Page 47 of The Awakening
Junichi
“Jae?” I call out. Nothing. I quickly move toward the bed and sit along the edge. His skin is all gray and chapped, peeling. I lean down toward his face. After a still moment, I thank God he’s breathing. It’s shallow, but he’s not dead. “Shit.” What the hell is happening to him?
“You find him?” Nino calls out from the front door. “Is he alive?”
“Yeah,” I shout. “Hold on.” Gently, I grab his shoulder and urge him onto his back. He rolls over, no resistance at all. He’s not wearing his glasses and his eyes are closed, lips parted as a faint breath passes between them. “Jae. Can you hear me?”
Nothing. I place my palm against his ashen cheek and put more weight behind my voice. “Jae, open your eyes.” It takes a few seconds, even though it feels like ten minutes. Slowly, his heavy lids open like slits. His usually warm chestnut eyes are white and milky, and he’s not looking directly at me. His gaze is vacant, lifeless.
Still holding his face, I lean down into him so that our foreheads touch. “Three words, okay? ‘Nino, come in.’ Can you do that for me, please?”
He closes his eyes against the warmth of my face, and I think he’s unconscious. I’ve lost him. But a long moment later, the words come out in a whisper, faint and dry.
“Nino… come in.”
I sit up straight and take a deep breath, hearing Nino’s footfalls bounding toward us. Soon, he’s in the doorframe and hovering behind me. “Jesus. He… he looks like a dried-out vampire. Haru was right.Lookat him.”
I turn to Nino with my eyes wide, the panic settling in my chest. “What the fuck do we do?”
Nino shrugs. “Feed him?”
“Jae doesn’t feed. He’sneverdrunk blood. Never wanted to. Should we take him to the hospital?”
Nino shakes his head. “Heisthe doctor! And he looks like a starving vampire to me, Jun. My father looked like this shortly after my mother died, and Haru looked like this once when we first met. I’m not a professional, but Iknowthis condition.”
“We can’t just give him ranked-vampire blood. What if I kill him? What if I fuck up his body forever?”
“Alright, hold on.” Nino pulls his smartphone from the pocket of his suit pants. “I’m calling Haru.”
“He won’t pick up—he probably doesn’t even have his fucking phone!”
Nino dials and brings the phone to his ear. “I’m calling Asao. He’s with him… Hey, Asao? Can you grab Haru, please?” He walks into the hallway. I stare down at this decaying husk of the doctor, shaking my head.
“What the hell is happening to you?” And why now? Did I do this somehow? Didhedo something to trigger this? He said he’s been with vampires before—that’s practically all he dated in England. Has this happened in the past and he just kept it from me? Does this happen once every six months, like he’s a fucking part-time vampire. A million questions are running through my mind when Nino walks back in the room.
“Right. Okay, I love you.” He exhales a deep breath when he pulls the phone from his ear. “Haru said feed him.”
“Fuck.” I rub my palm down my face and take a deep breath. I can’tbelievethis.
Nino watches me, his gaze soft and his voice calm. “I know… offering yourself on a whim like this isn’t ideal. But you like Jae, right? You’ve been spending time with him and he’s a good guy?”
With my eyes closed, I massage my forehead with my fingers, trying to process this situation while simultaneously wrestling with my ego. “I’ll do it. Just give me a minute, please?”
Nino nods. “Sure. I’ll go clean up the kitchen and give you some privacy. There’s a market down the street. I’ll grab him something to eat. He’s lost a lot of weight.”
“Thanks.” Slow breaths, in and out.
“No problem. You’re not alone in this, Jun. Whatever is happening to him, we’ll help. He’s our kin.” Nino picks up the bottles on the floor in the bedroom before leaving, heading toward the kitchen.
He’s our kin… He’s not supposed to be our damn kin. He’s supposed to be ahuman. Shaking my head, I bring my palm up to my mouth, but hesitate.
What if we bond?
If he is a vampire, we’ve slept togetherandI’ve fed from him… What if this is the final piece? The second he takes a sip of my blood, we’re locked into each other for the rest of our lives? The only possible outlet would be a broken bond, which I understand to be a painful and horrific process (ifyou survive it). I’ve only known this male a month. I like him, but do I want to be tied to him forever?
I try to take another deep breath, but my chest is tight. I can’t let him die here. Do I waste more time by telling Nino and Haruka that we need to find someone else—simultaneously putting Jae’s life in jeopardy and looking like a fucking coward?
I will my incisors to elongate and bite down into my own flesh before twisting toward Jae again. I swallow hard, bringing my palm down to his parted lips. “Jae, you need to drink this.” I wait, terrified. Not even knowing if he’ll do it. If he even hears me.
