Lan Zhan wasn't sure what woke him up.

For a few seconds, he couldn’t remember where he was, feeling disorientated but the solid warmth at his side became a grounding force. It tethered him to this new reality...his new reality now.

It was hard to think of himself as a predator...but wasn't that what he had become now?

A monster?

The changes in his body were nearing completion, he could feel it.

There was also the biggest sense of irony...him, a healthy eating connoisseur, a vegetarian and look at him now.

He had even eaten a steak...his stomach turned at the thought, nevermind throwing it all up.

And there were serious questions he would have to answer before even thinking about going back to his old life. All of that seemed like an insurmountable challenge now, and the thought of seeing his brother's face...it was causing a knot of tension in his head.

No...First and foremost, he had to gain mastery of himself, and then, only then, could he think about leaving...no...even that word caused a sharp jolt of pain in his chest. If there was a God somewhere granting prayers, then Lan Zhan wanted, in this crazy mess of his life, to be able to keep Wei Ying somehow.

And A-Yuan.

He thought back to the rather pleasant evening he had with the child.

It had been nice...to have company in the kitchen with someone who wanted to help him, and so eagerly too. His round face was so cute, a dimple in his chin when he smiled. A-Yuan really listened to Lan Zhan, hanging onto his every word.

He ran to get plates or bowls or whatever Lan Zhan needed. He found ingredients in the fridge to hand to Lan Zhan whenever he asked the little boy.

And that made him realise: A-Yuan was just as lonely as himself.

The little boy warmed up to him immediately after he had made the helicopter out of lego and more so once they made dinner together, and the official Taster had approved what he had made...even after that, A-Yuan had gone and brought a book from his room to hand to Lan Zhan.

Wen Qing's face was priceless.

"Please...can we read this together?" His hopeful face full of innocence and acceptance...it was too cute to refuse.

Not that Lan Zhan would...it was just that he hadn't been around children at all.

His only experience had been at shopping malls and the grocery store, and so...since both parents and children were most likely tired of each other, it didn't make the best of impressions.

In fact, Lan Zhan could say without any amount of guilt, he didn't really like children. It was traumatic to see adults shouting at their kids and such situations made him want to leave those scenes behind with some urgency.

But A-Yuan had leaned against him and ultimately fallen asleep.

Just that much showing of trust was humbling.

It made Lan Zhan feel better about himself for now; if a small kid wasn't scared of him...then maybe this change wouldn't be so bad?

He wanted to hold onto his humanity, to be able to feel kindness, love, happiness...all those things he'd taken for granted whilst being a vulnerable human being. And he desperately wanted to believe that he was in control, that he could be in control.

The hunger hadn't come back yet, which was strange, right?

When he had first woken up, he was so hungry that he'd bitten himself on his lip at least three times just to quench that desire, to fill his stomach. Was whatever nourishment he had gotten from the steak enough? It didn't make sense because most of it was puked out...still, he had a lot to learn about this new body.

Sleep would soon become a thing of the past; of this he was so sure. So maybe once he stopped doing that...would it signify the end of his change?

That, he didn't know.

Most of his worries seemed like they would be sorted out by simply waiting. Time was his friend and perhaps he was being unreasonable with himself by being impatient and needing everything to happen now and now.

Still, he felt frightened by that word.

Vampire.

"I can hear you thinking." Wei Ying yawned and wriggled closer.

"Sorry for waking you." And because he could, Lan Zhan kissed his hair.

This man had already become so precious to him...he didn't understand it, either.

Maybe this desire to always be with him...maybe it would also taper down, soon.

"Didn't we agree not to say that word?" Wei Ying opened a single grey eye, before closing it and yawning again.

"Mn." Lan Zhan stroked his hair gently, methodically. "Sleep. It's still early."

That was another thing. He knew what time it was without looking at his watch. It was part of him, the cycle of the moon, and the sun. There wasn't a way to explain it without sounding like a total loon, but it was another one of those things that Lan Zhan was absolutely certain of.

"What are you thinking about, anyway?" Wei Ying asked, fighting another yawn.

"How beautiful you are."

Lan Zhan felt too exposed to even begin unravelling his private thoughts yet. He wasn't used to the whole biting thing yet...and then have to explain why he was so terrified?

No, thank you.

Wei Ying whined adorably, kissing his neck.

"Tomorrow...you can tell me the truth." He slurred, before falling asleep again.

Lan Zhan sighed to himself, continuing to gently stroke his hair and lulling him back into a deep sleep.

How could he explain anything, when he had no idea himself?

This whole situation was like dunking a kid into the deep end of a swimming pool and expecting them to know how to get on with it and not die.

Except in this scenario, he was sure he wasn't going to die.

But what about the people around him?

What if he couldn’t control himself?

***********

Lan Zhan must have fallen asleep because the next thing he knew was Wei Ying jumping out of bed and silencing the alarm clock which was situated as far away from the bed as possible.

Lan Zhan rubbed his eyes and sat up in alarm, suddenly very alert.

"Oh God, sorry for waking you." Wei Ying stretched with his whole body, yawning and smiling at the same time. "You can go back to sleep, if you like."

He came over to plant a kiss on Lan Zhan’s cheek.

The gesture was so unexpected and so welcome, Lan Zhan suddenly grabbed him and pulled him back with a yelp.

"I don't want to go back to sleep." He said quickly, against Wei Ying’s lips.

Wei Ying was immediately wide awake. His beautiful silver eyes were wide with surprise before his brain caught up.

"My, my, my...then, what do you want to do?" He asked, his voice still sultry with sleep.

Even if it was unintentional, the sound still managed to shoot down past his waist, affecting other parts of his body.

Lan Zhan smiled dangerously.

"This." He said, before plundering that mouth.

There was something so addictive about kissing Wei Ying, a feeling like he couldn’t get enough of this far too attractive man. His taste was so divine, and Lan Zhan felt as though he was filling in all the empty places inside himself. The short, sharp tingles were increasing and becoming longer as warmth exploded in his chest, and wanting to prolong this feeling, his mouth became less urgent and more sweeter.

Wei Ying had climbed back into bed, straddling his hips and wrapping his arms around Lan Zhan’s neck, kissing him back with the same sweet innocence, a feverish quality to his touch.

"Well...that's one way to wake up." Wei Ying said, rubbing his nose affectionately with Lan Zhan’s nose.

He was smiling too.

Lan Zhan wanted to remember what he looked like, forever.

It was a snapshot moment, one he knew he would never forget.

Wei Ying with his long hair, a waterfall curtain around them of silky softness. His scent was all encompassing right now, and Lan Zhan took an appreciative sniff, feeling happy.

Wei Ying’s beautiful silver eyes were staring back in wonder, making no move to leave, as if he was comfortable here, this close to Lan Zhan.

This confidence too, it made Lan Zhan feel so much better too.

Maybe there was hope for him yet.

"I have to have my alarm clock as far away from me as possible, otherwise it's a lost cause." He whispered, an apology in his tone.

"That's okay. I do not think I'll be sleeping for much longer." Lan Zhan admitted.

"Oh, you're welcome to sleep in. Wen Ning is coming to pick A-Yuan up in about an hour, so just before I leave for work." Wei Ying reluctantly untangled himself from the warmth they shared.

"No...I mean, I won't need to sleep...at all. Afterwards. Maybe in about three nights' time."

Wei Ying was shocked.

"Wow...really?"

"Mn. I can feel...certain changes." Lan Zhan added.

"Well...you wanna be careful." Wei Ying grabbed a red scrunchie and began collecting his lovely long hair into a ponytail, efficiently tieing it up. "In that show...the Strain? I distinctly remember...bits fell off..." He giggled, hastening away  towards the kitchen.

Lan Zhan thought about it, before the sudden realisation of what Wei Ying was implying grabbed him, and he had to check...that everything was where it should be, intact and still working.

There were still benefits to his condition though; the lack of food and drink meant he didn't have to use the bathroom as much as when his insides functioned properly. His hunger wasn't back either, which was a relief to him.

He made a promise to himself though.

It was useless to worry about the things that hadn't happened yet, or to think about the possibilities of everything that could happen.

He told himself this quite sharply, hoping he would take it on board.

What was happening to him...it was all so new and strange...and so he would definitely be better off taking things slowly...for now.

So he stood up, stretched and headed for the bathroom to take a shower.

**********

Wei Ying was in the kitchen, chewing on semi-burnt toast and thinking about Lan Zhan.

Despite his jokes...whatever was going on with him was something serious.

Vampire.

Wei Ying was certain about this.

He had so many things he wanted to ask about...but he had a feeling they were going to be just as much of a mystery to Lan Zhan too, which was a shame, because Wei Ying found the whole thing utterly fascinating.

He had never been squeamish about blood and gore; it was what it was. He loved zombie movies and picking nits out of scary films, his insatiable curiosity providing unlimited entertainment most of the time.

It wasn't a stretch to believe that the evolution of mankind would lead to a different type of growth, one which required a speeding up of survival skills.

What if Mother Nature, tired of human beings taking, taking, taking from her, all the resources that practically every single entity needed to survive, what if she decided to do something drastic about the virus that was the human race?

By creating vampires...in a single swoop, Mother Nature was ensuring her continued success. Long term...perhaps the humans would not survive much longer...but on the other side, plants and animals, everything would be better off.

For a while.

Wei Ying had read in a study by a zoologist, a group of wolves had moved away from a Nature park in Washington state.

As a result, the deer population had exploded, causing all manner of problems which had a domino effect on farming and other businesses. In the end, they had to reintroduce the predators back to control the eco system, albeit in a roundabout way.

Removing the humans from the earth...and this was theoretically way, way, way into the future, would it make things better? Or worse?

Everything was dependant on each other to survive...

Warm lips on his forehead jolted Wei Ying out of his thoughts, and he offered the remaining piece of toast to Lan Zhan, grinning when the ex-vegetarian wrinkled his nose in distaste and stepped away, disgusted.

Lan Zhan went to sit down at the little table which served as extra space when the countertops got too congested.

"So...thank you for making dinner last night. I can't remember too much about it, whether I said it or not yesterday night." Wei Ying polished off the remaining bread in his hands and wiped his fingers on his trousers, earning him a look of disapproval from the other.

He beamed and began making breakfast for A-Yuan.

"No need...for thanks." Lan Zhan told him, firmly. "And I packed the leftovers for your lunch today."

"What?! Really?" Wei Ying turned around in surprise. "That's so kind of you!" He was making cow eyes at Lan Zhan.

Lan Zhan found his ears getting hot...that was another thing he was going to miss. Or not miss...depending.

He remembered something Wei Ying had said earlier.

"Are you really going to work today?" He asked.

"Hm? Oh yeah, Saturdays are extra busy." He made a face, licking the butter and jelly from his fingers and distracting Lan Zhan by doing that. "I make extra on tips too, so there's that."

Lan Zhan sat on his hands to try and quell the shot of raw desire that burned through his body at that small gesture.

Wei Ying went on, obliviously. "I draw the line at working on a Sunday though. I hardly get to see my kid except in the morning and after school...so Sundays are reserved for just us. We can do something tomorrow, together." He suggested.

"I think A-Yuan is lonely."

The words hung between them like wet clothes on a washing line.

Lan Zhan had blurted it out, not expecting Wei Ying to suddenly become completely still.

"I'm...I'm doing the best I can..." the knife clattered onto the plate in front of Wei Ying.

Lan Zhan was up in an instant, going to him.

His shoulders were shaking.

When Lan Zhan turned him around, he was shocked by the tears in his eyes. Instinct had him holding Wei Ying tightly in his arms.

"I did not mean to imply that you weren't." He said gently, regretting his words. "It was just an observation...yesterday he helped me make your food. A-Yuan has become my official Taster." He carried on talking, his voice a soothing balm to whatever wounds he had unintentionally opened by thoughtlessly throwing out his earlier opinion.

By this point, Wei Ying had sagged against him.

At least he was no longer trembling.

"Wei Ying." Lan Zhan liked saying his name.

The way it sounded, like a see saw perfectly balanced.

"Huh?" Wei Ying blinked up at him.

"You're a great father."

When he said that, Wei Ying’s eyes filled with tears once more.

Lan Zhan tenderly wiped them away.

"I did not mean anything else by my words. I do not want you to think anything other than exactly what I said. And I'm only mentioning it because he spent every minute with me." Lan Zhan clarified. "And I liked it." He added quickly in case it caused another misunderstanding.

"He's a great kid." Wei Ying sniffed. "I'm glad you're getting along well."

Lan Zhan heard the extra two words not said but possibly thought: for now.

There was no way to carry on this discussion because a small voice greeted them sleepily.

"Good morning, Baba...Good morning, Zhan Gege..." A-Yuan yawned, and in that slight action there was so much of Wei Ying's characteristics that for a few moments,   Lan Zhan could only stare.

He moved away from Wei Ying, sitting down at the table once more. He watched as Wei Ying discreetly wiped his face before giving his son a huge smile and lifting him up into his arms. Wei Ying kissed his pudgy, soft cheeks enthusiastically, making the boy wriggle in his arms, squirming trying to get away.

He started giggling in protest to what Wei Ying was now doing until they both ended up in a heap on the kitchen floor.

"Okay my little Radish, what'll it be? Shower first, or breakfast?"

"Bweakfast." A-Yuan came and sat next to Lan Zhan, gifting him with a smile brighter than the sun. "Please, Zhan Gege, can we play wiv the legos when I get back today?"

"Mn. I would love to." Lan Zhan said quickly, sensing that Wei Ying was about to interrupt and give him a choice. "Thank you for inviting me."

A-Yuan flushed with pleasure.

"I like playing with you." He said simply, turning to pick up his toast.

Wei Ying was smiling at both of them.

"I also like playing with A-Yuan." Lan Zhan said, softly. He was surprised that it was true.

"Do you like children?" Wei Ying asked.

He realised then that he knew hardly anything about Lan Zhan.

In fact, other than he had a caring brother....well, that was basically it. And his car was in the shop.

"I like A-Yuan." Lan Zhan replied, diplomatically.

Wei Ying beamed at him, seeing through his words.

"Yes, A-Yuan is a very special boy."

They were watching each other as A-Yuan ate.

"So..." Wei Ying said, carefully. "What are you going to do today?" The question was aimed at Lan Zhan.

Lan Zhan had been giving some thought to this already, and he was ready with his answer.

"I would like to accompany you. If you don't mind."