Peter Pan

Part II

                “Get to work.” He said, sipping on his Hennessey. Jiaheng blinked. Tao cocked his head. “Are you deaf? Get to work.” He said again. Jiaheng stood up and bowed.

                “Of course sir, right away.” He went to leave but turned around. Tao held up his hand to silence him.

                “Cleaning supplies are in the kitchen. Look under the sink and in the closet. They should be there” he snapped his fingers, and Jiaheng turned around. “Ah, and the kitchen is around the staircase, and to the right of that is the laundry room. Just set the garbage outside, I’ll call someone to pick it up.” Jiaheng nodded.

                “Yes sir.” He said. He promptly left the office in search of the cleaning supplies.

*****

                Jiaheng wiped the sweat from his brow, making sure not to touch the rubber gloves on his hands. He had been at it for three hours now. It was very late. The crickets even stopped chirping. Tao had resided himself to watching him work from across the room.

                Jiaheng loaded basket after basket of laundry and piled it into the laundry room. Dish after dish was found and placed in a bin to be taken to the kitchen. He had to take it multiple times and reload it. Several times he found dead mice and rats. He even found a dead rat, which in the middle of eating a mouse, had been squashed to death. He turned and closed his eyes, ready to vomit. Zitao smiled.

“What? Ready to quit already?” he looked at his watch and shook his head. “And I had such high hopes for you.” Jiaheng shook his head.

                “I’ll be fine.” He turned back, peeled the rat off the floor, and threw it in the garbage bag. There were so many dead rats and mice; he was surprised Zitao hadn’t hired someone sooner.

                “Um, I have a question,” said Jiaheng, picking up loose debris and throwing it away.

                “Yes?” answered Zitao, surveying his new employee.

                “Um, why are there so many dead animals in here?” he asked. Zitao shrugged.

                “They found their way in, and I didn’t feel like calling an exterminator.”

                “Um, another question, have you ever had anyone else clean your home?” he asked, picking up stiff moldy pants, and throwing them into the bag. Zitao shook his head.

                “No?” Jiaheng shook his head. “Why ever not?”

                “Because I damn well felt like it.” Zitao scoffed. “Do you always ask this many questions?” Jiaheng blushed.

                “No, sir.”

                “Then shut up and keep cleaning.” He said, walking off into his office. Jiaheng could feel a weight being lifted off of him now that he wasn’t being watched so closely. He took bag after bag of garbage out of the house.

                His back became quite sore as he sank to his knees and began scrubbing the entire foyer. He had finally made his way over to the kitchen when he heard the sound of footsteps. Zitao stood in front of him. He smirked and pointed to a spot in the corner.

                “You missed a spot,” he said, and with that, he turned and walked away. Jiaheng’s mouth fell open as he watched Zitao walk through the nicely scrubbed room with his filthy shoes, leaving an imprint with every step. He scrubbed even harder now.

*****

                It was hours before Jiaheng had finished the foyer, cleaned all the dishes, mopped the kitchen floor, wiped down the counters and cleaned out the cupboards and the fridge he knocked on Zitao’s office door. He heard things knocking around in the room before Zitao stumbled out, his eyes bloodshot. He looked Jiaheng up and down before settling on the frame.

                “What [hic] do you want?” he asked.

                “Um, sir? I was wondering if you would be alright if I left? I don’t know how long my hours are, so I was wondering if it would be alright to go home?” Tao stumbled out of the office and examined his work. He shrugged.

                “Looks okay. But going home isn’t really an option.” He stated.

                “What do you mean, sir?” asked Jiaheng. Zitao turned to him.

                “I have a meeting at 10 o’clock. I’ll need you to help me get ready. That’s in about…” he checked his watch. “Three hours.” He pointed to the living room. “Just sleep on the sofa.” He said, making his way upstairs. He stumbled, tripping and falling down three stairs.

                “Sir, are you okay,” Jiaheng rushed to him. “Do you need help?” he reached for his arm, but Zitao shoved him away.

                “Get off! I can take care of myself!” he said, stumbling to his feet. He sat back, looking at Jiaheng. “Come here,” he said, holding out his hand. Jiaheng extended his own hand, and was promptly pulled down. He came face to face with Zitao.

                “Um, sir?” he asked, as Zitao his face. “What are you-” Zitao put his finger to his lips.

                “Shhhh, don’t speak.” He whispered, running his fingers through Jiaheng’s hair. Jiaheng shoved himself away from Zitao.

                “Th-this is qu-quite unprofessional, sir. I shall h-have n-no p-p-part of it.” He said. Zitao smirked at him.

                “Is that so?” he asked. Jiaheng nodded. All Zitao could do was laugh. He had never been told ‘no’ so much in his entire life. It was kinda turning him on. He scooted up the stairs backwards, holding on to Jiaheng all the while.

                He stood up and dragged Jiaheng onto the landing, and shoved him against the wall. He ran his lips down his neck.

                “Mr. Huang, please stop.” Asked Jiaheng. He was feeling extremely uncomfortable. Zitao smiled.

                “What’s wrong Mr. Li, are you nervous?” he asked, brushing his cheek lightly with the back of his hand. “I can fix that.” He said, leaning in towards his neck. Jiaheng put up his hand to stop him.

                “No! Stop!” he asked. He pulled away from him. “Goodnight, sir.” He said, heading down the stairs. Zitao smirked. This was going to be fun.

*****

                Jiaheng rose early, his back and legs sore from working throughout the night. He folded the thin sheet he had been using as a cover onto the dusty couch. This entire house was filthy. He was not looking forward to cleaning the entire house. There were many rooms upstairs, not to mention all the rooms downstairs, and the laundry still needed to be done.

                He knocked on Zitao’s bedroom door. He heard shuffling, but there was no answer.

                “Excuse me sir, you asked me to help you get ready for your meeting?” he heard more shuffling.

                “Come in.” he opened the door, and almost fell over backwards.

                The room was disgusting. There were moldy dishes and garbage scattered throughout the room. There was a waist-high pile of laundry in the corner, and his desk against the opposite wall was filled with papers, writing utensils coffee cups and candy wrappers.

                Zitao was still in bed. . The only part of him covered by the sheet was his groin. He was sprawled out, staring up at his canopy, rubbing his eyes. He propped himself up on his elbows. Jiaheng blushed and looked away. Zitao smiled.

                “Come help me.” He said, waving him over.

                “Wh-what?” Jiaheng’s face turned bright red.

                “Get over here. I need help getting out of here.” He walked over, his eyes to the floor, and helped Zitao out of bed. He promptly fell onto Jiaheng. He could feel Zitao’s member against his own. He quickly stood him upright and turned around. Zitao came forward, pressing himself into Jiaheng. “Mmmm, stop playing hard to get,” he said, pulling on his shirt.

                “Mr. Huang, stop!” he turned around, angry at him. Did this man have no perception of personal space?

                “You’re no fun, Jiaheng.” He said, turning around. “Follow me.” Jiaheng stood there defiantly a moment, and then decided to follow him. He went into the bathroom, and almost vomited.

                There was mold lining the sink and used tissues scattered about. Empty soap and shampoo bottles littered the floor. The toilet covered and bathroom mats didn’t look as if they had ever been washed. His shower was covered in lime scale and there were cobwebs all over the ceiling.

                “You bathe in here?” he asked. Zitao nodded.

                “Well, it is a bathroom.” He said, turning the knob to just the right temperature. The water sputtered out of the shower head, and turned grayish before becoming clear.

                “Oh my God, it’s disgusting!” Jiaheng exclaimed, holding back the urge to vomit. Zitao scoffed.

                “What do you think you’re here for?”  He asked, stepping into the stream of water. He shivered as his body adjusted to the temperature. Jiaheng stood there awkwardly. Zitao looked at him. “What? You like watching?” he asked. Jiaheng blushed and shook his head. “Go find me a clean towel.” Jiaheng nodded.

                “Of course, sir.” He bowed and went off to look for a towel. He looked up and down the hallway. There were four other rooms. One on each side of the door, and one at each end of the hall. He wasn’t told which door to go through, so he went into the first door on his right.

*****

                It was quite dark. He could barely make out shapes. He saw an old bookcase, and next to it, a globe. Both were absolutely covered in cobwebs. There were boxes upon boxes piled past his head. He could see some filled with books, others with dusty knick knacks. He shook his head.

                ‘Well, I know where I’m going first tomorrow,’ he thought to himself as he closed the door. He headed to the door on the left. This door looked particularly mangled. Not from the outside, but he could see small protruding dents from within. He slowly opened the door.

                The room was completely in ruins. The bedframe had been pulled down from above, and had collapsed onto the bed. The mattress stuffing was scattered everywhere. The window was cracked; the mirror on the bureau was shattered. The curtains on the bed and window were shattered. Clothes and garbage littered the floor. Jiaheng jumped out of his skin as he felt a hand slam down onto his shoulder.

                “What do you think you’re doing here?” he was twisted around to see a very angry, dripping wet Zitao.

                “I-I’m sorry s-sir,” he stammered out. “I-I was looking for the towels, a-and I c-came in here. I-I didn’t kn-know w-what was in h-here.” Zitao looked from him to the room. He dragged him out by the collar of his shirt, slamming the door behind him. He slammed Jiaheng up against the wall, holding him there by the collar of his shirt.

                “Don’t you ever go into that room again, do you understand me?” he asked, his face inches away from Jiaheng. He nodded.

                “Y-yes sir, b-b-but I d-d-didn’t kn-know.” He tried to explain. Zitao pushed him higher up onto the wall.

                “It doesn’t matter what you knew, but that you know now.” He dropped him. “Look in the laundry room.” Jiaheng nodded, ducked away from him, and ran downstairs.

He made his way into the laundry room, climbing over the mountains of clothes. He dug and dug until he reached the dryer. Once he opened it, he was lucky enough to find just one towel. It was a little on the small side, but it was better than nothing. He ran out, tripping over the pile near the door, and falling onto his shoulder. He got back up, and ran upstairs.

Zitao was waiting for him at the head of the stairs. He watched as a breathless Jiaheng climbed up and handed him the towel. He took it, and threw it back in his face.

“Well done, but next time you might want to hurry before I air dry.” He said, and turned to his bedroom. He turned back. “Well, are you coming?” he asked. Jiaheng nodded, and followed him.

Zitao opened his wardrobe, revealing only five suits left. It was a rather big closet too. Jiaheng wondered how many suits he was going to have to wash to fill it back up. Zitao turned to him.

“Pick one.” He said. Jiaheng shook his head.

“I’m not really good with-”

“Now.”

“That one.” He said, pointing at a black suit, black tie and everything. Zitao picked it up and set it aside.

“Pick another.” He said. Jiaheng pointed to another suit. This one was a steel gray, with a black tie.

“Well done.” After reviewing the two choices, Zitao picked the grey suit and threw the black one at Jiaheng. He went to put it up, when Zitao grabbed his arm. “What are you doing?” he asked.

“Putting the suit back?” Zitao shook his head.

“Put it on.” He said.

“What?” Zitao looked at him.

“Did I stutter? Put. It. On.” He said, shoving it back into his arms. Jiaheng left to go to the restroom to change his clothes.

To his surprise, the suit fit perfectly. Zitao looked so tall; he figured that it would be rather large on him. He walked out of the bathroom, to see Zitao standing right in front of him.

Zitao was rather handsome in the suit. It fit the contours of his body like a glove. He could put Adonis himself to shame. He smiled.

“You clean up nicely.” He said, walking forward. He grabbed Jiaheng by his tie, pulling him close. Jiaheng pulled his head back, only to be relieved once Zitao adjusted his tie and straightened his suit. “There, perfect.” He looked into his eyes. Jiaheng felt his heart stop as the fierce man held his gaze. He shook his head. “Come with me.” He said, grabbing him by his wrist. He shot out the house, slamming the door behind him. He shoved Jiaheng into the passenger seat of a white Mercedes, and got in on the driver side. He turned to him.

“Don’t speak unless spoken to, and even then think twice.” He said, before taking his hands and placing them on the steering wheel. He back up, and drove down the lane, leaving his bayou hideaway behind.

*****

They drove out of the wilderness, and into the bustling metropolis. Lights blinded Jiaheng from every edifice. People in elaborate costumes paraded about the streets while musicians played on the sidewalks.

Zitao turned down a road with grand houses lining the street. They were some of the biggest houses that he had ever seen in his entire life. Zitao scoffed at his amazement. He had been around these parts his entire life, it was nothing new. But he expected this from a simpleton like Jiaheng. But seeing the awe on his face for himself was just hilarious.

He turned down the road to an elaborately decorated town house. There were lights strung everywhere. People were crowded outside, as well as inside the house. Loud music was playing. However, it was barely audible over the buzz of conversation from the party guests. Zitao exited the car and took Jiaheng by his arm, dragging him into the party.

END OF PART II