HOSTIS (Now On Webnovel and Coming Soon To Goodnovel and Meganovel)

Cigarette Smoke And Other Vapors

 Cigarette Smoke And Other Vapors

Open Road Side, Unknown City, Unknown State.....

    Tears streamed down the pale cheeks of a sixteen-year-old blond boy sitting alone in the brown old model four-door he'd taken off in ever since having to leave Grady's Diner following the shooting that took place after the attempted robbery. His white t-shirt was still stained with the blood from his possibly deceased lover and he was filled to the brim with absolute rage. The chill of the night had little effect on him as his mind seemed to have been focused on the chaotic events that led to his now solitary existence. In a matter of seconds, the would-be robbers ensured that he'd have to endure the loneliness he suffered for most of his life once again when Lonnie took that bullet that the bastard leader had meant for him.

Beside him on the seat, he could see the gleaming metal of the gun Lonnie had taken from one of the bastard robbers and shot them before succumbing to his injuries while they spoke in the alley. Knowing all too well that he did better getting off the street in his current condition, Lex decided to stop at another roadside motel. He knew it was the kind of place that Lonnie himself would have chosen had he been in the driver's seat.

It was quiet and out of the way, just the way the older man liked it and at the moment it was just the way Lex preferred it given all that happened the previous hours. He pulled one of Lonnie's jacket's from the backseat put it on over his blood-covered shirt and took the cash from the glove compartment. He wiped away his tears and focused on the current task at hand.

He pulled into the parking lot then made his way to the front desk and ordered a room, he didn't care where he simply needed it for the night. The clerk looked at him for a few moments before dispensing with his greeting routine despite Lex not being in the mood for it. He watched Lonnie do this time and time again and it came easy to him in that moment as he had not felt much like himself when he thought about the shooting.

"We have one room available." said the clerk attempting to make small talk. "You look a bit young to be traveling all by your lonesome."

"I'll take it," replied Lex his somber mood. "And I'm not alone, my Dad asked me to get the room ahead of time because he was running late."

The clerk looked at him for a few moments then proceeded to give him the key. Lex paid him, careful not to reveal just how much money he'd been carrying, and went to his newly acquired room for the night.

"Enjoy your stay." said the clerk after he walked away.

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Room 221, Roadside Motel, Unknown City, Unknown State...

The scent of musk and lingering cigarette smoke filled Lex's nostrils as he entered the new room unsure of what to do with himself as he shut and locked the door behind him. He waited until he'd been safely inside before dropping down onto the dark blue carpet as the tears seemed to race down his cheeks in rapid succession. He clung to Lonnie's suit jacket and caught the familiar scent of his cigarettes and cologne as he inhaled.

He missed the older man terribly and not knowing what became of him seemed to eat away at the young man a great deal. He wished to do what Lonnie said, but missing him was getting the better of obeying his command even if it had been his last.

Lonnie wanted him to go to school and return to his home.

Lex wanted the bastards who potentially killed his lover to pay.

For the first time since meeting him, Lex resisted the urge to obey Lonnie's direct orders in a bid to get a little vengeance. He decided he'd find the bastards responsible and make them pay himself.

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The Bathroom, Room 221, Roadside Motel, Unknown City, Unknown State...

Steam filled the bathroom as Alexei let the steady stream of heated water beat against his tension-riddled body. His short blond hair was soaked and dripping onto his neck as he once more found himself replaying the events of the past few hours over and over again in his mind. Each time he concluded that if he had just been brave enough he could have helped Lonnie back there and that the fatal shooting had been all his doing on account of cowardice.

Lonnie took all the risks and he was the one always fighting no matter the odds and no matter how it affected anyone else.

Lex balled his fist and beat it against the tile in the shower. His continuing cascade of tears began to mix with the heated shower water that trailed down his face as more memories of his time with Lonnie came flooding his mind in rapid succession. He missed the older man terribly. The scent of some off-brand liquor and cigarettes, the terrible temperament he had, and the heated lust behind his dark chaotic eyes that was always an indication of just where his mind would go whenever he'd been alone with Alexei.

For the first time in a long three months, Lex found himself utterly alone and he had not been too fond of the ramifications. Lonnie was the only person he had ever known since the passing of his grandparents who even bothered to look after him. His clueless youth and lack of skills didn't bother the older man in the least and he always seemed happy to teach him any and everything so long as it didn't coincide with his agendas.

He learned to drive because of Lonnie.

He learned to cook because of Lonnie.

Virtually any aspect of his life that required any measure of independence, he learned from Lonnie during the three months they'd been together.

An unyielding rage began to boil within the chest of the soaked teen and his pale blue eyes flickered with malice in the wake of his memories subsiding.

Those bastards were going to pay for what they did to Lonnie and he would be the one to ensure that they did one way or another.