Don't Fear The Reaper

Part 6

The fire is cracking cosily in the oven. There's pitch black behind the window.

"What's wrong with the internet?" He asks his friend.

"Satellite must be somewhere in bad spot" he answers shortly and dives back into his desktop. Three huge monitors, two keyboards, flashing rainbow lights - looks like someone created his own heaven right in the middle of nowhere.

They shove away the snow every morning and every afternoon and wake up only to find the entrance is blocked.

"Is it always like that?" Tsukki's breath doesn't goes out in such prominent puffs like Marat's.

He grins back toothily "Special for you. Last winter was barely a scratch through the whole four months."

Tsukki knows he notices the difference. When they chatted online, it wasn't obvious. Marat doesn't ask questions. But Tsukki got here only ten days ago. He got enough blood on his way to Marat's house. He visited the hospital in the biggest city nearby, Irkutsk, and is well behaving.

He thinks of what he's gonna do if the weather is gonna be the same. Heavy snowfall wasn't something he expected. One or two days were okay. But they haven't seen something closer than a lamp on the courtyard entrance for four days now and the forecast predicted at least three more days of cyclone. 

Tsukki was sure he can manage one more week. He didn't want to hurt Marat in any way. Neither did he want to open up his another identity. He made up a tall tale he got on the wrong side with Yakuza and Marat swallowed it. Or was smart enough to pretend he did.

But Tsukki feels like the car, burning out of fuel, how the satisfaction that filled his body when he drank the blood last time, already leaving it. Thin, slightly cautious stings of hunger creep upon his stomach in the morning. He tries to keep himself busy, do not think about the food. He's sure, he can get along for one more week.

"Damn," the signal goes off completely. "Must be because of the blizzard," Marat says. "Gotta check some stuff out, be back in a minute."

Now, with the internet died out, he's got nothing to wind the mind off.

***
The pulse is beating so loud. Like a drum put close to his ears. Marat sleeps in the another room, but it doesn't help in the slightest. Tsukki tosses and turns, not able to have a rest. He's got to do something about the food if he wants to stay here. Otherwise there's a possibility he'll wake up upon his friend's deblooded corpse one day.

It's around one hundred kilometres to the big city. Of course, he can take someone on his way, but it's a bad idea. He's a newcomer, he stands out. The best way is to get to Irkutsk and drink someone there as well as get the stock of donor blood and hide it somewhere around Marat's house. Tsukki promises himself he'll make out the plan tomorrow and finally falls asleep.

In the morning he finds Marat checking his snowcart in the garage.

"Are you going somewhere?" That's both good and bad news.

"Yeah, the antenna is broken, gotta buy details. Besides, the food is nearly out of stock. Dog and cat food too, gotta go to the city for a few days. Will you manage? I probably will stay there for at least a night. Have some other stuff to take care of as well," Marat puts on the balaclava, a snow costume, takes out of the wardrobe big backpack.

"Are you gonna be okay? The snow's still heavy. You sure you'll be able to find the way?" Something settles at the pit of the stomach - unease, mixed with slight anxiety that makes Tsukki's voice pitch a bit.

Marat looks at him, furrowing brows.

"Are you gonna be okay? Seems like you nervous. Afraid bears will hit on you while I'm away?"