-Quan Leung-

I looked into Ruarc's deep blue eyes as he traced the cut on my face. I let myself sink into the feeling that this was an incredibly cheesy scene in a movie, which I usually wouldn't watch, and lent into his touch, which caused a soothing sensation to follow the sting of pain.

"Where did you get those from?" I asked him gently as my attention was drawn to the scars which decorated his face. "They can't all be cool battle scars."

He huffed a laugh. "Actually, they are." He used his arm to move some hair out of his face, so that he avoided using his hands. "Okay, not even I believed that. I had a lot of scars when I was human, but nothing as elaborate as the ones that I now have. My hands were almost always covered in cuts, and I had a scar on my bottom lip, and one just by my eyebrow."

My attention moved to his hands, where I could now see very small scars, but they were extremely faint. I could almost convince myself that I was just imagining them after hearing that there were once scars there. "From working?" I couldn't help but be curious. Ruarc was from an entirely different time to me, I didn't know much about history, but I knew that everything could change in such little time.

"Yeah," he said offhandedly. "I used to make mats and baskets when I was human, along with the odd building job," His head turned from me and then over to the shower before he picked me up, causing me to wrap my arms gently around his neck. He slowly lowered me onto the floor of the shower. "Suppose you don't mind those trousers getting wet?"

The very slow movement was still enough to cause some mild dizziness. I snorted. "I don't think they'd even be considered trousers anymore," I joked. "But then where'd you get the scar on your eyebrow from? I doubt that's from a basket attack."

Ruarc took the shower head from where it was stationed and turned the water on, feeling it with his hand before he moved to his knees and began to let the lukewarm water wash over me. The water caused a mix of irritation and relief, a very peculiar sensation. "I wasn't the nicest human."

I got the message that he didn't quite want to discuss this at the moment, but he wasn't directly telling me. I really didn't want to overstep my boundaries, but the conversation was the only thing distracting me. I had gotten so deep into my own thoughts and experience, I was using Ruarc's life as an anchor.

"I'm almost certain I've met worse humans than you were," I stated firmly.

"I mean, I'd hope so, considering you're a police officer." The warm water moved to my back, which hadn't really been hurt too much, despite the scraps caused by the cave wall.

"I'm not a police officer, I'm an investigator, there is a world of difference. I wouldn't last one hour out on the street as a police officer." I was sure that it was possible to be a blind police officer, sure, but that wasn't my main anxiety relating to the position. That related to being too much in the public eye, and not being able to handle myself. I had too much of an unfriendly aura, and that wouldn't be in my favour.

"My apologies, investigator. I didn't mean to insult," Ruarc teased. His voice was deeper. My eyes had wandered to the wall behind him, but at the tone of his voice, they immediately moved to his face to see if there was anything wrong. He was focused on me, more specifically, my bare chest. Actually, it was tricky to figure out what exactly he was looking at.

"Ruarc?" I asked with furrowed eyebrows.

He lowered the shower head and flicked it off within a second, causing chills to crawl over my body.

"Remember when I said you were beautiful?" he asked in the same tone, causing me to instinctively swallow a lump which formed in my throat. "I don't think that's a strong enough word."

He had taken my breath by how he was talking, by how he was staring at me. I was nothing to look twice at, but Ruarc's eyes couldn't even be considered hungry. They would be described as admiring, awe-struck, bewitched. I had never imagined wanting someone to look at me like that, But I had never met another Ruarc.

Despite the cold air on my body, my face warmed and I looked down towards my hands, which were interlocked together tightly. I felt bashful and embarrassed that I was in such a vulnerable situation, but Ruarc made no move to take advantage of that. He could've taken advantage of me at any point throughout our relationship, but he didn't.

I shuffled closer to him and caught his lips with my own. I placed one of my hands on his leg and used that to help me balance. My other hand was pressed against the cold floor of the shower.

Ruarc gingerly placed his hand on my left shoulder, which was free of any wound. His other hand rested on my hip, as anything above that would cause his touch to be painful.

When we pulled apart, he breathed a laugh and pressed his forehead against mine. "I didn't think you were the type," he teased.

"I couldn't help myself when you talked with that tone," I admitted shyly. "But anything more than that is off limits."

He whined lightly. "Even that tender looking neck?" His hand which had previously been on my shoulder crept closer to my neck and he tickled it with his thumb.

I bit my lip and pulled away, nodding my head. "I don't know Ruarc, that seems so risky. Offering my neck to a vampire is something that is highly frowned upon."

Ruarc grinned and tapped my nose. "Good to know that you have some sort of self-perseverance. Might get me out of a job, but at least it's there."

"I'm not sure my wit would be enough reason for you to be fired, maybe the hole in my stomach would be though?" I found it a bit ironic, how Ruarc was hired as a bodyguard, and I had done nothing but get into trouble ever since.

"Maybe, I doubt it though. As long as your hands can touch things, I've got a job." He paused for a moment. "Can you use your powers with other parts?"

I schooled my expression. "As long as I'm touching it, I can see the object's past." I tried not to think about what he could possibly mean by such a vague question, what those 'other parts' were.

"And there's the Quan I met when I first walked into his office," Ruarc remarked. "Don't worry, I'm a real classy guy."

I snorted. "Is that what you're calling it? And would you prefer that old Quan to return? Because that would be extremely easy." I wasn't a fan of the idea that I changed so much personality-wise that I was a completely different person, but I felt relaxed around Ruarc, and able to be myself. It felt like, for the first time in my life, that I had a friend.

"What? Cold, distant, and rude?" he listed, the grin on his face was audible.

I made an exaggerated offended expression and placed my hand over my heart, needing to lean my elbow on my leg to do so. "I appreciate your blunt honesty, but has nobody ever told you that words hurt?" I immediately put my hands down, as Ruarc began to bandage my torso again. "But yes, that Quan. I can't admit that he will forever be a part of me, and that this Quan you're talking to right now is only a mask." I wasn't sure how serious I was being, or whether or not my words were right.

"I don't mind. I like a challenge, and that Quan is definitely a challenge." He gave a small shrug before gently grabbing one of my wrists and beginning to apply bandages wherever necessary. "Quan, I've got to tell you something."

I raised my eyebrow and frowned at his serious tone. "Yes?" After the last few days, I was unsure what kind of news he could give me. I had received some of the worst, and some of the best news of my life, both of them being the same thing.

"I know why Harlen sent himself to prison," he admitted. "It's one of the same reasons why everyone is helping us. It's, as some people would say, part of the family business to help each other out."

My mind became static as I tried to figure out what exactly he meant. "Family business?" I repeated. I had heard that term used to refer to illegal activities and groups. Surely that's not what he meant? Then again, he did say that the others didn't like police. "You're a part of a family business?" I asked slowly. I wanted to make sure I knew what he meant, and how much he was telling me.

"Yeah, have been since a few years after I was turned into a vampire." His breath was cool on my shoulder as he reached around me, almost in a hug. "Harlen is one of the bosses, you could say. I always knew that he wasn't a huge fan of the deals they had going on, but he didn't say anything. That's why he turned himself in."

"And Candice knows?" I couldn't even concentrate on the pain anymore, far too concentrated on the conversation. "That's why she was more than happy to put him behind bars?"

Ruarc snorted. "You're all done," he informed, but I didn't move. "Candice is also a boss, which was why she was happy to lock him up. She was angry that he got caught in some sort of act. It didn't matter if he had actually done it or not."

"But then how did he get caught if he didn't do it?" I leant forward and pressed my forehead to his arm, which had a cooling effect. It wasn't until then did I realise how warm I was. I frowned uncomfortably, hoping that wasn't going to be a fever.

"Why don't you look?" Ruarc trailed his fingers up my arm with less damage, causing shivers to run down my spine. He was exaggerating the fact that we had contact.

"I like hearing your voice," I answered plainly. "And, as my bodyguard, I don't think that you should be encouraging me to use my powers, which drain me of practically my entire life-force." I lifted my head, so that my chin was resting on his shoulder.

"I see your point," he said. His mouth was so close to my ear now that I could feel some of his facial hair along the back of my ear, causing it to twitch. "That's adorable."

I ignored his words, and asked again, "how did he get caught if he didn't do it?" I was pulled into his arms and onto his lap. I thought that this was a bit too soon, quite a bold move, but we went straight to kissing, so I don't think we were doing this in order.

"We think he was framed by an enemy leader." His arms wrapped around me limply. I could pull away or move back whenever I liked, and he certainly wasn't causing any more pain. "I don't know about Sara, Aubrey, and Luka, but I can't think of anyone close enough to him to have gotten the evidence and planted it at the scene. I might've missed a bit when I was concentrating on making sure you stayed alive." He huffed a bit.

"Hey, we'll figure it out." My hand found his and I squeezed it. "He seems pretty happy in jail at the moment though, I'm not quite sure if he wants to get out."

"Well, if he can't get out, then I doubt people will be able to get in." He shrugged and held me tighter. "We need to get some proper clothes on you."

"Yeah, but would you?" I made no move to shift from the position I was in.

"If that's you asking if I have clothes, they probably won't fit but they're there. If you're asking if it would pain me greatly to see you back in clothes, then you're getting far too cocky for your own good. And finally, if you're asking if I'm willing to leave this very comfortable position, no."

I blushed, despite flirting back. I wasn't used to such comments, especially from someone like Ruarc. "Then, I suppose we're stuck like this forever," I told him lightly. "Or until I get cramp in my legs or ribs, which is very imminent."

He laughed lightly and pulled away, allowing me to stretch my right leg out and roll my ankle a few times. "Humans are so strange," he muttered fondly. "I don't think I've gotten cramp since I became a vampire. Not properly anyway."

I hummed in thought and shook my head. "I'd say lucky you, but I'd take cramp over vampirism, thank you."

"Do you have any idea how many times I heard the opposite?" Ruarc asked good-naturedly as he stood up. He turned the water off completely, which felt like a bit of a waste, and scooped me up in his arms. I tried not to focus on where my bare skin met his arms, which were under my knees. The skin on my back was covered in bandages, but he somehow avoided my wounds.

"I don't want to, but I'd imagine they were females?" I asked curiously.

He hummed in agreement. "At least you know why they were complaining." I heard the smirk in his voice, despite not looking at him.

"What kind of person do you take me for? I went to school, you know? We were taught about all that." Well, I had done research before I took the biology exams, I needed to take in order to get into university. I didn't necessarily need my science degree, but I thought that I might as well try and get as many pieces of paper to my name as I could.

"Well, I just figured that you wouldn't have spent much time around women and talking about things like that. I thought it would go to the back of your mind. Given the fact that you're gay and all?"

I gave a small huff. "Okay, who told you I'm gay? And why would that make any difference to whether or not I know about female biology?"

"Fewesi, and I'm not answering the second question." He booped my nose, which was one of the cringiest experiences I ever had. "I'm bisexual myself, just in case you were curious."

"How did we get onto this conversation?" I asked honestly, as I had completely forgotten. "And I'm going to kill Fewesi." I was placed onto the bed, with my feet planted against the cold floor.

"Don't go after her, she was just rooting for us. She also said that it might've been a lie so that women would get off your back." He chuckled and gently lifted my arm, slipping it through a sleeve. "And I believe it started when we were discussing muscle contractions."

I nodded and let him pull my other arm through another, seemingly green with a plaid pattern, shirt sleeve. "I don't do a lot of exercise, so I get cramp quite a bit."

"And that's another thing we should work on," Ruarc said with a sigh as he buttoned up my shirt. I would've told him to get off, and that I could do it myself, but his fingers grazed my stomach causing me to shiver again.

"You know, you don't need to be my health coach? I really don't think that's in your job description." I tried to laugh, but I faltered.

"But what kind of person would I be if I did nothing to help?" His words were light and slow. "I think I'm like Harlen, you know?"

"Hm?" I raised an eyebrow down at him as he took my hands in his.

"He went to jail because he felt guilty for his crimes. I think that's why I accepted the job at the station. We both worked our way up the ranks, doing dirty work without question, as long as it got us money or an advantage."

Flashes flew through my mind, but somehow, they didn't make me tired. They didn't make sense at first, but all of them were tinted red. There was a lot of blood, and a lot of money. There were flashes of pain, which I couldn't quite embrace, and guilt.

"Ruarc?" I asked, hoping to snap us both out of the trance. "Why did you do that though?"

"Stability, family, necessity," he answered. His voice was completely different now to what it had been a few minutes ago. He sounded dead. "I needed a family."