There was nothing but darkness surrounding Silas. Everything around him was cold and damp, and the smell of fresh earth filled his nostrils. He blindly kept moving forward, using the wall as a guide. He continued walking for who knows how long, until he saw a faint light in the distance. He had arrived at another door with a weak little lamp lighting the area. He shoved the door open with his body and was greeted by a ladder leading up to the surface. When he reached the top of the ladder, he peeked through the door and quickly scanned the room before pulling himself out and throwing himself on the floor. He drew in a deep breath and momentarily shut his eyes.
He had put all his trust in a man that he had just met the day before. Trust that he wouldn't be sold out, trust that he wouldn't be shot in his sleep, trust that he wouldn't be abandoned. First things first, he went to check on how much food was available. He didn't know when he would see Ray again before he would need to go out and find his next meal. From a glance, it seemed like the food stocked up here would last him about a month, at least.
He toured the little cabin, slowly looking for traces of Ray. He had to have had a reason to own a safe house in the first place. Silas gazed out one of the windows, his eyes landing on the vast meadows surrounding the cabin. He was truly the only person there. He leaned against the wall and covered his face with his hands, contemplating on whether he should stay here and wait like a sick puppy or move on to the next town and settle there. But something told him that he should wait. He should wait for that man. All of his senses told him that Ray was going to come for him.
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On the other side, Ray was still hidden in basement, thinking of ways to get rid of the attackers. He couldn't risk them finding the secret passageway leading to Silas. He let out a deep sigh and braced himself. He watched the shadows lurking above him, until one of them stopped directly above.
"Somethin' don't feel right over here!" one said, stomping on the floor repeatedly.
A few moments later, the basement door flew open, and two men jumped inside, guns at the ready and aiming into the darkness. As one man turned around, he was suddenly grabbed from behind, his yells not even making it past his throat before he dropped with a thud to the ground. The other man jumped at the noise, starting to feel a bit spooked.
"M-Marcus? Was that you? You gotta stop scaring me like tha-"
The man froze. As he was shuffling around, his foot bumped into a large object sprawled out on the ground. The moment he realized what it was, a pair of eyes peeked out from the darkness and grabbed him. Not even a second later, his limp body was tossed over the first man.
Ray brushed off his clothes and snuck over to the basement entrance, patiently waiting for the next ruffian to fall into his grasp. However, the remaining person seemed to be in panic, repeating " I don't wanna die I don't wanna die I don't wanna die" to himself and pacing in circles. Ray let out a small chuckle. He quickly climbed out of the basement door and grabbed the frantic little man by the scruff of his neck like a little kitten.
"If you wanna live, I suggest you get as far away from the Quinn family as you can. Start fresh," Ray snarled, tightening his grip.
"T-they'll kill me! If I come back empty-handed, they'll kill me. If I run away they'll just hunt me down. I should've never…I was so desperate…" The man was trembling fiercely, tears gushing like a busted pipe.
Ray had a soft heart. He could only feel sympathy for this weeping man and loosened his grip. But the moment he did, he felt a piercing throb in his lower abdomen. He slowly looked down to see a trembling fist gripping a small blade lodged into his belly all the way to the hilt. He let out a puff of air and slammed the man's head into the ground, immediately knocking him out.
He carefully pulled himself up and dragged himself to the kitchen to perform first aid on himself. Clenching his teeth, he ripped out the blade and slathered on some ointment before messily wrapping up the wound.
"Silas…" he whispered while slowly making his wait towards the basement door. He had to find his way to Silas no matter what. Drops of sweat rolled down his face as he climbed down to the basement and pushed through the heavy metal door. His vision blurred as his consciousness faded in and out as he made his way down the dark tunnel, until his body finally gave in and he fell to the ground with a thud.
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Ray slowly blinked his eyes. He was warm and enveloped in a soft blanket. It was night time. His eyes shifted around, trying to take in his surroundings when he spotted a black haired person lying next him.
Am I dead? Did I die already? He thought to himself before reaching down to tug at the person's hair. The man rolled over and threw his arm over Ray's torso, hugging his bare upper body like a pillow.
"Mm…are you finally awake?" He mumbled softly, still slightly groggy from his slumber. He looked up at Ray with his tired, cat-like eyes. Ray's heart jumped. Heaven? Was heaven like this? Ray sat up abruptly, but immediately dropped back down onto the pillow, wincing in pain. He looked down to see his wound neatly cleaned and wrapped. Finally, he realized that he was, in fact, still alive, and he was resting in his safe house.
"Gosh, you scared me." Silas sat up and rubbed his eyes, his silky hair draping over his shoulders. His shirt was large and loose with a couple of buttons undone at the top, revealing a bit of his soft but toned chest. The image of this sent Ray into a frenzy, rolling off the bed and hitting the floor. Silas burst out laughing til there were tears in his eyes.
"How? How did I get here? I thought I was a goner." Ray brushed himself off, the tips of his ears popping with a bright crimson. He situated himself back onto the bed, keeping himself at a safe distance from Silas. He had no confidence in his self control.
Silas let out a gentle laugh and tucked his hair behind his ear. "I felt guilty leaving you there alone so I started making my way back. That's when I found you unconscious on the ground, bleeding everywhere. So I dragged you back here. You're awfully heavy, so I hope I get some kind of compensation for that." He smiled, bringing his face closer to Ray.
Ray's face lit up bright red like a Christmas light. He grabbed Silas' shoulders and pushed him away slightly while averting his gaze. Silas' face dropped. He felt a bit embarrassed being rejected so suddenly, thinking that they were going to continue that kiss that they left off on. Did he get the wrong idea this whole time? He brushed Ray's hands off his shoulders and hopped off the bed.
"Wait I didn't mean-"
"You must be hungry. You were out for three days, so I'll fix something for you," Silas said dejectedly. He didn't want to hear anything that would hurt him even more.
Ray twirled his thumbs as he sat at the dinner table, waiting for his food. "Silas, I-"
"It's almost done, so be patient."
Ray pressed his lips into a thin line. He wasn't the best at communicating his feelings, and he didn't want to say the wrong thing while trying to clear up their miscommunication. Silas placed a plate of meat and greens in front of Ray and headed to the bedroom.
"You're not eating?" Ray questioned as he grabbed Silas' wrist.
"I ate earlier so don't worry about me." Silas peeked over his shoulder, his eyes slightly trembling.
He tried to gently tug his wrist out of Ray's grip, but Ray wouldn't budge. "About before, I didn't mean to react that way. Truly. I want to respect you. I'm sorry…I'm not very good at this… "
Silas finally turned to face Ray. His lip was pursed, giving him the image of a cute and pouty little cat. Ray brushed Silas' cheek, his finger tracing down from the corner of his eye to his jaw. Silas held his hand at his cheek and bent down to meet Ray's face. Their noses brushed against each other as they inched closer.
BANG BANG BANG.
A loud knocking came at their front door, interrupting their sweet moment.
"Who could be here right now? It's the middle of the night and no one even-" Ray's face dropped, slapping his forehead with his palm. There's only one person that knows of this place.
The door flew open and in came a burst of energy that Silas had never seen before. A small woman marched through the entrance like she owned the place, her chin held high in the air and her eyes sparkling.
"My boy! I knew you'd be here! My goodness what happened to you?!" She grabbed a handful of Ray's cheeks, pinching them until they practically glowed.
"Haah…hi Auntie. It's been a while." Ray sighed as the squirrely little woman jumped back and forth and up and down, checking to see if he had any other injuries. "Auntie, please relax. I'm fine."
Silas let out a small laugh as he watched this humorous interaction between the two. Auntie suddenly froze, causing Ray to stiffen as well. She peeked behind Ray and immediately spotted the dashing young man standing in the kitchen. A wide grin spread across her face.
"My, what a beauty! And you must be? A mysterious lover?!"
"Auntie, please…" Ray whined.
"I sure hope I didn't interrupt anything. Mind introducing me?" Auntie slapped Ray's back with a loud WHAP.
"You interrupted. You definitely interrupted." Ray cleared his throat. "This is Silas, and we just met a few days ago. Silas, this is my aunt Leigh Ann. She raised me ever since my parents passed so she's like a mother to me."
Auntie Leigh Ann let out a huge cackle. "A mother, huh! Well, it's nice to meet you! Sorry for assuming y'all's relationship, it's just…" She snuck a quick glance at Silas' oversized clothes and messy hair.
Ray and Silas simultaneously flushed bright red. She truly had no filter and no shame.
Ray coughed and quickly changed the subject. "So how did you know I was here? This house isn't in your normal travel route."
"I come back every once in a while to air the place out. Who would've thought that you'd be hiding out here, and with a pretty boy no less! If I'd known, I would've brought back some food or something. Jeez, this rascal never tells me anything!" She slapped Ray on the back again. Ray gave up and let out a soft sigh.
"Well, it's nice to meet you, ma'am. Ray here has treated me with nothing but kindness since we met. You've raised a fine man! If you'd like, I can fix you a plate too." Silas cupped Auntie Leigh's hand his.
"Aren't you an angel? No no it's fine, I was just about to head out again. I don't want to intrude on y'all's alone time. You better tell me if Ray-Ray mistreats you! I'll drop everything and give him a good smackin'." Auntie Leigh softly pats Silas' cheek then turns around to playfully smack Ray on the back once again.
"Okay Auntie, time to go. I didn't even get to touch my food because you just barged in," Ray mumbled as he gently pushes her towards the door. Silas watched in amusement, observing Ray's still red ears. Once she was finally gone, Ray leaned back on the door with his head drooped, looked up at Silas with bashful eyes. He took a moment to find his words.
"I'm…so sorry about that haha…"
"It's fine. She seems very nice, although she has a very strong personality. Let's get back to dinner, Ray-Ray," Silas teased, pulling Ray by the arm back into the kitchen.
"Please don't call me that…"