Work Text:
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i.
Hyakuya Yuuichirou was eight years old when he left home.
Home was really not the right word for it. It was just a place where he was born, where he aged, a place where he was brought up. And a place where he was abused. He never really found the reason why his parents acted so hostile to him, but for as long as he could remember, he was getting beaten up, maltreated and assaulted. They looked at him with eyes full of hatred and contempt, like he was an abomination—a pawn of the devil.
Yuuichirou had understood that no one would really care for him. Everyone who knew were bound to turn a blind eye for every wrongdoings and misdeeds. No one had attempted to rescue him, to help him, to save him. Therefore, young as he might be, he finally took the will and courage to free himself from a life that he never wished.
With only his clothes on his possession, he wandered and wandered and came to areas that were never familiar to him. He roamed around, strayed and deviated until he reached a place rumored to be both a paradise and an abyss, The Underground City.
The whole city was housing different types of people. There were beggars in every corner, children who were neglected and forsaken – just like himself – but were unconfined and independent, and wealthy-looking adults who were probably doing business that shouldn't come to light. It was a place almost too crowded for his liking, yet he felt himself relaxing. Because in here, no one looked at him like they wanted him dead.
He kept walking and striding and failed to realize that he was being followed until it was too late. He got cornered, trapped on an alley that showed no room for escape. The feeling was nerve-wracking, but not at all horrifying, like he was being chased for a completely entertaining hunt.
When he turned around, he was utterly mesmerized with what he saw. Yuuichirou only ever heard about vampires before and never gotten the chance to see one. He had pictured them and dreamed of them based on his own personal characterization. But this was not he was imagining they would look like.
"Are you alone?" the person spoke, his voice cold yet gentle and distinct yet reserved.
Yuuichirou found himself nodding as he stared at him with eyes filled with wonder and fascination. He was taller than him so he had to crane his neck to look at the stranger. He was quite surprised at himself for not getting scared of the vampire, even though he was aware of the things that they could do. If anything, he was feeling thrilled for encountering a creature that he honestly never thought truly existed. Perhaps, the root of all his positive excitement had something to do with the vampire's otherworldly appearance.
"Do you want to engage in a deal with me?"
"What deal?" Yuuichirou tentatively asked.
"I'll feed you, house you and provide your basic necessities, and you'll let me drink your blood when I need to. I can't promise you an extravagant life, but," the vampire paused, scanning the young boy's form. Yuuichirou could somehow tell that the person before him was sympathizing with him, his current state was a give-away, after all. "I think it's better than that. So, do you want to come with me?"
A gloved hand was stretched out to him, waiting for him to take it. Yuuichirou was never taught not to talk to strangers nor to have a deal with a demon (in this case, a vampire), so it didn't take him long to place his own small hand on top of the vampire's hand. The deal was almost too good for him. A promise of food and shelter and a life far away from his abusive parents, and the only thing that he had to do was to give him blood. What more could he wish for? His previous life was worst enough, nothing could be worse than that.
"Yes. Plea—" He bit his tongue to prevent the word from escaping his mouth. No matter how much he wanted to have the deal, he still didn't know this vampire and was still ignorant of what could happen from now on. Besides, even in his young years, Yuuichirou still had some human pride with him.
"What's your name?"
"Hyaku— My name is Yuu. Just Yuu."
"Alright, Yuu. Let's go home." The vampire held his hand, firm and secured. It was unfamiliar yet nothing like unpleasant. It was the first contact he had that didn't inflict pain. It provided him warmth and care and gave him hope. "By the way, my name is Mikaela."
ii.
There were three things about Mikaela that Yuu found strange, if not outright interesting.
First, he never stayed at his – their – own house. Day and night, he was always out and only coming home from time to time for about a couple of hours before leaving again. The house he was brought to was moderate in size, not too spacious but not too cramped. It was perfect for the two of them. But, as Mikaela was rarely around, Yuu noted it to be too big for himself.
However, the place was likable. It was comfortable and cozy and even though it didn't have many articles, it was more than enough for Yuu to feel at home. Every time the vampire came home, he always had stuffs with him. True to his words, he gave him shelter, food, clothes and other necessities—even going as far as bringing him to a deserted library to help him become educated.
He asked the vampire once where he was and what was he doing whenever he wasn't at home, the only answer that he got was a timid 'I'm working'. Yuu had shrugged it off then, his mind too young to really concern himself on the vampire's business.
The second thing he noticed was the vampire's eyes that changed its color when he's thirsty.
The first time they met, Yuu remembered his eyes as crimson red. They had glowed then, illuminated by the sun that was about to set, and like a burning fire, they gave out a bright light as they looked into his own emerald orbs. They were striking in a chilling way.
The next day, after he had let the vampire drink his blood, he saw his eyes that were as blue as the sky. They were glimmering, too, caused by its natural radiance. They were striking in a calming way. In Yuu's mind, they were so contrasting that it left him wondering whether it's the same person or not. He had realized then that Mikaela's thirst push him to become desperate and seek for anyone.
It was as if the vampire only happened to sight him first so he went after him, but in reality, anyone would do as long as he could quench his thirst. It didn't really have to be Yuu, anyone would do.
Somehow, that thought didn't bode well on him.
The last thing that Yuu found strange, but this time definitely interesting, was Mikaela's looks.
He knew vampires had fangs and Mikaela had them. He knew they never age and Mikaela didn't look over twenty years old – at least in Yuu's perspective. And he knew that they looked extraordinarily pleasing to the eyes compared to a mere human. But he never thought that they would look like how Mikaela would. Though perhaps it was merely a Mikaela thing.
Despite being a vampire, he had an appearance of an angel in the books that Yuu had stacked under his bed from his former house. His blonde locks had a soft and fluffy appeal to it that had Yuu craving for its feeling in his palm and fingers. When sated, his eyes were a treasure, it gave off a gentle feel like he's being guarded and secured. His skin, although pale, had a distinct glow on them that could rival every high-born's daughter.
Also, he rarely smiled, but whenever he did, Yuu felt like he was given a life yet again. It looked so pretty and lovely and it made his heart flutter in ways that he never experienced before. It was basically as if it was trying to heal his emotional wounds and fill his empty heart.
He longed to see it all the time since then.
iii.
Yuu was ten years old when he found out why Mikaela only drunk on his wrist.
He had read from books that vampires often pierced its prey's neck to drink their blood. It was were the jugular vein was located and the blood flow there was the most convenient for vampires to feed. But Mikaela never bit Yuu on his neck. It was mostly on his wrists and sometime on his inner arms. It was also too quick that it left Yuu wondering if it was sufficient enough, if he was sufficient enough for Mikaela.
He asked him once, minutes after the vampire finished drinking. The bite wounds were still fresh on his arm but it had stopped from bleeding profusely. "Why do you never bite me on the neck?"
Mikaela looked at him with shock. He blinked once, twice, then looked at the arm of the boy where he just had his meal. "Does it hurt?" he asked, concern coating his voice.
"No but, is that enough for you?"
The vampire averted his gaze from him, eyes turning from burning red to shining blue. Yuu watched as he swallowed a lump on his throat and chanced a glance on him. "I don't want to take so much from you, I... don't want to hurt you."
Yuu didn't fully understand it then. But his last statement was influential enough to render him speechless. He said he didn't want to hurt Yuu. It nearly came as though he couldn't decipher the meaning of it because he had never heard nor felt the sentiments behind those words in his entire life.
It was only now, it was only at this moment, and he was truly very touched that it made him cry.
iv.
Through the years of them living together, albeit not quite, Yuu had learned to acquaint with Mikaela's personality.
Based on what he could make out, the vampire was close to being bipolar. From caring and mellow, he was shifting to angst-y and depressed from time to time. He often came home to him with his positive side, and it honestly made Yuu cheerful to see him like that. Yet on the times when he was on his negative mode, Yuu frequently had a split mind of just leaving him alone and confronting him.
One particularly cold evening, the vampire came home and Yuu just happened to be awake. If he was to discern what the current mood of the vampire was, he would say it's on the positive side, though it appeared more than that. He was smiling merrily and was looking at Yuu like he was precious. He found it weird—how Mikaela acted so open and emotional, but didn't protest against it.
"I'm home," the vampire said, eyes filled with mirth and tone laced with excitement. Yuu wasn't sure why, but he followed along, anyway. This moment was rare, but not entirely unwanted.
"Welcome home."
He had stuffs with him again, groceries and supplies that only Yuu had the need to use. They carefully placed the items on their proper places as they reveled at the comfortable silence that permeated through the air. The wind was cold and the night was chilly, yet Yuu felt his heart warming up.
"Hey, Mika," Yuu called, sending the vampire a sideway glance. It was the first time he used a nickname and he didn't know how the other would take it, but this was certainly not what he expected.
Mikaela's eyes widened a fraction for a few seconds before they sparkled almost animatedly like a star. He was grinning, showing how happy he was with what he heard. "Yes, Yuu-chan?"
Yuu's initial reaction at the nickname was to get irked. But somehow, the way Mikaela said it was too endearing to let it past. The vampire was smiling, like how Yuu wanted him to, and that was an ample reason why he let it slide.
"It's nothing," he answered, hands moving to resume to his task. He didn't really know what to say or how to ask him about his contrasting personalities. Even him wasn't stupid enough to know how rude it was to just ask something like that and how insensitive it was to pry on his life, especially if it could disheartened the person.
After a few minutes of going back and forth from the kitchen to the bathroom, Yuu settled to rest on the living room where a small fireplace was lit. He was a little tired, but not yet sleepy and his room was not heated enough to find comfort on it.
Mikaela was sitting on their only divan in front of the fireplace, a mug of piping hot drink on his hand while the other hand was tapping the sit next to him. His eyes were blue, and even in the dim, he would never mistake them. That meant he wasn't thirsty, which wasn't really uncommon for times like this. Yuu reluctantly sat beside him as he took the offered drink. It wasn't the first time the vampire had served him and tended to him like this, but every time he did, it made Yuu feel embarrassed and elated at the same time.
They spent the night like that, huddled close to each other as they talk about anything that would come to their minds. Mikaela's temperature was cold, but Yuu never registered it because he was blushing all the the while. He was unaware of it at first, but later found out why his face was constantly heating up, partnered by the unusually rapid rate of his beating heart.
The vampire talked about himself. Although he wished for it, Yuu didn't really expect him to. He told him that it was only a while ago since he became a vampire. He told him how he died and was immediately turned, but against his will. He told him how he suffered on those first few days of casting away his humanity and becoming a creature that wouldn't live a normal life. He told him how he ran away from his sire to live in a city where he could still interact with humans, where he could still feel like a human.
Yuu concluded, then, that this was the starting point of his repulsive episodes. It makes sense, he thought as he observed how the vampire's eyes became so expressive that he was able to take a peek at his soul. He was able to commiserate with the torment that would bind him for the rest of his life. He was able to sense the emotions that were running through his dead heart. He was able to feel the pains and heartaches that he had been suffering through.
Mikaela also told him things that he never thought he was curious about until that time.
He listened with strained ears as the vampire spoke of their first meeting. He said that he saw himself in Yuu. When he was young, he also had a taste of what Yuu had been through. Even as a human, he also had his fair share of hardships. He said that no matter how, he didn't want Yuu to continue living a life like that. He didn't want Yuu to think that he was something that shouldn't had been brought to life, that he was something like a disgust.
Furthermore, Mikaela expressed his feelings for having Yuu with him, waiting for him to come home. "Even a while ago," he said, smile never leaving his pretty face. "I was happy that there's someone to welcome me home. I'm really glad that you're with me, Yuu-chan."
By then, Yuu's face was flushed red. He didn't protest when Mikaela ruffled his hair as he grinned at him, grateful and blissful at the same time. He just stared at him, getting mesmerized yet again at the beautiful creature on his side. Mikaela was beautiful, inside and out, and someone wouldn't have to be a genius to know that.
Yuu was young and immature, and he was only in the middle of his adolescence, but even him could tell what these feelings were. They continued on growing, blooming and unfolding and they kept on getting intense that it was getting impossible to ignore them any further. They were a little heavy for his mind, but it made him full and complete.
Yuu was fourteen years old when he accepted that he was undeniably in love with Mikaela.
v.
A few days following the event of the cozy night spent together in each other's side (Yuu wanted to smack himself for how romantic he wanted it to sound), Yuu eventually managed to make Mikaela drink from his neck.
"I've been eating a lot and staying healthy, so please, starting from today, drink as much as you need to. You won't hurt me," he spoke before the vampire could seep his fangs on his left wrist.
Mikaela looked at him with surprised, but for some reason, Yuu could see the hint of appreciation on his widened eyes. He figured, then, that he made the right move.
"Are you sure?"
Yuu eagerly nodded, loosened his shirt collar and smiled invitingly at the vampire. "Come on."
When the fangs made contact with the junction if his neck and shoulder, Yuu involuntarily shivered. They sinked in slowly, gently, and little by little as if the vampire was afraid of hurting him.
Truthfully, he was waiting for the pain to come, was anticipating it as something similar to the tiny prick he always felt on his wrists or arms. And yet, it never did. As a matter of fact, it was almost too pleasurable. The sensation that was coursing through his vein was making him dizzy with ecstasy. Yuu would very much like to think that this wasn't cause by his recently acknowledged feelings for the vampire.
He didn't want to label himself as someone who enjoyed pain – a masochist – because he wasn't one. There was no pain to enjoy and he only felt ecstatic with it because of the intimacy of the act. He felt like their relationship had stepped up, that they had gotten close, that they had connected in an innermost level.
vi.
Yuu was sixteen years old when he decided to get a full time job.
He had been accepting part-time jobs before, helping out on the library, doing some errands for their neighbors, and filling in on the pub when ever they were short on people. They paid him with money, goods and sometimes food. But now, he wanted to take a step into adulthood.
He might not received a proper education, but with his constant visit at the library – which was surprisingly big enough to contain references that were actually useful and important – he had acquired the knowledge and wisdom to help him function in the society. Mikaela praised him before, saying he was a naturally clever person and was even more intelligent than most of the active members of the society nowadays.
However, when he told him about his plans, the vampire apparently didn't take it well.
"Why do you need to work? Are my resources not enough? Do you need something?"
Mikaela bombarded him with questions, all the while looking so dejected as though he failed in his life. Yuu regretted saying it then, but he had to let the vampire know why he wanted it so much, he had to explain it to him that he wasn't the cause of it, but instead the motivation of it.
"I'm getting older, Mika. I want to be an adult, I want to fend for myself, I want to be your strength, too."
"But... but..." the vampire refused to look at him, he was mumbling something while his eyes were downcast—eyes that were crimson red but without its usual fire, they were dull and stone-like instead. "If you can take care of yourself now, that means you don't need me anymore."
"No!" Yuu's unexpected exclamation made the vampire flinch. He brought his hands to lightly grip at Mikaela's face and compel him to meet his gaze. "That's not it, Mika. I still need you, and I will stay with you for as long as you want me to. We have a deal, remember? The work is a personal thing. Please don't say that again."
The vampire seemed to calm down. He relaxed on Yuu's touch and let the other guide him to his neck. Yuu softly brushed his fingers on the feather-like blonde hair and urged him to drink. He heard a faint "Okay." from the vampire before he felt the fangs piercing his skin.
vii.
Yuu was eighteen years old when his relationship with Mikaela had changed.
Half of his mind was blaming his carelessness while the other part was his male instinct taking action.
One night after he came home late from work, he found Mikaela on his room, eyes closed and body stilled. He knew for a fact that vampires didn't have the need to sleep, so the vampire was just probably resting and was actually awake. He had done this before, after all. What he found peculiar was that, he was on Yuu's room, lying on Yuu's bed and hugging Yuu's pillow.
Looking at him like this, he appeared just like any other normal human being. His lithe form was curled as he relaxed his facial muscles. He really looked like he was sleeping.
Yuu couldn't help himself. Even with the knowledge that the vampire was awake and could sense his every move, it didn't deter him to lean so intimately close at him and share his personal bubble while staring at his serene face.
When Yuu entered his seventeenth year, he surpassed Mikaela's height with a few centimeters. His physical form had transcended Mikaela's, as well, but it wasn't distinguishable enough to take note of. Where Yuu had grown up and changed, Mikaela had stayed exactly the same.
Even when he was young, he already found Mikaela pretty and delicate like a doll, but now, he looked even more delicate because Yuu's viewpoint had also changed. He could fit the vampire on his arms now. He could lock him on his embrace. He could protect him from his fears.
Yuu leaned his head closer to the vampire's face, so close that they were almost touching. Yuu contemplated whether or not to make it happen, but before he knew it, Mikaela was opening his eyes and was backing away from him.
The vampire was looking at him with such a pained expression that Yuu took as a big rejection. Mikaela looked a little bit betrayed, alarmed, and disappointed, but mostly hurt. He didn't understand, the vampire gave an impression like he failed in something, yet his refusal was hurting him too. It was as though he was thorn in between, and he didn't know how to act.
So he ran away from Yuu.
Since that night, Yuu never saw Mikaela again for more than a few minutes. When they came across each other at home, he always had the excuse of having an appointment or needing to be somewhere. It made Yuu feel frustrated, but for the most part, he felt heartbroken.
viii.
Yuu never saw himself as someone brimming with patience. He didn't always get what he wanted, but at least, he was making an effort to gain it. This time, too, he felt the extreme need to face the problem properly and confront it like a man. He couldn't take anymore of the heartache, of the guilt, of the loneliness.
He knew that Mikaela was hurting, too, when he was pushing Yuu away. He knew that the vampire was not rejecting his feelings but was just afraid of the possibilities if he ever held on on those feelings. He knew that he was only scared.
Mikaela was terrified of getting attached to a human. He was terrified of the fact that they were different—that no matter how much the world insisted that vampires and humans could coexist, they were still predator and prey that were never meant to stay together as an equal. And he was terrified of their extremely magnanimous difference that would only hurt both of them if they ever pursued something that had no guarantee to last.
But apart from being impatient, Yuu was also too stubborn for his own good.
He refused to back down from a fight that haven't even started yet. He refused to put an end into something that never even started yet. He refused to wordlessly let Mikaela to simply cast him away. If he had to, he would force his perceptions to him, his sentiments, his will. He would drill it to the vampire's mind and make him understand that they might be different as a specie, but Yuu was also remarkably different from a normal human.
So this night, he decided to put his plans into action.
They might constantly missed each other at home, but Yuu knew when the vampire was coming to bring his usual portion of the refills. It might not be a regular schedule but he put on a great bet for tonight. He called in advance from his work to take the off tomorrow and waited restlessly for the vampire to enter. He made it so it would appear that he was sleeping to prevent him from sensing Yuu's consciousness. If he knew, he would possibly try to ran away again.
When Mikaela finally arrived, Yuu took quiet yet hurried steps to where the vampire was and cornered him.
"Y-yuu-chan?" he startled, surprised at being back away at the wall in the kitchen. Yuu didn't budge, even when faced when the hurt yet scared expression of the vampire, he kept on pushing him and trapping him with his arms. "It's late, why are you still awake?"
Mikaela's eyes were blue, something that was undeniably weird. They should have been red because he hadn't fed him since that night, they hadn't even made contact since then, let alone give him his blood.
That means—! Yuu's vision had darkened when realization hit him. He was drinking from another human. While Yuu was waiting for him, he was sinking his fangs to another man's skin and sending them pleasure that only Yuu should ever feel. He gripped the vampire's thin arms, tightly, securely and possessively.
"Yuu...?" Mikaela called, wincing when the grip tightened even more. If he wasn't a vampire, they would probably be already hurting and bruising right now.
"You knew, didn't you?" Yuu couldn't recognize his voice when he speak. It was colder than normal and yet it carried a tone of desperation in it. "You realized my feelings."
The vampire didn't respond, only averting his gaze as he let Yuu take it as a sign of confirmation. He moved to place a kiss to the vampire's lips but he quickly turned his head. "Yuu, don't."
Yuu was aware of how much strength Mikaela had in him. So if he really wished for it, he could push Yuu away with only a flick of a finger, yet he wasn't making a move. Sighing, Yuu interpreted it as him not really wanting to reject him.
He leaned, breath ghosting at the vampire's pale cheek. "Push me, Mika. Shove me away and turn me down properly." He released his hold from his arms and cupped his cheeks instead. This time, the hold was gentle and full of pure affection. "If you can't, then stop resisting me, stop resisting us."
"Yuu..."
Yuu gave him a full minute for his response, when it appeared like he would get none, he ultimately claimed Mikaela's lips as he tasted for the first time the love and contentment that had been missing from his life.
The vampire was still at first, but eventually, he went on with Yuu's beat as they both relished the precious moment and forgot everything else. They moved in coordination with Yuu claiming and marking what was his and with Mikaela completely submitting himself to the human.
Yuu was on the verge of crying, all his pent up emotions were surfacing and they were threatening to spill now that he had taken a huge load off of his shoulder. He was so happy and delighted that he wished for the time to still and for this night to never end.
He embraced Mikaela securely on his arms and whispered all his love and affections for him. The vampire didn't look any different, although he was still wavering and insecure, his emotions were flowing endlessly like a waterfall. This was the highest form of happiness that Yuu had obtained and he vowed to protect it and make last.
As time passed, Yuu finally took the toll of his exhaustion and felt sleepy. He attempted to opposed it, though, as he was afraid that once he lost consciousness, Mikaela would slip away from his arms, that he would slip away from his life. He was determined not to make it happen at any cost. His hold tightened even more and locked his arms with each other as he caged the vampire with them.
Mikaela sent him a confused look which he only responded with a grin and a kiss on his lips.
Determination and resolve aside, however, Yuu was still human all through and through. In the end, he unconsciously loosened his arms and fell asleep.
When he woke up, the only thing that left of Mikaela was a note.
'I won't be home for a while.
Please don't wait for me.
I'm sorry, Yuu-chan.'
As Yuu let his tears fall from his eyes, he repeatedly cursed his humanity.
ix.
Yuu was nineteen years old when Mikaela disappeared from his life and left him as empty as he could ever be.
i.
Mikaela was nineteen years old when he was turned against his will.
He was nineteen when he decided to live on his own in the city where he could freely interact with humans without facing unwanted prejudices.
He was nineteen when he met Yuu, a boy who gave his soul a salvation.
He was nineteen when he finally enjoyed his life—a life together with Yuu.
He was nineteen when he encountered feelings that seemed to be troublesome in the surface, but were actually adding a sense to his life.
He was nineteen when he first experienced an intimate night with someone very precious to him, with Yuu, after coming terms with his own feelings.
He was nineteen when he realized that he was always nineteen while he was watching Yuu grew up into a fine man.
He was nineteen when it came to him that he would be forever nineteen and Yuu would eventually leave him—willing or not.
He was nineteen when he chose to hurt Yuu now than hurt him in the future.
ii.
Mikaela was nineteen years old when he became a lost soul. He wandered and wandered for years without stopping and without a clear destination. He avoided humans and vampires alike. He didn't want to get attached again, he didn't want to hurt and get hurt again.
He never aged, appearance and maturity wise. He always ran away from his problems and refused to face them head on. He was always trying to escape from his fears, from his reality.
He was nineteen years old and would always be nineteen years old, despite of how many millennium it would pass.
iii.
Mikaela was nineteen years old when he saw Yuu again after almost four decades.
He was shocked when it happened, too shocked that he failed to notice that he was getting closer and closer to him and before he knew it, Yuu had locked him in place.
"I finally found you."
It was impossible, it was nonviable. Yuu's voice was the same, his height and appearance was the same, his age was the same. Everything was the same from how he left him many years ago. His shock had rendered him speechless, and he couldn't still process what he was seeing, but Yuu's hold was still the same and it touched a string on his heart—a string that wasn't supposed to be there, in the first place.
"Mika?"
"H-how?"
Yuu grinned at his perplexed face and planted a chaste kiss on his lips. "I went to Sanguinem. You know that, right?" Mikaela nodded. Sanguinem was a city ruled by the vampires, it was where the majority of the nobles and vampire progenitors resided, it was where he came from.
"I went to see Krul Tepes," Yuu looked at him again, confirming his recognition of the name. Krul Tepes was the third progenitor who was currently reigning the Sanguinem. She was the queen vampire who turned Mikaela, she was his sire. "I told her that I needed to go with you, that I needed to stay with you. That I will find you no matter what, even if it takes me forever, and I will spend my life by your side for all eternity. And then, surprisingly, she gave me what I wanted. Seems like she actually cares for you."
Mikaela was suddenly washed over with understanding, comprehension and realization. Then, they were instantaneously replaced by his overwhelming emotions that he couldn't seem to contain so he let them spill. He returned the embraced that Yuu gave him and held him even tighter than Yuu had which made the latter laugh at him.
"Yuu-chan..." he whispered, facing the other properly to convey his feelings. "I love you, Yuu-chan."
Yuu kissed him once, "I..." he kissed him twice, "love..." he kissed him thrice, "you..." On the fourth time that he kissed Mikaela, it was deep and passionate and simply overflowing with love and longing.
"I'm never going to let you go again, Mika. You're stuck with me forever."
Mikaela smiled, genuine and full of endearment. He was being held with an immense strength that any normal human wouldn't be able to possess matched with a very unnatural temperature that he, himself, had been emitting. And yet, he felt fluffy soft and warm inside, like there's a beautiful flower blooming inside his chest. A flower called love.
"I wouldn't want it any other way. Forever, Yuu, forever."
...
-KRIZZA-