Product of the Broken

Ch.4
His flesh smelled sickly sweet like honey suckle mixed with sharp jagged spices. Incoherent breathing met her soft touch as her fingertips brushed his nostrils they were small and childishly cute. His eyeballs rotated beneath the silkscreen cover of his eyelids, his face only baring black colored shadows of freckled hair. Lips dried and chapped he mouthed her name, and in wordless slumber he opened his eye's squinting towards the sun stricken face in front of him, squarely sharpened teeth glinted against his lips and it made him frown. He shouldn't have let this happen. He told himself softly out of habit to insure he still held a voice. Tilting his skull like a curious bird he yawned and soon felt empty air replaced with warmly crafted lips. Sternum caving in with the access of oxygen, he knew he must have tasted like fire roasted copper left to varmint in the depths of an oil drizzled puddle.
He guessed his breath meant close to nothing to her if the dawn made things this urgent. Nicolae's delicately famine belly was warm and swelled with careless afterglow, stiffing when the flat of her palm rested against his navel. Drifting towards the upper regions of his chest she could feel his heart beat beneath her fingertips fluttering away frantically as if it were a trapped sparrow drowning in an hourglass. Trying so hard"¦not to burst. She'd known he'd been awake for some time now because of how he lay stock-still unmoving for what seemed like a small eternity. Nicolae didn't want to move yet, in fear that what had happened the night before would be erased as easily as anything else validly important that had happened in his young life.
Out of the corner of his eye he could see her sitting up, the bed creaking just lightly. The mattress dipped around his frame as she leaned over his hip pressing into him and resting the side of her head against the tip of his shoulder, ignoring the sharp twang of bone against her cheek through the layers of his warm skin. She casually flinched when the sound of his voice came as smooth as porcelain from his throat faintly dusted with bright silver flecks of guilt. "Where's Mitchell?" He waited patiently for her reply but got nothing more then the groaning of the beds frame as she slid from it's barriers. Rolling over he found himself constricted by bed sheets; they molded themselves to the slack layers of his pant legs restricting his movements. Her head turned as she looked around the room for anything she may have set down earlier that night. "He's asleep in his office, he always falls asleep at a ninety degree angle because he doesn't have the common knowledgeable sense to come to his own bedroom." His forehead wrinkled "So he doesn't know you're here"¦in my room." He said as he swallowed, licking the back of his teeth having trouble remembering the last time he ever had the opportunity to talk about himself as if he owned material items. "No Mitchell doesn't know where I am right now nor did he last night."
Nicolae puckered his lips together before crawling out of bed and stretching his lean form in front of the bedrooms full-length mirror. "I'm feeling strangely good this morning despite everything that's happened in the recent events"¦" Cambria popped her head out of his bathroom. "So what do you suggest we do today?" he said smiling. Cambria however was not smiling back at him and he noticed he"˜d seen this expression on so many others before her. "When Mitch is home Nicolae it"˜s a little different around here so I have to organize a few things for him and well you understand don"˜t you?" he nodded he"˜d had this rehearsed down to the dot of perfection of the veins and nerves inside his face to form the utterly requisite expression needed, "Oh well um I guess I'll just have the morning off and walk around town"¦" He said nodding his head to himself doubting she could see the movement from where she stood in front of the sink. "I may have a roof over my head now but I still enjoy cruising town, since there"˜s seemingly nothing else to do" He said beneath his breathe, watching her exit the room without a backward glance in his divine direction, pausing just faintly and without expression her body removed itself from the doorway.
No matter how it happened it was always supposed to feel the same the emotions and sensations weren't programmed to change. But in a slightly dismaying realization he found this felt different. He liked her. He wasn't supposed to like her. He trusted her. He wasn't supposed to trust her. But she'd touched something inside of him that no one had been able to even come close to finding. He wasn't sure how she did it or if she was even aware of her actions. He'd become so comfortable around her that he'd come to expect her company. He'd come to expect a lot in the past few weeks. And part of him knew that accepting something such as all this could have mind-blowing consequences.
As Nicolae pursed his lips he licked the corner of his mouth. Pulling on the nearest thing he found which was a thinly knitted freshly pressed t-shirt and sand blasted jeans he glanced at his reflection in the mirror. Pulling the t-shirt up just slightly he examined the scrape marks she'd left from last night's escapades through the thick layers of synthetically fabricated nightmares and fabulously blissful experiences through the land of the unknown. Letting the material slip through his long fingers he touched his bare belly. All of this almighty confusion running through his brain would have to wait for now. Cambria was lost her world of her husbands self built empire, which was apparently made of three things. Money, ignorance, and inner cruelty towards those who reminded Mr. Slater of his delightful imperfections and past terrorized values in life.
Giving his lips a hint of gloss to prevent persistently annoying chafing he proceeded to pop his lips. Rolling his shoulders he took a similar path he'd watched her stroll through. And into the intoxicatingly bright sun, he nimbly made his way down through the suburban kingdom of ridiculously wealthy and into the graceful scenery in to which he'd come to know and recognize as familiar.
Millions of thick twinkling shards of blue and green glass previously cleansed in a large cast iron pot under intense heat lay scattered along the Spanish imported tiles that had been so precisely placed to form a mosaic image of distant European countryside. Naked skin laid itself tentatively against the sparkling shards, slowly easing all his weight evenly as he stood up to his full height and inhaled lightly Kimber turned towards the entryways full-length mirror. "No matter how many times I do this it always makes me feel like a freakin' virgin"¦and we all know I'm certainly anything but a virgin." he said to no one in particular. Sifting through the contents of his silk pants he found a remote and delicately with one finger pressed the play button and smiled at the gorgeous sound of Swedish pop music. Idly crunching his feet down on the broken glass shards he glanced at his wrist watch it read a digital date of "Saturday 14th". Pressing the tip of his tongue to his right canine until it stung, he brought his attention to the front door of his small condo that was located in a rural district area of the city. As the music from his living room Stereo reached a high tempo he began to count down from twenty. The doorbell rang as his voice caught the fleeting tips of the number nineteen. Kimber began to grin; Nicolae was always such a good boy about making his scheduled visits every once in a great while. He'd taught the boy many things since he met him so long ago and one of them was to always be on time.
Watching him cross the threshold Kimber quietly took in Nicolae's newest appearance. The young man was clothed in European comfort, and Kimber could only smile. Perhaps he'd finally hit the big time and found someone who could give him more then just a taxi fare back to the subway. Nicolae was subconsciously touching the side of his belly tracing something through the finely woven thread of his Gucci t-shirt. Kimber sighed placing the palm of his hand against the small of Nicolae's back and gingerly led him to the back of the condo. He couldn't remember the last time he'd been given anything Gucci.
Clucking his tongue against the roof of his mouth Nicolae turned his head as they walked down the hallway. "Reminiscing about Gucci?" Kimber nodded "You know me all to well Nicky." Nicolae's head flopped backwards in a soft whiplash fashion of annoyance. "You know I hate that awful nick name Kimber must you always use it?" He said sitting up on the kitchen counter while maneuvering his upper half to reach up and grab a glass from the cabinet behind him. "And you know"¦Nicky that I hate it when you wear your shoe's inside my house, must you always forget?" Kimber retorted as he placed himself in front of Nicolae spreading his legs and placing his hands on top of his thighs as he leaned in against him in a bored fashion before leaning down and unlacing his shoe's. "No I don't forget I just do it because it bugs you." The first shoe fell with a loud thud against the floor. "You can be such a spoiled bitch Nicolae I swear I let you get away with just about anything." Kimber said wrenching off the second shoe that managed to collide with a potted plant that was placed against the left side of the entryway to the kitchen. Kimber glanced over his shoulder to see the damage results and found it wasn't to horrible, nothing a broom couldn't cure.

Sipping tap water from the sink he was stationed near Nicolae rested the back of his skull against the cabinets, his legs dangling off the edge of the counter. Feeling Kimber wrap his arms around his body he shut his eyes. "Let's not forget you made me such a spoiled"¦" Kimber cut him off by placing a quick kiss to his lips. "So I assume you haven't been in the subway mopping around and condemning yourself to your own personal hell lately, because last time I checked self condemning young men don't wear hundred dollar cotton t-shirts"¦at least none that I've ever had the pleasure of meeting." Sniffing Kimber added "You don't normally allow anyone to spoil you quite like this." Nicolae opened his eyes now "I just finally met someone, but I'm sure you figured that out." Kimbers hands traced a path along his sides and resided once more at the top of his thighs. "So you finally listened to me and found some guy dripping in mutual funds and oversea stocks?" Nicolae began chewing on his lower lip. "Actually no Kim I found a woman dripping in her husbands mutual funds and oversea stocks, and I'm really not there for her money."
Kimber hissed softly inches away from his throat digging his fingernails into his tender flesh. He knew why Kimber was doing this, Kimber had his own personal problems with women, and in his own way he detested them. Mainly because women had done nothing for him in anyway valuable through out his entire life. He wasn't a feminist or anything he just couldn't handle getting heavily involved with them he claimed in a small sense they drove him insane. "Well didn't you get lucky, I'm happy for you Nicolae you always were such a lady killer." Kimber said groaning.
Nicolae curbed his disappointment in Kimbers lack of excitement at him being off the streets for the time being and reached out idly feeling the other man's currently bubble gum pink hair between his fingers. "Unlike Dane I know when you're lying, you always were such a horrible lair when it came to expressing your hatred for something." Kimber snorted rolling his eyes. " You're still involving yourself with that self righteous historian?" Nicolae had introduced the two of them once long ago while still in high school. To say the least the two of them did not get along nor could they stay in the same room with one another. It primarily came down to the fact that Dane profoundly disagreed with Kimbers lifestyle and beliefs as well as the way he presented himself to others. Kimber simply hated him because he didn't agree with absolutely anything he did, and he fairly enough believed Dane should be locked away in a transsexual strip club for 24 hours.
Nicolae was the one who groaned now "He's nice to me Kimber, holy crap he's not as horrible as you make him out to be." The man in front of him didn't respond for a moment and this bothered Nicolae more then it appeased him. Pushing off of him Kimber walked into the living room saying as he went "I hate when we fight"¦come on you came all the way over here we might as well watch a movie." Nicolae raised an eyebrow totally confused as he followed him out of the kitchen, rubbing the front of his thighs. "Since when can we watch movies you don't even own a television"¦you threw a tantrum two months ago and kicked it over unless you magically brought it back." Kimbers face lit up as he proudly presented to Nicolae a huge brand new entertainment center, arms thrust forth in a dramatic manner. "I'm proud to present to you my new television and stereo system as well as a large array of DVD's." Nicolae covered his mouth in mock surprise. "Courtesy of whom." He asked as he stood next to Kimber who dropped his arms allowing them to quickly become ensnared around Nicolae's waist. "All these pretty new toys are courtesy of my own newest companion"¦his name is Mitchell"¦uh Slat or something like that I met him a couple weeks ago up town in some sushi bar, he's such a sweetie in that "˜I kick corporate ass' type of way, I think you'd like him."
To Nicolae the oxygen in the room had suddenly been vacuumed out, and he stood frozen in place. He slowly turned his head from staring at the brand new T.V to look Kimber straight in the face, Kimbers happy expression slowly melted off his face and dropped onto the floor his hands painfully gripping his hips, eyes narrowing Kimber leaned in close his lips inches from Nicolae's own. "Tell me what's got your boxers in such a twist"¦and don't think I won't know if your lying Nicolae"¦I'm not the only one who can horrible at it." Nicolae swallowed hard wincing out loud as Kimber raked his nails up his backside. He never could lie to Kimber.


Nicolae slumped slightly in his sitting position against the headboard of Kimbers bed. Allowing himself to curl forward and off to the side lying on his stomach, head towards the footboard. Kimbers green eye's colored in the shade of the very broken glass he walked upon stared heavily onward towards the ringing phone. Neither man moved as if each were unwilling to answer it and ends it's shrill cries. The answering machine eventually picked up the call and Kimbers mechanically sarcastic voice filled the room explaining that if they didn't know what to do after the beep there was nothing he could help them with and he would only get back to them if he felt like it.
Nicolae expected his own raw humor would get Kimber to crack a snicker but he stood unwavering, arms crossed over his chest fingers gripping his shirt willing to pull it ever more tightly around himself. The voice that filtered through the speaker box of the answering machine was surprisingly pleasant although it was coated with a light undertone of disappointed arrogance, that both men knew well enough to recognize. "Hello Kimber"¦this is Mitch I know we had plans for this evening but it seems my office wants me to oversee a meeting in town tonight and I won't be in until later tonight"¦so I assumed we could reschedule for a more appropriate date in time and speak then. Good night Kimber." When the message was finished and the line disconnected Kimber ran his fingers through his pink hair. "You know Kim he's like that with his wife"¦don't take it personally." Nicolae said as if the football captain had just dumped Kimber for the cheerleader with boobs, he paused before rolling over onto his back and staring up at the ceiling "Speaking of which I need to get back I said I was only leaving for the morning and we've wasted well into the afternoon. She'll wonder if I've crawled back into the subway to live out my self damnation."
Kimber walked up shoving him roughly backwards so he sat staring up at him on the edge of the bed. "Let her wonder where you went"¦I feel like going out and I want you to come with me I'm stressed out beyond belief here this is to much to handle and I need to be around people." Nicolae shook his head wanting to say no and to just push past him and walk out, but he knew otherwise. "Kimber taking me out to some club isn't going to cure this problem we have to decide what were going to do, I'm not surprised at how this figures because he's such a control freak Kim you should see him, he walks around like he owns to goddamn world, it's not a wonder that he plays both fields what better way to say 'I'm king of my own proclaimed world' then to do that." Kimber rolled his eyes "As much as this is a shock to you Nicolae he isn't with me for that. I'm not sure why he's with me now if he's how you describe him with you then he's quite different alone with me he's still a corporate brat that's for sure but he isn't with me for anything in the affections department not physically anyway. But no your coming tonight I need to dance I hate it when people stand me up it's flippin' rude." Nicolae rubbed his chin between two fingers "You are capable of dancing by yourself yea know"¦besides what the hell do I tell her tomorrow because I know first hand I'll be lucky to get back there by noon tomorrow." He asked as he watched the other man go into the bathroom already preparing himself for a night of partying applying clean lines of black eyeliner to his eye's and a thin layer of lip gloss. "Tell her you were condemning yourself to damnation." Kimber said with a giggle.
Kimber perched himself at the edge of the bar, keeping a close surveillance on Nicolae who stood about six feet away dancing with a semi tall young woman who if standing next to himself would have only come to his shoulders. Now while Nicolae himself had rather enjoyable company, he himself had to agree that his was almost unbearable. Sitting on a barstool beside him was the perfect example of everything related to Americanized trailer trash. Something Nicolae and he had priced themselves on staying away from. She talked a mile a minute and laughed like a neutered donkey. She was very short, coming up no higher then his nipples with shaggy brown hair, and the faint remnants of a very ghastly upper lip-bleaching job. She wore shoe's to large for her feet and she clearly had gotten her fashion sense from some teenyboppers dumpster. Kimbers own upper lip curled up in disgust as she proceeded to go out of her way to touch his arm, while letting out another hideous chortle, seemingly at a joke he'd never even told.
Openly pulling away from her grasp Kimber took a deep swallow of his drink, scanning the dance floor he spotted Nicolae's humored gaze sending him his own agonized expression. Forming his right hand into the shape of a small handgun Kimber motioned with it towards his own head as if to say, "This is why people commit suicide." Nicolae sent him a silently mouthed "Sorry." Before turning away. Kimber glanced down at the girl he was beginning to want to murder. She hadn't shut up at all his lack of attention had don't nothing to halt her in the least. He knew just from her appearances she was no older then perhaps 15yrs. How she made it inside with some bogus ID he didn't know. She was just some stupid little girl with no hopes or dreams in the least, and if she did all they consisted of was drugs, drinking, and seeing whatever asshole she was here to cheat on. Frankly he pitied whoever it was she was claiming to be seeing. When she flashed him a very yellowed smile he visibly cringed wondering how many would care if he just bashed her skull in with a brick. Not seconds later Kimber declared he was through experiencing this tramps tragic existence and proceeded to pour what was left of his vodka cranberry mix onto the girls thrift store white top. She screeched so loud at the sudden actions, Kimber could swear his eardrums were bleeding Setting the glass on the bars counter top with tender care he exited the area, all the while smiling at the tramps shattering wails and angry curses.
The problem with Kimber was he was so painfully hard to say no to. The words could be searing away the layers of skim on your lips and somehow he'd convince you to bend to his will and just go along for the ride. Nicolae knew most people hated Kimber for his charming flamingly open need for control in certain situations. But Nicolae himself cared little. As the knight carried on they'd long since returned to Kimbers condo, neither making comments on the television as they passed it, one heading straight for the bathroom and the other flopping down on the bed. Reaching for the phone as he lay on his belly at the very edge of the bed, on the brink of sliding off. Nicolae whined sharply as Kimber walked up slapping his palm, being none to sweet about it either. "You touch that damn phone Nicolae and call that spoiled woman. You're going to get such a beating." Nicolae kept his outstretched arm frozen in place. "Wouldn't be the firs time." He retorted Kimber licked his lips leaning down to chomp his teeth sternly with a loud snapping sound, barring his teeth inches from Nicolas face. "Don't be such a smart ass Nic you know very well what I'm talking about."



Kimbers soft threats normally remained hollow when things concerned Nicolae but every now and then when he was ultimately serious he'd carry out the words carefully chosen. Nicolae had not forgotten the last time he'd done something after Kimber told him not to He'd walked around for a good two days with a lightly bruised area along his throat where Kimber had bitten him. Looking like the most embarrassing hicky to anyone who didn't know them, which meant primarily everyone. He knew he was in trouble with Cambria already for disappearing all damn day and night, the last thing he wanted was to have to explain to her as to how and why he had bite marks all over him.
An hour later Nicolae found himself lying on the floor of the living room. His head placed against Kimbers expose d belly, which was always flat and taut, seemingly never able to expand no matter how much food he consumed. Fingering Nicolae's black locks as he pretended to be interested in the movie they were watching on the television. Which was apparently about four teens dumping a body into the harbor and then setting their car on fire for some insane reason. Kimber didn't even remember the plot to the movie. "Do you remember Nicolae"¦what we did on my 15th birthday and the present you got me?" Nicolae tilted his head to the side allowing Kimber to feel his teeth as he spoke against his flesh. "Yeah, I gave you the first Zippo lighter I ever stole even though I don't smoke and neither do you I knew you'd love it anyway." Kimbers teeth appeared blue as the glow of the T.V. reflected off them as he smiled at the memory of it. "And remember how nervous I was"¦" There was a slight pause in Nicolae's breathing. "We we're both nervous Kim. Besides I don't think either of us know many other teenage boys who burned houses as a way to express inner salvation on their birthday I think you're the only so far"¦that I've met anyway." Blinking Nicolae twisted his lower body around to get comfortable. "Inner salvation wrapped up in a birthday bow, that house stunk so bad, even worse when it was burning." Kimber stated softly almost unheard over the drone of the T.V. Scrunching his nose up Kimber went on "It was all those freaking dolls she had littered around I always hated those shitty things she spent every dime we had on them, I was glad to see them burn. My mother was such a drugged up freak show, she took so much from me before I even really had anything to give. I'm surprised I didn't do it sooner"¦but I know Nic I couldn't have done it without you with me"¦without someone who understood why."

Silently Nicolae leaned up kissing his mouth and settling his head down just underneath the bottom of Kimbers throat. "She made really good cookies though for being such a drugged up sadistic freak show." Kimber looked down at Nicolae who strained to look him in the face "Yea they were all right, when they weren't laced in sleeping pills and crack." Kimber said as he remembered how many times his mother had baked cookies or pies out of the blue and put on that Jude Cleaver smile promising him rainbows and kittens. He'd never willingly fallen for her deceptions, her lies rotting away in the form of baked goods and pitchers of iced tea.
Both had been fairly tall for just turning 15yrs old around the same time as one another a month or so apart in age. Kimber always hated his birthday because it was in the dead of winter and everyone knew the kid with the birthday in winter always had the worst parties. Kimber didn't have anyone but Nicolae at the time anyway and he liked it that way just fine. Nicolae had come to him in the middle of the night the morning before. Crawling threw Kimbers bedroom window, his hair falling in his eyes and momentarily blocking out the black and blue blotches scattering the area around one of his eyes. A previously hideous black eye healing as best it could. His lower lip split on the side where he had nearly bitten through it. Kimber hated seeing Nicolae like this but there was little either of them could do about his father. Nicolae's father was a force neither of them knew how to reckon with.
Kimbers mother however, was a different matter entirely. Kimber had finally reached a breaking pointing without even really knowing it himself. Until Nicolae crawled through his window that night and slipped into his hands a small cold piece of metal. Staring down stupidly for a moment it had all suddenly become crystal clear. He hadn't really known what he'd been going to do until about the moment they walked up the street to his house from running around town all day hiding from kids at school. His mother hadn't been home she'd been out doing lord knows what probably trying to envision some creative way to kill her child without anyone catching on because paint thinner in his morning cereal clearly wasn't working. You'd think she'd just tell him to go away or put him up for adoption anything would be better then having to live day in and day out with her psychotically twisted bullshit. Kimber had had the mother who on the outside appeared to be the worlds most tidy soccer mom when in fact Kimber played no sports and they didn't even own a car let alone a space ship mini van. But people like Nicolae and Kimber knew better. Behind that Jude Cleaver smile was a woman who'd lost her marbles at some point in her early twenties and blamed Kimber for all her past sins and preached to him constantly that his virginity would save him from the depths of hell. Kimber had always looked right at her and said "But mom I'm already in hell." So there they were standing beside his garage door both breathing hard from running for two blocks until their lungs burned and ankles felt weak. They'd crept inside despite no one being home and stood in front of Kimbers mother's china cabinet everything she treasured more then Kimber himself lay inside of it. Opening the little doors, Kimber had reached inside and picked up two pieces of an overly expensive Russian tea set and in a fit of rage that had been slowly simmering all day he flung it against the wall and watched it shatter all over the rugs on the floor. Staring at the rest of the contents as Nicolae left his side for a moment going into Kimbers bedroom and collecting anything and everything that he could that meant anything to Kimber at all which wasn't much since he hadn't been allowed very much in the first place.
The couch had been the first thing to go. Its plastic seat covering melting away at the right armrest where a burning dolls head had been flung. He took his time ripping his mother's precious dolls apart. Lighting the hair and clothed midsections on fire with his 15th birthday gift. With both arms he shoved everything off the fireplace mantle watching it scatter across the hardwood flooring. Taking the fire poker in his hands as the curtains caught fire, wasting away in no time flat, he broke all nine windows in the living room. It wasn't long before the smoke was becoming overpowering and Nicolae was begging him to hurry and come outside, but he stood for a moment staring at a picture on the wall. Eye's transfixed he scanned the framed photo of his mother and he when they first moved into the house when he was only five years old. Kimber took the fire poker and wielded it like a baseball bat. Striking it and shattering the pictures glass and frame, scrapping it clean off the wall, leaving behind in it's wake a long jagged line coursing it's way down the walls surface.

With one more insistent tug on his arm, Nicolae had him out the back porch door and into the backyard that had nothing but a forgotten garden hose laying on it's lawn, gnarled and paled by the months left out in summer heat. Both coughing and feeling sick top their stomachs with spent worry and nervousness; Kimber allowed Nicolae to hug him, hold him to his body and cradle him. It was only now becoming difficult to do such a thing because Kimber had been getting taller then Nicolae in the past months. There would be a time when it would become impossible. But tonight was not that time and so Kimber allowed Nicolae to hold him. Because no other person had ever cared to touch him and treat him like the most important piece of flesh on the earth. So Kimber held onto him in return as if he were the last ray of hope he'd ever see again, he felt if let go of the other boy he'd never be able to survive another day. His house began to crumble apart behind them and become completely engulfed in flames, the orange glow of the fire flickering against each boys pale complexion. Tears streaming down his face Kimber said almost too softly to be heard "Happy birthday to me." Kimber had never looked back after that night and no one was going to write out his fate or tell him his destiny based on their own illogical problems ever again.