I stood there, unable to look away from this man. I didn't know whether it was that whole "vampire magnetism" I read about or the way his eyes shifted into that warm, honey color that made my knees weak. Maybe it was the fact that I had found a kindred spirit, who felt just as alone as I did.
"I guess I should go then." I finally mumbled, tucking a braid behind my ear.
"I guess so." He replied quietly. "Tomorrow then?"
"Looking forward to it."
The sun rose and peeked through my curtains, just as it did every morning. I shuffled into the bathroom and sat in front of my vanity, not really looking at my reflection. This morning started out as any other, but I just felt like something was off. The only word that could come to mind was lonely.
I was used to being alone, of course. I had been on my own since Mom died and had done a damn good job keeping my head well above water. Now? Ever since meeting Daniel and Edie, I kept feeling like something was missing. Like I wasn't alone anymore, but truly lonely.
Everything in me wanted to rush to their house, but I remembered that it was still morning. Would they be sleeping? Didn't sunlight hurt them? My mind was suddenly going a million miles a minute and I was starting to give myself a headache.
Get a damn grip, Sylvie! I scolded myself. A little chuckle slipped out as I realized I was using my new nickname.
I decided that murdering faces in video game form would be the best distraction for the time being. I couldn't even remember what I played, in all honesty, but I do remember it had a lot of blood and there were dragons involved.
Before long, I was bored with slaying dragons and shut the system off. I did a bit of cleaning to pass some more time, but I could've sworn that it was going slower on purpose.
After what felt like an eternity, I finally saw the sun start to set in the sky. I bolted to the bathroom, nervously fussing over my appearance. No, I didn't look terrible yesterday, but today was different. There was a spark. At least, that's what I felt. Did he feel it, too?
Probably not. I rolled my eyes at my reflection. Yes, we shared a "moment", but the man was gorgeous. Gorgeous and immortal. He could have anyone he wanted, why in the hell would be waste time on a plain Jane like me? I just looked at my reflection and shook my head at my thoughts.
"Memo to myself: Work on your confidence because it blows. Hard." I let out a puff of breath and took my leave.
His house was easy enough to find, located on the last on a dead end in the historical district. As I raised my hand to knock, the door swung open. There was Edie, a big smile on her face. I noticed that she took special care to not let what little sunlight there was touch her skin. I internally commended myself for being so cautious.
"Sylvie came back!" Edie waited until I was completely inside the house before she pulled me into a hug. "Edie miss Sylvie!"
"I missed you too, Edie." I smiled, genuinely meaning what I said. It was short lived when I saw the worry on her face. "What is it?"
"Brother." She said simply, shaking her head. "Not good."
"Where is he?"
She took my hand and led me past the living room and up their spiral staircase. We stopped at a large wooden door and she placed her ear to the door. "Brother?"
"Keep her away, Edith!" I heard a growling voice command from the other side.
I took an instinctive step back. "What's wrong with him?"
"No blood." She answered quietly, her head hanging in shame. "Hungry."
I have a feeling I'm going to regret this. I placed my hand on the doorknob. Edie let out a tiny squeal, vigorously shaking her head.
"Sylvie stay!" She begged. "Brother hurt Sylvie!"
"I'll be fine, Edie." I reassured her. "Just trust me, okay?"
She let out a small whimper and ran into the shadows of the hall, most likely to hide.
I slowly turned the knob and stepped inside. I saw Daniel sitting on his bed, who looked like he had an aggressive case of the flu. His skin was pale, almost ashen, and there were bags under his eyes. He was sweating and shaking, trying not to look in my direction.
"Oh, my God!" I immediately tried to rush to him, but he scrambled away from me. "Daniel, what happened?"
"Apparently, I've gone longer without feeding than I thought." He rasped through dry lips.
"You can't go out and go – hunting, I guess is the word?"
"I'm too weak." He chuckled bitterly.
Don't say it. Don't you dare say it!
"What if I let you take mine?"
Goddammit, Sylvia! What kind of idiotic human being are you?
Daniel looked at me in wide-eyed horror. "Absolutely not."
"Daniel, please." I began, inching closer to him. "You need it."
"Please don't!" He slammed his eyes shut tightly. "You need to go."
It was too late for that. I was already within arm's reach of him. I slowly sat down on the bed next to him, watching him intently.
"You and I both know I can't leave you like this."
"Sylvie, please. I can smell you." He whispered as his eyes opened. I saw that familiar glow in them. "It's driving me insane."
As he spoke, I could catch glimpses of his fangs. Any normal person would be scared. Not me, though. I figured if I lived, then things would continue as they were with our weird little tribe. If not? Well, at least I'd be with Mom again.
I extended my wrist to him, my hand visibly shaking. He looked at my arm, then into my eyes.
"Do you trust me?" He asked, slowly leaning closer to me.
'NO!'
"Yes."
'Son of a bitch.'
"Then, close your eyes."
I did as I was instructed. My eyes fluttered shut just as I felt arms snake around my waist. His breath was warm against my throat and I felt him nuzzle my skin.
"Thank you." I heard him whisper.
Then I felt it. The pierce of fangs, but it was much different this time. This felt surprisingly gentle, almost sweet. He pulled me closer and my hands gripped his hair out of pure instinct. After a moment, I began to feel a familiar tingle creep up my spine as I fought to keep control.
'Sylvia, no.'
'Don't you dare.'
'Don't. You. Dare!'
I couldn't even concentrate enough to keep my moans any semblance of quiet. My head fell back, and my body was wracked with shivers.
'You have got to be kidding me...'