I was awakened by a cold hand on my cheek. My eyelids fluttered, too tired to open. There was only one person it could be. “Will,” I murmured sleepily, my eyes still closed. He didn't answer me. I felt him pull back my sheets and lay down next to me. I reached out to him only to feel cool blood seeping from his arm.
I stumbled out of my bed to the light switch. Bright light flooded out the early morning darkness. I gasped. Black blood was seeping from numerous wounds on his torso and arms.
“What happened?” I asked my voice shaking. He said nothing. “Why are you bleeding?”
“I'm sorry about the blood on your bed,” he muttered as he stood up. At the moment, that was the last thing I cared about. I walked up and hugged him. His cold blood slowly soaked my night shirt. He moved to push me away but I stopped him. “You're ruining your shirt,” he said but wrapped his arms around me anyway.
“It's alright,” I said as our bodies pressed together.
“If I had known I would get this close, I would get wounded more often.”
I smiled against his arm. It was so Will.
“Will you please tell me what happened?”
“I don't wanna talk about it.”
Fine. I grabbed my towel hanging off my door. I handed it to him and he pressed it against his wounds. The blood quickly soaked the towel.
“This looks bad. Will you heal?”
“Yeah...but....” He looked longingly at my neck and, though it took me a moment, I understood what he wouldn't, or couldn't say.
“But you would heal faster if you...if I....” I let my words drift. Will nodded and groaned in pain. Or perhaps desire. The blood was still seeping from his arms. My fears would have to be put aside. I braced myself mentally. I can do this. For Will. I swept my hair from my shoulder, leaned towards him and tilted my head, offering my neck. Will sucked in a breath. He leaned halfway then seemed to remember something.
“I can't. You don't want me to. And I promised.”
“I want you to, Will. It's alright, you need it.” My words seemed to ease him.
It was an extremely vulnerable position. I was suddenly sure that if he lost control, Will could break my neck. I waited a few seconds, though they seemed like hours, my heart racing with nerves. Then his fangs drove into my tender flesh. I think I gasped, though it might have been a shout or a scream. It hurt, sort of like getting a shot at the doctor, only worse. But the pain slowly receded as he fed on my blood. It did feel good in a way, likes waves crashing and receding.
His hands curled into fists as he dug into the back of my shirt. I felt his nails leave rips in the thin material. My own hands found their way to his perfect white hair, the tips unnaturally red. I helf him close, feeling like this moment was too perfect to be lost. He pulled away too soon and yet not soon enough.
When he licked his lips clean of blood, I had the distinct feeling that I had seem him do that before. But that was impossible. Will had never fed off of anyone in front of me.
I ran my hand over the side of my neck. Two tiny holes that I could barely feel were all that was left. Will suddenly noticed that I was observing my love bites. He smirked and kissed the marks.
“Thank you,” he said. His voice was strange, as if he'd been drinking. Can vampires even get drunk? I wondered. I stood up and went to look in the mirror above my dresser. I was curious about what the bite looked like. I was half excited and half disappointed to realize that the two little marks were barely visible. “You know, I'm still kind of hungry. There are other places I could bite,” Will said from across the room on my bed. He's back.
“I think you took enough blood for one night,” I said, surprised at how breathy my voice sounded.
“Are you sure?” he asked again, suddenly in front of me.
At that moment the phone rang, but I was too tired. So I let Will guide me back to bed and I fell asleep safe in his arms.
Chapter 4
Love and Death
April 25, Friday - 11:10 a. m.
Ashes, Ashes Page 5