The Bite That Binds [Kaylor] ON HOLD

[ turn you out ]

Updates probably won't always come this quickly, but you all were so nice with your feedback to the first chapter, so here you go.  Another update already.  It's kind of fluffy, but I'm just warming you up for events yet to come.  ;) ;)  I hope you all enjoy!

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Karlie was exhausted, absolutely exhausted.  Her nap had lasted two hours and only made her feel more drained.  The days after full moons were always so difficult.  She couldn’t clearly remember what her body had done last night, but obviously it hadn’t been relaxing.  Murder wasn’t really a calm activity, and she could feel the exertion aching in her muscles, reminding her of the horrible, horrible things she’d done.  She rested her chin in her palm, running her finger in circles on the rim of her wine glass.  It was empty, and it made a quiet humming noise as she sped up the motion.

The days before the full moon, she was always ravenous, breaking her careful diet like glass so she could devour whatever she wanted.  But for a day or two after the full moon, she felt parched, like someone had drained her blood straight from her veins.  Food all tasted like cardboard.  So she'd done an emmaculate job of chopping her food with her fork and making her meal look eaten, because Taylor had found this vegan restaurant for her, and it was such a sweet gesture.

The blonde was sitting across the table, making small talk that Karlie had enough sense to pay attention to.  Her responses were clipped short, however, and she could just imagine the way that Taylor's eyes were probably growing from cerulean to the clumsy, chaotic gray of an ocean before a hurricane.  She was too exhausted to make an effort, though.  She was concentrating more on not falling asleep on the table.  Wouldn't the paparazzi love that?

She was busy dizzily flipping through news headlines in her head that could come of it, and she realized far too late that Taylor had asked her a question.  The girl was looking at her with eyes filled with expectation of an answer, her lips quirking in a certain specific way.  Karlie blinked hard, physically shaking her head as though it were filled with cobwebs she needed to clear out.  The smile that pulled at her lips wasn't quite sunshine, much closer to overcast, "Sorry, baby.  What was that?"

Taylor's eyebrows dropped, tilting inwards in the way they did when she was worried.  Karlie braced herself for the onslaught, and it came gently at first, "Are you okay?  I feel like you're here, but you're not actually here."

Karlie tried to manufacture a smile that was more convincing, "I'm fine.  Just tired." She tried to keep herself steady as Taylor stared, but it was difficult with those eyes like blue fires.  The smile titled into a landslide that wobbled uncomfortably on her face.

It was the opposite of convincing, obviously, because Taylor's cherry lips pressed together into a thin line.  She tilted her head like one of her cats, and this time, her voice was a little more pointed, "Karlie, what's wrong?"

"Nothing," Karlie said, unable to control the annoyance filling her like a tornado, "I'm fine.  Jesus christ, Taylor.  Calm down."  Taylor flinched slightly at the harshness of Karlie's tone, and the model realized she'd just gone too far and taken her exhaustion out on this beautiful angel in front of her.  She could almost see Taylor's glow dimming.

Taylor's head dropped slightly, and the way she stabbed her fork into her chicken was aggressive, a high-pitched clink ringing out as the silverware knocked against the plate.  Her voice reminded Karlie of a bruise as she mumbled, "I just wanted to be sure you were okay."

A sigh filtered from between Karlie's teeth, and she reached out, finding Taylor's free hand.  She gave it a soft squeeze, feeling the warmth that simply radiated from the other girl's body.  It felt comforting, and guilt filled her up like razor blades, carving her open from the inside out.  She made a concentrated effort to speak in the same voice she spoke to Taylor in when the other woman had nightmares, "I'm really sorry, Taylor.  I still have a headache and I just don't feel well, but I shouldn't have taken it out on you."