He sat crossed legged in the middle of the floor, his hands clutching the fronts of his sneakers - Vans - cute ones. Black with white stitching. A white V. Reminicent of Converse, but low-tops, and fashioned for skateboarding, though Zev did none of that. Too lazy, or just disinterested. He liked the way they looked though, and didn't see any reason why he had to lie about conforming to some level of fashion to be able to wear something he liked.

But, he refused to have his back up against any walls or coverings in this place, spruced up as it may be, he knew what may or may not lurk in here, and he was already feeling unwelcome. He was wary of other vampires as he sauntered inside, found the closest empty comparted room and settled down to patiently wait. It was nearing 2 AM, and he was restless - as usual. But besides the fact that he felt he did not belong here - this place of all places, this musky, murky assortment of quarters. It reeked of other vampires. It reeked of uncertainty, and he could never sleep with that discomfort in mind. He also was waiting for a boy, for reasons he had only to keep to himself, and would only share if he knew they would lead to what he wanted. His goal. A goal he was disheartened on, but was too enthralled with to give up on entirely.

He rocked slightly, a habit he had since he was a little boy. Comforted him in the way a mother rocking a baby on a rocking chair comforted the child.

Could have lulled himself to sleep if he only felt he could trust this place.

He did not know what he would say when he got here, if he got here, for all he knew this was a night he had Celeste and would not be showing up at the Church. He'd be stuck alone in this unknown territory until the next night, provided he waited until daylight.

Light bothered him. Considerably. But he could stand it - long enough to find somewhere more comfortable to sleep. Somewhere dark. Somewhere dry.

Somewhere not here. At least not alone here.

It was a Tuesday. On most days, he would be responsible for Celeste, but after the argument he and Stephen had had, they compromised. Colton would take her for some weekends. He had her for that past weekend, and she went to be with Stephen for Tuesday and Wednesday. He had the night off on a night he didn't usually clock into Ace High. Where did he go when he didn't have work or Celeste?

The church was dirty again. How many weeks had it been since he had been there? Colton shut the big, heavy door to the front of the church behind him. He was dressed in his typical attire; a suit and tie, black Converse hightop silently falling with every foot fall on the stone floor. Colton glanced around, taking note of a new broken window. God damn teenagers; they were ruining his church. His church.

Colton didn't want to go home tonight. He didn't want to go to the office. Home reminded him of being alone. Office reminded him of Clementine. The coven's catacombs were the only place he could safely get away from everything.

Colton clunked down the stairs to the catacombs, not bothering to be silent. Typically there was no one here. Typically, no one came into the church. It was a mockery; Colton knew what vampires said about him. He was weak. He was too young. It was true, sure, but it wasn't like anyone was offering to take over for him. Nope, they all knew the rules as well as he did. Respect the leader. Hah. They didn't respect him behind his back.

Maybe he could revise that rule...

Colton opened his door nearly jumping back at the sight of Zev sitting on the floor. "JESUS, ZEV," he said, taking a deep breath. "You scared the... What the hell are you doing here?"

Zev awoke from his daze at the entrance of Colton, his eyes widening in an instant. He staggered up to his feet and attempted to look as natural as possible. His hair was messed, his clothes were slightly wrinkled. But just around his ass. It looked like he'd been sitting for a while.

"Uh, sitting - standing! Slightly to the left... feet tilted at an axis... hands kind of... at my sideish. Breathing... very quickly. Blinking occasionally." His words somehow did not match his emotions or the look on his face. It seemed out of place. He seemed out of place. His clothes were dark, they blended into the suroundings, the wals, the ground, the air. Or lack of it.

"Actually. I came to see you. I was just... wondering how you were. How Celeste was and stuff. How things were... going." He cut himself off before his words became reptitive, and they were already borderline on that. He did a little movement of balancing up on his tiptoes and then back flat on his feet, a nervous, impatient, movement.

Colton looked over Zev with an expression of confusion and pity. How long had he been here? In the dark? Colton liked the dark, but he was aware that not everyone liked the dark the catacombs had to offer. Pitch black; Colton wouldn't be able to see Zev's wrinkled clothing or messed up hair. You could hardly tell that his tie was red and yellow striped. Everything seemed to be darkened to a monochromatic scheme once you took the descent into the catacombs.

"You've got a screw loose, kid," he said, stepping inside his room. His room. How Zev had been able to pick his room out of all the others was beyond him.

Colton's room was amazingly simple. One bed, one mostly-empty closet. One desk that held only dust. The floor was bare. The walls were a bleak grey (Well, they could be any colour, but in the lack of light, their grey) and devoid of everything; pictures, posters, even a simple clock.

The only object in the room that had any sort of personal touch was the bedside table, one which there were small pictures in frames. One picture lay face down, hiding the image inside from view. The rest were of Celeste and Codi and his parents. The only family he had.

"Everything's fine, Zev..." He let the door creep shut behind him, not bothering to shove it closed. Zev'd be leaving soon, anyway. "Celeste's fine... She lost another tooth and got a haircut," he explained. "Nothing else."

Colton stood awkwardly, idley, by the wall closest to the desk. "How have you been?"

"It smells like you in here." He noted inspecifically, pulling himself onto his feet and looking around the room with an air of dissatisfaction. He walked a few steps, here and there, taking things in as if he hadn't cared to look at them when he first entered the room.

"I've been okay. I haven't been here so long. A few hours." He lied, shrugging and stuffing his pale hands into the pockets of his jeans, standing rigid, almost like a statue. "But, it was nice... to sit. I was... tired."

He looked to the left, down at the floor. He had wanted to eat before he came. Didn't want to waste time. Didn't want to be on edge. Wanted to be able to relax when he spoke to Colton. Didn't want his stomach to be rumbling in the middle of any conversations. Didn't want to feel awkward, alien, like he normally felt.

But he had failed to notice the cracks in the walls in the alleyway he had chased his lunch into, and the dirty grey field mouse he had been pursuing gladly slipped into the house of who-knows-who and away from it's stalker. He had been too discouraged to continue a chase, or even look for another. He would last. Though small, frequent meals were the order of his life - an order that prevented him from craving larger meals, larger meals that were usually only satiable by feeding from humans and likewise being unable to control yourself and hurting them - no, killing them.

He wouldn't be able to handle that. Harming someone.
It wasn't in his nature.

Or was it?
The nature of himself when he was human and that of which he is when he was changed into a vampire were two entirely different things. He felt the urge, he felt the pull, whenever he had an empty stomach and passed near a human. How easy it would be to pull them down, hold them, sink his...

He grimaced, thinking about it only made it worse. He wouldn't think about it. He couldn't.

"That's cute about Celeste." Celeste. Young. Weak. Soft... "Does she know about the Tooth Fairy?" He smiled. It was somehow sincere.

"Oh... I guess I've never noticed," he said, looking around the room briefly. It smelled like him. He didn't know what he smelled like. No one ever commented about him smelling badly, but no one ever walked up to him and told him he smelled fantastic, either. Colton folded his arms across his chest and avoided looking at Zev.

"Few hours is a long time," Colton said softly. "Especially to sit... Still." He glanced up at Zev, then around the room. He had fed that evening, avoiding his usual catch of a whore. Too much like Clementine, and that was too much of a shocker for him to want to deal with. He befriended a bum instead. Old man didn't have a chance. Luckily, Colton also didn't have the heart to drink much from the man, and they both lived through the experience. Thank God; another death on his hands might have thrown him into a depression that would have made all others seem like a child's crying fit.

"'Course she does... My parents would kill me if I hadn't done the Tooth Fairy thing." Nevermind the fact that Stephen thought that the Tooth Fairy was the stupidest thing he had ever heard and told her otherwise. Colton won out in the end; dollar bills had much more appeal than grumpy men.

"I wish these teeth would fall out." He said, bringing a finger up to point at his incisors, which seemed moist and sharp, even in the dim light. Damage was something he could cause, no dispute about it. If he was so inclined, he could rip someone to pieces. He had learned that the hard way, years ago, and he had no intention of repeating that performance.

"You look... good tonight." And he meant it, as his eyes slid along Colton's form. He looked altogether insanely appealing to him tonight. He wanted to touch him, feel him, kiss him - just have any sort of physical contact. He wanted to cling to his waist and never let him go, never let the oppourtunity pass.

He often wondered how two vampires... well, it was something that had crossed his mind frequently because he had never experienced it himself. Vampires being intimate, it seemed a far-off dream. Especially between boys - though he couldn't imagine why creatures such as them would not have the most fluid sexualities of all. They already seemed fantastic, perfect in front of dark and slimey exteriors. Even himself, even Colton, he had to remind himself. Colton was the thing about him that he despised, and embodied it perfectly, down to his pale skin and the attraction he felt for him that was almost overwhelming.

But then, he was this thing, too. So, why did he feel so human? He understood differences in vampires were as frequent as differences in human beings, but why so many disconnections between a singular species. Physical abilities, attributes - they seemed so absurd. Zev was capable of so little, and so many were capable of so much.

Zev was more human then most. He had a keen distaste for the dark, dirty, grimy world that the vampires seemed to cope with, embrace even, upon occasion. Closer to the surface then Zev may have thought before, was his longing for a family. A white house with a big yard and a labrador retriever. A tire swing. School. God, he missed school. Missed the montonous normality of it. Missed the comfort he felt in a daily schedule, floating in the hallways inbetween classes like a lethargic ghost. Missed taking notes and stressing over tests, instead of taking lives and stressing over the daylight.

He wondered, suddenly, if this was how transsexuals felt. Knowing you were a girl or a boy or whatever and being stuck in a body that could not possibly be your own. He was human, he felt it in his soul, felt it in his heart, but he had fangs and a intolerance for sunlight. And the hunger, God, it was always there - beating in the back of his throat, reminding him the time would come, again and again, where he would need to calm it. It was a constant. Something that would not be cured until he was killed.

If he was killed. His life would be a running circle unless someone took it in for him. That should have been a comfort, but it filled him with a sour-tasting terror.

Colton watched where Zev pointed and nodded slightly. He wished the same, but in a different sense. He wished he could go back in time, just four short years. Maybe Jake would be alive now, and Codi. Maybe she would be alive. Perhaps Celeste wouldn't exist, and that pained him. She was his life these days. Then again, if she did exist, she wouldn't be his. She'd be in Codi's care, and God knew how often he'd be able to see her then...

What pained Colton most about being a vampire was that the situation he had got himself into could have been entirely avoidable. He had been so selfish; wanted so desperately to move on from Jake that the first person who tried to care for him was now the girl of his affection. He fell for her, and then, bam. She was telling him about how it could never happen. Vampires, how she didn't want that for him. And he couldn't stand being shut down so easily. He was hot-headed. He was a young man with a point to make, and he let it all go to his head. He thought he was invincible, and then he wasn't. He was murdered for his stubborn actions.

Colton was saved; given a second chance. Why he deserved a second chance was beyond him, but he shaped up quickly. Would Zev be able to believe that Colton had been able to joke and play around and be human before his turning? That he could smile and laugh, like everyone else? That he had had the most outlandish dreams and fantasies? Would Zev be able to believe that Colton had once been so desperate for someone, anyone, that he was willing to forgive Hannah for killing Jake if she wouldn't leave him?

He wanted to fix everything. Not being a vampire would have at least given himself a chance to save Codi. Save himself from becoming such a pitiful example of a life form out there. Maybe he'd still smile and laugh and dream. Maybe.

Colton shrugged slightly. "I don't look any different than I normally do..." he said. He couldn't take a compliment, especially when said by someone who could possibly like him. Love him, even. It was a way of pushing people away. Keeping his distance. He wasn't going to be taken advantage of and left alone again. Never again.

His eyes almost danced. There was something cute about Colton's solemnity. Something dark and mysterious and outwardly sexy. He would have done anything, at that moment, to pin him to the ground and let the forcefulness he was occasionally so fond of take over. He could be rough with another vampire. Feel more natural.

"Do you mind that I'm here?" He asked, he smiled, raised his eyebrows, blinked a few times. "I was hoping I could... stay." He shrugged, looked down again, completely bashful and embarrassed. His voice was so high, so young, almost feminine. He could control that to a point, but when he was feeling emotional... it was very evident that he had not progressed far in puberty, indeed, time had not been kind to his appearance. Too smooth, too short, too skinny, not enough muscle. Child.

He looked at Colton's bed, then at the floor next to it. Let his eyes drift across the room to the other side. He would never expect Colton to let him sleep with him, even if he did let him stay in his room. He would take the floor, no questions asked. On the other side of the room. He was used to conditions more unfavorable to that.

Colton shrugged slightly. "I don't mind... Just unexpected, is all," he explained. Zev was a good kid. He didn't mind good company every once in a while, so long as topics stayed neutral (Or stayed focused on other parties and not on him) and he wasn't expected to add much to the conversations. Maybe that's why he did so well around gregarious people. He didn't have to say a thing, and everyone loved him for it.

Colton blanked slightly, and shrugged. "Uh... Sure... There are plenty of open rooms here... No one usually stays..." He obviously didn't catch Zev's drift at first. He glanced up, looking at Zev in a vaguely shocked sort of stare. Why Zev would want to stay in the catacombs...

And then Colton got it.

"Oh, HERE?" he said, looking slightly more shocked and confused. "Here, in my room?" He looked at the bed, then the floor, and shook his head slightly. He didn't know what to say. That he didn't have any extra blankets? No, he could get some from another room... Pillows too. That he didn't have the space? It was obvious that he had the space. The room was stark naked, save for the very basic furniture. He paused, shoulder slumping a bit in resignation. "I... I guess... I... Just... You have to take the floor..."

"It beats sleeping around homeless people." He grinned, paused, shrugged again. "I'll feel better in here. Safer. It means a lot to me." And he'd been sleeping near Colton, and that meant the world to him. To hear him... wait. No. But his prescence would be enough.

He crouched down onto the floor, put his back against the wall for the first time, and brought his knees up to his chest. Then, as an afterthought, grabbed at the ends of his t-shirt and lifted it up over his head, then flung it to the floor. Then looked at Colton and plucked it off the ground and folded it next to him.

"Er, sorry. Bad habit. I'm a slob."

His chest was bare and pale. White like a ghost. He was shaped like a stick, straight down, no form or muscles. His stomach was flat and curled into itself when he sat down.

Colton looked concerned for a moment. "You live on the street?" he asked, almost shocked to think that Zev could live like that. "Why would you live out on the streets? You... You should join a coven and room with them, or something..." he said, sounding sincerely concerned. That worried him. Bad things could happen out on the streets.

Colton watched Zev strip with a blank expression. He was almost mortified; he didn't expect to see anyone half naked ever again, let alone so soon after the Clementine incident. He bowed his head and looked away, walking towards his bed and sitting on the corner. He didn't face Zev. He avoided looking at him.

"Me too," he said softly. He was a slob as well. Wasn't going to rip off his clothes to demonstrate, per say, so Zev would just have to take his word for it. Colton did slip off his shoes and kicked them aside, lazily aiming for the closet. Clunk, clunk, and then silence.

He looked down. "I don't like being around vampires. And I don't like being around humans. I- I mean, I don't ... dislike... people. I just don't like... the temptation. The pressure. I don't know. It's... I'm better by myself. But, you're different. I feel comfortable with you. You won't pressure me." He smiled at Colton, lifted his head up and for all the world looked like he was smiling at his best friend.

He tilted his head and looked up at Colton. "You don't gotta look away, I don't have anything different then you." He laughed - no, giggled.

He tossed his shirt back and forth in his hands, twisted it around his arms. He wasn't paying much attention to it, it was just... a nervous thing, an absentminded thing. Something to keep his hands busy so he didn't have to lay them at his side and feel awkward.

"Do you uh, have a blanket or something for me while I'm down here? I don't need it. But, if you do... that's cool, too."

Colton smiled smuggly for a second and glanced over his shoulder at Zev. "And now you understand why I like being alone." Colton looked back to the floor before him. Pressure. That was a good, general term to describe why Colton liked being alone. He could escape the pressure of people, relationships, drama, and the likes by being alone. And, of course, being alone meant he wouldn't pressure anyone else. Zev had a point. He wouldn't pressure Zev into anything, except perhaps putting his shirt back on.

Colton didn't respond to Zev's remark about him looking away. How could he tell the kid, who had been so adament about loving him, that he was done with seeing half naked people for a few years. Sex was scary. It made a silent sort of commitment in Colton's mind, and rushing into "commitments" was something Colton couldn't do. He was scared.

"I can get you a blanket... Just... Hold on," he said, standing and digging under the pillow of his bed for blue flannel pants and a white teeshirt. His pijamas. He walked to the door, and pulled it open. "Be right back..."

'Bout five minutes later, he returned, suit in a crumpled ball of clothing, blanket being dragged over his shoulder. He tossed the suit near the closet, blanket at Zev, and shut the door completely before trudging back it his bed.

He caught it, held it to himself for a few moments, and then laid back, struggled to get it around himself and flipped on his back with his arms behind his head. He smiled over at Colton, still squirming to wrap the blanket around himself. He couldn't ever sleep with it just laid over him. He liked being wrapped in the blanket. Ever since he was a child, when his mother would tuck him in at night. He'd tell her to tuck him in so he couldn't get out, and she would, making a game out of it, pushing the blanket all around him and then telling him to try and get her. And he'd try, but he couldn't. And they'd laugh, maybe follow it up with a book. He remembered his favorites. Three Billy Goats Gruff. Gingerbread Man. Pinocchio. He had a old, hardcover, weather-worn copy of 'Cinderella' that was read to him so often the cover had fallen off and they kept it together inbetween readings with a rubber-band.

He'd often fall asleep dreaming about evil stepsisters and pumpkins and balls and slippers.

His favorite book, though, was Chicken Little. Sometimes when his mother read to him, and he'd close his eyes, she'd put her hand on his head and take it off quickly, and when he'd look at her and ask her what it was, she'd tell him a piece of the sky had fallen and landed on his head.

He'd laugh at her and tell her that was impossible. He was quick to remind her that they were inside a house. And there was a roof over their heads.

He smiled at these thoughts, closed his eyes, curled up into fetal position and fell asleep. His chest rising and falling with each tired breath that escaped his lips.

Colton slid down into his bed, haphazardly throwing his blanket over him, just covering himself with the weight and warmth of it. He watched Zev for a few moments as the boy squirmed and wriggled into a small nest on the floor. He smiled lightly. Zev was like Celeste in a few ways. She liked being tucked in tightly.

Colton watched Zev whle the boy fell asleep, paternally wanting to know everything was all right before he tried to sleep himself. He rested his head against his pillow, breathing softly.

When he was a boy, Colton read Dr. Seuss books before he went to bed. His favourite was the Lorax, closely followed by Yurtle the Turtle and some tall tale about a moose who gave his antlers up to hundreds of other animals. In turn, he had kept all those books for Celeste's enjoyment, and he was imprinting his favouritism of the Lorax on his young niece, who always giggled at the fact that the Lorax grabbed himself by the seat of his pants to fly.

When Colton was sure of Zev's sleep, he allowed himself to roll over and fall asleep, staring at the wall to calm his thoughts. It didn't take long before Colton's breathing stopped all together, and he lay there silently.

Zev's eyes snapped open.

He could tell it was late morning, he had been asleep hours, and from the looks of it, Colton had been too. His eyes were shut tight, sleeping a fitful, human sleep. There was no air of solemnity around him that suggested the sort of sleep that he had seen dozens of vampires sleep during his existence. Did Colton dream? Zev did - but he didn't know if this was something that was alike in all vampires, or if it was merely something he did. It was what woke him up at a time he normally would not bother to be awake.

Dreams of past lovers and tragedys and fear and the unknown. Dreams where he was lost, cold - trapped somewhere without doors and a slow, inky sea of dark liquid underneath his feet that slithered and hissed like a layer of snakes. Dreams where he did not know where he was nor did he know who he was. There was nothing but fear - fear and uncertainty and panic.

The only thing Zev was grateful for was the fact that when his dreams got the most horrible, he began to realize he was dreaming, and could wake himself up. That did not, however, dimish the sweat and tears that covered his face upon awakening, or the sort of shivering heat he felt wrapped up in his blanket. He gripped his arms around his shoulders, his face blank, his eyes wide, his skin paler then it should have been. He breathed - hard, in short, shallow bursts of breath, and after a few moments of labored silence, pushed himself off of the ground and slowly crept over to where Colton was laying down - asleep.

There was no hesitation in his movement, he pulled himself on top of his bed, in front of Colton, and drew himself into a curled shape of shivering, whimpering mass of vampire. His eyes were squeezed tight. He did not know if he'd awoken Colton with his movements, and did not care. His mind was not there, all he could feel was the soft sheets against him and someone else's body against his own, reminding him he was not alone.

Colton had gotten to the comfortable point of his life where dreams did not exist. He didn't have flashbacks or fantasies or dreams anymore. It was a quick, silent, restful sleep. He had learned to block out the pain and the suffering and the pleasure and the wonder dreams could offer. He didn't want any of it, and typically, that meant he didn't have to have any of it. He could sleep in silence.

The most common dream Colton had was one through the eyes of him as a ghost. What would have been different if he had died. It always started with the meeting after his funeral. Of course, his death had been pronounced a suicide. Everyone knew how much pain he had been going through; all the people who turned out knew him through Jake. This was the second funeral in year for them.

His father never showed. Not once.

In the dream, everyone was unimportant, save Codi, Celeste, Maria, and his mother. The four girls were standing around in a circle, silent. Codi was holding Celeste, still a baby at the time, and Maria was sniffling lightly. Cynthia stood calm, shaking her head lightly.

Depending on the version of the dream, she'd call him weak, pathetic, and then leave, or perhaps she'd share anecdotes of a happy childhood. Once she had declared that her boy would never have killed himself, but typicially everyone there was unhappy with him, and he was standing there, looking around. His death would have saved so many of their lives. Why did he have to live on?

Tonight, his mind ran silent.

It was Celeste who usually crawled to him in the middle of the night, whimpering from bad dreams and scary thoughts that plagued her night times. Colton's instinct was what acted first, and he hugged the mass before him gently and kissed the top of Zev's head. "Shhh, Celeste..." he muttered.

Zev tensed a bit, as if something had thrust him back into reality.

He turned so that his head was no longer facing the side - he was trying to look at Colton. "Colton." He hissed, his eyes still wide, his chest still heaving. "Wake up." His voice was sharp and urgent, some leftover air of paranoia from his dreams.

His touch was comforting - more comforting then he'd ever thought it would be. And that realization was powerful. He felt tears sting his eyes, as if he was in the grip of something he had left behind a long time ago. It felt so real, so sincere, so perfect. He almost did not want Colton to awaken and see him. He doubted somehow that he would be as willing to hold him like this when he realized who it really was.

The feeling of his hands on his body almost made him squirm. It was surprisingly warm, but being shirtless, it tickled his skin and made what blonde, thin, unnoticable body hair he had stand on end.

Colton had safely fallen back asleep, cuddling Zev close. In his mind, he was lying in his bed, in his apartment, his niece scared and whimpering in his arms. He just had to be strong for her; she asked for nothing but a firm hug and the comfort of his breathing. It was a ritual that he could accomplish without having to do much else than this, and it no longer woke him from his sleep.

That's what further conversation is for.

Colton groggily shook his head. "Just five more... FUCK." Colton sprang back from where he had been lying, slamming up against the wall. He held himself up on one hand and on his knees, back to the wall, eyes wide and unblinking. Colt clasped a hand over his chest, taking a few deep breaths to calm his nerves. "You scared the SHIT out of me, Zev! Jesus," he whispered harshly.

He eyed Zev nervously. The kid looked just as terrified as he felt and didn't seem to mean anything by climbing into his bed. Colton didn't ease up, regardless of this realization. He just knelt there, watching him quietly.

When Colton yelled, Zev drew back as if he had been struck. He was so terrified it seemed as you could almost see his heart beating quickly beneath his chest. He grabbed a fistful of blankets and started to ease backwards, off of the bed.

"I'm sorry." He sputtered quickly, trying to find his balance. "I didn't mean to - I didn't do it to - it's not what you think." His mouth was drawn into a deep frown - his teeth clenched together, giving a nice view of his fangs slid over his bottom row of teeth.

Zev pulled himself backwards off of the bed and stumbled back a few feet before sitting back down on the ground - hard. His eyes flickered widly, as if he were searching for something to save him, as if he was searching for an excuse or some sort of explanation. Anything to prove he wasn't lying.

Colton watched Zev stumble off the edge of his bed and he flinched as the boy sat himself down on the floor with a painful sounding thud. Colton crawled to the edge of his bed on hands and knees, peering down at the kid. He was terrified.

"Shhhsh, Zev, it's ok..." Colton explained in a low whisper. "I know you didn't mean anything by it... I... Just didn't expect it to be you." His face was flushed slightly; embarrassed that he had confused Zev for Celeste. They weren't the same size, shape, smell... "It's ok," he repeated, trying to calm the boy from where he was.

He nodded, solemnly. His movements too slow, somehow - too precise.

Colton's voice soothed him somehow, the consistant shushing, calming him until his breathing slowed to close to normal and his shaking ceased to the occasionally deep shudder. He was hunched forward slightly, legs crossed, hands gripped his knees, head bent over - staring at the ground as if he were trying to regain some element of control.

His hair was draped over his eyes, making it difficult to see if they were open or closed, but some part of his deliberate movements suggested they were wide open.

Some part of him was aware at how hard the floor was, but he did not squirm, did not shift his weight. There was a sharp pain in his lower back that suggested he may have minorly bruised something in his semi-fall, but he knew, as always, that it would heal quickly. Even so, a quick rub to the bottom of his spine eased it to some extent.

Colton's breathing had fallen back to a normal, rhythmic pattern, and he no longer looked as frightened as he had been. His hair was a mess, and he didn't help that fact as he rubbed a hand through it. He watched Zev go through a calming ritual similar to one Colton had taken on when he was younger. Keep yourself close and block out everyone else. That's what Jake always said he did. Kept himself close and no one else could help.

Colton didn't know if Zev was as awake as Colton was, but the fright had sent all his nerves into awake mode. He wasn't going to be able to sleep again for a while. Zev looked like he was ready to sleep again, down on the floor. Colton shook his head lightly. Silly kid.

Colton climbed out of his bed and stood over Zev, sighing softly. "Up," he said softly, offering him a hand. "Off the floor. You can sleep on my bed... I'll take the floor."

"No." He said sharply, shaking his head as if he were trying to remove something from it. "I don't want to, I'm fine." He didn't even look up, there was somthing angry in his voice, something frustrated. His body was rigid and even while looking at the floor, it was clear to see his eyebrows were pulled together and he was frowning.

He looked up at Colton, and as he did, his expression changed from one of frustration to one of deep regret. "All I do is scare you and make you upset." He moaned, rubbing his elbows and arms with his hands as if he were freezing. "I like you and all I do is make you want to be further away from me."

Zev's face looked pained, as if plagued by a thousand memories and half forgotten feelings. His voice dropped to a low hush. "What's wrong with me? How come I have no trouble attracting the people that want to hurt me, but I can never get anybody nice to stay?"

Colton sighed more deeply this time, with a hint of frustration. "You're not fine. You're terrified. Don't lie to me," he said softly. His words weren't angry, but slightly pitying in tone. Colton let his hand drop back to his side. He watched Zev sternly, with a hint of concern in the frown on his face.

"Listen, Zev," Colton said, his tone slightly exasperated. "You can't decide what I like and don't like for me. I like you just fine. You startled me, nothing more," he stressed, trying hard to get Zev to move past that little incident. "And if I wanted you to be further away from me, then why would I even be standing here, trying to get you off the damn floor before you freeze?"

Colton shook his head lightly and knelt before Zev, no longer trying to get the boy to stand. "Nothing's wrong with you, Zev," he said, clasping his knee gently. "You're a good kid." His tone was sincere. He was trying to look Zev straight in the eye, his own golden eyes covered with a mesh of messy blonde hairs that needed a trim.

Zev leaned forward and grabbed Colton roughly around the waist, pulling himself into him and resting his head against Colton's chest as he squeezed weakly. For once realizing how much larger in stature Colton was compared to him. How much thicker and stronger feeling. Zev may have been a vampire longer, and he may be older, but there was an element to Colton that Zev would never gain. A body that fit his mind - that was something he'd long for for the rest of his existance and never get to experience. Trapped in the body of a child - a skinny, malnourished looking child that seemed to examplify less of a vampire and more of one of those children you saw being advertised on television. (For just 30 cents a day - the price of a cup of coffee - you can give this child hope!) His own insecurities didn't help. He knew he looked weak, and he knew his inner weaknesses only strengthened that look.

He buried his head deep against Colton, letting a few tears escape into his shirt. Allowing himself - for a few moments - to let go and release everything he had never had a chance to while he was alive. He was never given the chance to be a child. To be a teenager - angsty, emotional, hormone-ridden. He was thrust into problems from an early existence and turned into a vampire before he'd ever gotten the chance to sort things out properly. To forgive his parents. To forgive his past boyfriends. To forgive himself.

And yet Colton didn't care. He comforted him as if he were a small child - like Celeste. And for a moment, Colton's role was mixed up in Zev's mind. Was he the potential boyfriend? The father figure? The friend? He clutched him harder.

Colton was slightly shocked at first, jumping under Zev's hasty hug. Colton gently hugged him back, resting his chin on the top of Zev's head. "It's all right, Zev," he said softly, patiently. Colton could feel the hot tears burn against his skin, and he clung to Zev tighter. He needed to be strong for the boy. Needed to be comforting and supportive. "It's all gonna be all right," he whsipered, rubbing Zev's back softly. "Just let it out... I can guarantee you'll feel better... I'm here," he whispered, leaning his cheek against the side of Zev's face, keeping his lips near the boy's ears to whisper word of encouragement when the time came.

Colton knew what it was like to have the problems pile up. He knew how it felt to want to just sit and cry in someone's arms; he had been so used to that luxury when Jake and Codi had been alive. They were gone now. He was forced to keep all his problems buried deep in the back of his mind, and he avoided them like some people avoid scary movies and dark alleys and eating onions before a date... It was a small, trivial thing to him. Something he considered unimportant. Feeling the tears Zev was crying reminded him that conflicts were never trivial to the person experiencing them.

The thing was, Colton did care. He knew what it was like to be uncared for in times like this, and he knew what it was like to have someone there. Perhaps his role in Zev's mind should remain mixed. Perhaps he could be that boyfriend or that father figure later on, but for right now, a friend was all Zev needed, and that was all Colton had to be. A supportive friend who truly did care.

Slowly, Zev's cries tapered and all he was left with was heavy sobs and nose sniffling. He moved his head so the side of it was against Colton's chest and his face was no longer in his shirt. His grip softened from his chest to his waist and down to his hips until his hands were barely grabbing him at all.

"I just had a really bad dream. That's all." He whispered, almost whimpering, his voice very low and very soft and very strained. "I didn't want to be alone. I'm sorry I woke you up. I wasn't thinking." He brought his arm up and wiped his nose and face with his wrist. But looking up, his eyes were still red and puffy and his cheeks were speckled with tear drops and smears of salty water. He breathed in deeply, filling his lungs, feeling his chest expand, and held it for a moment, squeezing his eyelids shut, clenching his teeth. Then let it out, slowly, through his mouth, his lips parted very slightly.

His head felt heavy, too big for his body, and he leaned against Colton a bit harder, yawning and feeling his eyes water. Then blinking. Closing his eyes, opening them again, each time he did so feeling the length of time his vision was cut off becoming longer, until his eyes were closed indefinitely. He swallowed hard, and that was the last of his tears, though his breath was longer now - and deeper, it was still shaky, as if he were fighting off whatever was left from before.

Colton's grip loosened as Zev's did, but he still held the boy gently, not wanting to just up and leave him now. That wasn't supportive. That was hurtful. He kept rubbing Zev's back, up, down, up, down, gently, continuously.

"Don't apologize," he said softly. "There's no need to apologize." Colton gently rested his chin against the top of Zev's head again. He felt Zev's breathing through his chest and kept his own breathing light, calm, soft. He shut his own eyes, just breathing, massaging, and holding.

Colton glanced down at Zev when the boy yawned, smiling softly. He stopped rubbing his back and pulled back from Zev slightly, just enough to slip his arms under Zev's and attempt to stand. "C'mon, Zev. Get up," he said, tugging gently on Zev. While the kid was still half asleep, he dragged Zev to his feet and over to his bed, letting him drop down onto the mattress. Colton lifted Zev's feet and tucked them under the blankets, pulled the pillow back under Zev's head, and reached over him to grab and pull the blankets over him. He recalled what Zev had done earlier that evening and tucked him in, not tightly, but tight enough that it could be considered tucking.

Colton sat on the edge of the bed and pushed his hair back out of his face to stare down at Zev for a moment. Watch him fall asleep. Then he'd let himself get comfy on the floor.

Zev didn't struggle when Colton hoisted him onto the bed, didn't make a noise as he was being pulled safely under the blankets. He was aware of a dull thudding in his head, and that was all. Some distant throbbing in the back of his eyeballs, some sort of swollen ache on his face, near his eyes, under his nose, inside his forehead.

He opened his eyes meekly as Colton sat watching down on him, felt himself lick his lips a bit to moisten them up to speak, but did no such thing. Just laid back and stared right back at him, only able to open his eyes halfway before feeling the familiar burning sensation under his eyelids.

He grabbed Colton's wrist, tighter then he should have been able to, and brought it close to his face, close to his mouth. Kissed it without looking up at him, and then tried to tug him closer. Tried to tug him down. Tried to draw him away from the edge of the bed and nearer to him, nearer to his side, anywhere but the floor, anywhere but away from him. He knew he would leave his side once he had fallen asleep, and that thought frightened him more than anything else at the moment.

Colton watched Zev silently. How many nights had he sat up like this with Celeste, watching her sleep after she had woken him up from a nightmare? Countless. And countless times, he had just let her snuggle into his arms and sleep. This was different. He was too afraid to hold him, but he felt the need to protect him. And he couldn't. You couldn't protect anyone from their own nightmares.

Colton didn't fight Zev. He let him kiss his wrist and tug on his arm. Colt leaned over Zev, bracing himself up on one hand. He searched Zev's face for something. An answer? A solution? A reassuring anything? He smiled softly, perhaps finding what he had been looking for. Maybe he was just coming to terms with himself. This was all okay. He could comfort someone without having to feel guilt for it. He didn't need to protect anyone. Perhaps this was enough. Being there; that was enough.

Colton climbed over Zev and sat beside him, still not giving into lying down beside him. "I won't leave, Zev. I promise," he said, trying to comfort Zev's apparent fear. He rested the hand Zev had been tugging on his shoulder, gently squeezing it. "Just go back to sleep."

"I wish I would have met you a long time ago." He whispered, flattening his back against the mattress, only allowing his head to be proped up slightly. He felt his shoulder flex slightly under Colton's touch, a reaction perhaps to the pressure of his squeezing, which was comforting and intruging at the same time.

He stretched his neck and turned his head to the side to face where Colton was sitting, for a moment being comforted by the sound of his own breathing, which had become steady. It had gained a balance between exhaling and inhaling and he felt both that and the contractions of Colton's hand on him lulling him to sleep. His eyes flickered, almost fighting sleep, not wanting to break his gaze from Colton's face, but eventually exhaustion won and he let out a long sigh before letting it engulf him completely for the day.

Colton smiled softly and nodded. "Might have been nice," he said, his voice soft and low. Soothing. Trying to lull Zev to sleep. He watched the boy's chest rise and fall, watched it slow down to a lenghty rythmic pattern that signified sleep once again. Colton removed his hand from Zev's shoulder and shifted to sit cross legged beside him. He leaned his back against the wall and shut his eyes, remaining awake, listening to Zev's breathing.

After a fifteen minutes, Colton was nodding off, slumping forward and catching himself before he fell over. It was a pattern that continued for nearly an hour before Colton gave up. He laid down and curled up nearer to the wall than to Zev, respecting any personal boundries that either he or Zev had in place. It didn't take long before Colton fell silent as well, comfortably allowing himself to sleep.

Zev grappled with his sheets, pulling them down to his shoulders, back over his neck, down to his waist, over his head. After a couple hours of unsettled sleep, he opened his eyes, groggily, and looked over to where Colton was laying, fast asleep. He had never had such a difficult time staying asleep. Perhaps it was Colton's prescence that made him restless and nervous.

He pulled himself backwards to lean on his elbows and watched him for a while, until his vision was clearer and he could honestly say he was wide awake again. He was in such a position. If he was respectful, he would turn over and leave Colton alone. Respect his wishes, show him that he was a responsible and respectful friend. A friend that was no pushy, no matter how much every instinct in his body told him to go forward.

He scooted closer to Colton, and before he could tell himself not to, spooned up against him and put his arm around his arm and chest, pulling himself tight against him so they almost molded together, then snuggled his chin against his shoulder. He calmed again, but did not sleep. He kissed his cheek, stared at the wall, and let his breathing subconciously adapt to Colton's until they were on the same rhythm.

Colton hadn't clibed under the sheets, and, as consquence, he wasn't feeling as comforted as he usually did. Back at his apartment, he had three blankets on his bed. None were for warmth; they were for weight. Colton liked the heavy feeling. Without blankets, Colton's sleep was slightly more restless.

Through Zev's constant thrashing, Colton woke up only once. That once gave him a quick minute to steal away some of the blankets, and he was able to fall asleep more easily. There was a comfort in blankets.

Zev was warmer than Colton, and the warmth was what cause Colton to wake. He didn't move, but lay staring blankly at the wall. Zev was holding him. Zev had kissed him. Colton stopped breathing all together, breaking the rhythm Zev had been going for. He lay silently for a moment, caught in indecision.

If he was fine alone, like he declared he was, he would have shaken Zev off. He would have told the boy to leave. There were fifty rooms in the catacombs; Zev could sleep elsewhere. He'd have been forceful. He'd have been stern.

Colton grabbed Zev's hand in his own and pulled the boy's arm tight around him, like how some children pull blankets tight around their cold little bodies. A blanket was warmth. Comfort. Zev had just become Colton's blanket, and Colt snuggled close.

He couldn't hold back his smile.

"This is cute. We should be on a calender." He hoisted himself up so he was draped over Colton's torso, half on one side, half on the other, on his stomach, turned slightly to look Colton in the eye, pulling Colton's grip off of his arm, but he grabbed it himself, inbetween both of his hands, and didn't let go.

His eyes were bright and alert, not wide with fear and not half-closed with the influence of sleep. He seemed as awake as he could ever be, and for the first time that day, seemed like his mind was clear of any incertainties or fears he had been having.

He brought his hand up to his mouth, holding it tightly, trying to warm it up, trying to fight the cold he felt from Colton. Kissed it again, for the second time that night, more forceful then before, and felt the skin on top of Colton's hand come in contact with one of his fangs, unwillingly puncturing it a bit before Zev had a chance to realize his mistake. He breathed in sharply, a 'sccth' sound that signified the thought of it being painful for him, then kissed it, for the third time, keeping his mouth on it, covering up the small puncture.

Colton laughed slightly, rolling over onto his back. "I don't know where you get your calendars..." he said softly, and left it at that. His eyes were half open, blinking lathargicly. He wasn't completely awake yet, and he made that apparent with a yawn.

He was feeling a mixed sense of relief and disappointment. Zev had broken the contact. Colton released his arm and let Zev bring it up to his lips and kiss it. Colton's hand tensed as Zev's fang pricked it. He groaned softly and forced himself to sit up slightly, supporting himself on his elbow. "That hurt, Zev..." he said softly, not really scolding him, but slightly curt in tone. It stung. Then again, it healed quickly under the boy's lips.

Colton pulled his hand away and looked it over, the small puncture gone. He glanced back to Zev and shrugged lightly. "Perks of being a vampire," he said, a slight smile on his face. He locked eyes with Zev, his expression one of quiet confusion. He was uncertain of what he wanted. He held back from any form of action, well aware that this whole situation rested on his shoulders.

"Zev, why me," Colton said softly, seriously. "Of all the men out there... Why me?"

He shifted his weight and climbed over Colton, straddling his stomach, yet not quite sitting on it. He leaned forward, crossing his arms in front of him and putting them down on Colton's chest, leaning his head on the backs of his hands.

"I used to ask myself that all the time." He replied, in a hushed tone, not so much because he was shy but more because the air seemed so quiet and serene, it would seem appropriate to speak loudly. "I'd always find the worst sort of people and I'd wonder why I attracted them." He pushed upwards a bit, finding it difficult to breathe with his body laid flat against his. "You know what I mean?"

Something felt so right then, something felt okay about the way they were talking. Unlike it had been before. Like they were both comfortable - with everything. There was no strained emotions, no hurt feelings. He had no doubt they would return sometime, but for now... he was okay.

"I think... for you, it's... something I can't describe. You're nothing like me, I think, but I'm nothing like you. I feel like you fill in something I'm missing. Like I've been looking for you for a long time because I've felt so empty." He paused, as if deep in thought. "You ever see those necklaces? There are two of them, and each one has one half of a broken heart, and when you put them together, they make a whole one? That's sort of how you make me feel." His cheeks were slightly red, flushed up with whatever blood he had consumed the previous night.

Colton fell back against the bed, both unable and unwilling to hold Zev's weight from his stance on elbows. He folded his hands behind his head and looked up at Zev with a serious expression, eyes still blinking slowly, hidden behind their lashes.

"I don't know what you mean," he said softly, keeping with the serenity of the conversation. "I always find that I attract nice people... And then the difficulty comes when I have to push them away," he said. He was going to have to push Zev away too. Not now, but later. Now he was just too comfortable to try pushing away someone he cared deeply for.

The feeling was mutual. This was okay. Something was right here. For this quick moment in time, Colton wasn't pushing. He wasn't fearful. Those emotions would hit him hard in a few minutes, but for right now, everything was ok. Colton gently wrapped his arms around Zev's back.

Colton chuckled slightly at Zev's analogy and sighed. "So you think I have something to offer you," he mused, "other than the heartbreak you're going to feel when you realize how wrong I am for you?" There was a hint of remorse in his voice.