flower power

Kayley clenched her jaw softly at the comment, breaking her eye contact with him for a moment. She wasn’t angry at the comment. She was angry that he kept pushing. She looked back at him, listening to him speak.She didn’t respond. She merely took in the words he spoke, letting him have his little rant. She could feel her anger building, but she would still never seriously injure him. Especially because of how badly he seemed to think he wanted it. The second he advanced on her however? She had had enough of his words. She truly believed he didn’t realise what he wanted. That he didn’t realise that it wouldn’t help. The blondes hand found his neck quickly, within seconds she had shoved him backwards, not even flinching when she heard the thud of his back hit the wall. Her hand held his neck as she looked at him “Satisfied?” she hissed “You want me to threaten to bite you?” she laughed bitterly “You want me to tell you that i’ll rip your fucking throat out” she growled once more, letting her nails slightly dig into the skin of his neck. You want pain levi?” she growled “This isn’t pain - this is far from fucking pain..” She stared at him, still refusing to break eye contact, keeping the boy pinned securely against the wall “You think i don’t know that we’re not friends?” she kinked her eyebrow “If you’re so sick of acting. Then stop fucking acting. Simple as that..” she shook her head “Stop fucking pretending” 

His chest moved with his deep huffs, his throat burning slightly from yelling. Never had he ever yelled like such, before. Well, not as angrily as this. In fact, he had never been this angry before and it wasn’t entirely fair that he was taking it out on Kayley either. Levi clenched his eyes shut as the blonde slammed him back against the wall. Maybe it was because he was weak that the bottom of his head took majority of the impact, dazing him for a couple of moments. He blinked sleepily, trying to get the image of Kayley to stop going in and out of focus. “I don’t want you to tell me,” he mumbled weakly. “I want you to do it.” As soon as the world started to realign in his vision, his anger seeped back into his being. “Does it look like I’m acting?” Levi half snarled, half choked out, finding it difficult to swallow. Suddenly, he felt a slimy wave of power - maybe - sweep over him. “Oh no,” he gargled out, trying to urge himself to stop whatever he was doing. When the dry spindles of sharp thorns and rose vines burst in through the nearest window, Levi clenched his eyes shut so hard, he could see black spots dance across his vision. Or maybe that was because of the grip Kayley had on him. “Not again,” he choked out. “Please make it stop. Kill me. I can’t make it stop!”

Levi was six and was in his second year of primary school. His class project was to grow a bean plant to contribute to a remedy to ‘fix’ the hole in the ozone layer and also to make New Zealand greener. He was as keen as a bean to do this project and followed all the instructions given to maintain his tiny plant.

Unfortunately, as it neared two weeks and everyone else’s bean plants had sprouted, Levi’s cup of dirt remained as a cup of dirt with no greenery in sight. This, nonetheless, made him upset. His teacher watched him carefully and nibbled her lip in thought, wondering what had gone wrong with his project. “Levi,” she called softly. “Come here.” He sniffled and walked towards her, rubbing his eyes. He looked up at her, his large hazel orbs glassy with newly formed tears. “Yes, Miss?” Levi answered, golden curls trembling softly as he tried to keep from crying. “What’s the matter?” she asked. “Why are you upset?” “Miss Cardew, my bean plant won’t grow!” Levi cried, covering his face. “Everyone’s plants grew except for mine! And it makes me sad!” The entire class looked at them. “Levi,” the teacher cooed softly, rubbing his back comfortingly. “That plant that you keep looking at isn’t yours,” she lied, motioning towards one of the couple of spare bean plants she had grown herself. “Your one is there.” Her young curly haired student’s eyes lightened up, giving her the chance to wipe away the remainder of his tears.  “Go and get a ruler and measure it.” Happily, he skipped off eagerly to measure it, recording the height and watering it afterwards. 

After four weeks, all the plants had grown a couple of beans and Miss Cardew had asked every single one of her students to pick off at least two of their beans so they could make a class chili. Everyone managed to do so.

Except for Levi.

As soon as his fingers brushed the leaves of his bean plant, it seemed as if death poured out of his fingertips and onto the new source of life, sucking up every bit of greenery and leaving behind a dry, wilted and dead stalk. Tears welled up in his eyes. “THIS PROJECT IS DUMB!!!” he screamed at the top of his lungs, throwing the polystyrene cup at the wall and watching as the dirt and dried up plant burst right before him. 

Stella wanted nothing more then to forget Levi ever being part of her life, or ever being present, or the memories he brought along, so she snapped her jaw shut, clenching it, keeping her eyes narrowed at him and letting out a cruel scoff. “The janitor?” He’d always had trouble with money, and whilst Stella wanted to help… “No. Not the help. A Siren. Didn’t you ever wonder how i seduced you all those years ago?” She half teased, her voice flat.

“Yes, the janitor,” he repeated almost harshly. “Did you want me to say it louder, Stella, so then the rest of the males in this place can hear?” Levi didn’t mean to answer like that, but he was still upset about what happened between them in the past. “A siren? No. I never wondered, simply because I was so stupid to think you were the type of girl who loved. No cheated,” he answered with such a sweet smile that hid bitterness. “For your own safety, keep your distance. Unless you have a kink for being strangled by rose vines.”

“Nobody stands up to me enough to question me” she retorted “Because they know better, better than you apparently” she muttered. When he groaned she rolled her eyes gently. Here he was begging for pain, pain he couldn’t handle and it made her frustrated, frustrated that he was so desperate for something so pointless. “Isn’t that what you wanted?” she hissed at him, Annoyed that he was trying to push her. “Do you not get it Levi?” she asked “You don’t want to get hurt. Don’t bullshit at me. You’re already hurt, you’re already wounded - i get that. Well guess what?! We all are. I’m in pain, I’m fucking wounded but i don’t sit here and let it consume me” she shook her head “So why are you standing here in front of me and trying to let yourself be swallowed whole?” she frowned “You can throw all the insults in the fucking world, you can give me attitude but know that i see through it all and i will not cave into your sick obsession with obliterating yourself” she hissed. Kayley could barely believe the words left her mouth. She was never one to give two shits about others, expecially not faes or humans, but there was something about this boy that reminded her of herself and she refused to let him fall victim to the same fate. 

“Well it seems that nobody here realises how much of a softie you really are,” Levi replied through gritted teeth. “So what if they know better than me? I honestly could care less about them.” He was worked up and everything he had bottled up was on the verge of spilling out. “Yes, I do want it. But not like this. I need more. Instead of gripping my wrist like that, why don’t you grab my neck?” he snarled. “Don’t tell me you’re suddenly all about that angel bullshit now and that you don’t hurt humans-- blah blah blah. Don’t make me throw up.” He snatched his arm back and instead of backing away from Kayley, he advanced on her - he definitely had a death wish. “I’m not wounded, Blondie!” he barked angrily. “Don’t think you know me. We’re not friends, OK? And look, I’m sorry you’re in pain but I secretly admire the fact that you can watch the world go on and crumble without wanting to jump into the deep side of things and disappear. I’m not you. I hate acting happy like all the fucking fae around here. I just want to feel what it’s like to hurt a lot physically. Is that too much to ask!?” He huffed harshly, wiping away madly at the tears that betrayed him. “So if you won’t give me what I want, I advise you to FUCK OFF!”

Cassidy couldn’t help but smile as the words spilled from his mouth. She agreed with every word, to the last syllable, her eyes didn’t leave his as he spoke back to her - it was strange, having someone set in the same ways as her. “Perfect.. _I have a needle and thread, if you ever need me to stitch it back together..” _she teased right back, though she was also serious with how she spoke, moving away from him. Her fingers combed through her hair as the conversation swayed back to cupcakes “Perfect, i like the way you think” she nodded “We could just frost them..” she nodded “Perfect frosting and shitty cupcakes - Perfect representation” she laughed “I knew there was a reason i liked you” she nodded. 

“Then that’s a deal,” he smiled softly, voice gentle. For a moment, he felt like Cassidy’s gaze was too strong and it resulted in him breaking eye contact. He stared down at his fingers for a while until the wave of sadness washed over him. Levi was a mess under his smiley demeanor, and preferred to keep everything hidden. It just made his life easier to give off the impression that his life was absolutely perfect and carefree. “That is probably the best thing I’ve heard since being here. So,” Levi grabbed her hand and tugged her to the nearest kitchen. “Let’s get baking.”

It wasn’t like Bennett to be rude with other people on purpose and although he had a reason for his emotions, he also knew he was taking it out on the wrong people. Hearing Levi’s voice, his body tensed slightly and he wiped his eyes rapidly, clearing his throat to ensure that he could speak properly. “I’m okay, I really am.” He tried although he knew his voice sounded watery. “I….I’ll let you in though…Just to uhm….Just so you don’t have to sit out there but you don’t have to make me feel better because, I’m…I’m just fine.” He tried, trying to place on a fake smile.

Levi smiled a sad smile as he heard Bennett reply, nodding as if the other male could see him through the wood of the door. Once granted entry into his room and went and sat beside Bennett, frowning when he saw him smile. The fake smile was his specialty, so he could tell when others were wearing it. “No, you’re not fine. But I’m not here to force you to smile genuinely. Are you hungry?”

Stella hadn’t seen the boy in so long that it literally took her a moment to recognise who it was. But when she did… She felt like the past was literally coming back to haunt her, and she took a step back, her confident facade fading for a second. “Levi? What the fuck are you doing here?”

He felt a small amount of satisfaction run through him when he saw recognition flood Stella’s features. At first, Levi was going to remain quiet, afraid that if he spoke, all the feelings he’d hidden would make him explode. But instead, he held his head high and cleared his throat. “I’m a janitor, here,” he answered. “What about you? Are you the help?” Bitterness was anywhere but present in his tone.

Kayley wouldn’t deny being taken aback by the sudden attitude, not that she should have been, she knew he liked to push, she gritted her teeth at his words. She looked back at the human still under her compulsion, taking his chin in her hand she looked him in the eyes “You can go, but the second you leave the ground - you will forget” she nodded before releasing her midnight snack. She turned her attention back to Levi seconds after, capturing his wrist, probably a little too hard in her grip and yanking him forwards “What the fuck is wrong with you?” she asked “Don’t be reckless. Do you not realise there are vampires a lot more dangerous than me? Vampires that would take you up on that offer? I’m not killing you. Even with a death wish” she shook her head, cursing herself for having a soft spot for him. “I’m not going to hurt you Levi” she made it clear. 

Levi narrowed his eyes, huffing when Kayley spoke and the human obeyed. “How did no one see you sneak livestock in here?” he asked bitterly, letting out a groan of pain when the blonde girl pulled him forwards by his wrist. “Ouch,” he grumbled, trying to pull his arm back into his territory, wincing at the pain that pinched at his wrist. “Kayley, you’re hurting me,” Levi said through gritted teeth, on the verge of whining. This was a new type of pain and unlike the other times where Levi had inflicted his own pain on himself, he felt this pain. And it hurt. A lot. It almost reminded the faeiry that he was human. “Do you not get it, Blondie? Maybe I want to get hurt. Don’t tell me your blonde hair makes you as stupid as the stereotype.” After her last sentence, he looked down in disappointment. “Why? Why not? What if I constantly give you attitude? Then will you hurt me?”

Cassidy laughed and nodded “Good to know i’m not alone in that” she admitted, a soft smile crossing her features. “Oh i’m not that naive” she shook her head “We’re destined to self destruct one day.” She nodded, capturing her bottom lip between her teeth, taking a moment to think about it, only looking back up when he leant into her, laughing in response to his offer “Heres the thing though Levi..” she smiled, this time? It was her turn to lean in close to him as she spoke, almost in a whisper “What if i like the pieces the world is falling into? What if it makes me feel just that little bit less fucked up” She pulled back combing her fingers gently through her hair and it was true. It did. It made her feel a little saner. “They do look the same” she pointed out. “I have no fucking clue” she laughed “But frankly i don’t care..” she smiled “I don’t have to eat them after all” she laughed “Hmm i like that idea..” she smiled over at him “Then they’ll be strangely covered too” 

“Self destruction is inevitable. It sometimes annoys me, however, that some people don’t even accept it,” Levi shrugged. He laughed quietly when she leaned in towards him, raising both brows when she spoke. Again, he lent towards her and held her gaze hostage with his own. “What if I told you that’s exactly how I feel with the shattering of the world? But hey, if you change your mind and decide that you want the world back together again, I have a glue stick. I’ll stick all the pieces back in their places.” Levi moved away and chewed his lip in thought. “True, but I don’t want our cupcakes to look like absolute shit. I want them to represent the majority of the human race; nice on the outside, but absolutely disgusting on the inside.”

“Well, i know it’s been a while but i guess i’m back in this shit hole. Who knew being too attractive could be a sin?”

Who knew nostalgia could smack one’s face so hard and stab a heart at the same time? Levi-- Levi knew. Because that’s exactly what was happening to him. He opened his mouth to speak, but resulted in closing it, his signature plastic smile etching over his lips.

Kayley had lured a boy back to Ivory Tower on her hunt - She was hungry and it was cold out. Luckily compulsion meant she didn’t have to drag him back. Walking through the hallways of ivory she collided with someone - stepping back “Can you watch where the fuck you’re going. Jesus” 

He was wandering about the corridors hopelessly without an exact destination, just wanting to ease his mind when he rounded the corner and hit into another wanderer. When Levi saw that it was Kayley, he scoffed. “Um, can you watch where you’re going, Blondie? Just because you can heal fast and shit, doesn’t mean all of us can. Fucking hell,” he complained, rubbing his forehead. “And you also have enhanced sight and hearing. You should have seen me coming. You sure you’re a vampire? You know what, just bite me and drain me. Do it.”