Lin Fan's arms trembled as he lifted Xu Ling in a bridal carry. The infirmary door clicked shut, sealing them in sterile silence.
"Put me down, you idiot!" Her protest died when his grip tightened—not painfully, but with a primal possessiveness that startled them both.
He knelt, fingers fumbling with her sneaker's laces. Her bare foot emerged, pale and delicate. The scent of her skin—honeysuckle and salt—flooded his senses.
Bite. Drink. Take.
The medicated spray hissed he applied it. Xu Ling gasped, her toes curling. "Easy! That stings—ah!"
Her moan reverberated in his skull. Crimson haze blurred his vision. Veins pulsed beneath her neck's porcelain surface, begging to be pierced...
Crunch.
Copper flooded his mouth—he'd bitten through his tongue. Xu Ling recoiled at the feral glint in his eyes.
"Lin Fan? You're... shaking."
"Allergies." He forced a grin, retreating until his back hit the cold wall. Control. You're not a monster.
Whispers & Warnings
By third period, rumors swarmed like hornets.
"He had her in the infirmary for an hour!"
"They say her skirt was—"
Liu Man cornered him at the lockers, reeking of cheap cologne. "Dude! Scoring with the Ice Queen? You gotta—"
"Not now." Lin Fan shoved past, hyperaware of Tian Liang's glare burning through his uniform.
The Hollow
The abandoned field reeked of decay and forgotten condoms. Wang Chong leaned against corroded bleachers, spinning a switchblade.
"Took you long enough, leech."
Six thugs emerged from the shadows.
From the Shadows
Perched in a ginkgo tree, Ji Yemei licked her lips. Show me your hunger, little thrall.