Steve lifted your shirt above your head and was just about to pull it off when Lloyd cleared his throat from the bed. “Who said you could do that?”
Steve froze, so you tossed your own shirt off with a huff. "Lloyd, this is why we invited him over!"
Lloyd tilted his head to the side, running two fingers over his mustache. "I invited him over," he replied, voice low, "because someone kept getting dripping wet every time they watched the boy scout mowing his lawn, and apparently, 'We have such nice conversations, too, Lloyd. I really like him.' And since I'd do anything to make you happy, Sunshine, here he is." He leaned forward, and you felt Steve fidgeting nervously beside you. But you weren't nervous at all. You knew the fun was just about to start. "But that doesn't mean this isn't still my show. So the two of you are going to go at the pace that I set. For my entertainment. And then, if we all have a good time, we'll talk about what happens after. Understood?"
You were already nodding excitedly when Steve cut a questioning glance to you, the sweetheart checking to make sure that you were okay with this even after everything that had already happened. At your answering grin, you watched his eyes cut to Lloyd's obvious erection in his boxer briefs. And then, finaly, you got to see one of Steve's boyish grins. God, he was so cute.
"Whatever you say, Sir," Steve answered, loud and clear. And you could feel the way both you and Lloyd fell for him a little bit more.
So Kris, I’ve been thinking about Cole and his relationship with Steve. He seems a bit…out of the whole vampire loop. Would you want to give us some insight into how Cole fits into Steve’s crew? And why Steve treats him the way he does?
Chelsea! Ok, here's a little drabble* that I hope, at least somewhat, answers some of these questions. Thank you for indulging all of the little avenues of world-building I constantly want to go down. 💜
*And by "little" and "drabble" I mean just over 1k.
There's no pairing or reader-insert character here, just Cole and Steve having a chat. With dinner crying in the background. This takes place about a decade before Everybody Wants to Rule the World.
This is My Four Leaf Clover
Warnings: violence, gore, death, a lot of blood. Vampire stuff, basically. Also, talk of being unhoused.
Cole sat in the small bedroom, unsure what he was doing there. It was nice, well-appointed, luxurious, but a little bland. Probably a guest room. He didn’t belong there. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d bathed or gotten new clothes. Everything was ratty, every part of him was dirty. He didn’t know why he’d been brought here.
The door opened. The man who’d found him in the alley and brought him here, Steve, came in, dragging a young woman behind him. She was kicking out, flailing really, and sobbing. But she was so pretty. He noticed that right away.
Steve shoved her into the corner and then looked her in the eye. “Stay,” he said firmly and she stopped moving, but her whimpers and cries continued. Cole’s fangs dropped, he couldn’t help it. Steve then took a seat next to Cole. “I brought you something to eat,” he said gently, gesturing to the girl. “Actual food.” Cole blushed. Steve had found him trying to take down a raccoon to have for dinner. It hadn’t been going well. “But first,” Steve said, “I need you to answer some questions. You know what you are?”
Cole ran his tongue over one of his fangs and nodded. “I’m a vampire, right?”
Him asking for confirmation seemed to take Steve aback a bit, but he nodded. “Yes, sweetheart, you’re a vampire. We both are. Who turned you? They didn’t explain it to you?”
“Uh, it was a woman? Her name was Sadie, I think. I met her at a bar one night and took her home, then I must have passed out. When I came to, she was gone. There was–” he closed his eyes for a moment, remembering. “there was a lot of blood. And I felt… different. But I never saw her again.”
Steve scowled and turned his head, muttering, “Of all the irresponsible–” He sighed and turned back to Cole. “How long ago was this?”
“Uh,” Cole hemmed. “I’m not sure exactly. Time is– It’s been hard to keep track of time. But years, I think. Some years.”
“And you’ve been on your own this whole time?”
“Yeah,” Cole nodded.
Steve looked pointedly at his ratty clothes. “Ok. And where are you living right now?”
“Um,” Cole ducked his head and ran his hand over the back of his neck, embarrassed. “You saw it. Earlier.”
Steve looked pained at that. “Honey, why didn’t you find a place to stay?”
“I was living on my parents' farm when I was turned and when I woke up, I just– I could hear the blood flowing in their veins. I had to leave. But I didn’t really have anywhere to go, so. I don’t know. I ran out of money a while ago. And I figured out real quick that daytime is no good, so that eliminated most jobs. I take nighttime work when I can, but,” the girl in the corner caught his attention again, and he gulped, “being around people is hard.”
Steve looked confused. “Honey, we don’t work. We don’t need money. You sweet thing. Alright,” Steve moved on, “why the raccoon?”
Cole closed his eyes again. “Uh, I’m not very good at– at stopping. And then I didn’t know what to do with the bodies? It drew a lot of attention. So small animals seemed easier. But it’s hard to get enough.”
Steve sighed. “I can imagine. You’re gaunt, honey. Ashen. I bet you’re weak, too. You’re just a babe in the woods, aren’t you? You aren’t cut out for this at all.” He brushed a finger over Cole’s cheek and Cole couldn’t help the shiver that moved through his body. “Well, we can deal with the hunger right now.” He turned to the girl in the corner. “Come here,” he said, and shockingly, she did. She stood where Steve directed her, but the moment Cole touched her, she started fighting again. And in his weakened state, he couldn’t overpower her. “Make her calm down,” Steve directed.
Cole looked at him, confused, as he continued to try to fight her into submission. “What? How?”
Steve stared at him dumbfounded for a moment then recovered and chuckled to himself. “This explains so much,” he said. “Honey, we can make people do whatever we want. Give us whatever we want. We don’t need money. We have power. We take.” He grabbed the girl easily and made her look him in the eye. “Calm down,” he said. “Be still,” and now that Cole was paying attention, he could tell that this was different. More. She immediately stilled for Steve, who passed her over to Cole. “Now,” Steve said to him, “go ahead, take your time.”
Cole took a moment to just hold her in his arms. She was so soft. So pretty. He tried to look her in the eyes, make a connection, but her gaze was glassy like she couldn’t actually see him. He tried to swallow down his disappointment as he moved his nose over her neck. She smelled so good. So feminine. Maybe, if he asked, Steve would help him keep her. He’d be so good to her. He would. But right now, he was so hungry. He sank his fangs into her neck and drank, sucking on her throat, relishing the blood as it rushed into his mouth. He swallowed, over and over, as he held her as close as he could. Distantly, he could hear someone calling to him to slow down, to stop, but none of it registered. She was so good, so delicious, everything he needed.
When he was finally sated, he pulled away, her body dropping limply to the floor. He looked at her and was horrified to see that a chunk of her throat was missing. He looked down. He was covered in her blood. He looked up at where Steve was now standing, preparing himself for rage, or disappointment, or something, but the man was placid. Steve just sighed. “That’s ok, honey. It’s alright. We’ll work on it.”
