Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

He wishes he could say he doesn’t know when this all started, but that would be a lie. He knows exactly when it started. It was a few months ago, when someone extended a simple kindness to him, something he wasn’t used to receiving. For years, Till had been used to receiving constant bullying and taunting from others due to his stature and appearance. He wasn’t small per se, but he wasn’t strong either and people knew that, and took advantage of it. While he wasn’t strong, he wasn’t weak either and he refused to let people think he was, he was scrappy, picking fights he knew he couldn’t win just to prove to people that he wouldn’t sit silently and take the taunting. This is how he ended up in his present predicament. One day some pea-brained musclehead started taunting him and he just couldn’t hold his tongue, well he never could. 

“Hey freak, why are you here? Shouldn’t you be sacrificing animals to the devil or something?” The meathead taunted, getting in Till’s face and using his extra height to loom over him, look down on him. 

“The fuck did you just say to me?” Till spits, getting right back in his face. 

“Are you stupid too? Do you lack basic comprehension skills?” The other man sneers, smirking down at Till. 

“I’m going to fucking kill you,” Till counters, squaring up and pushing the other man back with as much force as he can muster. The other steps back in surprise, laughing humorlessly. 

“Oh, so you think you’re tough huh? Trash like you needs to learn its place,” he snarls, grabbing Till’s collar and drawing his fist back. 

Till smiles joylessly, this was a near every day occurrence for him, some meathead running his mouth, getting off on toying with someone he deemed to be less than him just because he was bigger, stronger. Till closes his eyes, waiting for the pain to wash over him, but it never comes. He cracks open an eye to observe what the hold up is and is taken aback when he sees someone else has approached and has the assailant’s fist gripped tightly in his hand. 

“What are you doing, Si-woo?” The stranger asks, dark eyes narrowed in anger. “What is your problem?” 

“I-Ivan, hey, this trash was running his mouth, I was just going to teach him a lesson–”

“That’s funny,” the black-haired man comments dryly, eyes flicking to Till, taking him in briefly. “The only one I heard running their mouths was you .” His voice is laced with anger, it was dangerous, a warning. 

The man goes white, he looks terrified, but Till can’t blame him. The newcomer, named Ivan apparently based on the context he has gathered, is big , bigger than the hothead running his mouth. And not just big, strong, tall, he looked powerful and above all else, he looked pissed . 

“How many times have I told you this isn’t a good look? You go around running your mouth, targeting anyone who you think won’t put up a fight. Does it make you feel good? Make you feel big ?” Ivan spits, voice venomous, expression hardening as he continues speaking. 

“I-I didn’t mean it, really,” he stammers, still held still by Ivan’s strong grip. “He just, he shouldn’t be here, we don’t need people thinking we associate with trash like him.” He looks at Ivan pleadingly, begging him to agree with his sentiment. The truth was Till probably shouldn’t be there, he was dragged there by his friends in a desperate attempt to get him to socialize and it ended disastrously. 

“He can be wherever he wants to be, but I’m starting to think the only trash here is you if you’re so willing to judge someone this easily, you don’t even know him and yet you were willing to put your hands on him.” Ivan drops the man’s hand and the other looks grateful for a second, relieved because he thinks he has escaped danger, but it’s short lived. Without warning, Ivan grabs the other man by the hair and smashes his head against the wall behind him. 

“What the fu—” Si-woo exclaims, shocked by the sudden attack, but he is given only a moment’s reprieve before his face is smashed into the wall once again. 

“You think it’s fun picking on people smaller than you? How does it feel?” Ivan asks, pulling the man's face close to his own, leveling his gaze. 

Till watches in astonishment, Ivan’s face is hard, eyes completely dark, brimming with hatred. He watches his features contort in disgust as he takes in his handy work, the other man’s nose is broken, bleeding and bruising already. 

“I-I’m sorry, I won’t do it again,” he pleads, begging Ivan for mercy that never comes. He slams the man’s face into the wall once more, even more forcefully this time, and then lets go as the other begins to whimper in pain. 

“You’re disgusting, get the fuck out of here before I really beat your ass,” Ivan says, voice thick with disgust and the other man gets up wordlessly, eyes wide in terror and flees before Ivan can change his mind and continue the merciless beating. “Are you okay?” 

Till flinches at the softness of his voice, he sounds almost gentle, it’s a complete 180 from how he sounded mere seconds ago. He chances a glance at Ivan’s face and his eyebrows are drawn in concern, eyes soft, caring. 

“I’m fine, I could’ve handled that myself,” Till snaps, tearing his gaze away quickly, completely awestruck by how attractive this stranger is. Ivan’s lips quirk up in a small smile, but his eyes remain soft. 

“I’m sure you could’ve, sorry I intervened, I just can’t stand bullies,” Ivan apologizes, voice still soft but now with a playful lift to it. Till glances back at him, taking in the way he is assessing him. He isn’t looking down at him, isn’t looking at him with disdain like people normally do. It’s slightly off-putting, this unexpected kindness. 

“It’s fine, thanks I guess,” Till replies lamely, he is grateful, but he doesn’t want to admit that he needed help and doesn’t really want to thank someone whom he didn’t ask for help. 

“Till, oh my God, are you okay?” Mizi rushes over to him, grabbing his face in her hands and checking it for signs of a fight. “I’m so sorry I didn’t mean to leave for so long…I, oh, hi.” She cuts off what she is saying when she realizes they aren’t alone, finally taking in Ivan for the first time. 

“Hi, sorry, I’ll leave now, if that asshole gives you any more trouble, come find me, I’ll make sure he regrets it,” Ivan says with a smile, eyes trailing between him and Mizi, who still has his face cupped in her hands. She realizes quickly why he is looking at her strangely and quickly drops her hands. 

“Thank you…um who are you?” She says, wanting to thank her friend’s savior but realizing she has never seen him before. 

“I’m no one,” he smiles warmly, “just someone who hates seeing someone else targeted for no reason.” 

“Don’t be so humble,” Mizi pleads, “you helped him and not a lot of people would, I would like to at least know your name so I can properly thank you.” 

He smiles, accepting defeat. “I’m Ivan, have a good night. Bye.” He waves and then turns to leave. 

Questions hang in the air, he never explained who he was or why he helped Till, but it was evident he wasn’t going to get any answers. Till watches silently as the stranger retreats, greeting others warmly as he goes, patting them on the back and smiling sweetly at everyone he encounters. So he’s popular, huh , Till thinks to himself, silently watching the other’s movements. He stood up for Till, no one has ever done that before, and then there was the way he looked at him, softly, like he cared. It made something inside of him stir, made his heart flutter slightly. He didn’t understand why, but that wasn’t really important. What was important was that their interaction had awoken something in Till, something nasty that wouldn’t easily be quieted by reason. He needed to know more about Ivan, he felt drawn to him, practically infatuated, and unspoken desire began to take root in Till’s brain. 

🔺

It started simply, the desire to get to know Ivan better. He knew nothing about him other than his name, that he had a penchant for justice, and that he was hot . He was easily one of the most attractive people Till had ever seen, strong and dark, a force to be reckoned with. There was also the fact that he clearly had a violent streak given how mercilessly he beat that bully without showing any signs of remorse. In the moment, Ivan looked dangerous, deadly even, but that only intrigued Till more, made his mouth go dry and heat pool in his stomach. It didn’t take long for him to realize he wanted Ivan, that the violence he displayed was more alluring than deterring. Maybe he was fucked in the head, well not maybe, Till had long ago discovered he was quite fucked up but when all he felt was attraction, admiration even, at the acts of violence Ivan displayed, he didn’t even bat an eye. He wanted to see more, wanted to know if this was a common occurrence or if it took a lot to push him to violence. Given how easy it seemed for Ivan, Till doubted it was the latter. So he took to social media, scouring over accounts searching for this mysterious man, hungry and almost desperate for more. 

It didn’t take long to find him, none of his accounts were private and he had quite a large social media following. Till’s observations at the party were right, Ivan was popular. It seemed everyone knew him or at least wanted to know him. He posted a lot and many of them couldn’t be described as anything but thirst traps. He posted countless pictures showing off his strong, toned body, flexing and posing with his shirt completely off or lifted to offer a peak at what lies underneath. Till normally found that kind of behavior repulsive, the cockiness and eagerness to make others thirst after him, but he didn’t think that way about Ivan. No, he felt quite the opposite, he was entranced by the photos, eating them up one by one, coming back to look at them frequently, always careful to never leave a “like” by accident and lurking in silence. His infatuation grew into obsession, he checked Ivan’s accounts multiple times a day, shamelessly admiring each new photo and post, trying to learn all he could about the man. 

In his stalking, he learned a few more things about Ivan. First, popular was an understatement. Given his following, he had thousands of followers most of which probably had never even met him, he was practically a celebrity in their small town. Second, he played sports and went to the gym frequently, which explained why his body looked like it was sculpted by the gods themselves. When he was at the gym, he would sometimes live stream his workouts, teasing the audience with his poses, provocative movements and sometimes showing just a little skin, but never enough to get himself reported and never enough for Till to be fully satisfied . He drank in every tease like it was water and he was a man dying of thirst, practically foaming at the mouth at some of Ivan’s more provocative actions. Third, Till learned he was older than him, not by much, only a year, maybe even less, but the thought was thrilling for some reason. He was not only larger than him in stature, but older, he had dominance over him in almost every sense of the word and Till wanted to be dominated. Finally, he learned that they were classmates, well not in the traditional sense, they didn’t actually share any classes, but they went to the same school which gave him an excuse to see him again. That was about all he learned, while Ivan wasn’t shy about posing for the world to see, he was surprisingly private about his personal life, not including many details about himself that would allow his followers the chance to get to know him on something more than a surface level. 

What he had found was good, but it wasn’t nearly enough. He needed to get more creative and fortunately he had the skills to do so. He was able to hack into the school’s system and located Ivan’s class schedule. He now knew where he could find the raven at most times during the day and that would make conveniently encountering him much easier. He also was able to find Ivan’s personal information, the school didn’t have great cybersecurity, it was easy to hack into and find his address and contact information. While he had access to all the details he would need to make getting to know Ivan more intimately at his disposal, he was at a loss for what to do with them. Despite his burning desire for the older man, he was scared. He hadn’t found out any of this information in an ethical manner and he didn’t know how he would go about explaining it if Ivan were to ask, so he had to think of a plan to get to know him without raising too much suspicion. So he began to plot, began thinking of how to alter his schedule so that he could run into Ivan or even just observe him from afar. 

It started as observations, he was too timid to go up to him at first. He would stand around the buildings where Ivan had class, arriving before the class started and staying after to track Ivan’s movements and commit his routine to memory. It wasn’t hard, he did the same thing almost every day. He would arrive on campus for his first class fifteen minutes early, walking into the building at 8:45 and finding a seat near the back of the room. Before the class started, girls would flock around him, fawning over him and shamelessly flirting. Till watched, jealousy burning a bit in his stomach as they touched him and batted their eyelashes, smiling warmly even suggestively at times. Some of the brave ones whispered to him, making him flush at some of the things they said, but he never returned their advances. He smiled at them kindly and made easy conversation, but he never looked truly invested, he looked almost bored. Till also came to notice the way he would look at the girls as they left, headed to their seats. He would smile until he was sure no one could see him, then his features would fall and his face would take on an expression that could almost be described as disgust. 

The first class lasted an hour and he sat, listening attentively and taking notes. Then he would pack up his things and talk to his friends, getting ready to walk to his next class. The next class was in the same building, down the hall. The routine for that class was the same as the first. After the second class, he would take a break in the library, sitting with friends and whatever girl was brave enough to chance talking to him. These interactions were interesting for Till to watch because while Ivan would talk back, even flirt sometimes, touching the girl’s arm and leaning in close to whisper in his ear, the look of disgust was still present, thinly veiled behind his charming demeanor. Till wondered what he was thinking, wondered how no one else could pick up on the subtle darkness that constantly colored the man’s expression, and watched in fascination as he proceeded through the rest of his day just as he had the morning. After class he had practice or would go to the gym, always at 4:00 on the dot. Till watched from afar as Ivan moved gracefully through drills and exercises, sweat coating his skin and making it shine deliciously, muscles flexing with every movement. This was Till’s favorite part of the day, he drank it in, eyes hungrily devouring the other man from the shadows, desire building in his veins. Well, it was his second favorite part, his favorite part was when he’d follow Ivan home and find a spot beneath his window and watch him change. He didn’t have access to Ivan’s bathroom, so he couldn’t watch him shower, but the show of seeing him remove his dirty clothes after a long day was invigorating. Watching as pale, unblemished skin and toned muscle was put on display, nearly drooling at the sight and trying to desperately ignore how his pants tightened with his growing arousal. 

Till wanted to follow him every second of every day, but it wasn’t feasible. He unfortunately had his own life to live, but he desperately wanted to abandon his friends and responsibilities to lose himself in Ivan. So he had to settle for stealing parts of the day to observe and analyze his obsession, catering to his own schedule, but soon all of his free time was spent thinking about Ivan or stalking him, either in person or online. It was becoming an issue, Mizi noticed how distant he had become, how disinterested in things he was and she called him out on it. He explained it away, saying he was stressed with exams coming up, but she didn’t buy it. Finally prying out of him that there was someone rather than something occupying his thoughts. 

“So who is it?” Mizi asks insistently, sitting across from him on the floor. 

“Who is what?” Till asks, playing dumb. 

“Whoever you’re obsessing over!” She practically screams. Till tries to deny it but she is insistent. “You’re so obvious ! You’re never on your phone and suddenly you’re always on it when I’m with you, which is like never at this point because you’re always MIA. There’s also the fact that you’ve been so secretive about everything.” 

He wanted to tell her, wanted to admit that he was, in fact, deeply infatuated with someone. To gush over how perfect he was, how much he wanted him, but Ivan didn’t know Till existed and certainly wasn’t aware of his feelings, so he bit his tongue. 

“It’s nothing, a crush, I’ll be over it in a week,” Till admits. Mizi hums, accepting his answer when she realizes she won’t get anything more. 

But, Till did not get over his “crush” that easily, before he knew it, he had spent weeks following Ivan, hungry for more, obsessively thinking about him and imagining scenarios in his head that would never come to fruition. The fruitlessness of his actions was proved to him on a Friday night about three weeks after his obsession began. Ivan normally seemed so disinterested in girls, but he had agreed to go on a date with one. When Till saw this (he had found a way to remotely hack into his social media and was monitoring his DMs like the absolute psychopath he is), he wanted to vomit. Rage flared inside of him and the desire to hurt the girl was so strong he had to physically ground himself to deny it. It was interesting though, he had no idea what made this girl special. Ivan had been propositioned by numerous girls and denied each and every one, it made Till proud almost, fueling his delusions that he could have him, but then this girl popped up and ruined everything, so of course Till did what he does best, and he followed them. 

🔺

The date was uneventful, they went to dinner and Ivan was as charming as ever. He laughed at all her jokes and humored her mindless droning, nodding and humming to show he was being attentive. She ate it up, so when he initiated something, leaning across the table and whispering something that made her blush from her cheeks to the tips of her ears, she nodded in acceptance. They got up from the table and Ivan ushered her to the door, hand on the small of her back as they walked, whispering things into her ear that made her laugh flirtatiously. Till hated it, hated every second of it, and wanted so badly to hurt the girl. His anger and possessiveness was frightening, he liked to pick fights, but only with people who deserved it so the fact that he was wishing harm on this innocent girl was very out of character for him and it made him still for a second. But when he saw the way Ivan looked at her, like he was a predator hunting his next meal, all hesitation left his body and he followed. The couple slipped into Ivan’s apartment quietly and Till followed from a safe distance, but he soon realized that Ivan didn’t lock the door behind him. This was rare, he always locked the door immediately after shutting it, Till would know he’s followed him home every day for weeks and the routine has always been the same. Staring at the door for a moment, Till makes up his mind and approaches, opening it slowly so as not to make a noise. He peers through the crack in the door to make sure no one is there to see him and then slips inside soundlessly. 

Once inside, he peers around, taking in his surroundings. The living area is cozy, but scarcely decorated. That isn’t unusual, it’s what Till had come to expect after seeing how bare the walls of Ivan’s room were. He was tidy, well organized, but his space wasn’t personalized. Till creeps down the hall and can hear the girl giggling from behind the closed door of Ivan’s room. Till freezes, anger and jealousy coursing through his veins as he listens to the encounter. He can imagine what’s happening, Ivan placing gentle kisses on her neck, his strong hands wandering over her curves, gently encouraging her to give him more. It’s a scene he’s imagined himself in more often than he cares to admit and thinking about someone else taking his place in his fantasy drives him mad. He curls his hands into fists, letting his nails dig into his palms harshly, the pain grounding him and clearing his head. What the fuck am I doing? Till thinks and for a moment he regrets his decisions, he thinks about leaving, but when he hears the girl scream shrilly all those thoughts are abandoned. 

“What the actual fuck, Ivan?” She screams frantically, disbelief and fear pitching her voice. Till can’t see what is happening, but he guesses Ivan might be a little more freaky than he appears. 

“Hey, come on, you said whatever I wanted, didn’t you?” Ivan coos in a low, sultry voice. 

“Yeah, but I didn’t expect you to fucking bite me and I’m not into…this,” she trails off. Till’s mind is going wild, he has no idea what Ivan did that was so unexpected, but the thought of him biting someone makes Till’s cock twitch uncomfortably in his pants. He wants to be bitten by Ivan, he would beg , he would let him do whatever it is this girl was bitching about without uttering a word of complaint. 

Lost in his thoughts, Till doesn’t immediately register when the bedroom door begins to open. He thinks quickly and scurries to the living room, finding a closet and hiding as fast as he can. Shit, shit, shit , Till scolds himself silently as he crams into the small space. The door has slots so he can peer through and see what is happening. The girl has her things in her arms and is angrily storming through the living room towards the door. 

“Come on, don’t be like this,” Ivan calls, playfully. Till notices his expression, it’s still predatory, and then he takes notice of what Ivan is holding…

“I’m leaving, you’re a fucking freak, don’t call me,” she snarls, turning to face Ivan and eyes going wide when she sees that he is holding a bat in his hand. 

“Hmm, too bad, thought we could have some fun first, but guess I was wrong,” he says darkly, a vicious smile on his lips. 

Before the girl can say another word, he brings the bat up and swings, it collides with her head with a sickening smack and she falls to the floor unconscious. Till doesn’t realize it, but he gasps audibly, making Ivan’s head snap in his direction with a raised eyebrow. Till silently screams and goes to grab the door, to open it and flee, but Ivan is faster. He rips the door open and stares at Till with wide eyes. His eyes flicker with recognition as he takes Till in and the vicious smile returns, making his eyes narrow and darken as it spreads. 

“Hello,” Ivan coos. “I didn’t realize I had a guest, but now we have a problem, don’t we?” 

“W-wait, I won’t say anything, I promise,” Till babbles, hands coming up in surrender. Ivan chuckles darkly. 

“No, you won’t, I’ll make sure of that,” Ivan’s voice is hard, laced with venom. 

He grabs Till’s wrist and drags him out of the closet harshly. Till struggles against his hold, swatting at his arm, but Ivan is too strong. He drags him down the hallway to the bedroom and throws him on the bed. Till’s mouth opens in protest, but Ivan is on him in a second, pinning him down and binding his hands with a piece of rope that was laid on the bed. 

“P-please, don’t hurt me, I won’t say anything I promise, I didn’t see anything,” Till begs, eyes wide in fear, completely immobilized by Ivan’s weight on top of him. 

“Why are you here?” Ivan asks, still smiling maniacally. “Did you follow me? I thought someone was watching me, but I never knew it was you.” 

“I was, I’m sorry, just let me go, please,” Till begs again, voice pitching into a whine with desperation and fear. 

“Why would I do that? You must have wanted something from me or you wouldn’t be here. Is this what you wanted?” Ivan asks and then without warning, he leans forward and crushes his lips against Till’s. 

The silver-haired man squirms in protest, but he is being held down harshly so his movements are limited, pointless. Plus, this was what he wanted. It wasn’t how he wanted to get it, but all these weeks spent following Ivan had been a desperate attempt to get closer to him, to get him in this exact position. Till melts into the kiss, body going limp and all fight leaving his body. He lets himself be kissed roughly and returns it. Ivan draws back, disbelief coloring his expression. 

“Wow, you are a freak, huh? Either that or you’re fearless…or stupid,” Ivan taunts. 

Till stiffens at the insult, but he can’t deny the truth of the words. “Maybe both,” he says breathlessly, meeting Ivan’s dark gaze. Till watches as realization dawns on him, the predatory look returning. 

“I’ll give you what you want,” he promises, voice low and laced with honey. He brings his hand up to push the hair off of Till’s forehead. “If you’re a really good boy, I’ll give you whatever you want and you may make it out of here alive.” 

The words affect Till in a way that is inexplicable, illogical. He should be scared, he should be begging for mercy, but all he can do is nod. As incredibly stupid and dangerous as it is, he wants to be good for Ivan, he wants to do what he asks and he doesn’t wish anything bad for the other. Ivan smiles at him softly, appreciatively. He presses himself up to his feet and goes to retrieve something from his dresser. Till’s cock twitches traitorously, his body should be in flight mode, desperately fighting for self-preservation and all he can think of is that Ivan told him he’d give him what he wants. Ivan turns and Till’s eyes widen when he sees what he’s holding: another length of rope and a roll of duct tape. 

“Sorry baby, but this is for insurance, you understand right?” His voice is soft, completely clashing with the tone of the moment and the implication of the items he’s holding. “Gotta make sure you stay quiet and don’t run away, but you won’t do that, right?” 

Till shakes his head furiously, not sure if he’s disagreeing with the thought of flight or the thought of being bound even further. Ivan smiles again and approaches, kneeling and grabbing Till’s legs. Till squirms against his hold and Ivan glares at him, eyes dangerously dark, which makes him still. The smile returns to Ivan’s face and he mutters praise softly. He ties Till’s legs together tightly and then moves to check the binding on his wrists, tightening it for good measure. Till is completely imobile, escape is out of the question entirely. He struggles against the restraints uselessly, making Ivan chuckle. He clicks his tongue in disappointment before tearing a piece of duct tape from the roll and placing it over Till’s mouth. He should be fighting much more than he is, he could’ve bitten him, made him cry out in pain and used the moment of shock to try to flee, but his body isn’t reacting the way it should. Despite the struggle he was putting up, he was totally compliant, not really fighting back at all. 

“There, that’s good, now you can’t leave me, Till,” Ivan whispers, placing a kiss on his forehead. Till’s eyes go wide, both at the sweet gesture and the fact that he used his name, Till had never told Ivan his name. “Oh,” he laughs, realizing Till’s shock. “I guess I should’ve been a little more honest, I knew you were watching me, Till, and I’ve been watching you too. See, I could’ve stopped you a while ago, but I was curious to see just how far you’d go and man, you did not disappoint.” 

He smiles at Till in awe, laughing lightly at the surprised expression the younger is wearing. “You look so cute like that, surprised,” he gushes. “You’re cute in general, but you should see yourself now, you look like a fucking dream.” Ivan’s eyes trail over his body, his fingers gently trailing down his chest to his stomach and then he sighs. “But this will have to wait, I have something to take care of first. Stay here, beautiful, and if you’re good you’ll get a reward.” 

He winks and places a kiss on Till's temple before turning to leave the room. This whole situation is fucked , Till is fucked . He doesn’t know what is worse, that he’s tied up in a potential killer’s room and is about to witness a murder or the fact that he is falling apart at Ivan’s praise, desperately searching his approval and affection. They’re both bad and Till definitely needs to reassess his self-preservation skills and his sanity considering how he is reacting to this situation, but he will worry about that when and if he survives this night. 

Chapter Text

Ivan is gone for a few moments, he can hear him moving around in the next room, dragging something. 

“You’re pretty but you’re actually heavy as fuck,” Ivan grumbles. Till assumes he must be moving the girl around somewhere. In a few seconds, he hears footsteps in the hall, alerting him that Ivan is heading back towards him. Ivan’s eyes catch his and he smiles fondly. “Such a good boy, sitting all pretty for me, wrapped up like a nice little present,” his voice is low, dangerous and the look in his eyes matches. “We need to get you up though.” 

Ivan walks over to the bed and slips his arms under Till’s legs, lifting him up easily and supporting him. He smiles down at Till, mischief sparkling in his eyes. Till’s mind spins, he has no idea where he’s being taken and for what purpose, but it can’t be good. Ivan carries him to the living room where he can see the girl tied to a chair, she is lifting her head, slowly regaining consciousness and when she sees Ivan her eyes go wide in fear. 

“You fucking psycho, let me go right fucking now!” She screams through gritted teeth and Ivan just laughs. 

“Sorry, I know you’re used to getting what you want but that’s not happening here, you can save your breath,” he smirks at her as he sets Till down on a chair and begins retying his restraints so that he is strapped to the chair with his hands free. 

Because his mouth is taped shut, he has no way of voicing his concern but screams under the tape, making Ivan raise his eyebrow at him and laugh again. 

“Till,” he says, clicking his tongue. “I thought you were going to be a good boy for me? Since we’re all here together, I thought we could have some fun and play a game.” Ivan leans over and removes the tape from Till’s mouth gently, carefully not to pull his skin too hard and grimacing when he still sees him wince from the pain. “Sorry about that, but now we get to hear that pretty voice of yours again.” 

“A game? Like what?” The girl screams frantically, staring at Till unrecognizably. “Who the fuck is this?” 

“He’s a, well, I don’t know, is friend an accurate description?” Ivan asks, laughing. “Whatever, it doesn’t matter, he was in the wrong place at the wrong time and now he’s part of our fun for the night, Hana. By the way, Till this is Hana and Hana this is Till.” 

She glares at him, somehow still able to look at him disdainfully in their present situation. Ivan stands and claps his hands together excitedly. 

“So the game is simple, we’re going to play Old Maid,” he explains. “If you don’t know how to play, you are going to get cards and try to make pairs, the person left with the joker at the end is the loser. Sounds simple enough, right?” 

He smiles as he takes in their expressions and removes a deck of cards and begins shuffling them before handing each of the players their cards. Till glances down at his hand, staring right back at him is a joker, he tries to keep his face straight, not give away his hand to his opponent. 

“One trick to this game,” Ivan adds, smiling a cruel smile. “Our loser, loses more than the game, catch my drift?” 

Till and the girl both stare at Ivan in disbelief before turning to face each other. The girl holds her cards, fanning them out and Till does the same. Ivan pulls up a chair behind them where he can see both their hands and lays his head forward on his arms. 

“Ladies first,” he coos, gently touching the girl’s shoulder which makes her flinch. 

She stares at Till and then down at his cards, trying to make her choice. She grips a card and pulls it from his hand, her face lights up and she produces a pair, narrowing down the cards in her hands. Till reaches forward and hovers his fingers over a card and looks up to see Ivan shaking his head. Till moves his fingers and glances up discreetly, to see Ivan nod. Till plucks the card from her hand and sees he too has found a pair. The game continues this way for a while, with Ivan giving Till subtle hints to help him. He’s helping me, he wants me to win , Till realizes. The rounds continue and the cards dwindle down until Till only holds two more and Hana draws the joker from Till’s hand. Her face drops immediately and she places it in his hand, Till grabs the final card she is holding, earning the final pair he needed and discarding his last card. 

“Congratulations Till, if that were real you would have won,” Ivan smiles, his eyes dark and shining with mischief. “But, that was just practice.” Till’s face drops and Ivan smiles darkly, grabbing the cards to shuffle them before distributing them once again. 

Till looks at his hand, no joker this time, off to a good start. The game begins and Ivan keeps offering subtle hints, until he just stops, leaving Till floundering. His expression is blank and he looks bored, but then after a few rounds without offering assistance, he again gestures to a card in the girl’s hand. Till’s heart races, chest feeling warmth at the help and a small smile pulling on his lips until he realizes he just drew the joker. Ivan misled him. The cards dwindle down and Hana picks pair after pair, leaving Till with just two cards left. She reaches forward to pick her final card and his heart drops, she takes the two of diamonds, leaving him with the joker. He lost. He was about to die. 

“Well, that’s that,” Ivan says, smiling darkly, all affection that he showed Till completely gone. 

He moves to untie Hana so she can stand up, but then ties a blindfold around her eyes and binds her hands in front of her, slipping a knife between them. Till’s eyes widen and he opens his mouth, but Ivan places a finger over his smiling lips signaling for him to remain quiet. 

“W-what’s happening?” Hana stammers as Ivan abandons her to come stand behind Till, untying his binds and helping him stand. 

“Follow my lead, Till, you’ll be fine,” Ivan whispers into his ear, low enough that the girl couldn’t hear. He slips a second blade into Till’s hand and winks. “Just walk up to her and drag this across her throat, it’ll be over so quickly.” 

Till’s eyes go wide and Ivan squeezes his shoulder gently, comfortingly, and smiles for him to continue. Till’s thoughts race, can he really take another life if it means saving his own? He doesn’t think he can, but Ivan gently guides him forward, their steps soundless as they approach the unsuspecting girl. 

“What the fuck is going on?” She whines, tears obvious in her voice. It makes Till’s heart clench, she didn’t do anything wrong, but he had to do this. 

Ivan urges Till closer, closing the distance between him and the girl and nods encouragingly. He lifts the knife with a shaking hand and holds it to her throat. He hears her gasp as the cold metal touches her skin. 

“P-please no,” she begs, tears streaming down her face under the blindfold and she begins violently waving the knife to the best of her abilities. 

Till dodges it easily and presses the blade deeper, drawing blood. She screams and pleads one more time, but her plea is cut off as the blade glides across her neck, opening the skin and spilling crimson down her throat. It’s quick how everything happens after that, the knife falls from her bound hands and clanks to the floor and she makes a gurgling noise as she begins to choke on her blood. So much blood spills from the thin cut and it’s mere seconds before she collapses in a heap on the floor, the blood pooling around her. 

Ivan hums in appreciation. “Good job, Till, you did so well,” he praises softly into the younger man’s ear, sending a shiver down his spine. 

Till throws the knife away, disgusted with himself, he just killed someone for no reason other than because Ivan told him to. He feels his eyes sting and tears begin to flow over his lashes, down his cheeks. Ivan reaches for him and he withdraws, but the other is insistent, grabbing his face in his hands, wiping away the tears that fall. 

“Shhh, don’t cry,” he whispers softly, pushing Till’s hair back and thumbing at the tears that continue to fall. “You did so good, you’re a natural and now I know I can trust you.” He smiles softly, adoringly at Till. “You did everything I asked you to and I couldn’t be any happier.” 

Till should feel disgusted, should hate himself, should hate Ivan, but he can’t, not when he’s looking at him so adoringly. 

“You did that for me, she put us at risk, she could’ve gone and told someone what was going on here, and then what would’ve happened to me, hmm?” Ivan gushes, peppering Till’s face with soft kisses. “You didn’t want anything to happen to me so you helped me, I’m forever grateful to you for that.” 

Till pulls back, blinking his tears away. He didn’t want anything to happen to Ivan, that was true, but this was too much, he was a monster. So why did the praise feel so good? So comforting? Ivan was making him feel like he didn’t do anything wrong, like he did exactly what he needed to do. 

“I promised you a reward if you were good and you were so good for me, so fucking good , Till,” he whispers, voice full of admiration and affection. “I need to tie you up again, just to be sure you don’t leave, so I can take care of this, but once it’s over, I will give you anything you want, you deserve it , you’re so perfect .” Such sweet words shouldn’t be able to be uttered by someone so undeniably evil, it was cruel and Till hated the way his heart was reeling at each one. 

Till didn’t struggle once as Ivan bound his limbs and settled him on the bed, making him as comfortable as possible with the restraints holding him firmly in place. He waits, not moving a muscle as Ivan leaves the room to clean up the mess in the living room. He didn’t say a word, didn’t move, but he couldn’t stop the tears falling from his eyes. He was a murderer , he could never go back to who he was before, his life had changed so spectacularly in the span of an hour and he couldn’t tell who he hated more in this moment, himself or Ivan.

🔺

Ivan hummed to himself as he began wrapping the deceased girl in a plastic sheet. He was happy he had the foresight to place it down before the game began, knowing it would get messy. He was elated, he knew Till was interesting, he could sense something dark inside of him the first moment they met, something broken, but it’s impossible to know how someone would react to such a situation until they were in it and Till had done wonderfully, better than he could have ever expected. His elation is interrupted when he hears a gurgling noise, looking down at the girl with disgust. 

“Oh, you’re still alive,” Ivan grumbled, disgust coating his voice. He hated it when they tried to hang on, it made things so much more complicated than they needed to be. “Well, not for long.” 

He stands and retrieves one of the knives from the floor, twisting it in his hand and pressing the point into his finger, admiring the pin prick of blood that began flowing from his fingertip. He kneeled over her and quickly thrust the knife into the side of her neck, where her carotid artery was. He pulled it out forcefully, watching with a smile as more blood began to gush from the wound. 

Blood was fascinating to him, it always had been, ever since he was a child and his sister skinned her knee, crying and screaming in pain, all he could do was watch the thick crimson liquid flow from the cut, painting her skin red. He was five and it was the moment he first realized that there may be something wrong with him. She cried for help, begging him to get their mother to do something, but all he could do was stare and secretly wanted to open the wound wider to watch even more blood flow from it. Eventually their mother heard her cries and came running out, eyes wide in fear and demanding to know what happened. Ivan was scolded for not doing anything but played it off as shock, cuing tears flawlessly so he just seemed like a distraught kid, not someone who would have gladly watched his own sister bleed out in front of him. His mother softened immediately, apologizing for yelling and escorting his sister inside to clean her wounds. 

Ivan should have been concerned by his lack of empathy towards his sister in that moment, at the complete disregard for her pain and his fascination with her blood, but he wasn’t, it wasn’t even a fleeting thought. This continued throughout his childhood, he quickly learned he felt nothing for others and desperately wanted to see them in pain, at his mercy. He got into fights often at school due to this bloodlust, thriving when he saw their bruised and battered faces coated in blood, appreciating all the wounds he inflicted. His mother, however, was concerned. Taking him to see specialists, worried that there could be something wrong with her perfect son. This was when he learned he had to be careful, he hated the way the doctor’s looked at him, like he was broken and needed to be fixed. He wasn’t, well rather he didn’t want to be fixed. So he created a mask, one he wore in public, only removing when he was sure it was absolutely safe or when the bloodlust got too intense to ignore. People loved him, he pretended to be kind, to be interested in what they had to say, to want to help, and like idiots, they all bought it. 

The first time he took a life, it could have been construed as an accident. He was walking home one night late from football practice, he was 16. A thug cornered him in an alleyway, demanded that he give him whatever valuables he had on him at the moment. Instead of complying like he’d always been taught to, Ivan fought back. He was big even as a teenager, strong, so he easily overpowered the thug, pinning him to the ground and wrestling the knife from his hand. Ivan held it to the man’s throat and watched as fear flooded his eyes and he began to beg for his life. 

“Why should I spare a low life like you? I bet you wouldn’t have spared me,” Ivan spits, smiling maniacally, drunk on power, his bloodlust taking over his body. 

He didn’t even give the man a moment to justify his actions, to continue begging. Ivan always hated the begging, he thought it was pathetic and that people were delusional if they thought their words could sway a killer like him. Without a thought or moment’s hesitation, Ivan drew the blade across the thug’s throat in one swift motion. At that moment, he hadn’t realized how much force he used, but when he saw the exposed bone in the man’s neck in the open wound, he laughed. Life was truly fragile, so easily taken away by one simple action, a well executed slash, a well placed stab, it was sad. Society placed such a high value on life, but it was so easily taken away and people did very little to protect it which was strange considering it was deemed “precious.” No one ever connected Ivan to the man’s murder, he was someone no one would miss and his life wasn’t worth much anyway. Ivan discovered then that this was the secret to unleashing the demon that had long lived inside of him, pick someone no one would miss, act quickly, and never leave any evidence, it was all too simple. 

That first murder quenched his thirst for some time, nearly a full year, but as he got older, the thirst got greater. He always chose his victims carefully, making sure it was someone who could potentially be seen as “deserving” of it and above all else, that they definitely wouldn’t be missed. He realizes now, wrapping the girl in the plastic sheet that he may have just broken his own rule. 

Hana was relatively popular, she had friends who would wonder where she went and she was young enough to have a family who would surely miss her. He curses himself for this, she wasn’t his usual victim, he knew that, but she had made a grave mistake, one that made her deserving of her fate. Ivan wasn’t lying when he told Till he hated bullies and Hana was a huge bully. She picked on people constantly, making fun of girls for their looks, for their weight. He hated it but had to act like it didn’t bother him, his friends would laugh at her comments and he would just sit silently, staring disapprovingly. He might’ve let it go, but then she targeted someone Ivan actually gave a shit about. 

Till didn’t realize it during their game, perhaps he was too overwhelmed and in shock, but Hana had been making his life a living hell for quite some time. Throwing insults at him under her breath whenever he walked by, but what pushed him over the edge was when she decided to catfish him. She created a profile on Instagram and was DMing him constantly, pretending to be interested in him, in his music, acting like she cared. She got him to trust her, and Till’s trust was hard to come by. When she had him where she wanted him, they set up a date and he excitedly prepared for it, buying her flowers and booking a reservation at a restaurant, going well outside of his comfort zone for this girl he had come to develop feelings for. But his date never showed up, leaving him sitting alone in the restaurant, and that’s when Hana struck. She sauntered to his table and began spitting venom at him. 

“Aw, did the freak get stood up?” She asked mockingly. “Are you really surprised? Who would even want someone like you?” 

Till didn’t say a word, but got up and left, shouldering past her and a few others as they taunted him and laughed at his pain. Ivan watched the whole thing happen, he was aware of the plan, he should’ve intervened, but then he wouldn’t have had an excuse to put her in the situationship she was in tonight. Till thinks he met Ivan at that party a few months ago and yes, that was the first time they talked, but he had been observing the other from a distance for much longer than that, secretly dying to talk to him, to protect him, but he didn’t know how it would be received so he stayed back and bit his tongue until that asshole Si-woo couldn’t shut his mouth. 

Ivan doesn’t care about people, he feels very little for them, even his so-called friends. Isn’t that the mark of a psychopath? He had fully convinced himself he was one until he saw Till for the first time, saw how little he cared for others, how little he let their words bother him, how quick to fight he was. It was love at first sight, Ivan had never wanted to protect someone else before Till and once he realized the urge, it was insatiable, so Hana was really a perfect victim even if she deviated from his usual profile and if he would have to be even more careful to cover up his tracks. It was for Till and he was so happy that even though he didn’t realize who she was, that he was able to exact his revenge for her torture, maybe he would even come to thank Ivan for it later if he ever explained the situation, but he doubted he would do that. 

He makes quick work of the rest of the clean up, there wasn’t much blood on the floor thanks to the plastic sheet, but he makes sure to thoroughly clean every surface just to be safe, silenting thanking himself for finding a place to live that didn’t have carpet. The disposal of her body was going to be more difficult. There was no explaining this away as an accident so he needed to ensure her body was never found, he set to work dismembering her, limb by limb, and removing all of her teeth so she couldn’t be recognized by her dental records. He went a step further and placed her fingers on top of a hot stove, singeing her fingerprints off so they couldn’t be used to identify her either. He would dispose of the parts individually, all over the place so that they couldn’t be found all at once which would make determining who it was extremely difficult for the police. 

Hours later and pleased with his work, Ivan goes to the bathroom and removes his bloodied clothes, throwing them in a heap to be disposed of. The body parts were all wrapped in plastic trash bags for easy disposal and he would take them out tomorrow and get rid of them along with his soiled clothes, but now, he had something more important to attend to, he needed to clean himself and give Till his reward for being so well-behaved, so obedient, so perfect . Ivan showers quickly, scrubbing his skin raw to get rid of any trace of that nasty girl. Ivan didn’t even like girls to begin with and he felt disgusting the entire time he had to flirt with her, touch her, act like he liked her in any sense of the word. The hot water washes aways the evidence of the crime and his feelings of disgust, leaving him feeling refreshed and excited. He exits the shower, dries off and slings a towel around his waist before returning to his room where he has someone much more exciting wrapped up and waiting for his return. 

🔺

Ivan walks into the room and is greeted by a heartwarming sight. Till is still bound, but he hasn’t moved an inch and even drifted to sleep, his long lashes fluttering as he dreams. Ivan walks over and gently caresses his cheek, admiring the man’s beauty and how soft he looks when he’s sleeping, the sight brings a genuine smile to his lips. His heart aches looking at him, he wishes things could have gone differently. In an ideal world, Till would have never found out about this side of him, but things rarely work out the way we plan them to. Ivan watches his eyes flutter and notices Till begins to stir under his touch, leaning into the hand on his face and groaning softly. Ivan’s smile grows and his heart feels so full, his chest so warm. It’s a sensation he has never experienced in his life and he isn’t sure what to do with it. Soon, Till’s eyes flutter open and Ivan’s black gaze is met with teal eyes, still heavy from sleep. As Till realizes what is happening, his eyes widen slightly and he stiffens, trying to draw away. Ivan’s brows furrow in disappointment, he knew this would happen, it was inevitable. 

“W-what…” Till trails off, eyes roaming up and down Ivan’s naked torso where water droplets are still running down the toned muscle. 

Till’s apprehensive expression melts and is quickly replaced by one filled with lust, his eyes drinking in each line and curve of Ivan’s body, drawing his lower lip between his teeth and biting down slightly. He brings his eyes to Ivan’s face and Ivan inhales sharply at what he sees. Till’s cheeks wear a faint pink tint and his pupils have dilated every so slightly. He struggles against his bindings for a moment before realizing it was useless. Ivan smiles fondly. 

“Do you want me to untie you?” He asks softly, returning his hand to Till’s jaw and tracing circles there with his thumb. Till nods weakly, staring up at him with such unfiltered want. “Can I keep your hands tied? I don’t want you touching yourself,” Ivan taunts, voice dropping to a low growl. 

Till’s eyes widen at the implication that Ivan is propositioning him sexually. His mouth opens and closes a few times, trying desperately to form words. Ivan laughs at his stunned silence and moves to untie his legs, running his hands along Till’s thighs once they are freed and he begins to move them to stretch them out. 

“Please untie me, I won’t…I won’t do anything you don’t want me to,” Till says quietly. “It just hurts.” 

Ivan’s eyes soften and his chest tightens. Even though Till’s expression betrayed his obvious lust, there’s still fear in his voice and then there’s the fact that Ivan hurt him accidentally. He never wanted that. He moves quickly, untying the knots binding Till’s wrists and then rubbing the skin gently, trying to ease the discomfort. Till looks at his incredulously, brows raised and lips pressed into a thin line. 

“Why are you being so nice to me?” Till asks, skeptically. “You just made me fucking kill someone and now you’re treating me like this, it doesn’t make sense.” 

“I never wanted to hurt you, Till,” Ivan sighs. “You were never supposed to be a part of this, this was all just an unhappy accident and I’m sorry.”

His voice is genuine, his expression soft, pleading, remorseful. Till softens under his gaze and brings his wrists to his front where he massages them softly, wincing in pain as he runs his fingers over the bruises the rope formed. Ivan takes them into his hands and Till stiffens briefly, bringing his eyes to meet Ivan’s and the older smiles softly to show him he means him no harm. Ivan then brings each wrist to his mouth and presses soft kisses to the marks left there, rubbing gently as he works. Till’s mind is reeling, there’s no way he could mean any of this? This is a cold blooded killer sitting in front of him, but he’s also treating him with such compassion and like he’s something fragile that could break under the slightest amount of pressure. 

“You know,” Ivan starts, “this night was for you actually.” Till looks at him in disbelief and Ivan smiles, still rubbing his wrists gently. “Do you remember that girl who catfished you? Set up a whole date and left you sitting alone for everyone to ridicule you?” 

Till grimaces at the memory, but nods indicating he does indeed remember that incident. 

“That was Hana,” Ivan confesses and realization flashes through Till’s eyes. “I wanted to get back at her for what she did to you, she deserved what she got, no one should be treated like she treated you, especially not you, Till.” 

“What do you even care?” Till says, voice slightly tinged with annoyance. 

“Because I care about you, I have for a very long time,” Ivan admits, smiling shyly. “I think I’ved loved you since I first laid eyes on you.” 

“You didn’t even know me when that happened, we met at that party a few months ago, that was the first time I had ever even seen you.” 

“That was our first interaction, but I had my eye on you long before that,” Ivan admits and Till’s eyebrows raise in shock. “There was something about you, something special, I didn’t know what it was or why it fascinated me so much, I really don’t care about most people, but I care far too much about you for my own good,” Ivan pauses laughing. “Probably for yours too.” 

“Bullshit,” Till spits and Ivan looks hurt. “Prove it then, if you care about me so much, prove it right now. Let me leave.” 

Ivan frowns, dropping Till’s hands between them. He meets Till’s gaze and Till is shaken by what he sees: sadness, deep sadness. “You really want to leave? After what I did for you?” Ivan asks, voice shaking with some emotion Till can’t pinpoint. “I don’t want you to leave,” Ivan adds sadly. “I want you to stay with me.” 

“I don’t want to be held hostage,” Till confesses, “but, if you asked me to stay, I probably would.” 

Ivan’s eyes light up, feeling slightly hopeful at the admission. “Really?” 

“Y-yeah, but I don’t want to be treated like a prisoner, if you care about me, you have to act like it.” 

“How?” Ivan asks, pulling himself to his knees in front of Till and placing his hands gently on the other man’s knees. “I’ll do anything.” He’s pleading, begging to let Till show him how deeply he cares. 

Till mutters something inaudible, turning his face away from Ivan as he says it. “What?” Ivan asks, not hearing a word that the other had said. 

“I said, kiss me, you idiot,” Till mutters, cheeks blazing red at the request. 

Ivan’s eyes widen and he smiles. He wastes no time in fulfilling the other’s request, leaning in and gently pressing his lips against Till’s, It’s much softer than the previous kiss and because he isn’t bound, Till is able to wrap his arms around Ivan and pull himself into the older’s lap, deepening the kiss. Ivan groans into his mouth and gently separates Till’s lips as he presses his tongue into his mouth. Till opens easily, welcoming the other in, and humming as Ivan begins to caress his tongue with his own, exploring the expanse of his mouth. As they kiss, Ivan begins running his hands over the younger’s body, slowly running them down his sides before settling on his hips where he grips tightly, afraid of letting go. Till adjusts his position so he is straddling Ivan and moves his mouth to the older’s neck, placing soft open mouth kisses along its length, licking and sucking at various areas. Ivan grips Till’s hips tighter, moaning at the attention the other is giving him. Till’s hands trail down from Ivan’s shoulders along his exposed chest and stomach, earning shudders and soft whimpers from the other with each gentle touch. 

“Is this what you wanted all along, Till?” Ivan asks breathlessly, crying out when the silver-haired man bites down on his shoulder. 

“Maybe, you don’t seem to be complaining and if you’re about to, your dick begs to differ,” he responds dryly, gently pressing his palm to Ivan’s growing erection, hidden only by a towel. Ivan groans, eyes fluttering shut at the welcomed friction and Till smirks, pressing his palm down a little more harshly, earning another, louder groan followed by a curse said through gritted teeth. “Wow, sensitive are we?” 

“It feels–ah,” Ivan cuts off when Till begins moving his palm along Ivan’s length, still applying pressure as he goes. “So good.” 

“Hmm,” Till hums, “do you want me to make you feel even better?” 

Ivan’s eyes widen and his jaw drops slightly, but all he can do is nod. Till shuffles off his lap and grabs the towel from Ivan’s waist, removing it. 

“Shit,” Till says, eyes directed at Ivan’s cock, fully hard and leaking precum from the tip. It’s big, long and thick, and the only thought Till has in that moment is how much he wants to be filled. 

With the least amount of grace possible, but trying not to seem too eager, Till adjusts himself so he’s laying on his stomach, head resting on Ivan’s thigh, He looks up through dark lashes, mouth already agape and tongue sticking out, ready to taste. Ivan inhales sharply, taking in the man below him, how ungodly sexy he looks and how badly he wants him, he nods silently giving Till permission to continue. The younger wastes no time, running his tongue along the tip first collecting the precum that had gathered there before sinking down on Ivan’s length, taking him into his mouth entirely. Ivan moans at the sensation, Till’s mouth is warm and wet, it’s perfect and it takes every ounce of self restraint Ivan has not to come in that second. Till keeps his eyes trained on his face, watching his every reaction, lashes damp and clumping together from the tears pooling in the corners of his eyes. He begins moving at a torturously slow pace, making Ivan’s face pinch in pleasure and his fingers tangle in silver hair. His moans are music to Till’s ears.

“God, you feel so good,” Ivan praises, “taking me so well, like you’re made for this.” 

Till hums around Ivan’s length at the praise, sending vibrations through his cock that make him shudder. He quickened his pace which made Ivan’s breathing turn ragged and his moans increased in frequency and volume. 

“Till, fuck, fuck , I-I’m…I can’t,” he stammers, trying to warn Till, but the other never ceases his movements. 

He speeds up even more, taking Ivan deeper until he hits the back of his throat and his hips buck upwards in pleasure. Ivan’s grip on his hair tightens and he pulls, pain pricks in his scalp, which makes Till moan causing Ivan to curse under his breath. He thrusts his hips upwards, giving fully into the pleasure and Till allows him, taking him deeper, relaxing his throat so the other can fuck into. 

“Fuck, shit, I’m gonna come,” Ivan groans, pulling Till’s hair even harder. 

He thrusts his hips upwards once, twice more and then he’s spilling into Till’s throat with a long drawn out moan that vaguely resembles Till’s name. Ivan silently urges the other man to detach his mouth from his cock, pulling gently at his face, but Till remains and swallows everything that Ivan had given him. 

“Shit, you’re perfect,” Ivan gushes, pushing sweaty hair off his forehead and caressing his cheeks as he finally pulls off of Ivan’s cock, eyes lidded and pupils blown wide, lips swollen from the abuse they’d just taken. “You’re so beautiful, you’re like a fucking dream.” 

Till rolls his eyes and tries to pull his face away, but Ivan pulls him in, crashing their lips together, tasting himself on the other’s mouth and tongue. 

“I hope you know, you’re never leaving now,” Ivan says seriously, eyes darkening. “You’re mine and I’m not letting anyone else near you.” 

“B-but you promised you wouldn’t hold me here,” Till stammers, unable to believe that Ivan would lie to him. 

“I was willing to let you go, but you decided to stay, you sealed your fate, I’m sorry,” Ivan says grimly, a dark smile pulling at his lips. “I won’t tie you up, but you’re not leaving, you can’t, I won’t let you.” 

Till draws back, mouth agape and eyes wide in disbelief. He trusted Ivan, he was intimate with him, he gave him something he wouldn’t have given anyone else, and he was going back on his word. Anger flares in his eyes and something else flickers there, something dangerously close to hatred. Ivan sees it and smoothes his features. 

“Just promise to stay, it’ll be easier this way,” Ivan pleads, voice soft. “I need you, you can’t leave.” 

Till wants to hate him, part of him does, he tied him up and then lied to him, but when he looks so sad, so wounded, it’s impossible to feel any anger towards Ivan. He wants to care for him, to be here for him, and for the millionth time that night Till realizes how extremely fucked he is because Ivan was right, Till agreed to this. He chose to stay, he chose to suck a psychopath’s fucking cock for Christ's sake. He had made his bed and he had to lie in it, he just desperately hoped it didn’t end badly, but how else could this end?

Chapter Text

Till stares at him, eyes wide in disbelief. He blinks a few times, feeling tears begin to prick at the corners of his eyes. He promised himself he wouldn’t cry, that he wouldn’t show any sign of weakness, but he can’t help himself. The fear coursing through his veins at this moment is crippling and it’s accompanied by an even worse feeling: betrayal. There was no reason for him to trust Ivan in the first place, they were complete strangers before this night and all the information he has since gathered has proven that Ivan is anything but trustworthy. But still, for some stupid reason, he allowed himself to feel hopeful, to believe him when he said he didn’t mean Till any harm. He fights the tears, but soon feels his lip begin to tremble and a sob rattle through his chest. 

“Hey, don’t cry,” Ivan says softly, reaching out to wipe away the tears that had begun to fall. Till draws back slightly and Ivan’s lip juts out in a pout. “I never said I was going to hurt you, that’s the last thing I want. All you have to do is listen to me and I promise I can make you the happiest you’ve ever been.” 

“W-why should I believe you? You’re a fucking psycho killer!” Till sobs. 

Ivan hums in acknowledgement, considering his words carefully before speaking. “That’s fair, talk is cheap, isn’t it? They say actions speak louder than words, what if I prove to you that I don’t mean you any harm?” 

His voice is velvet, soft and warm, inviting. It’s enough to draw Till in and when Ivan reaches out again, he doesn’t withdraw. Ivan wraps his arms around Till’s slim waist and easily transfers him to his lap, pulling him close to his chest and pressing his nose into Till’s neck. His hands begin to rub soothing circles onto Till’s chest, making him melt into Ivan’s touch slightly. 

“That’s it, relax,” he praises, pressing a gentle kiss to Till’s neck as his hands continue to work. “You’re so good, I never gave you that reward did I?” 

Ivan’s soft voice and soothing hands lull Till into a state of tranquility, all fear and trepidation melting away under his touch. Till knows he should be terrified, he should feel disgusted by this man’s touch and should want nothing more than to flee, but at this moment all he wants is to stay there and be handled this gently, like he could break. He has never felt such a soft touch, so loving and tender, there’s no way someone evil could possibly handle another human being with such tenderness. 

“So good for me,” Ivan coos, letting his hands trail lower down Till’s stomach. He tenses at the movement, but relaxes when Ivan gently shushes him. “I’ll take such good care of you, you’ll never want to leave me.” 

His fingers travel further downward, touch feather light and inviting. All rational thought has left Till’s brain and the only thought he is capable of forming at this moment is that he wants whatever it is Ivan is promising him. His eyes flutter shut and his head falls backwards against Ivan’s chest as the older one’s lithe fingers make quick work of his belt and the button on his jeans. Till hisses as Ivan’s fingers slip into his pants and gently trace over his length, applying the slightest bit of pressure, not enough to satisfy, but more than enough to tantalize. 

“Hmm,” Ivan hums as his fingers continue moving slowly and gently, it’s a tortuous sensation, teasing and it has Till at the brink of begging for more. “Do you like that?” 

Till nods, not trusting himself to open his mouth for fear of what sounds may escape his lips as he is teased mercilessly. “You have to use your words, Till, otherwise I won’t know,” Ivan replies softly, a smirk evident in his tone. This bastard was sadistic afterall, why wouldn’t he make Till beg for it? 

“Y-yes,” Till stammers, biting down on his lip to stop the groan threatening to escape his lips as Ivan suddenly applies more pressure. It’s still not enough and they both know that; this is a game and Till is definitely losing. He’s completely at Ivan’s mercy in more ways than one. 

“Do you want more?” He whispers, voice dipping dangerously low. Till nods and Ivan clicks his tongue, stopping the movement of his fingers, making Till whine at the loss of sensation. “Words, Till,” Ivan demands, voice stern but not threatening. 

“Y-yes, more,” Till breathes, “please.” 

“Oh, that was such a nice way to ask, how could I ever say no to that?” 

Satisfied, Ivan stops his teasing and finally slips his fingers under the waistband of Till’s boxers, taking him in his hand. This time Till can’t stifle the groan, the pressure of Ivan’s grip is delicious, intoxicating, and he wants, no needs , more. Ivan hums in appreciation of Till’s reaction, rewarding him with another soft kiss and then begins to slowly stroke Till’s length before pressing down with his thumb on the tip. 

“Oh, you’re already wet here,” Ivan muses, “I guess you do like this, that’s good, I’m glad.” 

His thumb slips in the precum and he gathers it, making his strokes more slippery, more pleasurable. Till moans softly as Ivan quickens his pace, bringing him dangerously close to the edge. Out of pure reflex, Till grabs onto Ivan’s arm that is wrapped around his waist and he squeezes tightly, a desperate attempt to ground himself as his head begins to swim in pleasure and his body tenses in anticipation. 

“Close already?” Ivan chuckles, it’s not teasing, just an observation passed without judgement. “Then let go, cum for me, please. I want to hear you say my name when you do.” 

Till groans as the familiar pressure builds and he feels the coil in his gut begin to tighten even further as it threatens to snap. He squeezes Ivan’s arm again, harder this time and grits his teeth. He is mere seconds from release and he is desperate, he would do or say anything to chase that high. 

“I-Ivan, p-please,” he moans breathily and Ivan gasps softly behind him, biting down on his shoulder as he pumps Till’s cock once more. “ Fuck, yes,” Till screams as his release coats Ivan’s fist. 

“Oh, you sound so pretty like that, Till, I could listen to you all day,” Ivan praises as he strokes Till once more, making the younger whine and shudder from overstimulation. “Such a good boy, I wonder how you taste.” 

Ivan withdraws his hand and brings it to his mouth, sticking his tongue out to lap up Till’s release coating it. His eyes flutter shut and he hums in appreciation. “Fucking divine,” Ivan moans. “God I want to devour you.” His voice is a low growl and he looks down at Till with eyes dark with lust. “And I’m going to, but that’ll have to wait. For now, let’s get you cleaned up and to bed.” 

Till blinks at him in disbelief, head hazy from the endorphins and eyes heavy from the exhaustion. He has never cum that quickly and the intensity of the orgasm paired with the shock from the events he has witnessed have him barely clinging to consciousness. He is shocked by Ivan’s gentleness, the juxtaposition between the coldness and indifference he displayed earlier and the warmth he is now showing Till is dizzying. Ivan scoops him into his arms and stands up, carrying him bridal style to the bathroom across the hall. He is careful to block Till’s view of the living room, preventing him from having to see the evidence of the crime committed earlier, not that there was really anything left to see. He sets Till down on the floor gently and begins to run a bath, testing the water to make sure it’s the right temperature before returning to help undress the younger man. Once the bath is drawn, Ivan lifts Till up like he weighs nothing and places him into the warm water before slipping in behind him. 

“What is this?” Till asks, head snapping around to look at Ivan who is situating himself behind him. 

“A bath?” Ivan asks innocently with a light laugh, wrapping his arms around Till’s waist and pulling him close to his chest. “I said I’d clean you up didn’t I?” 

“Why though? Why are you so nice to me?” 

Ivan doesn’t answer right away, but instead takes a washcloth and begins to gently wash Till’s back and shoulders. The warm water seeped into his bones, making him feel even more exhausted than before. 

“Isn’t it obvious?” Ivan says softly and when Till doesn’t respond he continues. “I like you, I told you I wouldn’t hurt you, that I’d take care of you, I’m only trying to prove that to you.” 

His voice and expression show no signs of hidden intentions. He looks at Till softly, lovingly, gently smiling as he continues to care for him. If the situation were different, this would be a dream, this is the kind of treatment people fantasize about, being cared for so lovingly, looked at so adoringly. Till wants to believe that Ivan means it and when he looks so earnest, it’s impossible not to believe him. 

“But how can you be so nice to me when you’re so…” he trails off, uncertain of how to finish the statement. 

Ivan laughs. “Evil?” He completes the thought for Till, looking down at him fondly, eyes crinkling with his smile and Till nods in agreement. “I don’t know, I’ve never really cared much for most people, never felt much of anything but disgust to be honest, but you, Till, you’re different somehow. I don’t want to hurt you, I really have no desire to do that at all.” 

His voice is soft, reassuring, and Till looks up to him in amazement. “Do you mean that?” 

“Yes, I do,” Ivan replies without hesitation, smiling as he does so. “So just relax, please, nothing is going to happen to you as long as you don’t leave me and I promise to make sure you never want to, I’ll protect you, take care of you, nothing bad will ever happen to you.” 

Ivan continues to wash him, using all the care in the world as he does so and Till wants to melt. He has never felt so loved, so cared for, and it all feels so surreal. Can this man be trusted? Absolutely not , Till thinks to himself, scolding himself for even wanting to believe such a thing, but he feels so drawn to him and as insane as it probably is, he doesn’t feel any fear whatsoever. He finds himself realizing he no longer wants to leave and he wonders what’s the worst that could happen if he does stay. Ivan has had every opportunity to hurt him tonight and he hasn’t even attempted to do so once, could he really be telling the truth? 

🔺

Till’s uncertainty only mounts once Ivan takes him to bed. He dresses him in clean clothing, clothing that smells like Ivan and the scent makes his head spin. He feels safe and warm, welcomed even, and that feeling only grows when Ivan slides into bed next to him and pulls him close to his chest, holding him tightly. 

“Everyone else has always left you, haven’t they, Till?” Ivan asks suddenly, making Till stiffen slightly. 

“What?” He asks, shocked by the question and the accuracy of it. 

“No one has ever stayed with you, not your friends, not your family,” Ivan trails, “I will, though.” 

“That’s not true, I have friends, I—” 

“Right, that girl, Mizi, is it?” Ivan asks and Till tenses at the mention of his friend’s name. 

“Don’t you dare hurt her or I swear to God I’ll kill you myself,” Till threatens, which makes Ivan laugh. 

“Relax, I said I didn’t want to hurt you, that includes hurting you emotionally, why do you think so little of me?” Ivan asks, sounding almost hurt. 

“I don’t know, because you’re a fucking murderer?” Till spits, glaring at Ivan who looks like a wounded puppy. 

“I only kill people who deserve it, she doesn’t, neither do you,” Ivan reassures, rubbing Till’s chest as he speaks. 

“Oh so you’re a hero?” Till says sarcastically, rolling his eyes, making Ivan chuckle. 

“No, nothing so noble. I’m a terrible person, but even bad people deserve love, don’t they?” 

The question catches Till off guard. Love? Who said anything about love? But he has a point, Till never thought about that before but even bad people can feel lonely. Maybe all Ivan was missing up until this point was someone to offer him affection, warmth, maybe if he had that sooner he wouldn’t have turned out the way he did. Suddenly an idea strikes him. 

“If I stay, you stop hurting people.” 

Ivan looks down at Till, smiling warmly. “I can’t promise that, you have no idea what it’s like. There’s something inside of me that craves violence, something that I can’t satisfy in any other way. This is who I am, who I’ve always been and nothing will change that,” Ivan sighs sadly. 

“Then what’s the point of me being here if it won’t change anything?” Till asks, genuinely curious and Ivan pauses, chewing his lip as he ponders his response. 

“To make me happy, I guess, and maybe to make you happy, don’t you at least think you deserve happiness?” Ivan answers honestly and it’s Till’s turn to pause and think. Does he deserve happiness? He had never given it much thought, but he supposes given his stalker tendencies that he wasn’t a much better person than Ivan was. 

“I don’t know,” Till answers honestly after some thought. 

“You do, you’re not a bad person, just lonely and loneliness drives people to do crazy things, but you don’t have to be alone anymore, never again,” Ivan promises, voice velvety and warm, pulling Till in an even tighter embrace. “Sleep, you’re tired, we can talk more in the morning.” 

Till wishes he could say that sleep didn’t come to him that night, that he stayed up agonizing over what he had done, but he didn’t. He fell asleep quickly, lulled to sleep by Ivan’s warm touch and tight embrace. It was the most comfortable he had ever felt and he slept deeply, not even dreaming or waking up once. It wasn’t until he heard stirring in the room that he awoke, only to find the room bathed in warm sunlight and Ivan standing with his back to him, fully dressed in fresh clothing. He must have heard Till move because he turns to Till and smiles at him warmly when he sees he’s awake. 

“Good morning, Till,” Ivan says sweetly, pressing a kiss to his forehead. “Sorry if I woke you, but you can go back to sleep. I just have something I have to take care of quickly, but I’ll be back soon.” 

“I have class today,” Till groans sleepily, rubbing his eyes. 

“Not today,” Ivan supplies and when Till looks at him confused, he continues. “You’re not going today, neither am I. I’m taking care of this and then coming home and we are spending the day together.” 

“What?”

“No school for you today,” Ivan laughs, kissing Till again. “Go back to sleep, I’ll be back.” 

“Where are you going? I’ll come with,” Till replies, sitting up. Ivan’s brows furrow in discontent at the suggestion. 

“Nope, you stay here,” Ivan insists. “Relax, no bindings this time, I’m just going to lock the door to the room.” 

“But–” 

“No buts, this is a compromise, prove to me I can trust you and we can talk about you leaving sometime soon, but not today,” Ivan says sternly. 

“You can trust me, I won’t tell anyone anything,” Till pleads. 

“Till stop acting like this is a punishment or I’m holding you prisoner, this will be good for you, I promise, you have to trust me, do that for me and I promise I will trust you soon,” Ivan promises, voice softening as he pushes back a few silver strands that had fallen onto Till’s forehead. “Please? Do that for me?” 

Ivan’s voice is pleading and he is looking at Till with wide eyes, looking very much like a child who has been denied their way and the look makes Till’s heart ache and his will crumble. 

“Fine, but get me food and let me go to the bathroom before you leave, I refuse to piss myself,” Till grumbles. 

“Deal!” Ivan says happily, standing and opening the bedroom door. “Go to the bathroom, shower, whatever you want and I’ll fix you something for breakfast.” 

Till pulls himself out of the bed and shuffles to the bathroom as Ivan begins hurrying around to ready things for him. Till shuts the door behind him and turns the lock, leaning heavily against it with a sigh. His mind is racing, how did he end up in this situation and why doesn’t he feel more concerned? He walks to the sink and splashes water on his face, bringing his eyes up to meet his reflection in the mirror. He stares contemplatively for a moment, scowling at himself for his stupidity. There are so many ways this could go wrong and instead of getting out, he just keeps getting pulled further in. He has no idea how long he stands there and stares, but he is pulled out of his thoughts by a knock on the door. 

“Till?” Ivan’s voice is clear from the otherside. “Why is the door locked?” 

“Uh, can’t a guy get some privacy?” He asks, embarrassed. 

Ivan laughs, “Fair enough, but hurry up or your food will get cold.” 

Till glances at his reflection one more time, shaking his head in disbelief. So fucking stupid, he thinks. He shuts off the water and turns to leave, unlocking the door. Ivan is there waiting for him, an easy smile on his face as he leans against the door frame. 

“Hi,” he greets warmly, still smiling. “Come, eat. It isn’t much, but it’s what I had. I'll stop at the store on my way home and buy some more food, so just tell me what you like.” 

“So considerate,” Till grumbles. That wasn’t a trait he would have ever prescribed to a serial killer, but his perception of them has been getting skewed ever since last night. 

“I do my best,” Ivan laughs. “My mother always told me how important it was to be a good host if you want people to feel welcomed in your home.” 

Till enters the room and stares at the breakfast Ivan had prepared for him. He sees his favorite breakfast foods spread out on a tray on the bed: a fried egg over rice with a slice of toast and a cup of black coffee. It’s a simple breakfast, it’s something everyone likes, there’s no way Ivan could have known it was what he prepared himself every morning. 

“I hope this is okay, like I said I didn’t have much ready, I wasn’t expecting company this morning,” Ivan says with a chuckle, “I didn’t even ask how you take your coffee, sorry, did you want anything for it?” 

“N-no, this is fine, thanks,” Till stammers. Ivan smiles at him warmly. 

“I left some water and snacks too, in case you get hungry before I get back, but I shouldn’t be long,” Ivan supplies. “Oh and I had to take your phone, sorry I’m sure you understand, but you can use whatever you want here so you don’t get bored.” Ivan gestures around the room to the books and the TV. 

“Such a considerate captor,” Till mutters under his breath, not intending for Ivan to hear, but he does and his face falls. 

“I’m not your captor, you’re not a prisoner, you’re a guest ,” he emphasizes the final word and scowls, but the expression is only there for a second before it is replaced by his usual smile. “Anyway, I won’t be gone long. Try to get some rest and I’ll see you soon.” 

He leans in and places a quick kiss on Till’s mouth before pulling away and drawing a hat over his face. He smiles and waves, turning to leave. Till opens his mouth to say something, but thinks better of it and just sits silently, listening as the door shuts and he hears the click of the lock, sealing him into this room for an indeterminable amount of time. He waits for a moment, listening to Ivan’s footsteps to ensure that he is gone before he begins to investigate the room. Once he is sure the other is gone, he gets up and begins inspecting the windows. 

He pulls on them, but they don’t budge. He searches for a latch, but is unable to find one. “Fuck,” he mutters, pushing his hair back with his hand. He searches the room for something he could break the door down with or perhaps break a window with, but finds nothing. He is stuck, completely trapped until Ivan returns. Sighing heavily, he plops onto the bed and stares at the food that had been prepared for him. He shouldn’t eat it, it could be poisoned, but at that moment his stomach growls, reminding him he hasn’t eaten in a very long time. “Fuck it, he’s probably going to kill me sooner or later anyway.” 

Till inspects the food before eating it, searching for any sign that it could have been tampered with in some way, but has no idea what he would even be looking for. His stomach growls again at the scent of the food and he shrugs, resigning himself to his fate. The food is good, it’s simple, but it’s better than anything he could have made himself and he’s grateful for it. The whole situation makes no sense, if Ivan wanted to kill him he could have done so last night, he had countless opportunities, but instead of killing him, he helped him, he was intimate with him, he was kind to him. It is unsettling to say the least and thinking about it is quickly giving him a headache. Ivan was clearly insane, of course his actions would make no sense to someone else, it was pointless to try to determine why he was doing any of this. 

He finishes his breakfast and cleans up to the best of his abilities, setting everything on the desk in the corner of the room and throws himself on the bed. It’s comfortable and smells like Ivan. Till wraps himself in the blanket and buries his face in the pillow, inhaling the scent and sighing. As fucked up as all of this is, Till can’t help but feel somewhat grateful. All things considered, this was the kindest someone has been to him in a long time and he has never felt so welcomed in someone else’s house, so wanted. He groans in frustration and burrows into the blankets, hiding from the light in the room and willing himself to sleep so he doesn’t have to think anymore. 

🔺

Ivan smiles at his phone as he watches the live feed. Till has made himself a cocoon out of blankets and has effectively shielded himself from the outside world. So cute , he thinks to himself. He ate the food which is good, he was worried he wouldn’t, fearing that it was poisoned or drugged or something (it wasn’t, of course, but Till couldn’t know that for sure). This was a sign of trust, that despite everything, he was willing to accept Ivan’s care and this thought made hope bloom in his chest, maybe this could work after all. He locks his phone and returns it to his pocket with a sigh. He pulls his hat down lower over his face and exits his car. This is the first of many stops he has to make and he needs to be quick if he wants to get back to Till before long. 

As eager as he is to return to the man in his room, Ivan can’t rush or risk being sloppy, there is too much at stake. He needs to take the proper precautions. He has carefully planned where he would dispose of each body part. He removes the plastic bag from his trunk and smiles at a few people passing by, offering them a nod and a wave which they return eagerly. The bright side of being conventionally attractive was that people rarely ever suspected him of anything, it saved his ass on more than one occasion and made it much easier for him to hide his true intentions. He throws the bag over his shoulder and heads to the landfill, throwing it into the pile of garbage in similarly colored bags. It’s the day before the trash was set to be sent to the incinerator which means this is the perfect day to dispose of evidence since after today it will no longer exist. He heads back to his car and begins his journey to the next stop. He has memorized the locations of all garbage disposal sites and their schedules for this very reason, he doesn’t have to rely on maps and has disabled his location services so that no one could trace him. 

He makes ten more stops, taking much longer than he would’ve liked, but he decided he couldn’t be too careful given the high risk nature of his latest victim. He had been covering her tracks since last night. He made sure no one knew she was going out with him, he deleted her social media account from which the messages had been sent and deleted the chat. He checked her messages when they were at the restaurant and she hadn’t told anyone she was going out with him. He had asked her not to but he didn’t trust that she would listen, he was pleasantly surprised to find out that she was naive enough to follow his directions. At dinner, he stole her phone, slipping it into his pocket after disabling her own GPS so her location couldn’t be tracked any further than the restaurant. Then he destroyed it, smashing it to pieces before he disposed of her body. He had effectively made sure she would disappear without a trace. He took one other measure to cover his ass before destroying her phone. He sent a message to her friends and her family, claiming that she met someone and was leaving the country, that they shouldn’t try to get in contact with her, before blocking all their numbers so they couldn’t get in contact with her. He then hacked into her account and turned off her cell service so the number would be unreachable even if anyone tried. The plan wasn’t full proof, but he did his best and up until this point, these steps had proved successful in previous situations. 

As he gets ready to head home, he pulls out his phone to check the live feed once more and sees that Till has emerged from his cocoon and is sitting on the bed, hair mussed by sleep and eyes heavy. He looks so cute, so innocent. He yawns and stretches, glancing around the room and then getting up to look around. He checks out the windows, Till can see outside but he has no way of knowing that they’re mirrored: he can see outside but no one can see in, but even so Ivan lives on the second floor and no one could see in even if they were normal windows. He walks over to the bookcase and runs his fingers along the spines of the books displayed there, grabbing one or two that pique his interest and flipping through them before returning them to their places. Finally, he finds out he seems entranced by and takes it back to the bed, sitting down to properly read it. Ivan squints to make out the title, but he can’t see with the resolution of the video. He smiles, nonetheless, Till seems comfortable, if not a little bit bored, but not unhappy. Yeah, maybe this will work out , Ivan thinks with a smile and shifts his car into drive to return to his apartment. 

🔺

Ivan was gone a total of three hours, long enough for Till to get a little bit stir crazy, but not enough to begin panicking. He leaps out of bed when he hears the front door open and then stands eagerly in front of the door, waiting for Ivan. He doesn’t have to wait long because a moment later the lock clicks and the door is pushed open, revealing a smiling Ivan. 

“Till! Hi, I missed you,” he gushes excitedly, quickly wrapping Till in a tight embrace. The silver-haired man stiffens at the touch, but eventually returns it, patting Ivan on the back. “I didn’t go to the store because I was already gone for so long, but we can order food, whatever you want!” 

Till nods in agreement, stepping away from the raven and shifting uncomfortably. 

“What’s wrong?” Ivan asks in a concerned tone, “Are you feeling sick?” He leans in and touches Till’s forehead, feeling for a fever and Till swats his hand away. 

“No, I’m fine, I just…what do you want from me here?” 

“Isn’t that obvious?” Ivan asks. 

“Would I be asking if it was?” Till asks dryly, glaring at Ivan, earning a smirk from the other. 

“No, I guess not,” Ivan concedes. “I want a relationship, I want you.” 

“W-what?” Till stammers, cheeks flushing red at the suggestion. 

“Isn’t that what you wanted too? Isn’t that why you followed me? Found out all that information about me? Didn’t you like me?” Ivan asks, grabbing Till’s hands as he speaks. “Because I like you, I like you so much and I’ll prove it to you.” 

Till opens his mouth to speak, to ask what the fuck he means by that, but Ivan is quicker than he is. He is on Till in a second, grabbing his face gently and pressing his lips against the other’s in a searing kiss. Till tries to pull away, but Ivan’s grip is strong and he pulls him back in quickly, deepening the kiss, gently separating Till’s lips with his tongue and slipping into his mouth, earning a soft groan from the silver-haired man. They continue like this for a few more moments, tongues working together before Till comes to his senses and pushes Ivan backwards. He’s breathless and flushed, but sudden rage has overtaken his body. 

“What the fuck is that even supposed to mean? How can you say you like me when you flirt with girls all the time?” Till spits and Ivan begins to laugh hysterically, tearing overflowing his lashes with the intensity of the laughter. 

“Till, I don’t even like girls,” Ivan chokes out between laughter. “They flirt with me and I just try to be nice to save face.” 

“W-what?” Till stammers, blush returning even more fiercely than before. 

“Yeah, even touching that bitch yesterday made my skin crawl,” Ivan admits, caressing Till’s face. “Touching you is amazing, it feels so right, like it’s my sole purpose in life to make you feel good and loved. I’ve never felt with anyone else, especially not a girl. And I’ve never wanted to do anything I want to do with you to anyone else either.” 

“O-oh,” Till stutters. “C-cool.” 

“Cool?” Ivan laughs. “Is that the green light to keep going, Till?” Ivan’s voice dips low again, pure velvet and honey, soft and sweet, sultry and suggestive. “I can make you feel so good, better than anyone else ever could.” 

“Oh yeah?” Till replies, trying to sound bored despite his racing heart. “I’d like to see you try.” 

“Hmm, is that a challenge?” Ivan smirks, eyelids drooping and eyes darkening dangerously. “Don’t start something you’re not willing to finish.” 

As he was speaking, Ivan had closed the distance between them and they were standing chest-to-chest. Ivan backed Till up against the bed and gently pushed, sending the younger man toppling backwards onto the bed. In a second, Ivan has him caged in, strong thighs tight around his hips and his hands framing his face. Ivan leans down and crashes his lips against Till’s. The younger returns the kiss hungrily, taking everything Ivan has to give him. Ivan slips his hand under Till’s shirt and begins running his fingers over Till’s chest, earning a whimper from the younger when his fingers brush against his nipples. Suddenly, Ivan pulls away, smiling sadistically down at Till. 

“Wow, I guess you aren’t all talk after all,” Ivan replies impressed. “But, I think I want to make you suffer just a little bit more, I gave you a taste last night, keep being good to me and you’ll get so much more, my love.” 

Ivan kisses Till’s forehead gently and stands up. Till sits up quickly, threats posed on his tongue and Ivan laughs. 

“You’re so worked up from a kiss, I can’t wait to see how you get when I finally ruin you. I’m going to take you apart piece by piece and you’re going to beg me for it, but first let’s get you some dinner, hmm?” Ivan’s voice is playful, teasing. 

“You’re an asshole, you know that?” Till spits, glaring up at Ivan who merely chuckles. 

“Yeah, I know, but the teasing makes this so much more fun, trust me, you’ll see. Get up,” Ivan stands and offers Till his hand to help him up which he begrudgingly takes. 

“Sadistic prick,” Till grumbles. 

“You flatter me, Till,” Ivan taunts, still smirking. “What do you want to eat? I have to feed you before I fuck you so you don’t pass out on me.” 

Till’s face flushes from his cheeks to his chest and Ivan laughs hysterically again, clearly enjoying the torment he is inflicting. “Stop being so cute and cooperate with me, will you?” 

“Nope.” 

“It’s a good thing I like a challenge then, isn’t it?” Ivan coos in his sultry voice and Till shoulders past him into the living room, followed by a still laughing Ivan.