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For as long as Kalim could remember, he was always being betrayed and lied to. Relatives, who claimed to love the boy, poisoned his food and hired hitmen to do away with him.
Some of these hired hitmen were more repulsive than others. Some would kidnap Kalim and took enjoyment in his suffering instead of just ending the young heir’s misery.
Even the “friendship” that he thought Jamil had with him, was nothing more than lies built upon lies. Nothing more than an illusion that his father created to help Kalim escape the harsh reality of his standing, when in reality, the servant hated his guts completely.
Kalim pushed these negative memories as far away as he could during the day because he knows he must be strong, as he had a duty to uphold.
However, during the night, he was scared. These fears manifested and tracked Kalim down, looming over his brain.
_ _ _
Kalim was tied up in a chair, unable to move his arms or legs. It was a scene that was all too familiar. Someone was walking towards him.
“Poor little heir. What’s the matter? Can’t untie the ropes yourself? Need someone else to do it for you??”
Kalim couldn’t make out the perpetrator’s face. ‘𝘚𝘵𝘢𝘺 𝘴𝘪𝘭𝘦𝘯𝘵,’ he thought to himself. It was a useful piece of advice he taught himself throughout the years of his kidnappings. Stay silent, and they may not hurt you.
Another figure came out from the shadows.
“What a pity seeing you like this. An adorable little desert flower like yourself ought not to be in such a place.”
Kalim remembers this perpetrator. Back then, this man kidnapped both him at 13 and the youngest Asim sibling at the time, who was three years old. Far too young to understand why either of them would be kidnapped.
He couldn’t get the image of his baby brother clinging onto him, crying about how scared he was, out of his head.
He hated this abductee the most out of all his kidnappers for hurting his sibling at such a young age. He wanted to scream at him about how much he hates him, but there was a problem.
His mouth wouldn’t move. Not because it was tied up, Kalim just couldn’t get himself to speak.
“I’m disappointed in you, Kalim. You’re unfit to be the heir.”
It was his father, staring at him in pity.
‘𝘕𝘰, 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘱 𝘪𝘵….𝘓𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘮𝘦 𝘢𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘦!’
More people came out of the shadows, more “people” that he recognized. Ranging from family members who have poisoned him in the past, to criminals who have left Kalim with permanent scars, both physically and mentally.
‘𝒢𝑜 𝒶𝓌𝒶𝓎, 𝑔𝑜 𝒶𝓌𝒶𝓎…’
Kalim closed his tearful eyes and turned his head away, trying his best to ignore the mocking laughter that came from the people in the room. It was just a dream, just a dream. He’ll get out of this! He’ll get out of….
“You’re speechless, I see. A fine quality in a pampered palace brat such as yourself!”
The figures that were once in the room, melted into piles of ink. He was alone with the overblot form of his former “friend”, staring at him in glee.
“Without your daddy’s money, boy, you’re nothing. Just a scared little child, needing someone else to protect him!”
’¡dn ʇnɥs ʇsnſ…dn ʇnɥS‘
The once piles of ink, became what seemed to look like ink zombies, that began running towards Kalim after Jamil’s overblot form. Right before they were all ready to make their killing blow, Kalim woke up with a shriek.
_ _ _
The young heir was panting, sweat coated his body, shaking profusely. It was a nightmare. Another nightmare.
Tears began welling in Kalim’s eyes as he covered his mouth, trying his best to hold back the loud sobs in his throat, in order to not wake anyone else up.
Unfortunately, it seems that shout that Kalim let out before had woken someone up, characterized by footsteps rushing towards his room.
“Kalim, what happened?? Is everything alright?!”
Jamil was standing by the heir’s door, completely ready to take care of the perpetrator or assassin who tried to hurt his master.
However, when the servant looked around the room, nobody else was there. It was just Kalim, who was shaking and wrapped in his blanket, using it as a shield.
“It- it was- I had-“ Kalim’s words continued to choke him, as he struggled to breathe properly.
Jamil, who had an inkling of what happened, rushed to his dorm leader’s side and sat down with him.
“Look at me, Kalim. Try to concentrate on your breathing.” Jamil inhaled slowly, using his fingers on one hand to count to four, and exhaled, counting backwards. Kalim followed his breathing, and after a few rounds, he managed to regulate his breathing and his shaking died down.
“What happened? You think you can tell me?” Jamil gently rubbed Kalim’s back, who is still letting out deep inhales and exhales. Then the servant realized that the heir didn’t need to say anything. He had all the evidence to decipher what went wrong.
“Did you have a nightmare?” That was all Kalim needed to hear to quickly nod his head and have more tears flow from his eyes.
Jamil, seeing this reaction, pulled Kalim close and gently hugged him, allowing the heir to speak his mind as he pet his hair.
“It was horrible…” Kalim sniffed. “I was tied up in a dark room and, and I saw the people who kidnapped me…they were gonna hurt me, they, they were-“
A comforting “shhh” escaped Jamil’s mouth as he rested his chin on Kalim’s head. “It’s okay. You’re okay now. Nobody is going to hurt you. I won’t hurt you.”
Jamil was always envious of Kalim’s position, his place in the social hierarchy, but seeing him so petrified and scared reminds him of when they were both little and Kalim was always so scared after a kidnapping or attempted assassination. It makes him remember that the life of an heir isn’t an easy one.
Kalim wanted to ask Jamil why he was being so kind. After all, the servant basically told him to his face that he hated him during winter break. And even if he didn’t, the hypnotizing and overblot was enough to convince the heir that their friendship wasn’t meant to be.
However, Kalim just accepted the kindness, and simply let himself be comforted by Jamil’s nurturing voice. He was always told that he had to be okay by his father, but was never told that he was going to be. That he could choose to be okay, and let himself cry.
As both the boys sat together, a thought crossed both of their heads.
‘Maybe this relationship isn’t completely destroyed.’