They sat in comfortable silence, the only noise heard was Kirya typing on the keyboard, and Damon occasionally moving a bit to find a better spot on the bed. Once again Kirya was a bit surprised at how good she felt in his company. She shot a quick glance over her shoulder.

He was watching her, but somehow he seemed like he was somewhere else completely. When she looked again a bit later, he hadn't moved yet.

Not stopping her typing she looked at him, unable to hide a small smile tugging at the sides of her mouth.

"You're staring."

"Huh?" He shook his head. "Sorry, guess I just spaced out for a minute." A soft smile of his own crossed his face, and Kirya couldn't help but let out an internal sigh. Damn he was handsome!

It was so seldom that he showed any genuine feelings. Of course he was smoking hot all the time. Even when he went all vampire and shit, he still looked like god. But right now... She didn't have words.

"Would you mind if I put on some music?" he was already on his feet studying her record collection, picking up one.

"No problem." At least he hadn't noticed her moment of... of what ever it had been.

A minute later Comfortably Numb with Pink Floyd started playing softly. Damon went back to the bed laying down again.

Kirya went back to her work, enjoying the soothing music.

She had no idea how long she had been engulfed in her computer when the record ended. She ignored it at first, expecting Damon to stay in charge of the music, but when the clicking noise of the needle going around and around didn't stop, she looked up.

What she saw surprised her more than she would have imagined. Damon lay relaxed on the bed, his arms crossed behind his head, against the bedpost. His eyes were closed, his breathing slow and deep. He seemed utterly relaxed and... asleep?

She rose, and tip-toed over to the record player. She quickly chose Quadrophenia, one of her favourites, and put it on, turning the volume slightly down. She poured herself another cup of coffee before returning to sit by the computer.

She didn't do anything, just sat there, occasionally sipping the warm liquid.

She had to talk to him. This thing they had, whatever it was... She had to find out more. Had to know exactly what had happened.

She remembered that weird effect he'd always had on her. She'd strived to gain his trust. She'd felt safe with him. She'd wanted to please him. She'd also been infuriated by him. No one could make her as angry as he could, or make her feel as small.

She rubbed her face.

All her emotions seemed to have doubled or tripled in strength lately. And all the thoughts made her head pound. The hangover hadn't lost it grip yet.

No more work today, she decided. If he can sleep, I can take a nap as well. It's not like we haven't shared a bed before. We are supposed to be adults after all.

And it's daytime, anyway... And stop that pathetic blabber!

Resolutely she shut down the computer, and walked over to the bed. She laid down next to him, sighing content with the softness.

She couldn't help but look at him, though. Taking him in. She had never seen him asleep before, she realized, and she wasn't really sleepy herself, just a bit worn out.

He was in the same clothes as yesterday. Of course he was one of those guys who's wardrobe apparently had a hundred of outfits in the same style. After hundreds years, you probably knew your own style pretty well. She recognized the print on the t-shirt, though. Had he been up all night? Now wonder he was tired then.

Kirya had never really figured out why vampires had to sleep at all, and the time had never really been right to ask the question.

She grabbed an unused pillow and put it under her head. Damon's eyelids shuddered slightly.

"You want to talk." It was a statement, and he didn't open his eyes while speaking.

"It doesn't have to be right now."

He rolled over on his side untill he faced her, using one of his arms as a pillow, the other laid motionless. His blue eyes was now open and awake.

"It might as well be, unless you've decided you'll be better off not knowing?"

Kirya thought she could hear a slight trace of hope in his last words.

"I need to know."

"thought so." He smiled, but there was no happiness in the gesture. "Ask away."

She was suddenly at a loss of words. All the questions that had filled her head constantly the past days was completely gone. She blabbered out the first thing that entered her brain.

"Why do vampires need to sleep?"

He rose an eyebrow, an amused glint in his eyes.

"That was so not the first question I expected you to ask." She shrugged. She didn't want him to know how much his closeness affected her, and she really was curious.

"We don't really need as much as humans, but I guess it's one of the things that comes along with having a functioning body when you have been dead for decades. As long as we drink blood the body is still up and running, so you need sleep. And hell, I think I would go completely insane if I couldn't take a nap once in a while to get away from the world."

Kirya hadn't thought of it that way. She was silent for a bit. Then she snickered.

"So what you say, is that you fell asleep so you could avoid me?"

Damon huffed, trying to look offended, failing miserably because he burst out laughing.

"Well, even if you're a bit too dutiful for my taste, working at home and all, you are not that bad company."

"Oh thank god," Kirya joked.

"The truth is a bit dull, though. I didn't get any sleep last night, and your bed is surprisingly much nicer than my own, so... I fell asleep."

Faking terror Kirya stage-whispered: "Watch out. You almost sound human!"

"Human, you say?"

In a split second he was on top of her, sitting with a leg on each side of her, holding her wrists in an iron grip. He was carefull not to put too much weight down on her. Just enough to make sure she couldn't wriggle away.

She gasped in surprise.

"Really? Human?"

He leaned down, and she giggled. He let his face turn slightly, his eyes starting to go black.

"Alright. I take it back." She would have held up her hands in mock surrender, if he didn't still have them pinned down. All the spots where his body touched hers seemed on fire, and her heart had picked up its beat.

"That's better." He held still a minute, his eyes still slightly shadowed. As an after thought he added in a soft voice. "Mind if I take a sip?" Her heart leaped in anticipation, and she cursed her body for reacting so extremely.

"Only if you let me go," she tried to bargain.

He smirked. Kirya swore inside her head, he must have picked up on her heart rate. His next words confirmed her theory. He leaned close to her ear and whispered.

"Are you really sure that is what you want?" Damn vampire hearing!

steadying her voice she replied sternly. "Yes."

"And what makes you think that I care what you want? You can't stop me." He was teasing her, waiting for her to give a snarky reply. But she didn't. Instead she twisted her head untill she could whisper into his ear.

"I trust you."

"Maybe you shouldn't."

"I guess that's my problem."

For a second an almost angry glare whipped across his face. Then he bit down. He did it harder than he had to, and Kirya couldn't hold back a tiny gasp of surprise. It actually hurt a little as well, but she was mostly taken aback by his sudden temper.

He drank viciously for a couple of seconds, before he pulled back. He didn't let her go immediately. Probably wanting to prove his point.

Jerk.

Then, as quickly as he had jumped her, he was off her, but he didn't stay in the bed. He lept to the floor.

Kirya pulled herself into a sitting position. What had caused his sudden mood change? It couldn't be that she'd said she trusted him? She would have thought that was obvious, and not something to make him go crazy.

Why the hell else would she let a vampire, that had a reputation of being one of the most ruthless and unreliable in town, into her home?

But apparently it was exactly the thing that bothered him. His next words proved that.

"Don't make this into some little fairytale of yours. It's not. I'm a vampire and I crave your blood. You would be wise to remember that." His voice was cold and harsh. "You can't make me into something I'm not." With those words he flashed out of the door.

Kirya was left alone completely stunned. Change him? What the fuck!?

Angrily she jumped to her feet, and stomped over to the still open door.

"Fuck you! If that is what you think I'm doing, then you are the fucking idiot!" she yelled into the street, earning weird glances from a guy walking his dog.

Damon was nowhere to be seen. She slammed the door shut.

She felt an urgent need to hit something. When she couldn't find anything she wouldn't miss if she broke it, she instead kicked her neatly lined shoes into a complete mess.

When she was exhausted she threw herself on the bed. A black leather jacket laid on the floor next to it.

Exasperated she picked it up. It was his of course. She sighed. It smelled like him.

Suddenly unable to keep her eyes open as much as a second longer, she fell asleep, still holding on to the jacket tightly.