Chapter Eight:

His shirt was immediately thrown to the floor, and just those words made his eyes go wild. He was already advancing on me with the intention of doing exactly what I just asked for.

"W-Wait," I suddenly blurted out, just as he was reaching for me. He paused and snarled.

"This is getting old," he growled. "Decide. Now, Pancake. I won't be toyed with like this."

"I just… Please don't hurt me…" And I felt like I was about to cry, but Ayato's expression became understanding, much to my surprise, and he continued reaching for me. When his hands met my shoulders, I flinched, but he just left them there and stared at my face. I looked back for only a moment before getting embarrassed and looking back down at the carpet.

"Whatever you want from me, I'll give," he whispered, and then leaned forward, running the tips of his fangs against the top of my collarbones. His other hand came up and he pushed a thumb between my lips and pushed against my one fang. My mouth involuntarily opened and I let out a quiet moan. I loved this sensation. "Just try not to take so much blood that I can't move," he added with a chuckle.

Was I really doing this? Was I really ready to give away my body to Ayato… of all people…?

"Ayato…" I whispered, and he grunted in reply. "I'm scared…"

"I'll make it quick," he said, "We can have fun next time." And then he pulled away from my neck and smirked at me. Then his smirk turned into a genuine smile. "Don't be scared, Yui. I'll take care of you."

He bent down and lifted both my legs around his waist and walked us over to my vanity. With a single swipe of his arm, he knocked everything off onto the floor and sat my bottom down on the newly opened space. I had to lean back against the mirror for support as I felt something strange in my stomach—like butterflies, but on something.

I jumped when it felt like I was sweating between my legs and I tried to close them together, but Ayato was between them. His teeth kept running over each part of my neck, scraping every part of my skin. I kept expecting him to kiss me, but he never did.

His palms suddenly pushed down hard on either of my thighs, holding me in place. A needy sound came out of my mouth but I wasn't sure what it was. My hands were still at my sides, my palms pushing harder and harder onto the wood surface of the vanity, but I wanted to move them. My eyes were squeezed shut but I already knew he had his shirt off. Of course, it wasn't something knew—I saw his chest every time we had class in the pool—but this made me feel a little different. I was never going to be able to look at him in the pool in the same way again.

I gasped and my eyes opened wide when I felt a hand cup my breast. I could feel his prodding through my shirt and even my bra. I could feel each of his fingertips giving me a sensual massage. It felt slightly wrong because I would have never expected to be doing this before getting to know someone for at least a year—it was just the way I was raised. I'd never thought that I would feel like I needed something like this as badly as I needed my next breath. I felt like it was something I couldn't control, especially not now.

Ayato's face suddenly came up to eye level with me and his lips grazed mine. I jumped and prepared to kiss him, but instead he bit down on my bottom lip, and when I parted my lips in surprise, he sucked my tongue into his mouth and grazed his fangs against that, too. I just wanted him to kiss me—passionately, like I used to watch in movies. But this was a different kind of passion. This was wild and hungry and… animalistic—passion in the eyes of a vampire.

And yet I still wanted to hold onto some of my humanity, so I dared to lift one hand and bring it between the thick hairs on the back of his head. I gently pulled him forward and I tried to kiss him through the grip he had on my tongue and the little blood dripping down my chin. I just put my lips on his and kissed him. Instead of having a reaction, he just ignored it and continued what he'd been doing.

"Ayato," I whispered around my tongue, and he let go, baring his fangs at me as he waited. I didn't know what to say, though. I felt like asking him to kiss me would just make him laugh, and I was no expert, so how could I make him want to do it. I ran my tongue over my upper lip, slowly, and he watched my mouth with interest. I pulled my tongue back and ran them over one of my fangs and shivered—and it hit me. I instantly moved forward and pressed my lips against his. He parted his lips in reply and I stuck my tongue into his mouth, aiming for the tip of his left fang. I felt his body jerk and he moaned breathily, his cool breath hitting me right in the face. It was refreshing, and it smelled like a mix of him and my blood.

Ayato seemed to have had enough of my shirt, and he was already reaching for the hem, and sliding his hand upward. When I felt the rough patch of skin at the tip of his finger hit my bare skin there I yelped, our mouths parting.

A sudden knock at my bedroom door made me jump, but I heard a light snarl come from the yellow-green-eyed vampire. He wrapped his other arm around me and pulled me flush against him until my breasts were being squashed between us and his hand. Then he turned towards the door.

"Go the fuck away!" he snarled at whoever it was.

A smothered laugh was all I heard, and I could only picture Laito for a second before Ayato was using his teeth again, this time reaching to scratch the side of my neck, and sometimes catching parts of my hair and tugging on the small knots. Then he grabbed my wrists and pushed my hands over my head, tugging on the bottom of my shirt. I don't know why I expected him to ask if he could take it off of me, but he didn't and I frowned a bit as he tossed my shirt to the floor. He then reached for my pants and undid the one button before tugging them off from the bottom, leaving me in only my bra and panties, both an off-white color with no design and no lace. I felt so plain, and at the same time I felt a little… slutty. Both in a good way and a bad way. Even though I'd never done something like this before, it was reassuring to see Ayato so enthusiastic about this. But on the other hand, it still felt wrong. I wasn't even eighteen yet, and I knew most girls my age didn't care about such things, but it still bothered me a little.

"Ayato," I breathed.

"Mmm?"

"I… I'm still scared…" He paused and released my wrists immediately. "I'm sorry," I said shyly, unable to look up at him. I was trembling, but I wasn't sure what it was from. I just wanted a little bit of a break, and I wasn't sure if that made me a bad person. I certainly felt like it. I had to break the silence. "So… you've never done this either?" I asked, even though I knew it was a stupid question, because of the whole bonding thing. Although, if he was a human, I would have never guessed it was his first time from his confidence alone.

He lifted an eyebrow at me and then grabbed my legs again, pulling me towards him. He pushed his hips into me and my eyes widened at what I felt.

"I'm not going to stop," he said simply, grinding himself against me. My breathing was ragged and I just nodded once at him. But then he sighed and lifted me up. I wrapped my arms around his neck as he walked us to the bed and tossed me down, on top of the sheets and blanket. He then walked over and switched off the light, bathing the room in a soft moonlit glow. I was hard to see anything clearly and it calmed me a little.

"Thank you," I whispered when I felt him crawl onto the bed beside me. I felt his leg hit mine and I realized it was bare skin. He must have taken off his pants, too. I was almost naked with a boy in my bed… Well, I was almost naked with a vampire.

For a few moments, he just laid there next to me, his cool breath wafting gently over my neck and face.

"Oi," he finally said, his hand moving to rest on my bare shoulder. He flipped it over and caressed up and down my arm with the back of his hand. In the dark and the silence I could hear my heartbeat pounding against my chest, loud and clear. "Let me take care of you."

Why did he keep saying that? It was just another way—a nicer way—of asking me if I still want to do this. Of course I did, but I still wanted him to know that I was scared. It shouldn't have been a shock to him that I was scared of him hurting me. It wasn't like he'd never done it before—emotionally and physically.

When my answer wasn't "no," Ayato squirmed around a bit before I could feel his body heat hovering over the side of me. I felt one of his hands grip my breast again and I jumped. If he wasn't above me I swear I would have shot through the ceiling. He trailed his hand down and pressed his palm flat against my stomach. I could feel my heart rate increasing dramatically as he moved down the side of my hip and turned around just before my knee. His hand moved to the inside of my leg and he began to climb upward.

My breathing became ragged and I literally felt like I was about to cry. I was scared. I couldn't help it. It wasn't that I didn't trust him not to hurt me, because we were beyond that. I just felt like I didn't know what was going to happen to me once this was over. I didn't even know what was going to happen during it. My mother died when I was young, and my father never taught me anything about this. And I was scared because I was forced to put all my faith into Ayato right now. I had to trust him with everything I had and I wasn't sure I could do that.

A quiet noise rumbled my body and my eyes opened slightly. I realized that Ayato's hand had stopped moving up and his face was beside mine, his mouth next to my ear. And the rumbling noise was a purring sound. And it was slightly calming.

"I can feel you," he whispered and his voice was sad. "Don't be so scared… Not of me. Please."

"I don't… I don't know what to do now…" I replied, and my voice was a little hoarse, and louder than I would've liked.

"Just let me take care of you…"

Again with that?

His hand resumed the climb and the tingling sensation down below was getting worse. I had to force myself not to squirm and to stay still. But then Ayato chuckled and I opened one eye to try and see his face through the dark. It was a bit easier now and the moonlight was brighter, so I could see the bright whites of his eyes and the sparkle they held when he laughed or smiled.

"What?" I breathed.

"Do what you want," he said, and I could see the white fangs between his teeth, too. "You want to move?" he asked, and then his fingers did a little dance on the inside of my upper thigh and I squirmed in reaction. "Then move," he smirked.

Ayato bent his head down next to mine and bit my ear lobe, and then the purring sound continued. His hand was almost at the top and my breathing was irregular. But then he gently traced the outside of my panties with the tips of his short fingernails and a big part of me just didn't care anymore. What I thought had been me sweating between my legs felt like it just caught on fire and I realized my mistake.

I gasped, and he nuzzled me, continuing that relaxing purring noise. He stopped only to groan when his fingers tapped the outside of my underwear. His head bent so that he could bury his face in my neck, and I suddenly wondered if I did something wrong. My eyes opened and I stared at the ceiling for a moment.

And then he moved his fingers. I yelped and grabbed his shoulders, my eyes wide in shock. He slipped past my underwear and into me and I lay there, rigid—wanting to move but afraid of what might happen if I did. Ayato's breathing was hard and erratic, but certainly not as bad as mine. It felt like fireworks were going off inside my body. His heavy breaths tickled the skin on my neck and his fangs kept gripping my earlobe and then letting go, over and over. My nails dug into his skin but I couldn't help it, especially when he moved his fingers in one "come hither" motion, grating slightly against something that sent my body into near convulsions.

I couldn't help the sounds that were coming out of my mouth.

"Lift," he breathed, and I opened one eye. His body was barely an inch from mine, hovering over me. He slipped his fingers out and I gasped again. "Lift," he repeated, tugging on my underwear, and I understood. He pulled off my panties and I let my bare bottom hit the sheets underneath us. "This, too," he muttered, lightly snapping back one of the straps on my bra. He bent his head down and tore the front with one quick bite.

"Hey," I said, a little upset, but not having it in me to care too much. He slid the straps off my shoulders and threw the ripped mess to the floor with the rest of our clothes.

It suddenly dawned on me that we were both naked and I got even more nervous. Of course, he could tell, and that same purr came from his throat again. He leaned down and raked his tongue from my belly button to the dip at the bottom of my neck and I shivered. His trail of saliva left me cold where it hit me.

And then there was a pause. I knew he was looking at me for some kind of acknowledgement, but I couldn't look him in the eyes. I was still scared, but mostly now because of the unknown. I had no idea what to expect or what this was going to do to me… Would it hurt? Would it be Ayato's fault? Or what if there was just something wrong with me? I didn't know what I was supposed to do either—

"Yui, I'll take care of you."

He took both my legs and separated them, making me want to cover my face with my hands and suddenly I felt something hot and hard between my legs. I waited for something to happen, but what seemed like a long time passed and I opened my eyes. He was just staring at me, patiently—the question in his eyes was unmistakable. He didn't have to ask it aloud. And even though I had no idea what I was doing, or what would happen, I knew my answer. I nodded at him.

His mouth opened and a hard exhale came out just before he began to guide himself inside me. He slowly pressed the rest of the way, pausing a few times—probably to check if I was okay—until I was full. Completely full of Ayato. And much to my surprise and happiness, nothing had hurt. He was slow and gentle. He was taking care of me…

Then I felt the strangest sensation. I reached up and wrapped my arms around his neck, pulling him down so our chests touched. For just a moment I needed to hold him. I wanted to feel his breathing against me. I wanted him to feel my heartbeat, if I even had one anymore. I felt like crying again, but this time out of happiness, not worry. But before I could make him think I didn't want to do this anymore, I lifted my head and whispered in his ear. "Bond to me."

I felt like I just erased any misconceptions Ayato might have had. He immediately grabbed my hips with both of his hands and let out a snarl before pumping in and out of me. I felt a building spiral in my lower stomach and decided to embrace it instead of shying away. Ayato seemed to be surrendering himself as well. I had to watch his face for a moment, but then I realized that something wasn't right. I was abandoning all negative thoughts, but his face was changing. Was he in pain?

"Ayato?" I moaned, trying to get his name out, but not being able to speak clearly.

"I'm fine," he grunted, and then lowered his head, resting his forehead beside me face, pressed into the pillow. I could hear his ragged breathing as his hips moved. He hit something in me that made me gasp, and he must have realized it because he did it again. And again. My nails dug into his skin once more, scraping relentlessly against his back and shoulders as I moaned.

And then I felt it. My body went off and I cried out. Ayato lifted his head and looked right into my eyes as my whole body tightened and I screamed. He gritted his teeth and cried out after me and I felt something warm erupt between my legs. His mouth opened and he gasped as I started to calm down. His eyes widened as he stared at me and I suddenly wanted him to kiss me again—more so than before. It was more than want. It was a need. I stared at his mouth for only a second.

"Yes," he breathed, and then his lips hit mine.

His kiss was slow but passionate, even for a post-human like me. Without warning, I locked my lips against his and threw away the key. The tip of my tongue swiped across his bottom lip and I soon realized that he was very unprepared for this. I was making him moan, and I could feel my own power. It felt good.

His lips parted as he breathed in and I took it as an open invitation to explore his mouth. I encouraged him to use his tongue by tapping it with mine until he did as I asked. But the gentleness he used was much different than how he would bite me. This felt like I was lighter than the air itself. It felt like I was melting into the bed, instead of skyrocketing through the roof. After a little while, we parted.

"I… I don't know why I did that," Ayato suddenly said, scrunching his eyebrows and looking away. Was he embarrassed? From just a kiss? And after everything else he'd done, that was what made him uncomfortable?

"I was nice," I replied with a light smile.

He let out a long exhale and the cool air against my skin reminded me that we were still both naked on the bed. It didn't bother me as much as before, but it still felt a bit awkward.

"I can feel you," he said with wonder. "I can feel your heartbeat and your temperature and…" He paused and frowned, and then looked at me. "You're hungry." He immediately rolled off the bed and I caught a teasing glimpse of his backside before he quickly pulled his pants back on, ignoring his boxer briefs. He turned around with a smirk. "I felt that, too, Pancake." And then he just stood there, half naked, staring at me with that smirk. "This is kind of cool." He walked to the door and opened it. Standing in the doorway, he half-turned back to me with his eyes closed. His smirk came back pretty fast. "Between the leftover chicken and some fried eggs…" He paused. "Yea, that's what I thought. I'll just throw it in the microwave for a minute. If you need me… just think of me."

And then he was gone.

Great. Now he could read my mind.