The Beast Within

by S. C. Stephens

  “You look great, sis,” I told her, pulling apart my tie again.

  Nika glanced over at me, and a faint smile touched her painted lips. “Need some help?”

  Frustrated over the tie and nervous about the potential sex, I tossed my hands into the air and gave up on the impossible task of tie tying. “Yeah,” I mumbled. Nika walked over to me, and I couldn’t help but smile at how pretty she was. With the deep color of her dress, the way it flared out at her hips to swirl around her ankles, she reminded me of an old-time movie star—Grace Kelly or something. It suited her. Nika was sort of an old soul.

  “I mean it. You really do look great,” I told her again.

  Grabbing my tie, she made a couple of adjustments, then pushed it up into a perfect knot. Patting it down, she responded, “Thanks. So do you. You’re like James Bond.” I was wearing solid black everything—shirt, jacket, tie, pants. The combination had been Arianna’s suggestion. She said the monochromatic look was dramatic, and suited my coloring. She said it made my eyes pop.

  Thinking about Arianna reminded me what was going to happen in a few hours…and the fact that I hadn’t really talked to Nika about it yet. She knew Arianna was officially my girlfriend, but she didn’t know what was possibly going down tonight. “So,” I began, conscious of the fact that my parents were behind their soundproof door, but they wouldn’t be for long. “Arianna wants to…come over tonight, after the dance.”

  Nika nodded, like she wasn’t too surprised. “Okay,” she murmured.

  Biting my lip, I ran my hand through my hair. “Later, after everyone’s sleeping…she wants to…she thought it would be a good time to…” I sighed, then closed my eyes. “She wants to have sex,” I bluntly stated. Embarrassment poured through me, and I kept my eyes tightly sealed.

  Surprise burst through Nika, followed by sadness. “Oh…I thought you’d wait longer.”

  Cracking open an eye, I risked a look at her. Seeing the resignation on her face made me sigh again. “I thought we would too…but Arianna says she’s ready now, and if she’s ready, then I’m…” Pressing my lips together, I halted the admission. Nika didn’t need to hear me say I was emotionally and physically ready to have sex with my girlfriend; she knew exactly how I felt about Arianna.

  A small weary smile graced Nika’s lips, and she gave me another small nod. She was giving me permission, or at least her blessing. And with all the crap she was going through right now, that meant a lot to me. This could actually happen.

  My stomach was in knots just thinking about it, and I began to get really anxious. Could Arianna and I pull this off without my parents finding out? Could we do it without Nika waking up and feeling it? It was Arianna’s first time too…would it hurt her? What if I messed it up? What if I completely sucked at it? What if it was so incredibly bad that Arianna never wanted to see me again? What if, what if, what if…

  Nika lightly thumped my chest. “Stop worrying, it will be fine.” She smiled at me encouragingly, even as a trace of horror flashed through her at the thought of me sleeping with her best friend.

  Releasing a quick breath, I nodded. “Thanks.” Peeking up at her, I whispered, “Thank you for being so cool about this. I know it’s not easy for you.”

  She shrugged. “One of us should be happy.” Her smile diminished, swallowed by sadness. “I wish we’d had a chance to talk to Gabriel about our bond. But…other things…sort of…came up.”

  Feeling her pain like a knife to my chest, I wrapped my arms around her and held her tight. I tried as hard as I could to radiate warmth and caring into her. She was loved. She wasn’t alone. Everything would be okay, someday. Nika sniffled, then pushed me back. “I’m fine. Stop worrying so much about…everything.”

  Smirking at her, I grabbed my jacket off the bed. “Not gonna happen, Nick.”

  Nika gave herself one last look in the mirror. Thanks to her artfully applied makeup, nobody at school would be able to see the dark circles under her eyes or the paleness of her cheeks; she hadn’t been sleeping well lately. Truthfully, she hadn’t been sleeping well since Hunter’s conversion. When she seemed satisfied with her appearance, she turned to me and frowned. “Guess we should get this over with, huh?”

  Mom and Dad exited their room the same time Nika and I left ours. They were dressed to the nines in formal wear that was going to top every other couple there—the coat of Dad’s tux even had tails. Mom and Dad claimed chaperoning was for our protection, but I had a feeling getting dressed up was the real reason they’d wanted to go. I scoffed at Dad’s outfit when he walked by. “Where’s your cane and top hat, Dad?”

  Mom gave me a disapproving frown. Her white gloves went all the way up her arms. She was even wearing a freaking tiara. Were they intentionally trying to be embarrassing? “Be nice. He looks amazing.”

  Dad bowed and kissed Mom’s hand. “As do you, my dear.” Nika let out a soft laugh, and I groaned. God, they were trying to be embarrassing.

  The doorbell rang then, momentarily saving me. I was just about to blur downstairs to answer it when Dad grabbed my arm. “Trey is with her,” he admonished.

  With a sigh, I hopped down the steps at a normal, human pace. In my excitement to see my date, it had nearly slipped my mind that Trey had offered to pick her up. When I pulled back the heavy front door, I saw them waiting with smiles on their faces. I couldn’t take my eyes off Arianna. She looked like a vision. Her dress was solid black, just like my outfit, with six thin spaghetti-sized straps that crisscrossed across her exposed back. It was super tight, and emphasized every God-given curve in such a way that my own clothes were starting to feel a little tight. Wow…she looked amazing.

  With a drink in her hand and a smirk on her lips, Starla walked around the corner. “Well, son, are you going to let your date in, or mentally undress her at the door all night?”

  I flushed with color as I shot Starla a wicked glance. Since Trey believed Starla was our mom, we’d called her over to see us off. Starla had been a little irritated about the inconvenience, but she seemed to be enjoying herself now. Taking a sip of something that smelled strongly of alcohol, she waved Arianna into the room.

  Trey stepped inside a second later. Pointing at Starla with both hands, he told her, “Hey, Mrs. A…lookin’ hot.”

  Starla gave him a genuine smile as she sank back into her hip in a pose that was both casual and seductive. “Why, thank you, Trey. You’re not so bad yourself.”

  She eyed him up and down as Mom and Dad walked into the room. Mom frowned at Starla’s inappropriate remark, and told her, “Starla, want to get some pictures of the kids before we leave?” Twisting her head to Mom, Starla shrugged like immortalizing the moment didn’t much matter to her.

  Trey, for once, wasn’t wearing his signature stocking cap, and my sister did a double-take when she saw him. He was tall and a little gangly, but he cleaned up all right. While I didn’t think my sister would ever develop feelings for Trey, I hoped against hope that maybe tonight would start something between the pair. At this point, I’d take Nika being with anyone other than Hunter.

  Trey’s eyes lit up when he saw Nika. Not wanting him to push her away by saying something stupid, I elbowed him and murmured, “Behave.” He rolled his eyes at me, then put one hand behind his back and extended the other to Nika. He reminded me of a butler, and I forced myself not to laugh.

  Starla took a half dozen pictures of our group, then the four of us kids headed out to eat. My parents were skipping that part since eating wasn’t something they could do anymore. They could fake it, of course, but I had to imagine that was really annoying. I think they’d declined out of politeness as well. They were giving Nika and me some tiny moment of privacy with our dates, and that was probably all we would get tonight, unfortunately.

  As I escorted Arianna to Trey’s car, a ratty Ford Escort that he was borrowing from his parents, I told her, “You look amazing. No, amazing isn’t strong enough. You look…”

  I wracked my feeble b
rain for a word that beat amazing, but I blanked. An adorable smirk on her lips, Arianna supplied the answer for me. “Edible?” she said.

  I tripped on my own feet, making Trey laugh as I stumbled. Feeling my embarrassment, Nika patted my back as she climbed into the front seat. “Goodnight, Mrs. Adams!” Trey yelled, starting the car.

  Starla waved from the door and murmured, “It’s Ms. Adams. Won’t you ever get that right?”

  Mom sniggered at Starla’s sullen comment as she cuddled into Dad’s side and waved goodbye to us with a gloved hand. Trey closed his window, then ran his hands back and forth over his knees, apparently as excited about this as I was. “This is gonna be awesome,” he mused.

  Grabbing Arianna’s hand in the backseat, I silently agreed with him. Yes, this was definitely going to be awesome. I hoped. God, please don’t let me mess this night up.

  After eating at a noisy pizza place downtown where we were all seriously overdressed, the four of us headed to the dance. Right on time, Mom and Dad pulled into the parking lot seconds behind us. Trey thought that was pretty miraculous, but Nika and I knew better. It was easy to coordinate timing when the people you were meeting were constantly pinging their location to you.

  The gym was thumping and alive with music and gyrating bodies by the time we got inside. My parents checked in and disappeared into the throngs to observe the student body. Their main job here was to separate couples who were dirty dancing, and to check the punch for alcohol. Basically, safeguard the virtue of the innocents. That was what the school expected from them at any rate. In actuality, what they would most likely be doing was slow dancing with each other while keeping mental tabs on Nika and me all evening.

  Doing my best to forget that they’d be watching my every move, I turned in my tickets and stood in line for photos. Arianna and I were practically glowing in our picture, arms securely wrapped around each other, but Nika’s smile was clearly forced when it was her turn to pose with Trey; she stood at least a foot and a half away from him too. I gave her a good dose of empathy, but she shooed me off with her hand, whispering, “Stop worrying, go have fun.”

  I nodded at her, then turned to my date. Practicing the gallantry that effortlessly oozed from my father, I extended my palm to Arianna and inclined my head over to the packed dance floor. Arianna giggled as she accepted my hand. Just holding her fingers warmed me. She warmed me. She accepted everything about me—my true nature, my family, the odd connection I had with them. There was only one thing I hadn’t told her about yet.

  My emotional bond with Nika. It was an odd thing to describe to someone, and I wasn’t sure how Arianna would take it. Would it freak her out to know that Nika felt every moment of joy I felt? That Nika knew when the joy I was feeling slipped into something more? A part of me really wanted to confess it to her, especially before we had sex—tonight—but the larger part of me was scared. Arianna had been really accepting up to this point, but if it ever got to be too much and she broke up with me, Halina would erase her mind and I’d lose her forever. That wasn’t a risk I wanted to take right now. I’d tell her…later.

  A dazzling amount of colored lights swirled around the room in haphazard patterns. The bass of the music reverberated in my chest, rattling my sensitive ears. Streamers littered the floor, crinkling under my feet. Stranded silver and white balloons were being popped by pointed heels and heavy shoes. Everywhere I turned there was another dizzying burst of color as the twisting and turning outfits around me clashed with each other. It made the solid blackness of Arianna’s dress a source of refreshment. The room was sensory overload for a vampire, but she was my solace.

  By the time we settled into the middle of the packed crowd, a slow song was playing. Arianna laced her arms around my neck while mine slid around her waist. Pulling me tight, she gazed up at me and threaded her fingers through my hair. The entire world fell away as I stared into her love-filled, hazel eyes. They were the perfect mixture of sea-green flecked with golden brown, and as I got lost in them, I stopped caring about the swirling colors and deafening music. I stopped worrying about my sister, my parents. I stopped thinking about Hunter. I stopped caring about Hunter’s father, the vampire hunter who knew about my family and would one day come back to finish us off, once he recovered from the horror of what he’d done to his son.

  All of it faded away as I held my girl in my arms. Wishing we were alone, I lowered my lips to hers, and let her feel how much I cared about her, how much I loved her. And I knew it was love. It was too intense to be anything else. I would do anything for her. I would die for her. Over and over again, I would die for her.

  It was easy to feel how much she cared for me in the way her mouth moved against mine. There was meaning in the softness. A declaration of I’ll never hurt you in the tenderness. The gentle melding of our bodies was a physical proclamation of our mutual pledge to never hurt each other. We were safe together. Complete.

  I fully expected my parents to pull us apart, but they never did, and we remained lip-locked for the rest of the song. Most of the next one, too, which was sort of odd, since it was a fast song. Finally, laughing, Arianna pulled away and told me, “Shouldn’t we be dancing at a dance?” Whispering in my ear, she added, “We can do that stuff later.”

  I instantly wished it was later, but I did as my girl asked and attempted some form of awkward dancing. I wasn’t as seamless at it as she was, but I soon lost myself in the beat. We turned, dipped, shimmied, and grooved for the longest time—it felt like hours, although it could have just been minutes. I wasn’t sure. Even though I knew the night was only going to get better afterward, I never wanted it to end. Nika was moderately happy too. I could feel her on the other side of the gym, and she seemed to be having a good time for once. I was grateful for it, and glad that, if anything, Trey was keeping her mind off Hunter.

  Then I felt something that made my heart drop. Nika’s too.

  Looking at the far wall behind me, I muttered, “Damn it.”

  Arianna didn’t hear me, but me suddenly standing still got her attention. “What’s wrong?”

  Sighing, I looked back at her. “My grandmother is here with…Hunter.” Sighing again, I scoured the gym for Nika. She was staring at the same far wall. Her eyes were wide; they shimmered in the rotating lights.

  Arianna glanced over at her friend. “Oh…Nika.” Looking back at me, she asked, “Why is he here?”

  Curling my hands into fists, I glared at the wall separating my sister and me from Hunter. “I don’t know. He told her they couldn’t be together, told her she should let him go. He broke her heart, again, and now he’s here?” Fire in my eyes, I looked back at Arianna. “What an asshole,” I hissed.

  So much for letting my sister move on.

  THE LIGHTS WERE disorienting, the music was loud, and my brother’s emotions were soaring into a heightened state of bliss. I didn’t really want to be here, but I’d promised Arianna I’d go, so here I was, dancing to a song whose lyrics were—I kid you not—bite me and I’ll bite you back.

  But as I watched my date move around the floor, I started relaxing and having fun. Not wanting anyone’s arms around me tonight, I’d made sure Trey and I sat out the slow song that had been playing when we’d first hit the dance floor, but I was feeling better now, and I let Trey grab my hand and twirl me around.

  Trey was sort of awkward, like an oversized puppy who hadn’t quite grown into its body yet, but he was surprisingly graceful as he danced. He was also surprisingly sober. His eyes were clear, and there was only a faint odor of cologne about him—a scent I much preferred to pot.

  He kicked a couple of stray balloons into the air. One of them smacked some poor, dancing girl square in the face. Trey quickly spun back around toward me before her date could figure out who’d assaulted her. It was then, while Trey was laughing, that I noticed something that I hadn’t before: he had a really nice smile.

  He was also sort of cute without his signature stocking hat in place. Since he
wore that damn thing practically all year long, even when it was ninety degrees, I rarely ever saw his hair. While some longer strands hung down almost to his shoulders, the bulk of it was a mess of short, shaggy, blond layers. I imagined he generally did nothing to arrange those layers, but tonight he had some sort of gel or spray holding each piece in place. It was really kind of…attractive.

  Attractive was such a difficult word for me to associate with Trey. I’d never seen him that way before. I wasn’t getting butterflies or anything, not like when I was around Hunter, but I was enjoying the view.

  By the time another slow song started playing, I was feeling comfortable enough with Trey that I didn’t push him away, or tell him we had to go sit down. He had just pulled me into his body when the song changed tempo. A look of disappointment crossed his features, and he started to point to the bleachers, where a group of kids were sitting. In answer to his silent question, I ran my fingers up the stiff fabric of his tuxedo jacket, and looped them around his neck. In the car, Trey had given me a red rose corsage that matched a flower pinned to his jacket. The smell next to my nose was heavenly, and I smiled at Trey as I looked up at him.

  He swallowed, like he was suddenly nervous, then he placed his hands on my back. I expected him to grab my butt, since he could be an obnoxious flirt, but he didn’t. His fingers stayed at a respectable level.

  While he looked down at me, I reminisced about his reaction to finding out what my brother and I really were. He’d instantly accepted us, thought what we were was “cool.” He hadn’t been afraid, not for a second, not even when we were in the middle of real danger. He’d been so brave that night, and I suddenly wished Halina had let him remember just how courageous he’d been.

  Leaning down a little, he told me, “You’re really pretty.”

  Compliments from Trey were nothing new. He joked that I was hot at least three times a day. Resisting the urge to roll my eyes, I replied, “Thanks.”