The Source of my Confusion
The cause of my confusion begins here. While this is not the sort of information I would usually share, perhaps some clarity will be gained from posting it publicly. I invite the thoughts of any who may have insight on the reasons behind this.
The lamp went crashing to the floor as Lestat swung his arm in some grand gesture of frustration. Glass crunched under his boot and he stepped closer to me once again.
“I can’t believe you didn’t even try to contact me!” His finger poked into my chest as if to punctuate the last few words.
He was upset about the sale of our London home, of course. Completely enraged that I had gone behind his back and sold it without breathing a word of my plans to him. The fact that I had absolutely no idea where he had been for the past few months or what his most recent phone number might be didn’t seem to play any part in this at all.
Normally, I will walk away from such confrontations, but he had quite literally dragged me out of the cinema for this, leaving Lexia to share the duration of the film with a shocked crowd and an empty chair. I was furious.
“It’s been sitting vacant for almost a year while you were off chasing demons with Armand.”
I took a step to one side and glanced out the massive picture window to my right. Lights danced along the banks of the Thames below.
"What's that got to do with it? You sold our house!" He had been reminding me of this fact since our discussion began.
“It’s not as if you have no place to stay!” I retaliated, raising one arm to gesture to the room around us; just one small part of this impeccably designed modern apartment that he had owned for many years.
I turned my back to him then, staring out at the city below. I wondered if anyone else down there had to deal with this sort of insanity.
“Oh that's just typical of you!” He grasped my shoulder, spinning me to face him again. “Why didn't you just burn it down again? Maybe we should go back to sleeping in a crypt!”
“Will you stop making this all about you?!” I slapped his hand away. “My name was on the deed and I did what needed to be done. I will not speak of this any further. And if you ever do that to me in a public place again you will regret it! Fils de pute!”
Something changed in his eyes then. The fiery rage had been snuffed out and replaced by something far more familiar yet equally dangerous. The corners of his mouth curved into a devilish grin. My god, he was actually enjoying this. After all this time, I really shouldn’t have been surprised, but sometimes the speed at which his moods can alter still catches me off guard.
My back slammed into the window behind me with such force that I had never been so thankful for impact resistant glass. His mouth was on mine before I could even think of protesting and I found myself returning his kiss with equal fervor. Despite the humiliation of being physically dragged out of a cinema and the heated argument that followed, I could not deny that I had missed him terribly.
I tore at the buttons of his shirt as I manipulated him back toward the bed. Though this apartment was far too high up for anyone to ever see inside, the idea of us being on display behind glass still made me a little uncomfortable.
We tumbled into the nest of pillows and he rolled on top of me, pinning both of my arms down above my head with one hand as if I might try to get away. Stopping this was the very last thing on my mind.
“Connard…” I whispered into his ear with a laugh and gave a quick nip to the earlobe that happened to be within my reach. I didn’t break skin, but heard him growl in anticipation.
I felt the fabric of at the collar of my sweater tear away and he was kissing me again in a manner that would leave a mortal gasping for breath. His lips moved over my chin and his teeth dragged across the tender flesh of my throat until they reached that space between my neck and shoulder which he so loved to leave purple and bruised. I pulled my hands free of his grip and tangled my fingers into his hair, pressing against his scalp in encouragement. I hadn’t realized how badly I wanted him until that moment.
I was expecting the feeling of fangs tearing into my skin, but instead there was a gentle kiss, followed by a sigh. His weight shifted off of me and before I could reach out to pull him back, he was sitting up on the edge of the bed.
My heart was pounding with desire and it took a moment to clear my head enough to speak.
“Cher…” I said quietly, testing these unfamiliar waters. “Is something wrong?”
“No,” He mumbled. “Everything is fine.”
A few minutes of silent confusion passed during which I began to count the tiles on the ceiling. What on earth had just happened? I stared at his back and could see his arms moving. Was he actually buttoning up his shirt?
“Did I… do… something?” It was the most awkward question I had ever formulated.
“Don’t be ridiculous.”
And with that, he got to his feet and left the room. I heard the front door slam and the whir of the elevator gears as it travelled upward to retrieve him.
The lamp went crashing to the floor as Lestat swung his arm in some grand gesture of frustration. Glass crunched under his boot and he stepped closer to me once again.
“I can’t believe you didn’t even try to contact me!” His finger poked into my chest as if to punctuate the last few words.
He was upset about the sale of our London home, of course. Completely enraged that I had gone behind his back and sold it without breathing a word of my plans to him. The fact that I had absolutely no idea where he had been for the past few months or what his most recent phone number might be didn’t seem to play any part in this at all.
Normally, I will walk away from such confrontations, but he had quite literally dragged me out of the cinema for this, leaving Lexia to share the duration of the film with a shocked crowd and an empty chair. I was furious.
“It’s been sitting vacant for almost a year while you were off chasing demons with Armand.”
I took a step to one side and glanced out the massive picture window to my right. Lights danced along the banks of the Thames below.
"What's that got to do with it? You sold our house!" He had been reminding me of this fact since our discussion began.
“It’s not as if you have no place to stay!” I retaliated, raising one arm to gesture to the room around us; just one small part of this impeccably designed modern apartment that he had owned for many years.
I turned my back to him then, staring out at the city below. I wondered if anyone else down there had to deal with this sort of insanity.
“Oh that's just typical of you!” He grasped my shoulder, spinning me to face him again. “Why didn't you just burn it down again? Maybe we should go back to sleeping in a crypt!”
“Will you stop making this all about you?!” I slapped his hand away. “My name was on the deed and I did what needed to be done. I will not speak of this any further. And if you ever do that to me in a public place again you will regret it! Fils de pute!”
Something changed in his eyes then. The fiery rage had been snuffed out and replaced by something far more familiar yet equally dangerous. The corners of his mouth curved into a devilish grin. My god, he was actually enjoying this. After all this time, I really shouldn’t have been surprised, but sometimes the speed at which his moods can alter still catches me off guard.
My back slammed into the window behind me with such force that I had never been so thankful for impact resistant glass. His mouth was on mine before I could even think of protesting and I found myself returning his kiss with equal fervor. Despite the humiliation of being physically dragged out of a cinema and the heated argument that followed, I could not deny that I had missed him terribly.
I tore at the buttons of his shirt as I manipulated him back toward the bed. Though this apartment was far too high up for anyone to ever see inside, the idea of us being on display behind glass still made me a little uncomfortable.
We tumbled into the nest of pillows and he rolled on top of me, pinning both of my arms down above my head with one hand as if I might try to get away. Stopping this was the very last thing on my mind.
“Connard…” I whispered into his ear with a laugh and gave a quick nip to the earlobe that happened to be within my reach. I didn’t break skin, but heard him growl in anticipation.
I felt the fabric of at the collar of my sweater tear away and he was kissing me again in a manner that would leave a mortal gasping for breath. His lips moved over my chin and his teeth dragged across the tender flesh of my throat until they reached that space between my neck and shoulder which he so loved to leave purple and bruised. I pulled my hands free of his grip and tangled my fingers into his hair, pressing against his scalp in encouragement. I hadn’t realized how badly I wanted him until that moment.
I was expecting the feeling of fangs tearing into my skin, but instead there was a gentle kiss, followed by a sigh. His weight shifted off of me and before I could reach out to pull him back, he was sitting up on the edge of the bed.
My heart was pounding with desire and it took a moment to clear my head enough to speak.
“Cher…” I said quietly, testing these unfamiliar waters. “Is something wrong?”
“No,” He mumbled. “Everything is fine.”
A few minutes of silent confusion passed during which I began to count the tiles on the ceiling. What on earth had just happened? I stared at his back and could see his arms moving. Was he actually buttoning up his shirt?
“Did I… do… something?” It was the most awkward question I had ever formulated.
“Don’t be ridiculous.”
And with that, he got to his feet and left the room. I heard the front door slam and the whir of the elevator gears as it travelled upward to retrieve him.