love bites
vampire!Liam Mairi x reader, with a side of Bodhi Durran x reader
words: 2.1k
🏷️: not canon compliant at all, Liam who came back wrong, he’s kinda a vampire now, blood drinking, Liam takes things too far without realizing, description of major blood loss symptoms, Bodhi to the rescue, he’s so sweet, tagging this as both Liam and Bo because he’s in love with you too and treats you so gently, descriptions of reader grieving Liam, mentions of feeling inebriated (due to blood loss and also vampire venom), dubious consent / coercion, Liam didn’t ask to bite you, he just did, and you’d do anything to keep him, I know our sweet boy would never hurt you but again, this isn’t our Liam anymore. thank you to the person who encouraged me to finish these scraps into something real, ily! okay that’s all I got byeeee
You might never get used to the sight of Liam Mairi sitting in your desk chair. It had once been familiar, but after nearly two months without him, it’s still a bit of a shock. You’d grieved him, cried all the tears you could possibly cry, finally starting to accept that he was gone… But now he’s back.
You still don’t know how exactly, or why, but he and Deigh just showed up at the school again, like nothing ever happened. He doesn’t seem to remember anything from war games, or the battle you’d fought in Resson. And something about him is just… different, in a way that makes you nervous— not the little butterflies you’d gotten when you were first dating, but some evolutionary sense that something is wrong.
Maybe it’s the way he’s looking at you. He’d never eyed you with anything but pure adoration, or soft concern, but now… it’s like he’s staring straight through you.
He finally speaks, since you don’t seem capable of forming words at the moment.
“Your heart is beating so fast. What’s wrong?”
“Huh?”
“I can hear it, silly.”
You blink at him once, twice. You knew he had farsight, but to hear your heart beating? That’s something else entirely.
“C’mere,” he coaxes, patting his leg.
It’s so easy to brush off your worries and climb into his lap, settling your arms around his neck. You still fit together like puzzle pieces after your time apart, relaxing into each other after the long day you’ve had.
“You smell good,” he murmurs.
“Hm? I don’t have any perfume on.”
He just hums in reply, skimming his nose over the side of your neck. Cold hands smooth over your hips, kneading the soft flesh as he starts to kiss down from your jaw.
So he’s in that kind of mood, then.
You haven’t been intimate since he came back nearly a week ago, just spending the time holding each other in silence. It's actually a little impressive how long it’s been. Before his… death, the two of you could barely go three days without it, and that was with seeing each other every day.
But you certainly aren’t complaining. Not when it’s been so long, and not when his touches feel so good. Your head tips back with a gorgeous little sigh, and he just can’t resist any longer.
Your eyes fly open, a sharp cry of pain parting your lips as he sinks his teeth into the soft skin just above your collarbone.
You try to squirm away, pushing at his shoulders, but he keeps you in place with firm hands on each of your hips as he starts to lap at the twin puncture wounds he’s made.
“Liam, what are you…” You don’t have any more time to dwell on it before all of the thoughts slip away and the pain ebbs, replaced with a hazy pleasure — like the time you’d snuck some of Xaden’s churam, mixed with the sated, fuzzy feeling in your tummy that you get after sex.
Your eyes fall shut, your body falling slack against his. He brings an arm up to curl around your waist, holding you close as he continues drinking.
“Attagirl,” he murmurs, pressing a gentle kiss to the spot he’d bitten, and squeezing your hip. “Did so good for me.”
You hum lazily, cuddling into him further — not minding the chill of his skin. You’ve never felt this relaxed, completely content to sit here and have him praise you, his hands rubbing your back and smoothing out the tension from a long day of training.
You haven’t fallen asleep this fast since before the revolution.
——————
When you wake, Liam is already gone. That much is normal. He’s always been an early riser, even before you’d been forced to join the military.
He’s probably back to playing bodyguard for Violet. You’ll see him at breakfast, though. Not that he really eats much anymore. Being resurrected must nix your appetite, you suppose.
Thankfully muscle memory takes over as you get ready for the day, because you don’t feel quite right — a little fuzzy, dazed… almost like you’ve been drinking. But you haven’t had a drop of alcohol in months. Not since Liam died. That was a slope you wouldn’t let yourself fall down, a line you’d drawn in the sand knowing that no amount of liquor could drown your sorrows, so you definitely shouldn’t try.
Sawyer is the first to greet you, but his usual shy smile is gone, replaced with a look of confused concern. “What happened to you? It looks like you were attacked by a snake.”
“Huh?”
You bring a hand up to the spot he’s pointing at on his own body, feeling two little scabs there, and it all comes rushing back to you — Liam biting you, holding you still as you’d struggled until whatever… venom? sedative? took over. He’s always been stronger than you, but his grip felt like iron.
“I don’t know,” you manage.
Someone changes the subject quickly enough.
——————
Your coordination is worsening by the day. You’re constantly dizzy, and it doesn't help that you’re too tired to properly raise your legs with each step.
The toe of your boot catches on one of the cobblestones of the courtyard, and you stumble, unable to right yourself, but you’re guided into a pair of strong arms — a warm embrace, not Liam’s cold one. Bodhi. You lean into his touch, resting your body against his for a moment.
“You feeling okay, honey?” he asks softly, rubbing his hands over your arms to help warm you up.
“She’s fine,” Liam answers for you, his eyes narrowed at the other boy.
Bodhi can’t control it. “Fucking look at her, man! She can hardly stand.”
“S’ okay, Bo,” you murmur, still leaning on him for support. “I just need to rest.”
A long nap sounds good right now. After this class, you’ll go back to your room and curl up under every blanket you own, and you’ll be better by dinner time. Liam’s dinner time, that is, not yours. He doesn’t seem to have any interest in human food these days — just human food.
“You need rest, and he needs to stop… feeding on you.” Bodhi accuses, sounding disgusted.
“He needs it to survive,” you protest sleepily. “And it does’n’ hurt as much anymore. M’ used to it.”
Bodhi stiffens, holding you even closer. “He shouldn’t be hurting you at all. Go find a goat or something. Deigh can eat it after you’re done. Unless he doesn’t want solid food anymore either?”
For a second you’re worried that Liam won’t take no for an answer, and that this could get physical — but then his eyes soften, like he’s realizing how drained you are.
Literally. You’ve let him take enough blood to fill a wine glass every other night for the last week. It’s a wonder you can still function.
He steps forward, but Bodhi doesn’t let go of you, still keeping you upright and tucked into his jacket for warmth. Liam presses a gentle kiss to the top of your head, stroking his thumb over your cheek. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
You just nod, too tired to speak, watching Liam head off in the other direction.
“Let’s get you to bed, hm?”
Bed sounds nice. You let Bodhi lead you away, his arm around your waist to help keep you steady. He takes the stairs up to the dorms one at a time, slowing to the same pace as you, and stopping at a door, unlocking it with his lesser magic.
It takes you a minute to realize that this isn’t your room — it’s his.
You don’t have the strength to protest, but you don’t really want to, either. You’d sleep anywhere at this point, and it’s not like the two of you have never shared a bed before.
The last time you were here, you‘d been a complete mess. He’d been strong enough for the both of you, letting you cry into his shoulder, rubbing your back and telling you that it would be okay, encouraging you to eat even when grief had stolen your appetite.
Did he ever have the chance to break, or was he too busy trying to glue you back together?
There’s a tug at your ankle, and you realize he’s knelt down in front of you, starting to unlace your boots. “I can do it,” you mumble.
“I know you can take your own shoes off, but I don’t think bending down is a good idea for you right now,” he says gently. “Just let me take care of you, okay?”
You nod, letting your eyes fall shut as he lifts your left foot into his lap, sliding the boot off and setting it aside — then the other.
You shrug off your flight jacket, which he takes from you silently, draping it over the back of his desk chair, and start to work on getting out of your leathers. He extends a hand for you to take to help keep you balanced as you peel them off.
Neither of you say anything about it, but his gaze lingers on your left thigh, which is wrapped up with bandages that have started to come loose. You tug at the end, pulling it off and dropping it into the small trash can by his desk, revealing the multiple wounds underneath.
Liam must have changed his methods after people noticed the marks on your neck — but he’d bitten too close to the major veins. Half an inch away, and he wouldn’t have been able to stop the bleeding.
And the wounds aren’t neat little circles, either, but jagged lines. He’d torn right into the muscle without thinking, or you’d struggled, trying to escape.
Either way, it makes Bodhi’s jaw clench, and his fingers itch to curl into fists. He’s quick to push down the anger, focusing back on you. It isn’t your fault. You love Liam, and you’d do whatever it takes to not have him taken away from you again. The physical pain of being bitten is probably nothing compared to the emotional pain of losing him last year.
Bodhi had done his best to comfort you, to keep you going even as grief nearly swallowed you, not letting you give up on taking care of yourself, doing all the things that Liam would do for you, protecting you like he would… but there was never any chance of him taking Liam Mairi’s place in your heart. He knew that at the start, and he’s reminded of it again now.
He kneels again, unrolling some clean bandages and wrapping the wounds carefully, tucking in the ends neatly — a much better job than you’d done, with your blurred vision and unsteady hands.
You’re about ready to fall asleep standing up. He pulls back the blankets and guides you to sit on the edge of the bed, helping you get tucked in. His bed is softer, warmer than yours — and it helps that you aren’t sharing it with Liam, who is always cold to the touch now.
Instinctively, you reach for him, wanting to cuddle, but he hesitates. You’re not fully cognizant right now, and you’re also Liam’s again, not his. You’ve never been his, despite how many times you’ve slept in his bed, held his hand in the hallways and sat beside him at meals, tucked into his side…
“Get some sleep,” he encourages softly, brushing some loose hair from your forehead. “I’ll be back to check on you in a bit.”
You hum in acknowledgement, leaning into his touch. “Thank you, Bo. Love you.”
The response is automatic, as is the kiss he presses to your temple before he pulls away. “I love you too, honey.”
——————
Liam gives you a warm smile, and you could swear his canines aren’t as sharp as they used to be. “Hey, sleepyhead. I was wondering when you were going to get up.”
You blink at him, looking back and forth between his face, and the half eaten plate in front of him.
“You alright?” Ridoc asks gently, his eyebrows creased with concern. It’s not like you to sleep through breakfast, and you still look a little ill, still stand a little unsteady on your feet.
“Fine,” you answer, shaking it off and taking a seat between them.
Liam loops an arm around your waist, tugging you closer — his fingers brush against the exposed skin between your shirt and pants, but you don’t shiver at his touch.
He feels warm. Normal.
Was this all just a bad dream? Are you going completely nuts?
Maybe you’ve just read too many fantasy novels lately.
