Lethal Beauty

VIII - A Taste

Gavril left the room after announcing Abel's presence, the house rules, and other things that didn't seem to matter that much with these fledglings but served as a subtle warning that if they lay a hand on a human, they would be severely punished.

Watching the chairman from where he was seated, Abel couldn't help thinking that he was also giving a fair warning to the one seated behind him. Iris didn't seem to care and both Abel and Gavril doubt he even listened. He sat there like a prince he was, arms crossed on his chest and only staring at Abel's wide back, and his jet-black hair that was a strong contrast against his skin that was white as snow.

The moment those eyes traveled on Abel's neck, they lingered longer on that artery under the jaw, between the earlobe and the collarbone...Iris made an involuntary gasp. His tongue touched the upper portion of his lips. As if he was tasting it. That he was meant to taste it...

Something about Abel that drew him in, like being on drugs or on alcohol. Abel's scent and even the taste of his lips when he first kissed him on that night at the freshman orientation party, hijacked the pleasure circuits of his brain and hooked him into wanting more and more.

On Abel's side, he could feel the intensity of Iris' gaze on his back. Attributing the awareness to a sense of unease and that prickle on the back of his neck. Although there was nothing psychic about it and his brain was simply picking up on cues. Abel couldn't help but imagine himself as a rabbit in the middle of the field, detecting a predator's gaze from his peripheral vision.

It got worse when Gavril left the room after giving him and the man behind him a long and hard gaze. It only lessened when the professor entered. A tall, and elegant woman with long and straight blonde hair and dark-blue eyes. She wore a blazer and slacks that showed not a piece of skin. Just by looking at her, Abel could tell that she was a tough-ass-nails ala Grand Dame, whose age he couldn't even define.

"Good afternoon," she addressed the class with her low yet accentuated voice that made everyone's attention turn on her. "I'm Professor Varuca Helena Forster. Welcome to Introduction to World Civilization."

⛧☾༺♰༻☽⛧

After an hour of intense, grueling class discussion, the female professor despite her beautiful appearance grinds them with verses and arguments about the evolution of mankind and vampires. All throughout this period, Iris did nothing but sleep on his seat and Abel was astonished the professor ignored his behavior while scolding those who showed the tiniest bit of reaction to dozing. What was even more bewildering, was that no one seemed to be complaining. Except him. Maybe. If he has the guts to air his sentiment to the rest of the class...

When the bell signaled the end of the first subject, Abel almost blurted a loud "thank you" and immediately stood from his seat to fetch his things.

"Hey..."

All the hairs at the back of his nape stood once more when he heard Iris' voice. "W-What?" He didn't mean to stammer, but he just did.

Now that they were standing face to face, Abel realized that Iris was as tall as he was. As someone who is physically fit and loves sports, Abel prides himself as someone with a masculine body. For some unknown reason, Iris' slender yet perfectly leaned and lithe muscles dominated him and made him feel rather small in spite of the fact that he was 185 cm tall.

This intimidation caused Abel to take a step back and hurriedly put all of his things back in his bag. A grin spread on Iris' face as he watched Abel's panicked gesture. He motioned to touch his elbow but someone interrupted the moment---

"Iris! Don't you dare fucking run away again you coward cat!"

With the professor gone and some of the students left the room, the voice that echoed quickly caught the attention of the others. Fledglings get excited at the sight of an incoming battle in front of them. Not to mention that two very handsome vampires with reputations were involved.