On a normal weekday night, Zan Ching was out of the house, as usual, which left Ren at home to do nothing much but sit around and stare at the wall. There wasn't much else to do anyways except for the laundry, which he hated.
He didn't mind washing his own clothes, because he did it everyday before anyhow, but Zan Ching's clothes were a hassle. They were, in short, big. And Zan Ching was a very messy eater. Meaning it was plainly troublesome.
Sighing, he tossed all the dirty clothes into the hamper and lugged it into the laundry room, where there was a small washtub. Zan Ching had the money, but Ren assumed he was too lazy to buy or use a washing machine. In fact, before Ren had begun to live with him, he doubted his clothes had ever been washed at all.
He filled the tub with hot water and began the unpleasant job of scrubbing each item with soap and water, trying to rid them of their nasty stains. It made his back, neck, and most of all, arms extremely sore, but he had to get it done or he'd face the consequences.
At last, he managed to finish one article, which he hung on the clothesline. Ren then knelt down to begin another, but when he was about to put soap on it, he heard a strange tapping noise on the window in the kitchen.
"Who's there?" he called cautiously, peering into the kitchen.
"It's just me."
Ren's eyes widened as he saw Horohoro waving at him through the window, grinning like an idiot. He rushed over and immediately opened the latch on the window and pulled it open.
"What are you doing here?" he asked as the Ainu hopped cheerfully in. "Zan Ching'll be back any second, if he finds out you're here, he'll-"
"Shh." Horohoro placed a finger to Ren's lips. "It's okay. I don't care about that lump of fat. I'm here to take you away from here." He grinned at Ren and rumpled his deeply colored hair affectionately.
There was a crash from somewhere outside as the front gate was slammed shut. Ren's eyes widened with panic. "Quick," he whispered, grabbing Horohoro's hand and running to the living room. "Hide here. Don't make a sound." He directed Horohoro into the closet, closing the door almost all the way, leaving it a tiny crack open.
"Ren, what's going on?"
"Shhh!" Ren urged, his eyes darting back and forth in sheer terror. "Please, just stay here and don't move. I've gotta go." He dashed off to the laundry room, trying to continue and pretend as if he had been doing such the whole time.
The door was thrown open with a deafening crash. Through the small opening, Horohoro could see Zan Ching stumble in, stomach wobbling, most obviously drunk. He slammed the door back shut and took a few steps inwards.
"Hey, you! Pointy-headed whore! Are you done with the laundry?" he shouted, lumbering into the laundry room where Ren was. A wide-eyed Horohoro watched quietly as Ren fearfully shook his head.
"No...I haven't, I'm sorry..." he muttered, looking down. "I...I was distracted..."
"Stupid bitch! You're worthless!"
Horohoro winced as Zan Ching kicked Ren hard, knocking him flat on his back.
"And what's distracting you, my dear? Thinking about your blue-haired boyfriend, perhaps?" He grabbed Ren by the collar, jerking him roughly to his feet. "Get upstairs. Right now," he hissed in his face. Ren flinched, turning his head away to avoid having to smell the alchohol lacing his foul breath.
"Did you hear me? Are you daft, boy? Go!" He threw Ren viciously to the floor. Terrified, the boy rose to his feet and instantly scrambled up the stairs, followed closely by Zan Ching's crashing footsteps.
The man shoved Ren into his bedroom and slammed the door, disallowing Horohoro to watch any further. He listened closely, shocked by the awful commotion.
He could hear Zan Ching's drunken shouts and Ren's desperate pleas for him to forgive him just this once. A loud slap which rang throughout the hallways told Horohoro his answer was most definetely a "No."
After that came the sounds of Ren struggling and Zan Ching laughing, then there was a silence, save Ren's muffled sobs. Horohoro's eyes widened as a pained scream suddenly split the silence, followed by a series of more. There were strange noises coming from upstairs, and Horohoro didn't even have to guess to know what was going on.
He clenched his fists, digging his fingernails into his palms. How could Ren expect him to just sit there and wait?
The bedroom door was suddenly flung open again, and Zan Ching was dragging Ren with him. Blood trickled from his lip, and his clothes were rumpled and torn. "Had enough, bitch?" the fat man laughed, grinning at Ren. Without warning, he suddenly threw Ren down the stairs.
Horrified, Horohoro watched as Ren seemed to fall in slow motion. With a sickening crack, his head struck the third step, and his eyes fluttered shut. The impact had knocked him unconcious, any idiot could have seen that. His limp body tumbled helplessly down the stairs, threatening to crash to the floor below.
He couldn't take it anymore. He couldn't just sit there and watch Zan Ching's abuse upon the boy he loved. Without even thinking, Horohoro burst out of the closet, outstretching his arms and catching Ren right before he hit the last step.