Of Mice and Men Ch. 04

"Carey, Carey!" Ethan shouted in his face. Carey opened his large eyes and stared up with fear. When he realized it was Ethan, he began sobbing. He buried his head in Ethan's chest and wrapped his arms around his wide shoulders. "I'm sorry, okay? I'm sorry," Ethan apologized. Carey sniffed as Ethan pet his ears down against his head gently, trying to soothe the poor man.

"I want to go home," Carey sobbed.

"Okay, come on. I'll take you home," Ethan soothed. He felt terrible. Carey had started making progress for the first time in a long time and he had ruined it. Now the man was a wreck and was clinging to Ethan like a child who had gotten lost in the store. Ethan led him through the streets, keeping his head pressed into his chest. Carey refused to look up, no matter what. Ethan hailed a cab, even though he knew he couldn't really afford one. Carey was done, he wanted to be home now. As they shut the door to the cab, Carey finally began to calm down. His loud, rough sobs slowed to a constant sniffling and gasping.

When the cab stopped, Ethan quickly grabbed his wallet and dug out enough cash to pay the driver. He grabbed Carey around the waist and pulled him into the building. Carey clung to him, burying his head in his shoulder. Ethan ignored the mildly angry and confused look from Trish, nearly carrying Carey to the elevator. The elevator ride was awkward. As the only sound in the machine was Carey's soft sobbing. Ethan rubbed his back, trying to comfort him to no avail. The elevator doors opened and Ethan pulled Carey to his door, and fished the keys out of his pocket. He unlocked the door for him and locked it, making sure he did every lock to make Carey more comfortable. Ethan turned to face Carey in the darkness of the apartment, and was surprised that he wasn't there. He searched through the black room quickly, and found no sign of the man.

"Carey? Carey, where did you go?" He jogged towards the bedroom and found the door closed. He reached for the door knob and realized it was locked. He remembered the dozens of locks across the door and sighed, putting his head against the door. "Carey?" he sighed again. "Carey, I'm sorry." When there was no reply, not even a sob, he gave up. He set Carey's keys down on the coffee table, and took a seat on the couch. He stretched his legs out and fell asleep.

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Ethan was a heavy sleeper. A tornado could have hit and he still would have been snoring loud enough to wake the dead. But for some reason, the soft sound of a lock clicking woke him up. He looked over to the bedroom door and saw it hadn't opened, but it had been unlocked. He tossed his legs over the couch and let his eyes blink the sleep away. He stood up, and stretched. He walked quietly over to the door and paused, before giving it a soft knock.

"Carey?" he called out softly, there was still no response. He opened the door and saw that the room was even darker than the rest of the apartment. He stepped inside and shut the door, heading for the closet first. He opened the closet door and found the small space empty. He checked the bathroom, shower, and even the cupboard under the sink. Maybe he had dreamt it all. He was about to leave, when he heard a soft sound. He didn't really know what it was, and it probably wouldn't have caught his attention if the entire apartment hadn't been absolutely silent. He got down on his knees, and looked under the bed. Two shining black eyes peered at him from underneath the bed. He thought for a moment how most people would be scared or unnerved by the beady black eyes, but he wasn't. Ethan found that they showed more emotion than plain ol' human eyes. "I'm sorry I left you alone, Carey. I was just freaked out, okay?" Ethan said. Carey remained silent, only staring at Ethan. Ethan frowned. It was as if Carey had actually turned into a full mouse. His eyes showed nothing but fear. Ethan sighed, before lying down, and rolling under the bed. He stayed there for a moment, lying with Carey in silence. Carey lay there, staring at the room out from under the bed. His head sat at an uncomfortable angle on the hard floor.

"How about we get on top of the bed, you'll be more comfortable there," Ethan said gently. Carey didn't look at him, but stared down at the floor.

"Okay," he responded, his voice a bit stronger than what Ethan expected. He crawled out from under the bed easily, leaving Ethan with a bit more trouble. Once Ethan finally wiggled out from under the bed, he saw Carey was already curled up and was watching him with his black eyes. He smiled and crawled into bed with Carey, who rested his head on Ethan's chest. Ethan stroked his ears lovingly as they laid in the dark.

"Are you okay?" Ethan asked.

"I thought I was getting better," Carey said, sadly.

"You are, but you can't expect to be magically cured after one group session," Ethan said. "Things like this take time, Carey. You just have to give yourself a chance." Carey scoffed.

"What, like how you gave yourself a chance today?" he snapped. Ethan was surprised at the hostility in the man's voice.

"I-I'm sorry about that. You're right, I was being stupid and childish," Ethan admitted. "I just... I'm so sorry," Ethan apologized again. "I don't like talking to people about personal stuff," he mumbled. Carey stared at him for a long time. "What?" Ethan asked, after Carey had remained silent for nearly a minute.

"Nothing. I'm tired. Will you stay with me tonight?" Carey asked.

"Of course. Whatever you want," Ethan said. Carey had already crawled under the covers, but Ethan took the chance to kick his shoes off before he joined him. Carey ignored any personal bubbles Ethan might have had, and snuggled close to him. He was pressed tight up against Ethan's body, and listened closely to the sound of his heart beat.

"Ethan?" Carey asked quietly.

"Yeah?" he answered, already falling asleep. He knew it was very early. Their appointment had been at five and the drive back was only a half hour. But they were both so tired.

"If you won't talk to a shrink, will you talk to me?" Carey said.

"You're a shrink too, Carey," Ethan pointed out.

"I'm different," Carey whispered. Ethan opened his eyes and stared at the man falling asleep in his arms. Carey hadn't opened his eyes while they spoke, but now he did, sensing Ethan watching him. His whiskers twitched on his face, Ethan thought they were cute.

"Oh yeah?" he asked. Carey nodded.

"You don't have to be scared of me," Carey promised. The words seemed funny, coming from the delicate man's mouth.

"Yeah. I'll talk to you," Ethan caved in. "But not now, okay? I'm tired."

"Okay," Carey whispered, and shut his eyes again. Ethan smiled as he pulled Carey closer. He knew they weren't together, but holding Carey, he couldn't help but want to be.

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TBC...