Page 34 of The Star in Room 7

“Worse…”

“Different,” he says insistently. “What do you need from me, right now?”

“A hug,” I whisper. “Please.”

He stands, walks around the table, and hugs me, holding my head and shoulders gently against his torso as he strokes my back. I wrap my arms around him and hold on tightly.

After a while, I look up and make eye contact with him. “Can you stay tonight?”

He raises his eyebrows. “If you need me to.”

“I do. Would you…? Could you…?” I take a deep breath. “I want you to blindfold me. Please?”

Smiling, he leans down and kisses the top of my head. “Gladly.”

Nate leads me to the back of the house, where several doors are close together, all closed. He knocks gently on the first one, waits a few seconds, and then opens the door. Inside is a simple bedroom, with a bed and a dresser.

“They’re not meant for staying in long term,” Nate explains. “Just for the odd night here and there.” He takes my hand, sits on the bed, and tugs me gently so I sit beside him. “Are you sure you want me to blindfold you tonight?”

I take a deep breath. “Yes. I need to relax, Nate. Please?”

He tugs open the drawers, smiling as he finds a sleep mask. He pulls it out and waves it at me. “Useful.”

“Why is there a random sleep mask?”

“It’s a bedroom, and the curtains aren’t that thick. I imagine it gets pretty bright in here first thing in the morning. So, not random at all.”

“Makes sense.”

“Tell me what you want to happen.”

I twist my fingers together. “I want you to blindfold me and cuddle me. I want you to help me relax.”

“How do you want to be cuddled?”

“On your lap,” I blurt out. “But I’m too big for that.”

“No, you’re not.”

“I’m taller than you.”

“Barely. If that’s how you want to be cuddled, that’s how I’ll cuddle you.”

I tuck my chin against my chest. “Thank you.”

“Safewords.”

“Are they really necessary? It’s just a cuddle.”

Nate puts his hand over mine, stilling my nervous fingers. “Yes. They’re necessary. I want you to feel completely safe, Zach.”

“Can’t I just say stop?”

He purses his lips. “Perhaps, for this scene. But stop might not be appropriate for other scenes.”

“I don’t understand.”

“You don’t have to right now. Just know that people typically avoid words such as ‘stop’ and ‘no’ as safewords.”