Again, Mr. Black? (M×M) (l***q+)

10.

"Your corretto, Sir. And banana nut cake. I hope you enjoy the order." And choke on it!

I, of course, didn't say that. Because no matter how much he angers me, he is a criminal. Even when most of the people in the diner had no clue who Hades Black really was, I very well knew what he was capable of. I can't openly insult an assassin when I loved my life way too much to entice death.

"Did you mix the alcohol in it like I wanted it, Lazarus?" He asked me and I tried my best not to shiver when he called my name. It was weird how he called me in ways that were different than how he called others.

He wasn't gentle, not even a bit. But he wasn't harsh either. As much as he makes me suffer in the cafe by deliberately asking me to make coffee for him, not knowing how many times, he would cook as much for me when we returned home. Hades Black was a jerk when he came as my customer. But Hades Black was a totally different person at home. A little less mischievous and a lot more patient.

"Yes, I did. I love my salary very much, Mr. Black. I won't mess with your orders. Especially when I know you are my boss's brother now," I said, and he chuckled softly, shaking his head. When I was about to leave for my counter, he gripped my wrist, making me halt on my feet. My breathing turned erratic as I turned around to look at him.

He had the cup in his hand as he raised it closer to his lips and took a sip of his beverage. And his eyes rolled back, as if he was savoring the taste of the drink. Honestly speaking, I barely liked drinking caffeine. Especially now that I have to make it for my customers, especially him, I didn't have any fantasies of drinking it.

"What?" I asked him, my voice shaky and if I wasn't hallucinating, I saw a faint smile on his face when he saw my trembling frame. He shook his head again, placing the cup down as he took a bite of his banana nut cake.

"I just wanted to make sure that it was you who made the coffee and not your colleagues. But you can go now. I'll call you when I feel again." He said and my jaw dropped at the audacity of this man. I left as soon as he resumed drinking his coffee.

And guess who was staring at me with a broad smile on her face? Sammy, of course. And I rolled my eyes, walking past her as I started to attend the customers. But it wasn't just Sammy who was looking at me with an impish look on her face, my friends were also staring at me, with their mouths wide open. It wasn't every day someone as gorgeous as Hades Black bullied me.

.....

They say darkness is best to hide crimes. Or better, the criminals. But it is night that often reveals the face of the ugliest crimes and unwraps the truth in the worst possible ways. When Hades Black was unable to pick me up from my work, I felt happy. It felt good to be able to breathe without him fanning my neck, intruding on my personal space. But I didn't know that something worse was awaiting for me when he didn't come for me.

I was no fool to follow the voices that often led the characters in movies and fiction into trouble. I was an empathetic person, but not suicidal. I knew my help would only provide aid when I was strong enough to get not just that person out of trouble, but also myself. But that night, the road I usually take was blocked by a giant rock. Maybe it was a landslide, which was very common where I lived. But the only way left to go to my apartment went through the territory of the gang— "dark". Where most criminals live.

The hub of illegal business. A place where I was stuck only once in my entire life. I was robbed that night. If only it wouldn't have been my father, they might have killed me. And now walking through the same lanes years later, I was scared. I was shivering like a shaking leaf. But then I took a deep breath and started walking.

"Lord, have mercy. Protect me, almighty." I kept chanting as I dragged myself into the dark lanes of the village.

This time fate had a cruel plan designed for me. I wasn't robbed or threatened to kill this time. My fate and destiny made me witness something that shouldn't have shocked me, but it did. I wasn't expecting to witness someone getting stabbed to death in front of me.

I froze when my eyes looked at a man standing with his body tied to the pole, his eyes red with all the crying and his body trembling. His pleas for freedom came out as muffled cries as he gagged. It was horrifying for me. I had only seen things like this happening in dramas. In movies. But when I saw someone held hostage in front of me, in the parking lot of God knows whom, I froze.

And like slow motion, I saw the masked man taking a step back before he stabbed the knife in the abdomen of the man tied around the pole. He kept stabbing the poor man until he wasn't alive and screamed in pain. He stabbed him until he was limp, lifeless, tied to the pole. And my trauma raised bars,

And me being the biggest dumbass, I gasped out loud. The tip of my shoes made contact with the empty juice cans placed on the edge to alert the gang about someone eavesdropping on them. The noise of the cans tattling about me made their eyes shift on me. And that was exactly the moment when the man with the mask decided to unmask him. And I took a terrified step back.

The splatter of blood on his face made him look like a bestial. Barbaric. But then again, he was barbaric when he stabbed the man with no guilt in his face. If anything, he looked impassive. Emotionless. And staring at me like he wanted to hurt me next.

"Hades...... don't..... don't come near me!" I cried out in panic when he rushed to grab my biceps. My bloody room-mate was killing people in somebody's garage with no guilt, no emotion.

Even his grip on me was painful, bruising. It was like he was a totally different person. Not someone who cooked dinner for me. He was not the person who indirectly apologized to me for gripping my collar and pleading for me to eat something. He was not the person who waited hours for me to take me home when I got late.

This Hades Black scared me enough to s**t my pants. I used to think that the man with no smile on his face and dropping threats here and there was dangerous. But now I know what dangerous and barbaric means. When I saw him for the first time with his shirt painted red in somebody's blood, I thought nothing could be scarier than that.

But how wrong was I? This was scarier than anything I had witnessed in my entire life.

"What are you doing here, Lazarus?" He asked me quietly, dragging me inside the garage. His men looked at me with no emotion. Their eyes just stared at the scene unfolding in front of them. Or maybe this was just normal for them. For their assassin boss to drag people into a small room that barely looked like an office to me.

"Leave my hand!"

"Tone your f*****g voice down!" He growled angrily, locking the door before he cornered me. No matter how tall I was to him, he managed to make me cower down. His voice was filled with venom and I flinched when he slammed his palm on the wall, behind me, caging me.

"Lower your voice when I am with my people, Lazarus. I am not just your room-mate here. And tell me, sweetheart, what in the name of hell are you doing here? I thought I made it very clear to you that I don't need your presence anywhere near my business and work."

I trembled at the voice that was so low that anyone could barely hear him, but his voice had the power to make anyone bow down in fear. And I was no different. Not even in a bit.

"No, I wasn't trying to stalk you or something, Mr. Black. The road that I usually take to walk home was blocked by a giant rock, so I had to take this way and it was so dark that I missed a lane or two and walked into the garage. I swear, I didn't do this intentionally. Don't.... don't hurt me, please." He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, as if trying to control his temper.

"Lazarus, you're a stupid kid. Don't you know this part of the town is a reserved area? And people who come here and witness s**t happening don't go back home but instead find a way to be a slave of the gang!? Do you have any bloody idea what would have happened if it wouldn't have been me but somebody else doing this job? You would have been dead by now. And if not dead, inside a dark room, waiting for your fate." He said, taking a few steps back, leaving me shivering with fear.

So, was he going to kill me now? Hold me hostage and make me his slave? The thought was enough to make me feel the chills down the spine.

"Are you going to kill me now?" I asked him fearfully and his intense eyes glared back at me, shooting me daggers enough to make me cower down. I had never been this terrified of someone in my entire life before.

"I might as well do you the honors, Lazarus, considering how you were walking to excite death tonight!" He said, making my lower lip tremble and a small tear rolled down my eyes as I looked at him, trying to find a little bit of empathy in those dark eyes of Hades Black. The assassin, Hades Black.

And as soon as his eyes saw my teary face, something in his eyes softened and he let out a tired sigh. His fingers rubbed the skin of his face as he shook his head.

"Stop crying, Lazarus. Nobody is going to harm you. Get up now. One of my men will drop you at home....." I cut him off, making his anger increase tenfold. But I was too scared to give a damn.

"No! I don't want your men anywhere near me. I'll get back home myself."

"Shut up! I am not done yet! And you are not going yourself now. My men will drop you. I don't want you accidentally stepping into somebody else's business. And let it be the last time I see you in this land, Lazarus. Next time you won't leave this garage without facing the consequences of your reckless and stupid decision. Mind my words. Do you understand?" He asked me and I gulped at his thick voice.

He looked scary.

"Yes," I muttered, and he nodded his head.

He looked at me for a solid minute, giving me sixty seconds to gather my courage before calling his men and ordering them to drop me home safely. I don't know why but the word "safely" scared me even more. Those men looked at me for a few seconds before nodding their heads.

The ride till home was silent and stressful. None of us talked, neither did they try to ask me anything. They left as soon as they saw me stepping inside the apartment. But the images of that man being stabbed to death kept flashing in front of my eyes. And that's when David's call rung on my cell-phone.

"Are you sleeping, Russell?" My friend asked me and I shook my head, forgetting how he couldn't see me.

"No, David. What is it?" I asked him tiredly and his excited voice only irked me.

"No, I just wanted to ask you if you changed your mind and wanted to Lana's party. It's going to be a wild party." David said, and my eyes flew open.

If I stayed here, I'd drive myself crazy by thinking of the man who died in front of my eyes, being stabbed to death by my room-mate. So, I simply nodded my head. But before that, I need to go to the police. I need to tell them what I saw. Living with Hades Black wasn't a safe option anymore.

"Message me the address, I'll be there in an hour." I said, getting my wallet out of the bag as I rushed out of my apartment.

I just hope I don't get killed for this.