It's got to be a cruel joke, right?

You, lying there, school zipper torn open and gasping weakly in your mess of blood and drool. But you're not disgusting. No, how could you be, in his eyes?

The disgusting one is him, for not getting there on time. And the fucking bastard that bit you—claimed you. Endo motherfucking Yamato.

And Suo's even more pissed, that kill should've been his, but Endo and Takiishi have left and you're bleeding out, vision hazy.

But as he holds you here, gently, in his arms on the bloody classroom floor, all fight leaves Suo, and he's curled over you protectively.

You're rejecting the bond, he knows, by the way you're convulsing and trembling so violently. That you don't want Endo.

But what about him?

It's an intrusive thought.

"You'll live," he whispers, quietly.