cross my heart and hope to die (epic vampire au) part one 2/2
“Peter, that was Doctor Hurley.” Patrick explained, coming back into the hotel room. He had gone to the bottom floor of the hotel, and then into a crowd to talk on his phone to his associate so that Pete couldn’t hear. “They know we were in, and have left, Chicago.” As Patrick spoke, he pulled his suitcase up, putting his overnight gear back in, locking it up. “He booked us a flight, gave us enough time for you to feed. Put our things in the car, I’ll clean the room up and kill our trail in the hotel. Don’t come back in the hotel at all, the pizza restaurant a few buildings down? Wait for me in front of it after you take the things. Give me an hour. Don’t feed yet.”
So Pete did as Patrick said, took their things to the car and locked it up, putting the keys in his pocket and taking a sporadic route to get to the restaurant, going around buildings and generally making a mess of his scent. Leaving something that would confuse the hell out of them in places where it would get stomped on my thousands and thousands of people, tires, and kiosks.
When Patrick got there, he looked antsy, muttering lowly to Pete, “Take your time. We’ll be on a plane for about seven or eight hours. Find someone who’ll last you. But, our flight leaves in three hours. Keep that in mind.”
“What about all that shit in your car?”
“We can take some of it with us. The car and the other stuff, Jo-Doctor Trohman will be bringing. We rendezvous with them after a few days bouncing around in Europe.”
“You’re going to run with me until you die?” Pete asked after a few minutes of walking around.
“No.” Patrick said, “They won’t follow us when we get back into the states in Alaska.”
Pete paused, “There aren’t enough people for me to . . .” he trailed off.
“Our second facility is in the final stages. It’ll be open for good by the time we get there in a week and a half.”
Pete snarled under his breath, balling his fists up into his pocket and resisting the urge to lash out and kill the doctor, without even tasting. “You’re locking me back up?”
“Yes.”
“Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t kill you right now.” Pete hissed into Patrick’s ear, pulling him close as if he were a brother or a close friend.
“Because then you’ll never be safe. Your friends will forget their anger. My company won’t. There are records kept that go all the way back to the Renaissance. I bet they don’t remember what they had for dinner a week ago.”
“You’re filthy, doing that to me.”
“You’re a murderer. I’ve seen you kill two people. I have proof you’ve killed more. You’ll be a scientific anomaly. They’ll dissect you while you’re breathing. They’ll torture you, study you, and then they’ll kill you. I’ll go to jail, for not turning you in of course but there were prisoners in my company yes? I’m a good enough actor to go insane, to say I got some sick pleasure from it. My company will get me, they’ll pull me out of the jail cell and give me my old room back. I will not suffer at all.”
“Fucking extortionist.” Pete hissed, seething-ready to throw himself off of a building and into something because he was so stupid.
Pete snapped his head up in sudden alarm, mind ripped from their conversation. “Whatever you do, stay close to me, don’t panic and don’t speak. You say you’re a good actor, Doctor Stump? Prove it to me, act like you’re under my complete control if you want to live.” Pete muttered into his ear, voice barely but a whisper.
Pete put his arm around Patrick’s shoulder, practically draping himself over the human-the façade of ownership completed by Patrick’s subtle leaning into him and away from the crowd. It was a quick click, it seemed like they had had more time to prepare than they were actually given. They ushered over to the side of the street-almost in an alley way and were quickly greeted by a couple.
“Pete. You got out?” The speaker was a deathly pale, lanky brunette who had his arm draped around an equally pale black-haired girl’s shoulders. They both emanated collected cold.
Pete put on a warm smile and laughed, “Yup, finally. I kicked them where it hurts, got one of their own.” He said, patting Patrick on the shoulder and urging him closer, “You and Alicia, that’s great Mikey.”
The brunette nodded and smiled sheepishly, “It’s a little cliché, but it works, right honey?”
She nodded, scrutinizing Patrick carefully, “You’re not going for a repeat with Ryan, are you, Pete? You haven’t done anything to him yet, he smells so clean.”
Pete’s smile faded, “He’s mine.” He said, voice almost falling into a predatory growl.
Alicia chuckled a little, “Only Pete Wentz. Listen, be careful. Ross didn’t deserve that, despite being an annoying little fuck. Kiss him or kill him, both if you’d like. Just don’t let him go until he knows the rules.” She said, “He’s too cute to go to waste. And, if you go with Option A or B? Let us know.”
Mikey grinned a little, “You know where to find us.”
Pete nodded, chuckling lightly, “Yeah, I do.”
“What’s his name?”
“Patrick.” Pete said, grinning brightly and proudly.
The couple chuckled, “You’re such a kid Pete. You should drop by our place! Gerard’s in for a while. He’d love to see this kid, he’d probably get a kick out of drawing him!”
“As I’ve said before, he’s mine.” Pete hissed, “Gerard gets too up close and personal with who he draws.”
Mikey chuckled, “I understand. You’re busy. Give me a call next time you’re in the area and have some extra time. You’re never an intrusion, to Alicia and I at least.” He said, ulterior meaning laced into the words.
“Yeah, that’d be nice. But I think I need to stay low. William and I are in a scuffle.” Pete said, scrunching up his nose as if it was only a trivial inconvenience.
Alicia looked from Pete to Mikey, “Yeah, we understand. We won’t tell him, or any of his henchmen, you were here. We like you more than him.” She said, cheerily. “You’re safe with us anytime, Petey. And if it comes to a fight? Gerard knows some old hardcore dudes. You know that. We’ll kick the shit out of them.”
Pete smiled with relief, “Thanks guys.” He said, reaching over a pecking a kiss on each of their cheeks, “We better run. We’re globe trotting, tonight. Meeting up with some penpals, so to speak.”
“Mmkay. Let us know how it goes.” Alicia snickered, returning Pete’s favor and placing a kiss on his cheek-reaching over and pressing her lips to Patrick’s temple tenderly, “Be good for him, he needs someone.” She said to Patrick, smiling warmly. It took all Patrick had not to flinch away.
Mikey rolled his eyes and smiled, “Bye, Pete. Come by when the storm has passed.”
“Of course. I owe you guys.”
“We know you do.” The lanky vampire chuckled, and the two of them departed as quickly as they had come. Pete kept his grip on Patrick tight and just as possessive for a while more, before finally relaxing.
“If I ever sense another vampire, that’s the first thing you need to do. Act exactly like that. Because they’ll smell me all over you, They need to think you’re mine. Then they won’t touch you.”
“I’m fair game . . .?” Patrick trailed off, the question hanging in the air-but Pete picked it up immediately.
“If they smell me but don’t see me, unless you’ve got a bruise, right there.” Pete said, looking as if he was about to put his arm around Patrick’s shoulders-instead just brushing his fingers against the bruise on his neck before putting his hand back in his pocket.
“You marked me?”
“I had too.” Pete shrugged, “I wanted too. I would almost go so far to say as I needed too.”
“How often?”
“A lot can change in twenty-four hours. It needs to be freshened up every night.” Pete grinned, manically, “We really need to learn to start trusting each other. I’ve got a week and a half to do all sorts of things to you. It’s all okay as long as I don’t kill you and we can still travel, right? I doubt your company is going to extend all hell towards me for anything that I do. After all, I’m only inhuman, and we’re very, very selfish need-based creatures, as you know.”
Patrick turned red, “Find what you’re looking for, I’m getting a hot dog.” He muttered, stopping at a hot dog stand a few feet away, standing in the short line and buying one.
Pete stood next to him, “It doesn’t bother you, make you sick-what I have to do?”
There was a moment of contemplation before he took a bite of it and looked around vaguely. “No. But I’m a Doctor, a Scientist. I imagined it would be worse.”
“You’re strange for a human.” Pete muttered, eyes turning-catching something, “Follow me close, I love Mikey and Alicia to death but they’ll be looking for you so I don’t want you to get lost.” He grabbed at Patrick’s empty hand, ushering him towards the crowd. They kept on in what seemed to be a big mass of people-but slowly the crowd started thinning as they pulled off of main streets-and, finally, it was clear to Patrick who Pete was following with his dark eyes and concentrated movements.
A tall boy, dark haired with glasses, and very bony. Patrick noticed the vague outline of Mikey in the boy, what Pete caught as a physical reminder. The same way as before, he lured the boy into a back alley off of a back road-pressing him against a wall at first, sinking his teeth in and drinking.
The boy struggled at first, but fell predictably quiet after a few minutes. Patrick watched, and eventually the boy slumped up against the wall-still alive. Pete did something different this time, biting at his own thumb and spreading the drops of blood over the wounds in the boys neck, watching as they healed up and then wiping the blood off.
“He’s unconscious. He won’t feel any pain, he’s barely got enough blood left to survive. He put his teeth just below the inside of the boys elbow and carefully used one fang to rip open the vein inside, long ways-blood gushing out.
Patrick sighed, “Let’s go.”
Pete closed his eyes and chuckled a little, “We’re right around the corner. I paid good attention.”
***
“I hate airports.” Pete muttered, “I hate airplanes. They drive me crazy.”
“I can understand why.” Patrick muttered in response. “It must be difficult.”
“There’s so much to take in, too much to take in. And the planes-they’re very, very loud. It’s difficult.”
They picked up their tickets and had their luggage-each one of them with a suitcase (those missing hours since they arrived in New York City were spent collecting a wardrobe for Pete) and the rest of the stuff locked up tight in Patrick’s car.
“When we get to Alaska . . .” Pete trailed off, “Is it going to be like before?”
Patrick was silent for a moment, “It couldn’t be the same now that you’ve gotten this taste of freedom, could it? Doctor Hurley told me you’ll have more freedom, your own room. Your movements will still be limited within the building, but you won’t be in that same room.”
“What about food?”
“We’re still working on your dietary plan.”
Pete closed his eyes for a moment, “I feel like a cliché asking this, Am I ever going to be free again, Doctor?”
“Once you’re no longer a threat to society.” Patrick said, softly, “We’re trying to save people, at my Company. I’m trying to save you.”
Pete laughed, “No matter what diet I’m on, the bloodlust isn’t going to go away.”
“Do you want to hurt people? Do you not want to help people, to become slightly human again?” Patrick asked, keeping his cool the best he could manage.
Pete smiled wistfully, putting his arm around Patrick’s shoulders, “I’m a monster, Doctor. There’s nothing on this green earth or beyond it that could change the fact.”
“Not even me?” Patrick asked, eyes cutting to the side to look at Pete, dark with something-oh, wait. The Doctor leaned in close, putting his arm around Pete’s waist-hand resting on his hip, fingers digging in slightly.
“Not here, God Almighty, not here.” Pete hissed, senses suddenly hyper-aware of everything that was Patrick-everywhere they were pressed together (the chafe of their legs as they kept walking forward), Patrick looking at him with dark eyes, and the sheer lust radiating from his body (in scent and in the way his heart was racing and his eyes seemed vaguely darker) and it was all together to much. Pete pulled away and glared at Patrick. Pete could already feel the blood racing through and burning his veins. He couldn’t help but lean closer and he had to resist the urge to bury his face in Patrick’s neck. “Stupidest fucking Doctor in the world.”
Patrick grinned softly, “We’re boarding now.”
***
“You don’t fucking do that in public.” Pete snarled at Patrick, once the door was shut and locked to their (rather nice) London hotel, “I could have easily snapped and killed you.”
“But you didn’t.” Patrick said, putting his suitcase down-calmly-and walking over to Pete, pressing his lips to Pete’s softly.
“God, suicide mission.” Pete hissed, pushing him away, “Not until after I feed.”
“Just before we left-“ He seemed flustered suddenly, almost disappointed.
“You do things to me, God you don’t even know.” Pete muttered, lips suddenly pressed just to the blue-violet splotch of color on Patrick’s neck. “I want-God, I want . . .” His eyes, onyx black to prove his thirst, raised to meet Patrick’s.
Patrick pressed flat against the wall, careful to keep his breathing steady, “Feed. Then you can . . . It’s daylight, so it’s dangerous. We’ll have to be-“
“No. You can’t go with me.” Pete hissed, “Not if you’re saying I can-no, I won’t control myself. I won’t stop myself, won’t be able to.” He pulled away abruptly and left the room in a storm.
***
By the time Pete came back it was dark outside-and he came in through the balcony. Patrick was shocked for a moment, they weren’t exactly on the first or second floor-more like the tenth, but didn’t say anything. He had blood on his jacket.
“Ran into some punk fledglings, Got into a little fight.” Pete shrugged the unasked question off, Patrick closed his computer and put it on the nightstand. Pete was right next to him in a flash of movement, leaning over the side of the bed, “You sure you want to do this?” he asked, grin full force on his lips.
“Would you even let me say no, at this point?”
“No.” Pete whispered, voice gruff, “Kiss me.”
***
Pete turned his head just a little bit, and there that throat was, he tilted just a little bit, and licked just over the bruise. Patrick shifted his hips and Pete couldn’t help it. Everything just melted in at once-and suddenly his teeth were sinking into flesh.
Patrick’s eyes shot wide open, but he couldn’t bring panic to bubble up at the surface over the intensity. Instead, he just rocked his hips and tilted his head back. He couldn’t say no to Pete, he couldn’t. Especially not like this.
Pete moaned against Patrick’s throat, “So fucking long.” He muttered, lapping up the blood from the shallow marks as Patrick rocked against him. Pete shuffled his hand around, finally touching Patrick.
***
“You taste perfect.” Pete muttered into the crook of Patrick’s neck, protectively sprawled across him.
“’m tired.” Patrick said, voice hoarse-expression sated.
“I know you are.” Pete whispered, “It’ll be okay. We can hang out here for a day or two, and then we’ll go do whatever it is we have to do to meet up with your friends.” He muttered, fingers dancing softly over the smooth skin of Patrick’s throat.
For once, Pete, too, felt perfectly sated. He hadn’t felt that way in an incredibly long amount of time that he didn’t feel like checking.
“I’ll stay here with you, and I’ll watch over you. I can bring you anything you need.”
Patrick rolled onto his side-almost curling up against Pete underneath the blankets. “I’m sorry, Pete.”
“For what?” Pete asked. Humans who were fed from, but not earnestly fed from, tended to be delusional. Pete had taken just a little more than he needed for a taste-it was nothing Patrick would “regret in the morning” (no, that was saved for their other activity). He might be tired and sore (from both things), but he would be fine in a day or so.
“This is all a trap.”
Pete went rigid, pulling away, “Explain, now.” He hissed.
Patrick looked intensely somber as he spoke, “Most of its true, all of it. Except that William, and your friends; they’re coming after me, not you. The other doctors set this all up for my protection.”
And in that instant, the Doctor had never been more terrified of the Vampire as he stood up and snarled-looking everything that he was supposed to be dangerous and horrific.
“It took them a long time to figure out it was me who caught you, but they did. They found out we were moving you, that I was moving you. They were going to kill me and take you back.” Patrick said, soft and tired, trembling slightly. “But we left ahead of the schedule their informant gave them.”
Pete snarled, growling, “I shouldn’t have stopped myself. They were right. They always have been. Humans are filthy, worthless liars. I hope you burn in your pathetic hell.” In a blur of shapes and air, Pete tore across the room and dressed before opening the balcony window and jumping.
The Doctor closed his eyes and fell asleep.