~Achilles~
"So, you have a week off from work right?" I put product in my hair before smoothing out the strands at the front to make them look more sleek. Xander was beside me in the bathroom brushing his teeth. The en suite connected to Xander's bathroom had his and her sinks or in this case his and his.
I forgot sometimes that Xander was seriously wealthy. I was getting too used to filtered water and the sheer luxury of the way Xander lived.
Xander nodded before spitting out tooth paste, and then rinsing out his mouth before rinsing the sink. He walked over to me, taking a comb and fixing my hair.
I sat down on the seat in front of the mirror and watched Xander attend to my hair, feeling very well cared for. I suddenly got the desire to shift and have Xander scratch me behind my ears. I didn't shift very often around him outside of on full moons but I wanted to change that. I closed my eyes, enjoying the feel of Xander's fingers in my hair. God, this could be my life forever. "I can take off a couple days this week so that we can do something," I said, looking at Xander's movements through the mirror. He was only stroking his fingers through my hair now, a calm expression on his face. "Like a spa, or maybe a hike."
"You've been spoiling me since Valentine's day. If you start treating me like this all the time I might grow to expect it," his voice was low and soft.
"Oh, Xander." I sighed, "Would it be such a terrible thing if you did expect it?"
He bit his lower lip, mumbling, "I guess not."
I stood up from my seat, cupping Xander's face to give him a quick, hard kiss. "If you're not busy today meet me for lunch at my workplace. There's this great sushi place across from where I work. My treat."
Xander smiled slowly, squeezing my bicep, "Okay, Mr.Wolf, you got me. I can't resist sushi. When's your lunch hour?"
"Twelve thirty, and it's a date?" I searched his face, wondering if everything was really okay.
Xander walked me to his front door and he gave me a leisurely kiss on the lips, "It's a date. Have a good day, Achilles."
#
"That's not how you hold chop sticks, Achilles." Xander whispered loudly to me at the table.
I was fumbling with the sticks a bit, feeling like maybe it had been a while since I'd had sushi. The place across my workplace was a little froufrou, with dark marble floors, high ceilings, abstract art I didn't understand on the walls and one wall of the place was all windows. I could see the kitchen from where we were seated and the person preparing the sushi wasn't even Asian. I wasn't sure how I felt about that.
Although, I did like that the place had private booths with high backs and that there was an ipad on a stand on the table where we could select what we wanted to eat.
—
—y'all know these right? —
Our seat was along a window so we got a nice view of the city, sunny blue skies with thick, fast moving clouds. The last of winter snow was finally thawing, and flowers were just beginning to bud.
Xander touched my wrist. "Watch me." He made a few motions with his hands and I copied them, successfully picking up a California roll.
We had ordered a lot of different food options but everything Xander had got was some different kind of vegetable based sushi, or vegetable tempura. I was still surprised that he didn't shrivel up and die without meat or fish or most dairy. He still hadn't gained the bit of weight he had lost before he started seeing his psychologist and it made me worry. But, Xander did eat, even if it was vegan kale smoothies, tofurkey, or cauliflower with barbecue dressing. If he would just ate a damn burger, maybe I wouldn't worry.
Xander seemed a bit absent minded, playing with my foot under the table. He was dressed very casually in a t-shirt and sweats, and it was by far the most normal thing I'd ever seen him wear. He drank his miso soup slowly with his eyes closed.
"What'd you do today?" I said around a mouthful of a salmon maki roll. I drenched my next maki roll in soy sauce as he responded.
Xander raised his eyes up to me. "Achilles, my dear, please don't talk with your mouth full."
"Shit," I said swallowing. "Sorry."
"It's been four hours since I last saw you, what makes you think I've done anything?" His voice sounded oddly careful.
"You smell like you've been out." I said slowly, stealing a California roll from Xander's plate since he'd stopped eating.
Xander sighed, "I don't know, I've just been thinking." He put down his chopsticks on a napkin and started removing the seeds from his edamame, fingers a blur.
"Okay." I prodded, waiting for Xander to say something as I got through a few pieces of sashimi.
"I really like you." Xander said slowly, breaking apart his edamame.
I smiled, "Okay. I like the sound of that."
"I like this, I like us." But, Xander wasn't smiling back.
I frowned. "So, what's the problem?"
"The letter I got last night was from my father. I haven't spoken to him in a while." Xander was talking quickly, long, slender fingers removing the seeds from the edamame at a rapid fire pace. "He was apologizing. Saying that he knows he doesn't deserve it but he wanted to meet up for coffee. I-" Xander paused, wiping his fingertips on a napkin and then worrying his necklace. "I went, but then...I just couldn't listen to anything he was saying. I just got so angry. All those lost years," Xander vehemently shook his head. "My first boyfriend, my first serious relationship. He wasn't there for any of that, and we were so close before I came out. We used to play duets together and compose songs when I was a kid. He was such a good dad and then he decided not to be. So. I left. And, I don't know if it makes me a bad person-"
"I don't think anything could make you a bad person, Xander." I said softly.
Xander gave me a forced smile, picking up his chopsticks again. "So, I told him I can't be around him for a bit, and that I need to think about it. He's staying in my mom's hotel downtown."
"Wait, your parents got back together?"
Xander grimaced. "Gross, I hope not. My mom owns a couple hotels, just like-" he gestured broadly, "-around the world. But, she's one of the managers for the Ananse downtown and it's where most vamps stay when they visit this city." Xander paused, eyes widening. "Oh my God. He probably is trying to get back with my mom. Maybe that's why he apologized to me."
"Maybe he genuinely feels bad." I suggested, tapping away on the ipad for more sashimi, and tempura for Xander.
Xander frowned, a stubborn line forming between his brows. It looked like he wanted to keep talking about the subject but then the features of his face smoothed. "You know," Xander's voice dropped an octave. "Maybe I don't feel like bottoming anymore."
I choked on my sashimi, everything going down the wrong way. I slapped my hand down on the table while coughing, accidentally upending my small tray of soy sauce and getting the substance all over the table and on my dress shirt. I picked up a glass of water, just as our waitress arrived, asking me if everything was okay. Instead of snapping at her that everything was obviously not okay, I gurgled down my glass of water and glared at Xander until she left.
"You," I said, pointing my finger at Xander. "Did that on purpose."
Xander's eyes widened. "Woah, that was a big reaction."
I stuttered, "Well, I-I-I don't know." I turned away but I could feel Xander staring hard at me, before a slight gasp.
"Oh." Xander nudged my foot beneath the table, the touch soft and somehow making me feel warm. "You've never done it like that."
My face was hot, and I felt like Xander may as well have been speaking into a megaphone. "Xander, I swear, sometimes I feel like you get this perverse pleasure out of embarrassing me."
He laughed in the way that I couldn't help but love with a mischievous squint of his eyes. "Did I do that? And we'll talk about it at home, I guess. I kind of want to buy some toys, too."
I did not even want to know what kind of toys he wanted so I gently pushed the conversation in a more safe for work environment. Like how Xander's sister would be visiting in a couple days and how he wanted us to meet.
Eventually, it was getting close to the end of my shift and Xander promised to go home and get me a change of clothes. After I paid the bill and we kissed goodbye I went back to work.
#
Xander texted me that he was downstairs with a new shirt and I excused myself from the office to greet him in the lobby. I hummed happily in the elevator, excited to see Xander even though it had been less than an hour I'd been in a handful of relationships but nothing as fulfilling as this one.
I stepped out of the elevator and saw Xander waiting for me by the concierge desk. He gave me a little wave as I walked over, he was holding a small bundle in his hands.
The secretray pretended not to noticce us as we kissed slowly, Xander spreading his hand over my chest as I cupped his head.
Xander gave me a soft smile as he opened the bag showing me the contents. "Your shirt is wrapped up at the bottom, but I also included a kale shake because they're so good. Honestly, Achilles, they're to die for."
I laughed. "I have work, Xander. I don't have time for you to convince to try one of your green shakes."
Xander closed his eyes for a second, the smile dissapearing from his face. "Ah." he said in a strangely pained voice. He opened his eyes and they were completely dialated, with a small almost invisbale rim of green surrounding the pupil. Xander swayed, and my heart stopped. He dropped the bag he was holding and the smoothie container clattered to the ground. Xander's mouth opened and it looked like he was trying to say something but nothing came out before he fell to the floor.
I followed him down, not sure what I was saying but feeling panic overtake me. The secretary stood up coming over to us.
"Is he okay? Should I call an ambulance?"
I touched Xander's face seeing it turn sallow as he jaw fell slack. I breathed heavily, and I couldn't think. My hands shook as I touched his face. "Open your eyes, Xander." I looked up at the secretary forgetting she was there. "I don't—don't know. He-"
And then he opened his eyes, slowly, blinking in confusing and grabbing me by the forearms. His teeth started chattering as he spoke, "Help me."
I shook my head, confused. "Xander, I don't know what to do."
He tried to stand but couldn't and the secretary helped me bring him to his feet. He was shudering, nostrils flared as he breathed harshly, shirt soaking with sweat as he took one shaky step after another. We made slow progress and based on Xander's painful walk outside,
His voice was so terribly quiet, "Thank you, ma'am, I'll be okay now. Achilles will help me."
I shot a frantic look at him, but he only stared hard at the secretary until she hesitated. "Okay, I'll leave you to it." She sounded afraid, watching the way Xander seemed unable to get enough air. Then, she looked to me. "I'll tell the office an emergency has come up." She looked betweeen Xander and I with an odd expression on her face. "Okay. I hope he feels better."
Xander started whispering in a low voice as soon as she was out of earshot. "My body is having a bad reaction to blood. I need you to drive me to a vampire hospital and call Elle so she can meet us there."
"What can I do?" I whispered, very carefully helping Xander into his car.
He sat slumped in the passenger's seat, face slick with sweat, as he struggled to keep his eyes open. Hands shaking, Xander struggled to remove his cell phone from his fanny pack. He dialed quickly, and spoke into the phone, "This is Alexander Von Ostemeier, I'm reporting a code red. ETA is ten minutes." I watched in horror as Xander's breaths were coming shorter and shorter. "I'm dizzy...sweating...and I've passed out once. Someone's driving." Xander entered the address into the gps in his car before promptly passing out. He slumped down into his seat in an unnatural position and his phone clattered to the floor of the car.
The calm voice of the gps was filling the space of the car and Xander just sat there, terribly silent and unconscious. I shook Xander for a second, harder and harder but he didn't wake up. His head flopped forward like it wasn't connected to his neck, and I saw his eyes had rolled back. I made an uncertain noise just wanting him to open his eyes and be okay. But, he wasn't okay.
I tried to calm down, but I couldn't and I was scared, hearing the small voice still coming from his phone. I bent down to pick it up, holding the phone to my ear while beginning to follow the gps instructions to the vampire hospital.
"Hello?" The woman on the other line said again.
It took me a while to find my voice. but when I did it was broken. "I don't know what to do. He's just...Oh my fucking God. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck."
The woman's voice was eerily smooth, "Please try to stay calm, sir. Can you describe your friend's symptoms to me?"
I was looking at Xander more than the road, and I swerved around a car, hearing a litany of honks as I tried to focus on the gps.
"What?" I said after the woman repeated her questions.
"Your friend? How is Alexander doing?"
I swallowed hard, squeezing the wheel with my free hand until my knuckles turned white. "He's my boyfriend."
"Oh?"
"I've never had one before. And he's got the nicest laugh, and the best singing voice. And he won't wake up." I tried to inhale but it came out wet and broken. "Yesterday was Valentines day and we had dinner and he looked amazing because he always does." I stole a glance at Xander, feeling like this couldn't be real. "Oh my fucking God, is he dying? Please, tell me he isn't dying."
"You're not that far from the hospital, okay, sir? Just focus on getting Alexander in our hands and we'll take care of him."
"I just- I need him to be okay. Can you promise me that?" My voice broke as the gps told me I was one mile from my destination.
The woman hesitated, her voice seeming uncertain for the first time. "We'll try our best, of course."
#
The hospital didn't look like a hospital at all. It looked like a condominum, but there was no front entrance. I went around the back and there were a few people dressed in scrubs, waiting with a gurney.
I parked up against the entrance, unlocking the door to the car, and getting out. I walked around to Xander's side but one of the vampires stopped me.
His voice was gruff, "We'll take it from here."
I was still holding Xander's phone with an iron tight grip, and my fingers were shaking. "I want to stay with him."
"There's nothing you can do right now,sir. If you can retrieve his hearth ID we'll notify his next of kin." The man's voice was almost mechanic as he looked at Xander in the vehicle before walking up to the car and opening the door, gesturing for his coworkers to come with the gurney.
I watched dumb and in shock as they loaded Xander up onto the gurney and strapped him in. I followed behind them as they said a lot of medical jargon I didn't understand, just wishing Xander would wake up and be okay.
They brought him into a medical room, lifting him onto a bed, and sanitizing a spot on his arm before hooking him up to an IV. On his other arm, one of them drew blood. I just stood there, uncomfortable, in horror and unable to peel my eyes away.
"Will he be okay?" I said loudly, clutching the phone like it was life support.
One of the workers came up to me, ushering me out of the room but I kept looking back at Xander on the hospital bed, eyes open but completely absent as he lay limp on the bed.
I missed the next several seconds and the next thing I remembered was a woman in scrubs asking me if I was okay.
"What?" I said shaking my head. "I'm fine, but what about Xander?" I was seated in the waiting room, it was almost completely empty.
I realized the person talking to me was the same as the one on the phone. The woman was short, small and had a pixie cut framing her elfin features. Her skin was bronzed and she had striking almond shaped eyes. The low, clear quality to her voice was at odds with her appearance. "My name is Kiara and I'll be your patient liaison since your boyfriend isn't conscious right now."
I tried to stand but she touched my shoulder keeping me down.
"Alexander is suffering from a bad blood rejection right now, and we're giving him the appropriate fluids so that he can be okay again. What's your name, sir?"
"Ah, Achilles," I said softly.
She pulled out a clipboard and started writing.
"Your relationship with the patient?"
"He's my mate."
Kiara's head shot up, her expression going from calm and professional to one of horror. "You're a wolf shifter?"
I nodded, not understanding why she'd stopped all pretends of writing anything down.
She grabbed my wrist. "You need to come with me."
I stood, following her as she spoke urgently to another worker and they brought me to an examination room.
Kiara's voice was smooth as she talked me through the procedure. "We just need to check your blood for any illnesses because I'm assuming you and Alexander have been intimate or at the very least shared blood. Very rarely, when a vampire is taking blood from multiple sources these different types can react negatively to one another. Shifter blood when introduced to a vampire's system can sometimes produce adverse effects if there is also a nearly equal amount of human blood in their system. We're evolved enough to ingest blood from various blood types but we can still have reactions or the different bloods in our system can react against one another." She swabbed my arm with an alcohol swab before drawing a few vials of blood from me. "It may not be your blood he's reacting to but we just want to rule it out."
My heart dropped in my chest and it struggled to find its place again. "This could be my fault?"
She hesitated, "We just want to rule it out. And, Achilles, if he is reacting to your blood it may just be a one time thing. If most of the blood in his system is from you it could create an imbalance where your blood could be attacking the human blood he has in his system. Historically, vampires don't take a lot of blood from shifters. We're beginning to see this over the past few years as more vampires and shifters interact with one another."
Kiara put labels on my blood and gave me a small pack of crackers. "You should eat something. You look pale."
"I need—I was supposed to call Elle." I stammered.
"We found his hearth ID in his fanny back and have contacted the appropriate family members. When you're up for it I can bring to the waiting room."
"Can I see him?"
She hesitated, as another worker in scrubs came into the room and collected the vials of blood. Kiara's voice was soft as she squeezed my shoulder. "I think it's best we wait for Alexander's family members to arrive before then."
"I—" I paused, slumping into my seat. "Okay."
We made our way back to the waiting room and I sat there unable to get the image of an unconscious Xander out of my mind.
"Do you have anyone to wait with you?"
"Huh?" I just felt so confused. Like my head wasn't screwed on right to my body and like the air wasn't getting to my lungs. Xander wasn't okay so I wasn't okay. I wasn't even sure how I'd begin to feel okay. I needed to see him.
"If you'd like to call someone to wait with you, this is a good time." Her voice was gentle.
I nodded, pulling out my phone from my side pocket, dialling instinctively.
The phone clicked on the first ring. "Mom?" I said in a choked voice. "I need you."
#
Kind of long. Overall thoughts?
Predictions for the future?
Do y'all think Achilles is a top or a bottom?
Random but if X&A did have kids what would their names be?