Lover for Pay: The Escort & the Teacher (manxman)

XV - Coward

Chapter Fifteen

Marbell had woken up before everyone the next day. He stood in the living room blowing at the surface of his coffee, eyes out the window looking over the busy Sunday morning. Dressed in navy slacks and a white shirt, his tie hung loosely around his neck from not having fixed it yet. Yesterday couldn't have been a more perfect day, as well as the night that followed. Even with all the bullshit surrounding them, they'd managed to have a nice romantic time together. Ever since waking up this morning, the words of admiration London spoke the night before stayed with him.

From the time when he was a child, Marbell had felt like he was the epitome of insignificance, that no one needed him, and that he would never amount to anything at all. Some would argue he had absolutely nothing to be woeful over. With all the money in the world to last several lifetimes, there were countless things to buy, and he could spend to satisfy every desire brought on by selfishness. And Marbell had tried that. He bought numerous things to keep him occupied, this very apartment being one of them. His Audi R8, private jet, multiple vacation homes around the world, even the mere television behind him, were just purchases he thought would make him feel better.

But nothing worked.

Money doesn't buy happiness.

For some people, that was a phrase that ate at the skin, because, for some people, it was the furthest thing from the truth. Money could definitely buy happiness for those who never got the chance to live with the luxuries provided to Marbell at a young age.

With all of his purchases, however, there was one that was never a waste: his first attempt at buying sex to satisfy a frustration that developed over time. It sounded sick, but if Marbell hadn't been in desperation for the touch and sexual fulfillment of bedding another man, he'd have never had means to pay for a lover, one by the name of London.

So, yes, for once the money he had bought him happiness, and not a penny of it went to waste. Until London's mother stole it all, but that wasn't the point.

Swigging back a bit of his coffee after it'd cooled down, Marbell turned away from the window when he felt a presence nearby. It was Henry standing at the end of the corridor beside the kitchen. He stood there in fitting jeans, and a black and blue Sub-Zero shirt he'd gotten from the arcade the other day.

"Good morning," Marbell said, "Are you hungry? I can make breakfast."

"No," Henry declined, "I'm okay for now. Is my brother awake?"

Marbell took a seat on the sofa, nearly spilling his coffee on his shirt. "He's still asleep."

"Can we talk for a minute then? I just wanted to set some things straight with you." Henry sounded a lot more serious than he ever did in class, using a tone that made his teacher a little anxious. "It's about London."

In a small way it was still strange to think of himself dating one of his student's guardians, but Marbell set the bizarre feeling aside, and said, "Go ahead."

The sixteen-year-old took a seat beside his teacher, just a cushion apart, and leaned back idly. For a second he wondered if any other kids had ever taken the time to sit down and have a heart to heart with their teacher, especially if it was about the secret affair they were involved in. Probably not, to be honest, so Henry alone wasn't really sure where to start or how to start without coming off as discourteous. "Uh," he just came out with it, "I don't want you to hurt my brother, Mister Matthews. By the way you interact with him and the way he is when you're around, I can tell off the bat that you two have something serious here, and that's fine, that's completely fine by me. Actually, since I was younger and growing up with him, I've never seen London happier than he has been in these past couple days. He laughs more, he smiles more, and I have no doubt in my mind that it's all because of you. As I'm sure you know, our dad was a real piece of literal shit, to him more than anyone else in the world, and if my brother wasn't as strong as I know he is, he would be buried somewhere in a graveyard, and our dad would have gone to prison for killing him and not for beating some guy senseless.