Moonlit

10: Disjointed Connections

⚠️Trigger warnings: Mentions of cutting/depression. 

**

"Stroke of bad luck," Noah murmured, the words barely escaping his lips. His gaze lingered on Callum, who was sporting smeared lip gloss on his lips and pupils that eclipsed the golden hue of his irises. The sight twisted Noah's stomach into knots. And then there was Vera, perched on the counter with a smug grin, her own lips glistening from their heated kiss.

"I can relate," Callum said gravely, his eyes flickering with a hint of something Noah couldn't quite place. For a fleeting moment, Noah dared to hope that it'd been a flicker of guilt—only to immediately squash the feeling.

Noah's thoughts had been relentlessly seized by thoughts of Callum, the guileful wolf, ever since awakening in the makeshift medical center at the school's full moon enclosure. From witnessing this brave—stupid—wolf combat the chaotic storm caused by his magic, to hearing him whimper while entangled in a nightmare, the gentleness of their kiss, and everything that transpired in between. The events seemed to have a mesmerizing hold on Noah, shoving evening Bellamy to the back of his mind. How long had it been? Time appeared distorted ever since Callum waltz into Noah's life.

Only two—bordering three—days had passed, yet Callum had somehow engraved himself so deeply into Noah's thoughts, he could almost believe they'd spent a lifetime together. Noah could almost superimpose Callum's face, and his mannerisms, onto the wolf boy he had encountered that summer in Louisiana.

"Why not go to the infirmary?" Vera asked pointedly.

Noah felt a pang of embarrassment, his throat hurt as he swallowed against the nasty black and blue handprint bruise wrapped around his neck. He'd convinced himself of the reality of Callum's fleeting affections. That Callum's interest was purely out of curiosity about coming across a warlock, even one as helpless and pathetic as himself. But as Vera leaned over, her arms coiled around Callum like ravenous vines, Noah's heart sank.

Zach, his attention divided between Callum's steady gaze and Noah's nervous fidgeting, explained, "Nurse Aylin has her hands full. I gave Noah the neutralizer, but I didn't want him to be alone."

Vera's soft snicker sounded like a piercing cackle to Callum's ears.

"Neutralizer?" Callum questioned, though he wasn't entirely sure he wanted to know what that meant.

Vera slid off the counter, the length of her body pressed against Callum as she coiled herself tighter around him. "They work with vampires, Hun." Callum scanned Noah's face, he'd clearly been bitten by a vampire, as toxic as those bites were to werewolves, he knew other fae and humans didn't react the same. Least of all warlocks, whose immunity to poisons was among the highest of all fae-kind. He watched as Noah wrapped his arms around himself, his ears drooped low and brows crinkled inward. "Do you not know?" Vera asked amusedly. "Oh right, you're a beast-shifter, the venom is poisonous to your and Zach's kinds. But, for Noah here, it's not a deadly experience at all."

A sly smile carved her lips as her eyes fixed on Noah; Noah peered through his tousled bangs his expression urging her to divulge his every dirty little secret her heart desired. "Will someone just fucking tell me what the venom does." He growled through his teeth.

"Maybe Noah should tell you." Vera purred. "He knows all about the effects of vampire venom. Don't you?"

Callum scraped his nails against his palms, if someone didn't answer his question soon, he wouldn't be liable to the hole that would end up in the wall. His muscles tensed, unsure if Vera's touch or Noah's inability to look at him bothered him more.

"Vampire venom is a highly addictive substance." Noah clutched his stomach, his eyes lifeless as he forced them from the floor to look at Callum. Or through him, Callum felt an icy current rip through him as if Noah intentionally blurred him from sight. "It's a mixture of chemicals that weaken cognitive control and heightens..." Vera snickered silently as Noah hesitated. "Arousal." Heat flared behind Noah's eyes, his feet tottered back and forth as his mind envisioned the layout of the home, more importantly its exits.