My Blood on Your Lips, Your Money in My Bra

I watched Kyrianna's unmoving form from where I sat on a chair in Nathan's living room. She was curled into a tight little ball with her back to us, dead silent and completely still. She'd been shaking for a while, occasionally jerking with a powerful sob, but those had stopped only a few minutes after they'd started. I was beginning to think she had finally passed out from exhaustion. The night had been a trying one, after all. Even I was barely awake, and I hadn't dealt with half of the stress she had.

"Are you sure I can't get you anything?" Nathan asked softly from his spot on another chair, one not far from mine. "There's a drug store right down the street if you're thirsty or-"

"I'm fine, Nathan," I murmured, sinking back into the chair as I finally just let my body relax. I looked up at the ceiling, the amethyst of my eyes lighting up the white paint. "I'm just...tired. Really, really, really..." I sighed and allowed my eyes to slip shut. "Really tired."

"So sleep." I listened as he shifted in his seat, leaning a little bit closer to me. "You're safe, now. Both of you are. You deserve a bit of rest."

I shook my head slowly. "I have to wait for Eli. Besides, there's no way to be sure that we're safe." I opened my eyes, turning my gaze to him. "The vampires from before may be gone now, but what if more come? What if the werewolves find out about everything that's happened and show up to play?"

"We both know that the chances of anyone else showing up are slim," Nathan said simply, his eyes drifting away from mine. They found Kyrianna, lying on the couch, then the closed and locked front door. Finally, they met mine again, more calm than they'd been before. "You'd wake up the moment someone arrived, anyway. They wouldn't really have an advantage."

Once again, I shook my head. "I have to wait for Eli," I repeated, my voice far quieter than it had been before. Nathan stared at me for a few seconds, then nodded once. I doubted he understood why waiting for Eli was so important, but at least he knew that there was no point in trying to make me sleep.

I turned my gaze to the ceiling again and began to let my mind wander. Why did I want to wait for Eli so badly? Merely because I wouldn't be able to relax until I knew he had taken care of everything? Or...was there more to it? It felt like there was more, but I couldn't pinpoint what it was that made me deem his arrival so important.

My eyes darted to Kyrianna when I heard a soft sound escape her, one that sounded almost like a whimper. Her body began to tremble again as well.

"Kyrianna?" I called quietly, in case she was asleep. "Are you awake?"

"Elyria?" came her weak, shaky reply. She sat up, turning to put her feet on the floor as her glowing eyes searched for me. The moment they locked on mine, she lurched to her feet and hurled herself at me, landing on her knees at my feet. Her torso was laying across my lap, her hands clutching at my shirt. "Elyria!" She was sobbing now, it seemed, deeply shaken.

"Kyrianna...?" was all I could manage, confused. I began to pet her hesitantly, running my fingers through her dark hair as soothingly as I could. I was out of my element here...

"Why did they take them from me?" she asked, her words barely audible. "My mother and father...Why did they kill them?"

My hand stopped where it was. My breath caught. Was I really going to have to explain it to her? Was I going to have to tell her the details of why this was my fault?

I swallowed and took a deep breath. "I helped to kill the man they considered their leader. Somehow, they found out that you meant something to me, and they thought that hurting you would be a good way to get revenge on me." I looked down at her, into her tear-filled eyes, now gazing intently up at me. "I'm sorry, Kyrianna," I whispered. "I didn't mean for any of this to happen. They weren't even supposed to know about you."

She was silent for a full minute. Her eyes remained on mine, tears still spilling from them to create wet streaks along her cheeks. I searched her eyes for what she might be feeling, for any hint of anger or the hatred she must have begun to hold for me already, but I found nothing. Even the sadness that they'd held before had vanished. It was more chilling than any sort of icy anger could be.

Suddenly, she got to her feet, her empty eyes still locked with mine. I waited for her to speak or to strike, to yank me from my chair and throw me through the nearest window, but she merely stared. Then, without a word, she reached down and touched my cheek with the tips of her fingers. I saw wetness glistening on them when she withdrew her hand, tears shining in the light of our eyes. I was...crying...?

"Why are you crying?" she asked softly, looking away from her fingers to focus on my face once more.

"I ruined your life," I replied, my voice barely a whisper now. "I killed your family...I almost killed you, too...and your home..."

She took my face in her hands gently, resting her forehead against mine. The glow of our eyes was blinding in the tiny space between our faces, but we each held the other's gaze.

"You did no such thing, Elyria. You didn't kill my parents, nor did you want anyone to. You didn't want anything to happen to me or to my family. It would be easy to hate you for everything that has happened, but...it wouldn't be right."

"Kyrianna..." The roles had been drastically reversed. Shouldn't I have been the one comforting her? She'd lost her family, her home, any chance to have a normal life. All I had was guilt. How could she forgive me for what had happened, let alone tell me I had no reason to feel the way I did?

"Elyria?" she asked in return.

I kissed her, believing that doing so was the only way to get my feelings across. I never would've been able to put into words how thankful I was for her forgiveness, her comfort, her support. She kissed me back the moment my lips touched hers.

"I'll take care of you," I promised in a hushed voice once I'd pulled away. "I'll give you a place to live, food to eat, a place to sleep, everything you could ever need."

"Thank you," she whispered.

Just then, there was a knock on the front door. We both turned, watching as Nathan stood and went to peek out through the window. Kyrianna's hands slipped from my cheeks as she straightened, her body tense with worry. She didn't want to deal with more fighting. I took her hand in an attempt to comfort her.

But Nathan opened the door without anxiety. It was just Eli. He was clean now, dressed in fresh clothes and no longer covered in the blood of other vampires. His aura was just as tranquil as always, which greatly soothed my nerves.

"Did everything go well?" I questioned, though I'd already assumed the answer.

"Yes. All of the evidence is gone." Eli looked from me to Kyrianna, then to our linked hands. He didn't seem to think anything of it, however, and his eyes coolly went back to my face.

"How are we going to explain the disappearance of Kyrianna's parents?" I asked. Kyrianna's grip on my hand tightened, and I began to caress the back of her hand with my thumb, trying to comfort her without forgetting to address any possible problems.

"We're not."

"What...?"

"We're going to pretend that Kyrianna has moved in with you and that her parents have simply gone elsewhere, perhaps to live closer to another relative or something."

"What about their house?"

"Already taking care of it. I left Kyrianna's things at your apartment and disposed of her parents' belongings, so it looks as if they just moved. The house will be sold."

"And you're sure there's nothing that could give us away?" I asked, feeling a bit uneasy about this plan. It almost seemed too easy...

"As sure as I can be."

"All right." I had no choice but to let the issue slide and hope everything worked out. If Terrence had still been around, the house would've been no problem to get rid of. Then again, there would have been no need to get rid of it, either... "Should we go to my apartment, then? There's no reason for us to stay here and bother Nathan."

"You're not bothering me," Nathan stated, shaking his head.

"Regardless, shouldn't we go home before Eli gets trapped here?" I asked, looking at the clock. It was nearly six o'clock in the morning.

"Good point," Nathan agreed.

I nodded. "Thank you for allowing us to spend some time here, Nathan."

He smiled. "You're welcome. Would you like a ride home?"

I glanced at Kyrianna's tired face, then nodded. "Sure."

"All right. Follow me." And with that, Nathan led us to his car, and the silent ride home began with Eli in the front seat and Kyrianna and me in the back.

-

After thanking Nathan for the ride and everything else he'd done for us that evening, I led the way to my apartment. The interior was just as dark as it always was, but I knew that everyone was perfectly capable of seeing in such conditions. With the door shut and locked behind the three of us, we all took our shoes off and headed down the hall.

"I think we should all sleep in the bed," I said quietly, opening the door to my bedroom. I didn't care that Kyrianna and I still had dried blood on us in places. I was too tired to even think about it.

"Why?" Eli asked.

I shrugged. "I just think we'd be more comfortable that way." Neither of my companions argued, and all three of us, fully clothed, laid down on our backs in my unmade bed. I was in the middle, of course, with Kyrianna to my left and Eli on my right. Kyrianna had a hold of my hand once more.

"We're not going to school today, are we?" she asked quietly after a moment of silence.

"I don't think I could make it," I replied simply.

"All right..." She fell silent at that point, and I watched as she closed her eyes. Whether she was trying to sleep or trying to keep more tears from falling, I wasn't sure, but either way, she fell asleep in less than a minute.

"Is she out?" Eli asked after another minute or two.

"Yes," I answered, my eyes on the vampire now. "Why?"

He shrugged. "Just curious."

"Shouldn't you be sleeping, too?"

"Probably."

"So close your eyes and try."

"And what are you going to do?"

"Probably lay here for a while. Sleep is impossible."

"Why is that?" He rolled onto his side as he said this, propped up on one elbow to allow him to look down at me.

"There's too much going on in my head."

"Why are you holding her hand again?"

I was a bit surprised by the sudden question. Where had it come from and why did it matter?

"She needs some form of comfort," I answered truthfully enough.

"Are you sure there isn't more to it?"

"What do you mean?"

"Do you have feelings for her, Elyria?"

"Where did that come from? Am I not allowed to hold someone's hand without having feelings for them?"

"You? No. You don't like physical contact of that sort, so there has to be more of a reason for it than just comfort."

I glared up at the vampire, getting very annoyed. "So I like her a little bit. Do you have a problem with that?"

"No. You just never seemed to be in to girls."

I shrugged. "I don't plan to be with many, if that says anything." I turned to look at Kyrianna, her pale face looking peaceful as she slept. "There's just...something different about her..."

"She cares for you," Eli said softly, watching me watch Kyrianna. "There have been a few men to care for you, but never any females, as far as I know."

"I guess that makes sense..." I gazed at Kyrianna for a few seconds, then I turned back to Eli. "Do you...care about me, Eli?" I asked cautiously, rightfully afraid of receiving the wrong answer.

The smallest smile graced his lips. "I do."

"Really?"

"Mm," he murmured in response. "And you care for me, too?"

"I do."

He chuckled. "You know, for someone who comes off as such an uncaring bitch, you like a lot of people."

I smiled softly. "I suppose so. But I doubt I'll like any others."

"I'd hope not. You already have a decision to make as it is."

My smile faltered. "What do you mean?"

"Don't worry about it. For now, you just need to get some sleep. All right?"

Slowly, I nodded, though confusion was clear on my face. "All right. Will you sleep, too?"

"I plan to try."

"All right..."

He laid down beside me, still on his side, and took my hand in his. "Good night, Elyria," he whispered.

"Good night, Eli," I replied, watching as he closed his eyes.

Soon enough, he was asleep, leaving me alone, wide awake and wrestling with my confusion. It didn't take me long after this to figure out Eli's meaning, however. It was so obvious that I'd missed it at first.

My decision? I was laying right in the middle of it, between my two sleeping choices.

If there had been any chance of me getting some sleep before, they were gone now. I was going to have to lay here and think until someone else awoke.

Lovely.