He started the shower to get the water warm and stripped quickly. Maybe he could set his alarm on his phone and make sure he was awake to get Jensen his tea? It had happened accidentally the first morning, but he enjoyed doing something even if it wasn’t much. He got into the shower and stared at the cubby in shock. There was a shower gel that hadn’t been there this morning, and more importantly it was one of the ones Jensen had bought that Dash had liked.
But he hadn’t been hinting. He thought Jensen would like it. He reached over and clicked the cap up and poured some on his hand. Jensen wouldn’t have put it in here unless he meant to use it, would he? He smoothed some on his skin and closed his eyes tight. He had played with himself before, but now his secret fantasy had a face, and as Dash smoothed his hand lower toward his groin, he groaned. It—
Dash’s thoughts were cut off as all the lights went out. He froze, not even daring to breathe as inky darkness descended like a shroud. The water still pelted out, but Dash never felt it. His heart seemed to jump and beat against his ribs like it was trying to escape. He couldn’t take a breath, couldn’t speak, couldn’t scream. Fear clutched at him with icy fingers, and his knees gave way. He sank to the floor and curled up, his head bent into his knees and his arms over them.
And curled into the tightest ball he could.
Eight
“Damn,” Jensen muttered as the lights went out and pulled out his phone to use as a flashlight. He looked out of the window. Looked like the whole block was off. He hoped Dash had gotten out of the shower—
Dash.
Who was petrified of the dark. Jensen leapt to the stairs and heard the shower at the same time. He barreled through Dash’s room just as all the lights came back on, but he didn’t stop as he ran right into the bathroom. He yanked back the shower curtain, and the sight nearly stopped his heart. Dash was curled up into the tightest ball he could manage. The water was still pelting down, and Jensen turned it off, quickly grabbing two huge towels.
“Dash, sweetheart, it’s Jensen. Let’s get you out of there.”
Dash seemed like he couldn’t hear him, and he never looked up once. After a minute coaxing and physically moving Dash’s arms and legs, he managed to get the boy out of the shower. He wrapped him up and carried him to the bed, sitting down and dragging the comforter over them both. He didn’t care if it got wet. “Sweetheart? Dash, can you hear me?” Dash seemed still frozen, barely breathing, locked in some imagined terror, and Jensen seriously considered calling 911 or even the doctor from the hospital, except that would involve going to get the card, and absolutely nothing would make him leave Dash right at that moment.
Jensen grabbed the teddy bear and hugged Dash tight and talked. Told him all about the holidays with his sister and aunt. Even told him how they’d always been allowed to open one present on Christmas Eve when they stayed at Mimi’s, but how their parents didn’t believe in gifts because they said they were giving their children the world. Jensen nearly smiled at that. Told Dash how many times Jensen had wanted to tell his parents where they could stick the world, and how much he had been grateful to his aunt. As an adult he knew his race for financial security and his need for control was because he couldn’t rely on it as a child.
“Steven always said the only way of curing me of being afraid of something was to face it head-on.”
Jensen wasn’t sure he believed in a higher power, but when he heard Dash’s whisper, he sent a thank-you heavenward. “Steven?”
“My father. He never wanted me to call him dad, and I’m glad.”
Jensen wasn’t sure what the right response was to that, so he kept silent and just held him.
“I’ll never forget the day he turned up at Gran’s. I’d seen photographs, but he seemed a lot bigger than his pictures.”
“Hadn’t you met before?”
Dash shook his head. “He arrived one Saturday out of the blue just as Gran was closing the store. I used to have a special corner upstairs in the storeroom with a chair and books. I’d bring my toys and some