Gathering himself up, Ben took a deep breath and pushed forward. Running up and down the boardwalk, Ben's feet were starting to pound and ache. "Evie?" He called, but no matter how many times he called her name, she never answered. Every scenario flying through his head just got worse and worse to the point Ben was making himself sick. He ran back to the atrium, trying the bathrooms. "Evie?"
"Ben?" came a shaky small voice and panic ripped through him, raking down his neck and back like a set of claws. His senses sharpening to a point of a needle, Ben grabbed the bathroom door handle, twisting and finding no give. Ben dropped his head against the door. "Evie? Can you open the door?"
She didn't respond and Ben just twisted the door again, not sure what to do. It was impossible to think when his heart was pounding inside of head. He didn't have his phone. He lost Nino too. Closing his eyes, Ben took a deep breath and threw his shoulder against the door. It felt as stupid as it hurt, but Ben still tried it again to no avail.
"Watch out," Nino whispered and Ben jumped, feeling Nino's body loom over him. He wrapped an arm around Ben's chest, holding him so close and tight, his arm resembled a seatbelt. Nino grabbed that handle, jerking it and crushing the lock inside. He forced the door open, sweeping Ben along inside.
Evie was huddled in the corner, laying her head against her arms as she sniffled. "Evie!" Ben tried walking out of Nino's hold, but Nino refused to let him go. Nino dragged Ben along, dropping in front of Evie.
"What happened? Are you burned?" Nino asked, breathing hard. He was out of breath. The back of his neck was slick with sweat. Something was wrong about him too, but he was turned away. It was hard to tell. Nino let out the tiniest sigh. He whispered in the softest voice, "I made it in time. I made it this time."
Evie showed her arms and from here, Ben could smell the burnt skin, the charred patches, and Ben swallowed what he might've thrown up.
"Somebody bumped me," Evie explained, her voice wobbly and scratched from crying. "And I- I stepped on my glasses. I thought I could use my magic to hide my eyes, but it was too much and it got too hot."
Nino cursed.
His throat tight, Ben tried not to cry and said, "I'm sorry. This is my fault." If she thought for a second she did something wrong here, Ben wouldn't be able to forgive himself.
"It's not," Nino argued, his voice as firm as a fist slamming against a table, but to Ben he wasn't angry enough. Ben deserved worse than Nino just snapping at him. "And if it is, it's mine too. I keep forgetting that... all of this, it isn't about us."
Ben nodded. They had to put themselves aside. They had to stop being selfish. Evie needed them. "At least I can make it up to her." Ben held out his arm. "Evie, you can take a bite."
"No," both vampires echoed and Ben jumped.
"I don't wanna," Evie whined and covered her mouth, but Ben caught her fangs. She did want to. She needed to.
"You are not a band-aid to fix our problems," Nino insisted, but Ben shook his head.
"It's not a band-aid, it's a solution. We can't hide out in this bathroom all day. People are going to come and we're gonna get kicked out." Ben grabbed Nino's arm to pull him off when Nino flinched. Nino never flinched. Ben grazed his forearm, its roughness and heat prickled Ben's skin.
He gasped. "You're burned too?" He shifted, pulling away just enough to get a good look at Nino too. His beautiful golden brown skin was cracked and splintered like dry snake scales. Pieces had blackened and were red and raw in other places. Even the white of his eyes had pinked around those horrible blood red irises. "You look like shit," Ben said, his voice darkening. "You want to get Evie out of here? Bite me. She doesn't know how to make it not hurt me, so you should bite me first."
"Ben." Nino shook his head, pulling away from him. He was always pulling away from him. "I don't like the trade of us feeling better at your expense. I don't want you to get hurt because of us."
"It's for you," Ben pleaded, finding it difficult not to yell. "Not because of you. I'm desperate here. Let me do this. It's all I'm good for."
"That's not true."
"Nino," Ben insisted and grabbed his face. He felt too warm, like he was sick with a fever. "We're not having this argument. You and I both know it's our only option."
Nino still hesitated. He wouldn't say it, so Ben had to do it. The more he spoke up, the easier it became, the more comfortable Ben felt speaking his mind. "If you bite me, it doesn't mean I think the only thing between us is a vampire and a human. If you bite me, I won't think you're using me. If you bite me, I'm not scared of you. I couldn't be." Ben put on a smile, praying this was getting through. That he was finally moving him. "Not when I'm your favorite taste. Not when I know you take the best care of me."
Nino still paused and in this dark room, Ben just had to count on this vampire being able to see his sincerity. Sighing, Ben stood up and declared, "If you don't bite me, I'll just have to find something to gash my arm-"
Wincing, Nino snatched his wrist. "That's not funny."
"I'm not joking."
Nino shook his head. He held Ben's wrists, tugging him so gently to bring him back down. Ben met his eyes, and he could see all the cogs in his brain whizzing and whirling. It seemed manic in there, a stark contrast to the silence between them.
"What? Tell me what you're thinking," Ben tried coaxing him. "What you're really thinking."
"You're doing too much for a house."
Ben shook his head. "It stopped being about a house a long time ago." Nino's hands still holding his wrists, Ben touched Nino's face, cupping this look of disbelief and awe. Ben told him with his full chest, "I wanted to do this for you. To be able to help the people I love the most in the world is all I want to do. I don't regret anything. I'll never regret a single thing I do for you. Ever. Even if you tell me you never want to see me, even if one day you hate me, I'll never regret saving your life. Ever."
"I don't deserve you," Nino said.
"It's not about that. It's about what I want. Now, I want you to bite me."
There was something at the very edge of Nino's tongue. There were a few words he was battling himself on whether to say or not, but he shook his head and took a deep breath. "Are you ready?" He asked.
Ben tensed. "Yes."
A sharp pain cut through Ben's neck and back like a quick tug. Then, the familiar warmth poured in and Ben was swimming in a cloudy haze of warm honey and sugar. It was so sweet, he burned the tip of his tongue. Ben gasped, shaken and his knees buckled. Nino wrapped an arm around his back, keeping him stable and Ben clung to him, pressing his face against Nino's skin.
Ben tapped Nino's shoulder, tapping out, remembering Evie still needed to feed and if he was getting light-headed now, he didn't look forward to a few minutes from now.
Nino used his strength to let go and detached, licking up the wound and making Ben tremble. Ben let out a labored breath.
"Evie, your turn," Ben said and offered his arm.
Evie shook her head. "I don't like it."
"Well, I won't let you hurt me."
"You won't need much," Nino said in his normal voice and Ben thought he might weep from the sound. He was going to be alright. His words were so sweet as Nino coaxed her, "Just enough to feel better, okay?"
"Close your eyes," Ben instructed. "You don't have to look."
Evie nodded. She scooted up and with trembling hands, took Ben's arm and closed her eyes. She bit down on the meat of Ben's forearm, and he straightened up, his blood going ice cold. The pain cut through all the sweetness and sobered Ben up. Nino rubbed his back and Ben just bowed his head, squeezing his fists together, baring the pain as best as he could, squeezing a tear out the side of his eye. He hated pain. It made him panic, set the alarms off in his head and he couldn't relax when his instincts told him to run.
"Alright, you're good, Evie," Nino said, but she didn't move, her shoulders shuddering. Nino moved over. "Evelyn. Let go."
Nino hooked his finger in her mouth and used his other hand to pull her back by her shoulder. She detached, her fangs ripping some skin on the way off and Ben fully dipped forward, focusing on his breathing. His body felt too heavy to lift, but his head was high in the clouds.
"Let's go home," Ben said and picked his head up too fast. Nino gasped and before Ben's head hit the ground, Nino's hand cradled the back of his head, slowly resting Ben on the ground.
Darkness came for him in a flash and when he opened his eyes, they were still in the bathroom. He looked around and smiled to see Evie and Nino look healthy again.
"You can close your eyes," Nino said. "Rest. I got you."
"I've got you," Ben corrected him, a little delirious. His arm and neck were pounding. His whole body ached, and he couldn't believe how cold he felt, but he did as Nino asked and closed his eyes, feeling like a ragdoll as Nino slid his jacket around Ben. He appreciated the warmth, but it also hid the marks. By the time Ben was on Nino's back again, they were outside and Ben soaked up the warmth to feel good enough to fall asleep.
***
Waking up, Ben found himself in Nino's bedroom. He was walking back and forth, and Ben could hear Nino packing. Ben forced himself to open his eyes. Nino was almost all packed up. Ben admired Nino for just a minute more, happy to see his color return. He was at full height. Brown eyes. Silky shiny hair. Ben didn't think he was ever going to get over the fact he could do all of that for him.
"Where are we going?" Ben asked.
Nino stopped in his tracks. He let out a relieved sigh. "You're awake." He dropped to his knees at Ben's bedside, stroking his cheek and fixing his hair. There was a worried wrinkle in the middle of his brow that Ben didn't have the strength to smooth out. "How are you feeling?"
"Sick," Ben admitted. He lifted his arms and hesitantly, Nino leaned in close enough for Ben to wrap his arms around him. He brought Nino in for one long hug, taking a deep breath while squeezing him with all his might and with less blood than he had yesterday, it wasn't a lot.
"That was kind of a pun," Ben said and let his hands drop. Closing his eyes and swallowing some of the nausea dragging him down. Despite Ben always being hilarious, Nino didn't seem like he was in the mood to appreciate it. Glumly, Nino kneeled down with a permanently pinched brow. If he wasn't a vampire, Ben would be worried he'd have premature wrinkles. A bunch of worry lines Ben might as well have drawn himself.
Nino ran his hand through Ben's bangs and Ben suddenly realized he could see just fine without his glasses. That was when the day's events flooded back to him, and his smile flipped. The tension in the air was suddenly so obvious now. He asked again, "We're leaving, right? When are we going?"
"Tonight," Nino said.
Ben's brows perked up. "So soon?"
"You should read this..." Nino walked over the nightstand, charging both of their phones. He grabbed Ben's burner phone, turning it on for him and zipping through until he showed Ben the screen. It was a series of text messages. An unknown number, but Ben recognized the phone all the same. The sender made it clear immediately.
Freddie: Hey Ben. It's Freddie. I'm not sure where you are or what's going on, but Lincoln fell down a flight of stairs.
Ben tried popping up, but Nino must've known because his hand pressed against Ben's chest, keeping him there. Taking a shaky breath, Ben grabbed the phone and kept reading, leaving Nino free to keep packing.
Freddie: He's been taken to the hospital. I understand if you can't come. I'll keep you updated.
"Keep you updated?" Ben repeated. He turned, staring down at Nino shoving all his socks into the pocket. "That was hours ago, and he hasn't texted back."
"I know," Nino said.
"What?" Ben pushed himself up, almost blown back over by a wave of nausea so strong it made his eyes water. He gripped the edge of the bed. "What am I going to do? I gotta get back, but we can't go back to the city. I'll go by myself—"
"Don't you dare get up," Nino said before he could. Ben's blood must've done too good of a job and gave Nino the power to read minds. He walked back over, sliding his hands over Ben's neck. Ben swallowed, doing everything he could to keep from sobbing. He felt awful inside and out, his body and heart aching at once. "We leave on a plane early tomorrow morning. I've booked a hotel. We're going to figure it out."
The tears built up, overwhelmed Ben too much and his chin trembled, his nose flared, everything threatening to burst and fall apart. Teardrops snuck out and they fell down his cheek. Nino's thumbs reached out and swiped them away, caressing his hot cheeks with his cool hands. Nino whispered, "The only thing I want you to worry about is resting. Evie volunteered to pack your stuff and once I'm done, I'll help her."
Ben nodded, unable to speak or he'd probably lose it. Nino pulled him in, burying Ben's face into his stomach and Ben wrapped around him. "It's okay," Nino whispered. "It's okay." He rubbed the back of Ben's head, letting him cry until he could sit up anymore.
They let him sleep.