Mendoza hit him again across his ass. Adrian jumped. The blow hadn't been strong, but he was sure Mendoza had targeted his balls.
I'll find a way to get revenge, you asshole.
His eyes filled with tears—his cheeks were hot and his ass on fire. Two stripes were burning where Mendoza had struck him. Adrian winced, waiting for the third shot, but it didn't come. Instead, Mendoza approached Adrian and opened his ass cheeks wide.
"Let's see if you like all of me," he said slipping a finger inside Adrian's hole. Adrian held his breath, fearing he could hurt him. Mendoza inserted his finger up to his knuckle, then he pulled it out before striking him a third time.
The belt caught Adrian by surprise and he let out a moan. The sting was bearable, but not the humiliation. Scorching tears overflowed and dropped on the sheets.
Mendoza grabbed his hair. "Suck my cock."
He pushed his hard shaft against Adrian's mouth. He opened up and Mendoza slid it until he touched the back of Adrian's throat, but his nose was stuffed.
Adrian gagged, and Mendoza pulled back. "What's wrong? Am I starting to disgust you?"
With a deep breath Adrian took all of Mendoza's length back into his throat until his mouth was on his pubic hair. He had the satisfaction of hearing Mendoza moan.
Adrian sucked him with commitment. He thought maybe it was the last time he would taste Mendoza in his mouth, so he tried to put in all the passion and love he felt inside into it. Adrian was determined to flee tomorrow. He was sorry he had to leave Mendoza, but he had to do it.
"Shit," Mendoza said, pulling his cock out of Adrian's mouth. "I think you need more punishment."
"It will be useless, you know… ah!"
Mendoza hit him with the belt again.
He sneered, satisfied. "What was that? It was a scream, right?
"You bastard!"
Mendoza grabbed his hair again. "I'm not so lovable, am I?"
"It takes more than that to change my beliefs. You have to hit me harder, make me bleed. What are you waiting for?"
Mendoza let go of him. "You're stubborn."
"You're stubborn, too."
"On your back," Mendoza ordered. "Raise your legs and take the lube. I want to watch you slipping your fingers inside your ass."
Adrian rolled onto the bed and grabbed the bottle from the nightstand. He tried not to show his fear. "Is this because you can't fuck me with your cock?"
"Shut up." Mendoza knelt on the bed and opened Adrian's legs wide. "Stretch yourself."
Adrian slicked his fingers. He inserted two inside his channel as he watched Mendoza's hard shaft, dying to feel it pushing inside of him instead of his own digits. A moan of frustration escaped Adrian's lips.
Mendoza's cold eyes stared at the show for a few seconds only. With a groan, he grabbed Adrian's hand, taking his fingers out and replaced them with his length, filling him in a single, deep thrust. Adrian couldn't help but moan.
Mendoza propped his hands on the mattress and fucked Adrian in deep thrusts, making him forget everything. He forgot the humiliation, he forgot the end of the world, and all that he had gone through. There must be a reason why Mendoza was so perfect to him. He didn't need Serpent to tell him why. Adrian arched his back, and joined Mendoza's thrusts. For his whole life Adrian had wanted him. Mendoza's weak punishment wouldn't change things.
Mendoza's gaze turned from an ice-cold to a burning, dark color as the pleasure grew. His stare was still one of wonder as he came. Then, in a perfect, precious moment, he rested his forehead on Adrian's.
A sense of communion, redemption, made Adrian's heart sing. He closed his eyes.
He was sure Mendoza was the one for him.
* * * *
Mendoza lay on top of Adrian, catching his breath. Adrian trembled slightly, but Mendoza couldn't bear to touch him. He rolled away and lay on his back, looking at the ceiling.05xii65
Yes, Mendoza felt something special for Adrian. He didn't know if it might be predetermined, if fate or some strange god had established their bond. Mendoza didn't believe it because he had never had such desires. Adrian had always wanted his Prince Charming, but Mendoza had never dared to hope for someone as nice as Adrian.
Adrian was also stubborn. He rolled toward Mendoza, cuddling in against his chest. Mendoza didn't push him back. He didn't touch him either. He remained still, his arms open on the bed as Adrian leaned his head on his shoulder.
"I'm an asshole." Mendoza said.
"Yes," Adrian said.
"But you still want me."
"Yes."
"Want to know what this Prince Charming did?"
Adrian didn't respond.
Telling the truth was his ultimate weapon. Mendoza would never be able to physically hurt Adrian and make him bleed, so he had to tell him everything.
"I'm an assassin," Mendoza confessed.
Adrian stiffened against him, but Mendoza didn't have the courage to look at his face. "I'm a murderer. I killed a man."
Adrian remained silent. Was he disgusted?
Now that he'd begun this pathetic confession, he had to finish. He had never talked about himself to anyone, and he wasn't good with words.
"I was in jail the first time at the age of seventeen because I stole a car. In jail, I met a man. I thought he was fond of me, like he cared about me, and he was perhaps the only one in the world. When I came out, I started working for the man, doing things for him. They weren't nice things. But nothing I've ever felt ashamed of too much. Sometimes I was asked to beat someone, but it was always just assholes. One day he asked me to commit a murder. I killed a person. I waited in a dark parking lot and I shot him. They arrested me. At the trial, I saw his family. The guy I killed had a wife, children. I don't think Prince Charming does things like that, honestly."
Adrian sat up on the bed, turning away. Mendoza couldn't see his face but his shoulders were trembling and he was bent forward as if he had to throw up.
Mendoza closed his eyes and waited. He wouldn't say anything else. He wouldn't tell Adrian about how his father had abandoned him, killing himself, throwing himself off a bridge when he was fifteen years old because of some debts. His father had left him in the shit, he had been a coward, and Mendoza hated him. He had hated him long and hard, and hatred had ruined him. It had made him sick, had made him rot inside. From that time on, he had been nothing more than grudge and loneliness, and when he shot the man in the parking lot, he thought of his father. But he wouldn't tell Adrian. Nothing could justify coldblooded murder.
"Did you just… just shoot him? You killed him like that?"
Adrian's voice was unsteady. His back was still turned.
Mendoza sighed. "Yes." He closed his eyes.
A part of him wanted Adrian to tell him he was still his Prince Charming. But this was impossible, of course. What he had done couldn't be forgiven. Mendoza now understood thoroughly what his conviction was: the moment he had killed, he had ruined not only his life but also that of a fair person like Adrian. It didn't matter if their bond was real or not. Adrian believed they were soul mates, and Mendoza's actions influenced Adrian's life.
And now Adrian had to bear the burden to be paired with a murderer.
A simple solution burst open in his mind. Mendoza knew what to do.
He had to kill himself.
Mendoza hated his father because he'd committed suicide, and now he had to do the same to free Adrian. A perfect correspondence.
"Adrian," he said. He reached out, but didn't have the courage to touch Adrian. "Tomorrow I'll help you reach the airplane."
Finally, Adrian turned to look at him. Adrian had tears in his eyes. He suffered because of what Mendoza had done, and it broke his heart.
Mendoza sat up and faced Adrian. "I'll make sure you and the children manage to escape. But I'm not coming with you. I can't."
Adrian wiped his face. "Okay," he said, his shoulders still trembling. "You have to redeem yourself."
Mendoza gaped at
him. "Redeem myself?"
"Paul, I'm outraged and shocked by what you did in the past, but even more by what you're doing now."
Mendoza was speechless.
"You stay here, waiting for time to pass and nothing else!" Adrian exclaimed, his face flushed.
Mendoza shook his head, incredulous. "There's no atonement, not for killing."
"Maybe not, but at least you have to try! You have to come with me," Adrian concluded.
Mendoza almost laughed. "Are you saying I'm still your Prince Charming?" The guy was as stubborn as a mule.
Adrian stared daggers. "You're so sure the Prince Charming thing is an invention of mine, but it isn't. I haven't chosen you, and I can't refuse you, so you're still my soul mate. You're damned, and you're a murderer, but you're still mine."
Yes. Now Mendoza knew he had to release Adrian from the burden of himself. Suicide was the only way out.
Suddenly, calm and relief washed over him. For the first time in ages, Mendoza felt at peace with himself. "I'll take you up to the airplane. For now, all I'm promising is that."
Adrian surprised Mendoza by holding him tight and cuddling against him.
Mendoza, stunned, stroked Adrian's back. "Aren't you angry with me?"
Adrian lifted up on his elbow to look into his eyes. "What you did was terrible, Paul, especially because you didn't have a real reason to do so, even if you're probably not telling me everything. But you talked about it with regret."
"Regret?" Mendoza said bewildered. "Go tell that guy's wife, that I regret what I did. She'll tell you that I can stick my regret."
Adrian shook his head. "I can't judge you and I can't forgive you, Paul. But I think that you should spend the rest of your life trying to fix it. Listen. You have already saved the lives of my elderly passengers. There were four of them. You killed one person, but you've saved four. Don't you feel better for it?"
Mendoza gave him a gaping stare, then grinned. Adrian was incredible.
"You're not even angry about the lashes?" Mendoza asked.
Adrian's eyes widened. "Oh, Paul, I'm furious for that. My ass is burning like hell."
"If you want, I can try to redeem myself by kissing it," Mendoza offered.
Adrian looked little suspicious. "That would be a great start."
Mendoza rolled Adrian over on his belly to look at his ass. "Yes, there are some red marks, although barely visible."
"They're burning, I assure you."
Mendoza leaned down and kissed the silk of Adrian's butt cheek. "Better?"
"I don't know. That wasn't enough."
Mendoza licked the mark on the back of Adrian's thigh, then stroked his mouth on the sign of the lashing across Adrian's ass.
Adrian hid his face on the pillow. "Oh, shit."
"Is it better now?"
"Yes, yes," Adrian moaned. He opened his legs and rose on his knees, pushing his ass towards him in an impudent offer. Mendoza went across the mark on the back of Adrian's balls, making him startle.
"It seems you're really better," Mendoza said, leaning to look at Adrian's sweaty face, gently squeezing his sac in his hand.
"You know how to make me forgive you, so that's a good start."
Adrian squirmed as Mendoza brushed his tongue across his perineum, and then on his hole, although his own cum leaked from it. The act seemed to drive Adrian crazy.
Mendoza grabbed Adrian's hips. He felt Adrian hold his breath in anticipation. He entered Adrian slowly, enjoying every minute of it. He pushed a little and still was totally inside. Adrian's body had the perfect shape for his cock. Like putting on a glove.
"Ah, shit," Adrian moaned, shivering.
Mendoza had never been so eager to please someone. "Don't move, I'll do that."
"I'm not moving."
"Yes, you're moving your ass. Stay put."
Mendoza was only able to make him suffer, but Adrian deserved better. Mendoza moved slowly, his hand on Adrian's balls. Despite telling him to stay still, Adrian joined his thrusts as Mendoza unhurriedly increased his pace, feeling his orgasm still lingering inside.
Mendoza realized Adrian had grown inside him up to unimaginable proportions, because now, even though he knew he had to leave Adrian free, his heart broke at the thought. In the end, Adrian was the only person in the world who cared about him.
"I want to hear you say my name," Mendoza said in Adrian's ear and he abruptly increased his rhythm, squeezing Adrian's balls in his hand.
Adrian satisfied him. He screamed Mendoza's name when he came.
Mendoza, coming as well, thought how strange that in his lonely and desolate life, a bright and unexpected gift like Adrian found his way to him.
Chapter 10
The night was an ordeal.
In an endless nightmare, the airplane crashed, exploded, people screamed, Captain Santoro and Joanne burned alive, Samantha and Thomas died devoured by phages or pierced by pieces of metal sheeting, Ghost opened his belly with a scalpel. Adrian woke up constantly, wincing, every time thinking he was in airline housing, or in a few hotels scattered throughout the world, disposing of terrible jet lag. The night before, locked up in the cockpit with Thomas and Samantha, he had fallen into a black, dreamless sleep, due to physical exhaustion, but now the post-traumatic stress had overwhelmed him in full.
At dawn, Adrian gave up sleep and merely looked at the cracked ceiling to the sickly light creeping from the window. Mendoza snored slightly, turning his back to him.
Adrian knew something was wrong with Mendoza. Although the man had confessed to committing a murder, Adrian wasn't sure he had told everything. And Mendoza's real intentions remained a mystery. Mendoza said he would take Adrian to the plane, but that he couldn't stay.
Was Mendoza planning to dump him there and disappear?
Adrian gritted his teeth at the thought. He absolutely had to prevent Mendoza from abandoning him. Finally, Mendoza had opened his heart, at least a little, and Adrian couldn't allow him to leave right now.
Mendoza turned on his back, muttering something.
A sudden sense of gloom fell on Adrian. Maybe, convincing a man like Mendoza to confide in him was a desperate enterprise.
But landing the damn plane had been hopeless. And surviving so far seemed the same.
No, Adrian couldn't surrender. He wanted Mendoza with him and wanted the man's soul, as well as his body.
He straddled Mendoza, still asleep, and rubbed his hard-on along Mendoza's cock, awakening it. Mendoza moaned something and Adrian smiled in satisfaction. He ran his palms through Mendoza's chest hair and on the tense muscles of his abdomen, then took Mendoza's shaft and lined it with his hole, still slicked from the night before. He lowered his body on Mendoza's until they were joined and closed his eyes for the pleasure, but also in pain, hoping, praying it wouldn't be the last time.
"Shit," Mendoza muttered, his eyes still closed. "I didn't expect such a damned good awakening."
"I want to make a deal with you," Adrian said. "You can have sex as many times as you want if you stay with me."
"It's tempting," Mendoza said, running his fingertips down his spine.
Although difficult, Adrian remained still, sitting on Mendoza's cock. "What are you going to do, if you leave me? You'll just be alone, regretting your sins forever."
Mendoza didn't answer, his eyes turned into two slits full of ice.
Oh, yes, Mendoza was tough, but Adrian wouldn't give up. "It's pretty stupid, when you can have a way of making amends. You can help me and the children, and any other people we meet, to survive. And you can have my body every single night."
Please, please, please, say yes.
"I'll help you to escape," Mendoza merely said, sounding distant.
His words stabbed him, but Adrian had to fill the distance. "It's not enough," he said starting to ride him.
Mendoza grabbed Adrian's buttocks with a groan and closed his eyes. He followed the movement of Adrian's hips as beads of sweat grew on his forehe
ad.
"You'll stay with me. Say it," Adrian ordered.
"You may not want a murderer by your side," Mendoza whispered, his eyes shut, refusing to meet Adrian's gaze.
Adrian sped up his pace slightly. "But I don't want a murderer. I want a man who has committed a serious mistake in the past and has the will to overcome it."
"Such a mistake can't be overcome," Mendoza murmured, stubborn, eyes still closed.
Adrian was determined. "It's enough that you want to! It's the only logical decision! Are you brave? Do you want me?"
Instead of answering, Mendoza clenched Adrian's buttocks with both his hands and came. An eloquent response.
Adrian sighed in triumph at the burning, wet explosion inside his body. He melted in Mendoza's groan of pleasure, and let his soul mate's uncontrolled, deep thrusts bring him to the brim of the orgasm and then he sank down.
Adrian fell on Mendoza's sweaty chest, grasping for breath. "So, you don't like this," he teased.
Mendoza brushed Adrian's wet hair form his face. "But I like you. For this reason I'm broken in two."
Adrian propped on his elbow to meet his eyes. "Please, tell me everything." Maybe Mendoza was giving up?
"There's nothing to say," Mendoza whispered, avoiding Adrian's gaze. "It's a sad story of loneliness and pain and death and shame. I feel shame. If I could find a way to erase my life, I would. I can't infect you with my presence."
Oh, his cold eyes, his flat tone, Adrian could no longer bear it. "Erase?" Adrian snapped, opening wide his eyes. "What exactly are you talking about, Paul?"
"You can't possibly understand, Adrian."
Adrian wanted to hurt him.
He nodded. "I do understand. I see a coward."
* * * *
Mendoza held his breath.
Adrian might as well have slapped him.
Adrian had called him in the same manner Mendoza had called his father.
Coward.
A great destructive rage washed over Mendoza. He didn't realize he'd clenched his fists and raised them until Adrian curled up on the bed, covering his head with his arms.
"I'm not a coward," Mendoza said, clenching his teeth.
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