I woke up a vampire

Chapter One: After Hours

The comic book shop buzzed with the low hum of the closing fan and the distant sounds of traffic outside. The fluorescent lights flickered slightly as Kev flipped the sign to Closed, letting the bell above the door jingle softly. He turned back to find Dylan still lingering by the “Rare Finds” shelf.

“Shop’s closed,” Kev called with a grin, leaning his hip against the counter. “Unless you’re planning to buy something extremely expensive.”

Dylan looked over his shoulder, smirking. “Thought I’d stick around. You know, make sure you don’t get attacked by rogue boxes of back issues.”

Kev laughed, wiping down the counter slowly. “How heroic of you, Helsing.”

Dylan shrugged one shoulder, stepping closer. “Comes with the name, I guess.”

Their eyes met for a second too long. Kev blinked, heart doing that weird fluttery thing again. Dylan always had this vibe—cool and confident but also strangely quiet, like he was trying not to say something he wanted to.

“You always hang around comic shops after dark?” Kev asked, pretending to sort a stack of manga.

“Only the cool ones.” Dylan’s tone was casual, but something flickered in his eyes—curiosity, maybe.

There was a pause, heavy but not awkward. Just loaded.

“I should get started on the basement stockroom,” Kev said, pushing off the counter. “Takes forever if I leave it.”

“Need help?” Dylan asked immediately.

Kev blinked. “You want to organize boxes of old trade paperbacks in a dusty basement?”

Dylan grinned. “Could be fun.”

Kev tried to act chill, even though his stomach did a little somersault. “Alright. Just don’t touch the boxes marked ‘Cursed’.”

Dylan raised an eyebrow. “You’re joking, right?”

Kev didn’t answer—just gave him a wink and headed toward the basement stairs.

—

The basement was cooler, the air thick with that old-paper-and-concrete smell. Kev flipped on the overhead light, casting long shadows across stacks of cardboard boxes and crates.

He bent over to reach for a low shelf and didn’t hear Dylan come in—until he felt a sudden warmth behind him. He shifted slightly, and—bump—his butt pressed right into someone.

Kev froze.

Dylan let out a soft, surprised exhale. “Uh. Sorry.”

Kev straightened up way too fast and turned, his cheeks already burning. “I didn’t know you were that close.”

“Yeah,” Dylan said, rubbing the back of his neck. “Didn’t mean to sneak up on you.”

Kev swallowed. His brain scrambled for something normal to say, but it wasn’t working. Dylan wasn’t moving away. If anything, he seemed like he was waiting.

“You… always get that close when you help people shelve comics?” Kev asked, trying to joke, voice slightly breathless.

Dylan’s gaze dropped to Kev’s lips for half a second. “Only when I like the company.”

Kev laughed nervously. “That was… flirting, right?”

“I think so,” Dylan said, equally unsure.

Kev stepped a little closer. “Cool. Just checking.”

They stared at each other in that charged silence again. Then Dylan leaned in, slow but steady, like he was waiting to see if Kev would pull away.

Kev didn’t.

Their lips met in a soft, tentative kiss. Just a press at first, then a slow shift, deeper and warmer. Kev felt Dylan’s hand brush his side—gentle, almost shy—and he leaned into it, one hand bracing against the shelf behind him.

The kiss broke, but they didn’t move apart.

Kev opened his eyes slowly, breath mingling with Dylan’s.

“So,” Kev murmured, voice rougher now. “Is that... your idea of helping?”

Dylan smirked. “Got a better way in mind?”

Kev’s fingers tightened slightly on Dylan’s shirt. He didn’t answer—not yet.

Kev lowered his hands down to Dylan's belt and started to unbuckle it. His hands shook it a little as this was his first time. 

Dylan slid his purple boxer shorts to his ankles and sat in the basement chair as Kev knelt down on an old stack of comic books.

He licked his lips and Dylan ran his fingers through his hair and pulled him closer