Page 16 of New Year

Zack still slept with his wallet and cell phone under his pillow.

* * *

Nat curled up on the end of the sofa bed and listened to the squish-wush of the washing machine behind the closet door, willing his body to relax. He was keyed up, prepared for someone to grab him, shove him, strip him, violate him for their own entertainment. His body simply didn’t know he was safe; his mind still wasn’t completely aware, either.

A few hours ago, he’d been selling himself for cash. Now, he was safely inside someone’s home, in clean clothes, with the inklings of a plan for his future. More inklings than just the hope that he could scrape together enough cash to get out of Reynolds. An actual chance to earn money without risking it being stolen while he slept. He was lucky the last mugger had only taken his cash and bag of clothes, and had tossed his driver’s license at Nat before running away. He still had that, tucked inside his sneaker for safekeeping. He’d have no chance of getting a bus ticket without it.

He tried to study the home, but it was pretty damned boring, giving no real hint about who Zack was as a person. No books on the mostly bare shelves, just a few knickknacks that seemed curated to go with the basic modern aesthetic. Basic motel-style artwork. Even his toiletries had been simple, drug store brands. No prescriptions on the counter. He hadn’t snooped in the vanity cabinet or the linen closet, though.

Not tonight. Maybe tomorrow.

The living room did have a wall-mounted TV, but he didn’t dare watch it, not while Zack was trying to sleep with his door open. The amount of trust Zack was showing him by doing that meant more to Nat than he could express. Nat could easily find a kitchen knife, sneak into the room, slit Zack’s throat, rob him, and flee.

Except no, he couldn’t do that. He hated squashing flies, much less causing harm to actual human beings. He’d never been able to hit Austin back. He’d rarely fought back ever, in his entire life. He was too much of a weak, beaten-down coward. But he had left, damn it. Austin had pushed him to his limit, and Nat fled to a friend’s house. And fear had sent him to the streets for a solitary existence in the shadows.

He’d become a ghost, drifting through life without living it, until his white knight saw him. Saw his loneliness and struggles and rescued him. And brought him home to his in-law suite. Nat would much rather be snuggled under the covers with Zack’s tall, muscled body, but a free sofa bed was nice, too.

Maybe Zack would want to fuck him in the morning, and that was fine. Since he’d given up his spot renting a room in a house-share, Nat was used to negotiating for his bed space. No reason why Zack should exceed his expectations and actually be different.

When the washer stopped, Nat switched his laundry to the dryer, set it, turned off the kitchen light, and finally slid under the covers. The mattress was lumpy with strange folds in it, but it was softer than cardboard, smelled better than garbage. He closed his eyes and dreamed of pleasant things, positive emotions, and woke to the enticing scent of coffee.

Uncertainty rolled over him until he remembered why he wasn’t still dreaming. The couch faced the wall opposite the kitchen, so Nat twisted around and sat up to see what was going on. Zack sat at the kitchen’s narrow, L-shaped counter with a mug and a laptop, and he tossed a warm smile at Nat.

“Good morning,” Zack said. “I hope the bed wasn’t too lumpy.”

“It was fine.” Nat rubbed his eyes, and then stretched his arms over his head. “I slept like a lump, actually. You?” Seemed like a dumb question, since this was Zack’s place, but they’d both had a bizarre night.

“I didn’t sleep very well, but I’m not surprised. Except for one intense relationship in my twenties, I’ve pretty much been a bachelor, always living alone. And when someone did spend the night, it was in a spare room, and my door was shut.”

“I’m sorry about the bathroom thing. I should have told you I’d just hold it.” His bladder began throbbing now that they were discussing it, and he started untangling himself from the blanket. “I don’t want to disrupt your life.”

“You haven’t disrupted anything. I’m not upset or put-out, I was simply answering your question. I try to be honest with people in most instances, especially in personal relationships.”

“What about business relationships?”

“Then there’s more room to embellish for the sake of ego stroking and making deals happen.” Zack stood, fully dressed in dark gray slacks, a white buttoned shirt with the sleeves rolled up, and a shiny leather belt. He pointed to his bedroom. “I folded your clothes and left them in the bathroom.”

“Wow, thank you. I should?—”

Knocking on the front door startled an embarrassing yelp out of Nat. Zack frowned then strode to the door. Pressed a code into the alarm system pad. Turned a deadbolt and opened the door. A tall, slender man with gray in his hair leaned heavily on a cane. He was wearing a fuzzy green bathrobe and matching slippers like a nursing home escapee.

“Chase, good morning,” Zack said. “My text said I’d call you.”

“Well, it sounded important, so I figured I’d walk over.” Chase shuffled past Zack, his gaze down until he’d gone five steps into the apartment. Then he froze and looked up, right at Nat. “Oh.”

Nat held his breath, stomach curling up tight, unable to manage even a polite hello. Had Zack invited this Chase over to join in? No, that couldn’t be it. Zack had sounded surprised to see Chase. Whatever it was, Nat had a feeling he was leaving soon. He mumbled an excuse about using the bathroom and fled.

Zack released a growly breath at Nat’s abrupt departure, the sleep-rumpled young man fleeing like a frightened rabbit. It was almost painful to watch. He shut the door and circled around Chase. “Coffee?”

“No, I had my morning cup.” Chase sat on the edge of the unmade sofa bed. “You brought something new home with you last night. Seems a little young.”

“He is young, and it’s not what you think. He obviously slept on the couch.”

“Okay.” Chase eyed him in the ‘don’t bullshit me’ way he’d had when they were together. “Then who is he and why is he here? You told me you weren’t looking for any distractions from work right now.”

“Trust me, I didn’t go looking. I kind of stumbled over him last night.”

“At a high school?”

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