justindrockwell-sna asked:

Teeth chattering and arms still wrapped self-consciously around his middle, Justin shrugged helplessly and stared at the ground, avoiding Ben's keen stare for the sake of eyeing the doorstep instead, studying it scrupulously. "V-vhen I s-said." He swallowed and squeezed his eyes shut. "I h-hed--somevhere e-else t-to go, I lied, I d-didn't--zhe dorms a-are--too full, I t-told zhem--not to trouble z-zhemselves." He gulped and glanced up balefully. "I h-heff been--elsevhere ever since."

It had been freezing. Did he not have a coat? Gloves, even? Surely a friend, or at least the school could have provided him with that. Did he have some kind of insurance plan? If not, of course, Ben could sort that all out with a snap of his fingers - and if that really was the case - why had he not brought the issue up soone—

“…So you have been… living independently… and you can’t do something about it because your inheritance is still tied up in legal…” Ben’s speech trailed off. He stood there for a minute, as if he had difficulty processing the situation. Suddenly not caring about tugging on a coat or putting on shoes, Ben simply stepped out to clasp the shivering figure around the shoulders and began to walk back inside, rambling under his breath. “I’m going to make you something warm to drink, okay? Tea or.. hot chocolate or.. something…” Closing the door, moving to the living room… “Get your sugar levels up, too.. Keep you warm, that’s the main thing, you look absolutely freezing.” Setting him down on the sofa and putting a blanket around his shoulders… “I’ll get you a bath sorted out, or a shower if you prefer, I don’t know.. You can stay in the guest bedroom for this night at the very least.. We can sort this out, I can.. I can fix this all for you, Justin, it’s fine, I have this under control, and you’ll be safe with me until you get the money to stand on your own two feet…” And so it continued. Not giving himself a chance to stop and consider the time it had been since he last saw Justin, because if he did… he wasn’t sure if his conscience would be able to take it.