Chapter 54
Chapter 54
Kyon genuinely regretted the absence of lush clouds of dust in Juno’s room. He could have hidden in them for a while. Given the current state of things, anyone could immediately find him under the bed.
When Juno left the room in the morning, Kyon checked out his environment and reached a grim conclusion: he could not leave the room on his own. The windows wouldn’t open, the door had a special lock. He had nothing to do but wait inside. He could hide only under the bed and in the closet. Both options were so-so, but he had no other choice.
Kyon wished he had one of those remotes that could reset time 15 hours ahead when the lousy skunk would snuffle peacefully in her pillows and not even think about waking up!
Six hours had passed. Kyon re-certified from the ghost of the mansion to the under-bed monster when suddenly Anna, armed with a feather duster, walked into the room, flashing her slender legs and other no less delicious parts in her sexy maid uniform.
«Stupid sister! Why did she have to fall ill… She is always running somewhere… Why should I do everything for her? Oh, how stupid she is… What if lady Juno finds out? I always have to cover for her.» – Anna muttered softly to herself.
Kyon’s heart went into unplanned shock. Of course, Juno’s room had to be cleaned! By superior maids, no less. The others wouldn’t be allowed in here! If only Anna noticed the slave who was considered dead, he would be dead for real! Maybe not at once, but that’s not the point.
Anna fluttered around the room, whistling softly, brushing off occasional dust. She noticed a tiny spider who had settled in the darkest corner between the ceiling and the closet and had to swallow hard before picking up the eight-legged beast and sending it into the bin with a wince of disgust. Anna opened the closet, collected the dirty things for the laundry, looked under the bed… With another discontented sigh, she swept away some cobwebs and feathers. She noticed a black hair among other sweepings – where did it come from? – and continued with her work.
Kyon had hidden on the bed in the pile of soft pillows against the wall while the maid was busy with the linen in the closet. He let out a sigh of relief — that was close. No one should notice him here. He had literally merged with the pillows, he was thinking like a pillow, he was himself a pillow.
However, Kyon hadn’t considered the fact that the pillows were not just “lying” there. They also needed an occasional pillowcase change! Anna took a pile of bed linen and approached the bed. Kyon shut his eyes tight with an if-I-don’t-see-them-they-don’t-see-me attitude. The maid took the first pillow and… The door opened, and Juno and Marina came giggling into the room together with sad and vexed Yegorka.
Kyon froze like a stone idol. Anna had just grabbed the pillow that was covering his head, and now, hidden behind the maid’s back, he was staring in horror at the merry trio. Anna couldn’t have chosen a better time to turn to the door!
«Oh, Anna! Clean the room another time, please.» – Juno waved her hand carelessly.
«Yes, my lady.» – The maid bowed, put the pillow back into its place without looking, giving Kyon a tangible knock on the nose and left, closing the door behind her.
Kyon was close to breathing his last breath because of all the tension. Staying in this mansion was like walking through a minefield. This time the mine did not explode. Was he going to stay lucky?
The three friends plopped on the bed. Kyon had the impression that Juno had been missing on some fun with her friends. That’s why she invited them all at once. (Well, only two of them, to be more precise. Not an epic party, of course, but given her terrible character, it wasn’t that bad). Marina could be considered as the little demon’s “friend,” but Yegorka was playing the role of their little fool. People like him were in any company, but it was quite unexpected to see Yegorka in this deplorable position. He was a respected and promising genius, after all. But not in Juno’s presence. He was willing to be even a clown just to be next to her.
Juno threw a pack of playing cards into the center of the bed. She smiled cheerfully, teasing Yegorka:
«You are a silly boy… Didn’t you see that the guard was just following my order to detain you? You made a complete idiot of yourself. I couldn’t believe my eyes when you took off your trousers on his orders!»
«That’s bad enough, but why did you start dancing at his request?» – Marina kept up with her friend.
Yegorka turned crimson, his head down. He slammed his hand on the bed and said with annoyance:
«So that’s who I heard giggling behind the door…»
The girls burst into laughter. Their voices were so sweet like ringing silver bells. Yegorka hid his embarrassment and began to shuffle the deck. His poor heart missed a beat every time he heard Juno’s laughter. He was willing to be a fool for the rest of his life just to see her smile.
With a sinking heart, Kyon felt Juno’s back lean on the pile of pillows. The pleasant smell of shampoo and her young body enveloped him in a soft cloud. She was close, too close. There was one pillow between him and the demoness and even less between him and death.
Kyon went deep into his role of a pillow. He had almost stopped breathing, slowing his heartbeat and literally turning into an inanimate object.
The three friends spent about an hour playing cards, laughing, fooling around and poking fun, mostly at Yegorka.
Juno pressed harder and harder on the pillows, making Kyon feel more and more uncomfortable, both morally and physically. He imagined his hands crawling out of the pillows, closing on her thin neck and clenching until Juno wheezed, fell down and never moved anymore…
Kyon was daydreaming and didn’t notice that he slowly began sliding to the side and down under Juno’s weight…
{Oh shit!}
The pile of pillows together with Kyon slipped into the gap between the bed and the wall.
Kyon landed on the floor like a cat, trying not to make a single sound. Even if he got deep into the character, he weighed a bit more than a pillow. Kyon rolled under the bed and tried to calm down his heart that was about to hang him out to dry with its loud hammering against the rib cage.
Juno picked up all the pillows with a snort of complaint and laid them out as close as possible to the previous design. However, for some reason, she felt that something was missing… {Maybe a couple of pillows have rolled under the bed?}
The game ended in Yegorka’s crushing defeat. He overreacted and scattered the whole fan of cards on the floor.
«Damn it! I lost again! Today is definitely not my day!»
Juno laughed:
«Yeah, surely the fault is in the stars and these… magnetic storms or whatever. Now pick up all the cards quickly.»
Yegorka got out of the bed with a groan to clean up the mess. The best genius of the family had to crawl on the floor like some reptile… But, it was his sweet little Juno who had asked him to…
Meanwhile, the under-bed monster was looking at the back of Yegorka’s head in fear. He was dangerously close. If only Yegorka turned his head, their eyes would certainly meet.
Marina, a kind soul, decided to help her newfound friend and dived under the bed to help him collect the cards. A glance – a spark – a storm! Kyon’s hand was already over her mouth to keep her from turning on the ultrasound. He pulled a scary face: “shut up, be quiet!” but she had already understood everything. At least, she didn’t make a fuss, she just nodded. Marina was sincerely sorry for Kyon. She didn’t enjoy the prospect of his instant murder, either. She turned around, covered him with her back and said:
«I will pick up everything myself, Yegorka. Can you give me some juice, please?»
«Ah… Sure.»
Kyon gave Marina his heart in gratitude. There was no one kinder than her in the whole world, that’s for sure. As for Yegorka, his attitude seemed perfect… to take the honorable place of “just a friend.” He could be a “wall builder” as well, creating a perfect “friend zone” around Juno and himself that he would never leave. Yegorka would have to become a king to make Juno take him seriously, and that by a long stretch of the imagination. Such is life. It would be easier for him to find a new girl and consider his mistakes.
Yegorka dusted himself off. He rose from the floor, visibly displeased, and went to take the juice from the nightstand. Juno sincerely enjoyed his sulky face. The moments when she could hurt someone gave her an indescribable thrill. Now, her face didn’t have a vicious grin but a pretty smile, and the pain she had caused was not physical but moral.
Yegorka stared at the subject of his desire and melted like ice cream in the sun. His heart fluttered, his hands trembled. He had to make an effort to pour juice into glasses, not on the nightstand. When Yegorka gave Juno a drink, she brushed him off rudely. His plan to prove himself a “gentleman” had failed. However, Juno was quite pleased with the downhearted look of the sorry-ass knight.
Soon the trio left the room.
The night replaced the day.
The door creaked softly, and Kyon could see from his perspective the same notorious slippers with bunny ears, slender bare legs and, of course, the owner of the legs, the slippers, and the room.
The young lady read a book for a while, murmuring something under her breath.
Kyon could barely keep his eyes open. Several sleepless nights had taken a toll on him. Suddenly, the piercing sound of the sound transmitter broke the silence. Judging by the wheezing in the receiver, Kyon was about to be an unintentional (or intentional?) witness to the conversation of the patriarch and his granddaughter.
After a couple of their welcome remarks, Kyon could draw some conclusions regarding their relationship. Grandfather Bai’s voice belonged to a man with a strong character and yet, it was imbibed with love, affection, and care for Juno. He was willing to give her half the world, she just had to ask. Kyon couldn’t help wondering why her grandfather was so far away, in the capital city of Boston if he was so dearly attached to her.