Heaven Below, Chapter 03

Chapter 3

Pulling up in front of the hotel, Julian could almost see the look of complete and utter resignation pass over Angel’s face. The boy didn’t even seem vaguely frightened by the idea of belonging to him. In fact, he seemed almost relieved. Julian was glad to know that the pet wasn’t scared of him, though he wished he could see a smile of some kind, not that he was expecting one, of course.
The fledgling driver opened the door and allowed Julian to step out. When Angel put his feet to the ground, he hissed. The pain was unbearable, and he nearly fell out of the limousine. Immediately, he was staring eye to eye with the vampire to whom he belonged. Momentarily forgetting himself, he just looked at the concern and panic that was clearly present in Julian’s eyes. Quickly, he looked down at the ground.
"What’s wrong?" Julian asked quietly, tipping Angel’s face back up to his own.
"My feet, Master."
Julian squatted down and grabbed an ankle that was hanging from the side of the limousine, ignoring the shocked look from the fledgling. As he looked at the sole of Angel’s feet, he cringed in sympathy. "Well, there won’t be any walking for you." With that, he reached down and cradled Angel in his arms. "And I’ll be damned if I let Miguel and his surveillance cameras stop me from carrying you. It is my desire to carry you and I shall."
They walked to Julian’s room, Angel cradled tenderly in his arms. When they came to the door, Julian looked hesitant. "I’m going to have to put you down to get the door open, aren’t I?"
"Not if you hand me the key, Master," Angel said simply.
"It’s in my right suit coat pocket."
Angel turned his head to hide his minute grin as he fumbled around in the pocket for the room key. His fear of Julian diminished when Julian had apologized in the car and had completely dissipated after being carried through the lobby, in an elevator, and now all the way down the hall to Julian’s suite. Sliding the key in the door, Angel turned the knob and shoved the door open.
"Are you hungry?" Julian asked once they were in the safety of his rooms.
"Yes, Master." Angel, in fact, had not eaten in two days and was more than hungry. He’d been ignoring the painful twinge in his stomach for quite some time, but now it came back full force.
"Okay, we’ll see about getting you something to eat." Julian could visibly see the boy beginning to brighten up, and it was a sight worth seeing. He knew the next couple of days were going to be hard, with Angel tortured and healing and with the fact that they were going to have to sleep together eventually. Julian pushed that thought from his head and instead put Angel down in a kitchen chair before backing away. "I basically have soup and the makings for a turkey or ham sandwich. I don’t care which one you eat as long as you eat."
"I’ll have the turkey sandwich, Master." Despite the fact that the boy was responding, he was still quiet and not meeting Julian’s eyes.
"Okay. Turkey sandwich it is." Julian turned to the refrigerator, but he continued to speak. "I said last time that you don’t have to act like a pet all the time. Please only call me Master if we have visitors, and you don’t have to look at the floor all the time."
"I’m sorry, M... it’s what I have been trained to do," Angel’s voice was quiet and sincere.
"I know that, but I would prefer if you would be a human and not a pet when we’re alone."
"Yes, sir." Angel looked up and met Julian’s eyes with a nod.
"Good." Julian pulled the bread out of the cupboard and the meat out of the fridge.
As Julian was preparing his sandwich, Angel stared long and hard at him. This was the vampire he’d known as a child - caring, compassionate, and tormented by his past. Julian had made a 180 degree turn in personality in just a few days. Angel wasn’t sure if it was because he knew now he’d have to keep him or if it was because he’d caused Angel harm. Angel allowed a slight smile to grace his features as he watched the vampire do such a menial task to help a pet.
When Julian turned around, he almost gasped. The boy was smiling at him, a genuine smile, not forced in any way. Just the slight upturning of his lips caused his beauty to amplify considerably. As he placed the sandwich down in front of the boy, he watched him curiously.
"Thank you."
"You’re welcome."
They sat in silence as the boy ate, and Julian could feel the tension growing inside him. He knew that it was getting close to time for Angel to need sleep if he didn’t already need it, but Julian couldn’t bare the thought of using him in that manner. After taking his last bite, Angel looked up at Julian hesitantly as though he wasn’t sure he was allowed to do that.
"Right now, you’re going to get some sleep. I know what must be done eventually but not now." There was no hesitation, and his tone of voice left no room for argument or even pleading.
As Julian scooped Angel up in his arms, he noticed him cringe in pain. Julian adjusted his arms slightly, and he could see that this new position relieved whatever distress the boy felt.
He placed Angel down on the edge of the bed gently. "Let me see to your back." Julian watched as Angel slid the robe off and set it on the ground. He’d already seen the full extent of the damage, but he cringed slightly anyway. It looked as if some of the wounds were better even from this afternoon.
Julian walked out of the room, leaving the boy sitting calmly on the edge of the bed. As he walked into the bedroom, he ignored the fact that he was nervous about having the boy in the same hotel, let alone the same rooms. There was too much temptation in those deep brown eyes.
"Lay down on your stomach please, so I can put this on everything." Oh, this position was not making things any easier.
Angel almost jerked when he felt the cool hands first rub the salve into his back. The gentle movements of Julian’s hands were calming and completely innocent. Slowly, he felt the movements turn into more of a massage. The hands pressed into the cup of his back, digging into the tense muscles, and moved steadily up until Julian’s hands were on the back of his neck. Suddenly, Angel felt himself drifting off into a comfortable sleep, ignoring whatever training he’d ever had on that manner.
For some reason, he thought this might be exactly what Julian wanted.
"Mom?" the boy called, wandering through the house. Tears were running down his face as he frantically looked from room to room, searching for his mother. He was thirteen, scared, and more than a little anxious.
"Mom?" he shouted once more, throwing open her bedroom door.
"Seb?" She looked up from her computer, glasses sliding down her nose. Seeing his distress, she walked to him and wrapped him in a hug. Though he was already hitting puberty, she was taller than he was at 5’9 and looked nothing like someone might picture a mother. Her long, black hair was pulled into a disheveled bun on the top of her head, accentuating her still young features. Though she was rapidly nearing fifty, his mother still resembled a woman no older than thirty.
"Okay, baby. What's wrong?" She pulled away long enough to look him in the eye.
Seb took a deep, shuddering breath, attempting to hold back tears. "It's Thomas." Her eyebrow arched at the mention of her oldest son. "He. . . said. . . that I was useless as. . . a member of this family because. . . I don't have any magic."
Upon hearing this, his mother pulled him tightly into her embrace again. "It's alright that you don't have any magic, sweetheart. I love you very much and that won't change."
His mother heard him mumble something against her shoulder, so she ran a hand through his hair. "What did you say?"
Pulling back, he met her eyes with his own, afraid of how she might respond. "I know you love me, but. . . Father doesn't."
When Angel awoke that morning, he realized that it was well past when he normally should have risen. Before getting out of bed, he looked down at his feet to find them almost completely healed. Knowing that if he walked on tiptoes, he’d avoid pain, he followed the smell of coffee to find some brewing on the kitchen counter. Julian was nowhere in sight.
Angel- I have gone to a meeting. Make yourself at home. Be sure to eat something. Don't touch the computer. The television and stereo are free.
Julian's name was scrawled in some sort of illegible script at the bottom of the note. Helping himself to some coffee and cereal, Angel curled up on the couch and flipped on the television. Being that it was 3:00 in the morning, there wasn't a whole lot on, but he did find some news stations and caught up on how the world had changed in the past year. Not much. It didn't take him long to bore of the television, so he walked over to the stereo and found five classical CDs and nothing else. "Ah well," he said. "It's better than nothing."
He spent the next few hours listening to classical music and flipping through the few magazines that were scattered through out the suite. Not used to being bored, Angel desperately wished for his journal that had been left behind in his room at Heaven Below.
Finally giving up on staring at the wall, Angel decided to look more thoroughly around the suite, careful not to stand for too long on his injured feet. Upon entering what appeared to be the dining room, Angel noticed a piano in the corner. His heart soared. A piano meant at least an hour's worth of entertainment if he could even remember how to play.
Sitting down, Angel placed his pale hands on the ivory keys, allowing himself a moment to disappear into nostalgia. Gently, his hands moved over the keys as he played the familiar Moonlight Sonata. The haunting music flowed over him and through him, echoing eerily through the empty suite. As he felt the music cleanse his soul, he closed his eyes and moved to rhythm.
When Julian walked into the suite, he heard the sound of the piano and moved silently towards the dining room. The sight that greeted him had to be one of the most beautiful pictures he'd seen in all of his years of living. There sat Angel, lost in the flow of music, as he had so often found himself. A look of complete peace had washed away all the gloom that Julian was so used to seeing there. In the couple of days he'd known the boy, that look had never faded. Shifting on his feet slightly, he made a noise he regretted immediately.
Hearing a creak behind him, Angel jumped and found Julian standing in the doorway watching him. "I. . .I'm sorry. You said-"
Julian cut him off before he could finish his apologies. "It was beautiful." There was a slight tinge of pink on the otherwise pale cheeks.
"Thank you. I learned when I was younger. Would you like to play something?"
Julian cocked an eyebrow, a slight smile playing across his features. "How do you know I even play?" There it was. A slight quickening of the heartbeat, embarrassment, no doubt.
Angel opened his mouth and closed it again before finally speaking. "You. . .you have the hands for it. I just assumed. . ." he faded off again.
Julian completely smiled this time and walked over to the piano. "You assumed correctly."
They spent the next two hours playing piano and talking. Julian was surprised at how much the music had brought the boy even further out of his shell. In the hours they spent together that evening, Julian felt completely at ease, and the boy never once tensed or pulled away from him. They ate a quiet dinner, and Julian beckoned the boy to his bedroom so that they could treat what was left of his wounds. Surprisingly, only a few scattered bruises remained, and Julian didn't need to wrap anything.
"Good night, Angel," Julian said as he stood to leave.
"No!" There was panic in Angel’s voice, and he grabbed at Julian’s arm. "Please don’t leave." He tightened his grip on the bit of sleeve in his hands. Without his consent, tears began to fill Angel’s eyes.
"Angel? What’s wrong?" Julian came back to the bed, sitting down next to the now very distressed boy.
His voice was quiet and hesitant. "I need you to. . . sleep with me." As Julian physically recoiled, Angel threw up one hand in protection, a gesture as vulnerable as it was unexpected.
Julian sat there for a moment, stunned. "You don't. . . can't know what you're asking of me."
"Please. If we go back or they come here, and you haven't, they'll. . ." He couldn't make himself say it. The words would not be forced through his lips.
"Oh." Julian had a recollection of the boy, hanging by his wrists, injured and sick. Grabbing Angel gently by the chin, he lifted the boy's head, thumb absently stroking away the tears as they fell. Slowly, Julian leaned forward and kissed him briefly and tenderly on the mouth. "I don't want to do this with you in these circumstances, but I will. Not because they tell me I must but because you tell me I must. Are you okay now?"
Angel nodded and took a deep breath before catching Julian's lips in a kiss he was willing to make for the first time since coming to London. Slowly, the kiss deepened, and Julian lowered Angel back down to the mattress, hands rubbing comforting circles along the boy's sides and arms. It was a slow kiss with no one pushing or taking more than the other felt comfortable doing.
Angel's hands slipped from around Julian's neck and began unbuttoning his shirt, nimble fingers moving quickly. The shirt was gone in moments, and Julian moved his kisses from Angel's mouth down his neck, gently suckling the sensitive skin, causing Angel to tighten his hands on Julian's back. The sensations coursing through his body were amazing. He'd had sex with many vampires and had been treated to these same experiences, but with Julian, it was different. He knew that nothing he did would cause the vampire to hit him or become angry. He could let all of his inhibitions go and give into the feeling.
Moaning quietly, Angel arched his back into the nips that were being lined across his abs and chest. He could see Julian's smirk, and it only made him groan louder. As Julian's lips moved across his chest, Angel felt him pause, unnecessary breath drifting down onto his right nipple before gently tapping it with his tongue. The onslaught of pleasure only grew as Julian sucked and bit gently before transferring his attention to the neglected left side.
Julian could feel the boy's heart pounding in his chest, and he wallowed in the feeling of complete trust Angel placed in him. He'd had centuries of experiences to draw from so that he could make sure this was the most intimate incident in the pet's life. As he dipped his tongue across Angel's navel, he slipped his hands into the boxers covering Angel, dragging them off before returning to his last position. Moving down further, Julian ignored the now straining erection and kissed down the inside of Angel's spread thighs, eliciting a keening whimper from his victim. The skin beneath his mouth was warm and twitched with his caress. Finally, taking pity, he ran a tongue up the length, toying with the base and running experienced fingers along it.
Angel bucked up into the mouth that had swallowed him whole basking in unknown feeling and suddenly understanding why it was that these men craved this moment so much. The feel of a tongue along that sensitive slit at the tip was enough to push him over the edge he'd been denying. Noticing that Julian had pulled away, Angel was almost scared to see his face in fear that he'd possibly done something wrong.
Julian looked up to stare into Angel's eyes with a smile in hopes of encouraging the pet. "See? There's pleasure to be had here."
Matching Julian's smile, Angel leaned up into a tender kiss. "More?" he whispered.
"More." Julian beckoned that Angel turn over, and he immediately felt the body tense beneath him. Placing a calming hand on the cup of Angel's back, he said gently, "Calm down. I'm not going to hurt you. This is all about pleasure. You have my permission to say stop if I hurt you. Calm down." He continued to whisper nonsense encouragements as he placed kisses down the spine, feeling the muscles relax.
As he felt his heart beginning to slow down peacefully, Angel felt Julian stand and remove what was left of his clothing. To prevent himself from becoming nervous again, Angel did not look. He felt Julian's hands on his back, massaging away the knots that had formed there. When he felt the hands move further down, he almost tensed again. Without any warning, he felt a tongue enter the most intimate part of his body, and he jerked up off the bed. Behind him, he heard Julian chuckle quietly before continuing what he was doing. Angel thanked whatever gods were out there for teenage hormones as he felt himself becoming hard once again.
This treatment continued for a brief while before Julian once again pulled away, leaving Angel in a nerveless, very frustrated heap on the bed. "Be back." He kissed the back of Angel's neck. He headed to the bathroom and grabbed the lubricant that had been "conveniently" left there for him.
When he walked back into the bedroom, Julian allowed himself a few moments to truly admire the human lying on his bed. Despite a few scattered scars across his back and legs, the pale skin was perfect. Julian felt lost in the sight of the young body before him. Knowing what all this pet had been through made him want to kill those who had hurt him. Suddenly, he noticed how thoroughly his protective tendencies had kicked in. The thought made him smile.
Leaning back down, he kissed Angel’s neck just above the collar. "You are so beautiful, love."
Angel felt a surge of pleasure and pride flow through him and lost himself in the rush of emotions.