Page 70 of The Toymaker
“I don’t want you to feel forced like you have to.”
Kit buried his face in Riju’s neck. “I don’t know what all I want to do in life, but I was thinking a year isn’t enough, so I’ll stay, and we can see where things go. If it doesn’t work out, neither of us can force the other to stay.”
Riju stroked his back. “Will you promise me something?”
“Yes.”
“If he ever tries to punish you for something unfair or even if you simply don’t feel safe, scream as loud as you can for me.”
“Why?”
“Because I’m not letting him do that to you again,” Riju replied with an edge to his voice. “If I have to, I’ll take you out and to the gate guards. Promise me.”
“I promise.”
Chapter Fifteen
Reality could be so unpleasant at times.
Worn out from the day, Riju had slept like a rock with Kit next to him in bed. The hours of nothing had been bliss, and during breakfast, he almost wished he could go back to bed.
He hadn’t heard Trig come home the night before, but he was at breakfast. Things were stiff, and Kit looked awkward as he ate on the floor since Trig hadn’t permitted him to sit with them.
They barely spoke, and Riju didn’t feel like helping in the shop, making anything downstairs, or even being around Trig. He wanted to keep Kit with him all day, but Trig told him to wipe down the inside of the windows and dust everything.
Riju curled up in the sitting room with the book about the toymaker and slowly read it, trying to make it last longer. How he envied the man. Probably nobody told him he wouldn’t be any good at his work.
It helped to take his mind off of things, and he was reading it a second time and hunched under his weighted blanket when Trig came in.
“Are you still not talking to me?”
Riju focused on the picture of a doll and a toy soldier dancing. “I don’t have anything to say.”
What was he supposed to say anyway? Sorry? He wasn’t the one who’d whipped Kit for dropping a coin because he'd had a cramp. He shouldn’t be sitting out in the shop with welts on his back.
It was too awkward to pretend yesterday never happened, and something about the faint tone Trig had used suggested it was Riju’s fault which meant he should apologize. Or maybe he was imagining it. He wasn’t sure.
Before bed, Kit had asked Riju what caused him to cry and get upset the most. If he made a mistake, did that cause it? Was it random? Was it being denied something? Or was it certain people? The physician had made Riju panic because it reminded him of a horrible day that he still hadn't told Kit about.
Trig came over and settled next to him on the couch. “Come on. Put the book down for a second and look at me. I know we had a rough day yesterday. It doesn’t mean we can ignore each other. I don’t like seeing you like this.”
Riju said if he was particularly upset or crying, he felt as if things were too much in his head. Like he was overstimulated and ready to burst. Kit asked what seemed to cause the feeling the most.
“Come on.” Trig took Riju’s chin.
Honestly, the single common factor in the majority of his meltdowns was Trig. Riju didn’t often cry over much else anymore. If he did, it was usually because Trig had stressed him out earlier. In general, he sought to avoid or get away from whatever was too much.
Trig took the book and set it on the table in front of the couch before he grabbed Riju in a hug, forcing him to shift his legs from the comfortable position he’d been in. Riju held back a frustrated noise. He wasn’t a pet to be grabbed.
“See? This is what I mean when I say you’re not mature enough to be on your own. The shop still has to run, and if you’re pouting and hiding, you won’t make money that way.”
Riju’s face burned. Kit and Trig could manage it today. It wasn’t like the business would fail without Riju upfront, and he never cared before if Riju went for a walk or spent a couple of hours doing something not work-related when they weren’t busy.
If he had his own business and lived alone, it’d be easier since he could focus on work. Trig also couldn't upset him as easily,and nobody else would be pestering him. If he lived with Kit, he was pretty sure Kit wouldn’t tear him down one day and expect him to pretend nothing happened the next.
Trig sighed. “Listen, let’s go out and do something fun. Do you want to?”
What about the shop? Being present didn't count for him? Riju pulled away. “Like what?”
