((Please note that this is just for background on Searan's character and the shop for the player's only. None of the characters unless cleared by lil will know this story unless they are told by Searan.))
May, 1998: The first meeting.
Searan had been on his own since he was 10 years old, and started working in a gentlemen-only club when he was only 15 years old and never once questioned whether his life would ever get better. The owner was kind enough to take him off the streets and give him a job that paid enough to let him stay in a nice apartment and buy clothes from time to time. However, it wasn't enough just working as a waiter and when he started to grow, his pocketbook and closet couldn't keep up. Within a matter of four months he grew from a pint-sized pretty boy to a nearly six foot tall young man that looked a lot older than he was. He asked his boss if there was any way he could become a host and he got his way...unfortunately, the young Searan was not fully aware of what a host's job really was until he was face to face with it.
"You want me to what?" Searan's voice cracked as he stood up abruptly, spilling a drink off the side of his table. He was panicked and flustered, praying that he did not hear the customer correctly. He can't be asking me for that, it's illegal!! I thought being a host just meant having dinner with these old geezers, not letting them touch you and do those things!! He had to bite his tongue to prevent him from snapping further; Searan really needed the money and could not afford to be fired from his position.
"I have a hotel room and I'm taking you with me. You will be paid, so if that's what you're whining about then no need for it anymore. Plus I already gave you the Rolex, you should be spreading your legs so fast right now that I shouldn't have to wait at all!" The 40-something year old man just chuckled as he puffed on his cigar, blowing little rings into Searan's face and making suggestive motions that made the boy's stomach knot in fear and disgust.
"B-but...that's prostitution and that's ille--"
"Don't you dare talk back to me, boy! Now you go tell your boss that you're leaving and you get your pretty little a** back here so we can leave, you hear me?" The man was an intimidating six-foot-seven and he was heavy set with muscles, or so Searan assumed was under his nice business suit, and the boy wasn't about to stand up any further. Instead he complied and grudgingly left to gather his things and tell his boss he was leaving. However, he was too embarased to say the reason for his early departure. It's alright, it can't be that bad, can it??
The night ended with Searan being given a drug that heightened his senses during the older man's torture. It made the pain ten times worse, the air ten times colder, and his body twenty times hotter. By the time the two had gotten to the 'main course', Searan's first dose had long since worn off and left him completely immobile, but still sensitive to pain. No matter how hard he cried or how loud he screamed, the man never stopped devouring Searan until he was completely satiated. He was rudely woken up the next morning by being thrown out of bed.
"You brat! You bled all over the bed, what I was going to pay you doesn't nearly cover the damage to this hotel room! Get out of here before I call to complain and get you fired, or maybe even arrested." Searan couldn't even walk but he somehow managed to hobble back into his clothes and out to the elevator. He knew that he was probably bruised and battered looking, and didn't mind the stares that he received from the other guests, he just wanted to get back to his apartment as soon as possible. Unfortunately, it was still dark out and extremely cold which left him rather disoriented. s**t, I'm lost... Well, maybe I can find my way back to the club and then go from there..?
Still running low on food and blood, Searan made it to the brightly lit street that housed all the gay bars and bathhouses in town. He almost made it to his work place when he suddenly felt the urge to vomit. It was so sudden that he hardly had time to turn his head into an alley, and he really wasn't ready for the dry heaves that came instead. His knees buckled and his tears started to fall once more as the rest of his body fell to the ground. He vaguely heard the pattering of feet behind him, and the gentle touches on his arms only hurt the tender bruises that were already turning various shades of purple. All he remembered was the high pitched screams of one of his co-workers and the loud bellows of a stranger telling him to hold on.
The next evening...
Searan opened his eyes slowly with a groan, his eyelashes stuck together by a layer of muck that built up after all that crying. His mouth tasted bitter and sour, but the overall pain was gone. He figured he was in a hospital given the sterile smell of disinfectant and the blindingly white room, but he didn't know how he got there. He groaned some more as he tried to sit up to get a better look of the room, but he was immediately pressed down by a large hand. "Uhh? Mm, wh-who..you?" His eyes squinted as he tried to focus, wondering briefly if he had lost his memory until he saw his co-worker rush to his side with a scolding voice...but it was the deeper voice that took over.
"What the hell were you doing last night, young man? You realize that what you did was dangerous and you could have even been killed?? Did you care to use protection at all? You could be infected with a million diseases right now and you wouldn't even know! You were really stupid, boy..." Searan's co-worker turned his scolding to the stranger and moved on to petting the boy's hair. He wasn't able to call this short man a friend, but he was very motherly towards Searan and was highly against letting the boy become a host. Which turns out that the other young man was correct.
"Sorry, Searan, Stefan is really protective. He's a police officer if ya really wanna know~" "Kiki", his co-worker, always had to flirt on and off the job no matter who he was with, it was just one of his quirks.
Searan tried to grumble out a few words but his mouth was too dry for anything more than gasps. Stefan was kind enough to pop an ice cube into the boy's mouth and once it was gone, he was able to speak a little bit more. "So what if he's a cop? He still took you out and did nasty things to you, right? I mean...I guess...no...damnit!" Searan started to cry again and both Stefan and Kiki hovered over him to try and soothe him, but it only made him want to cry even more. "Why WHY didn't I listen to you when you said hosting was bad?! I didn't--it hurt so bad, he wouldn't stop! I said no so many times but he just kept hurting me! I didn't even get what he promised..." The rest of his words could not be understood through his sobbing.
"It will be alright, Searan..." Stefan's voice is really deep...he smells nice, too. "I can't formally arrest that man without bringing you into this, but I can tell my men to look into what sleazy deals he may have made in his business. I'm sure he's a crooked man that we can trap without a problem. Heh, but no worries, even if he isn't, I'll let the boys back at the station know to give him some hell for making a beauty cry." The man winked, pet Searan, and laughed. Even his laugh is nice, maybe he is a nice guy.
"You should rest up, and don't worry about the staff here. This is a private facility and the doctor's one of my close friends and he's a part of the gay community, too, so you won't be ridiculed at all." Stefan gave Searan a final pat and a light kiss on the forehead before heading for the door with a wave, "I'll be back tomorrow after work to check up on you, be good, Searan!"
Over the next few days Searan was told to stay in bed and Stefan and the doctor kept him entertained. The boy wasn't one to stay in bed all day, but he was promised a day of fun when he was released if he followed the doctor's orders. It was a very enticing offer and it was not like Searan was bored; Stefan visited every day after his work was over and stayed all day on his days off. The two learned a lot about each other when it came to current events, but Searan really wanted to know more about his older friend.
"So how old are you really, Stefan?" Searan sat up with an inquisitive face, leaning in close to Stefan to make sure the man felt obligated to answer.
"I'm an old man." Stefan took a sip of coffee and sat back, crossing his legs. "You don't need to know more than that and I don't feel like tellin' ya."
"So that means you're 60-something, huh~?"
"I'm not that old, I'm only 40! Er... Searan burst out in laughter as Stefan smacked a hand on his forehead, shaking in disbelief. "You'd be a good interrogator, Searan. Anyway, how old are you, 20-Questions?"
"I'm 17, but don't let my boss know, I kinda fibbed when I first applied and it's not like I look 17 or anything..." Stefan gave an irritated, fatherly look but just huffed in response that let Searan know the man wouldn't say anything. "Thank you, thank you, Stefan! I'd hug you but you're too far away." He smiled largely, "So you're 40, I'm 17... That makes you old enough to be my dad, that's kind of a lot."
"I see that you're a budding math wiz, eh? Yes, I do have a son about your age but I haven't seen him since he was a few months old. My ex-wife refused to let me see him after I came out of the closet, said something about wanting a real man to be a role model for him or something." Stefan rubbed the back of his head and turned to look out the window, causing Searan's chest to tighten.
Searan managed to maneuver his legs off the bed and hobble over to Stefan, wrapping his arms around the man. "That's horrible! I'm sorry but...mm.." He held his tongue but Stefan patted him on the arm to encourage him to continue. "You're a really nice guy, I would have loved to have you for a father. She's just being stupid and closed minded, but mostly stupid. You would make a great father!" Searan mouthed off a few more less than kind words but eventually hushed when Stefan never responded.
There was a long pause that made Searan itch, but eventually the man spoke up. "I'd like to meet the man who raised you and then kill him, letting you out on your own like that..." He scoffed and stood up, turning around so fast that Searan almost fell flat. "You're too young to be living alone and you obviously haven't had any sort of adult influence on you for a long time. How can anyone do that to their child??" He reached out and tenderly placed his hands on Searan's cheeks. "You're too young to be doing such adult things."
"I was the one who chose to leave... My mom and dad were fine, I don't know why I left but I did." Searan shrugged and moved back to the bed, crawling in with the help of Stefan. "Mom made my lunch every day, dad played catch with me when he got back from work, everything was fine. They got along well and never fought, they just fell on some rough times financially when mom was pregnant. Mm I guess I left because I didn't want to be a burden to them?" He shrugged it off and patted the empty spot next to him for Stefan.
The man gingerly sat on the edge of the bed, obviously thinking of what to say and coming up short. "I...well, a child should never feel like they are a burden to your parents. You should probably talk to them and work things out, they're probably worried sick about you! I know I'd be worried if my ex ever called me to say my son was missing." He cleared his throat and turned to Searan with an extremely serious look. "Now, I can find your family for you if you want, and I won't tell them the details unless you want me to."
Searan shook his head frantically, "NO! I refuse to be a burden for them! Plus, aside from that I like my job. I still want to be a host, I'll just have to be more careful with my customers. I mean...it's not..like..." He trailed off when he looked up to find Stefan glaring at him and shaking his head, his jaw clenching so hard that it shook. "It pays a lot and I really need the money, Stefan! You can't expect me to turn it down just because of one incident!"
"You can't be serious, Searan! You're just a boy! You had something so horrible happen to you but you're still going to be a host?! You must be joking..." Searan shook his head and Stefan stood up with a flurry, grabbing his coat and heading for the door. "Well if you are going to choose to be a victim, then I refuse to help you anymore. You know this will just happen again and again until you put a stop to it." Stefan paused at the door for a moment to turn around and face a shocked looking Searan, "I hope learning your lesson doesn't take you to an early grave, Searan." With that he hurriedly put on his coat and walked out the door, not turning again to see Searan's tears already starting to flood the room.
