Yuki crept along the dark corridor, the wooden floor cold beneath her bare feet. It had been a long night patrolling the school grounds and she desperately needed sleep. But she couldn't, she was too worried about Zero. She hadn't seen him all night. In fact she hadn't seen him at all lately. Not since she had found out that he was a vampire.
Placing a hand to her neck, Yuki felt the healing puncture marks, remembering that eventful night. The sight of him losing control, of becoming the one thing he hated more than anything, had terrified her. The feeling of his teeth piercing her neck, the feeling of her blood being sucked from her veins. That wasn't the Zero she knew and loved. She'd seen that when he had pushed her away, horrified by what he had done. The look in his eyes, fear and shame at what his actions, terror at what he was becoming, the physical pain of denying the blood lust.
Since then he'd been skipping class and shirking his guardian responsibilities, locking himself away in his room avoiding as many people as possible.
Yuki sighed, for four years he'd been fighting against becoming the one thing he truly hated. A battle, that everyone was convinced he couldn't win. And he'd been doing it alone.
They were wrong. Zero was strong. He could fight this, and she would help him in any way she could. He won't be alone anymore. A loud creak from the floor boards caused her to pause, glancing around see if she'd woken anyone before turning to head back to her room hesitating when she spied light pooling out from under Zero's door.
He's awake? She thought, pausing outside his door. It would make sense, vampires are usually slept during the day and woke during the night. And as much as she hated to admit it, that's what Zero was becoming. A vampire. Quietly, she knocked on the door.
"Go away Yuki" he said, his voice barely audible through the door. Of course he knew it was her. His senses were heightened now. Ignoring him she pushed the door so it opened just wide enough for her to enter. Zero was sitting on the edge of the bed, his head in his hands, illuminated by the candle on the night stand. He looked exhausted. His jacket lay discarded on the floor next to him leaving him in his trousers and unbuttoned white shirt, the light making his skin look even paler than usual. Yuki made her way over to him, hands clasped nervously in front of her, eyes never leaving him. It wasn't until she was sat next to him on the bed that he moved, looking at her in disbelief.
"Should've guessed" he muttered looking back down at his hands, "You never listen".
Yuki smiled, unphased by his reaction. In the four years that she had known him, Zero had never been very good at letting people in, even her. "I wanted to make sure you were ok, it's been a while since we last spoke", She nudged him playfully, "and that reminds me, you skipped night patrol AGAIN, you'd better turn up tomorrow, it's pretty boring doing it by myself".
Zero scoffed "Sure whatever". They sat in uncomfortable silence for a few moments, neither of them knowing what to say. "You should leave Yuki" he murmured, still not looking at her. She shook her head. "No" she told him firmly. He turned fully to face her, eyes full of emotions and blood lust. He opened his mouth to speak but she cut him off. "No Zero, I'm not leaving, and you're not shutting me out this time either, I don't care what you say". He stared at her, mouth open in confusion. A few times he tried to say something but never did. Leaning forward Yuki took his hands in hers, his long fingers entwining with hers. "I mean it Zero" she told him softly, looking straight into his eyes, at the mass of emotions that they held, "I'm not going anywhere, I'm going to stay here and help"
Staring at her friend, she willed him to move, to speak, to do something. Instead he just sat there, staring blankly into space.
Yuki was starting to worry when he suddenly pulled her into his arms, crushing her against his chest, hands clenched into fists against her back, his face buried in her hair. She hesitated for a split second, suppressed at his sudden movements, before hugging him back. "Thank you" he whispered. They sat there for several minutes, neither of them moving from their embrace, content to just sit there in each other's arms. Various emotions swamped through Yuki. Relief that he was finally letting her in, fear at what the future held. She tensed as he froze, pushing her back quickly so she was at arm's length, the blood lust evident in his now red eyes. With his body rejecting the blood tablets he had nothing to help him battle the urges. Her heart clenched at the sight of him. She couldn't even begin to imagine what he was feeling right now.
"Yuki..." Zero gasped. She knew what he was going to say. He was going to tell her to leave, going to push her away, protecting her from what he was. She raised a hand to his face, softly stroking his cheek. The last time she had seen him like this it had terrified her. However this time she wasn't. She knew what he needed.
"It's ok" she whispered. Pulling the hair from her neck she moved back into Zero's arms, wrapping her arms around his thin body, willing him to relax. He shook his head, "No, Yuki... I can't". His voice was quiet, almost like he was pleading with her, begging her to leave. Her heart clenched at the sadness in his eyes. "It's ok" she repeated, "I trust you". He still hesitated, his breath warm on her neck. Slowly, he leaned into her, licking her neck, just as he had done before. The feeling sent shivers down Yuki's spine causing her to grip him tighter. When his fangs finally pierced her neck, Yuki felt all the air in her lungs leave her, like she had been holding it in for a long time.
Zero pulled away, licking the puncture wounds, stopping the flow of blood. Zero leaned his forehead against Yuki's eyes back to their natural purple. It hadn't hurt like the first time. Zero had been so careful, so gentle treating her like she was made of glass. Knowing he was internally damning himself, Yuki smiled at him hoping to convince him that he wasn't the monster he thought he was. "Thank you" he murmured, closing his eyes.
"Anytime"
"You can't keep doing this for me Yuki, I'll end up killing you". Frowning she grasped his face with both hands waiting till he opened his eyes before speaking. "Now you listen to me Zero Kiryu, you're stronger than this. You know it and I know it. Forget what everyone else thinks. You're not going to fall to a Level E. I won't let you!" Her hands dropped to her lap, her eyes following. A few seconds passed before long pale fingers grasped hers, stopping their nervous twitching. Glancing up at him Yuki recognized the analytical look on Zero's face. It was the one he used whenever he was trying to figure something out irrelevant of whether it was a maths question or something someone said. He was analysing her now. "Why do you care so much Yuki?" he asked, uncertain. Yuki blushed unable to meet his gaze.
"I love you" she whispered. The words spilling out before she could stop them. It was true, she did love Zero. Not in the same way she loved Kaname who was like a brother to her, but in the way that gave her butterflies whenever she thought of him. The way that made her heart swell with joy when he was around, even when he was in a mood, and made her feel empty when he was gone.
But how did he feel? How would he react? What was he thinking? These were words that Yuki had never said aloud before, no matter how many times she had tried to muster the courage. She was afraid. They had been friends for so long, she didn't want to ruin it by saying something stupid. Her heart pounded in her chest, so loud that she was convinced he could hear it.
Did he feel the same the same way? Or, more likely, would he reject her and push her away?
Zero's lips brushed against her as he kissed her softly. Yuki's heart stopped. Pulling away she almost gasped at the smile on his face. It was one of the few smiles she had ever seen him show. Normally he was in such good control of his emotions that it was almost impossible to determine to what he was feeling.
"I love you to Yuki" he told her. Now she was the one smiling, pulling his face back to hers, their lips moulding together. Her arms wound round his neck as his encircled her waist. Zeros chiselled lips soft and urgent against hers, fingers tangling in her short brown hair. Yuki ran her tongue over his lips, feeling his fangs descend as he groaned into her mouth. The two inexperienced teens explored each other's mouths, completely lost in each other.
They needed to talk. Both of them knew that. But now wasn't the time. For now they were just happy in the knowledge that the other felt the same. Eventually they parted, the need for sleep taking its toll. Yuki yawned as she reluctantly moved to leave, detangling herself from Zeros limbs. She stopped when she felt him catch her hand. Turning she gazed into his purple eyes, at the pleading look she saw there.
"Stay with me?" he asked her. She smiled at him,
"Always" Returning to the comforting circle of his arms, Zero leaned back so he was lying down on the bed, pulling her with him. Shifting so they were snuggled under the covers, Yuki cuddled up to his chest, feeling his strong arms wrap around her. Glancing up to his face she saw his eyes were closed, his expression calm and relaxed.
She could feel his breathing becoming slow and even as he drifted off. She had never seen him so calm and peaceful before. It made a nice change from his usual tense demeanour. Closing her eyes, Yuki fell asleep to the sound of Zero's breathing, perfectly content in his arms.
The next morning the headmaster wandered down the corridor, a slightly confused look on his face. Despite it being a weekend, it was unusual for Yuki or Zero to remain in bed. Seeing as Yuki wasn't in her room, he'd she might have gone to see Zero. Knocking lightly on the door he frowned to himself when he got no response. Pushing the door slightly he stopped at the sight of the two teens curled up together. Smiling to himself he backed out the room, quietly shutting the door behind him before heading back the way he'd come.