Days of Grace

When Ethan returned, the days that followed were quiet. It mattered not that fractions continued to fight or that people continued to follow up vendetta against each other nightly. Ethan quickly proved uninterested in much conversation or company beyond Brit. As for Brit, she found his nearness comforting and they did not leave their resting place for days. Nothing was hurried. The first evening, Brit woke to Ethan slowly dragging a single fingernail across her skin as if he were examining it for the very first time. Nothing was said beyond the exchanged greeting. With the slowness of someone who has eternity to spend, he watched her skin’s reaction until nearly sunrise when he gathered her to him and sank his fangs deep into her neck. He drank in miniscule amounts of blood as he held her tightly and only licked the wounds closed before falling into his daytime slumber.

The following morning, Brit returned from her shower to food that had been brought for her. Ethan combed out her vanilla-scented hair that had started to dry, and had gifted her with a pair of boots with small heels and new dress that matched his suit. He seemed to find amusement in watching her clip-clomp around the perimeter of the room clinging to the wall to stay mobile. The corset of the dress was quickly laced by him and she spent the remainder of the evening chattering to him while brushing out his hair. Like the night before, he showed no interest or indication of leaving their resting place despite the sirens that screamed in the streets for most of the night. Prior to resting, he gathered her to him and held her tightly as he fell into his sunrise slumber.

Ethan woke alone the third day, but quickly found Brit dancing in the studio with Larissa, Merma, and a neko named Brianna. He watched quietly and turned down Brit’s invitation to join in. When he turned down her request to dance with her alone, she wrapped up her dance lesson with the others and left. After ensuring she ate properly, he returned to their resting place, and then they danced slowly and quietly until dawn. Like the first night, he drank small drops of her blood before licking the wounds closed, and she became keenly aware of the metallic salty taste on his lips when he kissed her good morrow. She slept to the song “As the World Falls Down” playing in her dreams.

The fourth, fifth and sixth nights were more of the same. Brit had quickly fallen into habit of sleeping when he did, and she did not stray far upon waking. The nights were filled with quiet togetherness that seemed to reaffirm the reality that both were indeed there with one another. Both enjoyed their nearly week-long unspoken celebration of recognition that each knew keenly how close they were to losing the other. Though others had invited them to return to see changes in the library, this was their time which was needed to come to terms with the past few weeks.

It was not until after the seventh night that Ethan willingly left their resting place. They found themselves in the Haven. Despite the large crowd, Brit’s only focus was on Ethan and his nearness. Leading her to the corner, Ethan’s usual reserve disappeared as he pulled her into his lap and kissed her openly. One kiss turned in to many with each being deeper than the last. The electric circus of the dancing crowd mingled with the bold kisses was dizzying to Brit. This time, the bite was deep and demanding. She could feel the fangs puncture through the thick walls of vein and hear the pull of blood from her body. Her heart raced giving a rush of adrenalin to flavor her blood in a way that he had always found pleasing. The music pounded and the crowd responded oblivious to the couple in the corner. To her, it was as if they were still alone in their resting spot, and the intoxicating sensation she experienced had nothing to do with the fact he drained her to the point her pulse was thready.