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Jack didn’t know the last time he’d taken a day off, or even just a break. It felt like he’d been working for… well, forever. So when the letter arrived on his desk, he couldn’t help but feel that the universe was laughing at him.
Position Terminated.
Another way of saying ‘Fired’.
Jack stepped into the elevator of his office, feeling his heart sink as he looked down at the cardboard box in his arms once again. It contained everything that he used in the office, everything that mattered to him. It was finally starting to hit him. He was out of a job.
“Oh, leaving, are you?”
Jack didn’t want to answer Elizabeth, but he also knew the consequences of ignoring her. The last thing he needed was another rumor spread about him.
“Yeah, my position was terminated.” Jack quoted the letter, just because he didn’t know any other way of saying such a heavy thing lightly.
“Oh, that’s a shame. Well this is my stop, so have a good life!” And like that, she was gone, leaving Jack standing alone in the elevator wondering how anyone could be so happy.
The doors closed, and the elevator continued down the tall building.
With nothing else to do in the painfully long time the elevator spent trickling down the building, Jack began to listen to the music playing overhead. It was one of those rare elevators that still had speakers in it, and the radio was playing some pop hit Jack had heard way too many times.
The doors opened, and Jack left the radio and his former life behind, stepping out into the bustling streets of New York City.
Jack usually loved wandering around his home city, looking for whatever characters were out and about nearby, but as he pushed through the crowded street towards his apartment, he couldn’t help the claustrophobia that settled in. Suddenly, his comfort city was a tall metal prison.
It was an unconscious action for Jack to pull out his keys as he neared his apartment building, even with a box in both arms. Jack climbed the short set of steps up to the main door and clicked his key into the old metal lock at the entrance. He turned the key, and heard a sharp SNAP resonate from the lock.
That wasn’t normal.
Jack lifted his arm, and found that only half of the key remained in his hand. The other half was still in the lock.
“You’ve gotta be kidding me,” Jack grumbled, leaning down to look closer at the lock.
The old metal key had broken at just the right point so that, no matter how hard he jammed his fingers in the lock, the key would not turn.
It was almost instinctual for Jack to kick the nearest thing to him, releasing his anger in one fell swoop. He didn’t process what that thing was until his belongings were laying on the ground in the alley between his and the next building, smashed to pieces.
This time, Jack bit his tongue, forcing a scream back into his throat as he gathered the pieces of his belongings into the ripped structure that was once his box. Instead, he gripped each shard of lamp and splinter of pencil just a little bit harder than he needed to as he shoveled them into a nearby dumpster, leaving his hands bruised and bleeding.
Jack slumped to the ground halfway down the alley, dialing a number on his phone as he watched the blood drip from a cut on his hand. As if the day couldn’t get any worse, the number, marked as his landlord’s, rang once and then hung up.
Jack buried his face in his arms.
He could see the light beginning to fade from the reflection of the sky in a puddle near where he was sitting, but he didn’t bother to look up and watch the sunset. What did a sunset matter if his world was already ending?
The sky grew dark, and the streetlamps flickered on, and Jack didn’t look up. The chill night air bit at his fingertips, cutting through his thin red hoodie and crackling against his skin. Even when he started to shiver, Jack didn’t move.
He didn’t move when he heard voices talking at the other end of the alley. He might have at the very least hoped they weren’t near enough to notice him if his brain wasn’t so numb. He did, however, feel the hand that grabbed his wrist.
Jack jolted to his feet, twisting against the attacker’s grip on his wrist. In one swift motion, the attacker’s arm shoved itself into Jack’s stomach, knocking any air he had out of his lungs, while Jack’s other wrist was pinned against the wall behind him.
A laugh echoed down the alley.
“You’re getting better at this,” a voice hummed, deep and smooth as melted chocolate.
“Better? That was easy, it hardly even fought!” The second voice came from the attacker, who shifted his hand to cover Jack’s mouth as he opened it to scream for help.
Jack’s eyes flickered to the shape growing larger in the darkness, a shape that seemed to belong to the first voice. As it leaned in towards Jack’s face, Jack was able to make out a head with long hair and bright red eyes.
“Good catch,” the figure remarked, turning to the other person holding Jack against the wall. “I think now is as good of a time as any to practice some of the things we’ve been working on.”
The attacker nodded and pushed Jack towards the other figure in a motion so quick it left no room for Jack to fight before he was once again restrained, this time held standing in front of the deep voiced figure.
Jack faced the other figure who carried the same bright red eyes, glowing harshly behind smudged glass. The person lifted his glasses over his head, taking a step towards Jack.
“What should I make it do?” the person asked.
“Make it speak,” the figure behind Jack said.
“So simple. It’s like you don’t even want to challenge me,” the person laughed.
“We start with the basics,” the deep voice replied.
The cold fingertips of a hand tapped against Jack’s chin, his eyes unable to avoid the red ones of the owner of the hand.
“Speak,” the figure whispered, leaning towards Jack.
Jack bit his tongue hard, squeezing his eyes closed.
A grumble resonated from the person in front of him, and the hand pulled away from Jack’s chin.
“What?! Why didn’t that work?”
“I told you we need to work on your basics,” the deep voice said.
“But- it- I was doing everything right! But there was this… this wall between it and me. And I couldn’t get through it.”
Jack could feel the hand holding his wrists behind his back tense, and he opened his eyes to find that the figure in front of him was even closer than he had been before.
“This is stupid, I’m just going to eat it!” the figure growled.
Jack was jerked away from the figure wearing glasses so harshly he thought his wrists might break, nearly hidden behind the other figure.
“No! If what you said is correct, I think this one could be special.”
“Special? What is that supposed to mean?!” the figure wearing glasses spat.
The figure hiding Jack sighed. “I’m not sure what it means, but it’s got to mean something. When have your powers ever not worked before?”
“I mean- it was probably just a fluke. I can try again, it’ll work this time.”
Suddenly, both figures went quiet, and there was a sound of footsteps passing in front of the alley. It was a long time after the footsteps were gone before either dared speak again.
“Try it at home. We’ve been here too long,” the figure restraining Jack whispered, turning back to him and hooking an arm under his legs.
Jack was lifted into the air and held tightly against the body of his second attacker, any scream he could muster cut off by the attacker’s hand over his mouth. Jack attempted to squirm, but then gasped as a sharp dagger like nail dug into his arm.
“This will hurt less if you’re still,” the person holding him rumbled, words vibrating in his chest.
The figure crouched down, and then Jack was in the air and on the roof of his apartment complex, still held tightly by his attacker. Buildings flickered by like clouds passing by the window of a plane as the two attackers leaped between rooftops with ease. Jack squeezed his eyes shut and hoped he wouldn’t be dropped.
As the wind whipped through Jack’s hair, he couldn’t help but wonder what sort of cruel trick the universe was playing on him. He’d lost his job, been locked out of his apartment, and then been kidnapped all in one day. He hoped that whatever fate lay before him was swift and painless, but after everything that had happened that day, he doubted it.
When Jack dared to open his eyes again, New York City was far behind him. He could see flickers of the skyscrapers over his attacker’s shoulder, half hidden by trees sweeping by them like birds. The world grew darker, and the trees grew thicker, but the red eyes of the, well, the thing following them remained constant.
Because Jack had decided on one thing, and one thing only. Whatever was carrying him, and whatever was following behind, leaping across buildings and between trees like it was a game of hopscotch, was not human. Nothing that could move this fast, and nothing that could hold him with such ease, could ever be human. The repercussions of that discovery were something Jack didn’t dare try to wrap his head around. He could figure that out after his inevitable death.
Jack had lived in New York City his entire life, where buildings stood like giants, guarding every turn from who knew what. But as his eyes connected with the building standing before him, he could feel the intimidation creeping into his chest.
It wasn’t that tall, and it wasn’t that big. But the dark, rotting wood of the outer walls combined with the teetering metal spikes stuck in the dirt surrounding the house left it to be formidable to say the least.
The stairs creaked as the creature holding Jack walked towards the front set of double doors, nodding to the other creature who held the door open for it. The two walked into the house and down a long hallway between two large sets of stairs leading to the second floor. Another door was opened, this time much smaller, and the creature carrying Jack dipped beneath the doorframe and down a long set of twisting concrete stairs.
If it was even possible, the air grew colder, and all light faded from the world with each passing step. After what had felt like hours, Jack was finally set down in the pitch black room at the bottom of the stairs, shoved against the wall.
“Try to make it speak again,” the creature that was holding Jack said, turning to the other creature.
“I can still feel that wall. I haven't been able to read its thoughts this entire time.”
“Still try,” the long haired creature encouraged.
Jack felt cold fingertips touch his chin once again, and a fist knocked against a door in his mind. He locked the door, biting his tongue once again.
The creature growled, and this time grabbed Jack’s chin with its full hand, twisting his head to the side. It only lasted for a second before the other creature pulled away the hand and glared at the first with glowing crimson eyes.
“It didn’t work, now don’t go and break its neck in frustration!”
“It’s worthless, why let it live? I can’t even see into its mind!”
Jack had heard words, although much less harsh, similar to those in his own mind. They rung true. Worthless.
“It’s far from worthless. Have you ever in your life not been able to use your power on something?”
The creature wearing glasses thought for a moment. “No… But what does that change?”
“This thing we’ve found, it’s an anomaly then! We need to study it, figure out why you can’t break into its mind! What if you found something else you needed to mind control that wouldn’t let you in? If you didn’t understand it, you’d be killed pretty quickly.”
It was almost funny how childishly the second creature responded. “But I’m hungry!” it whined.
“You can wait. This is far more important. I’m going to go find some of those books in the library and look through them; I don’t care if you join me as long as you don’t mess with my new test subject.”
“Fine.”
The voices drifted away and up the stairs, and then Jack was alone.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Jack wasn’t sure how long he was left to his own devices, but he did know one thing. Although there was nothing that seemed to be keeping him in that basement, the stairs leading out of it were most definitely cursed. Jack had spent what felt like hours running up those stairs, only to find himself right back where he started, lying on the cold concrete floor of the basement.He gave up after about six attempts, choosing instead to curl up on the concrete floor and try to get some sleep. God knew he was tired.Jack awoke to the sound of footsteps. He looked up to find the long haired creature standing in front of him, a torch hung on the wall behind it.It was strange, finally seeing what the creature actually looked like. It looked almost… human. But after the events that happened the day before, Jack knew that wasn’t true. Still, he felt a small sense of familiarity as he studied its features.The creature had dark brown hair to its shoulders and a beard, and was wearing a sweater and jeans. As Jack looked back up to its face, he noticed that it seemed to be studying him as well.“Hmm,” the creature rumbled, kneeling down in front of Jack. If the memories of the day before weren’t so prominent, Jack might’ve tried to fight off the creature. But Jack knew the repercussions of that. The repercussions dotted his arm like mosquitoes biting his flesh.The creature in front of Jack seemed… almost entertained watching Jack’s facial expressions change. It looked Jack up and down just as Jack had done to it, and then stood.Jack would never have admitted that he was afraid of needles. But he didn’t have to after the squeal that escaped his lips upon seeing the creature pick up a syringe. Jack immediately darted to the corner of the room, although he knew there was no escape from whatever was going to happen next.The creature turned back to see Jack cowering in the corner and laughed.“Afraid of a needle, are you?” it chuckled, looking between the syringe and Jack’s horror stricken expression. “Don’t worry, this won’t hurt at all. It’s just a little prick, so I can study some of your blood.”Jack still cowered, pulling the hood of his hoodie up and over his head, as if that would help shield him. He felt a cold hand gently pull the hoodie back, and found the creature kneeling in front of him, still holding the syringe.“You’re too funny,” the creature said, smiling from ear to ear. “It’s just like the doctor’s, nothing bad! I even brought some disinfectant and gauze.”Jack glanced down to see a small wipe packet and roll of gauze at his feet. It wasn’t kidding.“C’mon, just give me your arm, okay?” the creature said, hand moving to Jack’s arm.Jack narrowed his eyes. “You’ve kidnapped me. How do I know you’re not gonna inject some horrible serum into me that turns me into… I don’t know, a pigeon?!”“A pigeon?!” The creature suddenly broke into a fit of laughter. “I’d lose you if you were a pigeon! You’d fly away and live with all the others in New York, and I’d never get to finish my experiment!”Jack shuddered. “I fuckin’ hate pigeons,” he muttered.“Goodness, Ryan would lose his mind if he were down here right now!” the creature laughed, wiping a tear away from its eye. “It’s a good thing he’s not. He really was set on eating you yesterday. I don’t know how I managed to keep his fangs in.”“Ryan?” Jack asked as the creature picked up the disinfecting wipe. “Who’s that?”The creature’s face went cold.“Shit.” The creature stood, throwing the half opened wipe to the ground and putting its head in its hands. “Fuck, Ryan’s gonna kill me. I wasn’t supposed to say that.”Jack suddenly smiled. All of a sudden, in this messed up situation, he had leverage. “What, is Ryan that other dude’s name?”The creature grumbled.“What’s your name then? Wait, no! I’ll guess!” For the first time in the past roughly 24 hours, Jack felt warmth creep under his skin. “Ryan’s a pretty dumb name, so I’ll have to think of something that fits with it. Like Gregory! But you don’t look like a Gregory.”“My name is not Gregory!” the creature groaned, head still in its hands.“George! No, Georgina.” Jack practically purred that last name, just to get the creature to groan even louder.“How are you this fucking annoying?!”“It’s a rare talent, only held by the last few members of a sacred tribe of people known only as dumbasses.”The creature turned back to Jack, sighing to itself. “Maybe Ryan was right about you…”“That Ryan guy really doesn’t seem like he knows what he’s talking about,” Jack replied, trying to hide the small prick of fear that returned to his heart.The creature shook its head. “How about this? You give me your arm so I can draw your blood, and I’ll tell you my name. Deal?”Jack pursed his lips as he thought for a moment. Was risking horrible death, or worse, becoming a pigeon, worth it to know this creature’s name?“Deal,” Jack replied. Yes, yes it was.Jack rolled up his sleeve and extended his arm, allowing the creature to wipe the spot over the bend in his arm gently with disinfectant. Jack bit his lip and looked away as the needle drew closer to his arm.After a moment, Jack asked, “Are you done yet?”A cold hand patted Jack’s cheek, and he looked over to see that the creature was wrapping his arm in gauze, a full syringe of blood at its feet. “Yes, I’m done. Was it really that painless?”“I- I didn’t feel it at all. I was still waiting for it to happen.”“Wow, I’ve gotten good then.”The creature stood, grabbing the syringe of blood and roll of gauze, and walked to the entrance of the room. It was about three steps up the stairs when it turned back to look at Jack.“By the way, my name is Adam.”-----Jack turned that information over in his mind for a while after the door shut. They had names, both of them. He honestly did not expect that. But I guess everyone had a name, even someone not quite human.Jack had resorted to tying his sleeves into a knot and escaping into his hoodie to pass the time when Adam returned. He carried a plate with what looked to be a sandwich on it.“I haven’t cooked anything in so long, I don’t know how I managed to only burn myself once!” Adam looked down at the small burn on his hand. “I wasn’t even using the stove, really not sure how I did that even once.”Adam kneeled down in front of Jack again, setting the plate down between them.“I figured it’s been long enough that a human would probably start to get hungry, so I made you something. I hope you like it.” Adam smiled, pushing the plate towards Jack.Jack examined the dish for a long time before he took a bite. It wasn’t amazing, but it wasn’t bad either. The pickles were damn good.Before he could fully think about the repercussions of eating a sandwich his captor made, it was gone, and he was wiping crumbs from his hoodie.Adam laughed. “I guess I was right, you were hungry.”Adam picked up the plate and stood, but paused at the entrance of the room.“You seem kind of lonely down here. Not a lot to do.”Jack watched Adam set down the plate on the first stair and walk back towards Jack. Jack couldn’t help wondering if this was the same person that had kidnapped him just the day before.“Mind if I sit next to you?” Adam asked.Jack nodded, and Adam took a seat next to him on the ground. “I really don’t like how cold this floor is, I’ve always preferred the warmth.”Adam reached his hand towards Jack’s wrist, and then paused. “Can I touch your wrist?” he asked.Jack, unsure of how else to respond, nodded.Adam gently held Jack’s wrist in his hand, feeling for Jack’s pulse.“Wow,” Adam breathed, leaning in to listen to the sound. “I haven’t just stopped and listened to a heartbeat in so long.”Jack watched as Adam closed his eyes and smiled just a little, hair falling over his face. He looked at peace.“Do you have a heartbeat?” Jack ventured to ask. With how cold Adam’s hands were, it seemed like a sensible thing to ask.Adam frowned. “No. I haven’t had one for a long time now. It’s just cold now.”Adam turned over his hand and opened his wrist for Jack to feel. It was true, there was nothing there but cold.“Are you, like- not alive?” Jack asked quietly.“Nope. Dead as a doorknob. Have been for about 400 years now.”Jack’s face whipped towards Adam’s so fast he thought he would hit the wall. “How many years?!”“I think it’s 412 to be exact. I don’t really keep track of those kinds of things anymore.”Adam’s face fell suddenly, and he sighed. “I really shouldn’t be telling you this stuff though. I shouldn’t even be down here. Ryan would be so mad if he saw me getting attached to you. I don’t even know why I’m doing this. I thought I got good at keeping my distance.”“How old is Ryan?” Jack asked, wondering if Adam would even answer his question now.“A little younger,” Adam said as he stood up. “Somewhere around 250. He’s my fledgling, so it’s been just the two of us for a while now.”Jack nodded. Fledgling. That sounded like a word for a bird.“What… are you?” Jack asked, seeing that he had a chance for one last question as Adam leaned down to pick up the plate.Adam turned to Jack and smiled, but it was different this time. It was colder, sharper.“A vampire. But not a good one. If I were a good one, you’d be long dead by now.”Adam stepped up the stairs and closed the door with a soft click.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Jack fell asleep after that. It was surprisingly harder to sleep on the cold concrete floor when he’d eaten, and the fear was wearing off from this experience, morphing into more of a morbid curiosity.Vampires were real. And Adam was… well, not so living proof of that.Jack still couldn’t quite process that. In fact, he had yet to process much of anything that had happened thus far. He felt like he was trapped in a bubble, slowly floating up and away from reality.It was a while until the door opened again. Jack was almost surprised to find that it was not Adam who entered the room, but Ryan.It was almost immediately apparent that Ryan was far different from Adam. The way they even held themselves around Jack, it was an unmistakable difference. While Adam had talked to him and even fed him, Ryan seemed like he wasn’t even aware there was another sentient being in the room.But Ryan was aware Jack was there.Ryan crouched down in front of Jack, just as Adam had done, but he didn’t carry the same soft presence Adam had. Ryan seemed more analytical, more like he was studying Jack, even when he wasn’t the one conducting experiments on him.Ryan adjusted his position on the ground, and then leaned closer to Jack, head tilting to the side.“Hey, buddy, whatcha doing there?” Jack said nervously, trying his best to shimmy away from Ryan. It didn’t work very well, Jack had basically cornered himself the past few hours.“Wait- wha-” Ryan sat upright so fast his head nearly knocked into Jack’s, brows furrowed in confusion. “Did you- did you just speak?”“Uh… yeah? I can, y’know, do that?” Jack replied, looking at Ryan curiously. It seemed the younger vampire was questioning his life decisions as he studied Jack’s words.“But- I- humans don’t speak. They just scream, and then they die,” Ryan argued.“I really don’t think you’ve paid much attention to humans, dude. We like, speak, and have conversations all the time.”It seemed Ryan couldn’t believe the possibility that humans might actually be sentient.“Alright, get to the point; what are you down here for?” Jack said, pushing at Ryan’s forehead with his pointer finger. Ryan did not budge.“Why do you need to know?” Ryan spat back.Jack could feel annoyance creeping into his chest. This Ryan guy was really hard to work with.“Because it clearly pertains to me. And move back; have you ever even heard of personal space?!”Ryan sat back just a little, seeming willing to give Jack space, even if just for a second.“If you really have to know, I’m tired of my brother’s bullshit. It’s like he’s teasing me, dangling you over my head just out of reach. I’m tired of playing by his stupid rules.”“Adam is your brother?” Jack asked before he could decide on whether he should reveal his knowledge of Adam’s name.“He- he told you his name?!” Ryan lowered his face into his hands, letting out a muffled scream of anger. “Of course he fucking told you his name. And you must know my name too, don’t you?”Ryan looked up, and from the timid look Jack shared with him, he guessed so.“Well then, to keep things fair, what’s your name?” Ryan asked, crossing his arms over his chest.“Jack.” Jack realized Adam had never asked his name when he was down here. He’d just shared his own and not asked for anything in return.Ryan snickered.“That’s such a boring name. What was the other option, Joe?”Jack sighed, already exhausted from this interaction. “I for one kept my thoughts to myself, but it seems that the courtesy was not reciprocated. But really, your name is dumb.”Ryan scoffed.“Your words mean nothing to me, lunch. You can’t insult me if I eat you first.”“You’d sound like you’re insane out of context.”“Shut it!”And with that, Ryan smacked his hand over Jack’s mouth, tilting Jack’s head to the side in one swift motion. Jack attempted to bite Ryan’s hand, but then felt another hand covering his airway, causing him to choke.“Try that, I dare you,” Ryan growled, all playfulness suddenly leaving his crimson eyes. Jack took in a breath to scream, which only caused Ryan’s thumb to push tighter against his airway. Jack could only squirm as his vision began to fog.And then, as quickly as it started, the pressure was relieved.Jack gasped for air, pressing his head against the concrete wall to try to catch his breath. The room was now brighter, a torch flickering on the wall, and Adam was holding Ryan by the collar of his shirt, teeth bared and growling.“THE TEST SUBJECT IS NOT YOUR LUNCH!” Adam roared, throwing Ryan into the wall and turning to Jack.Jack cowered into his corner again, hiding his face from Adam’s burning red eyes. But when Adam settled in front of him and touched his arm with the same gentle hand he always had, Jack relaxed.“Hey, I’m sorry about that, he’s not supposed to be down here.” Adam looked over his shoulder to where Ryan was sitting up and rubbing the back of his head, shooting a glare his brother’s way. “Did you get hurt at all?”“Not really,” Jack replied, rubbing his throat.Adam frowned. “Well I’m still sorry. I’ll keep a better watch on him, okay?”Jack nodded, looking back to where Ryan was standing up.Ryan glanced at Adam and Jack on the ground, and then began to growl.“Oh, I see what’s happening,” Ryan started. Adam stood, placing himself between Ryan and Jack. “You’re getting soft for it, aren’t you?”“I am not getting soft for him, I am just making sure my test subject remains alive!” Adam retorted.“Test subject! That was a lie this whole time and you knew it! You just want a new fledgling!” Ryan stepped closer to Adam, pushing his chest. “Well what about me? What about the old fledgling? What’s wrong with me?!”Adam growled. “Stop being so selfish! Not everything has to be about you!”“Selfish?!” Ryan spat. “What’s selfish about wanting to eat, wanting to survive! You’re the selfish one, trying to get some new kid into our coven without consulting me first!”“I am the coven leader!” Adam snarled, grabbing Ryan’s arm forcefully, nail’s digging into the vampire’s flesh. “I make the rules, and you follow them! That’s how this works!”Adam shoved Ryan into the wall again, teeth bared with what looked to be sharp fangs protruding from his jaw. Adam held his arm over Ryan’s chest, his other hand pressing Ryan’s head against the wall. Ryan’s nails scratched at Adam’s arm, leaving behind deep cuts into the flesh, but Adam didn’t budge.“please… stop…” Ryan whispered, just loud enough for Jack to hear. Just loud enough for Jack to feel a shudder trickle down his body. “i’m sorry…”Jack could see the veins in Ryan’s face bulging, his skin turning a deep purple.“Adam, stop! You’re gonna kill him!”At those words, Adam immediately let go of Ryan and turned to Jack, eyes still burning. It almost seemed like something beyond Adam’s body had taken over, because all of a sudden Adam was crying and kneeling down at his gasping brother’s side.“Fledgling, brother, I’m so sorry,” Adam cried, picking his brother up into a hug just loose enough to allow Ryan to breathe freely. Adam pressed frantic kisses to his brother’s cheeks and forehead, combing his hand through Ryan’s hair.After a second of tension, Ryan began to relax, allowing himself to melt into his sire’s arms. He smiled in a way that seemed like he was feeling something familiar, something comforting. Jack could almost swear he heard a rumbling sound, like the purr of a cat, from the two brothers.As Adam’s cries began to quiet, Ryan opened his eyes again and met Jack’s. Jack smiled nervously, trying to communicate some sort of offer of a peace treaty to Ryan. Ryan pulled his arm out from between his and Adam’s chest and motioned for Jack to come closer.Jack sat down next to Adam, watching Ryan carefully to see if there was any remaining harshness in his eyes. But Ryan’s eyes were emitting a gentle glow, like that of a streetlamp in Central Park. Ryan pulled away from Adam, turning towards Jack and examining him again.“His name is Jack,” Ryan said, glancing over to Adam to see if the information had already been said by Jack himself.“Jack. That’s a nice name. Like yours, Ryan.”Ryan sighed and shook his head, sharing a knowing look with Jack. The first of many.He glanced at Jack a moment longer before resting his hand on Jack’s shoulder.Ryan smiled, something soft and light. “I guess I could get used to you.”
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Jack was surprised by how quickly things were moving after that moment. Jack was brought back up the stairs only minutes later to the main level of what looked to be a mansion, Adam leading him and Ryan down the hallway to a set of three bedrooms.“This one is Ryan’s,” Adam explained as he passed by the first door. Jack peered around the door and found that the bed was a mess of blankets and pillows formed into a nest-like shape, a few stuffed animals sitting around the edge of the nest.“You actually made your nest for once,” Adam hummed.“That’s made?” Jack asked incredulously as they moved down the hall.Ryan laughed. “Adam and I must be a bit different from the people you came from, you’ll get used to it.”“Why are all the blankets on the floor?” Jack asked as they passed by the second room.“Adam’s weird. He likes the floor,” Ryan responded, poking Adam in the arm.“What, it’s comforting!” Adam protested, continuing down the hall.The final door of the hall was closed, and Adam opened it to reveal a neat white bed and simple room, just like the other two.“We’ve never had guests before, since we kinda… you know… but I still like to keep this room neat.”Jack stepped into the room, looking around at the gold etchings on the wall and soft red velvet in the curtains. It was a nice room, that was for sure. It looked nothing like what Jack could remember of the outside of the mansion.“I’m going to go make something for Jack to eat, Ry. Don’t hurt him, okay?” Adam gave Ryan a quick look that seemed to speak a thousand words, and then left the room.Jack sat down at the edge of the bed and looked at the palms of his hands. He faintly remembered cutting them open after he kicked his box of stuff a few nights ago, but now the skin was clear, not a sign of even a scrape.“That’s… wow,” is all Jack could manage to say.Ryan leaned over his shoulder and looked at the palms of Jack’s hands.“I remembered smelling blood on you earlier, did you cut your hands?” he asked.“Yeah, they had these huge gashes into them, but now they’re gone.”“Hmm,” Ryan replied. “Maybe something to tell Adam about. He’s the type to want to look into that a little more. Because as far as I’m aware, humans don’t heal that quickly.”“They don’t,” Jack agreed.There was a moment of silence before Jack opened his mouth to speak again.“What… what’s happening? Like, generally?” Jack asked.He turned to Ryan, expecting some mocking expression on the vampire’s face, but only found a thoughtful look.“I’m not quite sure. I think Adam at the very least finds you quite interesting, and it seems charming too at this point. I guess I can’t disagree. I’ve never met someone who didn’t react to my powers.”Jack nodded, urging Ryan to continue.“I think Adam might be thinking about turning you. We’d have to wait a little longer to do that though, turning is a difficult process that requires a lot of trust we just don’t have right now. And it requires you actually wanting to become immortal like Adam and I.”Jack thought for a moment.“Immortal. I’m not sure if I would like that. I don’t know, I think I’d have to get to know you two a lot more before I decided if I wanted my life to be changed forever. At least, if there is anything left to change. I kind of lost a lot that day when you and Adam found me.”Ryan nodded, a look of sympathy playing in his eyes.“Well, unless Adam can get my powers to work on you, we probably can’t let you back to your old life knowing we exist. So turning is probably the inevitable option, at least with how much Adam has grown attached to you. I still just don’t understand it. Neither of us have gotten attached to anyone since…”Ryan trailed off, and Jack could tell he was sinking into a deep thought. Jack didn’t try to push him, just watched his eyes flicker as a memory washed by.“I’ve always wanted to write a song…” Ryan mumbled, slowly coming back to the present moment. “But I’ve never quite figured out how to do it.”“I’ve thought about doing that too. I used to play guitar when I was a kid. But with my job, I never had any time for that.”Adam returned a moment later with a bowl of some sort of soup in his hand as well as a pitcher of water and a glass. He set down all three on the bedside table and sat next to Ryan, allowing Jack to pick up the bowl of soup and eat.Ryan laughed a little as he watched Jack eat.“You eat so weirdly,” he said.“Why are you watching me eat, weirdo?” Jack responded through a mouthful of soup.Ryan laughed again.“You have a point.”As Jack finished up his bowl of soup, Adam yawned, leaning back and stretching his arms on the bed.“It’s starting to get light out,” Ryan observed, glancing out the half open window. He stood and closed it, allowing the room to grow dark again.“I dunno about you guys, but I’m gonna go to bed,” Adam yawned, stretching to his side.“I agree with that,” Ryan added, standing and pulling Adam up to his feet. “We’ll leave you alone, Jack. See you tomorrow.”Jack watched the two leave, feeling a sudden hollow feeling in his chest. It was a strange sense of loneliness, even though it was felt for two people who only days before had been debating killing him. What sort of messed up Stockholm Syndrome was this?Still, Jack felt lonely, and even when he laid down in his soft bed, he felt a thin veil of sadness descend on him. Jack decided that instead he would wander until he grew tired, exploring the lightening halls of the mansion.Jack stepped out of his room and down the hallway, but found himself standing in front of Ryan only a step further. Ryan was disheveled and shirtless, wearing a random pair of sweatpants and holding a small blanket in his arms. Scars raked his body, including two pinpricks on his neck that seemed to match his sharp teeth.Ryan just grunted and pushed past Jack into Adam’s room. Jack turned and watched as Ryan set his blanket down in Adam’s nest of bedding and curled up besides his brother. Jack felt a pang of longing hit his throat. There was a spot at Adam’s other side, just big enough to fit him. But why would he do that?Jack didn’t know the answer to that question, but he also didn’t care. The second he stepped into Adam’s room, he felt his loneliness dissipate like mist in the warm room. He laid down next to Adam and pulled a blanket over his legs, mirroring Ryan as he curled up at the vampire’s side.There was something comforting about that, something that just felt right. Jack had never had brothers, but he’d always wanted them. Especially older brothers. But that wasn’t possible when you were an only child.Jack rested his head near Adam’s shoulder and wondered whether the two would smile if he asked them to be his brothers.