forum A Different Kind of Anti Villain (OxO with @Dayzed, MATURE)

Started September 24, 2023 by @Desvelarse pets

tune

Footsteps. Vaughn could have sworn that he heard footsteps moving off of the porch when he reached the front door. He whipped it open without hesitation, pausing in the doorway to search for the source. There was nothing or no one there by the time he had done so, leaving him a bit stressed. Had someone actually been there watching the murder take place or was it an auditory hallucination? His auditory and visual hallucinations usually calmed for a day or so after he killed, but maybe his mental health was declining further. Looking around, he noticed a backpack and a skateboard left on the porch. He wasn’t sure if that had been there before, but opted to take it with him, tossing both into the trunk of his car.

Real or not, the footsteps left him on edge and paranoid for the remainder of the night, taking the long way home. He didn’t turn the lights on at the gas station that night, not wanting to draw attention to himself. He took his time washing himself clean of the blood and scrubbing at his stained clothes. It wasn’t long before he gave up, opting to toss them in a pile of clothes that were in a similar state. He needed to burn those soon.

The next day, Vaughn woke up in the late afternoon. He was feeling the aftermath of the kill much more than he had the night before. His body ached from the impact of the takedown. His knees were bruised and his calloused hands had cracked open again due to his grip on the hatchet. He considered wrapping them to hide the marks, but remembered he could save himself the trouble and blame them on boxing.

Vaughn had to meet up with Kohen that day. He only had a short time to get up and get ready before he was set to meet Kohen at the bus stop. It was thankfully in walking distance from the gas station so he was able to avoid using his vehicle. The seats were still smeared with blood and smelled of iron. He had been tired enough the previous night that he avoided cleaning up immediately like he usually did. All he had done was shower, take care of his clothes, and collapse on his cot to rest.

Vaughn had tried his best to appear somewhat put together and not like he had committed a brutal murder not even twelve hours ago. He waited at the bus stop, dressed in a pair of blue jeans, white t-shirt, grey crewneck sweatshirt, and grey sneakers. A black baseball cap was on his head, covering the hair that he had failed to tame that morning. He looked at his phone every minute or so, watching the minutes pass by as he waited for the ginger haired man to make an appearance.

It had been a struggle to commit to meeting up with Kohen again. The first time had been purely coincidence, but now he was making a conscious effort to. It was the first time in a while that he had done that, so he was a bit antsy waiting there. He had considered not showing up that morning, knowing getting close to Kohen could only put himself in complicated situations. Meeting the man who had unknowingly seen him murder someone was a testy thing. Was he making a stupid decision that could end with him getting screwed over in the end?

Kohen hadn't stopped once all the way to the porch of his house. He hadn't looked back once either. It felt like a death sentence if he dared to look back even for a split second.

Once he did make it to his house he collapsed right before he got to the door, his chest heaving as he took in deep breaths and he stared up at the roof that was over the porch, now lying on his back.

The sickness still stirred in his stomach every time he thought about it. He had already not been too much of a fan of murders and whatnot, despite his experience with killing others himself. The way Vaughn had done it- his blood froze over when he realized that the first encounter with the guy had been at the scene of a murder. He hadn't known at the time, but now that he put two and two together it made sense.
Kohen very slowly brought his hand up to his neck, his fingertips brushing his throat. There was a slight shake to him as he did so and a million thoughts ran through his head. One of them being this: Vaughn had tried to kill him. Strangle him. And yet, when they had bumped into the coffee shop he acted like he hadn't known him. Maybe he genuinely hadn't remembered him. But then….
He swallowed harshly as he remembered Vaughn asking him about the marks around his neck. Oh. He had known. The knowing look he had given him, made the blood drain from Kohen's face, yet strangely, after a beat longer, the color returned, now in the form of red-hot embarrassment.

Kohen had sat outside on the porch for the rest of the night, thinking things over and picturing that night's events. Would he even show up tomorrow to meet Vaughn? His mind told him no, but whether he would listen was still debatable.

---

The sun hit Kohen right in the face as day broke through another night. He scrunched up his nose, squeezing his eyes shut as the sun blinded him when he tried to open them.

His brain was slow to catch up, having slept in an awkward sitting position in the corner of the porch, his head against the old railing. And although he knew he had to get up to get ready for the day, his body ached. He didn't want to go anywhere today, Vaughn's blood-splattered face flashing across his mind and a crippling heat jolting his body when he thought about it for too long. Oh, fuck that.

Kohen forced himself up from the sitting position to dust off the back of his pants, reluctantly making his way into the house. Maybe, if his father was home, he'd given him a good beating to snap him out of whatever thoughts were passing through his head at the moment. Because as far as he was concerned, he was going to go take a shower and still meet up with Vaughn anyway. Even with all the blood and guts, Kohen didn't listen to warnings and his morbid curiosity was getting the better of him.

…

He was late. He had taken too long getting ready and his father, who had in fact been home, had ripped him a new one. Well. He had said he needed it, but it only added to the ache in his body. Wounds and bruises weren't something he was new to, he even had a good excuse for them. He skateboarded. Without padding or a helmet, so it made sense. He got hurt all the time whether that was in fights or practicing new tricks, he had a plethora of excuses.
Well. For someone who didn't know what certain bruises meant. Certain things bruised differently and wounds from another person were very telling.

Kohen had just been making his way down the street when he saw someone waiting at the bus stop he had suggested to meet up at. The familiar figure made him pause as his eyes landed on Vaughn.

Today he had thrown on casual loose blue jeans that looked to be faded with chunkier worn-down white, red, and black sneakers, a plain black t-shirt underneath a similarly colored racer jacket as his shoes. He had gone as far as to jell his hair so it was slightly spikey, however, in the end, he pulled it back with a wavy metal headband. Some of the hair pieces were too short to be pulled back and ultimately fell back onto his face. He wasn't a fan but it was too late to turn back and fix it.

He took a deep breath before quickly going over to Vaughn, playfully nudging him when he got close enough. He didn't want to give away that something was different today, that if he met the guy's eyes fear would be hidden behind them. So he wouldn't. He wouldn't look at his eyes. But he'd do his best to act normal- as normal as someone could be after witnessing a brutal murder and realizing he had almost been killed by that same person too.

"Sorry for the wait!" Kohen gave the other a faint shaky smile. "I couldn't sleep last night and woke up late today" A soft nervous laugh left him as he shoved his hands into his pockets.
"But I'll make it up to you. Is there anywhere you wanna go before we head off?" He questioned.
Kohen hadn't eaten yet, he didn't usually eat in the mornings, but he had gotten paid that week so there was at least enough to use for food and a few other activities. There was a thought of going to eat but he wanted to hear Vaughn's suggestion first.

Vaughn hadn’t even realized Kohen was approaching until the other man was right on top of him. He suppressed a flinch when Kohen nudged at his bicep, looking up from his phone to gaze at Kohen instead. He took in the others appearance, and wondered if he dressed too casually. It wasn’t like he needed or wanted to draw attention to himself with brightly colored clothes. There was no reason to think otherwise. Pretending to be normal was out fo the question. It would always better to stay under the radar and go unnoticed. Doing so had kept himself safe for almost a decade, so there was no real reason why he should stand out.

Though, it was clear that chain had been broken when it came to Kohen. What was the real reason he kept meeting up with the ginger man? There was the easiest answer- to get close enough to kill him for what he had witnessed. That’s what should be happening. Alternatively, he could be hanging around Kohen to keep an eye on him and make sure he doesn’t tell anyone what he witnessed that night. But, there was a third reason- one so pathetic of him that it made him want to sneer out of disgust: Vaughn wanted company from another person. The way that the thought made Figure lurch away was enough of an answer, but it was difficult to accept. What was it about Kohen that made Vaughn want to continue this dangerous companionship?

Kohen not meeting Vaughn’s eyes didn’t go unnoticed. He could tell when someone was uncomfortable around him. He remembered that look all too often. As a preteen in the foster care system, it was the norm. People who knew his story and what he had been through always avoided his cool gaze. It was almost as if they were afraid of having a conversation about the night his family was killed. It was the same in high school. His peers never made eye contact with the quiet kid who was rumored to have had his family murdered ruthlessly. That treatment growing up was what had pushed him further into a self-made solitary confinement. Kohen seemingly doing the same only made him want to run away with his tail between his legs.

Yet, Vaughn endured. “That’s alright, I had quite the long night as well,” he replied with a small shake of his head. It was true that he had slept like the dead, but only after staying up late to commit a brutal murder.

When had he eaten last? It had to have been before the murder. Really, he had been in such a dissociated state all night and morning that he hadn’t noticed the hunger that made a deep pit in his stomach. “How about we grab a bite to eat? There’s a good place about a mile and a half away. I’m sore from boxing, so we can take the bus,” he suggested.

The bus pulled up to the stop moments later. Vaughn nodded for Kohen to follow him before stepping on. His wallet was taken out quickly, paying for their two tickets without a word. The two went to the back of the bus, and it began to move again. The bus was decently full. There weren’t many seats, save for a few handicap reserved ones, and he wouldn’t take those from someone else just because he had a little ache in his bones. So, he opted towards staying standing, hand gripping the metal pole he stood by.

It didn’t take long for the ride to get a bit bumpy. The streets in the area had clearly
not been maintained properly due to them being outside of city limits. The government didn’t care too much due to them not being traveled on as often.

With a thud, one of the wheels on the bus bumped over a good sized pothole. Vaughn tensed his grip on the pole to keep standing, but was quick to notice Kohen stumble. Out of reflex, his free arm shot out. His arm went around Kohen’s waist to grip firmly on his hip. He steadied Kohen, jaw clenched tightly in annoyance as he looked up towards the front of the bus. “Damn road…” he mumbled, large hand still holding onto Kohen’s hip. The movement had pressed Kohen against him slightly, keeping him trapped against his body for the moment. It was easy to feel his muscular frame, even though the crewneck sweatshirt he wore.

Kohen seemed to pale slightly at Vaughn mentioning his long night. Here he was, trying not to think about it, but the words out of the man's mouth- hell, the man himself was a reminder and it was impossible to escape those thoughts…those…images. Kohen knew murder and brutality, he had been around it his entire life, but Vaughn took the cake on that one. It wasn't solely because of how strong and built he was, but the way he carried himself when he killed someone. It looked like it didn't bother him one bit. Murders were usually like that- Kohen knew that of course he did, but….right now…
Kohen looked up at Vaughn to briefly meet his eyes before they darted away again. He didn't look like a killer right now. He was awkward and well, kind of sweet too…. the memory of Vaughn playing with the cats still fresh in his memory, like it was something he cherished greatly, his prized possession he didn't want to forget. It was stupid as he had just met the guy but there was no stopping it once the thoughts started.

Kohen smiled at Vaughn when he pitched where they should head, his smile only faltering slightly at the blatant lie. Boxing. It made sense that it was a cover-up lie, he didn't know how he hadn't seen that before- how he had not put two and two together? The voice, the body type, and the eyes…
He shifted slightly on his feet as he tried to push the thoughts out. Maybe it was futile but he didn't care. They would leave him alone if it was the last thing he did.
Kohen swallowed the lump in his throat.
"The bus sounds great, I'm also very sore" He mused with a slight shakiness in his voice. The warm shower had been great but it didn't stop his bones from hurting. God, he was going to regret today. He had been looking forward to this but his curiosity and poor decisions was going to ruin this for him. Why couldn't he have just left things alone? What was it that they said? Ignorance is bliss? Yeah.
Perhaps he would just pretend he hadn't seen anything and do what he always did best which was ignoring the problems around him.

Once they had boarded the bus, Kohen followed Vaughn's lead, giving a polite nod to him once he paid for the both of them, he would definitely pay him back later for that. These days money came hard and he had no idea what Vaughn's financial situation was like.

Kohen watched as Vaughn opted for standing. He wondered why he hadn't taken the open seats, he knew they were for the handicap but- but they…. he tried to come up with something to justify himself taking a seat but found he had none and decided to take the spot next to Vaughn. Maybe it was a little close for his own comfort, the air of the bus suffocating him slightly, but it would have to do for now. It wouldn't be too long of a ride, it would be alright.

There was a knowledge that the streets were absolutely screwed to hell and back, the craters enough to cause accidents, which they had, on multiple occasions but no one did anything about it. It irked Kohen a lot. Such a simple thing could have prevented deaths and injuries, but like most things, he turned a blind eye. He wasn't a bad person- he didn't think he was, but he couldn't handle the knowledge of certain things and not be able to do anything about it. It was torture to know people got hurt and he was powerless.

As he seemingly stared off into space, his eyes trained down at his shoes, there was a sudden jolt he hadn't been expecting, though he should have. And in return, should have held on tighter so that his balance wouldn't be lost, but hadn't, and before he knew it he was instinctively reaching out for Vaughn.

However, he hadn't realized that Vaughn's cat-like reflexes had gotten to him first and so Kohen had gotten a fistful of his shirt as he got pressed against the guy. At that moment his mind blanked, the only thing he could hear being the nearly silent static that overwhelmed him. Oh. Oh fuck. Oh fuck no.
He was aware of Vaugh's arm around him and he didn't want to move, because as things were, the touch could barely be registered by Kohen despite his strong grip. It was one fo those things that became more noticeable when motion was applied.

The moment went on for too long, the seconds feeling like minutes as he didn't dare to breathe.

There was a sudden nervous quiet laugh that came from him as the feeling of everything made his brain short-circuit.
"Wow you are fast, I wasn't expecting that…" His eyes trailed down to where his hands were, still bunching up Vaughn's crewneck, and in a blind panic frantically let go as he realized he had also held on longer than he had meant to. "Sorry, sorry, didn't mean to ruin your shirt, now it's all wrinkly" He scrunched his nose up slightly, an apologetic look on his face as well as a deep redness that was now very pathetically visible. He was trying to keep it together but his mind kept wandering to places that maybe weren't the best to think about at the moment.
"O-our stop should be next I think" he stuttered out slightly, now standing properly.
There was a long moment of silence as Kohen stewed in his thoughts.
"And thanks, for uhm, catching me?" He questioned. It was a bit embarrassing to say. "Yeah, for catching me, would have knocked into the others" He swallowed harshly as he avoided eye contact for what felt like the thousandth time already since he had met up with the guy. He wasn't used to being all jumpy around others but Vaughn had that type of effect on him for obvious reasons and less obvious reasons that they both knew, but were unaware that they both knew.

What an interesting situation the two found themselves in. Vaughn, with his hand on Kohen’s hip, and Kohen, holding onto the front of his sweatshirt. After getting over the initial annoyance of the state of the road, the realization dawned on Vaughn. His hand left Kohen’s hip almost immediately, like it had been suddenly burnt. His face did turn quite red, matching the similar shade of Kohen’s. His hands quickly went into his pockets, stuffed out of sight as he looked down at his shirt. “It’s no big deal, it’s not that wrinkled,” he breathed, shaking his head.

Why did he feel so strange after the encounter? All he did was keep Kohen from falling on the floor. There should be no reason why his stomach was doing flips and his face felt feverish. There should be no reason why he was trying to place the smell that Kohen gave off, or pick up on the shampoo he used. He blamed the strange feelings on being pent up. He hadn’t slept with anyone in at least a year by that point, maybe he just needed a bit of human contact to fix himself.

They reached their stop, and Vaughn was eager to get off to escape the awkward situation. Figure laughed from somewhere behind him, and he had to keep himself from looking over his shoulder at it. “It’s not a problem, you’re welcome,” he said as the bus parked at the stop, “Here we are.”

Vaughn walked to the door, making sure Kohen was following behind him. He stepped off the bus, saying a quick word of thanks to the bus driver. They were less than a block away from the restaurant he had been planning on going with Kohen, so hopefully the quick food would ease the tension. “So, did you have any other plans for the day?” he asked as he walked down the street next to Kohen. He didn’t have anything planned himself. Going out with Kohen had been something he fully cleared his schedule for. That, and rest after the kill. It was usually up to a week between kills. Killing was such a physically taxing thing, often leaving him sore and bruised for the days following the event. It was an unseen side of a killer- the rehabilitation.

Kohen was going to be sick. His stomach was tied up in knots and his anxiety had now skyrocketed. Butterflies? Isn't that what people said it felt like? Kohen had never believed them, a scoff always leaving him whenever a mushy couple talked about the feeling, but at this moment, he understood it. He understood it and it was ruining him.

So with all of his determination, he made it a point not to remember the way Vaughn's clothes gave off a pleasant aroma. Or the way his hand had held onto him so firmly- the same hands that just the night before were forcefully shoving a blade into someone else.
Kohen staggered a little after Vaughn had let go, a combination of the shock and the memory working together to throw him off balance. There was a moment of vertigo as he realized the last part. Vaughn was a murderer- maybe one with morals with the way Vaughn specifically picked out each victim, but still. A murder.
And yet? His heart raced in his chest, his body kicking his senses into overdrive with things he hadn't ever felt before. Kohen was no stranger to crushes but this? This was all new- and he was a virgin to boot. He had no idea what he was doing. Cornering others and beating the shit out of them was what he knew how to do best. It was his go-to when he found someone attractive, it was the little bit of human contact he could get without seeming like he was interested in the same sex.
"Y-yeah, alright.." Kohen muttered, subtly rubbing his palms on his jeans to get rid of the clamminess. He hoped the action wasn't too obvious given how close they still were- and he sure as hell hoped that Vaughn didn't catch on to the fact that Kohen shifted on his feet slightly, there being a slight frustration to him as he was also eager to get off and away from Vaughn. He needed to get to a bathroom he decided. Quickly.
Once their stop came up, Kohen trialed after Vaughn as he made the first move to leave.

Embarrassing. Kohen hissed at himself through his other thoughts once they had disembarked the bus. The casual small talk seemed to relieve Kohen a little, however. He didn't like the silence much and found that it weighed heavily on him, an uncomfortable feeling settling into his bones when there was nothing left to say.
"Plans…?" he questioned softly, trying to shake off the still persistent heat on his face….and in other places. "N-no plans." his voice involuntarily hitched. Fuck.
Kohen glanced over at Vaughn as they walked, looking him over for the first time since the incident. He gave him a friendly smile, a bit of an awkward dorky smile that didn't often show up on his face.
"I was actually looking forward to today. I don't get out much but when I do, it's usually on my own, just- you know, dicking around I guess" Kohen's eyes panned down to the ground as his shoulders hunched up slightly, his overall demeanor tensing as he shoved his hands into his pockets. Did that sound desperate? Maybe weird? Did it make him look like a loser who didn't have a soul to hang out with? Probably, he concluded but tried to pay it no mind.
"What about you?" a smile found its way onto Kohen's lips again as his eyes landed on the larger male once more. "I'm probably pulling you away from work huh?" He mused, though, knowing that there was no way Vaughn would skip going to work just to hang out with some stranger he had just met a few days ago. No one in their right mind would.
That thought, however, sparked a new curiosity in Kohen. He knew Vaughn's main thing was to…kill. As wrong as it felt to put it casually. But when he wasn't going around slaughtering people, he wondered if Vaughn had a more stable day job like he did.

"Speaking of which, you never did tell me what your job was- er, if it's something you don't mind sharing" Kohen nervously added at the end, knowing it was a bit of a touchy subject if he was getting paid for his killings. If that was the case, there really was no need for an actual job.

Vaughn was relieved to find out that Kohen wasn't being bothered by their meetup. He had been slightly worried that Kohen was only hanging out with him because he had to. Hearing that Kohen had been looking forward to their meetup, though, was surprising. He had a slightly shocked expression for a split moment, his stoic facade breaking. Kohen was excited to see him? Why would he be excited about that? It was hard for him, who had been a loner most of his life, to believe that. He reached up, rubbing at the back of his neck. He couldn't deny that he had been excited to see Kohen. He had been anticipating their meetup all night, going over what he would say and do repeatedly.

"I was… really looking forward to seeing you too," he admitted, sounding a bit sheepish. His cheeks were lightly flushed, and he didn't look at Kohen when he said it. There was something about the way that he had said it- that he was happy to see Kohen, not just go out. He didn't seem to pick up on his own implications, though. "I don't get out much with other people either."

The only time that Vaughn would usually get out would be to meet up with people he was to help, and when he went to kill. Besides that, he could be found in the gas station. He preferred to be alone. He would never admit to himself that he secretly craved company from another person. Admitting that sort of thing to Kohen, to his face no less, was very out of character for him. He cleared his throat, ready to move on to the next topic.

Holding down a stable job was something that Vaughn had never been able to do. Growing up, he got his first job at sixteen. He hadn't wanted to, but his foster family thought it would be a great idea for him to have something to do besides hide out in his room. He lasted a total of three days at the fast-food place that he worked at. Something happened to trigger a breakdown, and that was exactly what happened. He was fired for causing such a scene and in trouble with his foster family for it. After that, he had gotten two more low level jobs, both ending in the same way as the first. He had given up at trying to have a normal job when he turned eighteen and began killing. The way that he got money was just as sinister. After he killed the men, he took whatever they had in their wallets. The amount varied, but it was usually enough to get by.

"I work as a gas station clerk," Vaughn came up with on the spot. He lived in an abandoned one, so he knew the ins and outs of them, "I was off today, so it worked out. What do you do for work?"

Kohen watched Vaughn's mannerisms for a second before his eyes flickered down to the ground once more. However, when Vaughn nearly echoed his words, the hairs on Kohen's back stood on end at the surprising tenderness there- an involuntary shiver running up his spine. Those were words too soft for a killer.
Still, Kohen acknowledged how fucked he was at this point. His mind kept going back to his belongings and how he hoped to God that Vaughn hadn't given it a second thought and left them. There was that and also the fact that his name was written all over the crime scene now- he didn't know which one was worse. Jail for life, or most likely, in this case, the death penalty? Or pushing his luck with someone who had buckets of blood on his hands?

He swallowed harshly at both options. Though, it wasn't like he could control it now, whatever happened, happened.

"You seem like a pretty cool guy to hang out with, 'm surprised you don't have more people" Kohen breathed, though, he took a wild guess that maybe, just maybe, it had to do with things being easier to get away with- you didn't have to cover yourself constantly from people you were close with.

A more genuine smile formed on Kohen's lips as Vaughn told him about his job. He didn't know if that was true, but he was inclined to take Vaughn's word for it, the reason partially because he needed to believe that Vaughn had some normalcy in his life. His mind taking the small piece of information and running with it. See? He's just like you and everyone else.
It soothed his soul somewhat, but whenever he looked at Vaughn's hands, his heart wavered and sped up. Kohen wasn't an anxious person per se, but it was more prominent around Vaughn for a number of reasons.

"Oh, that's nice.." Kohen muttered, silently smiling to himself before looking up at Vaughn to answer his question. "I work a part-time at an old laundromat- not a lotta people swing by but the shift I work gets a bit of traffic since it's in the evenings… er- not that I do much, just clean and stuff… watch people while I do my schoolwork… that kind of thing.." His words transitioning from confident and bright to small and hesitant. He gave the other a meek look at the end. He knew it didn't sound like a lot, in fact, he knew it was quite pathetic when he could be working better jobs more suited for him- or so his father always told him. Still, his father's words seemed to control a lot of Kohen's thinking, and the area of his work was no different.

"But!" Kohen quickly added. "I do plan on putting my resignation in and taking a job at the coffee shop we met at" He gestured with his hands a little as he spoke. "It's fast-paced and someone I know works there- he asked if I wanted the last spot available, and since they pay better.. I mean, why not, right?" He gave Vaughn a huge playful smile, bordering on mischievous. "Maybe if you swing by while I'm on shift I can give you free stuff" He mused, his rule-breaking tendencies still rampant as ever, like he never left his teenage years.
"And hey, maybe I can also swing by your work hours and hang around for a bit, I imagine it's just as slow and dull as the laundromat" He made a displeased face at the thought of a slow day that made him want to rip his hair out. Watching the clock tick by was not something he wanted to be doing for the rest of his life, it was too mind-numbing- and not in a good way.

It wasn't long till both the males arrived at their location, Kohen running up to the door and holding it open for Vaughn, remembering how it had been held open for him the last time. There was a shit-eating grin on his face at the thought that he had gotten to it first as if it were some sort of competition.
Once inside, Kohen did let Vaughn take the lead to pick out where they would sit.
And of course, it wasn't surprising when he led them both to the booth in the very back, the space feeling more private. But Kohen at this point knew Vaughn was a private person and his mind dismissed it entirely as one of his odd quirks.

Vaughn fidgeted with his fingers, glancing down at his own hands. As he stared, he noticed something reddish-brown tinted under the thumb of his right hand. Knowing exactly what it was, he picked it out from under his nail. He was usually very meticulous about leaving no trace of a kill behind on his person. He had been distracted by the meetup with Kohen, so he must have not cleaned himself up as well as he should. He wondered if there were any other dried blood stains on him, and the building anxiety made his stomach churn. All he could do was brush off his paranoia and focus on Kohen.

Kohen complimenting him, calling him cool of all things, made him chuckle nervously. "I wouldn't say all of that. I just tend to keep to myself, that's all," he said. Sure, part of it was the fact that he was a serial killer. Having a large group of friends would make things complicated and put himself at risk of being caught. But along with that, he was generally antisocial. He had never been formally diagnosed with antisocial personality disorder. It had always been a point of conversation with psychiatrists that he spoke to after the murders of his family. But, due to his age, he could never be diagnosed. They could say there were signs but could never slap the label on him until he turned eighteen. By that point, though, he had run off and started avoiding his therapist's calls.

Listening to Kohen talk about his job at the laundromat, Vaughn almost felt a bit jealous. Kohen seemed to have such a normal life. It was something Vaughn would kill for. He wished that he could handle having a normal job like every other person around him. Having some sense of normalcy in his life would be good for him. His mental illnesses and current criminal situation were things that got in the way of that, though. Going back out to try and find a job scared him, especially due to the fact that he was unmedicated. If he couldn't hold down a job when he was medicated, how was he supposed to do it without medication?

"I think you would do well at the coffee shop. It does sound a lot more interesting than working at the laundromat," he commented as Kohen talked about his future work endeavors. It took Vaughn a moment to process the joke about getting free drinks from time to time. He was taken aback by the expression on Kohen's face- that smile. It made his stomach sway, and not in the nervous was that he had been previously feeling. It was something warmer, like butterflies in his stomach. He probably looked out of it, gaze locked on Kohen's smile for a bit too long for it to be normal. His throat cleared as he dragged his gaze away, pink dusted on his cheeks out of embarrassment. "Ah, no need for that. I wouldn't want you to get in trouble for anything."

Kohen visiting Vaughn at his imaginary job could clearly never happen. "It is usually fairly busy, actually. It's right off of a highway exit, so we get a lot of traffic. If you did stop by, I don't think I'd be able to talk much. I'm always running around doing something," he lied, thinking his excuse sounded decently believable.

Once they arrived at the diner, Vaughn had planned to open the door for Kohen, but was beat to it. Kohen running to the door to get there and open it first, that damn grin on his lips, was endearing to the man. He thanked Kohen with a small chuckle, stepping inside and leading them to a booth in the back. It was a moody and warm looking restaurant. Most of the decor was a dark wood, the smell in the room matching. Lamps provided a nice mood lighting, and the lack of sunlight added to it. There was a bar off to the side, the kitchen around the corner. He slid into the booth, watching as Kohen sat across from him. "This place has decent food," he commented, folding his hands. He had been about to speak when a waitress approached them, setting a menu down in front of each of them.

"Hi, how are you two doing this afternoon? Can I get you two started off with something to drink," the young woman asked with a smile, clicking her pen as she took out a small notepad.

"I'll just take a beer- bottled, whatever you have. I'm not picky," Vaughn replied, not looking at the menu. He seemed familiar enough with it to not need to look at it. The waitress took down the drink order before turning to Kohen, looking at him expectantly for an answer.

"Mmmm…" Kohen hummed thoughtfully at Vaughn's words. "Maybe, but I still think you're cool" He grinned, although it faltered when his mind reminded him that he was complimenting a killer. He quickly looked away, his smile dropping and turning into something of unease, however, not to the point that he looked out of it or discontent- just slightly guilty that he knew who the murderer of all those people was and yet here he was- going out to eat breakfast with him. He really couldn't stop thinking about it. If there was something he was good at- it was overthinking everything.

As Kohen had been talking excitedly, he had gone back to facing Vaughn and making eye contact, an eager look on his face as he thought about making the small change in his life- a little too happy that he had someone to share the news with.
Still, the look on Vaughn's face hadn't been lost on him as he stared for longer than Kohen was comfortable with. Despite this, he didn't look away from the man, a faint red making its way onto his cheeks.
He only snapped out of it when Vaughn turned down his offer to visit him, his heart sinking a bit at the rejection. He quickly looked away after Vaughn did. He wondered if he didn't like meddling in his life- him being a killer would make sense in that regard, but if he was working and meeting people… what was the harm? Kohen's brain worked hard to try and understand it from a killer's perspective but came up empty in the end.

However, the excuse lie from Vaughn that followed did make sense and put Kohen somewhat at ease, his mind immediately jumping to the conclusion that maybe he was being too much- or getting too involved more like. But he was glad that wasn't the case- or well, it was, but not because Vaughn thought him annoying- he just liked to focus on his work.
"Oh- I see, I guess that makes sense" He smiled, his mood lifting.

Kohen seemed to beam when Vaughn thanked him, reveling in the fact that he had "won" this time.

The inside of the restaurant brought an awe-struck look to Kohen's face, never having been to a place like this before. The dim lights and smell shook Kohen's core with excitement, like a kid who was experiencing something for the first time.

As they sat and Vaughn spoke, Kohen was still looking around at the interior as if he couldn't get enough. It was so dark, the moodiness giving him chills. Kohen couldn't help but keep a half smile on his face throughout it all.
If there was something about Kohen, it was that he was a huge fan of horror and places that brought mystery. Seeing a real murder was maybe pushing it- that genuinely did strike him with fear, but abandoned locations and a dark atmosphere was bound to thrill him. It was the same reason why Halloween was his favorite holiday- despite what his father would say about the day.

"Looks expensive" He breathed, though, Kohen didn't dislike that idea. If Vaughn would be paying this time, Kohen made a mental note to step up his game for the next time they went out. He might not have had enough money currently but once he switched jobs he could take his new friend out somewhere fancier. Making plans in his head seemed to rile Kohen up, his leg bouncing as the waitress came over to take their order.

Vaughn's reply drew a charmed smile from the woman.
"Not picky, huh?" She spoke as she wrote it down, her eyes flickering to Kohen.
"I'll get uhm…" Kohen trailed off as he scrambled to look over the drinks section of the menu. He wanted to make sure they had what he wanted- he didn't need to be looking like a fool in front of everyone. "…a cherry cola," He said confidently once his eyes read the words.
The woman quickly jotted it down, taking slightly longer to write something more down before she ripped the ticket off the notepad, and then tore that paper in half.
"If you're not picky, does that mean I've got a shot?" She mused, extending the ripped ticket to Vaughn so he could take it. On it, was a quickly scribbled series of numbers- a phone number, Kohen quickly figured out.

He watched as the interaction happened in front of him, his smile dropping in an instant. Kohen seemed to stiffen a little, averting his gaze, wondering what Vaughn would say. But as the seconds felt like minutes, Kohen's mind wandered to Vaughn and this woman in the same bed… sending time together….
It sent him over the edge- he didn't want someone to steal the one person he had finally been able to convince into spend time with him.
So before he knew it, in the heat of the moment with blind panic, he suddenly bolted from his seat, snatching the paper from the woman's hand.
"No-!" Came his tongue-bitten words, not quite coherent as he stopped short.

Once the paper was in his hand, the woman's eyes wide at the outburst, Kohen froze in place. His heart hammered in his chest at his impulsive nature and the realization of what he had just done. It was then that he had to make up an excuse for this- but nothing he came up with would be good enough. Still. He went for it.
"I-I'm sorry miss," He swallowed harshly as he forced the words to come out of him. "It's just that I'm here with my…" His face burned with embarrassment. "…with my boyfriend."
There was a moment of silence as the dark-haired woman blinked at Kohen, the words processing in her head.
"Oh…" Came her disappointed voice. "I'm sorry, I didn't know" She gave a kind smile to Kohen, reaching over to take the piece of paper from him. Her eyes flickered over to Vaughn, the look of want and a light dusting of pink on her face.
"As an apology, I'll bring free deserts if that's alright" She spoke.
Kohen could only numbly nod at her, the horror overtaking him once she left. His teeth were gritted as he stared intently at the table in front of him, not being able to look up at Vaughn.
With every second that passed, he felt sicker, the anxiety building in his stomach threatening to make him throw up.

Now he had done it. What if Vaughn had wanted that woman's phone number? She was pretty. She seemed very much suited for Vaughn- so why had he thought of himself in that moment? Was he that selfish?
Kohen attempted to swallow the lump in his throat as his eyes panned up to Vaughn, a nervous twitch of a smile on his lips.
"I-….I don't even-" The words faltered on his lips. I don't even have an excuse for that. He wanted to say but immediately jumped to spit out any excuses his brain could think of.
"I-I figured that maybe you didn't have time for that- I mean, you seem like a very busy guy and all and people can be so annoying- you also don't strike me as the type to pick up a one-night stand- or uhhh, well, you do get around- but that's a bit uhm weird to think about- anyways!! I'm sorry that was so sudden- I didn't mean to call you my boyfriend either- oh wow, that was absolutely crossing a line wasn't it?" As Kohen rambled, he had pressed his hands to his face, feeling the heat there and attempting to cool himself down with his hands and maybe also trying to hide the clear shade of red he had turned into.

"It was just the first thing that came to my mind- I mean, how are you supposed to explain that one? Oh, he's my friend but I don't want him going out with you- that seems a bit mean and stupid because obviously I don't have a say in what your dating life looks like- if you wanted to you could, I-I can't stop you- or uhm, I just did but- but-" Kohen seemed to short circuit, finally giving up after stuttering through his words and sentences. He laid his head down on the table, wrapping his arms around himself, a small groan leaving him.
He was stupid. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. And he wouldn't blame Vaughn if he didn't want to hang out with him after this. He was acting overbearing and that's all Kohen knew how to do, so why not get rid of him now?

Vaughn found himself making notes about Kohen’s preferences. So far, it was clear that Kohen liked cherry flavored things. First it was the cherry slushee, now the cherry cola. In Vaughn’s mind, the flavor seemed to fit Kohen. It looked a fiery shade of red, but turned out to be all sweet once you finally got a taste of it. He bit his tongue, wondering where his brain was going with those connections. It threatened to bring a memory from his childhood to the surface- one of a warm spring afternoon and the smell of cherries filling his childhood home. He couldn’t quite place it, though, the image being fogged over in his mind. He was deep enough in thought that he hadn’t even registered that he was being hit on until a piece of paper was shoved his way.

Shell-shocked was the only way to describe how Vaughn looked. Despite being an attractive man, he still found himself surprised when he would get approached with such offers and comments. He couldn’t fathom anything seeing him in any way that wasn’t a scared little kid or a blood soaked killer. He looked towards the woman, lips parted with nothing escaping them. She was pretty, he couldn’t deny that, but she wasn’t exactly his type either. Then again, what was his type? He wasn’t exactly sure if he had one, but ultimately, he felt no inclination to accept the woman’s phone number. He had planned on being polite and taking it, but never giving her a call or text.

That was until Kohen suddenly snatched it away before Vaughn was even able to lift his hand off of his lap.

Vaughn’s gaze left the woman and shot over to Kohen instead. What was he doing? Why had he felt the need to intervene? Maybe Kohen wanted her number instead. If that were the case, he would have (reluctantly) given the paper over right after. But that didn’t seem to be Kohen’s intention.

Boyfriend.

The word hit Vaughn’s ears like a sledgehammer, weighing heavy in his mind. For a moment, he wondered if he had simply imagined Kohen said it. It seemed like a sort of trick Figure would play on him. But seeing the woman’s reaction and Kohen stammer through the rest of the sentence solidified that it had in fact been real.

Vaughn didn’t say a word. He didn’t agree with or deny what Kohen claimed. He just stared, appearing like a deer in headlights. It took a lot to get him rattled like that. He had seen so much violence and gore, been through so much trauma, but Kohen claiming to be Vaughn’s boyfriend had been enough to shake the killer to his core. He was as still as a statue, the words processing slow in his emotionally stunted brain.

Kohen’s rambling apologies and explanations fell of deaf ears. Vaughn wasn’t listening- in fact, he felt like he wasn’t even present. When the waitress had walked away, everything around him crumbled in an instant. To him, everything fell under a cloud of black sheets. All of his surroundings became indistinguishable around him in an instant. It was all a delusion, one meant to try and help his brain cope with what had just happened. The only things present in the void he now sat in was Figure’s floating grin and Kohen.

’Well, what do we have here?’ Figure hissed, its sharp teeth the only thing visible in the blackness. It cackled, making Vaughn tense as his gaze snapped to his hands that were now in tight fists resting on the table. ’You? His boyfriend? He could have said anything else, why did he say that?’

Figure slid out of his peripheral, and Vaughn dared not to look up to see where it was going. That was answered, when he heard Figure voice behind him, the sound grating like nails on a chalkboard, ’Kohen would only say that if he liked you, wouldn’t he?’

That idea caused Vaughn’s chest to tighten with emotion. Figure was right, Kohen could have said anything at all- he could have even said nothing. But no, he chose to say that they were boyfriends. That little word planted a seed in Vaughn’s mind. Kohen could like him. He glanced up from his hands, looking at Kohen, whose head was now resting against the tabletop. Could Kohen be his type? Kohen was attractive, and he was surprisingly fond of Kohen’s rambunctious yet awkward personality. Did he like Kohen? It was hard for him to distinguish between liking someone and obsessing over someone. Either way, the damage had been done. Maybe Kohen really did like him.

Vaughn’s twitched, and the moment they did, the darkness fell away and he was back in the restaurant. The sudden change of scenery came with a bit of vertigo, and he had to take a moment to focus on not swaying unsteadily in his seat. His mouth opened, then closed again. What was he supposed to say? What was he supposed to do? In the end, he decided on reaching out a hand to lightly place on Kohen’s shoulder. It didn’t feel like the same hands that had been used to kill a couple dozen men. He touched Kohen like he was worried about damaging him or scaring him off. Really, he was worried Kohen might end up being a figment of his imagination and vanish if he tried too hard.

“It’s ok- I’ll pretend to be your boyfriend,” Vaughn stammered out, sounding unsure of himself. Just pretend, he reminded himself before swallowing sharply, “I didn’t want her number anyways, she’s not really my type. I wouldn’t have called her even if I had taken it. And I didn’t exactly hate being called your boyfriend, so don’t worry about it.”

Vaughn hesitated, contemplating his choice of words as he gave Kohen’s shoulder a small squeeze. “We can take advantage of the free desert, though. Get something cherry flavored,” he suggested, a small smile on his lips. His hand moved to ruffle Kohen’s hair, much like he had done at the pet shop, before he leaned away. He nudged Kohen’s foot with his own under the table, chewing on his bottom lip before he spoke. “I guess this is a date now, huh?”

It had been a long time since Vaughn had been on a date. He had gone on one or two as a teenager, but never had been in too interested in who he went on them with. This time, he was actually interested. It didn’t take long at all for him to look at Kohen with a sort of softness in his eyes that didn’t often see the light of day. It was a look that was reserved for the women and children he helped, and now Kohen was on the short list of people who had seen it.

It didn’t take long for the waitress to return with their drinks. Vaughn didn’t recognize the brand of the beer, it being some dark blend, but he was honest when he said he wasn’t picky. While it was unclear whether it was intentional or not, he didn’t look towards the woman, his gaze staying set on Kohen. When asked about their food order, he spoke up first, “I’ll just have one of the classic burgers, everything on it and medium rare,” he answered. He didn’t make eye contact once with the woman as he spoke to her, soft eyes left on Kohen.

“Do you know what you’re getting, babe?” he asked Kohen, the pet name feeling foreign on his tongue. He mentally kicked himself, knowing how dumb it must have sounded. He was clearly getting eager at the prospect of pretending to be Kohen’s boyfriend.

During the interaction, the woman noticed the surprised look on Vaughn's face, her lips curling into a smile. He seemed clueless to his looks- or more like he didn't think anything of himself, and for some reason that only piqued her interest all the more. It was a shame he was dating the smaller redhead. Her eyes heavy with the letdown.

After she had stepped away, Kohen had clearly noted the look on Vaughn's face, his heart sinking further and further down as he realized how mortified Vaughn looked- or well, how mortified he seemed.

Ah.

For some reason, it stung. A lot. He knew he wasn't much of a looker, his appearance too feminine for his own liking. In Kohen's mind, a lot of those who were interested in the same sex were probably attracted to the heavier build- like he was. And he was just- a shiver ran up his spine when he thought about it.
Pretty boy. He could hear the echo of past acquaintances who he had thought had been his friends, accompanied by their sinister laughs. He had quickly realized that that hadn't been the case. To compensate for those comments and his looks, though, he had indulged in many sport-heavy activities and refused to hide his anger. He tried to appear as masculine as he could, even if the claw machines in an arcade filled him to the brim with joy when he managed to pull out a stuffed animal.
…
Right. And then there was his personality which was also horrendous- he could learn to be a little less rough and loud and mean, but the mere thought of becoming softer threw him into a panic. Maybe that's why he hadn't ever had anyone interested in him. He was too "fight or flight" and never froze- he only froze when he dissociated. And that didn't happen too often. Unnllleesss he was witnessing a brutal murder, in which case, his body gave him a pass to freeze up.

The thought brought the image of Vaughn slamming the sharp object through someone's neck to his head again, his heart racing as the memory was still too vivid.

Once he had set his head down, Kohen seemed to have calmed down, the red wiped off his face and now replaced with a crushed look, his mood tanking- though, not that Vaughn could see it.
It was wrong anyways- a guy with a guy- so why did it still feel so bad? Why was he so upset about it? He'd go to hell for his thoughts and these feelings. Fear ripped through him at the thought, his breathing picking up slightly. He still hadn't gotten over it. His father's teachings. It never left him no matter how hard he tried not to think about it. It made him feel sick. His attraction to Vaughn, who was a man, and then the cherry on top- a killer.

However, Vaughn's gentle touch made his shoulders tense slightly, bringing him out of his thoughts and back to reality.

He didn't know what he thought Vaughn would have said, but it certainly wasn't… that. The words made Kohen lift his head, his eyes watery as if he might have been on the verge of crying, but never got to the tipping point. There was a distant look in Kohen's eyes as the reality of everything hit him. The edge of his lips twitched into a smile- a sad one at that, but still, a smile.
"Right…" Kohen said, forcing a laugh. Though, he didn't seem quite the same as before. To be truthful, Kohen had never felt like this before Vaughn and he didn't understand what was wrong with him. Why couldn't he just brush this off like he usually did?

But then Vaughn was making excuses. And that seemed to draw a curious look from Kohen. He wondered why- maybe it was to comfort him, but Vaughn didn't need to. He didn't need to explain himself to Kohen, even if his heart did shake and lighten when Vaughn told him he hadn't minded it.

A light rosiness dusted Kohen's face at that, shifting in his seat a bit. It looked like excitement laced with heavy anxiety, and it only seemed to amplify as Vaughn kept talking.
Something cherry flavored? His eyes trembled as he searched Vaughn's face for something, but he didn't find it. He hadn't thought Vaughn would have picked up that his favorite flavor of literally anything was cherry-related. But it was the small details he noticed that gave Kohen a light fluttering feeling in his chest. No one had ever been that quick to notice something about him.
The ruffling of his hair only drove the nail into the coffin, Kohen's nails digging deep into his skin as he clenched his fist hard. He swallowed harshly. The knot in his stomach tightened when Vaughn labeled their going out as a date, his eyes widened with horror- or what seemed like horror.

"Oh- that's…." And before Kohen knew it he was covering his face again, the familiar heat rising again as he peaked at Vaughn through the gaps in his fingers- an annoyed look on his face that Vaughn was causing his turmoil. The other's look, however, was enough for Kohen to second guess himself- wondering if maybe there was a chance he had been mistaken that Vaughn was the killer. That look was too soft and too genuine, but he knew what he had seen and it was hard to forget the sheer strength he possessed along with the blood everywhere. Even the similar build and the small details of his face…

Kohen's eyes darted away when he realized he had been staring.
"I-I guess it is" He frowned, now slouching against his hand that he had pressed to his cheek, elbow on the table. He was trying hard to seem normal and cool about everything and it showed in how he seemed "disinterested", even though the blatant red on his face gave him away.

However, he seemed to quickly scramble for his menu again as the woman came to take their order. The woman wrote down Vaughn's plate of choice before she turned to Kohen.
This time he wasn't so quick to pick something out. He had no clue what he wanted and he didn't want the lady to come back a second time and then have Vaughn wait for their meals on top of it all.
Kohen's heart stopped at the pet name, his hands freezing as they had been mid-turn to flip the menu over. Vaughn had not. Was he trying to kill him??
Well. It would have made sense. Though perhaps not in the physical sense.

Kohen choked on his words as he blurted out the only thing he could think of.
"I'll have the same!" He gave the woman a fake awkward smile, looking too eager and panicked. He knew he looked stupid at the moment with the expression he was pulling but he couldn't help it.

It wasn't long before they were handing over the menus to the woman, Kohen immediately kicking Vaughn hard underneath the table when she had left. He had seen the soft eyes Vaughn was giving him and he needed to do something before he fell into them.

"Do you mind" He hissed, a strained look on his face as he gritted his teeth- though, nothing about his expression indicated that he was angry, but more so that he was trying to put his "tough act" on so it didn't seem like he was falling apart at the seams. "Don't you think you're acting a little too cute now" Kohen continued, though, in his mind, that had been meant as an insult.
He suddenly leaned back into the booth, taking the cherry drink with him as he huffed. There was a slight pout on his face as he sipped the cola, now avoiding eye contact with Vaughn.

If he didn't look at him, his stupidly handsome face didn't exist.

It was difficult for Vaughn to read what was really going through Kohen’s brain. The redhead seemed to deflate in front of him, and he couldn’t guess why. There was no way he had been mistaken about Kohen’s intentions, right? No, not with the way Kohen’s face turned red with every soft word and action. Kohen was clearly holding back, but the reason why was unknown to Vaughn.

If Kohen had brought up the assumption about Vaughn surely only liking more large and buff men, he would have shot it down. The way Kohen was, smaller and lighter than him, was just right. Kohen was small enough to protect, small enough for Vaughn to hide him away where no one’s prying eyes could reach. Maybe he could just keep Kohen all for himself. Though, that level of possession would involve something much more dark that he would resist crossing over into. It brought along the thought of holding Kohen against his will, but Vaughn couldn’t do that- he wouldn’t. No matter how selfish he got.

The kick from Kohen sent a jolt through Vaughn’s body. Kohen’s foot connected with his shin, making him grunt. That would surely leave a bruise, joining the many that he already had under his clothes. He wondered if that was why it had hurt so much, knowing that he had been reckless with himself at the past couple of kills. Had Kohen meant to hit him so hard? The words rose in his throat but never ended up passing his lips. Figure snickered out the word ‘masochist’ as it took a seat next to Kohen in the booth. Vaughn’s jaw clenched, not liking how close it was to Kohen.

“I didn’t do anything wrong,” he argued with a little frown, “I was only trying to play along. I thought I was supposed to be your boyfriend- that was your idea. People call each other pet names.”

Vaughn exhaled as Kohen sat back, who seemed to try and avoid his presence altogether. He picked up his beer, taking a quick swig from the bottle. His nose scrunched up as the dry alcohol coated his tongue. He wasn’t the biggest fan of beer, being more of a whiskey drinker, but he hasn’t expected it to taste so cheap. “I couldn’t go out with her. Her beer recommendation is not good,” he murmured, setting the bottle down on the table again. His gaze flicked up, looking to see Kohen’s reaction to his words. Kohen seemed to enjoy when his personality was a bit lighter, so maybe attempting to make a joke could lift his spirits.

Really, Vaughn wasn’t sure what was wrong with him calling Kohen ‘babe’. Kohen said it was too cute, and he took the meaning behind the words a bit different. He could tell Kohen was trying to use it in a negative sense, but that didn’t change the fact that Kohen called him cute- technically. Figure hissed out an agreement, only solidifying his thoughts.

Vaughn let out a hum, nudging at Kohen’s foot again with his own under the table. “I could have held your hand or kissed you, so I guess be grateful I only called you ‘babe’,” he tried to ration, though he knew he wouldn’t have had the confidence to do either of those things. He would have gotten choked up and just as flustered as Kohen if he tried to make those moves in the moment. It was easier to think about in theory. That brought to mind a scene of him moving across the table to kiss Kohen in front of the waitress. In his imagination, Kohen would have reciprocated, then they would go to the bathroom and- no, that’s not how it would have happened.

“If you kicked me that hard for calling you ‘babe’, I don’t want to know what you would have done if I pulled that sort of thing,” he breathed with an awkward chuckle, red dusting his cheeks as he tried to get rid of the dirty thoughts that had begun to appear in his mind. Kohen would have likely hit him in the face or possibly even between the legs if he had tried to kiss him, which made him cringe at the thought of.

Kohen side-eyed Vaughn at his words. There it was- the oddness. However, Vaughn's cluelessness made Kohen's eyes soften from their glare. There was something about the way he didn't quite understand or pick up on cues from others- like he had been raised isolated and didn't know how to react. It was something he saw again and again each time they met to hang out- or well, from the very few times they had hung out so far.

Then, the red was back on his face as he listened to the man before him. Clueless idiot. He hissed in his mind, though, it did bring a smile to his face. He thought it quite funny, and maybe even charming. The fact that he had latched onto the idea of them being boyfriends and was sticking firm to it. Anyone else in his position would have grown uncomfortable right away and dropped it- maybe even brushed it off as a joke to be kept in the past.
"You're odd, you know that?" He said suddenly, instead of addressing what the other had just said. "Not a bad kind of odd though, just different- different how regular cherries taste different than the ones you get on a sundae" Kohen spoke, a thoughtful look on his face at the comparison. Damn. Now he wanted actual cherries.

"But fineeee, call me babe till your heart's content" Kohen smiled widely at Vaughn, the giant grin back on his face as he poked fun at Vaughn further. His smile dropped, however, when Vaughn made the joke.
The attempt at bringing his spirits back up made Kohen want to cry. Cry laughing that was. And it did work, but for all the wrong reasons. He thought it was stupid, a cute kind of stupid really. Clearly, the guy didn't know what he was doing, and the "joke" wasn't exactly funny to Kohen, but it made him smile like an idiot at the botched attempt at one.

Kohen immediately turned his face away, pressing the back of his hand over his lips and part of his nose. A slight tremble had started across his body as he closed his eyes. The only thing that came to Kohen's head was the word "Loser" but he knew that would be too mean to say and he wasn't a bully in high school anymore. He wouldn't admit it to anyone, but he always found himself gravitating toward those types. The awkwardness. It attracted him in a way no other personality could, and he didn't know why that was the case with him.

It took a moment longer for Kohen to collect himself, and when Vaughn nudged him, he finally turned all his attention back to him, there still being a ghost of a smile on his lips.
The words, however, threw him for a loop, nearly choking on the drink he had been so eagerly sipping on the entire time. He was already halfway done with it.
He had avoided spitting the drink in his mouth everywhere, but in return, had given himself a coughing fit that he tried to hold down so it didn't draw too much attention.
Once he had gotten it under control, his glossy eyes shot Vaughn a glare. A playful one, but still, a glare.

"Yeah fucking right" Kohen announced loudly, gathering his courage and now crossing his arms to give Vaughn a proud smug look. He knew there was no way he would have done it- it was just pretend as he had stated before, and doing those things would have taken it too far. Though, he mused at the idea. He would have actually bitten the guy had he done that- along with shoving his knee between the other's legs to cripple him. So Vaughn had been right in that regard.

Kohen's grin grew as Vaughn spoke, a small cackle leaving him at the thought of Vaughn being scared of him. He knew it wasn't the case at all, but it was funny to think about.
"Wow, looks like you got me all figured out, huh?" He teased. "For the record, I only kicked you that hard 'cause I know you can probably take it. I honestly would have hit harder if it wasn't so difficult from the angle I'm sitting in" He joked, now scrunching his nose up with displeasure at the table. His wicked grin hadn't fallen once at the exchange, even as he joked. He hoped that it would come across as one and not that he meant it seriously- if the dorky smile on him said anything.
"But you're right" Kohen hummed proudly, a slight arrogance to him as he spoke, though it was all for show. "I would have done worse if you had dared- maybe you should be the one counting your lucky stars" Kohen gave him a knowing smile as his teeth bit down on the straw in his drink. He quite liked the back-and-forth "threats" so to say. It was fun to joke and mess around with someone, something he hadn't realized he missed so much.

Vaughn was very emotionally and socially stunted. It was partially due to the trauma he experienced as a child, along with him growing up in the unstable foster care system. From the start, he was set up for failure in that sense. The abuse from his father as a child started it. The physical and emotional abuse caused him to be more closed off from his peers. The murder of his mother and sister only caused him to isolate himself further. They had been some of the only people he felt safe around, but they were taken away and he was left with nothing. Jumping from family to family in the foster care system meant he never got comfortable. He was never able to get settled with the family he lived with or at the new school he was thrust in to. The longest he had ever stayed in a foster home had been about two years, which in the long run, was no time at all. There had been no chance for him to flourish and feel safe enough to even attempt to recover. He wondered if he had found a foster family that could have handled his issues, if things would have ended up different.

Being called ‘odd’ was nothing out of the ordinary. If Vaughn had a penny for every similar word that had been used to describe him, he would be filthy rich. There had always been something off about him. Something about the way he spoke, and about the way his gaze shifted, made people uncomfortable. He was never able to place why. He had done his best to try masking and fitting in- trying to do that exact thing in that moment- but it clearly wasn’t working.

“It’s not the first time I’ve heard that, and certainly not the last,” he said, trying to brush it off with a dry chuckle. Kohen said it wasn’t a bad thing, but the memories brought with it certainly were negative.

Though, Vaughn was distracted by Kohen mentioning cherries again. Yeah, that was clearly his favorite. He smiled softly, glad that he knew that thing about Kohen. It would be engrained into his memory, along with anything else he learned about Kohen. He felt the urge to tease Kohen about it, but held off when he watched Kohen begin to laugh. His stomach flipped, excitement bubbling in him as he watched Kohen’s mood lighten. He bit down on his bottom lip in an attempt to hide the delighted smile on his own lips. Seeing Kohen laugh and smile, almost in tears, was something he wished he could take a photo of. It was enough to push his anxieties aside, and he felt it was similar to taking whatever medications he should have been on.

Vaughn chuckled when Kohen talked about hitting him harder. For a moment, his mind went back to the first night they really met- when he had held Kohen by the throat. He could have snapped Kohen’s neck with ease. He had killed larger men with his bare hands, it wouldn’t have been difficult. Why didn’t he kill Kohen that night? Did something in his subconscious know that leaving Kohen alive would lead to something like this?

“Right, right. How could I forget that you’re a professional street fighter,” Vaughn commented, a smirk twitching at his lips as he poked fun at Kohen. Kohen was so cute when he was trying to act big and bad. That attitude reminded him of his most recent foster sister, the only one he had even remotely bonded with. He started to speak his mind. “You would get along well with my foster sister. It’s endearing when y-“

Vaughn was cut off by the waitress returning with their food, probably for the better. He had been about to say he found Kohen’s silly confidence very endearing. He quite liked that about Kohen. That attitude came with that smile and laugh that made him want to open up, despite all of his instincts telling him otherwise. They were given the food, and when asked if they needed anything else, he asked the waitress for a water. He didn’t say that the beer wasn’t to his liking, keeping his manners towards the woman. He most likely wouldn’t end up touching the beer all that much.

Kohen picked up on the lack of reaction to his words, a near-quiet hum leaving him as he made a mental note not to bring it up again. Maybe being called odd was a sore topic, and he could understand that- he had a few topics of his own that were like that too.

However, when the tease was turned on him, he scrunched his nose distastefully again but this time at Vaughn.
"Hey! Watch it-! I bet I could have your ass on the floor if I wanted to" He paused, a light blush passing over his cheeks. "I just wouldn't want to," He said, instead of admitting that there was no way he could overpower the larger male sitting across from him.
Kohen was a little bold in his claims.
…
Okay, maybe he was very bold in his claims, but tough acts and bluffs had saved him more times than he could count- both out in the streets and at school. Had he never made himself out to be stronger than he was- he would have found himself in some serious trouble. Hell, there had been times when even though he didn't believe he could get out of a situation, the words that had come out of his mouth had encouraged him to try and he had been pleasantly surprised to realize that he had it in him to fight back and win.
Course, every fight and every situation hadn't gone down that way at all. In the beginning, Kohen had taken hits silently, never fighting back, never talking back. He had gone to the adults for help multiple times during those years until his depression had turned into white-hot anger.

It was only then that he had raised his fist to the first person who had dared to beat him down, effectively knocking two or three of the kid's teeth out until someone heard the commotion and ripped him off of the other.
From that point on, his track record had gone down the gutter. But he didn't care, because it had worked. In his mind, even to this day, he had a firm belief that he didn't need anyone's help, he would be the one to protect himself. He would have his own back, and he would make sure others got what they deserved if they tried to hurt him again. All of this was true…. except when it came down to his father.

Kohen's eyes lit up when Vaughn started to talk about himself- it's what he had been searching for in the man since they had met. He loved it when he could relax around others and when others placed the same trust in him. It was odd, however, how Kohen seemed to trust Vaughn, knowing that the man was a killer. Especially when he could still feel the ghost of Vaughn's hand around his throat at times when he caught a glance of them. But…
For some reason, it was a comforting thought. It was the closest he had been to death his entire life, but the thought comforted him. Nowadays, he found himself ruminating a lot over his own death. Maybe underneath all the anger, he was still depressed, he could certainly feel it creeping up at times, but he made it a point to ignore it.

Being strangled wasn't the worst thing out there and it sure as hell beat dying a more violent death like Vaughn's victims had. The violent deaths shook him, but he didn't mind going out in a simpler way.
As he thought it over, there was a moment in his head when the pieces clicked together as to why he was so hellbent on befriending Vaughn and why he didn't mind being around him even after he discovered he was the killer. Aside from the man's attractive looks and the charming personality Kohen deemed him, Vaughn embodied a way out- in more ways than one. Not only could he help Kohen with getting rid of his father… if he ever gathered the courage to tell anyone about what went on at home, but Vaughn could easily kill him too.

A slight frown made its way onto his face at his own thoughts, now swallowing harshly. While it vaguely unsettled him, it felt alluring. His body had decided it didn't mind being killed long before Kohen had even realized. It numbed him to know that he hadn't been dealing with his problems as well as he had hoped. Maybe having ignored them was what was biting him in the ass now- and the worst part was, he didn't even care.

As Vaughn kept talking and the realization set into Kohen's bones, he seemed to feel a little lighter. His eyes looked over every inch of Vaughn's face as if trying to remember every line and every subtle expression. It looked a little like he was fawning over the guy, the way he listened intently- that was till their food came.
His eyes darted over to the woman again, silently thanking her when she set their plates down. Along with Vaughn's water, Kohen had asked for a refill on his sugary drink.

A small soft smile made its way onto Kohen's face again when he looked at Vaughn.
"You were saying? I didn't know you were part of the system" He commented casually before he picked up the hamburger, only looking at it for a second before his eyes found Vaughn's again to let him know he wanted to keep listening to him, his teeth sinking into the burger. A pleased sigh left him at the savory taste of it. He had taken a giant chunk out of it- like he did with most foods when he was starving, ready to scarf it all down. Sometimes he forgot that he shouldn't bite off more than he could chew, but now he had to deal with chewing the giant chunk slowly as he looked like an idiot with his mouth too full.

Vaughn had hoped the conversation wouldn’t be picked back up after the waitress left, but he had never been that lucky. He was the complete opposite- a walking bad luck charm. Tragedy followed him everywhere he went. Ever since he was a child, he had been surrounded by negative energy. From the moment he was born- where another infant was passing away in the next room- to now, everything and everyone around him was affected by his bad luck. It was one of the many reasons that drove him to isolate himself from society.

Kohen pressed for more information, inquiring about him being in the system. Vaughn looked down at his food, suddenly feeling a lot less hungry than he had been when he arrived. Despite the horrible taste of it, he took another long drink of the beer. While it wouldn’t do much considering his high tolerance to alcohol, maybe he could convince himself that it was enough to take the edge off. Enough to have this conversation. In the end, it was his fault. He was the one that brought it up, and he couldn’t exactly shut Kohen down without dampening the mood. He would have to push through the discomfort.

“Yeah, since I was thirteen,” Vaughn said, reaching up to scratch at the back of his neck. After spending a couple of nights at the hospital due to his potential head injury from being shoved down a flight of stairs, he was brought into the system. His parents had no family to take care of him, or maybe they just hadn’t wanted to. If there had been anyone, they wouldn’t have wanted to deal with the burden of raising a fucked up kid. He stayed at the center for a while, mostly being seen my doctors, psychiatrists, and detectives who were working the case. He was made to relive that night over and over again for the first year of his life until he was eventually placed into a home. He had told Kohen that he wasn’t in contact with his parents, so with the new piece of information, it was easier to understand why.

Vaughn picked up his burger, taking a bite out of it. He wanted to spit it back out due to his appetite having been soiled, but he forced himself to chew and swallow the piece. He could have sworn he tasted the familiar metal of blood, but he chalked it up to his mind playing tricks on him.

“It’s not all that interesting, really,” Vaughn quickly said, wondering if he could get out of talking about it further. It wasn’t normal for a preteen to suddenly be in the foster care system. It had its implications- the main cause being loss of immediate family. If Kohen asked about that, he would shoot the conversation down immediately. That was one thing that was off limits- the death of his family. Talking about it would likely cause a breakdown, and he didn’t need to go and do that in front of his new found crush.

The lack of wanting to talk told Kohen everything he needed to know. He hadn't ever been good with dealing with emotions- not his own, and certainly not others. However, one thing about him was his understanding. While he may not have been good at showing it in the traditional sense, he picked up on things a lot quicker, and in return, it helped him think of how he wanted to approach a situation.

It was things no one ever thought about- like the atmosphere that hung around them or the subtle mood shifts in other people. Their actions when they were scared or angry. He wasn't a people pleaser by any means and if someone was in a terrible mood, he didn't care to land a left hook to ruin their day further, he could handle himself, but…
It helped in situations like these. It helped with knowing where the boundary was set and if he was about to step on a landmine that he wanted to avoid altogether. He didn't want to ruin Vaughn's day, that wasn't his intention today.
There were a few seconds of silence as Kohen slowly chewed his food and swallowed before he decided to change the topic.

He supposed he should thank his father for his hyper-awareness and maybe even slight paranoia.

"Yeah, well, you know what is interesting? That you keep drinking this shit- it can't be that good, you said so yourself" Kohen said, now swiping the drink off the table when Vaughn finally put it down.
"Here, I'll trade ya for a second" he spoke as he gently slid over his cherry cola over to Vaughn's side of the table, now bringing up the beer to his lips and taking a large swig of it to finish the bottle.

It was almost instant the way Kohen brought his hand up to his face to keep himself from vomiting the drink back up. He took a few labored breaths before he forced the rest down.
Kohen cleared his throat after he had set the bottle down. It looked like he paled a bit from how horrible the taste was.

"I don't think I've ever tasted anything worse. I don't even think my father would touch this" Kohen stuck his tongue out in disgust.
It had been meant as a joke, and he hadn't meant for it to slip out but the mention of his father made his smile falter for a second, the mood around him taking a dip before he picked up the burger again and took another bite out of it- just as large as the last.
He couldn't let it show how not even the man's name was enough to ruin his mood and put him in a panicky state.

Vaughn was pleased that Kohen didn't push the topic of him being in the foster system. He was able to relax a bit, no longer worried about having to brush off questions about why he entered it at such a late point in his life. Figure hissed something about him being lucky, but he ignored it in favor of paying attention to Kohen, who was swiping the beer away the second it hit the tabletop.

Kohen slid the cup of cherry cola over to Vaughn, and he raised his brows in confusion. Why was Kohen doing this? The thought that Kohen could be doing this to lighten his mood made his heart swell with emotion. If that was the case, it was a realization that Kohen could be weirdly considerate. He had his own way of doing it, but it still counted- and worked. When Kohen took a sip of the beer and showed such intense disgust afterwards, he couldn't help but laugh. It was stifled from him trying to hold it in, but he failed. Kohen was so honest with his reactions, and it was amusing to him. He tilted his head down, placing a hand over his face in an attempt to hide it as he laughed softly. "Yeah, it really is that bad," he agreed, shaking his head a little.

It had been offered, so Vaughn took a small sip of the cherry cola. He didn't drink from the straw, having a feeling Kohen would kick him again for doing so. He hadn't had cherry cola in quite a long time but made a point to have it more often. It tasted good enough, and it was one of Kohen's favorites, so he would learn to like it too. He passed the cherry cola back to Kohen. "Just wash your mouth out with that," he suggested, taking the empty beer bottle back from Kohen. He was surprised to see that Kohen had finished the rest of it, but it wasn't like he would miss it. Maybe Kohen had finished it so he wouldn't have to, which made him smile softly. How considerate of him.

The short shift in Kohen's energy when he mentioned his father didn't go unnoticed. Kohen hadn't mentioned much about his father previously. He wondered what Kohen's home life was like. If it was enough for him to momentarily deflate- and immediately try to hide it after- then it certainly piqued Vaughn's interest. "Bad relationship with your father too?" he asked with a dry laugh.

Saying that Vaughn had a 'bad relationship' with his father was a severe understatement. It was more of a fitting statement for someone who just couldn't talk to their father, not someone whose father was essentially a family annihilator. It was easier to talk about his father than his mother and sister. Maybe that was because he felt so much less attached to the man who tormented him growing up. All he had were negative memories with his father, unlike his mother and sister, who he only shared positive memories with.

Though, Vaughn didn't know how much of a touchy subject it was with Kohen. He didn't want to pry and lose the favor of someone he just begun to bond with. "If you don't want to talk about it, you can just kick me again," he offered before taking another bite from his burger. It was a bigger bite this time around, his anxiety settled enough to be able to stomach something. The burger tasted good, though that was compared to the normal shitty convenience store food he ate on a regular basis. He wished that he could have better food like that more often, but there was never the occasion to. Maybe he could go out to other restaurants with Kohen. Not only would it give him an excuse to eat better food, but it was also an opportunity to hang out with Kohen again.

Kohen hadn't expected Vaughn to react at all to his antics, but the stifled laugh brought the rosiness back onto his face- the corner of his mouth curling into a subtle side smile.

The smile on the other made his heart skip a beat. Kohen knew he had been fucked since he met the guy, even after everything, but it seemed that the realization was only starting to sink in now. He liked him. A lot. But he didn't know what that meant for him exactly. He could pine after the guy all he wanted but would he ever allow himself to admit his feelings? He didn't think he would. Maybe he would be doing himself a service if he kept things strictly friendship-related between them. It made his heart sink yet again, but it couldn't be helped.
Still, even after his conclusion, the charmed smile didn't fall as Vaughn tried to hide himself.

Once the cherry soda was passed back to him, Kohen eagerly took it and drank from it. The soda was almost nearly at the halfway point again despite the fact that the waitress had just refilled it.
Kohen's eyes flickered up from his drink to Vaughn when he asked the question. There was slight hesitation there, but overall it didn't seem to bother him as much as it had initially. However, the reassurance from the other to avoid the subject completely brought a soft smile to his lips before he waved him off.
"You could say it's a bad relationship, though, it's not anything I can't handle," He said proudly, a more playful grin coming onto his face.

Although Kohen was deathly afraid of his father and the topic was very hard on him, Kohen liked to act like it didn't bother him much- that he could handle any sort of problem or hardship in his life. While it would be a different story if his father were present, it felt nice to pretend like the bruises and wounds under his clothes meant nothing. Not once had he stopped fighting back when his father tried to hurt him, but he found that even if he did fight back, he always lost. Every. Time.

That part did bother him. Usually, he wasn't so powerless, but at home, it was a different story.

"But hey, lots of people have shitty fathers- or even just shitty parents. I'm lucky enough to have at least one of those. Doesn't mean I'm too fond of the guy, but he and his wife were nice enough to adopt me" he hummed, that fact alone being part of the reason why he felt he owed the ill-tempered Christian man, despite everything he had done to him. He wouldn't forget the way he had hired people from his church one summer to literally kidnap him and send him off to a conversion camp for "therapy". It had been to help with his same-sex attraction but ended up doing a lot more harm than good.

While Kohen didn't know what was considered sexual assault, he knew that on some level what had happened to him at that place was what happened to a lot of women. Still, he hadn't thought much about the way one of the older men had come onto him, because it hadn't mattered in the end. The guy hadn't gotten far before Kohen was beating him to a pulp. In his mind, it didn't count. It didn't count as sexual assault since he had almost killed the guy.

"What about you? You said 'too' so it can't be that great" he seemed to follow suit, taking a bite out of his burger after he had finished talking. "I thimk we shouhd bahn tomgether to run away" he spoke, some of his words sounding muffled as he tried not to be too impolite while eating- the end of his sentence only sounded clearer since he had finished chewing his food.

The way Kohen reassured Vaughn that he could handle his father made it seem like he knew. There was no way that Kohen could know that he was a killer, but it sounded like it. It sounded like Kohen was hinting at him to not get involved with whatever was going on. It made him feel a bit paranoid, though he had only bumped into Kohen that one time. He had been wearing his mask, so there was no way that Kohen saw his face that night. Even if Kohen did know the killer was him, there was no way he would still be hanging out with him. Kohen would call the police or avoid him all together if he knew. They would never be having a meal together and smiling at each other like they were currently.

Vaughn shook off that paranoid feeling as he listened to Kohen. So, Kohen had been part of the system as well. He wondered what happened to Kohen’s birth parents. Did they die and go to jail like his did, or was Kohen given up at birth like most were? That felt like such a pushy question, and if he asked that, Kohen would ask the same one in response. That was something he couldn’t lie about- well, he could try. He could try to lie, but there was something that always gave him away. Whether it was a certain emotion in his eyes or the way he’d stumble over excuses, he knew that he couldn’t lie about that.

The question about fathers was turned on him. Vaughn cleared his throat, wondering how he should answer. He couldn’t say the exact truth- that he wasn’t fond of his father because he killed the two most important people in his life. Despite his anxiety on how to answer, Kohen’s muffled words of running away together made his lips twitch into a faint smile.

“Depends on if you mean my fosters or my blood related father,” he said, looking down at his food, “The couple of foster fathers I had were alright. I don’t keep in contact with any of them, don’t feel like I need to. My blood related father, he…”

What the hell was Vaughn supposed to say? He should have never even mentioned his father and should have only answered about his various foster fathers he had throughout the years. “I never had a good relationship with him, even as a kid. He’s in prison, haven’t spoken to him since then,” he decided to say. It was vague enough to not cause suspicion. His father could easily have been portrayed as just absent instead of the over controlling man he had really been. His father could be in jail for anything, not for his attempt at being a full family annihilator.

But, as anxious as he was to talk about it, Vaughn felt a faint bit of relief. It felt nice to get those heavy thoughts about the man out of his brain. It was like a physical- small, but still there- had been lifted off of his chest when he spoke about it. He took a small bite of his burger, choking it down. He picked up a napkin, wiping it against his lips before crumpling it up in his fist and dropping it on the table. “It’s just me alone now, so there’s nothing for me to run away from,” he said, tone flat and expression unreadable.

It was difficult to tell if he was sad about it or not. Of course, he would miss what could have been. He had been meant to experience so much with his mother and sister. He had been meant to walk through life surrounded by those loving hands, but it was ruined by his father. That was reality and nothing could be done about it. It was better to accept what had happened and move on. He had not achieved that completely, at least not in the traditional sense. If he was really over what happened, he wouldn’t feel the need to go out and kill men. He would be medicated and in society with everyone else.

Kohen stared at Vaughn for some time, watching the man carefully, his smile having faded between the bites of his hamburger, a slightly tired expression replacing the previous energy he had. It wasn't a surprise, he had barely gotten any sleep last night and his back was still sore. Right about now, he was really wishing to have taken some painkillers, but it didn't show on his face- the discomfort.

"Mmm so you bounced around a lot, huh?" Kohen casually commented. That makes sense… he thought to himself. Not that it made sense or was an excuse to kill others but still… it made sense to Kohen. He wondered if something like that- not having a permanent home to call your own was enough to push you over the edge.
Well, Kohen didn't know too much about mental health or anything of the sort, but when Vaughn trailed off at the topic of his biological father, Kohen felt himself holding his breath. Like he had triggered a subject he shouldn't have.

When the words did finally come out of the man, Kohen tried to play it off like it didn't mean a whole lot. Prison? Prison for what?
…
Was that the thing that had pushed him over the edge? He couldn't know for sure, and he wouldn't ask either. He felt it was unwise. If he pried anymore, he felt like Vaughn might figure out that he knew his secret. Maybe something like recognition and understanding would read on his face, and he didn't need a target on his back. He didn't quite know if Vaughn at this point would think twice about killing him. Maybe he wouldn't and he didn't want to go down in such a brutal manner.

The thought made him pause in eating, now staring down at the hamburger in his hands- feeling like he couldn't stomach it anymore.

"Oh" Was the only thing Kohen found he could manage to say. It was an easy read. His words. Oh. I don't know what to say to that- and I don't want to ask for more details. You seem like you don't want to talk about it.

An involuntary shiver ran up Kohen's spine at the lack of emotion behind Vaughn's words. Kohen gave him a shaky smile before he decided to scarf the rest of the hamburger down, hoping that it would make him sick enough to need to use the bathroom to get away for a second.

Nothing to run away from. Kohen repeated the words in his head. He begged to differ- if the piles upon piles of folders and reports of Vaughn's kills in his father's office said anything.

It only slightly set him off.
Okay. Maybe it set him off a lot. The flat tone and near-dead look in his eyes. Again. Kohen wasn't a huge fan of dealing with emotions and while Vaughn lacked one at the moment, it felt very similar to sitting across a ticking time bomb. Something silent that didn't give a warning, but there was just something too off-putting about it that you knew not to mess with it.

"Yeah- nothing to run away from, makes sense…" Kohen swallowed harshly at that, now unable to maintain eye contact. Instead, he looked over at the waitress who was attending another table and taking their order. "Should we take our leave now? I'm done- unless you wanna stay a bit longer and eat our promised pastries here"

But before Vaughn could even answer, Kohen was waving down the waitress.

She promptly made her way over to them when she finished taking the table's order, glancing from Kohen to Vaughn, then back to Kohen.
"Ready for the check?" She asked. "Would that be all on one bill?"
"Ah- yes please, I'll be paying this time" He spoke, it looked a lot like Kohen was trying to cover up his panic by focusing on talking to the waitress, but in the process, he didn't exactly know what he was saying, his words coming out a bit rushed. To Kohen, it felt like he was suddenly on autopilot.

"What do you think? I pay this time and you get the next one?" He pitched the idea to Vaughn, his eyes on the other for only a second before they were darting to the woman again when she spoke.
"Well, while you two decide on that, what pastries would you two like? I'll throw in two, one for each of you" She smiled at Kohen, her gaze shifting over to Vaughn.

Emotions were very complicated for Vaughn. He could feel them most of the time, but the problems arose when it became time to express them. It didn't come naturally to him. While most people expressed emotions without a second thought, he had to take a split moment in his mind to instruct his face on what shapes to make. He had gotten quite good at it growing up, trying to trick his therapists and foster families into thinking that he was alright with what he hoped was a genuine-looking smile. It worked for the most part. But, there were times that he forgot. When he forgot to direct his face and didn't mask his dead eyes with something more human. Some would call him a psychopath for that, and maybe they were right.

That was exactly what had happened when he spoke to Kohen about his biological father and running away. He picked up on his mistake almost immediately and put on a softer emotion. Though, the damage had been done. He wondered if he had scared Kohen by his lack of emotion. It made him mentally scramble, trying to think of something to rescue the situation, but the damage had clearly been done. He looked down at his half-eaten burger and knew that he couldn't stomach another bite even if he tried.

"Kohen, I'm-" Vaughn had started to say, but Kohen was already flagging down the waitress. He looked up at the woman for a moment, then to Kohen when he said he would be paying. Vaughn had planned on paying for the two of them, but then Kohen said there would be a next one and he decided to let it go. He would get the tab next time, right. There would be a next time. Maybe he was thinking too deep into how Kohen felt about his words. Maybe Kohen didn't care too much about what he had said. They were already talking about going out together again. "Yeah, the next one."

The question was turned to him about what would be for dessert. He didn't have an answer right away, not having even thought to look at the dessert menu. "Uhm, something cherry flavored- like pie or something," he answered. While familiar with the restaurant, he rarely ever got dessert for himself, so he was unfamiliar with what they offered. Surely there would be something cherry flavored, though.

They would end up going with a cherry cheesecake. It sounded good enough, but he just hoped he would be able to stomach it. The waitress took down the order before walking away, leaving the two of them alone again. Vaughn sat tense in his seat, wondering if he should move past what happened or say something about it. It didn't take long for him to decide, desperate not to lose the connection that he had so recently made.

"I'm sorry if anything I said bothered you. That stuff is just… hard for me to talk about," he suddenly said, voice sounding soft. He looked guilty, like a child who just got scolded for breaking a vase. He would control himself and be better at expressing himself around Kohen. He could be good, as long as it meant that Kohen didn't leave him. The connection he felt with Kohen was already clear and strong on his end, and he hadn't felt that way in quite some time.

It wouldn't have bothered Kohen. It wouldn't have.
But he knew that the man sitting across from him was an actual serial killer. For the most part, Kohen was pretty accepting-
…
Well. He was a little more now than he had been years prior, but when it came to the way others expressed themselves emotionally and carried themselves- he didn't care much. Vaughn could have spoken to him the entire time with no emotion on his face whatsoever and Kohen wouldn't have batted an eye as he ate. The guy was odd, he knew that. He didn't care for odd. But he knew. And he couldn't shake the images from his head.
Kohen still didn't know what it meant to get on the guy's hitlist, but if the reports he read over told him anything, it was that Vaughn was very specific in who he targeted. They all had two things in common- one, they were both men. Kohen was a man. And two, they were all abusers. Kohen wasn't one. But if his past threatened to resurface and Vaughn found out about his years in high school, he might think differently. Though, there wasn't a reason for Vaughn to go looking. Kohen's paranoia, on the other hand, made him feel lightheaded.

Kohen had heard Vaughn's cut-off sentence but decided to ignore it as the sickness in his stomach grew. Maybe he should really consider skipping town. He had planned to for a while now- he had wanted to save a little more, but maybe jumping the gun would be good this time…

But then Vaughn was talking when the woman asked about the pastries they wanted and he was asking for something cherry flavored. He seemed to freeze at that, the words that were on the tip of his tongue faltering.
The woman only nodded before she left.

Kohen, despite knowing that Vaughn wasn't a bad guy-
His thoughts stopped there. Wasn't he though? Didn't the number of people he killed say otherwise?
No.
Kohen refused. After all, he was the same. Maybe not on the level Vaughn was- he could count how many he had killed on one hand, but still, the same. A killer was a killer, no matter how you wanted to paint them.

He wasn't a bad guy, Kohen decided then and there. He might have been terrifying in those moments, but he wasn't all bad.
Kohen huffed at the apology, his eyes looking at the wall with sudden interest before they reluctantly looked over at Vaughn and found his eyes again.

"I understand… I don't mind talking about hard subjects- it didn't bother me at all-" He stopped short. If Vaughn asked what it was then, what would his excuse be? He couldn't exactly flat-out say that he knew he was the killer and that was the reason why he had seemed so panicked and suddenly on edge.
But the look on Vaughn's face now made Kohen's heart hurt. He wondered if the other had a hard time expressing himself- maybe killing would do that to a person who had been doing it for a long time. Or maybe it was just the way he was and there was nothing to fault.

"You just seemed a little serious and I was scared to push the conversation further…" he muttered at the end through pouted lips as he slouched against the table again, a bit of his anxiety melting when Vaughn provided an explanation- though, not that Vaughn owed him one. Still. It helped a bit, the look on Kohen's face looking conflicted for a second before he smiled.
"Cherry flavored, huh?" He asked suddenly, wondering if Vaughn also enjoyed cherry-flavored things as he did. "D'ja like my soda?" he mused.

Vaughn was too sensitive for his own good. It was strange to think that a serial killer, someone who has participated in so much violence, could be so soft. He had the sensitivity of a child. He had never grown out of it. Being in an abusive household always left him feeling vulnerable and exposed. Being beaten down did that to a person, leaving them cracked and broken. It was something that could be helped with therapy, but he lied and tricked his way out of that.

Kohen's words were surprising to him. He had always been met with anger after doing something wrong. If he messed anything up as a child, his father would make him pay for it. While it could be verbal, it came as physical most of the time. His father would beat him, leaving bruises and scratches all over his body. His mother would do his best to protect him, but he would turn on her every time. He would beat her half to death, then go back to him. He never blamed his mother, not once. She tried to save him, every time she tried to get his father's attention on her. Sometimes, it worked. His father would take his anger out on her instead of Vaughn. After his father would leave, Vaughn would crawl over to his mom and hug her as close as he was able to, apologizing for not being able to protect her. He hadn't been big and strong back then like he was now. He was just a kid. There was no way he would be able to do anything to protect her, all he could do was help put Band-Aids on her wounds and take care of his sister in the meantime.

Maybe he should apologize again. That would be the safe option, right? Even though Kohen explained that it was ok, he was still nervous. He was scared. Scared of the consequences of his actions, though all he had done wrong was not shape his face the right way.

Kohen had interrupted his worrying thoughts by asking about the cherry cheesecake. Really, cherry wasn't his first option if he had to choose any flavor. His favorite was apple, probably. That, or blackberry flavored things. Still, it was Kohen's favorite. If it was Kohen's favorite, that meant that he would have to like it as well. He would adapt if it meant that he could relate to Kohen better and get closer to him. His new infatuation wouldn't easily be stopped by a different taste in fruit flavors.

"Yeah, cherry flavored," he confirmed. What he said next was something that he hadn't been able to control. He blurted it out without a second thought, like his words had a mine of their own. As he said it, Figure echoed the words back to him. "It was ok, but I like you."

Vaughn was horrified with himself that he had even said such a thing. He didn't even know if Kohen liked men, and there he was, confessing his feelings just like that. His emotions showed on his face that time, real and saw and without force. He looked startled. His eyes glanced to Figure, wondering if it had been the only one to say it and not him, then looked back to Kohen. Regret flooded his system as his nails dug into his fists. His anxiety shot through the roof, and he felt as if his fight or flight would kick in. While normally going towards 'fight', he would run away. He couldn't hurt Kohen, not when he liked him so much. It wasn't right, Kohen had done nothing wrong. Kohen wasn't like those other men that he killed.

"I'm sorry- I don't know why I said that," he stammered out, face having gone red. He looked away from Kohen, moving to get to his feet. He wanted to run away; he didn't want to see the way that he thought Kohen would surely look at him. He could feel himself begin to sweat, and Figure chuckled from somewhere nearby. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry."