A Life Not Spent With You Ch. 01

He heard a loud thud from upstairs and immediately made for the stairs.

On the way up to the second level of his house, Marcel wondered if the puppy was trying to drown himself. All hints of amusement, as halfhearted as it was, vanished when he burst through the door after recieving no reply to his knocking. The young man was in the shower stall and lying face-down in a growing pool of water. His body was splayed as best as it could in the small space, and motionless.

"Fuck!" All exasperation had left him the second he had laid eyes on the fallen. Forcing his legs to move, he skidded across the floor, nearly falling as he splashed into a large puddle. He was lucky to grab the door handle on his first try, his desperation barely aiding him to keep control of his shaking. Throwing the door open, he fell to his knees, dragging the other out of the shower. Taking care to lay the puppy down onto the flooded marble floor as gently as possibly, Marcel leaned over, somehow keeping anger off his face. Such a weak spirit this one had... Blinking suddenly, with unsure hands, he pressed hard on the younger's chest, and after feeling on intake of breath, began in what he hoped was CPR.

A crashing sound echoed around his empty house - a harsh sound of what was surely an attack, judging by the force.

"Come in, dammit, the door's open!" Shouting of his shoulder, his gaze snapped back to the still unconcious boy under him, already unsure whether it was two breaths per five seconds, or one breath every five or ten. Under his palms, the other remained still, slick with water and free of any signs of life.Shit! Remembering that he had to give air along with the CPR, he crushed lips with the other, the action far too fast. His knee slipped, and with a growl, Marcel fell onto the younger's body, a grumbling of pain following his sound of frustration.

"Nnn!" The nameless suddenly tried to sit up with a great cough, expelling water from his gasping, whimpering mouth. Recieving a face-full, Marcel swore furiously, already trying to steady himself to lift himself up.

"You fucking bastard!Get-the-fuck-off-my-lover!!!!" Out of nowhere, a scream sounded, the sound horribly magnified in the bathroom. Nearly able to rise on all fours without sliding, Marcel barely turned to see whoever it was that entered his house before strong fingers fisted his hair and lifted him to his feet. "What you did last night was bad enough, don't you think?" A man, blond and with an English accent, glared at him with livid green eyes, his words nearly a hiss as deadly as the silver snake piercing in one of the man's ears.

"Are you-" He broke off in a muted curse, slamming into the far wall. The pale colors of the bathroom swirled with the black marble of his floor, before his vision unblurred. The nerve of some guest to shout at him then toss him aside in disdain merited more than a retort and equal amount of force. Steamed for a fight, Marcel scrambled to his feet, stalking only a couple steps before stopping altogether.

Kneeling in water, Ivan rested his lover's head on his lap, fingers sliding through wet tendrils of ebony.Damien... Bending low, he kissed the younger's forehead, closing his eyes in concentration. A flickering of breath brushed against his cheek, frail and weak. Relieved, he pressed another gentle kiss, face moving in a single second of pain before pulling away. His gaze faltered as he took in the nail marks, bruises, cuts, and bites, especially the large one on the younger's neck, almost touching his shoulder blade. Ghosting fingertips over a long scratch on his Damien's cheek, Ivan kept himself completely for his lover, knowing if he were to look away, he'd be overly compelled to return the damage and more in a heartbeat.

"Turn off the water." Voice cold, he then gently shook the younger, trying to rouse him awake. "Damien, Dami, wake up, sweetheart..." Speaking softly now, he shushed uselessly, waiting, waiting. Ivan's legs protesting at the prolonged kneeling, he cradled the boy against him, sitting himself in the water, propping up a knee to help support. A frown flitted across the wolf's features, his fingers that were combing out tangles found a large bump; it was familiar, as was the slightly dilated pupils that slowly exposed, Damien rousing from unconciousness. Truly smilling, Ivan pressed a kiss on the younger's cheek, nuzzling gently, shushing over and over.

The tenderness he felt from the obvious love the wolf, whoever he was, had for the puppy, Damien, shattered with a sobbing wail. Such an outburst made Marcel jump, creep closer to see whatever was the matter with the puppy. The wolf that held him was struggling to calm the young one, have his voice heard over,

"-no! Ivan, don't look at me! Please! Go away! Don't touch me, don't, don't..." Twisting and turning, Damien fought to leave his arms, his voice nearly shrieking now. A few blows caught him but Ivan tried to retain his hold on the younger. Hurt swelled within him - to have Damien burst into tears because of his mere presence was heartbreaking.

"Don't, baby, it's alright! Shhh, don't cry, don't cry." Managing to trap the younger's arms to his sides, Ivan closed his eyes, propping his chin over his lover's shoulder. "It's alright, it's alright..."

"No, no, d-don't look...Please, leave me alone, go away!" Rocking them back and forth, Ivan whispered reassurances, "Don't look...I-I wasn't fast enough, I wasn't good enough! I...I loved another, I'm so sorry, Ivan!"

The puppy broke off into sobs again, and struggled to be free once more. This time, the older wolf, Ivan, stood, unmoving for long seconds. Then with the merest turn of the head, green bore straight into him with immeasurable hatred.Oh shit... It was "that" Ivan... Dropping his gaze, Marcel bit his lip, tasting blood already. "Here," He glanced up carefully to see the other wolf offer Damien a towel which was refused with another outburst of apologies and pleas for him to leave. Something dangerous flickered across the clean-shaven face of Ivan, and with much force, the towl was flung at him. Catching it easily, Marcel opened his mouth to apologize, say anything, then shut it uselessly as the other left the room, his footsteps sounding angry as well.

"H-hey, Damien?" His words shook as did he - it'd be hell the moment walked from the room. Kneeling, he started to set down the towel but paused, pulling back as if it had hurt the boy. "Damien, I-I'm sorry..." All the wounds, all the pain could be seen on the puppy, and with much shame, he laid the fluffy towel over slim shoulders.If only problems could be tucked away from sight... "Damien, I'll be downstairs if you need anything...While in my house, you're my guest, and whatever you need, I'll give you..." Unable to remain any longer, he left the water-logged bathroom to enter the hallway and be suddenly tugged to the side. The hand gripped at his collar tightly, the other shutting the door quietly before joining it's brother.

"You won't be downstairs, you'll be in the garden as fertilizer!" Promising through gritted teeth, the wolf Ivan dragged him back down to the kitchen all while muttering under his breath.

"I should really kill you right now, reduce your flesh to ribbons to decorate your lovely garden. Funny," Contemptous green ran over him in mock examination, "You never did strike me as the gardening type. But picking through here and there, taking what you want like a greedy human..." The wolf, in a flurry of movement, crossed the kitchen and was face to face with him, "But taking Damien, mylover is something you're not going to have, not for long." Turning away, blond locks nearly slapping him, Ivan began to stalk around his kitchen, Marcel's gaze never leaving him. "I'm going to speak to the clan's leaders at sundown, beg, plead, offer my soul if I have to, to get Damien away from you. Oh, I saw the nail marks, and the bites, and the bruises and cuts and the Gods know what else you may have done to him. I know you raped him last night, I watched you but I couldn't move..." Ivan slowed his steps, hovering near the counter top at his side. "He was crying, and then when you finished, he was apologizing to me." A confused frown formed, Marcel watching the other brush fingertips over a single daisy in a vase set on the smooth counter surface.

"Y-you don't have to plead or beg, sell your soul..." Trailing off, he shuffled his feet, staring at them, "I must speak to the clan as well, apologize to them." Silence fell between them, nearly tangible. "I went drinking yesterday, I don't remember the evening. I-it was a mistake, I swear."