault, all this shit!
— And what did I do? Your relationship ended because of you, not me.
— If you didn't exist... She would be mine!
Alex pushed Leonardo so hard that he fell on the drums. The loud sound of the amplifiers caused a loud noise through the speakers.
As Leonardo stood up, Alex already raised his fist to punch him. The brunette managed to hold his fist, trying to push the brute away from himself without having space to move. A punch hit the corner of his lips, and the fight only intensified.
Trying to defend himself and get Alex away from him, Leonardo dodged the punches and hit the lug's belly, but without success. In the strength aspect, that guy was bigger and stronger than him, which put him at a disadvantage. In the end, he received a punch in the nose, which had started bleeding immediately.
His vision blurred and his head felt heavy as Alex's heavy hands hit him. Little by little Leonardo lost his focus, feeling only the pain of the punches and kicks in his stomach.
— That's for you to learn to stand in your place, you piece of shit!
Leonardo held Alex's ankle. He couldn't hide his anger anymore. It was the necessary snap for Alex to continue to assault him in the circus stage, with Leonardo using his hands to hold the punches or to protect himself.
— I'll make sure you never use that fucking hand again....
Grunting, Alex looked around the stage finding a piece of metal from the drum kit, picking it up before Leonardo could get up. As the brunette turned on the stage to try to gain distance and stand up, he felt the pain.
Raising his dark eyes he saw that metallic piece go through his hand and soon making him scream until he felt his throat hurt. His right hand was burning like it was on fire, still Leonardo watched Alex pull the bar and open a weak smile on his face.
— Now you learn...
— Leo, we decided to have lunch together today, so what do you want?
That voice... Leonardo heard it and soon felt relieved that finally someone had arrived on the stage. But his puppet seemed to be accompanied by the other attractions.
Benjin entered the stage and stopped immediately when he saw the catastrophic scene. Not only him, but Ray, Aslan and Vicente were also there. They stared at Leonardo who was wide-eyed with bruises on his face and holding his bleeding hand, being Alex a few metres away from him.
— Leo...? — Aslan had taken a few steps, soon running to his friend — Leonardo!
Quickly the boys went to their young master, with only Benjin staying behind with his eyes wide open and not moving an inch.
— What happened here? What the fuck is this?
— Hey, we need first aid! Benjin!
The trapeze artist was no longer standing at the stage entrance when Vincent turned looking for his help. He had run across in an unparalleled rush, holding Alex by the neck.
— How dare you touch him!
— Ben, we need to call Mr. Monteccello to take care of this boy.
Leonardo took a deep breath trying to contain the painful moans, which was definitely a mission impossible. When Vicente held his hand to take a look, the twinge of pain and burning caused the young master to scream hoarsely.
— Argh!
— I'll call the detective then... — Aslan volunteered when he was interrupted.
— Hey, Leo — Leonardo raised his eyes towards the trapeze artist, who still had his back to him. But when Benjin looked over his shoulder, he was smiling malevolently, and his eyes had changed to dark sclera and yellowish irises — I can do whatever you want, as long as you wish.
Shuddering, Leonardo swallowed dryly.
It had never been an illusion of his.
That day, he would have seen right.
Benjin's eyes had changed!
And it wasn't just his look, but his voice was different from the time they had talked on the phone. Thicker and more seductive as if guiding him down some dangerous path.
Being like that, it was too scary. Too surreal!
Feeling something heavy on his shoulders, Leonardo had heard a low, playful voice in his ear.
— That's right, young master. Wish to finish him off, and we will do it for you.
Glancing over, Leonardo was startled to see Ray with a similar but reddened look on his face.
What the...
What the hell was going on?
It was then that he realised. Of the attractions, only Aslan looked like a normal person. Even Vincent had those frightening eyes, despite his impeccably calm composure as he removed a handkerchief from his overcoat and tied it around the young master's hand.
Swallowing dryly, he looked directly back at the puppet who was still waiting for his response. Benjin was holding Alex by the neck and even holding him aloft as if holding a rag doll!
Creepy.
Benjin was scary.
Only his horror was losing out to the pain in his hand.
Right...
He could go crazy later, but he had to tend to his injury and find a way to get Alex out of the circus. That guy had broken into his home and beaten him for no good reason. That was an unforgivable audacity.
He had no idea who Benjin really was, but he had a chance on his hands to end that. Besides, given their relationship, it was likely Leonardo could be safe by his side. So heaven forgive him, but he would take advantage of that to end that story once and for all.
Determined, Leonardo returned the puppet's gaze.
— Show him a real circus show.
Laughing amused, Benjin blushed in euphoria.
— As you wish, Leo~.
État de l’alimentation hebdomadaire
-- Classement
Power Stone 
-- Power
stone