Chapter 2. 

The boy was still watching him intently. He had a full upper lip with a high cupid's bow that nearly touched his flat nose. But it looked right on him.

A low thrum filled the room and it took Syl a moment to realize it was coming from the boy. It sounded like a purr, but softer and deeper.

His long tail lifted and ran over Syl's hand in invitation. Syl turned his palm up and felt the silky fur slide through his fingers.

The boy's tail was thick and narrowed into a sharp point at the tip. He unfurled and pressed flat against the floor, presenting his long spine.

Syl stroked that too, feeling sharp bones beneath the grey pelt. It should have been strange, petting a boy his own age, but Syl felt himself relaxing.

The boy purred and rolled onto his back to show his plush belly.

Syl ran his fingers through warm velvety fur and remembered a time, long ago, when a family friend had gifted him a golden retriever puppy. He'd been eight years old and he named her Jenny, after a character from his favorite cartoon.

He used to pet her like this, but Jenny had a habit of pooping on the rug and his then-nanny eventually gave her away. Syl didn't want another pet after that. It hurt too much to lose them.

The memory tensed up his shoulders and the stench in the room reminded him he had a job to finish.

"I gotta go." He got to his feet.

"Go?" The boy scrambled to all fours and blinked up at him rapidly. "Go where?"

"I have to clean this up." Syl explained and walked towards the door. "Your master told me to."

The boy followed him out, but huddled beside the couch. His eyes flit warily about the lounge and the fur on his spine lifted.

Syl checked the cart screen for housekeeping and they still weren't available. "I'm just going to fetch a broom. I'll be right back."

"You promised me food!" The boy spat and Syl frowned. It was true.

"I don't think you should eat all that." He muttered, but lifted the remaining lids to check their options. There was a couple more seafood dishes and another bowl of cream. Cream was still a heavy dish, but lighter than solid foods.

"Here." Syl placed the bowl on the floor and turned towards the door. His fingers had barely grazed the gold handle, when a crash sounded.

He jumped and spun around. The bowl lay dented against the wall and cream soaked into a black wool rug.

"Why did you do that?" Syl exclaimed and the boy stared up at him with large eyes, round ears pressed flat.

He didn't respond, but leapt up on the couch and shredded the green velour cushions with his claws. Panicked little mewls escaped his throat and cloudy white stuffing started flying about the room.

"Hey..." Syl said gentler, pausing when he realized he didn't know the boy's name.

He reached out and touched the alien's trembling back. The boy froze, claws digging into the stuffing. Syl sat carefully beside him and trailed his hand down the soft spine.

"I can stay. If you want me to." He said quietly.

The boy watched Syl out of the corner of his eye, tongue flicking rapidly across his flat nose. Without a word, he curled up on the torn cushions and pressed his cheek to Syl's thigh.

Syl tensed briefly, then relaxed. The violet eyes gazing up at him were the picture of innocence and a purr thrummed through his skin. It felt natural to stroke the boy's head and run his fingertips over a warm little ear.

The boy's fine grey lashes lowered and he rubbed his cheek against Syl's hand.

"What's your name?" Syl asked softly, fingers carting through the fluff on the alien's nape. It pressed flat under his touch and bounced back in smoky tufts.

"My master calls me Reja." The boy breathed and turned his head to lick one of Syl's fingers with a nubby tongue. It should have been weird, but it was just cute.

"Was that always your name?"

The boy lifted his head and Syl scratched under his chin. The fur on his throat was even softer.

"No. I used to be Eleven." The alien was purring loudly now, violet eyes slit with pleasure, and a thin line of drool ran down his chin. He licked it away carelessly. "But the others were numbers too."

"Numbers...?" Like cattle? Syl's blood ran cold and his hands stilled. What exactly had happened to Reja?

The boy hissed and pushed up on his hands to climb into Syl's lap.

"Uh-" Syl's voice caught when furred arms wound around his shoulders and Reja licked his cheek.

The boy was heavier than he looked on all fours and his breath felt hot on Syl's skin, tongue damp as it lapped over his jaw, his chin and his neck.

Syl's fingers sank into velvety fur and he thought of pushing Reja away, but the licks felt good. The lithe body trapping him against the back of the couch felt even better.

Reja lifted his legs to wrap around Syl's waist and rolled his hips. Syl gasped when their groins pressed.

"Reja..." he wasn't sure what he would have said, because the boy lifted his head and licked Syl's mouth, purr rumbling through his chest.

That purple tongue ran along the seam of his lips, prodding insistently, until they parted. Reja tasted like warm cream and ocean salt.

The boy's hips were still grinding in a determined rhythm - massaging Syl's pulsing dick through his jeans. Silky fur feathered against his cheeks, his throat, and it was suddenly hard to breathe.

Liquid heat flooded over his crotch, feeling incredible, and his breath shuddered out in a moan.

He pulled Reja's soft body closer and tilted his head to taste the boy deeper. Sharp teeth grazed over his tongue and a hot shiver ran down his spine.

"This wasn't the service I expected." Several voices spoke cooly.

Syl's heart jumped into his throat and he ripped his head back to stare at the Talaya. The boy purred up at his master, violet eyes barely open.

"I made a friend." He lisped, tail curling languidly.

"I can see that." The alien looked around the room and his white brows lowered. "Were my instructions not clear?"

Syl scrambled out beneath the boy and felt a cold wetness on his crotch. He looked down and the blood drained from his cheeks. The boy had pissed on him.

"Oh god...I...s-sorry." He looked up and flinched at the red eyes searing into him. "I'll go change."

The alien's gaze narrowed and Syl realized belatedly he was making eye contact. He jerked his gaze to the floor.

"I told you to feed him and clean up. Are you impaired in some way?" The Talaya's voices flowed over Syl and his half-hard cock jerked.

He covered his soaking crotch and felt his eyes sting with shame.

In the space of a few hours he'd met aliens - been shocked, frightened and then overwhelmingly horny.

This had been his first kiss, he'd never allowed a girl close enough to attempt it before. Not that it mattered, because apparently he was gay.

His mind whirled with stress and, to his utter mortification, he sniffled. He hadn't cried in years. Not since he was little.

"Oh." The Talaya breathed and Syl cringed when he felt the alien move closer.

The Talaya was so much larger (Syl barely reached his waist) and his silver armor gleamed in the overhead lights.

A pale blue hand ran over his head and Syl trembled. His cap must have fallen off on the couch. "Sweet boy, don't cry."

Syl glanced up in disbelief. He was sixteen years old and the only person that had ever spoken to him like that was a nanny he'd had when he was seven. He'd liked her, but she was working to support her studies and she didn't stay long. None of them ever did.

Large fingers firmly cupped his chin and turned his head slowly from side to side. Syl kept his own downcast and fought to control the tremor in his lower lip.

"My dear, should we keep him?" The Talaya spoke thoughtfully and Reja jumped off the couch to rub his flank against Syl's leg.

"Yes. Yes, I like him." Reja purred.

A knock sounded on the door and the Talaya turned his head to stare at it, but said nothing.

The door opened and two women in beige uniforms gasped. They took in the wrecked lounge with horrified stares and spotted Sylvester.

"What are you doing here, sir?" One of the women exclaimed. Syl knew her. Her name was Anna-Marie, she was thirty years his senior, but she still insisted on calling him sir.

The alien tilted his head, thumb stroking Syl's cheek absently. "Are you referring to me?"

The woman paled as she gazed up at the alien and her fingers clutched the rosary Syl knew was in her pocket. He regularly saw her take out the amber beads and pray.

She prayed in the Hotel's foyer, in the elevator, and on a marble bench in the garden. Syl had never found an opportunity to ask her why - especially since she practically ran, whenever she saw him.

"N-no, sir. That's the president's son."

"Your leader?" The alien turned back to Syl, brows lifting. "He sent his offspring to attend me?"

"No!" Charisse, the second maid, hurried forward and gripped Syl's arm. "He shouldn't be here. We're terribly sorry! We'll get this cleaned up and bring some refreshments. Come along, Sylvester."

She jerked Syl away, lips pressed tight, and marched him out the door. Unlike Anna-Marie she wasn't intimidated by his status. If anything, it made her sterner.

Syl heard Reja hiss, before the door clicked shut.

"What did I tell you?" Charisse's blue eyes were hard. "No more swapping with George! He's trained staff. You're not. Angie might look the other way, but you're not above the rules! I don't care who your father is!"

Syl hurriedly wiped his cheeks and stepped back. Normally, he would have protested and explained how George worked overtime and Syl had nothing better to do anyway.

But his pants were clammy, and piss-soaked, and his lip wouldn't stop wobbling.

"Yeah...okay." He turned away from her surprised stare and half-ran down the hall, jabbing the elevator pad with trembling fingers.

....

When he got back to his room he stripped off his clothes and stepped right into the shower. Now that he was allowed to cry, his tears had dried, and his skin felt tight with tension.

Hot water pounded down on his head, gushing over his crotch, and it reminded him of Reja's urine flowing through his jeans - of short clawed fingers running warm over his ribs and a rough tongue in his mouth.

He gripped his aching cock and jerked fast, coming so hard, he nearly lost his footing and slipped on the smooth black tiles.

He switched the water to lukewarm and leaned heavily against the glass stall, while his breaths slowed. Some of his tension had eased, but his chest still felt tight.

Was it even right to be thinking about Reja like this? The poor kid might have been trafficked, but Syl couldn't be sure - different worlds meant different customs - and he couldn't just call the police on a Talaya. They wouldn't stand a chance.

He scrubbed his skin twice with the hotels orange and bergamot soap, and stumbled out of the stall. He toweled off and pulled on a pair of dark navy sweatpants and a soft white t-shirt.

A waiter arrived with his dinner and arranged the silver platters neatly on a large oak table in the dining area. For once, Syl didn't mind dining alone. He wouldn't have been able to hold a conversation anyway.

He forced down a glass of sparkling lemon water and half of a marinated pork shank with perfectly seasoned vegetables and soy-garlic sauce. Then he brushed his teeth and headed straight for bed.

He delved into fresh linen sheets, but sleep didn't come easy - even with his noise machine playing soothing ocean waves rolling up the shore.

When he finally drifted off, he dreamt of smoke twining around him and glittering violet eyes.

....

A little info about Reja:

Name: Reja. (pronounced Ré-ya).

Species: Foll.

Age: Fifteen.

Characteristics: The Foll inhabit the hot desert planes on the planet Harenae. They dwell in underground tunnels, or caves, and are rarely spotted outside.

They're extremely territorial, skittish, and move in packs. Unfortunately, their lush pelt have made them vulnerable to poaching and illegal fur farming.

They form strong attachments and are ideal pets for many superior species. However, once a Foll is matured it's difficult for it to bond and it's best to purchase them young.