Page 2 of Inhuman Natures #1

Lawrence cocked his head, then reached over and pinched Shaun in the exact same place. Shaun yelped, the pain from Lawrence’s hand harsher than his own touch.

“There,” Lawrence said. “Now you know for sure.”

“ Ow .”

Lawrence drove off without another word. Shaun didn’t know whether to be annoyed. His arm didn’t hurt badly—it was such a tiny little thing.

Perhaps vampires experienced pain differently than humans.

“So, are you going to tell me where we’re going? I can look it up on my phone,” Shaun said as the street lights streaked by.

“Phone?”

Shaun pulled it out. “See?”

Lawrence hummed. “I would rather we didn’t keep that with us.”

“Why not?”

“Shaun, we have to be careful. Can’t have anyone getting the wrong idea and following us, can we?” Lawrence’s fangs poked out as he shot Shaun a reassuring smile. “It’s imperative that we keep this between us.”

“Uh. What should I do with it, then?”

“Hand it over.”

Despite his reluctance, Shaun gave Lawrence the brand new phone without further question.

Lawrence tucked it out of sight. “I’ll keep it safe.”

Shaun rubbed his fingers along the smoothed edges of the wolf figurine in his pocket, and a chasm opened up in the pit of his stomach. “I should text my mum,” he said .

“No, you don’t want to message your parents.”

Right. Of course not. “Okay,” Shaun said, then sat in silence, processing his sudden agreeableness.

After a while—Shaun didn’t track how long—he spoke up again. “You still didn’t say where we’re going.”

“It doesn’t matter, does it? I’m taking you away from here. Away from this place. What’s it called again? Shrewsbury? Honestly, no wonder you wanted me to rescue you. That’s all you’ve ever wanted.”

It was all Shaun had ever wanted. But everything still felt off. “Lawrence—”

Lawrence made a noise in the back of his throat. “You haven’t quite earned the privilege of addressing me in such a manner yet.”

Shaun wasn’t sure if he understood. “You mean…I can’t use your name?”

“It implies a certain familiarity.”

Shaun’s face burned with indignation. “But we’re boyfriends.”

He felt like he might puke when Lawrence laughed. “No, Shaun. That’s a ridiculous word. Do I look like a boy to you?”

“No?”

“No.”

Shaun crossed his arms over his chest and sunk lower in the seat. So far, none of this was going how he’d planned. He expected to be swept off his feet. Instead, he was just pissed off.

“Don’t get huffy with me,” Lawrence said without even glancing at him. “It’s childish.”

“I’m not in a huff. ”

“That tone was rather petulant for someone who claims not to be in a huff.”

“Maybe we should stop the car,” Shaun said, looking at Lawrence out of the corner of his eye. “I need some air.”

“No, it’s best we keep driving. The nights are short in summer.”

Shaun pressed a hand to his roiling stomach. “I think I might be sick.”

Lawrence sighed. “We’ll stop at the next service station.”

Shaun had barely noticed they were on the motorway. A sign told him they were heading north. “Are we going to Liverpool?” he asked.

“No more questions, Shaun.”

He pressed his lips together to stop himself from retorting. Real life Lawrence wasn’t as much fun as online Lawrence.

“I need to pee,” Shaun announced. Lawrence opened his mouth, but Shaun got there first. “That wasn’t a question. I’m telling you I need to go.”

“I forgot how needy humans can be. Fine.” Lawrence didn’t stop the car, however. If anything, he sped up.

“We passed a service station,” Shaun said, pressing his face to the glass of the window.

“I didn’t like the look of it.”

Shaun started to think that Lawrence wouldn’t stop at all.

The alarm bells ringing in his head now wailed a constant warning.

Nothing so far had gone like Shaun had expected, and he began to think he’d just made the worst mistake of his life.

He waited, the silence in the car oppressive, but when Lawrence didn’t stop at the following station either, Shaun knew he needed to do something drastic .

He held onto his stomach and moaned. “It hurts.”

“Don’t be such a baby. I’m sure you can survive.”

“I’m asking you to pull over, please .”

“And I’m telling you no.”

That pushed Shaun to his breaking point. “Well, I’m saying no, too. I don’t want to go with you anymore!” He hadn’t expected his words to sound so loud, but his outburst hung in the air like a bad smell.

“Well, there was no need for that, Shaun. I thought we agreed.” Lawrence changed lanes, taking them towards a petrol station. “But I suppose we can afford one brief stop.”

“Thanks,” Shaun muttered. He eyed Lawrence’s pocket, where he’d put the phone. Maybe Shaun could convince Lawrence to return it so he could call his dad to come pick him up.

The drive to the service station only took five minutes, but the tension in the car had Shaun shuffling in his seat. He kept one hand pressed to his abdomen. It wasn’t even pretence anymore. His stomach ached with worry.

When Lawrence parked, Shaun ran from the car to the bright lights of the petrol station.

The harsh fluorescents made his eyes water when he entered the shop, but he made a beeline for the bathrooms at the back, right next to the row of wilted sandwiches.

Even as Shaun hurried past, the checkout person didn’t so much as raise their head from their glossy magazine.

Light but insistent footsteps behind Shaun had him moving faster, but he didn’t turn around. He already knew it was Lawrence.

Shaun burst into the bathroom, breathing like he’d just finished a cross country race. He tried to lock the door, but fumbled with the handle for too long.

The door swung inwards and Lawrence stalked inside, flicking the lock shut behind him with a resounding click.

“I kinda wanted some privacy,” Shaun said.

Lawrence looked down at him, pursing his lips. “You seem to be under the impression that this is something it isn’t.”

Shaun backed away, wanting to put any measure of distance between them. “I thought you were taking me out for my birthday, like you promised.”

“I made a lot of promises, Shaun. But do you remember the first one I made to you?”

Shaun swallowed. Of course he did. “No,” he said, regardless.

Lawrence smiled, all teeth. “I promised I would bite you. You begged me for it.”

“I’ve changed my mind.”

“No. You don’t get to do that. You”—Lawrence stepped forward—“owe me. I’ve spent months listening to your every errant thought. I’m due some compensation for the effort.”

Shaun had poured his heart out to Lawrence every night since they’d started talking. His worst fears. His deepest truths. His secret yearnings. Lawrence wasn’t wrong; Shaun had told him everything, and Lawrence had read every word and responded with compassion.

“I’m sorry,” Shaun said, meaning it.

In a blink, Lawrence was inches away from him. “You’re such a sweet boy.”

Shaun took in a ragged breath as Lawrence used a finger to tilt Shaun’s head to the side, exposing his vulnerable neck .

“I hope you taste as sweet as you sound,” Lawrence said, one sharp nail pressing into Shaun’s skin, right under his jaw.

“Will it hurt?” Shaun asked, thinking that he knew the answer already.

“Yes.”

Shaun screwed his eyes shut. He reached into his pocket and held on to the glass wolf, as if the touch alone would ward off the pain.

Lawrence, for perhaps the first time, hadn’t lied.

It did hurt.