Opening the Can of Worms

Zaira wasn't liking this approach at all. It felt too weird. And yet as Eden had opened a vial she couldn't deny that whatever was in there she would kill to have. The smell alone drawing her in, beckoning for her to indulge in, and once she had gotten that small taste, she was hooked. It was strange, was it not, how she had never been addicted to anything as a human, but now as a hybrid she found herself struggling with holding back. It seemed Eden approved that she showed appetite, but perhaps he had no idea what he was unleashing upon the world. Or worse, he did know. Being a hybrid meant that she was still alive, she was practically as inviting to mortals as well as immortals, so she had an easy time getting what she wanted. Not only that, but the advantage of being out in the sun was one thing that would come in handy.
Eden made sure to give her a few vials, telling her to not hold back on the feeding and only stop when she felt at ease. And quite frankly, right now she felt really good. It wasn't like getting high in the typical sense, but it was definitely something that made her feel the pep in her step. Trying to subdue it a little, she went to Kurtis, placing the vials in her pocket, keeping them safe and close. "C'mon, let's go home," she said. She had gotten the lecturing she needed for today, and feeling this rush of energy, she just needed to do something with it. And spending time with Kurtis was important to her.

When Zaira finally returned, Kurtis felt more at ease because now they could leave. He didnt want to be around Romeo or these vampyres a second longer. "You dont have to say that again." he scoffed, getting up to take her hand so they could leave. He gave Romeo one last glance. He didnt know where to place his cousin but he didnt want to think about it anymore either. He just wanted to go home.
Getting home, he took off his hoodie and threw it over one of the chairs, sitting down with a sigh. "What a shitshow." he mumbled, rubbing his face a little tiredly. "Did he at least help you?" he then asked, looking at Zaira. Hopefully something good did come out of them going.

Finally being home she went to put the vials away, not thinking too much about it, but perhaps that was because right now she felt rather good. Especially after having felt like starving for so long. Returning she saw his hoodie over the chair, touching it lightly. Even the fabric felt different, the color more vibrant. The question made her snap out of her trance, looking to him, humming as it was clear she was still trying to process it all. "I mean he gave me some tips and tricks about my intake," she despised the word feeding. It made it sound like she was a leech. "I don't know, I guess time will tell if what he's saying is useful, but I'm actually feeling rather good right now," walking over, she took his hand, letting him feel for himself. She wasn't feeling extremely euphoric, but her mood was better and the agitated undertones were gone. In fact she felt almost like she was at peace and not fighting herself for once. "I'll go brush my teeth," she said, sending him an apologetic smile before slipping away to the bathroom. She didn't like kissing him with blood on her breath.

Once she came back she saw him, mostly just looking at him with a faint smile as his snoring was a little cute. He had been all worked up and now as they had finally gone through it he could hopefully relax a little. She moved over, sitting down on the couch next to him, grabbing a blanket that she wrapped around both of them only to snuggle up to him. His warmth was always so inviting to her, and soon enough she too closed her eyes to get a small nap. Only she didn't sleep for long, she didn't really need to the same way as before her change.
It was dark out already, and Zaira felt that familiar itch in her throat. It wasn't as bad as it had been earlier, but she opted to listen to what Eden had told her. Stock up as soon as she got the feeling. Getting up from her seat, she went to the kitchen, popping open the fridge to peek inside. She saw her own vials, but they weren't as tasty as those she had gotten from the vampyre. It wouldn't harm to indulge a little. Ease herself in to this way of living by having the quality be that much better. So she grabbed a vial, taking a small sip. Oh, it was sweeter than honey and as addicting as a sugar rush. It almost made her whole body rejuvenated, but a small bit in her brain also wanted to withhold herself from this. It wasn't easy to put down the vial, not now that she had begun, and she actually ended up probably drinking more than she needed. Feeling a little dizzy, she closed the fridge, placing the vial in the recycling after making sure she had gotten it all.

While he was waking up, she had snuck out to the bathroom, cleaning her mouth and brushing her teeth. She could hear him yell, something about a dinner date and she smiled at the reminder. She had looked forward to it all week! Opting to just put on a bit of make-up, while keeping it pretty laid back, she also felt like she looked better. As if the blood had made her look more sexy. Was that a weird thing to think about?
She moved on, putting up her hair a bit, just to get the worst of it out of her face before getting to their bedroom. Seeing Kurtis change, she stopped in the door, looking at him as he was right now. Biting her lower lip slightly, she just took him in, filling herself up with the sight of him, though it only seemed to fuel her appetite. "I was thinking of actually wearing a dress," she pondered to herself, walking over to their shared closet where she took out a nice black dress. The kind that hugged her minor curves just right. Getting in to it, she turned her back to Kurtis, moving her hair to the side to get him to help with zipping her up. She paired it pretty simply with some converse flats. She guessed she would always be a little tacky like that. "I'm ready when you are," she said, grabbing her coat off of the hanger.

Kurtis was shifting through options in his head but eventually got into a button up shirt, that he left open in case he changed his mind. He picked out some dark pants that were a little more casual. Sure, a mix of formal and his own style. He noticed how Zaira looked at him, looking over towards her before he scoffed. "Hey, no window shopping." he teased her with a sly smile, buttoning up his shirt as she went to get her dress. He couldnt help but watch her get into it and when she presented the zipper he helped closing up the dress. "Uh. Yeah almost, I should probably do something about my hair." he remarked, leaning over to kiss her hair before he went to check. Not that he was the finer type to put down his hair, no he rather ruffled it up further had the nap not done a well enough job. He joined her shortly after, reaching down to grab her hand and entangle their fingers. "Fuck. I didnt note down the address. Do you remember?"

"Jeez, such a meanie," she chuckled, though it didn't stop her from stealing looks. He just looked perfect to her. Everything about him was exactly as she liked it, even his messy hair, giggling softly as she watched him leave to fix his hair. It was always a bit of a mess, but that was normal. He joined her soon after, and as their fingers entangled, she gave his hand a soft and reassuring squeeze. She felt perhaps a little different, her body still relaxed, but there was something more. Though to him it just felt like she was more attracted to him than usual. "Don't worry about it, I got it on my phone," she assured him.
They decided to walk, now with Zaira not a human, she had an easier time keeping warm. Even better when she could hold Kurtis' hand, and he was never shy to share his warmth. "I gotta say, after today this is really something I need ... Just unwinding and having a bit of fun," she felt almost giddy to see Damiano and Jeremy.

"Thank the fucking gods." he sighed, smiling faintly now that he had had a nap and gotten to relax a bit. They went and he listened to her speak. He nodded and couldnt agree more. He wasnt much for confrontations like this one, because it was so tiresome. He also felt that he was far too young to give two shits about some family drama. He just wanted to forget all that. "I do hope we eat a bit first. I'm fucking starving." he remembered. But he doubted it so he did take the liberty to drag her with him to grab something quick and filling that he could eat on the way. "Where was it that we were going? Some bar right?" he asked. He did feel a little bad for not remembering much, but his bad boy facade would not let him show it.

"You're lucky you have me, is that what you're saying?" she asked with a chuckle. She felt good still, the blood in her system making her feel more alert and everything seemed so sharp even at this time of the evening. "It's a bar, yes, but they aren't serving alcohol - We had to find something that Jeremy's parents would approve of, remember?" she told him. Had he really forgotten the struggle they had gone through to find a bar that would allow their age and also serve them? Either way they had found one that was relatively popular with their age group, and while sure they could've snuck in and gotten Damiano to order booze for them, this felt better in a way. She needed to spend time with her friends where she wasn't just drunk.

Damiano was just silent as they walked, it wasn't until Jeremy broke the silence he felt the hurt blossom up once more. "You sounded convincing enough," he just muttered. He knew that what him and Jeremy had was unorthodox, but for how long could they keep beating around the bush? He wanted them to be a couple, he wanted to hold his hand out in public, but it seemed as if the seraph just couldn't bring himself to go against his parents. "No, we're not canceling this ... Zaira went out of her way for you, and Kurtis hasn't been having it easy," he said, walking down the street. He was dressed nicely, his make-up on point as always, even adding some glitter to spice it up. It was as if the more Jeremy tried to hide, the more Damiano showed himself off. "Sometimes I just wonder if you're embarrassed of me," he muttered, not even sure if he had spoken loud enough for the other to hear.

"Have I not said that like all the fucking time?" he scoffed but he smiled. He did consider himself quite lucky to have her. It wasnt like he really took her for granted ever since they started taking each other seriously. The mention of Jeremy's parents made him sigh. "Yeah yeah, pleasing the homophobes as if they even deserve that." he remarked with a dismissal. He knew that eventually it would get to Jeremy. Having to hide all the time and pretend. He didnt want to think about all that now. He pulled gently at Zaira's hand to lean in and kiss her head, looking at her with a crooked smile. "You smell really good tonight."

"That is like beside the point. I had to." he said, trying not to sound too frustrated. Did Damiano think that he was just without feelings? That he wasnt confused and annoyed with their situation as well? But what could he do? The only thing he saw was combing out the knots and reassure. That he wasnt just stringing him along. But then Damiano refused cancelling, reminding him of their friends. Jeremy had kept it quite simple, his usual get-go when they went out; Anything that a nerdy jock would wear. The mutter made him frown. He just sighed out loud and shook his head rather than answering. Their time to talk it through was running out anyway as he spotted the other couple down the road, raising his hand to wave at them.

"Don't try and smooth-talk me, dumbass," she muttered, blushing a bit but it was only because she loved it so much. He wasn't shy of complimenting her, even on days when she felt disgusted with herself. He just had a way of knowing just what to say to make her feel good. "Play your cards right and I might have a treat up my sleeve for you," she whispered a little hushed as she saw Damiano and Jeremy, the latter raising a hand as a greeting.
She had been pretty good about keeping her distance, mostly because the smell of seraphim was rather alluring to her new senses, but she felt good after drinking the vials today, so she actually went in for a hug. Zaira had missed his hugs, quite a lot, and she giggled softly as she finally let go, nodding to Damiano who didn't seem much of a hugger anyways. Of course she could see that neither of them seemed in a festive mood, but she just tried to shrug it off as whatever had happened could be put aside.
Moving inside they got a table, and ordering some drinks the music wasn't half bad. Zaira and Jeremy quickly found themselves talking. It was as if that sibling bond they had gotten wasn't so quickly removed, and she was very happy that him and Kurtis were best friends.

Damiano tried putting on a smile as he saw the two others, and it was rather convincing if you didn't know him as well as Jeremy did. Inside he got a simple soft drink, sitting down and looking at the other kids their age, though he didn't feel like they fit in. He tried to ignore it, smiling as he saw Zaira and Jeremy talk. Did he ever look this excited to talk to him anymore? He couldn't recount the last time he had laughed uncontrollably. "How's she holding up?" he asked Kurtis. He had gathered as much as that Zaira had changed, it was obvious, but he could still hear a heartbeat and from what he could see there wasn't that much of a change. "And what about you? The whole school has been buzzing with rumors about your family for weeks now - just say if you need anything, alright?" he said, flashing a friendly smile.

"I always play my cards right." he argued confidently with a soft chuckle. If there was anything his promiscuous past had brought him then it was a large palette of just the right words to make a girl crumble. And knowing Zaira as well as he did, only made it easier to swoon her. But he liked that.
They got inside and Jeremy and Zaira was as expected falling into some prolonged chit chatter about everything and nothing. Kurtis didnt mind it. Damiano's question made him sigh, tilting his head slightly as he looked at her. "Better." was the best way he could describe it. At least from today, that was the vibe he was getting. As the question was turned back to him, he eyed the hybrid. "I dont think you want to get involved." he chuckled, shaking his head. "They have some sick mafia methods to keep people out of their business." He said, though it was a little absurd to admit. But who would like waking up to notice that a car had rolled up to their house and just sat there for a couple of hours before mysteriously leaving? "What about you and Jeremy? It feels tense between you." he admitted and he hadnt even had to touch either of them to know. "We're good." Jeremy just said with a smile, clearly having picked up on his name being spoken.

Damiano hummed, nodding as he looked at Zaira. She looked better. Almost radiant in a way he couldn't put a finger on. But then the question about him and Jeremy came, and even before he could open his mouth the seraph had answered for him. His lips pulled up in a polite smile, feeling like it was so straining, "I'm going out for a smoke," he just said, getting up from the table, giving Kurtis a short look before heading for the exit.
Once outside he felt like he could finally breathe. It felt almost suffocating inside with Jeremy micro-managing everything. He wasn't lying when he said he needed a smoke, patting down his pockets until he found his pack, taking it out and lighting one between his lips. Inhaling he felt the nicotine enter his system, making him calm down more. He had worked on his anger issues a lot. He wasn't as violent these days, but perhaps it was because he was more worried.

Kurtis did find Jeremy's out of the blue answer a little weird. He couldnt help but wonder if the nephilim was truly listening in at this point? Making sure that everything just seemed fine? Damiano got up and Kurtis hummed, signaling that he was going as well. When he got out, he took some time to find his cigarettes, lighting it before he looked towards the hybrid. "So what's really going on?" he asked, frowning slightly. It did kind of seem as if Jeremy had been trying to muzzle Damiano in there and Kurtis didnt like that thought one bit.

Luckily it seemed like Kurtis had caught the hint, even if he would be bereded later with questions from Jeremy. He just stood calmly, half leaning against the outer wall as he looked out at the street. The question came as no surprise, "just a bit of tension," he admitted, sighing as he scratched his neck, not wanting to fuck up his make-up. Shaking his head no he looked to Kurtis, not wanting to bullshit him. No, maybe he could see if Damiano was really the asshole in this situation. "I just overheard a conversation that Jeremy had with some of his study buddies, you know the ones from his extra classes," he knew he shouldn't have listened in. He shouldn't even be seeing him in school, but he had felt the need to at least just see him. "I basically had to stand and listen to Jeremy explain how he could never be with a guy ... That the only reason he was around me was because I had good grades and me being his senior was just that," licking and then biting his lower lip he squashed the bud of his cigarette between his fingers. "The school knows I'm gay, so it's not weird when people make up rumors about who I'm dating, but I guess I was hoping that he spoke about me more nicely when I wasn't around," it had been hard for him, especially because he had to enter the classroom to get something from one of the teachers inside. Jeremy knew he had heard it all. "I get he's supposed to be this cool jock or whatever, but he's not like that when it's just me and him."

A little bit of tension? Well if it was just a little bit then it was manageable? Kurtis hummed and nodded, gesturing for the hybrid to say more; If he wanted. Meanwhile, was the lycan sucking lightly on the smoke, feeling it crawl down into his lungs to bring that sense of temporary serenity. He nodded, his gaze wandering away as Damiano began explaining what had happened. But hearing that it had been something in school, Kurtis was already thinking of something bad. Jeremy was smart. Super smart, on like geek level of intelligence. But it was like whenever he was threatened, it was all reduced to some simpleminded being that didnt care what he said or did as long as the threat was eliminated. It was like that when they were kids too. He was quiet for a bit, drawing in a deep breath before he sighed and shrugged in defeat. "Yeah, I dont know how to defend that shithead behaviour." he flat out admitted. He wasnt the kind to lie and hide, and he wasnt much for trying to understand it either. "So you confronted him?" he asked, looking at Damiano with a small frown. Had they talked it through?

"I didn't need to ... He followed me home, insisting that we talk, but I felt like I needed time to process it," he said scoffing softly, looking at his cigarette before taking a deep inhale from it, feeling how the tobacco burnt a little faster to get more smoke. He felt like he needed more nicotine, more to soothe him and his anxiety regarding it all. "He started explaining himself, saying that he wanted to keep up the façade ... But then he started blaming me, asking me why I was getting upset when we weren't even a real couple," Damiano stopped, looking at his hand that was shaking, frowning to himself as he snuffed out the cigarette against the wall behind him. Was it unreasonable of him to be upset? He just felt so guilty because he could be free and Jeremy seemingly couldn't. But he was also hurt. He kept thinking if this was just Jeremy testing himself out. Or maybe getting paranoid enough to think that this was all some big joke. "I know what we have isn't optimal, I know it's unconventional," he muttered, looking up at the sky once more, seeing the stars above winking down at them, "but I always saw us as a real couple." Whatever real meant anymore.