Another Day

Chapter 10

Of brooms and closets

Kai decided that he had had enough sun for now, and walked towards the kitchen. On the way he passed the stables and the sight reminded him suddenly of what he had promised to do. He looked inside for Enrique, but the blonde wasn't there. There were not that many interesting places to spend free time in this house and, since all the horses were in their boxes, Enrique could not be out working, so Kai reasoned he would probably be in the kitchen. The kitchen was the centre of all activity on the servants' part; everyone who was going from inside to outside, or the other way around, had to pass through here.

Indeed, the blonde was sitting on a chair, talking to Max. Emily was washing a cupboard above the sink, her knees on the bench and a look of concentration on her face. Kai walked over to the two by the table and their conversation stilled when they noticed him. They took in his serious expression and Enrique asked, "Hi there, Kai, is something the matter?"

Kai sighed, "Not really. I was just wondering if you know kid named Oliver."

He was surprised when Enrique shot up and grabbed him by the collar, "Have you spoken to Oliver?"

Kai nodded, "I went with Tala and their friends on their weekly walk. Oliver wanted to give me a message for you, but we were...interrupted."

Enrique looked like he knew exactly what that meant; his excitement became sorrow, and he sat down again with his head hanging. Max looked knowingly and sympathetically at the other blonde.

Kai felt terrible; he should have done more to stop Bryan from beating Oliver. "Is he a good friend of yours?"

He immediately regretted his words when Enrique turned angry eyes on him, "I love him."

He looked at Kai as if daring him to say something cruel, but Kai surprised him, "He seemed like a very nice kid. I'm happy for you. He must love you a lot considering the risk he knew he took in speaking to me about you."

Enrique looked defeated again, "Bryan is a complete bastard who loves to beat his slaves simply for fun. Oliver used to be confident and full of life, but then he was sold to Bryan and now he is just a shadow. Still, he is the most wonderful person I have ever met. I wish I could get him away from the Tozanavitzs, but if a slave escapes from their household then they hunt him down and kill him. No matter how long it takes." He put his head in his hands.

Kai did not know what to do or say except, "Don't give up, Enrique. Some things are worth fighting for even against impossible odds."

The blonde looked up at him, "Thank you, Kai. I won't give up."

The Hiwatari left the kitchen. He was just up the stairs when Max caught up with him, "Kai, I just want to warn you. Don't mess with Bryan; he's cruel to the bone. You have to leave this battle to Enrique and Oliver."

"I can't promise you not to meddle, but I will be careful, Max." He turned and walked down the narrow hall.

Kai cried out in surprise when a door was thrown open right in front of his nose. The cry alerted the person who had opened the offending barrier to his presence, and Rei peeked around the corner of the white door. He looked slightly nervous, but Kai did not get to ask why before a shrill voice called from down the corridor. The feline grabbed Kai and hauled him into the room.

It proved to be a small broom closet, and when the door closed it became so dark that Kai could barely see the outline of Rei in the light that came from the cracks around the door. The left wall held shelves filled with stuff and the floor was also full of things except from a small space in the middle in which both boys had to keep their feet.

Kai was not at all happy with this turn of events, "What do you think you are doing, you moron?"

All he earned was a hand clamped over his mouth. "Quiet," the black haired boy whispered, "Danielle is after me." Indeed, it was the youngest member of the Ivanov family who was walking down the hall, calling out for Rei. She passed the door, and the black haired boy tensed up. Kai on the other hand, didn't care whether Danielle found them, but as she passed he noted somehting odd; unless he was much mistaken the little girl was not supposed to have more than two feet. Who was walking with her?

The tiny space in which they both had to keep their feet made it impossible to stand up straight, so Kai had to lean on the wall and Rei was leaning over Kai, so close that the blue haired boy could feel every careful intake of breath.

Finally the threat passed, and Rei exhaled in relief.

It was really was dark in there and now that no one was walking in the hall the only noise left was the two boys' breathing. Kai waited, but when nothing happened he exclaimed, "Well, what are you waiting for? Open the door, damn it!"

He was becoming increasingly nervous with every second; he was not only trapped in a tiny closet with a very attractive boy practically hugging him, but he was beginning to feel claustrophobic. He was not used to cramped spaces, although he had hidden in many a tight corner before; when he was running from the cops or hiding he always had his survival in mind and that made him focus and overcome whatever fear that tried to settle in him, but here there was nothing else than the darkness and the clean scent of Rei's hair.

"Open the door!"

"I'm trying, but it is stuck! It must have locked itself when I slammed it."

Kai felt panic rise in him, "It's locked?"

Rei tried again, but the door remained firmly shut. "How could it have locked itself? Doors with keys don't just lock themselves," Rei said, wondering.

"It's locked?!" Kai almost squeaked.

Rei sighed, "Don't worry; someone is bound to come along and then we can call for help." So they stood there in awkward silence for a little while, waiting.

"So...what have you done today?" The feline asked.

"I've carried boxes... and been walked around the neighbourhood."

Rei grimaced, "You got to go outside? You were lucky; I had to brush Danielle's hair for what felt like an hour before she was happy. Then she wanted to experiment on my hair, so I ran away. I've spent most of the day in hiding."

Kai chuckled, and it vibrated through Rei as well, from where he was leaning on Kai's strong chest. It made him draw a sharp breath, but the other boy didn't notice.

Footsteps coming from the kitchen made both boys sharpen their ears. "Hello! Can anyone hear me? Help!" Rei yelled.

Kai felt extremely embarrassed at being found locked in a closet, but Rei was soft and warm and pressed against him, and if they did not get out soon then Rei might notice the way that was affecting Kai. So he shouted along with the black haired boy and when the footsteps came to a halt outside the door he was relieved. But the voice that came from the other side belonged to the one person that Kai did not want to meet.

"Is that Rei and Kai I hear?" Soft and smug and so...knowing.

Rei had felt the same instinctive dislike for Carlos that Kai had, but he had not spoken to the strange boy yet, and so didn't really know what they were up against, "Carlos, the door is locked! Could you get the key somehow?" He asked nicely, while Kai remained silent and tense.

Soft laughter came from the other side of the white door, "Why would I do that?"

Kai sighed; he had expected this. "Carlos, come on; don't do this, just help us out," he said, not quite as friendly as Rei had. This time the laughter they received was high-pitched and crazy. Kai felt Rei shiver against him.

Carlos left with a last; "It is so nice of you to stick around while I go inform Tala what you are up to." Kai growled, but there was nothing he could do.

Rei shook his head, "What is wrong with that boy?" Kai only shrugged; he was not sure himself.

A few seconds passed in silence, but then Rei said, "Well, at least, if Carlos goes to Tala, we will get out of here."

Kai grabbed Rei by the front of his tunic in sudden realisation, "What? No! This is all your fault."

The jostling made Rei start to slide, and when he attempted to regain his footing he found nowhere to place his feet. Instead he ended up falling further onto Kai. "Relax, stupid, it's not the end of the world," he said while still trying to reposition his feet.

Kai released him, "Sure, that's what you think; you aren't the personal slave of that selfish, cold-hearted brat."

Being released caused Rei to slide downwards faster. Their soft shoes had only a precarious hold on the smooth floor and their slanted positions made it even worse. Rei yelped in surprise at the sudden loss of support and grabbed a hold of Kai, trying to keep himself up.

Kai seized the cat by the shirt and dragged him back up roughly in an attempt to mend the situation. "Stay on your feet will you?" But even as he said it he could feel himself slipping as well. Someone was taking their job of washing the floors way too seriously.

For a moment, both boys struggled not to fall. It wouldn't have been so bad if Kai could only sit down, but up against the wall he was leaning on stood several buckets and other things that would make the fall quite uncomfortable. They ended up helplessly staring at each other as they slid down the wall. Suddenly, and with a surprised yell, Kai fell the rest of the way, pushing Rei's feet away from under him so that the cat landed on top of Kai, knocking his breath out. Kai's feet collided with the shelf and caused most of the contents to fall down on them.

When it seemed that everything that could fall down had fallen down, the two teens found themselves nose to nose. Kai was very much aware of the way their bodies were pressed together. Rei's face was inches from his own and the feline's golden eyes were wide and shining in the darkness of the closet. In the awkward silence, Kai noticed that his left foot was trapped between a fallen shelf and some other unidentifiable items, and so he pulled, trying to get it out. With a hard tug he managed to free it, at the same time pushing his leg up between Rei's and colliding with the hardness there.

What? Hardness? Oh.

Rei gave a strangled groan but not in pain; Kai was wearing baggy pants that made for a soft impact.

The slate haired teen felt his face grow hot, even though it was Rei who should be blushing. "Um, sorry," Kai said, wishing fervently that someone would come and get them the heck out.

He meant to rise, but Rei had other plans, and he was not half as shy as Kai was. The Hiwatari was caught completely unprepared by the soft lips that were pressed to his. His first thought was to protest, or push the feline away, but the taste that suddenly flooded his senses and the awakening heat between his legs were enough to drive all such thoughts away. He threaded a hand in Rei's hair to hold him in place and ran his tongue over his companion's lips. The raven haired boy moaned and responded eagerly.

The two were too occupied to notice the footsteps coming their way. The sudden light that filled the closet made them part as far as was possible, not very far in their position, and look up at the now open door. They hadn't even heard the key being turned. In the doorway stood Enrique with a part shocked, part amused look on his face. For a second it was completely silent.

"I only came for a bucket, but I think I will leave you two to your business."

That got the two slaves in the closet to react. They got up, with less than a little grace, and managed to stumble out of their crowded prison. The blonde only raised an amused eyebrow.

Once out and composed, Rei scratched the back of his head and said hesitantly, "Um...we would appreciate if you do not tell anyone about this."

Enrique grabbed his bucket, closed the door and smiled, "Of course I won't. Good luck you two."

Kai sighed, but didn't argue any further. Instead he began to think, "Enrique, has this door ever gotten jammed?"

The blonde looked puzzled, "No, it hasn't. Why?"

"Because if it hasn't then someone must have locked us in."

"Well, there are multiple keys to the closets in this house so anyone could have done it, but why would anyone lock the two of you in a closet? Apart from the obvious, of course."

Kai covered his eyes with one hand, "It's not what you think, Enrique."

"Of course not," the blonde grinned with obvious amusment, before leaving.

Rei looked after the retreating figure, "We might as well have shouted it at the top of our lungs from the roof."

But Kai shook his head, "No, I think that he will know not to reveal this particular secret to anyone." With that Kai left the other way, leaving Rei to wonder.

'Great, now I have to take a cold shower as well. What more can come along to trouble me today?'

At dinner that day they were at their full number; Boris had joined them. There were fifteen servants in all at the Ivanov mansion. Kai sat between Max and Ian, and he chatted a bit with both, learning to know them better. Ian was very similar to him in the sense that he knew the harsh reality of life and accepted it without complaints. He sounded more like a warrior than a gardener, but then again Steve looked like a warrior and he too spent most of his day with his hands buried in soil. Ian told Kai that working with flowers was a way to see the better things in life, and not just focusing on the negative.

That night was not a calm one for the slave. He slept restlessly and woke several times from the same nightmare. Rei slept through it all and Kai was glad, for he did not like others to see his weak moments, and for some reason it was important not to show Rei in particular. He woke up one final time a long time before dawn. Realising that the battle for sleep was lost, he got dressed and left his bed.