#9

“I’ll be there for the opening.”

Tennessee’s voice flowed in, breaking the child’s reverie. The child pulled his head back. Tennessee was on the phone.

That radio-like phone actually works. Seeing a flip phone for the first time, the child was genuinely impressed that a phone with a lid actually functioned.

“Stop talking nonsense and I’ll see you then.”

Surprisingly, Tennessee’s tone wasn’t sharp. His usual way of speaking was calm and cold, but now there was even a hint of playfulness.

Who is it? The child craned his neck this way and that. But in the rearview mirror, he could only see Tennessee’s eyes.

“……Where are we going later?”

“You don’t need to know.”

There was a reason he didn’t say. Besides Rick, Tennessee knew one other person in this place he could ask for information, and he planned to see him today. If the destination had been a cafe, he would have told the child, but today’s destination was a club.

“Shall we rest a bit until then?”

And Tennessee stopped the car.

Where are we going now? When he asked, he was told it was downtown. He didn’t quite grasp the situation, but the child nodded and followed Tennessee closely.

As they entered the city center and the crowds grew, the child stuck close to Tennessee’s side. To the child’s surprise, Tennessee blended in well with the people and didn’t stand out. The child thought that he, who was looking around, probably stood out more.

For some unknown reason, the Tennessee he saw now had a different atmosphere than when he was driving. He looked like an ordinary young man who had come downtown to have some fun.

“Come here.”

“……Yes?”

Tennessee didn’t repeat himself and reached out his arm. Dazed, the child instinctively leaned into Tennessee’s embrace. Being held close, he could smell Tennessee’s scent. There was a faint smell of cigarettes, but a masculine fragrance was stronger. It wasn’t an artificial smell like perfume.

When the child stiffened as he had before, Tennessee told him to relax. The child now clung to Tennessee’s chest like gum stuck to the pavement. Now that he was held, he realized anew that Tennessee’s shoulders were broad. His arms were firm, and his neck was hotter than expected.

Held in his arms with his own arms hanging down, the child looked around.

Hotels were visible. Perhaps because it was a very large city, there were many luxurious, golden hotels. Tennessee crossed the lobby and went to the reception.

“Could I have a room?”

How do we look to the staff? The child wondered. Would they think of them as a brother or uncle on a trip? Without appearing suspicious, the employee began to assist them naturally.

While Tennessee spoke smoothly, the child remained quietly in his arms.

He had seemed like a person who would be as cold as marble to the touch. But just like the last time he was held, he was surprisingly warm.

Though unexpected, the child thought that the reason Tennessee got a hotel room wasn’t because he wanted to rest, but to let the child rest.

Since he had mentioned resting and got a hotel room, the child thought Tennessee would lie down, but Tennessee sat in a chair and cleaned his firearm. He showed no sign of wanting to rest.

Lying there, the child found himself getting sleepier and blinked slowly.

Lying comfortably, the child only turned his head. When he opened his eyes, Tennessee, sitting with his legs crossed, came immediately into view. It was the first time he hadn’t felt greatly tense with an adult—and a male adult at that—right beside him.

A voice continued to scream in a corner of his mind.

He’s pretending to take care of you, pretending to be kind, but one day he’ll start hitting you. He’ll raise his hand harder and more often. He’ll make you stand against the wall naked, telling you to say what you did wrong. The violence that happened once every two weeks will become once a week, then every other day, and then a petty daily habit. ……You mustn’t trust him.

“Tennessee.”

At the faint call, he looked up. Blue eyes filled with a question, as if asking why he called, met his. His eyes, which should have been blurred behind cigarette smoke, were always surprisingly clear. It felt as if a flash of light pierced through his brain at every moment.

I can’t. I’ve only been with him for less than a week. I have to run away. He meant it when he said he’d kill me.

The child had never opened his heart even to peers he had known for years. The pain of betrayal was too great and frightening, so he chose not to trust. But.

“What.”

He was too warm. What if I get burned? What if my skin melts away, what will I do in the pain?

……I have to run away.

Lying on his side, the child closed his eyes tightly. ‘Run away’ wasn’t the right word. ‘Leave’ was the right word. He would never mention that Tennessee stole a car or that he was a suspicious and dangerous person. Then, he would probably overlook it.

The warmth he experienced for the first time over the past week was so hot it brought tears to his eyes, and the child feared he might melt away.

* * *

“Stay here.”

It had been a long time since he’d had a deep sleep rather than a light one. Waking up to the voice, the child snapped awake. When he opened his eyes, Tennessee was standing there. He wasn’t in the casual clothes that made him look young, but in a suit, just like when they first met.

That damn ‘Stay here.’

If he had received just one dollar every time Tennessee said ‘Stay here,’ he would be a millionaire by now.

“Order room service if you’re hungry.”

The child looked at the clock. My god. He knew he’d slept well because he felt refreshed, but he hadn’t realized he’d been unconscious until this late at night. Tennessee probably would have let him sleep until the next morning if he hadn’t woken him.

“When will you be back?”

“Soon.”

‘Soon.’ In that case, should he aim for the next opportunity? When should he run away? The child bit his lip in anxiety. Unaware that Tennessee had been watching him as if observing his every move, the child thought about many things.

“……A bit late. Go to sleep first.”

When Tennessee corrected himself, the child nodded. Then it’s today. Now is the time. Once I confirm Tennessee has left, I’ll go. With a determined expression, the child watched Tennessee’s retreating back as he left.

Even as he closed the door and left, Tennessee didn’t offer so much as a short goodbye. He was always like that, but now the atmosphere was even colder. As if he knew exactly what the child was thinking.

The child pressed his ear against the door. He hoped to hear Tennessee’s receding footsteps, but there was no sound at all.

What should I do?

Even though he knew he was panicking and unable to think straight because he was too tense and overwhelmed by the situation, the child continued to flounder.

First, the child took out the hundred dollars Tennessee had given him. It was all the money he had. He packed his toiletries… put on his jacket and tied his shoelaces properly.

He couldn’t just leave. Tennessee might think he had been betrayed. He wanted to let him know that wasn’t the case.

The child rummaged through the drawers looking for a piece of memo paper. There was no pen. After running back and forth and opening every drawer, the child found Tennessee’s wallet.

…Huh? Why did he leave this behind?

In that moment, a fierce conflict erupted within him. Just holding the wallet filled him with guilt. But simply looking at it wasn’t a crime.

The child opened Tennessee’s wallet. As expected, though he hadn’t hoped for much, there was nothing to identify him. There were no photos or licenses; there were only banknotes, without even a common receipt.

What is this money? The child examined a banknote he had never seen before. Eu… Euro. Euro? Why does he have Euros? Scratching his head, the child closed the wallet. Then, he looked down at the crumpled hundred-dollar bill in his hand.

Just one more, should I take just one more?

“…No.”

The child placed the wallet back where it had been. Right next to it happened to be the pen he had been looking for. The child began to write a letter on a white memo pad.

To… Tennessee.

And he hit a wall from the very first phrase. How do you spell Tennessee? Tenne… sse… is that right? Were there two e’s at the end?

…I should have studied harder.

With a click of his tongue and a sense of regret, the child eventually set the pen down. He placed the note on Tennessee’s bed so it would be clearly visible.

Upon reaching the door, the child looked back. Tennessee had been sitting in that chair. He himself had fallen into a deep, oblivious sleep in the bed next to it. He hadn’t been suddenly slapped awake or thrown to the floor.

In fact, he couldn’t even imagine Tennessee acting so passionately. He felt that Tennessee was the type to call him over and give him a stern lecture instead of raising a hand.

It was, how should he put it, an exceptional sense of relief.

The child finally opened the door. And as if overcoming his lingering attachments, he turned away coldly.

After the child left, a terrifying silence descended upon the empty room. Only the written note and a single crumpled hundred-dollar bill remained quietly atop Tennessee’s bed.