Liam should've just stayed home.

It was cold as fuck out here– what on earth possessed him to take a detour from his usual path? Well, maybe all the weird, hostile looks he'd been getting from literally everyone at the corner store he'd gone to to buy the can of coke he'd been randomly craving had played a part.

And so on that cold November night, Liam Sanders ended up walking through the park, all alone.

As he walked, he had a strange feeling, as if someone was following him... But that was silly. Stop being such an idiot, Liam, you're just paranoid because you're breaking routine.

Snap!

Liam spun around like a skittish cat when he heard the snap of a branch behind him, but quickly felt relief settle over him as he realised it was only a group of guys he knew– 6 in total, he counted.

One of them, Ted, held a baseball bat. They must've been coming back from a game!

"Oh, hey, you scared me." He chuckled awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck in mild embarrassment. "What were you doing sneaking behind me like that?"

The men sniggered, exchanging glances and gestures. "Cut the act, fag. We know." Ted grinned, malice shining in his eyes as he turned his bat over in his hands gleefully. "Everyone knows!" Another added.

Liam frowned in confusion, which caused another wave of mocking laughter. "What...?"

"Oh, don't play dumb, you freak. Everyone knows you're one of them. And we're here to give you a warning, a friendly reminded to never trick us again."

They started advancing and Liam backed away, heart racing.

"Wait, g-guys, look, we can– we can work this out, right? Wait, n-no, no, seriously we– FUCK! No– WAIT PLEASE I'M SORRY–"

Liam should've just stayed home.

'Cause here he lay, on the pavement, listening to the sound of his own pitiful breathing. Pain still seared through every inch of his broken body, doing its job in numbing him just as well as the freezing temperature did. They'd taken his jacket. Along with his health.

What if he just lay here to his death? Who would care? Not the guys that had attacked him, that's for sure.

That baseball bat had come into good use for Ted. The others had kicked and punched, shoved his body like a ragdoll between them, like merciless toddlers at playtime. It felt like all his ribs were broken. It hurt to breathe.

Liam had always hated his body. He doubted these injuries and the inevitable scars they would leave would make him any more attractive. They certainly didn't make him feel any better.

Maybe if he closed his eyes... Just for a while...