Unexpected love

With a stealth born of practice, Ten entered the house quietly. It occurred to him that he had not been quite so skilled that morning, but he could attribute that to the awkwardness of finding himself in the bed of a strange man.
Despite his near-silent entry, and the lack of people in the foyer, Ten got no further than the stairs before his father bellowed his name from the study. Grimacing, because he'd gotten caught and because having his father's attention was never a good thing, Ten turned from the stairs and walked the marbled hallway that led to his father's private domain.
No one was allowed in the study, a room marked by tall windows, a large oak desk, and walls lined with bookshelves, without the express permission of the head of the house; that included the family, the daily servants, and weekly cleaning personnel.
"Ten Chittaphon Leechaiyapornkul, where have you been?" his father barked out the moment Ten appeared in the doorway.
Ten bowed his head and shrugged. His father would most likely not like the truth, and he had learned long ago that he lacked the skill to lie. Better to say nothing, and hope that he received only a scolding for holding back.
"Ah, come along, Tennie" his sister crowed. Ten raised his head enough to glance at the corner. His younger sister, Tern, was sprawled in one of the high-backed chairs, her pretty face twisted into a mocking pout. "Don't hold out on us, dear brother."
"Stay out of this, Tern" their father ordered, his tone more gentle than the one that he had used with Ten, but still commanding. "Ten" his father said, his voice hardening as he turned his attention back to his son. "I expected you back last night. You said that you were only dropping your friends off. I ended up having to make excuses to the mayor for your absence."
If anything, the expression on Ten's face tightened. His father hated making excuses for anything, himself included, and for him to have to extert himself on Ten's behalf would most likely have negative consequences for Ten. Added to that the fact that he had proven himself unreliable in his father's eyes, and he started to wish that he'd just stayed at Johnny's.
That was the only bright spot to his day, and the momentary happiness he'd found that morning was beginning to seem very frail and bittersweet.
"You will call the mayor this afternoon and apologize, Ten. And then you will invite his daughter out for the spring picnic. You're not worthy of her, but both of her brothers are busy, and she mentioned needing an escort. You will volunteer yourself to be in service to her."
It was business as usual, it seemed. He was grateful to get off so lightly, compared to the punishments he'd endured in the past. He nodded and murmured his agreement, which was both unnecessary to and unheard by his father. A quick glance at his sister showed that, though still smirking, even she'd moved on to more important things.
Ten quit the study quickly, making his way to the stairs and then up them. He was almost at the sanctuary of his room when he saw his door open and two of his cousins leave. The three of them stopped on the landing and stared at each other, and then the cousins giggled and passed him as they went on their way, leaving his door wide open.
He stepped into the room; it was hard to tell how long they'd been in there, but it had to have been more than a few minutes. His books were strewn in front of his bookcase and on his bed, and his memorabilia box, so entitled because it held loose photos and old notes, was tipped over, spilling its contents onto his desk.
After a moment, during which he fought the initial surge of anger, he stepped into his room, shutting the door gently behind him. It was with a sigh and a heavy feeling in his chest that he set his room to rights, quickly putting everything back in its proper place. He wasn't worried about his cousins finding anything important. So far, up until the night before, he'd done nothing outside of what was expected of him. He'd tried for so long to be the son that his father wanted; there was nothing in his room that spoke of anything more than another rich man's child. No hate poetry, no confessions of scandals. His life had always been incredibly boring.
It ocurred to him suddenly that he could no longer say that. Things had definitely changed in the last twenty-four hours. He turned and glanced at the full-lenght mirror that hung on on his closet door.
Dark brown eyes stared back at him, set into a too-pale face framed with plain black hair. He was nothing remarkable to look at; his cousins and sister had inherited their parent's good looks, including the lovely hazel eyes, brown hair, and well-shaped figures. His own body, though of a reasonable height, was neither lean, nor athletic, skinny nor heavy. "Just plain," he whispered, turning away from his reflection.
That fact had been honed into him for years, along with the knowledge that his sister and all four of his cousins were smarter than he, more popular than he, and more outgoing, wonderful, sweet, charming, etc... The whole thing made him sick at times, but he'd never spoken out agianst it.
He wondered suddenly if Johnny would have made him the offer if he'd had a chance to meet his cousins first? "As if there's even a comparison," he muttered.
Another sigh, a glance of self-hatred at the mirror, and he picked his backpack up and headed back out the door. Even if his weekend had taken a surprising turn, he still had normal events to deal with. He needed to get back on track, to regain his balance. It was his only protection when facing his family.
He had hoped (for the second time that day, rather foolishly) to leave without getting caught up in the daily drama that invaded his father's estate, but Jay, his oldest cousin, was waiting for him in the foyer, leaning insolently against the wall with a smirk.
"Baby!" Jay exclaimed, using one of his many nicknames for Ten. Ten ignored him and headed straight for the door. Jay stepped in front of it, blocking his way. "So, little cousin, where were you last night?Your father was all worried that you had run off with some cast-away street girl, but I told him not to worry. Even the lowest dredges of society wouldn't be tempted by the likes of you."
Ten ignored the outright slam, choosing instead to change course. There were any number of doors leading out of the house; he simply had to find another one. He didn't account for Jay following him, or for his cousin to lean over his shoulder to hold the door to the veranda shut when Ten tried to open it.
"Don't be so cruel,little cousin, as to deny me a reply. I'm wounded, Ten. You're normally so biddable, but today you're being downright closed-mouth about the whole thing. Is she truly worth such discretion?" Ten stiffened, and Jay made a thoughtful sound. "So you -were- with a girl, huh? I didn't know you had it in you, Tennie."
"I got conned into going to the party, and I crashed there," Ten said, hoping that the lie he tacked onto the truth would appease his cousin. A mocking laugh sounded in his ear, and he knew that Jay wouldn't accept that.
"Nice try, Ten-boy. Why don't you try another lie? You've already given yourself away. Why don't you just tell me who she is? I'd love to meet the girl who's willing to bed you." Feeling nauseous, Ten held his tongue, hoping that his silence would make Jay leave him alone. It was another futile attempt, another trick that never seemed to work. "Don't be that way, baby. Tell old Jay what she's like? Does she squirm for you? Call your name when you make her-"
Ten slammed his elbow into Jay's gut, finally silencing the hateful things he was saying. His cousin grunted, and then fell to the ground, holding his stomach. Ten leaned down, his bag slipping from his shoulder to fall on the ground, and let his own anger out in a heated glare. "You have no right to make assumptions like that about anyone. You don't know -him-, and you sure as hell know nothing about me. I spent last night with a -man-, Jay. And do you know why? Because for the first time in my life, someone -wanted- my company."
He bit off, realizing that he may have gone a bit far. His cousin was staring up at him with wide eyes, their depths revealing confusion and the barest hint of fear.
Ten ran a hand through his hair and sighed softly, his anger draining as quickly as it had boiled to the surface. "I'm sorry," he said quietly. "I didn't mean to hurt yo-"

A punch at his jaw knocked him backwards, and their roles were reversed, his cousin standing over him while Ten cowered in fear. In a physical contest, there was no chance for him to everpower Jay, and they both knew it.
"You sniveling pain in the ass. You wait until I tell your father about this. You'll be disinherited for sure, you little punk."

"Whatever," Ten said, wiping at his mouth. The back of his hand came away bloody, but he ignored it. "Like he'll truly do anything? As long as I don't sully the family name, he doesn't care what I do. None of you do. You want to know why I stayed out last night? Because I figured that none of you would notice I was gone. I'd forgotten about the mayor coming, but even then...the only reason the mayor probably noticed I was gone was because he wanted make a dig at father. The two have never been friends; they're only waiting to one-up each other."

"Lovely little sob-story, Ten" Jay said snidely, uncaring. "And out of pity and 'brotherly love', I'll even give you five minutes to get your sorry ass to your car before I tell your father."
He stalked away, leaving Ten to pull himself up, retrieve his bag from where it'd fallen, and get outside. It was three minutes before he pulled out of the driveway, and another six before he pulled over on the side of the road and cried.

Notes