44 ✒ Chapter 32 : Bolster Khein
PANTING, Center stared at Ethan like a hungry beast. Then, reality slapped him.
"Don't tell me that you're gay?" Ethan asked. He had no problems with homosexual people though.
"If you mean by being gay means liking you, then yes. But I never liked nor felt like looking to other men aside from you, Ethan." Center confessed. His heart was pounding like crazy when he heard Ethan's 'confession'.
"Since when?" Ethan asked with no reaction at all. He thought, 'Crap! Now this is gonna be a big problem.'
"Since we started hanging out often- back when we were kids." Center said nervously.
"What a tragic, I was just bluffing. I'm not interested in guys." Ethan said as he tried to stop himself from laughing. Center's chest felt tight.
"You took it seriously?" Ethan asked in disbelief. They both knew about the current situation. Ethan has changed. Care nor empathy could no longer be seen in the former good guy's eyes.
"And all those times you told everyone that I was gay. I even had a traumatic experience with my bullies before. My father even doubted me for being an honest son. I even became an introverted person because of you." Ethan recalled the painful memories one by one as if they didn't affect the present him at all.
"What a selfish human being. Are you even human?" Ethan asked in disbelief as he sneered.
"What do you mean by bluffing?" Center asked. He was hoping for Ethan to tell the truth.
"I don't like you, Coward." Ethan said bravely without minding what will happen next.
"Ethan, please tell me you like me. Say it again. Please." Center begged hopelessly.
"You wish" Ethan smirked. He couldn't believe that Center actually liked him more than just a friend.
"I like you so much. I love you. Please tell me that you feel the same way too, Ethan." Center pleaded with a lonely face. Center looked like a lone puppy in front of Ethan. Begging, Center held Ethan's knees as if he was afraid that Ethan might run away again.
"No way" Ethan said while chuckling.
"I can't believe you actually fell for it. Now, you just made me hate you even more for what you did to me." Ethan said with anger in his eyes.
"I'll do anything to make you forgive me." Center vowed to Ethan. bLHe was desperate and lonely. And the fact that he couldn't leave Ethan at times like this made him even more shameless.
"Let me have some fun. I'm a sober anyway." Ethan said and smiled playfully. He felt so tired that his body gave up. He slept on the floor without minding the spoiled brat in front of him.
"I'll take all the punishments." Center declared as he carried the smaller boy towards the bedroom.
The spoiled brat knew that the day after that night, he would be hurt for the next upcoming days.
•••
IT was already nine o'clock in the evening and Khein was still up for playing games.
His phone vibrated on the floor and he looked at who the sender was.
From: Psycho
Kheiny, what are you doing right now?
Khein hissed when he realized that he died on the game while looking at the message.
"What a drag" Khein cursed and put down his controller and held his phone.
"I'm playing. Don't disturb me, dumbass." Khein has this habit of voicing out the words that he types while texting.
From: Psycho
Let me play with you!:)
"No way!" Khein hissed and sent his reply. It has been ten minutes since Khein replied Rei's message. He continued playing while glancing at his phone on the floor from time to time.
'No reply huh?' Khein thought as he got a little bit distracted from the game.
Fifteen minutes later and Khein's phone vibrated. The rebel guy's eyes instantly focused on his phone. His heart thumped when he read the text.
From: Psycho
Open the door for me, Kheiny. I brought some snacks!:)
Khein immediately went downstairs to see if Rei really was in front of their door. Khein's eyes widened as he opened the door and saw Rei's smiling face.
"Hi!" Rei greeted Khein happily. The psycho guy went inside the house happily as if it was his own home. He immediately went towards Khein's room since the rebel guy's mother was sleeping.
"Can I spend the night here?" Rei asked politely. Khein raised an eyebrow at Rei's unacceptable suggestion.
"You can't" Khein said with a straight face. He suddenly felt nervous.
"Why?" Rei asked with his usual puppy eyes and sulking face. Everytime Khein sees that luring and cute face, he couldn't resist the psycho guy's demand.
"Fine, but you sleep on the floor." Khein said and grabbed the snacks that Rei just brought.
"Yey!" Rei said cheerfully yet with a low voice.
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.
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10:30pm
"Kheiny" Rei called Khein. The psycho guy was currently lying on the futon on the floor that Khein provided him.
"What?" Khein mumbled under his breath.
Rei bit his bottom lip as if he didn't want to continue what he wanted to say.
"Can I hold your hand?" Rei asked politely while staring at the side of the bed. He could not see Khein's face or even a part of the rebel guy's body. Rei didn't receive a response as he sat up and leaned his back on the edge of Khein's bed. Rei sighed as he was about to lie down again but Khein placed his left arm on Rei's shoulder. Rei stared at Khein's hand with still his body turning away from Khein's direction. Rei smiled as he intertwined their fingers and held hands. Rei kissed the back of Khein's hand and treating it as if it was a premium hand.
"That tickles" Khein mumbled. The rebel guy hid his flushed face, he never felt so shy in his entire life. But Rei was slowly changing him.
"You already know my father, right? Can..." Rei started and stopped halfway when he hesitated whether he'll continue or not.
"And?" Khein asked with sleepy eyes. He could feel Rei's fingers perfectly fit with his own.
"...about your dad. Can you tell me about him too?" Rei asked politely. Rei often sees Khein's father when they were younger because the man was always not at home. He never heard Khein talked about his father even once.
Rei felt Khein's hold tightened that he hissed. He knew that Khein's fingernails were digging on the back of his delicate hand.
"Kheiny... Uhm... It hurts." Rei said. That was the very first time that the psycho guy wanted to let go of Khein's hand because of the pain.
Khein flinched at the sudden realization that he just hurt Rei.
"Oh shit! I'm sorry..so sorry!" Khein said. Panicking, Khein looked around to see any medicine kit or a first aid box.
"Kheiny, relax. I'm sorry for suddenly asking. It doesn't hurt, so please calm down." Rei said while biting his bottom lip. He thought, 'I shouldn't have asked him.
Rei thought that if he would be honest with Khein, the rebel guy would do the same.
"Uhm... Okay..." Khein said awkwardly. He couldn't keep his eyes away from Rei's hurt hand so the psycho guy hid it under the pillow on his lap.
"Let's just sleep" Rei said and bit his bottom lip. He immediately hit the pillow with his head and forced to close his eyes.
Khein hated it. He knew he was acting like a child when he did that. Khein inhaled heavily and exhaled the nervousness inside him slowly.
"Uhm... You can..." Khein fidgeted as he buried his face on the pillow and murmured, "...sleep beside me."
'What? Am I hearing things?' Rei thought in his mind.
"I won't say it twice, dumbass." Khein said underneath the pillow. Rei rolled to face the ceiling as he heard Khein. He immediately sat up and looked at Khein.
The psycho guy chuckled as he saw the bolster beside Khein that served as the boundary between them.
Rei climbed on the bed and hugged the bolster beside Khein.
"Lucky pillow, got the chance to be hugged by me until the morning." Rei said teasingly.
Khein frowned and decided to throw away the bolster that Rei was hugging. Rei made a wide grin as he immediately buried Khein's blushing face on his chest.
"This bolster is the best" Rei said as he let Khein listen to his loudly beating heart.
