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The fangs sank into the flesh of his forearm so quickly that he could barely react to the initial jolt of pain as his skin tore. Blood gushed out, spilling over Kyle’s lips and dripping onto the floor. Despite the fear anyone might feel at such an act, Price’s attention was focused solely on those eyes that never stopped weeping. Who would have thought that a hard, fierce face could look so fragile whilst feeding? It was an astonishing sight for Price.
The two of them were in the privacy of Price’s office. The warm light of the sunset illuminated the scene as best it could. Hints of colour adorned Kyle’s face, lending him a touch of delicacy that Price had never imagined he would witness. All of this stood in stark contrast to the sergeant’s despair and his lamentations. Apologies poured from his mouth as if from a waterfall. He barely had the courage to hold his captain’s gaze.
"It's okey, Gaz. Take your time". Price’s words of reassurance seemed to cause Kyle even more pain. He couldn’t understand why. Perhaps for his sergeant, this was a moment of vulnerability. His confident demeanour shattered into pieces, revealing fragility beneath the empty shell. However, it was the only option left to them.
Ever since they’d arrived safely at base, Kyle had been losing his composure. His footsteps were heavy, as if he were finding it hard to walk. His gaze wandered without settling on any clear focal point. And his cutting remarks had ceased entirely. Kyle’s physical and mental distress was palpable.
No sooner had the debriefing ended than Price ordered Kyle to follow him to his office. With the security of a closed door between them, Price simply waited patiently for Kyle to speak, to make some irritating comment or reproach. But only a heavy silence hung in the air. After several attempts to coax the problem out of him, he watched as his sergeant crumbled under the weight of his helplessness. He needed blood. He longed to find a victim and savour the freshness of the blood.
Price was no stranger to the creature standing before him. In the early days of their collaboration, a minor slip-up by Kyle had ultimately revealed its true form. Price had to admit that, thanks to that, they’d managed to escape unscathed from what had seemed like certain death. It was difficult to break down the wall of fear surrounding his sergeant, but he managed to gain his trust. However, Price always wondered why he had never been an option for Kyle to feed on. Not until this moment. If he had to rewind the scene, Price wouldn’t know exactly how this situation had arisen. His arm serving as food.
It had been a long time since Kyle’d fed like this. The taste of the blood transfusion packs was nothing compared to the taste of fresh blood, sweat and the scent of skin. Price understood this. Kyle’s hunger was ravenous. All the tears he kept shedding could not hide his carnal desire to devour.
His face was drenched in tears and blood, which ran from his chin and disappeared into the neckline of his T-shirt. There was nothing clean about the way he fed. Need and desperation took hold of Kyle.
It was a beautiful sight for Price to watch his sergeant. His hand gently caressed Kyle’s cheek, wiping away the tears that dared to make their way down his face. He had never before been able to quietly observe his subordinate without fear of being discovered. Always displaying confidence and, at times, stubbornness in the face of nonsensical orders.
Every touch and every movement was carried out with the utmost care, for fear that Kyle might shatter as if he were a porcelain doll. Fragile yet beautiful. Something so delicate that it possessed an exquisite beauty.
"You weren't kidding about these teeth huh" said Price, in an attempt to play down the matter. However, he did not get the response he was looking for. Kyle pulled away from his arm in fear and stopped. His breathing was becoming increasingly laboured; it seemed as though he wanted to run away, to hide in the darkness so as not to be found.
It broke Price’s heart. The last thing he wanted was for Kyle to feel unsafe.
"I'm sorry, cap…". Kyle looked away, focusing on the fang marks that adorned the smooth skin. The tears kept flowing. His hands were trembling, but his grip tightened. His throat was constricting from the sobs he was holding back, or perhaps from stifling more apologies. Price wasn’t sure. He didn’t know what to do. Should he move away and leave Kyle alone, or force him to carry on drinking?
Time seemed to have stood still for both of them. Motionless, as if in a standoff to see who would break first and lose the battle. Silence fell once more, mingling with the smell of iron; suffocating them. Price watched Kyle warily, whilst Kyle looked on in horror at the damage he had caused.
Seconds, minutes or hours passed. He didn’t know, but Price didn’t care in the slightest. His body was still. If he could, he would even have stopped breathing. He would turn into a statue and go unnoticed. Kyle could do whatever he wanted that way. How funny. Leaving his body in someone’s hands—a vampire’s hands. Not having to make any decisions, just being used. Was that what he’d always wanted? He didn’t know. But for Kyle’s sake, for his sergeant? That was beyond question. And there he was, waiting for the man to make a move. Waiting for him to flee or to pounce on him, devouring him. But at least let him do something. His patience was wearing ever thinner.
Kyle, as if he knew what Price was going through, began to move. Price hoped that Kyle wouldn’t choose to flee, that he would accept his decision and continue to claim his prize. The grip on his arm loosened and he feared the worst. But to his surprise, Kyle stared at him intently for a brief moment. Perhaps making sure of his decision, before digging his nails in and sucking once more on the arm that had been offered to him as a sacrifice.
This time, Price couldn’t hide his grimace of pain. “Easy, Gaz. I’m not going away”. Kyle let out a groan. “Shh… Just drink as much as you want. I can take it”.
Price could stay for hours, weeks, months. His whole life. There was no turning back now. From that moment on, their lives became intertwined. Price accepted without hesitation whatever lay ahead.