Book 2: Living free from Jupiter's law - Rising from the ashes of Herbay

A secret shared by everyone

By the time Cal reached the highway, Benson had already boarded his motorcycle and was putting it in gear.

"No! Wait!"

However, it was too late. The roar of the engine covered his voice and Cal could do nothing but stand petrified in front of the gate, watching the air-bike speeding away, leaving a bright trail behind it.

He returned home disconsolate. Not finding his masters, he easily deduced that they had retreated to the bedroom and, his head in a whirlwind of thoughts, he went back to his work in the kitchen.

'How did we get to this point? Where did I go wrong?' he asked himself, as he transferred the chopped onion to a pan along with large chunks of meat, oil, spices, and tomato sauce. He would sauté it quickly on the stove, finish cooking it in the oven, and serve it as a side to a cornmeal cream.

He did not feel wrong - he still believed that Benson's fixation on wanting to attend all the lessons in the course, even the ones that had nothing to do with them, made no sense - but he had to admit that the last sentence he said had been mean and, above all, not true. Cal was afraid of sexuality, but he really wanted to explore it with Benson, albeit calmly and unhurried.

Out of breath and slightly red in the face, Riki joined him about half an hour later. Under normal conditions, he would not have been able to free himself from his blond lover's attentions so soon, but being concerned about Cal, he had persuaded him to let him go with a promise to let himself be properly chastised later for such insolence. To be honest, he didn't mind at all; he was looking forward to the night.

"Well? Did you get to talk to him? Have you made up?"

"Unfortunately, I didn't arrive in time, Master Riki."

The mongrel grimaced in disappointment as he opened the fridge and helped himself to a glass of iced tea from a pitcher. He didn't know what happened between the two eunuchs, but one thing he had learned from his relationship with Guy was that couple disputes should be resolved sooner rather than later.

"Is Master Iason angry?" the former furniture asked. No doubt Benson's attitude had been rude and he feared the possible repercussions.

"He's in a good mood and I don't think he's going to trouble you. Now, are you going to tell me what the hell you did to piss Benson off like that?"

Cal described the events of the afternoon, obviously leaving out everything about Katze and his job offer.

"Did you really tell him you don't want to have sex with him? How could you? You can tell a mile away that boy can't wait for someone to open his legs and touch him properly. You hit him in his weak spot!"

"I know, but... he insisted with his absurd stubbornness to take part in every meeting of the course at all costs," Cal tried to justify himself. "It's ridiculous! His reasons for wanting to do this are childish, absurd, and grasping at straws!"

"Well, they probably are, but the point is: why should he give you justifications? He's only curious. Just because Benson wants to attend every class in that course, it doesn't mean he wants to have sex with someone other than you. We didn't go to so much trouble to free Amoi from a tyrant so you can decide on behalf of another person what he can or cannot do. I never imagined you could be so jealous, control-freak, and manipulative, Cal."

Riki was not in the habit of sugarcoating reality and he clearly said what he thought. He knew he was being rough. He also knew that Cal, sensitive as he was, couldn't help but flinch at such serious accusations words, but he did it on purpose. On seeing him struggle to avoid crying in front of him, he decided to preserve his dignity leaving him alone. "I'll be out here if you need me."