Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

It was nearing 11am when Taeyong finally roused, which was some kind of miracle, because he could never make himself sleep past nine even on the best of days.

He woke up feeling so incredibly warm, only to realise his face was pressed against a broad chest. There was an arm wrapped around his shoulders too, holding him close. Taeyong moved his leg and found it entangled in a pair of others. His heart skipped a beat, giddy.

Johnny had stayed, just like he had said. Taeyong sighed, snuggling closer.

“Good morning," Johnny suddenly rumbled, his voice rough like he’d not long woken up himself. “Did you sleep okay?”

Taeyong nodded. “I don’t usually sleep this late,” he said, staring at the clock on the wall.

“Late? It’s only 11am!”

“Late for me.” Taeyong yawned. Johnny trailed his fingers along his shoulder, dipping down over the curve. “I don’t feel like leaving the bed though, I know that."

Johnny chuckled. “Me neither. I’m not opposed to staying in bed all day, although we could both do with a shower.”

Taeyong looked at the covers and found them bare. He pushed them away, looking down at himself. Johnny had cleaned up, his eyes easily found a washcloth on his bedside table, the sheets bundled neatly by his door, ready for cleaning.

“We could take one together…” Taeyong wondered aloud. He chanced a glance up at Johnny when he felt him shift.

Johnny met his eyes, messy hair flopping to the side as he tipped his head.

“Well.” He grinned. “I’d be a fool to say no to that.”

He rolled out of bed, and Taeyong didn’t get to miss his heat for long before Johnny was dragging him out too, pulling the covers around his body for a bit of modesty as they walked to the ensuite. Taeyong stumbled, still a little numb from last night’s endeavours. 

“You okay?” Johnny asked, quickly catching Taeyong’s arm and letting him lean his weight against him. Taeyong nodded with a smile, gratefully leaning into his support.

Showering together, Taeyong realised after they’d already been under the spray for a handful of minutes, was rather intimate. He was sure his cheeks had become a permanent shade of red by this point. Without the cloud of arousal from the previous night, Taeyong felt almost rude for looking at Johnny’s naked body as the man lathered on body wash. He felt like he should apologise each time his hand brushed the vampire’s skin when he was in the process of scrubbing his own, but was silenced by Johnny’s continuous smiles.

It was Johnny that started the conversation, of course. They talked about non-things; small insignificant topics, interesting ones, amusing ones that had bubbles of laughter bouncing off the tiles. It wasn’t awkward, intimate and a little stomach-flipping yes, but comfortable all the same.

Johnny was still his usual charming self. He kept checking that Taeyong was alright, asking how he was feeling and even offering to shampoo his hair. It was an awfully domestic offering, but Taeyong readily agreed, letting out a satisfied groan as Johnny’s fingers massaged into his scalp. The vampire only laughed. “I’m glad my shampooing skills are worthy of such a reaction.”

He had looked a little stunned, however, when he first saw the extent of the bruises covering Taeyong’s body. He’d promptly apologised, but it sounded half-hearted, and Taeyong didn’t miss the way he bit his lip whilst Taeyong was examining the marks on his thighs.

They towelled off and changed. Well, Taeyong did, pulling on a fluffy pair of sweatpants and a sweater to match. Johnny stood and looked at his abandoned clothes from the night before.

“I don’t really wanna wear this again,” he grimaced, picking up his shirt. “I think I better go get some fresh ones from my place.”

“Oh," Taeyong said, pursing his lips. He didn’t want Johnny to go yet, but he supposed that was being selfish. The man had already ditched his own party for him, had spent the night because Taeyong had asked him to, and it was nearing midday. “Okay…” he finally mumbled, trying and failing not to sound sad about it.

Johnny noticed. “Hey, what’s wrong?” When Taeyong didn’t answer, he smiled. “Because I’m going?”

Taeyong nodded stiffly.

“I’m just going to get some clothes." Johnny put a hand on Taeyong’s arm, squeezing. “I was hoping you would want me to stay a little longer, to be honest. Do you want me to come back after I've changed?”

“Yes,” Taeyong said, probably too fast. “I would like that.”

“Okay, then I will.” Johnny’s eyebrows ticked down as he looked at his clothes again. “How did I just realise that I’m going to have to put these back on in order to get to my apartment.”

Taeyong giggled. “You could just go in the towel,” he suggested, not-so-subtly eyeing Johnny’s chest and how low said towel was sitting on his hips. “It’s only one door down.”

“That is true,” Johnny murmured. “Also very daring, what if someone else saw me?”

“Well, I suppose you’ll just have to be extra fast.” Taeyong grinned.

He accompanied Johnny to his front door, checking the coast was clear upon the other’s request before holding it open for him.

“I dread to think what my apartment looks like,” Johnny grumbled, peeking out into the hall himself, double checking.

“Hopefully it’s not that bad, didn’t you say your friend was watching it for you?”

Johnny scoffed. “Yeah, but Yuta also brought his boyfriend with him last night, so I assume the tidiness of my apartment would have been the least of his worries.”

“I don’t mind helping you clean up,” Taeyong said, smiling when Johnny looked down at him.

“Whereas that’s sweet, I couldn’t expect you to do that.”

“You’re not expecting, I’m offering.”

“Still,” Johnny said. “I don’t want you to tidy my mess.” He rearranged his towel and Taeyong refused to blush at the slight glimpse of his dick, because that would have been ridiculous. “I’ll be back soon, alright?”

Johnny’s eyes flicked down to his lips before flicking back up. He raised an eyebrow, his query blatant. They hadn’t kissed since last night. Taeyong had wanted to, especially when Johnny had turned him around in the shower, a small smile on his lips as his eyes unabashedly searched Taeyong’s face and his fingers had massaged through his hair. Taeyong thought leaning up to steal a kiss might have been inappropriate — more inappropriate than showering with your hookup the next morning? the voice in his head supplied.

Hookup probably wasn’t the right word. It certainly didn’t feel like the right term to refer to Johnny as. Taeyong couldn’t remember wanting to hang out with his previous hookups after a night together, nor had they ever asked to hang out with him. He couldn’t remember any of his hookups making him smile so much. Taeyong also couldn’t remember any of them being his neighbour, whom he’d been living beside for a little while now. Who he had admittedly become incredibly fond of.

Taeyong pushed himself onto his toes, capturing Johnny’s mouth in a kiss. Johnny kissed him back with just as much enthusiasm, pressing a smile against Taeyong’s lips. It was sweet and soft and terribly natural.

“See you soon, okay?” Johnny assured once he’d pulled away, giving Taeyong one last chaste kiss before he was gone. Taeyong waited until Johnny slipped into his apartment before shutting his own door, stomach feeling fuzzy.

To pass the time, Taeyong focused on cleaning. He picked up the sheets Johnny had stripped as well as his own soiled clothes and shoved them all in the wash. The rest of his apartment was relatively tidy, but with Johnny coming back over, Taeyong made sure to go over everything again, even going as far as to pull his vacuum out of his closet.

He ran into a panic for ten whole minutes when he couldn’t find his phone, thinking he’d left it in the jeans that were currently on a spin cycle, then sighed in relief when he found it on his bedroom floor, partway under the bed. The battery was almost dead, he plugged it in to charge before unlocking the screen. He was greeted by a string of notifications from none other than Doyoung.

         [Doie :p]
        » yong
        » yongie u alive??
        » gonna take the silence as a yes
        » i hope you scored last night
        » i know i did :p
        » is that why ur not replying??
        » yong pls let me know ur ok :(
        » if u dont answer by 1pm im coming over there so help me god
        » ok make that 2pm
        » don’t make me call Ten
        » i will make him call Kun too!!!

Taeyong rolled his eyes at the dramatics before quickly typing out a response.

         [Yongie]
        » no need to come over
        » or call Ten. im fine
        » i’m busy though so i’ll talk to you later
        » and i’m glad you had fun

It showed as read almost immediately. The typing ellipsis followed right after.

         [Doie :p]
        » oh FINALLY
        » just been here worrying myself silly but dw
        » but i’m glad ur ok
        » wait busy doing what?
        » hold on DID you score last night??
        » holy shit was it johnny??
        » ARE YOU BUSY DOING JOHNNY???

Taeyong pursed his lips.

         [Yongie]
        » my phone’s almost dead so i gotta go

He sent instead, ignoring the multiple vibrations that came through as he locked his phone again, putting it on his bedside table.

Taeyong went and settled down on his couch, fingers drumming on his knees as he waited. He probably should’ve put on the TV or something to fill the silence, but he couldn’t shake the slow return of his nerves.

He suddenly realised that this, Johnny coming over again, was a moment, would be a moment. This bypassed chats in the building lobby or enthusing about plushies. It topped dancing together at a party, kissing when tipsy on beer and drunk on excitement. It even surpassed falling into bed together, giving into lust.

This would be the first time Taeyong and Johnny had ever hung out. Taeyong thought this was more daunting than their events last night had been, which was saying something. It would just be them. Alone. Not that they hadn’t already been on multiple occasions, but this was different. This was a post hook up (not really hook up?), friendly hang out. Could he even say friendly after they’d showered together and kissed at his door not even an hour ago?

He was soon snapped out of his thoughts by a knock on his door. He leapt up, rushing to go and open it.

Johnny stood in a pair of his own sweatpants and a large, white t-shirt. Under his arm he held Taeyong’s towel. The vampire gave him a wide smile.

“Hey,” he said, passing Taeyong the towel.

“Hi,” Taeyong greeted, standing aside and nodding for him to step in.

“You okay?” Johnny asked when the door closed. “Have you had second thoughts about me coming over again?”

“No!” Taeyong quickly shook his head. “I haven’t, I promise. I was just waiting.”

“I’m very glad."

“How was your apartment?” Taeyong asked, ushering Johnny further inside. He tossed the towel towards the general direction of the bathroom as they went. 

Johnny made a contemplative face. “It’s not as bad as I thought actually. It’s full of cups and bottles, but they can wait. Nothing looks damaged as far as I can tell, so that’s good.” The vampire fell onto the couch when Taeyong insisted he sat down. “Yuta’s still there— dead to the world. Well, dead-er than he can be, I guess.”

“I really don’t mind helping you clean,” Taeyong said as he sat next to him, a modest space between them. “I did take you away from the rest of your party,” he mumbled, still feeling a little bad about it.

Johnny let his head fall against the backrest. “That’s hardly a reason for you to help with that. And I can’t say I mind that I missed the rest of the party." He turned his head to look at Taeyong. “I’d definitely take coming home with you over any party, if given another chance.”

Taeyong averted his eyes to his lap. His face burning hot was to be expected.

“So, what’s on the agenda for today?” Johnny asked.

Taeyong blinked. “I… don’t know, actually. I’ve not really done this before, either,” he admitted, scratching his neck. “Erm, what would you like to do?”

“Well, it’s Saturday,” Johnny mused. “As good a day as any to binge watch some movies. How does that sound? That’s pretty chill, right?”

Taeyong met Johnny’s eyes. He instantly felt his lips tug into a smile.

“Yes. I would like that.”

✵

It soon became apparent that Johnny didn’t just watch movies. He had a thing for scrutinising everything about their plots, too.

“Like, who in their right mind would open another dinosaur park after all the shit that happened in the last movies,” Johnny had muttered as they watched Jurassic World.

“Movie studios who want even more money from a popular franchise?” Taeyong said, laughing at Johnny’s incredulous look at the TV as crowds of people ran away from flying pterodactyls.

“Yeah but logic wise, it makes no sense! A T-Rex got loose in a city in the last movie, and they still thought it was a good idea to do it again!" he had argued. “And that moron who wants to train raptors to fight in wars? Like, who wrote this? I refuse to believe someone wrote a character so stupid.”

Taeyong couldn’t remember exactly when during the movie his leg had made it onto Johnny’s lap, but he didn’t complain, and he’d thoroughly enjoyed the vampire’s hand stroking down the length of it, even as he continued to express how ridiculous the movie was.

“This whole journey could have been avoided had Nemo just stopped being such a little shit,” Johnny later said as they watched Marlin and Dory race through the swarm of jellyfish in Finding Nemo.

“There wouldn’t be much of a movie if that had happened, Johnny.” Taeyong had smiled, looking up from where his head rested on Johnny’s shoulder.

“I guess,” he’d mumbled, pulling Taeyong’s other leg onto his lap too. The angle almost made Taeyong slip backwards, but Johnny’s arm circled around him before he could, holding him close to his side so Taeyong could still lean his head on the vampire’s shoulder. Taeyong was glad his face was out of Johnny’s view so he wouldn’t have to see the stupid smile that split Taeyong’s lips apart. “Still, it doesn't change the fact that it’s always one person ruining everything for everyone else.”

“They are fish, Johnny.”

“Alright. One fish, then. Every-fish. My point still stands!”

It wasn’t until the credits began to roll that Taeyong’s stomach rumbled.

“Should we order some food?” Johnny suggested, already taking his phone out of his pocket. “I found an amazing place last week, actually. They make great pizza. Is that cool?”

Upon Taeyong’s confirmation, Johnny rang up and ordered them food; two large pizzas and a smattering of side dishes the vampire said he was craving and promised wouldn’t go to waste.

Once he’d put the phone down, Johnny turned around, keeping a firm hold on Taeyong’s legs until they were facing each other, sideways on the couch. Taeyong mirrored him, smiling when Johnny took his hand and started playing with his fingers.

“So, while we wait, what can you tell me?” Johnny asked.

Taeyong arched his brow. “About what?”

“About anything. Tell me something I don’t know.”

So Taeyong talked. He wasn’t sure what prompted it, but the first words out of his mouth were about how he enjoyed dance at school. He was in a dance club every Wednesday and Friday after classes were out. He had wanted to study it further, had researched dance academies both locally and globally, then ultimately gave up that dream as he grew older. Looking back on it, he wasn’t entirely sure why he dropped it — Teen hormones? Lectures from teachers and family about doing something worthwhile instead? Perhaps a combination of things. He could have been dancing now, maybe part of a famous dance troop or touring in theatre productions or something of the like, but alas, that wasn’t how it had turned out. Taeyong didn’t think it was worth dwelling on, in any case.

That led him into talking about how he went on to study law at university. Uni only lasted a few months before he decided it wasn’t for him, and with help from his family he was able to move out here. It was another fresh start, despite his first one (as his parents had put it) having only just begun. He talked about job-hopping, getting into an endless loop of cashier positions until Doyoung pulled him out of it and helped him find something new, and a few office jobs later, he ended up with his current one. It wasn’t what Taeyong had planned for his life when he’d decided to up and move to a new town, away from family and childhood friends, that was for sure.

“You’re only twenty-four,” Johnny said, tracing the lines of Taeyong’s palm with his finger. “Plenty of time to try new things. Sure, that’s all you’ve done so far, but who’s to say you won’t be doing something entirely different this time next year?”

Taeyong shrugged, letting his head fall against the backrest. “Just an absent worry of mine, I guess. That I’ll be stuck looking at boring reports for the rest of my days all because I flunked uni.”

“I flunked uni too,” Johnny told him, chuckling at Taeyong’s surprised expression. “Probably for the best, since I was looking to become a doctor. That would have been a lot of money down the drain, considering my circumstances.”

Taeyong frowned, realising what he meant. Vampires couldn’t become doctors. Too much exposure to blood ignites their extreme bloodlust. Putting one in an operating theatre would be like throwing a barrel of gasoline on an already blazing fire.

“I’m sorry," Taeyong said solemnly, squeezing Johnny’s hand.

Johnny just laughed. “Nothing to be sorry for. I don’t think I would have been a very good doctor, anyway. I wasn’t entirely comfortable with the idea of rummaging around someone’s insides in the first place.”

“Not very wise of you to pick a career path that involved that, then.”

“No, but it was either that or do business studies — parent’s orders. Studying business extensively… God, boredom might have killed me before any vampire had the chance to.”

Taeyong swallowed, looking down at his legs, again entangled in Johnny’s own. “Do you…” he started, then shook his head. “Sorry, ignore me.”

Johnny tugged his hand until Taeyong met his eyes again. His smile was encouraging when he said, “You can ask me whatever you want. I promise you won’t offend me, if that’s what you’re worried about. Was the question something to do with being a vampire?”

“Yes. If… If that’s okay?”

“More than okay.” Johnny nodded.

“…Do you remember? Being turned?” Taeyong asked in a whisper, still worried that the question might be too invasive.

Johnny looked at him, hand still playing with Taeyong’s fingers. His eyes, so warm, flashed with something else. Something Taeyong instantly recognised as sadness.

“I remember everything,” Johnny said quietly. “Some vampires remember the day they died, others don’t remember anything at all. Some lose all knowledge of their human life, in fact. Being turned is like a clean slate for them. Me personally, I remember my human life, I remember the turning and I now remember the years I’ve lived since.”

Taeyong let out a breath. He shuffled closer, took Johnny’s hand in both of his own. “I can’t even imagine— I… I’m really sorry, Johnny.”

“I said there’s nothing to be sorry for.” Johnny smiled, and Taeyong was thankful it still reached his eyes. “I got over being so sad about it a while ago now. As for getting past it, not quite yet. It’s slow acceptance. I was a human for twenty-six years, much longer than I have been a vampire. I guess that acceptance will come with time.”

Taeyong wasn’t sure what to say. He hadn’t meant to angle their conversation into something so deep, but nevertheless he felt honoured Johnny deemed him worthy enough to share something so personal with. He thought about vampires. All human up until a certain point. He thought about his own thoughts on them. That guilt was still there, swirling around his ever-changing judgment. What a fool he was. He squeezed Johnny’s hand tightly, letting him know he had listened, despite not quite knowing how to respond.

They fell into a comfortable silence. Taeyong stroked rhythmically over Johnny’s knuckles as the vampire watched intently.

“Did you know that you talk in your sleep?” Johnny suddenly asked.

Taeyong blinked up at him. Johnny looked as though he was trying to stop himself from grinning. Taeyong frowned.

“I don’t talk in my sleep.”

“Oh, but you do," Johnny lilted. “You were talking quite a lot, actually. You said my name a few times in fact, which was flattering. Do you remember what you were dreaming about?”

Taeyong’s face flushed. Johnny finally let his grin loose.

“No.”

“Not at all?” Johnny questioned, the mischievous glint in his eye telling Taeyong he saw right through the lie. “No problem, I think I can help re-jog your memory. You see, each time you said my name, you also said the word ‘please’, but you were saying it in a way that sounded an awful lot like you were in the middle of—“

“Stop!” Taeyong cried, clamping a hand over Johnny’s mouth for good measure as his own cheeks burned. The vampire just laughed behind his palm, even Taeyong squeezing his face tighter didn’t quell his snickers.

“Did I break your dream?” Johnny asked, his voice muffled.

“Shut up,” Taeyong mumbled.

He allowed Johnny to grab his arm. The vampire pulled his hand away from his face, pressing a kiss to the inside of his wrist before entwining their fingers. When Taeyong braved a glance at him again, he was met with Johnny still looking highly amused.

Damn him and his stupidly infectious smile. A peal of laughter was up and out of his throat before he could stop it, and Johnny joined in, grabbing Taeyong’s other hand to pull him closer.

It wasn’t much later until Johnny’s phone buzzed, telling him the delivery guy was outside the building. The vampire gently pulled himself up, saying he would race down to pick it up. Taeyong cleared the coffee table and let Johnny back in again when he appeared less than two minutes after having left, taking the bag of side dishes and heading back to the couch.

They ended up putting on the first episode of some thriller drama as they ate. It didn’t take long for them both to wind up confused with the story. They eventually turned the volume down, the drama now background noise for much more interesting discussions. Johnny could apparently make a joke about anything it seemed, and Taeyong almost choked around a mouthful of pizza a couple of times as a result, but it was still nice, wonderfully casual, like they’d done this a hundred times before. 

By 9pm they were wonderfully full and worn out from their Netflix binge. Johnny stayed true to his word and didn’t let all the extra stuff he’d ordered go to waste, an array of empty containers spread across the table. Taeyong found a pack of soft mints among the mess, it took them less than a minute to work through half of it.

“It’s late,” Johnny finally murmured. Somehow his hand had found Taeyong’s again. “Not that I want to, but I should probably go back to my bombshell of an apartment. I have no idea if Yuta’s still there or not, actually.”

“I understand.” Taeyong smiled, even though if he had his own way, he would happily have Johnny stay another night. “I really enjoyed today.”

Johnny smiled back. “Me too,” he said before leaning in for a kiss. It started out soft, but it quickly grew deeper. Johnny seemed more than happy to let Taeyong take the lead, leaning back as Taeyong surged forwards and kissed him until they were both breathless.

It was only when Taeyong realised he’d wedged himself between Johnny’s long legs, pressed firmly against the vampire’s chest, that he pulled away. The urge to duck his face away in embarrassment for being so eager was outweighed by the urge to peck Johnny on the lips again, directly on the bow. Taeyong had to admit, he was getting rather addicted to the smiles Johnny pressed into their kisses.

“You’re making it awfully hard for me to leave.” Johnny laughed, his hands on Taeyong’s waist.

“You kissed me first.”

Johnny laughed again. “Touché. But really, I better get going.” 

They untangled themselves and slowly walked to the door. Johnny stopped Taeyong from opening it right away, instead he reached down to take one of his hands.

“If you’re open to it, I would really like to take you out on a date,” the vampire said, voice small, and dare Taeyong say, shy.

Taeyong gaped at him. “You would?”

“Most definitely.” Johnny nodded. “Only if you want to, of course. Would you like to?”

“Yes,” Taeyong rushed to confirm, nodding his head. “Very much. I’d love to.”

The smile that overtook Johnny’s face was immeasurable. Taeyong’s stomach did another flip thing again. He would say yes a thousand times over if Johnny would grace him with another smile like that, where his eyes disappeared into little crescent moons and small laughter lines appeared on his cheeks.

The vampire fished out his phone. “In that case, can I have your number?” he asked, holding it out for Taeyong to take. Taeyong did, punching in his digits and saving himself under Yongie :). 

“I’ll text you, okay?” 

“I’ll be looking forward to it,” Taeyong said, giving Johnny one last kiss before opening his door. Johnny smiled at him as he walked out, didn’t stop holding onto his hand until their arms were pulled taut, then he was gone, slinking into his own apartment with a wave.

Taeyong felt giddy the rest of the evening. The excitable nerves tingling under his skin didn’t dissipate as he cleaned up the takeout boxes, nor as he tidied the living area, and not even when he finally went back to his phone on his bedside table, looking at the mountain of indignant texts from Doyoung about being ignored. Above all of them though, was a new message, and Taeyong felt his mouth stretch impossibly wide.

         [Unknown Number]
        » Hey, it’s Johnny :)

✵

Just over two weeks later, Taeyong found himself sitting in front of Doyoung in a nearby café. His friend had a scowl plastered on his face and seemed more interested in drinking his coffee than talking to Taeyong.

They had been here for around ten minutes already, and Taeyong knew it wouldn’t be much longer until Doyoung caved and broke the silence, because that was what Doyoung was like. So he waited, quietly sipping his own drink.

Then, like clockwork, “You sleep with one good-looking man and suddenly not replying to your friend is acceptable,” Doyoung grumbled from across the table.

Taeyong scoffed. “I did reply!”

“Yeah, with like, so many hours between each one! You even blanked me for two whole days!”

“I said I was busy!” Which admittedly was a half lie. He wasn’t busy in the conventional sense, as in swamped out with work or other necessary things. He was busy messaging and seeing a certain vampire over the last couple of weeks, so much so that he may have forgotten to respond to Doyoung’s texts at times. He daren't tell his friend that just yet though, lest he get properly loud and offended in the middle of the café. “I’m here with you now, aren’t I?”

Doyoung huffed, putting his coffee back on the table. “Yeah. So, now you are, spill. Johnny’s got to have some magical dick for you to be acting so different. And you know, ignoring me.”

Taeyong choked on his smoothie, eyes darting around the café and praying the other people seated around them did not just hear Doyoung say magical dick.

“I’m not acting differently,” he said, instead of addressing the other part of that statement.

“You’ve got that stupid ‘I'm so in love’ look on your face,” Doyoung said, ignoring Taeyong’s affronted noise as he continued. “I haven’t seen you look like this since that dude from way back when, you know, that engineer guy? So I’m guessing it’s something to do with Johnny. You said you would tell me everything in person, so start talking. You can start with why you now deem him more important than your friend who you’ve known for literal years.”

Taeyong sighed, but relented. He started from the night of the party — well, from when Doyoung came to announce he was leaving with Jaehyun. Taeyong told him about them ditching the party for his apartment instead, very quickly breezed over the events of that night and then told him about the Saturday they spent together too. Doyoung was surprisingly quiet throughout his explanation, his face impassive right up until the last part, then his eyebrows wavered, like they were torn from shooting up towards his hairline or meeting as a frown in the middle of his forehead.

“Let me get this straight. You hooked up with him, then had a date in your apartment the very next day?” Doyoung asked, looking perplexed.

“Well—“ Taeyong stuttered. “It wasn’t a date, we just… hung out. For the day. A friendly hang out.”

“Right…” Doyoung's tone was annoyingly skeptical. “And I suppose there was no kissing or anything during this friendly hang out?”

Taeyong despised how his cheeks had an inability to lie. He knew they’d tinted red from the way Doyoung’s face lit up.

“That’s what I thought.” He grinned. “Well, I have to say, this is new. I’m guessing you like him then? Either that or he does have a magical dick and he’s got you in some kind of trance right now.”

“Would you please stop saying that?!” Taeyong whisper-shouted, quickly scanning the room again in embarrassment. “But yes," he said, nodding to himself. “Yes, I… I like him.”

The honesty seemed to put an end to Doyoung’s teasing, both his faux annoyance and everything else, as his eyes softened. His friend cupped his chin on the palms of his hands as he peered at Taeyong from across the table.

“Aw, Yong,” he cooed, and Taeyong glared at him. “That’s actually pretty cute. I know I told you to go for it—“

“I distinctly remember you threatening to kill me if I didn’t—“

“But I only said that because he’s hot! I didn’t think you like — liked him. As in, liked him beyond being willing to hook up with him.”

Taeyong bit the inside of his cheek, eyes falling to his glass. He hadn’t lied, he did like Johnny, and probably more than he would care to admit at this stage. Not that he could blame himself, the vampire was awfully hard not to like. Hell, even thinking about him made his stomach flutter like a lovesick teenager.

Johnny was wonderful, in more ways than one. Though Taeyong couldn’t help but think they had gone about things a little backwards; what with getting to know each other more after having slept together. Hanging out after having already been intimate. Was there even one set way of doing things? They couldn’t be the only people who were doing it this way around. Whatever ‘it’ was, anyway. Courting didn’t sound right, it also sounded terribly old-fashioned. Just… seeing each other? God, Taeyong couldn’t even remember the last time he did anything like this.

Everything about Johnny was new for him in so many ways. Casually seeing someone wasn’t something Taeyong did on the regular. Hookups weren’t something he did frequently. Seeing said hookups wasn’t something he did at all. Then of course you throw the fact that Johnny is a vampire into the mix, and well. The situation was about as new as it could get.

However, despite the unfamiliarity of it all, Taeyong knew that he liked Johnny in some way. He most certainly liked him beyond a simple fling, much to his friend’s earlier assumption, and Taeyong supposed that meant something. 

“Your face tells me you’re thinking too hard,” Doyoung said, offering Taeyong a sincere smile when he looked up at him. “I was only kidding, you know. If you do like him, then that’s great. It’s better than hating the guy, anyway. I just wasn’t expecting you two to do anything further, was all.”

“Yeah, well.” Taeyong finished the rest of his smoothie. “I’m not entirely sure that what’s happening with us has, like, a label yet, but it’s something. He uh…” Taeyong pondered, the corner of his mouth twitching upwards. “He asked me out on a date. An actual one.”

A small gasp left his friend’s lips. Doyoung slapped his hands over his cheeks. It did nothing to stop the force of his grin. “Wow, Yong, you obviously did something right. Ditched his own party, stayed the night, stayed the next day and now he wants to take you out on a proper date? Did you suck him dry or something? The old suction-three-thousand? Is he the one in a trance?”

Taeyong frowned, then picked up a handful of sugar packets from the center of the table and launched them at Doyoung. He smiled when a few hit Doyoung directly in the face, and then smiled a little bigger when a couple landed in the last of his friend’s coffee.

Unsurprisingly, bickering ensued; mainly Doyoung whining that Taeyong owed him another cup of coffee and Taeyong arguing that he’d almost finished said coffee and that it was a warranted attack for him being such an ass. Like always, it eventually fizzled out. They ended up ordering another drink each and splitting the costs, and Doyoung joined Taeyong in the booth as they sat back down. Taeyong informed the other of everything that had happened between him and Johnny thus far upon being prodded for more information, and Doyoung gave either his input or approval in his usual way: crudely and or kindly.

“So, are you going to tell me about Jaehyun?” Taeyong later asked as he watched Doyoung sip his third drink. It was only fair he got to pump his friend for information too.

After a moment, Doyoung let out a short sigh, putting his cup down with a thud.

“What about him?” he questioned, voice flat.

Taeyong blinked. “Erm— well. You’ve not told me much about him. Are you still speaking to him?”

“No.”

“No? Did something happen?” Taeyong pressed.

“No," Doyoung said again. “He was just a guy I hooked up with, simple as that.”

“Simple as that?” Taeyong parroted, disbelieving. “But you said he was nice, right?” His friend only shrugged. “It sounded like you might have… I don’t know. Had something going on.”

Doyoung snorted then. “I think I’ll leave the ‘dating your hookup’ thing to you and Johnny.” 

Taeyong pursed his lips. There was no in between when it came to Doyoung. His friend was either incredibly voluble or incredibly vague. However, vagueness, on the topic of him and a potential date, could only mean one thing in Taeyong’s eyes.

“Wait— you like him, don’t you?”

“He was a good lay, yeah.”

“No, you like him, right?”

Doyoung could mask an exceptional poker face when he wanted to, but in this instance he let the visible clench of his jaw betray him. It broke right through his nonchalant façade like a sledgehammer to a glass panel.

“You do!” Taeyong said, elated. When Doyoung didn’t respond, he took the opportunity to do some teasing of his own. “What did he do, huh? Was he a hopeless romantic? Did he profess his love to you or something? Does he want to meet you again— oh. I bet that’s it. He’s asked to see you again, hasn’t he?”

On top of all the other things Doyoung was and was not, he wasn’t particularly good at the whole relationship thing either. The only long-term relationship he’d had was with the ex from a couple of years ago. It had lasted four years and had ended ugly. Since then, Doyoung only seemed to dabble in hookups, simple flings that meant nothing to both parties involved. He got any pent up stress out of his system and then he could move on. However, if what Taeyong had deduced held any truth…

Doyoung sighed, long and hard. “I don’t understand why he can’t just leave me alone.”

Bingo.

“So he has been in contact with you?” Taeyong asked, turning to face him fully.

“No, he’s trying to. I stupidly gave him my number. Now he’s not stopped texting me,” Doyoung grunted, his eyebrows pinched.

You could block his number, Taeyong didn’t say, because Doyoung definitely knew that himself. With the knowledge Taeyong had of his friend, there was one obvious reason why Doyoung hadn’t in fact just blocked Jaehyun: he liked the vampire, more than he would care to admit. He didn’t want Jaehyun to stop texting, but he didn’t want to acknowledge it either; a tin of worms he would rather keep sealed lest he end up opening an old wound in the process. Taeyong could understand, could see in his friend’s hardened expression without needing it confirmed.

“Perhaps… it would be worth a shot?” Taeyong tried. Doyoung turned to him with a withered look, eyebrow arched as if to say, really?  “I’m seeing Johnny and that’s going well. What’s the harm in meeting with Jaehyun too? You could meet him for a coffee, at least.”

“That’s mean, I couldn’t do that.” Doyoung laughed but it was void of any actual amusement. “That would just be leading him on. The lay was enough. I don’t want anything further with him.”

Sure you don’t, Taeyong kept to himself, swirling the last of his drink around. Doyoung looked desperately like he wanted the conversation to move along, so Taeyong kept his mouth shut. He made a mental note to grill him about it at a later time though. Doyoung might want to ignore a shot at something more, but what kind of friend would Taeyong be if he let him pass up a chance at something that could be worthwhile?

“So, enough about me,” Doyoung piped up. “Now I want details, explicit ones. Seriously, you must have done something in that bedroom to make that man fall head over heels for you. Did you hit him with a reverse cowgirl? Did you give him a raunchy pet name whilst you were doing it? Oh God, did you call him the D-word? He looks like the type to be into that, if I’m being honest. Oh! Did you take his—“

Doyoung saw the sugar packets coming this time, ducking back to the other side of the table as an abundance soared through the air, pelting him from all directions.

✵

Taeyong was beginning to wonder how he should refer to his and Johnny’s relationship.

“You’re obviously dating," Ten had said during a weekday call. He had been extremely offended that he’d been kept out of the know on the situation for almost a whole month, his tone still sharp and responses snarky even after giving Taeyong an earful on best friend etiquette. “You text, you kiss, you fuck. Friendly neighbours don’t do that. You are dating.”

Taeyong had spluttered. “We do not have sex! It’s only been the one time—“

“Really? You’ve not fucked since? Lame. Anyway, everything else you’ve said sounds like stuff people dating do, so yeah, I’d say you’re an item.”

Taeyong still found himself conflicted though. Johnny hadn’t explicitly given them a label either, and Taeyong didn’t want to jump the gun and define them as an item in case he might’ve been reading things wrong.

But when he thought back on the last few weeks; the constant messages, chaste pecks when they unexpectedly bumped into each other in the building lobby, that one evening Johnny had knocked on his door with a crate of beers in his hand and they had a repeat of their Netflix binge, the night ending with slow, undulating kisses and soft touches.

And all the apartment hangouts since then, where they would talk about anything and everything, where movies were reduced to background noise for late night snoozes together and reduced to ridicule by the vampire’s scrutiny. And where Taeyong could never stop his heart from doing a little somersault in his chest, trying to remember the last time he’d connected with someone so well, so fast and when they had become so comfortable, so natural — well.

It was becoming increasingly more difficult not to agree with his friend.

Still, Taeyong was hesitant, in case there was, any possible chance, Johnny didn’t feel the same way about things. And he couldn’t ignore the small part of himself that worried that his assumption could turn out to be true.

“You think that Johnny — the man that sends you cheesy as hell animal memes and kisses you whenever he sees you — doesn’t feel like there’s something more going on between you both?” Doyoung had then said on the phone yesterday. His words had easily translated to: you’re an idiot.

“People work differently, right?” Taeyong had tried to justify, knowing his self-doubt was winning out against his logic but unable to help it. “What if that’s all just… I dunno, a casual thing for him?"

“Taeyong,” Doyoung had said, voice chiding. “The guy has literally told you he’s planning a whole date for you. My God, you should have taken the hint when he first said he wanted to take you on one! Who asks someone on a date after a hookup if they only want something casual? Like, could it be any more obvious?”

Could it be more obvious? Probably not, Taeyong thought as he rested his head on Johnny’s chest.

It was Sunday evening. The heavens had opened up around midday and it hadn’t stopped raining since. Johnny’s visit today was unplanned, but Taeyong didn’t mind at all. He’d been having a pretty miserable day until the vampire showed up, the gloomy weather only adding to his somber mood. Johnny had appeared at his door with his hair damp and coat zipped up past his nose. His afternoon meet-up with a friend got postponed because of a cancelled train, he asked if Taeyong was up for hanging out instead. Warmth bloomed in Taeyong's chest when Johnny returned his impromptu hug at the door without an ounce of hesitation.

Now they lazed on the couch, Taeyong practically all the way on top of Johnny as the man lay on his back. Pulp Fiction was playing on the TV. They had opted to pick from Taeyong’s DVD collection instead of Netflix this evening. It was a movie Taeyong had seen countless times before so he wasn’t paying much attention, instead he was focusing on the sound of Johnny’s breathing and the slow, dull thumps of his heart against his ear. He counted, ten seconds between each beat.

The first time he had noticed the vampire’s heartbeats he’d been bewildered. He hadn’t known a vampire’s heart could beat at all, let alone have such a delayed rhythm.

“Slow circulation of blood," Johnny had explained. “It’s almost like a side effect of the blood we drink. I’m gonna be honest, I’m not sure why it happens, but the moment you feed, it’s like your heart comes alive again, almost? A few days after feeding, the beats start to slow down and they keep getting slower until they stop altogether. That’s usually how I judge when I need to feed again.”

Taeyong was so wonderfully warm, snuggled against Johnny. He absently wondered where the myth that vampires were as cold as ice came from. Johnny was anything but.

“You okay?” Johnny asked after Taeyong let out a sigh. His hand gently traced the nape of Taeyong's neck, moving down smooth across his shoulders.

Taeyong hummed, nodding his head. “Just comfy.”

“I’m glad.”

During the final scene of the movie, Johnny took out his phone. Taeyong couldn’t see what he was doing from where he was, but he could hear the other tapping away speedily. Johnny suddenly gasped.

“Yes!” he shouted, a hand flying back to Taeyong’s shoulders when he realised he’d jolted him.

“What’s happened?” Taeyong asked, craning his neck to try and see what Johnny was looking at, but the vampire tilted the screen away before he could, a broad grin plastered on his face.

“I’m pleased to announce that I can finally take you on that date now.”

Taeyong sat up so he could look at Johnny properly. The vampire looked very pleased with himself as he kept sneaking glances at his phone. Taeyong frowned.

Johnny had told him he’d been planning their date from the moment he’d asked Taeyong a few weeks ago, but he hadn’t been sure whether it would be ‘available’ to go to as soon as he would like. Understandably, this had left Taeyong quite puzzled. It quickly became apparent that Johnny did not crack under any pressure, either. He was dead set on keeping his secret about where the date was taking place, no matter how much Taeyong prodded. And Taeyong had done a lot of prodding.

“Uh oh. You glaring at me wasn’t the reaction I’d hoped for when I imagined telling you our date was ready,” Johnny said with a teasing smile.

“I’m not glaring, it’s scrutinising. I’m suspicious." Taeyong eyed the other again. “You’re still going to keep it a secret from me?” 

“Yep!” Johnny pocketed his phone again.

“And what if it’s something I don’t like?” Taeyong said, hoping cheek might finally prompt an answer instead.

Unfortunately, Johnny didn’t seem the least bit deterred by this line of questioning. His smile turned smug. “Nice try, but I know for a fact you’ll like where we’re going. I already got your approval about it, actually.”

Taeyong’s frown deepened. His approval? But how? Wracking his brains very quickly proved futile. He was brought out of his reverie when Johnny poked his chin.

“Hey, stop trying to guess what it is,” he admonished.

“Well if I had at least one clue I’d stop being so curious,” Taeyong shot back, laying it on thick by batting his eyelashes and leaning closer to the vampire’s face.

Johnny sighed, long and overly dramatic, then let out a deep laugh.

“Alright,” he relented. “Only one clue though. We will be able to get lots of sweet things there.”

Sweet things? That, unsurprisingly, didn’t shorten the list of possible date scenarios Taeyong had in mind at all. That could also mean anything — The movie theatre? Some kind of dessert parlour? Was he talking about a bakery? Were bakery dates even a thing? Where else would you get sweet things that would be considered a date-worthy occasion? Johnny had also been waiting for whatever it was, which in all honesty only confused things tenfold.

“Clue quota is used until further notice, I’m afraid,” Johnny said before Taeyong could even open his mouth again. Taeyong huffed, ignoring the hand that moved to poke his pout. “So, how does next Saturday sound?”

“It sounds like not knowing where we’re going is gonna bug me for another week.” Taeyong's lips twitched into a smile. “But yes. Next Saturday sounds great. Will I need to bring anything to this super secret place?”

“Just yourself. And a warm coat.”

Before Taeyong could start speculating what that also meant, Johnny bridged the short distance between them with a kiss. The vampire did that a lot, instigated kisses. Not that Taeyong ever complained. On the occasions he did manage to steal a kiss first, Johnny would always meet him with the same ardour.

Tonight was different though. A familiar flicker of heat sparked in the pit of Taeyong's gut as he leaned in closer. He opened his mouth a moment later, inviting Johnny to kiss him deeper, and let out a satisfied hum when the other did just that. It didn’t take long for the kiss to grow heated, Johnny's hands falling to Taeyong's hips and effortlessly pulling him up until he was straddling the vampire’s own.

Taeyong let out a noise, pulling back as he settled himself down, cock stirring in the confines of his sweats as he ground down on Johnny’s lap. He didn’t miss the way Johnny grit his teeth at the action, his hands tightening their hold as he encouraged Taeyong to do it again, another deliciously slow grind.

Taeyong was truthful when he had told Ten they’d not done anything since the night of the party. They had never progressed past suggestive touches in those times between. Appreciative squeezes eventually morphed into innocent strokes and open-mouthed make outs all simmered down into soft kisses, but it had never bothered Taeyong. It had been nice to be intimate without it always ending in sex, to know that Johnny didn’t mind either, that he was more than happy just to kiss Taeyong sweetly and hold him close.

But tonight, he wanted more, and he could tell that the vampire did too. All he could focus on was the heat of Johnny’s hands as he slid them under his top, fingers trailing over his stomach then further up across his chest, teasing. Taeyong shuddered, dived back in for another searing kiss.

“Johnny,” he breathed, impatient. “Please can we move? Off the couch?”

“Hmm, gladly. Bedroom?”

Taeyong barely got out an affirmative before he was suddenly upright in Johnny’s arms. The vampire had moved so fast that Taeyong’s body hadn’t even registered it. Johnny’s hand was supporting the back of his head, his other around Taeyong’s waist, making sure he wouldn’t slip. 

After a moment, Taeyong blinked, his head a little woozy. When he blinked again he gasped, scrambling to cling onto Johnny’s shoulders and wrap his legs around his waist, like he hadn’t already been in the man’s hold for a handful of seconds.

“My God! Warn a man!” Taeyong managed.

“Shit, I’m sorry, Yong," Johnny said, looking guilty. He ran his fingers into Taeyong’s hair soothingly. “I moved that fast out of habit, I’m sorry for surprising you. Are you alright? Do you still feel weird?”

“I’m, uh… I'm okay.” Taeyong found himself giggling after the shock had worn off. “It was just… really bizarre. Woah. It was pretty cool actually, a bit like an adrenaline rush.” Taeyong marvelled. “I’m guessing it doesn’t feel that weird for you though, right?”

Johnny shook his head, worried eyes still searching Taeyong’s face. “Not anymore it doesn’t. I admit it took me a little while to get used to when I first turned.” Johnny looked him in the eyes, brows furrowed. “Are you sure you’re alright?”

Taeyong suppressed an eye-roll, huffing through his nose instead as leaned in, kissing him firmly on the lips. “Yes Johnny, I’m positive, you can stop stressing. Now, weren't we heading somewhere?”

When he jerked his head in the direction of the bedroom, Johnny’s smile returned.

The vampire walked them to his room, accepting all of Taeyong's pecks as he went. He blindly kicked the door shut when they made it inside, only to twirl them around and press Taeyong against it.

Taeyong was expecting another kiss but instead Johnny went straight for his neck, his fangs pin pricking his skin as he mouthed down the column of his throat. There would definitely be bruises there by morning; Taeyong had cottoned onto the fact that Johnny was a fan of leaving marks.

(Just over a week after the party, Johnny had traced the fading blotch on Taeyong’s neck with a single finger. “It’s almost gone,” he had said, sounding a way about it.

“Yeah, the ones everywhere else are fading faster than I thought too, considering how you left them,” Taeyong had replied, watching as Johnny’s brows ticked down a fraction more.

“Huh,” was all the vampire said.

Johnny had sucked a mark onto the delicate flesh of his collarbone later that night, thinking he was being subtle by kissing Taeyong breathless first. He had looked very pleased once he’d pulled back. Taeyong didn’t mention it, only smiled to himself as he brushed his teeth and the loose collar of his tee slipped over his shoulder, exposing the purpling bruise and faint indent of teeth.)

Taeyong hummed, going lax against the door and grinning when he felt Johnny easily shift to accommodate his weight, all while not straying from his task.

“Johnny,” he said, fisting a hand in the other’s hair. Johnny looked up almost immediately. His eyes weren’t black, but they were murky, almost glossing over.

The vampire had been working on that, his self-restraint. Taeyong always assured him it was alright, he was used to the sudden switch in colour by this point, but that wasn’t the problem. Letting his eyes glaze over put him in a certain state of mind, Johnny had told him. Slipping into it for too long wasn’t good, it could mess with his rational thought and even his memory, in extreme cases. He hadn't used the word dangerous but it was heavily implied in the way he described it, eyes elsewhere as he'd relayed the information.

Just like he had done then, Taeyong brought his hand up to Johnny’s face, thumb sweeping gently underneath his eye, then across the apple of his cheek. (“It’s hard around you,” Johnny once admitted. “I’ve been around many people since I turned. It’s strange, none have affected me quite the way you have.”) The murky mist in his eyes faded, honey-brown shining through like the sun through the clouds. Johnny surged forwards with a kiss, hands squeezing Taeyong's thighs as he pressed his body closer.

“Yong, what do you want?” he asked.

“You,” Taeyong answered swiftly.

Johnny pulled back to meet his eyes. “I’m having déjà vu." He chuckled. “And I’ll say it again, that’s not very specific. Still shy, hm?” Johnny’s grin was too sly for Taeyong’s liking.

“I’m not,” he lied, badly too, if the way Johnny’s grin stretched was anything to go by. “It’s just an… embarrassing question.”

“You think so? Seems like a pretty simple one to me.”

“Alright then, if it’s so simple, how about you tell me what you want?"

Johnny looked at him. He didn’t move an inch from where he was still holding him against the door, eyes flitting around Taeyong’s face slowly. Taeyong did the same back, waiting for something to snap. Then, Johnny took a breath, exhaled it through his nose like a sigh.

“What I want...” Johnny suddenly eased Taeyong’s legs from around his waist, steadily lowering him onto his feet. “Is to make you feel good.”

Johnny quickly caught the hand Taeyong let fall from around his neck and pinned it beside Taeyong’s head instead. The wood was terribly cool against his flushed skin, Johnny’s grip around his wrist was near scorching in comparison.

“You were so pretty that night,” Johnny said, voice hushed. He took his leg and slid it between Taeyong’s own. It wasn’t high enough to touch, but the weight was there, heavy.

Taeyong swallowed.

“You took everything so well,” Johnny continued as he leaned closer. “You were so good for me. So pretty. Taking everything I gave to you. I could tell you liked it a lot. You made so many pretty noises…”

When Johnny moved his leg, he moved it fast. The sudden press of Johnny’s thigh against his cock made Taeyong’s hips jerk, a high pitched keen flying out of his mouth. His free hand shot down to Johnny’s hip, seeking some kind of purchase as the vampire moved his leg up higher. Taeyong gasped, pushing himself up on his toes in an attempt to relieve some of the pressure on his sensitive cock.

“Hm, yeah. Noises like that." Johnny smirked. “So sweet. And to know they were all caused by me, well.” 

He swiftly knocked Taeyong’s ankle with his foot, making him drop back onto his heels, right back against Johnny’s thigh.

“Ah! Fuck, Johnny—“

“So pretty. You like that, hm?” Johnny moved his leg slowly this time, stroking teasingly. “Want me to keep going?”

Taeyong nodded hurriedly, breath stuck in his throat as the other dragged his thigh along his cock, picking up the pace. Taeyong bit his lip, whines slipping through the cracks. It was rough, near chafing, but so good. After an uncounted amount of firm, tantalising strokes that left his legs trembling and his hold on Johnny’s hip wavering, Taeyong moved his hips forward.

A zap of electricity shot through his groin, zipping straight up his spine and fizzling out into a wave of pleasure. Taeyong groaned, deep and guttural. He couldn’t help but chase it again, gritting his teeth as he started to move his hips in time with Johnny's leg, meeting his movements in a wonderful push and pull. It was addictive, embarrassing — filling the silence with huffs and quiet moans as he moved against Johnny’s thigh — but he didn’t think he could stop if he tried.

At a particularly hard grind, Taeyong's whole body jolted. He’d almost forgotten his other hand was restrained, bolted in place by Johnny’s strong grip. The vampire’s grin was smug as he watched Taeyong wriggle, trapped between solid wood and Johnny’s strong hold, his pressing thigh, pushing harder now, purposefully.

Johnny brought his free hand up under Taeyong’s chin, lifting his head so that he met his gaze. Taeyong didn’t know what was more humiliating; the fact he was actually getting off on the vampire’s leg, the way he was being made to look at said vampire as he did so, or Johnny’s overly calm demeanour, watching intently as Taeyong bucked against him.

He must have been a sight; face flushed, eyes glossy, an array of noises tumbling from his lips. Johnny was his only audience, standing so close, shrouding his senses and taking everything in with hungry eyes. It was shamefully intimate, allowing someone to pick him apart in a way that felt so dirty. Arousal churned deep in his gut.

“Do you think you can come like this?” Johnny asked.

“Y-Yes, yes, Johnny— God,” Taeyong breathed. He could feel his boxers grow damp with his own precum. God, he felt filthy, he felt so good. “Please.”

The hand on his chin shifted. Johnny kept his fingers hooked underneath, but he brought his thumb up to Taeyong’s bottom lip, pulling it from between his teeth. He pushed the digit into Taeyong’s open mouth and Taeyong couldn’t help but whine as it pressed down against his tongue.

“So pretty. Yong, you’re so pretty,” Johnny said, his own breath catching as Taeyong swirled his tongue around the digit. “Shit, you’re so hot. You like fucking my thigh, huh?”

Taeyong nodded frantically, proving the point by grinding against Johnny harder, faster.

“Yeah, that’s it. You’re close, hm? You’re so good, baby, getting off on me like this. Look at you...” Johnny did look, eyes trailing from his face and down his body, enough to have Taeyong shiver under the attention. Taeyong felt his cheeks burn, nearing the edge he was so desperately craving. “You gonna come, pretty? Gonna come on my thigh?”

Taeyong’s hand fisted Johnny’s shirt, the only bit of leverage he had when his other hand was pinned and Johnny had a hold of his face, keeping his head from dropping in both embarrassment and ecstasy, forced to look the vampire in the eye as his peak drew closer.

The next time Johnny pushed his leg up, he kept it there, an unyielding pressure that left Taeyong squirming in place with a cry, unable to escape it.

“C'mon, Yong. Come for me, pretty.”

Taeyong's hips stuttered, mouth falling open, and with one more hard thrust he came. It was a lot at once; his eyes shut but he registered his hand shooting out of Johnny’s grip, joining his other in fisting the man’s shirt. His head dropped to the crook of Johnny’s neck the second the vampire pulled his hand away from his face, his loud moans muffled against his heated skin.

Johnny grabbed onto his waist, holding him close and keeping him upright as Taeyong shuddered in his arms, his legs threatening to buckle underneath him as he rode out his orgasm.

“Yong,” Johnny breathed, sounding a little hoarse. “Yong, you did so good. Fuck, you did so, so good,” he whispered, sending more shivers across Taeyong’s body.

It took several moments for his high to subside, whines softening into satisfied breaths. Johnny held him through it, his thumb stroking against his side as he murmured more praises in his ear.

When Taeyong finally lifted his head, Johnny was already looking down at him. The vampire kissed him so deeply it reignited the flickers of Taeyong’s lingering arousal.

“Fuck, that was the hottest thing I’ve ever seen,” Johnny grunted. His lips quickly made their way down to Taeyong’s jaw, leaving open-mouthed kisses as they went. “So pretty for me, baby. Do you want to sit down?”

Taeyong giggled at that, the change from Johnny being overly complimentary to tender in a microsecond. Taeyong couldn’t ignore the way his heart swelled a little. He shook his head, letting it drop onto Johnny’s shoulder again as he regained his composure.

“What I want,” Taeyong eventually said, flipping Johnny’s words on him as he pulled himself back. He held Johnny’s gaze as he brought his hand down over the obvious bulge in the vampire’s sweatpants, savouring the surprised gasp that left Johnny’s lips. “Is for you to come, too. Let me help you.”

Johnny smiled, kissing him with a sweet hum. “It appears you only have the ability to tell me what you want once you’ve already got off. Not so shy now, huh?” He snickered at Taeyong’s reddening cheeks. “But that does sound like a wonderfully tempting offer, if you’re up for it. What do you plan on doing, pretty?”

Taeyong raised an eyebrow at him, taking Johnny’s hands to pull him over to the bed. He let go so he could strip off his clothes, throwing his soiled boxers and sweats near the door before pulling off his top. Johnny observed silently, wetting his lips with his tongue and looking very much like he wanted to touch.

“What I plan to do,” Taeyong said as he walked to his bedside table and took out his all too familiar bottle of lube. “Is to prep myself for you.”

Johnny sucked in a breath, eyes widening as he watched Taeyong climb onto the bed. Taeyong picked up his stuffed bunny, placing it on the floor before he nestled himself in the pillows. Perhaps the vampire was correct in what he said, because Taeyong found no hesitancy in his movements as he spread his legs apart, nor any bashfulness in coating his fingers in lube and warming it between his hands, all while looking at Johnny’s slack jaw.

“Are you just gonna stand there?” Taeyong quipped, grin widening when Johnny blinked dumbly at him. The vampire quickly sat down at the bottom of the bed, eyes darting straight between Taeyong’s legs as he spread them wider.

“Taeyong—“ he started, but cut himself off when Taeyong pushed a finger into himself.

Taeyong let out a sigh as he started working it in and out. The stretch wasn’t much, he’d had a very indulgent night to himself the Friday just gone so the glide now was relatively smooth. He pushed in a second finger after a moment, breath hitching a little when he pushed them deeper.

“Fuck, Yong,” Johnny breathed. He inched closer, eyes fixed on Taeyong’s fingers pumping steadily. “Shit, you’re really doing this,” he said, suddenly sounding shocked.

Taeyong laughed despite himself. Johnny never failed to be endearing, even in moments like this. 

“Said I would — shit — prep myself for you."

Johnny reached out a hand and wrapped it around Taeyong’s ankle. He didn’t pull him closer like Taeyong had anticipated, he just held onto it, grip flexing as he watched with rapt attention. Taeyong moved his fingers faster, urged on by Johnny’s eager stare.

“Baby, you’re so good at that." Johnny visibly swallowed when Taeyong added a third finger and a whimper came out of his mouth. His fingers weren’t as long as Johnny’s, but the stretch was still there, sparking an already simmering flame. “Holy shit, Yong, you don’t know what you’re doing to me,” he said through clenched teeth.

“Then fuck me,” Taeyong said, slowing down his movements. “Oh, please, Johnny,” he whined sweetly, managing a smile when the vampire responded immediately by pushing himself off the bed to get rid of his clothes.

Once off, he crawled back on the bed with purpose, climbing right into Taeyong’s space. Taeyong gasped as Johnny drew his fingers out only to press two of his own digits in him instead. Johnny mimicked his movements, fingers reaching further than Taeyong’s ever could, and curling them inside, stroking against his walls.

“Shit! Johnny, please,” Taeyong pleaded. “Want… want you to fuck me now.“ 

“Don’t worry, baby, I will." Johnny removed his hand, picking up the lube. “You’re so good to me, Yong. Working yourself open like that. Gorgeous.” He leaned down to peck his lips, once, twice. “How do you want it, Yong? Tell me.”

“Any way you want,” Taeyong said. Johnny gave him a look. “Johnny, please? Any way, really. Just want you.”

Johnny smiled, slow and mildly amused. “Alright, baby. How am I supposed to argue when you’re asking like that?”

Taeyong only felt Johnny’s lips against his for another moment before there were hands at his hips, urging him to turn over. Taeyong followed, letting Johnny pull him onto his knees and push down on his back until his chest was pressed into the sheets. It was an awfully compromising position. Taeyong had nothing against being fucked from behind, but he couldn’t think of a time he’d been put into this position by a past lover, made to spread out and bare all like this. Johnny’s touches were guiding, tender. He took his time like Taeyong was someone to be appreciated, someone to be admired, and there seemed to be some truth in that when he felt Johnny’s hands smooth down his back, long fingers slipping over his sides and down to his hips. The vampire let out a deep hum of approval.

A shiver ran all the way from Taeyong's nape to the base of his spine.

“Are you comfortable?” Johnny asked.

So sweet.

Taeyong nodded his head against the sheets in answer. There was a pause, then Johnny moved around him. A second later, Johnny was tapping his chin, and when Taeyong lifted his head up, a pillow slid underneath him.

“Better?”

Taeyong looked at him, fingers curling around the pillow. If he couldn’t ignore it before, then there was no missing the way his heart suddenly felt too big for his chest now. He was sure the vampire could hear how fast his pulse had become, knocking incessantly against his ribcage.

He sat up before he could stop himself, hands cupping Johnny’s face so he could crash their lips together. Johnny didn’t seem to mind, he never did, smiling as he kissed back. 

“Sorry,” Taeyong mumbled as he pulled away, settling back down on the sheets. “Impulse. Please continue.”

Johnny chuckled. He moved back, and Taeyong sucked in a breath as Johnny’s hands squeezed his hips, then eagerly over his ass before he began pushing in.

Stupid of Taeyong, really, for almost forgetting how big Johnny was.

“You okay?” Johnny asked, hand rubbing gently over his lower back.

“Yes, Johnny, fuck,” Taeyong let his knees slip a little further apart, groaning as Johnny pushed deeper. “Please don’t stop.”

He had the air forced from his lungs when Johnny's hips finally met his ass. He struggled to take any more in when the vampire draped himself over his back. It should have been smothering; Johnny’s large frame bracketing him, his heated skin pressing firmly against his own, pushing him further into the sheets, but it wasn’t. It was warm, raw, and Taeyong sighed as Johnny’s lips pressed softly against the nape of his neck.

“Yong, baby,” Johnny groaned, his breath fanning Taeyong’s ear. “You feel so good. So good, pretty.”

Taeyong’s hand shot behind him when Johnny pulled his hips back, managing to get a grip on the vampire’s thigh just before he snapped his hips forwards again. They moaned in tandem, again when Johnny did it a second time, a third, the position allowing him to reach deep from the get go.

Johnny pushed himself up as he picked up the pace, hand pressing down between Taeyong’s shoulder blades as an anchor for this thrusts. Taeyong felt more exposed than ever, held down with his hips in the air as Johnny filled him up over and over. He was grateful for the pillow beneath his head for muffling the embarrassing whines the other kept punching out of him.

Johnny alternated his thrusts, fucking Taeyong fast enough to have broken moans catch in his throat before easing into near-heavenly slow strokes that Taeyong left his cries unfiltered for, pushing his hips back into them just to hear Johnny’s own moans stutter, to hear the string of praises that would fall from his lips each time he did so. Fuck, you’re so good, was his favourite to whisper. So fucking pretty, beautiful like this, you’re taking me so well.

“Can you come again?” Johnny asked around a groan, telling Taeyong he was close.

“Yes,” Taeyong said, feeling his stomach tighten. He moved his hand with the intention of jerking himself off, but Johnny moved before he could. The vampire’s arms circled around him, pulling him up so he was kneeling instead, his back pressed to Johnny’s chest as he sat back on his lap.

Taeyong’s hips jerked. Eyes threatening to roll back, he groaned, he was so impossibly full. He could feel Johnny’s huffs as the man buried his face in Taeyong’s neck before starting his thrusts again as he held Taeyong in his lap. Johnny kept one arm wrapped around his body as the other reached down to grasp Taeyong’s cock, beginning to stroke him in time with his thrusts.

“Johnny—” Taeyong choked. He brought up a hand to fist Johnny’s hair over his shoulder, shivering when Johnny groaned against his skin, the vibrations leaving goosebumps in their wake. There was the pinch of Johnny’s fangs again, the pressure wavering, and he didn’t have to look at the vampire’s eyes to know they’d switched to black. The pain, that slight element of danger, shamelessly poked at Taeyong’s arousal, had more precum dribbling down his length, right into Johnny’s palm as he worked his fist over his cock. “Johnny, w-want you to come, too—“

Johnny nodded, having heard, unable to answer as his lips mouthed along the side of his throat, his fangs grazing the skin, his hips snapping into Taeyong harder.

“Fuck, Johnny. I’m so close, come in me, please, fuck!” Taeyong urged, pushing his hips back into Johnny’s thrusts before the vampire’s movements stumbled. The arm around Taeyong tightened as he pushed himself to the hilt, teeth sinking into Taeyong’s shoulder as he came.

The bite overtook Taeyong’s senses. It hurt a lot, but he couldn’t bring himself to worry about whether Johnny had broken the skin because his eyes were rolling back in bliss. His own hips stuttered as he came in Johnny’s hand, a cry of the man’s name on his lips.

His high subsiding gave way to the pleasant ache in Taeyong's thighs, the scratchiness of his throat. Only when he went to stretch out his arms did he realise that he hadn’t felt Johnny move behind him since he came. The only sign that the vampire was with it at all was that he was still holding Taeyong close, supporting him on his lap so he wouldn't fall forward onto the sheets.

“Johnny?” Taeyong said, trying to look over his shoulder at the other.

Johnny took a deep breath. “I’m sorry, Yong,” he said, voice small.

Taeyong’s eyes widened. He unceremoniously pulled off his lap, ignoring how sensitive he still felt as he turned to face the other. Johnny’s eyes weren’t black like he had expected, but their usual bright glint had vanished. He looked sad.

“Why are you sorry?” Taeyong asked worriedly, clasping his hands around Johnny's neck.

“I almost—“ Johnny swallowed, let out a huff. “Again, I almost bit you properly. And then I bit you really hard here,” he said guiltily, brushing gentle fingers over Taeyong’s shoulder. Taeyong glanced down at it; there was an almost perfect, circular imprint of the vampire's teeth. The blood vessels had broken underneath the skin, but the flesh hadn’t been pierced like he had expected. It would leave a mean bruise, that was for sure. “I’m really sorry for hurting you.”

“Hey, I’m fine,” Taeyong assured, giving him an honest smile. “Don’t be sorry, Johnny. I’m okay, see?” He moved his arm around dramatically to prove the point, pleased when it made Johnny laugh a little.

“It’s just so… so hard with you,” Johnny said as he tilted his head up to the ceiling. He drew in another deep breath. “And it’s only getting harder the more I…“

Taeyong arched an eyebrow. “The more you what?”

Johnny slowly met his eyes again. “The urge to bite someone increases the more you like them.”

Taeyong stopped.

“The more you…” he echoed lamely.

“Yes,” Johnny confirmed. “Love, lust, affection — it all goes, like, hand-in-hand with bloodlust. I mean, the clue’s kind of in the name. It was difficult to keep myself under control the last time. But just now…" He shook his head. “Just now, I really thought I was about to do it! I managed to move away from your neck, because if I had bitten you there without the right precautions then that could have been bad, but if I had actually broken the skin on your shoulder that wouldn’t have been good either. Then I panicked because I thought I had and I could have just screwed up everything—“

Taeyong silenced him with a kiss. It took a moment for Johnny to reciprocate, but when he did Taeyong just kissed him harder, hands framing his face.

“You like me?” Taeyong asked instead of addressing Johnny’s panicked rant. It was as much as a distraction for Johnny’s own train of thought as it was a moment for Taeyong to shamelessly get the validation he’d been hoping for.

Johnny looked perplexed by the question. Then he smiled at him, he smiled so wide.

“Of course I like you." Johnny chuckled. “If I’m being honest…” He brought a hand up to the side of Taeyong’s face. “I’m more than just a little fond of you. I like you a lot, Taeyong.”

Taeyong could do nothing but stare. His heart stuttered into a much faster rhythm. Stuttered again when Johnny’s smile turned sad.

“That’s why I was so worried,” Johnny continued. “I was worried I might have just ruined everything. I would never forgive myself if I did that without your approval. I know you’ve never really spent much time around my kind before and that a lot of stuff is new for you. I know it took a lot for you to trust me, and I’d hate myself if I broke your trust by doing something you’re uncomfortable with. I’d hate for you to hate me.”

Taeyong blinked. His eyes felt wet, but he ignored it in favour of grabbing Johnny’s face again.

“Johnny,” he said seriously. He waited until Johnny met his gaze again. “I like you a lot, too.”

Taeyong laughed at Johnny’s astonished expression, the way his mouth dropped into a little ‘o’.

“I think this has just made me like you even more.” Taeyong smiled. “And you’re right, I do trust you. However, your assumption about me being uncomfortable with you biting me is... rather far from the truth.”

Johnny’s mouth opened wider.

“It doesn’t make me uncomfortable, Johnny. On the contrary, I actually find it quite… hot,” Taeyong admitted, feeling his cheeks flush when Johnny’s eyes went as wide as his mouth. “Also a little nerve-wracking too though, when I think about it with a clear head — but not in a bad way! Only because it’s something new for me. Everyone gets nervous about new things, right?”

“I guess so,” Johnny murmured, still gaping at him.

“You know so. So no, Johnny, you would not have ‘ruined everything’ if you had bitten me. But I do think it’s something we should talk about properly before uh, doing this again,” he said, looking around at the rumbled sheets then down at himself and Johnny, equally messy.

“Yes… Yes, of course we should,” the vampire agreed, though he sounded a little dazed. Taeyong giggled, leaning in for a quick kiss.

“Thank you for thinking of me,” he said softly. “I know it mustn’t have been easy to suppress it, but thank you for still putting me and my thoughts first.”

“Of course.” Johnny’s lip twitched. “I said I would never forgive myself if I did. The urge is strong, but I like you more.”

Unsurprisingly, Taeyong felt his cheeks heat. He wrapped his arms around Johnny’s neck to squish him into a hug. The vampire returned it not a moment later.

“Would you... say we’re dating now?” Taeyong asked, taking advantage of the fact Johnny couldn’t see his face like this.

He felt Johnny’s chest rumble with a laugh. “I would say we’ve been dating for a while now, have we not?”

Taeyong hugged him tighter.

“Yes.” He nodded, a giddy smile overtaking his face. “Was just making sure.”

✵

The train station was busy.

"Where'd all these people come from?" Taeyong murmured as he plastered himself to Johnny's side, careful not to get swept away with the passing crowds.

The vampire shrugged, slinging an arm around Taeyong's shoulders. "It is Saturday."

"Yeah, but this is unusual, even for a Saturday." Taeyong glanced around the platform. There were a number of families surrounding them, young children in puffer coats zipped up to their noses and running around excitedly. "Where could they all be going?"

Johnny's lip curled slightly. He looked down at Taeyong before shrugging again. "Who knows?" he lilted. "Perhaps they're going somewhere fun."

Taeyong didn't get to question Johnny's playful smirk before the tannoy announcement sounded, signalling that their train was approaching. Johnny led them to the front of the platform, and when the train pulled in, he ushered Taeyong on first. The vampire sneakily used his speed to snatch them a couple of seats before anyone else could take them, pushing Taeyong beside the window and taking his hand once they were settled.

Taeyong was on high alert as they zoomed past farming fields and under tunnels. Johnny had been even more secretive the week leading up to their date, refusing to drop even the smallest hint; even Taeyong's plan of kissing the taller man senseless for information in the middle of his kitchen didn't work, much to Taeyong's frustration.

"We'll be there soon," the vampire said with a grin, obviously noticing the impatient bounce of Taeyong's leg as he peered out the window.

It was another twenty minutes before they reached their stop, and Taeyong couldn't stand up fast enough.

They followed the throngs of other passengers out onto the platform, then up the steep flight of stairs leading to the high road. The same passengers continued along the route Johnny was leading them, pacing ahead on the sidewalk. They passed by a few small stores, the majority closed now that the sky grew darker. Taeyong hadn't ventured this far out of town before, so he remained close to Johnny’s side, quickly lacing their fingers together when the path became more crowded.

His patience thinned with each new road they turned down, desperately trying to catch a clue from passing signposts and huffing when they gave him nothing.

He was on the verge of asking Johnny how much longer they had to walk when he saw it. Over the rise of the road they followed, Taeyong could make out of the top of a ferris wheel. Then he saw strobe lights, aimed at the stars, steadily ticking back and forth. His eyes widened further when the large tree they passed gave view to an enormous swing carousel, an army of chairs flying high in the sky, the faint cries from their riders carrying across the wind.

"There's the fair!" cried a young boy in the group ahead of them. "I can see it, mama! Look, look!"

Taeyong came to a halt. It in turn stopped Johnny, who was tugged back by Taeyong's grip on his hand.

"Taeyong?" he asked, pushing them out of the middle of the sidewalk as people sailed past.

"You brought me to the fair?" Taeyong breathed.

"I did." Johnny's smile pushed his cheeks all the way up to his eyes. "Surprise?"

"Johnny… You…" Taeyong looked up at the carousel again. He squeezed the vampire's hand tightly. "How did you know…?"

"...That you love fairgrounds?" Johnny finished. "Easy. You talk a lot when you're drunk. You enlightened me on the fun of fairgrounds for at least an hour one night. It wasn't long after we started seeing each other more often." He looked up at the carousel too, his lips spreading into a smile. "I couldn't not bring you here after that ted talk you gave me."

Grabbing Johnny's face was something Taeyong had become quite accustomed to. He pulled the other man down into a kiss, not caring that the people passing by were shooting them curious glances as he continued to press a multitude of kisses against Johnny's lips.

"I take it you approve of our date location?" Johnny smirked once they'd parted.

"More than approve. Quick, before we miss everything," Taeyong said excitedly, already slinking back into the crowd and dragging the vampire with him.

Johnny laughed behind him. "The fair is in town for a few more days yet—"

"Yes but I want to see it now. Come on, Johnny, hurry!"

The vampire dutifully followed Taeyong's eager pace as they weaved around other people on their way to the fairground's entrance. The ecstatic flutter in Taeyong’s gut only intensified the closer they got; the sights, the noises, the smells — the rainbow of lights, an abundance of different jingles ringing in his ears and an assortment of aromas filling his nostrils. Taeyong had almost forgotten the thrill of it all, pushing himself up onto his toes to peer over the heads of the people in front.

As breathtaking as it all was, Taeyong’s attention was snagged by something else when they finally made it past the gate. He instantly veered Johnny to the right, pulling him along until they made it to a sweet stall.

It was marvellous. There were bags of cotton candy hanging on hooks from the wooden canopy above, an array of caramel apples and other candied sweets in large tubs and trays and what seemed like every kind of biscuit and mini cake in between. Taeyong practically salivated at the sight, his gaze unable to settle, flicking from one colourful treat to the next.

"Should we get some stuff?" Johnny asked, looking amused at Taeyong's awed gape.

"On the way back," Taeyong eventually said, forcing himself to take a step back. "We'll be carrying bags around the whole time, otherwise."

"Bags?" Johnny questioned as Taeyong led them back into the crowd, following the slow shuffle down the main path, where rows of stalls were set up on either side. "How much were you planning on getting?"

"Hey, a fair is not something that comes by often. Fairground sweets are unmatched, I have to get enough to last me a month, at least." 

Johnny didn’t argue, only chuckled again as he held Taeyong’s hand close.

They stopped by a few stalls on their way down the path. There was a stall for just about everything; world food with unusual herbs and spices, special drinks in a host of colours, jewellery, knick-knacks, clothes — Taeyong couldn’t say he’d ever been to a fair with so much variety. He found himself eyeing a braided bracelet at one of them, it had red and black beads with a drawstring tie.

"For you, half price," the stall owner said, looking at him hopefully. Taeyong hummed, about to put it back with an apology, when Johnny reached over with a couple of notes in his hand. Taeyong blinked as the owner smiled, taking the money and raising his brows at the pair. "You've got a good one there." He grinned, nodding his head at the vampire.

Taeyong mumbled a thanks, his face feeling hot as he and Johnny continued on their way.

"You didn't have to buy this for me," he whispered, knowing the other would have heard despite all the noise.

"But you liked it," Johnny said, as though that was reason enough, tracing his fingers over the beads sitting snug on Taeyong’s wrist. "And it looks good on you.”

“Thank you. I really do love it,” Taeyong murmured, leaning up to peck Johnny's cheek, pleased when it made him smile.

The main path eventually split into a wider area, allowing the crowds to go their separate ways. Taeyong still stayed close to Johnny’s side as they ventured further into the fairground. They passed by a few children’s rides, and Taeyong’s heart skipped a little when he saw Johnny laugh at a bunch of kids cheering as they went round and round on a mini version of the swing carousel.

They carried on around a few fairground games, watching young children doing their best to hook a duck and giggling at overly eager adults trying to win the biggest prize on the ring toss and failing miserably.

Taeyong stopped at one game shack, his eyes falling on the string of prizes available to win, more specifically, the small version of his stuffed bunny back home, cramped in with a bunch of other stuffed animals.

"Oh, it looks like yours," Johnny said with a smile.

"I want it," Taeyong said adamantly.

"Okay, but can you play darts?"

Taeyong looked at the dart board, hung high on the wall. He could not, in fact, play darts. Well, he'd never tried, but how hard could it be, right?

"Excuse me," Taeyong called out to the lady behind the counter. "How many points do you need for one of these prizes?"

"For all the ones hanging up, you need to score fifty or over," she said. "Do you want a go?"

Taeyong glanced at Johnny. The vampire gave him a shrug. "Yes, I want a go."

The lady gave him three red darts in exchange for the coins he dropped into her palm. She stepped away to see another customer when Taeyong readied his hand to throw. 

The first dart landed on twenty. Not a bad start. The second just landed on sixteen, and Taeyong frowned.

"One more twenty and you've got it," Johnny said encouragingly.

"I'm not that great at aiming." Taeyong worried his lip, eyes flicking between his last dart and the bunny. He wanted it so bad, and he knew he wouldn't be satisfied until it was in his hand, no matter how many goes it took. The thought of throwing a chunk of his money away to try and score fifty points wasn’t very appealing, though.

"Want me to throw the last one?" Johnny offered. "I don't think I can get a bullseye or anything, but I'm certain I can hit the twenty."

Taeyong handed him the dart. That statement was good enough for him.

Johnny sized up the distance, drawing his hand back before launching the dart. It cut through the air with a slight whistle, the pointed tip wedging into the board with a resounding thunk.

"Oops." Johnny winced. "I didn't mean to throw it quite that hard."

How deep the dart was buried into the cork didn't matter — Johnny had hit the triple ring on number twenty, meaning he'd scored sixty with a single throw.

The lady came back around, looking at the board and tallying up the score. "Ninety-six. That means you can choose between the medium and small prizes."

Taeyong needed no time to contemplate, he picked out the bunny straight away, smiling like a fool when the lady unhooked it for him. He walked away with a skip in his step, putting the bunny in his bag for safekeeping before leaning up to give Johnny a well-deserved kiss for his efforts.

Johnny fell in love with a prize of his own at the tin can toss, using his strength to blast down the pyramid of cans with just one ball. It earned him a handful of awed gasps from the surrounding crowd, something the vampire seemed quite pleased by. The person in charge of the game was no different, still wearing his flabbergasted expression even as he handed Johnny a goofy-looking stuffed banana as his prize.

"I don't know why, I just really like it." Johnny grinned as he slipped it into Taeyong's bag also.

It wasn't until they made it into the middle of the fair that they were met with the adult rides. When it came to rides, Taeyong had a particular preference; as long as it didn't have too many turns and didn't go that fast, he was game. Unfortunately, when it came to fairgrounds, that crossed almost everything off the list, and this fair seemed to be no different.

Taeyong gulped, he swore he heard Johnny do the same. They both watched as the slingshot ride was lowered down into position, the caged ball containing two people being tilted back until they were facing the sky. There was a ten second countdown from the ride operator, then the latch released, and the ball shot up into the air at breakneck speed, accompanied by the screeches from its passengers.

"Uh," Johnny mumbled beside him. The ball bounced on the bungee cords, the screams from the people inside could still be heard all the way from the ground. "Please don't tell me you want to go on that."

"God, no." Taeyong vehemently shook his head. "Not a chance."

"Good," Johnny breathed. "I'd hate to see you get on that thing by yourself."

Taeyong made a noise, whipping around to shoot him a look. "You're saying you wouldn't ride it with me if I wanted to have a go?"

"That is correct." Johnny had the gall to laugh at Taeyong's pout. "There are many things I'd do for you, but being launched three-hundred feet into the air is where I draw the line."

"Ah, I see. You're scared of heights," Taeyong stated as he tugged Johnny to start walking again.

"No," Johnny denied. He pulled an offended face when Taeyong grinned at him. "I'm not! There's a difference between simply being up high and being literally shot into the sky. Anyway, you can't talk, you didn’t want to ride it either!"

“I would have ridden it for you. Because I’m a good boyfriend,” Taeyong teased.

“Oooh, so it’s like that now, huh?” Johnny raised his brows, eyes narrowing when Taeyong gave him a shrug, daring. He grabbed Taeyong by the wrist. “You’re such a good boyfriend? Well, I’ve just thought of a ride I want to go on. I saw it earlier.”

Johnny weaved them around the crowds, his smile growing as they went, and Taeyong felt his heart thump a little faster. He didn’t trust that smile; it was the same one Johnny would do when he was up to no good, like the time he conned Taeyong out of all his monopoly properties, or when he’d lied about his favourite Starbucks drink no longer being available, just so he could see the look on Taeyong's face when he pulled the pink beverage out of his bag.

When Johnny pulled them to a stop, Taeyong's stomach dropped. 'PINBALL', said the huge neon sign hanging above, and Taeyong didn't have to ask why the ride had the name. It was a roller coaster, a tall one, the tracks horizontally layered on top of each other with the coaster cars making their descent down them in a zig-zag kind of pattern. Had it stopped there, Taeyong didn't think he'd have been so uneasy, but aside from the jerky course of the tracks, the cars also spun. Each corner of the track seemed to send the cars into a dizzying frenzy. Taeyong swore his vision was swimming just watching from below.

"Hey now, what's with that face?" Johnny said, his grin overly smug. "Gone back on your word?"

"No," Taeyong denied, because for some reason he had to have the last laugh, even if meant doing something as stupid as riding the Pinball.

"Great. Shall we get in the queue?"

You're a moron, said the voice in Taeyong's head as they inched further up the queue line. The Pinball seemed even bigger now they were directly under it, the rattling of the coaster cars vibrating through Taeyong's whole body doing absolutely nothing to ease his nerves. Johnny on the other hand seemed perfectly chipper, glancing down at him every couple of minutes to flash him what seemed like a blatantly teasing smile masked as an innocent one.

It wasn't until they were at the front of the queue, waiting for one of the cars to come back around, that he felt Johnny nudge his side.

"Hey," he whispered, bending down so only Taeyong could hear. "You don't really have to ride this, you know."

Taeyong blinked at him. "What?"

"We don't have to go on this if you really don't want to," the vampire repeated. "Your heart rate hasn't slowed down since we got in the queue. I was expecting you to back out before now. I didn't think you'd keep up your brave façade for this long."

"It's not a façade!" Taeyong said indignantly, because even as he watched the coaster car empty of its riders and the gate open for him and Johnny to walk through, he was in too deep to bail now, not without embarrassing himself. "I told you I'd do it."

Johnny eyed him suspiciously, but he followed Taeyong through the entrance when one of the ride operators told them they could board.

Taeyong slid into the car on shaky feet, grabbing hold of the bar the second it was lowered over both of their waists, strapping them in. The operator rattled it to make sure it wouldn't budge, then threw a thumbs up to the man in the control box. Taeyong involuntarily lurched when the car suddenly started rolling away from the starting point, following the track around the corner at no more than walking speed.

"You okay?" Johnny asked. Taeyong could feel the other's eyes boring into the side of his face, but he had more pressing issues. Like the fact they were now faced with a practically vertical slope that would take them to the very top of the ride.

Taeyong could feel his heart pound with each crank of the chain lift as it pulled them higher and higher, everything on the ground steadily becoming smaller. He couldn't even bring himself to look out over the fair, doing his best to keep his eyes focused on the railing and praying it wouldn't spontaneously decide to unlatch itself beneath his fingertips.

Through the blood rushing in his ears, he heard Johnny scoff.

"I really can't believe you," the vampire said, but it sounded fond. There was a smile on his face as he shook his head at Taeyong's hunched up position. "All of that talk just to scare yourself shitless. Why'd you do that when you clearly didn’t want to ride this thing?"

"I don't know," Taeyong mumbled, because now that Johnny said it as they sat several feet in the air, really, what an idiot he was.

The vampire tutted. "Come here, you," he urged, unclamping Taeyong's hand from the bar so he could lace their fingers together. He scooted closer until they were thigh to thigh, leaning over to press a kiss to Taeyong's cold cheek. "You'll be fine. I'm here, and it'll be over before you know it. Okay?"

"Okay," Taeyong said, taking a breath when they eventually made it to the top, the car following the track around until they made it to the first descending slope, then it stopped — the infamous lull in all roller coasters before a major drop, designed primarily to heighten the thrill. It did nothing but heighten Taeyong’s panic.

"Just hold onto me," Johnny said, squeezing his hand tightly before the thunk of the catch releasing rang in Taeyong's ears and their car took off.

It was, unsurprisingly, just as nauseating as it had looked from the ground. The speed matched with the intense spinning at each knee-jerk turn had screams flying out of Taeyong’s mouth all the way down, Johnny’s laughter echoing between each one. True to the vampire's word though, it was over fairly fast, the car slowing down as it hit the final part of the track, rolling back around to the start.

Taeyong didn't know which way was up. He knew that he looked a sight from Johnny's badly concealed cackle.

"Babe," he said between more laughs. "Are you alright? Did you survive?"

Taeyong mustered the emotional strength to shoot him a glare, one that was only met with more laughter. He let Johnny grab onto his hand and tug him out of the car when the bar was lifted, leading him down the ride's exit.

"Are you really okay, Yong?" Johnny asked, bringing up a hand to fuss over Taeyong's tousled hair. "You look like you had a few years knocked off you after that."

"I'm never going on a ride again," Taeyong declared, feeling wobbly.

"Well, I did tell you that you didn't have to—" Johnny snapped his mouth shut when Taeyong's eyebrows furrowed. "Not the time for an 'I told you so'... got it."

Taeyong hoped the vampire considered himself lucky that he allowed him the kiss he swooped down to steal, almost like an apology.

"But are you serious? Do you really not want to go on a ride ever again?" Johnny then had the audacity to pout. "Does this mean you won't ride the ferris wheel with me?"

Taeyong pursed his lips as Johnny's own gradually split into a grin.

"I suppose... I could handle the ferris wheel," Taeyong finally murmured, folding his arms. "But you owe me food first, as compensation for what I just went through."

Johnny, sweet as ever, didn't argue, despite having every right to — Taeyong did bring this on himself, after all. The vampire just nodded, following along until Taeyong found a food truck he was satisfied with, one that specialised in roasted meats marinated in all kinds of ale. Taeyong walked away with a burger bigger than his hand and Johnny with a jumbo sized hotdog; it sparked a rather inappropriate debate on their way to the ferris wheel that had Taeyong almost choking on his food. The vampire seemed pleased at making Taeyong laugh again though, showing it by peppering his cheek in kisses and rubbing his back when another coughing fit started after a badly timed joke.

"You're sure you're okay with going on this?" Johnny asked while they were standing in the queue.

Taeyong rolled his eyes. "For the third time, yes, Johnny," he answered, shaking his head when the vampire still looked unconvinced. He proved it by pulling Johnny past the gate when it opened, sliding into the bright red passenger car waiting on the deck, smiling reassuringly when Johnny sat down opposite him.

It was a bit of a squeeze, their knees bumping together, but Taeyong didn't mind. Nor did Johnny, his hand falling to Taeyong's thigh the moment the wheel began turning, steadily lifting them higher into the air.

"Woah," Taeyong gasped as he peered out of the window. He hadn't had a chance to see it on the Pinball, but fair was as every bit magical from above as it was below. Colours danced, people moved — it really was second to none. "It's so pretty."

"Beautiful," Johnny said, but when Taeyong turned his head, Johnny wasn't admiring the view, he was looking at him.

Taeyong felt his stomach flutter. He looked back out the window. "You're supposed to be appreciating the scenery. Isn't that the whole reason you wanted to come on here?"

"Perhaps I came on here so I could look at you," Johnny quipped, and Taeyong's cheeks flushed.

"You can do that anytime you like."

"True. But this is different." Johnny tilted his head at him, eyes mapping their way across his face. "I like seeing you this happy. You look like you're glowing. If I could bring you here all year round, then I would."

Taeyong's face grew impossibly hot. "Stop it," he mumbled.

"But you look pretty when you blush."

"What did I just say!"

"Okay, okay! I'll be quiet."

Johnny leaned over to look at the view with him, marvelling at all the lights as the ferris wheel circled round and round. He pulled Taeyong into a kiss on their last loop, taking advantage of the blind spot at the wheel's highest point to render him breathless; a moment of seclusion from the uproar of the fair several feet below.

Taeyong left the ride feeling fuzzy, his hand back in Johnny's warm grip as they continued on their way. They passed a few more terrifying-looking rides, stopping to watch some unfortunate souls be catapulted into the air or spun fast enough they were reduced to nothing but a blur.

It wasn't until they had made it to the very back of the fairground, stomachs full of sickly chocolate covered churros, that Taeyong pulled Johnny to a stop.

"Look," he said, pointing at the entrance ahead of them.

"'The Trial of Terror'?" Johnny read aloud.

"It's a horror house."

"I gathered that." Johnny rolled his eyes. "What? You want to go inside?" 

Taeyong nodded, disposing of the last of the churros in the trash can by a curtained doorway, a wacky skeleton statue towering over it.

Johnny frowned at it, his gaze following the jumble of less-than-scary monsters littering the front of the horror house, grimacing in displeasure at the cartoonish depiction of Dracula near the very top. "Seriously?"

"It'll be fun!" Taeyong enthused. "And look, it's free! Unless... you don't wanna go in cause you're scared?"

The vampire threw his head back with a laugh. "Scared? Not at all, pretty. Go on then, after you."

Taeyong pulled a face, flashing the other man a smile before slipping past the curtain. He was met with a long, dark corridor, the only light coming from the sparsely placed bulbs along the walls, flickering to create atmosphere. With a sudden thought, he hid to the side of the entrance, holding his breath as Johnny pushed his way through.

"BOO!" he shouted as he leapt out, hands raised high.

Johnny didn't even so much as blink, let alone startle. He turned to Taeyong with an arched eyebrow.

"You forget I can hear where you are, Taeyong." He smirked. "You can stop breathing, but you can't stop your heart from beating," he said, tapping his ear.

"Damn your stupid hearing," Taeyong grumbled, turning on his heel to continue down the corridor.

He walked no more than ten steps before he felt something grab his ankle.

With an embarrassingly loud shout he stumbled backwards, careering right into Johnny's chest. He would have been more mad about how hard the vampire was laughing had he not clamped eyes on the bloodied hand that was sticking out the bottom of the wall.

"And you were worried about me being scared?" Johnny cackled.

"S-Shut up! I didn't know this was the start, I thought this was still part of the entrance!" Taeyong shot back, frowning when Johnny let out another bark of laughter. "You knew there was a person there, didn't you?"

"Of course I did. I can hear them all, in fact. The walls aren't very thick here." Johnny gestured to the house at large. "There's three more people in this corridor, several more around the corner."

"Well then this is pointless." Taeyong huffed. "It's no fun if you already know what's coming."

"Awh, were you hoping for me to get scared, baby?"

"...Maybe just a little.”

Johnny chuckled, giving him a sympathetic look before his face lit up. "There is something we can do instead."

"What's that?"

The vampire's smile turned sly. "Follow my lead."

Johnny skipped a little further down the hall before using his speed to dart across a particular spot. Taeyong’s puzzled look only grew when the other held a finger to his lips, pointing to the wall and shooting him a look.

Oh, Taeyong realised, nodding to show Johnny he understood. There was another person waiting to grab at their feet. Johnny quietly urged Taeyong to keep walking forward whilst he crouched down by the wall, his hand poised.

When Taeyong’s foot made it to the target point another bloodied hand shot out towards him, but Johnny was faster, clasping the performer by the wrist before they could reach any further. There was a petrified screech from behind the wall as the hand yanked itself back, and Johnny fell against the wall in a fit of hysterics. Taeyong soon joined in, helping the other back onto his feet so they could pull the same manoeuver on the next two performers along the corridor. More screaming ensued, and Taeyong’s stomach hurt by the time they finally made it into the next part of the house.

They were greeted by more flickering lights and eerie sound effects, like a wolf howling and a maniacal laugh that seemed to echo around the maze of walls. Taeyong cursed himself for getting startled by an animatronic bat dropping down from the ceiling, its wings flapping wildly. And he practically kicked himself when Johnny threw him a quick ‘watch out’ and he still jumped at a performer dressed as a mummy sticking their head through the window they passed.

It became apparent that nothing fazed the vampire. Part of Taeyong had been expecting it, but oh how he would have loved to see him lose his shit just once — Johnny continued to power through, though. He gave Taeyong a heads up whenever they were about to be jump-scared by a person, and he admitted he could hear the whir of the few animatronics dotted around after letting Taeyong consistently get spooked by them, but he’d reasoned, with a mischievous smile, “I can’t let you come out here completely unscathed, now can I?”

“The last two people are at the end of this hall, so I assume that’s the exit,” Johnny informed him as they ventured down a red-lit corridor. "They're standing up, so I think they're going to jump out."

Taeyong nodded, holding onto the other's hand as they drew closer. The last two performers did jump out at them, bursting through either wall and screaming loudly, swinging the drapes of their costumes around. One was dressed as a werewolf with a plastic snout, the other as a vampire with fake fangs and blood dripping down their chin.

They both seemed a little baffled by their lack of reaction, heads snapping to Johnny when the man let out a deep chuckle.

Dim as the corridor was, Taeyong still saw the way Johnny's eyes slowly morphed into solid black, the way his very real fangs glistened as he parted his mouth. He swiped his tongue over the points before his lips spread into a devilish grin.

"A vampire, huh?" Johnny lilted, eyeing the costume. The performer stuttered, fake teeth threatening to fall from their gaping mouth as Johnny loomed closer. "I have to say, those fangs don't look as sharp as mine. And I can definitely smell human blood under all that makeup."

Johnny making a show of licking his lips was what finally kicked the two performers out of their frozen forms, taking panicked steps back with wide eyes.

"Boo!" Johnny said as he lunged forward, and they both screamed.

The costumed vampire fell to the ground in their hysteria, the werewolf furiously tugging at their arm to pull them back up before making a run for it back into the wall with Johnny's roar of laughter following close behind.

Johnny switched his eyes back, looking at Taeyong with a satisfied smile. “That never gets old.”

“I think you might have traumatised them,” Taeyong murmured, glancing at the gap they’d disappeared into.

“You think so?” Johnny cocked his head. “Did you think I was that scary, baby?”

“Yes.” Taeyong swallowed. “That was… a little hot too, if I’m being honest.”

Johnny’s eyes widened. “First the biting, now this? Hm, we have much to explore, pretty.”

The vampire swooped down, giving Taeyong a teasing nip to his neck and laughing at his surprised yelp.

"Johnny!" he chided, his face burning in embarrassment. He was given an apologetic kiss, one that toed the line of inappropriateness when Johnny bit his bottom lip and pulled him closer by the hips. Taeyong had to push him to keep walking, stressing that there could be cameras around, for all they knew.

“Let them look,” was Johnny’s response, then huffed a surprised squawk when Taeyong swatted his arm. 

Taeyong pushed him all the way to the exit, sighing when the cool air hit his flushed skin. The sky was a picture, by now. A black canvas dotted by stars and colourful lights. Taeyong was brought back to earth when a hand slipped into his own.

"Did you want to get all of your sweets now?" Johnny asked.

Taeyong beamed at him, squeezing his hand back with a nod. "Thank you for today, Johnny. I've loved every minute of it."

"No need to thank me, Yong," Johnny told him as they walked back. "Knowing you had fun is good enough for me."

Their moment fizzled out when they passed by the bumper-car ride, watching a horde of people crashing into each other and spiralling into the walls in fits of laughter. They exchanged a look.

"I bet I could totally whip your ass on this," Taeyong stated confidently.

Johnny blinked in surprise before his whole face darkened. "Oh, you're on."