Heart, Body & Soul (MxM)

Chapter Thirteen

A little past midnight, Riyaan's phone starts ringing non-stop, breaking his only 2 hours of sleep. He fumbles through his sleep, finding the phone beneath the pillow at last. He silences the ringing before responding.

An unknown number.

'Hello,' he says, tired and sleepy.

'I need a favour.' Comes through a voice that's rough and careless.

'Nitin? What — where are you calling from?'

'The police station.'

'Bro, what now? What did you do?'

'Can't do that now, come and get me out of here,' Nitin says, before disconnecting the call.

Riyaan sits up, legs on the carpet, and drops his face on his hands, pressing his cheeks that are still hurting from a headache from the day before.

'You okay...?'

Riyaan hears Ivan calling out sleepily, as he feels Ivan's warm hands find the back of his body, hands moving up and down. Caress so soothing and warm that he almost falls asleep like that, sitting on the bed.

'Yeah,' he replies, slow and steady. He cannot leave without telling Ivan. 'Ivan, I have to go somewhere.'

'Where?' Ivan starts to sit up.

'No, don't get up. I have to help a friend,' Riyaan finds his pants and shirt on the chair. When he was living alone, leaving his clothes on the bed and chair was not a problem at all. But the bad habits are now corrupting this beautiful home. Ivan is the opposite, he is neat and clean. Or he was. Nowadays, even he is losing touch with tidiness. He's a bad influence on Ivan, especially after he started sleeping in Ivan's bedroom again upon special request.

'What — where are you going? What friend?' Questions, all logical according to Riyaan, fill up the room followed by the light.

'Someone I know from before — at the orphanage.' Riyaan looks for his keys and wallet.

'Wait, wait. Wait. Look at me.' Ivan is behind him, locking his hands before they reach the keys and wallet.

'Who is this friend, like, what's his name? And what help does he need?'

'Nitin.' Riyaan tries not to look at Ivan while he says it. He is ashamed of a lot of things. Years ago, this could have been him.

'And?'

'He's at the police station, and needs me to get him out,' Riyaan says, finally looking at. He is not proud of it.

'At the police station! What has he done?'

'I don't know, okay? I don't have time for that!'

'You don't know but you're running to save him this late night? What if he is lying about being at the police station, and even if he is, who knows what he's done?'

'He won't lie about that. I just...he, he helped me before, okay. I have to help him. We helped each other before, we don't keep in touch like that but he has been there for me. I cannot just not help him.'

'Okay.' Ivan takes a long sigh, hands on his hips. 'Okay, let's see, I'll come too.'

'No, no, absolutely not.'

'There are no two ways about it.'

'Fine, hurry.' He takes the keys to his bike.

'Ahh! No, no, I'm taking the car, you're not riding the bike at 2 AM.'

'Don't bring the car, please. We can ride the bike.'

'You don't trust my driving? I'm taking the car and you are coming with me.'