Page 53 of His Untoward Hate

This explained why Jude had broken down earlier, why he had tried to run in front of that truck, and why he had seemed so distant and unlike himself the whole night.

Sky finally understood him completely.

And honestly, Jude had every right to be angry.

Even from a distance, the physical differences between Mitch and Jude were obvious enough that anyone could tell they were not related by blood. Sky had known it for a long time, and he was sure others at school had noticed it too.

“I heard everything they said about me, Sky,” Jude admitted. “I was so weak earlier… when I should’ve been strong for myself. I should be strong because I only have myself…”

Jude’s voice trembled as it broke at the end.

Sky pulled him closer, but Jude kept pulling away, struggling against the comfort.

“Come on,” was all Sky said.

Sky was terrible at scenes like this.

“No,” he cried.

“Come on, let’s go home. We have school tomorrow,” Sky said softly, trying to steady him amid the noise and crowd.

Sky did not care about anyone watching anymore. But of all the responses he could have given, he could not help feeling ridiculous for bringing up school.

“I’m not going to school tomorrow,” Jude muttered, shaking his head like a drunk brat, eyes fixed on the floor as he weakly held onto Sky’s shirt.

“Since when did you start skipping school?” Sky said, lightly reprimanding him as he guided him closer with a hand on his back.

“Since when did you start caring about school, Sky Granger?” Jude muttered, narrowing his eyes as his brows furrowed suspiciously.

“Sshh. You’re drunk,” Sky said softly. “Come on, I’ll take you home.”

“I don’t have a home,” Jude replied, trying to sound casual, but the pain in his voice was impossible to hide.

“Enough of your fucking drama, will you? You’re drunk, Jude Finn. Let’s go home,” Sky said, trying to weather him down, but Jude was hurt by his words even more.

Sky was absolutely not good at giving comforting advice or saying the right words, so there was really nothing more to expect from him.

“I’m not drunk, Sky Granger! I’m not even tipsy yet!” Jude raised his voice, yanking his hand free from Sky’s grip. “If you want to go home, then go home yourself!” he snapped before pushing back into the crowd once again.

Damn it!

Sky let out a heavy sigh and planted his hands on his hips, his patience wearing off. His gaze never left Jude, who tipped his head back with eyes closed, swaying effortlessly to the music as if nothing else in the world existed. It was not even something he was doing on purpose. Even with sweat on his skin and bruises and marks on his face, nothing could take away from how striking he looked in that moment.

Sky jutted his jaw, resisting the urge to do something reckless as jealousy and frustration burned through him. Jude was immediately surrounded by a group of guys, completely exposed and unguarded. Even if he did not seem to care, it still chafed Sky to the point where he could barely stand it. Sky gritted his teeth, almost crushing the nerves beneath them.

When Jude opened his eyes and flashed a smile at them, that was the final trigger for Sky.

He stepped in immediately.

“What the hell is your problem, man?!” one of the guys snapped.

“Back off and stay the fuck away,” Sky growled, every word spoken with grit and conviction, shoving him square in the chest as he stood his ground, looming over the group.

In an instant, the people around them turned their attention toward the commotion.

Sky fixed his glare on the guy, his eyes dark and piercing. Fear immediately flickered across the man’s face.

He quickly raised both hands in surrender.