Kian entered Viktor's lair, the heavy wooden door closing behind him with a quiet click.
The dim light from the fireplace flickered against the stone walls, casting long shadows that danced like specters from another time.
Kian's heart pounded as he took in the familiar yet eerie surroundings. This place had once felt like a prison, a place where he was hold against his will, but now it seemed to be a sanctuary though it was filled with questions he wasn't sure he could answer.
Viktor stood by the window, his silhouette stark against the pale moonlight. He turned at the sound of Kian's footsteps, his usually unreadable expression softened by the flicker of hope that Kian's return brought. Viktor's eyes were brimming with a mix of relief and lingering sorrow that Kian could feel even from across the room.
"You came back," Viktor said, his voice low, tinged with a vulnerability he rarely showed.
Kian nodded, running a hand through his hair as he tried to find the right words. "I couldn't stay away," he admitted, his tone shaky but honest. "But I'm still… I don't know what to do, Viktor. I feel like I'm standing at the edge of a cliff, and I don't know if I should jump or turn back."
Viktor crossed the room in an instant, his movements graceful and silent. He reached out, gently placing a hand on Kian's shoulder. The contact sent a familiar warmth through Kian's body, comforting but also laced with an electric current of tension that neither could fully ignore.
"You don't have to decide tonight," Viktor said, his thumb brushing the fabric of Kian's jacket. "I don't want to rush you into something you're not ready for. But I need you to understand… the danger you're in, it's real. I've lived through this before."
Kian met Viktor's gaze, his brow furrowing. "What do you mean?"
Viktor took a step back, the distance between them filled with a heavy silence. He looked away, as if grappling with memories he'd long buried. After a moment, he began to speak, his voice tinged with a pain that echoed across centuries.
"His name was Mikel," Viktor began, his eyes distant as if seeing another time, another place. "He was… like you. Human. Kind-hearted. So full of life. I loved him more than I ever thought possible. But he refused to be turned, just like you're considering now. He didn't want to lose his humanity, to become what I am."
Kian listened intently, feeling the weight of each word. Viktor rarely spoke about his past, and this glimpse into a time long gone was both fascinating and haunting. The room seemed to grow colder as Viktor continued.
"We tried to make it work," Viktor said, his voice faltering slightly. "I promised to protect him, to keep him safe. But I couldn't be with him every second of every day. I couldn't shield him from what it means to love someone like me."
Viktor's expression darkened as he recalled the memory. "One night, I came home to find the door ajar. The room was dark, too quiet. I knew something was wrong the moment I stepped inside.
And then I saw him… lying there on the floor. His skin was pale, his eyes wide open but lifeless. Drained of blood. I couldn't even tell who had done it, there were so many enemies back then, vampires who wanted to hurt me by hurting him."
Kian's heart clenched as he imagined the scene, Viktor's lover cold and lifeless, drained by creatures who saw him as nothing more than a pawn. He could see the anguish in Viktor's eyes, the pain of a wound that had never fully healed.
"I lost him," Viktor whispered, his voice breaking. "I held him in my arms, and I felt… nothing but emptiness. I couldn't save him. And it's haunted me every day since. I told myself I'd never get that close to anyone again. That I'd never put someone I loved in that kind of danger. But fate has other plans."
Kian stepped closer, his chest tightening with empathy and fear. "Viktor, I'm so sorry. I didn't know."
Viktor looked at Kian, his eyes shimmering with unshed tears. "You remind me so much of him. Your stubbornness, your fire… your refusal to back down, even when it would be easier to give in. And I can't… I can't go through that again, Kian. I can't lose you too."
Kian felt a tear slide down his cheek, the weight of Viktor's words crashing over him like a tidal wave. He had never truly understood the depth of Viktor's fear, the reason behind his desperate need to turn him. It wasn't just about protection, it was about love, loss, and a second chance that Viktor was terrified of losing.
"I love you, Kian," Viktor said, his voice trembling. "And I know that's selfish of me. But if you stay human, if you keep walking this line… I don't know how much longer I can keep you safe."
Kian's mind was a whirlwind of emotions. The thought of becoming a vampire, terrified him. But the thought of losing Viktor, of Viktor losing him in the same way he had lost Mikel...was unbearable.
He took Viktor's hands, squeezing them tightly. "Viktor… I don't want to be the reason you suffer again. I don't want to be a burden you have to protect, someone who can be taken from you. I've been thinking about it, and… I can't walk away from you. I don't want to."
Viktor's eyes widened, his grip tightening as if he were afraid Kian might slip away. "What are you saying?"
Kian took a deep breath, his heart pounding. "I'm saying I'll do it. I'll let you turn me. Not because I want immortality, or because I want to be something I'm not, but because I want to be with you. Because I love you, and I don't want to lose you either."
Viktor's expression crumpled as tears finally broke free, a raw, unguarded display of emotion that Kian had never thought he would ever see in him. Viktor pulled Kian into his arms, holding him as if he were the most precious thing in the world.
"Thank you," Viktor whispered, his voice choked with emotion. "You have no idea what this means to me."
Kian wrapped his arms around Viktor, burying his face in Viktor's shoulder. "We'll figure this out together," Kian murmured, his voice firm but gentle. "I'm not Mikel, and this is not the past. We have a chance, Viktor. Let's not waste it."
But even as Viktor held Kian, relief washing over him, he couldn't completely silence the ghost of his past.
He could still see Mikel's lifeless body in his mind, a constant reminder of what he stood to lose. It was a pain that never fully faded, and even in Kian's embrace, Viktor felt the sting of old wounds reopened.