Bring On the Night

Chapter 1: Foolishness

Nikki stared out into the obsidian sky as the trees flew past her. Her iPod had run out of charge at least an hour ago so she found herself gazing blankly out of the bus window just to pass the time. Night had fallen a while back and the clock at the doors to the bus read 22:53 so it wouldn't be long until she arrived at sunny L.A. Nikki had dressed down for the journey. Her long black hair had been shoved up into a messy ponytail and the only make up she had on was a tad of mascara. She was wearing her old tattered black skinny jeans with a n oversized grey hoodie with the logo 'Space Moon Toys' written on the front in bubble writing. Her scruffy high top nikes could not even be considered to be white anymore and the black tick on the side was almost completely worn away but still she loved them. She had always preferred comfortable style and those nikes were the comfiest shoes she owned.

She was sat about half way down the bus, her head leaning against the window. At the beginning of the journey the bus had been almost packed but now there were about five people left including Nikki and the bald, slightly overweight driver. She was heading for the last stop, a small place called Crystal Rock Valley in northern California. She had dreamt about the place for over a year now and since nothing was holding her back, she left spontaneously in the middle of the night. She had only brought one bag, and that was only a small black hand bag. All she needed was her purse. She saw Crystal Rock Valley as a fresh start, a new destiny. So after staying in the small hotel for one night she would go to the real estate agents and buy a small apartment with a view of the sea. Nikki chuckled at how simple she was making it all sound. Of course, money was no issue. Her parents had left their entire legacy to their precious little girl when they had died and they weren't exactly short of money.

Nikki's parents had died in a fire when she was seven years old. A fire had done it. Arson. They never caught the culprit. They figured that Nikki was too young to realize exactly what had happened and so they told her it was all a 'terrible accident', But she knew better. She had seen him. He had barged into her when he was running away and for a brief moment they had shared a look and in that look Nikki could tell that he knew she knew it was him. She would never forget his face. He had eyes as silver as the stars with light blond hair that fell to his shoulders. He had the chance to kill her but he carried on running. From then on it had been foster homes and parents. She had been in the Sun View half way house when she decided to leave. She didn't see it as running away, it wasn't like anyone wanted her there. She simply saw it as her time to go.

"Miss, this is the last stop…"

The driver's voice shook her out of her revere. She looked outside to see a sign which read 'Welcome to Crystal Rock Valley' in bold black letters. Nikki smiled at the driver before picking up her bag, shoving her iPod back in her pocket and moving down the isle and out into the cold January air.

"Thank you," she called to the driver who looked at her and nodded before closing the doors and driving away. Nikki sighed as she looked around her. It only then hit her that she was truly alone. The air was so silent, so still, that it almost felt as though there was no one around for miles. Behind her were a couple of benches and a bin and across the road in front of her was an empty children's playground with a few street lights scattered here and there. Trees lined the road for as far as she could see. She then realized that she had absolutely no idea where she was going. She had just assumed that everything would fall into place and there would be a hotel right next to the bus stop but…she couldn't see one sign pointing towards a hotel or giving directions. She was screwed. Admitting defeat, Nikki carelessly wandered over to the colourful playground and sat on one of the four swings. The clock on her phone read 02:13. Only a couple more hours until daylight. Nikki put her head in her hands and laughed at her foolishness.

She did not know what she was expecting to happen upon arrival at Crystal Rock Valley, but it certainly wasn't this. But then how could she think anything else? It wasn't like she had planned this all out. Hell! She had only decided to go twenty minutes before she got on the bus! The whole 'moving to Crystal Rock Valley' was the exact definition of a spur of the moment decision. The wind picked up and Nikki began to regret her decision to go there. Who was she kidding? She was only seventeen, way too young to be trying to make it on her own. She sat and debated the serious possibility of just going back to San Francisco when her thoughts were interrupted abruptly.

"I'm guessing you're not from around here." It wasn't a guess, it was a statement. Nikki turned her head to see an angel. Her jaw almost dropped at how beautiful he was with his short messy black hair and brown eyes that were looking directly at her. He was wearing a white v neck shirt with three quarter length sleeves that clung to his body and defined his extremely toned chest and what looked like navy blue baggy jeans. He had dressed for the season with a black scarf and black gloves. His skin was slightly tanned but at the same time it looked like shimmering marble and the contrast with his dark hair and eyes was heavenly. A sly, crooked smile was placed on his lips as he sat on the swing next to her.

"You guessed right, I just moved here about an hour ago actually." She took a silent deep breath before she spoke.

"So what, you thought you'd make camp in the park?" He raised one of his perfectly arched eyebrows.

"No…I just didn't really plan this out well. Actually…I'm being modest," She leaned closer and whispered, "I didn't plan this out at all." He chuckled and it sounded like heaven's bells. "I'm Nikki," She reached out a hand and he shook it.

"Luke." He said in a matter of fact sort of way that made Nikki feel flushed. She smiled at him, attempting to retain her dignity and he smiled back but did it beautifully. "So you really don't have a place to stay?" She shook her head and stuck out her bottom lip. She immediately regretted it as she realized that she probably looked like a twelve year old. "Well the Hotel is just a couple of blocks away. I could walk you if you'd like?" Nikki couldn't believe her luck.

"That'd be great, thanks."

"No problem," Luke stood up and held out his hand so that he could pull her up. The butterflies in her stomach were having a hissy fit.

"So tell me Luke, why is it that you are wandering the streets at two 'o' clock at night?" She glanced over at him as they walked down the road outside of the play park.

"Sometimes I just need to…get out. I know it sounds weird but usually there is no one around at this time of night and everything is so…"

"Still." Nikki found the word that he was looking for.

"Exactly. Do you ever feel like that?"

"Constantly." Nikki had always found ways out of her foster homes and roamed around the streets in the early hours of the morning back in San Francisco.

"Where abouts are you from anyway?"

"San Francisco."

"And why exactly did you move to Crystal Rock Valley?" His voice was drenched in sarcasm. She knew she couldn't tell him about the visions. He would just think she was crazy. So she did what any girl would do in her given situation. Lied.

"I just needed to get away and the first bus I got went here." They turned another corner onto what looked like a deserted street. "Are you sure you know where you're going?" Nikki looked around uneasily.

"Yes I'm sure, I've lived here my whole life. It's just around the corner." His voice was so smooth, there was no faults or flaws, so she had no reason to believe that he was lying. "So how old are you?"

"I'm seventeen."

"Seriously?" Nikki nodded when his questioning eyes met hers," That's a little young to be here on your own isn't it?"

"You tell me?" She laughed, " How about you?"

" I am nineteen years old. Feels like it's been that way forever." She couldn't make sense of his tone.

"You must have a birthday right? Everyone has a birthday." He looked at her and for a second he looked extremely serious, but the moment past as quickly has it had come and he smiled and carried on looking forward.

"Right." He stopped suddenly and turned to face Nikki and she didn't know what exactly, but something was different about his eyes. "I was going to wait until a couple of more streets but…" He was moving dangerously close to her, "You are just too damn tempting."

"What are you talking about?" Her heartbeat was racing as he moved so they were mere centimeters apart and she had to look up at him.

"Shhh, just relax. I won't hurt you." And just like that she found herself melting into him. He kissed her neck and collar bone before lifting her arm and planting a kiss on the inside of her wrist. And then she felt it. It was like a huge burst of electrical current shot through her and all of a sudden, she found her mind wandering.

No!

The voice was in her mind but she was sure that it was not her speaking, it was him. His voice was inside her mind.

This cannot be happening…

What can't? She thought but somehow he seemed to hear that.

It has to stop now!

And then he was gone. He had wrenched himself away from her mind and was standing twenty feet away from her. She looked at his silver eyes before doing something that she had never done in her entire life. She fainted.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

When Nikki woke, one word hit her like a bombshell. Unfamiliar. The sheets of the bed she was lying on felt new and different and she knew she had no recollection of ever being put in a bed. She still had not opened her eyes, part of her was afraid of what she'd see. A sigh of relief came over her when she realized that she was still fully clothed apart from her shoes which she did not remember taking off. Finally, she admitted defeat with herself and curiosity got the better of her. So she slowly opened her eyes to see that she was lying on a bed alone, Thank God, and was in what looked like a rather modern and expensive bedroom There was an orange light coming through the blinds so she guessed that the sun was just rising. The walls were a light cream colour to match the bedding and the floor was wooden. There was a dresser, a mirror, an armchair and a few canvas paintings in the room other than the bed and a door which was probably a dresser and a en suite.

And then her memory came flooding back. Sure enough, there was still a fresh bite mark on her wrist and it was still red and she could see that there was a little bit of blood on the sheets. But she still had absolutely no idea where on earth she was. As if out of no where, a voice answered her question.

"Don't worry your safe. You're in a penthouse apartment in the middle of Crystal Rock." Nikki turned around to see Luke sat in another cream armchair watching her intently. He was wearing the same clothes as the night before just without the scarf and gloves. The sunlight shadowed his chiseled features and for the first time since she had first seen him, he looked dangerous.

"What happened when you bit me?" She said in barely a whisper, afraid of his response. His alluring gaze never waved, never faltered as he spoke.

"We started what is believed to be the 'Soul mate' principle." He must have seen the look of sheer confusion spread across her face because he continued. "Some people in The Night World believe that there is one love for everyone. One person destined for the other and no matter what happens, fate will always lead you back to that person. Don't even bother asking me about the Night World."

"I wasn't going to. I know about the Night World." It was true. She had known about the Night World ever since she was seven and she realized that her parent's murderer was a vampire. She wasn't as good at recognizing them but she did know to be careful of them…usually. For a second shock flashed across his face but he did not question her. He did not move either and this unnerved Nikki. So, hesitantly, she moved off the bed and kneeled in front of him. His gaze never left hers. "And I'm guessing you're not entirely thrilled about the whole soul mate thing." It wasn't a question so he didn't give an answer; he just stared at her all the same. "So I'm just going to put my shoes on and leave. It'll be like this…'incident' never occurred, nobody has to know." She smiled for a second before putting on her shoes and grabbing her hand bag, she could still feel his eyes on her. She was just about to leave when all of a sudden he grabbed her good wrist and whipped her around to face him.

Without say a word, he slowly leaned forward and kissed the top of her head and held her. They stayed like that for about a minute before she shrugged out of his hold and walked out of the bedroom and then into the elevator which opened up into the apartment. As soon as the elevator doors closed Nikki let out the biggest sigh in the world and held her head in her hands. She ran a hand through her hair before exiting into the morning light.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Thanks for reading. PLEASE REVIEW! I will update as soon as I can, no sooner, no later =)

нαℓσ νєηgєαη¢є

XOXO