I haven’t seen Mark since that rainy night so I don’t know if he spoke to Jack and, if he did, how it went. It’s been five days and my mind is never where it should be. I’m getting worse at my job and sometimes I think about Jack’s words more seriously - but you can leave. It’s not like they’re holding you here. He’s right, they’re not holding me here, but do I really have guts to leave. Maybe I just need to give up the only thing I’m good at. Well, was good at. With Jack on my mind I can’t do anything right!

As Jake leaves my room with scoff, loud enough for me to hear, I sigh and get up from bed. Short walk to mirror and the worst sight is in front of me. Dark circles under my eyes, dark bruise forming on my cheek under my left eye. Thank you, Jake. Just because he’s not happy with my job doesn’t give him rights to hit me. I guess, I could tell this to Arnold and relieve myself, but I need him. Not like him, but his money.

I have locked myself in my shell and I haven’t spoken normally to anyone. I know that Arnold is not okay with it, but what can I do. I want what I want and that’s not to talk to him. I want to be okay with Jack. Okay, I can live with him not wanting me the way I want him, but at least I need to know that.

I find some clean clothes, pull brush through my hair and giving last look to myself in mirror, leave my room. I hate what I see there and I actually don’t care how good or, probably, bad I look.

“Hey, you heard there’s new guy coming in?”

“What?” I turn around to see my… you can call him my neighbor… he’s leaning against wall next to the doors to his room.

“Where having a new guy coming in tonight. Heard he’s going to get that empty room next to yours.”

“Fuck, I like it empty!” I whine, walking over to him to get some more news, “So, what do you know about him.”

“Not much. He’s young, younger than you baby. He might steel your clients,” he smirks, twirling my hairs in his fingers.

“Stop that,” I push his hand away, “something more? Where’s he from?”

“You I know I like you, you know I would bang you the moment you would say yes,” he whispers in my ear, “but about this new guy, I’m not sure. I heard he’s from country side, something around twenty, maybe twenty one. I don’t know.”

“So he’s going to do job the moment he gets here?” I ask, ignoring his first response to me.

“If someone would want him, then yeah, he’s going to do the thing,” he laughs.

“Great,” I mutter, turning around to leave, but his hand on my wrist stops me, “what?”

“You’re not fun this whole week.”

“And? It shouldn’t bother you.”

“Is this about that fight you got with Barakat?”

“It’s none of your business,” I pull my hand back and leave him standing there. I can feel his eyes following me. He’s a fun guy to talk to or get drunk with, but the fun ends the moment he tries to get me in bed. That’s how it always had been between us, since I came into this House. He already was here and even if I was only sixteen back then, that didn’t stop him to try. And he hasn’t stopped since, but I’m not giving up, not yet.

Slowly walking down the stairs I see Arnold in his usual spot. Deep inside I feel happy about that, but I’m too tired to show my happiness.

“I haven’t seen you down here for years!” he looks happy.

“It’s not that long.”

“But it feels like that,” he smiles at me, but his smile falls when he sees the bruise forming on cheek, “what’s that?”

“Nothing,” I mutter falling into chair behind his small desk, he never uses it anyways, well at least I haven’t seen him sitting there.

“Alex!” he says like warning me about something, ”who did this?”

“No one!”

“Really? Don’t even try to feed me with some bullshits about you running in some doors or falling out of your bed!”

I look down at my hands, not saying a word to him.

“Fine, but if there happens something more than just this,” he gestures to my face, “don’t even try to hide it from me! I’ll be standing next to your bed and watching every move of these guys, got it?”

I only nod my head and feel him pat my shoulder, “I know it might be hard, but you know, I won’t push to do anything you don’t want to. Just say this to me and I’ll let you quit.”

“What’s about this new guy?” I change subject.

“Have heard about him, huh,” his hand leaves my shoulder as he leans against table to look at me.

“Yeah, just talked to Owen and he told me.”

“Well, he’s in the bar now, meeting everyone there and then I’m showing him his room.”

“Mhm,” I glance over to bar, but I can’t see him.

“You have Jack in three days,” he says, not looking at me.

“What?” I almost jump out of the chair to jump on Arnold.

“He was here pretty early this morning, around 6am, maybe earlier. Wanted to get signed up as fast as possible. It was closest emptiest day on your list for him to get in.”

“At what time?”

“3pm to…6pm I think…he likes to spend time with you,” he sends my way knowing smirk; even though, I believe he has no idea about what we’re doing there.

So Mark had talked to him. Or he decided this by himself, but it doesn’t matter. He wants to see me. Or just fuck me… I’ll find that out in three days. It’s not too long away, but to me it feels like another long week. But what do I say to him? Do I need to apologize? But about what? About not knowing his past? But I didn’t say anything wrong, I think. I just said what I think is…

“So, I’m ready to see the rest of this House!” chirpy voice breaks into my thoughts.

“Okay. You can meet your neighbor here. It’s Alex. If you can top him, I’ll give you his room,” Arnold laughs, introducing us.

“I heard about you at bar. You like to get wasted when you’re free,” he smiles at me, but I can answer only with a glare.

I don’t like this guy. He comes here, takes empty room, which is supposed to be empty, listens to rumors about me and now throws it at my face! He’s pretty short, with light hair, almost blond, bright blue eyes and this smile. I can say it’s annoying. He’s annoying.

Arnold catches my eyes and gives warning look, before leading new guy upstairs,

“Alex, wait for me here. And if someone comes in…well you know what to do then, just sign them up or something.”

---

Three days, which is more like three weeks for me and the new guy makes it all worse. He got one guy yesterday and I can say it’s impressive for his first days here. I got all my first week full, but only because everyone already knew me as a guy who just helps at bar. So, when I started to do the real work, they run to me like hungry wolves.

What it looks to me, he wants to befriend with me, but I have to disappoint him, I don’t like him, not at all and I don’t need any new friends. I have my own problems to deal with and I don’t need him to be one of them. Even after our little talk yesterday, he’s at my doors again this morning at fucking 8am! Does this kid even sleep!?

With loud groan I get up from my warm bed to open those doors,

“What?” clear grumpiness in my voice, but he seems to ignore it.

“Good morning. I wanted to talk to you about yesterday.”

“I think I made myself clear. I don’t need any new friends, especially you!”

“Okay, we don’t need to be friends, but maybe you can help me something? Just listen to me and I will leave you alone.”

“What?”

“You won’t let me in?”

“No. This is my room and I choose who comes in here and who doesn’t.”

“So I need to pay for you to come in?” he smirks his annoying smirk.

“You don’t have enough money to come in here, if that’s what you think,” I almost growl at him.

“Okay, whatever. So I need to talk here?”

“Talk or leave. I prefer second option,” I look past him to see Owen walk out of his room and give us questioning look. I just shook my head and he leaves with small smile. What I would give now to see him standing in this annoying kids place.

“So, there’s this one guy, who…I kind of like, you know?”

“Mhm,” I answer without even listening to him. It’s not like I would be interested in what he has to say anyway.

“I have seen him coming here. I don’t know if he comes just to bar or is he client to someone here, but as much as I know and as much as I have seen, you have a huge effect on almost everyone. So…I thought…maybe you could like…talk to him or something?”

“As you said, I have huge effect on people; you want him to like me or something?”

“No! I just thought that, maybe…”

“Who is he anyway?” I look at him properly for the first time this morning to see him blushing. Great, “if you want me to talk to him, I need to know who he is.”

“You know Jack Barakat, right?”

I knew I don’t like him! I’m not the person who would hate someone without any reason, so here I have my reason!

“Isn’t he too old for you?”

“He’s around your age and you’re not too old.”

I glare at him, actually not knowing what to say. I can say that Jack indeed comes here, I can say that he’s client to someone, I can say that he’s my client, I can say that he must be wrong and I haven’t seen Jack here, but that wouldn’t work, he might see him here today. I can just ignore him and not do what he wants me to do.

“Alex?” he asks. Fuck! You need to say something to him!

“I…I don’t think I can do this…”

“What? Why?”

Because he’s mine! Because you’re not allowed to look at him or even think about him! Because I have my own problems with him and I don’t need you to be in the middle.

“One day you will understand and that day might not be too far away,” I close the doors and lock them for safety. I don’t think he would try and come in, but I don’t want to be surprised if he does come in.

I crawl back in my bed and pull cowers over to my chin in hopes to warm up soon. Room might not be cold if you’re dressed, but it is cold if you’ve been sleeping under warm cowers before someone suddenly takes that warmness away. This someone being the new kid.

God, I hate him! He really thinks I would give him Jack! Even if I wouldn’t have these weird feelings for him, I wouldn’t give him up. He takes three hours and that’s a lot of money. Thinking about those three hours, he’s gonna be here today and I still have no idea of what to say to him. I only have two clients today, one of them being Jack. First one should be here around 10am, that gives me two more hours, but I know I won’t be able to fall asleep, thanks to this kid.

---

It’s almost two thirty, my previous client left before more than two hours and I’ve been like on drugs. I can’t sit peacefully at one place, I’ve been running up and down those stairs so many times that I’ve lost my count. Arnold looks amused by my behavior today, but I couldn’t care any less about that now.

Impatiently I walk inside almost empty bar. It’s too early for normal people to be here. Most of the guys there are from House, bartenders and few waitresses. I walk over to bar where almost everyone has gathered and are talking about something.

“Hey, Lex!” one of the bartenders calls me as he sees me coming closer.

“Don’t call me like that!” I laugh at him.

“Sorry. We’ve been talking about new guy. Hope you’re not friends with him and we can also say bad things?”

“Not friends at all, say as bad things as you want,” I laugh at him and he looks surprised. I’m not the one who usually likes bad talks about others, but not today and not about this guy.

“Well, that’s something new from you,” some waitress, who stands closest to me, says, “What has he done to you?”

“Trying steal my clients,” I can say that much, they don’t need to know about feelings.

“Ooohhhh!!!” they all yell in unison.

“Well, we can’t let that happen,” Owen speaks from other side of the bar. I didn’t see him at first.

“Alex!” I turn around to see Arnold standing at the entrance of bar.

“Yes?”

“If I’m calling you, that means you’re supposed to come here.”

I groan while walking away from the small group gathered at bar. I see Arnold turning around and walking out and I’m fast to follow him. What I didn’t expect to see was Jack. It’s not even 3pm yet. I think. Quick look at the clock to make sure that I’m right. It’s 2:45.

“You can have him,” Arnold says, writing something in his journal.

I send a puzzled look his way, but he doesn’t see that, so I walk over to Jack ready to say something, but he whisper to me,

“Later,” and I just nod, grabbing his hand in mine and leading him to stairs.

I’m happy and worried the same time as I see our new friend coming our way down the stairs. I squeeze Jack’s hand and make him understand to have a look at this guy. He pulls his eyebrows together, but I just whisper,

“Later,” as we walk past the kid. Obviously he sees us and obviously he doesn’t look too pleased seeing me holding Jack’s hand, but that’s not my problem. I’m the one who’s able to do that and I would be lying to say I don’t enjoy it.

Notes

usually when I write I sit down and write whole chapter at once, but for this one I didn't have that much time, so I wrote it when I got some free time. That might explain all those time lapse ;D
but - yeeyyy - Jack is here!!!