My Vampire Bromance

Chapter 41: You Okay? You Don't Look Well.

 I sat at the library desk, thumbing through my phone as I waited for Thomas to text me. I was on time, and he was? Well, he was late. Looking to the side, I glared at the stack of books that needed to be labeled, entered into the system, then shelved. This was going to take forever, even with help. Internally I moaned as I booted the computer system and waited, watching the clock tick by. After half an hour, I resolved to start on my own when my phone buzzed.

"Phillip. It's me. Thomas. I'm here."

I took a deep breath and walked to the front library doors. My gaze fell upon the young man before me. Instead of a smile grazing my lips, I frowned. Thomas looked frazzled, pale, and not at all well. "You okay?" I asked, unable to help feeling concerned for him.

Thomas looked up from his phone. "Yeah," his brows furrowed, "I'm feeling okay. Just uh, not used to getting up so early, is all. "Internally I cursed. Thomas looked worse for wear; his dark blue eyes were bloodshot. His pallor sickly.

"Sorry. You could have texted me last night and slept in."

"It's okay," Thomas said. He gestured past me, "Should we, um, go in and get started?"

"Yeah," I said, bouncing back. "Yeah. I've already begun. If you could hand me books, I can quickly get them into the system. It'll streamline the process."

"Sounds easy enough," Thomas said.

"You need coffee or anything? " I asked, observing his sunken features. The bags under his eyes were almost purple. Why did he look so unwell? From the time I first met him, Thomas always looked healthy, his skin flushed and pink. Could it be that he wasn't drinking enough? "I have access to the shop and can make anything you want."

Thomas looked me over, a gentle smile crossing his face. "Yeah, that would be nice. I haven't had a chance to properly wake up yet."

"Alright then," I smiled back at him.

Thomas walked past me into the empty library. The sound of the air conditioner and whining electronics surrounded us as I keyed open the coffee shop doors. He stopped at the threshold, looking unsteady and pale. "You okay?"

"Yeah," he mumbled, whipping his forehead. "It's just. Well, the last time I saw you here, you were with that girl."

"Samantha?"

"Yeah," he said. "I uh, well. It's tragic what happened to the one that worked here, you know?"

I bit my lip, "Yeah, I know. Brinley was a good person. She didn't deserve it."

"Did you like her?"

"As a person, yes. But I didn't ever have any interest in dating her." I looked over at Thomas as I walked behind the bar to make a pour-over coffee for both of us. "I, um. I guess I sort of, kind of...like guys. But you already knew that." I said softly.

"This is the first time I've ever officially heard you say it," he said. His bottom lip trembled. One look at him and I could tell he was shaking all over. I watched as he pulled out a chair and sat down unsteadily.

"Are you sure you're feeling okay, Thomas? If you're sick, you should go home. I'll be okay."

The more I looked at him, the more it became clear that Thomas was anything but alright. His skin was dull and lifeless. Akin to what Victor looked like if he waited too long in between feedings.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just tired." Just tired? More like thirsty! My mind began to wander. If Thomas was really unstable, I could be in big trouble. I smiled at him and began to bring a kettle of water to boil.

"You want some water?" I asked him, coming around the bar.

"No," Thomas shook his head.

"You sure? I can get you some?" It was dumb to offer it. I knew what Thomas needed was not a glass of water or coffee, but blood.

"I'm sure. It won't really help."

"If you're tired you should get some rest," I said flatly. I stood beside him, crossing my arms in front of myself. I grew keenly aware that Thomas shrank back in his chair, eyes wide and frightened. "Seriously, you don't look good. I mean, if I didn't know any better, I'd say you look like a ravenous vampire." I laughed after I said it.

Thomas looked at me, face growing suddenly paler, "Funny...You're a funny guy Phillip."

I raised my brows at him. "I try to be." The kettle clicked off. I shrugged as went to prepare our drinks. Thomas lowered his head to the table and groaned. He really wasn't feeling good. How long had it been since he fed? Without thinking too hard I pulled the safety pin from the right seam of my plaid shirt that was holding a seam together and punctured my finger. I held it several seconds over the cup, letting the blood from my finger drip into it. Thomas didn't even notice as he groaned again while holding his stomach.

When the coffee was made, and my finger stopped bleeding, I came around the corner and handed him his cup. "Here, please drink. You look awful." Thomas gravely accepted it. Taking a sip, he looked at me, frightened. He looked down, where coffee and blood swirled together, and then back up at me.

While Thomas said nothing, the look in his eyes told me everything. He tasted my blood. He knew at that moment that I knew what he was. I smiled and continued on as usual. "You should feel a little bit better in a couple minutes. Then we can start, but if you don't, you should go home."

"I think I'll be okay," Thomas said. His hand twitched on the table, fingers splaying open in an offering to take my hand. I left it open and took a sip of my own coffee instead.

"Alright then."

We sat in silence for a long time. Thomas eyed me as if ready to break down at any given moment. I sat, observing him, wondering how long it would take before he would attack me. But as time passed, his coloring slowly returned to a slight pink. His eyes became brighter, the redness fading along with the purple eyebags turning to a subtler shade of grey. His body and hands stopped their severe shaking, only twitching every now and again.

When he looked better, I interrupted the silence, "You ready?"

"Yeah," Thomas said. He looked at me wearily. Probably wondering when I'd figured out what he was and why I hadn't said a damn thing to him about it. "Yeah, I feel a lot better," he pointed to the coffee cup. "Thank you." His eyes met mine, searching for something...anything in my eyes that would tell him what he desperately wanted to know.

"You're welcome. You ready then?"

"Yeah," Thomas stood, taking the rest of his coffee with him. I sighed, relieved that my plan had worked.