Ice cold heart

[Blue]

Trailing a hand through the sun-dappled, dewy leaves overhead, Xu An breathed in deeply. He took in the scent of the damp earth and the petrichor that lingered just after a sudden burst of rainfall. He hadn't been expecting it to rain and was caught out but it didn't matter. Xu An liked being in the rain. He felt cleansed.

Underfoot, something scurried through a small bush; a dart and a flicker of what looked like wings. Just a small bird. He peered over the edge of the bush and saw a robin hopping hastily away with something caught in its beak. Probably a bit of food, maybe a berry or a worm. Xu An tracked it until it disappeared deeper into the woods, then resumed walking along the damp trail that led down to Pebble Lake.

He swept a hand through his rain-soaked hair as he walked, slicking it all back. Although his clothes were now heavy with moisture and stuck to his body, the mild discomfort didn't bring down his good mood. A rusty smile even worked its way across his lips--albeit briefly--as he caught a glimpse of sunlight glinting off the waters of the lake.

Xu An walked until he reached the usual spot, a secluded area away from prying eyes and several hundred feet off the man-made trail that wound its way around Pebble Lake. He had found it purely by accident while exploring the area and it became their secret place to meet every time they could get away together. They couldn't leave in the same car or even at the same time, so usually Xu An left first on the rickety bus that trundled in and out of town and, a little after sunset, Jiyun followed him.

A glance up through the canopy of leaves showed that dusk was just beginning to fall. Xu An sat down on the grass, in the area that they had painstakingly cleared together, and pulled his knees up to his chest. He rested his chin on his knees and wrapped his arms around his legs, content to wait in peace and quiet. This time of the day, not many people were out; nobody wanted to be lost out here after dark. The woods here were fairly safe--unlike the stretch near Eagle Ridge--but it was still highly unpleasant to be lost.

Plip

Something cold and wet landed on his cheek. Absently he looked up; just a raindrop. Lowering his head to survey the area, he had to admit that the clearing wasn't exactly ideal for a secret tryst at the moment--unless they wanted to roll around in wet grass and mud. Xu An was all right for energy, though. It wasn't about the energy anyway. He couldn't get much out of Jiyun; humans were worth more as far as that was concerned.

It was just...

Jiyun warmed him, from the inside-out. He liked the way their hands fit and how even a glance produced sparks. They didn't have to be close for Xu An to feel the pull but when they were connected, he felt like every cell was alive. 

Ever since he first laid eyes on him, wandering through downtown Hazleton with his group of friends, Xu An knew that he was the one. He didn't know how he knew but the way his heart started pounding in his chest and the heat that flooded him from head to toe were pretty obvious signs. The next time Xu An saw him, he was alone and Xu An wasn't shy about making his intentions known--it was a definite anomaly for him, to make the first move.

All his life, Xu An was cold. People called him Ice King--even his friends. He didn't smile and hardly registered emotions. Sometimes he looked irritated but that was about the extent of his emotional range. Even clients at the brothel complained about his expressions. He wasn't a log in bed but he didn't look like he enjoyed it and that broke the scene for them or something. Xu An didn't know what they expected; they were paying for sex. It wasn't a relationship.

This thing he had with Jiyun, though, wasn't all of a relationship either. Xu An had been up front about where he worked. It was never a big secret and he didn't want it to be one. He wasn't ashamed of what he did--he needed that energy to survive. There were other ways to get it, that didn't involve sleeping with strangers, but that kind of existence was bothersome and bordered on torture. Why barely scrape by when he could have his fill? Xu An didn't work at the brothel every night; just once in a while, when he needed to feed that other side of him.

Slowly he lowered his head until his forehead touched his tented knees, alone with his thoughts. It had been a few weeks since they'd last been together; he couldn't remember missing anyone as much as he missed Jiyun in that moment. After that incident at the Moonlight Inn, everyone was up in arms against the vampires and his group was no different. Meanwhile, the vampires were banding together, getting defensive--aggressive. Things were happening that Xu An didn't like.

Just underneath the surface of that sleepy little out-of-the-way town, a storm was brewing.

It wasn't until a warm hand touched the top of his head that he finally looked up, and smiled--a full and real smile--as his hand slipped up a thigh to suggestive heights.

Xu An wasn't shy.