The Lockdown

Panic, cold and sharp, flooded Luca’s chest. He looked at the elevator doors.

He didn't care about the money anymore. He didn't care about the art. He just needed to get out. He needed to breathe air that Sebastian hadn't paid for.

He turned and bolted.

His boots skidded on the marble. He scrambled toward the brushed steel doors, slamming his palm against the call button.

* Press. Press. Press.*

Nothing happened.

The panel above the button, usually a soft white, flashed a singular, ominous red.

* SYSTEM LOCKDOWN.*

"Open!" Luca screamed, clawing at the seam of the doors. "Open the goddamn door!"

He looked around for the emergency stairs. The door to the stairwell was across the foyer. He ran to it, grabbing the handle.

Locked. Magnetic seals.

He was trapped in a glass box in the sky.

"Luca," Sebastian’s voice came from the center of the room. He hadn't moved. He hadn't chased him. He had just tapped a button on his phone.

Luca put his back against the stairwell door, sliding down until he hit the floor. He pulled his knees to his chest, hyperventilating.

"Let me go," Luca sobbed. "Please. I don't want this. I don't want your money. I’ll sleep on the street. I don't care."

Sebastian walked over slowly. The sound of his dress shoes on the marble was rhythmic, deliberate. *Click. Click. Click.*

He stopped in front of Luca. He loomed over him, blocking out the light of the chandelier.

"Sleep on the street?" Sebastian chuckled darkly. "You panic when the thread count of the sheets is too low, *oro*. You get migraines when the lighting isn't diffused. You are a creature of comfort. My comfort."

Sebastian crouched down. He didn't reach out in anger. He reached out and brushed a tear from Luca’s cheek with his thumb. His skin was warm, dry, and terrifyingly steady.

"You tried to leave," Sebastian whispered. "That was brave. I like it when you’re brave. It makes the breaking so much sweeter."

"I hate you," Luca wept, but he leaned into the touch. He hated that too. He hated that his body recognized Sebastian as safety even when his mind knew he was the danger.

"I know," Sebastian soothed. "Hate is a passion. I can work with passion. Indifference is what I cannot abide."

Sebastian moved his hand to the back of Luca’s neck, gripping the nape. It wasn't a chokehold, but it wasn't a caress. It was a claim.

"Look at you," Sebastian murmured. "A mess. No plan. No money. No friends who aren't on my payroll. You are utterly alone, Luca. Except for me."

Luca squeezed his eyes shut. The truth of it crushed him. He had no one. If he left, he vanished. If he stayed, he disappeared.

"You need me," Sebastian said. It wasn't a question.

Luca sobbed, his resistance crumbling like wet paper. "I... I need..."

"Say it."

"I need you," Luca whispered.