#touchofchatzy

It was still weird, not having a heartbeat to indicate just how nervous he was. Not that Reza needed one now to tell him that he was freaking out as he killed the engine of the motorcycle on the edge of Kalani house lot. Kind of reminiscent of the night he'd come over after the four month absence, hoping Noah would take him back. That time, he'd been somewhat optimistic about his chances. Now, he had now fucking clue. Noah had initiated this meeting himself but that didn't really have to mean anything. Maybe he just wanted to make sure that things were decent between them, or even set in stone just how finished their weird little relationship was. No matter the reason, Reza couldn't ignore the giant rock in his stomach that was the kiss shared with Eddie. As much as he wanted to just pin the whole thing on the drunk medium, he couldn't. He was very aware of the way he'd returned the kiss, and all of the conflicting reasons behind it, and each and everyone weighed heavy as he reached the door and knocked gingerly. With his nerves on high alert, he couldn't refrain from listening to what was going on inside the house, which thankfully gave the impression of being mostly quiet. Well, other than the tell-tale sign of dog claws skittering across the floor along with familiar footsteps, that albeit sounded much slower than Noah's usually fast paced step. Reza honestly and truly thought he'd been prepared for this situation (meaning as prepared as he ever could have been) but the unfamiliar smell that followed the door opening, along with the obvious bandaging on Noah's neck, threw every bit of menial preparation out the window. "Hey," he just managed to breathe out, for once not paying attention to the two dogs staying close to Noah's feet or even Noah himself -- but more so whatever was hiding underneath the bandage and tainting the air with an unfamiliar scent of blood. It definitely smelled like Noah but... different. Reza really should have had a cigarette before knocking, damn Noah's sensitive nose.

Sitting there underneath his nest of blankets and dogs, Noah was well aware of motorcycle as it came up the driveway, engine noise cutting through the sound of his wildly beating heart. And there were a lot of reasons to be nervous, but Noah didn’t have the brain power to go through them all at the moment, his sole focus was trying to get to the door without needing to sit down again. “Hi” Noah breathed out as he opened the door, his heart constricting in his chest. He knew it had only been a month but somehow he expected Reza to look wildly different. To have a weird haircut or another tattoo or just something to mark the change. But he didn’t. In fact Reza look exactly the same as the day the Slayer had interrupted them and set off this entire journey. It was Noah who had changed.  “Uh sorry about the” He waved towards the bandage on his neck. Cahill had insisted they put a new one on before Noah forced him to stop fretting and stay locked up in his damn room for the duration of this conversation. But he knew Reza could still smell it, and he knew that could be a huge problem for him. But hopefully Reza had eaten before coming. Damn he should have told him to eat before coming should he. Trying not to fret Noah left the door open for the other boy, head starting to feel a bit fuzzy from all the movement (well that and the lack of blood in his veins) “Um, but I’m going to go sit back down now,” Noah stated quietly, hoping Reza would get the jist and just follow him as he shuffled back to his safe space. “If you need a drink or something before this uh well you know where the kitchen is” He waved out before plopping himself back down into his nest of blankets on the living room couch, both dogs wedinging themselves somewhere within reach of Noah’s body.

Hearing Noah's voice was rough, reminding Reza of their last actual conversation like a ruthless slap to the face. Even more so, reminding him of what the last words spoke by the vampire were. They rattled around in his head now and there was no denying the truth behind them; even after an actual breakup and more than a month apart, Reza couldn't fucking deny it in the slightest. "That's fine. It's just good to see you." By some miracle, Reza managed to find his voice, weak as it was. What the hell had even happened to him? If it was relevant, Noah would most likely reveal it in time but Reza was jittery with the need to know now. To know how bad it was, if only to quell just how much he wanted to dote and worry and wrap his arms around the other boy for comfort; whether for Noah's or his own was debatable. "Of course, yeah. I'll just, uh..." Trailing off, Reza settled for closing the door behind him as Noah shuffled away, and kicked himself for feeling so flustered. Not that he didn't have every reason to, all things considered. It was a relief that the dogs and the mounds of blankets took up most of the couch Noah was on, not giving Reza the choice to even sit there since his desperation most likely would have jumped at the opportunity and dragged him over. Stunts like that didn't seem like the best course of action right now, especially since he had no idea where Noah stood on this whole thing. Sitting crosslegged on one of the smaller sofas opposite Noah, feeling extremely reminiscent of the night Charlie had accidentally outed the vampire as just that, Reza tried - and failed - to bite his tongue. "You already know I'm going to ask so... are you alright? You feel a bit weak and you probably didn't bring me over here to pry but I just... your heartbeat even sounds off. Which is a weird thing to note but here we are." Stop rambling and let him answer the question, dumbass.

Sitting there feeling the worry radiating off of Reza, Noah wasn’t surprised when the other boy spoke first, voicing concerns about his condition. And it was funny how if on cue his heart just melted, the complete and utter joy of actually having him in front of him after so many days without him mixed in with the pain and the longing of having to have gone without. But Noah knew he at least was a better man now because of it, and he wasn’t going to let the fact that he absolutely and utterly missed fucking Reza Burki get in the way of having a healthy conversation about the changes that had happened to him and the relationship dynamic since he left. So taking a deep breath Noah went for it, glad that Reza was sitting opposite him and not beside him. “ Well I’m not going to say I’m fine, because you obviously can tell I’m not in any way shape or form” Noah started softly hand absentmindedly going to the scruff of Kea’s neck, eyes avoiding Reza’s at all costs. “But um I-I wanted to tell you this first, before we even talk about well [i]us[/i] because I think it’s important for our communication. But uh” Noah paused for a second trying to figure out how to even put this into words. “I-I asked my Uncle to bite me,” He practically spat out, knowing he just needed to say it before out before he couldn’t anymore.“So uh yea that’s what this is.” Noah pointed to the bandage on his neck, hoping Reza would be able to put two and two together. “And um I’m sorry if it’s something that you don’t think you can handle going forward, but I just needed to do it for myself, and I wanted to make sure you knew,” He chanced a glance towards Reza, wondering what was going through his head as the words kept spilling out of his own mouth “And like I wanted to give you time to process if you needed to. And just let you know thats whats up with me right now and part of the reason why I think I was just. I was unhappy before. But uh I’m going to stop rambling now” Noah nodded. Waiting for Reza to say something.  

Reza couldn't help but think how much of a damn blessing these dogs were, as he tried and failed to come up with a situation where they hadn't helped tremendously. Whether it was in the way they were curling up with Noah now, helping Reza refrain from literally tacking the other boy and ruining everything right away, or every time they had been a focus point in difficult situations, just like now. Even though the vampire's fingers itched to have soft fur to focus on too, he wouldn't have taken either dog from Noah. Not with the timid way he was speaking, like it was definitely a two dog struggle. So Reza settled for fiddling with his rings as the words grew more and more tense until the bomb was finally dropped and his hands stilled. Noah's following ramble got lost in the white noise as Reza wrapped his head around that little tidbit of information. His eyes met Noah's quick but curious glance for a hot second, chest constricting. Not because Noah had taken a huge step, really, but more so because he cared. He cared about Reza's opinion and thoughts on this and- "Holy shit." Not very articulate but a start. "I mean... no, that's exactly what I mean, holy fucking shit, Noah. That's great! I'm, uh... assuming, since you asked him and he actually said yes, I obviously know squat about this werewolf stuff but... damn." Reigning in the little outburst, colored with all sorts of excitement, Reza cleared his throat. "So... yeah. I'm happy for you. Honestly." Fuck, he wanted to be closer to him right now, touch him or even just lean against the comforting warmth. "What happens now, then? You're part of the pack and... can go full wolf whenever you like? Or wait, just on the full moon? Damn, now it makes sense that you smell different. Not that it's a bad thing! I just... am shutting up now and letting you speak." Sinking back into the sofa to keep his eagerness from literally drawing him off it and onto the floor, Reza's eyes never left Noah's. Methodically marking every change he could notice now, even just in the way he carried himself (not including the weakness from being bitten by a giant alpha werewolf, obviously).

"Holy shit."Noah couldn’t help but wince slightly at the phrase because, well yea, that definitely could be taken a multitude of ways. But luckily for the both of them Reza kept talking, his giddy energy making the corners of Noah’s mouth uptick slightly. He didn’t know exactly what he had expected from the other boy, but this, this was definitely good. In fact, it was better than good, it was something that well, made Noah’s heart feel that strange sort of warm fuzzy sensation, coupled with  the urge to just throw his arms around the other boy. But as much as he wanted it, Noah was going to resist all of those urges. Because they still were technically broken up, and they still needed to talk about things like adults, and Noah would be damned if he forgot that. Letting himself though drift into a playful smirk. “He almost didn’t say yes at first.” Noah remarked  hand still absentmindedly playing with Kea’s ears “But he’d have cut his own arm off before he let anyone else touch me, so he eventually gave in” He glanced up at the ceiling with that one, wondering if his uncle was listening. He probably was, the bastard. Sighing through Noah Leaned back a bit more on the couch, still-ing his hands, much to the dismay of Kea. “I’m still in transition, which is why this thing isn’t already healed.” He tilted his head slightly to emphasize the bandage again. “So it’s like I’m still technically human, and we won’t know if the bite actually took until this next moon. But uh yea, I figured I’d start to smell different. I definitely feel different. Well you know minus the giant gaping wound” Noah chuckled out slightly, trying on another smirk. It didn’t exactly fit over his mouth like it once used to but it seemed to work just as well as any of his other expressions in the moment. Letting it fall slightly Noah found himself gazing at Reza, as if trying to assess everything that could have changed with the boy in the past month through eye contact alone. “How are you doing though?” He asked quietly, but genuinely wanting to hear the answer. 

Seeing Noah smile in that lopsided, cheeky way was such a damn relief, especially since their last face to face meeting had ended with an expression from the other man that had burned itself into Reza's retinas. Pure disappointment and hurt. And the two of them weren't just fixed now, Reza knew that but... this felt hopeful. Noah's laugh made him feel hopeful and happy and light. "That's good. I really hope it takes. I mean, I'm sure it will." Trying not to get stuck on the image of what Noah would look like as a wolf, especially since Reza had only ever encountered one fully formed werewolf, he managed to get caught off guard by the soft question. "Hmm? Oh, well..." Raking back his hair as he wondered where to start, Reza pushed away the thought of telling him about Eddie. He would, there couldn't be any secrets, but right now wasn't the time. "Getting by, I guess. Still trying to figure out that whole slayer thing which is... a bummer but while that's a work in progress I actually, uh... took a note from the Noah book of good advice and... started seeing a therapist, I guess. It's really weird but at least it's something to do that's not just... unproductive and sad." Reza's gaze, previously fixed on the dogs still trying to nuzzle even closer to Noah, chanced a glance up at him. "I'm supposed to like... meditate every day which is a really wonky thing to do when you don't normally breathe but, uh... yeah." Rubbing the back of his neck, an awkward chuckle slipped out past the shy smile on his face. Even though he was supposed to be going to these sessions for himself (which he was, after a whole lot of deliberating with himself), Reza still felt happy that he could tell Noah about this.

“Well here’s hoping i’m not like the 1% of bite victims that are immune “ Noah replied with a sarcastic sigh, trying to not even let his mind go there. Because it would be just his fucking luck to be the one person in the history of the Kalani Pack who had ever been immun.. But no. He couldn’t be immune, he had Alpha blood in his veins. From two [i]different[/i] alphas. This was his birthright, and once it happened everything would be as it should be in the world. Pushing the worry out of his mind though Noah focused on Reza and the small little beacon of warmth that started pulsing in his chest once that revealed he had been going to therapy. “Wow. That’s really great Reza. Like honestly, i’m like-”  Noah breathed pausing to try to gather his thoughts the flood of emotions hitting him like a brick. Because while everything was outwardly the same with the boy staring back at him, inwardly Reza [i]had[/i] changed. Reza had taken his advice and done something that took courage to do. And even if they never got back together Noah would always be glad that he’d helped Reza with that. That reza even felt comfortable telling him this. “Wow I’m like really fucking proud of you Reza.” Noah continued smiling at Reza “Like really fucking proud. Like you have no idea how proud of you I am right now.” He was smiling ear to ear now, something it seemed like he hadn’t done in a while “And goddamn like therapy? Meditation? It’s like you got body snatched or something while I was away” He teased out sticking his tongue out at the other boy, his body falling back into this playful banter so easily.

The giant smile, now directed at Reza and not just a general thing, was making the vampire lightheaded. Those dimples looked even more amazing than ever, especially coupled with the words of encouragement being repeated again and again and really, if Noah had told him he was proud one more time, Reza just might have imploded. "Thanks," he chuckled shyly, trying to get his body and mind to behave. Something that wasn't really easy to do with Noah's tongue making a playful appearance, Reza's adam's apple bouncing as he swallowed thickly and prayed the other boy was too tired to notice. Because how could Reza's mind not accidentally slide back to that night, as badly as it had ended. That damn smile and the twinkling eyes were bound to draw Reza back to happier memories. "Yeah, I uh... guess I sort of did. Had an awakening or whatever. Even managed to make a friend to practice all that communicating on so my, uh... talking myself down is kinda being held in check. And maybe we can do that whole meditating thing together sometime when you're better." A second spent to wonder if that was assuming too much from their current relationship, before he quickly moved on. "But I definitely owe you like... a lot. It hasn't been that long but I think the therapist might actually be helping so... thank you. Really." The genuine smile turned shy, hands resuming their fiddling as he added the last part. "Anyway, it's just really fucking good to see you."

“You even made a friend too? Wow and all I did was be sad about shit and drink, then decide not to be sad about shit” Noah mused with a playful shrug, before wincing slightly. Ugggh the goddamn bite mark. Fuck he would be so happy when all of this was over. Realizing though he was successfully bringing the mood down he hastily continued speaking. “But I’m not exactly sure i’m your guy for meditation?” Noah left it more as a question, hoping Reza wouldn’t take it the wrong way “My therapist made me try it too and I just can’t sit still long enough for it to be effective. So naturally we settled on running or going for a walk for me. But I definitely want to offer support wherever I can. So like if you need another accountability partner or something, like I’m down for that. I really probably need to start going more myself.” Because it was true, Noah had gotten down to only needing to go to his therapist once a month instead of weekly. But with the kidnapping, and the break up, and now this whole trying to be happy and whole thing involving his werewolf side, he could probably use a bit more therapy right about now, if only to get him all of these heavy feelings out of his mind. “But yea, its good to see you too.” He nodded before looking down at his own hands “Actually I really missed you.” Because it was true, despite their status as broken up, Noah had missed Reza. He had missed talking to him about his problems. He had missed Reza’s small but strong arms holding him close and snuggling him when he was sad about his family. But all of that was neither here nor there right now. And sparked Noah to remember the package on the kitchen counter he’d laid out just for this occasion “Oh shit before I forget I may have gotten you something. Or a couple somethings.”

"Deciding to not be sad about shit is...uh, good" Reza almost trailed off completely at the sight of Noah's face, pain flashing over it for a brief moment. It was enough to have the vampire just about ready to pounce to provide (unnecessary) assistance but it seemed like Noah wanted to brush it off. Fuck. Not that there was anything Reza could really do about a giant bite wound, and the dogs were definitely providing enough emotional support but still. This was a special form of torture right here. "I can settle for accountability partner," Reza quickly agreed, smile playing on his lips. Any continued contact with Noah was a win in his book. Hearing Noah say that he'd missed him, out of the blue, was like a splash of cold water but in the best way. Which made no sense but it did leave Reza speechless, struggling to come up with anything that wouldn't just be an emotional mess. Because they were two adults, talking like mature people and Reza couldn't ruin that. As much as he wanted to cuddle up against Noah and tell him just how fucking bad he'd been missed as well. A possible reality sometime soon, even, if he didn't fuck this up. "You, uh... wow. I feel like saying 'you didn't have to' is kinda redundant so... thanks. Or maybe I should say thanks after I see those somethings?" he added, chuckling awkwardly because Noah had gotten him gifts.

“Good. I think that sounds-” Noah paused not really knowing how to say what he was feeling at the moment And maybe he should have waited to do this meeting until after he changed. Until he had his emotions in check and didn’t want to just the all this growth out the window in favor of comfort cuddles and his own personal vampire butler. But maybe this was good for the both of them in a way, to experience the growth of the other person while it was still happening. If only to prove that they were changing. For each other.  “-good. Accountability partners sounds good.” He nodded finishing the thought. Snorting slightly at Reza’s chuckle Noah grinned. “I have a feeling one of the presents you are going to hate on principle. But I bought it anyway because I thought it would look good on you regardless” He said before mentally preparing himself to move again. “Haukea. Caleb. Down” Noah chirped watching as his dogs listened effortlessly to his commands. Or well one of them did at least. “Caleb” Noah said sternly the weight of his glare forcing the other puppy to slowly extricate himself from Noah’s legs “Good dogs” he whispered as he planted his feet and slowly got up, half expecting the vampire to be on him in a second. But the dogs were still circling affording the other no room, something of which Noah counted as a bit of a win. Finally making it to the counter after what seemed like ages (ok it took only a minute but who’s counting) Noah took the neatly wrapped package and placed it gently on the floor next to Caleb “Take” He commanded the younger dog as Caleb dutifully grabbed the present by the handle tail giving a slight wag. “Give” He said again to him with a smile, finger pointing toward where the vampire was sitting. And sure enough seconds later Caleb was bounding over toward the vampire plopping the gift bag right at his feet body practically wiggling with excitement over a job well done.

Reza was starting to physically squirm as Noah made the painfully slow journey to the other side of the room. Aside from the inner battle of wanting to carry Noah back to the safety of the couch while also knowing that the werewolf would hate that and could make his own decisions, Reza was also on the edge of implosion just because of the whole gift ordeal. Agreeing to even meeting him had been a big enough gift in Reza's mind but coming back with memorabilia from Hawaii was so very Noah that it almost wasn't surprising. Almost. Managing to keep his excited ass on the sofa, he was awarded with Caleb trodding over and threatening to make Reza's heart burst. The excited wagging coupled with Noah's proud smile... fuck, not bursting into tears right then and there was becoming really hard. "Good boy," Reza cooed, fingers running through the soft fur and filling his body with warmth - almost as much as the gift bag he raised into his lap. "I'm impressed with your teacher skills," Reza added to Noah, smile lighting up his own face right up until he dug out the first item in the bag. "That is... very red." Holding the flaming red Aloha shirt up, eyes moving from the flower-speckled material to Noah, Reza finally just placed the first gift (most likely the one Reza would hate on principle - man, he hoped this was it) to the side and moved on to the safety of something that was less of a fashion statement. The black beaded bracelet had to be something with an explanation and it filled Reza with an urge to return the favor of getting Noah jewellery (easy, there). "Very neat," he commented honestly, wondering if feedback on everything in the bag was necessary or just awkward while he slipped it on and pulled out the final thing. A hawaiian themed fridge magnet. Huffing out a laugh, Reza fiddled with the bag as words made themselves very hard to find. "See you're still intent on making my apartment look presentable. Even though this might make my fridge look way more appealing than it actually is, considering the contents of it." Heaving out a heavy breath that did nothing to quell the fluttering in his stomach, Reza finally returned his gaze to Noah. "Thanks. I love it." A quick glance over at the shirt. "All of it. I think."

Letting Caleb take some of the focus off of himself Noah shuffled back to the couch, feeling relatively ok for the moment. I mean he was still in pain yes but as long as he moved slowly and kept his heart rate to a minimum everything seemed to work out. Which was nice. Because the last thing he wanted to do was like accidentally pass out in front of his already worried ex boyfriend. Watching Reza open the present as he settled back down on the couch Noah couldn’t help but smile. Reza had had exactly the reaction he thought he would to the Hawaiian shirt. “I thought you needed some more color” He said with a shit eating grin. “Oh and those are kukui nuts.” Noah commented as Reza pulled the next item out of the bag “They’re usually what male leis are made up of in traditional Hawaiian stuff” He explained if only because he knew Reza had no idea. Grinning again though at the next present Noah just basked in the slight glow of having picked both simultaneous bad and good presents, a feat he knew from experience was hard to get just right. “I’m glad you like it. All of it” Noah said gently before the air started to stale in front of them. Because wow did this kinda make things awkward now “Also I’m sorry if all of this makes things weird. I was just.” Noah paused wondering how truthful he wanted to be with Reza but then fucking it and telling him anyway “I was having a rough time thinking about my dad, and well this” He waved toward the bit wound on his neck “ And I just. Needed some retail therapy. And I was… thinking about you. And Just.” Shit. Noah could feel the tangle of emotions start to well up, all of the sadness and the anger welling up in his chest. Pushing it down though Noah took a breath. “I’m really just a mess right now” He whispered out looking down at his hands instead of at Reza.

"Needed some color," Reza parroted back in a mocking mutter that lost all its punch due to the grin on his face, matching the pleased one on Noah's. But as was with all good things, it seemed, they could never just fucking last. Something shifted and Reza's heart wrenched, expecting the worst for a moment, hand tightening around the new bracelet. The sudden spill of emotion was the last thing he'd been prepared for but the familiarity of it was still a welcome relief. If he couldn't do a whole lot of anything else to help Noah, at least he could fucking listen. And break his personal vow about not asking for a hug because how the hell could he not? Noah looked like a kicked puppy and Reza could not deal. "Since things are already weird can I... I mean, would it be really fucking inappropriate if I hugged you right now? I get it if you wanna say no but you just... kinda look like you need one." Please say yes

It was funny how Noah knew in that moment, that his heart was going to win over his head. How he knew in only an instant that he was going to ignore every rational warning sign that he needed to be careful around Reza or he’d fall right back in to those deep brown eyes. But for right now Noah didn’t care. Ok well actually no that was a lie. Noah did care, very much so. But listening to the progress that Reza was making with himself, and knowing that the both of them were suffering, Noah physically, and Reza more mentally…. Who was Noah to say no to comfort? Because friends hugged, and Reza was still his friend. One of his best friends actually, something Noah had come to realize through their month of no contact. So without even another word Noah nodded, before becoming aware that that really wasn’t an answer. “Yea, you can hug me” he said softly hoping that was all the confirmation Reza needed. Scooting over in his nest Noah curled up into as small of a ball as his hulking frame could go, without aggravating his injury or the dogs that has resumed their take over of the couch.

"Thank fuck," Reza found himself sighing, barely audibly, at the confirmation, not really sure how he would have handled a no. Not wasting a second, he made his way over to the much too appealing pile of dogs and person he sort of helplessly loved, somehow managing to make space for himself in between the furballs. His stomach flipped over with nerves and the smell of Noah, absolutely intoxicating and shamefully, even more so with the open wound. But that wasn't the point here now. The point was that Reza could finally get his arms around Noah and even though they were nowhere near as scrawny as during their first weird cuddle sessions, they still felt small around the curled up body. The familiar sound of Noah's heart was another luxury, provided when Reza's head leaned against his shoulder despite every cell in his body begging him to go in for the chest. This was just a friendly hug. Yeah. "I'm sorry things are shit," he mumbled, revelling in every second of this before it would have to end. "But hopefully your mess will get better soon. And if not, I'm, uh... I'm here. For you. Not like this, literally like right here cause that's...weird." Reza chuckled awkwardly at himself as he reluctantly shifted his weight and extracted his arms, yet making no move to actually leave the couch. "Bad joke," he muttered, unable to get the smile off his face.

Like an addict getting that one last hit, Noah could feel himself physically relaxing underneath Reza’s touch. And he knew just how unhealthy this behavior was, but at the moment the heart wanted what it wanted despite his head screaming no. So against all better judgement he let his head snuggle closer in the crook of Reza’s arm snorting at the other’s attempt at joking. snorted at Reza’s attempt at humor “Wow. A month away from me and it’s like you forgot how to even tell one” Because oh sweet lord that was bad. “But thank you.” Noah continued feeling better already with just this little bit of touch from Reza and the dogs. Letting the silence wash over them for a few moments though Noah figured now was as good a time as any to talk about what this meeting was actually for.“Sooooo I hate to do it, but um should we talk about us?” It came out quietly more like a whisper than anything audible, Noah’s heart fluttering widely in his chest. Because he did still did want to be with Reza that much was evident, but communication was a part of the reason why their relationship had crumbled in the first place. So if there was even any hope of this working again they needed to be honest with each other, even if it meant asking the hard questions.

Chuckling quietly along with Noah, never wanting this moment to end, Reza saved every detail of it in case everything went the worst possible way. Which he really hoped it wouldn't but life was tricky that way. "Joke's on you, I've never known how to tell one. Just been bluffing this whole time." And yeah, continuing this easy and safe conversation would have been really nice but it wasn't what they were here for. This much harder path they were heading down was the important thing. "We sort of have to, don't we?" he attempted lightheartedly despite the stone in his stomach. "Guess I'll start off by saying you were right. About us needing a break, I mean. It's, uhm... yeah, it was good. I mean, it was the fucking worst but it was good. And I guess I'm... still sort of kinda hoping that it's still just a break and not..." Reza cleared his throat, forcing down the stupid voice crack, fingers fiddling away at rings. Looking at the dogs right now was much easier than watching Noah. "Not a, uh, break up. So that's where I'm... at."

Noah rolled his eyes at the other before sitting up a bit more. Because this needed his full attention, no matter how much he wanted to just wrap himself in Reza. “Ok.” Noah acknowledged once the other was finished, a hand absentmindedly running through his hair, chewing over his own thoughts  “I think.” Noa paused eyes now down at his own hands “I think I want the same things too, but. Logically I think that we still need to work on things. Individually. Like I mean I’m changing into a fucking werewolf or christ sakes” Noah sighed out almost playfully, the absurdity in in words definitely not lost on him at all  “So can we just like… can we just like not break up, but take a beat and go back to square one of this relationship maybe?” He asked quietly hoping Reza would understand what he was trying to say. “Like let’s just talk for a while. Get to know the new versions of ourselves. Take it slow you know”

Reza really couldn't have asked for a better consensus. Yeah, the impatient part of him that had clawed its way into making a hug happen was still very much hoping that things could take off from where they'd ended, all hands and touching but thankfully, Reza was managing to stuff that part down with logic. Well, logic and the idea of this maybe becoming a real relationship and not whatever they'd had going on before. "Square one sounds pretty good," Reza agreed softly, trying to keep his cool despite the pure elation shining through the brown eyes. "Like a do-over where I don't have to wonder if you're straight or not and you actually know you're chatting up Edward Cullen." The joke was weak, a slight improvement on the earlier one but really, Reza didn't give a shit. This meant he could talk to Noah again who, even after everything, was sort of still his best friend. Only friend, really, before Eddie and that was... complex. "I'm, uh... excited to get to meet the new better Noah." The statement was accompanied with a genuine smile, Reza's eyes finally daring to look up from the dogs.

Shit like this was the reason Reza had been reluctant to return to Ashkent. His leg ached with every step and it didn't help that he was running, not walking, away from danger that was quite possibly still imminent. Even so, he tried to rush carefully because there was no telling if there were more fucking traps littered around these woods. His leg wasn't exactly healing like it should either, due to the whole 'strenuous escape' thing. So all in all, things were pretty fucked. Or they were until he finally spotted his motorcycle from the edge of the woods. With any luck, Leo hadn't returned yet to find Reza missing and the trap busted open with inhuman strength, so there was time to get the fuck out of here. The tingle of adrenaline surging through his fingers didn't give way until he'd gotten a nice distance away from the mansion, leaving it out of sight. With his wounded leg complaining every time he switched gears (or even moved it for that matter), Reza figured the best course of action was parking somewhere secluded and giving it some time to heal. Time he could use to call the police. He hadn't dialled 911 in... well, he'd never dialled the number, which was probably why nerves knotted up in his stomach as someone picked up on the other end. "Hi, uhm..." Great start. "I think - well, not think, I'm pretty sure that..." That what? "Someone tried to kidnap me?"

For Ashkent it had been a mercifully slow night all things considered. No horrors, just some run-of-the-mill stuff. It was towards the end of her last shift before taking time off and so far there’d been one false alarm break in over by one of the stores on main street and two neighbour disputes over property lines and parking for the fifth time that month. After that the lines had been unusually quiet. Her headset was beginning to dig in and she realised after she adjusted it and shifted in her seat that she really shouldn’t have let that thought come into her head. No sooner had she done that when the call came in. “Nine-one-one, what’s you’re emergency,” she said on autopilot and opened out the report form and listened. The voice was male and sounded pained in their speech and their breathing. He hesitated before giving her the emergency and she waited. “They tried to kidnap you?” She asked to clarify since he’d been uncertain at first. “Okay, and where are you now? Are they still in the area?” She asked as she started to log it into the system. “Are you able to give a description?”

Questions rained over Reza, settling rather badly in his fuzzy brain, coming down from the adrenaline and anxiety infused high. "I'm..." Did he tell them? That could mean the police riding in here, maybe even trying to get Reza to the hospital and his healing made that complicated on all levels. "I got away. I don't think he followed me, at least not yet but..." Very vague and shitty. Why had this been a good idea, again? "I can give a description, and a name but I think... I think they might have taken more people." Reza rubbed his face in exasperation, starting to doubt if involving the police had been a good idea. "Or not, I can't really confirm that."

There was a lot of hesitation and vague answers going on. She leaned forwards in her seat as she listened, she just needed to get a lock on the location when she had a thought. “Are you safe to talk?” She asked, “if not let me know and we can trace the call, you don’t need to say anything, just stay on the line,” she offered but the voice on the other end eventually gave her some more info. He’d got away, but that didn’t mean he was out of the area. “Okay. We’re going to get somebody to you,” she typed out some notes quickly onscreen and asked again, “where are you now?” If she could get a description she could add it, maybe get an APB out to any units. “Okay, go ahead. Just give me what you can.”

This woman's patience was admirable as Reza struggled to find words that would actually help in this situation. He didn't want a squad car coming out here; a couple of cops wouldn't stand a chance against a group of hunters (Leo had made it sound like there were definitely a few of them). But then what? With a heavy sigh, he finally decided on a course of action. "Look, his name is Leo and I think he's part of some big, murderous operation because I smelled a dead body and I have a friend that's been missing for way too long now-" Inhaling sharply to shut himself up, Reza realized there was no going back now.

Logged it all into the system: ‘Male caller in attempted kidnapping. Possible homicide. Caller reports “being able to smell a dead body”. Unconfirmed. Units alerted. Awaiting location.’ She listened as he gave her a name and her attention was snapped to it. “Can you give me a description of him, this Leo? Short? Tall? Dark hair? Any distinguishing features you remember? Where was this, was it somewhere it town or outside, somewhere secluded or off road? Just whatever you can,” she added. She noticed at the latter part that he’d stopped and frowned, “and you said you think your friend is connected? How long has he been missing for? Did you report it?”

Reza's eyes squinted at nothing in particular as the voice on the other end rambled on, suspiciously eager about Leo's appearance, the description tall and dark haired making it sound like... Was it possible that she knew him? "Dark hair, pretty tall. Lives in a weird mansion just off Dark Score Lane. I think his dad is running for mayor or something." Because fuck that guy. Maybe getting him arrested for questioning was the best possible thing right now. Or maybe it would just fuck everything up and shit, should he hang up? "I... No, I didn't report anything, he's not really-" Reza groaned, itching to just throw the phone over to the other side of the road. "Look, here's the deal." This was going to make him sound crazy, wasn't it? "I think they're hunters. Him and whoever else is with him. As in hunters of... supernatural creatures. So if you're thinking of sending people up there I'd be... careful." There it was. Now to pray that this lady didn't have her head in the sand like a lot of the town did.

Thought so. It was him. She knew as soon as she heard the name. She leaned towards the screen. What was that creep up to now? “We’ll get an APB out on him. Dark Score Lane, right, okay.” She didn’t flag the location up on screen. she didn’t need to, she knew as soon as she mentioned his name and logged it. Her eyes narrowed. How many more people were going to get dragged into this? She wanted nothing more than to get everybody back in that place into matching cells. “Okay, I can log it, get them to look—” She was losing him, the caller on the other side. She could hear the hesitation and reluctance creeping back into his voice before he thankfully spoke again. Cassie looked towards the other desk. Her desk mate was deep in conversation on the line. She hunched her shoulders in towards herself to try and block out any listeners. “I…I hear you. They’ll get sent out there, it’s been logged, they’ve already been alerted, but I hear you… noted. I can add that, what you said, let them know.” How exactly she was going to do that she wasn’t sure she’d have to be damn careful with her words. “Are you at that location now?”

There was the slightest change in this woman's voice but Reza would never have been able to pinpoint it; not in person and hardly over the phone. No to mention the possibility that he was imagining it. Besides, the fact that she (seemingly) believed what he was saying about the hunting part was more important. "I'm not," he lied, realizing that it meant he had less time than expected to get far away from this place. He didn't feel like the cops picking him up, asking questions, keeping him locked up and away from his steady blood supply... "I have to go, just... don't let them kill any police officers. Because I don't think they'll hesitate." Was there anything else to add? Nothing except asking her to go in there and save Noah who might or might not be trapped at all. No, not a good idea. Panicked and irrational. "Uhm... thanks?" he added dumbly as he struggled to his feet, leg immediately complaining about the weight.

Forest: Skidding to a halt in front of the police station (thermos still clutched tightly in his hand) Forest took a moment to gather himself, a small part of him knowing that he’d definitely be looking like a crazy person if he just ran into the police station. No he needed to be smooth about how he asked his questions to not arouse suspicion. Especially since there was an off chance that this bad feeling was just that. A feeling. And Reed would just pop up from behind his desk, food crumbs on his shirt, eyes red from being immersed in some juicy case. Praying that that might be the case Forest took a small breath before walking into the police station and up to a small brunette woman. “Hi my name’s Forest. Is Officer Han in right now? I really need to speak with him” He asked as polielty as he could hoping his baby face and respectful demeanor would maybe ease her into trusting him more. Or so he hoped.

Grace: The name immediately stopped Grace in her tracks, with a pile of work she had enough to keep occupied and ignore how Reed had read her texts and decided not to answer. She had her coffee cup halfway to her mouth, and her grip on the handle tightened. "Sorry he's not in right now. Not sure where he is actually... he hasn't called in and no one has been able to get a hold of him." She didn't mean to make her tone so clipped, she was annoyed but the underlying guilt softened her up. The guy looked pretty young and genuine, and Grace’s read on people had gotten pretty good from looking for prey. Emitting a loud sigh, she set down her cup. “I’m really sorry, Forest. I’ve been tempted to call his emergency contact, a lot of people are worried right now. But he’s tough, so I’m sure he’s going to turn up.” Something prevented her from saying okay, and dismissively using her information officer techniques. Reed was one of their own, and deserved a more human approach. “I’m Grace, by the way.”

Forest: Trying not to let his heart sink further, Forest took the news as best he could. “Well that’s not good” He breathed out for lack of anything really better to say, mind already racing with possibilities. If Reed wasn’t here and he wasn’t at his house that was bad soo so bad. “I think she knows already actually. I mean i ran into his mother at his house, he’s not there either in case you were wondering. Um it’s nice to meet you grace though” He was rambling now and he knew it but it was just. There was so much to process with Reed being missing and it probably being about Azul Forest didn’t know where to begin. Unless... “Is there anything you can tell me about maybe-” He paused trying to figure out how to say this without being slightly offensive towards the sensitive information police officers handle, or worse just getting himself dragged out of the police station entirely. “Um current cases, or uh just like where he likes to go when he’s on duty? I mean” No this was not going to work now was it. “Sorry it’s just I-I’m good at finding people. I just need to know where to look for him first” Forest looked up at her with his innocent eyes hoping she would help.

Grace’s  heart sank after hearing that his own mother wasn't sure of his whereabouts, she wondered if they had went in to check there already. "Did you two go inside and notice anything that might indicate where he is?" She scoured her brain thinking of how to track him, or what officers may have the know on his last location, and where he was headed. "Nice to meet you as well, sorry it's not under better circumstances." She frowned, taking a sip of her coffee while the boy rambled on suggestions. Grace wasn't opposed to searching for Reed, after her texts she felt a lot worse that she had been joking of this very scenario in her texts, regretting how she turned it into a joke while something serious was happening. “Well I know someone, so let’s ask her where she thinks he could be. She’d have a better idea than me anyway.”

Forest shook his head “She was inside waiting for him already. She said he had not be home since the day prior” He replied wondering if he really should be telling Grace this at all. But she didn’t look shady or anything, and the Police were good people right? And it was then and there that Grace decided to prove it to him by suggesting they go and ask someone who would know the answers to his questions. Looking at her with eyes blown wide Forest could help but light up a bit. “Really? You’ll help me?” He breathed out clutching his thermos even tighter. He was so used to doing things on his own, and just so ready for the people at the station to shut him down under ropes of confidentiality that he wasn’t quite sure what to do now that he was getting what he wanted.

Veronica couldn’t remember the last time that she had been to the high school. The truth was she had been fourteen at the time and her parents had been considering taking her out of private tuition and placing her in public school. However they had quickly decided that it wasn’t for her. Being here on the common, for an event surrounding said high school and the other schools in Ashkent Creek was certainly odd. To be perfectly honest, education that wasn’t supernaturally related was hardly Veronica’s biggest concern. But Reed had invited her and she had reluctantly agreed. Bridget was always reminding her how she needed to get out more, and she was sure that she hadn’t meant her nightly patrols. Parking her car by the side of the common, she did her best to leave most of her weapons in the car. She kept her daggers tucked comfortably into their sheaths at the base of her back, but everything else she left. After all, surely nothing would happen in broad daylight? Stepping out of her car, she sent Reed a quick text. “Where are you?” Hopefully he’d respond soon, there was already a woman with a stall full of cakes that was practically waving her over and Veronica wasn’t about to allow saturated fats and sugars back into her life.

With all of the surplus in activity, work was spiking more than it should for the early start of November and Reed’s head felt like it was floating from being pulled this way and that by colleagues and people in town. Based on everything he read online and heard about, there wasn’t as much vocal pushback towards the school-related fundraiser compared to the neighbourhood watch; he had a few guesses as to why. Still, he wanted to check it out, maybe see this Helen person and he had shown up not too early because he didn’t want to appear too eager (or, odd). A single text from Veronica made him stop his search for the apparently very elusive Helen and hasten towards the other end of the common. Mid-rush, he shot a quick text back: Coming. Will find you. Red hair, that’s what he kept a look out for, that and a certain air of presence that she carried with her. Thinking that he spotted her, Reed called out a, “Hey! Right here!” And waved both of his arms, careful of the people around him as he continued towards her. “I am so glad to see you!” He blurted when he was close enough, “It feels like so many people are backing out on me these days, so— uh— thank you. Means a lot.” He grinned brightly at her then gestured around and looked back towards the row of stalls, saw the woman waving them down. “Anyways...” He looked back at her, gleaming still, “You ready to get this party for two started?”

The ‘blood drive’ and the bloodmobile practically had the vampires in the town chomping at the bit and Veronica’s kill count had risen by more than she could have anticipated. Obviously it wasn’t anything that she couldn’t take into her stride, especially now that she had stopped holding back. But this was a part of her job that she felt was necessary, after her ball she had become all too aware of how vulnerable public events like this were. Checking her phone once more, she saw his text and decided that it would be best to stand still and wait for him. Finally, she found him. She’d managed to avoid the gaze of several mothers who were obviously far too keen about their roles in this fundraiser. “Reed,” she purred as she glided over to his side and placed kisses on either side of his face in the traditional french style of greeting, “it is a pleasure to see you, I’m sorry that it has been so long but the summer was a very pressing time for us all and I’ve been busy with the vampire problem that this town has.” She noticed the strange look that someone gave her, but she didn’t particularly care. Discretion had come and gone in this town without anyone batting an eyelash, it was obviously too late for this lady to receive the memo. “You don’t have to worry about me backing out of anything, I am as good as my word,” she promised with a smile, before looking down at the chocolate covered everything that was offered at the first stall. “I am ready, well, as ready as I’ll ever be, is there somewhere specific that you want to start?”

“Oh— Wow— Okay.” Reed’s body froze entirely briefly, surprised by her chosen greeting then tried to make up for his reaction by offering his hand to shake before quickly changing his mind and raised his arms for a hug. Moving on from that, he found that he was still taken aback — she definitely spoke with the same air that she walked with. Formal and proper. She was always so nice too, he liked that. Nodding in understanding and appreciation, “No need to apologize, I’ve been pretty busy myself and this town can be one hell of a handful at times. Or,” A sigh, “All the time.” Then a pause to look around once more at everyone nearby before he said, “Never a dull day in Ashkent Creek.” And there was a chance this one would be no different (and for what it was worth, he hoped it would go smoothly). People, mostly of the mom variety, were definitely keen on eavesdropping and throwing twisted looks at any mention of foul language and questionable phrases — the latter of which was more likely for them both than anything else. Reed turned his body as if inviting her to join him on a stroll through the area and presented his arm to her, and hummed, “Everything looks really good up front but I’m more interested at what’s going on towards the back.” He began walking, “I think I saw some tart cookies over there—” He pointed high over the heads of hyperactive teenagers and children rushing passed, “All the boring and too-healthy looking stuff looked really good to me.” He glanced over at her, wondering what interested her, “You?”

Raising an eyebrow gently at Reed’s reaction, Veronica did her best to indulge him by hugging him, she even patted him on the back gently. Honestly, she didn’t understand how people could go through their lives without learning the proper etiquette, however she wasn’t about to question him on it. She knew that she wasn’t exactly the easiest person to talk to, not to mention she was sure that there were a number of people that felt intimidated by her status as a slayer. Regardless, she took Reed’s arm and allowed him to show her around the stalls that were scattered about the common. “I think you were right with your second attempt,” she commented with a smile, “there hasn’t been a dull moment in this town in the last thirty years, at least that is what I hear. Perhaps that is what is driving these people to suddenly become proactive about their safety.” She smiled gently at a mother who was giving them an odd look, she wondered what it was that concerned the onlooking parent. As a gaggle of minors zoomed past them, Veronica found herself being taken through the common towards the stalls at the back, “There was a stall that sold home made honey and barley cakes that I thought looked intriguing, otherwise the fruit punch takes my interest…” she shrugged, “even though I don’t work as a personal trainer anymore, it is difficult to give up the habits of checking the nutritional facts in everything, which makes me wonder how much sugar is in each one of these reasonably priced treats. Not to mention the condition of hygiene in their kitchens…” she bit her lip, doing her best not to be a judgemental bitch, “what about you? Do you have a preferred poison… so to speak.”

Reed nodded, flicking his eyes towards one direction and another as he waved and tipped his head at anyone that made eye contact with him, “I think it’ll be good,” He mused with an optimistic tone, “They— We need it.” Everyone here appeared as they were to him, what they knew, what their skills were, what they thought about the new changes — there was an underlying vulnerability, a certain level of unknown. “I was told some odd months back that if I wanted to survive and live a life here, I’d have to be armed with at least the basics,” Reed admitted, lowering his voice whenever shoulders got too close as strangers brushed by. Telling Veronica that felt like some kind of political move across the chessboard for him but she had always been easy to talk to, so he didn’t mind despite it being a free for all for anyone else that was listening. “I think that could benefit everyone else too.” Slowing his pace down even more, Reed looked around and all over heads and hats for the booth, “Wanna go there first?” He asked her with a gentle nudge to her side as if telling her to take the lead and added, with a teasing smile, “Consider this a cheat day and you can blame all the bloating on me afterwards. As for me, my only goal is to stay away from cakes and cookies, the last time I went all out at a festival like this, I...” He stopped, thinking of how to say it given his profession, “Got high... And gave a lot of the same thing to my colleagues too, so... The lemonbars looked good.” Then with a firm nod, “Healthy and safe.”

“If I knew that everyone was seeking knowledge to survive, like you are, then I’d agree with you, but I don’t trust the neighbourhood watch movement for one second, not after the liberation and everything that followed that…” Veronica trailed off as she considered the point that he was trying to make. “Have you ever considered moving?” she suggested, “I’ve got a reason to stay, my family and the fact that this is my home, but you could just as easily set up your life anywhere else. Not that I’d want you to move of course, but you’d certainly be safer.” She did her best to avoid everyone’s gaze. After all, she didn’t want to cause a scene and there were people who wouldn’t take kindly to a Babineaux being here. There were still fools who thought that vampires weren’t dangerous. “Besides, not everyone is ready to be made aware of everything that you’d need to be aware of to survive, many of them outright reject the fact that they’ve been attacked by a vampire and that is after I’ve saved them and put a bandaid on their neck where a vampire’s fangs had previously been…” she trailed off as she felt her slaydar go off, but it was still far away, implying it was someone in a house looking onto the common. That wasn’t enough for her to get involved, at least not just yet. “I’ll follow your lead,” she said with a smile, “although I’ll abstain anyway, I have something much more interesting in mind for my cheat day, something that will taste better than these home made attempts at desserts.” She looked up at a mother who had heard her say that. “No offense,” she said with a shrug before continuing browsing. “Somehow, it doesn’t surprise me that you got high, although I suppose a lemonbar can’t do too much harm…”

Reed listened, his only knowledge of the liberation was limited to what people told him and whatever he managed to find through newsletter and police archives. He understood the concern and was wary as well but still hoped this could had good intentions and wouldn’t turn out like anything they experienced in the past. Sometimes, he had to remind himself frequently as involved as he was in the supernatural community, some things that happened were just normal too. He chewed on his bottom lip in thought, decided to save that portion of their conversation for a later time, and said, “I did for a while after...” An uncomfortable chill ran down his spine as he revisited that point in his life, hesitated for a little bit to explain before nodding, “My mom wanted me to too after— but...” He shrugged then, “I can’t bring myself to leave and I don’t think I’d want to, I care about everyone in this town, I love my job and I don’t want to abandon ship just because I have a higher chance of dying here.” He noticed the wide-eyed look from a mom passing out gumdrop sugar cookies, another one froze momentarily too and all that did, along with what else Veronica said, was reminded of the brief conversation he had online with someone and being left with the impression that his suggestions were more or less brushed off. He was sure he had incidents similar to Veronica’s as well but talking about his starter kits was the most recent. His easygoing smile fell down into a frown, “A lot of them may not be,” He agreed albeit feeling more like a disappointed father when he did, “But my strategy here is to market it differently so it appeals to them.” Nearing the lemonbar stall, wondering what the more interesting thing would be for her cheat day and if it was anything like the deserts Adrien mentioned before, Reed waved his hand at her, “No offense taken.” Then made a beeline for the stall, Reed pulled out his wallet and made small but polite conversation with the vendor as he picked out three center-piece lemonbars (one was for his mom). “Oh— No— You don’t have to do that, keep the change, please.” He murmured to the gentleman as soon as Reed saw him open the cash box to make change for a twenty dollar bill, being here was in the spirit of supporting the school district and raising money. After thanking the vendor, Reed turned his attention back to Veronica, offered the extra lemonbar he bought despite her pass before before grinning, “The most harm it’ll probably do is be a touch too tangy.” Taking a corner bite and chewing, he remarked after swallowing and being pleasantly surprised, “Not bad, has a pretty good amount of lemon flavouring too. I like it.” Had a smidge weird taste to it but it wasn’t so offensive to make him toss the treat (and if it did, he’d wait until he got home to discard of it anyway). Looping his arm with Veronica’s again, he motioned with his elbow towards the crowd of people, “I’m ready for stop two whenever you are.”

“Well, I wouldn’t ever presume to judge you Reed, but I sometimes wonder whether you’re giving this town a bit more credit than its worth. Besides, no one would judge you for trying to save your own life.” Veronica wondered whether he realised how easily this town could chew him up and spit him back out. Sighing gently, she tried to keep her reservations to herself. Reed didn’t need anyone else being down about what he could or couldn’t do, after all, it was hardly her place either. “Well, market it all you want, as long as it keeps people safe then who am I to complain…” she just hoped that people kept it for defense and didn’t start going out with more nefarious schemes in mind. As Reed offered her a lemonbar, Veronica could feel the eyes of the mothers still on them. How many of them were witches or werewolves who understood exactly what they were discussing? As Reed held her snack, Veronica decided that it would have been rude not to take the snack. Holding it delicately, she broke a small chunk off and chewed on it, brushing the crumbs from her lips. As the zesty taste spread through her mouth and settled on her pallette, Veronica had to admit that she was pleasantly surprised. “Well, that is surprisingly pleasant,” she smiled at the man behind the stall who seemed somewhat offended by her honesty, although he did seem a bit confused about whether she’d meant it as a compliment or not. Her vision almost seemed to swim before her eyes as she chewed, and despite the fact that she blinked several times, she couldn’t help but stumble backwards slightly. “Yeah,” she said, regaining her footing, “stop two, do they have a bar? I could use a drink.”

“Maybe I am but I have to have hope,” Reed shrugged. It can’t all be bad, that’s what he kept telling himself even on the days when he was least convinced of its truth, even now with so much resistance about the neighbourhood watch. Nigel told him a couple of years ago that this town would kill off that bright light in his eyes; and he realized he probably ran out of fingers and toes to count how many times he has had this kind of conversation. The old-age question being why would anyone move and willingly stay here? Reed didn’t have that answer but sometimes it definitely felt like there was a draw pulling him deeper, like curiosity was the thing that was what was really making him stay. Perhaps it was that way for everyone else that wasn’t born and raised here too. Without saying it, he understood the risks of living here, knew that the statistics were higher than even cities like Detroit and Chicago, knew there would be a tray variety of loss too, and Reed knew he also sounded less grounded in reality with his mention of hope. Fair chance. Helen could be good or bad or somewhere in-between, but which one that was has yet to be seen. “Thanks. As long as we look out for each other and keep each other safe, we can weather everything Ashkent throws at us.” A glimpse at Veronica turned into him trying to, somehow, brace himself to catch Veronica in case one wrong step back sent her falling when she stumbled. “Hey—” are you okay?, “Yeah, you said there was—” He began looking around for the stall she mentioned earlier again as he spoke, “—some fruit punch somewhere.” His eyebrows crinkled downwards just as the effects claimed ahold of him too. It felt like his mind was twisting around itself and his vision was getting caught up in that as well, it was disorientating. Everyone looked askew and duplicated. “Um—” Reed was paused for a really long time, like he were looking for the words and what to say but it escaped him so he began tracing their steps back towards the other stall. “I hope there are chairs.”

“Hope isn’t going to keep you alive, pragmatism is. Don’t let stupidity kill you. Especially when you’re so obviously not stupid.”  Veronica bit her lip thoughtfully. Reed was too much of a good guy for this town. She used to be idealistic like him, she used to kill vampires when she could prove they’d done something wrong. Now she didn’t take the chance, it wasn’t worth it, especially when it could potentially kill you not to take every precaution. “You’re welcome, and yes, I like the optimism, I am sure that we’ll be able to survive if we can stick together.” She smiled gently as she regained her footing, placing a hand on Reed’s shoulder she tried her best to reassure him. “Don’t worry, I shouldn’t have worn heels for walking through grass, I think it was just my heel sinking into the dirt…” she never finished her sentence, because just as she thought that she had gotten over the shock of the hallucinogenic effect that these lemon bars apparently seemed to have, it hit her several times harder. The world seemed to fold in on itself in a bright swirl of colours, at least for a moment, and then suddenly everything was swirling in front of her eyes and she was struggling to keep herself upright. “Chairs seem like a good idea,” she admitted, looking around her for somewhere that they could sit, “if we could make it to my car we could sit there, or maybe there is a bench or something…” glancing around her she finally spotted it. Smiling gently at her own great work she pointed. “There,” she said, the colours of the grass all but leaping out at her, “that should work….”

Squeezing her shoulder when she did the same to him, Reed nodded once with half of a grin, “I know how to read a situation.” He knew better than to let hope totally blind him. Reed swallowed and blinked several times, trying to keep focused by looking into Veronica’s eyes, uncomfortably aware of his attention drifting away from the moment. “I won’t give anyone the chance to kill me. Not again.” And speaking of nixies, a pale blonde head in his peripheral caught his attention and made him snap his head in that direction. His heart began pummeling hard against his chest while he stared wide-eyed and in a trance at the woman. Azul. When she whipped around, cones with fluff on top in hand, Reed jerked reflexively back. “Fuck,” He blurted and felt his face flush with heat as he saw a countless amount of pairs of eyes glaring intensely at him, “Crap— I mean crap. It’s a no brainer.” Their faces look distorted, almost melting or slipping off, and less convinced that he meant that so he stammered out, “I- I’m PG.” It felt like an infinity of time passed by the time he thought he got his bearings together and he forgot what he said just seconds ago. Then his gaze dropped to where Veronica was pointing and brought his hand up to shield his eyes, “Christ, that’s bright.” Facing Veronica, he cupped both sides of his face with his hands and asked after sucking in air through his teeth, “...Are they still staring?” He stopped talking after someone walked passed with a cup of pomegranate-looking something. Fruit punch, some tiny part of him that was sober realized. “Hey!” He pointed, struck with a repeat idea, “Let’s go get something to drink.”

Veronica’s mind went into overdrive. The lemon bars must have been spiked and anger overtook her at that moment. Biting down on her lip to try and focus through the blur of colour and swirling lights. Normally she didn’t rely on emotions, they were a weakness that caused her to focus to shift and people had capitalised on that before, Heath, her father, too many people had taken advantage of her emotions. But for once they actually helped her gain a little bit of clarity. As she leaned against one of the stalls, she wrapped her slender fingers around a wooden beam that held up a tent, it was only when she heard the cracking noise from it that she realised that the wood was splintering beneath her fingers. “Make sure that you don’t, I would hate to have to go after someone because they hurt you, I’d much rather just avoid that altogether. If that is okay with you of course.” Stumbling towards the stall of fruit punch, Veronica pulled a splinter from her palm and watched as it spun away, growing in size before her eyes before it was a stake plunging through a vampire's heart. Blinking several times she found herself staring at the ground before stumbling towards the fruit punch. “I’m not convinced this is going to fix whatever is going on.”

Nodding determinedly, Reed rushed as best as he could towards the stall while simultaneously completing a warped obstacle court from his days in police academy. “It’ll help us,” He said automatically still bobbing his head up and down, eyes focused on the gallon of fruit punch, its colour a bright fuchsia though the closer he got, the darker and redder it appeared and the more hairs across his forearms and nape stood on end. Barely a couple of feet away, Reed watched another clear cup be filled halfway with the fruit punch, its viscosity looked closer to blood than fruit punch to him now. To the vendor, he asked, “Actually— Do you have water?” A shake of the head was followed up with a sorry and suggestion on where to find bottled water, and Reed watched in horror as their face twisted into a flesh-coloured spiral. Defeated, he turned around, “Well, I’m not going to drink whatever that is.”

As they stumbled over to the vendor who was selling a punch that had something bobbing in it, though Veronica had to admit that she wasn’t sure whether the things bobbing in said punch were cherries or eyeballs, it was almost as if every time she blinked something changed. The thick punch swirled in front of her and she was immediately put off by it. “Y’know,” Veronica said, reaching for her phone and tapping the uber app, which she was pretty sure grew teeth and snapped at her, “I think that maybe we should just go home, there was obviously something in those lemonbars and they are really fucking with me…” she rubbed her eyes exhaustedly, the colours of everything merging and jumping out at her. Whatever the hell was in those lemonbars was killing her. “I’m getting a cab home, you can crash on my sofa or in one of the spare rooms if you want, at least until this wears off, I don’t think we should be on our own.”

Reed just stood there, believing he got the best results by keeping his weight and balance even on both feet. Everything was still shifting around for him, taking on different forms while certain colours grabbed his attention. Hues of red and silver burst out and all he could do was connect it back to his work and Azul. It upset him, really. He wasn’t high but he was definitely experiencing some kind of trip. Turning slowly back around towards the vendor, Reed wondered if the fruit punch was really fruit punch or whatever it was he was seeing. He wondered if everything here was just like the lemonbars. Did Helen know about and approve that or was someone trying to give her a bad name? “You can go,” Reed said, “I should probably go have a talk with that other guy who sold me the lemonbars...”  It was a challenge trying to see passed the demonic things going on in front of him and trying to think clearly. Weren’t trips supposed to be...not mortifying? Or did that just mean he had a lot of skeletons in his closet? “He shouldn’t be selling that here.” It explained the weirds they got before.

Veronica paused for a moment, before rolling her eyes. Reed had to take such pleasure in doing the right thing, couldn’t he just be a real person for once and do something that was selfish, something like going home and riding out this trip. Her finger hovered over the confirm request, before she sighed and tucked her phone back into her pocket. “Well, I can’t let you do that on your own, if they’re not above spiking cakes that could end up with children then they’re almost certainly not going to just give it up because you asked them to do so politely.” She sighed and cracked her neck and her knuckles. “Come on, lets get this over with,” she turned and took a moment to compose herself before making her way back towards Mr Lemonbar, which was easier said than done considering she was pretty certain that the ground was melting away beneath her feet, not to mention the fact that her legs were jelly. Not a helpful combination when you’re trying to get somewhere, especially in heeled boots.

Reed looked back at Veronica, halfway shocked that she was truly committed to sticking by his side while halfway wishing she would take that cab home, though his actual facial expression must’ve looked exaggeratedly different from how he felt. His mouth quirked up into a small and forgiving smile. “I’ll confiscate them,” He assured her as he tried yet struggled to walk with brisk purpose, “He’s not taking those bars home or anywhere else for that matter.” Each step sent a vibration up into his body that made his vertigo chime like the church bell. Though it was only movement, it felt so loud and the effort it took to focus was incredibly crowded in his head. “After that’s done, we’ll get you home and off your feet.” And Veronica looked to be struggling a lot more than he was which resulted in Reed wrapping his arm across her shoulders and offering her his free hand up to her as a form of stabilizing support. They weren’t in the best mind to deal with this and Reed wasn’t volunteering on behalf of the station. Biting the inside of his cheek for a moment, Reed reconsidered what his mission was here against how well their bodies and minds were reacting to whatever was corrupting them. “On second thought, I’ll get security to confiscate it and we’ll get that cab.”

The ringing of the church bell in the distance was enough for Veronica to lose focus again, she felt a slight surge of panic as the bell tolled loudly, the sound seemed to engulf her in an echo chamber and suddenly she was almost certain that she could see the waves of sound cascading down towards her in a cacophony of noise, as Reed wrapped an arm around her she acted on instinct, her leg swiping out from underneath her. It was basic self defence. Knock your opponent off your feet. But as she made contact with Reed and watched him begin to tumble backwards, her mind suddenly cleared and she reached out and grabbed his hand. Normally she would’ve felt embarrassed or at least amused, but she couldn’t say that she felt anything other than annoyance at the fact that they’d been spiked. She was sure that this didn’t happen anywhere else. “Sorry,” she confessed though she didn’t feel particularly sorry but etiquette was important to her, “that was habit normally when people do that it’s not because they’re trying to help, but I am starting to agree with you.” In this state she could easily act on instinct and get someone hurt, not that it would bother her but she didn’t need the hassle. “Let security handle it, I’m going home.” She called an Uber, which headed for the wrong side of the common much to her displeasure. “You can tell security on the way,” she said as she began to make her way across the common.

More than once now, Reza had felt reassured that he’d reached his lowest point post-vampirism. The time he’d followed someone all the way to their house by the sound of their pulse, the smell of their blood, only to retreat in utter shame when the person was greeted by two kids in the door – that had been his last ‘lowest point’.

It had only taken him two weeks to reach the newest low point.

Being at Mystery Loves Company had always felt like a safe haven, both figuratively and literally, keeping out all sorts of danger. For the last couple of years, Izel had been pretty much the only thing keeping him alive and for the most part, sane. The fact that he’d been actively avoiding her since returning to Ashkent Creek a few months ago was shameful, but it’d been too long now. Revealing to her now that he’d become the thing she’d been protecting him from… Reza was just too much of a coward to come clean.

Hence him sneaking around outside his once safe haven, trying to figure out the best way to break in.

He’d tried to go on without the stuff he’d left behind but it was long overdue for retrieval. Any sane grown-up would have just rang Izel up and asked to swing around but Reza considered himself to be neither, so breaking and entering was obviously his only option. His plans post-vampirism seemed to be getting worse by the day.

In the hopes of skipping the ‘breaking’ part of his plan, Reza had brought his bulky keychain along, hopeful that one of them still worked to the lock of the store. A few keys in, his hope was quickly fainting, the hairs on his back standing up in fear of someone – mostly Izel– spotting him.

Click.

Almost crying out in relief, Reza pocketed the keys and quietly let himself inside. His ears were halfpart tuned into his environment but he was still learning to control his senses; focusing solely on what was happening inside and around him instead of cars honking outside was far from easy.

Nostalgia filled his chest as he passed the counter, gently shutting the door behind him, ears twitching with tension. Reza longed to throw himself in the familiar lounge chair and just read and not have to strain his mind for just an hour or two. To feel normal again for an hour or–

Pain pierced through his brain and if vampires could bleed, Reza would have had no doubt that his ears had been dripping crimson from how bad they hurt right now. Hands desperately attempted to cover them as the noise continued to wail and only when he’d blocked the sound, if only a little bit, did Reza realize that the noise was an alarm. Izel had installed a security alarm and Reza had definitely woken her up now, along with the rest of the block.

Panicked, mouth drying up as the noise continued to slam against his sensitive eardrums, Reza stumbled towards the stairs. The pain and uproar were making him disoriented but if he could just get to his room and then escape out the window…

The door to the apartment was closed and Reza reluctantly removed one hand from his ears, instantly grimacing. Fuck, did it hurt.

Hand reached for the handle, Reza paused because… because what? Why? His panic rising, Reza tried again but… didn’t. He couldn’t open the door, couldn’t get into the apartment. His old apartment, because he wasn’t him anymore. He was a vampire and if he wanted his stuff back, he’d need a holy invite from Izel to enter. What a shitty, shitty plan indeed.

It wasn’t clear what woke her up, the beeping of an alarm on her bedside table, or Zaskia hissing and scratching at the door and generally making a fuss. Izel groaned and reached over to turn off her alarm, but it wasn’t 7.30 am. It was a breaking in type alarm. Her first instinct went to Nora, but that didn’t sound right. grabbing her dressing gown and phone and the ridiculous sword she’d won in that one raffle, she let Zaskia out and hurried downstairs. Just as Izel reached the bottom floor, she heard the main, full building alarm starting to blare and winced, her knee almost giving as she held the sword in front of her. There were laboured footsteps in the store. “Hey, who’s there!” She yelled, heart pounding, knowing that if the alarm rang another minute or the security company would be called. The security company her dad had once worked for.

Whoever is was stopped at the door way but didn’t come any further. Through the frosted glass all she could see was a silhouette. No aura. Possibly no invite. She leant in carefully to the eye piece and squinted at the distorted figure on the other side.

“Look, back away from the door. I have a ridiculously sharp sword that I pretty much know how to use and if you don’t leave soon I will call a Slayer who has experience with zombies. So my bases are covered and you really really need to-

“Reza?” It was. The planes of his face were sharper and no longer sagging. His skin paler and almost dusty. There were no rings under his bright, shining eyes. They were scrunched up in response to the siren, and she could hardly blame him, but she hesitated in turning it off. Reza was in Pakistan, or dead, given how he never answered his emails anymore. Reza could have just come in, this was his home. Or it had been. Might have been more of a motel for all of a goodbye he gave it and her. Convenient, useful for -

Oh.

Like a pricked balloon, she deflated all at once, the recognition vanishing and morphing into something worse. Her heart started hammering and the tip of the sword dropped to the floor, slicing an inch into the tiles before stopping. “You’re from Ashford,” she stated softly, failing to hide all the weight that came with it. There was only ever one. Her dad or the man who occasionally hovered in the doorway, staring, judging, before leaving again. Her mother or the lady who lived in Peru and didn’t even speak English. Reza, or a burglaring vampire. She glanced at her feet, safely on the inside of the threshold. “What are you doing here?” The alarm continued to blare. Zaskia continued to hiss at her ankles. Gently, she pushed the cat away from the door with her foot.

Izel’s voice reaching Reza’s ears cut him deeper then the blaring alarm ever would and he could have sworn that his immobile heart startled. All the energy drained from him, he simply stood motionless as footsteps neared the door, the shrill alarm still filling the space. This wasn’t how he’d imagined announcing this to Izel and as much as he wanted to escape, to sprint away and hide from his problems a little longer, he couldn’t. Izel’s silhouette was already visible on the other side of the stained glass and Reza’s mouth went dry.

For a moment, it seemed, she didn’t have a clue who he was. Her threat to call a slayer did confirm that yes, Reza no longer had an aura. Something he’d known would happen but still managed to surprise him. It had been something of a comfort, knowing that Izel could literally see the person he was; could reassure him that things weren’t as bad as he usually assumed. Now, her guess was as good as anyone’s.

“Reza?” Izel’s tone changed completely, tearing Reza’s heart in two. He really did have a lot of explaining to do. With everything he could have said, Reza only stayed silent, tongue turned to lead in his mouth. In hindsight, he should have started explaining before Izel continued, since her assumptions were far worse than Reza could have imagined. In her head, the only plausible situation where Reza was a vampire, had happened in another universe. Question was, could he just let her believe that?

The door creaked open, just barely, but enough for Reza’s ears to pick up on the hissing inside. Zaskia was… hissing at him?

“I’m…” Reza started, still at a loss for words. This wasn’t at all what he’d planned on this evening; he wasn’t prepared for this. Dark eyes moved to the cat by her feet, looking at Reza with distrust, an expression shared by Izel herself. “Can you turn off the alarm? Please, this is… I’ll explain everything, I just can’t… think!” He shouted, head pounding from the physical and emotional pain trying to run over his mind like a tank. All he wanted at that moment was to hold his cat once again, or to sit with Izel on the couch, watching an easy fantasy. What he didn’t want was to admit to Izel what he’d become, uncertain of whether or not she’d understand. He wasn’t sure his heart could take her judgement, if it was negative.

Izel stared at the crack in the door for a long second, her gaze an off brand attempt at being cold, before sighing and looking at Zaskia. "Ven aqui cariñito," she murmured as she scooped the hissing cat up, extra careful not to get scratch. "Shhhh, buena chica, buena chica, tranquilo, shhhh. I'll be back in a moment, but you are not welcome in." Her heart sank as she stepped away from the door and carefully carried Zaskia to the kitchen. "Stay here cariñito, shhh" Izel instructed, lowering the cat to the floor. Zaskia raced away and jumped onto the nest area of her scratching post, hackles still raised and facing where Reza was, hidden by walls. "Yo tambien." Izel pressed her fists into the table, knuckles white as she struggled to catch the semblances of herself and put them together. This happened all the time. Ashford stole people. She might have caught Reed but that didn't make a difference. Hot tears stung her cheeks as she slammed her fist into the desk hard enough to startleZaskia. Her body ached and was slow as she pushed herself upright, resisting her as she walked back to where the other Reza, the non Reza was, closing doors behind her to keep Zaskia safely out of harm's way. She turned off the alarm and winced as she raised her arm to lift a small decorative crucific off the wall, and slowly made it back to Reza, opening the door enough so that he could see her but stood so it was clear he wasn't welcome in. "Explain, before I call someone who will stake you no questions asked."

The ringing in Reza's ears came as a blessing, replacing the shrieking alarm. It was quiet, almost, but if Reza's hearing hadn't been compromised, he would have been able to hear the pounding heartbeat nearing the door. It creaked open and he straightened his back, the pain now a distant memory -- the physical pain, at least. His heart felt completely useless, shattered even, because Izel was staring at him like a cockroach. Cowering away from the crucific, Reza realized he had no idea where to start. "Izel... I'm not..." Should he lie and tell her he was from Ashford? It would make things easier, maybe, than explaining all of his decisions up to this point. No. He'd been enough of a coward, avoiding her for this long, he wasn't going to insult her with another pathetic lie. "I'm not from Ashford River, it's... me. The one who went to Pakistan without... without a goddamn word of warning to you. I'm the Reza that was too much of a fucking coward to come find you when I moved back here because I'm.... I'm not me. I'm not what you'd have wanted to return from Pakistand and now everything's... fucked." Hands rubbing his face, brushing away tears forming in the crook of his eyes because he had no right to play some sort of victim here. He'd done everything wrong up to this point.

Izel 's knuckles grew white around the crucifix, as she listened with an icy breath caught in her chest. Her eyes were glue to his mouth, uncomprehending of the words coming out of them. Perhaps she was waiting to see a flash of white fangs, or see the lie as it slithered its way out. She'd been caught by his lies too often before, but when she searched for them, he couldn't hide them. At least, not her Reza, but this Reza could be a snake in sheep's clothing and how would she know? "Cut the self-pitying," she said, her voice wavering too much for it to be vicious and too quiet to be hard. Her eyes bored into him long after he'd stopped speaking, staring without seeing. The hallway clock ticked away the seconds, unfeeling and harsh to her ears as he wiped away tears. It was only then that Izel looked away, eyes dropping to his wringing hands as her mouth became a thinner and thinner line. "How long." Her eyes flicked up with new fire blazing in them. "How long have you been back in Ashkent?"

 The harsh statement from Izel's lips hurt worse than the stake that had once been embedded into Reza's hand, despite its low volume. It didn't quite reach the voice she'd used while talking or referring to Heath but the similarities were striking. Despite all he'd done, Izel had never treated him like this. The silence was deafening, more so than the fucking alarm, and Reza wanted to run with every cell of his being. And then the question he'd been dreading more than any other. He could have lied, except for the fact that he'd never been able to lie to Izel. Being a vampire wouldn't change that and she really did deserve better. "A couple of... months." Shrinking together in shame, he wondered if he'd crossed the line for good now; maybe there was no coming back from this. "I get it, if you don't want any explanation. If you don't want me back at all. I get it." Of course he'd understand. Even though the thought of never seeing Izel again made him feel ill.

A lump in Izel's throat formed so sharply she choked around it, twisting away to cough in the crook of her elbow, until she tasted the faintest hint of copper. Izel closed her mouth and swallowed until it had completely vanished before she turned back to him. No point in have him gnashing at the doorway. "Stop it," she said again, looking right at him. There was a loud clack of wood smacking wood as her hand jerked the crucifix into the door. "So I guess you're returning for your things? They're -hgggggh- right where you left them, in the guys' room. But I guess it was better to let me think I'd been burgled than you seeing me." She tapped her foot agains the floor, looking at him right in the eye. "So when did you die?"

Reza cringed away from Izel violently jerking the crucifix around. Nothing in her eyes seemed to be softening, her stance still guarded, a contrast to Reza's vulnerable and pathetic body language. "Late May. In Pakistan. On purpose." Talking about this for the first time was... rough. Especially considering the circumstances. "And you're telling me you wouldn't have wanted to avoid this situation?" Maybe not the right thing to say but he'd known how she'd react, how hurt and disappointed she'd be so her thinking he was dead -- actually dead-- really had seemed like the better alternative.

Izel nodded, looking down her darkened hallway as it was more comforting than looking at him. It was easier than calming the tempest inside her. "I'm glad you got to choose." She'd only just calmed the tempest to a storm when he felt the need to open his mouth again. "Yes, I would have preferred to not have you break into my home to avoid me. Maybe a phone call, or an email. But I guess if you didn't think I could handle a goodbye, then what should I expect? Never mind the fact that we were relying on you with the shop or anything. So yes, I would have preferred anything to meeting you like this, but you didn't give me any choice!"

His eyes closed as Izel threw one accusation after the other, each one truer than the last. Reza hadn't been doing this for her, had he? He was selfish and scared and, apparently, willing to hurt anyone -- including Izel-- if it meant that he could hide from the real world a little bit longer. That's all he was doing at this point; hiding and pretending everything was fine while the people he'd called his friends before suffered. "I didn't," he finally replied, voice cracking before he cleared his throat. "I didn't give you any choice because I was scared and... and... self-centered and selfish. I didn't wanna deal with stuff because the stuff was hard so I just... didn't and you deserved better than that. I guess maybe you thought I was maturing but turns out I'm not. At all. I was... fuck, I was more responsible with my life when Heath was alive than I am now." Reza laughed, a cold, harsh sound, as he shook his head. "And I'm sorry. For dragging you into this and then treating you like... I don't even fucking know, I took you for granted and I'm sorry." Rubbing his face, head reeling, Reza finally looked up at Izel. "I don't deserve everything you've done for me, I really don't, because you're just... you're family, but I sure as fuck didn't act like you were."

It would have been easy to forgive him. To calm down and let him in and tell him evrerything would be forgiven. Izel desperately wanted to reach out and hold him and his begging was slowly breaking her heart. It was easier to treat herself as a doormat, if it weren't for the anger burning through her. "I do deserve better than this." She injected, crossing her arms tightly. His puppy dog eyes had lost their softness a long time ago, and while she could hear the grief in his voice, it sounded... hollow. "I deserve to know that you're not dead, I deserve more than a note in the night, and I definitely deserve better than you throwing yourself a pity party at ungodly o'clock because you got caught." She was bristling now. "Has it occurred to you that right now, this isn't about you and how bad you feel? Are you really asking me to listen to your feelings right now, to carry them and comfort you? Because that's what it sounds like right now. I am not some receptacle for your guilt about how you treat me."

For a brief second, it seemed like Izel's anger was fading, or at the very least being pushed aside for something else. That second didn't drag on for very long and Reza physically recoiled away from Izel's waves of anger. This isn't about you and how bad you feel. His mouth formed a tight line; no attempts at interrupting her. She was right, about everything and what he was doing, what he was attempting to do here without even realizing it, it was... it was basically emotional blackmail. He really was no better than the person -- the thing he despised the most. "I... I'm going to fix this." Eyes on the ground, fists clenched, he came to a resolution. "You won't forgive me and you shouldn't, but maybe I can do... something to make things okay." Before Izel had a real chance to respond, Reza was back at the store's entrance, hand on the doorknob. "Thanks for keeping Zaskia for me."