The dinner guests were unexpected, and it was an odd assembly. Monroe sat next to his dad, an unfamiliar man next to him, and then Cameron. Noah and Jenny were on the opposite them. Eli walked into the kitchen with steeled nerves ready to be yelled at, but from the smile he was greeted with from both Jenny and his dad it was clearly not going to happen. Not yet anyway.
"You better not have eaten yet" Jenny warned as she stood up, moving to the stove.
"Let me help with that" The stranger followed her. He cast a quick glance over Eli, and smiled when they're eyes met.
Eli lowered himself into the only vacant chair, uncomfortably placed between Noah and Cameron at the head of the table, and put the bag V had given him between his feet. Eli studied the man once more, before flitting his eyes to Cameron.
Cameron was already looking at him, as though waiting for Eli's attention to move to him. "That's Shane" He explained, "He runs the boarding house."
"You didn't text me"
Cameron flashed a quick smile, though it was half a grimace. "I wanted to surprise you." Eli's expression must have shown the discontent that immediately flashed through him, because Cameron abandoned the smile in favour of the more put out expression. His lips curved down in a frown, and his eyes shone with clear irritation. "My phone was confiscated."
"You say that as if you've been wronged" Shane chuckled as he re-joined them, bringing with him as many plates as he could balance. Two.
Cameron jerked his gaze to Shane. "I didn't do anything wrong."
"Tell that to your mother" Shane shrugged, dismissing the annoyed tone that was directed at him. "I'm not giving it back until she gives the okay"
"What did you do?" Noah asked.
Cameron narrowed his eyes at him. Noah's eyes gleamed at Cameron with a sharp unfriendliness, and Eli had no doubt his interest lied in getting to hear something bad that Cameron had done.
"The usual" Cameron smiled, while his eyes matched the sharpness that Noah directed at him. "Talking to your little brother in the middle of class."
Shane glanced warily between the two boys, and Monroe broke from his conversation with Marcus to watch the animosity unfolding.
"Eli" His dad said with a short breath, "Just because you were free to talk doesn't mean your classmates were. You should think about the situation they're in too."
Eli wanted to point out that Cameron called him, but he didn't want to say it in front of Noah. Instead he tilted his head to Cameron, drawing the eyes that were daring Noah to say more, and offered an insincere "sorry"
Cameron smiled. A smile that said he knew Eli was keeping his silence, and siding with him in the spat with Noah. "I could be moved to forgive you."
"Could you"
Noah interrupted by quizzing Cameron about soccer.
Eli noticed Jenny frowning in his direction, and wasn't surprised the others could pick up on his dislike toward Cameron. Eli drew out the book Richard have given him, distracting himself with the first few pages. A thick smell of coffee wafted up from the paper. He observed the pencil marks scratched into the margins, and identified Richard's handwriting. This must have been a book related to one of his papers.
Cameron nudged the back of his hand.
Eli moved the book away and a generous helping of food was placed in front of him. It was at least twice what he'd eat on ordinary day. Cameron chuckled.
"What?" Eli looked at his plate, it was equally heaped up.
Cameron picked up his cutlery with a headshake, "If you can't eat it all I'll finish it."
Eli relaxed enough to pout at him. He earned a savage scowl from Noah. He ducked his head down, and concentrated on the food. He didn't miss the glare Cameron returned to Noah.
The conversation of the adults continued, either oblivious to the heated looks, or ignoring them. Eli listened, and let the reason of why they were here slip to the back of his mind, as he focused instead on Monroe. V's knowledge made him look at the doctor in a different light. V's post had been from a few weeks ago, so Monroe must have encountered the creatures before Eli had gone into him. Would he have suspected the cause then of Eli's injury? He had been questioned about it...
Monroe looked over. Their eyes met. Eli was too preoccupied with finding some way of bringing the animal attacks up without being suspicious, that he merely stared at Monroe. A quizzical look was cast in his direction.
"How are you feeling, Eli?" Monroe asked warmly. Something about his tone immediately piqued Eli the wrong way. Like someone being overly sincere and overly caring in a manner that was just too far to be believed. "I hope it's not too much trouble eating?"
"No" Eli wanted to ask him. A stammer or a faltered reply would be enough of an answer. And if Monroe did respond, Eli would be giving himself away. But where was the harm in that? Why shouldn't he trust Monroe? An acquaintance of his dad was more reliable than a stranger online. V's words echoed in his head. He knew what it was. Why hadn't she confronted him about it? Well... Eli didn't have anything to lose. "I heard," Eli ventured, "You were attacked by a wild animal."
Monroe jolted.
There it was.
Monroe didn't recover himself immediately, and the food on his fork fell onto his lap. He didn't seem to notice.
"I had no idea" Jenny frowned, "You aren't injured, are you? I hope you didn't feel obligated to come tonight."
Monroe cleared his throat, looking away from Eli to her. "I'm alright. It was a small encounter in a parking lot, nothing noteworthy. I didn't think that the report was ever made public." At his last sentence, he looked pointedly at Eli.
"I saw it in the comment section of an article" Eli shrugged off the look. Shane was looking at him just as sharply. Cameron was tensed up, and a halfway grave, halfway anxious expression was focused on him.
Eli hesitated when he faced it, but he didn't know what response Cameron was seeking from him. The fact that he was reacting in the same way that Monroe was made his stomach twist uncomfortably. Maybe it was because of Kaylen? But they didn't know her disappearance had anything to with the 'animal attacks'.
Barking interrupted them.
Eli inclined his head towards the stairs. "I'm going to check on them." he scooped up the bag and the book, making his way away from the tense table companions.
He knew what it was.
And now Monroe knew he knew too.
Eli didn't know if that was good or bad.
Technically, it was good. But the tightening feeling in his chest told him he'd just made a massive blunder. It grew, until instead of returning to the dinner group, he sat on his bed instead.
The door opened. It wasn't Monroe's frame, but Cameron's that entered the room. He shut it behind him, and strode across the floor. The frown seemed to be an ingrained part of his being it fit so well.
"Eli" Cameron cupped his cheek, resting his thumb underneath the gash. "What you just said to Monroe..." He looked between the injury and Eli.
Cameron knew.
The meaning of the look was too obvious to be misread. Eli's hand trembled as he closed it around Cameron's wrist, giving it a small squeeze. There were too many sensations exploding through his chest to identify a single emotion. "What-"
"Later" Cameron interrupted with a hushed voice, and a nervous glance at the door. "We'll talk later"
"Your phone..."
Cameron's eyes flicked to the window. "Okay?"
"ok" Eli agreed.
"Come on" Cameron urged Eli out of his room, and rushed them back downstairs.
Noah scowled at their entrance. Eli was more concerned with the poorly concealed seriousness of Monroe and Shane. They both looked at Cameron as he sat down, and Cameron endeavoured to not even glance in their direction for the whole dinner. He made small talk with Eli, but by the time dinner was over Eli couldn't recall a single thing they'd talked about.
Just as they were leaving, Monroe pressed upon his dad the importance of bring Eli in for a check-up.
*
Eli paced back in forth in front of the window. The later it got, the more his anxiety grew. In a moment of clarity, in which he opened the curtains and was greeted with the view of the woods, he desperately wished he'd said no to Cameron. He didn't want anyone to be amongst those trees. Once the thought entered his head, he could only sit on the window sill, keeping his eyes peeled for any sign of movement.
He didn't want to see them. But if Cameron was coming, he needed to know if they were there.
Out of the trees Cameron's figure materialised from the darkness. He came directly from the forest. Cameron scaled the drainpipe, and lifted himself through the window with ease.
Eli, despite his anxiety, stared at him incredulously. "You make it look as easy as walking down the road"
Cameron gave him a confident smile. "It's that way with most things."
Eli closed the window, and pulled the curtains. He played with the hem of the blue drapes, suddenly hesitant to turn around.
"I thought it was Jackson" Cameron broke the silence with a soft voice, "I didn't even consider that it could have been..."
"Could have been what?" Eli turned to him.
"A rogue."
The word didn't mean anything to Eli. It hadn't turned up in any of perusing on the internet. "And what is that exactly?"
Cameron hesitated.
"why come here if you weren't going to tell me?" Eli asked irritated.
Cameron rubbed the back of his neck, his brow was furrowed. "It would be easier to explain if I knew how much you already know"
"Easier to know what to leave out, you mean"
Cameron scowled at him.
Eli felt a small prick of guilt for his own sharp tone. He moved to the bed, scooping up one of the puppies for his lap. "I know what I saw."
"It resembled a wolf, except it stood on two legs and was a whole lot bigger"
Eli pet the puppy. Cameron had just admitted that he knew what they were, and Eli wasn't happy. "How do you know that?" he stared down at the fur ball in his lap, instead of at Cameron.
Cameron sat down next to him. "It's complicated... they... ugh" he cut himself off suddenly.
Eli peeked up at his frustrated explanation.
"I don't know how to explain it to someone who..." Cameron trailed off, "They're all over the country. They appeared out of nowhere a few months ago and have been attacking certain kinds of people. They're impossible to track, it's as if they vanish from thin air after they attack someone – and take their victims with them."
Eli took in a deep breath, and decided to toss aside his apprehension and his fear for the moment. Those creatures were real, and he needed to stop wishing someone would turn around and call him crazy. He also needed almost everything Cameron just said to be elaborated for him. "Certain kinds of people?"
Cameron looked up from his wrung hands, glancing over Eli with a faint expression of surprise. He continued talking. "You're an anomaly. I didn't think it could have been them because they don't attack ordinary people. It's probably because you lived with Jackson that you were singled out." Cameron glanced away. "And being involved with me after you moved here."
Jackson and Cameron were the 'certain kinds of people' that were getting attacked? "Why are you being targeted? Why don't you fall under ordinary people?"
"I'm not allowed to say"
"You didn't sneak out here after the others went because of something you're allowed to tell me." Eli said, and from Cameron's grimace he was sure he'd hit the nail on the head. Eli took in his darting gaze, and accelerated breathing. "Let's leave that till later then. Who knows about them? The certain kinds of people?"
"We're doing our best to find them. There are traps being laid out, but ... to be honest I haven't heard about anyone successfully confronting them."
"How many is there?"
"It's impossible to tell. Enough to cause trouble in every county." Cameron glanced over Eli's cheek, "Can you .." He hesitated, but after a deep breath he began again. "Can you tell me what happened?"
Cameron listened with a tensed body, and a severe frown that worsened with each syllable. By the time Eli was finished he was shaking in agitation. The springs in the bed creaked.
"Chill out a bit" Eli murmured with a glance towards the door.
"They've been in this room." Cameron muttered back angrily, "How can you stand to be in here? How have you not fled the place already?"
Eli shrugged. "I've only ever seen them when I'm alone. I've made sure that doesn't ever happen."
"And who was with you when I got here?" Cameron scowled, "Besides what could anyone in this house do against a rogue?"
Eli returned his attention to the puppy. Renewed unease pricked at his chest. He knew that without Cameron saying it. What could anything do against something like that?
"I don't mean to scare you" Cameron sighed, "It's smart not to be alone. They avoid crowds." His head turned down, and he drummed his feet as he glared at the carpet.
Eli lay back with the puppy, waiting for Cameron to finish whatever thoughts were going through his head.
"I haven't heard about infighting before" Cameron murmured, half to himself, half toward Eli. "Which one was in the locker room?"
"I don't know" Eli stared at the ceiling, working up the courage to say what he had to next. "I ... I saw the golden eyed one when I was leaving the party" His voice lost all volume as he spoke. "And I saw Kaylen."
Cameron took his hand, and gave it a gentle squeeze. His expression was a mixture of fuming emotions that Eli couldn't identify. It was like before. Cameron's movements contrasted so sharply with his expression it was difficult to ground himself. Unlike he'd been able to do with V, Eli couldn't bring himself to ask any questions. If the answer was 'she's dead' he wasn't ready to hear it. He wouldn't ever be able to hear it.
The puppy suddenly came to life in his lap, crawled over to their hands and started gnawing on Cameron's thumb.
Cameron raised an eyebrow at it. "I was meaning to ask about these guys."
Eli couldn't help but snicker at the ferocious effort the small creature was putting into attacking.
Cameron growled.
The puppy whimpered.
"Hey" Eli shoved his shoulder, "Be nice"
Cameron looked put out when Eli cuddled the puppy, and pulled his hand away from him. "You're choosing the hairball over me?"
"It's your fault I had to choose at all." Eli pointed out. Once the puppy was settled, he turned his attention back to Cameron. He was openly frowning at the so-called hairball. "I don't want you going out there alone" Eli said quietly.
Cameron snorted, as if Eli had said something ridiculous. "You just told me that a rogue has been in your room. I'm not going anywhere."
Eli pouted, and thought about a sarcastic remark, but didn't bother voicing it. Instead he asked Cameron to get the laptop. The puppy started growling when Cameron settled next to him on the bed. Eli shushed him, and reached over Cameron to put Netflix into the bar. The endlessly spinning circle, and the bright glare of the screen made Eli aware that they were alone.
Eli banished the thoughts from his mind the moment they reappeared. No part of this was romantic. Monsters weren't romantic. Eli peeked at Cameron's expression. He was blankly staring at the movie titles.
No worry.
No apprehension.
No interest.
Eli's nerves turned to irritation. Of course Cameron wasn't affected by them being on a bed together.
Eli scooted next to him, letting his cheek rest on his shoulder and turned to the list, mirroring Cameron's position. "What are you in the mood for?"
"You can pick"
Eli pointed to the movie in the new release list.
Cameron groaned. "I hate that movie"
"You hate the main character" Eli corrected, "The one I remind you of."
"You completely missed my point" Cameron grumbled under his breath.
Eli fought back a smile. "I did. May as well tell me."
"I like you."
Eli dropped his hand. He abandoned his resolve to look only at the screen, and turned to Cameron. He moved his shaking hand, and gripped Cameron's chin turning it towards him. He opened his mouth to say something, but the words didn't come out. The green eyes looking over him were overwhelming, and Eli felt like they were seeing more than he realised. Sudden heat filled his cheeks.
An embarrassed grin grew on Cameron's lips, "From that reaction you'd swear that came out of nowhere"
"That did come out of nowhere" Eli said defensively and hotly. "If you were going to say you like me why not the other day at school? When we were... talking."
"You were in a weird mood" Cameron shrugged, "I thought you'd just make fun of me"
Eli scowled. "I wouldn't-"
"I know, I know" Cameron soothed, "Lower the volume unless you want Noah bursting in here"
Eli rolled onto his back. Cameron liked him. He'd been toying with the idea in his head – he hadn't gotten around to figuring out even remotely what their interactions had meant to Cameron. Thought about it – yes. Understood it – no. "When you say 'like' you mean –"
"Eli" Cameron laughed.
"I'm just checking!" Eli's cheeks burned even hotter.
Cameron chuckled, and turned his attention back to the screen. Eli couldn't even peek in his direction. He thought that it would give him time to calm down. It didn't. The heat in his cheeks trickled slowly into his chest, where it spread and seized control of his heart, sending it hammering.
"This one looks good" Cameron clicked into a movie.
Eli saw that his gaze was once again focused on the screen. A similar burst of irritation as before sprang to life. It gave him the courage to look at Cameron's face. His eyes were fixed away from Eli, his face a perfect mixture of boredom and relaxation – apart from the foreign colouring on his cheeks.
The irritation melted.
Eli rested his cheek on his shoulder. "Sure, let's watch it."
*
Eli woke up surrounded by suffocating heat. Disorientated, he tried to push the covers away – his movement earned a grunt of protest from Cameron. He caught the corner, and pulled the blanket back over them – pinning Eli beneath his arm.
Eli opened his eyes. He was too closely tucked against Cameron to even make out what part of him he was seeing. His arm? His chest? Eli scooted away. The back of his hand brushed against skin. He didn't have a shirt on. He was seeing his bare chest.
Soft, steady breaths fell over Eli's face.
Eli was filled with the sudden urge to see his sleeping face. He moved back enough that he could focus, and tried not to disturb the bed so he didn't wake him. His eyelashes fanned out over his flushed cheeks. His hair framed his face, with thick curls sticking to his skin, and his lips were parted slightly. Eli's eyes hovered there for a long moment, before his eyes travelled down.
His bare neck led down to his exposed chest. Eli's lips tugged down. He didn't remember him taking his shirt off. His own clung to his back and stomach, and seemed to trap the heat against his skin. He could see why Cameron would have taken it off.
Eli lay back down. Then he rolled onto his back, then rolled onto his side. His cheeks were burning again. He splayed his hand out on the empty bed beside him. The brown puppy was gone. He bet Cameron put him on the ground the moment Eli fell asleep.
The mattress dipped behind him, and the arm that he'd displaced returned around his waist. Cameron pressed against him, let out a sigh, and then his deep breaths returned.
"Are you awake?" Eli hardly raised his voice against a whisper.
No response.
Heat radiated from Cameron, and the torso half covering him didn't allow any of it to escape. Eli shifted. It didn't help. He shifted again.
Cameron let out another sigh, and nuzzled the side of Eli's neck.
Shivers raced over his skin, and unrest whirled to life in his stomach. He remained completely still, acutely aware of every millimetre of contact between them. He squeezed his eyes shut, trying to slow his breathing as Cameron settled again. This time his face rested into the crook of his neck, and his hot breath brushed down the front of Eli's shirt.
Eli shuddered. He hoped that the embarrassment and shame of being affected so much a sleeping body would lessen his sensitivity.
Cameron nuzzled his neck again. Eli almost groaned.
The deep, settled breaths behind him halted. The moment of stillness was filled the hammering of Eli's heart, then soft lips against his neck. He did groan this time.
Cameron's hand moved across his stomach, then trailed alongside to his hip. His hold stilled Eli's quaking body, and kept him fixed in place as he scooted tightly forwards, and fitting himself against Eli.
Eli took in a sharp breath, and Cameron released a hard one.
The kisses along his neck continued.
Eli struggled to take in shuddering breaths. It was already too late for cool, rational thoughts. 'I like you' started replaying endlessly in his head, and everything else disappeared.
He sunk into Cameron's grip and tilted his head back. Cameron hummed and nipped the newly exposed skin. His hips flexed forwards into Eli, and when Eli responded with a similar movement Cameron's breath hitched. He grated his teeth softly over his throat, and repeated the action. Eli responded, and Cameron released a low moan.
Cameron continued to nip and bite, muffling his moans into Eli's skin. Now that Eli was moving without guidance, his hand was free to slide over the front of Eli's pants. Eli jolted at the first contact. His fingers teased lightly against him, and after receiving no objections, pressed harder.
Eli grit his teeth and fought to keep himself quiet. His painful effort made him realise, for a sobering moment, that there wouldn't be any interruptions this time. As long as they were quiet, they could keep going.
With trembling hands, he unbuckled the front of his trousers. Cameron followed his lead, running his hand up over his stomach, then underneath his trousers, and underneath the band of his boxers. Eli shuddered. He turned his face into the pillow and bit down. Their moans and pants mixed together, and he wasn't coherent enough to discern how loud it was. He knew there was no point in trying to stop his own, any moan he managed to stifle turned into an even louder groan.
Cameron's bites became harder. They pinched his skin and were painful enough to make Eli flinch, but the momentary sting was easily forgotten in the waves of pleasure Cameron was stimulating.
Eli's rocking movement unconsciously slowed, and the unrelieved tension growing in his body made his back arch. Cameron rose onto his elbows, and moved Eli onto his back. With the pillow no longer muffling his mouth, hot pants and pleasured moans filled the air. Eli wanted to stop making those sounds. He wanted to be quiet. But the haziness that filled him only let him respond to Cameron and hope he kept going.
Cameron did keep going. The distance gave Cameron space to pull the fabric out of the way, and dispose of Eli's shirt. Eli managed to open his eyes, wanting to see Cameron – to see what expression he had right now, but his face was buried once more in Eli's neck.
Eli yelped at the pain. It was more than just a sting.
Tears pricked his eyes, but his body hovered on the edge of release, and the discomfort disappeared in an instant. Eli couldn't tell if Cameron was biting him or kissing him anymore. He slid his hands into his hair, gripping it tightly and pulling his face to his own. He kissed him hard, pulling him as close as possible.
His heat overwhelmed him and their bare skin rubbing together send him over the edge. He clung to Cameron as release racked through him, consuming every ounce of energy he possessed. Eli sank back onto the pillows, dragging in greedy gasps of air. He registered the taste of copper. Cameron shifted his weight, pulling apart their stomachs. Eli shivered at the sticky substance running down his side and onto his back, but Cameron moving broke him away from the sudden fatigue.
"I can..." Eli murmured, opening his eyes.
He froze.
Cameron waited, poised over him, with lips stained crimson and eyes glowing green.
Eli lifted his hand to his neck. He ran his fingers along his skin, and red covered it all as he pulled it away. Seeing the blood made him register the pain. But it was the vertical slit pupils staring down at him that Eli couldn't ignore. "Cameron" His voice was scarcely above a whisper. "Why are your eyes like that?"
Authors Note
I'm unsure about how explicit the mature tag on Wattpad is and whether or not the scene above falls into that category. I'd really appreciate if you could leave me your opinion about whether you think it needs to be changed. Thank you very much :)