#p:cole

[crwally-blog]

i’m gonna live forever 📀

prompt: fame | @crxcole​

“The eighties? I wouldn’t know songs from the eighties, unless you’re talking about the eighteen eighties,” he admits, almost bashfully. “I’m not familiar with muggle pop! My uncle was very against it – something about how pop music doesn’t have longevity. It’s not true that pop artists fizzle out, is it? I’m a big Britney Spears fan, so please tell me it isn’t so!” 

[littleleah-karlsen]

Where all our colors run together || Cole&Leah

Un petit sourire étirait les lèvres de Leah tandis qu’elle se dirigeait vers le dortoir des trois garçons, elle était plutôt contente de rejoindre Cole ce soir là parce qu’elle commençait à s’ennuyer de son côté. Surtout qu’un moment en la compagnie du jeune homme était toujours agréable. Maximoff s’entraînait encore et Charlie n’était pas là également alors autant en profiter. Elle donna quelques coups sur la porte en essayant de ne pas faire trop de bruit, présentant le paquet de gâteaux qu’elle avait acheté dans la journée dès que Cole lui ouvrit. “Je viens peut être sans rendez-vous mais j’ai ramené des gâteaux pour compenser.” Déclara-t-elle avec son plus beau sourire en se faufilant dans l’ouverture que lui laissait le brun. Et une fois qu’il referma la porte, elle se retourna vers lui avec un regard plus malicieux. “Et j’ai aussi de jolis sous vêtements.”

[rezathevamp-blog]

Fangtastic || Reza&Cole

Nothing more fun than running into an old friend at the cemetery where your ex was killed. Aren’t coincidences just the best?

Cole had actually found a way to miss Ashkent Creek while he was gone. He used to love the town, it had been where he was born and where he grew up. He had Luna and Vas and his parents. Then everything, for lack of a better term, had gone to hell. He couldn't get out of Ashkent Creek quick enough. Some time away had been good for him, he got to travel around with this group of hunters and forget about everything. But for whatever reason, here Cole was again, chasing down some criminal in the middle of the night just like he did after he was first killed. Tonight he was after something he saw attacking a girl leaving the bar. He wasn't sure who or what it was, but since the thing was able to outrun Cole it had to be supernatural in some way. He lost the trail at the graveyard, leaping over the gate and suddenly finding himself rather alone in the place. He could only sense one other heartbeat. He crouched down, pulling the hood from his black sweatshirt over his head and winding his way through the headstones until he came across a single guy alone in the cemetery. At night. "Uh hello? You're not like here to do anything sketchy right?"

Reza couldn't think of a sensible reason for coming here. It was stupid and reckless and unnecessary but here he was, lingering at Nate Blackthorne's grave. Izel would freak out if she knew. Crouching, Reza's fingers brushed the ground, damp with the night dew; no sign of any vampires having been killed here. With the apartment gone, as well as the remains and with no photos existing, Reza was finding it hard to remember that Heath actually had existed. The only thing reassuring him that the dangerous eretich hadn't been a figment of Reza's insane imagination were the scars that littered his arms, neck, thighs and the stray ones hiding all over his skin. Coming here was almost... soothing. Sitting crosslegged on the grass, Reza listened to the silence, enjoying it right up until the unwanted memory of red eyes and a mouth agape in death forced their way into his head. ​"Uh hello? You're not like here to do anything sketchy right?"​ Head snapping up, Reza quickly wiped the tears from his face, the familiarity of the voice scratching at the back of his mind. "Just visiting... someone," he replied back, voice hoarse and shaky. He quickly clambered to his feet, brushing off his pants as he turned to whoever had joined him in the cemetery. "You're the one wearing a hoodie in the middle of the night," he shot back suspiciously, trying to get a look at the face concealed by shadows. The figure was small, shorter than Reza but not as fragile and skinny. "So are you up to anything sketchy?"

"Well actually I'm-" ​Cole​ had unsurprisingly been asked similar questions before, he could practically instinctively recite his comeback word for word. But this time he paused from defending himself when he realized that the face that was now facing him was all too familiar. "Reza?" Cole asked, slightly concerned by just how... rough he looked. Before Cole had even left town Reza had been pretty messed up, months and months of psychological and physical abuse could do that to a person, but now he looked even worse. He looked beaten and tired and he had obviously just been crying. Cole glanced beside Reza to see Nate Blackthorne printed on the headstone, but the name didn't ring any bells for Cole. "It's me" Cole finally realized that in the darkness, Cole was probably pretty unrecognizable. Not to mention Cole had been gone so long, who knew if Reza even remembered who he was. "Cole." reaching up, Cole threw his head off and then lifted his hand in a wave, "Long time no see!"

Reza found his muscles stiffening in suspense when the explanation from the stranger came to an abrupt halt, sure that something bad was about to happen. Didn't it always? His muscles coiled further when his name was spoken, recognition crawling through his brain but not quite hitting the right spot. He was considering whether he should sprint away, but if this was someone who knew him through Heath, running would be pointless. Maybe it would just be nice, getting killed here in the same spot, the two of them. Poetic justice, in a way. Morbidly poetic, but still. ​"Cole."​ Reza's mind froze, eyes narrowing as the hood dropped, revealing Cole Wiley, waving. Not the same Cole Reza had previously known; no, this one had a different glint to his eyes and although he obviously hadn't aged, something about him looked... older. Matured. "What the fuck..." he muttered, shaking his head before a hand came up to rake through his mop of a hair. "You're back? Just like that? Where the fuck have you been?" He wasn't even sure if he cared about the answer but it seemed like the right question to ask.

Cole had grown up a religious kid. His parents had gone to church every Sunday and dragged Cole to each and every service. Until he died at least. But while Cole had never really been super religious himself, the idea of some kind of higher power had never really left his head. He was never sure who or what this higher power was, or if there were multiple of them, and honestly it had never really effected him. But he had obviously done something to piss them off if they really were up there and chose to have Cole run across Reza tonight, just days after he got back into town. Cole remembered the last time the two talked, and it hadn't been left on good terms. Reza pretty much hated Cole for a load of reasons. Some of those reasons Cole hadn't deserved, but others gave Reza every right to wish that Cole had just run off and been staked, and that was probably exactly what Reza had wished for. "I left town for awhile. I met this group of Vampire hunting vampires." Describing them still felt strange on his tongue, the oxymoron was bitter tasting in his throat. "It sounds weird I know. But I didn't really want to be here for awhile. Considering." He didn't mention the specifics, but Reza knew them. "You're out late."

This was surreal. What were the odds of Cole showing up here, exactly where ​Reza​ had been composing his thoughts - not very successfully- about Heath's death. And now Cole was hunting vampires with, presumably, the pack that had forced his soul back. Forced his soul back after Cole had killed a few of Heath's colleagues, people Reza had known, without blinking an eye. Vampire hunting was clearly the right job for him. "I am." His eyes narrowed, a thought striking him. "Are you following me?" He took a step closer, unafraid. Cole had never hurt him in the past, he wouldn't hurt him now. Or maybe he would, if his new friends had made him ruthless enough to kill his own species without hesitation. Grief, anger and confusion made any fear vanish. "Because if you're here to kill Heath then tough luck, someone beat you to it. And I'm obviously still human so unless the vampire hunting includes murdering humans too..." Reza trailed off, breathing harshly, not realizing that he'd raised his voice or that a few tears had managed to slip down his cheeks, completely unwanted.

Cole was instantly confused. "Follow you? Why would I follow you?" Cole asked, but Reza had apparently already moved on to the next topic. Heath. Cole had wanted Heath dead, very very badly. Even before Cole lost his soul. Cole remembered the feeling very clearly, watching Heath take advantage of Reza the way that he had. How angry Cole was at the time, how he had completely lost his cool and went after Heath. The way that Cole had felt afterwards, while being yelled at by Reza for something he had never even done. At the time it was the most painful thing that had ever happened to him, and he had stabbed himself with arrows multiple times by that point. "Heath is... dead?" Cole finally asked. He didn't know what to say to that. He wasn't sad. He wasn't empathetic. Cole was relieved that people like Reza couldn't be hurt by them anymore." Cole took a step back from Reza as he stepped forward. "I'm sorry." He hoped it sounded sincere, in a way it was. Cole wasn't sorry that Heath was dead, but he was sorry for Reza's loss. "They don't kill vampires just for fun. They didn't kill me when I deserved it."

Reza scoffed, but it was halfhearted. The indignation and anger was harder to suffer when his mind was still reeling with memories. One came to the forefront of his mind, crystal clear; Cole telling him that Heath had been cheating on him. Way before Reza had seen evidence of Zack and Heath's... yeah. "I know you're not but thanks for trying," he mumbled, deflating like a popped balloon. He wasn't even angry at Cole. Not really. He didn't care. Reza just wanted to remove all of the bad memories from his mind, wipe them out for the good stuff. Impossible, but he could wish. "I'm glad your killing has moral codes," he muttered, arms crossing over his chest, light breeze whipping his hair into his face. He took a breath, composed himself, wiped better at the tears on his face to remove them completely. Asked the question he hadn't known he wanted to ask. "When you said... the night you attacked Heath or... he attacked you or whatever. Was he really... was it true? What you told me about him?"

This was a dramatic turn around for Reza. ​Cole​ remembered trying to talk to Reza after his shoulder had finally healed from the piece of broken wood that Heath had jammed into it. Even after Cole could use his arm again it had been sore for months while little pieces of splinters still seemed to be stuck in it. Reza was so sure that Cole had made everything up. That he was blinded by jealousy caused by some stupid little crush that Cole must have had on Reza. Maybe Cole had been jealous that Reza was dating Heath, but whether he had been or not, Reza should have known that Cole would have never made up that story or lied to him. But then again, Reza had never been hesitant to inform Cole that the two weren't actually friends. "I didn't just make it up." Cole said, then bit his lip to stop himself from talking. Whether or not Reza had made a mistake ever trusting Heath, and whether he was still in mourning for whatever reason, the fact was that Reza was hurting. The hunters had taught Cole a thing or two about people that were hurting, whether or not they were at fault, try to speak gently. It was always better to go into things level headed and clear-minded. "It was true. But I did hit him first." Cole couldn't remember if he had mentioned that or not back when Reza and Cole first fought about it but it seemed important to mention now, for whatever reason.

Reza knew what the answer was going to be before Cole replied. It was written all over the young vampire's face, not to mention that with every unravelling of Heath's past, more shitty stuff seemed to come to light. It still didn't make the hole in his chest feel any smaller. The only thing that seemed to help fill it, if only a little bit, were Bridget and Izel, and most recently, Neven. So all the way back then, Heath had just been messing with Reza. Not even at the start had he been telling the truth -- about anything. Reza's stomach twisted back and forth, making him nauseous. Was he really going to throw up twice here in the cemetery? Instead of his stomach convulsing further, Reza was simply dragged to the ground by an invisible weight, his lungs constricted. Reza was here, mourning or whatever he'd been doing, in the middle of the night, and all the while Heath had been out and about, fucking random people. His eyes closed but that only made the grotesque head appear in his hands so his lids snapped back up. "I'm sorry," he gasped, breathing in in shallow bursts of air, head starting to feel light. Sure, a panic attack in front of Cole, of all people. Why the fuck not. "You... I'm... so sorry," he wheezed, burying his face in his hands. "Should've... I should... fuck..."

Cole felt bad for Reza, he really truly did. For as obvious as Cole thought Heath was in his general lack of interest for Reza and all the other crimes he was committing, Reza had obviously cared for him. A lot from the looks of it, seeing as how Reza was still seemingly mourning him after finally accepting how cruel Heath was. For all Cole knew, Heath had put up a good front when others weren't around and actually feigned caring for Reza. Maybe in a way Heath even did care about Reza, it seemed unlikely but not impossible. "Hey Reza-" Cole stepped forward but immediately stopped himself, remembering the last time Cole had tried to help Reza after an episode like this. The grocery store scene was all too fresh in his mind, the way Reza had flipped out. "It was a long time ago. I really don't care about it anymore." He reached out for Reza and tried just patting his shoulder. The touch was gentle and stiff, knowing how fragile Reza was, and still seemed to be. The last thing Cole wanted was another episode.

Reza hadn't realized that Cole was approaching until a barely there touch landed on his shoulder. Unlike so many months ago, Reza didn't recoil from the touch but almost leaned into it instead. It felt like an anchor where he was sinking into darkness, a shaky hand latching onto Cole's arm. Trying to dig up all the tricks he'd tried to assemble so he wouldn't hyperventilate himself into passing out, desperately focusing on his breathing. Still clutching onto Cole, praying the other boy wouldn't step away, Reza finally cleared his head enough to take a deep breath. "Sorry, sorry," he panted, uncurling his fingers from Cole's arm, swallowing thickly. "I'm sorry he hurt you. And I didn't believe you." He attempted to stand, still too lightheaded to keep his balance, so he sunk back to his knees, feeling rather pitiful. He hadn't been this bad since his birthday. "You can go, I'll be fine, just... need a moment."

Cole was probably the one that flinched this time around when Reza actually grabbed onto Cole's arm, simply because the touch was so foreign to him. Cole's parents had been very affectionate, and so had Luna. All of them were big into hugging and Cole had definitely taken after them. When Reza felt like he was in trouble, Cole just naturally reached for him or if he had been sad he tried for a hug. The hunters were not a very touchy-feely bunch. The closest thing to affection Cole got from them was a slap on the back after Cole woke up from having his soul returned to him. He had grown used to it, so when Cole tried to climb to his feet and fell back to his knees, Cole was surprised that he reflexively reached down and wrapped his arms under Reza and tried to pull him back up to his feet. "I don't really think I should be leaving you alone. Maybe I can help you back to... wherever you're staying." If Reza had moved back in with his dad, that's how Cole would know everything in this town had flipped upside down. "And I told you don't worry about it. He hurt me because he knew about my crush or whatever. He was good at-" pinpointing weaknesses was what Cole had started to say. But the wound still seemed too fresh. "It wasn't like I didn't hurt people."

Reza was easily pulled up to his feet, hanging shamelessly off Cole like a wet rag. With their size difference, Cole should have struggled carrying Reza but obviously, his supernatural strength allowed him to easily carry the older boy. "It's fine, I can probably... walk or... something..." His head was starting to clear a bit but his legs were still unsteady, shaky underneath him. "I'm just... it's just down the road to MLC, not that far." He wasn't really sure whether he was arguing for walking alone or convincing Cole to accompany him. Either way, the two of them just started to make their way out of the cemetery, Reza trying his best to lean some of his weight off Cole. "It was a slayer," he mumbled, speaking the random train of thought going through his head. "Cut his head off in the cemetery."

It took a moment for ​Cole​ to realize what MLC was, but eventually it all clicked together. "So you're living with Izel now?" Cole asked absent-mindedly as he supported Reza out of the cemetery and onto the streets. Izel had obviously cared about Reza a lot, and had found a way to get through to him that Cole had never really pinned down himself. So it was good to know that Izel was there for him when Reza needed it most. "Did you... were you there when it happened?" Cole wasn't necessarily a Slayer's mortal enemy. In many ways they performed the same job, although a lot of Slayer's would probably still try to rip Cole's head off whether or not they knew what was going on. "Sorry you really don't need to answer that."

Reza nodded in response to the question, wondering what Cole felt about that. Whether or not he thought that Reza deserved Izel's kindness. "I was," he cut Cole off, before he could finish his polite follow up, not caring that the other vampire knew. A pause. "I shot him. In the shoulder." The confession made Reza momentarily wonder where the hell his gun was, a foggy memory of Izel confiscating it floating to mind. "He was an eretich. And a killer." Saying these things out loud felt weird. Really weird. Especially since Cole, someone he hadn't talked to in forever and hadn't really shared much with before their falling out, was the one listening. The words were spoken with numb detachment, almost as if her were speaking about a different Heath and Reza and not his own past.

"Oh" was all ​Cole​ could really think to say to Reza. Cole remembered thinking that Heath was different from Cole, but at the time didn't know much about vampires in general, let alone Eretich's. Slowly, the hunters were teaching Cole about all the types of vampires that they had gone up against and what they had learned. Cole knew just enough about Eretich's to know that they couldn't just be killed by any wooden stake. But he supposed beheading was just as effective. "He was. But that still must have been hard for you." Cole had always kept a strict no killing policy, something that soulless Cole had abandoned. It took a lot for the hunters to finally convince Cole that sometimes killing was absolutely necessary, and it took even longer for him to actually kill something himself. Shooting Heath must have been tough for Reza. "I'm sorry. Again."

 "Oh, stop being so nice," ​Reza​ snapped quietly, voice harsh yet submissive. "Don't have to pretend that you're sorry... You didn't really do anything and I was a piece of shit to you so just don't... apologize anymore." Finally trusting himself to carry his own weight, Reza leaned off Cole, but the two still walked side by side.

Cole just grinned to himself when Reza chastised him for feeling bad for him. There was the Reza that Cole remembered. Eventually, Reza picked himself back up and was able to walk on his own, and Cole crossed his arms, slightly relieved. "I'm not pretending. I know that must have been hard for you." But Cole shrugged, "But whatever. No more apologizing. Promise."

Reza nodded, frowning, his slightly damp cheeks stinging from the cold. "Good," he muttered, letting out a heavy breath, hands stuffing into his pockets. "And it was. Hard, I mean. Is hard. You probably think I'm... crazy or something but you've thought that all along so..." Cole grinning was weird, making it feel like everything was fine but the lump in his throat and stomach told him that everything wasn't. More weirdly, Reza found his eyes lingering a second too long on the white teeth, trying to remember what the boy looked like with the fangs visible.

Cole rolled his eyes at Reza. "I don't think you're crazy. I think you're mourning. It makes people do stupid stuff, I know." Cole knew all too well about the stupid things people could do when they were hurting. Reza probably wished that he could get rid of all of the emotions he was feeling, to not feel the pain. Cole felt the same way after his parents were killed, but he tried to take the easy way out. Which hadn't gone well for anybody involved. "I never thought you were crazy. I mean maybe just a little bit. You were very confusing I'll say that." he tried laughing, hoping that the mood hadn't been soured too much. It was strange, walking towards Mystery Loves Company with Reza at night. It sounded so odd, and yet it was probably the first normal thing he had done in months. Cole had been staring up at the stars, but glanced back over at Reza to catch his eyes trained on Cole. "You're staring."

Reza's head filled with the memory of soulless Cole -- not a very pleasant encounter -- and wondered for a moment if he'd have done the same after Heath's death, had something like that been possible. Honestly, he probably would have. "That's a nice way to put it," he scoffed but his voice held no menace, the smallest of smiles even making its way to his face. Cole's attention shifted and Reza couldn't even find it in him to be embarrassed, simply continuing to stare. "So?" With the almost casual response, Reza's gaze moved to the street ahead, chastising himself for ​what​ he'd been staring at.

Reza seemed to be doing fine on his own now, so maybe ​Cole​ should have left him to make it back by himself. The Reza that Cole used to know had always scoffed at the idea of needing the smaller vampire's protection anyways. Cole had a killer to hunt down, which had probably long since escaped now. Cole would probably be in trouble with the hunters for letting a murderer go just because some connection to his past had popped back up. Yet despite all of these things, Cole was still following next to Reza. "Well I'm a nice kid. Or well I used to be. Not so much anymore I guess. You certainly had some choice words to call me." Cole shrugged it off, knowing that everything Reza had called him had been well deserved. "So it's weird. What are you staring at?" Cole hated himself for still feeling like he could blush at the question, realistically it wasn't possible. But sometimes he still felt flush, like he could remember what it felt like before he had died.

Reza shrugged, mildly amused at the statement. "Being a nice kid is overrated. Or impossible. Little bit of both." He knew they weren't too far away from MLC, conflicted about how he felt, just leaving Cole again, not knowing whether he'd see the guy again for the next months or so. "Like you said, I am weird," he shot back, kicking a stray pebble down the street. "But I wasn't staring at anything special. Just... thinking." No way was he going to admit to Cole, or anyone, that among all the other things he was missing, the sharp pierce of fangs was still on the list. "No need to make it all... awkward. Wasn't staring at your lips or anything, promise."

Cole thought he could see Mystery Loves Company from here. Which meant that soon he could get back on the hunt, by now it was mostly just a lost cause. He would have to accept the loss and whatever punishment the hunters chose for him. Maybe the next night he would have more luck. "Okay. I wasn't accusing you of staring at my lips." But he had been staring, and Cole was just a bit curious as to what he was staring at. Getting information out of Reza was never that easy though. "So what were you thinking about?" Cole asked, speaking in almost a mumble. Because he didn't know if Reza would even give him a straight answer, old Reza probably wouldn't have. Just how much had he changed since Cole left town?

"Good," ​Reza​ replied, still keeping a casual tone, even though part of his composure was slipping. Cole was suspicious, even if he didn't know just ​what​ to be suspicious about. "You probably don't want to know," came the answer, after some silence, and Reza refused to look down towards Cole now. "Just some messed up stuff, you know how it is." Shaking his head, something like a chuckle following his words, he absentmindedly scratched at his throat, most of it hidden by the lapels of his jacket. "You going to disappear again after this?"

"Actually now I'm really curious to know" ​Cole​ laughed. Cole closed his eyes as he walked alongside Reza, letting his ears do the work to figure out if it was just the two of them around. Because no one could really be sure in Ashkent Creek. But nothing. He could hear faint heartbeats, probably people sleeping in the apartments above shops. But no real signs of activity except for the sound of Cole and Reza's footsteps, then the sound of Reza's nails scratching at his neck. Cole could practically hear his blood flowing through his neck as Reza pressed up against it. Maybe all that time in complete isolation really had helped Cole's senses like the hunters claimed it would. They had promised to fix his blood lust, and had done a pretty good job considering. Maybe he should stop doubting them. "But I know better than to pry I guess." That was about the only thing that Cole really knew about Reza. "I'm sticking around for awhile. A few months at least." Cole had asked to come back here, and was able to convince the hunters because there was always some kind of threat here in Ashkent Creek. But Cole didn't really have a long term plan in mind."

Forcing a smile, ​Reza​ glanced back over at Cole. "Ask me about it sometime later, then." He didn't have any interest in talking about this later but he hoped this would kill the topic completely. "So that means your hunter friends are around, too?" The words held a bit of distaste, he couldn't help it. Before an answer came, they had arrived outside MLC, the light outside illuminating their faces. Cole looked... good. In good shape. Maybe these guys he was hanging out with were doing something positive for him but still... Aware that he probably looked a mess, Reza averted his eyes to the door, once again moving a hand to his neck, rubbing it awkward this time. "Well... thanks. Didn't expect you to, y'know... want to help me."

Cole knew that was basically an attempt to drop the subject entirely, but Cole had a fantastic memory. If Cole and Reza ran into each other again sometime, Cole might just ask him. Maybe then Reza would be more open to talking about it. Or maybe Cole just needed to realize that this was probably just what Reza did to get rid of him. "I wouldn't say friends were the right word." The hunters were not terrible by any means, Cole believed in the work that they did and while they might have some ulterior motives they still meant the best. Their methods were a bit... dramatic, but Cole had learned to adapt. "More like teachers. Or maybe even coworkers. I don't know." It felt weird talking about them to someone that wasn't actually a hunter with him. It felt... wrong almost. Like Cole was betraying their trust. "Well you know, old habits die hard I guess." Would it be too much to quote that stupid line from that Cowboy movie? Brokeback Mountain? Yeah, probably, so Cole left his mouth shut. "You should tell Izel I said hi for me. I'll try to stop in sometime when I'm not worried about turning to dust in the sunlight."

"They do," ​Reza​ replied solemnly, shaking the expression of his face just as quickly as it had appeared. "I'm sure she'll be happy to hear you're back. Or... probably. I mean, you are still a vampire but..." Shrugging, fingers now numb from the cold, Reza still stuck out a hand after some thought. It felt slightly forced but he didn't want to just say goodbye and disappear inside.

Cole could remember how helpful Izel had been right after Heath had almost killed Cole. Of course Heath had no real intentions of actually killing him, Heath just liked to play with his food. But Izel had never once treated Cole like he was a monster or that he was any different just because he was a vampire. Then she showed him the basement of Mystery Loves Company where Cole actually started to get some real answers about Vampires that didn't come from Twilight or the Vampire Diaries. But if Izel had heard about what Cole had done while he didn't have a soul maybe she would take everything back. Cole just stared at Reza's hand for a long moment. "Like.. a handshake?" Cole asked out loud, his hands still stuffed in the pockets of his jacket. Cole didn't know if it was the teenager in him or just how odd it felt to be in this specific situation with Reza. Instead, Cole took a step backwards and pulled a hand free to wave at Reza goodbye. "Not really my thing." Cole laughed. "But I'll catch you some other time I'm sure. See ya."

Reza cocked an eyebrow, hand wavering slightly. "For real?" Watching the wave in disbelief, Reza scoffed and looked towards the door of MLC before returning his gaze to Cole's retreating form. "Fine. Fuck you too, then," he called after the vanished vampire, no real menace in his words, more joking than not. Weird. Really weird evening. Wiping the grass off his pants, Reza unlocked the door to the apartment and slipped inside, immediately greeted by a purring cat rubbing himself against his leg. "Yeah, I don't know what the fuck just happened either," he sighed to the feline, picking it up as he headed for his room.

Had Reza turned into a fifty year old man since ​Cole​ had left Ashkent Creek? Cole couldn't imagine Reza shaking Cole's hand before, not even before Heath, when Cole and Reza had actually been on the verge of potential friendship. It could have partly been Cole's fault. He had been way too awkward. Awkward around everyone, but especially Reza. "Good to know your vocabulary is about the same." Cole called out to Reza as he pulled the hood up over his face and started jogging off down the street. He could hear Reza's door unlocking and opening, then the sound of a cat purring. But he shook his head to free himself of those distractions. If Cole was lucky, he could find who he had been chasing, or maybe catch someone else in the act. If not... well it wouldn't be the first time Cole had slipped up and let someone get away. He ran his hand across his arm reflexively, thinking about what would happen if he came back empty handed, especially after telling them that he was following someone. He shivered, though it wasn't because of the cold, and then took off in a sprint.

[rezathevamp-blog]

Offer Me That Deathless Death || Reza & Cole

Soulless vampires, drug dealers, punching and stuff. 

The place was a dump, not that ​Cole​ expected much else from one of Heath’s friends. This particular friend, more like a coworker actually, considering Heath was way too much of a dick to make or keep real ones, lived in a ratty apartment filled with skeezeballs and douchebags galore. Insults coming from an orphaned soulless vampire no less. Cole wasn’t entirely sure what the plan was going in, but after flashing the cash he had borrowed from the bar and being offered the invite in, he figured to hell with plans, Cole was at his best winging it anyhow. The place was a disaster, cases of drugs Cole couldn’t identify littered the floors and empty beer cans and liquor bottles scattered every table or desk top imaginable. Cole counted three vampires in the room, the man who let Cole in, aka one of Heath’s business buddies, a man downing a bottle of tequila on the couch, and a woman spread across the floor who looked too drugged out of her mind to even realize Cole had walked in. Cole had no clue how old they were or how strong they were compared to him, but fun fact about having no soul: Cole didn’t give a shit. He stuffed his hands in his pockets nonchalantly, running his finger along the knife and walking deeper into the apartment. “You gonna tell us what you want or not kid?” the vampire crossed his arms expectantly, waiting for an answer.

This was exhausting. As if Heath getting infected, threatening to kill the cats and ​Reza​ in the process, hadn't been enough, the healing process had to take forever as well. But Reza was definitely glad the whole snake thing was over with. Living with someone who not only was aggressive, but who you couldn't touch, was a pain. And he could feel himself getting more nectar deprived with every day. Hopefully, things would get back to normal soon. For now, however, Reza had to 'check up on business' as Heath had put it. Reza hated Heath's business buddies. Most of them were careless pricks who did little except poke fun at Reza whenever they were around; one had even asked Heath if he could 'have a taste, too.' A ​joke​, he'd insisted. And that was exactly the guy he was heading to meet now. Just his luck. Shivering as he finally found the address, Reza gave an awkward nod to the guy outside. A vamp that was actually pretty decent, but looked every bit the part of a bouncer with his towering frame and steely glare. "There's some kid inside, though. Just hang around in the hallway." Reza nodded, stifling a groan. More waiting. He just wanted to get his kittens back and go home. Maybe actually be able to touch his boyfriend again. But he did as he was told, back sliding against the wall as he took a seat on the ground. Through the door, he could hear muffled voices but paid them little mind. Hopefully this 'meeting' would be over soon.

Cole fell silent when he heard the guy standing outside talking to someone, and knew that the other two vampires had heard him talking too. Cole watched curiously as the two exchanged glances, then both turned towards Cole, obviously irritated. "We don't have all damn day kid for you to gather up your allowance. You want something or not?" the main vamp, the leader apparently of this mis-fit band of drug dealing murderers asked. Soul Cole would have been thrown in a tizzy to see how awful this drug ring was, how little they valued human life. New Cole couldn't really give a damn to be honest. But the guys ran with Heath, and even without the ability to feel things Cole still couldn't get rid of the distaste he had for the guy. He tapped against the knife in his pocket, not enough to kill a vampire, but definitely enough to make them hurt for a few minutes. For the real pain he would need wood. He glanced around the room, finally settling once he noticed the wooden chairs behind him in the dining room area. He walked over to it and with a gentle tug, broke a section of it off. "Wooden chairs? In a vampire's apartment? Really guys?" Cole asked, then pulled the knife and threw it, lodging it right into the lackey's forehead. Ouch. The shocked expression on the guy by the door's face was priceless, but Cole didn't have time to take a picture. He raced for the guy, using the couch's arm as leverage and leaping into the arm, wrapping one leg around the guy's neck and throwing him into the ground. By now the ruckus had forced guy outside to throw open the door, and Cole was greeted by a towering vamp staring at Cole's neck choking out his boss, and a very confused looking Reza sitting on the floor right outside the door. "Reza! What a pleasant surprise!" Cole smiled and waved right before jabbing the wood into his victim's heart, standing to brush the dust off of himself after the guy had exploded.

Reza had managed to zone out, mind wandering to whether or not he should get Fiona something to thank her for the kitten sitting when there was a loud commotion from inside the other room. Before Reza could even react, the bouncer guy rushed past him, slamming open the door and Reza was forced back into the ground by the shock of seeing Cole of all people inside one of Heath's drug dens. What the fuck... He blinked back when Cole waved nonchalantly at him, like they'd just ran into each other at the store instead of inside a shitty apartment with Cole's leg wrapped around the douchebag vampire's neck. But it made sense because Cole was soulless. Which explained why Reza's least favorite vampire was suddenly turning into dust before his eyes. Watching the vamp disappear finally spurred him into motion and Reza scrambled to his feet just as the largest vamp grabbed Cole in a vice grip. Fangs bared, angry stares; even the guy enjoying his tequila had gotten up to retrieve Cole's makeshift stake. "Wait... wait, wait, wait, wait," he muttered, barely audible over the incoherent shouting of the vampires inside the other room. It wasn't until the stake was actually raised and pointed at Cole's chest that Reza raised his voice. "Don't!"Practically stumbling towards the trio, Reza slammed into the vamp holding the wooden piece, somehow actually managing to push him back. Probably because Heath would kick their ass if there was an injury on Reza's body not caused by him. "Just wait!"

Cole dangled from the man's grip and almost laughed as the guy came forward with the stake. Well this definitely wasn't going as Cole had planned. Cole couldn't even reach the ground the man was so tall, so instead Cole stay suspended in air, held at his throat by Green Giant with his feet suspended above the ground, waiting for death. But then Reza was stumbling forward, crashing into the guy and most importantly, distracting the two men. What a white knight that Reza fellow was. Cole swung his legs up, wrapping them around the guy's shoulders and then pulling down as hard as he could. He heard the bones snapping and then the man yell out in pain before he dropped Cole. Cole rolled backwards upon impact and grabbed the closest thing to him, which happened to be the tequila bottle, and threw it out at the guard, glass exploding on impact against his face spraying tequila everywhere. With him temporarily distracted from the glass in his eyes, Cole raced over to the other guy, picking Reza up swiftly and gingerly and pushing him out of harms way, "Careful! There's glass there!" Cole yelled out before turning to the man with the stake aimed at him. The man swung forward, and Cole tried dodging with no luck. The stake had lodged into his shoulder and Cole screamed out in pain. But now the thing was stuck there. The vampire tried to pull it out, but Cole pushed it in further, forcing the vampire to either come closer to Cole or let go. When he finally chose let go, Cole kicked out at his ankles, sending him tumbling to the ground. Then he ripped the wood out of his shoulder and plunged it into the guys heart before whirling it at the other vampire's heart. Two dust explosions went off almost simultaneously, leaving just Cole, Reza, and the drugged out woman alone in the room. "I knew you cared." Cole laughed as he walked towards the couch and clapped his hands together sending vampire dust flying in all directions.

"He killed Josh, I'm dusting that fucking asshole," the vampire growled in Reza's face, grabbing his shoulder and shoving him away. He didn't get very far, however, as the ground shook from the impact of something heavy hitting the ground and Reza was being shoved around ​again​. Disoriented and way too fucking confused, Reza barely managed to gather his bearings before there were more screams of pain. Cole had gone completely berserk, taking a stake to the shoulder only to kill another vamp, and Reza couldn't help it. He pulled out his phone, stomach sinking, and typed out a quick '911' message to Heath. And then everything was quiet. Reza stared at the remains of what had been the likable vamp, now simply dust on the floor. Cole was completely insane, underlined by the fact that he started joking seconds after committing murder, sarcasm dripping from his voice and laugh. These guys hadn't been stand up citizens but they hadn't deserves this... Not to mention the fact that Heath would be furious. "Are you ​fucking​ kidding?" Fueled by anger, shock, adrenaline, Reza stomped over to Cole, glaring down at him. For a moment, he thought about picking up the stake but Cole wouldn't hurt him... probably. "What the fuck is your problem, Cole?" Their last encounter had been awkward, uncomfortable and downright awful but after the week he'd had, triple murder had just been the fucking cherry on top of it all. "I knew these guys and you..."

Cole looked up at Reza from his seat on the couch. He was furious, and didn't seem to be in the lounging mood, so Cole stood up from the couch again and even then barely made it up to Reza's height. Honestly those vamps should be embarrassed they had just had their asses kicked by the shortest vampire in Ashkent Creek. He eyed Reza curiously. The yelling was obviously annoying, but Cole had to admit that even mad Reza was still pretty hot. Especially before he had apparently gotten into drugs and let himself be a blood bag for psycho vamp. Back when Cole had first met him he had practically fallen in love on the spot. He had seemed so laid back and so brave in the face of danger. Now that Cole didn't have the emotions to cloud his judgement he saw Reza for what he really was, but that didn't take away from the looks. "These guys would kill you if you weren't Heath's chew toy." A little harsh, maybe. But it hadn't stopped him from what he said to Luna, it definitely wouldn't stop him with Reza. "And they have killed a bunch of other people. Either by themselves or from the drugs they're selling them." The hero act felt almost acidic on his tongue. Reminded him of how pathetic old Cole was. But even as someone that wasn't capable of caring about the people who had been killed by them, it was the honest truth. "I may be doing it to ruin your boyfriend's business, but I'm actually helping the town out too. You're welcome town!" He shouted out loud, as if the town could hear him and yell out a thank you in reply.

Of course this was about Heath. The two of the hadn't talked about anything ​but​ Heath since... well, Heath. God, this was all such a mess. Why did talking to anyone that wasn't Heath or part of Heath's world just make everything feel like a mess? Or make him feel like a mess, which was ironic since he was the only one not being driven to ​murder​. Or attempted murder, in Izel's case. Fuck, his blood boiled just thinking about it. Although that could have just been the hints of withdrawal beginning to take its toll. Either way, Cole's attitude and shouting was pissing him and there had been no one to take his frustrations out on for the last few weeks so before he could even register what he was doing, Reza's hand had balled into a fist. And then it collided with Cole's face. And Reza's fist probably hurt way more than Cole's face but damn it if it didn't feel good. Even though a part of him still regretted punching Cole, an newly made orphan, but a larger part just didn't care anymore. "That's for Heath and the guys you just ​staked​."

Cole had been caught off guard, he could admit that. But even after Reza had punched him and Cole grabbed onto his jaw he didn't move. "Ow." he replied simply, rubbing at it. Reza was either incredibly brave or ridiculously stupid for choosing to punch a soulless vampire who could rip his throat out, but who knew, when it came to Reza the thought probably turned him on. He obviously had a thing for vampires. "You play this rough with your boyfriend too?" Cole smiled again, despite himself. He couldn't help the joking, even if it was probably going to drive Reza out the door. "It sure looks like he knows how to throw your around." Cole wandered off, avoiding being punched anymore and ran his fingers across some of the "merchandise" lying in a box next to the couch. They sure were lucky Cole had showed up and not the police. Or maybe not since they were dead now. "At least I didn't destroy the big Kahuna's merchandise." But even as he said it, the idea had already planted itself in his mind. "Or maybe I'll burn the whole place down? But don't worry. Didn't I promise you once upon a time that I'd never hurt you or something like that?"

Reza's eyes narrowed. This was absolutely ridiculous. Like every encounter he had with Cole. Pointless and frustrating. Which it shouldn't have been; this was a fifteen year old... twerp. Reza's fist felt sore but he didn't regret throwing the punch, even as Cole threw more sarcastic comments his way. As bothersome and uncomfortable as he had been, Reza definitely preferred Cole with his soul intact. This Cole just felt wrong. Reza's nails dug into his palms, the urge to throw another punch growing. He knew he shouldn't have let Cole spite him, should have just waited calmly for Heath to arrive, but after the whole Izel thing, he couldn't really stand more trash talking about Heath. "You don't know what you're talking about," he spat back, turning to watch Cole wander carelessly, stepping over the vampire ashes. This whole situation still felt unreal; Reza hadn't seen a vampire killed since he'd met Francis the slayer. Violence he'd gotten good at accepting or looking past but vampires getting dusted just like that... Nails dug even further into his skin, deep enough to draw what little blood Reza had in his body on a normal basis. "Yeah, something like that. Don't really expect you to keep any of your fucking promises now that you don't give a shit." Reza's phone vibrated in his pocket. Heath? Had to be. He had to know that Reza wouldn't have sent the message for nothing. "But there's no way I'm letting you set a fire."

Cole chose to ignore Reza's claims that Heath wasn't hurting him. Because it was so painfully obvious that Heath was hurting the sorry sap. If Cole had his soul he'd probably feel pity for the dude. And definitely anger towards Heath. Souled Cole had been mad enough about the cheating thing. Abuse would probably send him off the rails. Force him to try something crazy and stupid like what Cole had just finished doing here. But he knew Heath's strength. Heath would overpower him easily. No, it was easier to make Heath suffer from afar. "Now now I don't know why you'd think so little of me. I didn't kill you here did I? Just because I don't have a soul doesn't mean I'm a complete savage. Hurting humans gets way too bloody. Too much evidence. Besides, I wouldn't want to harm a hair on that pretty little head." Cole pondered moving in to pull something infuriating like messing with his cheeks, but Reza would probably just flail around like that day in the grocery store and trip over something. Instead Cole kept his distance and laughed at his own humor. That's when he heard the vibrating coming from Reza's pocket. "That must be the boyfriend checking in on you."

"I'm glad I'm an inconvenience to kill," ​Reza​ spat back, feeling more and more furious with every word that left Cole's mouth. Paying no mind to the fact that the anger was in some part because of the guilt. Cole was an absolute mess, soulless and lost, and he couldn't help but think that if things had turned out differently between them, maybe he'd have at least had a friend. But he had to remind himself that Cole had attacked Heath, accused him of cheating, and been generally unsupportive over his relationship. Reza had no obligation to him. Why did he still feel guilty, then? "You realize you're starting to sound just like the guys you just killed, right? Starting to think someone should stake you, too." It was an angry overreaction; Reza was mad but he didn't want Cole dead. Probably. "And yeah, that's ​Heath​. He's probably on his way, too." It slipped out, the part of him that didn't want Cole punished for this, feeling like it wasn't his fault, letting the words out. Another part of him, the angry part, kind of wanted Heath to show up and hit Cole, make him hurt the way Reza's punch had completely failed to. "So if you want to avoid getting what you probably deserve for this mess, I'd leave. Now."

Cole could admit that he was impressed with the backbone Reza had somehow managed to keep through all of this, considering he must understand how easily it would have been for Cole to snap his neck if Cole had chosen to. "Ooh. Threatening. There's a stake right there Rez. Have at it." He pointed at the wooden stake that Reza had been eyeing the whole time anyways and opened his arms as if to feign surrender. If Reza had grabbed the stake and ran after him, Cole would probably have to seriously consider stopping him. At this point, Cole had pissed Heath off enough to the point that when Heath did get a hold of him his death was probably going to be pretty painful. At least this would be relatively painless. Plus, with all the emotional turmoil Reza had put Souled Cole through, Reza deserved to live with the guilt of being the one that caused his death. That'd be one way to get some payback on the asshole. "Sucks that our date's getting cut short right? Get it? Sucks?" Cole pointed at the fangs and smiled widely, though he doubted he'd get so much as a chuckle from Reza, who was ridiculously bland for Cole's taste. "Oh well. I guess I'll take my leave now. Tell the boyfriend I said hey, and that it was a pleasure doing business with him." Cole strolled merrily to the door, ready to take his leave once Reza got his snarky last words in.

Reza tensed at the nickname, muscles coiled, and for a moment, he was tempted. And it scared him. But the rational part of him knew he could never. Maybe he'd toy with the idea when he wasn't completely dry and sober but for now, it just left a bitter taste on his tongue. "Like I'd sink to your level," he muttered quietly, knowing very well that Cole would hear him clear as day. His lips twitched into a dry, dark smile at Cole's joke. At least soulless Cole had a sense of humor. Maybe souled Cole had had that too, but Reza hadn't gotten a chance to find out. The vampire had always been so awkward and twitchy around him and again, they'd never really been friends. "I get it." Fuck, that smile looked so wrong on Cole's face. "You know," Reza started as Cole headed for the door, even going as far as following him a few steps, "-I actually ​did​ want to be your friend. Before everything. Just because I thought you were the complete opposite of this. But I was obviously wrong. Enjoy being a coward without a soul, Cole." It all just flooded out, he couldn't have stopped it if he tried. He just wanted Cole the feel as guilty as he did right now, even though Reza knew that it wasn't possible.

"Well if I ever get my soul back, I'm sure old me will throw a party to know that after all the shit you've put me through, you wanted to be my friend all along." For someone soulless, it sure sounded like Cole held a lot of contempt for Reza. But Cole knew that someday if he got his soul back, which was a big if, Souled Cole would never say something like that to him. This guy who had caused so much pain for Cole and yet Cole would still do anything for him. It made no sense. None. So if there was one positive thing that Cole would do for himself, it would be this. Say the shit that Souled Cole was too afraid to say. "But lucky for you your boyfriend is probably going to catch up to me eventually. I'll be long gone before your words will actually mean anything real to me anyways." Then Cole was grabbing onto the door handle and waving a goodbye before swinging it shut. "It was a sorry fucking excuse for an apology anyways!" He yelled out at the last second right before the door slammed shut behind him.

[itsjustwesley-blog]

it’s tough love || wesley&cole

When Wesley made the decision to come home, he knew that it meant he’d have to see people more often. He’d be spending time with Sophia -- knowing her she wouldn’t allow him to sulk in his room, -- as well as Alec who would likely see him more often than usual now that they were in the same house. He also counted on seeing Cole more often than usual, though he felt like lately he’d been seeing him quite a bit. Oddly enough, no one had seemed to pick up on his brother’s newly found bad habits, or newly found from a few years earlier. It seemed strange to Wesley that though he was the least close to his brother from anyone else around them, he seemed to be the only one to notice that Cole was struggling with something.

Nothing ever stirred Wesley’s love for his brother. Cole could scream at him, throw things at him, even hit him, but Wesley could never find it in him to leave his side. The last thing that his brother deserved was one more abandonment. Their father had walked out without a word, and it almost seemed as if even their mother couldn’t quite look at him like she used to. But Wesley was fairly certain that even if his brother committed some heinous crime, he’d still help cover his tracks.

It never became less concerning when Cole wouldn’t answer his phone calls. He never tried to pester his brother, but sometimes when he only called to check up and the ringing went to voicemail, he couldn’t help but assume the worst. That his brother had maybe passed out somewhere, left by himself. No one could take care of Cole like Wesley did, because to Wes it seemed that at the moment he was the only one who cared to notice. “Cole, for Christ’s sake pick up your damn phone,” Wesley muttered into the voice message. But he knew well enough that his brother wouldn’t, or maybe he’d only get a single text back, a rarity. But he’d have to go find him and pick him up, as always.

The town was covered in a sheet of darkness as Wesley’s hands clenched the steering wheel of his old truck, navigating the streets that he knew like the back of his hand. Before long, in the small town that it was, he came across a dark figure walking down the street, or rather stumbling. Wesley pulled his truck to a stop along the curb, exiting the vehicle with what could only be the look of a worried brother. “Cole,” he called to his clearly intoxicated brother. “Cole, get in the truck. Let’s go home.”

[berlz-chatte-blog]

Cole & Berlioz || 11/12

Berlioz didn’t really know why Cole wanted to see him. They hadn’t exactly left things on good terms. But he didn’t want Cole to be upset because of him--again-- so he agreed to see him. After class on Thursday he made his way to Cole’s room, a familiar journey, and knocked on his door.

@coletremaine

[rezathevamp-blog]

Visiting Hours || Reza&Cole

Takes place the evening after the vampire attack at the High School.

Cole was turned away from the police officer almost immediately after walking off the elevator. He could clearly see Reza's room, guarded by the police officer who had caught Cole's eye in the hallway and shook his head at him. Was it that obvious that Cole wanted to see Reza? "Sorry, no visitors," he spoke brutely, before strutting off and sitting in the chair a little bit down the hallway. "I'm uh not even here to see Re- that person," he covered, "I'm here to visit my grams. Wrong floor I think," he laughed nervously before heading back into the elevator. He had to see Reza. Had to apologize for what he almost did to him. It took the elevator one floor up and then searched the room that he figured was immediately above Reza's. It was empty. Perfect. Now was he actually prepared to do this? It was incredibly stupid, even by Cole's definition. But pretty soon he found himself unlocking the window and sliding it open. He had to be quick, before a nurse or someone had come to check on Reza. He climbed out onto the window sill, looking out at how dark it was. He had snuck out of his house at almost midnight, so it had to be passed that by now. Taking one final breath, he positioned himself on the window sill and then let go, just barely grabbing on again at Reza's floor. One peak inside told him that he had chosen the right room. He was so nervous. Not just because he was breaking into a hospital room for some guy that probably didn't even like him, but because the guy probably didn't like him because Cole had almost gotten him killed the night before. But, it was too late to turn back now, literally, so he knocked.

Reza's phone had been taken away once he'd been caught furiously typing away, the nurses claiming that his brain needed a rest away from screens and any outside stress. He'd been pissed at first but without the constant distraction, he'd eventually begun to doze off, the painkillers for his headache starting to kick in. Reza was startled from his sleep by a foreign sound, wondering if the nurses were back to check on him, seeing as he wasn't allowed to sleep for too long, but the room was still pitch dark and he was all alone. Blinking at the ceiling, he perked his ears, heart starting to pick up its pace. What if the vamps were back to finish the job? Maybe their boss wanted him dead because he knew of their existence now. Tensing up, he startled at the repeated noise, fumbling to sit up on the bed. The knock had come from the window... Slowly, warily, he padded barefoot to the window, breath catching in his throat as he noticed a pair of eyes staring back at him. And a face he recognized. "Cole?!" Reza rushed over, unlatching the window and grabbing onto the boy hanging from the window sill, helping him climb through. "What are you doing here?" he whispered loudly, arms crossing over his bare chest as the cold wafted in through the window.

Cole averted his eyes immediately after realizing that Reza was shirtless. He tried to keep his eyes focused on Reza, but then realized that that was probably creepy in itself. So he started looking anywhere else he could. Like the plant sitting next to the door, how lovely. Or the hospital tray sitting next to his bed. "Uh hi. I came to visit you. Although looking back I can probably see why that was a bad idea and incredibly stupid. You were sleeping and this is illegal and you probably don't want to see me anyways, considering what happened. What I almost did. I just thought that I probably needed to apologize but now I see I could have just messaged you. I am so sorry for waking you up I can probably just go now and leave you alone." Cole was speaking a million miles a minute, fumbling through everything that he thought he needed to say. He still didn't get everything out that was on his mind, but eventually he forced himself to stop blabbering. He really shouldn't have come. Not with Reza on lock down by the police with a head injury, that was caused because of Cole. Not with him asleep and shirtless in his hospital room, barely even aware of who Cole was. Before last night Reza had no clue that Cole even existed. "I'm so sorry again. For everything. Really." Maybe he could just leap out the window and die of embarrassment. Cole wasn't even sure a fall from this height could kill him.

Reza barely realized why Cole was averting his eyes so much until remembering that, yeah, he wasn't wearing a shirt. That was what was making Cole so fumbly? ​Why?​ The constant stream of words almost completely eradicated the good the pain killer had done and Reza's head began to throb as he tried to make sense of the rambling. He was here to apologize? For what, exactly? Reza's eyebrows furrowed and it wasn't until the cold drew out a violent shiver that he figured to close the window. Maybe he should put on a shirt as well... "It's fine, they, uh, actually took away my phone," he explained once Cole finally grew quiet, finding the white, discarded shirt and pulling it over his head with a small wince. "Happy to have some company, I guess..." He took a seat on the bed, pulling his legs under him, staring at Cole with some curiosity. So this guy was a vamp. He always felt a bit intimidated by the vamps he met at Macabre so this was a nice change. Maybe he'd be able to pick Cole's brain a bit. "You can, y'know, sit down or whatever. If you want," he offered after a moment of heavy silence, gesturing towards the chair placed at the side of his bed.

Cole took the seat Reza had pointed towards and sat there awkwardly. His phone getting taken away explained why he had never messaged back earlier at least. "So uh... how's the hospital been?" he wasn't sure why he had decided this was the only way to apologize. Why couldn't he have been like every other normal person and just sent flowers and a get well soon card or something. But maybe change the words to sorry I almost drank your blood. They probably didn't make those. "Oh!" Cole unzipped his bookbag and dug into it,suddenly remembering that he hadn't come empty handed after all. "I - uh brought you stuff." He started pulling out a paper bag, now dark brown from the grease, and an old comic book that was a personal favorite of his. "I brought you this comic book. I don't know if you read comics, you probably don't. But I thought you mightget bored here all alone and it's one of my personal favorites. All about Nightwing. And I also brought you a cheeserburger. And fries. I don't even know if you like cheeseburgers. But I heard hospital food sucks so" he stopped talking again, afraid he'd start rambling on like last time. Instead he just handed the food and comic book out for Reza to either take or deny.

Reza fidgeted on the bed, for some reason feeling thankful for the bandages covering the shallow puncture wounds on his neck. He felt ashamed of them, in a way; ashamed of not having fought back harder, maybe? For part of his brain kinda not-hating it? "Crappy. They barely let my sister in to see me and I've been bored out of my mind. I'm not supposed to watch TV or read or whatever because of the head trauma but I think they're overreacting." This felt kinda small talk-ish. Once again, Cole was being weirdly awkward and Reza couldn't put his finger on why. Maybe he was embarrassed that Reza knew his secret? That he'd almost sucked him dry? Reza's eyes lit up with curiosity as something was pulled from the bag, an earnest smile appearing on his face. "Wow. Uh... Thanks." He warily accepted the gifts, carefully placing the precious comic book on the night stand, currently more interested in the actual food. "Still don't know what you're apologizing for but you're definitely forgiven." He took a few grateful bites out of the hamburger, almost offering Cole some fries before remembering that they were a little too 'food' for him. Putting the bag aside, Reza stared at the younger boy for a moment before finally daring to bring up the first question. "Where do you get your blood?" Maybe not the most tactful way to put it but whatever. "I mean, I'm guessing you don't like... y'know, drinking from people. Or maybe you do. I'm not judging either way." Reza winced at his own question, staring somewhat sheepishly at Cole, continuing to fidget with nerves and curiosity.

Cole started laughing when Reza suggested that Cole had nothing to apologize for. "Seriously? Nothing to apologize for?" That thing hurt you because of me. He tried to get me to kill you and.. well I almost did. The smell of your blood was driving me insane and I was so close to convincing myself that just one bite.. a lick even would satisfy the hunger." he noticed that he had started speaking louder through his emotions and calmed himself down again, returning to his whisper. He didn't want the cop hearing that Reza had a guest, or was talking to himself. That probably wouldn't have been a good sign either. "I haven't drank human blood, no. The goal is to avoid it at all costs. I can barely control myself around animal blood. I don't even want to know what human blood tastes like." No matter how great it smells. "There's this butcher shop that I get the blood from sometimes. And sometimes I go out hunting for deer." It felt odd talking about this to someone that didn't know what it was like. Drinking blood was normal for Lu and Vas, which made talking about it to them normal. With Reza it was completely different. Everything seemed completely different. Like everything he said was the wrong word.

Reza furrowed his eyebrows, feeling even more fidgety with every word Cole spoke. As his voice rose, the fifteen year old actually managed to look intimidating and Reza found himself leaning backwards on instinct, half expecting Cole to just take a bite right here. Of course, he didn't. And wouldn't. Obviously. Animal blood had been a guess but it was still kinda surprising to find that Cole hadn't tasted human blood. Ever. He almost wanted to tell Cole that he was missing out but that would have been weird. Actually, beyond weird, seeing as it would make it sound like Reza was speaking from experience. Which he wasn't. Or, well, only phantom experience. And Cole clearly had some moral code stronger than the vamps Reza had met. Was it bad that he kinda didn't like the moral code? Looking up, he could see that Cole seemed uncomfortable as all hell and Reza's eyes darted to the ground. "Sorry, I didn't mean to pry. If you don't want to talk about it... I'm just curious."

"No it's fine I-" Did ​Cole​ want to talk about it? He wasn't exactly sure. All he was sure about was that if they ran out of things to talk about then Cole would have to leave, and he didn't really want to leave yet. "I like talking about it. I like having these abilities. Helping people. It's just I'm not a fan of the drawbacks. Having to drink blood, putting a target on people's backs because of what I am. I didn't ask for that. I never wanted you or anyone else get hurt because I'm different."

Reza was surprised to hear Cole's thoughts on the whole undead vampire thing. He'd never really imagined that it would put anyone else in trouble but then again, what had happened hadn't been Cole's fault. It could have happened any day of the week, vampire friend or not, considering all the deaths in this town. "You're not putting a target on anyone's back. You know that, right? These... spawn probably would have torn us to pieces if you hadn't been there," he said quietly, staring at Cole, hoping to convince the younger boy. Reza wasn't going to broach the blood drinking subject, seeing as Cole obviously had his mind made up about drinking from humans and he wasn't going to argue. That could lead to some uncomfortable conversations that Reza wasn't ready to have right now with his head feeling like dead weight. "Tell me you'll stop blaming yourself."

Cole wanted to agree with him. Wanted to tell Reza what he wanted to hear, but he didn't think he could. Sure, Reza was probably right that the vampires would have just killed the three of them. But once that thing found out that Cole didn't kill them, something told him that it would come back for him, or all four of them. The thought terrified him, and if it did happen then it would definitely be because of Cole and it would definitely be Cole's fault. "I wish it was that simple. I can't promise things like that when I'm the reason you're in the hospital right now."

His eyebrows furrowed in mild annoyance. "Come on." ​Reza​ poked the other boy with his foot, not pleased with the answer. "I'm ​fine​. I've been getting myself into trouble long before you came around and I'm probably going to continue getting my ass kicked by supernatural things, whether you're around or not. Now stop brooding and let me try and guess your type." He didn't feel like sitting around, talking about who got who hurt when all of this had happened because of a sadistic Type III. This day had been pretty crap so far, filled with nurses and his angry dad and a pounding headache and a distraction would be appreciated. And he actually was pretty curious about what type of vamp Cole was.

Cole rolled his eyes at Reza's carelessness but couldn't help but smile. "Fine. Let's play guess my type. Although I must say I'm kinda curious as to why you keep getting... beat up by other supernatural things before me." He jumped up and wandered around the room, too restless to sit still anymore. He wished he knew why this was making him so much more nervous than when he usually talked to people. Sure, Cole wasn't exactly smooth with words around anyone, but everything seemed so much worse with Reza. He supposed the only two times he's ever talked to him were at a school in the middle of the night right before almost getting killed and now here in the hospital in the middle of the night with a cop guarding the door outside. Neither exactly set the premise for a pleasant conversation.

Reza offered a small, awkward smile, rubbing the back of his head, fingers tracing the large bump from last night. "I'm a human in a town full of supernatural activity?" he offered, scooting into a more comfortable position as Cole began pacing. "And I sort of... sneak out at night. A lot." He bit his lip sheepishly, grabbing a few more fries to nibble on as his eyes began to trail the vampire moving around his room. For the umpteenth time, Reza found himself feeling like he'd been dropped into a novel; getting visited in a hospital room at night by a vampire struck with guilt... except this current vampire was an awkward fifteen year old and not... well, not like Heath. "Alright, uh... So the most common type, I guess, are the Type IIs. The ones that turn into the... goat thing, a Type III." He paused for a moment, wishing he had his rings on for something to fiddle with, feeling slightly restless with the nervous energy wafting off Cole. "Did you get bitten before you died or did you just... die?"

Cole paused from his pacing only when Reza mentioned that he snuck out at night, "I do too! Sneak out I mean." he was happy to find something the two shared in common, considering just about everything else about that was the opposite. Lainie snuck out at night too. Was that something all high schoolers did? Cole figured it was just him who didn't sleep at night, but didn't pretend like he knew anything about high schoolers. He had never really been like a typical teenager. And he was definitely not like one now. "I.. I don't know. I was walking to a ... friends house I guess, if you could say that, and something knocked me out. When I woke up I had these powers. I didn't even find out that I was a vampire for like two more weeks." he started pacing again, remembering just what those two weeks had been like. So awesome at first, and then suddenly so surprising and sometimes depressing the more and more people he met. "I can't even remember how I died. Pretty lame right?"

Reza: The sudden joy from Cole was a nice change from the usually tense atmosphere and ​Reza​ returned the smile. Not that a vampire sneaking out at night was ​that​ surprising, seeing as it was the only time they could go outside, but whatever. Cole seemed pleased. Reza frowned as the younger boy began pacing once again. This would make things a little bit trickier. So he was just a new vampire? Shouldn't he have had a much tougher time resisting Reza's blood last night if he was still just a fledgling? "Oh... that... complicates things. The way you were made is what says the most." He pursed his lips. "If you were knocked out by something, it could have been another vamp? I mean, if that's the case then you could be a Type II... or possibly a Liogat. Have you tried starving yourself? What's the longest you've gone without feeding?" Reza was leaning forward without realizing it, interest coloring his features.

Cole thought on that. He hadn't been a vampire for any longer than a month, and even going more than a few days without drinking blood had driven him to the point of wanting to murder his parents. Not a very fun evening at all so mostly he tried to avoid that at all costs. "No more than a few days. If I don't then I get.. very very hungry?" It was posed more as a question, because he didn't want to go into more details about what it made him want to do. Honestly, Reza seemed to know more about Cole as a vampire than Cole did, so he figured Reza could infer what he meant. He noticed how focused Reza had become on figuring out what Cole was, so he finally decided to sit back down in the hospital chair and slid it a little closer to Reza's hospital bed.

Reza nodded, slightly amused by Cole's uncertainty but also unable to help a small twinge of jealousy. Cole didn't even realize what he had, what he ​was​, and it even sounded like he didn't ​want​ to be this way... Reza shook the thoughts away, the tiny green monster, trying to instead focus on the fact that Cole had actually bothered to come visit him and bring him decent food. "That rules out the Liogat, then. If I had to guess, I'd say that you're probably a Type II but I'm not a 100 percent sure. I have some research on this back home so maybe when I get out of here, I can give you a more definite answer? You could come over, maybe look at whatever I have and-" He was cut off by the sound of his father's voice carrying through the door mere seconds before it was pushed open, light flooding the previously dark room.

Cole hadn't been sure if the voice he heard down the hallway was coming for this room specifically or not. But while listening to Reza he had kept an ear open, making sure no one would come in and find him in Reza's room where no one else was supposed to be. When the voice became a little too close for comfort, Cole started to go on alert, and by the time somebody pushed the door open, Cole was already out of his chair and behind the curtain. It wasn't the best hiding spot, but besides the bathroom it was the only place to hide, and Cole wouldn't have been able to make it there by the time the person came in. Cole crawled up onto the windowsill to make sure his converse weren't noticeable and then stayed completely still. If he was going to break into the morgue this was good practice anyways he supposed. At least he didn't have to worry about trivial things like breathing to move the curtain.

Cole had practically vanished when his attention had been averted, thankfully, leaving ​Reza​ to practically shove the bag of food to the floor before sinking, meeting his father's gaze as he awkwardly tried to make it look like he'd just been getting back into bed. Where had Cole even gone? "I thought you'd gone home?" he fumbled, sinking uncomfortably back against the headrest, hoping his father hadn't heard him chatting away to what was supposed to be an empty room. "I had. They needed me back for paper work," came the short reply, the man not even advancing into the room. "They told me you can most likely come home tomorrow morning. I'll pick you up. Try not to get into ​more​ trouble until then." The room was given a suspicious once-over before the door closed, the room once again going dark. Reza stared blankly at the comic on his nightstand before speaking up, voice quiet. "Cole?" Maybe the vampire had somehow managed to escape quietly through the window and was already gone? The thought made Reza feel eerily lonely.

Cole waited a few extra seconds to make sure the footsteps had walked down the hallway before pushing the curtain aside and dropping from the windowsill. "That sounded kinda.. hostile" Cole admitted. He probably shouldn't have said anything. Cole was never one to be very nosy, mostly just let things be as they were. And this situation should be no different. "Sorry. None of my business" Cole whispered, once again taking his seat on the chair, turning slightly away from Reza in embarrassment.

Reza forced a smile when he saw Cole dropping from the windowsill, although the relief he felt was real. "Yeah, well, that's him being nice. He took out most of the scolding when he first got here. At least until the nurses kicked him out," he mumbled, not really sure why he was sharing this with Cole. Maybe because he had a feeling Cole wouldn't tell anyone. Or maybe it was just the fact that he'd actually taken the time to bring Reza his favorite comic book, a gesture that definitely helped in making him feel less like a complete failure after his father's short visit. "It's fine, you're not prying or anything. Besides, I've been asking you questions all night and that's not exactly my business." Dark eyes shifted to the mattress, the curiosity and interest in his attitude from before completely evaporated. "You know you don't have to hang around, right? If you have somewhere to go. I'll be fine."

"I don't sleep anyways." Cole shrugged. He wasn't sure why Reza was being so open with him. When Cole had first met him in the library, and made a complete full of himself in the process, Cole had been pretty sure that Reza hated him. He supposed almost getting killed was one type of bonding. Maybe Reza hadn't hated Cole at first glance, just mad about falling asleep in the school perhaps? Or maybe he was using it as a defense. Cole had seen how terrible people at their school could be. Cole had been lucky that he was a freshmen and practically invisible. Not popular, but not exactly a loser either. Cole was practically transparent in those hallways. "And I like spending time here. As long as I'm not annoying you or anything."

Reza let out a low, slightly humorless laugh. "Right. No sleeping." He huddled closer to the wall, wondering if he was still making Cole uncomfortable and if so, why the younger boy didn't just leave? Obligation? Did he ​actually​ want to be here or was Cole just saying that because he felt sorry for him? Why did he even care what this freshman thought? "You're not annoying me," he said quickly, still not looking at Cole but rather the stark white mattress. "Just thought you had something better to do, I guess." Silence.

"Nope. Nothing better to do. The only friend I had stopped talking to me after I was turned." ​Cole​ stated coldly, realizing too late how pathetic it sounded. Like he needed Reza, locked in a hospital bed surrounded by nurses, cops, and his father all day with a possible concussion, to feign pity. Cole had long since accepted that he was different now, and his old friend didn't want to be apart of that. Cole couldn't blame him, Cole had never been someone super fun or social. He enjoyed reading comics and watching movies. Not going out to parties or drinking. "That sounded a lot more pathetic than I wanted it too. I have friends. Kinda."

There was no hiding the surprise on ​Reza's​ face when Cole told him about the treacherous friend. It took as little as being turned into a vampire, which wasn't such a horrible thing, for him to abandon his friend? He wanted to pry more but the other boy's tone of voice suggested that he probably had no longing to talk about it. "Guess we're both a little pathetic, then." He offered a small smile. The fact that Cole didn't have a lot of friends was made pretty obvious by the fact that they shared the same table in the cafeteria, usually occupied by the same group of people that didn't talk and had no intention of doing so. The cast outs, in a way. Reza sort of liked the solitude, used to it, but Cole didn't seem to share that sentiment. Either way, Reza was way too tired to start ​that​ conversation right now, made even more obvious by the fact that his eyelids were beginning to droop, head feeling heavy as the creeping pain began to throb once again.

Cole was taken aback by Reza's statement. Sure Reza usually kept to himself at school. Cole had never really seen him talk to anyone. But Cole always just figured it was by choice. Reza always seemed like the type that didn't want to talk to people, and didn't want people to talk to him. Cole didn't know what to say to make him feel better. Then again, Reza's not the one that sounded incredibly sad about it. "I-" he cut himself off when he heard the police officer's voice. It was still a ways down the hallway, but something told him that he was making his way down to this room. What other reason would he have for walking down this part of the hallway? The chair he had been sitting at when Cole arrived was next to the elevators which would take him anywhere he needed to go. "The cop's coming. I have to go." He jumped up and made his way over to the window sill, pulling the window open and hopping onto it. He wondered how far of a jump it would take to seriously harm him. Or even kill him. Not exactly something that he wanted to find out he supposed. "Thanks for letting me stay here with you. And thanks for not blaming me for the whole blood thing."

Reza startled at the sudden interruption, sleepily watching Cole make his escape towards the window. Was he going to jump? He'd probably make it, with his strength and speedy healing, Reza thought. Even though he wasn't overly excited about being left alone in the dark hospital room once again, Reza kept quiet. No way was he going to ask this almost stranger to waste his time here, just because Reza was... lonely? Scared? Bored? One of the above, anyways. "Thanks for stopping by. And for all the stuff." He smiled wearily, wanting to add something to that sentence but the only words he could think of sounded kind of pathetic. Instead, he watched Cole vanish out the window right before the door to his room opened for the umpteenth time.

[rezathevamp-blog]

The Breakfast Club || Reza&Cole

Part 1 of 3

Reza liked the school library. It wasn't anything special but the familiar smell of books and the general lack of people was a plus. Not to mention that the couches in one of the corners were really comfortable. He'd stayed behind after school in order to catch up on some homework, resolutely trying to spend as much time away from home as possible. His sister had begun to notice, unlike his dad, but Reza just couldn't stand to stay at the house for too long with all the secrets that were piling onto his back. After burying his head in studies for a few hours, Reza's mind had begun to grow idle and he finally succumbed to the book sitting in his bag; a new arrival that he was ​eager​ to dig into. The main character was a newly turned vampire, previously an outcast at his school, and Reza liked when he was able to see himself in a character. The pages flew by and as did the minutes as he sunk into the storyline and soon enough, his eyelids began to feel heavy. Book resting on his chest, Reza began to doze off, oblivious to the lights going out in the library as he fell into an even deeper slumber, curling up comfortably on the small couch.

Cole could hear something coming from the school. He was on his way to the park for his nightly training session, dressed in all black minus the spider-man shirt zipped beneath his jacket. Passing by the school he noticed that something was off. He could hear something coming from inside, but was too far away to know exactly where it was coming from. He weighed his options. Technically, breaking in the school at night was illegal and he wasn't exactly a fan of breaking the law. Of course, technically being out this late was past curfew so he supposed that he was in the wrong either way. If there was someone in that school, they could be in or up to trouble, and Cole had an obligation to make sure it was safe, so he went in. Once inside there was barely any noise, but the smell of blood took over his senses. He followed it down the main hallway of the school and into it's library. What would someone be doing in the library at this time? Stealing books? Unlikely. He followed it to the very back until he saw someone lying on the couches sound asleep. "Reza?"

Reza startled awake at the sudden sound in the otherwise peaceful quiet, his stomach sinking when his eyes were met with a place that wasn't his bedroom. His book cluttered to the ground, the sound much too loud inside the empty library. Well, almost empty, save for the guy staring him down, presumably the one who'd woke him up. Did he know him? Some junior, Reza vaguely recalled. Didn't they sometimes share a table in the cafeteria? "Yeah?" he replied, straightening up on the couch, finally realizing just how dark it was. Damn... He'd actually fallen asleep in the school library... What time was it, even? He moved up a hand to rub his eyes, thinking better of it once he remembered that there was probably still some faint eyeliner on from this morning. No need to make himself look like even more of a mess, falling asleep in here... "What time is it?" he groaned as he moved to pick up his book, sleepily stuffing it into his bag, not that fazed over the awakening. He was just thankful that it had been this freshman kid instead of someone from the football team. He dreaded to think what that would have led to. "And... sorry, who are you, again?"

Cole reached to help Reza pick the book up at the same time Reza grabbed it, and Cole flinched back from how hot his hand was. "Uh sorry" he fumbled, trying to recover from whatever his dead reflexes made him do, he was still getting used to them. "I'm Cole" he pushed into his pocket and pulled out his phone to check the time. "It's going 1 a.m" Cole wondered how Reza had managed to fall asleep and not get noticed by anyone as they left the school. But honestly, who came to the library? And a quick glance at the old, musty carpet showed that the janitors had neglected the library in their cleaning tonight. It was also possible that it was just Cole's super sight, but regardless the place needed some detail sweeping. "You're uh, really hot" he stated once an awkward silence had fallen over the two.

Reza raked back the unruly mop of hair, a small yawn slipping past his lips. The kid was fumbling more than Reza was, despite the latter having been found fast asleep on school property. Although Cole definitely looked like the shy, quiet type, at least from what Reza could tell of him. But at this point, he was too tired to try and analyze the guy or be polite, for that matter. He just wanted to get home, especially seeing as it was after midnight. A glance at his phone screen revealed several missed calls and messages. Great. He could definitely expect an angry rant when he got home. In the thick silence, Reza finished packing up his stuff, wondering why the kid was still standing around. And then he spoke up and Reza's hand froze where it was, busy zipping up the bag. He slowly raised his head, one eyebrow quirked, blood rushing to his face despite his best efforts. "Uhm...." Reza mentally winced at the stellar response, the awkward tension from before only multiplying. Why was ​he​ getting flustered? This was a 15 year old, for crying out loud. A 15 year old that had randomly decided to make a sweeping proclamation. And Reza was still staring at him with confusion and slight panic etched into his features and it was definitely time to look away. He finished zipping up the bag with haste, throwing it over his shoulder as he stood up, clearing his throat.

Cole took a second to realize what exactly he had just said and why the color of Reza's cheeks had changed to red so quickly. "oh.. Oh! No I uh - I didn't mean it like that! I - uh" this was terrible, and probably only made things worse for Cole, "I meant you were hot" Wait what? Did he just say it again? "Not like that! Like your hand, your skin. It was hot. Like your body temperature" he finally fumbled out, tripping all over himself on the way. How did he manage to embarrass himself this quickly? This had to be some kind of new record. "Uh what are you doing here" He tried digging himself out of the hole he had leaped in.

Reza blinked, trying to keep up with the rambling, only feeling the warmth in his cheeks grow. Yet another reason the undead life was preferable to this; no blushing. Some form of explanation finally tumbled from Cole's mouth and Reza continued to stare because that had just sounded like Cole was awkwardly backing out from the compliment. Or maybe he was just really weird. Either way, Reza kind of wanted to get out of here. "Sure," he replied slowly, once again clearing his throat and starting to fiddle with his rings out of pure habit. "I was sleeping, apparently." Was this small talk? Why were they talking small talk? And why was Cole the only one asking this question? "What are ​you​ doing here? Isn't it past your curfew?" Even though Reza technically still had the same curfew but he was turning 18 in less than two months... "Did you break into the school?"

Cole thought about how to answer his question. Yes, it was past his curfew and yes he was breaking into the school. But how to explain what he was doing here? It's not like he heard Reza sleeping. Obviously whatever he heard or thought he heard wasn't Reza. It probably wasn't even coming from the school. Cole hadn't exactly grown accustomed to his new senses yet, everything seemed off all of the time. "I uh, thought I heard something." he told the truth, figured it would be easier than trying to fumble through a lie like he usually did. "And I didn't exactly break in. The door was open"

Heard something? That wasn't exactly comforting. Even though strange noises weren't uncommon in this town, they weren't exactly comforting, either. And it begged the question, had Cole heard something or someone? "You mean something inside the school?" ​Reza​ pushed, feeling his curiosity burn despite his common sense telling him that this was how he usually ended up getting himself into trouble. Wait... "Did you say the door was ​open​?" Reza felt his heart rate pick up speed. Why would someone break into the school? "The door's never just open... Not this late..." A worried glance was thrown in Cole's direction as Reza perked his ears. Nothing. It might have been 1 am but everything still felt too quiet. Wrong. "We should get out of here," Reza muttered, not waiting for an answer as he quickly began walking towards the library's exit, simply assuming that Cole would follow. If there was something inside the school right now, the best thing they could do was leave while they still could.

Cole quickly realized Reza was not stopping to make sure Cole was behind him and ran to catch up to him. Reza had already made it to the front of the library and was swinging the door open by the time Cole caught up to him. "Exactly, that's what I was-" a distant sound made Cole freeze. He tried listening harder, focusing more intently, anything that could give him an idea of where the noise was coming from or how close it was, but he couldn't tell. All he could tell was that whatever was making that noise was in the building, and it was close. Instincts jumped in and Cole leaped forward, grabbing Reza by his forearm, ignoring the heat and Reza's resistance and dragging him back inside the library. He pushed Reza up against one of the walls, trying to be careful to avoid crushing him with his strength, and shushed him. "Someone's here"

Reza felt a chill creeping up his spine when Cole hushed up abruptly, although Reza had no idea why. He strained to hear something, anything, but things were just as quiet as before. "What is-" he whispered, but that was as far as he got. His arm was grabbed in a vice grip and he was tugged back into the library despite his best efforts to try and break his arm free. He didn't look like much but the kid was ​strong​. The doors closed behind them and Reza's indignant look at being shoved against the wall and physically held there dampened at Cole's words. His breath caught in his throat as he once again listened and then, finally, heard something. Footsteps. "There's another exit," Reza whispered, giving a small nod towards the other end of the library, a small part of him still wondering how exactly Cole was managing to overpower him so ​easily​. Reza wasn't exactly all muscle but he wasn't ​that​ weak... Was he?

Cole quickly realized Reza was not stopping to make sure Cole was behind him and ran to catch up to him. Reza had already made it to the front of the library and was swinging the door open by the time Cole caught up to him. "Exactly, that's what I was-" a distant sound made Cole freeze. He tried listening harder, focusing more intently, anything that could give him an idea of where the noise was coming from or how close it was, but he couldn't tell. All he could tell was that whatever was making that noise was in the building, and it was close. Instincts jumped in and Cole leaped forward, grabbing Reza by his forearm, ignoring the heat and Reza's resistance and dragging him back inside the library. He pushed Reza up against one of the walls, trying to be careful to avoid crushing him with his strength, and shushed him. "Someone's here."

Reza was thankful that he'd been released; being manhandled by people that were older and, in some cases, definitely much stronger than him (case and point, Marley and Ana) was bad enough. Being manhandled by a tiny freshman? Not exactly Reza's idea of fun. The two of them snuck towards the door, his heartbeat a little faster than usual, a slight tremor in his legs. Funny how every near-death experience made him more and more immune. Reza's hand was on the handle when unfamiliar voices spoke up and he resisted the urge to simply throw open the door and run for it. Following Cole's lead, Reza turned, his stomach sinking at the sight of the three, grown men. Midnight snack... Were they vamps? Why? What the hell would they be doing at the school? And who were they even talking to? "Cole," Reza muttered, not quite sure if the younger boy realized the potential danger. And then another sound, a low snarl, emerged from the darkness, followed by a pair of blood red eyes appearing. As their owners appeared, Reza grabbed Cole's arm. Those were Type I vampires. Reza had never seen one in Ashkent but he knew that they lacked all civilization and they were ​definitely​ dangerous. "We have to go. Now!" Reza tugged, thankfully managing to drag Cole along through the door, slamming it shut behind them and running, sneakers slapping against the polished floors of the dark hallway. Why was a pack of vamps, followed by Type Is, roaming the high school? What was going on?!

tbc in part 3