Chapter 7
Eric
Bennie was behaving off, Finn wasn’t fucking listening to any of my notes, and everything was going to shit.
He was puking again. Just as I’d assumed my regular post on the opposite roof, I’d seen him slapping his hand in front of his mouth and running to the bathroom like his ass was on fire.
It took every last ounce of my restraint not to march over there, throw him over my shoulder, and carry him to the closest urgent care, no matter the consequences.
He couldn’t go on like this. He could seriously hurt himself.
And why?
Because he was too stubborn to listen to me? I was just trying to help!
My eyes zeroed in as the door to his bathroom swung open and Finn emerged. He was leaning heavily against the doorframe, his skin pale with a sickly green hue, as he was wiping at his mouth with the back of his hand, spreading something bright red.
My stomach turned.
Blood.
He was wiping blood from his mouth.
Sure, I couldn’t smell it through the closed windows, but I was a vampire. I knew what blood looked like.
My stomach knotted with hunger, but anger and worry trumped my hunger a thousand times over.
Puking blood was not a good sign.
I needed to do something.
Did I call 911?
March over and kick in the door?
Oh, he was moving.
I narrowed my eyes as I watched him putting on his shoes.
He left his apartment in a hurry, his phone clutched to his chest and stuffing his wallet into his pocket.
He wasn’t wearing a jacket, even though it was mid-October and chilly outside.
In the long run, this wouldn’t do, but seeing as he was panicking, I’d let it slide for now.
Hopefully, he was going straight to the ER.
And damned if I wouldn’t make sure he did.
Vampires were faster than humans, which meant I was already waiting a couple of feet away from his front door when he emerged. From up close, the smell of vomit laced with blood hit me square in the chest. My stomach clenched painfully in sympathy with him.
He wasn’t looking left or right; instead, Finn started hurrying down the sidewalk.
Was he seriously going to walk himself to the hospital?
Hello???? Ubers existed!
I let out a frustrated sigh and followed him, always making sure there were a couple of people and a few feet between us. I didn’t want him to notice me, and I definitely didn’t want him to think I was following him.
Bennie would be pissed.
Well, more pissed off than he already was.
I’d told him I was just watching over Finn, not following him around, which yeah, had been accurate at the time, but things had changed. He was in immediate danger—a danger he’d created himself—and I definitely wouldn’t just stand by while Finn risked losing consciousness on the sidewalk.
Stubborn human.
I’d thought he was smart, a happy-go-lucky guy, and he’d always appeared way more mellow and agreeable to me.
However, it appeared the agreeable and mellow part was not accurate. Finn was a stubborn fool, and the reason I’d be the first vampire to get gray hair.
Finn stopped at an intersection, clutching the pole of the traffic lights with one hand, while clutching his stomach with the other. He was leaning precariously to the right, and then, out of nowhere, fell forward.
“Whoa, careful there,” I said gently, gripping his arm and pulling him back. Sparks danced up my arm, and warmth seemed to seep into me from where I was touching him, even though there was a layer of fabric between us.
“S’rry,” Finn mumbled, slowly turning his head to me. He was still blinking, so it took him a while to focus on my face.
Would he recognize me?
I held my breath out of pure instinct, anxiety knotting in my stomach.
His eyes flickered with recognition, but the ultimate expression he settled on was confusion.
Fuck.
“Hey, Finn, right?” I asked, relieved that my mind let me say those words. I mean, not a lie, technically, so it appeared to be okay.
“Yes… uhm…” He blinked, furrowing his brow. He wanted to say more, but the lights changing got his attention. “I need to go,” he said, pulling his arm out of my grip.
I suppressed a growl.
“Sure,” I said, trying for casual. “Where are you going?”
I fell in line with him, my shoulder brushing against his as we crossed the street in silence. Subtly, I turned right, the fastest way to get to the nearest hospital.
“Oh, uhm… I’m headed to the ER.” At least he still had enough blood inside him to turn crimson; however, his pulse was way too fluttery and fast for my liking, not the steady thump-thump I wanted to hear.
“Sorry, I feel like we’ve met before. I mean, we obviously have since you know my name, but I can’t place you. ”
I gave him a wide smile, though I wasn’t sure it worked on him. Some people told me it was too intense, bordering on creepy. Okay, Bennie had said that. “We met at a club a couple of weeks ago. CRAVE?”
“Ohh.” Finn nodded, his cheeks turning even darker. “That night’s a complete blur. It’s so weird. I don’t think I drank a lot, but yeah, sorry I forgot you.”
“Don’t mention it. Hey, why are you on your way to the ER? Are you okay?”
I needed to change the topic before I accidentally admitted to unintentionally getting him drugged. Also, he should get off his feet immediately. I didn’t like the way his heart was speeding one bit; the panting and sweaty forehead were just adding to my worry.
Finn stopped. “Not really, no. I ahh, might’ve puked a little blood, and now I’m freaking out.”
Placing a hand on his shoulder, I steered him off to the side, away from the people idling by, so he wasn’t at risk of being run into.
“Oh, man, that doesn’t sound good at all. Are you still nauseous? Let me call you an Uber!”
There, I sounded completely reasonable. Like a true friend. Not like someone who’d watched him from the opposite roof for hours every day and had been trying to help him get better for weeks.
We’d have words about this.
He deserved a fucking spanking for denying himself medical care for such a long time.
Closing my eyes, I tried putting that thought aside. I didn’t need a boner right now. Not at the moment, no matter how much his blood was calling to me. Even through the acidic stench of vomit, I could scent the metallic, rich tang of his blood.
“Oh… thank you.”
Jackpot.
I grinned at him, keeping my hand firmly placed on his shoulder to make sure he wasn’t going to try to run off after all as I fished for the phone in my pocket.
Five unread messages, all of them from Bennie, flashed on the display, but I didn’t have the time or mental capacity right now. Instead, I navigated to the Uber app and ordered the nearest car.
“It should be here in two minutes,” I told Finn.
“Oh, okay.” He sighed with relief. “Thank you. I don’t even know why I didn’t call one myself.”
I rubbed his back, and he leaned into the touch. Internally, I was screaming with joy, but on the outside, I stayed calm and collected. Finn needed someone right now, and though I was the worst person for the job, I was here, so I’d step up.
“You said you vomited blood. I imagine that was pretty scary for you. It’s only natural for you not to make the most logical decisions in such a stressful situation.”
Finn nodded, his shoulders relaxing a fraction, but his face was still tight with worry. “I guess you’re right. Thank you. Oh, uh… do you want to exchange numbers so I can pay you back?”
I blinked at him.
“I’m coming with you,” I told him in no uncertain terms. Since I’d revealed myself to him, I might as well stay by his side. That way, I could make sure the doctors took his problems seriously. Especially since I didn’t trust Finn not to downplay his symptoms.
“Oh.” Finn bit his lip. “Thank you, but I don’t want to ruin your night. I don’t think spending hours in the ER with me is what you imagined you’d be doing tonight.”
Ha! No, no, it wasn’t. But having him close once again, no matter the circumstances, was more than enough.
“I like spending time with you,” I said, giving him a reassuring smile. “And I don’t think you should be alone right now.”
In the end, Finn didn’t put up much of a fight.
It might have been because of his exhaustion or the fact that a part of him didn’t want to be alone in the hospital, but he didn’t protest at all when I climbed into the Uber too.
And he only protested a little when I climbed out after him at the hospital.
And when the nurse led him to a room, well, by then he was shaking like a leaf and way too nervous to tell me to fuck off.
Fortunately, the doctor took his symptoms seriously, immediately admitted him, ordered a gastroscopy, and had his blood drawn.
By then, Finn told me to go home, and as much as I didn’t want to, making a scene in front of the hospital staff seemed unwise, so I had no other choice but to agree.
Outside the hospital, I checked my phone.
Seven messages and three missed calls.
Fuck.
Things appeared to be urgent.
I sighed as I hit the callback button.
The bass of the music vibrated through my body, though I hadn’t entered the club yet—a steady, quick rhythm that doubtlessly had the crowd writhing on the dance floor. To me, however, it was grating on my nerves, shredding the last ounce of patience I had to pieces.
Never in my existence had I imagined returning to CRAVE so soon, yet here I was, slowly approaching the line in front of the dark red brick building that used to be a warehouse a long, long time ago.
Blue light bled through the old overhead windows, the shadows licking at the buildings across the street. Even out here, the air was heavy with the smell of alcohol and sweat.
The people in line were giggling and chatting, seemingly unbothered by the cold as they waited to be let into the seedy hell they called a club.
Fortunately, I didn’t need to bother waiting. The bouncer, a vampire himself, knew to let me in. Well, I guess he had orders to let all paranormals in, as I’d never ever seen one standing in line.