Page 4 of Love of the Egoist
Nothing. Staying in the doorway with his hands folded over his chest, Greg stared through Kuon, reacting to nothing.
“You know, you don’t have to be a part of this. I can guarantee your safety if...”
With a blank face, Greg pushed the tray harder with his boot. The soup spilled, and Kuon shut his mouth.
His heart dropped as realization killed his hope.
He isn’t going to talk. Kuon picked up the spoon again and started eating.Shit, this feels good… warm… Yeah, right, feed me well, so I can kick the shit out of your ass.
??E??
IN THE EVENING,as Kuon sat in the corner with his knees to his chest and his back pressed against the wall in an attempt to accumulate a bit of warmth, Greg brought an industrial gas heater. Its yellow sides looked unnaturally colorful against the doleful background of the concrete basement.
Stomping past the cell, he installed the heater in the far corner of the basement, connected it to a tall, red propane bottle and left without a word.
Kuon frowned.
Why bother to keep me well? What is it there to gain? What do I cost? What do they want? If they wanted to set an example and convey a message, I would be dead by now. So why?
He glared at the heater.
Providing him with a blanket would be easier, but Greg obviously didn’t want to risk giving him anything that could be used as a weapon or as a tool for distraction. Kuon got that the moment his tennis shoes left his feet.
I don’t get it…
But he didn’t finish the thought before the sound of heavy steps came from above, and all the windows one by one were closed with metal plates, shutting him off from the last connection with the outside world.
Watching the last stream of daylight being choked with metal, Kuon turned to the only source of light he had—blue burning gas.
??E??
KUON DIDN’T KNOWhow long he had spent in the basement. Disoriented and lost, he lay on the mat watching the blue flames glowing in the far corner. It felt like days, but Kuon still had water from the last refill. He wasn’t hungry, so it couldn’t have been more than a day.Then why the hell did it feel like eternity?
Warm streams of air reached his body, stroked his skin, shushing him to sleep. It was nice to be warm again, and he didn’t want to move. The pain in his side had almost faded and only reappeared when he stirred. But he still had to get up. It’d been too long since he’d used a bathroom, and his bladder had ached for what felt like hours. Using a metal bar, he got up and wandered to the other side of his prison.
Using the cell bars to navigate in the dark, he moved forward but stumbled and kicked the bucket with his foot.
“Fuck!” he hissed, curling his toes. The pain rushed from his pinky toe to his knee, jerking his nerves.
The bucket swayed and spun, rattling on its way, filling the basement with loud clanging. His nerves screamed from the sound as small hairs prickled all over his body. Unable to tolerate the noise, Kuon grabbed the rim of the bucket, stopping the movement.
As far as he could tell in the weak light from the blue flames, the bucket looked clean or new. Shiny.
He tilted it toward the light and looked inside. A toilet paper roll lay on the bottom. Kuon cringed. The mere thought of someone cleaning this after him sent chills down his spine. Taking the toilet paper out, he set it on the dusty floor nearby and grabbed the nearest cell bar, to stand straight. His stomach roiled as the pain returned for a moment.
Catching his breath, he unzipped his jeans and took his cock in his hand. It was hard to point. Drowning in the darkness, Kuon could barely see the outlines of the bucket and hoped he wouldn’t miss. He let go and the loud noise of streaming urine hitting tin wall filled his ears. He closed his eyes as the pain abated. His head fell backward and the rush of relief, further releasing the tension in his body, intensified the sensation of finally being able to relax. He shook, sure that some drops hit the floor, packed his cock back into his jeans and returned to his mat.
??E??
“TAKE ME TO YUGO,”Kuon said, staring at the dusty floor. The surface was mirror smooth yet dirty. His socks, once black, were now gray with all the dust from the floor. The clothes he wore felt filthy, soaked in his blood and sweat. His jeans had lost their color and wore a rusty-reddish patch above his left knee that must have been his blood. His light gray shirt hung torn around his wrist and some buttons were missing.
Greg didn’t waver. Crossing his thick arms across his chest, he leaned against the metal door, waiting for Kuon to eat.
What the hell is going on? What am I missing? What do they need me for? Think Kuon, think! What is the fucking gain?But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t come up with a solid explanation.
“I need to use a bathroom.” Kuon looked up.
If only they let me out of this cell, I would have a chance to fight my way out of this mess.If only I could get out of this basement…
