After the drama unfolds with Karina and Wolfgang, Zaiden and Max are finally alone together.
Wolfgang has gone somewhere, and neither of the boys care to know where. In fact, every second that is not spent in his presence feels like a blessing. Not only has Max undergone consistent traumatic feeding sessions, now even Zaiden--who tried to remain out of the picture entirely--has suffered a personal loss thanks to Wolfgang's increasing psychological and physical instability. The anxiety in the apartment is mounting and the two young men take the opportunity to talk about their problems candidly.
Unfortunately, Max has little to no compassion for other people's pain.
"At least you aren't being fed on every night because your plasma apparently tastes better than everyone else's!" he says, pointing to the scars on his neck.
Zaiden doesn't take kindly to his insensitivity.
Still, unsurprisingly, their ordeal has brought them closer together, despite being completely incompatible people.
They hear the third boy come home and shut his bedroom door. The air in the room feels electrified. They get quiet.
"...We can stop him. Somehow... we just have to get help. Let's try to work together on this. I don't plan on dying this way, and neither should your girlfriend... even if she does hate you now," Max whispers.
Zaiden only nods, and walks away.
[A few hours later]
Wolfgang had heard everything. Apparently the other two young men hadn't gotten used to the fact that their roommate can turn into a bat.
He confronted Max while he was alone. Besides Karina, Max was his favorite prey. To think that Wolfgang's most reliable source of blood was trying to retaliate--it enraged him. He needed to break Max's will even more.
He had known this boy since elementary school. He knew all his hidden weaknesses and fears. Obviously Max wasn't scared enough.
"Don't run from me, Max... you don't want to know what I can do to you if you run..." he whispered as he sank his fangs into flesh.
The pangs of pain continued for some time.
[Later]
Wolfgang was restless with a hunger that he couldn't describe.
He finds himself standing in the rain outside of a building. He doesn't remember walking... maybe he flew there.
He heads upstairs to the bar. There are cracks in the walls and ceiling where the rain leaks through, staining the floor and upholstery. There is a dank stench of mildew here. It lasts all through the summer, unchanging. There is something about it that he likes.
He pulls out his phone.
Only one thing is on his mind.
...
*Bzzzzt* *Bzzzzt*
*Bzzzzt* *Bzzzzt*
*Click*
"...Wolfgang."
"Karina..." "I have nothing to say to you."
"Please, Karina... I need to talk to you, soon. Do you know the bar Slayers?"
"Why in the world would I meet with you?! You... you bit me. Like... some kind of freak." Her voice was a hushed whisper.
"I'm sorry, Karina. Please, just... meet with me. I'll explain everything if you let me."
Silence...
He continued, unrelenting.
"I'm sorry about that idiot, Zaiden. He doesn't deserve you. Nobody has the right to say those things to you. Nobody."
...
Karina heads to the bar. It's far away from the city. It takes a while, but she knows he'll still be there. He was always there when she needed him. Her thoughts are filled with distant memories. Her fear is fleeting faster than she thought possible. She can still feel the marks on her neck, but the sting feels strangely sweet.
They sit.
An awkward silence covers the two like a thick, moist blanket. She wonders if this was a mistake and suddenly she has the urge to flee.
"Ah, uhm! Let me get us a drink, okay?? Just... one sec." He goes to the bar.
It feels like hours, but they find a seat in a secluded corner and quietly sip their drinks. The color looks eerily familiar. It stains their lips.
All of a sudden, a chorus of sickening spits and hissing emanates uncontrollably from Wolfgang's mouth. The red wine splatters onto his clothes and he doesn't seem to notice.
She tries to hide behind her glass and not look disgusted.
Eventually the hissing subsides. It doesn't look like he has any way of stopping himself when that happens. She finds herself pitying him. The pity is almost stronger than her fear.
Almost, but not quite.
"Heh, well... ah..." she laughs nervously. "Look, I know you wanted to talk to me, but I think maybe we should try another time. It's late and... you don't seem too... well. I'm worried about you, Wolfgang. I don't know what you've gotten yourself into, but it's obvious that you are sick or... something."
"Um, so... thanks for the drink and I'll see you... later..."
He says nothing, but just looks at the floor.
She gets up to go and inadvertently stops in her tracks. A red mist starts to envelope her. She sees it twist and spiral up around her legs to her waist and finally, her head. The room is spinning. She is being pulled back towards him and she tries to fight it.
"What... are you doing?? Let me go, Wolfgang!" She keeps resisting, but it's hard.
"Please, stay... Karina. I love you. I never stopped loving you. And... now, it really is like I never will."
Wolfgang smiles. His teeth are stained red from the wine. Or... was it from something else?
Karina isn't quite sure, but the fear is back, and it's stronger than the pull of the red mist. She breaks free. While he is disoriented from the failure to bend her will to his, she makes her escape down the stairs.
Wolfgang hesitates to go after her. Not just because of his weakened state, but because he sensed that she... cared. Even though it was just for a moment. It reminded him of those days.
...
He needs a drink--or he would of if he were still a human. He gets one anyway.
He sits.
There is a pale man, nicely dressed, beside him. He looks out of place, but oddly comfortable. He seems absorbed in his own thoughts, although to be honest, it was hard to tell much about him at all. Wolfgang never noticed the man come into the bar. How long had he been sitting there? He certainly seemed like the kind of person who could remain unseen if he wished. This makes Wolfgang feel uneasy. Threatened even, though he can't quite tell why.
Then the man speaks.
"It isn't very kind to use force against the ones you claim to care about."
For a minute, all Wolfgang could hear were those words echoing in his mind, the reverberation of them strong enough to make his head almost split apart.
...
"I don't claim anything," finally came out from the depths of Wolfgang's throat. He continued to stare into his glass, his thoughts as clear as the liquid in it.
"She is now the only thing I have to live for. But I will be living forever, and she..." he stops short, and a terrible bout of hissing and spitting takes place of his words, choking them to death. Onlookers make hideous faces as they back away.
The pale man only sits and listens. It is impossible to know what he is thinking. Or if he is even really there at all.
He gets up, paying his tab.
No words are exchanged in farewell, but a feeling lingers next to Wolfgang where the man had been sitting, as if part of his presence had been left behind... and it's watching him.
For the first time in a long time Wolfgang felt... terrified.
Continue to Part 3
Wolfgang has gone somewhere, and neither of the boys care to know where. In fact, every second that is not spent in his presence feels like a blessing. Not only has Max undergone consistent traumatic feeding sessions, now even Zaiden--who tried to remain out of the picture entirely--has suffered a personal loss thanks to Wolfgang's increasing psychological and physical instability. The anxiety in the apartment is mounting and the two young men take the opportunity to talk about their problems candidly.
Unfortunately, Max has little to no compassion for other people's pain.
"At least you aren't being fed on every night because your plasma apparently tastes better than everyone else's!" he says, pointing to the scars on his neck.
Zaiden doesn't take kindly to his insensitivity.
Still, unsurprisingly, their ordeal has brought them closer together, despite being completely incompatible people.
They hear the third boy come home and shut his bedroom door. The air in the room feels electrified. They get quiet.
"...We can stop him. Somehow... we just have to get help. Let's try to work together on this. I don't plan on dying this way, and neither should your girlfriend... even if she does hate you now," Max whispers.
Zaiden only nods, and walks away.
[A few hours later]
Wolfgang had heard everything. Apparently the other two young men hadn't gotten used to the fact that their roommate can turn into a bat.
He confronted Max while he was alone. Besides Karina, Max was his favorite prey. To think that Wolfgang's most reliable source of blood was trying to retaliate--it enraged him. He needed to break Max's will even more.
The pangs of pain continued for some time.
[Later]
Wolfgang was restless with a hunger that he couldn't describe.
He finds himself standing in the rain outside of a building. He doesn't remember walking... maybe he flew there.
He pulls out his phone.
*Bzzzzt* *Bzzzzt*
"Karina..." "I have nothing to say to you."
"Please, Karina... I need to talk to you, soon. Do you know the bar Slayers?"
"Why in the world would I meet with you?! You... you bit me. Like... some kind of freak." Her voice was a hushed whisper.
"I'm sorry, Karina. Please, just... meet with me. I'll explain everything if you let me."
Silence...
He continued, unrelenting.
"I'm sorry about that idiot, Zaiden. He doesn't deserve you. Nobody has the right to say those things to you. Nobody."
Karina heads to the bar. It's far away from the city. It takes a while, but she knows he'll still be there. He was always there when she needed him. Her thoughts are filled with distant memories. Her fear is fleeting faster than she thought possible. She can still feel the marks on her neck, but the sting feels strangely sweet.
An awkward silence covers the two like a thick, moist blanket. She wonders if this was a mistake and suddenly she has the urge to flee.
Almost, but not quite.
"Heh, well... ah..." she laughs nervously. "Look, I know you wanted to talk to me, but I think maybe we should try another time. It's late and... you don't seem too... well. I'm worried about you, Wolfgang. I don't know what you've gotten yourself into, but it's obvious that you are sick or... something."
He says nothing, but just looks at the floor.
She gets up to go and inadvertently stops in her tracks. A red mist starts to envelope her. She sees it twist and spiral up around her legs to her waist and finally, her head. The room is spinning. She is being pulled back towards him and she tries to fight it.
"Please, stay... Karina. I love you. I never stopped loving you. And... now, it really is like I never will."
Wolfgang smiles. His teeth are stained red from the wine. Or... was it from something else?
Karina isn't quite sure, but the fear is back, and it's stronger than the pull of the red mist. She breaks free. While he is disoriented from the failure to bend her will to his, she makes her escape down the stairs.
...
He needs a drink--or he would of if he were still a human. He gets one anyway.
There is a pale man, nicely dressed, beside him. He looks out of place, but oddly comfortable. He seems absorbed in his own thoughts, although to be honest, it was hard to tell much about him at all. Wolfgang never noticed the man come into the bar. How long had he been sitting there? He certainly seemed like the kind of person who could remain unseen if he wished. This makes Wolfgang feel uneasy. Threatened even, though he can't quite tell why.
Then the man speaks.
"I don't claim anything," finally came out from the depths of Wolfgang's throat. He continued to stare into his glass, his thoughts as clear as the liquid in it.
"She is now the only thing I have to live for. But I will be living forever, and she..." he stops short, and a terrible bout of hissing and spitting takes place of his words, choking them to death. Onlookers make hideous faces as they back away.
The pale man only sits and listens. It is impossible to know what he is thinking. Or if he is even really there at all.
No words are exchanged in farewell, but a feeling lingers next to Wolfgang where the man had been sitting, as if part of his presence had been left behind... and it's watching him.
Continue to Part 3
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