“Remember that when I come back asking for more details.”
I let out a big sigh of relief after Fiona had left. I had actually enjoyed talking to her but I felt like talking anymore about Spencer would jinx the whole thing. We'd only been out together once and Fiona was already planning what type of suit I should wear for the wedding.
I only hoped he would call soon.
Chapter Fifteen
Spencer
I thought I would be fine after Henry left but I was dead wrong.
The hunger returned with a vengeance. I had made it a few hours and felt pretty normal. But then that thirst resonated throughout my entire body. By the time it got really bad, all the blood banks were closed.
I wouldn't be able to rob any until the next morning and I didn't know if I could make it that long. The hunger had never been so bad before. It was so debilitating that I could barely think straight. My body felt so weak that I had to lay down and not move.
My skin began to sweat buckets. My eyes went red.
Henry being around only masked the symptoms. He didn't fully take away the hunger. If he had stayed all day like I wanted him to, I might've died the moment he finally left.
I needed blood and I needed it fast. Getting to my normal hunting grounds would be almost impossible in my position. No guy or girl at a club would be even remotely interested in me for me to get close enough to feed.
It was after midnight and my building would most likely be deserted. Roaming the halls looking for a victim would sap the rest of my energy.
Calling Henry for help crossed my mind. But that would mean confessing my deepest darkest secret. I knew I'd have to tell him eventually if I ever wanted any real future with him. But now it was too soon. He'd run straight for the hills if she saw me for who I truly was.
I had to find another way.
My only option left was to pick someone off the street and hopefully not be seen. It was a huge risk but one I'd have to take.
I stood up and the room immediately began to spin. I put my hand on the kitchen counter to steady myself. This was worse than a hangover. It was more like being drunk and having a jackhammer in your head at the same time.
I took a few wobbly steps to the door and knew that my mission was futile. Even if I did make it outside onto the streets, I had no strength left. It would be next to impossible for me to grab someone and drain them.
I fell onto the hardwood floor and flipped over on my back and stared up at the ceiling. I tried to control my breathing to keep the hunger at bay. It was the only thing I could do to try and stay alive.
Now Henry was my only hope.
I pulled out my cellphone and dialed his number off my hand. I put the phone up to my ear and waited for it to start ringing. I couldn't keep my eyes open. The call began to ring. I just needed to stay awake long enough to tell Henry to get over here immediately.
Everything went to black.
–
A banging noise woke me up. The sun was out and blinding me. I couldn't remember what had happened or how long I'd been asleep. I saw the phone next to my head and remembered that I was in the middle of calling Henry.
I couldn't move my limbs anymore. The need to feed had overtaken me. My brain was only working at ten percent. Based on that I knew I had been asleep for a couple days. It wouldn't be much longer now until I took my eternal rest.
There was another banging and I realized that it had come from the door. I tried to reach out for it but couldn't. I opened my mouth and it was drier than a desert. I tried to speak but only a whining sound came out.
You can do this, Spencer. Whoever is on the other side of the door will be your next meal. You just need to speak.
I opened my mouth again and forced out the word help. I didn't know if it was loud enough until the door handle turned. Thank the gods I never locked my front door.
Henry came running in. “Spencer! What happened?”
No. Not you. Anybody but you.
Henry came to my side and propped my head up. “What's wrong, Spencer? Are you hurt?”
I could hear his veins pulsing for me. “Blood...”
“What did you say? I didn't hear you. Maybe I should call 911.”
“Blood,” I said again softly, using every last ounce of energy.
Henry leaned over me and put his ear up to my mouth. His neck was dangerously close to me. There was no resisting it.
My hand moved without much effort and I placed it on the back of his head. I pulled him closer to me and dug my fangs into his sweet flesh.
Henry screamed as the blood flowed down my throat. He tried to fight me off but it was no use. My mind awakened, my strength returned. He was no match for me.
A voice deep down called out to me, “You've had enough. Don't kill him.”
I ignored it and continued to feed, relishing in the taste. Blood had never tasted so good.
You're going to kill him.
The image of Henry popped into my head. Our long night together flashed before my eyes.
The fiery red in my eyes dissipated and I released Henry from my grip. He fell to the ground, lifeless and unmoving, blood slowly leaking from two holes in his neck.
My heart began to flutter. “What have I done?” I said.
Chapter Sixteen
Henry
A nightmare.
I walked into Spencer's apartment to find a living monster. It attacked me and I wasn't able to get away. He had me.
I woke up not in my parents' house. I looked around and realized I was laying in Spencer's bed. The sudden realization hit me right in the face.
It wasn't a nightmare. It all came back to me now.
Spencer had called me and I had missed it. When I called back all I got was his voicemail. I thought nothing of it and the next day I tried calling him again. But still nothing. That's when I began to get worried. I didn't know if he was purposely trying to avoid me or something bad had happened.
The morning after that I decided that I was going to go over to his place and give him a piece of my mind. Nobody could treat me that way.
What greeted me at the door thought was something out of a horror movie. Spencer looked pale and dead. When I went to check if he was still alive, the monster attacked me. I blacked out after that.
Was the monster Spencer?
All I knew was that I needed to get out now before the monster returned. I sat up in bed and felt woozy. My hand instinctively went to my neck and I winced from the pain. I pulled my hand away and a little bit of blood was left on it.
I got up and went for the door, stumbling over a pair of Spencer's shoes. I put my ear to the door and listened. If the monster was still out there, I'd have to find another way to escape.
No sound. No movement out there. The monster might've gone away. I took a deep breath and turned the door knob.
Spencer stood in the kitchen, behind the counter, stirring a pot. His face lost all its blood when he saw me.
“Henry...you're awake.”
I didn't know what was going on but I needed to get out of there. I looked for the door and knew that I wouldn't be able to make it before Spencer would pounce on me.
Spencer took a step towards me. I ran back into his bedroom and closed the door. I fumbled at the handle until I was able to lock it.
His voice came from the other side, calm and collected. “Can we talk, Henry?” he asked.
“What are you going to do with me?” I yelled through the door.
“Nothing. I just want to explain what happened.”
“You mean how you sucked my blood like a vampire? You're an abomination.”
“I deserve that. I never meant to harm you. And I should have told you about my problem sooner. But things were going so well and you have this power over me.”
I stood there just staring at the door just waiting for Spencer to knock it down in a display of super strength.
He continued, “My body can't survive without blood, Henr
y.”
“And you kill people for it?”
“No of course not. I do occasionally drain people but they never die.”
My head was swirling. Was all this really happening? Was Spencer really a vampire?
But that was a fantasy. Vampire didn't exist in the real world.
“Are you a vampire?” I asked him.
“Not in traditional sense,” he replied.
I sat down on the edge of his mattress. “What the fuck is going on here.”
“You're special, Henry. When I'm around you, I don't feel the hunger anymore. It's something that's never happened to me before. I don't know why it's happening but I've never felt better when you're around.”
I pinched my cheek and howled from the pain. This wasn't a dream.
“Listen, Henry. I'm not going to hurt you. I swear it. I can open this door if I wanted to. I have the key out here.”
I cursed silently. “And once I open the door, you're going to use your vampire powers to brainwash me into your slave.”
Spencer laughed on the other side. “That would be a nice power to have.”
He sure was acting normal for a vampire. But could I trust him?
“Just please open the door and I'll explain everything.”
I don't know what came over me but I didn't feel scared anymore. I don't know if it was Spencer's soothing voice or the fact that there wasn't any way I could escape.
I opened the door and Spencer was sitting on the ground. I walked back to the bed and sat down. He stood up immediately and walked in. “Are you all right?”
“I feel lightheaded and I think I'm losing my mind.”
Spencer pointed at my neck. “Does it still hurt?”
“What kind of question is that? Of course it fucking hurts.”
Spencer hung his head low. “I'm sorry, Henry. I was on the brink of death. If I didn't get blood soon I would've certainly died.”
I rubbed my tired eyes. “This is taking a lot to process. So you don't go around killing people and draining them of blood?”
Spencer looked me in the eyes and I had to turn away. “I never kill them. I take just enough blood to keep me going.”
“So that's what you're doing at the club.”
Spencer nodded his head in shame.
“And you've never been caught before? How do your victims not report this to the police?”
“They usually believe it was all dream.”
I pointed at my neck. “Does this look like a dream to you?”
Spencer grasped my hand. My instinct was to pull it away but he was so warm. His holding my hand calmed me down a little.
“I do what I need to do to survive, Henry.”
“And there's no other way to get blood? Can't you get blood at a hospital or something?”
“They don't usually give that out for free. I've had to steal from blood banks when times got tough.” Spencer squeezed my hand. “But you don't understand. When I'm around you, I don't feel the hunger.”
“And look what happened when I left,” I replied.
“I don't have all the answers but I know what we have between us is special. I need your help, Henry.”
Chapter Seventeen
Spencer
Henry was taking the news rather well. I was scared that he was going to try and fight me off. Run for the door and never be seen or heard from again.
But he was sitting on my bed still. Understandably distraught but willing to talk things through. That's more than I could ever ask for.
“I need some time to think about all this,” Henry said.
“I understand. I'll give you all the time you need.”
Henry stood up and swayed from side to side. I grabbed his forearm to steady her. “I'm sorry, I still feel a little lightheaded.”
“Lay back down and I'll get you some orange juice.”
I could tell he wanted to go but his body wasn't allowing him. He plopped back down on the bed as I went to the kitchen.
I returned with a glass of orange juice to find Henry sound asleep on the bed again. I put the glass down on the wood floor next to the mattress. He was exhausted and so was I. But I couldn't assume to sleep next to him on the bed. I didn't want him to wake up and get scared.
I went back to the living room with a blanket and took a spot on the couch. It didn't take me long to fall to sleep.
–
I awoke as the sun was setting across the city. Shades of orange covered the walls of the apartment. I went to the bedroom to find the bed empty.
My heart dropped. Henry must've left while I was asleep. I didn't know what else to expect. He had said he needed some time to think.
I heard the toilet flush in the bathroom and my heart came back to life. He was still here.
Henry opened the bathroom door and stopped in his tracks when he saw me. “Sorry I didn't mean to wake you.”
“No, I actually had thought you'd gone.”
Henry took a cautious step towards me. “I thought about it. I really did. I guess sleeping on it helped. You need my help and I can't run away from that.”
I couldn't believe the words coming out her mouth. “So you'll stay with me?”
Henry took in a deep breath and slowly exhaled. “I agree that there's something special between us. I don't want to throw it all away once things get hard.”
“I don't want to throw it all away either. I know I can conquer this problem with you.” I went to embrace him in my arms.
He put her hands up to stop me. “We need to take things slow. I'm not ready to just dive right back into bed with you.”
“Of course.”
Henry rubbed his arms and looked around. “So how is this going to work? Do I need to be within five feet of you or something for you not to feel this hunger you were talking about?”
I shrugged my shoulders. “I have no idea. I felt fine when you were sleeping in the other room so I think it's probably more than five feet.”
“And can I never leave you alone again?”
“Depends on the last time I had some blood. You could leave me right now and I'd be fine for a couple days. It's when I'm with you and forget about the hunger that's the problem. When you go, it all comes rushing back and I can't get out to feed.”
“That's what you call it? Feeding? Sounds like you're eating people.”
“Do you have better word?”
He thought for a moment. “No I don't.”
“So if I make you forget your hunger? How is this going to solve your problem?”
“To be honest, I'm not sure. But I know you're the key to all this. I'm hoping the more time I spend around you, the less the hunger can take over when you're gone. Like my body will just forget about it eventually.”
“I still feel like I'm going crazy but okay. Let's do it.”
Epilogue
Henry
One Year Later
“Are you sure you don't need help carrying that, Spencer?”
Spencer lifted the heavy toilet and strained as he began the ascent up the stairs. “No I think I got it.” His face went red and he blew out heavy breaths as he juggled the large object.
I led him up the stairs, guiding him up each step since he couldn't see over the porcelain. “You're almost there. Be careful of the wall to your right.”
“I see it. I see it.” Spencer turned the corner and made it into the bathroom. He squatted down and gently placed the toilet in its rightful place. Spencer craned his neck side to side and cracked it.
“Looks good, don't you think?” I asked him.
“It's a toilet, Henry. It looks exactly how I imagine a toilet would look.”
I playfully hit Spencer on the shoulder. “I mean the bathroom is finally coming together.”
Over the past year, Spencer and I had been renovating my parents' house together. I had wanted to do all the work myself but Spencer's curious condition changed all that.
We were together twenty-four seven. All day
every day. We had tried out leaving him alone for any length of time but the hunger always came back like a freight train.
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