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Waiting at the table (alone), Kanata sat patiently. His servants were preparing dinner for him. He stared at his plate, the napkin folded perfectly underneath it just for him. Obviously it was all for him, he was a God.
The servants came in with their cart, silver platter and cloche on top of it. They picked the platter up, putting it on the table in front of the young boy. Lifting the cloche up, they all left the room silently.
And what stood in front of the boy others would think is horrific . But to Kanata, this was normal. Except this time, it was still alive .
The boy on the platter was tied up, stomach all cut up and skin burnt as if he was cooked alive. (He was.) His stomach was sliced perfectly into cubes, so if you stuck a fork into it you could easily rip chunks out. Usually, Kanata’s meal was never alive .
The boy looked at Kanata, expression pained. His face was growing paler by the second, and all he did was whimper out a “Please, don’t!” He was trembling, making eye contact with Kanata. The young god simply stared back, nothing but venom tracing in his eyes as he picked his fork up. Who did this kid think he is, telling a God no? He was supposed to obey his God, and his order was to get eaten.
Kanata stabbed his fork into the boys stomach, ripping out a chunk and putting it into his mouth. The boy screamed in pain, and Kanata felt awfully irritated. He put the piece of meat in his mouth, and simply thought It’s too chewy..
Kanata never got to see the face of the boy. It was blurry the entire time, until after he swallowed, when he looked at the boy again, he recognized him as the boy who was always at his family’s aquarium. Ms. Hakaze’s son.
His blond hair stuck to his face from sweat, his breathing heavy. He was scared, no doubt. Kanata simply reached in for another peace. It was his sacrifice, no? A gift. He was supposed to appreciate gifts, whether he liked them or not.
A knock on the door. One of the servants opened it and came in, standing at the door with what looked like a tenderizer. He approached Kanata, giving him a small smile.
“Sorry, Shinkai-Sama. It looks like he is still alive.” And with that, he lifted the mallet up. Kaoru’s eyes read nothing but pure fear, and he sucked in a quick breath of air. The servant smashed it down on the blonde’s head, making a loud crunched gushy noise.
————
Kanata woke up in a cold sweat, sitting up aggressively. His heart was out of control as he gasped for breath. Tears streamed down his cheeks, and he started sobbing. He hated this gross feeling, like his heart was being ripped into a million pieces. He felt sick.
The boy kept trembling, trying to get his breathing to steady. Nobody was there for him, Hiyori was away for a trip for Eden, and Rinne was god knows where. He felt the crushing darkness of the room consume him, and all he could think was about how lonely he was, and look of pure terror in Kaoru’s eyes as the mallet was rushed down into his head. That’s right, Kaoru!
Kanata reached over to his bedside table, grabbing his phone. He shakily opened Kaoru’s contact and pressed call. His stomach was tying into knots, and everytime he blinked he saw the horror in Kaoru’s eyes.
The phone kept ringing, until it stopped. He called again. And again. That was just a dream. Kaoru had to have been alive. Right? Finally, Kaoru picked up, and Kanata let out a sigh of relief. He was still crying silently, trying to get it to stop. He was going to be sick, no doubt.
“ Kanata-kun, what the hell? You do realize it’s 3 am, right? What’s so important for you to call 3 ti-“ And Kaoru was cut of by a choked sob and a whine. He instantly froze on the other side of the phone, pulling it away from his ear for a moment. It instantly met his ear again, though.
“ Kanata-kun?! A-Are you okay!? What’s wrong?” He questioned, worry dripping in his tone. Kanata simply sobbed again, trying to get it to stop.
“K-Kaoru.. you were.. you were…” He kept trying to tell him what happened, but everytime he thought of it he just saw it happen.
“ Take a deep breath, Kanata-kun. It’s okay. I’m here.” And Kanata started sobbing again.
“ Where are you right now? Do you want me to visit? ” He asked, and Kanata felt sick again. Kaoru shouldn’t have to worry about him. But like Kaoru said, it’s okay to be selfish sometimes.
Kanata nodded, acting like Kaoru could see through the phone. “Yes.. I-I am at my ‘dorm’ room…” He replied, and that was all Kaoru needed to hear.
“ Okay. I’m on my way. ” And with that he hung up, leaving Kanata all alone and oh god he was all alone.
The boy curled up under his blanket, shaking. The thought of the mallet crushing his head flooded his mind, and he could only think How much of this was actually real? Kanata was sick of the sacrifices he got, the sacrifices people made for his happiness. He hated it all. And then he heard it. A knock.
A knock on the door . The servant was back, he was going to present a sacrifice and-
Kanata got up and rushed to the bathroom, leaning over the toilet to throw up. The knocking continued, followed by a “Kanata-kun, it’s me! Open the door, please!”
But Kanata did not listen. The knocking continued, and Kaoru realized nobody was going to come and answer. He grabbed the door, realizing it was unlocked. Which must have meant Rinne probably left in a hurry for whatever activity he would be doing all night.
Kaoru walked in slowly, shutting the door behind him. “Kanata-kun? It’s me, where are you?” And he heard a hiccup from the bathroom, and walked there quickly. What he was met with was the saddest sight ever, though.
Kanata was a mess, cheeks red and tear stained, snot dripping down his nose. His hair was tangled and frazzled, face pale and contorted in sadness. Kaoru dropped down to the floor, reaching a hand out to the boy.
“Kanata-kun, what happe-“ And the boy was leaning over the toilet again, throwing up. Except this time, the taste of.. Kaoru got stronger. Warm iron lingered on his tongue, and he whined again. Kaoru came up to him and rubbed his back.
“Hey, hey, it’s okay. It’s okay.” He pet the boy’s back while he heaved above the toilet. But nothing came out. There was nothing left to come out, Kanata never actually ate Kaoru.
The boy turned to face Kaoru, grabbing him into a tight hug. Normally, Kaoru would have been like “ Eww! A hug from a boy! ” But this time, he knew Kanata needed it.
Kanata put his ear against Kaoru’s chest, listening to his pulse. He was alive. He was always alive. He never became a sacrifice, he was never eaten. He was here.
Kanata whimpered again, and Kaoru started to rub his back.
“What happened, Kanata-kun? You’re safe, right? Was it something at home?” And Kanata tensed at the word “home.” He hated his “home.” It certainly did not feel like a home. He wasn’t cared about there like a normal kid, he was only used for his parent’s benefit. But with Kaoru, he felt cared about. He felt home.
“You don’t have to tell me, but I worry about you, you know? I just want to make sure you are safe.” And sobs became sniffles as he nodded his head into the boy’s chest. Kaoru reached over, one hand still around Kanata, to flush the toilet.
“Kaoru, you ‘died.’” Kanata said, and Kaoru simply hummed.
“It sounds like you had a nightmare, Kanata-kun.”
“I ate you.”
And Kaoru froze at that, because what? Was cannibalism a normal thing in nightmares?
“You ate me?” And Kanata started trembling again.
“I did not ‘want’ to. You were a ‘sacrifice.’” And that broke Kaoru’s heart, because anyone could put two and two together and realize this was a nightmare about stuff that happened at home, and Kaoru just happened to be a part of it.
Kaoru rubbed Kanata’s back again, sighing. “Well, I’m still here, okay? See?” He tightened his arm around Kanata. “Nobody is going to hurt me.”
And Kanata sighed with what seemed like relief, and snuggled closer into Kaoru. He was still trembling. He still had the taste of iron in his mouth. How could Kaoru be so sure?
“Let’s get up, okay? The floor is pretty uncomfortable, right?” Kaoru said, standing up. He reached a hand out to Kanata which he grabbed, feeling the warmth of someone who was alive .
Kaoru brought Kanata over to his bed and sat down on it, pulling the boy to sit down next to him. Kanata kept holding his hand, and by the looks of it, he wasn’t letting go anytime soon.
The two sat in silence, until Kanata yawned.
“You seem pretty sleepy, huh?” Kaoru asked, facing the boy. “You should get some rest, getting sick like that uses a lot of energy~”
“Will Kaoru ‘stay’ with me?” Kanata asked, and Kaoru’s cheeks tinted pink.
“Like stay the night? I dunno Kanata-kun, I have early practice tomorrow.” And Kanata nodded, his face still pale.
“But I guess I can stay with you.” The boy added. “But where will I sleep? Who would be less mad about me sleeping in their b-“
“I thought Kaoru would ‘sleep’ with ‘me…’” Kanata said, and Kaoru hummed.
“If that is what you want, then I don’t mind. Whatever will help you calm down.”
And Kanata finally smiled, laying down on the bed. He was scared of slumber again, but with Kaoru he would be safe. Kaoru was here, after all.
Kaoru lied down next to him, and Kanata snuggled close to the blonde, listening to his heartbeat. The taste of iron slowly went away, the trembling went away. And he was safe.
Kaoru wrapped an arm around the boy, pulling him closer. “See? I’ll always be here, by your side. Nobody is going to sacrifice me, okay?” Kanata nodded, smiling into Kaoru’s chest.
“Goodnight, Kaoru.”
“Goodnight, Kanata-kun~” And the two drifted off to sleep, feeling at home.