Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Here’s the thing. 

Kaelix had a secret. 

A very normal secret. So normal, in fact, that it edged the line of inconvenience just to keep it a secret. Seeing as he has been living and rooming with the other staff of the By The Beat livehouse it only becomes so much more evident how inconvenient this little secret truly was. 

Seriously, secretly being a vampire with three other roommates is a nightmare. 

For the past year, Kaelix had been silently suffering with his vampiric curse that had ailed him since that fateful Halloween. 

It was a special night at the livehouse. Seible proposed the novel idea of hosting a special event in order to attract more patrons, not a surprising choice from the resident promoter. Each member of the By The Beat staff dressed up as a different creature/spooky character. Zeal, their bartender, was a sexy, mad scientist, Freodore was a victorian-esque ghost, Seible was an angel, and Kaelix was the vampire (Although Freodore debated making Kaelix a werewolf). To Seible’s credit, it was a massive success. That night there was a line of costumed party goers that wrapped around the city block. 

Unfortunately for Kaelix, the resident security, that meant he had his work cut out for him. Hours passed as he checked IDs, conversed with party goers, kicked out troublemakers, and ignored any drunk flirtations thrown his way. At one point, a man dressed as a sexy Bojack Horseman saddled up to Kaelix and rested his arm on his shoulder. Despite the fact Kaelix exceeded him in height by a good four inches, the drunkard was not deterred. 

“H-hey there pretty boy.” The man tried to say between his hiccups. He did his best to intimate a suave, deep, charismatic voice; like something you’d hear in an audition for the bachelorette or old tapes of Bill Clinton’s speeches. Unfortunately for the drunkard, Zeal Ginjoka was Kaelix’s roommate, so consequently his standards were a little out of the man’s vocal competency. 

“Y-you know what they say about horses?” He asked, giggling as he spoke. Intrigued, Kaelix entertained him with a response. “What?” Kaelix responded, raising an eyebrow at the man. 

The man soon fell into giggles, apparently the voices in his head were quite the charmers. If only he could put their talent to good use. “They say-” He took a moment to catch his breath, “They say, well, save a horse, ride a cowboy. If you catch my drift.” He winked obnoxiously through the holes of the horse mask. 

Kaelix was thoroughly confused, “But you’re the horse? Wouldn’t that be a little counter intuitive?” 

“Nope, because I’m THE cowboy.” A man that was standing behind the drunkard spoke up and moved to stand beside his likely companion. It was at this moment Kaelix realized he’d just been played and tag teamed by two idiots dressed up as Bojack Horseman and Woody from the Toys franchise. This night could not get worse. 

“Look sir, sorry, but I’m not interested.” Kaelix responded, trying to remain civil.

“If it’s just b-because he’s a man I promise yoouu, you’ll change your mind after a night with this cowboy.” The sexy Bojack horseman said, pointing exaggeratedly to his friend. 

That was not the problem. 

Far from it. 

To reiterate, Zeal Ginjoka, Freodore, and Seible were his roommates. Any chance of Kaelix just being straight got crushed once he walked through the doors of the livehouse. 

While his roommates may not know about his secret affections for them. One thing that’s certain is the money he invested to soundproof his room is reaping dividends. 

“No–that’s not the problem–look.” Kaelix said, rubbing the bridge of his nose. The two party goers paused, even the drunk, at Kaelix’s tone. “It’s Halloween night and I’m a bouncer. As much as I’d like to ditch this place, even if not with you guys, I can’t. I have a job to do, and nothing is going to change that fact.” 

The two stood there in silence pondering, even the horse guy seemed to sober up a little at Kaelix’s words. Then Bojack Horseman spoke up, “You know what,” he said with determination in his voice. 

He walked up to Kaelix, sizing him up, “All I have to say is-’got your nose!” Suddenly he swiped Kaelix’s glasses, prescription ones by the way, and ran off screaming and laughing down the road. 

This night just got worse. 

“What the ff–Seible watch the door!” Kaelix yelled through the entrance of the livehouse.

A faint huh? K-chan wait wha- reached Kaelix's ear before he took off after the thief. 

They ran for several blocks with Kaelix cursing the world under his breath at every opportunity. It really was just his luck. Some drunk guy and his friend took an interest in him then stole his glasses. It vaguely reminded Kaelix of when kindergarten boys would pull on little girl’s pigtails or steal their pencils for attention. Except they were grown, mature adults; atleast, they were supposed to be! 

After approximately ten minutes, Kaelix was only nine or so meters behind the thief. The man then disappeared into an alleyway between a rundown liquor store and a 24/7 women’s only gym. Classic. 

Kaelix slowed down to a jog then a walk in order to properly catch his breath. He needed to calm down; He wasn’t looking for a fight. He wanted to end this as quickly and peacefully as human nature would allow.

Bracing himself, Kaelix walked into the alleyway.

 It was your typical dingy alleyway. There was graffiti decorating the brick and mortar walls of the buildings. There was trash everywhere . Every step further into the alleyway was another crunch of a crushed soda can or assorted aluminum. Out of the corner of his eye, Kaelix saw the silhouette of a raccoon scamper off with a half eaten tub of butter. Finally Kaelix sees, at the end of the alleyway, the Bojack Horseman slumped against the wall with the glasses perched on his horse mask head. The thief appeared to be asleep. 

Kaelix let out a sigh of relief. At least this way, he wouldn’t need to get physical. Even though he is a bouncer, physical fights were never his forte or something he enjoyed. However, Kaelix then noticed that the horseman wasn’t alone. To the left, crouched over him was a man seemingly examining the drunkard. 

Well, even better. This way someone can help him carry the drunk back to their friend and go home.

 “Hey, sir!” Kaelix shouted to the stranger. The man immediately flinched. He stood up quickly and turned around to face Kaelix. 

There, at the end of the alleyway, stood a classy victorian-dressed man (slightly shorter than Kaelix). The clothing looked extremely authentic from this distance. Kaelix may not be a fashion expert, but during his time as a model he saw his fair share of period-clothing. These seemed straight out of an old textbook. He also had a cape which–although may not be historically accurate–the rule of cool dictates he earns bonus points.

The man himself was pale, sickly so, perhaps due to makeup? His mouth was smudged with red, likely with some sort of lipstick to imitate the look of blood. His dark hair was slicked back, the excess tied into a ponytail resting on his shoulder. Then there were his eyes that glowed red in the dark. 

It was a fantastic vampire costume. 

“That is a fantastic vampire costume.” Kaelix said, his eyes tracing over the outfit. “I need to know how you got your eyes to glow like that.”

The man paused, a perplexed expression crossed his face, “Yes, thank you. I put a lot of effort into it.” He had a unique accent, something vaguely european. Then, he looked over awkwardly to the drunk guy, still laying there, “I seem to have found this gentleman lying here.” 

Kaelix looked over to the slumped figure, “Yeah I assume it was the alcohol that made him drowsy enough to sleep in this dump of an alleyway.” 

Kaelix and the man exchanged a glance, “Sorry, he stole my glasses. I just need to grab them and then we can help return this guy to his friend.” 

The guy nodded and moved to stand off to the side, allowing Kaelix to get closer to the drunk. Carefully, he tiptoed over to the drunkard, not wanting to accidentally wake him, then plucked the glasses off his head. Kaelix made a mental note to thoroughly clean them once he got home.

However something caught Kaelix’s eye. Although difficult to see from the man’s slumped position, a thin trail of blood can be seen soaking into the man’s red crop top. It was coming from under the horse mask. The world slowed down to a stop, Kaelix could feel his heartbeats pick up speed. Subtly, Kaelix went to check his pulse. Still breathing. That’s a good sign. 

Clearly, this vampire guy did something to the drunk. Maybe he’s some sort of gang member or a guy who's physically violent; either way that guy was bad news. Luckily, he seemed very compliant with Kaelix, he probably didn’t  expect to get caught so quickly and just went along with the flow. 

If Kaelix plays his cards right, he could help get the drunk guy to his friends and then have this stranger questioned by law enforcement. In his right pocket, he silently held the SOS button on his phone. That would alert the other By The Beat staff that there was trouble. 

“Ah, so you’ve seemed to have figured me out.” The strange man said, his words were thinly laced with ire. Kaelix froze. 

Oh fuck. 

“Huh? What’s up?” Kaelix responded, he tried his best to conceal the tremor in his voice. Currently the wall and Kaelix’s eyes are becoming great acquaintances. 

“I can hear your heart racing.” He said, “It's akin to the flapping of a hummingbird.” The sound of click clack that followed a pair of heeled footsteps were slowly approaching.

Oh…” the stranger groaned to himself, “I’m starving…” 

Fear struck Kaelix like lightning before a thought made itself known.

Oh god. This guy is a freak ! 

Kaelix stood up quickly and turned, he dodged as the freak tried to launch himself at Kaelix. 

Kaelix shrieked.

 “Oh my GOD! WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU?” 

The man gets back up and appears in front of Kaelix inhumanly fast. He goes for Kaelix’s mouth; hit . His lips were probably busted. Kaelix attempts to retaliate with a sucker punch. Instead of blocking or maybe dodging he catches Kaelix’s arm and bites. Hard. 

Kaelix held back another curse. He was terrified. In pure instinct, he threw a hook at the man’s head using his other arm. The creep stumbled back a little, wobbly and looking delirious. Kaelix took the opportunity to jab him right in the mouth then kick him in the gut. When he pulled his fist back, blood painted his knuckles. Kaelix suppressed the urge to feel guilty. Fortunately, the combo seemed to slow down the creep. 

Shit, Kaelix realized, his arm was still bleeding, he could feel the warm blood running down to mingle with his fingers. 

Kaelix himself was feeling a little light headed–probably from the blood loss–not to mention he was sweating like crazy. Kaelix would have to dry clean his costume later, Freodore would not appreciate it returning covered in blood, sweat, or tears.

A warm feeling ran down his nose and chin. 

He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. It was more blood, on top of the bleeding arm he had a nosebleed; God the stress was really getting to him, huh? He can taste both the fresh blood from his nose and stale one crusting on his hand on his chapped lips. 

Suddenly two loud and familiar voices echoed through the alleyway:

“K-chan are you okay!?”

“Kaelix! We’re here!”

Kaelix heard the rumble of frantic footsteps, faintly he could also hear the whine of police car sirens. Two thoughts immediately crossed his mind:

Finally and home.

Immediately, Kaelix was filled with relief, it soothed him like a balm.

Everything was going to be alright now. 

Kaelix turned to face his beloved roommates. He was ready to get this night over with. There the three stood, still in their halloween costumes, it was a little humorous. Seible was the first to run over to Kaelix, quickly assessing him from head to toe. 

“K-chan! We were so worried–YOUR ARM IS BLEEDING!!!” Seible yelled immediately. That alerted the other two to quickly move to crowd Kaelix. 

“Guys-” 

“Shut up. I brought a first aid kit.” Freodore said, passing it over to Zeal. Wordlessly, Zeal opened the kit and passed the cotton balls and alcohol to Freodore. While Freodore and Zeal tended to Kaelix’s arm, Seible proactively went to talk with the police. In his peripheral vision, Kaelix could see the police arresting the freak and carrying off the Bojack Horseman guy.

Moments later, Seible ran back to their little huddle pile around Kaelix. Seible then pulled out a handkerchief from his pocket. It was a cute blue and white checkered fabric, Kaelix would hate to stain it with all his dirt and grime. 

“K-chan. Bend down a little.” Seible asked with a hand motioning Kaelix to come closer. 

“Seible, really it's fine–” Kaelix attempted to say, he was shut down immediately. 

“That wasn’t a request, Kaelix.” Seible's voice dropped an octave, his usual soft eyes were hardened leaving no room for discussion. It left a shiver wracking through Kaelix’s body. Instantly he complied, placing his face in Seible’s palm. It was so warm.

Seible’s eyes soften once more. With the care and tenderness of a bunny, Seible gently wiped the blood and sweat from Kaelix’s face. 

He lingered a moment on Kaelix’s lip, a displeased expression overtook his face. 

“We’ll need to ice that later,” he mumbled to himself just as Freodore finished wrapping Kaelix’s arm. The four then stood there in tense silence and exchanging looks before Freodore reached to flick Kaelix’s forehead. 

“Ow!” Kaelix rubbed the spot on his forehead.

“Cochino.” 

Kaelix pouted, looking at his three roommates, “What was that for!?” 

The three shared a glance before they collectively sigh. Kaelix didn’t get it. He hated being left out like this, they all looked so… sad, disappointed even. 

Zeal spoke up first, “Kaelix… look. You can’t just run off like that. When you took off with barely a warning to Seible he panicked.” 

Kaelix looked at Seible, the shorter man fidgeted a little before turning to look at Kaelix with teary eyes. That felt like a sucker punch to the gut. Zeal continued, “We were so worried. Then about twenty minutes later we got your SOS.” 

Kaelix could feel himself begin to tear up, he felt terrible right now. He just wanted to go home. His heartbeat was ringing in his ears and  his breathing started to quicken ever so slightly. 

Zeal paused, instantly he moved to pull Kaelix into a strong hug. Kaelix buried his face into his shoulder, taking in the comforting scent of whiskey and mint. Soon, Kaelix could feel Seible and Freodore join the unplanned group hug too. It felt so warm…so safe…like home. 

“We don’t have to talk about it right now.” Freodore murmured into Kaelix’s right shoulder. 

“Yeah…Furi-chan is right. Tomorrow, okay?” Seible added from Kaelix’s left shoulder. 

“Y-yeah, tomorrow.” Kaelix replied, letting himself fall further into the warmth. 

The four would stay like that for another ten minutes before walking home together. Kaelix in the middle between Freodore and Zeal while Seible walked a little ahead, holding Kaelix’s hand, pointing at random shops or knick knocks he’d noticed. 

Once they got back to their apartment, they wouldn’t let Kaelix do anything. Somehow, they all telepathically decided that tonight Kaelix was going to get the princess treatment. 

Freodore went to run him a bath. Zeal went to the kitchen to whip something up (despite it being almost midnight), and Seible helped Kaelix take off his costume. 

Kaelix grimaced at the blood stains on the once pristine white shirt Freodore gave him. Seible didn’t even blink twice. 

“I’ll make sure to get it dry clean later.” Kaelix said, as Seible worked on unlacing the corset he was wearing. 

“Don’t even bother” was Seible’s response, not even sparing a glance from his task, “Furi-chan wouldn’t even think of letting you get that dry cleaned, let alone pay for it.” 

Kaelix sighed and rolled his eyes, “Listen! I didn’t know you couldn’t machine wash cashmere. That was a one-time thing! I even bought him a new sweater after the fact as an apology.” Kaelix whined.

“Hey, hey, don’t tell that to me! You should be begging Furi-chan for mercy, not me.” Seible said, giggling a little. “Although… I wouldn’t mind if you begged for me instead.” 

Kaelix’s thoughts screeched to a halt, whatever dignified response he had prepared had decided to self-defenestrate.

Pause.

Rewind.

Play.

The corset dropped to the ground. Kaelix whipped his head to face Seible, his face beginning to resemble a tomato. “You WHAT?” Kaelix exclaimed with poorly concealed panic. 

The sly bastard only tilted his head innocently while blinking his cute, doe eyes. “What’s wrong K-chan? Cat got your tongue?” But Kaelix knew what he heard, he can even pinpoint the mirth in his voice. 

“Seible, what did you mean by that?” Kaelix asked, his eyes searching the shorter man’s face. His lip quirked up slightly, a sign that Kaelix wasn’t going to get the answer he wanted, the one he needed. “Let’s wait until tomorrow, yeah?” Seible said, pushing Kaelix towards their shared bathroom. 

The apartment they shared had four bedrooms, two bathrooms, and an extra room that served as Seible and Freodore’s shared office. Zeal had the largest room so he just worked in there or, occasionally, in the living room. Seible had to handle a majority with a lot of paperwork as the owner and promoter of By The Beat so he got half of the office. Freodore got the other half as the designated designer of the livehouse. He needed the space for his fabric, mannequins etc. Kaelix was similar to Zeal, although his room was the smallest of the four, he usually opted to work in the living room anyways. It allowed him to talk with his boys while he worked on paperwork or other miscellaneous stuff. 

The apartment was essentially divided into two; The kitchen and living room serve as the divider. On one end were Zeal and Freodore’s room with their side shared bathroom. Seible and Kaelix’s rooms, bathroom, and the office were on the other side of the apartment.

The apartment they lived in was also directly above the livehouse. While under normal circumstances it’d be a terrible idea, By the Beat livehouse only had four employees, so the livehouse was only operating when they were all working. Not to mention, they’ve taken the time to install soundproof foam beneath the floors of their apartment. It was comfy, a perfectly cozy home for the four of them. Kaelix couldn’t have wished for anything better.

Seible knocked on the bathroom door, “Furi-chan are you ready?” 

Seconds later, the door opened, “Yes. Kaelix, there's a thing or two I need to tell you before I’ll leave you alone in the bath.” 

Kaelix walked in, Freodore closed the door. The bathroom smells like fresh citrus and honey. Looking to his right he found the source, a bubble bath, just for him prepared by the one and only Freodore. 

“Make sure not to get your bandage wet, the wound is still healing. There’s a stool beside the bath for you to rest your arm on while you bathe.” Freodore instructed, “I’ll help wash your hair and bring you some clothes later. Get in the bath first.” 

Freodore then stepped outside, giving Kaelix some privacy to undress. Once he was done, he took a second to check his face in the mirror. He looked like a wreck. 

His lips were starting to bruise from that punch earlier. His eyes were a little red, probably from trying to stop himself from crying. The hair gel Freodore used earlier made his hair all crusty now. Honestly, he looked terrible. But he didn’t feel terrible, except for all the grime he felt coating his skin. 

Carefully he stepped into the bathtub, submerging himself until only his right arm, neck, and head were above the water. 

A knock, before a voice came through the door: “Can I come in?” Freodore said.

“You can come in, Freo!” 

Freodore, who was now dressed in simple PJs, swiftly stepped into the bathroom and closed the door. There was a pile of neatly folded clothes in his arm. He placed them on the sink counter before approaching Kaelix armed with shampoo and conditioner. He pulled over another stool and sat, taking Kaelix’s head into his hands to start working.

Kaelix hummed happily as Freodore thoroughly washed his hair. The ambient sounds of moving water and soap suds echoed against the bathroom tiles. 

“So… what happened?” Freodore broke the silence. 

As relaxed as ever Kaelix murmured his response, “Thought we weren’t gonna talk about it till tomorrow.” 

Freodore let out an airy laugh, a quiet sound but beautiful nonetheless. “Of course, but maybe I want to hear the inside scoop first. Before the other wolves pounce on you.” 

Kaelix laughed at the comparison. A full body laugh that jostled Freodore whilst he was working, “Stay still!” he ordered, pushing Kaelix’s shoulders back down. 

“S-sorry,” Kaelix said struggling through his residual giggled, “Just the image of Zeal and Seible as wolves is so…” 

Freodore sighed but Kaelix could see that he was smiling. 

“Well…” Kaelix drawled, dragging the syllable out, “I wouldn’t want to show any favoritism between my roommates.” That made Freodore roll his eyes, Kaelix suppressed another snort. 

“Fine, keep your secrets, Cochino.” He sprayed the taller man with water. Kaelix sputtered trying to blink the water out of his eyes. “That was so mean! You haate me Freo!” Kaelix whined, directing his look of betrayal to Freodore. 

“Hmph, it's what you deserve.” Freodore said, washing the suds off his hands in the sink, 

“Finish up soon by the way, Zeal made us dinner.” Then he left, leaving Kaelix alone again in the bathroom.

At the thought of dinner, he shifted to drain the tub. The adrenaline from all the chasing, fighting, and chaos had finally settled. Kaelix was now aware of how hungry he actually was. He dried himself from head to toe, being careful to not disturb his injured arm. The bleeding seemed to have stopped but it’s far from actually healed; injuries like these usually took a few weeks to heal in full. He was gonna need to change the wrap before bed.

The clothes that Freodore left were a pair of basketball shorts and a large oversized, green Zelda T-shirt. Even though it was mid-fall Kaelix still prefered to wear shorts. Sweatpants–or just pants in general–never fit him well because of his unique proportions. The woes of being tall and having long legs….

Once Kaelix changed, he exited the bathroom and entered their small dining-kitchen living room space. It was a domestic sight; Instead of sitting at their perfectly functional dining table, the three roommates were all gathered around their singular coffee table sitting on the floor. 

Kaelix observed that Zeal and Seible had also changed into their own PJs. 

“K-chan! Sit down,” Seible said while patting the spot beside him. Kaelix obliged, moving to sit next to Seible, in front of him sat a plate of delicious chicken with rice and broccoli. Kaelix started eating without hesitation. 

“Woah, woah K-chan slow down!” Seible said, startled. Zeal and Freodore were also surprised at the vigor Kaelix ate.  Unfortunately Kaelix had no defense besides sheer hunger.

“Warf? Im hunghy.” he said through a mouthful of rice. There was a silent pause before Zeal and Seible bursted into laughter. Freodore tried to hold back his laugh but soon fell into giggles too. 

The night went on as they all ate. While they promised to talk with Kaelix about his hijinks tomorrow, Seible, Freodore, and Zeal also had their fair number of stories to share from that night. 

Seible had apparently been ‘adopted’ by a couple of ‘bros’ after discovering their mutual interests in FPS games. They exchanged numbers before the guy with big claws had to escort his friend home. Meanwhile, Freodore was attempting to comfort a few drunk girls crying outside the ladies bathroom. Queen never cry was a phrase that Kaelix has officially added to his vocabulary. The most fascinating (in Kaelix’s opinion) story belonged to Zeal. 

Zeal shared that a certain party of patrons were ordering beers like crazy. There were eight of them, each dressed up in their own unique costume. The most obvious costumes were the demon, sorcerer, cyborg, and police officer. The rest looked a little ambiguous but were stylish nevertheless. Zeal and the demon were conversing most of the night since he was ordering drinks until something interesting happened.

“We were laughing, bonding our mutual interest in sonic when he propositioned me.” Zeal explained. 

Zeal deepened his voice trying to imitate the patron’s baritone tone, it made Kaelix giggle in his seat, “Hey mate, have you ever thought of joining a polycule? The five of us really wouldn’t mind having you around, considering you’re such a looker.” 

Kaelix gasped, staring at Zeal in disbelief. Then a ugly feeling started festering in his chest. He didn’t like the idea of Zeal going off joining some other group, let alone a polycule . Of course if Zeal wanted to he could… but he was theirs. By The Beat’s beloved bartender. No one else's. He frowned at the image of Zeal frolicking off with five strangers into the sunset never to be seen again. 

“But you’ll never guess what happened next... Before I could even respond–this guy,” Zeal said pointing at Freodore. Freodore seemed to shrink a little, a light blush dusting his cheeks, “Stepped in and interrupted him.”

Oh. Well that changes everything. Kaelix was now looking at Freodore with wide eyes. He also momentarily glanced at Seible, but he seemed unperturbed throughout the entire story. 

“Surprising right?” Zeal asked rhetorically, “So Fredore stepped in and said, no joke, "Babe, is this guy bothering you?” and interlaced our hands.” Immediately the table bursted into laughter, except Freodore who was now looking bashfully at his plate of food. 

“T-there’s no way,” Kaelix said struggling through his cackles, “There's no way you quoted that one meme I sent like–five months ago.” 

Seible, who was also laughing beside him, choked out his own, “H-he did.” 

Kaelux turned his gaze to Seible, colored with curiosity, “You saw?” 

Seible nodded before Freodore finally spoke up in his own defense, “I wasn’t quoting the meme, I just didn’t know what else to say.”

“I thought he was making Zeal uncomfortable and tried to step in. Besides…” Fredore trailed off then sent a pointed look towards Seible, “He joined in too!” 

 “Seible came over, grabbed Zeal’s other arm and said “Sorry he’s taken!” then winked at the demon.” Freodore said accusatively at the brunet.

That shut Seible up until he responded, “Well–I just thought–it looked fun! I wanted to join in. Plus, I had to defend By The Beat’s staff. I can’t just let anyone steal our amazing bartender now can I?” 

Zeal, who had been quietly listening up until this point, interjected “I wasn’t uncomfortable, Freo, but thanks for looking out for me. And Seible, thanks for joining in, the look on that guys’ face was… priceless.” Zeal started laughing again which set everyone off once more. 

They laughed and talked and yelled for hours. Everything felt so comfortable, so warm. This was Kaelix’s home. 

It was about 2am when Kaelix finally decided to turn in for the night (against his wishes, apparently one yawn was enough to set off everyone’s alarm and force poor Kaelix to go to bed). He closed the door behind him, yawning some more as he approached his bed. Then he remembered: he had to rewrap his arm. Grabbing the first aid kit from underneath his bed, he placed it next to him and moved to unwrap the dirty bandage. He tossed the used bandage into a small waste basket and examined his arm. 

Huh. Underneath the bandage, where the wound should definitely be, there was nothing. 

Kaelix rubbed his eyes. No, that wasn’t right. He inspected his arms closer, in place of where the wound was were two small scars a little over an inch apart. They looked more akin to moles than anything. Kaelix shook his head, the drowsiness was probably getting to him. He quickly went through the process of cleaning and bandaging his arm (even though the wound was nowhere to be seen) and went to bed. It was probably just a trick of the light… probably. 

Chapter Text

The next afternoon, because Kaelix never wakes up earlier than 12pm despite his best efforts, he woke up to an uncomfortable burning sensation. He hissed as quickly moved to close his curtains whilst cocooned in his blanket. The room was submerged into darkness and the burning sensation disappeared immediately. Kaelix blinked, that was unusual; normally, he loved waking up to the feeling of warm sunlight streaming through his window.

Kaelix glossed over the moment, instead opting to focus on trying to get ready for the day ahead. A quick glance at phone showed he had a few notifications from their shared group chat:

By the Beat ♪💓

Seible 💙 

K-chan! Do NOT show up to work today! Boss’s order (thats me) 

stay home and get lots of rest ok! >-<

Zeal and Freo ‘heart’ Seible’s message

Zeal 💚

yeah kaelix u better stay home and rest

breakfast is in the oven btw

Freo ❤️

There is also some tea in the microwave

To clarify, I did not microwave it

I’m not Zeal Ginjoka.

Zeal 💚

unprovoked !?

Freo ❤️

You provoked me when I first saw you microwave that coffee.

Zeal 💚

I didn’t even microwave coffee today !!

Freo ❤️

I still see you do it every week

I believe the coffee pot from last Tuesday is still in the fridge

Zeal 💚

Oh

I’ll drink it all tomorrow dw

Freo ❤️

No

Don’t even think about it.

Zeal 💚

Try to stop me.

I dare u

Freo ❤️

Location attached

ETA 5 minutes

Start running Ginjoka.

Zeal 💚

!!!

Seible 💙

🤭

Kaelix chuckled to himself as he read the messages. Banter like this between his roommates always brightened his day. He took a moment to type out his own response:

Kaelix 💛

I’m awake !!

will eat food after brushing my teeth 🫶 

Kaelix then put his phone into his pocket then left his bedroom to wash up in Seible’s and his shared bathroom. 

Kaelix hobbled to the sink, rubbing his eyes as he turned on the light. Like clockwork, he splashed his face with water before grabbing his yellow toothbrush and toothpaste. He bit his lip in concentration, a habit he picked up from Seible, as he squeezed the toothpaste on the bristles until a shock of pain hit him.

“Ow-what?” He touched his lips and found his fingers stained red. Finally, Kaelix checked his reflection in the mirror only to find a different face staring back at him. 

Technically it was still his face, same eyes, nose, eyebrows, lips, etc. But Kaelix could tell something was off; something was different. His complexion looked paler, as though he had painted his face white. Additionally, while Kaelix knows he’s pretty handsome, his skin seemed a lot clearer than it had been the night before. The small pimple on his cheek that’d been bothering him for days has disappeared completely. Then he saw it, or more accurately, them. 

Fangs. Instead of his usual canines, they were replaced by a shiny pair of fangs. A simple poke with his finger proved that they were in fact the real deal and they were sharp . The scent of blood began to fill his senses. A heady sensation began to fog Kaelix’s mind, he had never drank before but can imagine that this feeling was similar. In the mirror his eye flashes red, and he snaps out of his stupor. 

God, he must be dreaming. 

There’s no way he wasn’t. 

Because if he wasn’t that meant that somehow…someway…

Kaelix has turned into a vampire. 

Adjusting to his new vampiric quirks was a challenge. Especially after Kaelix had just gotten into his second fist fight in his life and was surrounded by three very observant and very caring roommates. 

For the first few days Kaelix would hide in his room and pretend to be asleep whenever they’d come check on him. During this time, when the boys were out doing their errands, he’d experiment the extents of his vampire traits and research forums or popular wikis (yes, even the twilight fandom wiki) in order to figure out the truth behind his newfound supernatural attributes. 

The first thing Kaelix discovered (and arguably the most important) was that if he layered on enough sunscreen, the sun wouldn’t immediately vaporize him. Granted, 4 layers of the thickest and highest SPF sunblock would only grant him an hour of sunlight but a win is a win. Clothing helped to mitigate the burning effect too. A particularly heavy and thick sweater he owned seemed to block the sun entirely from reaching Kaelix’s sun-sensitive skin. 

Second, his fangs were retractable. On the third day of his self-imposed isolation, he found that he could consciously retract his fangs. Which was good, Kaelix was starting to consider bizzare solutions to the fang dilemma like perpetually wearing a mask or fake losing his voice. 

Third, he had inhuman regenerative powers. After injuring himself while trying to turn into a bat he found that the cut on his arm was fully healed by the next day. Further testing found that any and all his wounds would close up within 15 minutes and fully heal by the end of the hour. This was the same for sunburns. 

And fourth, Kaelix was not a vampire. At least not fully. According to his research, to turn someone into a vampire there were two criteria: first, the vampire must have bitten and drank of the blood of their chosen human. This fact confirmed a previous theory that the man in the alleyway was probably a vampire. Second, was that the bit human needed to ingest the vampire’s blood, about an ounce or so. 

The second criteria is where it got dicey. Somehow, Kaelix had accidentally ingested some vampire blood. How? He’s not sure. However it wasn’t enough to fully turn Kaelix into a vampire, just enough to begin the process. This would explain why he only got some out of the many supernatural powers commonly associated with vampires. Its also why Kaelix is able to have even the slightest tolerance to the sun even with all the sunscreen. And most notably, its why Kaelix has been able to last this long without a drop of human blood. He wasn’t sure when he’d develop the craving for it, but for the past four days Kaelix has been able to sustain himself with the meals that his loving roommates would leave at his door. Frankly, he’s afraid of what would happen when any vampire instincts take over. 

The self-imposed isolation was short lived, lasting less than a week. One, because Kaelix was slowly starting to grow miserable without his beloved roommates; Two, because by day five Seible and Zeal had tag teamed to break down his door and drag him out to their shared living room for game night. Freodore was setting up the game. 

Roomie Rule #7

All roommates are obligated to participate in weekly game night. No exceptions  

You will be dragged kicking and screaming! - Seible <3

Luckily, Kaelix has somehow scrambled together enough information to act perfectly normal during game night. His fangs were retracted, he’d just enjoyed a yummy plate of fried tofu with rice, and he was currently destroying all of By The Beat in mario party. 

Life was good. 

Perhaps through divine intervention or that his roommates might have descended from the heavens, no one decided to bring up the weird five days Kaelix had chosen to completely isolate himself. He briefly explained what happened Halloween night over dinner, sharing some laughs as Kaelix dramatically retold his encounter with the sexy Bojack Horseman and weird Dracula, but no one asked about the five-odd day Kaelix was MIA. He was grateful. Kaelix could tell that they were curious, worried too. 

For roughly two weeks after ‘the incident’ Zeal, Seible, and Freodore were all extremely attentive to Kaelix’s needs. They’d frequently text to check up on him, pick up stuff for him from the grocery store, or just call because ‘I just missed the sound of your voice’ (Well, Freo didn’t word it exactly like that but the same message came across). His birthday also passed with a small celebration, they all went to see a movie and get dessert afterwards.

As another week passed, Kaelix found himself slowly adjusting to his new routines. Luckily, because the livehouse was typically open from 5pm until late into the night, Kaelix’s sleep schedule had not changed too drastically in order to adapt to his newly developed sun allergy. 

His first sign of craving for blood happened roughly a month after ‘the incident.’ Freodore had accidentally cut his finger while cutting fabric for a new project. When he came into the kitchen looking for a band aid, Kaelix and Zeal were watching a horror movie together on the living room couch. It was a recommendation from their mutual friends Reimu and Maria, or more accurately phantomosinger and dollface , two girls they met in-game on a farming sim. Every few weeks the four of them would plan gaming sessions and expand their farm.

When he caught the scent of blood, an all-consuming urge to jump over that goddamn couch and ‘help’ with that wound overcame him. Kaelix had half the mind to hold himself back, the death grip he had on the couch left markings after Freodore finally returned to his office. Kaelix let out a sigh of relief and slumped onto Zeal’s shoulder, nuzzling into the warmth. Zeal let out a small chuckle. 

“Are you cold, Kaelix? You’re freezing.” Zeal asked with mirth, the ends of his lips quirked up slightly into a small smile. 

“A little, I guess…” Kaelix took the opportunity to move closer, wrapping his arms around Zeal’s torso. Zeal said nothing but he would pet Kaelix’s hair throughout the rest of the movie.

 Nothing happened that night. 

The blood problem was quickly resolved when Kaelix discovered that he could buy animal blood from butcher shops, people often used it for cooking so it wasn’t out of the ordinary for people to ask for a bag or two of pork blood. Kaelix installed a mini-fridge in his room days later and bought a few bags of blood. The blood was kinda gross. It was cold and weirdly thick but at least it satiated the bloodlust of his vampiric instincts. Atleast, for the first few months. Four months after his peculiar semi-vampire transformation, Kaelix noticed that the blood bags he had been buying were becoming less effective at killing any vampire instincts. He found himself craving something warm, fresh human blood. But he couldn’t, Kaelix could never bring himself to hurt someone so selfishly. So he didn't.

So that was how Kaelix lived for the next year. Every day he woke up at 5pm, lathered up sunscreen then went to work, he’d finished work by 1am then went to bed at the crack of dawn. Every month, he’d visit a local butchery run by a small family. The butcher, Ryoma, the shop’s owner Twisty, and their maid, Klara. They were a cute trio who never questioned why Kaelix would come in every month ordering two (soon three) bags of blood. Sometimes Ryoma would throw in an extra bag ‘ boss’s order!’ for being such a loyal patron. It warmed Kaelix’s heart.

Since his semi-transformation, there's only been a few close calls. 

One time, a few months back, when Kaelix was organizing his monkey plush collection and Seible lounged on his bed, he asked if he could grab a drink from the mini-fridge. Too focused on the monkeys, he obliged. It was only a second later when he realized his mistake. 

“Um… K-chan? What is this?” Seible asked, confused, holding up one of the blood bags he’d bought. 

Kaelix, do not panic. Just act normal.

“Uh-erm-well-” Kaelix stuttered aggressively, he was doing a fantastic job. “They’re bag tomato juice! Like the milk bags from Canada!”  Kaelix explained, wiping the sweat from his brow. 

“Oh.” Seible stared at the bag for a moment longer, “I didn’t even know they sold tomato juice in bags. Can I have some-” 

“NO!” Seible blinked at him, a shocked expression claimed his face. Clearly, Kaelix was panicking. 

“I mean–sorry Seible, I didn’t mean to yell at you. That’s one of my last bags.” Kaelix said, scratching his neck sheepishly while gesturing towards the bag of ‘tomato juice.’ 

“I promise I’ll let you try some when I buy more later this month.”

Seible seemed to carefully consider Kaelix’s words, tilting his head like an owl. He looked at Kaelix like he was examining a specimen under a microscope, like there was a secret hiding just beneath the surface in the maze of cells. 

“Okay then, K-chan.” Whatever Seible found seemed to satisfy his curiosity. He smiled knowingly at Kaelix, eyes turning into crescents “Let's cuddle and rewatch Dungeon Menshi together, I kinda forgot what happened already.” 

Seible knew Kaelix so well, he had him at dungeon meshi (and cuddles). Kaelix leaped onto his bed and they rewatched dungeon meshi on his old laptop. 

Now, it was one year later. 

Halloween. The night it all began. 

There were a few changes this time around compared to last Halloween. First, Seible did not let Kaelix man the door which he was perfectly fine with. Seible chose to hire three professional security guards to fill Kaelix’s mandated absence. One of the men in particular took a fondness towards Kaelix. He’d refer to him as his ‘son’ every time they crossed paths; Kaelix found it incredibly endearing. 

Instead, this Halloween night, Kaelix would first help Freodore prepare the sound equipment for the bands that’d be performing that night, Ethyria and Iluna. Then he’d help Zeal at the bar until the livehouse closed. Last Halloween, Zeal was swamped so extra hands were greatly appreciated.

Second, Freodore made them all brand new costumes. The four of them had collectively agreed to dress a little more cohesive this Halloween because the four of them loved matching and so patrons could identify them as staff at the livehouse. After some light discussion, they’d all agreed on dressing up as zombies. Though, not just any zombies, Seible and Zeal both thought it’d be nice to finally pull out the stage outfits Freodore made years back. So now, they were also idols; Idols who got caught in the zombie apocalypse. It sounded like an interesting premise for a manga. 

That afternoon, Kaelix helped Freodore prepare the stage and sound equipment for the bands; they’d be arriving around 3pm, earlier than Kaelix would usually wake up, in order to set up their own instruments and any props. Kaelix was a little sleepy, apparently he still needed a good night’s rest despite being a vampire. Consequently, he was startled when Freodore asked him this: “Kaelix, do you know why Seible has been acting… peculiar recently?” 

Kaelix whipped his head to look at Freodore, he was already staring at Kaelix. 

“No I haven’t.” Kaelix responded, a confused expression claiming his face, “What do you mean?”

“Hm. I suppose you wouldn’t know since it's been happening in late mornings and early afternoons but,” Freodore looked left and right before leaning in closer, like he was sharing a secret for Kaelix’s ears only. “For the past few months, Seible has been coming in and out of the apartment semi-frequently several times per day.” 

That didn’t sound too unusual. Seible, as both the promoter and owner of By The Beat, often goes out to meet with future collaborators and business partners. This could occur multiple times in a short time frame, so it wasn’t uncommon for Seible to come and leave throughout the day. Sometimes, he’ll bring back freebies and gifts he had received from his meetings like spoils from a decade-long war; Kaelix’s favorite stuff were the small plushies or miscellaneous food. 

“That doesn’t sound super strange, Furifuri-”

“Silence, let me finish.” Freodore said, silencing Kaelix with a finger to his lips. “He’d leave the house in sweatpants… and hoodies .” Freodore, stressed his last few words with a hiss.

Now that was weird. While Seible wearing casual clothing like sweatpants and hoodies was perfectly normal at home, he’d always dressed up when he went out. He’d argue it helps him start his day and separate home from whatever work he was doing. Meetings in particular, Seible always dressed to impress, first impressions were everything after all.  

Freodore added onto his previous statement, “He’d come back from his outings with bags of books and thick manilla folders. In our shared office there’s literally stacks of them on his desk. I never bothered to look in order to respect his privacy but…”

“That is definitely strange,” Kaelix said, completing Freodore’s thought. They were both huddled together in the middle of the stage semi-whispering to each other. As a result, they didn’t notice the sound of a nearby door opening and closing, followed by several footsteps

“Right? I asked Zeal too but he didn’t notice anything either.”

“Really??? So that means-” 

“Hello?” A nasally voice asked, spooking Kaelix and alerting Freodore. Immediately, Freodore switched to work mode and turned towards the voice; Kaelix followed suit. Before them were three women, rather short, and dressed in elegant lolita-like dresses. 

Freodore spoke first: “Hello, I am By The Beat’s designer, Freodore. I assume you three are Ethyria?” Freodore asked, looking over the small group. 

“Yep! That’s us!” The blonde one piped in, raising her hand. 

“Well follow me, I’ll show you where you can put your stuff.” Freodore then turned to Kaelix for a moment, “Kaelix, can you put the amp closer to the back of the stage?” 

“Yep.” He nodded and watched as the three girls followed Freodore backstage. One of the girls glanced back at Kaelix, a knowing look in her eyes. Kaelix brushed it off, it was now back to work. 

The lights of the livehouse flashed to the rhythm of the music. The floor rumbled and shook in tandem with the stomps and jumps of the crowd as they screamed the lyrics to their favorite songs. Kaelix could see the glass of water beside him similarly dance to the song, it vibrated and shook in sync with the crowd. Kaelix stood at the opposite end of the bar from Zeal, there were only a couple patrons left hanging around the bar. A majority of them had hit the dance floor once the instrumentals of Lets Get it Started , Iluna’s debut single, played through the overhead speakers.

“Kaelix, could you grab me two olives?” Zeal asked, shouting over the music. He was preparing two Molotov Mocktails, one of the non-alcoholic specials available at By The Beat. It was a Zeal Ginjoka original and highly addictive. Kaelix would ask Zeal to make it at every opportunity he got, including but not limited to birthdays, anniversaries, holidays, celebrations of any sorts etc. They were definitely one of his favorite drinks. Kaelix grabbed two olives and passed them to the bartender absentmindedly. He was still stuck on what Freodore had mentioned to him that afternoon.

Seible has always been somewhat enigmatic. When they had first met, Kaelix struggled to read between the lines of his words. Every sentence felt like a puzzle he needed to solve; to decipher. Of course, now Kaelix had gotten accustomed to Seible’s unique mind and language but this was something entirely different. While Seible loved to keep thinly veiled secrets, ones he teases Kaelix with becauses Kaelix is nosy and is not afraid to beg, he is never someone who’s sneaky about it. His brows furrowed as he tried to tap to the rhythm of the beat. Nothing made sense right now. 

“Care for a drink?” Zeal asked, interrupting Kaelix’s thoughts. He slid the man a glass, a Molotov Mocktail; his favorite. 

“Oh! Thank you, Zeal.” Kaelix said delightedly. Kaelix beamed at the bartender before raising the glass to take small sips. He had to savor the drink, he probably wouldn’t get another one tonight so he’ll have to make it last. 

Kaelix looked towards Zeal, he was already looking at Kaelix.  An inquisitive look dancing across his features, “Care to share what’s on your mind, darling?” 

Kaelix decidedly ignored the pet name, otherwise this conversation was going to get derailed very quickly. “I’m just thinking over something Freo asked me.” 

Zeal let out an encouraging hum, a silent request for Kaelix to continue. 

“It's just-” Kaelix paused trying to articulate himself correctly, “Freo asked me if Seible was acting strange. I haven’t noticed anything but now I’m kind of worried.” He began fidgeting with the glass occupying his hand. 

“Oh, Freo asked me about that too a few days ago.” Kaelix nodded with a sigh, he knew that at least but nothing else about the whole situation. However, what Zeal said next piqued Kaelix’s interest: 

“Between you and me, I know some of the stuff Seible has been reading up on.” 

Immediately, Kaelix locked his full attention onto Zeal. “What is it?” Kaelix asked with poorly concealed excitement. 

“This morning he left some of the books on the coffee table. One was on human anatomy and the other was a book of old myths and folklore. I’m not sure how those two relate but… I hope that can satisfy some of your curiosity.” 

That felt… anticlimactic. But It did answer some questions, unfortunately, it also raised more questions Kaelix needed answered. Maybe he should corner Seible later and ask what’s going on. 

“Hey!” A loud voice broke through the calmness of the bar. Zeal and Kaelix looked up in unison to see two girls across the counter. One was one of the Ethyria girls from that afternoon, her pink-ruby eyes glimmered in the neon lights of the livehouse. Like her bandmates, she also wore an elegant lolita-like dress full of ribbons, frills, and lace. The other girl was one of the members of Iluna, if Kaelix’s memory was correct, she had pink hair pulled into a side ponytail with an eyepatch to compliment her face. Her outfit vaguely resembled the ones seen at fancy preparatory academies in classic anime. Before Kaelix had realized, the band had moved onto performing some solos produced by the individual members. Blue Sugar High now rang through the speakers. 

“Oh! Two of our lovely performers, would you like a drink?” Zeal asked, similarly assessing the two. 

“Yes! But that’s not important right now!” The silver-hair one said, hitting the counter. “I know who you two are and we need to talk.” 

Zeal and Kaelix shared a confused look. Her voice did sound familiar but Kaelix couldn’t quite put his finger on it. “I’m sorry but who are you?” Zeal asked, looking at the two of them. 

The silver-hair girl dropped her jaw in disbelief. She turned to her companion, who was trying to hold her laugh, and started wildly gesturing to the two behind the counter, “Maririn! Can you believe this! They don’t recognize us!” 

The shorter girl, now known as Maririn, was now giggling hysterically, “I-I know Reimu!” 

Reimu. Kaelix knew that name. It was rather uncommon, he had likely only encountered the name once or twice max on niche or obscure fandom wikis. And Maririn was a nickname that sounds vaguely similar to-

Oh my god.

“You’re Phantomosinger and Dollface?!” Kaelix exclaimed pointing at the two. Zeal appeared to reach a similar conclusion because he was chuckling behind his hand. 

“Yes, You buffoon! Or should I say monkeyking1109 and MedusasMask." The woman who Kaelix now knew was Reimu yelled at him, “I suspected the moment I heard your voice this afternoon and Freodore mentioned you both during our introductory tour of the livehouse.” 

The pieces from that afternoon were clicking and frankly Kaelix couldn’t be happier with the results. “This is crazy,” Zeal spoke up, his eyes reflecting his surprise at the presence of two of their online gaming buddies. 

“Yeah it is,” Maria said, “I also started suspecting it when I first got the email signed by Seible and when Freodore first introduced himself. It lined up with a lot of the details you shared over calls and chats.” 

“Yeah, I mean come on, a bartender and a bouncer with two other ‘roommates’ nicknamed Sei and Freo?” Reimu added, narrowing her eyes at the two. “You guys basically doxxed yourself to anyone who had two functional brain cells.” 

Kaelix laughed, elated how he was finally talking to Haunted Rock Club, the name of their group chat, in person. They had planned IRL meetings previously before but due to Kaelix’s unfortunate circumstances and other miscellaneous factors, they could never settle on a date and time to do it. 

They spent the rest of the night just chatting. The two would come and go if they needed to perform any solos or group songs but would always return to the bar. They talked and talked until an hour before closing which was when Ethyria and Iluna would finally return to their hotels but not before leaving a few parting gifts. 

Maria pulled out four keychains, each red, green, blue, and yellow respectively, from a small purse she carried and passed it to the two. “A gift, for the four of you!” Kaelix nearly cried, he was touched at the thoughtfulness of the gift. He put them in his pockets for safe keeping.

Reimu also pulled out her own gift, four laminated passes with each of their names printed in pretty sparkly ink. “These are lifetime passes for you guys and your ‘roommates’ to our shows. You better show up when we’re in town!” Reimu said, sliding it over the counter. 

“Well this is awkward, we didn’t get you two anything at all.” Zeal said, examining the passes. 

Reimu laughed, waving him off, “I mean…you can buy me that Apex skin I’ve been looking at.” 

“Deal. You, Maria?” 

“Oo! I have a list, I’ll send it to you both tomorrow morning! I’m exhausted right now.” 

“Perfect.” 

Kaelix was quiet during this exchange, he was feeling terribly emo from the gifts and was desperately trying to hold back tears. He even sniffled a little. 

The two girls finally left, ready to head back to their hotel and sleep . Kaelix really wanted to sleep, but he still had an hour before the livehouse closed. Also he really needed to ‘pick flowers’ as Seible lovingly called it. Kaelix informed Zeal as such and hurried off to the stalls. The bathrooms were shockingly empty, there were still a few drunks laying around the hall but normally around this time lines that wrapped around itself would be forming. Kaelix was not the type that looked a gifted horse in the mouth so he took this boon in stride. He relieved himself, but as he was thoroughly washing his hands he heard a familiar voice:

“O-oh my gaga, is that pretty boy?!?” 

Kaelix slowly turned. Behind him stood none other than the sexy Bojack Horseman. Wasn’t that the same costume from last year? Kaelix couldn’t believe his eyes. The one who technically started the entire mess. The one who indirectly caused Kaelix’s semi-transformation into a vampire. He was standing right across from Kaelix in his livehouse bathroom. A number of emotions flickered across his face, disbelief, confusion, annoyance, and…hunger. A sudden bloodlust overcame him as he zeroed in on the rhythmic beating of the Bojack Horseman’s heart. It was fresh human blood, just within reach. 

Perhaps it was his drowsiness that lowered his inhibitions and gave way to instinct, or maybe it was their unresolved one-side beef that Kaelix has unconsciously held onto because under normal circumstances Kaelix wouldn’t even dream–let alone think–of feeding from a live human; But these weren’t normal circumstances. Whatever it was, it pushed Kaelix to convince the guy to ditch this place and follow him outside through the alleyway exit. The man pinned Kaelix against a wall, clearly prepared to receive something else from this exchange.

A flash of guilt struck Kaelix before being overpowered by sheer bloodlust. He mentally promised to be quick and not take too much. Frankly, it will just become a distant memory months from now. He leaned in closer, catching the whiff of axe body spray, sweat, and cognac intermingling with one another, and gently pushed the man’s head to the side to reveal his neck. “I promise I’ll be quick,” Kaelix whispered to the Bojack Horseman before sinking his fangs into his neck. 

“Holy shit-” 

The blood tasted good. Much better than the sealed and packaged stuff he got from the butchery. It was warm, flowing, and alive. He could feel the man’s heartbeat quickening and slowing down in succession. Kaelix groaned a little before forcefully pulling himself away. He licked the wound which quickly closed it up, another small feature of being a vampire. He was still hungry but he wasn’t looking to become a murderer overnight. The man struggled to stand, wobbly on his feet before moving to squat down beside Kaelix against the alleyway wall. A quick assessment revealed he had passed out, squatting. Kaelix was going to need to get security to–

“O-oh my god.”

Kaelix whipped his head to the sound of the voice. At the entrance of the alleyway stood Seible, standing there motionless with a hand covering his mouth. Kaelix could feel his heart drop to his gut. 

Oh god. Oh crap. Quick! He needed to come up with an excuse–anything–um. 

“Seible look, it’s not what it looks like-” 

“K-chan can you bite me like that too?” 

What. 

Kaelix stares in disbelief as Seible begins to unbutton his collar, approaching. “I mean like, you know, I think I’d be pretty tasty.”

He pulled down the collar of his black button up to expose his neck and collarbone, Kaelix nearly died. “What was the saying again? Save a horse, eat a Seible?” 

Kaelix could not believe what he was hearing. Maybe he was hallucinating? Kaelix knew that severe drowsiness could sometimes cause people to see things that weren’t actually there. The theory was shut down when he felt Seible grab hold of his arms. This was real. 

Despite Kaelix’s shock and Seible’s apparent desire to get bit by Kaelix, he was unfortunately distracted. Even though the four of them had all gotten ready together that evening, Freodore taking the time to individually do each of their makeups, Kaelix did not have the opportunity to appreciate his work up close. Seible has eluded Kaelix the entire night up until this moment, so seeing him up close for the first time today was…enchanting; Seible looked beautiful. His eyes glimmered like sapphires, the idol-like makeup Freodore applied on top of the zombie makeup emphasizing the vivid blue color. His eyes also glimmered with something else, something like hope, like determination. Kaelix desperately wanted to preserve this moment forever. Stay here, locking eyes and feeling their breaths intermingle for eternity. 

“Well, K-chan?” Seible asked, a cheeriness in his voice that Kaelix couldn’t image the source of. 

Right, Seible wanted Kaelix to bite him, vampire style. For some god forsaken reason. For once, since Kaelix had turned into a vampire, the insatiable bloodlust that raged inside him was quiet. There was absolute silence, every fiber of his being had effectively shut up. Kaelix was lost, this has never happened before. It felt like at every waking moment of everyday for the past six months, his body has been begging for just a taste of fresh human blood. Many times, he’d have to physically restrain himself or run out of a room so he wouldn’t randomly pounce on his roommates. 

Now here he was, in a dark, dingy alleyway, with one of his beloved roommates offering themselves to Kaelix on a silver platter. Yet Kaelix could not do it; He can’t, not to Seible. 

“I-I can’t, Seible.” Kaelix choked out, he watched as confusion overtook the shorter man’s face. 

“Wait, I don’t get it. Why not?” Seible asked, frowning.

Seible pointed to the man slumped against the wall, “Clearly you can, you just bit that guy.” he said incredulously. 

“I just can't Seible. It…it just doesn’t feel right. I’m sorry.” Kaelix said, watching Seible.

A look of hurt claimed Seible’s face as he desperately searched Kaelix’s own face, it made Kaelix’s heart ache. After a moment, hurt transformed into frustration. 

“What is it? Is it because you’re afraid you’ll hurt me? I can take it, you know.” Seible said, near pleading. “I taste really good too, you know I’ve been trying this new diet where-” 

“Seible, please stop.” The brunet shut up. Kaelix met Seible’s gaze with a pained expression, “Let's just… forget this ever happened, I’ll get someone to get this guy home,” Kaelix said pointing to the horse guy as he tried to walk back inside the livehouse.

A set of furrowed eyebrows settled on Seible’s face as he held his grip on Kaelix. “K-chan that's not fair-”

“Seible, please .” Kaelix begged, not looking at Seible. He couldn't, he was afraid of what he might see. Softly, he felt the grip loosen and drop entirely. 

There was a small sigh before Seible followed it up with his response, a quiet “Okay K-chan. I’ll keep your secret.” 

Kaelix let out a sigh of relief. The two went inside and Kaelix got one of the three security guards to help get the strange horseman home. Seible was silent as Kaelix explained how he’d found the man outside in the alleyway by chance . It was a lie, but one he wasn’t afraid of saying to protect his peace. To protect his home. 

The two met up with Freodore and Zeal who had just finished cleaning up the livehouse. Janitors would come in the morning to thoroughly clean the place, but wiping down a few tables and counters was fine. 

“Look who finally showed up,” Zeal said jokingly, as Seible and Kaelix approached the bar. Freodore was sitting on one of the stools, nursing a Molotov Mocktail. “You guys both disappeared right when we needed to clean up.” 

Zeal paused as he caught sight of Seible’s somber expression and Kaelix’s awkward shifting. “You two alright?” 

“Well-” 

“Everything is fine Gin-chan.” Seible said. His face was perfectly neutral, the epitome of chill and relaxed. But to everyone in that room, it was a clear sign that something was wrong. 

The tension in the air was palpable. It wrapped its stiff arms around Kaelix’s throat as if to silence him; It worked. For a solid thirty seconds, no one spoke. It was complete utter silence. 

A singular sigh echoed through the room, it was from Seible. “Lets…just go home. I’m tired.” Everyone nodded in unison and shuffled their way out the livehouse. They locked the door before heading upstairs to their home. They each returned to their rooms exchanging quiet goodnights as they each shut their doors one by one. 

Once Kaelix had closed his door, his knees gave out. He crumbled to the floor, leaning against the door for support. He was completely exhausted, his mental fatigue had peaked and he was ready to clock out right there.

Before he could drift into sleep’s cold embrace, a hushed voice came through the wooden door.

“K-chan? Are you there?” 

Seible? He was still awake? 

“Hm?” Kaelix hummed, choosing to stand up from his sat position. He was exhausted but he wanted to properly hear what Seible would have to say.

He heard a trembling sigh followed by a quiet voice, just above a whisper, that asked, “Are we…going to be okay?” His voice shook a little as he spoke. 

Immediately, Kaelix flung the door open and pulled Seible into a crushing hug. He buried his face into the man’s hair. Seible squeaked in surprise before returning the embrace. Seible was so warm, so soft, so comfortable. He smelt like fresh laundry and honey. Kaelix could only imagine this was what clothes felt like in a dryer. Kaelix didn’t know how long they stood there, just hugging one another in the hallway of their apartment, but it didn’t matter. Right now, his one objective was comforting his beloved roommate. Kaelix could feel a wetness start to seep into the shoulder of his shirt, he also became aware of the tears running down his own face. 

“We’re going to be okay.” Kaelix whispered into Seible’s hair.

They stood a while longer before Kaelix began noticing dawn peeking through from down the hall. Kaelix squeezed Seible one last time before stepping back inside his room. 

“Goodnight Seible.”

Seible, although no longer crying, had tear streaks on his face; Despite it all, he still looked beautiful even in the rumpled shirt and messy hair. He smiled at Kaelix, a genuine one. The type that reached his eyes and lit up the world, or at least Kaelix’s world, with its radiance. 

“Goodnight K-chan. Sweet dreams.” 

That night (technically morning) Kaelix went to bed feeling light as a feather. Kaelix let himself sink into the warm embrace of his bed. The moment his head hit the pillow, he was asleep. 

Everything was going to be alright.