The Consort (MalexMale) 《COMPLETE》

Chapter 10

Chapter 10

If it weren't for their shadows darkening the purity of the whitened walls, I would have never noticed them leaving. My eyes try to adjust to the night as I slip off the couch and tiptoe across the carpet. Bogdan and Kelly hover near the door. I clutch my arms across my chest with a shiver.

Their red eyes flash to me without warning. I know it's in their nature to hear me, to smell me, before I say a word, but this behavior still catches me off guard. My gaze lingers on Bogdan before falling on the face of my best friend.

Kelly's fangs are elongated, his eyes a brighter red than I've ever witnessed before. They're practically glowing. It's not like I wasn't aware of what happened to him, but the weight of Kelly becoming immortal is finally sinking in. Tears sting my eyes as I watch them both stare back at me.

My best friend is gone.

Gone is my protector, the one who stuck up for me against the bullies during high school. Gone is my best friend who spent countless hours with me laughing and talking. Gone is a community musician. Gone is my hero.

Kelly brushes the bangs away from his face, a gesture he unknowingly used to do as a nervous habit. The tears hiding within the confines of my eyes slip down my cheeks, making my view of them become blurry. My chest burns with the desire to walk to Kelly and give him a hug goodbye.

But I can't.

I know I can't.

I keep my feet planted where they are and give both a nod of acceptance. This isn't what I want, but there's no other option. They can't stay, and I can't leave with them...even if that's what my heart secretly is begging me to do. They wouldn't take me if I asked to go with them, and even if they did, leaving this society behind would be a gesture I could never take back.

Kelly opens the door, and muted light spills into the apartment. Bogdan whispers something to him, and Kelly gives a clipped nod before gracefully moving into the hallway. My vampire remains at the doorway. His torso is rigid and still, and he cocks his head to the side after a few seconds, listening to something far too soft for the human ear to detect.

Then he looks at me. His red eyes are far less potent than Kelly's. He takes a few steps towards me, and I hastily wipe away the tears from my eyes.

"You cry, human?" Bogdan asks when he reaches my side.

"Yes."

He gets closer to my face, his red eyes searching my features with such a calculated concern. Having him this close to me stirs the same desire within me that I felt in the bathroom with him earlier tonight. My stomach tightens with desire, and a nervous sweat breaks out across the palms of my hands.

"It's hard to see him go," I explain after a few beats of silence. "He was my best friend, you know? I'm going to miss him."

Bogdan's quiet for a moment. "That feeling will change, eventually. All emotions are fleeting, human. The sooner you learn that, the happier you will be."

He turns to leave, and in a moment of panic, my arm shoots to grab him by the crook of the elbow. There's no way I could make Bogdan stick around if he didn't want to. His strength is powerful enough to break our couch in half if he really wanted to.

But he remains in place, staring at me with widened eyes.

I swallow hard. Is this the first time I've touched him of my own, free will? Bogdan has touched me a number of times, but each one has been cold. Impersonal. This time it's me touching him, and it feels different. I loosen my grip from his elbow, and my fingers trail up his chiseled arm.