First Bite

Bait

As Brittany sank deeper into sleep, Santana rubbed a drop of her own blood over the bite marks on Brittany's neck. She watched them seal up like a reverse burn, the deep purple of the bruise vanishing into pristine, pale skin. Then she gave the same treatment to Brittany's inner thigh, watching the bruised, raw flesh disappear, healthy and pink once more. Then she returned to watching Brittany breathe. She remembered breathing. That slow, steady rhythm was soothing to watch. The rise and fall of Brittany's chest lulled her into a dream-like state.

After Brittany had been asleep for at least half an hour, Santana heard a noise in the hallway. Jerked back into a reality where humans and vampires were at war, she realized she needed to leave. Vampires had no business watching humans sleep, and she didn't want to be caught red-lipped. So she kissed Brittany's cheek and left at lightning speed.

The farther away she got, the more relieved she felt. After the relief came annoyance. How had Brittany managed to manipulate her like that? She had told Brittany repeatedly she wasn't interested, and Brittany didn't listen. But Santana knew it was her own fault for caving. She should have stuck to her rule about first bites. As she arrived home, she sank back into her indifference towards humans, telling herself she was content to pay her regulars for their blood. Money made things clean, after all. It made eating a simple business transaction.

The following weekend, Quinn commanded Santana to come with her to Fangtasia again. Santana despised Fangtasia even more since last weekend, but she couldn't disobey Quinn. Luckily the baby vamps from last week weren't there, but no sooner had Quinn disappeared again, Brittany popped up beside Santana's booth. She was wearing a sheer, yellow scarf tied around her neck in a knot, a grey blouse, and a pencil skirt that matched her scarf.

"I was hoping I'd find you here again," she chirped. "Although I should be mad at you for disappearing on me like that. That was rude, you know."

Santana tried to scowl, but it was hard to look at Brittany's face and make any kind of sour expression. So she said, "What did you expect, breakfast in bed?"

"For you, maybe," Brittany said with a sly shrug. "I was just happy to find someone who could keep up with me."

Santana scoffed. "A vampire, keep up with you?"

"Gotcha!" Brittany giggled. "No, but I'm serious. You left without even telling me your name. Which, now that I think about it, makes me feel kind of trashy. I've never slept with someone without knowing their name."

"Consider me a once-in-lifetime experience then," Santana quipped.

"Oh, you are," Brittany said, certain. "Definitely once in a lifetime."

There was silence as Santana tried to look everywhere but at Brittany, who wasn't taking the hint.

"Sooo... will you tell me your name?" Brittany asked, hopeful.

"That would imply I intend for you to use it, which I don't."

"You want me to scream out, 'oh, sexy lady vampire' instead?" Brittany giggled.

"I want you to scream nothing. It's not going to happen again," Santana said cooly, determined. "I told you I don't like fangbangers."

Brittany pursed her lips and studied Santana's face, looking for an in. "I'm not a fangbanger. I just like one set of fangs so far."

Santana hummed in disinterest. "Same difference."

"No, it's not," Brittany argued. "That's like saying all rectangles are squares."

Santana said nothing, looking around for Quinn in hopes she would be released from her companionship duties so she could leave.

"Do you like my scarf?" Brittany asked, toying with the knot at the side.