Your werewolf boyfriend is always by your side.
You love coming to this park together in the overcast evenings. Some vampires use it for hunting grounds, preying on unsuspecting solo joggers or people looking for a quiet place to indulge in their choice of substance.
But not you. You, on the other hand, just like having a secluded place to read, where you can enjoy nature and spend some quality time with your boyfriend.
After all, no one is going to mess with you with him around, vampire or not.
You usually are bit too alert to doze. But this time, something about the warm breeze and the hum of cicadas make you quite drowsy, the bits of braille under your fingers mushing into unintelligible bumps as your focus softens.
Vampires don't sleep, not truly, but it's enough to bring you about as close as the undead can be.
When your alertness resharpens, you immediately notice something- or more accurately, you notice the lack of something.
The presence of your loyal companion is curiously missing. The lack of his body heat at your side is instantly noticeable when you don't generate one of your own.
You feel out to the side with your hand, patting in the carefully searching way you've learned is safest over years of trial and error.
No fluffy pelt, of the wolf nor of the were variety. After a bit more canvasing with your fingertips, you do hit fabric different from the picnic blanket. You immediately recognize the fabric and the scent- it's the clothes he was wearing.
"Huh." You say out loud to nothing.
You focus your hearing- and detect two heartbeats, not too far away. A whine from your currently wolf-skinned boyfriend. Not pained, just plaintive and uncomfortable.
Well. Best go look for him.
You get to your feet and start the slow, methodical process of going to fetch him. In hindsight, you should've brought your cane- but you usually don't need it with your seeing eye werewolf around, and he rarely leaves your side, so… you didn't bother.
After some guessing based on muscle memory, you feel the familiar wooden railing of the running path- going in the opposite direction of the river- running water not being an option for you.
"Hey," A stranger's voice calls out as you draw closer. "Is this your dog?"
It sounds like they're hovering over where your wolf-skinned boyfriend must be seated, the sound of his wagging tail pounding the dirt a dead giveaway.
You're unsure of how to answer for a split second.
"You could say that." You say, truthfully.
"He was out here alone, and didn't have any information on his collar," The stranger chides you. "You should keep a better eye on him."
It takes all of our strength to not scoff at the irony.
A soft growl from the same direction. Not an declaration of intent to bite, but offense at her rudeness.
"Would that I could." You settle on as your response, forcing a thin smile onto your face and mentally reciting your various patience-extending mantras. Not everyone is quite so observant. Not everyone is well educated on the needs of others…
Some people are simply a bit thick.
Soon, you are mercifully freed of that awkward interaction after a bit more of a lecture.
"Went for a run?" You hold out the balled wad of his clothes in what you are reasonably sure is the right direction, to what you are reasonably sure now looks like a very hairy, very naked man (save for a spiked collar) standing in the middle of the running trail.
"Ah, bless you-" He says with husky appreciation, before shifting gear to defending his choices- from himself, more so than from you. "Just a little one. It was only for a few minutes. I was, uh, securing the perimeter."
"Right." You snort. Werewolves sometimes need to feed that desire to run, full moon or not, just as much as you need to consume the occasional bit of blood. "Nothing really happened I suppose, so no harm done."
"Sorry." He says sheepishly, and you can hear the rustling of what sounds like him pulling his shirt back over his head. "I shouldn't have left you alone without saying I'd be back. You just looked so cozy."
"You're already forgiven."
You pat his arm lovingly, a teasing smile quirking at the side of your mouth.
"I'm just glad they didn't take you to the shelter."
