He awoke slowly, reaching under his pillow for the .45 he usually kept there. There was a moment of panic when he didn’t feel it, then he remembered where he was.
He smelled frying onions and his stomach lurched. Even with that, he found he was famished, hungry and thirsty at the same time. He pushed the soft down comforter off of him and glanced down at himself. He was naked, as he had taken to when going to sleep since living with Lorenco. He sat up and swung himself so he was sitting off the side of the bed.
For once, in a long, long time, he felt things he hadn’t felt before. First, was a sense of protection, that he named “love”. He wanted nothing to happen to Lorenco, he wanted to protect him, but he knew he could take care of himself just fine. Second was that he didn’t want to lose Lorenco. He knew Lorenco wouldn’t want to be Embraced, and he understood he was mortal. Whether he himself would walk into the sun at Lorenco’s death he wasn’t sure, but he didn’t think the Beast would let him. Third was a deep feeling of caring, compassion, wanting to make him happy. He named it “love”.
He had felt that last with his third girlfriend, the only one who showed him caring, who let him make mistakes and who let him take her virginity. Then she started acting clingy; calling him, his parents, his friends if he hadn’t called her. When he broke up with her at first he was afraid of a Sharon Stone, but it didn’t happen, and he felt the monkey slide off his back.
Since then, he refused to let it climb back on. However, he had more than a monkey now.
The door opened, and Lorenco peered in. “Good evening,” he said, in his worst Lurch accent.
Bomber smiled. “Evening.” All he really wanted to do was launch himself off the bed and tackle Lorenco, then sink his teeth into the tender flesh of his neck. Lorenco came over, and Bomber reached for him, pulling him against his chest. He kissed him first, trying not to state the obvious. Lorenco knew what he really wanted, and tilted his neck for him, exposing the throbbing artery.
Bomber’s fangs dropped and he bent his head. Without any preamble he sank the fangs in and began to drink. He forced himself to count this swallows, even as Lorenco sagged in his arms, caught in the ecstasy of the Kiss. Bomber held him tight.
Then after twelve swallows, he raised his head. He looked at the neck, the blood oozing out of the wound, and got the same feeling in his gut that he used to get at seeing a well-endowed woman. He licked the drops of blood, closing the wound.
He watched Lorenco come slowly back to himself. Lorenco languidly opened his eyes and focused on Bomber. Bomber gave him a tender kiss, and waited for him to stand on his own two feet. Locerno sighed in happiness.
“Ready to try keeping down wine again?”
He nodded. “Let me take a shower.”
“Mind if I watch?”
“Better, join me.”
Locerno looked undecided for a moment, his hands running over Bomber’s broad chest. “Hm…tempting…”
Bomber smiled, “You have something cooking downstairs, I can smell it.”
“I’m keeping it warm.”
Bomber kissed his forehead. “I won’t be long.” He got up from the bed and walked to the bathroom just off the main bedroom. He really wasn’t long, though the hot water was turned up all the way, it felt lukewarm to him. He got dressed in his normal work clothes of a dark t-shirt, blue jeans and boots, and went downstairs.
At the table there was a setting of an empty plate. A glass of red wine was before it. Lorenco was already seated, waiting for Bomber. Bomber sat down across from his lover.
“Remember, let the wine touch your lips only. Take small sips.” He started in on his dinner.
Bomber was slowly getting used to the smell of food again. However, certain scents he absolutely couldn’t stand: citrus, pine needles and cigarette smoke were just a few. He raised his glass, Lorenco raised his, and they both drank at the same time. Bomber took a small sip, and then set the glass down. It tasted not like the fruit of the vine, but the vine itself.
He looked at his empty plate. “Are you going hunting after this?”
“Yes, I am.”
“Your usual area?”
“Yes. I think staying to the woods and tackling Carnies is better, send ’em back to their tents.”
Lorenco nodded. Bomber sipped again, and it stayed down. He found out last night that he could take half the glass before running to the bathroom. “If you sip it, it will last longer and not seem so bad going down.”
“Do they drink this stuff at Kindred parties?”
“No, it is more blood with wine for flavor.”
He sipped again, and put it down. “I think I’m done.”
Lorenco looked up at him. “All right. I’ll see you soon.”
Bomber got up and came around the table, then kissed Lorenco on the cheek, inhaled his scent. “I’ll be back in a couple of hours.” He walked out of the kitchen, picked up his jacket on his way out the door.
Words: 899
Inspiration: Imagination of a set-up for Bomber and Lorenco.