Well damn so much for trying to keep everything under the radar.
He wasn't surprised that Gabe had noticed, he had always been so observing ever since they were kids. "It's, eh nothing. Just, just don't worry about it". He didn't even know how to begin explaining what happened, and honestly he didn't know what it meant. He pinched the bridge of his nose slightly to try and alleviate some of the headache he had but also to distract himself. Jay got in a fight technically because of Gabe, and how would the boy even react if he had known Jay would kick a guys ass to defend him. He didn't want to make things weird or awkward so he decided to just stay quiet on the matter for the duration of the car ride back.
When the car was finally parked Jay had already planned on trying to dash back to the room but Gabe paused for a moment which prompted Jay to glance over at him. "Hey.....you know just because I think you're an asshole, you can talk to me right?" He was being sincere, Jay knew it but there was no way that they could just become friends again. They weren't good for each other, (or at least that a what his father's constant banter made him believe). Still, Jay nodded slightly and let out a rather soft reply of, "I know". This had oddly felt like the most normal encounter Jay had with Gabe in a while, and his weakened state wasn't in the mood to fight but rather just go along with it. So, when Gabe helped him out of the car supporting some of his weight, Jay let him.
When they finally reached the apartment Gabe led him over to the couch and Jay couldn't help but sink into the security and comfiness of it all. However he wasn't ready for an interrogation session from Gabe.
"Now, you've been silent for a bit Jay, tell me what happened, I haven't seen you this beat up since that night you showed up to my house all bruised and bloody....you still never told me what happened." Jay let out a small groan and sunk further into the couch, expressing his discomfort about the situation. He knew that Gabe wouldn't leave him alone until he said something so he just decided to leave some parts out, it technically wasnt lying. "God Gabe its not a huge deal. I just got into a fight with one of the guys, he was just talking shit on someone and I stood up for them. You can see how being a Good Samaritan has treated me" he gestured to his face with a pause, "now can I just get some sleep? I'm tired and I feel like I got hit by a bus" he complained.