“Why are you still smoking?”

“Hm?” Jaejoong was unbothered as he kept walking on his steady pace, following the traces on water on his path. It was so dim that one might not notice how crimson polluted the water. It was blood. But worry not, it was not his; nor Yoochun’s. He returned the cigarette back to the thin gap between his pale lips as he spared one second merely to wipe the bloodstain on the corner of his lips as if the tobacco was his sweet desert despite-

“It doesn’t work for us,” Yoochun continued. The younger increased his pace, following Jaejoong, just so he could now walk on his side. The strong scent of iron, of human blood, was almost too apparent for someone not to realize despite the burnt tobacco. Even so, it was nothing in compare to their presence. Jaejoong chuckled, as he decided to take the cigar off himself and gave it out, for Yoochun to reach.

“Does it?” Almost obediently, he took it. Yoochun took a deep breath, inhaling all the supposed sweetness of tobacco into his lung, despite how bland it was to his sense. For a vampire, what human defined as intoxication was far from their own poison. Alcohol for water, and nicotine for the oxygen they breathed. They said they were cursed; or sick, in another way. Vampire possessed greater strength than human in general and as an impact, they require greater amount of nutrients so that their body wouldn’t start consuming themselves for lacking. One’s body just couldn’t digest the food fast enough to support their system and so, their adaptive behavior gave them an absolute option: to take blood from humans, in order to gain the processed form of nutrients.

“It tastes like nothing.”

“It still makes a good dessert, Yoochun-ah,” Jaejoong explained as he continued to walk.

Yoochun obediently followed the older figure from behind as he squinted his eyes once in a while; displeased by the sight of carcass abandoned on the sides of the alley which most were Jaejoong’s. Odd; since, his appetite wasn’t this huge back then. One was enough for five to seven days, but he consumed five in one eating- which was not a normal appetite. Meaning, Jaejoong had something under his sleeves. “Since when you’re eating this much?” Yoochun asked.

“I’ve always been a big eater, you see,” Jaejoong chuckled, as if he paid no heed to the hint of distrust in Yoochun’s tone.

“Not this much.”

“Ah. Really?”

Yoochun gritted his teeth. He abruptly increased his pace, so he could pass the figure in front of him and stand just before him; preventing Jaejoong from taking another step further before he gave him a proper answer. They were just a step away from the great door at the end of the alley, which supposedly would lead him into a chamber Jaejoong wanted to enter; yet, Yoochun stopped him anyway. The only reasons why a vampire would require more nutrients were: first, if one used too much of their power, or two, they had been consuming more of their own kind. And the question left would be: which. “Answer me.”

“He doesn’t deserve to be king.”

“What are you talking about…”

Jaejoong sighed. “Our current emperor. How could one believe that a mere weakling of a human can lead a kingdom of vampires and humans? Let me tell you something. He couldn’t. That’s why they put us on isolation. The only reason why the aristocrats’ residences, ours, are located far up the hill and guarded was not to prevent them from entering, but not to let us out.”

“….”

“They’re keeping us captive in a world we are supposed to rule.” Horror plastered on Yoochun’s face. Jaejoong was implying that he wanted to be king; and the thought of having him as the king was… petrifying.

“Wait-”

“Move aside, Yoochun-ah.”

Jaejoong knew better than anyone, that he wouldn’t let anybody else stand on his way. Not even his dearest Yoochun. Yoochun couldn’t help but to step aside to Jaejoong’s order, as the door behind him was pushed open for them to enter. Inside, they were welcomed by coffins, made of marbles and perfectly sealed. Vampires couldn’t die; not that easily. Rip their heart out or burn their body to ash; that would be the only ways. But, humans were not strong enough to do so most of the time. So, they made up another option, which to force them into an eternal sleep, prisoning them inside these coffins. Some of them had been sleeping for too long that their bodies had grown rotten and the world had forgotten their existence. ‘Such a shame,’ Jaejoong thought.

No matter what the other things available for him to see, Yoochun’s gaze remained still at Jaejoong’s figure, following even the littlest of his gentle gesture. Jaejoong was too graceful, even for a vampire, and they would mistake his gracefulness for weakness; which, led them to their death.

“Why are you looking at me like that, Yoochun-ah?” It was Jaejoong turn to ask. He didn’t even need to turn around to know how Yoochun’s deep brown eyes was looking at him, watching him closely.

“I…. I still don’t understand. What is this for?”

Jaejoong hummed softly, which turned out to be Lavender’s Blue. He didn’t use to fond of children lullaby, but she did. So, he learnt to love it as well. It reminded him of her. He laid his hand on the top of the marble lid of a coffin, feeling the ice coldness on the tip of his fingers. It gradually got warmer as Jaejoong ran his power to his touch which caused the lid to break down to pieces; much to Yoochun’s surprise. He made it seem so effortless to control his power, despite the enormous effect he was creating.

“Tell me, Yoochun-ah. What did I do wrong?”

Yoochun gulped. He couldn’t find an answer.

Jaejoong then slit the veins of his artery. It was small enough for it would be closed in no time by his regenerating factor, yet deep enough for him to let the dark crimson of his blood dripped out. Yoochun’s eyes widened in another shock for how dark the shade of Jaejoong’s was now. How? How could his blood come to be poisoned that badly?

It was written on the old tales that those who consumed of their own kind would be cursed by power and hunger. And the most visible sign would be how dark their blood would be. The ‘Black Blood’, they said. Jaejoong’s was not black; yet. Nevertheless, it was far from bright crimson of fresh blood. The droplets of his blood fell upon the dried mouth of the sleeping figure; and what’s left for him to do was to wait until they woke up from their slumber. Waking up the prisoners from their confinement, so he could make himself an army of the undead. Jaejoong smiled; wasn’t his idea terrific?

“What’s wrong, of attempting to create a world where us belong?”

For him, and his sleeping mistress. He was making conducive state for Sandara as he was waiting for her to wake up. There was another question he wanted to ask, yet Yoochun couldn’t spit any other world as if there was a lump existed within his throat.

“She would be delighted, don’t you think?”

Soon, a slight movement was noticed from the long-dead figure.

.

.

Lavender's blue, dilly dilly,
Lavender's green.
When you are king, dilly dilly,
I shall be queen.

It was a long time ago.

The melody of Lavender’s Blue escaped her lips so beautifully. Yet, the hum soon stopped as she could feel his hand reaching out to her. Sandara opened her eyes then.

“It looks pretty on you,” Jaejoong uttered just after he tucked the flower on her ear. The simple gesture was then followed by a gentle caress along her tresses; yet, Jaejoong didn’t dare to let go as soon as he reached the end of it.

She didn’t mind. Or in another point of view, she wanted him that way.

Sandara was sitting on the low wall of the balcony, facing inside, as the end of her dress. The western brought in another light to their fashion. They said vampires are trapped in time; so, it was no wonder why Sandara had been taking the Victorian way of dressing, especially when Jaejoong said he loved them. She had to admit how impractical they were, though. “You and your sweet mouth.” She smiled. “You’ll get bored of me at the end of the day if you keep looking at me, Jaejoongie.”

Jaejoong replied, “worry not, you’ll need to wait for an eternity if you want me to get bored of you.”

“Hey, hey! I don’t!” Sandara panicked, and the words were then tailed by a soft chuckle.

“But, really. Do you think we have forever?”

Jaejoong rested both of his hand on walls to support his own weight as well as to keep her in between. An eyebrow was raised, showing his own confusion to the reason behind her question. “Why do you ask?”

“We’re not immortals.”

“And?”

“They hate us.” Humans, she meant.

Jaejoong rolled his eyes. “They’re always afraid of those they find different. Why do you need to pay them a heed?”

“I’m afraid that you will need to wait for me, in case things go their way instead of ours.”

Jaejoong quickly put both of his hands on his cheek; holding her gently as if she was made of glass, dearly as if letting go was the last thing he ever wanted to think of. Fear was caught in his golden eyes. Not even for the slightest second he averted his gaze away from her; as if she could disappear if he dared to blink. “Don’t. Don’t think about it, please. Nothing will happen to us,” he exclaimed. He then pressed his lips against hers, kissing her for another countless of times; out of distress, out of paranoia. No, no; he just couldn’t. He couldn’t lose her just /now/.

And Sandara’s kiss soother the storm within his thought in a way words couldn’t describe. It was tender. “Calm down, my Jaejoongie; for we will be alright.” Not now. A gentle sigh escaped her lips. “I’m sorry to scare you.”

“Losing you is the last thing I want to think of, Beloved.”

“I know.”