The last day at the resort was gloomy and gray, foreshadowing the similar grayness awaiting them in Moscow. It felt oppressive and disheartening for some reason. However, by the midday session, Daniel had regained his upbeat mood. Things became fun, easy, and relaxed again. Sensing the change, Sonya also lightened up, joking around, encouraging them to race each other, and laughing so loudly that others turned to look at them. Tengiz, unable to conceal his growing unease, practically shadowed them, going down and up together and eavesdropping on their conversations.

"Listen, who is he?" Sonya asked as they rode up the rope tow elevator.

"A bodyguard," Daniel answered reluctantly, looking back at glum Tengiz, who was talking on the phone.

"Does he think I'm going to hurt you?" Sonya burst out laughing.

"No, of course not. He's just overly suspicious. I'm tired of it," Daniel turned away from her and suggested with a mischievous grin, "Why don't we ditch him? Right now."

"Let's do it," Sonya whispered conspiratorially, even though no one else could hear them. "We'll get off at the next post, turn around, race down again, and at the bottom, we'll head into the woods. I'll signal when."

"Done," Daniel adjusted his grip on the poles so he could easily switch them between hands, eagerly eyeing the approaching marker. It was a bit childish, perhaps, but he wanted to enjoy the remaining hours without being watched.

"Let's go!" Sonya ordered sharply, letting go of the rope tow. Daniel followed suit, slipped his hands through the pole straps, and pushed off forcefully, catching up with swift Sonya. Tengiz, caught off guard and still fumbling with his phone, dropped the poles. Realizing they had a head start, Daniel let out a hearty laugh. It was a mix of slight embarrassment, as Tengiz was just doing his job, and an overwhelming sense of freedom. Sonya's laughter echoed as she sped down the slope, and the sound, carried by the wind, stirred his excitement.

Daniel propelled himself with his poles, trying to catch up to her, focusing solely on her agile white figure swaying ahead. His breath grew heated and rapid, the wind whistled in his ears, and he felt undeniably happy in that moment, regardless of anything else. At the bottom, Sonya, ensuring she wasn't cutting anyone off, turned left towards the forest. Daniel, mimicking her maneuver, almost lost his balance but managed to regain it and followed her into a pristine ravine. There he plowed into a large snowdrift, like a scene from a cartoon.

He awkwardly struggled to free himself from the snow, spitting out the icy flakes. Sonya returned, checking if he was ok, and then burst into such hearty, infectious laughter that Daniel couldn't help but join in.

"If the arms and legs are moving, it means nothing's broken, even the skis are intact," she said, laughing. "Why are you just lying there? Your bodyguard must have followed us."

"One moment," Daniel tossed aside his poles and looked up at the sky, where a soft blue peeked through the gray clouds, promising more fun to come. Taking a deep breath, savoring the wonderful moment, he gave Sonya a playful look and asked, "My back still hurts, I can't get up by myself. Can you give me a hand, please?"

Trusting Sonya planted her poles in the snow, leaned in to help him, and yelped when he playfully pulled her towards him. Despite her slim frame, she landed with a thud, knocking the wind out of her. Indignant, she quickly pulled up his mask, tugged balaclava down, and pressed a handful of snow into his face.

"There you go!"

Daniel spat out the snow, shook his head, and broke into an uncontrollable laugh, only to freeze when Sonya, looking serious without her mask and with her balaclava pulled up, leaned in slowly with her lips slightly parted. Daniel hesitated, shaking his head faintly as if to say 'no, don't,' but she persisted, closing her eyes and kissing him. Her delicate lips, flavored with cherry balm, kissed softly and tentatively, not like the dominant, dictating kisses he was used to from Alexander, but rather a gentle invitation to reciprocate. Succumbing to their allure, Daniel responded just as softly and tentatively, feeling the incredible purity of that kiss. It was reminiscent of his first schoolyard kiss: sincere, innocent, and thrilling beyond measure.

Somewhere nearby, people were shouting and screaming, the sound of skis rustling on the snow and expletives after falls filled the air, and the rope tow elevator hummed. Yet, in that ravine, it was quiet and peaceful, like a small, safe haven. Suddenly, a rustling sound broke the tranquility, followed by a loud crunch that startled them. Pulling away from her lips, Daniel turned at the noise and was shocked to see Tengiz, Maxim, and Alexander standing at the edge of the ravine, staring at them.

"What's going on?" Sonya, blushing and dreamy-eyed, turned to see. "Daniel, is there a problem?"

"Let's go," Daniel murmured. "We need to leave."

As Sonya tried to pass, Alexander gave her a dismissive shake of his head, but when Daniel, who had been standing behind her, tried to move, he was met with a punch to the jaw. Sonya let out a sharp cry, rushing toward Daniel and struggling against Tengiz, who had grabbed her.

"What are you doing?!"

"Teaching my unfaithful lover a lesson," Alexander snarled. "Get out of here! Tengiz."

Tengiz, without a word, pushed Sonya, who was swaying in shock as she looked at Daniel. Daniel lowered his eyes, silently accepting everything and wiping the blood from his split lip with a gloved hand. Sonya, her lips trembling, let out a sob, turned around, and skied away.

"You son of a bitch!" Alexander hissed venomously, shaking Daniel, who looked at Sonya with deep ache. "So that's why you turned me down! Did you fancy the girl?"

Daniel remained silent as he bid farewell to Sonya, who seemed to think he had been played her. The thought of having involved her in this mess left him feeling sick and disgusted. Daniel looked directly and wearily into Alexander's piercing green eyes and stated flatly.

"I liked her. I've always been attracted to women and never was attracted to men. You wanted honesty, so here it is - I can't stand you!"

Alexander flinched, paling visibly, his uneven tan making his face appear even more distorted with pain, as if Daniel had struck him physically instead of verbally. Daniel, relishing the discomfort he'd caused, continued.

"I hate it when you kiss me, touch me, and fuck me! I hate that you're playing this relationship game when you're really just blackmailing me! Well, go ahead, hit me again! You're in control, you can do whatever you want! You can hurt me, you can send me back to prison, but you can't change how I feel about you!"

"Shut up! If you keep talking, I won't be able to control myself!" Alexander clenched his fist and struck Daniel in the chest, causing him to fall back and break his ski, silencing him. Daniel covered his eyes resignedly, bracing himself for what was to come. Strangely, it was harder to think about Sonya, who had been hurt by this turn of events, than to contemplate the impending consequences. Alexander growled, "Get up, you scum!"

After a brief hesitation, Daniel sat up, released his ski bindings with trembling fingers, and stood. Alexander pushed him toward the chairlift station and followed, instructing Tengiz.

"Take him down there!"

Tengiz riding alongside him, said in a resigned tone.

"I warned you not to get involved. Now I'm going to be blamed for not watching you. Why would you take such a risk?"

"You just don't get it, do you?" Daniel said, tasting the blood from his split lip and trudging with a defeated air towards the platform. Tengiz was right, but he was tired of hearing about right and wrong from these righteous people. He hadn't done anything immoral; he'd just tried to snatch a few normal days for himself. They descended in silence and arrived back at their cottage just as quietly, where a rattling noise could be heard. Tengiz grasped Daniel's shoulder, hesitantly suggesting.

"Maybe we should wait a bit? He's really furious right now."

"He'll still be angry later," Daniel shrugged, but didn't move: his self-preservation instinct, stifled by what had happened, still urged him to wait out the storm.

After what felt like an eternity, enraged Alexander burst onto the porch himself, seizing Daniel by the collar of his jacket and dragging him behind him. The collar pressed against his throat, choking him, the broken furniture casting a belated fear, and the sight of a bloody hand made him recoil inwardly. He was about to be killed, broken just like the skis had been - rendered worthless. Initially allowing himself to be dragged, Daniel suddenly sprang up, kicked Alexander in the knee, yanked the zipper of his jacket, freeing himself from its restraint, and leapt back to his feet.

"Do you think I am going to fight you?" Alexander sneered, his icy rage unnerving. "To square off with you, you piece of shit, as if you're a real opponent? You're nothing but scum! No, Daniel, I won't fight you or talk to you like a human being. You hate me, you say? Fine, I get it. Your hatred won't stop me from having my way with you. Come here," Alexander unbuttoned his ski pants with jerky movements, pulled them down to his knees, and sat on the couch, patting his thigh. "Serve your Master."

"I won't," Daniel blurted out; the attempt to humiliate him was too blatant. Alexander had never once asked for a blowjob, though he was willing to suck Daniel's cock. The dynamic had drastically changed today, marking a new phase in their faux relationship.

"You will," Alexander promised, almost affectionately, pulling a phone from the pocket of his fallen pants. "Or I'll order you to be taken back to jail immediately, and oops, they'll find more drugs on you. You'll get the maximum sentence, and I won't get you out again. I'm going to count to ten: one... two..."

Daniel winced with each tension-filled count, locking eyes with Alexander's deceptively warm angry green eyes. He moved forward on the count of nine. Alexander hummed in satisfaction, shifting down and parting his legs, constrained by his pants. Slowly, Daniel descended to his knees, mentally preparing himself to escape reality, seeking refuge in distant, safer tropics, in an old dry crevice - a sanctuary he'd been unable to reach due to an odd emotional barrier. As he approached the limp, musky head with his chapped lips, he realized that this might actually make it easier.

He moved in sync with the rhythmic motions, following a familiar path, shrinking to become almost invisible to the menacing presence, slipping into a hidden crevice to hide. The world divided once more: one half on his knees, subservient, while the other half disconnected from it all. The burning and stinging of his lips, the urge to gag from the motion against the hard head, momentarily combined to pull his attention back to a single reality. Yet, Daniel pushed himself to remain detached, not feel as one, not allowing himself to suffocate with self-contempt.

A salty stream hit his throat, making him choke and cough. Daniel pulled back, automatically spitting on the floor and coughing. Alexander, who was breathing heavily, stood up jerkily, kneeing him painfully on the shoulder, and threw him down gutturally.

"This was a mediocre blowjob. Work on your skills."

Daniel wiped the mixture of saliva, blood, and semen from his hand and stood up on shaky legs, the lingering adrenaline causing a slight tremble. He felt nauseous, the sour taste of semen combined with the metallic taste of blood in his mouth. His swollen, split lips throbbed with pain, but he felt no regret. For a brief moment amid his extended prison sentence, Sonya had appeared - bright, pure, tender - and it had been worth it. These two days would help him endure to the end; anything was preferable to continuing with Alexander's sickening love charade. He decided to erase the last episode with her, her writhing in sobs, from his memory.

They planned to depart before dinner, but Alexander was patient enough to wait for his friends to bid them farewell. At first, his friends were upset, insisting they stay and leave together as planned. However, their tone changed when they saw Daniel's bruised face. Georgy smirked, barely concealing his satisfaction, and gave Alexander a firm hug goodbye. Daniel remained silent, not even offering a farewell. They weren't his friends; they were the aggressor's allies, and he owed them nothing. Alexander became angry, lashing out at Daniel.

"Where are your manners? What do you have to say?"

"Goodbye," Daniel said absentmindedly to everyone and offered a broken smile to Alexander. "Is that enough for you, Master?"

A mix of fury and pain flashed in Alexander's eyes. Breathing heavily, he struggled to control his emotions and, swearing under his breath, headed to the car. The entire group looked at Daniel with evident disapproval, but he didn't care. His terms were clear, similar to his arrangement with Sennoy, but with a small allowance for his own choices. Daniel and Alexander didn't speak again until they reached Moscow, and instead of Tengiz, Maxim came to the apartment to pick up Daniel.

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Dear readers, we reached the equator - half the book is posted. Thank you so much for all your love, support, and encouragement during the last 3 months. 

Love you all. 

 Gem