“Don’t be sorry, if you want to walk out here all night, I’ll stay with you.”
The train stopped and Fen woke up to the cool glass against his face, heaviness of sleep-deprived eyes, and throbbing pain in his temples.
It took him a moment to remember where he was going, but when he did, he wished he hadn't woken up at all. If he stayed asleep forever, he’d be in a good memory instead of on an empty train staring at a dark reflection and running from a goddamn vampire.
Before the train doors closed, Fen slipped out onto the platform and ran through the empty tunnels towards the stairs that would guide him from the underground.
With every fast step, his eyes shifted in a different direction and the panic rose when he wasn’t sure if his anxiety was poisoning his mind or if Gabriel was closing in on him. He expected to be grabbed by shadows or dragged into the darkness. With every movement, he imagined how it would feel to have those claws tear across his back or how much worse the pain in his neck would be if Gabriel ripped it out.
The tunnels felt longer, an endless maze threatening to bury him alive, and he wished he’d pass someone, see another living soul that would confirm he wasn’t trapped. But there was no one.
When he turned a corner, he found the gate but whether that was something to be relieved about was unknown because if he stepped above ground he could be attacked or killed. Gabriel was close, he felt it in the humming of his heart, the pain in his neck, and the dread that filled him.
Let me find Vic, just give me that.
He prayed, but to whom was a mystery. God or Gabriel, whoever held his life in the tighter grip.
Fen ran up the stairs, exiting the world below and into the night that was heavy with the smell of rain. He panted, looking at the subway sign and reading his whereabouts.
Downtown, 32nd and Harper.
He woke up at the worse time, Vic’s apartment was still several blocks away, and there was no telling where Gabriel was lurking, but when a noise broke from the nearest alley, he took off up the street.
The smell of smoke, the flickering of streetlights, the distant cars, and sirens crying against the darkness. He made sure to focus on everything but the alleys that called his name, the shadows that moved at the corner of his eye or the noises that might’ve been something more dangerous than a trick of the dark.
He ran past a few people: a group of kids laughing, a homeless man digging through the trash, a few figures on the corner he didn’t recognize. Living souls who helped him confirm everything was happening and stopping wasn’t an option, not even when the neon lights and the buildings all started to look the same as he tried pulling his thoughts out of the tar to focus on where he was.
When he slowed down, an unseen force overcame him, a sudden increase of pressure against his body that made him cry out and take off around the corner.
He collided with someone who shoved him back so hard he nearly fell over, but after a few steps, he caught himself and looked straight ahead.
“Watch where the fuck you’re going!" A man said, looking Fen up and down with an irritated leer while his friend seemed to be watching him a little too closely.
Fen inhaled, almost overwhelmed with relief when he saw it wasn’t Gabriel, but that relief was short-lived when the friend’s eyes perked and he spoke.
“Hey! He’s the one Tony was looking for! The whore Kellen sleeps with!” He said, which prompted the guy to reach forward and grab Fen by the coat, the other helping as he struggled with them both frantically.
“Let go! You don’t…fucking understand! Let go!” He was shouting meaningless words because what he wanted to tell them couldn’t be believed nor would it matter. Gabriel would find him for sure if he lost to them, but they were fighting with him, arguing which who should call Tony unaware that the man was lying dead in that hotel.
In their struggle, Fen heard footsteps, heavy and powerful, coming toward them and he panicked when one of the men was tackled to the ground. And when the other guy loosened his grip, Fen tore away from him and ran. He knew Gabriel was behind him and was too afraid to look back. The vampire was here and if Fen didn’t hurry he would—
“Fen!”
That voice stopped him in his sprint.
He turned quickly, emotions flooded his eyes until he felt like crying when he saw Vic standing at the corner. The two men disappearing into the night after they got to their feet and after they were gone, Fen ran to Vic and collided into him in a heavy embrace.
Relief. Safety. Comfort. They all fell over him like rain, washing away all the thoughts of Gabriel and death, wiping the smell of blood clean from his body with the scent of smoke and spearmint. He inhaled it all, but several pathetic sobs escaped him as he exhaled, which only brought Vic’s arms tighter around him.
“Thank god…” The man whispered lowly into Fen’s hair and kissed his forehead until he was sure he wasn’t holding a ghost.
Fen looked up and there wasn’t a moment of hesitation before they kissed, deep and longingly, tasting each other’s mouths and holding on tight.
The sound of a car alarm streets away tore Fen away from Vic and he frantically looked around, coming to his senses when reality sank in. Vic looked him over, examining the bruises and attempting to uncover the rest of his neck, but Fen took his hand and squeezed it.
“Vic…I can’t…I mean I…I can’t stay. I have to…”
Think, fucking speak right!
“What happened?” Vic asked, his hand sliding over Fen’s cold face. “When I heard what they found in your apartment…I…fuck…I thought—“
“I didn’t kill him, Vic! I swear!” Fen said with a desperate plea for the man to believe him.
Vic’s expression looked troubled, painful. “I wouldn’t have given a damn if you did, Fen. I was worried about you! I thought you were taken, killed or worse!”
“It is worse. The one who killed Kellen…killed Bunny and those other two men. He…He…killed so many more people and Tony too! Now…he’s after me and I can’t—“ Fen was shaking uncontrollably now, with every word he expected Gabriel to show himself, to attack him or…Vic. Fen nearly stopped breathing when that thought crossed his mind and he backed away, fighting to urge to run if it weren’t for Vic’s grip locked around his wrist.
If Vic wasn’t human, Fen might’ve thought he’d make a creature more frightening than Gabriel when his stare darkened and fury clouded his eyes. He brought Fen closer, taking his shoulders and forcing their eyes to meet. “Who is after you? Tell me.” His voice tensed.
Fen bit his lip, chewing on it until Vic gave him a shake that forced him to focus on the man again. “A vampire, a fucking vampire, Vic. They’re real! He’s real and, fuck, he’s killed so many people and he…wants to…turn me into one or kill me too.”
The look on Vic’s face was one he expected, questionable and fighting the urge to believe him, so Fen went on. And slowly, his hands slid up the man’s chest and he leaned into him.
“….Thank you.”
“What?” The man asked softly.
“Thank you, for everything. Everything you’ve ever done and might’ve done if things were different.” Fen smiled against the man’s shirt, wetting it with dumbass tears and trying not to sob again. “You protected me from the streets and tried to keep the demons outside, sometimes they got in but…I always knew I could rely on you to get rid of them. I loved when you came over, I loved seeing you and feeling you. No matter who was at my door, I always imagined you would be on the other side. And it made the nights…”
Vic lifted his face by the chin, looking down at him with every dark shadow and scar, hair falling off his shoulders as a thumb wiped Fen’s tears away.
“…so much better.” Fen sighed, finishing his words against Vic’s mouth.
One of the streetlights went out.
Fen came to his senses, he pushed Vic away and took a few steps back. “I…have to go, I can’t stay here, he’ll kill you too.”
“Fen…calm down and breath, I know you’re scared but let me help you.” Vic reached out.
“No, you don’t understand, t-this isn’t a fear you can comprehend!” Fen said sharply and was silenced by the fall of shadows around them. Vic was saying something, going on about things he had tuned out. His heart was pounding and his head was throbbing, panic and fear rising, and the sudden urge to puke overcame him.
Someone was here.
Someone…
Without warning, Fen violently grabbed Vic and dropped to the ground with him just as something passed over them with an inhuman sound. Fen laid on top of the man, breathing harshly and holding him from standing just yet. Then, Vic sat up with Fen in his arms and they looked around.
“What..in the hell was that?” Vic asked as they stood together.
“Vic, please, you have to run!” Fen pushed him, but the man wouldn’t budge nor let go.
“Like hell I’m leaving, just tell me—“ Vic was interrupted by the sound of footsteps and the two of them turned to the sidewalk ahead where the streetlights didn’t reach or couldn’t break through the sudden thickening of darkness.
And he appeared.
The shadows came alive, parting like disturbed smoke then becoming one with the angelic man who took the breathing darkness under his coat. When he stopped between the light and shadows, Fen focused on those deep-sea eyes that carried such terror in them.
There was a cruel silence. Fen pressed closer to Vic and spoke. “I suppose you’re the one who’s going to try and convince me you’re a vampire?”
Gabriel’s beautiful face softened, a look that almost pitied the man. “Perhaps…you’d better just believe? My convincing might hurt…horribly.”
He smiled, a dark growl vibrating against those large fangs as those blue eyes cracked and started to bleed and by stepping into the light, they saw blood against his clothes, though his skin had been licked clean, and Fen felt Vic inhale and he saw the man’s eye widen. “Christ…”
Gabriel opened his arms as if Vic had formally addressed him before he laughed.
A shiver passed through them both.
“I have been…so kind.” His voice, it was struggling to come out right, like there was something preventing him from keeping his glamour in focus. “I saved you. I delivered you from the pit. I spilled the blood you craved. And I am the only one you should pine for."
His eyes glanced at Vic and his lip rose in a quick smirk.
“No! Gabriel! Not him!” Fen moved in front of Vic just as the chaos clock ticked and Gabriel’s face dropped, his eyes growing terrifyingly wide. His smiled vanished
“Oh. Yes. Him.” Those other voices were a low rumble within his voice.
He ran at them, appearing in front Vic within a few heartbeats. He shoved Fen aside and slammed the palm of his hand into Vic’s chest. An unseen force sent the man flying backward, but when he landed, Vic rolled and got to his feet by pushing the pain aside.
Fen watched as he tore off his coat and tossed it, staring Gabriel with narrowed eyes that didn’t leave him once after he recovered from his fall. And when Fen turned to Gabriel, the air nearly left him when he saw the twisted smile that appeared. The satisfaction, the pity, a look that intended on having fun.
He licked his lips and started toward Vic, removing his own and laying it over a stair railing he passed.
“Vic! Just run! Please!” Fen hollered, but the man didn’t budge.
Gabriel struck, sending Vic into the side of the wall with a playful slap to the face. The man sounded, crushing against the brick and nearly losing his balance, but he caught the wall and used it to stand.
However, Gabriel grabbed him by the shoulder. Claws stabbing into Vic’s flesh and muscle until he hissed in pain. And slowly, Gabriel forced Vic to his knees.
Fen let out a sharp cry when Gabriel kicked Vic to the ground and he ran towards them.
The vampire tilted his head, staring at Vic before Fen grabbed him from behind, trying to pull him back, but failing.
Gabriel reached around and grabbed Fen by the hair, pulling him forward. “I will deal with you in due time.” Those voices purred darkly before he threw Fen into the street with enough force to knock the wind from him when he landed.
Fen coughed, almost feeling sick enough to vomit as he looked over at the two, his vision foggy.
Vic tried to swing, but Gabriel grabbed his wrist with a disappointed smile and he gave the man’s wrist a squeeze, making Vic shudder in the wave of pain that rolled through him.
“I despise humans like you.” He whispered through his fangs. “So intent on being noble that you don’t stop to consider the size of the lion you’ll face in the arena.”
Vic spat blood onto Gabriel’s already-red shirt. “I’m not…letting you take him without a…fight.”
“This is a fight?” Gabriel asked, squeezing Vic’s wrist until there was a small crack that forced another sound of pain from his body that had weakened momentarily.
Vic inhaled a few times, his muscles tensing and he looked back to Gabriel. “I know him...and he…doesn’t want to be anything like you. Not a murderer, not a monster, and especially not stuck with you for a fucking lifetime.”
Gabriel’s pupils slit and he snapped, a demonic snarl echoed against the shadows as Vic was slammed into the ground. He grabbed the man by the neck and slammed him into the wall, not to kill him, but to hurt him…and badly.
Vic was removed from the wall and lifted into the air, blood dripping from his head, his mouth, and his nose, but he was still awake, still breathing. And still watching the creature closely.
"I will enjoy killing you,” Gabriel said in a low shiver of his voice and body, a disgusting display of arousal at the thought of doing what he wanted to make Vic hurt, bleed, and scream. “If only to wipe you from his thoughts.”
“…J-Jealous?” Vic said breathlessly.
“Oh, no. Jealously is for the men who can’t contend for what is theirs.”
“You’re not…a man," Vic said sharply. "You're a god-damn corpse!"
Gabriel growled and tightened his hand around Vic’s throat, cutting off all air and watching as the man slowly began to suffocate.
“N-No! Gabriel!” Fen got to his knees, fighting the concussion that tried lulling him to sleep. “Stop it!”
But he didn’t.
Gabriel watched Vic fight death, trying to struggle and kick and breathe against his grip.
He smiled, a too-wide grin of pleasure when Vic stopped moving.
Fen inhaled, his body stiffening and the world started to break apart.
"N-No!"
“This is who you ran to? Your savior?” Those viciously red eyes, burning with rage and hellish desires, glanced to him. “Well, take a good look, my Dear, because there is not a more pathetic sight then—“
Gabriel was struck in the face and Fen froze.
His head cocked to the side, eyes widening once more, yet he remained perfectly still.
Then Fen felt as if his soul left him when Gabriel’s face wrinkled in rage, the glamour had shattered and the demon was set loose. A horrible cry escaped him, a noise from the darkest of nightmares and the deadest of souls, there was nothing more terrifying than that look, that cry, and the moment when it all focused on Vic.
The vampire grabbed Vic’s arm and twisted.
Crack.
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