Alex really didn’t want to have this conversation on the floor so very carefully Alex moved them up to the bed that was in the room.  Hope had been having a rough patch and he just wanted him to be comfortable.  Alex still continued to hold him as he talked; he was not ready to let him go just yet.<br/><br/>Alex just held Hope close to him and began to run his fingers thru Hope’s trying to keep him calm.  Alex knew the story from reading the note and he knew that this had to be hard for Hope to tell him.  Reading the letter was one thing, but listening to Hope recount what happened to him and been really hard for Alex to listen to.  “Hope, what happened with that man was not your fault.”  Alex said with a sigh.  “You’re not messed up; you are just adjusting to how you have been treated and living.”<br/><br/>Alex pulled Hope close to him again and leaned down and gives him a gentle kiss, “You are with me now and I will never let anyone hurt you like that again.”  Alex said with a small smile,  “I want you to let me take care of you so you never have to worry about things like that again.”<br/><br/>Alex had hoped that Hope would be able to pull himself out of his shell and get more comfortable with himself about everything.