I've been getting a lot of views and a few alerts, but only 1 person has reviewed. It would mean a lot if you could leave a few words about what you think. (=

Mike's body went rigid. His blue eyes searched Harvey's face for any sign of emotion that would reveal his intentions, but the other man's face was blank. Mike made a small sound that seemed like it may have been the beginning of a word but it died in his throat. He did not have the courage to stand up to the man standing in front of him. He was stronger, tougher, older. He had obviously seen things that Mike, who spent most of his adult life getting high, had not.

Harvey was betraying no emotion purposely. He wanted to frighten Mike at that very moment. It was similar to a child throwing pop-its near a dog's paws. He did not intend to hurt, only to tease and laugh at the reaction. Mike was still standing there, trembling with fear apparent in his eyes.

"Turn around," Harvey repeated in the same tone.

Mike made another tiny, almost unnoticeable noise before he began to slowly and awkwardly turn around as best as he could with his feet bound together. All he could think was, 'This is it. Rape, murder. Right now.' More tears were coming out of his eyes, and he didn't even make the smallest effort to try and stop them.

He felt a warm hand in the middle of his back and started forward, throwing himself slightly off balance before regaining his center of gravity. He was about to start begging not to be harmed when he felt the pressure of the hand on his back removed and the ties on his hands being released. It confused him for a moment, and even though they were untied they lingered behind his back for a few extra seconds before bringing them to his front and rubbing his aching wrists. After a moment he froze, suddenly being hit with reality. Harvey was still behind him, about to do who-knows-what.

Mike would have liked the say he uttered the word 'please' at that moment, but when he tried it came out sounding like a jumble of barley audible noise. Harvey tilted his head slightly and exhaled air through his nose to make a sound that meant, 'What the hell?' Mike heard it but it did not register as anything important in his mind. He was too busy standing stock-still, wondering what was about to transpire.

Suddenly he felt two hands on his shoulders and they wheeled him around violently. Due to the fact that his legs were tied together and he was not expecting it, he immediately fell. Halfway to the ground he was caught under the armpits by Harvey. They made eye contact for a full second, Mike's eyes full of fear and confusion and Harvey's filled with what could only be described as gentle humor. Suddenly the younger man broke the gaze and began to struggle for his life. He shook his body and pushed Harvey's arms off of him with his own now unbound hands, and fell the remainder of the way to the dark hardwood floor with a loud thud. Panting, Mike stopped. The small battle had given him confidence, though he had scarcely accomplished anything. He stared up at Harvey with rebellion and determination in his eyes, as well as a growing sense of hatred for the man.

"Mike," Harvey said in a voice that one would use to coax a child into giving his friend's toy back. The look in his captive's eyes was surprising. He had not thought Mike would gain any confidence in himself, but obviously the small struggle had brought it out. He hoped that it wouldn't end up being a problem, as he didn't want to harm Mike in any way, even though he knew he had already done so slightly by putting the gag on so tight. There was still dry blood caked on the corners of his mouth.

Mike did not respond to Harvey. Instead he simply stared at the older man with as much ferocity as he could muster, but of course it wan't effective. Harvey had a nonchalant expression and it would not break. They looked into each other's eyes for at least 5 minutes, and neither of their expressions changed until Mike finally gave up. He turned his head to the side so his cheek was flat against the floor and glared daggers at the legs to the bed he was now staring at.

Harvey, satisfied that he had won the battle, looked down at Mike with his hands in his pockets. "I untied you so I didn't have to hand feed you like a child, you should be grateful. And what did I say about hurting yourself?" His tone was hard and slightly scolding. He wanted Mike to understand that he didn't want to completely baby him, and that he also would not tolerate him hurting himself.

Mike was still, his jaw set firmly. Does he really expect me to thank him? He had changed in that moment, going from a scared kid to a fighting and kicking rebel, but it was slowly draining away. Being stared down by Harvey and forced to look away had lowered the confidence that he had gained until it was almost nonexistent once more. Suddenly his mind went back to what Harvey had said. 'So I didn't have to hand feed you like a child.' He became aware of the hunger in his stomach. He had not eaten since the day before, but had forgotten about it due to his thirst and the fact that he was distracted by his situation. Suddenly he was craving pizza, or fast food, or anything to put in his stomach, as well as something more to drink as the one water bottle had not fully quenched his thirst.

Harvey looked over Mike once with his chocolate brown eyes before he knelt down near his feet and began to untie the leg binds. Mike flinched slightly when Harvey touched him but was unmoving other than that. Of course with his hands unbound Mike could have untied the ropes himself, but Harvey felt more power when he did it personally.

"Now go back in your crate," Harvey ordered, raising his eyebrows slightly as he did so.

Mike's stomach did a revolting flip. The all to familiar feeling of being disgusted with himself returned like a bullet. The words 'your crate' had especially left their mark. He lay still on the ground for a few more moments before standing up and walking over to the black wired crate without looking at Harvey and then ducking into it, sitting down cross legged parallel with the door. Harvey came over and closed it, putting on the pad lock and then walking out of the room, snapping the door shut behind him.

Mike sat in the crate for around 20 minutes. He couldn't hear any noises coming from outside of the bedroom and his imagination went wild, scarring him into oblivion. The chance that he may have been getting torture weapons prepared was definitely the one that stuck out in Mike's mind. He was getting hungrier with every minute that passed, and wondered if Harvey was going to watch him starve to death for entertainment. He shuddered. That had to be one of the worst ways to go. He could imagine waking up everyday with agonizing pain in his stomach, his rib cage slowly becoming more and more prominent...

Harvey walked into the room carrying two plates in his hands and set them down on the dresser that was on the same wall as the door. Mike had tensed as soon as the door was opened but when the smell of the food wafted in his stomach gave another low growl. Harvey once again returned, carrying a glass of brandy and a bottle of water. He set both down on the same dresser before unlocking the crate. Mike watched him out of the corner of his eye from his Indian Style position.

After opening the door Harvey grabbed the plate and handed it to Mike along with the water bottle before closing it once again.

It was pan fried seasoned pink salmon covered in lime juice. The side was asparagus with a squeeze of lemon and a sprinkle of salty cheese. Damn, Mike though as he picked up the fork and put a piece of the fish in his mouth, he can cook.

Harvey had sat on the corner of his bed to eat. He hadn't had salmon in quite awhile and had decided it was appropriate to make some. And, turns out, it was amazing, like everything else he cooked, which he usually did every night. It was a simple pleasure, being able to eat good food by yourself, but sharing it with Mike was much better, he decided. Harvey watched as Mike chugged two-thirds of the water bottle at once and took a sip of his own high class brandy.

He watched Mike eat for several more minutes before saying casually, "I'm not gay, you know."

Mike, who had been deliberately staring at his plate so he did not meet Harvey's eyes, froze. He furrowed his eyebrows just the slightest, holding his fork still. Why would he say that? Is he trying to say he won't rape me? Mike shuddered slightly at the thought, though it went unnoticed by the other party.

Harvey watched the amber liquid in his cup swirl around before he downed the rest of it quickly, releasing a small satisfied 'ahh.'

"And?" Mike said with as much malice as he could muster, still staring at his empty plate. It was the first word he had said to Harvey, who raised his eyebrows and smirked in a sort of way that sarcastically meant, 'Oh, so that's how it is?'

"And so you don't have to worry about me raping you. Or," he added with a slight nod of his head to the right, "killing you, for that matter."

Mike finally looked up from his plate to meet Harvey's eyes fiercely. The confidence he was feeling earlier was starting to come back now that his stomach was full of food. "So then what do you want me for? To be your personal slave?"

Harvey chuckled lightly, and it made Mike want to punch him in the face. "No, it's... more like your my dog."

Mike was appalled by this statement, and his stomach churned with self-resentment. So I'm supposed to be a dog, he thought bitterly. He felt very queasy, like he was about to throw up the food he had just eaten. After a few moments of silence Harvey stood up and once again unlocked the crate. He took Mike's empty plate as well as his own and brought them into the kitchen after locking up the crate yet again. He placed them in the sink, deciding he could do dishes later and then walked back into the room.

"I guess you have to shower, now that I think about it," he said, thinking. He went over to his dresser while Mike glared at a wall. Harvey was holding a casual T-shirt and a pair of sweatpants as well as boxers. "They'll be a little big, but that's fine," he said, walking over to the crate and unlocking it for the last time that night, saying as he did so, "There's a toothbrush in the bathroom you can use, and toothpaste."

When Mike came out of the crate grudgingly Harvey guided him with a hand firmly on his shoulder to the guest bathroom, which Mike walked into and slammed the door, locking it behind him. He got an overwhelming feeling to cry, but he knew Harvey was standing right outside the door and did not want to show anymore weakness than he already had. Instead he got undressed and set the clothes he would be changing into on the counter, and washed himself in the shower. He took over an hour, savoring every moment he was allowed to have the simple freedom, though he still felt very uncomfortable. After he had gotten dressed and brushed his teeth he searched all the cabinets in the bathroom for a razor, but he could not find one. He knew he had no chance of overpowering Harvey unless he had some kind of weapon, so he gave up on the thought of trying to fight. Plus, he was tired.

Mike emerged from the bathroom to find Harvey waiting for him in grey sweatpants and a blue T-shirt and was once again guided back to the bedroom with a firm hand on his shoulder. He crawled into the tight, uncomfortable space without a word. When it was locked he laid down facing the wall with his back to Harvey. He covered himself with the fuzzy blanket to block the AC out and make himself more comfortable. He also set his head down on the pillow.

Unknowing to Mike, using the sleeping things he had provided was a victory to Harvey, who then turned out the lights and went to sleep himself.