The boy held up the gun against his nemesis, "You're going down."

.

.

.

"Then one night, as I closed my eyes
I saw a shadow flying high
He came to me with the sweetest smile
Told me he wanted to talk for a while
He said, "Peter Pan, that's what they call me
I promise that you'll never be lonely"
And ever since that day"

A little boy quivered as he sat on a red, posh couch. He watched an enormous man escort his parents out of his sight. He hoped they would finish their conversation with their friend so he'd be able to go to bed early. His eyes tried to follow their shadows as he felt fearfully aware of the big men with guns around the room. He wondered if those weapons were real. His mind wandered around the room mesmerized by the leather couches and rich, silky walls straight out of the movies. 

"Hey," a voice snapped him out of his anxious trance. He looked up to find the towering figure of an older boy with a firm, serious expression. It seemed as if he was attempting to be friendly. 

"Hi," the smaller boy voiced back.

"What's your name?" He asked.

"Raphael. How about you?" Having asked this, the little one frowned at the way the bigger boy gave him chills up his spine. He appeared like one of the massive boys who pushed him down the hallway and made him cry before his friends... only this grey-eyed boy before him seemed scarier.

"Kace," He stated in a single syllable. 

Raphael smiled in a grimace and Kace offered to take him outside. Kace knew that Tristan never used the silencer and that the little boy before him did not need to hear it. 

So, Raphael blushed and timidly laced his hand into Kace's awaiting one. He followed him outside and Kace asked him out of curiosity, "How old are you, Raphael?"

"Nine... How about you?" 

"Eleven."

Raphael looked at him in surprise, "You don't look like it. You look... older."

The corner of his mouth seemed to twitch as if to smile but he went back to being stoic and Raphael realized that he'd look his age if he ever smiled.

We walked down some dusty paths and the little boy flinched as he heard a loud shot of what unmistakably seemed like a gun. His instinct was to turn around and fling himself toward the house. He was worried for his parents. Kace grabbed him across his waist, "You aren't going there."

"What was that sound?" Raphael's eyes filled with tears as he looked up at Kace. "I wanna go home. I'm going to tell my mum and dad."

Kace looked at Raphael as he tightened his hold, "Do you not want to see the horses?"

Raphael's tears wouldn't stop and he blubbered, "I wanna see my mommy... and daddy."

He never did. He was thrown over the shoulder of the bigger boy and taken away from the place of crime with no answers. The house disappeared out of sight as a numbed sound of the last shot was heard.

Days turned into months and he was put in Kace's room. He had questions that he never found answers to. Nobody said a word to him and Kace made sure to make him eat, bathe and go to bed on time. The buzzing in Raphael's ears died down eventually and he began to realize that he might've lost his parents for good. Denial plagued him and he feared to ask.

Kace brought in his food and placed a plate of sandwiches before him. 

"What happened to my parents, Kace?" He asked in a strained scratchy voice.

Anticipation filled the air until Kace decided to answer, "They failed to pay back Tristan's debt. You should move on. They're not coming back to get you."

"Why aren't they coming back?" Raphael found himself asking as his head blanked out in despair.

"They're dead."

Raphael felt himself freeze and zone out. Kace's words hardly registered in his head. He just knew. He felt a bubble form between him and the world. He felt safer as he relaxed into his blank canvas of mind.

Kace expected Raphael to cry but his frozen posture and dry cheeks rang warning bells in his head. He grabbed his shoulders and shook him, "Hey!" 

Raphael wouldn't budge. He sat like a vegetable with unblinking eyes. Kace patted his cheek and tried to break through his response. "Hey, Raphael. I'm gonna be here, okay? Your parents are gone, Raphael. But, I'll never let you be alone. I promise."

"Nobody can ever replace them," Raphael whispered as tears fell one after the other. Kace anticipated Raph to hit him but Raphael just broke down into tears of innocent grief.

Months turned into years and the tears had turned into acceptance and calm mourning. In Kace's eyes, the boy hardly ever changed since the first time he met him. The light in his brown eyes didn't exactly dim. He had grown to lovingly smile at Kace. The day he brought in a cupcake for Raph's birthday was the first time Kace experienced a hug. Ever since he subconsciously did little things to please the smaller boy. 

Raphael grew to move along with the gang and learned about what they did. He was given a gun but Kace firmly took it away from him and shielded him from the drugs, alcohol, bloodshed, and gang politics. Tristan was dangerous and Kace made sure to protect Raphael from their heartless business and cruel mission.

Tristan knew to make good use of Kace because he was an incredible marksman and never missed the target's head. Kace was bigger and more agile than most of his men. The best hitman he could ever get even as a teenager. So, he'd let him protect and keep Raphael as long as he did his dirty business. Kace advocated for Raphael to finish school and Tristan allowed it on the condition that Kace bears the expense from his pay. 

And he did. Kace was adamant about Raphael completing school from within the establishment, to keep him busy inside his room and not involve in any of their affairs. Raphael complied and did not question Kace's stubborn decision. He did excel and went on to become very studious.

Tristan's right-hand man, Benjamin brought Raphael to the shooting range in Kace's absence. Benjamin genuinely believed that Raph must know how to use a gun in emergencies and complained that Kace was being way too controlling and possessive. He secretly weighed the possibility of Kace wanting to protect Raphael's innocence as a secret fetish over the intent of truly protecting his innocent heart. After all, Raphael was a pretty boy who probably shat rainbows and unicorns unlike any of the men that work for Tristan. 

On Benjamin's advice, Raphael took it upon himself to grow physically stronger and decided that he needed space. He asked for a separate room much to Kace's chagrin. A separate room he did get by Benjamin's interference. Benjamin was sure he had to watch his back for a while as he covertly feared that he had angered Kace. He could feel Kace's glare on his back all the time and Kace didn't fail to make his dissatisfaction known. 

Raphael's nineteenth birthday came and Kace knocked on his door close to midnight. Kace secretly had access to Raph's door but was too embarrassed to admit it. Benjamin happened to sarcastically ask him if he had some sort of fetish for the boy that he raised as a parent figure. He wouldn't care what anybody thought of him but Raphael would be appalled if he ever knew... about the sketches lying under Kace's mattress and poems he wrote about him. Would he be disgusted? Kace hoped to never know because Raphael did not deserve a broken person with a "weird fetish", especially not the guy who practically raised him in place of his parents. As much as Kace tried to convince himself that it was not a fetish, he also began to wonder why he would feel so attracted to the boy he raised. 

He could hear the whirring of what seemed like a hairdryer. He knocked harder on the door and the whirring stopped. The door swung open to reveal Raph with a sweet smile. "Hey!" He whispered, his voice like music to my ears. But his eyes stared widely at his partly wet hair except it was blonde, metallic pink. He had bleached his dark hair and colored it. He looked so adorable that Kace had to do a double take before swallowing his wild thought process. 

"How did you get access to bleach and color? How did you even know how to do that?" he asked him.

He rolled his eyes, "You think I don't know how to use the internet? Benjamin got me the supplies- gloves and everything."

Kace folded his arms in a stern glare, "You could've just asked me."

Raph pulled him inside and locked the door behind them. He shrugged and replied, "You never let me do anything so I had to ask someone who treated me like a grown-up."

Heat flooded Kace's face as he tried to cover up his unease, "I do treat you like a grow-up."

"Oh do you, now?" he asked him with a disapproving frown.

"You weren't exactly grown-up up until this point," Kace tried to counter as he berated himself internally for the sketches that appeared on his desk for over nine months now... beautiful sketches of Raphael that filled his mind every time he got some shut-eye.

"Oh right..." Raph looked like he didn't believe him.

"Stop asking Benjamin for favors. I wouldn't trust him. I could get you what you want," Kace told him.

Raph smiled at him sweetly, "You should stop worrying about me."

Kace shrugged, "I heard there's going to be a meteor shower tonight. We should get to the roof." Kace knew that a blonde Raph is going to make him sleepless for a few more nights because he knew that he could never get Raphael to be his. That is just how it's going to be and he was feeling the pain. These emotions were good. They made him feel alive. But how he wished that he could just grab Raphael and kiss him as if his life depended on it. How he wished they'd break out of this place and start a fresh life. He wished for Raphael to get his freedom and to be able to leave this prison for good.

But there he was, rushing to get his hair dry and running a towel through. He grabbed his phone looking excited despite being tied down in this place. Kace wondered how he was so merry and joyful all the time. 

"Do you know an estimate of the time?" he asked and bumped into Kace on their way up the ladder. 

"Probably an hour," he told him as he felt shivers up his spine at the proximity. But his face hardly ever gives away any emotion apart from annoyance and anger. Kace had been trained to be like this. He hasn't cried in a long time either. Looking at Raphael made him want to let it all go and give up trying to bottle up everything.

The meteor passed and left, yet Raphael appeared to be the most beautiful entity in Kace's eyes. He knew that he would be sketching until dawn after putting Raphael to bed. He needed some colors this time.

Months passed and the most unexpected event took place. 

"I'm going to have to let you go, Kace. It appears that your face is getting familiar everywhere. The cops are getting traces of your identity," Tristan stated somberly but Kace knew that Tristan was the devil in disguise and there was an underlying intent.

"Do I need to go underground for a while?" Kace asked, testing Tristan's waters.

"Oh no, where's the fun in that? I'd like to send you to the afterlife," Tristan laughed at his own joke. Kace paused to absorb what he said.

"I've got nothing to lose, Tristan. If you want your shit to still stand after, I suggest we do this on my terms," Kace's face etched into a slow smirk making him look like the dangerous weapon that Tristan happened to create.

Tristan's humor disappeared knowing that he cannot take Kace's threat lightly, "What do you want?"

Kace stared down Tristan as he uttered, "I want Raphael to leave the country and you are never to touch him again."

Tristan instantly found the greatest weakness of the unassailable young man before him. He always assumed that Raphael was Kace's boy toy. It was at this instant that he realized that Kace actually had a heart that seemed to care for that boy. Tristan connected the dots on how the little twink looked at Kace all the time and he quickly realized that perhaps Kace loved him. But, the boy Raphael saw Kace as a parent almost... he was innocent like that.

Through the coming days, Kace arranged for Raphael to be transported to a different country to pursue college and turn a new leaf away from danger. Tristan had no choice but to be patient because he knew that Kace was a tough nut to crack. He'd know from the number of times Kace had been captured by his enemies and nothing ever came out of him. Kace had Raphael apply for college out of the country and placed his savings away for his education. But Raphael had no knowledge of this setup. He hesitantly agreed to pursue college as Kace convinced him that they'd meet soon after he left. Little did he know that Kace was going to be killed by Tristan to keep his establishment from disrupting.

It had been a few months since Tristan had given his ultimatum and Kace was determined to free Raphael. He felt almost happy that he was being released from his cursed life. He believed he did not deserve happiness or... the person he was in love with. He could finally bury the shame that he felt on developing feelings for the boy he raised. He was certain that Raphael saw him as a parent figure after having lost both his parents. He would be horrified if he ever knew about Kace's intentions. Benjamin did not refrain from accusing him of grooming Raphael, which surely made Kace scramble to cover up any evidence of his feelings.

Kace made sure to have Raphael's things packed as his end was nearing. Raphael stood with his suitcases and looked at Kace longingly, "You could go with me."

"I can't," Kace replied with a tight voice.

Raphael stepped close and wrapped his arms around Kace's torso. Kace hugged him back and drank in the moment. Emotions rushed through his chest as his mind indulged in Raphael's scent. Kace felt alive and content. He was ready for sleep.

.

.

.

With the stars out and having passed midnight, he knew that Raph's cab had left for the airport as he gave up his weapon. Benjamin cuffs him with a somber demeanor and they wait at the clearing of the trees for Tristan to make his appearance. Benjamin had grown to see Kace attach himself to Raph. He was secretly praying for them to have a happy ending. But here he was, about to watch another life that he'd thrown his hopes on come to an end.

But little did Kace or Benjamin know that Tristan was a menace and had been waiting to kick the dying man down. Tristan and a few other men dragged a glaring  Raphael by his arm down the dusty path toward Kace.

Fury gripped Kace as he gritted his teeth, "What's this about, Tristan?"

Tristan laughed and mocked, "Oh guess who went through your room and discovered certain... information. You actually burnt everything before poor little Raphael saw it. Am I right or am I right?"

Kace glared at Tristan. But Tristan wasn't done yet. He went on to say, "But, I have copies of it. I'd like to enjoy this drama before you die, Kace."

Kace shook his head because this was the first time he was absolutely terrified of the outcome. He spoke, "Don't you dare."

He pushed Raphael to the ground and pulled out a roll of what looked like printed copies of his drawings and sketches. He threw them before Raphael and Raph looked them through curiously. He picked up the latest one with color and the meteor passing. Some were semi-nude sketches and Kace's heart pounded as Raphael picked them up. Tristan watched all color leave Kace's face and oh did he enjoy watching the rare instance of fear on Kace's face.

Raphael's face flooded with heat as he saw the semi-nude sketches for the first time. He wondered where he had hidden them earlier. He felt his body freeze over as he witnessed a window into Kace's mind and the way Kace saw him. He had a rush of sensations inside him, greater than before. He always wondered if Kace saw him as a child or worse, a brother. But the answer lay before his eyes and he could not stop the smile tugging at his lips. A sense of relief filled him. The sketches were beautiful and the details were intricate with lines that danced across the page sensually.

Meanwhile, Kace was almost hoping that Tristan would shoot him in the head all while wanting to put a fucking knife through Tristan's throat. He sneered and grimaced at Tristan, "What did you get out of this?"

"Oh, this wealthy aristocrat decided to help hide our goods in exchange for... Raphael. The useless trashbag is now suddenly valuable," Tristan smirked.

Kace tried to attack Tristan and was held down by Benjamin. Kace looked at him with fury and exclaimed, "You can't possibly let this happen, Benjamin!"

Benjamin tried to control the situation and firmly said, "Calm down, Kace." Benjamin knew that Tristan had his men within reach and he was still on the powerful side. Being Tristan's right-hand man, he'd know. He glared at Kace and Kace breathed heavily, trying to analyze the situation before him. He quickly understood where Benjamin stood and how they were overpowered.

Meanwhile, Raphael picked up the most erotic art of the bunch. It was a sketch of Kace kissing the back of his neck while in a nude embrace. He folded it and slipped it into the back pocket of his jeans under his oversized hoodie. His fuzzy head seemed to clear out and he stood back up. He slipped his fingers into the back of his jeans and slipped out the thing that Kace seemed to hate the most. His eyes lay on the man whose eyes held a cruel ego and sadistic pleasure at his beloved Kace's pain. Nobody suspected the pink-haired angel.

The boy held up the gun against his nemesis, "You're going down... M*therf*cker."

The house at a distance blows up in short spurts of terrifying flames... with all of the sleeping men inside.

☆*: .｡. ☆*: .｡. o(≧▽≦)o .｡.:*☆ .｡.:*☆