In the kitchen, the kettle was just reaching boiling point. Mitch held his face in his hands, leaning on the table.
"Annie?" He called to her, hoping for a response. His head hurt and he couldn't remember how he'd got himself to the table. Thinking about it made his ears ring.
There was a clattering and a small shriek in he kitchen, followed by the appearance of Annie.
"Mitchell!" She jumped to embrace him in a hug, knocking his hands out of the way. "What on earth are you doing here?"
"I really haven't a clue..." Mitch said, shaking his head and leaning out of her hug. He looked closely at her. "Are you still dead?"
"Well of course I am, silly." She put one hand on her hip and ran the other through her curly hair. "You can't just stop being dead."
"So where are we?" Mitch squinted at the room through his headache. "It looks like home -"
"Because it is home. I dunno, we must have been zapped to a familiar place or something."
"But why?"
"I don't know, Mitchell." Annie turned away and walked back to the kitchen. "But get used to it. Tea?"
"Yes, please." He muttered, despite feeling they had more pressing concerns than hot beverages. "Annie?" He continued, getting up on shakey legs to follow her.
"Hmm?" There she was like countless times before, back towards him as she poured hot water onto the teabag. Depite his worries about their whereabouts his eyes looked longingly at the much ignored jar of coffee.
"Do you remember getting here?"
She kept her back to him as she spoke. "I didn't to begin with, but I think I do now. Something to do with Hal, I think."
"Hal? Who?" Mitch repeated, wondering whether this was one of Annie's friends she'd forgotten to mention.
"Oh, right. You were alreay dead." She laughed uncomfortably for a second then turned to face him, offering the cup of tea. "New vampire. Well, a very old one. He showed up not long after you died."
"Ah." Mitch took the mug and avoided looking at Annie. "Boyfriend of yours?"
"Excuse me?" She coughed, hands on hip again.
"I was wondering why he'd have anything to do with you coming back her. Unless it was because he missed you."
"What? Wh-why would I be in a relationship with someone I barely know? And a vampire, no less. I've already learnt from that mistake, thank you." She added with an accusing wave towards Mitch. He recoiled, jaw dropped.
"You really think it was a mistake?"
"Mitch you were never the most honest of people to be around -"
"But I loved you. And I think at one point you might have loved me. And you still think it was a mistake?"
"I only know that I'm never getting emotionally involved with a vampire again." They were standing quite close to each other, now staring each other down.
"I'm sorry I made such a bad impression on you. I hope Hal doesn't take it personally."
"Don't be a fool, Mitchell. There has never been anything like that between us."
"Oh yeah?" Mitch leant down to look straight in her eyes, slightly unsure why he was feeling so bothered.
"Yeah. Not that you should care." Annie crossed her arms, looking away.
"And why's that?"
"Because you never cared, did you?" She looked at him with watery eyes, leaning away slightly as if to distance herself from an unpleasant smell.
"Annie-" Mitch said in a softened tone, reaching for her arm. She flinched away, closing your eyes. "I hurt you." She laughed once, opening her eyes to roll hem to the ceiling.
"You can say that again."
"I hurt you." He repeated, reaching around her to put the mug down. As he did he grazed her waist with his arm and she flinched. "And I am so, so sorry for that. I never meant to. Every time I thought I'd managed to get things finally sorted out something else would appear and break it. I was playing a very dangerous gaame trying to protect you and I lost. But I always cared, Annie. Always." She looked over at him with softened eyes.
"You still killed all those people -"
"Yes, and I'm sorry for that too. But I wasn't myself then. You brought out the best of me and all those years we lived together you helped me believe I didn't need blood. And it was the best time of my life."
"You're welcome." She sighed, wringing her hands. "I know it was difficult -"
"Shush. Don't think about it. It was all my fault but if we're here for much time I'm going to prove that I can be better. Maybe good enough for you one day."
"Mitchell, don't-"
"Shush." He leant in quickly to kiss her cheek. It was cold and as fragile as puff pastry but he knew it was real.
"Guys?" From the diningroom came the familiar voice of George. Mitch looked at Annie one last time before stepping away to greet his friend.
"George!" Shaking off the tension that had built up around him and Annie, Mitch emraced George and thumped hia back.
"What are we all doing here?" George asked as he moved to give Annie a careful hug.
"No idea. Annie thinks it has something to do with Hal-"
"Hal?"
"Her boyfriend."
"NOT my boyfriend." Annie shouted, glaring at Mitch as he retrieved his tea.
"A vampire... Friend." she explained, turning back to George.
"Ah, I see." George nodded and there was silence for a moment.
"Tea?" Annie asked again, smiling.
"George, I need your help." Mitch mutered, crumbling the remains of a biscuit onto the table. Since George had arrived so had Nina and the two women were now chatting upstairs.
"Crikey. John Mitchell admitig he needs help?" Mitch shot him a dirty look, making him laugh. "Sorry. Ask away."
"I kissed Annie."
"WHAT?" George spilt hot tea onto the table and jumped almost out of his seat. "Recently"
"Literally just before you walked in."
"Well, what did she say?"
"She didn't get chance to; you walked in."
"Oh, right, right." George picked up another biscuit. "Why?"
"Because I felt I should." George laughed at Mitch, raising his eyebrows.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"I don't even know. But now what do I do?"
"Run."
"Don't be ridiculous."
"I guess you'll have to talk to her about it. Was it a big kiss?"
"No, just a little peck on the cheek." Mitch admitted, pointing to the spot on his own cheek.
"Aw, Mitchell's in love." George teased, giggling. Mitch laughed too for a moment, then admitted,
"I tried that with her before but I'm just too uncontrollable. It should have been perfect, you know? I mean she's already dead - it's not like i could hurt her. But I just hurt eveyone else and I think that did more damage than any bite from me could have done."
"Sucks." George sighed heavily before falling into a fit of giggles. In response, Mitxh thre the handful of crumbs at him.
"I'm going to make a coffee." He announced, standing up to walk to the kitchen. As he passed George he felt something warm on his face with a familiar scent. He raised his hand to wipe his nose and stared in horror at the stain on his glove.
Blood.
Panicking, he turned to show George. His friend was having the same problem - quite reasonable for a werewolf, bur for a vampire whose hert hadn't beat in hundreds of yeara? A nosebleed should have been impossible.
"Nina-" George tried to call before falling to he floor from his chair. He looked up in horror at Mitch and screamed again.
Overcome by confusion, Mitch too fell to the floor. He wiped frantically at the blood dripping from his nose and felt his face contact the carpet. Somewhere far in the distance, he heard two women screaming.
As quickly as the nosebleed began, darkness overshadowed Mitch's view of the world. The last hing he was aware of was the continuing, throbbing headache.
And suddenly there was light once more.
The headache had gone and Mitch's face felt dry. He could open his eyes and he saw the radiator, inches from his face. Using it as support, he pulled himself to a sitting poaition and immediately felt light headed. He felt a pulse coursing through his neck, his wrists, his back...
Blood was moving through his veins.
George, too, was coming round. He stared in horror at his blood covered friend before realising that he, too, looked like he'd just stepped out of battle.
"Are you okay?" He asked, but Mitch ignored him. Instead he was pulling himself to his feet and stumbling towards the stairs.
"Annie?" He shouted, paning. George was soon close behind him and they both ran upatairs, trembling with excitement as they began to guess what had happened.
They found Annie and Nina in the old nursery, clinging to each other with eyes full of wonder.
"She's solid - look!" Nina laughed, taking one of Annie's hands and offering it to George. Eyes on Annie's, Mitch intercepted and subtly pressed his fingers to her wrists. He barely noticed her mirror the action and in the silence which followed he felt a bright, fluttering pulse.