The Art of Living (Or To Die Trying) (boyxboy)

Chapter 12, Breakthrough

 Yay, I just noticed that I've gotten some votes from you guys! Made me so happy to see that people like what I've written here :] Keep 'em coming! >:3

The name of this chapter seems promising, no? ;) Yay for plot happening!

Lastly, I'd like to dedicate this chapter to everyone who has stuck with this story this far! Man, you've made it through like 100 pages soon! Thank you all so much for reading! <3

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It takes a moment or two before I come back to my senses; long enough for me to lose track of time – but then again, time has been a very loose concept during all of this – but not long enough for the two bites on Vivian's throat to have stopped bleeding. My forehead is rested against the mattress right next to said throat, and it's when my senses eventually register the feeling of the warm liquid dripping onto my cheek that I realize where I am and what's going on around me.

My body is protesting, mind still in a haze up in carnal heaven and not wanting to come back down to reality, but I manage to persuade my body to move and shift my head upon the prospect of a few more drops of blood. His neck is smeared with blood which makes finding the actual wounds a bit difficult since I'm navigating solely with lips and tongue, searching for the two bites I administered – the bite-mark on his shoulder from earlier has already stopped bleeding so it's not of concern for me.

Eventually my lips reach one of the bites and he groans slightly as I start licking it. There's no magic fix for his wounds, like there is for mine, I can't lick it until it will heal itself, though I can lick it until the bleeding ceases. Sometime, long ago, during the years of my species' evolution we developed an interesting attribute to our saliva; some sort of enzyme which serves to help the coagulation of blood. Maybe Vivian is more right than he thinks when he says that it's in my nature to want to keep him, my prey, alive – why else would we have developed this odd attribute?

It doesn't take long before the bleeding calms and soon it has stopped all together and I allow my lips to navigate up his throat until I come across the other wound. Once again he groans and tries to turn away, though he's too out of it to put up much resistance at the moment and within minutes this wound, too, has stopped bleeding.

I force myself to sit up straight, blinking as I try to gain a sense of orientation. My body still feels numb, slow to react to the commands of my still dazed mind, so I remain sitting there, blinking and breathing, reveling in the delight of this cotton-like feeling of utter calm. It doesn't take long before Vivian starts to stir and soon his eyes flutter open. He seems even more dazed and bemused than me, blinking and looking around – groaning and forcing a hand up to his wounded neck while doing so. Eventually his eyes come to rest on my figure and his mouth opens to speak, though nothing comes out at first.

-”Are you... back?” he finally manages to breathe out.

Was I gone? I question, head tilted at his strange inquiry.

-”Kind of,” he replies while forcing himself up into a sitting position, his hand still cupping his neck. “I mean, are you back to normal?”

You mean my usual, friendly and non-threatening self?

-”I'm not sure if I'd go as far as to call it 'friendly' though,” he snorts, though the tone of his voice is light and humorous. “But yes, something like that.”

I am, I guess, I reply vaguely. That side of me is ever-present though, I just hide it better most of the time. Why? You don't like it? I add, teasingly.

-”Haven't decided yet,” he mumbles back as he starts to search for the light switch of the lamp on the bedside table. Eventually he finds it and the room is bathed in a soft, yellow light. “Holy fuck,” he exclaims after taking in the sight of me, the bed and himself.