Nonami: Haha I think that Yui and Ayato go good together too. (: It's one of the reasons I have them together in my fic. (: Haha, I'm glad that you think I'm representing his character so well! :D He's a lot more interesting to write about than I thought he would be! Still, I've been enjoying it. (: I'm glad that you like Mai so much, and I feel bad for her parents in a way. It must be heart wrenching to see their daughter going through this and not being able to help! As for how Yui is, I totally agree with you. I think she does what she needs to in order to actually survive with the brothers. Her feelings are indeed the most pure in the entire series! I'm glad that you picked up on the fact that I have Ayato loving her in his own twisted way! :D Mai for now is just an outsider looking in. She hasn't actually seen a lot of the interactions between Yui and the brothers, but I'm sure that she'll see Yui as a much stronger person when she sees first hand how well Yui has adapted! (: You are right too. Mai is going to have to learn to adapt in order to coexist! (: Thank you so much for your review! :D
Thank you for reading! I hope you guys enjoy this chapter! :D
How was she going to possibly pull this idea off without getting into some type of trouble? Mai's brown eyes search her ceiling silently, as if the answer would magically appear. Every single idea she had so far had ran into the same problem. She had no true way to work her way into the brother's household. Sure she was friends with Yui, but she didn't think that would get her closer to one of the brothers. She releases a sigh and rolls onto her side. She reaches out for her phone. She had decided that she had two connections to truly work with. One was Yui, but she knew that Yui had gotten all the information that she was willing to tell Mai. Yui had done what she could, and Mai didn't see a point in pushing her. If her friend saw fit to hide something, then it must be for a reason. The second was, unfortunately, Laito. While Mai had met the others, she hadn't really interacted them enough to feel safe approaching them to hold a conversation, let alone a connection. A connection was what she believed that she needed. If she could form a tight enough bond, she could possibly pick apart their brain for a way to help Yui out of her situation.
Her hand bats blindly at the nightstand before it wraps around and wakes up her phone. She could see that it was around midnight. She releases a sigh. This wasn't supposed to be so hard to figure out. It seemed so easy on her walk home. With a flinch, she considers the fact that maybe she shouldn't have ignored Laito earlier that evening. He seemed like her easiest way into the house. That simple thought ran a chill down her spine. She slowly sits up and glances around her dark room. Slowly, she pulls her knees up to her chest and stares at the blankets covering her legs. If only she hadn't thrown away their father's contact information. She would have called him and seen about getting back into the school, regardless to the strings attached. That would at least increase her chances of running into at least one of the other brothers, possibly Shuu. He seemed the most mellow out of all of them. A thought suddenly occurs to her. She abruptly sits up and glances toward her dresser. Sitting on the top was Yui's clothes. Mai hadn't had a chance to return them to her. This could be her chance to get back to the house. They should know how to get a hold of their own father, and she could possibly find an excuse to start talking to someone other than Laito.
A sense of relief rushes through her. She would return them tomorrow when it was daylight out. There was no way she was going down that creepy road at night. Besides even if they could come out in the day, they'd at least be tired. She falls back onto her bed and rolls onto her side with a sense of satisfaction.
She had been dozing in and out of sleep for a while now. It seemed like just as she was about to actually get some sleep, something would wake her up. Her sleepy mind could never identify whatever it was that kept alerting her sleep riddled mind. She thought that maybe the blanket would shift over her skin, causing a tickling feeling. She'd panic each time and blindly search for any bugs in her bed, but she could never find one. Finally, she slowly drags herself into a slumped half sitting position. Sleep stubbornly clung to her mind, making it hard to focus on anything around her. The only thing that she knew was that she had to go to the bathroom really bad. The carpet felt nice and cool beneath her barefeet. She slowly makes her way out into the dark hallway. She bumps into something in the hallway, but she just steps around it without giving it much thought. She was faintly aware that there was a stinging sensation in her hip.
Once she is done in the bathroom, she leaves the light on and peers into the hallway, but she couldn't figure out what it was that she had run into. Finally, her tired eyes spot a large, dark blob near her room. Her mind tiredly drags through her memories to remember that her mother had been rearranging things, so it was likely that she had run into an end table of some sort. Mai assumed her mother was rearranging because she was bored, so there were plenty of things out of place and filling the hallway like a maze. With a sense of relief, she turns the light off, allowing darkness to wash over her. She leans against the doorframe of the bathroom. Normally, she would hurry to her room, but the hallway wasn't like it normally was. She releases a sigh as a tired feeling makes her body feel heavy. She decided that it would be easier to wait for eyes to adjust some to avoid running into more things that would wake her parents unnecessarily.
A strange noise from the direction of her room sends every nerve in her body into overdrive and chases any the remaining dregs of sleep. She straightens up to listen closer. It sounded almost like her phone was ringing. She slowly shakes her head, but she doesn't move her eyes from that direction. She just listens to her phone ring. Both of her parents were sleeping nearby, so she knew it couldn't be them. She didn't think that Yui had gotten a phone, yet. That quickly ruled out everyone that had her phone number. The sound stops after a few rings. She couldn't even identify the ring tone. She didn't remember ever having a haunting melody on her phone. Her muscles slowly relax, when it remains silent. She tries to convince herself that it was nothing more than a wrong number. She slowly starts toward her room now that her eyes had adjusted enough that she felt confident to move without running into something.
She peeks into her room, but she doesn't see anything. A light, cold sweat starts to break out along her spine. Her room felt terribly eerie. She jumps when her phone lights up on the night stand. She considers bolting in to get it, but she couldn't shake the sense of dread building in her chest. She didn't want to go in there. In fact, she felt like she was being watched. She takes a step back and tries to tell herself that it was just all a part of her tired mind, but she felt wide awake now. The light on her phone shuts off, and it goes silent again, only to vibrate with a chime later to let her know that she had either gotten a text or a voicemail. This only causes her to take a step backwards. She'd go downstairs, get a glass of water, and watch some tv. That would help to calm her nerves and help her work up the courage to return to her room and look at her phone.
Careful to keep from turning her back on her room, she slowly makes her way toward the stairs. She flinches each time she runs into something. She was being so loud that she was sure that her parents were awake at that point. Finally, she manages to make it to the staircase without any sign of her parents. In the dark, she misjudges the distance between her feet and the top stair. The heel of her foot encounters nothing but thin air when she steps back. Since she hadn't been expecting the stairs to be so close, her body leans dangerously backward. For a heart stopping second, she thinks that she's going to tumble backwards down the stairs. The thought of broken bones or worse races through her mind. She frantically reaches for the railing. Luckily, she catches it, but all it does is keep her from falling completely down the stairs. The foot that had caused the problem still slips down the stairs, scraping her foot and ankle painfully. Her butt collides awkwardly with a stair, making her release a loud whimpering sound. Her solidly placed foot scoots, effectively making her unwillingly do the splits. Tears spring up in her eyes as pain laces the insides of her thighs at how awkwardly far they were stretched. She could only hope that she hadn't pulled a muscle. She thought she could hear her phone ringing. It was almost as if it were mocking her clumsiness. She uses the railing to scramble up. Thankfully, her muscles felt fine, but she could feel a few scrapes and bruises.
A light fills the hallway just as she finishes standing. Her father's head appears from her parent's room. He notices Mai and gives her a frown. "What are you doing?"
Mai lets out an awkward chuckle. "I was thirsty, and I couldn't sleep. I just thought I'd go downstairs to watch some tv and drink some water."
"Did you make that noise?"
Her cheeks burn a bright red, and she quickly nods. "I just misjudged the distance from my room to the stairs, because mom has been moving things around. I was paying more attention to not stubbing my toe than the approaching stairs. Sorry for waking you, dad."
He's quiet for a moment. Guilt begins to grow in her chest. He looked so tired. Finally, he slowly nods and starts to pull away, but he pokes his head back out before she has a chance to feel completely relieved. He asks softly, "are you ok?"
Mai gives him an actual smile. "Yup! Might get a few bruises, but I'm fine."
He chuckles and disappears back into his room. Darkness once again floods the hallway when he shuts the door quietly. Mai leans over the railing and breathes a sigh of relief. Her eyes were quicker to adjust to the darkness this time. She sucks in and holds her breath for a couple of seconds. This helped her to listen for any sounds that were coming from her room. Thankfully, everything sounded quiet again, but she found that she still didn't want to go back. She knew that she should have her phone on her at all times, but she didn't think it would be worth it to fall down the stairs again. She slowly makes her way down and into the kitchen. She decides to not use the light, even though it had no chance of waking her parents. She feels a glass with cool water and takes a large drink. It was completely silent on this level, which she found to be relaxing.
Once she has drank her fill of water, she hurries to the living room to turn on the tv. She flinches at the light that suddenly illuminates the room when it's turned on, and she immediately turns the volume down. It had echoed so loudly that she was afraid that her parents would have heard it. She settles onto the couch, leans against the armrest, and proceeds to channel surf in an effort to find something remotely interesting. She finally settles on a thrilling crime drama. Tiredness starts to feel overwhelming, and she dozes off before she even can even finish watching the episode.
Something heavy was resting on one of her shoulders. That something was cold, and another cold object was pressing against her thigh. She was faintly aware of the sound of a voice coming from the tv. Her eyes snap open when something cold lands on her upper thigh. She sits up abruptly to find that whatever was resting on her shoulder had pushed her back down against the armrest. Instead of just resting on her shoulder, the weight was now pressed against her entire side. Her eyes flick to the side to meet vivid green ones. Instantly, she starts to struggle, but she was already awkwardly crushed between Laito and the armrest of the couch.
She takes a deep breath to scream, but she doesn't get a chance to even do anything. Amusement fills his eyes, and his cold hand covers her mouth and nose. She violently jerks her head back, but he simply follows the movement, effectively pinning her head against the back of the couch. Her heart starts to race, and she wiggles her hands free and reaches up to grab his hand and wrist. No amount of pulling could dislodge the suffocating hand. Panic causes her to struggle even harder. The sound of something hitting floor faintly registers in her mind. She closes her eyes only to open them a few seconds later to see that Laito wasn't even looking at her. He had turned his attention turned to the tv. Her lungs were starting to burn from lack of oxygen, and she digs her nails into his hand. This seems to get his attention, since he turns his amused green gaze back to her. "Hm?"
Her heart was beating wildly in her chest, and she tries to give him her best glare from around his hand. To her horror, she sees him leaning down. He leaves a few light kisses along the temple area of her face. She closes the eye on that side and tries to jerk away, but his hand grips her cheeks tightly. She feels him huskily chuckle against her skin, and her body stiffens. Finally, he pulls his face away from her. His hand slowly drops from her mouth. She immediately sucks in a few greedy breaths of air. His fingers slowly trace down to her neck, where she promptly shoves them away. He lets out a chuckle and just leans on her more. She shifts uncomfortably beneath him. A noise from the tv has her blood feeling like it was turning to ice. She hadn't paid much attention to the tv. Laito had rudely woken her up and had kept her attention on him. Slowly, she turns her gaze to the tv. What she sees leaves her speechless. She wasn't sheltered by any means, but she had never actively searched for the more adult oriented movies.
Her face begins to burn, and she quickly drops her gaze to her lap. It still didn't help the quiet sounds radiating from the tv. To be honest, it felt like the tv was much too loud to her. She clenches her fists and cautiously looks for the remote. "What are you doing here?"
To her horror, she can't seem to see it, and his weight was still keeping her pinned to the couch. He lets out a sigh of feigned irritation and lets his head drop against hers. His attention was back on the tv screen. She tries to wiggle, but it only causes him to put enough weight on her that it was getting harder to breath. His hair was tickling her cheek, making her face itch. Thankfully, he wasn't wearing his hat, which she was sure would have been uncomfortably stabbing her. She tightly closes her eyes and tries to wiggle so she can dig her elbow into his side. The sound of his voice ceases her struggles. "I got suspended again."
"What does that have to do with me?" She practically snarls at him. "Why did you come here instead of going to your own house?"
He shifts against her, causing her to tense. She was sure that he was going to touch her, but, to her surprise, he simply sits up. Now that she was free, she quickly scrambles to her feet, intent on putting some distance between the two of them. Her foot kicks something, drawing her attention to her feet. Her heart starts to race when she sees it's her phone. She hears him starting to shift again, so she leans down to scoop it up and quickly steps further away from him. The last thing she wanted him to do was reach out and pull her back into his lap. She's careful to turn her back on the tv. The sounds were even louder now that she was closer to it. Her face flushes a deeper red at a particularly lustful moan. Her gaze locks with an amused green one, and Laito leans forward. He rests an elbow on one knee, and his chin settles into his hand. His eyes narrow a little. "Aren't you going to ask me why I was suspended?"
Mai resists the urge to snap at him that she didn't care. This could be her one chance to start wiggling her way in. It was much easier that finding an excuse to leave her house during the day and making her way to their house. Laito's eyes narrow a little, like he knew what she was thinking. The noises were making it harder to focus, so she abruptly spins around and reaches out to turn off the tv. She flinches at the images that she was sure were going to be burned behind her eyelids for months. The whole room becomes dark and silent. She doesn't even get a chance to turn to face Laito again. Instead, his voice is suddenly beside her ear. She flinches and tries to step away, but his arm wraps around her waist and pulls her back into his body.
"I'm bored," he practically whines in her ear. "You aren't being a very kind hostess. I came over to talk to you about how horrible that school is, but you won't even ask why I was suspended. Now, you've turned off my tv show. That was really interesting to watch, but I get your hidden meaning. You don't want to watch it, so you want to reenact it?"
Panic settles in her stomach, and she desperately twists to face him. To her surprise and suspicion, he allows her to turn to face him, but he keeps her close to his body. Thankfully, he allowed enough space between their bodies that she wasn't touching him. Her eyes hadn't adjusted to the darkness around her yet, so she couldn't see if he was leaning his face close to hers. His body hasn't moved enough to give her any indication on what he was planning to do. Quickly, she asks. "What did you get suspended for?'
She was hoping that it'd distract him from whatever he was planning. It's eerily quiet for a few moments before he chuckles deep in his throat. Her hope slowly starts to die when she feels him actually leaning closer. She puts her hands on his chest and pushes, but it doesn't do much. It just traps her arms between their bodies. She could feel his breath brush her face. Her mind frantically races. She thought about calling for her parents, but she bites it back. Laito was her easiest chance to get in and find out about the brides and how they were chosen. The more she learned about Yui's position, the more she could be of help. She would just have to deal with whatever Laito threw at her.
She decides to try a different route just as his nose brushes along her jaw. "We are friends! Remember? Friends don't do something to hurt another friend, right?"
She flinches at the sound of her own voice. She sounded more panicked that she wanted to. He makes a humming noise, and she feels his cold, wet tongue runs over the side of her neck. That's when a cold realization rushes over her. He had been watching something so dirty while she had been sleeping beside him, and she had effectively turned off the only light that she had. She could feel a lump pressing against her upper pelvis lower abdomen. Her face flushes, and she starts to struggle even harder. She freezes when he lets out a low, husky moan against her neck. His fangs brush her skin, and she almost gives into her urge to call out for her parents. She closes her eyes and lets out a slow breath to try to calm her racing heart. There was no way he could get away with what he was thinking about doing, not in her very own living room. She closes her eyes tightly when she realized why he had made the moaning noise. Her struggling had her lower body brushing…. It.
His teeth graze her skin again, sending a shiver down her spine. He lets out a chuckle and pulls away after a few times of doing that; each time sending yet another shiver of fear down her spine. His voice is full of amusement when he says, "I was bored, so I played with a few of the female students."
To her relief, he finally pulls away. She didn't dare move, though. She wasn't sure if he'd take it as her trying to run. The last time she had run, he seemed to enjoy it. Slowly, her mind catches up to what he was implying. It wasn't much of a stretch to figure it out. He had a suggestive tone, and he had been watching something so perverted. She recoils back a step, bumping lightly into the tv. "You're disgusting!"
It came out as more of a hiss than she meant for it to be. He just laughs it off. Her eyes were slowly adjusting to the darkness, so she could see that he had moved back over to the couch. She wanted to take comfort from this, but it was like she could still feel the lump pressing against her body. The thought sent a shiver down her spine. She could vaguely see that he had spread himself out on it. His voice was playful as he says, "You are the only one that's not in school right now, so I thought I'd come to see how my friend was doing. After all, you were so cold to me the last time we saw each other."
A cold feeling settles into her stomach. Could she really do this? Could she converse with him like nothing was wrong with the way that he acted? Maybe she should just return Yui's clothes and try for a more mellow brother. The thought of Yui's suffering swims to the front of her mind. Determination settles into her stomach. She could do this. Laito had said that he had wanted her to fall in love with him. How hard could it be to slowly work her way into pretending that she truly cared for him? The only thing she had to look out for was making it seem like she was giving in too quickly. She releases a slow sigh and says, "I don't like you touching me. Friends don't touch each other like that."
"I was trying to hug you," he says with a feigned whine. She lets out an annoyed sound, but she doesn't respond to him.
"You've touched Little Bitch," he states as if he were quickly becoming uninterested in the conversation.
"That's different," Mai seeths. "I'm not touching her with the intent of doing something crude to her."
He lets out a soft laugh. It briefly crosses her mind that he might be trying to be quiet to keep from alerting her parents to his presence, but she quickly pushes that thought out of her mind when he says, "You might want to be careful. Ayato might get jealous. He doesn't like sharing with anyone. He's always been a selfish little brat."
She feels disgust take over her face and stares at his dark outline with apparent disgust. His chuckling just serves to grate on her nerves even more. He spoke with a bit of disdain that she couldn't fathom aiming at her own family. She desperately wanted to change the subject before it went too far. She manages to grind out. "I hope you don't plan to come here every night of your suspension."
He makes a soft noise that she isn't able to identify. "Why not?"
That simple question made her stomach twist nervously. She was starting to doubt that she could actually trick this vampire. He was so great at acting that he had actually sounded innocent just then. She clenches her fists and reminds herself once again that she was doing this for her friend's safety. She gives the first lame excuse she can think of. "Because my parents will find out."
She knew that was the wrong answer when she hears a husky chuckle emanating from him. Before she can try to cover her mistake, he chuckles softly and says, "It sounds almost like you want to be alone with me, sweetheart. So alone that no one will know that we are together. You know we can be friends that do a little bit more together, right?"
"I'm not interested in being friends with benefits," she quickly answers. Thankfully, it's silent for a few minutes. She uses this time to gather her thoughts and try to calm down. She barely hears him saying softly.
"Prudes are always the funnest to break."
She doesn't get a chance to answer. A thumping noise above them draws her attention toward the stairs. It made her realize that time had flew by. The room was lightening up with the rising sun, and she could actually clearly see him reclining on the couch. A chill runs down her spine at the amused smirk on his face. He winks at her and says cryptically, "See you tonight, sweetheart."
He seems to literally vanish before her eyes. She is still staring at the couch where he had been sitting when her father stumbles down the stairs. He gives her a tired look. "Mai?"
She jumps and snaps her gaze up to him. He runs a hand over his face and says. "Are you still up? Have you gone to bed yet?"
She forces a smile onto her face. Her father looked so tired, and she didn't have the heart to worry him right before he was about to go to work. Besides, she needed to just bear with Laito's behavior for a little while. She nods a couple times before quickly hurrying past him. "Sorry for waking you up earlier!"
He grumbles something, but she was already weaving her way to the bedroom. She flops onto the bed and rolls onto her back. She feels her phone vibrate in her pocket, though she doesn't remember how it had gotten into the pocket of her sweats. Tiredly, she pulls it out. Her eye widen when she sees the insane amount of missed calls. They were all from the same unknown number. There were a few voicemails and a couple texts.
She glances over a text with a shiver. It said that it was Laito, and she was being mean by ignoring him. It proceeds to say that he has the perfect punishment in mind. She doesn't bother looking at the other texts, which she assumed would describe the punishments. She just deletes them all and the voicemails as well. She just rolls over to go to sleep. Her phone vibrates again. With a sigh, she glances at the text. It was from Laito, but the contents made her blood run cold. She promptly leaps out of bed.
She had forgotten about what Laito had been watching! She bolts out of the room. He had sent her a text saying that he'd have to finish watching his movie with her later, and it was a dvd. She stumbles down the stairs, almost slipping a couple of times. She had only turned the tv off! She hadn't known that it was a dvd! She didn't want to think about it at the time. The last thing she needed was her parents thinking that she watched that kind of stuff! She grimaces at the stern looks she clearly imagine getting from them. There would be no way that she could get out of this. They would have to assume it was hers, and she wouldn't be able to tell them the truth. It wasn't like she could tell them that a boy was in the house watching it with their teenage daughter. That would only make the situation worse. She greatly regretted not calling for her parents now. If she had, she'd be able to claim that it was his. She leaps down the last few stairs. Her sore spots from last night ache when she lands heavily on the floor. Her father rushes into the hallway separating the kitchen from the living room.
"What the hell is wrong with you, Mai?!" He snarls at her when he sees that it's just her. She flinches at the worried, but frustrated, look on his face. She frantically searches for an excuse other than saying that Laito had been in their living room watching a porno, and that she was retrieving it, so they wouldn't see.
"I…. I forgot something in the living room." Her father gives her a suspicious look. She flushes as she mutters. "It's a personal thing."
She flinches since that simple phrase sounded unusually dirty to her. She offers her dad a tired smile, though he continues to frown at her. Finally, he gives her a dismissive wave. "Ok. Try to be quieter, though. Your mom is still sleeping."
To her relief, he disappears back into the kitchen. She scrambles into the living room and pulls the dvd from the dvd player before turning it off. She flinches at the naked woman on the disc. She awkwardly tries not to touch anything on the picture, and n the picture, andshe frantically looks around for the case.
"Hey, Mai? You have school today, right?"
It felt like Mai was sweating more than she should have been. She makes a strange noise in the back of her throat. She couldn't find the case anywhere at all, and her panic was just escalating.
"Mai?" Her gaze snaps up to see that her father was giving her a strange look from the hallway. Her face flushes a deep red, and she shoves the disc behind her back. To her relief, her father seems too tired to even notice her strange behavior. He had a worried tone to his voice. "Are you ok?"
She hastily nods. "Yeah. I thought I left something down here, but I guess I was wrong!"
She flinches. Even to her own ears, her voice sounded oddly strained. She forces a smile onto her face and bolts for the stairs. She throws a hasty good night over her shoulder, and she moves the disc in front of herself to keep him from seeing it. She doesn't even look back to see if she was actually successful in keeping her father in the dark about it. The only thing she could actually focus on was the hope that there wasn't actually a case in the living room that she had overlooked. Once in her room, she proceeds to shove the disc as far under her mattress as she can reach. She didn't care if it got broken or scratched. She breathes a sigh of relief before she flinches at the thought of what Laito would typically be doing during a movie like that one. With a sense of disgust, she goes to wash her hands. Dread fills her stomach and chest. It was going to be a long day full of dreading nightfall, and she was sure that it was going to be an even longer night. With a sigh, she starts downstairs to start her day.
She flops back onto her bed after changing into a tank top and shorts. She had been so tired that day that she hadn't been able to focus on her online schooling or even hold a conversation with her mom. She had discreetly looked for the case to Laito's disgusting habit, but she hadn't been able to find it. Luckily, her mother hadn't found it either. Mai rolls onto her side and closes her eyes. She had ended up helping her mom move furniture around and had done several chores with her. She had wanted to stay awake, but she was having a hard time of achieving that. It wasn't that late at night, so it comes as a relief that she can faintly hear her parents downstairs. She slowly starts to doze off to the sound of their laughter. She's faintly aware of her phone vibrating, but she doesn't give it much thought.
Her mind barely registers the cold fingers that are slowly running circles along her abdomen, getting dangerously close to the bottom of her breasts. She was positive that she wasn't lying on her pillow. She feels something brush her shoulder, more towards her back, that felt suspiciously like lips. Her eyes snap open to find that she's still laying on her side in her bed, but she wasn't alone. A body was lightly pressed against her back, and it was lacking body heat. An arm was draped over her waist. The fingers of that hand was still tracing lazy circles along her skin. They lightly skim the bottom of one of her breasts, causing her body to jerk involuntarily. A deep, husky chuckle makes every muscle in her body tenses.
To her horror, she found that her shirt had been pushed all the way up to expose part of her breasts. Her face turns a deep red, and her body tenses even further. She feels the arm under her head move to wrap around her shoulders before her panic filled mind can figure out how to get away. He pulls her upper body closer to his chest. His face becomes buried in her hair, and she can faintly hear him saying something. Panic races through her body, and she tries to twist her body so suddenly that she's able use her body weight to get away from him. She opens her mouth to scream at the same time, but the hand that had been caressing her abdomen lifts to cover her mouth. He jerks her body back into his, and he presses her head back to his shoulder. Her scream is easily muffled by his palm.
She considers slamming her foot back into his shin, but she stops herself just before doing so. Every instinct told her to fight, but she resists the urge. She needed to get closer to him in order to get information, or at least a way into the house so she can help Yui. Besides, fighting always seemed to just excite him even more. Mai closes her eyes tightly and tries to make her body relax against his. She flinches when she hears him coo beside her ear in a huskily playful tone. "Oh? Not going to fight? That's no fun."
She decides to just lay there limply and glare at the wall. She had to find a fine balance between what she would allow him to do and what she wouldn't. Now wasn't the time to make a rash choice about what she wasn't going to allow. She needed time to think about clear lines. She slowly closes her eyes and takes a deep breath to steady her nerves. Seconds later she wishes that she hadn't started to make herself relax. She's abruptly flipped onto her back. Her eyes open just as his cold hands tightly wrap around her inner thighs, mid way up.
The sour taste of fear coats her tongue and throat. She tries to twist her body to the side, while desperately keeping her legs tightly together. Just as her body twists, a horrifying sensation settles over her. The sensation is the feeling of her legs being forcibly separated, and his body quickly settling itself between them, effectively preventing her legs from going back together. Her heart beats wildly in her chest, and she opens her mouth to scream again. His hand once again covers her mouth, and her wide eyes lock with amused, green ones. His body was touching her in places she never wanted him to ever think about touching. She could feel the material of his shirt against the bare skin of her abdomen, and his pelvis is pressed harder against hers than she ever thought possible. She didn't dare tear her gaze from his. She wanted to be able to see what his next plan was going to be. The street light filtering through her window allows her to see the amused smile that spreads over his face when he leans down close to her face. She doesn't get a chance to react though. His free hand grabs a fistful of the hair on the top of her head. He gives a sharp tug, painfully dragging her head back. To her horror, she realizes that it completely exposes her throat to him.
She awkwardly arches her upper back into his chest to try to relieve some of the pressure on her scalp. Tears instantly spring to her eyes. It had forced her to lose sight of him. She closes her eyes tightly to prevent the tears from leaking out. The last thing she wanted was to look at her headboard while bit her, or worse, violated her. She found herself silently praying that he wouldn't take it all the way. A cold feeling of dread fills her stomach. She considered fighting, but she decided that she would wait for the right moment to strike. The way she was arched would prevent her from putting any weight behind her strikes. Her eyes snap open when she feels his tongue run up her throat. She releases a strained gasping noise when he licks from her collarbone all the way up to her chin again, and she tries to turn her gaze toward the door.
A low chuckle near her ear starts to crush the hope that her parents would hear any noises. She wasn't able to see if the door was open, but she had a sinking feeling that it wasn't. His voice is low and husky when he says. "I closed the door, and I can hear your parents sleeping not far away. How hopeless you must feel knowing that help is so close, but you can't reach out to them."
It was like he had thrown cold water over her. A type of strange clarity comes to her mind. This was just his way of tormenting her. It was just another of his stupid games. He wanted to see her scared, and she was foolishly playing into his hands. She decides to take a gamble and forces her body to slowly relax. She can feel him make a scoffing noise against the skin of her collarbone. Panic threatens to settle in again, but she just settles a stubborn gaze on the headboard above her. She wouldn't fight unless he took it too far, even if he bit her. It's silent as he places kisses along the bottom of her exposed throat, near her collarbone. He finally chuckles and says. "Ah, how cute. You think just laying there is going to save you?"
Thankfully, his hand moves away from her mouth. Unfortunately, the path he chooses leads it further down her face. His cold fingers trace down the side of her neck opposite his kisses. She again closes her eyes tightly to keep herself calm. His face finally pulls away from her neck. The hand in her hair loosens enough that she can tilt her head down just enough to look at him. She casts a cold glare his way, which seems to excite him more than discourage him. His fingers trace down to her collarbone, where they begin to lightly trace the bone hidden beneath the skin. She is proud of how calmly she says. "I don't stand a chance against you, even if you were human. Why should I waste energy trying to fight you?"
Another amused smile spreads over his face. He leans down as if he is going to kiss her. She turns her face away the best she can, despite the pain in her scalp when he tugs on her hair to try to make her look at him again. When she stubbornly refuses, he pulls his head back. That only served to cement the idea that he was going to kiss her in his mind. He tilts his head playfully and says. "You don't want a kiss?"
"Not from you," she states as coldly as she can.
"Ah, but aren't kisses from the ones you love supposed to be the sweetest?" He playfully coos at her. Mai finally turns her gaze back at him.
"I don't love you. Do you even know the meaning of that word? You throw it around so casually." She sounded angrier than she meant to. He chuckles softly. He leans down toward her chest instead of her mouth. Panic rushes through her chest at the thought of being bitten anywhere other than her soft, fleshy neck. Her hand hadn't hurt as bad as she thought it would, but he hadn't gotten a bone either. What if he were to graze one of the many bones in her chest? The thought of how much pain that would cause sends her thoughts into overdrive. She quickly rushes out. "Who are the women in white?"
He pauses just before his face touches the exposed skin just below her collarbone. Her heart stops for a moment before it starts to races just as wildly as before. She was desperately hoping that she had distracted him enough that she would have time to think of a better way to get free. He completely pulls away from and looks down at her from his kneeling position between her legs, even the hand that was in her hair had pulled away. Her heart skips a beat when she sees a thoughtful look on his face. It was the first emotion other than small traces of irritation, lustfulness or playfulness that she could remember seeing at that moment. It quickly disappears, but she was positive of it's existence. He says playfully. "Are you saying that you don't know why a woman wears white?"
She can't help the scoff. She tries to slowly work her way out from beneath him. He abruptly pulls away from between her legs, leaving her shocked, but she doesn't hesitate to hurry up against the headboard. She jerks her shirt down and pulls her knees up to her chest as extra protection. She settles an intent glare on him. He leans back to prop himself up using one of his hands. He gives her an innocent look and tilts his head. "What do they look like?"
She considers asking why should tell him, but she refrains from doing so. His attention was finally somewhat diverted from her. She takes a moment to think about each of the women she had seen. She picks the one that had talked to her in particular. She proceeds to tell him about her bluish hair and creepy eyes. The more she tells him, the larger his smile seems to grow. It was like this was some sort of inside joke. She suddenly stops talking in favor of giving him a suspicious glare. Without warning, he lunges at her. She tries to escape by scrambling off the bed, but his cold hand seems to uncannily find her hair. The world around her spins sickeningly, leaving everything a blur of color. Bile rises in her throat, though, thankfully, she doesn't actually throw up.
Everything halts just as suddenly as it had started moving, which makes the sick feeling worse. She sinks to her knees trying to fight the dizziness. It was brighter here than her room, so it takes her eyes a few seconds to adjust. She focuses on the cold, stone floor below her. It was helping to ease the sick feeling faster than she thought it would. She didn't think that she would ever get used to the teleporting thing that the vampires did. Her humiliation builds when she hears Laito laughing near her. She lifts her gaze from the hard floor to glare up at him. Something behind him catches her eye, effectively distracting her. Her heart skips a beat upon seeing a pretty red haired lady in a wedding dress standing behind him in an uncomfortable pose. Her glassy blue eyes stared off into space. Beside her was a dark haired woman, also in a wedding dress. Mai slowly climbs to her feet and begins looking around to see there were more women wearing wedding dresses of varying styles. It felt eerie to see them all standing so still. They looked like they were looking in a set direction. Each one was striking a unique, yet uncomfortable looking, pose. Mai's heart continues to race as she steps closer to the red haired one. It looked like nothing more than a life sized doll, or even a mannequin if she really thought about it. She reaches out to gently run her fingers over the wedding dress. She jerks her fingers back upon feeling real material, though she didn't know what she had been expecting. Her eyes rise to look at the red head's face. Her face was free of any blemishes, so Mai figured that she was just a mannequin for displaying wedding dresses. She didn't know which was more impressive the details of the women or the dresses. She releases a slow breath. "Wow."
Laito appears behind her. He leans against her back so that the side of his face is just visible to her out of the corner of her eye. She was so entranced by the doll before her that she didn't even think to shove him away. He lets out a low chuckle. "Kanato does a really good job, doesn't he?"
Mai's eyes widen, and she leans away from Laito enough to look at him. "Kanato makes these? Are they made of wax? They look so lifelike and have such amazing detail. Each one seems so unique."
He gives her a playful smile and pulls away before wandering between the dolls. Unsure if she was supposed to follow, she simply stands there looking over the other dolls nearest to her. They were creepy, but she found them oddly fascinating. Laito seems to appear from behind a doll not far to her right. He winks playfully at her. "Come along, sweetheart. There is something you have to see!"
She grimaces and starts after him. There had to of been hundreds of dolls wearing different wedding dresses. Chills runs down her spine. Each doll that she passed reminded her of Yui's predicament. Mai picks up her pace and says loudly. "Hey, Laito? I was wondering about the sacrificial brides. How are they chosen?"
Her response is a chuckle that seems to echo around the room. Mai's step slow to a halt, and she glances around in an effort to find him. She didn't want him to sneak up on her, but she couldn't seem to see Laito at all. A frown settles itself onto her face. Finally, Laito's echoing voice says, "Sweetheart, why don't you reach out and touch one of their arms."
Mai glances around for any sign of him, but she still couldn't see anything. Slowly, she starts to shake her head. The last thing she wanted to do was touch the dolls more than she already had. She wasn't sure if Kanato would be able to smell her scent on them. A chuckle behind her has her spinning around, but the only thing she can see is the dolls, though it feels like they had moved slightly. They weren't all looking in the same direction anymore. It felt like some of them were looking at her. Her heart stops completely at the sight. Laito must have been trying to scare her by turning some of the faces in her general direction. She swallows hard and says in a soft voice. "Laito, this isn't funny. I'm not going to give you another kiss just because I am scared."
He simply chuckles at her from his hiding place. "Don't worry, Sweetheart. I'm not after a kiss. I just want to answer your question. That's what a good friend would do, isn't it?"
Mai tries to keep from frantically looking for him. This was just another of his games. She bites back a comment about him being the worst friend she's ever had. Instead, she releases a slow sigh. His voice is suddenly beside her ear. "Reach out and touch one."
She attempts to spin around, but his arm wraps tightly around her waist. Her movement is halted, and her body is pulled back into his. She feels every muscle in her body tense. She tries not to think about home. She told herself that this was one step closer to some of the answers she sought. While she was trying to convince herself of the relevance of touching one of Kanato's dolls, one of his hands runs down her arm to interlock his fingers with hers. His hand covers the top portion of her hand, leaving the palm free. He mutters playfully in her ear. "I'll tell you something you want to know if you touch it."
"Why are you so intent on me touching one? Is Kanato going to do something to me if I do?" Mai asks. Something wasn't right. He drags both of their hands up. She tries to jerk her hand away, but he doesn't seem to notice. His hand forces hers onto the arm of the nearest doll. A cold feeling runs through her body. It didn't feel like wax, or even plastic. It was ice cold, like the floor beneath her feet, but it was softer than she expected it to be. Her hand remains there even when Laito pulls his away. She barely notices that he had completely pulled away from her. Her mind was trying to process why the doll would feel almost humanlike. She whispers softly. "Kanato's amazing."
She can hear Laito scoff playfully behind her. She glances over her shoulder at him, only to find that she was alone again. She turns and looks up at the doll that she was touching. Her heart stops completely. She recognized this one. It looked eerily like the one she had seen the night that she had let Laito kiss her. Her heart starts to race as she jerks her hand away from it. It was one of the eerie ones that was looking right at her. She starts to back away from it. It didn't move, but her panic made her believe that she saw the chest move a little. Laito's voice echoes once again. "They are so lifelike, aren't they?"
Mai simply nods. Her body collides with one, and she uncharacteristically loses her balance along with the doll. The doll hits the ground first with a very soft thud. She lands half on top of it and quickly rolls away. Her face had touched the exposed parts of its' shoulder. A shudder runs down her spine while she crawls away from it. She glances over to see that the doll she had touched was gone. Fear coats every inch of her body. "Laito, what is going on?"
"I promised to tell you something you wanted to know when you touched one, didn't I?"
Mai frantically looks around for him. She flinches at the thought that she was even considering relying on such a cruel person. Instead, she decides to focuse on looking for the missing doll. She scrambles to her feet, since she felt more exposed sitting on her hands and knees. A chill runs down her spine when Laito's low voice echoes loudly beside her. "You asked if they were made of wax. Well, they are not. What do you think they are made of?"
She grits her teeth. She didn't want to play this sickening game, but she knew from experience that it would get her out of there quicker. "I don't know. It doesn't feel like plastic, either."
Laito's laugh echoes eerily around the room. Mai scrambles to her feet and quickly starts to walk between the rows of bridal dolls. Every so often, she'd find a large gap between them that made her pick up her pace. She would find the edge of the room and keep her back to it to prevent herself from being snuck up on. Mai glances behind her just to be sure that nothing was doing just that. The more dolls she passes, the more she feels panic threatening to take over. Laito's mocking voice echoes around the room. "They were once human."
Mai freezes in her tracks instantly. Her skin starts to crawl. "Wait."
Laito laughs playfully. "That's right! Kanato is so talented, isn't he? He can make humans into dolls after they die. What you touched was the woman's skin! Wasn't it still so soft?"
Mai finds herself completely speechless. She spins on her heel to stare at the row of dolls. A sick feeling starts to rise up her throat. There were hundreds of women! A chilling thought forces its' way to the front of her mind. Did this mean what she thought it meant? Was this what happened to the sacrificial brides? The image of Yui being preserved just as prettily comes to mind, making Mai feel even sicker to her stomach. "Is this…...what happens….. To the….."
She found that she couldn't even finish the question. The thought made her blood feel like ice. Laito seems to materialize right in front of her. He gives her a mock look of concern. "Ah, Sweetheart. Are you ok? You look like you want to throw up."
Her hands were shaking violently. She kept telling herself that she had to know for sure. It wouldn't do to assume that like this is what would happen to Yui. There would be no guessing when it came to Yui's life. Mai opens her mouth, but Laito presses a cold finger to her lips, effectively killing any words she was going to say. He gives her a playful smile. "I don't know if this is what happens to the sacrificial brides. Perhaps you should ask Ayato? He's with the current one. I'm sure that he will be willing to tell you anything you want to know."
She thought that his words sounded jealous, but his look and tone didn't have a single hint of jealousy in them. He leans dangerously close to her face. Her eyes widen, but she doesn't get a chance to pull away. His words halt her in her place. "I can see that you think I'm jealous. I'm not. I've got a different playtoy to use until the next bride comes along."
Disgust fills Mai's chest almost instantly. She knew that he was referring to her, but she doesn't get a chance to retort, since he seems to vanish before her eyes once more. She tries to repress the shiver from racing down her spine. Her skin was still crawling, but she doesn't get a chance to even think about the fact that she had touched dead skin.
"What are you doing here?" A cold voice rings through the room. Her body tenses. It was her worst nightmare coming true. She had been admiring his work, and he had shown up. She turns her attention to the purple haired vampire. He was still in his school uniform. Mai's heart starts to race. How late had it gotten? He clenches his teddy bear even tighter in one arm and starts to stride toward her with a snarl on his face. "How did you get in here?"
"I… Laito…." She tries to figure out the words that she can say, but she flinches when he appears before her. His face looked angrier than before.
"You are saying that Laito brought you here?! Did the two of you do something terrible to my dolls?! Did you come here to destroy my work?!" He yells at her. His voice echoes off the walls around them, making it seem louder than it should have been. Distracted by this fact, she didn't actually answer him right away, which seemed to anger him further. His hand lashes out to grab her forearm in a painfully tight grip. She releases a gasp of pain and says the first thing that pops into her head.
"Your dolls are beautiful!" She flinches at the fact that she was commenting on dead bodies. Her skin starts to crawl even worse. She wanted to get in the shower and wash off the fact that she had touched something that had once been alive, but she didn't think she would ever get rid of the feeling. In fact, she could still feel the cold, soft flesh against her hand and face. It made her feel like throwing up all over again, but she tried to force a smile on her face. Kanato had stopped squeezing her arm, but he still had a tight grip on her. He tilts his head a little giving her a completely innocent look. She reminds herself that he was even more unstable than Laito.
"You like them?"
His voice was low and innocent sounding as well. Mai earnestly nods her head. She feels a sense of relief wash over her. Flattery seemed to cool his anger. Her heart starts to race when Kanato pulls lightly on her arm. He had a blood chilling smile on his face. He leans forward and says. "Do you want to know how I make them?"
Mai's heart stops. Being around this purple haired vampire was probably more dangerous than being around Laito. There was no way that she wanted to know how he turned humans into dolls. Slowly, she nods her head, though. It would be best to get him talking. It would be the fastest way to get away from that room. With a deep breath, she tries to prepare herself to listen to what she had a feeling was going to be a warped tale of death and pain. The only upside she could think of was the fact that she could possibly ask Kanato about the brides.
