Wicked Ones {bxb}

{Chapter 14 : Delusive and Bewitching}

Vincent was a dead man. There was no questioning it.

His stomach felt sour, churned by the bloodlust in Jason's eyes and the stench of fermented rice wine. But despite the harrowing nausea, Vinny ordered whatever item he noted first on the menu. He didn't know a thing about sushi, but he was never much of a picky eater. He saw no harm in trying something new. After Jason was done with him, he'd probably be eating from a straw for the rest of his life, anyway.

The atmosphere inside of the restaurant was comfortable: dark and dim, even though it was nearly noon, and the sun had broken through the overcast to bathe the city in its fleeting light. For Vincent, it was a nice escape from the harsh rays. He and the sun never gotten along too well.

"Was it rough?" He eyed Kai from behind his glass of water. "Military school?"

Though the place was half-empty, the clash of dishes and soft chatter still filled the small voids of silence.

Kailan glanced up from the menu, shoulders jumping in a shrug. "I don't know if was really hard or just a pain in the ass." He smirked. "It's the military, they were training us to be soldiers. I was being forced to work for the same people who want us killed." He set the menu down, biting his cheek as he thought back to his time in Phoenix. "I mean, not everything was bad. Most of it was bullshit, but it had its moments." He wasn't keen on going into details. It was rough, frankly. Most of the time the other students clashed. There was a lot of fighting, little privacy and the overwhelming fear that someone might find out he wasn't entirely human.

"High school got a little cranky after everyone lost their beloved drug-dealer." Vinny leaned back in his chair, smirking at the waitress as she sat down their neatly organized platter of food. His smile fell flat as he eyed the artistically composed slices of raw fish. "Things got really boring after you left."

"And I didn't think I would be missed." Kailan laughed to himself, the pitch almost too high. "Well, as fun as Arizona was, I can't say I miss the place."

There were definitely a few things different about Kailan, but the most prominent was how he suddenly seemed so concealed. So cut off from the rest of the world. And as much as he hated it, it wasn't Vincent's place to question his shift in personality.

He only snapped apart his wooden chopsticks and raised a bite-sized roll of sushi to his lips. His thoughts lingered back to Jason's menacing stare in the hall, and his mood dropped drastically. He knew Jason would be showing up the next morning. He knew that in Cally's broken state of mind, she would have been an easy in. And he knew that he'd be regretting his rash decisions, because as loose as Cally was, she wasn't the type to lie to her significant other. Jason knew exactly what went down last night. The evidence was written on his face.

Popping the bite into his mouth, he let out a sigh. "May have gotten myself knee-deep in shit, my friend."

"I'm not surprised," Kai spoke, a sneer leaping onto his lips. "With the way those guys were glaring daggers at you last night, it's easy to assume. Not to mention the fact that I've only been here a few days and you nearly had us pulverized by the football team, got yourself drugged into a stupor and—I'm assuming—managed to hook up with someone else's hussy." He leaned back, crossing his arms and basking in his smug glory. "Well, don't you live a busy life?"

Vincent rolled his eyes. "Alright, Stormy. Stick to your snow and your rain and your cute little lightning bolts. I don't need you reading minds, too."

Kai choked on a laugh. "Yeah, lightning is cute. You know I'm just very perceptive, Vinny. It was pretty obvious." His tone was almost coy, cooing his friend's name like he had done back in high school.

Vincent rested his chin on his palm, letting out a sigh, like the air in his lungs had gone foul. This wasn't the first time he had been with another man's girlfriend, but it wasn't a thought that sat well with him, either. Usually those girls came to him. This time, he was the one who initiated it.

His eyes loitered the room behind Kai, not necessarily focusing on anything. Just roaming vacantly while his thoughts ran wild. At least, until they caught something familiar.

She had been there the whole time, watching him since the moment the two had arrived. It was Gigi, alright. Her plump red lips curving into a rich smirk as she turned and walked casually into a room at the back of the restaurant.

"I'll be right back." Vincent shot up from his seat, wading his way through the snug empty spaces between tables and the busy workers who rushed to cater to their customers.

He finally made it to the back wall, following a familiar perfume like a compass to his nose. In the direction Gigi had vanished, there looked to be a short hallway with one door on either side. A men's room and a women's room. The only other door was a back exit, which was built to sound a fire alarm had anyone pushed it open. He heaved his chest in frustration, his fist meeting the girl's bathroom door in a series of gentle raps.

"Gigi!" he called from behind the wooden door. "Come out. We need to talk."

When he received no answer, he sent the door flying open. The clatter startled a woman at the mirror who was applying a fresh coat of lipstick. Vinny ignored her abhorred glare and read the room for a sign of Gigi, but there wasn't another face in sight.

"Did anyone else come in here?" He looked to the older woman who clutched her purse in fright.

She shook her head, summoning a nod from Vincent. "Alright," he resigned, stepping outside so as not to terrify the poor woman any longer. As the soft prattle of the restaurant filled his ears, he leaned back against the wall with a grit in his jaw. Was he just imagining it?

Observing from a distance, Kailan snorted at the sight, his cheek resting comfortably in his hand. Vinny hadn't changed at all. Not one bit. Still causing trouble for himself, still stumbling about as he tried to piece things back together—he was a mess and he always had been.

He spoke into his palm, the words but a mutter under his breath. "Being straight sounds so bothersome."