The weekend was a strange mix of anticipation and doubt. Adrian had spent the last few days convincing himself that agreeing to grab drinks with Kai wasn't a bad idea. It wasn't like he didn't find the young man intriguing there was something about the way Kai seemed so unapologetically himself, even if he had just spilled coffee all over Adrian's favorite suit. That kind of clumsy charm had a strange appeal.
The bar was quiet when Adrian arrived, the soft hum of conversation and clinking glasses filling the air. It was a place that had a certain elegance to it, nothing too flashy, but just enough to suggest a refined taste. Adrian leaned against the bar, scanning the room for Kai, his usual icy calm replacing the faint flicker of curiosity that had stirred when he'd agreed to this meeting.
He hadn't expected Kai to show up on time, given how chaotic the coffee shop encounter had been. The idea of a werewolf an omega, no less coming to meet a vampire prince was still a bit absurd. Yet, here they were.
A few minutes later, Kai walked in, looking more out of place than he probably realized. His eyes scanned the room nervously before landing on Adrian, and for a moment, everything seemed to slow down. Kai looked... adorable. His dark hair was slightly messy in that way that suggested he hadn't tried too hard but still managed to look effortlessly cute. He wore a simple jacket over a shirt that looked just a little too nice for a casual outing, and the sleeves were rolled up, revealing delicate, pale wrists.
Kai's face lit up when he saw Adrian, and he waved sheepishly, walking over with a hesitant smile.
"Hey," Kai said, his voice lighter than usual, but there was an underlying nervousness in it that Adrian found oddly endearing. "I didn't think you'd actually show up."
Adrian gave him a measured smile, leaning back against the bar with his usual nonchalance. "You thought I'd back out?" His voice held just a hint of teasing.
"Well, yeah," Kai laughed nervously, pulling out the chair opposite Adrian and sitting down. "I mean, I'm not exactly... your type."
Adrian raised an eyebrow, leaning forward slightly. "What makes you say that?"
Kai shrugged, his fingers absently tapping on the table. "I don't know... vampires and werewolves don't exactly hang out, do they?"
Adrian studied him for a moment, noting the slight tension in Kai's posture. There was something there something more than just the usual discomfort of meeting a stranger. The fact that Kai wasn't making any more jokes about the spilled coffee, wasn't fidgeting with his phone or looking for an escape, meant something had shifted.
"True," Adrian said slowly, his lips curling into a smirk. "But then again, I'm not exactly a traditional vampire."
Kai blinked, his brow furrowing slightly. "What's that supposed to mean?"
Adrian's eyes gleamed. "I'm not bound by all the old rules. I like to think for myself." He let the words hang in the air, watching as Kai absorbed them, clearly intrigued.
"So," Kai began, shifting in his seat, "what do vampires do when they're not trying to take over the world or whatever it is you do?"
Adrian chuckled darkly. "That's an oversimplification. But, for the record, I'm not a fan of the power games either. Too much of a hassle."
Kai leaned back in his chair, clearly trying to relax. "Yeah, I get that. Power games are exhausting. I'm more of a... keep things simple kind of guy."
That was a line Adrian wasn't expecting. He raised an eyebrow, his interest piqued. "You don't strike me as someone who likes things simple."
Kai laughed again, a little more freely this time. "Yeah, well, you don't know me that well." He glanced down at the drink menu, eyes narrowing thoughtfully. "But let's be real, I'm just here because I owe you a drink, and the last thing I need is more stress in my life."
Adrian studied him, his eyes narrowing slightly as he caught the subtle tension in Kai's words. There was something behind the casual remark a hint of sadness, maybe? Or just the weight of something unspoken.
"You're not as carefree as you like to act, are you?" Adrian asked, his voice low, but not unkind.
Kai hesitated, glancing away for just a moment. "I guess I'm not. But, you know, everyone's got their baggage."
Adrian's gaze softened, his usual stoic demeanor cracking just a little. "Yeah. I suppose we do."
A silence lingered between them, the heavy weight of unspoken words hanging in the air. But just as it began to feel too intense, Kai shook his head, trying to break the tension.
"Alright, enough of the deep stuff," Kai said with a grin. "We came here for drinks, not a therapy session."
Adrian smirked, finally relaxing a little. "Fair enough. What are you having, then?"
Kai glanced at the menu again, his eyes lighting up when he saw something he liked. "How about whiskey? I'm not exactly a wine guy."
Adrian nodded in agreement. "Whiskey it is."
They both ordered their drinks, and as the bartender went to prepare them, Adrian couldn't help but feel a strange sense of... camaraderie with Kai. Despite everything despite the fact that they were enemies, bound by their families' legacies and a bitter history between their species there was something undeniable about the connection they were beginning to forge.
And, though Adrian wouldn't admit it, something about Kai's charm, his unguarded nature, was starting to chip away at the carefully constructed walls he'd built around himself.
The bartender slid their glasses across the counter, a smooth amber hue filling the crystal tumbler in front of Adrian. The warmth of the whiskey was enough to settle his nerves, though he couldn't entirely shake the sense of curiosity gnawing at him. Kai had a way of getting under his skin that was far too... intriguing.
Adrian took a slow sip, his gaze fixed on Kai, who was already holding his glass like it was the most important thing in the room.
Kai's hand shook just a little as he brought the glass to his lips, the slightest hint of uncertainty lingering in his posture. It was subtle, but Adrian caught it, and it only deepened his intrigue. Kai wasn't just some carefree guy; there was more going on beneath the surface.
"Tell me something," Adrian said, leaning forward just slightly, his eyes locking onto Kai's. "What's your deal, really? I mean, we both know this is weird... two enemies grabbing drinks like it's nothing."
Kai raised an eyebrow, his lips curling into a playful smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. "You're asking me what my deal is?" He chuckled, shaking his head. "I thought I was the one who should be asking that."
Adrian smirked. "Fair point. But you're not getting away that easily."
There was a brief moment of tension between them, the air thick with something unspoken. Kai shifted, clearly trying to dodge the probing question. "I'm just trying to get through life, alright?" His voice was casual, almost flippant. But Adrian could tell it was a deflection.
Adrian leaned back in his seat, fingers curling around his glass. "Yeah, I get that. We all have our roles to play, don't we? The werewolf prince, the vampire prince..." He let the words hang in the air, emphasizing the weight of their titles, even though neither of them seemed to wear them quite the same way.
Kai looked at him, eyes narrowing, but there was a hint of humor there, too. "I wouldn't exactly call myself a prince. I'm just an omega with a lot of responsibility I never asked for. Same with you, I'm guessing?"
Adrian's gaze softened, the brief flicker of emotion quickly masked. "Yeah. Same here. It's exhausting."
They both fell into a quiet rhythm, their glasses occasionally clinking as they sipped in comfortable silence. But there was still a tension in the air something between the two of them that couldn't quite be ignored.
Kai finally broke the silence, swirling the last of his drink in his glass. "So, how does this work, then? We drink, talk about nothing, and then pretend like we're not enemies?"
Adrian's lips curled into a smirk. "I think that's the general idea."
Kai snorted, then quickly stifled it, as if the idea of laughing at something so absurd was... well, absurd. "Right. But seriously, how do you keep doing this? Being this..." He trailed off, clearly struggling to find the right words.
"Cold? Detached?" Adrian filled in for him, his tone lighter now, though there was a trace of bitterness underneath. "I've had to, you know? Can't afford to get too close to anyone. Not when there are always wolves and rival vampires ready to tear you apart the second you show any weakness."
Kai seemed to hesitate, then nodded as if he understood more than he wanted to admit. "Yeah, I get that. My pack's got its own... set of expectations. It's tough."
Adrian's gaze softened for a moment, before he took another drink, savoring the burn of the whiskey. The whole thing felt surreal sitting here, sharing a drink, with someone who had, at some point, been just a name on a list of enemies. Now? He wasn't so sure what to make of Kai.
Kai broke the silence again, his voice a little quieter. "I don't know why I agreed to this. It's dumb. But... I guess it's nice to talk to someone who doesn't treat me like I'm just some weak omega."
Adrian looked up at that, his eyebrow arched. "You think I treat you like that?"
Kai shook his head quickly, his face flushing slightly. "No! I didn't mean it like that. It's just... everyone expects me to be weak, you know? But I'm not. I can hold my own."
Adrian studied him for a long moment, his gaze assessing. "I can tell."
There was a strange silence, one that held a lot of meaning, but neither of them spoke it. Instead, they drank in silence for a while, the conversation ebbing and flowing like the ebb of the tide.
But as the minutes turned to an hour, something unspoken grew between them. Kai seemed to ease up a little more, the layers of tension that had initially wrapped around him slowly starting to peel away.
Adrian couldn't help but wonder what was going through Kai's mind. The wolf was a mystery, one that Adrian found himself slowly unraveling. Maybe it wasn't just rivalry keeping them apart. Maybe there was something deeper. Something... dangerous