Chapter 126: A vaguely familiar thirst

Chapter 126: A vaguely familiar thirst Everyone was surprised, except Cass, when he shakily raised his hand to place it on top of Sam’s, holding onto the bottle as the liquid poured down his throat. The thick liquid coated his mouth, the taste of herbs, the bite of mint, and the slight metallic taste washing away the remnants of the healing tonic that he hadn’t even been aware of that remained. The bottle emptied, and Cass sighed, licking his lips. His gaze slid towards where Charles stood, and he jerked, crouching down and grabbing another bottle, opening it and handing it off to Sam, who stood there in shocked silence. Everyone did, except Vespertine, who had a calculating, curious expression on his face. His arms were crossed, his bright blue gaze watching Cass as he vaguely grabbed for the new bottle, licking his lips as he waited for Sam to lower it to his lips. He didn’t know why he was so thirsty, but he was, as this liquid was hitting the spot. Cass spilled slightly, and Draken’s thumb wiped away the small drop. Cass didn’t know what he’d done with the drop until he made a hissing noise above him. "Oh yuck. That’s disgusting. Ugh, still tastes like-" He cut off when Vespertine gave him a glare and cleared his throat. "I would watch what you’re saying, since Cassian is guzzling it down like water." Vespertine’s voice was tight, and Lady Fiona jerked. It was like hearing it out loud made it real to her, while Cass wasn’t fully paying attention to the trio. He was busy finishing the second bottle. His hand was still shaking where it held it, but his grip was stronger. Sam was watching him, worry coating his expression. His gaze scanned his face, looking him over. "Do you want another?" He asked quietly, and Cass took a few deep breaths. The rattle was gone when he breathed, and his head didn’t feel as foggy. "Give me a moment." Cass rasped, and Sam backed up, nodding as he took the bottle with him. Cass closed his eyes, leaning his head back. His body yearned for another bottle, another taste, and now that he had enough strength, he wanted to fight that instinct. He’d never had it before. This cloying thirst that filled him. The desire to have more, need more, want- Cass’ eyes snapped open suddenly, and he turned his gaze sharply towards the crate as he realised suddenly, and with horror that no, this wasn’t the first time he’d craved something this deeply. He just hadn’t had a clear mind about it the last time he’d craved it. He had no idea what that meant, and it only made things more confusing. He wasn’t...like Vespertine. He could go outside in the sun without covers, he didn’t need to avoid windows, and he’d never, up until this point, needed a constant supply of blood. Not as far as he was aware, and he fucking hoped that was something Lord Blackburn would have declared. Hmm. Lord Blackburn had referred to Vespertine like he was something different from him, he hadn’t spoken about him like they were the same thing, so why the fuck was he having these kinds of cravings? What the hell was going on? There were a few things he could consider, like maybe a fucking mineral deficiency? Fuck, that sounded like an excuse even to his ears. Sam was there, his hands on Cass’ hands, his brown eyes big. "My Lord? Are you okay? You moved so suddenly, is something wrong?" Sam’s voice was kind, thoughtful, and full of fear. It was clear he was worried that something awful was happening to Cass. Cass himself couldn’t really say that wasn’t the case. He had no idea what was going on with him, why he had this craving, and especially so soon after his fucking week from hell. He couldn’t even use his hands, yet he’d wanted to wrap his hand around the bottle, control it. Where had he gotten the strength to do that? He couldn’t even remember when he lost control of them, and yet here he was, after his eyes had started bleeding, and he began to lose the ability to breathe, hold himself up, and other terrifying realities, demanding for the liquid that was inside those bottles. Vespertine was going to hold this above his head for ages. "I just...fuck. Another." He muttered and Charles was on it, coming over and passing it over to Sam. It was a strangely intimate hold now that Cass had more of his head on his shoulders and as he was thinking that, Draken’s hand covered Sam’s on the bottle. "I’ll do it. Make sure he doesn’t spill." Draken murmured, and Cass’ position shifted slightly until he could see Draken’s face. Cass’ eyes went wide as he caught a glimpse of him. Draken’s face was hard, his eyes orange gems, crystalline and hard in his face, his jaw sharp, and his black hair pooling forward, covering his expression from the others as he held the bottle at an angle, pouring the nicely flavoured liquid into his mouth. If it had felt intimate with Sam, it was beyond that feeling now, and Cass felt his face heat. Draken’s lips twitched slightly, before he sighed. Cass wondered briefly why Sam had backed down so quickly when Draken had demanded that he should take over, but then remembered that Sam was just a weak human compared to these fools. The bottle finished and Draken pulled it away, handing it off to presumably Sam, before using his thumb to wipe Cass’ bottom lip with his finger, raising it to his own lips and licking it clean. He made a face, but that was about it. "Do you want another?" He asked softly, sweetly, and Cass felt like his head, and his heart were going to explode. Why the fuck was he behaving like this in front of Vespertine?! Lady Fiona, that kind of made sense. They were both married to her, and Draken had assumed that she had given him the green light to pursue him. Cass could dismiss his behaviour in front of her by trying to think like Draken, and Lady Fiona didn’t care. He knew that much. But Vespertine? He had no fucking clue what that man was thinking, and he had also kissed him once before! Twice, actually! Why the hell was Draken behaving like this in front of him, especially when his sister fucking hated Cass now! ...That was assumed, he didn’t know that for sure. He did know that she didn’t like how everyone had ’turned their backs’ on her for him, but he was pretty sure that she had done that to herself. Extreme rhetoric does tend to alienate people. That wasn’t the point! Draken shouldn’t be behaving like this! Cass did not give him permission, and Cass was also not used to this kind of treatment! Even if he had the lack of use when it came to his hands, he didn’t have to fucking lick his finger clean after! Vespertine’s laughter filled the air, and Cass jerked his gaze towards the other man. He still had his arms crossed, but his handsome face was bright with laughter and he bent in half. "Oh, by the gods. Lucy hasn’t behaved like this, even with Fiona." Vespertine chuckled heartily, his body shaking. "What? Afraid I’ll take him away?" Vespertine raised his gaze, meeting Draken’s gaze, completely ignoring Cass who was in his lap. Cass was surprised when Draken’s grip on him tightened. "You couldn’t, even if you wanted to. You’re too loose. Cassian doesn’t like men like you." Draken’s voice was tense, dark, and his expression reflected that. Lady Fiona was watching the men in shock, but her lips were twitching. Cass sputtered. His heart was in his throat. He nearly choked on it. What the fuck was Draken even saying? That was basically outing him! And Cass hadn’t even told him that he was gay, just that his grandfather was an asshole! "There’s a problem with that statement itself, Draken! You’re implying that I like men in general!" Cass felt desperate. "I don’t like men!" Cass exclaimed, and tried to force as much truth into those words as possible. He didn’t like men. He really didn’t. Why would anyone want to like men? He was sexually attracted to men, that’s different. Vespertine’s gaze dropped to Cass, his blue eyes sharpening, brightening, and Cass gasped, before he slammed his covered hands over his mouth. It was the first time he’d been able to do the action since he’d woken up, and he was trying to ignore the fact that he was able to do so after he drank...what Vespertine normally drank. Vespertine smirked. "Are you so sure you want to say that from Draken’s lap? Because if he shakes you free, you’re more than welcome to mine." Cass’ was glad for his hand covering his mouth as he screamed internally. His jaw was on the floor. What the fuck. What the fuck?! Why was he saying that while Lady Fiona was around? Wasn’t he supposed to be the fucking playboy who was actually in love with his wife? Where the fuck was that? Where had that image gone? He hadn’t done anything! He just...got mad at them, and told him off and...kissed him in a secret spot in town, but that was it! He had probably done that with a lot of people! He wasn’t scared of people like Lord Blackburn and Cass were! "W-What is wrong with you? Our wife is right there!" Cass exclaimed from behind his hand, and everyone turned their gaze towards Lady Fiona. She blinked, before her expression melted into a smile. Cass felt a shiver of warning rush down his spine, and he realised that maybe he shouldn’t have just deflected towards the woman who had thrust Draken onto him, whether she knew it or not. He began to regret his actions almost immediately as she slid her gaze towards Cass, and gave him a wink before she began to speak. "I think it’s cute how all of you are being so kind and thoughtful towards a fellow family member. Cassian is an important member of our family so it is important to keep him healthy. It warms my heart to know that you are all getting so close after being so antagonistic towards each other for so long. It’d be wonderful if you were able to have sleepovers like what Lady Ava and I have." Cass nearly choked on air. He knew damn well what those fucking sleepovers were! Lady Fiona’s smirk as she slid her gaze towards him held pride. Like she was looking for praise from him. Her expression basically said, ’see? I didn’t expose you this time! Praise me!’ Cass closed his eyes, groaning as he wanted the ground to swallow him whole. He never wanted to be alone with them for that long. He couldn’t trust these sleazeballs to keep their hands to themselves. "Hmm. Sleepovers. Is that what people are calling it nowadays?" Draken rumbled, curious, and Cass had the distinct satisfaction of watching Lady Fiona’s face go bright fucking red. Serves her right. If Cass was getting outed, he wasn’t going down alone.