Vygus looked ready to say something, but he got a sad puppy dog look about him before lowering his head.
Ugh, why did River feel so frustrated. River got up.
“I’m leaving.”
River expected one of them or both of them to either argue with him or say they were going, but when nothing happened and River made it all the way to the elevator with no interruptions, he felt even more irritated.
It was stupid. He’d just argued with them and hoped he’d get his way, be on his own, yet as the elevator made it to the first floor and River walked out of the building, a small part of him was waiting to see if either one of them would follow behind him.
Where had he gone wrong? He’d made sure never to have anything important to him, nothing that he couldn’t leave behind if the time arose. Yet as he sat there alone in the bookstore, he found himself wanting to be near Vygus and Caydem. He was going insane. He couldn’t possibly need them as much as they wanted him. River checked his phone again, and still no messages or calls. He’d been gone well over four hours, and neither supernatural had checked up on him.
What if he was free?
Why did the thought scare him? He should be overjoyed, elated even. He wanted to be left alone, right? Free of the inconvenient attachments.
“Hey, man, are you okay?” some teen asked.
River was utterly confused.
“You’re crying. Is that book really that sad?”
River touched his face, and sure enough, his cheeks were wet from his tears. The teen’s face blurred as more came. It was as if once they started, they never stopped. River hadn’t cried since he was a child, never felt the need, and he wasn’t even sure why he was crying now. He only knew that the ball of emotions in his chest was a heavy weight, and the tears seemed to ease it somewhat. River wiped his face, but the tears didn’t stop.
“Uh, do you need help or something?”
River closed the book and placed it back on the shelf. He was a man of logic and order, yet he felt the irrational desire to sprint out of the bookstore and go to Caydem and Vygus.
“No, I’m fine,” River said. His voice was calm and a stark contrast to the tears that continued to slide down his face.
“You don’t look all right,” the teen said.
River caught himself laughing. He was far from all right—he was different. He walked out of the bookstore. When he’d decided to give in to the two supernaturals who’d taken over his time and life, he thought he’d be able to keep some level of distance from them. But River had been wrong. If anything, their attachments had taken root, and there was no way he was able to walk away from them now.
River pulled out his phone and dialed the number of Caydem’s driver. He was there with a cleaned Bentley. River rode in the back seat with a clear mind. There were no muddy thoughts or confusion; it was as if his mind had made peace with the decision long before River had even acknowledged the possibility.
The ride up the elevator, he could feel excitement roll around in his stomach. Had he ever been excited? Caydem and Vygus had made him feel all types of things that River had never thought possible. He’d gone about life believing as long as he was in constant control of himself and the things around him, he would be content. And maybe he was, but now he wanted something more. And Caydem and Vygus gave that to him no matter how annoying they both got.
He opened the door and found Vygus kneeling at the door with a smile on his face.
“You came back, Master.”
River ran his fingers through Vygus’s light blond hair, tugging at the strands playfully. Caydem was there in a flash, his hand wrapped around River’s throat, easing any tension left in River’s body.
“This was your only chance,” Caydem said.
River belonged to the vampire, and the werewolf belonged to River. He had something that was impossible but all his.
The End