Page 32 of Blood Loss (The Obscura Saga #2)

K YLO

“You sure the candles were in this bag?” Eunice calls out as Kylo sets the table.

“Thought so. But”—he points to the hostess stand at the front of the restaurant—“they could be in the bag over there.”

Today is Lathan’s birthday, and they’ve rented out Benedict Bistro for a surprise party. It’s not something they usually offer, but Eunice managed to convince her boss with payment, offered by Maria and David, to cover the costs of being closed for the night.

After Lathan’s hospital stay, Kylo’s parents stuck around for an extra week to support him and their son as they navigated the transition into a daily routine.

It was rocky at first.

Long nights of tears and trauma, pain and temptation.

Old habits die hard but, this time, they really do have each other.

Medication is taken like clockwork everyday—cheers-ing each other on before throwing their capsules down the hatch—and therapy sessions are scheduled at the same times each week .

No more secrets; no more hiding their pain; no more assuming one is not good enough for the other.

They are a unit .

They are mates .

“Dad, can you hang those balloons again? They keep falling. If there’s packing tape, maybe use that. Oh, Ellie! Don’t worry about the banner, I can get it! Can you go check on the cake?”

“Mijo, take a deep breath. It’s going to be perfect,” Maria soothes, rubbing his back.

Kylo sighs, trying to shake the anxiety off his shoulders. “I know, I just… After everything, he deserves this.”

“He does. And you are so thoughtful”—she takes him by the shoulders and gives them a loving squeeze—“and kind, and courageous, and he is going to love it. Because he loves you .”

Kylo’s eyes soften with his smile. “Thanks, Mamá.”

These past two months, Kylo has stayed clean. But with sobriety comes large lifestyle changes. He no longer attends parties, steering clear of all locations or events where any substance might be used. And he no longer offers his blood to Lathan.

If he’s honest with himself, that’s the hardest.

It was a level of intimacy he adored, but with the bite of his fangs comes a delicious high, one he can’t have ever again. He’d be lying if he said he hasn’t wanted it, hasn’t stooped so low as to beg for it during one of those hard, late nights of struggle. But he never partook. And each week that passes, it becomes a little easier.

“Kylo! He just texted that he’s on his way!” Eunice hollers from the kitchen door.

Lathan is under the impression that he, Kylo, Ellie, and Eunice are going on a double date at the Bistro—completely unaware of any birthday celebrations, or that the Garcias have flown out again to see him.

“Thank you!” he yells back, and then exhales his nervousness. “Okay. Final touches everyone! We’ve got about twenty minutes!”

Everything in its place, lights dimmed to hide the decorations and give the illusion of a moody diner atmosphere, everyone hides inside except for Kylo, who waits on the sidewalk, hoping Lathan doesn’t notice the open sign has been flipped to CLOSED.

Lathan hasn’t been very social since coming back to Obscura at the end of summer. Not that he is very social anyway, but they talked about how isolated he was when Kylo was in rehab. And when he got out of the hospital, everything was overwhelming, and he could only handle being around Kylo, Maria, and David for a while. Shame lingered around the text he sent to Ellie and Eunice, so they moved back to their dorms to give them space—leaving behind a few of their homey trinkets as well wishes.

Over time, though, he let them back in, at his own pace. And Kylo could not be more proud of him today—ready to go out for the first time, properly, with his friends.

The zippers and chains off Lathan’s leather jacket clamour as he makes his way down the long Ridley street that is its downtown core—making Kylo giddy in anticipation. The streetlights illuminate him as he nears, highlighting his long hair, worn down, now reaching his pecs. It makes his cheeks bloom, flooded with warm memories of their first date.

“Hola, mi amor,” Kylo calls affectionately, walking to meet him partway down the sidewalk.

He can’t help himself. Sliding his hands along Lathan’s hips and around to his lower back, he slips them up and under his shirt. Feeling his skin, his dull, vampiric warmth. As he presses into the embrace, he kisses his cheek and rubs his head against Lathan’s neck, soaking him up.

“How was the test?”

Lathan hums against Kylo’s hot touch, lids drifting shut with his mate nudging into his throat, and his fingers tangle into the back of his curly hair, holding him against him, letting him mark his scent. “Hoping I feel better about the final exam,” he says in a low voice. “Are the girls inside already?”

Kylo grumbles. “Yeah, but I haven’t seen you all day. Just one more minute.” He holds him tighter.

Lathan chuckles softly, a sound that’s slowly becoming more commonplace again. He kisses the top of Kylo’s head and breathes him in.

The comforting feeling of mine echoes down the bond.

Kylo’s getting quite familiar with the silent language, continuing his meditations to stay in tune with his wolf. With his mate.

A part of him wouldn’t be opposed if Lathan said they should go home, spend the night with just each other, even if that’s just sitting on the living room floor with a shitty reality show while he yells at the contestants and Lathan sits back quietly, holding him. But too much work has been put into today. So onward they must go.

Kylo takes one last inhale of citrus and musk, one last rub of his head against his mate, then backs away, slipping his fingers between Lathan’s. “You ready?” he asks, eyes locked on those beautiful burnt cedar orbs that still make his heart melt.

“Yeah,” Lathan says, and then his lips bend mischievously. “I think I can handle a couple of lesbians.”

Kylo mirrors his smile, because just mere days ago, really, he couldn’t.

They walk in tandem to the dim restaurant. The door chimes above them as he holds it open for Lathan and steps in behind him. Benedict’s is quiet. No music, no chatter, no signs of life, with odd things scattered around that are too hard to identify with the low lighting.

Until, suddenly, the lights flick on.

“Surprise! Happy birthday!” Maria, Ellie, David, and Eunice all cheer, somewhat unsynchronized. Kylo squeezes Lathan’s hand, grinning from ear to ear.

You are loved. You are important. You are a choice. You are mine.

A large table in the centre of the room is decorated with a black table cloth, black plates, a white rose and dahlia centrepiece, and gifts—the other tables pushed out of the way to give them space. Black, white, and grey balloons are stuck to every wall, nook, and cranny, and a large black banner is strung from the ceiling with HAPPY BIRTHDAY in metallic silver letters.

Lathan startles, flinching back into Kylo, ears twitching with their cheer. He blinks wide eyes at the small group, lips parted as he scans the decorations.

“Hi,” he says, confused, stepping forward. “I— What?” His gaze hops from each person grinning at him—finally reaching Kylo. “You asshole.”

“Told you I wouldn’t forget,” he says cheekily. “And we’ve got this whole place to ourselves. But that was a team effort.”

“ Oh , stop hogging him to yourself,” Maria interrupts, barely containing her excitement. “Come here.” She walks up to Lathan with open arms and Kylo releases his hand to let her have her moment.

He’s embraced by Maria, and he gently holds her back. “What are you doing here? This must’ve been so expensive.”

“Ay, dioses mío,” she groans, “don’t you worry about money. We wouldn’t miss this for the world.” She wiggles him from side to side, then gives him a good squeeze.

“I guess Kylo didn’t tell any of you that I don’t celebrate my birthday,” he muses as they pull out of the hug.

“Of course he did.” Eunice hops forward, her brilliant teeth contrasting brightly against her dark skin. “But we do. So you can just be here, and the rest of us will celebrate.”

He blinks at her, and she giggles and dives for his torso, wrapping her thin arms around him.

Ellie teeters back and forth where she stands, as if deciding what to do, before going for it and making it a group hug. “Happy birthday, Lathan.”

His arms come down around both of them like sheets of snow, delicate and encasing.

Kylo’s heart thrums with love and warmth and family.

As he holds them, he continues to look around. “You really rented the whole Bistro? You could have just reserved a table. For free.”

“I thought it would be more intimate—less overwhelming,” Kylo notes, smiling warmly at his embrace with the girls.

Everything is thought out. Everything has a purpose. Every person here cares so deeply for Lathan. And Kylo knows he’s never had this before.

“Come on!” Eunice takes Lathan’s hand; hers is swallowed in his grip. “I fixed some virgin cocktails for everyone. Don’t worry—Kylo gets a Sex on the Beach.”

Kylo snorts at her comment—secretly pumped that he gets to enjoy his favourite cocktail without it being a one-way ticket back to rehab—as she leads Lathan further into the restaurant, straight to the main table.

David keeps his distance while Lathan is getting acquainted and comfortable, but as everyone gathers at the table, he lifts up a large, seemingly heavy, wrapped box and holds it out for the vampire. “If you don’t like it, we can always return it for something else,” David primes, but Maria leans in and whispers loud enough for everyone to hear, “He picked it out all by himself.”

Lathan takes the gift cautiously and looks, silently, between his in-laws. “Why is it, like, thirty pounds?” He cocks a brow. “Is Mateo in here?”

David cracks a smile and chuckles under his breath. “Better open it to find out,” he teases—a rare occurrence in the aftermath of Lathan’s hospital stay, but Kylo loves to see it. Loves to see the ones he loves support his person.

Lathan flexes his jaw as he sets the box on the end of the table and peels up the tape. Inside, right on top, is a leather planner and a silver pen snug into a loop on the spine. He opens it, the smell of its material crisp and strong and comforting, and the end page has Maria’s scrawl on it: ‘For those hard thoughts. Put them to work. Love, Maria & David.’

The book is sat on top of a dark grey, quilt-patterned blanket—that weighs twenty pounds. Microbeads fill each quilt square, adding therapeutic weight. He lifts the planner to feel the blanket, and the pen glints at him and Kylo. Engraved along the side reads, ‘ never alone.’

Maria leans into David, giving him an encouraging pat on his upper arm, and he pipes up. “I read online that these heavy blankets are good for anxiety. Something about the nervous system. It’s like a hug.” He shrugs. It’s clear he doesn’t know a lot about these things, but he’s trying to learn, to be considerate of his family.

Everyone watches the beautiful reveal, but Eunice and Ellie almost bounce with anticipation. “Okay, okay, us next!” Eunice takes her bag and plops it on the table near the giant opened box.

Kylo sits down and smiles, admiring the scene set before him, scooching in close to Lathan’s side to place a gentle hand on his thigh.

Lathan looks up at Eunice from under his brows for a moment, then reaches for the bag without a word. Cautiously, he pulls out a large spiced vanilla candle, a hand soap in a fancy, black pump bottle, and an envelope.

“Eee! So I really hope you like the scents we went with. They’re warm and a little sweet, something to liven up your place. But in there …” Eunice’s voice trails off as Lathan opens the envelope. Kylo was fully expecting just a card, but instead, he watches as two tickets to a Nordic spa are removed.

“It’s something you two can do together. It’s in the larger city, but Ellie and I really like going in the colder months—less sun—and I thought it could be a relaxing getaway for a day.”

“That’s…that’s great,” Lathan says, smiling as he looks at each individual around the table.

Eunice dances in her spot, her little hands on the back of her chair as she stands behind it. “Good! Great! Now look at the menu. Carlos isn’t prepping everything tonight, so just ask me and I’ll let you know!” She pulls out her chair to sit, and the others follow suit.

“I’ll just be right back. Eunice, the washrooms are that way? ”

She looks up to where Lathan’s pointing with his thumb, and then nods and chirps in confirmation.

Lathan looks grateful, happy, but there’s something off. As he walks away, Kylo can’t shake the feeling and focuses on the bond. Closing his eyes, his mind isolates the tunnel connecting them and feels a wave of blue.

A corresponding sting in his chest yells, hurt, sad, wrong, mate .

He can’t hear Lathan’s breaths over the others talking. He can’t smell the tears over the kitchen’s cooking. But he knows .

Pushing himself from the table, he silently excuses himself and heads to the bathroom. The closer he gets, the stronger it becomes. He can hear , he can smell , he can feel . And it almost puts a panic in him, that his mate is in distress.

Opening the bathroom door—huffing as if ready to attack an intruder—he sees Lathan, a puddle leaning over the counter.

“I’m here, I’m here,” he reassures, scooping his arms around him like a safety net.

Lathan takes his hands off the countertop to place them along Kylo’s arms, encircled around his waist. He swallows, and then gasps a rough breath, letting his head fall backward into his mate. Letting him cradle him. Letting him be there.

He looks up at the ceiling with teary eyes, blinking away the film of emotion. He’s not sobbing, but he’s lost his breath in the jolt of emotion that stole them. His breathing is starting to slow now, though, as he’s held without prodding questions.

“How’d you know?” Lathan exhales, sniffling up at the ceiling .

“I felt you.”

Lathan sighs and looks into the reflection in front of him. Evidence showing he isn’t alone. That Kylo’s attached to him—emotionally, and physically, as mates.

His hands move along Kylo’s arms. “It’s just a lot.”

“I know,” he hushes, nuzzling in. “You say the word and we’ll leave.”

Lathan’s quiet as he thinks. “No”—he finds his mate’s golden brown stare in the mirror—“I want to see them.”

The shift in the room is palpable, settling Kylo’s nervous system. “I’m so proud of you, you know that?” He says it nearly every week, but the weight of these honest words still feels so great.

“Yeah, yeah.” Lathan waves a hand dismissively, but his face has softened. He wipes his eyes dry with a fist and deeply inhales, inflating his lungs slowly, a controlled mechanism.

“Okay.” He unwinds Kylo’s arms from his body and slips their fingers together, nudging his head toward the door.

Back at the table, they sit down, and Maria notices Lathan’s eyes, how they’re a little glassy still, and because she worries, she asks, “Everything okay, mijo?”

Lathan looks at her, his shoulders rising and falling with a deep breath. “Yeah,” he says. “Thank you. Everyone. For the gifts. I just…realized I’ve never had this before.”

Eunice tilts her head, chin rested on her clasped hands. “Had what? A birthday party?” She giggles at the silly thought, though Kylo knows that, actually, yes .

But Lathan smiles softly and says, “A family.”

Everyone’s faces dip with empathy as each one raises from their seats and shuffles over. Kylo’s warmth is the first to drape over him, then Eunice, then Maria, Ellie, and David. A group hug that’s filled with so much more.

Because they are a family.

A messed up, complicated, but beautiful, loving family.