A Fate Worse Than Death

Chapter Five

Jordyn walked into the unit after the guard, Gizmo and Bunnenstine at his heels. The guard closed the door behind them as the resident stuck his head out of what must've been a bedroom. His shortish, dyed-blue hair was spiked in all directions, and he had very pale skin, almost lighter than Jordyn's. He walked out, and Jordyn noticed he seemed to be wearing a prison uniform, though his was a light blue solid color one.
"Hi, Mom," Preston greeted the guard as the dog, Baron, trotted up to greet him.
"Preston," the guard gave a small smile for the first time. "This is Jordyn. He's brought some friends with him to stay." Jordyn hadn't thought the guard knew his name, but he found it slightly comforting when she said it.
"Hello," Jordyn greeted politely. He wasn't taking chances until he knew how Preston was.
"Hello," Preston looked interestedly at him, but he seemed friendly enough. Bunnenstine and Gizmo made little friendly noises at him. Rune stayed quiet, he was still trembling slightly. The guard put her helmet back on and opened the door again.
"I have to get back to work," she said. "Preston, Jordyn is supposed to go to work with you tomorrow. It's your choice whether the spider boy goes or not. I'll be back later tomorrow to give Jordyn the list of other attractions, he gets his choice." She walked out and closed the door behind her.
"Come on in and sit," Preston offered, indicating a seating area. "I hear you've already been through some stuff."
"You could say that," Jordyn walked over to a couch with an ottoman and set Rune down on it. "But I also made some new friends, so there's that." Preston was quiet for a few seconds as Jordyn placed a throw blanket over the younger boy.
"If you want to shower or take a bath, I can show you where the extra bathroom is," Preston suddenly offered.
"Hm?" Jordyn was confused for a second.
"I can see the blood stains, bud," Preston said gently. "I'm guessing you probably want to wash off." The truth was, Jordyn had almost forgotten about his own trauma with worrying about Rune.
"Yeah," he admitted. The clowns hadn't wiped him down after they'd finished, so he knew he had dried blood on him, he'd felt it dripping as he'd picked out Bunnenstine.
"What about your little buddy?" Preston asked.
"Rune," Jordyn said gently. "Do you want a bath, bud? Do you need to wash anything off?" Rune shook his head, pulling the blanket closer around him.
"I think he just wants to stay on the couch," Jordyn said. "He's sore, so he doesn't really want to move."
"Poor buddy," Preston sounded genuinely sympathetic. "He must've really wanted out if he came here with you."
"He was being abused," Jordyn told him. "And having giant egg sacs stuffed inside you when you don't want them wouldn't be fun for anyone." Preston winced.
"I would think not," he said. "Maybe I can get him to drink some sweet tea while you're bathing, that might help him calm down a little."
"Will he drink tea?" Jordyn asked as he followed Preston up a narrow set of wooden stairs. "He didn't care much for water when I offered it to him."
"From what I've learned," Preston explained as he pulled a few things out of a small linen closet. "His kind tend to like the sweeter drinks. If I put enough sugar in the tea, he'll drink it." He led Jordyn to another door in the large loft area. Inside was a large bathroom with a separate tub and shower, two sinks, and a separated little area for the toilet.
"I use the second downstairs bedroom as a plant room," Preston admitted. "So it's bathroom is kind of dirt-filled. The two of you can sleep up here, this bathroom's larger anyway. You can fight over the top bunk when it's bedtime." He handed Jordyn a towel, washcloth, and a thin but comfortable looking bath robe.
"Just leave your uniform outside the door and I'll come get it in a minute," Preston said. "I have my own laundry room, so I can wash it for you. You can wear that robe until your uniform is clean."
"Thank you," Jordyn smiled at him.
"Don't mention it," Preston told him. "The shampoo and soap should be under the sink. I'll ask Mom if she can get the two of you toothbrushes and toothpaste next time she stops by, if she doesn't bring some on her own." Jordyn went into the bathroom and shut the door, undressing and leaving his uniform folded outside like Preston had said. He let the shower water run over him for a few minutes, finally relaxing fully for the first time since he'd arrived.