idiot.

 he should've been more careful. he should've known to be more cautious, especially considering he had just killed and fed from a witch, but he had never been pursued by a witch's coven before. no one had ever caught him feeding before. 

'they have now,' felix thinks to himself, pulling the edges of his jacket closer together. 

the boy takes his  time in approaching felix. he watches him, makes sure he's vulnerable enough before going in for the hunt. felix has no idea.

felix had only been returning to his dorm for the night, ready to sleep off his meal. as he enters the building and begins climbing the stairs, he calls chan to let him know that he's safe and well.

 he hasn't checked in with him in a while.

chan picks up immediately. "hello?"

"hey!"

"felix?" chan asks, surprised. felix feels guilty. "it's late."

"sorry. i wanted you to know that, uh, i'm okay. and..." felix lowers his voice. "the witch who wanted us dead is gone. i'm sure she has a coven somewhere, but they won't be able to find me."

"that's good," chan says, his voice noticeably tired. "i don't know where we'd go if i had to transport the entire coven somewhere else. all the other estates won't let us stay with them because of minho."

"it's not his fault his family is full of witches! he ran from them when he got turned!" felix says in exasperation. "and anyways, you don't have to worry about--"

and then the boy appears out of thin air, his eyes angry. he smells like a witch, and felix shouts in alarm. the shout, however, is cut off and muffled by the pillow the boy is holding. 

"felix?!" chan asks worriedly.

felix opens his mouth and detracts his fangs, doing his best to slash through the pillow, but it seems that the witch has charmed the fabric to be resistant to his teeth. he smothers the pillow against felix's nose and mouth, his hand squeezing the vampire's neck as hard as it possibly can. felix's vision starts to go blurry and dark around the edges, and he attempts to gasp in a breath to no avail.

his phone is still pressed flush to his ear, the witch making sure that chan can hear every second of felix's struggle. he's shouting now, begging for felix to say something, anything. 

he can't speak, and if he can't speak, he can't call upon his coven for help.

he's going to die here, all alone, with nothing and no one.

a tear leaks from his eye. 'i don't want to die yet. please.'

using all his strength, he tosses his head left, successfully breaking free from the stranger's grip. he gasps in a breath and whirls around as best he can, sinking his teeth into the witch's arm.

with a gasp, then a cry of pain, the witch disappears into thin air, leaving behind the pillow. it drops to the floor with a soft thump. felix wipes the witch's blood from his mouth and picks his phone up from the ground. a crack now cuts through its middle from the impact.

"felix?!" chan calls, clearly on the verge of tears. "felix, please, can you--"

"chan," felix rasps, barely getting the words out before he doubles over and begins coughing violently. he clutches his throat and tries to overcome the hacking, and eventually, after a few seconds, he succeeds. "chan, i'm okay, but gather the coven and flee.  get everyone out. make sure you find a safe place to stay, and don't let me know where unless they find you."

"felix--" chan says, half-sighing in relief and half-reprimanding the hell  out felix's demand. "we can't leave without you."

"you can. you have to, chan. they're after me, not you."

"no. they're after all of us."

"look, would you rather i die or jeongin? hyunjin? minho? the kid's only twenty, chan. he's barely out of his teenage years. i can't let him go. and i can't let any of you go, especially not you, chan. you're the one who protects them. i'm the one who defends them. please, let me do what i need to do."

"i don't like it," chan sighs, and felix can only imagine the deep frown etched onto his mouth. "but do whatever it takes. and stay alive. we need you."

"i will."

"and felix?"

felix pauses. "yeah?"

"there's a witch on campus... a good one. he doesn't take sides, he's just there to help anyone."

"really?"

"yeah. he's psychic."

"do you know anything else?"

"text minho."

"what? why?"

"just text him, felix. you'll see." chan pauses, listening to another voice that murmurs so as not to be heard on the other end of the line. "i have to go. be safe. call me if you need anything."

felix sighs. "...bye, chan." 

chan hangs up, and felix continues walking, this time more vigilant. he climbs the rest of the stairs and makes it to his dorm, only to find a note taped to his door. unlocking the door, then fitting his keys between his knuckles, he opens the door, ripping the note off as he steps inside. he scans the room. no one's here, not even his 'roommate,' if that's something someone who hasn't returned to the dorm in a month can be called. he's pretty sure the boy dropped out at some point without telling anyone.

felix relaxes, locking the door behind him and dropping his keys on his desk. he turns on his lamp and sits on his bed, unfolding the note. as soon as he comprehends the words, he flinches.

"you have thirty days to live, lee felix. spend them wisely."

  ―

xodaniel