Chapter 1. It's Complicated

It only took a few seconds for Marshall Lee's eyes to adjust to the darkness. Besides him lay a candy-coloured royal, fast asleep, his chest slowly going up and down. Clothes were scattered across the bedroom, crumpled witnesses of a night filled with passion and desire.

He stretched out his hand and cupped Gumball's cheek, which had a lovely rosy colour. For a moment it seemed the other boy was going to wake up but an incoherent mumbling was all that came out of the prince's mouth before nuzzling up to Marshall and returning to his previous state of rest. The vampire king just sat there in the dark for a while, watching his cute lover. He noticed that Gumball's lips were still a bit swollen from all the rough kisses they had endured. Marshall felt the corners of his mouth creep up in a self-satisfying smile, when a glance at the window urged him to leave the warm, comfortable bed and put back on all of his clothes.

Carefully and very reluctant to do so, he removed Gumball's arm from around his waist and snuck out the comfortable bed. Having to leave in the middle of the night was kind of a drag, but the sun would rise soon, which would make it very difficult to leave without attracting attention. With a silent and exasperated sigh the dark-haired vampire collected all of his clothes, which were surprisingly difficult to find – how did his socks manage to get under the wardrobe across the room? Marshall shrugged. His mind had been completely preoccupied with getting the damned clothes that formed a barrier between him and Gumball out of the way, not caring about the near-quest he had to go on afterwards in order to retrieve them again.

A quick look at prince Gumball's desk incited a spark in the vampire king's eyes. If he had to depart from his lover in the middle of the night, it was only common courtesy to at least leave a note. He placed it on the still warm spot he had occupied a few minutes ago, making sure that the bubblegum prince would definitely find it when waking up. He allowed himself a gentle but chaste kiss on Gumball's forehead, any more and he wouldn't be able to control himself. A small smile spread across the prince's face. "Don't go making faces now Bubba, it only makes it harder for me to leave", the vampire boy whispered. Out the window he floated, the sky already a soft grey instead of the dark black Marshall had grown accustomed to. "Better hurry home", he muttered.

The dark-haired boy huffed as he finally reached the door of his cave house. Outside the first rays of sunlight warmed the earth, dispelling another night. It had been close, too close. In all honesty, he hated how he had to sneak out of the Candy Palace when everyone was fast asleep. But there was no other way. Gumball had been very specific, the nature of their relationship could not be exposed.

Really, what's the big deal? Love is love, right? Nobody should be judging us. And if they do… well, I can always make them disappear…

Unfortunately the pink-haired prince was not as flexible in his thinking as Marshall. As always, rules and tradition came before everything else, even the boy he claimed to love. Whenever the vampire king tried to bring up the subject, the royal would tense up, colour draining from his face. In a strained voice he would say: "This is not the time to be talking about these things, Marshall Lee". At that point, the dark-haired boy usually dropped the subject, not wanting to upset Gumball any more.

He had known the prince long enough to understand that when it came to feelings, the pink boy had problems dealing with them. Having lived a constricted life as the ruler of Candy Kingdom, always having to put emotions aside and sacrificing himself for the greater good, had left Gumball incapable of expressing himself clearly. Whereas Marshall lived according to desire and passion, Gumball lived according to rules and rationality, the only things that made sense to him. The vampire shook his head softly: "He just needs more time. Just a little bit more time." It was a lie he told himself time and time again, for several months by now. And still there was not a single sign of change. It was vexing in a way. The vampire lord longed to openly declare their relationship, scream it from the Candy Palace's rooftop. No more secrets, no more sneaking out, just him and Gumball being able to be themselves. But for the prince this seemed too difficult a concept to accept. As always, he was more worried about what others would think and feel, not realizing that the one he was hurting most was the person who shared his bed, and had to leave it because of stuck-up rules and society's expectation.

It's not fair.

Thinking about it any longer was not going to provide him with a satisfying answer and would only result in a wrecked brain.

"Life isn't fair, Marshall Lee. Hasn't anyone ever told you that?" he muttered grimly. Out of habit he searched for his bass, finding it on the sofa in the living room, together with some lyric sheets he had been working on before Gumball had called him – in a shy voice, stammering – if he wanted to 'hang out'. It had become a sort of code for them, a secret hidden within a seemingly ordinary message of which only they understood the real meaning.

As he floated above the sofa, aimlessly plucking the strings of his guitar, he thought back to the time he had pushed the candy floss prince down, right here on this very sofa. No matter how many months had passed, Marshall could not entirely forget what had happened that night. Nor could he forgive himself. The images were burned in his memory: Gumball, tears streaming down his face, curled up in a ball in order to protect himself, trembling. He had seemed so fragile, so broken. He swallowed a few times to get rid of the lump that had formed in his throat.

Never did he want to return to that time. Never. Especially not after he had tasted the pink prince's sweet fragrance, intoxicating him more with every bite he took. And that is why he complied to Gumball's wish, and kept silent about his own feelings. Because if the prince started hating him, he would not know what to do anymore.

He had once tried to end his life and would not be standing here if it were not for Fionna. Reminiscing the attempt, he distractedly ran his fingers over the skin of his arms. It had not been a pretty sight. The blisters and black skin had scarred his arms for weeks. For once the vampiric ability to heal abnormally fast had come in handy. Not a single trace of the sun's scorching rays was left. Ironically enough, what was supposed to be his end, had been the start of a new life, a life where he could hold Gumball in his arms. Ever since dating him, Marshall had discovered so many new things, no only about the prince but also himself. Feelings he had never imagined even residing in him filled him with glee and every day was pure bliss. Well, except for the secrecy of his relationship with the candy floss king of course, but he was willing to overlook that for now. Marshall Lee, Vampire King and future ruler of the Nightosphere, was perfectly and utterly happy.

A/N: I have returned with a sequel. A this point I'm not completely sure where to go with the story, and the upcoming finals will prevent me from actively uploading (but I'll try).

Rated 'T' for now because I swore never to write a sex scene again (not that my first attempt was actual 'M'-rating worthy)

Anyways, enjoy (and sorry for the slow start, the drama will commence shortly)