Like every year, Ange and Angelique's 20th birthday was celebrated by their friends. The siblings had helped Eve to prepare a feast. One thing that was a new addition in this year's celebration was...

Ange scrunched his nose. "It's bitter."

"Really?" Angelique asked curiously.

"I know right!" Robin nodded his head, agreeing with Ange. "Wines are supposed to taste sweet but they're so bitter!"

On their birthday, the two siblings wanted to have their first drink. They were old enough to drink as they just hit twenty. Guiltia had served them wine as their first drinks.

"I prefer orange juice over wine," the brunette mumbled. The sharp taste of wine didn't suit well with him, even though he had taken only one sip. 

Guiltia smiled gingerly. "Then orange juice for you, Ange." His insight came in handy as he had kept the bottle of Ange's favourite orange juice right next to him in case he didn't like the taste of wine.

Eve giggled silently. Ange was truly adorable. His taste hadn't changed since he was a young boy. He might've grown up but to Eve, he was someone small.

"Here, let's toast to juice!" Robin clinked his glass with Ange's newly filled glass with orange juice.

"What about you, Angelique?" Ange turned next to him.

Angelique brought her glass to her mouth. Hmm... it has a nice aroma. The four men inquisitively watched her drink from her glass.

". . . It's not that bitter," she commented before emptying her glass. "It feels bitter at first but then it tastes sweet."

"Eh?" Robin pouted, sulking. "Does that mean Angelique has a more mature taste bud than us?"

"I don't think it works that way," Eve denied his claims.

Angelique lightly touched her neck. "....But it has a sharp taste. Its taste is still lingering in my mouth."

"That's correct." With a nod, Guiltia sipped from his own glass. The very figure of him calmly drinking wine was excluding so much elegance that it left Angelique staring at him.

Woah.... he looks so perfect. She admired his image. Guiltia didn't drink much, especially in their presence. If the youngsters could get used to alcohol then it would allow him to drink whenever he wanted.

In the midst of thinking, Angelique started feeling really happy and fuzzy inside. My mind feels light all of a sudden.

"...I'm feeling warm now..."

"Eh?" Ange noticed a sudden change in his sister. "Angelique, are you okay? Your face is getting red."

"Do you have a fever?" Eve's tone turned concerned.

"Fever...?" . . . Did I have a fever? Slowly, she shook her head. Her vision started getting cloudy as well.

"Could it be..." Guiltia spoke out. "...she's drunk."

Robin exclaimed, "Wait! She only had one glass. And wine has a really low alcohol quantity, right?"

"Yes." The elder vampire nodded and watched the girl blankly stare in the air. Their words weren't reaching her at the moment.

"Then that'd mean..." Robin trailed off.

"Mm." Eve spoke Robin's mind. "She has really low tolerance for alcohol."

"But it has been only a minute since she drank," the pinkette mumbled. He hadn't expected any of the two to get drunk so easily. He, himself, hadn't gotten drunk when he had his first drink.

Ange, concerned for his sister, gently nudged her arm. "Angelique...?"

"Hmm...?" Almost painfully slowly, she turned her head around. At the sight of her twin, her lips stretched into a big happy smile.

"Ange...!"

"W-Woah!" All of a sudden, he felt himself get pulled into a bear hug by Angelique.

Angelique giggled happily. Ange was always so warm to hug. Amidst her giggling, she chirped, "Hehe...I love Ange so much!!"

"Eh?" Ange's cheeks became pink at the sudden announcement. "Why are you-"

"My Ange loves me too, right??"

"What…"

"Right???" How can he ever diminish the high expectation that was reflected in her voice? No matter how embarrassed he might feel, he won't let Angelique be disappointed.

"M-Mm…..me too."

"Hehe..." Pulling away, she squished his cheeks with her hands. His affirmation sent her to the seventh heaven. "Ange is so cute! My brother is the cutest!!!"

"Wha-" Ange's eyes sized up in severe embarrassment. "A-Angelique!"

"Hmmm....but you were cuter when you were small. Now you've gotten so taller than me. It's not fair! You were so squishy and little before." True, because of his dhampir powers his growth had been slow compared to boys his age. However, his body kept growing after his growing age had ended, resulting in him surpassing Robin.

She looked troubled for a moment before grinning in a giddy manner. "No, it doesn't matter if you're a kid or not. You're the cutest brother in the whole world."

Ange got engulfed in a bear hug yet again. His face had gone beet red from the series of compliments. He wasn't a little boy anymore but she kept doting on him! "Y-You're definitely drunk!"

Meanwhile, Guiltia, Eve and Robin watched the scene unfold before them. They couldn't deny that they found their interaction very adorable.

"Despite Ange being the youngest here, she has turned into a child instead of him," Robin grinned.

"Don't treat me like a child!" Ange sulked at the other four.

"Pannya!!!" She squealed excitedly when she spotted the cat on the windowsill. Letting go of her brother, she went to cradle the cat in a hug. The cat was surprised at the suddenness of getting grabbed but relaxed a moment later when it realised that the perpetrator was Angelique.

"Pannyaaaa..." She marvelled at how fluffy Pannya felt. "Why art thou so cute, Pannya!?!"

"Pannya pannya." The cat didn't understand what brought the sudden change in her but continued enjoying her loving cuddles.

Angelique's stomach growled suddenly. It was heard by everyone present in the room. Well, she hasn't eaten anything except drinking the wine so it was reasonable to be starved.

Her shoulders visibly slumped. "Eve-san....!!! I'm hungry...!!!" She whined.

"Yes, yes, there's plenty of food for you," Eve was enjoying her childish form. 

"Let's eat together. Eating with everyone makes the food more yummy." She giggled. "I love eating with everyone!"

The four's hearts literally melted at her angelic smile. Smiling, they all joined her in the meal.

"There there," Robin patted her head while she took a huge bite of her meal. "When you're like this, it makes me feel like a big brother. Is this how nii-san usually feels?"

When she continued staring at the bottle of wine, Robin turned to Guiltia. "Guil-san, is she allowed to drink more in this state?"

"No." His reply was firm.

"I want to drink more..."

"No."

"Pwease?"

"...No." Her puppy eyes also failed to sway him, resulting in her to puff out her cheeks.

.  . .  . . .  .

"She fell asleep." Eve pointed to the couch where Angelique was dozing on Ange's shoulder in between Ange and Robin, with Pannya on her lap.

"Looks like she enjoyed herself." Guiltia sighed fondly. She had completely loosened up after drinking. Her usual modest reservation had vanished in her drunken state.

"Angelique? Oi..." Robin lightly nudged her. "Sleep in your room, Angelique."

"No need to wake her up. I'll take her upstairs." Guiltia approached the couch and after Robin and Pannya moved, he easily lifted the female in his arms.

He secured one hand under her knees and the other behind her back in a princess-carry. Resting her head against the side of his neck, she slept comfortably.

"Goodnight." Bidding farewell for the night, Guiltia departed upstairs.

By then Ange and Angelique had gotten their separate rooms. They had grown up and needed more space. So Ange resided in the room they once shared while Angelique shifted to another room on Guiltia's floor.

Guiltia opened the door to the dark room and walked inside. Her room consisted of a bed, a closet, a shelf to showcase her fangirling collection and a table. The moon was serenely luminating her room.

He carefully laid her on her bed and sat down next to her. Leaning down, he pressed his lips on her forehead. "Goodnight, Angelique."

At that moment, the wind coming from the open window made the door shut with a thud.

"Mm....." Angelique groaned at the sound and creaked her eyes open. "Guil....?"

"I apologise. I should've closed the door after entering," he stated.

She shook her head sleepily, dismissing the matter. Pushing herself up, she sat up on the bed. In her hazy vision, Guiltia looked absolutely breathtaking in the silver moonlight.

"Hm? What's the matter?" Guiltia questioned when she loosely wrapped her arms around his shoulders.

"Nothing...." She rested her head on his chest and closed her eyes. In turn, he held her close by the waist. "You're still drunk."

"No, I'm not." Angelique replied with a pout. Guiltia decided to leave it at that and enjoy the embrace as her fingers tenderly caressed his hair.

"Guil." His ears perked up at his name. He looked down to find her gazing at him.

"Do you love me?" She asked. The alcohol had made her skin flushed from her cheeks down to her neck. Guiltia wasn't able to identify if she was blushing or not.

In a gentle tone, he replied, "I do."

His answer made her smile. She cupped his cheeks and leaned upwards to press their lips in a chaste kiss. "I love you too."

Usually, Angelique wouldn't do this so suddenly; at least not until she had prepared herself mentally. The drink had thrown all her shyness out of the window.

"I know." In answer to her kiss, he decided to give her a kiss as well. Pulling her by the waist, he locked their lips.

"Mhm..." As she couldn't hold herself back in her current state, he could easily hear her moan in the kiss. Amidst the romantic kiss, the female's hand slipped from his cheeks to his neck.

"Guil..." Her arms tightened around his neck, pressing their bodies together. She wanted to keep kissing him. She wanted to hold him tightly like this. This desire started burning inside her. She wondered if Guiltia felt the same way as her.

Their lips smashed in another greedy kiss. He entangled one of his hands into her hair. With them being pressed against each other, he could clearly feel her hammering heartbeat. It was as if his own heartbeat.

"Aaah....Guil......" Another moan escaped her throat.

Guiltia wanted to feel more of her heat. He wanted to hear her voice more. He wanted to feel her more. And he wanted to take things further.

But he knew he shouldn't. Angelique was drunk and in this state, he couldn't bear to lose his mind. This is the time when Guiltia must have his self control.

They pulled away, breathless. Guiltia watched her cling to him while panting heavily. Her hair had become ruffled because of his hand. She looked absolutely enchanting. 

Before the male lost control, he pressed his hands on her shoulders and distanced himself. Angelique stared at him, confused.

"...?"

"Let's stop here for tonight." He whispered.

"No...." She sulked. "...I want to kiss more."

"Angelique." Guiltia couldn't allow himself to be seduced further. Breathing deeply, he rested his head on her shoulder. ". . . I want to too.... more than just kiss you."

His mouth was right next to her ear. His hot breath was making her already flushed skin even more red. "However, if we go on any longer, I will lose control of myself."

"I won't forgive myself if I hurt you." Guiltia's solemn lavender eyes looked into hers. "That's why," He gently laid her back on the bed and got up, "Go to sleep."

"....Yes..." Having no other choice, she closed her eyes. The tiredness of the day seemed to have catched up to her and she instantly fell into a deep slumber.

Putting the blanket over her, he soundlessly left the room. Once he was in his room, he sighed heavily. Thank the stars that he had a good alcohol tolerance. Otherwise he would've lost control of himself and devoured her.

.  . .  . . .  .

The next day, Angelique wanted the ground to swallow her up. She remembered. Everything. From her squishing Ange's cheeks to her kissing Guiltia- everything was vivid in her mind.

Right after she woke up with a light headache, images from last night flashed in her mind. She remembered how their kiss had become so full of desire, how close they held one another, how she had submitted to her desires, how Guiltia prevented them from going further and the words he had whispered to her.

She had to spend a good half an hour hiding her face in the pillow at the remembrance. How could she have let herself be swayed by her desires?

Angelique was a young woman now. From her female friends in Saotome Academy, she had learned about the intimate physical contact between lovers. It was too embarrassing and neither she nor Guiltia ever brought it up.

 . . . . . Last night, was that the desire to become one with Guil? She hugged one pillow while curling on her bed. We've been together for three years. Is it weird that we've never made love?

Her cheeks were burning at her own thoughts. ...Guil has been holding back for my sake. He has been considerate from the start due to my lack of experience.

Last night he. . . .said wanted to do m-more than k-kiss. Does that mean... he wants to take our relationship to the n-next stage?

Then aren't I just holding him back? Her heart felt gloomy. ...I don't want him to hold himself back. 

That night, Angelique visited Guiltia's room before they headed to sleep. Despite her growing embarrassment, she decided to be honest with her thoughts.

Guiltia couldn't admit that he hadn't expected her to bring this topic up after the previous night. Once she had finished talking whatever she had thought in the morning, the blonde cleared his throat. 

". . .It's true that I want to share intimate contact with you. However, as I said last night, I have no intention of going further without your consent."

Before she spoke up, Guiltia added, "I don't want to pressurise you in this sort of matter. Don't agree to do that recklessly."

Angelique shook her head. "I... I've thought about this." She stared at her lap for a moment before meeting his firm gaze.

The more she spoke, the more her cheeks continued to redden. ". . I-I want to be one with you, Guil. I want to be close to you... as physically as possible."

"Angelique." His voice was unwavering and stout. "Do you truly want to do it?"

She smiled reassuringly. ". . I want to. With you." If it's with you, Guil, then I want to. You're the only one I want to give my all to.

"I see." Hearing her answer, his shoulders relaxed. It was sort of embarrassing to talk about this so straightforwardly but it was necessary to speak up regarding this important stage.

"I'll comply with your wish then. Let's… wait until the time is right."

To be continued...