Life wasn't supposed to be so hard. Living alone of course, not that he was entirely. He had a family... sort of. But he was all alone, his heart as empty as the field he now stood in, letting his eyes wander searchingly through every space he'd seen and knew so well it made his eyes ache.
Alexander took one slow calculated step forward, doubtful of the life he led. Did he want it to end this way, this mundane completely non-existent existence? Not that he could do anything about it though. It was always going to be him, living this way and hating every bit and moment of it, hating the fact that his life was as empty as how hopeless those five subtle words were.
Void.
Blank.
An empty canvas. And suicide wasn't an option, not that he hadn't tried. Tough luck. Being a vampire was no field day trick. And as much as he'd experienced and the life he'd lived, he wanted normality. A life that didn't entail animals and having to hold down the urges that threatened to burn right through his granite-cold skin every breathing moment. He wanted to listen to the soft normal beat of his heart, not that he could sense in the fear of the creatures he had to kill daily to survive.
What have I become? He wondered, running his ragged hand through every strand of his hair in wonder. What was I always meant to be? A monster? Someone to be feared and avoided? Someone to always live in solitude and despair? Otherwise, he couldn't imagine being anything better than the monster he already was.
He shot a pebble off the rugged old path, letting the wind tousle his hair through his skin. If only he could feel. If only the hard granite of his skin could feel anything... Even the mere rustle of the wind against his face.
The wind did a little play with his hair, sending a leaf rustling through his skin. He turned back to the path he'd come through and walked out of the alleys and into the dull dark streets of Charleston. Small coffee shops and cafes lined this part of the town. Dizzy lights a flower shop sparkled by his right and a mall by the left. A woman walked beside him, pushing a pram slowly and deliberately just so he notice and talk to her. He could see it all in her thoughts and the fact that she was making extra efforts to look pretty made him chuckle louder. The baby in the pram smiled up at him.
" She likes you," The woman said, grinning a smile of gratitude at her baby. He smiled, wondering who really liked him the most. Going down on one knee, he held out a hand and ran every rugged finger through the baby's soft red cheek.
" Hi there" He cooed. The woman gasped, literally reeling from all that heavenly raspy velvet. He ran his finger through her warm skin and she giggled.
" She never does that. Not even to me" She whispered, staring intently at his face. He laughed at her thoughts. She'd imagined them both kissing in a sauna. And she was married. For the love of God.
" She really likes you"
" I know." He smiled at her, super sure she'd meant that in her case. She stared at him, dazed and he stood to his feet, looking away before his eyes could cause any damage " I have a way with kids" And women, he wanted to add. The scent of her blood hovered around but not strong enough to attract him.
He stood up straight and smiled at her.
" Later," He said. A small girl in a hat stood on her toes, reaching out for a red-gold autumn leaf. And as always, everyone stared at him. From an eighty-something-year-old hot dog stand vendor to a woman in versace sheath flirting with him from afar. The girls eyed him, whispering noisily. A small pixie-like girl was imagining them having sex with his arms in her... he looked away in repulsion. He was used to thoughts like that. After all, one didn't see any tall, gorgeously handsome teen and with ice-like sculpted face and rivetingly dreamy eyes walking on a normal plain street like he was on a runway show. His dark waxy hair fell into his eyes and stopped right at the base of his neck in long, straight and wavy lines. They framed his extremely beautiful soft features and shaped his Adonis-like face, highlighting the sharp sapphire blue of his small fluid-like angel eyes. Coupled with the cool evening breeze that tousled his hair into the wind and his smooth long-legged strides that made him look like he was floating, not walking, his scent appealed to every woman, lady, girl, everyone on the street. They stared at him, ogled at him, and literally bored their eyes through his skin, feeling his head with their terribly uncomfortable thoughts. There he was, every woman's fantasy but the world's emptiest misery. He took a light turn towards an alley, stepping into a residential area. Through an open balcony window, a family was having dinner. Two teen couples were making out on a front porch. From the glassy misty windows of a cafe, he could make out a pretty couple kissing over a plate of bacon. Above the love that filled the air was also that alluring fresh scent of human blood and the loud throbbing sound of their hearts that filled his ears. He made a sharp bend and a sudden whiff wheezed through his nose and right into his heart. He spun round slowly, heart throbbing, mind reeling. and there it was. The purest freshest scent emanating from who had to be the most beautiful girl he'd ever seen. She stood right there, staring at the old 21st-century-styled apartment with two large suitcases and a carry-on bag. Her eyes crinkled in utmost concentration as she ran her eyes through what looked like a map and stared right back at the door before pressing the doorbell on once more, waiting, breathing. He could feel it all, the soft rise and fall of her chest, the light tired lines across her face. She sighed and pushed a lock of one of those waxy black curls behind her ears. He could hear, see, feel. Her soft sighs and heaves, the loud throbbing of her heart, her evened-out breathing, and that too above every other noise. Every other human paled in comparison. He couldn't tear his eyes off her. She heaved once more and chewed on her full pouty lower lip. He ran his eyes through that soft, pale, waxy skin, that slim but perfectly curved and toned body. The thirst burned deep within, swallowing him whole. A low growl rippled from his mouth and he fell to a crouch, snarling to control himself. This couldn't be happening. He gasped as one arrow ran through his heart. It was too...soon. Too... impossible. She was a human damn it. He couldn't... It wouldn't. It wouldn't work. It wasn't even humanly possible that he could feel... feel the burning edge through his heart. It's just a reaction. A purely normal reaction. Snap out of it Alex, snap out of it! Snap out of it! He ordered himself. Now!!!! the growls slowed and the snarls died down. He looked up and staggered back a little.
Down the alley and up the Reeds' mansion she turned slowly. Their eyes held and for a moment neither could take theirs off each other. They stood, enraptured, captured.
Captive.
Bonded.