Title: Worst nightmare

Word Count: 4499

Rating: M

Summary: Did you ever feel like something wasn't quite right? That someone was stalking you? What would you do if your worst nightmare came true, someone was watching you and they made you his for eternity.

Disclaimer: The author does not own any publicly recognizable entities herein. No copyright infringement is intended.

30th October

BPOV

It was the little things she noticed first.

Ornaments slightly out of place, a mug on the draining board that she thought she had left on the table, a damp towel in the laundry basket that she could have sworn she had thrown on the bathroom floor.

Little things. Puzzling things.

Unsettling things.

But not enough to be worried about.

If she had known then what he was, what kind of nightmare her life would become, she would have been more worried. She would have run as fast and as far away as possible.

Isabella Swan was twenty-four. She lived alone. She worked as a waitress, a job she hated. She had broken up with her boyfriend a few months ago and, while she had dated since then, she always felt like something was missing, like a part of her craved for something unknown.

Someone unknown.

Some would say Bella was attractive, she had the girl next door look and a sweet disposition that seemed to draw people in, much to her chagrin. She didn't think she was anything special.

But someone did.

Bella was home at her apartment, asleep in her bed. The doors locked and bolted, the windows secured. She thought she was safe.

She was wrong.

The window curtains were pulled closed, as always. Since she had been a child she was a light sleeper, needing total darkness and silence. So her bedroom was like a sensory deprivation chamber. She loved that.

But this night was different. The darkness was different. Not comforting or secure, but cold and deep, as if the safety of her chamber had been breached. She didn't know if she was asleep or awake, but she could feel an electrical current that seemed to settle in her chest. She had been feeling this current for weeks now, since the end of September. but this felt different, stronger.

She lay on her back, snuggled in her bed, her eyes open wide, her head propped up on the pillow, her eyes stared straight ahead at the shadows in her room. She tried to move but couldn't.

Her head full of imagined whispers and screams. A shadow detached itself from the darkness, moved towards her. Her heart raced as she watched the fluid motion of the shadow, she tried to move again, pull away, but her body wouldn't move.

The shadow took shape, a human shape, lean, with two red glowing eyes, it moved closer.

Bella, with a hammering heart, closed her eyes. Her brain was trying to send a signal to her mouth… open… scream. But nothing happened.

She screwed her eyes tight and tried not to breathe. Pretend she wasn't there. Willed herself to awaken. Nothing happened.

The dream shadow was right beside her, its red eyes by the side of her head. She could feel its dream breath on her dream cheek.

Then, the shadow spoke. Low, velvety. It crooned painful words she didn't understand. She tried to understand, form those words into sentences. There was something that felt familiar about the sound of the shadow's voice, but the words drifted away into the recesses of her dream, lost and irretrievable.

Cold, hard hands touched her, fingers traced over the features of her face, slowly, lovingly. The shadow started talking again. Words of love, destiny, something about… forever.

Then, it vanished, silence filled the room. Bella opened her eyes, the shadow had gone. She was alone in the darkness once more. She closed her eyes and willed herself to drift into a peaceful sleep . A safer one, that would bring pleasant dreams.

A harsh, shrill noise crashed in Bella's ears. She jumped, opened her eyes. Blinked. Looked around. Sighed. Her deprivation chamber bedroom. She closed her eyes again, but the blaring of her alarm told her in its own unlovable way, that it was time to get up wouldn't let her go back to sleep.

She opened her eyes again and sighed, normally she liked to lie in after the alarm woke her, cherish the last few foggy tendrils of sleep that had wrapped themselves around her. Leave it as late as possible before throwing the duvet back and reluctantly trudging off to the shower. But not this morning. Not with the nightmare she'd had. She didn't want to stay in bed longer than she had to.

She stumbled towards her window, placing one hand on the sill to steady herself, pulled back the curtains, ready to see what kind of day it was. She didn't get as far as looking out of the window, there was something stuck to the pane of glass. She frowned, not quite understanding what it was doing there. She slowly pulled the object off, scrutinized it more closely. And felt her heart lurch.

It was a flower, dried and pressed into a piece of paper, she turned the paper over. Gasped as fear shuddered through her. There were words on the back. Neatly printed block capitals. She read them.

SOON, MY LOVE

The nightmares ran back through her head. The shadow. The voice. The hands on her face. The red eyes. It was no nightmare. It had been real.

She fainted.

24th September

EPOV

From experience, he knew that the key to waiting, lay in pacing himself. He had never been a particularly patient man, but he had learned - it was part of the game, like everything else.

At first, he'd struggled with boredom, frustration and all the other unwanted feelings that crept in after a millennia of hunting the same easy prey, but this was a new game, he had plans. It was simple really, the first person to make eye contact with him would be dinner, he would stalk them, slowly terrify them before pouncing. After- all a meal always tasted better with a side of fear.

He sat in the middle of the coffee shop waiting for it, he knew it would happen, it always did. There was always one person brave enough no matter what their instincts told them.

He didn't react when she came in. Her mousy hair was tied back and she was wearing a dark green coat and black boots. She looked a little hurried but it was almost nine and there were only two other people in the queue at the counter and she soon was ordering her coffee.

He knew she was going to be the one, the brave little soul that was going to meet his eye, he stared hard at her, waiting, silently rejoicing. And then, it happened. Only it wasn't what he expected. As soon as he met her coffee colored eyes his world tilted on its axis, his dead heart that had been silent for over a thousand years thumped painfully in his chest.

"Sodalis vitae," he whispered, their eyes still holding each other, she gave him a small smile and walked out.

He calmly followed her out onto the street. She walked with a quick, determined stride as she made her way up the hill, but it wasn't difficult to stay with her, hiding along the way. He allowed her to lead him, but let the distance between them to open up again, he knew she would feel him if he got to close. She was his mate and the connection worked both ways. She was some twenty yards ahead of him when she turned off into an apartment building. There she halted to fumble with her handbag, he watched as the door opened and she let herself inside.

31st October

The weeks that followed were interesting, he had found himself unable to be more than a few yards away from her without it causing him pain. He had never experienced pain before, always being the predator, the strongest, even among his own kind.

But this little human had managed to turn his life upside down. It was making him crazy and he had been doing stupid things because of it. Being unable to stay away he had been following her closely, he had found that like him, she was a person who preferred to be alone. She had one friend and even that relationship was not the closest. She had no living relatives or they were estranged.

She visited the same bookstore once a week, spending hours sat in the dusty chair reading silently to herself. He could feel the pull getting stronger, telling him to claim his mate, make her his forever.

He was finding his mental health slowly deteriorating, he found himself visiting her at night when she was sleeping. He knew she had noticed when he'd been there, he was unable to resist moving things, and last night the sadistic part of his mind had wanted her to see him and she did. He didn't want to scare her, and he knew she would accept him when she was turned. The note this morning was stupid, but he had to let her know that he would be returning for her. Tonight she would be his.

A sound jarred him out of his thoughts, its noise, harsh and foreign in the basements gloomy solitude. He became alert, both mind and senses. The noise echoed again, closer. This time he recognized it as... Laughter? Yes; laughter. It grated across his nerves like the ever-present rats scuttling in the dark.

The thought of rats had him glancing sideways to the mound of corpses that littered the cellar floor. He grimaced, though more from unsatisfied hunger than disgust. They'd served their purpose, while he had no particular fondness for human street vermin, they had served to curb his hunger while he was unable to leave.

"Sodalis vitae," he whispered, they were destined for each other. Fate, he snorted, he had always believed it to be a fairytale that some vampires had soul mates. He didn't have a soul, so it was impossible, but he had definitely heard and felt his heart beat for that short moment when their eyes met. Since then, he had spent every waking moment as her shadow, every night held up in the basement of her three story apartment building.

His head snapped up when he not only sensed, but heard her enter her bedroom. She and her friend had spent the last couple of hours drinking wine and talking. He had learned a great deal during those conversations and it made him more impatient, but tonight would be the night, she would be his, forever.

31st October

BPOV

Today had been hellish, the diner had been busy from the start of her shift, till the very end. Halloween was a busy day for her and she had made a lot in tips, but her feet were feeling it now. Angela had come home with her to have a drink and a catch-up before she moved back to Washington. When she had left, Bella had closed the door, putting the deadbolts in place, the chain across the frame, and then flattened herself against it. She sighed like she had been holding her breath from being underwater.

She looked down the hall of her apartment. At first glance, everything looked the same as it always did, she relaxed.

This should have been the place she felt safe, could take refuge in. Not any more. There was nowhere she felt safe now. Not even her own body. Not after last night.

She remembered her body's refusal to cooperate when she tried to move. She remembered the strange feeling in her chest, like everything was right, like this man, monster, was right. The feelings inside of her last night, the apprehension and fear, they hadn't been because of the shadow, they had been because of the unknown.

Bella stood with her back against her front door, wondering and hoping, the locks and chains would be enough to keep out any intruder. She could still feel the ghost of his hands on her face. She could see the coffee table from where she stood, her landline handset lying across her hardback address book. Had she left it that way? At that angle? Down the hall she could see into her bedroom, the duvet pulled back on the bed, and the curtains were opened.

"Oh god..."

She sank to the floor, her back still against the front door, and covered her face with her hands. Tears came. Great, racking sobs. She clinched her hands in tighter, her fingernails digging into her skin.

"No... No..."

Her legs kicked out, filled with rage and frustration. She felt herself caving into the emotion, being weakened by it like acid eating away at her, destroying her from the inside.

Then, she opened her eyes. Willed the tears to stop.

Bella felt something rise within her. Hot. Fiery. Angry. She stood up.

"No, no, you bastard."

She looked around the living room for something, anything, to take hold of. She saw the phone and picked it up. "You hear me?" Turning round on the spot, shouting at the walls. "You're not going to win!"

She hurled the phone as hard as she could. It hit the wall and fell to the floor. She wiped the tears away, her cheeks burning. She sat back on the floor, and breathed deeply, trying to focus. Concentrate. Her fingers pulling at her hair. She looked down the hall again, into her bedroom. Everything that she had built up, the place she regarded as safe, had been violated. No other word for it. Burglary victims talked of the same thing, but this was something deeper, something she didn't understand. A part of her yearned for the red-eyed shadow, she shivered.

"Bastard..." her jaw ached. She was grinding her teeth. The doorbell sounded.

Bella screamed.

The bell rang again, she stayed where she was, slumped on the floor.

Was it him? Back again? Had he hidden outside, waiting for Angela to leave?

The doorbell rang again. She stared at the door, the chain hooked and locked. She hoped it would be strong enough. She stood and made her way slowly towards the door.

"Leave me alone, leave me alone," she whispered to herself. Her heart began pumping like a sports car pistons, pounding the blood throughout her body. She stretched out her hand. The apartments had no entry phone or intercom system. If someone rang they had to be let in manually. Down three flights of stairs to the front of the building.

No, opening the door was one thing. Going down all those stairs alone was another.

She made her way to the window and blew out the breath she didn't know she had been holding, when she saw the trick or treaters laughing and squealing.

She could feel herself growing tired and decided to have an early night. After brushing her teeth and getting changed into some pajamas, she found herself staring at her bed from the bathroom door and contemplated sleeping on the couch.

"Don't be a coward," she muttered, as she made her way to her bed and climbed in, falling into a deep sleep almost instantly.

Bella opened her eyes, it was dark, she tried to move but couldn't.

Panic welled up within her and tears sprang into the corners of her eyes. She screamed. Nothing. No response. Just her muffled cries dying away. She lay still breathing hard, breathing heavy. Trying to work out where she was, what had happened to her. She closed her eyes, cast her mind back to how she got here, what had happened.

The last thing she remembered was heading to bed early, falling into a deep sleep almost instantly, she remembered the peaceful feeling that washed over her before sleep overcame her, but that didn't explain how she ended up here. Where was here? She looked around, willed her eyes to grow accustomed to the dark, make something out of her surroundings. It looked like a basement, smelled like one too. She was laying on some kind of mattress, wrapped in an old and itchy blanket. But she still felt cold. Not uncomfortably so, just not warm.

Bella lay still, listened. Tried to take in sounds beyond the basement. Nothing.

Silence.

She sighed. Tried not to let her fear overwhelm her once more. There was a film out years ago, Summer's Moon. It was about a young woman who found herself captive in someone's basement where they had some kind of human garden. The whole family turned out to be psychopaths, raping and killing many women. Angela and she had watched it late one night drunk, and Angela had laughed at it, said it was terrible. But Bella hadn't laughed. Because for her it was, quite literally, her worst nightmare.

Ever since she was a child she had a recurring dream. Her arms and legs would stop moving, stop responding. Her dreaming mind would tell her that she had to run, escape. And she would try, until a calm would spread over her, comforting, almost loving. Then she would wake up, confused, not fully understanding what her dream was about.

And now the dream was back again.

Except this time it was real.

The fear and panic welled up inside her just like her dream. She tried to scream but she couldn't. Try to keep the panic down, Bella.

All she could hear was her own breathing nothing else. She lay as still as she could, waiting to see what would happen next.

Out of the corner of her eye, Bella saw movement, the shadow was back, moving slowly towards the corner. She heard the sound of a match, then, a soft glow filled the room. The shadow was obscuring her view, when it moved away and she could see a pumpkin in the far corner, the tea light flickering, her eyes moved to the shadow. He was young, maybe around her age with dark hair, but it was his eyes that were the most mesmerizing, yet terrifying. It was hard to pick which one, like two parts of herself where warring with each other, one part terrified, begging her to scream, run as far away as possible and the other part feeling like everything was right, like this was where she belonged, no. Like he was where she belonged.

"Don't be afraid Isabella, I know you must be confused and I'm sorry I had to take such extreme measures to get your attention." His voice spoke softly.

She could feel herself being slowly pulled in, hypnotized. He was so beautiful and a peaceful feeling slowly worked its way through her body as she gazed into those red eyes. Why was this happening to her, she didn't understand. Who was he? All these questions ran through her head, but she didn't voice them, she couldn't, she closed her eyes, she was still paralyzed.

"It should wear off soon." Her eyes snapped up to meet his, how did he know?

"I just needed you to be calm, I can't risk anyone hearing you, should you decide to scream." Did he drug me? How? "No Isabella, I didn't drug you. Let's just say I have a talent, quite a few really." He crouched beside her.

"Why?" She croaked, instantly relieved that she was able to move, she moved to get a better look around the room and noticed a mound of sorts. Squinting her eyes to get a better look, she could see they were bodies. She willed herself not to scream or cry, she was going to die down here in this dark damp basement.

"Shhh, Isabella no one is going to die, well not yet, anyway." He flashed her a smile full of mischief, bizarrely, she didn't feel scared of this man, was he even a man.

"I'm a vampire, and before you laugh and call me ridiculous, consider the facts Isabella."

She thought back to everything she had seen, the speed, the cold touch, the red eyes. Her eyes flickered to the corner of the room where the bodies lay.

"Not one of my finer moments, but they served their purpose." He grimaced and she wondered why she wasn't scared. Sure, she didn't want to die, but she should be terrified, she should be screaming, crying, begging.

She shouldn't be imagining what his lips would feel like on hers and she definitely shouldn't want him to hold her, love her. What's wrong with you Bella, she scolded herself and heard him quietly laugh. His laugh was beautiful, and she frowned.

"You don't know how long I've waited for you." He cupped her cheek, the sparks that worked through her body was unbelievable. His eyes looked into hers and she had to look away from the emotion in his.

"My mate." He whispered the word so quietly she thought she imagined it.

"Mate?" What did that mean.

"It means, you belong to me, that you were made for me. Forever Isabella, that's what we'll have, just you and me." Why did she like the sound of that. She lifted her eyes to meet his. There's an element of knowing them. He looks smug and it threw her completely off.

"God, I can't wait to fuck you." He groans and pulls her up to stand in front of him.

"Then do it," she says it quietly, half hoping he didn't hear her. She met his eyes with determination, she didn't know why she wanted this man, it was like she was under a spell. The electricity between them was pulsing.

"Do you think there'll be sparks?" he asked cockily, his mocking injects some bravery into her. She lifts her hand to cup his cheek and presses her lips stiffly to his. Her heart rate was speeding up, and the electricity started to pulse between them. She wants him more than she knows she should.

EPOV

He nibbles on her bottom lip cautiously aware of how this could go wrong if he gets carried away. His tongue pushes into her mouth and he feels her relax into the kiss, her hands clasp his shoulders, it's heavenly. He snickers, but before she can comment he pulls her closer.

He's worshiping her.

He groans pushing his hardness into her stomach, she gasps and pulls away, her breathing heavy.

"Once we start Isabella, I won't be able to stop." She stares into my eyes looking uncertain, then he see's it, the determination sets in and her heart rate slows. Whatever fear she had left about him has disappeared.

He presses his lips back to hers and guides her down onto the mattress never breaking contact with her mouth. If this kiss is an indicator of what is to come, then he knows he's a lucky man. His hand grasps the hem of her t-shirt, lifting it, breaking contact with her mouth briefly to get it over her head. He leans over her, nose to nose, forehead to forehead. His red eyes looking into hers.

"I don't think I can take it slow." He has to warn her, he doesn't want to hurt her but his need for her is too strong.

"I don't want you to." So beautiful.

He quickly undresses her, his mouth over the apex of her thighs within seconds. "Are you sure? Last chance." She groans and he almost laughs.

"Soon my mouth will be here" His finger enters her, as he nibbles on the inside of her thigh. "Would you like that?" She nods her answer and a low moan escapes her when he moves his fingers, his mouth working its way up over her navel and between the valley of her breasts; his tongue briefly leaving his mouth to taste her skin.

"Not tonight, but soon." He settles over her with his finger still inside her, he stops moving and stares at her.

So beautiful, he can't believe she's here after a thousand years of waiting for her. He presses his lips to the corner of her mouth and her head turns, her lips seeking his.

He growls a low broken sound of pleasure, he withdraws his single finger, slowly thrusting two in and she whimpers. His fingers speed up and her back bows in pleasure, she's close, he adds another finger and growls at the sight of her as she climaxes.

He removes his fingers and grabs her bottom lifting her legs onto his shoulders. He pulls the zipper of his pants down, releasing himself and enters her in one swift move. He clenches her hips, careful not to use too much pressure and grinds deeply, receiving a low alluring moan from her.

"Jesus that sound, I can't wait to listen to it for eternity," he hisses in pleasure.

"Oh god," she moans, pushing short uncontrolled breaths through her lips.

He drops her legs and leans over her, his hips gaining speed. "Tell me you want me." He gains more speed, the only sound in the room is there pants of breath and the slapping of where their skin meets. This was fucking, raw sweaty,well, she's sweaty, primal fucking.

"Kiss me," she begs breathlessly as he grinds firmly, rotating his hips. Her hands pull at his hair, his red eyes meeting her brown eyes.

"This must be heaven," he grinds. "Tell me you feel it," he murmurs, claiming her lips briefly. "Do you Bella".

"Yes." She bites his lip and plunges her tongue into his mouth. He's too far gone, his climax is closing in, he feels her body spasm, the hints of the building orgasm making her kiss harden and he loses it. No thinking, just pure unadulterated pleasure.

"Forever Bella, say it." She moan, she so close. "Say it Isabella."

"Yes, forever." She nods and bows back, exposing her neck as she climaxes, groaning in pleasure.

"Mine," he grows, leaning forward and bites her, sealing her fate with him forever.

3rd November

Three days he had sat waiting while she burned in silence, he watched as her skin began to harden, her features sharpen and her heart rate slow. Although he didn't plan on it happening at the moment, it did and he couldn't feel any remorse. He had his mate and it didn't matter how it happened. When life offers you a dream so far beyond any of your expectations, it's not reasonable to grieve when it comes to an end. But this wasn't the end, it was just the beginning.

Thump… thump… thump.

Silence.

Thump...… thump…... thump.

Silence.

Her heartbeat got slower and slower as time went on.

He leans over her just as her eyes open, the shade of red seducing him in there beauty.

"Sodalis vitae," He murmurs lovingly

"You" she growls and flips back, landing on her feet, in a hunting crouch, he's mesmerized.

"Bastard" She's stunning in her anger.

"Thats right, we never did get to my name. I'm Edward, Edward Masen, your mate"

She growls in fury, crouching more.

"Let's hunt isabella"

She springs at him.

"Bastard!"