Sanctuary

Chapter Eighteen

As he came down from another painful spasm, Jake whimpered. Daegel gently mopped his feverish skin with a cold cloth. Earlier he had undressed Jake down to his boxers to ease the irritation they all knew he was feeling. A drop of blood trickled down from Jake's lip, which he wiped with his thumb. "A bit messy. We'll have to work on that." He smirked down at his mate, who chuckled. "How are you feeling, babe?"

"A bit better... it doesn't hurt as bad anymore." Though his eyes were glazed over, Jake looked hopeful. "Does that mean... it's almost over?"

Daegel nodded. "It should be. You're getting stronger already. Plus, the Turning takes about two, three days, so it'll be over soon." He leaned down to kiss Jake, reveling in the feel of his soft lips, a taste of blood still there from Jake's earlier feeding.

Jake moaned softly, his hand entwining with his boyfriend's. "Good. Cause this sucks... no pun intended."

Daegel threw back his head and laughed, his first real laugh since this whole mess started. Jake managed to laugh along with him, snuggling closer to his warmth. "...I forgive you, you know." Instantly, he could feel Daegel tense. "I just wanted to get that out of the way now. For whatever you think you are at fault for. You came back for me. So I forgive you." Reaching around, he stroked Daegel's knuckles.

"...You're too good of a person, Jake."

Jake looked up at his mate. "Is that why you..."

Daegel shook his head. "No I... I just wanted you to make the choice yourself, when you were ready. I didn't have a choice, none of us did."

Jake smiled at him. "I could never hate you, Daegel. Never. I wanted this. Even if I had known about this part beforehand, I would have said yes. Nothing ties me to humanity, Dae. You guys are my only family. You saw what those fuckers did to me in the alley, and I've told you how my adopted guardians treated me. That was my human life."

"This... before this, I was afraid of dying old, of you getting tired of me or leaving me because I was human. I didn't want to be human anymore. All I want, all I ever wanted, was to be with you. I love you, Daegel. With all of my heart and soul."

Daegel's eyes watered and he clutched Jake closer. "I love you too, my mate." As if words couldn't possibly describe his emotions, he kissed Jake passionately, who in turn moaned and kissed back enthusiastically.

"M-Mate?" Jake asked when they finally broke apart, confused. "Is that a vampire thing?"

Daegel nodded. "Kind of like vampire marriage... sort of." That mischievous smirk of his made a reappearance. "It pretty much means that I'm yours until the day one of us dies."

"R-Really?" Jake's eyes watered.

Daegel smiled and nodded, pulling him in for another kiss. "Really, babe. You're stuck with me for eternity... or however the fuck long vampires live."

Jake's laugh was cut off by a whimper as another spasm of pain hit him. Reacting quickly, Daegel adjusted him so that he was more comfortable, whispering soft reassurances as he helped his lover ride out the pain. "I hate this..." Jake whimpered, clutching Daegel's hands tightly.

"I know, babe. I know. It'll be over soon, I promise."

~~~~~~~~~~~

The second his eyes fluttered open, Jake instinctively inhaled sharply, preparing for the pain which had been tormenting him for days. At the sound, Daegel was instantly at his mate's side, ready to do whatever he could to ease the suffering Jake felt...

But nothing happened. After a minute or so, both let out a breath they hadn't realised they were holding. Words weren't needed to realise what was happening. Or rather, what wasn't. Finally, it seemed Jake's Turning was over. Taking in a deep breath for the first time in days, Jake allowed a grin to spread across his face.