Walking in Daylight Ch. 02

Once he was clean, Pen lay back to let the heat seep into his muscles. His eyes wandered over the bottles of painkillers that lined the side of the tub. Sometimes he needed relief sooner than recommended, which was why he needed so many types. Choosing the strongest dosage, Pen swallowed the tablets dry and hoped they would start acting quickly. He stayed, mind whirling yet unfocused, until the water started to become uncomfortably cool.

Without taking the time to dry his waist length hair, Pen quickly hurried to bed. It was surprisingly early, only about nine-thirty, but he was exhausted and needed sleep. A hot shower in the morning, might just make him feel partly normal by the time his unwanted visitor arrived. He knew he needed to make a very good impression if he wanted the agent to go away and leave him alone.

+++

Coffee is good. Pen inhaled the fragrance coming from his cup and sighed happily. French vanilla was perfect this morning. Along with the bagel and cream cheese, it made a rough morning seem better. He was sore, wincing when he moved too quickly, but that was a state he was used to. It hardly registered anymore, so long as he kept taking the painkillers every couple of hours.

He was already dressed, since he intended to run down to the corner and grab a newspaper as soon as he finished his breakfast. Not that he was particularly hungry, it was just that his stomach always felt better with something in it after it had been abused. Probably helped shore up the bruising or some such shit. He didn't really care why, only that it helped.

When the doorbell rang, Pen frowned, wondering who could be visiting, until he remembered Alex saying something about an agent with the FDPA coming by. Carefully he stood and paused in front of the hall mirror. He checked himself over to be sure there weren't any obvious signs that all was not well. The green turtleneck hid the bruises that were healing along his collarbone and on his arms. It was a bit snugger than he would have liked, but he only owned the one. His black jeans were loose and he'd left off the belt. No way could he have stood the restriction around his midsection. If he weren't going out, he would have stayed in nothing more than a robe until it was time to go to work.

The bell rang again. "I'm coming, I'm coming," he muttered. If possible, he wasn't going to open the door. His eyes looked pained and red. Not good.

"Who is it?"

"Mr. Taylor? We're with the Federal Daywalker Protection Agency. We had a report that you might need help with an abusive relationship and wanted to discuss the situation with you. You are Mr. Penlan Taylor, are you not?"

The voice sounded familiar. Another voice prompted for an answer, a woman's voice. "Yes, I'm Pen Taylor, but I'm afraid there's been a mistake. Whoever contacted you didn't know what they were talking about."

"Could you please open the door, just so we can talk? I'm Agent Carlie Simmonds and my partner is Agent Ryan Sealey."

Pen opened the door and looked at the agents. The woman didn't really register in Pen's mind. He got an impression of a tall woman with black hair and a fancy suit. Ryan, however, got his entire attention. He was just like Pen remembered, only more. The memory he carried around had faded and blurred over time, but everything was now crystal clear.

The golden brown hair was longer now than it was during their meeting at the coffee shop. It fell past Ryan's ears and curled slightly. His face was leaner, but still square and angular. Definitely a masculine face, unlike his own which always seemed too soft. The suit hid the man's build, except for showing the broad shoulders.

Only now, faced with the man, did Pen realize something. All of his boyfriends over the past four years resembled Ryan. Only the eyes differed. That was because Pen had never really looked at Ryan's eyes before, having learned as a young child never too look people in the face. They were gold. He'd never seen anyone with gold eyes before.

Pen gave himself a mental shake as he realized that if he stared any longer, Ryan and his partner would certainly notice. "Well, well, Ryan Sealey. I'm shocked that you would be involved with anything involving the protection of daywalkers. If I were in need of help for anything, I definitely wouldn't look to you to provide it. When I did need help and asked it of you, all you did was call me a lying daywalker. Go away and leave me alone."

With that, he slammed the door shut and leaned back against the wall. Oh God! Why hadn't he known? How could he not know that he had a crush on Ryan Sealey? Now that he accepted it, he knew when it happened. The day that Ryan stood up for him at the gas station and bought him the milk and bread. Everyone he became involved with after that, from his first kiss to Alex, all had traits similar to Ryan. This couldn't be happening to him!

Actually, now that he thought about it, maybe it was good that he knew. He spoke his new resolve out loud as he hurried to the bedroom to tie back his hair before going for the newspaper. "From now on, I won't even look at anyone unless they have dark hair. That must be why I'm always in this situation. It has to be."