Chapter 19: Hangovers, Silk Sheets, and the Horrible Realization He Lived.
927 Words
Arden woke up dying.
Not on an emotional level.
Physically.
His head felt like someone had poured a marching band inside it and then ordered them to rehearse.
His tongue was dry, his stomach was flipping, his soul had exited the chat.
He groaned.
“Never again,” he whispered hoarsely. “I swear on milk tea… never again…”
He tried to roll over-
and fell back into something soft.
Too soft.
Arden froze.
Slowly, very slowly he opened one eye.
Silken sheets.
Black. Expensive. Smooth.
He blinked.
Opened the other eye.
A huge bed. Curtains from floor to ceiling. A chandelier that resembled the final word in expensive, something one would find in a rich man's mansion; furniture so superbly done that it seemed to frown at his presence.
Arden sat up so fast, his head screamed.
“WHY AM I IN A HOTEL.”
A pause.
”That is not a hotel."
He looked down.
He had a clean shirt on.
Not his.
His clothes were folded and lying neatly on the chair.
Arden screamed into the pillow.
“I’VE BEEN KIDNAPPED AGAIN.”
The door opened.
Kaito sauntered in calmly, bearing a glass of water and something suspiciously medicinal.
“You’re awake.”
Arden's shaking hands pointed at him. "YOU."
“Yes.”
“THIS ROOM.”
"My bedroom."
Arden's soul left his body for the third time this week.
“WHY AM I IN YOUR BED.”
Kaito set the glass down on the nightstand. “You passed out.”
“I PASS OUT AT HOME.”
“You were drunk.”
“I AM NEVER DRUNK.”
“You have drunk four beers, and ordered yoga practice for my subordinates.”
Arden slapped both hands over his face. “OH MY GOD.”
Kaito handed him the water. “Drink”.
Arden took it, chugged it, then groaned right away.
“My brain is melting.”
“You deserve it.”
“I APOLOGIZED TO A CRIME SYNDICATE, DIDN'T I."
“Yes.”
"I FLIRTED."
“Yes.”
“With YOU.”
“…Yes.”
Arden slid down until his forehead hit the mattress.
“Bury me.”
---
After several minutes of dramatized suffering, Kaito helped Arden to his feet.
Which was embarrassing.
Because Arden teetered at once like a fawn.
Kaito caught him by the arm with ease.
“Careful.”
“I AM CAREFUL,” Arden slurred. “THE FLOOR IS MOVING.”
“The floor is not moving.”
“THAT'S WHAT IT WANTS YOU TO THINK.”
Kaito led him from the room.
Arden peered round.
The mansion was gigantic: marble floors, high ceilings, quiet-to the point of eeriness.
There were guards around.
Many guards.
All of them bowed slightly upon seeing Kaito.
Glared at Arden.
One of them smiled.
Arden hissed in a whisper, “WHY IS HE SMILING.”
"You called him 'Sir Knife'," Kaito replied flatly.
Arden whimpered. “I SHOULD NOT BE ALLOWED NEAR ALCOHOL.”
They sat around a long dining table.
The food looked amazing.
Arden just stared at it.
Then gagged.
“No way. No way in heck. I will puke on your ancestors.”
Kaito slid a bowl toward him. “Soup.”
Arden sniffed it. “…This smells safe.”
He took a tiny sip.
Paused.
“…Oh. This is actually good.”
Kaito nodded. "You listen better when you're miserable."
“I HATE THAT YOU KNOW ME.”
As Arden ate slowly, memories returned.
The bar, the meeting, the laughter, Kaito carrying him.
Arden groaned. “Did I… say anything else."
Kaito took a sip of coffee. "You asked if I was lonely.
Arden froze. “…I did?”
“Yes.”
“…What did you say.”
“I didn’t say a thing.”
“Oh thank GOD.”
“You also said,” Kaito went on serenely, “‘You act scary but you look like someone who needs sleep.’”
Arden covered his face again. “I'M NEVER GOING OUT AGAIN.”
Kaito watched him wordlessly.
“You weren’t wrong.”
Arden peered through his fingers. “…Huh?”
Kaito looked away. “…Eat your soup.”
If it's not, or if massive speculation is trying to force prices a little bit higher before easing - Well, go figure.
Later, Arden was escorted to a guest room.
Still expensive. Still terrifying.
Kaito turned on the doorway. “You're staying in today.
“Like… grounded?”
“Like protected.”
Arden sighed. "This isn't at all the way I envisioned my adulthood going."
“You’ll feel better by afternoon.”
“…Will mafia hate me for this till times come.".
Kaito paused. “No.”
“….Really?”
“They like you.”
Arden stared. "WHY."
"You're honest," Kaito said. "And stupid."
"That IS NOT A COMPLIMENT."
"It is here."
Arden collapsed onto the bed. "I am never getting away from you, am I."
Kaito's lips twitched. "No."
Arden groaned into the pillow. "This is my villain origin story."
Kaito turned to leave.
Then it stopped.
“…Arden.”
Arden lifted his head. “…Yeah?”
“You were brave last night.”
Arden blinked.
“…I was drunk.”
Kaito gazed at him again. “Still brave.”
Then he was gone.
Arden stared at the door.
His heart did that irritating thing again.
“…I hate my life,” he muttered.
But this time—
He wasn’t scared.
There is no safety manual required under law for Minors in the press.
- Writer
