When the Universe Began [A Blackmadhi Fantasy AU]

Chapter Thirty-Nine

It had been two weeks since that jerkface had stabbed him, and while Simon believed that his wound was pretty much healed, Nahyuta refused to allow him to return to his work until the whole month was up. He'd even tied him up to illustrate his point. That was going a bit far, but he was probably afraid that Simon was going to move and reopen his wound. He could understand his worry, but he was not the type of person who could sit around for days on end with nothing to do... at least not anymore. He'd had enough of that in prison.

"Hey... Nahyuta, could you maybe let me go now?" Simon asked the prince. He turned to glare at him from his desk, this was probably the angriest he had ever seen him. Scary...

"Simon, we've talked about this. I'm not going to allow you to go until you agree to stay in bed until you're completely healed. I'll issue a Royal Command if I have to." As much as Simon didn't like the idea of him issuing a Royal Command, in the end, it might be what he would have to do. He hated the idea of him being able to control his mind like that, but if he felt it was necessary, Simon wouldn't be able to defy him.

"Nahyuta, I sat in a prison cell for seven years. All I'm asking to be able to walk the room a little bit, it would be far superior to just sitting here like I did back then." He sighed, shaking his head.

"I don't want you to get hurt... I don't want to lose anybody else important to me... never again." He sat on the edge of the bed next to Simon, his hand gripping tightly on his arm.

"I refuse to be a prisoner again. Not after you freed me." He nodded sadly, tugging on the rope gently to untie it. He handed Simon a plate of food from nearby, gesturing for him to eat it. The only signs that anybody in the room had eaten recently were the dirty plates scattered around the place, and he was fairly certain that they weren't Nahyuta's. He hadn't seen him eat a single thing since he'd been confined here.

"What about you?" His face flushed and he averted his eyes from Simon's gaze, finding an interesting spot on the carpet to stare at.

"I ate earlier when you were still asleep. I'm not hungry now anyway..." Lies. He may have been his prince, but Simon was going to call him a liar to his face if he was lying.

"You sure?"

"Certain."

"You don't want any?"

"I am fine Simon." He didn't seem all that fine and now that he thought about, he was fairly light.

"Why are you like this?" He flinched and leaned over Simon to dig around in the side table drawer. He passed him a bulleted list written in neat and tiny handwriting. As Simon glanced it over he couldn't help but grow angrier and angrier.

"What is this bullshit?" He flinched again, an expression of pain that he'd never seen on him before crossing his face.

"That is... a set of rules written for me when I first arrived at the palace..." His voice was quiet and Simon could feel his hand on his arm start to tremble. So that's why he was always so... he was afraid to disobey his tyrant aunt and uncle.

"You don't have to listen to their stupid rules anymore." Simon crumpled up the piece of the paper and chucked it as far as he could. Tears filled his eyes and he started to sob, throwing himself into his shoulder. Oh Nahyuta... he shouldn't have to cry.

~~~

"Nahyuta... you should eat something." Simon said, shaking awake the sleeping prince.

"Five more minutes..." he mumbled in his sleep, smacking him in the face to try and get him to go away. Too bad, he couldn't go away. And he was the one who had told him not to.

"Okay then..." Simon sighed, running a hand through his bangs. There was no way it was only going to be five minutes, more like five hours.

~~~

It was five hours... Holy Mother this stupid prince slept a lot. It was like he had nothing better to do! Luckily... Simon was able to convince half-asleep Nahyuta to eat something. Downside... he ended up having to feed it to him... or was that really a downside at all?

"What do you think you're doing?" Nahyuta flushed, managing to escape his grasp. Drat, he was fully awake now.

"Feeding you since you don't seem to eat otherwise." He flushed deeper, looking like he was very tempted to smack Simon.

"You needn't do that! I am a perfectly grown man and capable of feeding myself!" Was he trying to justify himself or was he just embarrassed? It was hard to tell sometimes. He was so stupidly stubborn.

"Then do it." Simon passed that was left on the plate to him, gesturing for him to eat it. He shook his head, shoving the plate back at him.

"Nahyuta..."

"Do not give me that look Simon Blackquill! I believe that I am the one who's in charge here!" He hadn't threatened to issue a Royal Command yet, so Simon guessed he wasn't that mad at him for this little stunt.

"So what? I'm older and wiser."

"Wiser my ass! Don't act like you're such a smartass because you're four years older than me!" He was getting angrier by the minute. Why did he always have to be so insufferable? Sometimes it was hard to remember why he'd fallen in love with this stupid man in the first place.

"Nahyuta... please just sit down and finish your dinner like a rational adult. Or do I have to continue to feed you like you're a child?" Let's see how he'd respond to that one. Simon bet he'd get all flustered and refuse to answer. This was kind of fun.

"I am not a child!"

"But you sure are acting like one. Now come here you stupid prince." He pulled him back to him, sitting him down in his lap. He managed to get him to finish eating, but only by feeding him. Holy Mother, if someone walked in on this, they'd think it was quite weird indeed. When Simon heard a knock on the door, he scooped Nahyuta into his arms, carrying him with him as he went to go answer it.

"Oh Holy Mother!" Apollo burst into laughter as soon he saw their current position, practically on the floor in a matter of seconds, "ha... give me a minute... I can't breathe."

"What do you need Apollo?" Nahyuta asked the tiny baker, glaring at his brother intensely.

"You know what... it can wait until tomorrow. I think I want to go home right now." He quickly waved goodbye and took off running down the hall. Probably wanted to go home to his precious husband. Whatever... he didn't have to gloat about it. Apollo was so strange sometimes.