On the Shores of Grand Cayman Part 7
Disclaimer: This is a total figment of my imagination and anything resembling reality is a mistake.
Tyler sat down in the shade of a large tree and wondered not for the first time why they were doing a treasure hunt. Sure they were getting to see the island but he can think of better ways to see it. There were better people to see it with too... well vampires. He glanced across where Thor was watching him cautiously from a distance. They had barely spoken this past hour, just the necessities.
He wished Murilo was here, wished he could be leaning against a firm body instead of rough bark. He pulled out his phone but the screen remained stubbornly blank. He glanced across at Thor as he slid it back in his pocket. If the plan was to wear him down until was too exhausted to do anything but beg to stop then he was pretty sure it would be successful.
Thor looked as fresh as he had when they’d left this afternoon whilst he felt he’d been working hard. He felt at a distinct disadvantage in this situation but when he’d opened his mouth to say something Jonathan had turned away and dragged off Murilo. Tyler saw the look the Brazilian had given Thor and realised it was probably for the best that the two not be too close. “If you want a rest you just have to say,” Thor said. “I wouldn’t mind a drink.”
Tyler flinched when Thor stepped closer and he felt his heart rate begin to increase again. “Is that how it’s going to be now?” Thor asked.
“Don’t know what you’re talking about,” he denied.
A few days he’d enjoyed Thor’s company and now he wasn’t sure he’d be comfortable in the Norwegian’s presence. It was strange how things had changed so much during what was meant to be a bonding experience for the team. Well he’d certainly learnt some interesting things this trip that’s for sure. Thor came over and sat beside him. “Oh just relax,” Thor said when he tensed. “If I attempted to drink from you JV would have to explain my sudden absence to the world media. It wouldn’t look good for him to lose the World Champion.”
“Like that’s ever happen.”
“You must have questions,” Thor ignored his words. “Come on, ask. I can’t believe Murilo has been that forthcoming.”
“What makes you say that?”
“You look like you’d prefer to be swimming with sharks right now than be this close to me.”
“What makes you think I have questions?”
“Everyone has questions.”
He hadn’t really thought about having questions, not when it was just Murilo. It had probably been unwise but it was just the way things were and he hadn’t seen the need to question that. Probably in time he’d have had questions but not that first night or any other night. At first he’d been shocked but once he’d gotten home that had worn off and he’d remembered just how bad a state Murilo had been in. “How old are you?”
“Sixty-seven.”
Tyler blinked and wondered how he was meant to respond to that. Nowhere near as old as old as Murilo and it made him wonder how old JV was. “Boss is in his nineties as far as I can gather, he’s not so forthcoming with the details. It makes for an interesting dynamic with Murilo since in vampire hierarchy Jonathan would always be subservient.”
“You know how old Murilo is?”
“No, but I know he’s old. I can smell it on him... on you right now.”
Tyler pulled on his t-shirt and sniffed it. The only thing he could smell was the very faint scent of his shower gel. “Trust me, it’s there, my sense of smell is a lot better than yours. Murilo’s a very powerful vampire, it’s why you’re so popular with the locals.”
That definitely didn’t sound good and he should probably find out if there was a way to deal with them. “He doesn’t seem to get mobbed every time he leaves the hotel.”
“You don’t just introduce yourself to a vampire like that, especially now word has undoubtedly spread. You on the other hand are a completely different matter. They expect you to be marked but you’re not so they get a little exuberant.”
“Marked?” he couldn’t stop himself from asking.
He wasn’t sure what to make of it, if Thor was telling the truth or if this was just another lie to get him to be quiet. “Vampires as old as Murilo have family seals and since you’re... special that means you should have one to keep you safe. Mark you out as belonging to him. Vampires aren’t always keen on sharing and it’s a little unfair to risk life and limb without knowledge.”
“I didn’t have a problem before,” he protested.
“The more time you spend with him the stronger the scent and Murilo’s family’s infamous. Not that they know who it is they can smell but last night was likely more of a Fischer groupie.”
Tyler didn’t want to be the target for groupies, the few he’d met at races were bad enough without having fangs and a need to drink blood. “Infamous?”
“Yes,” Thor answered being unexpectedly coy.
“How safe am I with you?”
The threats from last night were still fresh in his mind and not for the first time today he wished Murilo was with them. “You’re safe unless I’m desperate to feed and then my need to stay alive will be stronger than my need for Murilo not to kill me.”
“I think you have the wrong idea about my relationship with Murilo,” he finally said.
“You’re like catnip to him,” Thor said. “Once he gets close enough he can’t stay away.”
Tyler wasn’t sure he liked that comparison, it didn’t seem very flattering. He would’ve preferred Murilo not being able to stay away because the vampire liked him, not because he couldn’t. He sighed, Murilo had tried to tell him that nothing would happen and he hadn’t listened. “You-”
Tyler’s attention was caught by a couple he could see in the distance. He watched as one leant into the other as their lips met. A pain blossomed in his chest as he realised that he’d never have that. He’d never be able to hold Murilo’s hand in public and Murilo would never kiss him like that. In fact he wasn’t sure Murilo would ever kiss him at all without it being awkward.
He pushed himself up off the ground and turned away from them. He brushed the dirt off his shorts and began walking off down the path. “You coming?” he asked Thor.
A hand grabbed at his arm and forced him to stop a few moments later. “Humans aren’t always a fan of the fangs,” Thor said in hushed tones.
“I don’t-”
“Things are always complicated with humans, is all I’m saying.”
Tyler wasn’t quite sure what Thor was trying to say and he wasn’t in the mood for talking about this more. He just wanted to go back when he was blissfully ignorant. “How many of are there on the team?”
“Just the three of us. Though it’s really-” Thor stopped abruptly.
“What?” he demanded even though he wasn’t sure he wanted to know the answer.
“It’s doping control you really have to watch.”
Apparently they were everywhere and he couldn’t get away from them. “I’m going back to the hotel.”
Too much, it was too much and he just wanted to pretend none of it had happened. It took an eternity for him to get back to the hotel and even then it wasn’t as simple. Jonathan was sitting under a large canopy on the beach and Murilo was sitting next to him.
Tyler hoped that he’d be able to sneak back inside without anyone noticing but he had no such luck. Murilo suddenly appeared beside him and gave every impression of not going anywhere. “I just want to be by myself,” he stated.
“What happened?”
“Nothing.”
“Tyler!”
“I just want everything to be normal again,” he whispered.
It had been too much - too much information and too big a shift in his view of the world. Murilo reached for him and the minute they touched Tyler decided he’d had enough of this dance too. Except he couldn’t quite work out if that meant he was done with Murilo and he was ready to move on or if he just needed to know what was going on. “Come on.”
He allowed Murilo to usher him along and in through an open door. He should probably have put up more of a fight given Murilo was a vampire and therefore part of the problem. “You look exhausted, maybe if you got some more sleep you’d feel better.”
“I’d feel better?” he queried and pushed at Murilo so he could have some space. “There’s no way to feel better after this!”
The words sounded so wrong now they were out there but he couldn’t call them back. The look on Murilo’s face made things so much worse if that was possible and he wondered if he’d ever get the opportunity to make amends for those words. “Tyler-”
“I get that you don’t want to be with me but could you not have left my view of the world in tact? Was it so important that I knew what you are? What they are?”
There was a pause before Murilo came closer to him again and he swallowed hard when the anger stopped being so well controlled. “What am I Tyler? An abomination? An embarrassment? Something that should never see the light of day?”
The words cut through the mess of emotions and stopped the words just tumbling out of his mouth. How many times had Murilo heard those words? “Do you ever regret it?”
Murilo frowned. “Regret what?”
“Being a vampire.”
“Pointless to regret it, nothing I can do about it now.”
It made sense and yet he felt unsatisfied by the answer. He’d wanted something and that wasn’t what it was. Maybe Murilo wasn’t capable of what he wanted any longer. He almost smiled when the vampire leant close and breathed in. “Going to tell me what’s going on?”
“No,” he murmured and leant closer.
“Thor didn’t get too close,” the Brazilian said. “I take it this means you’re still getting on well.”
“I don’t want to talk about that now.”
“It’s my fault you found out about them. Jonathan was trying to stop me doing something I’d regret.”
Tyler pulled back and looked at the vampire before him. “He thought it’d be better if he didn’t have to try and explain to the resort manager what had happened to one of his casuals,” Murilo continued. “He didn’t think I’d forgive you for turning me into everything I despise. I shouldn’t have listened to him.”
It took a while before the words sunk in and he actually understood what it was Murilo was trying to tell him. When he did he wasn’t sure what that meant for them though he had a good idea. He bent his head and began examining his hands instead. “I thought if I just pretended like this was normal, like we could be normal I thought... if you could see that this could work, that we’d be good together, you’d tell me what the problem was,” he murmured.
“Tyler-”
“You tried to tell me and I wouldn’t listen. I didn’t realise I was making things worse.”
He felt a hand come underneath his chin and encourage him to look up. “This isn’t your fault.”
He made a sound of disbelief because while he appreciated the sentiment there was no getting away from the fact that he’d made things worse. If he’d just backed off when Murilo had demanded then none of this would have happened. “My family kill for sport and they’re good at it. Being around you... I don’t like the idea of other vampires feeding.”
“I’m not a big fan of it either,” he said.
Tyler wasn’t sure where this left them now, it wasn’t something he knew much about. He couldn’t exactly do a lot about it if a vampire decided they were really hungry. It was the downside of dating someone who was... human, along with the fact that Murilo undoubtedly had a few centuries more experience than he did. “You and Thor have been pretty close,” Murilo commented.
“He’s here and I thought we might have got on well but my interest lies elsewhere.”
He felt hands grasp his hips and pull him closer. “Really?”
“Uh-huh,” he answered against Murilo’s lips.
“I think there should not be any more talking with Thor,” Murilo’s lips ghosted over his. “It’s bad for your health.”
“Murilo,” he murmured.
“Fine! No feeding though.”
“No feeding,” he agreed as lips grazed his.
He slid an arm around Murilo’s neck and couldn’t stop the smile that spread over his face. “Are you ever going to kiss me?”
“I might,” Murilo said right before he claimed a kiss...
Tyler walked along the beach the following afternoon and reflected on how much things had changed since they’d arrived. He reached up and rubbed the pendant that now resided around his neck. He smiled when he thought of how he’d woken up in a tangle of limbs and bedclothes. He was going to miss that when he went back home.
He knew they’d have a lot of things to discuss when they left here but for now he just wanted to be optimistic. There would be more challenges to deal with along the way but they didn’t need to rush anything. He rubbed his thumb over the pendant again as he saw all the possibilities before them. “You look happy,” Murilo’s voice cut through his musings.
“I am.”
He wanted to reach up and kiss Murilo but there were photographers milling around and that wouldn’t be advisable. “Later,” Murilo promised.
He nodded and they continued on down the beach in what he thought was aimless walking until he saw the canopy and the chairs underneath them. Jonathan and Thor were waiting and he wasn’t sure he was ready for more attempted conversation. “You don’t have to, I just thought it would be nice if we all spent some time together before we left.”
“You mean you’re going to be nice to Thor?” he asked sceptically.
“I can be generous.”
Tyler thought that probably had a lot to do with what had happened last night so he just smiled and said nothing. Murilo pulled his cap down over his eyes in retaliation which made him laugh as he straightened it again. “I didn’t say anything!” he protested.
“I know, it was the way you didn’t.”
He laughed again and saw Murilo smile at him. After all the time waiting he’d finally been offered everything he wanted on the shores of Grand Cayman, an unlikely location all things considered. He began to walk towards the other vampires and wondered if there was time for a few more surprises before they left.
Tyler sat down in the shade of a large tree and wondered not for the first time why they were doing a treasure hunt. Sure they were getting to see the island but he can think of better ways to see it. There were better people to see it with too... well vampires. He glanced across where Thor was watching him cautiously from a distance. They had barely spoken this past hour, just the necessities.
He wished Murilo was here, wished he could be leaning against a firm body instead of rough bark. He pulled out his phone but the screen remained stubbornly blank. He glanced across at Thor as he slid it back in his pocket. If the plan was to wear him down until was too exhausted to do anything but beg to stop then he was pretty sure it would be successful.
Thor looked as fresh as he had when they’d left this afternoon whilst he felt he’d been working hard. He felt at a distinct disadvantage in this situation but when he’d opened his mouth to say something Jonathan had turned away and dragged off Murilo. Tyler saw the look the Brazilian had given Thor and realised it was probably for the best that the two not be too close. “If you want a rest you just have to say,” Thor said. “I wouldn’t mind a drink.”
Tyler flinched when Thor stepped closer and he felt his heart rate begin to increase again. “Is that how it’s going to be now?” Thor asked.
“Don’t know what you’re talking about,” he denied.
A few days he’d enjoyed Thor’s company and now he wasn’t sure he’d be comfortable in the Norwegian’s presence. It was strange how things had changed so much during what was meant to be a bonding experience for the team. Well he’d certainly learnt some interesting things this trip that’s for sure. Thor came over and sat beside him. “Oh just relax,” Thor said when he tensed. “If I attempted to drink from you JV would have to explain my sudden absence to the world media. It wouldn’t look good for him to lose the World Champion.”
“Like that’s ever happen.”
“You must have questions,” Thor ignored his words. “Come on, ask. I can’t believe Murilo has been that forthcoming.”
“What makes you say that?”
“You look like you’d prefer to be swimming with sharks right now than be this close to me.”
“What makes you think I have questions?”
“Everyone has questions.”
He hadn’t really thought about having questions, not when it was just Murilo. It had probably been unwise but it was just the way things were and he hadn’t seen the need to question that. Probably in time he’d have had questions but not that first night or any other night. At first he’d been shocked but once he’d gotten home that had worn off and he’d remembered just how bad a state Murilo had been in. “How old are you?”
“Sixty-seven.”
Tyler blinked and wondered how he was meant to respond to that. Nowhere near as old as old as Murilo and it made him wonder how old JV was. “Boss is in his nineties as far as I can gather, he’s not so forthcoming with the details. It makes for an interesting dynamic with Murilo since in vampire hierarchy Jonathan would always be subservient.”
“You know how old Murilo is?”
“No, but I know he’s old. I can smell it on him... on you right now.”
Tyler pulled on his t-shirt and sniffed it. The only thing he could smell was the very faint scent of his shower gel. “Trust me, it’s there, my sense of smell is a lot better than yours. Murilo’s a very powerful vampire, it’s why you’re so popular with the locals.”
That definitely didn’t sound good and he should probably find out if there was a way to deal with them. “He doesn’t seem to get mobbed every time he leaves the hotel.”
“You don’t just introduce yourself to a vampire like that, especially now word has undoubtedly spread. You on the other hand are a completely different matter. They expect you to be marked but you’re not so they get a little exuberant.”
“Marked?” he couldn’t stop himself from asking.
He wasn’t sure what to make of it, if Thor was telling the truth or if this was just another lie to get him to be quiet. “Vampires as old as Murilo have family seals and since you’re... special that means you should have one to keep you safe. Mark you out as belonging to him. Vampires aren’t always keen on sharing and it’s a little unfair to risk life and limb without knowledge.”
“I didn’t have a problem before,” he protested.
“The more time you spend with him the stronger the scent and Murilo’s family’s infamous. Not that they know who it is they can smell but last night was likely more of a Fischer groupie.”
Tyler didn’t want to be the target for groupies, the few he’d met at races were bad enough without having fangs and a need to drink blood. “Infamous?”
“Yes,” Thor answered being unexpectedly coy.
“How safe am I with you?”
The threats from last night were still fresh in his mind and not for the first time today he wished Murilo was with them. “You’re safe unless I’m desperate to feed and then my need to stay alive will be stronger than my need for Murilo not to kill me.”
“I think you have the wrong idea about my relationship with Murilo,” he finally said.
“You’re like catnip to him,” Thor said. “Once he gets close enough he can’t stay away.”
Tyler wasn’t sure he liked that comparison, it didn’t seem very flattering. He would’ve preferred Murilo not being able to stay away because the vampire liked him, not because he couldn’t. He sighed, Murilo had tried to tell him that nothing would happen and he hadn’t listened. “You-”
Tyler’s attention was caught by a couple he could see in the distance. He watched as one leant into the other as their lips met. A pain blossomed in his chest as he realised that he’d never have that. He’d never be able to hold Murilo’s hand in public and Murilo would never kiss him like that. In fact he wasn’t sure Murilo would ever kiss him at all without it being awkward.
He pushed himself up off the ground and turned away from them. He brushed the dirt off his shorts and began walking off down the path. “You coming?” he asked Thor.
A hand grabbed at his arm and forced him to stop a few moments later. “Humans aren’t always a fan of the fangs,” Thor said in hushed tones.
“I don’t-”
“Things are always complicated with humans, is all I’m saying.”
Tyler wasn’t quite sure what Thor was trying to say and he wasn’t in the mood for talking about this more. He just wanted to go back when he was blissfully ignorant. “How many of are there on the team?”
“Just the three of us. Though it’s really-” Thor stopped abruptly.
“What?” he demanded even though he wasn’t sure he wanted to know the answer.
“It’s doping control you really have to watch.”
Apparently they were everywhere and he couldn’t get away from them. “I’m going back to the hotel.”
Too much, it was too much and he just wanted to pretend none of it had happened. It took an eternity for him to get back to the hotel and even then it wasn’t as simple. Jonathan was sitting under a large canopy on the beach and Murilo was sitting next to him.
Tyler hoped that he’d be able to sneak back inside without anyone noticing but he had no such luck. Murilo suddenly appeared beside him and gave every impression of not going anywhere. “I just want to be by myself,” he stated.
“What happened?”
“Nothing.”
“Tyler!”
“I just want everything to be normal again,” he whispered.
It had been too much - too much information and too big a shift in his view of the world. Murilo reached for him and the minute they touched Tyler decided he’d had enough of this dance too. Except he couldn’t quite work out if that meant he was done with Murilo and he was ready to move on or if he just needed to know what was going on. “Come on.”
He allowed Murilo to usher him along and in through an open door. He should probably have put up more of a fight given Murilo was a vampire and therefore part of the problem. “You look exhausted, maybe if you got some more sleep you’d feel better.”
“I’d feel better?” he queried and pushed at Murilo so he could have some space. “There’s no way to feel better after this!”
The words sounded so wrong now they were out there but he couldn’t call them back. The look on Murilo’s face made things so much worse if that was possible and he wondered if he’d ever get the opportunity to make amends for those words. “Tyler-”
“I get that you don’t want to be with me but could you not have left my view of the world in tact? Was it so important that I knew what you are? What they are?”
There was a pause before Murilo came closer to him again and he swallowed hard when the anger stopped being so well controlled. “What am I Tyler? An abomination? An embarrassment? Something that should never see the light of day?”
The words cut through the mess of emotions and stopped the words just tumbling out of his mouth. How many times had Murilo heard those words? “Do you ever regret it?”
Murilo frowned. “Regret what?”
“Being a vampire.”
“Pointless to regret it, nothing I can do about it now.”
It made sense and yet he felt unsatisfied by the answer. He’d wanted something and that wasn’t what it was. Maybe Murilo wasn’t capable of what he wanted any longer. He almost smiled when the vampire leant close and breathed in. “Going to tell me what’s going on?”
“No,” he murmured and leant closer.
“Thor didn’t get too close,” the Brazilian said. “I take it this means you’re still getting on well.”
“I don’t want to talk about that now.”
“It’s my fault you found out about them. Jonathan was trying to stop me doing something I’d regret.”
Tyler pulled back and looked at the vampire before him. “He thought it’d be better if he didn’t have to try and explain to the resort manager what had happened to one of his casuals,” Murilo continued. “He didn’t think I’d forgive you for turning me into everything I despise. I shouldn’t have listened to him.”
It took a while before the words sunk in and he actually understood what it was Murilo was trying to tell him. When he did he wasn’t sure what that meant for them though he had a good idea. He bent his head and began examining his hands instead. “I thought if I just pretended like this was normal, like we could be normal I thought... if you could see that this could work, that we’d be good together, you’d tell me what the problem was,” he murmured.
“Tyler-”
“You tried to tell me and I wouldn’t listen. I didn’t realise I was making things worse.”
He felt a hand come underneath his chin and encourage him to look up. “This isn’t your fault.”
He made a sound of disbelief because while he appreciated the sentiment there was no getting away from the fact that he’d made things worse. If he’d just backed off when Murilo had demanded then none of this would have happened. “My family kill for sport and they’re good at it. Being around you... I don’t like the idea of other vampires feeding.”
“I’m not a big fan of it either,” he said.
Tyler wasn’t sure where this left them now, it wasn’t something he knew much about. He couldn’t exactly do a lot about it if a vampire decided they were really hungry. It was the downside of dating someone who was... human, along with the fact that Murilo undoubtedly had a few centuries more experience than he did. “You and Thor have been pretty close,” Murilo commented.
“He’s here and I thought we might have got on well but my interest lies elsewhere.”
He felt hands grasp his hips and pull him closer. “Really?”
“Uh-huh,” he answered against Murilo’s lips.
“I think there should not be any more talking with Thor,” Murilo’s lips ghosted over his. “It’s bad for your health.”
“Murilo,” he murmured.
“Fine! No feeding though.”
“No feeding,” he agreed as lips grazed his.
He slid an arm around Murilo’s neck and couldn’t stop the smile that spread over his face. “Are you ever going to kiss me?”
“I might,” Murilo said right before he claimed a kiss...
Tyler walked along the beach the following afternoon and reflected on how much things had changed since they’d arrived. He reached up and rubbed the pendant that now resided around his neck. He smiled when he thought of how he’d woken up in a tangle of limbs and bedclothes. He was going to miss that when he went back home.
He knew they’d have a lot of things to discuss when they left here but for now he just wanted to be optimistic. There would be more challenges to deal with along the way but they didn’t need to rush anything. He rubbed his thumb over the pendant again as he saw all the possibilities before them. “You look happy,” Murilo’s voice cut through his musings.
“I am.”
He wanted to reach up and kiss Murilo but there were photographers milling around and that wouldn’t be advisable. “Later,” Murilo promised.
He nodded and they continued on down the beach in what he thought was aimless walking until he saw the canopy and the chairs underneath them. Jonathan and Thor were waiting and he wasn’t sure he was ready for more attempted conversation. “You don’t have to, I just thought it would be nice if we all spent some time together before we left.”
“You mean you’re going to be nice to Thor?” he asked sceptically.
“I can be generous.”
Tyler thought that probably had a lot to do with what had happened last night so he just smiled and said nothing. Murilo pulled his cap down over his eyes in retaliation which made him laugh as he straightened it again. “I didn’t say anything!” he protested.
“I know, it was the way you didn’t.”
He laughed again and saw Murilo smile at him. After all the time waiting he’d finally been offered everything he wanted on the shores of Grand Cayman, an unlikely location all things considered. He began to walk towards the other vampires and wondered if there was time for a few more surprises before they left.