Chapter 1

I couldn't take it anymore. I snuck into the mansion, ran up the stairs, and stepped up to the first door that I could find. I opened the door and walked into a large room. The walls were red and the floor a black marble. A glass chandelier hung from the ceiling. In the middle of the room there was a man in a chair, reading a book that sat on his lap. He looked about 17, my age, and had pale skin and emerald green colored eyes. He looked up at me and opened his mouth to talk. I saw white sharp teeth. He had fangs.

*****

Three weeks ago I would have been considered your average, harmless teenage girl. I had friends, I was fairly high up on the popularity chart, my grades were decent, and I was on the right track to becoming a successful, hardworking citizen. But all that changed the day I saw the house.
It all started with a dare. It was at my best friend, Megan's birthday party. My six closest friends and I sat together in a circle. My eyes made their way around the circle. Jake sat cuddled with his girlfriend Monica, Emily sat with her boyfriend Tim, and Megan sat close to her boyfriend Bryce. As always, I was the awkward seventh wheel. I always made it seem like I was okay with it, but inside, I wasn't. I had always been a helpless romantic; I read and watched countless shows filled with romance, destiny, and true love. And as I did, I longed for someone to hold me, someone to love, someone to love me back. I would stay awake at night and dream up countless scenarios, a million ways I would have my first kiss; but that was all on the inside. "Ember! Ember!" Jake shouted. "Huh?" I said as I dragged myself out of my thoughts. "I asked you like five times! Truth or Dare?" He shouted as Monica giggled at my cluelessness. "Oh!" I laughed along, "Um…dare!" I said. "Okay, give me a second." He said as the six of my buddies huddled together to create the best, or rather worst possible dare. "Perfect." Jake said as the huddle receded. "I dare you to sneak into the old Faraday Mansion!" He shouted with excitement. I cringed.
The Faraday Mansion was at the top of a big hill at the end of Blind Eye Road. It was rotted and looked as if it had been abandoned for centuries. As kids we would all make up stories about what or who still inhabited the house. I had always been curious as to what was inside, but never enough to face my fears and enter the supposedly haunted house. But, a dare was a dare so I put on my coat and set out towards the house. I wearily walked up the creaky steps and knocked on the rotting door. No answer. I knocked again, still no answer. I lightly pushed on the door and to my surprise, it opened. And what I saw inside, I never would have expected. There was not a creaky floorboard or spider web in sight. On either side of the room stood elegant, large, wooden staircases that curved to connect in the center. Where the stairs met stood a huge marble archway with intricate carvings. On each side of the archway stood a gargoyle staring back at me. As I stood marveling the interior, I suddenly heard footsteps and fled the mansion. But ever since that day I vowed to see the beautiful interior of the mansion again. And indeed I did, but never did I imagine I would be spending eternity in these beautiful halls.

*****

The mysterious man finally spoke. "Hello" I cringed in fear. "Hello" He said again. "Hello," I responded just loud enough to hear. "I won't hurt you, trust me." He insisted. I pondered his words as I took a small step backwards. He sighed. "I won't hurt you." He reassured. I took a little step forwards as I quietly spoke again. "Wh-What are you reading?" "A Midsummer's Night Dream" He replied. "What's it about?" I asked, even though I already knew. "It's a romance." He responded as I took another step forwards. "Do you enjoy reading?" he asked as he looked at me with his emerald eyes. I nodded. "What type of things do you like to read?" He asked casually. I took yet another step forward and whispered, "Fantasy." I took one more step closer only to realize I was right beside him. He then stood up. I closed my eyes. I shuddered as his lips grazed my ear. "Good bye." He whispered as his fangs sank into my neck. My world faded until everything went black. It all went by so fast. I felt pain, a lot of pain.
I awoke in the man's placid arms. I looked into his beautiful emerald eyes as he said "Hello.". I was confused and thirsty. Not for water, but for something else. But what? "You know what you are now." He murmured. I thought about it. He had bit me, bit me with his fangs. I was a vampire now. I said it aloud in fear and disorientation. I believed in life and death, nothing more, nothing less. I was completely overwhelmed, my head spun as everything became dark once again.
I awoke to the sound of a frantic voice calling my name. "Ember! Ember! Wake up!" The voice said. I slowly opened my eyes to see those now familiar ones staring back at me. "How do you know my name?" I croaked. He ignored my question and continued to stare at me with a worried look on his face. I then remembered why I had blacked out in the first place. I suddenly became enraged. "WHY WOULD YOU DO THIS TO ME?" I shouted, "I DON'T WANT TO BE THIS WAY!" He just looked at me calmly and said "You may not have asked for this, but it was inevitable. Your father was one of us. I just awakened your potential. Your father was Prince Alexander of the vampires. My father was a prince as well but right now, that's beside the point "That's impossible. My father was not a vampire!" I yelled. My voice then became a whisper "There's no way." He stood up then, and as I limply hung in his arms, he walked towards the door.
He continued to walk through the dark narrow hall way, passing many other doors. He stopped and opened a wood door with a gold handle. In the room there was table and two chairs. The chairs were black with red cushions. He put me down in one and poured us both a glass of a beautiful red liquid. It smelled so good. He gave me the glass and sat down in the chair across from me.
"You must have a lot of questions," he said. I nodded and spoke. "So you're allowed to know my name and I'm not allowed to know yours?" He chuckled and answered simply, "Sterling." He took a sip from his glass then. I turned my head away. He sighed. "We need to drink blood in order to sustain life." He explained as he motioned to my glass." Drink." he said. I reluctantly took a sip. It was delicious. I drank another gulp without thinking twice. As I finished my glass I took a good look Sterling. I was so distracted before that I hadn't noticed that my eyesight had increased significantly. It was as if I was seeing Sterling for the first time. My eyes grazed over his gorgeously defined features. His hair flowed gracefully down his neck down to his shoulders. The color was magnificent, the blackest of blacks. I then turned my attention to his clothing. He was wearing a black, silk linen shirt with a high collar, a blood red cravat tied with perfection, and a plain, black, silk coat that seemed to be tailored to his body exquisitely. He wore tightly fitted breeches that matched his cravat flawlessly. His attire was of another time; the early nineteen hundreds maybe? I wasn't sure. But then again I wasn't really sure of anything at this point. At some point he noticed my staring because he spoke. "Is there something on my face?" He asked. "Oh, no, not at all, still flawless." I started rambling. As soon as I realized what I had said I became completely mortified. I waited for my cheeks to become hot, revealing my embarrassment, but they didn't. Vampire, I reminded myself. No blood in the body equals no blushing. I looked down, afraid of how he would react to my comment. Suddenly, I felt a hand on my chin. Sterling lifted my face, but my eyes stayed glued to the ground. I slowly raised them only to find him kneeling in front of my chair so that his eyes could meet mine. But this time, as I looked into his eyes, it was a completely different experience than any other. As I stared deeper into his eyes, it was as if I was staring deeper into his soul. "Sterling." I gasped at the magical sight as his lips met mine. Cautious at first, as if making sure that the feeling was mutual, as if he didn't want to force me into anything. I met the caution with a wave of passion, and his kisses soon mirrored mine. Everything around me started to fade then. Right then and there nothing else in the world mattered. It was just Sterling and me. I entangled by hands in his silky hair. Too soon, we broke apart. I reluctantly let go of his hair. It was then I noticed I was on the floor, sitting on Sterling's lap. "Why?" I whispered. "Why what?" He whispered back. "Why did you change me?" The smile on his face vanished. He pushed me off his lap and looked into my eyes. "It was selfish," He started, "three weeks ago, when you snuck into the house, I knew I had to be with you, no matter what it took." He looked down in shame. This time, it was my turn to take him by the chin and raise his face to meet my eyes. I said nothing, but he knew he was forgiven as I leaned in and everything faded once again.
This time I was the one to break the kiss. I yawned, "Why am I tired?" I asked. He laughed as he picked me up and carried me down the hall. "Vampires still have to sleep." He explained. "At night?" I asked confused. "Look out the window, my love." I couldn't hide my smile hearing his nickname for me. I reluctantly tore my eyes from his face and looked out the window to find that the sun was rising. Just then, he turned to face huge medieval double doors. He opened them with one hand, still supporting me with the other. I gasped.
The walls of the room were lined in intricate gold and red wallpaper. In the center of the wood floored room stood a gorgeous, wooden, four poster bed. A mirror atop a wooden dresser took up the left side of the room while two doors, one leading to a bathroom and one leading to a closet, lined the right side of the wall. He carried me over to the bed and set me down. He started to walk towards the door. "I suppose I'll sleep on the couch for now. Sleep tight, my love." He said. "Wait!" I shouted. He rushed over to me, his face wearing a look of concern. "What?" he asked. "Stay with me, please?" I whispered. He stayed silent as he crawled into his bed and held me close. I laid my head on his chest and drifted to sleep. And for the first time, I didn't stay awake longing to find my true love, because I knew I had found him. I no longer longed to hold someone, because he was holding me. I didn't long to love someone, because I did now. And I didn't long for somebody to love me, because there was one thing I was absolutely sure of; Sterling and me, it was destined to be, and that was all that mattered.