A/N: Hi guys, a number of you have been anxious for the next chapter in this series, so here it is. I'm not entirely sure where I'm taking the next chapter though, and I'm going to be away next weekend, so it might be a couple of weeks before you get another update. Please be patient, I promise I will finish this series. Thanks, and enjoy!
~Nique
Ch. 07: Results and Rewards
Masumi woke in Reiji's bed, the remains of his tattered dress shirt still hanging off her. Sitting up, she glanced around the room and immediately blushed as she spotted Reiji in front of his closet, back to her, sliding into his school uniform. She turned her head quickly.
"I suppose an ill-mannered woman like you wouldn't express gratitude that I allowed you to sleep in my own bed after your punishment. But I do at least expect the common courtesy of a proper greeting," Reiji said without turning around. Masumi pursed her lips but replied,
"Good morning, Reiji-san." Reiji turned to face her, his necktie hanging loosely and his glasses missing. Masumi felt a strange jolt in her chest as she took in his appearance, and she turned her head away from his gaze, blushing harder than before. What's wrong with me? she thought. He's done nothing but abuse me. I can't possibly... find him attractive...Can I? Reiji tightened his tie and buttoned his school vest.
"Clearly your body has recovered some of its... stamina from last night, so I expect you to be on your best behavior today. I will not tolerate laziness or disrespect toward me or this household. Am I clear?" He asked while sliding both arms into his jacket. Masumi nodded, still turned away, still largely consumed by thoughts of her odd reaction to Reiji's presence. There was a moment of silence in the room as neither spoke, but Masumi heard the telltale sound of his white glove sliding onto his skin and she shivered involuntarily.
In the next moment, that gloved hand had her by the chin, and was forcing her head around to look Reiji in the eyes. He was bent over slightly, but he still stood well above where she still sat on the bed. The implication of their obvious power difference was clear, and he knew she was smart enough to understand its meaning without him having to explain it to her. She swallowed harder than she meant to,
"When I address you, Masumi-san," Reiji said, his voice low and soft, "I expect a prompt, verbal reply. Do you understand?" he asked, giving Masumi what she knew to be a very rare second chance.
"Yes, Reiji-san, I understand," she said softly, trying to avert her eyes, though she could not move her head. Reiji held her there for a moment longer, as if to let his lesson hang in the air, then released her swiftly. He looked her up and down with a contemptuous look and gestured to his desk chair, where a fresh uniform waited for her. He didn't have to say anything.
Masumi rose quickly and took the clothes off the chair, hesitating only momentarily before unbuttoning what was left of the dress shirt she'd slept in and letting it slide down her body, falling in a heap and her feet. She chanced just one look over her shoulder as she turned her back to the vampire prince, but she saw his eyes, glowing, fixed on the red marks which criss-crossed her back and thighs. He had paused, one end of his glasses clenched between his sharp teeth, halfway to his face. Masumi turned back around and dressed as quickly as she could. As she tied her second shoelace, Reiji shut his lab notebook (which he had been studying while she prepared) and opened his bedroom door, leaving first and telling her to find a seat in the car in exactly ten minutes.
Halfway down the hallway, Laito and Kimi stumbled out of their room; Kimi was trying to fight Laito off long enough to finish buttoning her clothes, and Laito was... well, being Laito. Intending to move around the couple, Masumi tried to squeeze by them along the banister, but in doing so, her skirt got trapped on a little splinter in one of the bars and she had to stop to work herself free. While she was in the process of this, a voice behind her remarked,
"~Nfu, are those marks on your thighs from Reiji's whips? What a naughty Bitch-chan you must have been... Still, that shade of red, the way they cross over each other like spiderwebs... ahh, it's so sexy I can't help myself, ~nfu." Masumi's eyes widened as cold hands encircled her waist and spun her around hard enough for her to stumbble backwards until she hit the opposite wall. It, of course, didn't hurt, but the surprise kept Masumi immobile long enough for Laito to cage her in with his body.
Laito licked his lips and glanced down at the side of her thighs, reaching down to finger the hem of her skirt. His green eyes sparkled as he said,
"Bitch-chan, did you know? A woman's thighs are the best place to drink from... So soft, so sensitive... And my bite looks so good there, marking you... ~nfu" Laito's hand slipped under her skirt and his cold fingers stroked up and down the outside of her thigh. He leaned in close. "Would you like me to show you?"
Masumi didn't know what was happening to her body. A sudden rush of fear, of anger, ran through her blood and she screwed her eyes shut. No, I don't want this. I don't want his hands touching me. I don't want his bite; I only want- That thought stopped her dead, and her eyes popped open. Was I going to say... Reiji's bite?
Laito's fangs were nearly on her skin. He was now kneeling, with Masumi's leg lifted in his arms. An annoyed "Oh, really!" saved Masumi from the triplet's perverted thirst.
"Laito-kun! Leave the poor girl alone. I'm your mate, for heaven's sake, show a little self-control!" Kimi came stomping up to Masumi and Laito and grabbed the vampire prince by the arm (the one holding up Masumi's leg), tugging him up and away. She'd managed to button her clothing and had obviously run back inside their room to run a brush through her previously "just-fucked" looking hair.
Laito whined. "But Neko-chan, look, she's got those lash marks I love so much all over her thighs! You haven't had any lash marks in a while," he pouted. Kimi blushed but didn't stop scolding her wandering mate. "Whose fault is that? I've got nothing against a few lash marks every once in a while, but it's not like I can exactly mark them on myself," she shot back. That was a mistake. Laito's eyes began to glow and he pulled his fedora lower, wrapping one arm around his mate's waist and pulling her in close to his body.
"I can fix that, Neko-chan," he replied, his voice lower than Masumi had ever heard it. "I'll love you from head to toe." The couple apparated out of existence before Kimi (or Masumi) could say anything back. Masumi glanced to one side of herself and then the other, still sort of wondering if all of that had actually happened. But then the clock in the dining room struck the quarter of the hour and Masumi snapped out of it, rushing down the staircase and outside into the waiting limo, just before her ten minutes were up. Looks like I'm going without breakfast again today.
Reiji was already in a bad mood by the time they got to school. Laito and Kimi were ditching again, and Shu had irritated him further by falling asleep on the way, and refusing to go to his assigned classroom when they arrived, heading instead for the music room he commanded, dragging his popstar mate along with him. Masumi said nothing, stayed by Reiji's side as she was expected to, and simply waited to see how the day would play out with Suki.
She didn't have to wait long. Suki was sitting in the desk next to Reiji's again when the two walked into their English class. She lifted her lip in a sneer at Masumi when she thought Reiji's head was turned, and then reshaped her face into a bright smile as she greeted him:
"Good morning, Reiji-sama. I've taken the liberty of assigning myself to be your partner for today, since you haven't been getting reliable help from anyone else... I hope that's alright," she simpered, her voice dripping with false sweetness. Masumi rolled her eyes and took a seat behind the two vampires. But Reiji remained standing, his eyes hidden in the glare on his glasses.
"Do not believe you may make yourself familiar to me without my permission, Nakamura-san," he said, his fangs just peeking out from his pursed lips. He glanced down at Masumi in her newly acquired seat. "I believe your instructions were to stay by my side and assist me when I require it. Is that correct, Masumi-san?" he rebuked. Masumi knew it wasn't really aimed at her, so she hid her smile and inclined her head slightly. With a confused look on her face, Suki rose from the chair next to Reiji's, and Masumi assumed the vacated seat.
"As you wish, Reiji-san," Masumi said politely, resisting the urge to look over her shoulder at Suki for the rest of the period.
The day continued to play out in Masumi's favor, as Reiji chipped away at Suki's helpful, humble facade, one comment at a time. She handed him the wrong solution in their chemistry lab, "a mistake," Reiji sniffed, "no true scientist would make in such a simple experiment. Masumi-san, counteract the interaction." When she sat down again, Suki's face was the deepest shade of red Masumi had ever seen. She looked like a tomato about to burst under immense pressure. Then Reiji delivered the final blow.
It was just before their last class of the day, Political Science (a necessity for the wealthy, elite students who dominated the school) and one of the class officers had come up to Reiji to ask his opinion on the debate topic for the day: government involvement in big business. Pushing up his glasses, Reiji sighed as if tolerating childish questions from his classmates out of sheer benevolence.
"As you should know, a bill was recently passed (Masumi didn't miss the passive construction Reiji used, rather than naming his father, who authored the bill) which allows businesses above a certain taxation bracket to merge part of their assets with government holdings, effectively becoming state-endorsed companies and multiplying their power in the economic market exponentially. The problem with this bill," Reiji's eyes focused on Suki, "is that suddenly businesses who have no businesses competing on that level have been thrust into the limelight. As they will inevitably fail, from lack of experience and aptitude for the complex political renderings of state-endorsement, gaps in our economic market will open. Those businesses which have no business in the circuit of the elite will create problems only for themselves and the lower classes their products target and serve." There was a heavy silence in the room as all of the students looked back and forth from Reiji, the vampire prince and renowned genius, and Suki, the school beauty and up-and-coming socialite.
Reiji sealed the deal: "And certainly businesses who cannot hope to engage the government's interest in any way other than whoring out their daughters to important political figures will fall the furthest." Suki's fangs lengthened and her sharp hiss broke the tension.
"How DARE you? First you insult my father's company, which has worked exceptionally hard to get where it is, and has taken advantage of every step up the ladder it could manage, and then... and then you insinuate I have been attempting to seduce you for the sake of my father's business?!" Suki's chest heaved and her face was that deep shade of red again.
"Yes, I am attempting to verify the truth of this matter," Reiji said, his voice low as he readjusted his glasses (again). "My assistant brought my attention to you uncharacteristic behavior and made the connection to our current political happenings, but I find myself needing to confirm her hypothesis...If I understand you correctly, you intended to push your love upon me, whether I wanted it or not. And you thought that in doing so, you and your father would gain access to the upper echelons of our society, where you long to be."
Suki's silence spoke volumes. Reiji chuckled, surprising both Suki and Masumi, who had never heard him produce such a sound before. "I think I'll pass. I am simply not attracted to corrupt women with loose morals," he said darkly.
Dumbfounded, Suki said nothing, recoiling as if she'd been slapped. The school bell to signal the end of the period rang, and Reiji rose, nodding once at the instructor (who had apparently been wise enough to let the prince deal with this issue in lieu of proceeding with the scheduled lesson plan). "Masumi-san, I have need of you in my study this afternoon. Go straight there when we reach the mansion," he commanded her. With that, he strode out of the classroom, leaving Masumi to gather her things and presumably meet him at the car when she had finished gathering supplies for her homework. Suki's eyes held the promise of retaliation against Masumi, who had revealed her, so she hurried out after Reiji.
As requested, Masumi made a beeline for Reiji's lab, waiting for further instructions. But to her surprise, Reiji appeared not through the hallway-entrance, but through the secret entrance, which fed into his bedroom, already half undressed. He had shed his outer coat (which he rarely did in her presence) and loosened his tie, rolling up his sleeves and untucking his shirt, even. The full effect gave him a sort of bad-boy-genius vibe which Masumi found herself very attracted to. She swallowed thickly as he approached her.
"R-Reiji-san, I'm surprised to see you like this. I thought you required perfection in everything? Is this state of dress appropriate for-" he cut her off by gripping her hair and yanking her backwards off balance. His other hand captured the hand she threw up instinctively as she fell, as if to catch herself on something. Suspended in a half-dip, Masumi's wide eyes met Reiji's, and she suddenly realized he wasn't wearing his glasses, and that his eyes were... Such a striking shade of red...
"What a bothersome woman you are," he said softly, his fingers tangled in her hair, his grasp of her wrist the only thing really keeping her aloft. "I wish you would stop making work for me. Unlike other people, I don't have time to enjoy myself... Still, I'm in the mood for a sip of your blood." Reiji's smile exposed his fangs and Masumi became painfully aware of how this position exposed the smooth column of her throat, punctuated only by the bruises Reiji had left there previously. "This is a reward for your decent work today," he whispered.
"N-no, Reiji-san, please, I don't-" she tried to struggle, to persuade him otherwise, to do something, really, she did. It was just that her body didn't want to listen to her. In fact she felt her heart speed up as Reiji's face drew closer to hers, then lower, until she could feel his warm breath against her skin.
Masumi cried out as Reiji's fangs pierced her flesh once more. This feeling... I should hate it. I should struggle, run away, maybe... But I-I don't want to. Masumi's eyes filled with tears. Yes, each pull of blood from the wound caused her pain, but for that she was almost grateful. But the realization that she was falling for this moody, sadistic, arrogant vampire...That was nearly unbearable.
Reiji's hand loosened in her hair and slid down until his arm was wrapped around her waist. He pushed her backwards until her back hit the edge of the lab table, cradling her now, the hand that had grasped her wrist so tightly letting it go, too, in favor of resting on her upper thigh, just under the hem of her skirt. Over the bruises and scrapes he left on my skin, Masumi gasped as his cold skin pressed against the warmth of hers.
Reiji made a deep, throaty sound, which hummed against Masumi's skin where his lips were sealed over his bite.
"Ahhh... such fine quality, not to be wasted on lesser vampires..." he whispered, lifting his face above hers, briefly, his fangs coated in her blood and a faint tint in his cheeks. With a start, Masumi realized that sound had been a... moan. Reiji had tasted her blood and... moaned. A deep blush spread from her cheeks down to her chest.
Reiji smiled again and continued, "There is just no help for it. I shall treat you to strict training, so you will become deserving of my attention."
No...No, this isn't what I want, I can't want... him. This. I don't- A strange, higher-pitched moan filled the space between them, and it took a moment for Masumi to realize it had come from her.
Fuck. It can't... It shouldn't feel this good, but... Trying to put some distance between them so she could think, Masumi reached behind her to push against the countertop. Maybe if she had enough leverage, she could make enough space between the table and Reiji's body to escape somehow. But when she leaned back onto her hands, she put her full weight down on several test tubes that had been lying out. They shattered. Yet between her own interior dialogue, and Reiji's attention, Masumi didn't notice the cracking of glass, and she certainly couldn't see the shards slicing into her palms.
But Reiji did. Lifting his head, he pulled Masumi upright suddenly, leaving her a bit dizzy and lightheaded (both from blood loss and sudden movement). With one hand he gripped her wrist and brought it around to face him, palm up. It was the first moment Masumi realized she'd been injured, and she stared at the glass shards protruding from her skin, watching the blood, her blood, drip down onto the carpet.
"You didn't feel the glass break?" Reiji asked, breaking Masumi out of her own thoughts. She started to shake her head, then remembered Reiji's earlier warning about verbal answers, so she cleared her throat delicately.
"No, Reiji-san," she replied softly. He was silent for a long moment, his eyes narrowed on her face. Then he dropped her wrist and turned, heading back into his bedroom and through it into his private bathroom.
"Follow me," he commanded. There really wasn't much choice, so Masumi did as she was told. After flipping on the lights, Reiji lifted her by the waist easily and sat her on the bathroom countertop, brandishing a pair of tweezers. He pulled a spare pair of glasses out of a drawer and went to work, quietly picking little slivers of glass out of the bloody mess his assistant's hands had become.
"Aside from the fact that your own clumsiness caused this mess, it will cause chaos in my lab if my assistant does not have sensation in her hands. You will inevitably break something, or drop something, or incorrectly conduct an experiment because you cannot judge properly with your natural senses, and I cannot have you ruin years of work. When did this start?" Reiji finally asked.
Masumi shook her head, "I can feel things... Like heat or weight, but I haven't been able to... to feel pain for a while now. It's been getting worse and worse since yesterday, though. The rate at which I'm losing that sensation has... accelerated," she said quietly. "I'm not sure exactly when it started, but it was definitely after I came to live here. Before this, all I knew was pain."
Reiji plucked the last piece of glass from her hand and told her to run them under water to clean them off. Then he disinfected them and bandaged them carefully.
"A proper young lady should not have ugly, scarred hands. Remember that I have no use for imperfect things," Reiji said finally, looking into Masumi's eyes. She nodded. "I would suggest you heal quickly," Reiji finished, turning and leaving her there. Masumi watched his back as he retreated into his lab and shut the door.
Softly, she whispered, "The only pain left for me comes from your bites... and this aching heart."
A/N #2: So someone pointed out that the last chapter sort of tied Masumi's lack of pain to her increasing affection for Reiji, which wasn't my intention. I hope this chapter has cleared that up some, and I'll continue to reveal more about Masumi's issue as the plot continues. Just know that although she began to realize these two things at around the same time, they aren't contingent on each other.