It wasn’t long before nightfall came. Kazimir felt like a stuffed pig from their dinner of pizza and breadsticks from the restaurant down the road. He sought comfort alone in Emmett’s bedroom, tucked underneath the covers. The temperature in their hideout dropped drastically when the sun went down. Shivering, Kazimir leaned over for his cup of warm tea on the nightstand.
New Syracuse would never be home to him. Not with the Voiceless Rebels, and not with Jordy either. Kazimir didn’t belong anywhere.
After his shoulder healed, he’d return to their apartment and try to find a stable job. He hated how he kept struggling to pay his share of rent on time. Thanks to Jordy’s generosity, he hadn’t been kicked out yet, but he knew he couldn’t keep taking advantage of his roommate. Kazimir had to get his crap together this time, otherwise he’d be relocating again, and he was so tired of moving everywhere. He just wanted to find somewhere he could call home again.
With a resonating creak, the bedroom door opened. Emmett’s tall frame came into view as he closed it behind him. He rustled a towel through his damp, blond locks, donned in a black fleece bathrobe.
“How are you feeling?” Emmett asked, nestling down at the foot of the bed. He playfully slid his arm across Kazimir’s leg underneath the covers, causing him to squirm.
“I’m okay,” Kazimir murmured, sitting up and pulling his legs close to him. “I took some painkillers a few minutes ago when my shoulder started hurting.”
“That’s good. I’m glad you’re feeling better now,” Emmett told him.
“Why are you doing all this?” Kazimir asked. “Don’t get me wrong. I appreciate it, but I don’t understand why you’d want to help me. I feel like you’re still hiding something from me.”
Emmett tossed his damp towel on the leather chair and crawled closer to Kazimir on the bed, barely leaving any distance between the two. Being so close to the gangster set his heart a-thump. Heat soared through the artist’s face as he scooted toward the edge of the mattress, but if he inched back anymore, he’d fall in the floor.
Brushing his fingers through Kazimir’s hair, Emmett sighed. “We don’t want to hurt you. There’s no need to be afraid. You remind me a lot of myself when I was younger. I don’t want to see you fall down the same path as I did. People will try to use you and manipulate you into doing horrible shit. I want to protect you from that.”
Kazimir shook his head. “I don’t understand why though. I’m nobody to you. I’m just another desperate coke addict.”
“Don’t belittle yourself like that.” Emmett propped his head down on the pillow. A lazy smile spread across his chiseled face, exposing two little dimples. “You’re an astounding artist. Not only with your paintings, but your graffiti pieces too. You have a way of capturing so much horror and sadness, but somehow make it so pretty. It’s so fucking cool.”
“Thanks. That means a lot to me.” Kazimir couldn’t hide his grin. He loved when people admired his artworks.
“My father’s actually an artist too. He used to make these cool little cartoons. He never took it seriously as a career,” Emmett told him. “He used to make me these paintings with whatever I was into as a kid too, like Batman or the Ninja Turtles. I loved his original comics the best. He’d base his characters off our family. Like, the two main superheros were Everly and I.”
“That was so sweet of him. Do you still have the comics?” Kazimir asked, leaning closer to the gangster as he laid down, where they’d be face to face.
“Nah, he kept them. My parents live down in Nebraska now. They fucking hated New Syracuse, especially my father. He said this place isn’t even meant for the birds.” Emmett snickered. “He couldn’t understand why Everly stayed here with me.”
Kazimir furrowed his brows. “Wasn’t he concerned about you staying here too?”
“Not really.” Emmett looked away. “He knows I can take care of myself.”
“You okay?” Kazimir reached out, gently touching his arm.
“Why wouldn’t I be?” Emmett’s playful grin returned. “Anyway, I wanted to ask about sleeping arrangements. If you’re not comfortable with me in the same room as you, I can take the couch downstairs. Or, I can sleep on the floor with a blanket.”
Kazimir had slept on too many cold floors and uncomfortable couches to let Emmett do that. He couldn’t be rude enough to tell him to leave his own bed. It wasn’t like he hadn’t shared a bed with another man before. When his mother kicked him out of the house at only eighteen, he had to couch surf all the time. It was either that or try the homeless shelters, which filled up too fast.
While the idea of sleeping beside the gangster stirred up many undesirable emotions inside him, he wouldn’t force Emmett away.
“It’s fine,” Kazimir answered. “We’ll just stay on separate sides of the bed.”
“Alright. Well, you better get some rest. It’s way past midnight.” Emmett rustled his hand through Kazimir’s hair before standing up. “I’ve got some work to do, but I’ll be back later tonight. It’s nothing you need to be concerned about. Just gang business.”
Gang business? Kazimir wanted to question him more about it, but he left the room before he had the chance. Emmett didn’t honestly expect to go do business dressed in a bathrobe, did he? The idea made him grin. Knowing Emmett, anything was possible with that strange man.
Tucking himself underneath the covers, Kazimir closed his eyes and tried to drift off to sleep. The fresh scent of Emmett’s shampoo lingered on the damp pillow beside him. It smelled nothing like his apartment he shared with Jordy. Strangely, Emmett’s bed was more comfortable too, but that was probably because he didn’t have a spring poking him in the back. That’s what he got for purchasing a cheap, lousy mattress and box strings.
Nightmares of Hank greeted Kazimir in the horror-land of his mind. No matter how hard he tried to focus on something else, Hank’s bleeding body wouldn’t stop haunting him.
Something touched his back. A dip in the mattress made Kazimir carefully turn around, squinting his eyes against the moonlight pouring in from the window. Emmett snuggled under the covers beside him, brushing his bare feet against the back of his leg.
No matter what position Kazimir laid in or turned to, peaceful dreams refused to welcome him in his sleep. He wrapped the blanket tighter around his body, trying to stifle the tears threatening to spill. Sniffling, he buried his face against his pillow. Hank hadn’t deserved to die like that. Whoever killed him might not be finished either. He could be next.
Warm arms embraced him, closing in around his hips. Kazimir froze. Even his tears stopped. He knew he should’ve wriggled out of the gangster’s grip. Letting his breathing regulate, Kazimir relaxed in Emmett’s arms and closed his eyes again. It was weird for two men to snuggle together in bed. If anyone caught them, Kazimir dreaded the consequences they’d face. What would the other gang members think?
Emmett couldn’t possibly fancy him romantically, could he? Kazimir didn’t want the man to get the wrong idea. While Kazimir wasn’t opposed to being with someone of the same gender, he knew hooking up with a gang leader could get him killed.
Warm hands that comforted him in the dark had killed others countless times. Kazimir was no fool. As he faded back into dreamland, he wondered what made Emmett stay in New Syracuse when his parents left. He sensed the gang leader was hiding something too, but he couldn’t fathom what.
Everyone in their horrendous town had secrets, and he wanted to uncover more of Emmett’s. But at what cost?
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