Chapter 12

"Did you enjoy the view?"

Valentino's voice cut through the air—thick and rich, followed by slow, heavy footsteps.

It was calm.

Too calm.

He claimed the living room, his dark-brown eyes immediately finding Nathan's, tinged with something unreadable.

The boy had taken refuge in the farthest corner of room, behind a couch.

Nathan shifted, heart pounding. His eyes darted from Valentino to the ground as he frantically shook his head.

"N... no, I forgot to knock—"

"Really?" The man cut in, hands slipping into his pockets as he stepped closer and stopped.

Nathan's stomach churned, palms sweaty, and he nodded. Muttered apologies dripped from his mouth like whimpers.

This wasn't the reaction he'd expected.

Valentino was almost unfazed, and that shook him to his core. More than his lash-outs ever did.

For a moment, he believed the man would hurt him.

"Come."

Nathan froze, slicing his gaze towards Valentino. He watched, in utter confusion, as the man turned and walked away.

He hesitated, sweaty hands clenching and unclenching by his sides, until Valentino spoke again.

"I won't repeat myself."

He'd never felt so out of touch with his limbs. His legs crossed the living room before he could form another thought.

Valentino entered his bedroom and Nathan followed behind him, shoulders curved inward and head bowed slightly.

The image of the man's bare body flashed torturously in his head, with his monstrous member as the highlight.

The boy muttered a curse, standing awkwardly by the door.

He watched as the man grabbed the clock off the bedside table and set an alarm for 5 o'clock.

"One minute."

Nathan's eyebrows furrowed at the vague announcement, an uneasiness tugging at him.

"You have one minute to leave, the second the clock rings," Valentino clarified, gruff voice laced with seriousness.

"W... what?" Nathan asked, immediately regretting it when the man looked up at him with narrowed eyes.

The contempt in them was sharp and unfiltered.

He nodded frantically, rooted to the spot by the door.

Valentino stood up and walked to the wardobe. He took out some pillows and proceeded to the bed.

The man began arranging the pillows vertically on the bed.

Nathan watched, his chest tightening with realization.

Did he think he was a... pervert?

"Cross those pillows with any of your limbs apart from your hand and I'm breaking them," the man threatened, sliding into the bigger side of the bed.

Nathan gulped, approaching the bed with slow steps. He climbed the furniture and slid under the blankets, heart racing faster than ever.

Even with the great divide, this setting still felt intimate. He shuddered, feeling the hair on his body rise.

His hand dropped lightly on the pillow, tensing as Valentino's engulfed it. Huge. Warm. Calloused. Scarred.

It told more stories than the man ever let on.

Nathan stilled, chest rising and falling fast from anxiety. He stared up at the ceiling, unable to shake the strange sensation in his palm.

He'd held Valentino's hand before, he thought, but it wasn't this... nerve-wracking. Intense. Heart racing.

Maybe it was because he was sleeping next to him.

His head tilted to the side as he glanced over at the man, taking in his side profile and the features he could see.

Valentino's eyes were closed.

Was he asleep?

He looked almost gentle.

Then, he shifted.

Nathan's head snapped forward, eyes wide. He shook his head and closed his eyes, trying to fall asleep, too.

He had only five hours to feel rested.

And a race to run.

Before long, his eyelids got heavy and his breathing evened out as sleep claimed him.

✿ ✿ ✿ ✿ ✿ ✿ ✿ ✿ ✿ ✿ ✿

Valentino stirred, a frown crossing his features as the blunt buzzing of the alarm clock pierced through his ears.

He reached for the clock and turned it off, plopping back down on the bed, with a sigh.

Then, he felt it.

A weight on his thigh.

His eyebrows furrowed as he sliced his gaze to the side, before his expression switched to irritation.

Nathan was still fast asleep. Curled up, undisturbed, with his leg boldly over Valentino's thigh.

The man's eyes narrowed, a feeling he couldn't name—dared not name—creeping into his chest.

It was familiar.

He'd felt it the night before. When Nathan opened his bedroom door while he was unclothed.

Valentino had stilled, his eyebrows shot up curiously as he looked back to see Nathan at the threshold.

He saw it.

The way the boy's widened eyes traced his body, taking in every curve, dip, scar, and strand of hair.

The feeling had bloomed when he followed the boy's gaze to his lower half, where it had locked onto his cock.

He couldn't understand it.

He wasn't repulsed.

He was almost... unfazed?

Valentino tensed as Nathan stirred and muttered nonsense in his sleep.

Before he could stop himself, he kicked the boy hard enough for him to roll over and hit the ground.

Thud!

Nathan's scream cut through the air, sharp and pained. His eyes flicked open in shock, as he gripped his shoulder.

The man watched as the boy hoisted himself onto the side of the bed and shot him a look of confusion and pain.

His heart raced slightly, guilt creeping in.

"10... 9... 8... 7..."

Nathan's eyes shot wide as he scrambled to his feet and bolted out of the room.

Valentino's eyes fell to the thigh where Nathan's leg had rested on, that strange feeling fluttering in his chest.

Involuntarily, before disgust took over—raw, sharp, more at himself than Nathan.

Why did he do that?