(AUTHOR'S NOTE: Ignore the changes in indentation with the chapters. Inkstone's formatting has been fussy... Sometimes it works and sometimes it refuses)
[©Lynnifer Ice - November 24, 2022]
----------------------------------
"You said I would barely feel a thing, Blake! That fucking hurt!" I snapped at him and would have yanked my arm back if Xinith had not been holding it in place. Xinith had straightened his posture, and I almost thought I had heard him chortle. However, when I looked his way, his expression had gone to his usual indifferent one.
"Well, I-," Blake faltered, taking a step back at first before proceeding to quickly toss out the used syringe before hurrying back. "It doesn't hurt that much for most people. Let's look at the bright side, shall we?"
"Oh, do entertain me. What is the bright side? This day has been an absolute wreck." I grumbled before rolling my eyes. Though, when a whiff of something tasty wafted into my nostrils, my gaze turned toward the direction, hoping to get a glimpse of whatever smelled so scrumptious.
"You won't lose your arm. That's one thing," Sasi quickly answered before Blake could convey anything.
"The cut luckily didn't go too deep so there shouldn't be any permanent deterioration," Liam added, his voice sounding closer.
"Plus, nobody perished!" Aron concluded, popping into my peripheral vision with a grin and gauze in his hands.
"Lastly, nobody else in the café seems to have noticed what happened. That or they're feigning ignorance, which would be wise," Blake remarked, waving a hand in front of my face to get my attention.
I blinked, finding myself tracking the hand to its owner's face. My stomach growled a little too loud for comfort. I cleared my throat, examining the bandage wrap in Blake's hands. Liam held back at the table with all the supplies while Aron came forward with disinfectants. My eyes dilated, realizing how much that would probably sting since I was starting to regain feeling around my wound.
It's just a guess, but I think that mystery poison must have numbed my arm or momentarily severed the nerves, if that makes sense. Either way, this is starting to hurt again. It feels just like that initial burn I had felt when Makan had seized my forearm.
"Why don't one of you bloodsuckers hold her arm instead? I'll disinfect the area," Xinith lightly requested with a hint of mischief as he took off the bloody napkins.
Liam hopped over, taking Xinith's place. Though, as soon as he held my arm in his hands, his body stiffened and he snapped his eyes shut. I could only assume it was because of the blood, but his hands felt really chilly! Xinith held a hand out expectantly, which Aron reluctantly gave him the disinfectants after eyeing him up and down.
"Are we sure we should be letting the demon do this? I don't like that twinkle in his eye," Aron spoke up, keeping his eyes on Xinith.
"I don't believe he would do anything rash, Aron. He did strike Makan unconscious for her," Blake unhurriedly clarified his reasoning but also maintained his eyes on Xinith and my arm.
"Oh, bollocks. It's not like I'm going to eat her soul or some shit!" Xinith disputed a bit too loudly. "However, if I said I wasn't going to enjoy this… Well, I might just be fibbing."
"Xinith, do you ever want children in this life?" I asked with an aloofness as my eyes found his. It was tough to keep my poker face when Xinith's ears turned a soft red.
"Wha-," Xinith nearly stammered, clearly caught off guard by my question. "What kind of question is that supposed to be? Well, perhaps I do, but only with-…."
"In that case," I deliberately cut him off, "Don't get any funny ideas before I make it my personal mission to neuter you. Don't go thinking I won't just because you can act kinda scary."
Silence. Not a peep from him or the others. That is until…
"I take it back," a heaving Hinrik breathed out, sitting up and staring at us, "You're not a crazy bitch. You're psychotic – a sadistic lunatic!"
"Anyone bring a scalpel?" I quickly asked, my eyes scattering around with a reignited anger. "I think Hinrik needs one in his brain."
"Alex, let's not go down this road," Blake cautioned, his gaze weary. "I don't know if the other students here will turn a blind eye if you choose to pick a fight with the same werewolf you just beat the shit out of only minutes ago. I'd rather you not get summoned to the Headmaster's office on your first day. You're new so people could probably let a first offense slide but a second on the same hour?"
"I don't like that asshole. He deserves a world of pain. Didn't you listen to what he called me? I say I should-..!"
I did not get to complete my thought as Xinith took that opportunity to POUR the disinfectants on my cut instead of dabbing it with a cloth or something like a normal person would! I screeched, hurling every profanity known to man before I took a swing at Xinith's groin with my closest knee. Unfortunately, he had sharper reflexes than me and caught my leg.
"Tsk, tsk," Xinith shook his head, "I assumed you would have learned the first time. We're even now, though." He side-smirked at the end before starting off in Makan's direction. "You guys finish up here," he continued on as he started dragging Makan by the ankle toward Hinrik, "I'm going to do business with these two. Oh, and if you would be so considerate as to escort Alex back to the dormitory after she's gotten something to eat, that'd be splendid. I'll be out late."
"Errr…. I hope you aren't planning to dispose of them," Sasi blurted out, "You'd be in deep shit with the headmaster, Xinith."
"Don't you worry your pale little head," Xinith fake smiled as he seized Hinrik by the head, preventing him from shouting, "I'm just going to have a lovely LONG CHAT with these mutts."
With that, Xinith left dragging the two out. I sucked in my lips, biting down on the insides to keep myself from conveying something I know I should not. Blake sighed and shook his head with disfavor before concentrating on my arm again. He suddenly held his breath as did the others when he took hold of the gauze and packed it against my cut before swathing the bandage around my forearm at lightning speed. Then, he and the others exhaled. I raised my right brow, relaxing my lips but decided to not ask the question at the tip of my tongue.
"Food. We should get food," Blake cleared his throat at the same time that Liam let go of my arm, finally opening his eyes.
"Vampires can eat human food?" I asked, more out of curiosity than confirmation.
"Not exactly, no. Well, the four of us can't, that is. A hybrid vampire can but none of us are hybrids," Blake awkwardly scratched the back of his neck. "Never mind that, let's get you fed, my dashing lady.~" He ended with a small smile as he offered his hand.
"So, quick question…," I began as I accepted his hand, and he led me further into the building, toward the central food court. "Does being friends with you mean that I can't eat my beloved garlic anymore? That would be extremely hard to give up."
Blake halted in his tracks, as did the others. I felt Blake's hold on my hand tighten a little. I stood there waiting for an answer but hadn't realized his ashen complexion could get any paler until he turned his head back toward me.
"Please, tell me you're jesting because that's not funny, Alex…."
-End of Chapter Ten-