Chapter Sixteen:

My eyes slowly opened, and I squinted. It was daytime, and the brothers must have forgotten to close the blinds. Either way, the sunlight didn't bother me. It was probably the reason I was alone in the room, though.

I struggled to sit upright before stretching out my sore muscles. I started with my arms. I slowly lifted them above my head and winced once before the pain subsided. I stretched a little harder and if felt good. My shoulder cracked, and I sighed, bringing my hands to rest on the blanket in front of me. I looked down at my fingers as I crossed them over one another. I stretched out my ankles and felt them both crack, too. I pursed my lips and tilted my head back, stretching my neck. I half-expected one of the brothers to appear when I exposed my throat to the ceiling like that. But no one showed up.

I swung my legs over the edge of the bed and stood. I felt a little weak, but that was expected, right? After all, I'd gotten pretty roughed up by those vampires last night. But although I was sore all over and my muscles felt like they needed a good oil change, the images of the brothers was stuck in my head—Ayato's beautiful face, scratched, blood running down his shoulders—Subaru forced to the floor—Laito trying to fight his way through a crowd, and losing—and Shuu… with that pained look in his eyes. I needed to see them. I wanted to be with them. I knew they all got out okay. I could feel it in my heart. But they were hurt. I'd only ever seen Ayato get hurt once before, when he was stabbed right before I transitioned. And it had only taken him a few days to fully heal. But this felt… different somehow. Like a sword was weaker than a group of vampires… I wasn't sure, but I had a strange feeling.

After walking the halls for a few minutes without even a hint of a sound, I paused. Something was strange. I knew that my footsteps must be like cinderblocks dropped on the ground to the brothers, so why weren't they coming to see me? I turned around and looked back the way I'd come from, and a chill went down my spine. Goosebumps raised on my arms. Why did the hall look darker than usual? I could have sworn that the candles had been lit down there a minute ago.

"A…Ayato?" I whispered, almost afraid to make a sound. "Subaru? Is anyone there?"

I waited a moment, but no one showed. I squinted and looked further down the hall and watched as the candles in the distance started going out along the walls. I jumped when the darkness seemed to be nearing me faster and I turned and walked quickly to the staircase. I stumbled for a moment as if the darkness was chasing me, but I tried shaking it off and hurried down the steps.

"Laito? Shuu? Can someone please come here?" I said to the empty space ahead of me. I hurried to the kitchen. Maybe I just needed a cold glass of water. I'd had a rough night, after all. I wouldn't be surprised if I was still a little shaky from everything that happened.

"What?" a voice said, and I jumped, turning around as I held in a gasp.

"Subaru…" I sighed, holding my hand against my chest. "You… scared me."

"That's only fair," he said, crossing his arms and frowning. He glared at me and I wondered what I'd done now. He looked so angry. "You scared everyone last night."

"Yea," Ayato said from behind, and I jumped again, sighing and shaking it off. "You weren't yourself, Pancake."

"You're not yourself right now, either," Shuu said, appearing behind Subaru. I frowned at him, but he wasn't looking at my face. His eyes were off in the distance, behind me. I turned and saw the lights past the kitchen going out. I turned back and the brothers were gone, and the lights were going out in front of me, too. Why were they doing that?

"Hello?" I called, my voice wavering. "Hey, please come back!" I took a step back as the darkness closed in on me. I screamed and closed my eyes, placing my hands over my face as I was enveloped in the dark.

I stood there for a moment, afraid to open my eyes, but a soft tapping made them shoot open. It sounded like fingernails on a countertop. I put my hands out in front of me and took slow steps, unable to see where I was going. But I knew I was almost to the kitchen.

"Please, someone turn on the lights," I whispered, jumping a little at the sound of my own voice. And then a small light came on in the kitchen, and I could see the outline of the island, and a little of the fridge and the sink, and the cabinets below. Someone was bending over on the tile floor beside the island and I frowned.

It was a young girl, with short blonde hair. She was quivering on the floor, her back to me.

"Excuse… me?" I asked, reaching a hand out. I gently placed my hand on the girl's shoulder and knelt down. She was crying… I could hear her soft sobs and feel the light bounce of her body as she trembled. "Don't be scared. No one is going to hurt you here."

"But…" the little girl said, and her voice was soft and afraid. "This house holds a monster. My daddy told me not to come here, but I had to."

"Your... daddy?" I asked. I paused and looked around, wondering why the brothers weren't around anymore. Maybe they didn't want to deal with a lost human girl? But… "How did you get in here?"

"The monster locked me in," the girl replied, and I frowned.

"Did the monster have fangs?" I asked, and when I felt the girl nod quickly, I sighed. "It's… not really a monster… Whoever it was… he was probably just being mean." Ugh, when I found out which one of them was playing dumb games like this… I was going to give them a piece of my mind.

"He?" the little girl slowly asked.

"Yes. This house belongs to a group of brothers. They all live together in this big mansion."

"But… it wasn't a boy who locked me in here. It was a girl." The child slowly turned, her eyes down at the floor. "It was… you." She looked up with wide, glowing yellow eyes, and her face began to distort. Giant fangs protruded from her mouth and she started to smile and laugh. I immediately screamed and recoiled my hand, falling backwards. The child growled and crouched on all fours... Then she pounced.

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I screamed, but before I could get more than a second of noise out, a hand clamped over my mouth. I struggled for only a moment before my body instinctively calmed. I wasn't in danger here. I was lying on something soft. Pieces went together like a puzzle in my head and I just slumped into my pillow.

"What a terrible noise for so early in the night," an irritated voice muttered.

"Shuu…" I breathed, and as reality and dream separated in my mind, I noticed the blinds were down and the curtains were closed. There was light coming in from the sky, though, so it wasn't nighttime just yet. My heart still pounded but I knew where I was, and I knew I was safe. "Shuu…" I repeated, and this time he took his hand off my mouth. I took a deep breath and looked up at him.

"What was that about?" he asked, but his tone made it seem like he didn't care about my nightmares. I frowned at him, but I sighed when he didn't press for an answer. I looked away. Of course he didn't care… That's just how he was. I was going to have to get used to it, though, because it still hurt.

"Where… is everyone?" I whispered.

"I don't know."

I closed my eyes and rested for a moment.

"Don't fall back asleep."

I opened them and looked over at him, sitting on the edge of my bed, his hand on the blanket beside my stomach. He leaned over and placed his head on my chest. He closed his eyes and his breathing slowed for a second before he lifted himself back up.

"Sit up," he ordered.

"But… I'm so tired." I tilted my head, confused. But when I looked at him, I saw small cuts and bruises on his ears, under his hair. "You're not… fully healed yet," I said sadly, reaching up and brushing his hair away to see his wounds. For the first time in a while, he wasn't even wearing his earbuds, since they'd been ripped apart during the fight last night. "Shuu…" I felt like crying. He watched me slowly as I ran my fingers over one scab. I remembered the blood running down his neck… staining his collar. He must have changed his shirt already… Of course he did. I wanted to see the other side of his face, but he wasn't turned enough for me to see. I reached my other hand up and he growled, quickly pulling his face out of my reach.

"You asked me not to drink from anyone else, didn't you?" he scowled. "Well, get up. I'm thirsty, and you've already annoyed me by sleeping for the past few hours. Since you carelessly interrupted my meal last night, it's your job to feed me. And I'm tired of waiting. If Ayato hadn't threatened me, I would have taken as much as I wanted while you slept, and then you wouldn't have woken up for another couple of days. What a quiet house we could have had…" He sighed again, looking past me. Then he eyes re-focused and he leaned forward.

I gasped as his teeth immediately dug into the side of my throat. I winced. He wasn't being gentle at all… I felt my skin tear and I felt tears sting the back of my eyes as his fangs ripped the muscle beneath the skin. It hurt. A lot. I took in a deep breath and was about to scream. My eyes went wide.

Immediately, he was torn off of me, but his fangs scratched me open as he was forced away. I yelped at the pain.

"What the fuck are you doing?!" Subaru screamed, baring his fangs and hissing at his brother. Shuu was already across the room, knocked to the floor in the corner. He wiped his sleeve across his mouth, smearing blood over his chin before scowling and standing. My blood.

In the next second, Ayato was in front of him, throwing him back to the floor. I jumped as Laito appeared beside me. He gave me a reassuring smile before moving his face to my neck and lapping up the blood that leaked out of me and dribbled down to my collarbone, puddling there. His tongue was cool and soft, and his saliva felt like ointment. I sighed and leaned into him.

"What's wrong with you?" Ayato snarled at Shuu, and I noticed both him and Subaru towered over the eldest brother, crossing his arms angrily as they kept him on the floor in the corner of the room.

"I was thirsty…" he snarled, wiping his mouth with his sleeve again.

"You were hurting her…" Reiji frowned, appearing in the doorway. Kanato was right behind him, his face looking unusually concerned.

Subaru hissed. "Are you trying to piss me off?"

"It's nothing none of you haven't done before," he sneered, spitting onto the floor and bringing one knee up to get comfortable, since they obviously weren't going to let him stand, at the moment. I tried to look around at him to see his face, but Laito pulled me into a soft hug and I couldn't see past him.

"Laito—"

"Shh," he cooed, hugging me a little tighter. The punctures on my throat felt a little better already and I brought my arms up to hug him back. "My Little Bitch," he whispered, nuzzling his mouth into my hair. He brought his hand up to give my scalp a massage. I couldn't help but close my eyes, but it was only for a moment.

"Shuu…" I whispered. "I… I'm sorry. I just… You scared me… I—"

"Don't apologize to him!" Subaru suddenly shouted, baring his fangs again.

"Yea… I know…" I heard Shuu whisper, and I knew that was the best I was going to get from him. I felt like his sudden aggressiveness made me react a little too much, riling the others up.

"It's okay," I said. "I'm okay. Can we all just…"

"Yea," Laito said softly, moving back a bit. He placed a light kiss on my forehead and stood up off the bed. "Keep that temper of yours in check, you deadbeat," he snarled.

"Or don't," Ayato frowned, "Then I can rip your head from your neck."

"Whatever," Shuu said, finally standing up. He shoved his hands into his pockets and headed for the door, but I held my hand out to him.

"Wait," I called, and I was thankful he paused. "Don't… don't go yet. Please." I heard Subaru hiss again, but I tried my best to ignore him. "I'm sorry, I just… I wasn't ready." I put my hand to my new wounds. A little blood still came off onto my palm and I looked down at it, as if it wasn't my own. "You're… angry with me?"

"I'm not," he sighed, and I could sense some regret in the back of his voice. "I told you… I was just thirsty."

"But… you know I don't mind giving you blood, so—"

"Just let him leave," Reiji said. "He's been in a terrible mood since you all got back."

"Oh, shut up," Shuu groaned, before disappearing out the door.

"What's wrong?" I asked, looking to Ayato. "What did I do?"

"Nothing," Subaru responded angrily. "He's just being an entitled brat, as always."

"It seemed like he went out last night because he couldn't take the sexual frustration," Laito snickered. "He's had a lot of blood over the past couple of days, so I doubt he's really that thirsty. He was more irritated that our Little Bitch needs more time before she can bond to him." He shrugged. "And her human predispositions tend to piss him off a bit." He smirked and looked over at me, winking.

I frowned sadly. "He never seems like he's willing to talk."

"And he won't," Reiji said flatly. "That's how he's always been. He wants whatever he wants and that's that. He doesn't do things if they aren't done his way."

"Just like a spoiled child," Laito snickered. "That's what he gets for being Father's favorite."

"Still," Subaru snarled, "He can't take it out on her when he gets in a bad mood. The last thing we need is to start having to watch him all day."

"Just let him be," Reiji said. "He likes being alone."

"Whatever."

"What happened last night between you two," Ayato asked me, turning around, "before we got there? What did you say to him? Or do?"

"I didn't… do anything," I replied, looking down at the bed.

"He's had a lot of blood these past couple days," Laito repeated. "He might be having a little high with everything that's been happening. We usually mind our own business," he added, turning back to me, "But since you've become a vampire, our lives are just full of surprises. Blood, sex, booze, clubs, bonding, even females and hunters. And high school drama," he snickered, rolling his eyes. "Being purebloods, we tend to stay away from things that draw attention to us, but you… you draw attention."

"I… I'm sorry," I said, unsure how to respond. But he was smirking at me.

"Well," Laito said, turning back to his brothers, "That lazy bastard has his issues. He can get over them on his own for all I care." And then he winked at me before flashing out of the room. Reiji and Kanato were gone in the next second, but Ayato and Subaru remained, both of them just staring at me.

"What?" I asked, after a few moments had passed in silence. And a few more silent moments passed before Ayato responded.

"He probably feels singled out," he said slowly, "Not that I care, but…"

"I don't understand why," I replied, "It's not like I don't want to bond with him. I went out last night looking for him because I… because…"

"I think he knows that," Subaru said softly, flashing onto my bed. I didn't jump this time and it made me smile a little. Maybe I was getting used to it, after all. "It has to be something else. Like Laito said, maybe it's your human past that bothers him. It's hard for him to think of a human as anything other than food, so…"

"Maybe he's mad at himself for how he treated you before you turned," Ayato shrugged.

"But this is new," I frowned. "He wasn't like this when I turned. He only started acting this way these past few days." I paused. "What can I do to help?"

"Nothing," Subaru growled. "You do nothing. Let him solve his own issues. If he tries to hurt you again, I swear I'll—"

"He won't!"

"Easy, brother," Laito said, flashing into the room. I didn't jump that time, either. Laito sat down on the edge of my bed and crossed his legs, leaning back on his hands. "We all know how Shuu gets. Stop being dramatic about it. Little Bitch is fine. He just bit her a little harder than usual. She probably liked it, anyway."

"She didn't," Subaru spat, "You would have known that if you were bonded, but you're not."

"Ouch." He pouted before turning to me with a smirk. He looked me up and down for a moment and I felt my face get hot. "Oh, and if you ever want to go out again—"

"I really hope you're kidding."

"Oh, Subaru… Always the party crasher."

"There are probably hundreds of vampires who could recognize her now! And that's all because you thought it was a good idea for her to leave in the first place!"

"Tell your pets to leave, please," Laito said, and under the insult, I could feel another motive. It gave me butterflies and I squirmed a bit, hoping no one would notice. Unfortunately, Ayato made a noise like he was faking throwing up, and I looked over just in time to see Subaru roll his eyes.

"Ugh, I'd rather you bond with the lazy ass right about now," Ayato smirked. Subaru flashed out of the room before I could say anything else. "Whatever, have fun." And then Ayato was gone as well, and for a second, I didn't want to look away from the closed door. Because then I would have to look into his eyes… those devilish eyes. And images of things that happened last night were starting to come back to me. Images of Laito standing in front of me, dancing, pressed against me. And I'd begged him to drink from me. And he'd touched me…

"If all I need to do is sit here and look pretty to get you bothered like that, I must be talented," he said slowly. Even his voice was… dripping. "If I remember right, I think I promised you some screams… If you still want them…?"

"You… want to bond… right now?" I stammered, but he chuckled and looked away, as if the mood was lost to him. He fell back in the next second, his head on my lap, crossing his hands behind his head and closing his eyes. I listened to his breathing slow and I let my eyes close. I guess he changed his mind…

"What should I do about Shuu?" I quietly asked. Laito seemed like the best person to ask about this. "I know Reiji and the others said to let him deal with everything on his own but there has to be something I can do to help."

"I'll talk to him tomorrow."

"But I meant—"

"Don't worry about him. He cares about you, just like the rest of us do. He just needs to sort out his thoughts. I'll talk to him, okay?"

I nodded. "What about…" I trailed off, but he didn't press. I gave myself a few moments before starting again. "Do you think… that maybe… we could go out again… to a place like that?"

"A vampire club? Sure. Just as long as Ayato and Shuu don't get in our way. And it would help if they knew I was already bonded to you," he smirked—I felt his cheeks lift on my thigh. I laughed a little and he flipped over, his head facing up to look at me. "I'll take you wherever you want when we're properly bonded. It's just complicated now, since I can't feel you as well as Ayato or Subaru can. But when I can," he licked his lips, "We can do whatever we want."

"Why… I mean, of course I want to, but why… aren't we?" I gulped. He just laughed again, and it was a hearty laugh, not his usual sly snickering.

"Lean back," he suddenly said, and I jumped. "Try to sleep. I can feel that you're still exhausted. I don't need to be bonded to you to sense something so simple." I looked down at him, his eyes shut now, and nodded slowly before laying back down.

Maybe he was trying to be considerate. The atmosphere here was much different than the club. Maybe he could sense that I wanted to be like that when he finally bonded to me—like I could barely take the physical distance between us… But here, with him on my lap, I felt more emotional attachment than physical need. Obviously, that wasn't Laito's kind of scene… But it was nice to spend time like this with him.

And maybe because of the adrenaline from Shuu's bite earlier, I hadn't even noticed I was still tired… The nightmare must have startled me awake before my body was ready to wake up. Still, it was a strange feeling—knowing that the brothers could sense things about me that even I wasn't fully aware of. It made me wonder what they felt, and how they felt it. Unfortunately, that seemed like a vampire side that I was never going to have.

Laito sat up and I looked at him. Before I could ask if everything was all right, he turned and laid down next to me, his head in his hand, propped up on his elbow. He looked down at me with a smirk, but the closeness of his face was too distracting for me to even breathe. Instead, I forced myself to close my eyes to calm my pounding heart. I heard him laugh a little again and I pursed my lips.

"Frustrated?" he asked slowly, teasing me. I instinctively shook my head without even thinking about the question. It just made him laugh again and I dared to crack open my eyes to look up at him. And I swallowed saliva in strange discomfort. He was still looking down at me, his face mere inches from mine, and he wore such a serene expression—as if the whole world didn't exist. As if this moment was the only moment… But my heart was still pounding and I couldn't focus on anything, much less a single moment in time. It made me a little jealous.

"Are you… thirsty?" I asked, my voice barely a whisper. But he finally looked away from my face and smiled. It gave me a moment to relax, but it wasn't nearly long enough.

"I think you've given enough blood for at least a couple of hours," he said softly. "But thank you for the offer." And then he let his body fall onto the bed and he let his one arm rest over my shoulders. He caressed my back between my shoulder blades and gently placed a kiss on my forehead. I forgot to breath for another second and I let out a long exhale.

"Laito?" I whispered, as he positioned himself above me, leaving the space between his chin and collarbone open for me to rest my head in. I relaxed a bit more as I thought about how well our bodies fit together like this.

"Hmm?"

"I really… didn't think you were anything like this before…"

"Anything like what?"

"Like…" I trailed off. I wanted to say "caring," but that seemed like a rude thing to say, so I just let the silence fill the air and hoped he wouldn't press for more. And after a short time, I heard him quietly laugh out of his nose and I felt him nuzzle into my hair.

"Sleep," he said, and I closed my eyes and did my best to listen. Now I could feel how exhausted I still was, and all I wanted was the respite of sleep. I brought one of my hands up and placed it on his bicep. I gently squeezed, partially to make sure I wasn't already dreaming, and I felt him move his head down. His free hand came up and cupped the side of my face as he gently kissed me. I kissed him back, but he pulled away after only a second. "Sleep," he repeated, his voice trance-like.

And before I knew it, I was closing my eyes. The dark of sleep was coming in closer, still and peaceful.

"Oh, and by the way, Little Bitch… you're part demon."

My eyes shot open.