Chereads / Of Rage & Suffering She Lives / Chapter 48 - XLVIII ※ Of Cocktails & Secrets: A Recipe for Trouble and Unwanted Revelations

Chapter 48 - XLVIII ※ Of Cocktails & Secrets: A Recipe for Trouble and Unwanted Revelations

Pride-Niklaus's Point of View

♕︎ ♕︎ ♕︎

Scarlet's gaze locked with mine, and for a brief moment, everything else seemed to fade away. The air thickened with tension, charged with an electric undercurrent that neither of us could ignore. It was like watching a violet thunderstorm collide with the blinding rays of a golden sun—intense, unforgiving, yet undeniably beautiful in its own violent way. Her eyes, burning with that ever-present fury, met my own, and I responded in kind. There was no need for words; the unspoken challenge was clear between us. We'd known each other for too long to pretend otherwise.

I leaned back casually in my seat, breaking the silence with a smirk. "What?" I drawled, my voice as relaxed as I could make it despite the storm brewing in her eyes. "We've known each other since you were eight and I was seven, and you don't even know something as basic as this about me? Tsk, what a half-arse nemesis I have." I let the words hang in the air, my tone teasing, mocking, but with a bite of truth underneath. 

She'd always been a source of irritation, a constant reminder that I couldn't control everything. And yet, there was something about that—about her—that made it impossible to look away.

Her eyes narrowed, and for a split second, I saw the flicker of annoyance, the challenge rising to the surface. "AB positive. The blood I drink is AB positive," she responded sharply, her voice biting as it always did. There was no hesitation in her words, but I could sense something deeper there. A hint of defiance. A reminder that there was always more to Scarlet than what met the eye.

I couldn't resist the urge to tease her further. "Oh? Good taste indeed," I said, my voice low and smooth, the words slipping from my lips like honey. A grin tugged at the corners of my mouth as I leaned in slightly, watching her every move. Her reaction was subtle but undeniable. 

For a brief moment, I saw it—the flicker of something dangerous in her eyes. A predator in the wild, circling, calculating. But just as quickly, the glimmer faded, replaced by the ever-present skepticism that defined her.

"How would you know that?" she scoffed, her voice laced with both suspicion and challenge. The corner of her mouth curled up into that familiar smirk, and I couldn't help but admire her ability to keep her composure. But I was ready for this. I knew her too well.

I met her gaze, unwavering. "Because I'm AB positive. Same blood type," I said, letting my voice drop to a more intimate tone. I licked my lips slowly, savoring the moment, letting the tension build. "And personally, I consider my blood type the best." There was no turning back now. I tilted my head ever so slightly, watching her intently.

For a moment, her gaze flickered downward, her eyes momentarily drawn to my neck, that subtle temptation flickering across her expression. It was brief, but I caught it. Her lips parted as if she might say something, but the moment passed, and she quickly turned away, her focus shifting to the bottle in her hand. She took a sip, and I couldn't help but notice the way her lips brushed against the straw.

"Is that blood?" I asked, my voice casual but probing, as if I didn't already know the answer. The question hung in the air, almost too innocent, but I could tell she was weighing her response.

It took her a moment, but finally, she answered, her voice cool and controlled. "I'm also half-dragon, Pride-Niklaus. I don't live off blood. I can eat and drink other things just fine." There was a slight edge to her words, as if she were trying to convince herself just as much as she was explaining it to me.

I raised an eyebrow, fully aware of what she meant. "I know that," I replied smoothly, my voice deepening slightly. "If you were a pure vampire, I would've already killed you. But your lips… they're a little red, that's why I asked." My senses were sharp, and the faint, iron-like scent of blood lingered in the air around her, no matter how well she tried to hide it. It was there—undeniable.

She paused, her fingers tightening around the bottle as she considered her next words. Finally, she spoke again, her tone more matter-of-fact this time. "It's my cocktail of AB positive blood, strawberry, vodka, lemonade, and two spoonfuls of milk jam to sweeten it." She took another sip, the coolness of her voice returning. But there was an underlying sincerity in her explanation. "Normal vampires can't drink this stuff because they can't digest fruits," she continued, her voice growing a little more animated. "But I'm not like them. And compared to just drinking blood bags from Sky-Eden's blood bank, these shakes and cocktails are much better for drakyres. At least for me, and the boys." 

She trailed off, her fingers absently brushing her neck.

I smirked, already knowing where she was going with it. "Drinking warm blood from a living source?" I ventured, my voice almost playful, though there was an undeniable edge to it. We both knew how far we were willing to push each other.

She met my gaze, unwavering, and simply replied, "Yes." The word was simple, but the weight of it hung between us. It was a truth she didn't often vocalize, and for a moment, the air seemed to thicken even more.

Then, as if to break the tension, Scarlet reached for her crimson-red iPad, the one with the golden crescent moon on its silicone case. It was an odd combination, crimson and gold—much like her, a walking contradiction. She unlocked the iPad with a casual swipe of her face, and without hesitation, changed the song to Who's Afraid of Little Old Me? by Taylor Swift. A sly smile danced on her lips, as if she knew exactly how it would get under my skin. 

The irony wasn't lost on me, but I didn't let it show.

After she finished her little act of rebellion, she opened the advanced chemistry section of the Academy's app, revealing the archive of academic books we would need for class. She didn't even ask for the ear pod back, like she was deliberately avoiding further interaction. As if she were trying to shut me out, retreating into the safety of the material world, where facts and formulas reigned over anything remotely personal.

I couldn't help but smirk to myself. If she thought she could brush me off so easily, she was sorely mistaken. I unlocked my own black iPad and opened the Academy student app, syncing it with the same content she was viewing. We were here to study, after all—or at least that was the plan for the time being.

But there was always the looming presence of Professor Kristo Gjebrea. Kristo, the eccentric nine-tailed black fox who seemed to take personal pleasure in making our lives as difficult as possible. He was convinced that Scarlet and I were nothing more than arrogant troublemakers, self-assured to the point of condescension, and in his eyes, that was more than enough reason to make our lives a living hell.

And yet, I couldn't help but enjoy it. In a way, his constant attempts to one-up us were almost a game—one I relished. He never quite seemed to understand that neither Scarlet nor I were the type to back down from a challenge, especially not from someone who clearly hated us as much as he did. It was just another part of our dynamic, another layer to the game we played so well. 

The only question now was whether or not he would realize how much we were enjoying this little dance before it was too late.