Page 45 of Fangs and Family
Okay, I was being dramatic, but at that moment, it felt like a reasonable request. My eyes didn’t want to open, and my stomach somersaulted each time I valiantly tried to rise from the dead, but the worst was my heart, which hammered in my chest like I’d run a marathon backwards and not just tried to sit up straight in bed.
A pitiful moan escaped my lips as the attempt to sit up made me fall back onto the cold, damp pillows. This was a hangover from hell, and the Veles spawn next to the bed kept snapping her beak, condemning my lack of effort.
I hope Sara feels this bad, too. I loved my friend, but I hoped she felt the brunt of last night’s indulgence, as she was the one who’d procured the moonshine from Michal’s secret stash. My mind ran through the sequence of yesterday’s events until the point of coming to Adam’s bedroom and trying to make him have sex with me.
‘Oh fuck,’ I muttered, grimacing when the reality of the situation hit me with the force of a runaway train. After all, I’d just barged in and thrown myself at him. I wasn’t ashamed of wanting him. Women who didn’t initiate things from time to time missed out on many good things in life, and it wasn’t the first time I’d been straightforward in my approach. The shame lay elsewhere. I’d rebuffed Adam so many times, only to say yes when I was drunk and horny.
‘Oh, Nina, you are such a mature, responsible person,’ I said out loud, ignoring the pacing kikimora.
I forced my eyes open and turned my head toward the other side of the bed. Adam’s impression was still there on the pillow, but I had to check one more thing. I raised the blanket and sighed with relief. I was still wearing my underwear, which meant Adam behaved like a gentleman, while I…
Suddenly, another memory surfaced, and I gasped, recalling his embrace and those few words of affection he’d whispered before I fell asleep. That jolted me out of bed, and fighting with nausea, I rushed to pick up my clothes and sneak back to my room. It felt too much like a dream or a hallucination brought on by my drunk mind, but I wanted it to be real. Consequently, there was a sliver of doubt that left me not knowing what to do or how to behave. My courage from last night evaporated with the first rays of the morning sun, but I wanted to make things work between us.
In vino veritas, the old Latin proverb rang in my mind:In wine, there is truth. My truth came with a dreadful headache and upset stomach, but the clarity was there. I just didn’t know how to act on it, and I had to find a way to not spoil it because I wanted to hear Adam repeating those few words to my face while I was sober. I wanted to hear those words whilst looking into his eyes, knowing I didn’t imagine them.
I quickly showered and put on the comfy loungewear Lorelai placed by the bed. Only now did I notice my room had gone through a transformation while I was with Sara, each corner now filled with vibrant fabric and handcrafted decor. It resembled my old apartment so much it couldn’t be a coincidence.
‘Lorelai,’ I called quietly, and the kikimora emerged from the shadows. ‘Did Adam order all these things for my room?’
‘Yes, do you like it?’ She asked, coming closer.
‘Yes. I didn’t think he cared… Never mind. Would you mind if I call you Lori? Why do you keep insisting on me seeing Adam?’
The kikimora looked at me, tilting her head to the side, repeating the nickname I gave her before she nodded vigorously.
‘Lori, I like it. You can call me Lori. He is mine. The house is mine. I look after him. That’s my purpose. That’s who I am. You make him happy. Will you stay? He needs you. You strengthen him, make him better, and make his dreams happy. Will you sleep in his bed tonight? I can move your blanket there,’ she said, and I snorted in laughter, but the kikimora’s eyes were serious, and she waited for me to answer her question.
‘I don’t know. Last night was kind of an accident and… I wasn’t entirely myself. This thing… arrangement between us, to say the least, is complicated,’ I answered, and the creature frowned. Lori’s shape wavered, becoming less human and more primaeval, and I felt her stare bore into my mind.
‘You will sleep in his bed, Nina. You are his tether to the light. You must stay,’ she stated, but it sounded more like an order or a threat. However, I wasn’t in the mood to be bossed around by a household spirit who thought she owned the house, Adam and now me.
‘That is for Adam and me to decide, Lori. That reminds me. I need to talk to him. Where is he?’
‘In the kitchen,’ Lorelai answered with a disapproving snap of her beak before disappearing into the shadows.
I looked in the mirror and frowned at the dark circles under my eyes; their depths enhanced my pale complexion. The combination of so many sleepless nights and my hangover made me look so ghastly I could have been possessed by a Lichoradka1. Not the best look, not after last night’s antics, but staying hidden wasn’t the solution. The longer I sat in my room, the more my anxiety spiked.
I walked to the kitchen, stopping at the threshold to stare at the usually be-suited vampire dressed in black combat gear and toasting bagels. He looked like death incarnate, with two long blades attached to his belt whilst spreading orange marmalade on a hot piece of toast. That had to be the sexiest but most fucked up image I’d ever seen, and now it was firmly etched in my memory.
‘Hi,’ I said, trying to balance the impossible duality of this situation.
‘Nina, ah, you’re awake. I asked Lorelai to let you sleep. She can be a little noisy sometimes. Let me guess, she woke you up?’ He said, looking me over with visible pleasure.
‘Yes, but don’t blame her. My hangover needs to be subdued, anyway. I may have overdone it last night,’ I admitted, feeling a blush crawl up my neck.
A small smile curved Adam’s lips upwards, but he didn’t say a word, and an awkward tension grew between us. I saw uncertainty in his gaze as if he didn’t know what to do either, but there was also a flicker of hope.What a bitch I must have been to him that a bit of civility makes him light up like the sun, I thought.
I realised Adam was letting me set the tone of our conversation, whether to greet him as a friend, lover, or hated partner, and with that, I felt the tension ease from my shoulders.
Somehow, that made me braver. Whether or not it was true, I could still hear the words he’d whispered when he thought I was sleeping.Because I love you. I thought about the decision I’d made. It was all on me now. It was time to put on my big girl pants and admit I cared for him. I wasn’t ready to sayL-word out loud, but it didn’t mean I couldn’t take our relationship a little further.
I walked across the kitchen, stopped next to Adam, stood on my tiptoes and gave him a light peck on the cheek.
‘So handsome, will you forgive me for last night and tell me who you’re hunting down today?’ I asked, nodding toward his combat gear whilst reaching for a bagel.
I never got to touch it as I was swept off my feet in a blur of shadow and heat to find myself staring up into the crimson eyes of an impassioned vampire,
‘Please tell me you don’t regret last night. You can’t regret it, I… I’ve waited so long to hold you as you slept. Please tell me it wasn’t just one night, my sweet Obsidian.’
