Free Birthday Burglar by K.A. Merikan Page B

apartment was small, so he had to be quiet. Through the
small gap Jamie left, he could hear Neil moving about in the
corridor. He was muttering something beneath his breath, and
Jamie's pulse quickened when he saw his partner’s form reflected in
a large mirror on the other side of the room. He felt like a real
predator waiting to jump his prey and smiled at the thought.
    It took a few
more minutes, but Neil finally walked into the bedroom taking off
his shirt. As soon as he dropped it on the bed, he bent down to
pick up some socks off the floor. “Oh for fucks’ sake, Jamie,” he
muttered with a long sigh.
    Jamie felt a
pang of guilt at the disorder he'd left but he wouldn't let that
stop him! Slowly, he crept out of the wardrobe, rope ready in his
hand, and took a few more seconds admiring Neil’s pale skin and
slender body. The blinds cast a stripy shadow on Neil’s back as he
kneeled on the carpeted floor, gathering the scattered clothes with
obvious annoyance. His spine flexed sensuously, as he reached to
his far side, for another garment.
    Jamie took a
deep breath and slouched to grab Neil’s arms and pull him up.
Neil’s face shot up. Their eyes met in the square mirror on the
wall behind their bed. He drew in a frightened breath and made a
move to turn toward Jamie, who stopped him, grabbing his arms in a
vice-like grip. He managed to grasp both of Neil’s wrists with one
hand and instantly put the other on his mouth. His boyfriend's
moves became frantic as he struggled to get free. He screamed into
Jamie’s hand before attempting to bite him. That distracted Jamie
long enough for Neil to deliver a strong kick to his knee.
    Jamie let out a
muffled cry through the balaclava and stumbled backward, trying to
keep his balance while still clinging onto Neil.
    “Help!” Neil
screamed, attempting to punch his face. Jamie managed to block his
hand, but then Neil’s knee delivered a blow to the inner side of
his thigh, dangerously close to his groin, and things got a bit too
real for Jamie.
    “God! No! It’s
me!” he screamed in panic. He didn't want that knee any closer to
his balls!
    Neil blinked,
and it took a whole five seconds for the information to sink
in.
    “What the
fuck... Jamie!” he finally hissed, pushing him away. His face
tensed in a mix of shock and anger. “Are you nuts?”
    “No! I...
uhm... I wanted to surprise you,” Jamie uttered, rubbing his knee.
Neil yanked the balaclava off his head and sent it straight into
the wall.
    “How could you
do this? What’s wrong with you?” he screamed and took two steps
back, his body tense, as if still ready to put up a fight against
the attacker who turned out to be his boyfriend.
    “Birthday
burglar?” said Jamie in a weak voice, spreading his arms to the
sides. It wasn’t exactly the reaction he had been hoping for.
    Neil's face
slacked, and he groaned, holding his head as if he were afraid it
would fall off. “Birthday burglar...” He trailed off in a flat
voice. “Jesus, Jamie.”
    “But you like
that sort of stuff!” Jamie felt the need to defend his idea. “I
wanted to be spontaneous.”
    Neil shook his
head, effectively shutting him up with a scowl of disappointment.
His shoulders slouched as he placed his hands on his hips. “That
wasn’t spontaneous! It was plain scary!”
    “Oh, now I’m
the bad guy.” Jamie folded his arms across his chest, shooting his
partner a disheartened look. He tried so hard to make this day
special and exciting, and all he got in return were complaints. “I
even bought a turtleneck to be more realistic.”
    Neil looked at
him as if he had just declared his love for Cradle of Filth, and
then suddenly let out a loud laugh, covering his face with both
hands.
    “Is that
funny?” Jamie mewled. “You wouldn’t be laughing if your head felt
as hot as mine.” He would always remember not to wear a balaclava
in the middle of summer again. Even if just for role-plays.
    Neil looked up
at him, the bottom