Living in the Shadows [Kaname Takashi & CharlotteV]

Zane felt so good he probably could have fallen asleep, everything was just...wonderful. The work on his shoulders drew soft sighs out of him, occasional low moans, and then the touches spread and...Zane liked his hands worked on too, they always seemed so warn out that having attention brought to them felt amazing. His eyes opened slowly when Genesis sucked a finger into his mouth, slight smirk playing on his face.

Lazy sex they weren't strangers to, even if they usually preferred a faster, harder pace. Nights like this...it was really all about feeling good, about letting go of the last of any tension still there. So while Zane usually liked being the one in control, he closed his eyes and just...let Genesis have it. It wasn't like he was disappointed, ever. Between strokes to getting that fucking wonderful mouth around him. He couldn't stay still for long though, eventually he had to thrust. He'd been so distracted he hadn't even noticed the touch on his ass until a finger was slipping in his ass, and Zane moaned again as his back arched slightly. It wasn't his favorite, but he knew exactly what his lover was going for, and that was pretty fun. It made him orgasm harder than he would have normally when he came, heat shooting from his abdomen through his entire body, curling his toes and pulling another sound out from deep in his throat. He came down slowly, still feeling a little fuzzy and lightheaded.

When he finally got back to himself, he pulled Genesis back up to him, into a long, slow, passionate kiss. One hand easily slid down to his lovers penis, which was definitely interested, and he pulled at it slowly, the little oil he was covered in helping his way, a tighter grip here and there, thumb pressing over the top, tongues twining together. It was lazy, almost sloppy, but orgasms were fun regardless, so no one was going to complain. He eventually got Genesis to come just like that, drawing it out and jerking him through it. Then he rolled his lover to his back, used the kleenexs on the nightstand to clean off the changeling and then his hand before cuddling up close, nuzzling his nose into soft dark hair and sighing in contentment. "That was fun."

Genesis really hadn't been expecting any touches back. He had cum on his own before hand, but touching Zane had stirred his penis to life. He had been hard by the time his lover came, but he could have tried to calm himself with a little bit of effort. As the pureblood pulled him up for a kiss though, he knew his lover wouldn't leave him to his own devices.

The oleo male moaned into the kiss as Zane's fingers wrapped around him. Tongues mingled, his hand moved to the back of his lover's head, and Genesis thrusted slowly along to Zane's pumping. When he came it was slow and not as much fluid as with the younger male. His boxers still got dirty, even with Zane's help.

He kicked them off to the side as the pureblood grabbed for some tissues. His legs opened a little wider to make sure Zane got everything, and then he happily moved into his lover's side. It felt kind of strange to have nothing but the other man's t-shirt on, but honestly it felt good as well.

"Yes, it was." Genesis replied with a lazy grin, turning his head so he could peck his lover on the lips. "Next time, you massage me…I'll expect something a little extra for my happy ending though." He teased as he closed his eyes. A yawn escaped him. Genesis thew and arm loosely over Zane's side, pulling his lover just the slightest bit closer as he tried to go back to sleep.

Zane slept hard that, he figured it would be impossible not to with as relaxed as he had been, smile on his face, curled up next to the love of his life. Once the sun was set and the moon was back in the sky, Zane got up early with Genesis, had a mug of blood with him and kissed him goodbye.

He spent the morning in the study, where he and Genesis had random things stored, on the computer getting ahold of family members who eventually got him Minho's number. He said his thanks to the proper people, packed up, and went to work.

Korea was a full sixteen hours ahead of LA, which meant he had to wait until the end of his day to call his cousin, at an ungodly early hour. He half expected no one to answer, but after awhile there was a click, followed by a very irritated, "Mwuh?" Which he knew was Korean even if it didn't sound like a word. He really needed to learn his languages.

Zane smiled a little bit. "Hey Lee, it's Kostantine." Zane hated using the name, really. Legally, it was Blackwell-Kostantine, and sometimes he considered dropping it down to just Blackwell for his personal life, but...he was already pretty well known as a Kostantine so. There was that.

There was silence on the other end for a long time, so long he was almost afraid he was going to have to explain who he was better. "Hey cuz," the man finally said in blessed English, less irritated even if he was yawning. "Long time, no see."

About nine years, give or take. Minho had stopped by not long after his fathers execution. A lot of family had, giving support or condolences after the initial shock. Minho had always been his favorite cousin, but also busy, and hadn't stayed long. "I need a favor..."

Unsurprisingly, it didn't take long to work out the details. Minho said he could line some other things up to be in LA when needed, and promised to see him soon. They hung up after an hour or so, and before he could even put his phone up it was ringing again.

He opened it without hesitation, forget something? already on the tip of his tongue, when he heard the worst sound of his life. High frequency. In an ear that wasn't back to one hundred percent. Zane smashed his phone. Into bits. It cut off the sound, but he could still feel blood pooling. "Son of a bitch!"

Genesis had left franticly out of a council meeting the moment he got the news. The meeting had been postponed for the time being, Alastair stating that he should take some time off to settle whatever was going on in his household. It was embarrassing in a way, work was meant for work, not rushing home to care for his lover. But it was Zane and he had been hurt again so Genesis disregarded the bit of awkwardness, ignored the whisperings, and called a werewolf to drive him home.

Zane had been settled in the living room, the same doctor was before patching him up again. Bruce was standing next to the pureblood, scowl in place. The minute the changeling's eyes were in his lover he walked over, an angry look on his face. The punch he landed on Zane's arm came as a surprise to most in the room.

"How could you be so reckless?!" He yelled, crossing his arms over his chest and glaring. Genesis had warned him to be careful, to make sure he knew the number before he answered anything. "Do you enjoy scaring the shit out of me?!"

The doctor cleared her throat and let the changeling's gaze focus on her. "Same ear, it hadn't been fully healed. The damage wasn't as bad as last time, but the chances for permanent loss of hearing are definitely higher now." She began putting her things away. "If you don't want to end up deaf in that ear I would listen to Genesis." She gave the younger male a disapproving look and a sigh before departing.

When the only three left in the room were Bruce, Zane, and Genesis the changeling dropped to his knees and laid his head on his lover's pan before wrapping his arms around the other man's waist. Bruce simply sighed, he knew what he had to do and so he ruffled Zane's hair before leaving with the younger man's phone in hand.

The head of his security team had sent him home, pressing tissues to his ear while shooting him glares. Zane didn't really remember getting home, too busy realizing that he couldn't hear. Again. At least it hadn't hit them both this time, even momentarily. Bruce had been there when he had, and immediately gone into looking both protective and angry, which always made Zane feel an odd need to behave.

It hadn't taken Dr. Mason long to arrive, giving him another one of those looks while she patched him back up. It wasn't comfortable, and being more aware this time around made him want to squirm out of her grip. She wasn't having any of it, of course. It didn't feel like he was there long before Genesis was walking through the door, and he only felt relief for about two seconds. The punch probably hadn't meant to hurt too much, but it still did, and the yelling made Zane instinctively try to protect his ears again.

"I didn't do it on purpose!" He complained. Well, whined, really. "I don't enjoy getting hurt." The doctor hadn't really spoken to him much, but now that the changeling was there she was handing over information. If possible, Zane was pretty sure he paled even more than vampire nature caused him to be. He definitely, definitely did not want to be deaf. At all. Ever. Even in just one ear. He sank down in his seat at the last glare she gave him, knowing they were right. Technically a phone call wasn't something he should have to stress about. But, once was a coincidence, twice was a pattern, three could...be the final tipping point. No more phones for him.

He knew all their glares were just because they were worried, but Zane was really more of a hugs and kisses kind of person. So when Gen dropped to his knees and wrapped his arms around him, he felt better. The hair ruffle from Bruce helped too, and then they were left alone. He sighed softly. "I'm sorry. I'd just gotten off a call with someone and it happened so fast I thought he was calling back. It was a stupid mistake. Won't let it happen again."

"You better not…" Genesis mumbled, pressing his face against his lover's stomach. He had been worried, terrified even when he had initially heard that another 'accident' had occurred. It had only been when he got into his car that his driver announced it was a repeat of the last time. While that wasn't good, a different kind of accident could have been worse.

After a few silent moments of being pressed tightly to Zane, the changeling moved. He stood, kicked his shoes off, threw his suit jacket somewhere, and settled on the couch. Genesis pressed close to Zane again. One of his hands, gently touched the bandage over his lover's injury. The good doctor had done a great job, as usual.

"They dismissed me," He began with a sigh, laying his head on the younger man's shoulder. "Alistair said that I had to 'get my house in order' before I could make decisions regarding someone else's." In other words, get your shit together while he was being being nice about it.

Genesis supposed the silver lining to that cloud was that he was home for the day. The thought that there would be a large pile of work waiting for him when he returned though was a little disheartening. So for the time being, he was relieved of duty until things settled down. The changeling doubted that would stop him from working though. He was always available through the phone or email and meetings were easy enough to set up if needed.

For a bit, they sat in silence, Zane occasionally petting Genesis hair while he tried not to focus too much on the pain. When his lover moved to pull of clothes, he understood. He was fairly comfortable in his jeans and Henley, but Gen and his suits...not that the changeling was gone long, and he came back with caring touches.

The news only surprised him a little bit, less so Alistair's choice of wording. Zane's time on the council had been short lived, but he'd still grown up with two parents and a grandfather in it. He knew how things worked. Despite the unforgiving, demanding schedule...if things got too stressful at home, time off was pretty much shoved in ones hands. It was just one of those things. "I would have thrown a party if they'd dismissed me," he joked. Half because it was true, half because when he had been dismissed it'd been because he'd been basically arrested.

He fell silent for a moment, his hands absently playing with one of Genesis'. It was a rarely seen nervous habit. Unlike the first attack, the shock wasn't present this time. There'd always been the very real decision that it was a personalized attack. But for some reason, now, that thought was settling heavily in his stomach. "Some time off won't be bad," he muttered.

The changeling sighed, watching as Zane played with his hand. He could appreciate the crack at humor, but really the situations were too different. The pureblood had been given his position because of blood, because someone was needed to fill a spot. Genesis had fought for that spot, with the help of other people, and won it. There was a lot of work he needed to do, but only so much of it got back home to him,

"I guess so." He stated, placing a soft kiss on Zane's kiss before standing. He walked to the kitchen, prepared him and his lover some food, and then headed right back in. Genesis seated himself back next to the pureblood, handing the younger male a mug. "So…who were you on the phone with before?"

Zane had few friends currently compared to when Genesis had first met him and what little blood family he had left he didn't particularly like keeping in touch with. So, needless to say, the changeling was quite curious who he had been talking to so intently that he would just carelessly pick his phone back up.

He brought his mug to his lips, took a large sip, as his eyes watched his lover intently from the corner. With his free hand he reached out to pet along Zane's thigh, squeezing occasionally. It was almost like a threat. Just like as Alistair had hinted to Genesis, the changeling was hinting at Zane to tell him what was going on while he was being nice.

Zane sighed a little when Genesis left him, but before long he could smell warm blood and the changeling was back, handing him a mug. Zane took it gratefully, followed by a large gulp, moving a little closer to his lover on mostly instinct. A need to be comforted, even if not outright. The question caught him off guard a little.

Obviously, Genesis knew how little people he actually spoke to, especially for long periods of time. He only had about fifty contacts in his phone and usually he texted if he could help it. Even Gregory took care of most of his work calls. That, along with the slightly threatening grips on his thigh, made the younger male sigh and shift a bit uncomfortably.

"I did a thing," Zane muttered, which usually translated pretty well to please don't be mad. "Well...more like I had an idea to do a thing. Um...okay." He sighed and moved a bit so he could look at his lover a bit more. "The paintings. I'm going to try to buy them all. And then you can do whatever the hell you want with them. But I don't think...I don't think the owner is just going to let me. So, after thinking things though I kind of...made a plot? To bring in an outside buyer because obviously everyone knows we're together so...it'll look less personal this way. Um, but before you freak out, the outside buyer is my cousin. Lee Min Ho. He's coming in from Korea and...it's pretty damn hard to trace our relation without, like, knowing." He doubted he was explaining it right but...he'd had a stressful day so. "So I was talking to him, to see if he was game."

Genesis froze for a moment, not really knowing how to react to this new knowledge. He didn't look at Zane, instead he focused on a point in the wall just above the curve of his mug as he sipped his meal. The last thing the changeling wanted was for more people to know, to see those paintings and what exactly they represented. Then again, he could see where his lover was coming from as well. Whoever was selling them would hold out, see just how much he could get from someone as desperate as Genesis or Zane. But another pureblood, looking to buy some interesting art work…that could be a decent enough cover.

The ancient vampire sighed, placing his mug on the glass surface of the coffee table. He placed his elbows on his knees and set his face in his hands. Genesis was at a loss for words. He needed those paintings, needed to destroy however many there were, but he wasn't able to do much of anything by himself.

"Alright…" The changeling mumbled, shoulders slumped as he leaned back against the couch. Genesis closed his eyes, his head throbbing just the slightest as he did so. "Please be careful love," One of his hands reached out, rubbing gently along his lover's knee. "I know we need to do something…but please, please, please be safe…I don't know what I would do if something serious were to happen to you."

Zane laid his head on the side of the couch, watching the vague emotions cross Genesis' face. Anyone who didn't know the changeling that well wouldn't have been able to see it, but Zane could. From reluctance to eventual acceptance, even if he obviously wasn't happy about it. The way his shoulders slumped when he finally sat back pulled at Zane's heart, though. He hated his lover looking so defeated.

When Gen's hand rubbed at his knee he reached down to take it, twining their fingers together, about to open his mouth and promise he was going to be fine. But....at the last moment, he couldn't bring himself to. The fact that he could only hear out of one ear was resting very, very heavily on his shoulders. "I will," he eventually settled on. "I promise."

He was silent for a moment, absentmindedly running his fingers over the changelings hand that he had. "Um, by the way, just in the interest of making sure you're in the know of everything..." He sighed a little, suddenly regretful that he hadn't mentioned Veronica in the beginning. Compared to everything else she was so unimportant it was laughable, but Zane keeping her a secret almost made it worse. He kind of figured that was part of the point, honestly. "The woman who brought me the painting to begin with...it was um, Veronica..." Why didn't he know her last name? Had he ever? Did she have one? "Indonesia Veronica. I didn't want to stress you out more, at first, which seems kind of stupid now and then I sort of forgot about her in all the rest of the drama but um...she kind of makes things just...that much more personal. It's another reason why I can't just buy those paintings myself, because she at least knows how badly I want to...and she's the messenger to get to the guy pulling the strings, so." And Zane very highly doubted that whoever was behind the scenes hadn't targeted him specifically for that work of art. But her appearance also meant that someone was well aware of Genesis' past, their relationship, and the mistake that almost tore them apart. That was a lot of information to have to not be in one of their very tight personal circles.

He felt a bit of relief at hearing Zane's words. It was tough enough for Genesis to look after both himself and the pureblood, so having the younger man take part in keeping his own safety was weight lifting. A small smile curled the changeling's lips as Zane touched him back. It was the smaller things that really got Genesis, made him feel connected and just the smallest bit happier.

For the most part Genesis was calm as his lover said there was more to know about their situation. He had expected more details pertaining to the plan really, maybe something just the tiniest but dangerous that would leave the changeling worried, but with each word the left Zane's mouth he stiffened.

At first he had wondered who Veronica was. The last person he was expecting was the woman who Zane had a slip-up with. Genesis could recall the photos that Alarick Kostantine had flaunted in front of him. The pictures of Zane in a rather compromising position with some blonde. Really that was all the changeling knew about her. He hadn't really seen her face, or at least not enough of it to know how she really looked.

Genesis removed his hand from Zane's grip. He took the information in strides, face blank. The new revelation brought back insecurities they had had in the past. Zane liked beautiful things, predominately women. In fact, he hadn't been attracted enough to men before Genesis to even do anything small. The changeling had been his first man. It had flattered the older male at first, but as their relationship progressed into something more serious it unnerved Genesis. There was that constant worry that Zane would go back to women,

How had someone known though? There were only five people who knew about Zane's brief slip and the only one who would have told others was dead. There was no way that Bruce or Ray would have divulged that incident to anyone and Zane wanted that to be buried permanently.

"I…" Really the changeling was at a loss for words. He brought his hands to his head, rubbing at his eyes in frustration. "I'm tired." He announced, standing and heading up to their room. He quickly stripped and crawled into bed.

The two of them had their problems. They weren't strangers to silent treatments or yelling so loud someone would eventually call to ask if things were alright. And usually Zane would admit he was in the wrong, apologize, and fix things. Because nine times out of ten it was his fault They hardly ever went to bed angry with each other, mostly because they were pretty clingy sleepers.

So when Zane knew he was going to hurt his lover before he ever even opened his mouth, he was already thinking eight steps ahead. How was he going to fix it? How upset would Genesis get? How bad was it? But with the way things were at the moment...Zane didn't know what to do. He felt impossibly young, brand new to everything, and unsure. He watched Genesis go quietly without a word, then eventually got up and put the livingroom back in order.

In their shared office, which was really more storage than anything, he had a drawer full of cheap cell phones because he had a tendency to break them, and some extra SIM cards. He loaded one up, selected Ray's name, and sent off a quick text: gunna be a really rough week. He didn't know how Thursday was going to go...either really good, or really bad, but one way or another he figured the older man should be in the know.

After that he went up to bed himself, washed up, checked the bandaging around his ear, before changing and going to bed. He stayed on his side, pillowing his head on his arms while he gazed at Genesis' form. He doubted his lover was asleep, just by the body language. "You okay?" He asked softly. "Anything I can do?"

Genesis curled himself up, back facing Zane's side of the bed. He had literally found himself in a cocoon of their blanket. Of course, he was awake. How could he find sleep with so many things flitting through his head. It just seemed that with ever proverbial step forward, they had to take four back. Why was everything popping up after ten years of calm?

He felt the bed shift as Zane got on, could feel the younger's eyes on his back. Genesis stayed quiet for a few moments after his lover spoke. The changeling had no idea what he should say, or really he had no idea what he wanted. Was there anything the younger could do for him? Maybe, maybe not.

It wasn't right for him to ignore his lover though, so reluctantly he rolled over and brought the covers down past his face. "I don't know." He replied, eyes closing as he threw his head back against one of their pillows. "I just…want to forget everything that's going on. I want to go back to when our biggest problem was who was going to pick up the dry cleaning."

Keeping his eyes on his lover, Genesis raised up onto his hands and leaned in. It was a brief press of lips. "Make me forget?" He asked, moving in again and this time nipping on Zane's bottom lip. He took the skin into his mouth, sucked, and pulled stretching it as he pulled back. "I want you to fuck me." One of Genesis' hands reached out, tracing along his lover's lower stomach with a finger. "Pound me into the mattress until my mind is blank…until I can't even remember my name and I pass out…"

He wasn't entirely sure it was a good idea, but sometimes sex was mind numbing. Not in a bad way, just that it made the changeling feel so much that it blocked out any real train of thought. It was an easy thing to do to deflect away from their problems.

Zane was a little relieved when Genesis actually answered him, it reminded him that he wasn't actually the problem...the situation was. The words actually brought a hint of a smile to his face. He liked domestic life, despite missing a more fast paced lifestyle, he actually enjoyed when their biggest problems were...well, picking up dry cleaning. He liked it a hell of a lot better than what they were doing right now.

The kiss was nice, and he expected one just like it, but by the time the changeling had ahold of his bottom lip he knew exactly what he wanted. And he couldn't say he was entirely surprised. They were both pretty well known for using sex as a mental block, so that was fine. Whatever. He could do that.

He was a little low on energy, given the day he had, but he figured he could give it his all and then just...pass out too.

"Okay," he answered, kicking the blankets down out of their way before rolling over enough to grab the lube out of the drawer. It wasn't long before he was over Genesis, one hand braced on the bed by his lovers head, the other three fingers deep inside of him, working him open while Zane kissed him. Long, deep, passionate kisses. He only moved away when he was sure he was ready, easily flipping the changeling onto his stomach, one hand between his shoulders to keep him pressed down into the mattress, the other helping line himself up before he was slamming in.

The rhythm he picked up was fast and hard, only pausing on occasion to flatten himself down over Gen's back, force his head sideways so he could get a kiss. Or slow down when he hit that spot, made the most amazing sounds come out of the older male. But he never lingered for long...it wasn't about him. It was about Genesis, and whatever his lover needed.

Sex was good, some thing both of them were familiar and comfortable with. Sometimes they had sex because they were angry and arguing, other times it was affirm that they still cared about one another no matter the situation. It could be an escape, which was what both of them needed at the moment.

Genesis moaned wantonly, eyes closed and just feeling. An occasional scream left him when Zane persistently poked at that spot with his fingers over and over again. The changeling was breathless between the fingering and the kissing. He was so close to orgasming when Zane pulled his fingers out and flipped him over.

Then the younger man was pushing him down and with one hard thrust Zane was completely inside of him. Genesis came hard, cum dirtying the sheets underneath him. His lover didn't waiver though, slamming into him over and over again. The older vampire gasped and moaned with each thrust, screamed as Zane abused his prostate.

He wasn't sure how long they were going at it, but Zane just kept thrusting. The second time Genesis came he could hear his lover grunt, the pureblood's nails dig into the skin of his hips. Zane didn't come though, just stopped for a few moments as Genesis worked through his orgasm before thrusting again once the changeling was finished. It was an insane pace and Genesis couldn't keep track of how many times he had finished. Zane did his job though, leaving the older male a drooling and moaning mess, begging the pureblood to finish.

"Zane!" He yelled, fist clenching at the pillow below his head. Genesis could feel his balls tighten, his cock spasm, but nothing came out. Every bit of tension seemed to leave his body and he was so exhausted he didn't even notice Zane thrusting and finishing inside of him.

The sheets were soaked underneath him, but at that point Genesis couldn't care less. His lover had literally fucked him into exhaustion. Blue eyes shut with one more gasp as Zane pulled out. It didn't take long for the changeling to pass out, body slumping.

Genesis was a mess. Sweat, drool, and cum everywhere - over him, under him. The sheets needed to be changed and they both needed a shower, but Zane knew they weren't going anywhere. They probably wouldn't even completely mind the goss wake up once the sun went down.

Zane could have collapsed on top of him, slept there fine. But regardless of the fact that the changeling didn't actually need to breathe, it wasn't exactly comfortable to be squashed all night. So he rolled off, at least half way, and pressed his nose into silky black hair. His partner was already asleep, and Zane was well on his way. Still, he murmured one "I love you" before he was out.

They were both off work for the next day, given Genesis basic leave and Zane refusing to go to work after getting his ear blown to shit, so he woke up slowly, and sticky, and uncomfortable. It wasn't the first time, and he was pretty sure it wouldn't be the last.

He sighed as he ran his fingers lovingly through Gen's hair, content just to lay there for awhile. He always thought it was kind of creepy to watch people sleep but with all the givens...he just liked not seeing the older man so stressed for some part of their time together.

For the first time in a long while, Zane actually wondered about their relationship. He didn't doubt how much they loved each other...but he knew things were rocky. For the first time...Genesis needed him. To lean on. To provide. Zane wasn't sure...if he was going to be enough.

Genesis was dead to the world through the entire night. He didn't move, he didn't dream and considering all the crap going on that was a rather good thing. Zane's gently touches through his hair were the next thing he could recall. They coaxed him out of his sleep and slowly his blue eyes opened to look at his lover.

It didn't take him long to feel other things, predominately the gross feeling of dried cum on his stomach, down his thighs, and in more intimate places. "Morning." He mumbled to his lover, grabbing hold of Zane's hand and pressing it to his cheek. The changeling nuzzled the area for a few moments, before kissing the skin on the palm.

He released Zane and lifted up onto his hands and knees. Genesis' nose scrunched up in disgust after he looked himself over. He was a mess and a gross mess at that. He was kind of regretting just passing out right away.

"I'm all sticky." Genesis announced, moving to sit on the edge of their bed. "Wanna join me for a shower?" It was a innocent suggestion. While the changeling was probably the worse of the two, his lover still had to be covered in sweat.

Zane had always loved Genesis' eyes. They were the very first things he'd ever noticed about the changeling. So many years ago now...when Zane had been slumped in a chair at some party, pissed that he had to be there, pissed that he'd been sober. Genesis had rolled in and commanded the entire rooms attention without even a word, and Zane had leaned over to Tripp Bassi and whispered, "Damn, did you see those eyes?" Tripp had given him a half smirk in response, which he realized now probably translated to you're at least half gay, dude. Twelve something years later and those blue orbs looked just as bright and beautiful as they had the first time he'd seen them.

The nuzzling was nice. It was the little things, really. Small reminders of being loved, eased the usually darker thoughts rolling around in his mind. He screwed his nose up when Genesis moved, much more reminded of the state of their hygiene at the moment. "Yeah, I'd love to join," he answered as he rolled out of bed himself. He went ahead and stripped the sheets before they both went for the shower.

It was a nice one, warm and relaxing, and he helped Genesis because...well, really, he made the mess so it was the least he could do. So he pressed kisses into his lovers warm skin, held him close, pressed his face into his shoulder. They were going to be okay. No matter what they had to do...they were going to be okay.

Genesis ended up in the living room wearing a nice pair of pajamas and curled up on the couch. The television was on, some popular show that he had heard Ray raving about, but really he wasn't paying attention. The blanket over his lap kept him the slightest bit warm, so overall he was rather comfortable.

The changeling bit his thumb as he thought. There were so many more important things he could be doing, like trading stocks or expanding his business empire. Hell, even answering some email from a few annoying people would have been more productive than what he found himself doing.

He laid his head back against the couch, eyes closing for a moment. Genesis had never really been…'fired' before. That was a strong word though, maybe suspended would have been more accurate. Either way, the changeling hadn't been sent away from a job and he found himself a bit embarrassed now that the situation had calmed down.

It would have set his mind at ease if Genesis had known whether or not their plans would work. He was usually a pretty confident person, but lately he found himself faltering. Things had been out of his control lately and that caused faltering in his usual bravado.

He was convinced that the best course of action would probably be for Zane to keep him occupied in bed for the entire duration of their predicament. Unfortunately, Genesis also knew that wasn't plausible. As much as things were slipping out of his hold, there was no denying that he needed to be vigilante, or at least try to be. Really, there was no time for constant repeats like the previous night. It was irresponsible to leave everything up to his young lover.

It was odd to have their roles switched again after so many years. Genesis was off council duty, even though he still had a business, that kind of made Zane the bread winner. Not that they ever really needed the money, it just meant that when night fell...he was the one leaving for work, not the changeling. Zane, for the most part, made his own hours at the gallery...but he still needed to be there. He didn't want to be...he felt like his time would be better spent with his lover, but he also had a feeling Genesis would chastise him for it. Outside of his art, Zane didn't have much of his 'own life' these days.

Dealing with Veronica had been fairly easy. He had agreed without really lining out details to show what he'd come to call The Unmentionable Piece in his next erotic show. Because of contracts and legal reasons, he wouldn't show erotic pieces out of a collection, so that gave him some good wiggle room.

He started talking to Minho over emails - any time he could stay off the phone was better, and his cousin was due in for other business within the next couple of weeks, which gave him a solid alibi of not coming in just for Zane. And of course he covered his tracks so no one could drag it up. He doubted anyone would actually go through the trouble but Zane was paranoid...usually for good reason. He'd learned from his father, after all.

Other than that, things were fairly smooth. Work was going just fine, there were no more phone attacks (mostly because Zane stayed off the damn things unless Gregory brought him something specifically) and life was almost...normal. Except for Genesis, who still had way too much weight on his shoulders and was more stressed than any regular person, or vampire, ever should be. It was wearing on them both, but Zane could deal. He had to deal.

Thursday was approaching, and he had a feeling Ray would be able to lift the changelings spirits even if he didn't really want to admit it himself. So Zane just...did what he could until then. He was attentive and loving and hoped it was enough. Really, that was the most he could do.

Thursday had come as a bit of a surprise. For the most part, Genesis had been spending his newly gained free time sleeping. Zane couldn't be with him twenty four-seven so a little bit of hard liquor before sleeping made his mind blank.

At least everything had been relatively quiet for the most part. No more attacks or strange text messages. It was an odd sort of calm and that put Genesis on edge more than if things were happening. He was just waiting for the other shoe to drop, waiting for something much worse to bulldoze its way right into their lives.

Genesis was showering, just taking deep breaths and enjoying the quiet. He toweled himself off, walking into his bedroom, and stopped at the sight of Ray. For a moment he was confused, but then he remembered that they had made plans.

Ray's eyebrow raised in question at the look the changeling gave him. "You forgot?" He teased, setting his duffle bag on the ground before sitting down on the bed. Genesis nodded, a soft smiling turning his features in an apology. "Who forgets that they planned a threesome?"

The changeling simply shook his head, making his way to his dresser before the pureblood accurately reminded him that clothes wouldn't be necessary. "I know." He replied, slipping into a pair of boxers before toweling off his hair. "Zane had to run to the gallery real quick though, Gregory called him in a tizzy."

The younger male watched the changeling join him on the bed. There was just the tightness in Genesis' shoulders, a duller look to his eyes that let Ray know that all those text Zane had been sending him weren't from being overly worried. Ray had known Genesis for over a century and he there was no doubt in his mind that there was something wrong.

Ray leaned over and pressed his lips to Genesis', the changeling returning it slowly. Eyes closed, they stayed like that for a while, just kissing as Ray's hand pressed gently against one of the changeling's sides. As the pureblood's hand began to wonder lower, Genesis pulled back.

"You know the rules, all three of us have to be here before something starts…" The older male reminded as he laid back against the pillows.

Ray huffed, but nodded. "Yeah, yeah." He kicked off his shoes and joined the other vampire, face pressing against the older's stomach and arms wrapping around Genesis' waist. The changeling's fingers ran through his hair, massaging Ray's scalp softly.

Thursday Zane hadn't actually meant to be out at all, but Gregory actually called him in, all flustered and unable to handle a certain situation. Of course rumors had spread that he was planning another erotic show soon, which meant art dealers were coming in from all over the place to try and earn a spot. Which was a headache on planning and money and all in all...it was about as stressful as his days could get. Which wasn't actually, much, really.

Thankfully he wasn't out too late, so he caught a cab home even if it was about an hour passed their agreed time. He didn't particularly figure Ray had any reason to be in a hurry, or that the older man would complain even a little bit about getting in some Genesis time all alone...even sexless Genesis time.

When he finally got in, he could tell Ray was there, just from the feel of the house. He didn't care, whatever, that was fine. Just took his shoes off, threw his bag down, and hung his coat up. "Sorry I'm late," he called out, swinging through the kitchen for a moment to fish a half-empty mug of blood out of the fridge. He nuked it, downed it, and then ran a hand through his hair. Threesomes always made him a bit nervous...why, he wasn't sure. But he needed a bit of a kickstart.

Then he was in the bedroom, pulling his shirt up off over his head and disregarding it somewhere unimportant before leaning down to give Genesis a kiss hello, and run his fingers through Ray's hair a bit in greeting as well.

Genesis felt calm, relaxed with Ray wrapped around him. The pureblood was something familiar, someone who had been a roadblock for the bad things in the changeling's life for as long as the two had known one another. That was how the ancient vampire was able to make his head empty. The feel of his fingers running through Ray's hair and the pureblood's lips playing along the skin of his navel was trance-like.

When he heard the front door, Genesis perked up. Ray muttered a finally as the two waited patiently for their partner. The older males knew it would be a little while. No matter how many the three participated in group activities, it made Zane nervous. Much to Ray's chagrin that usually meant that Genesis placed most of his attention on the young vampire until he was fully relaxed and too into it to care.

Eyes wondered as the youngest of the trio removed his shirt and Genesis took a few moments to leisurely enjoy the hello kiss he was given. Almost getting lost in it, Ray brought the changeling back to the matter at hand with a firm bite to the smaller male's side. Genesis hissed a bit in pain, shooting Ray a glare in the process.

Ray shrugged and got up and removed his own shirt. His fingers worked on the button of his jeans as he spoke to the pair by the bed. "We know how he gets Genesis, you better start us off." With the denim hanging low on his hips, Ray squatted down and began to ruffle through his bag.

Blue eyes stayed on the older pureblood for a few minutes before they wondered over to Zane. With a reassuring smile, Genesis moved onto his knees and moved over to his lover. His arms wrapped loosely around the younger's neck, fingers gently playing through the short hair at the nape of Zane's neck.

"Everything okay?" He asked calmly, lips pressing against Zane's briefly. Ray knew what needed to be done, so there was no rush in getting Zane into his comfort zone.

Zane never could pinpoint why it still made him nervous. Sex was kind of his thing, he'd been well experienced before he met Genesis and then even more so after. Threesomes hadn't been new thing either, granted with a little less dick involved, but whatever. That was fine. Zane had a fairly dominant bedroom personality so it worked regardless, because it wasn't like he was going to be in the middle any time soon. He just focused his energy and attention on someone and played agains whatever the third was doing. Ironically enough, he and Ray worked well together. It made for a good night. Zane actually enjoyed group play time...after he got rid of the anxiety. He actually kind of figured that part of it was a self-consciousness problem. He didn't have a whole lot of those left anymore, but being compared to Ray always shook him up a bit. And it wasn't like anyone was actually saying "Ray's better in the sack than you" but he figured he could hear it anyway.

The fact that they both knew about it almost made it worse, but then Ray was taking his clothes off and....Zane had to admit he was staring too. Of course Raymond Pierce was a hella attractive man, but it'd taken Zane awhile to actually get passed the hate cloud an honestly enjoy the mans aesthetics. Of course, Zane's personal preference was a little smaller and leaner, but whatever. Hot was hot, didn't particularly matter to him.

Still, Genesis had his full attention on minutes, and he sighed at the little kiss before loosely wrapping his own arms around the older males waist, fingers tracing gently at the line of his boxers. "Long day," he answered. "Can't wait to...work that off."

It'd been a long week, really, and if anyone knew that it was definitely Genesis. He was glad they had today. Glad for Ray, glad for Gen, and he definitely wasn't getting any short ends of the deal. He just needed to...chill out first. So he pulled Genesis a little closer for another kiss.