[ In the rumpled bed, Lauralae seems small and very young, every bit the sweet girl waiting for the movie vampire to come and ravish her. It would be easy for Armand to repay that trust with the sharpness of his teeth; he remembers the sweet fizz of her blood on his tongue. Maybe it would be enough to drive back the hollow cold inside him for a time. He could fill his belly with her warmth. She might even allow it.
Unsettled and wanting, he runs his tongue over his fangs and doesn't move, not until she does, opening her arms and making room for him in the blankets, a disarmingly childish gesture. After a moment, he takes her invitation, wondering in the back of his mind which part of him wants this. Ever since he came back from death, his past seems very present; he's cutting himself all over again on the edges of old memories. Did Arun climb like this into someone's bed? Did Amadeo seek comfort in someone's arms? For the first time, he wants to know the answers.
He reaches Lauralae and pauses to reach down and pull off his slippers, dropping them onto the floor, then lies down carefully alongside her, slipping beneath the blankets still fully clothed. He keeps his hands to himself for the moment, gathered up on the pillow while he looks at her.
Without meaning to, the confession comes to him and demands to be spoken. Softly, he says: ]
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Unsettled and wanting, he runs his tongue over his fangs and doesn't move, not until she does, opening her arms and making room for him in the blankets, a disarmingly childish gesture. After a moment, he takes her invitation, wondering in the back of his mind which part of him wants this. Ever since he came back from death, his past seems very present; he's cutting himself all over again on the edges of old memories. Did Arun climb like this into someone's bed? Did Amadeo seek comfort in someone's arms? For the first time, he wants to know the answers.
He reaches Lauralae and pauses to reach down and pull off his slippers, dropping them onto the floor, then lies down carefully alongside her, slipping beneath the blankets still fully clothed. He keeps his hands to himself for the moment, gathered up on the pillow while he looks at her.
Without meaning to, the confession comes to him and demands to be spoken. Softly, he says: ]
I don't know how to be alone.