Kill Me, Kiss Me

FIFTEEN

"HEY! What do you think you're doing?"

Graham's hold didn't loosen, no, it only tightened as he pulled Theo further through the dimly lit room, picking his way through the wreckage as if it was a commonplace occurrence.

The place itself was spacious and deceptively high-ceilinged. If it weren't for the smashed glass and broken furniture littering the parquet floor, it would've painted the very scene of high-end lavishness. Theo's eyes, however, couldn't help but be drawn to the shattered glass, glistening like fragmented stars across the floor as well as the dark red stains splattered across the cream wallpaper.

Somehow, these reminders of violence weren't as incongruent with this smell of money as he'd thought at first.

"Let go." He said coldly.

No one answered.

"Here." Graham's voice lit up the stuttering light of the lamps, still clinging to their pitifully torn lampshades.

A sigh stuck inside Theo's throat, and he looked up towards Graham's 'special friend'. Before he could even get a clear look at the person, the familiar little electric ding shot through the heat:

"Game target Keir Hew met, relationship status opened."

Theo's limbs seized up, and amongst the twisted cold and sinew of his chest, the man's back expanded fully into his sight.
   
He was clothed in a simple black shirt tucked into similarly black suit trousers. The sleeves were rumpled and rolled up to his pale elbows, accentuating his strong arms and narrow waist, a hard contrast to the tightness around his shoulders. But what was most striking about him wasn't even his body but his hair. It fell in black tendrils over his shoulder like bolts of silk, a waterfall of ravens' wings and starless skies that cried for the tenderness of stars.
   
Theo could not explain it; there was no longer any need.
   
He just knew it was the most perfect hair he'd ever seen, and he wanted to run his fingers through each and every strand no matter that this was a man, no matter that this was a Hew.
   
For a moment he couldn't even take his eyes away from the sight. He couldn't even comprehend anything else, the danger, the ruined room, the cold sweat beading in his palm. The one thing he was left wondering again and again was 'just what brand of hair conditioner does this man use?'
   
"Hey, here, don't be so mad anymore. Magda's already got her warning, she's not a stupid woman, she'll learn. And here, I've got someone that'd really cheer you up."
   
Theo jolted at the sound of Graham's voice and shook his head, tearing his eyes away from Keir Hew. His cheeks flushed a little with embarrassment, and he clenched his fingers, trying again to yank his arm from Graham's grip. Not only did his arm not budge, but a sour ache crawled up his limb from the red skin beneath Graham's fingers.  
   
It wasn't that he wasn't strong; he was quite pleased with the musculature of his body, but somehow, everyone in this game was unnaturally strong, or at least, stronger than him. The idea filled him with bitterness.
   
"Oh?" The man's voice was smoky and reminded him of dark streets and moonless nights, "I can't imagine that YOU'd bring me anything remotely good."
   
The slow whirr of Theo's brain finally caught up, and he raised an eyebrow. So Magda left early because of him? And this guy, he presumed, was the only brother he hadn't seen.
   
"He's a horrible thing..."
   
A horrible thing? Oh yes, this Keir was definitely another horrible Hew bastard, but just how horrible? That was the question. More 'horrible' than Alexandr? He didn't think so.
   
"I think you'll like this one." Graham said, glancing between Theo and Keir nervously.
   
"Hah." Keir laughed lightly, "And how would you pay if I don't?"
   
Graham's jaw tightened.
   
"No matter," Keir waved lazily with a fine-boned hand, "Let's see."
   
And he turned around.
   
He was just as tall as Alexandr, perhaps taller now that Theo was face to face with him. And as for his features... Theo blinked and glanced away sharply. It was too hard to face this man properly. It was stupid of him, incredibly so, but... The man's face still lingered in his mind even if it had been for one second.
   
A high, sharp nose, thin lips, dark brows that drew over long, thin eyes with irises too dark. Perhaps they were normal features, but fixed on that single face, they made it hard for him to breath. Too invasive, too piercing, and even though he refused it, he was still stabbed straight through relentlessly.

He could see a little that he was mixed, perhaps a south-east asian mother, Japanese? Chinese? Indonesian? It added an extra darkness to his brows and eyes, whetted his gaze until it was a blade. And the fall of his hair framing his face only added to his...

A soft yet foreign intake of breath floated through the air.

"...Indeed." Keir said, warm air splashing across Theo's face.

Dun, dun! That electric depression played in his ear.

The strange feeling in his chest dissipated, and he looked up, grounding himself. Keir was staring at him, eyes wider, brows raised in a half mix of fascination and delight that raised goose-bumps on Theo's arms. Even on a face like his, it was thoroughly unpleasant for reasons that Theo could not quite discern.

This fascination, it wasn't like Alexandr. Alexandr had shone a slick observation and ultimately, something close to fixation for the same unknown reasons. It was not even like magda's shock. Keir looked at him like... he was some rare animal in a zoo. Something to taxidermize and put in a study to look at from time to time.

He glanced up at the small white heart above Keir and blinked twice. Was he seeing right? Surely... not? He traced over every digit: -100.

How?

Eyes widening he looked back at Keir, "Who are you?"

The man made no reply, only extended a long finger to trace Theo's feature in the air.

"Interesting." He said tonelessly.

"What's going on here?" Theo feigned furiously, looking between Graham and Keir.

The finger dropped, "It's rather loud, isn't it?" Keir addressed Graham with a tinge of disgust.

"Loud?" Theo laughed through gritted teeth, "I can be a bit louder if you want. WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?"

Keir winced, eyes flashing dangerously. His hand shot out, and before Theo could evade the touch, Keir's hand wrapped around his jaw, shutting his mouth together mercilessly. Theo's teeth collided together with a clack, and the bitter iron taste of blood suffused through his mouth.

He grasped Keir's wrist tightly, but with even more bitterness he realised that he could not tug the man's grip off. Why the fuck was everyone in this world so superhumanly strong? How was he ever supposed to win?

Trying to wrestle away from both men, he yanked backwards, kicking and struggling without pride. Kier's expression turned blacker and blacker. His feet cracked into Theo's right knee with a well-placed kick. An explosion of pain ignited through the entire length of Theo's leg, and with an audible crack, he dropped to the floor, cold sweat dripping down his forehead.

"Yoah godmmmhed mothemfu—" He shouted through Keir's hand.

A deep sigh rumbled through the air, "I was going to take my time." Keir whispered slowly, looking up at the ceiling.

"Keir--" Graham called tauntly.

Keir shook his head, "Well, I'll enjoy it anyway. Throw him into the pit." He rubbed his chin with his free hand, "Oh, and I don't want an audience."

His lips did not curve, they remained as stoic as ever, but a cruel laugh lit within his pitless eyes. Crouching slowly, his hand tightened around Theo's jaw, and he leaned forward by his ear:

"Little pig, little pig, run as fast as you can. Or I'll huff and I'll puff, and I'll cut you all up."