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

Morning spell

Cal got up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom. He was so drowsy that he didn't realize that the room he was sleeping in was not his own, but the guest one, nor did he remember, walking back, that Benson had accidentally fallen asleep in his bed the night before. Thus, in total innocence, he took off his robe, hung it on the back of the usual chair, and lay down on his large bed without even noticing the presence of the other boy.

The next morning, Benson didn't know what to think when, inches away from him, Cal was snoring blissfully with only his underwear on. He had to collect his thoughts in order to remember what had happened the day before.

Riki picked him up in the morning and took him to New Ceres. In the afternoon, he helped Riki and Cal prune the trees in the garden and bake a cake. In the evening, they all had dinner together and watched a horror movie. After the movie, he had tried for the umpteenth time to contact either Master Raoul or Guy but none of them could be reached. Concerned about his Master's poor health and Guy's seriousness in speaking to him last time, Benson panicked. Riki convinced him to take a hot bath, a calming pill, and rest on Cal's bed because there was a music player next to it. After lying down with headphones on and soothing music in his head, he chased away his thoughts. From there on, he remembered nothing more.

'I'd better get out of this embarrassing situation before Cal wakes up or anyone sees us,' Benson thought. If Guy found out, he would have teased him for life.

Getting out unnoticed, however, proved more difficult than expected because Benson was practically trapped between the wall and Cal with almost no room to move. To make matters worse, the blankets on the wall side were firmly stuck under the mattress. The only way to get out was to open them on the free side, but that way he would uncover Cal.

As he pondered the best way to proceed, the other ex-furniture muttered something in his sleep, rolled over, and wrapped his arm around Benson's chest, imprisoning him further. The green-haired young man remained frozen and practically in apnea, he could feel Cal's breath on his neck.

Since he had no way out, he turned to look at him. 'He's cute,' he thought. 'He looks like a sleeping angel.'

Cal looked very young, though it was hard to accurately determine the age of the eunuchs because, since their hormonal development had been halted before puberty, they all gave the impression of being kids.

Sighing, Benson glanced at the clock on the nightstand. It said five o'clock in the morning. It was still early to get up, so he decided to wait for Cal to wake up on his own. It would be an awkward situation but at least it would be between them. Besides, Cal was sleeping so peacefully that it would be a shame to wake him up.

It was the first time someone was hugging him. It caused Benson such a warm and reassuring feeling that, as time passed, he felt the urge to reciprocate. In fact, he did it. Slowly so as not to wake him up, he rested his hand on Cal's naked side under the covers.

Cal's skin was soft and smooth. In the silence of the room, he could hear his slow, regular breathing, accompanied by the rise and fall of his chest and the fast, steady beats of his heart.

He thought back about that night when he had seen Katze and Daniel kissing, and, imagining doing the same thing with Cal, he got excited.

'I wonder if he would return or reject me. I wonder if Cal has ever kissed anyone.'

He slid his hand from Cal's side to his face and gently brushed his cheekbone. Cal's mouth was inches from him and, at that moment, the need for their lips to touch became almost irresistible.

He would have done it if the brown-haired sleeping beauty didn't suddenly open his eyes. Benson jerked his hand away. Cal's peaceful expression turned to astonishment and mortification as he realized that he had mistakenly crawled into the wrong bed after going to the bathroom.