Prologue: Questions without answers
"Get out of here! Your presence is not wanted." The man's bright eyes burned into hers, as he pushed her out the door. She stared back up at him, her face carrying only shock and grief over what he was doing to her.
"Tom..." She tried to make herself heard, but he merely slammed the door shut in her face, leaving her standing on the street outside what had been her home five minutes earlier. The only home she had had for the past three years.
Drying the angry tears off of her cheeks, she picked up her hastily packed bags and set off down the street. The neighbours' confused and judging gazes burned into her back and she kept her head down. She did not want them to see her tears, sense her anger and laugh at her humiliation. For she knew they would notice all of that anyway and then stand in their usual groups and laugh at her when she was gone. Laugh at how stupid she had been for thinking she would be made for a life with someone like Tom. Her boyfriend... No, ex-boyfriend from now on, had always been too demanding of her and such a control freak. And now, after getting mad at her for not doing what he wanted again, she was out on the street without a home.
Katie sighed and ran a hand through her long, brown hair. What was she going to do now? The majority of what she owned was in her hands and the rest she had to pick up before Tom threw it away. So she had to find a place to stay. And that fast.
"Thank you for meeting me." Katie smiled towards the woman opposite from her. She warmed her hands on the teacup as her eyes took in the little café. "I just... needed to talk." Her friend nodded and smiled softly.
"Of course, I understand. Don't worry about it." Jenny brought her own cup to her lips and took a sip of her coffee. "What actually happened, though?" She frowned, meeting the eyes of her friend.
Katie sighed, her eyes turning to the beverage in her cup. She had already relived what had happened in her head too many times and she did not need it again.
"Tom got mad about... something. I'm not exactly sure about what, actually. I never are when it comes to him and his rage attacks." She took a sip of her tea before continuing. "He started going on about how useless I am and how much I always disappoint him by not being who he want me to be. I just had enough of that and decided to head out to get some time to think. He wouldn't have that, though and told me to leave for good instead. I just had the time to get some things together before he threw me out." She sighed again, her eyes turning to the street outside. It was raining. The world seemed to be taking on her grey feelings. "I will have to go back there and get the rest of my things, though. He said I had until Friday afternoon."
"I can't believe he would do something like that. He always seemed so nice and caring when it came to you." Jenny raised her eyebrows in surprise over what she had just heard, and Katie shook her head slowly.
"He always was like that. He put on an act before everyone else, but at home he could be in a terrible mood all the time. I should have guessed it would end like that." Katie leaned back in her chair, her eyes sadly travelling over her bags on the floor.
"You know what? I will call Danielle and we will have a girls' night tonight. My place. Where you are to stay, by the way. Alex won't mind, I promise." Jenny met her friend's gaze and smiled. "We will pick your things up now and then you will never have to see that jerk again." She gripped Katie's hand tightly and rose from the table. "Come on, let's get it over with."
Her friend smiled sadly, tears slowly forming in her eyes by the thankfulness she carried. Without Jenny, she wouldn't know what to do in life.
"Looks like someone is moving in." Annie stood in the window of the house, her eyes looking across the street towards a house further down.
"And you want to come where with that?" Mitchell looked up from the sofa, where he lay, his eyes glued to the TV. "People move out and in every day." He sighed and ran a hand through his dark hair. Sometimes Annie obsessed too much with people's every day business.
"But this is someone moving into an already inhabited house", Annie protested, throwing a frustrated look towards her friend. Sometimes Mitchell just didn't understand.
"So? It's nothing special, still." The vampire sighed deeply again and leaned his head against the backrest of the sofa.
The ghost in the window rolled her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest. Even though Mitchell might not find it interesting, she did. It didn't matter what he thought.
"I wish I could go out and say hi." She thought for a moment, a small smile rising on her lips.
"Well, you can." Mitchell rose, smiling carefully back as he headed towards the kitchen.
"No, I can't." Annie followed him, frustrated. "They wouldn't see me, remember?"
"Well, some people do actually see you. What if it's one of them?" Her friend shot her a quick look, before he opened the fridge to take out a beer.
"But what if it's not? Or one of them see me and the other don't? What do I do then?" Annie stomped her foot in the floor, a jar on a shelf rattling dangerously.
"Hey, take it easy." Mitchell took a sip from his beer. "It's no biggie."
"It is for me!" Annie ran a hand through her hair and leaned against the doorframe. "Why can't you come with me and introduce yourself? And if they see me I can just say hi to them?" The idea made her face lit up in a smile once more, and Mitchell sighed.
"No, I don't feel like it. Get George to do it if you're so desperate." He headed back into the next room, not noticing the grumpy look on Annie's face.
"George is not home. It has to be you." Annie tugged at his arm. "Come on, just this once. We don't have to be there long. We can just say hi and see if they need any help with anything. Then we can just leave again. Please?" She pouted slightly and Mitchell closed his eyes for a moment, hating her stubbornness.
"All right. But just really quickly." He put the beer down on the table and grabbed his jacket. "Come on then." He pulled the door open and stepped outside, his eyes finding the two young women across the road immediately. This was a stupid idea.
Katie had just stepped out of Jenny's car, when she saw the woman in the window. She was not sure what made her notice her, but something about her made her eyes get drawn to the window in a house a little way up the street.
An eerie feeling settled in her stomach as she watched the woman, who carried a small smile on her lips. She made no sign that she had seen her standing there, but Katie was sure she had and that this was why she was smiling.
Shivering, she turned her back and started to unload the car together with her friend. She could not start to worry about the neighbours this early into it all.
"Who lives there?" She nodded towards the house, as Jenny gave her a box to carry.
"Oh, I'm not sure actually. Two guys, I believe. I have seen them sometimes. I think they work down at the hospital. Not sure, though." Jenny shrugged her shoulders, showing that she obviously didn't care.
"Only two guys? No woman, then?" Katie followed her friend up the small path towards her own house, her brow knitted in thought.
"Not that I know of, no. I know one of them had a girlfriend a while back, though, but I'm not sure if that's still going on." Jenny pushed the door opened and stepped to the side to let her friend inside. "Why do you ask?"
"Oh, no reason." Katie flickered her friend a quick smile, as she set down the box and then headed back towards the car in a quick pace to fetch the next, while Jenny carried the first one upstairs and prepared the house.
Having a few moments in solitude was somewhat calming. She had felt such an urge to talk to someone after the incident, but now, after doing nothing but talking, she was glad Jenny had left her alone for a bit.
Unloading the few boxes and bags she had from the car, and putting them into the hall of the house she was now to live in, her mind was occupied by other things.
She had tried so hard to understand why Tom had done what he had done, but now she had finally figured it out. He had never loved her the way she thought he had. He had only wanted someone that he could easily control. Someone that he could force into doing the things he didn't want to do.
The thought of it now disgusted her slightly.
Footsteps on the pavement behind her, caused her to turn as she had just closed the car after taking out the last box.
From the house she had noticed earlier came two people, a man and a woman, towards her. The man, being a little taller than her, had brown eyes, dark enough for her to be unable to read anything out of them, and dark curly hair, hanging about his face.
The woman was about the same height as herself, with a friendly smile on her lips under a pair of sparkling eyes and wild, dark-brown hair.
"Hello." Katie smiled hesitantly, not entirely sure if they were actually interested in greeting her.
"Hi." The man flickered her a quick smile, his eyes examining her face. It was something about him that both made her skin crawl and her heart to skip a beat. And she was not sure why. "I'm Mitchell. I live right across the street." He nodded back towards the house he had exited, as the woman next to him nodded excitedly.
"And I'm Annie. I live there too, actually." The woman stretched a hand forward, while smiling happily.
"Nice meeting you, Annie. Mitchell." Katie shook her hand, balancing the box on her hip, and nodded towards the man. He did not seem very keen on shaking her hand, at least. "I'm Katie. Katie Bryce." She was not entirely sure why she included her last name into it all, but she could not seem to control her tongue. Something about the two, especially Mitchell, made her feel all giddy inside. She did not like it.
"So, are you moving in?" Annie looked curiously at her and the box, before directing her eyes to the house.
"Well, sort of." She shrugged her shoulders. "I am to stay here for a while until I have found an apartment of my own, at least."
"Oh? What happened?" The other woman smiled kindly and met her gaze.
Katie opened her mouth to speak, but something kept her from uttering a word. She could not have herself to tell these two strangers of what had happened to her. She supposed no one actually spoke of their massive heartbreak to someone they had just met.
"I just... found myself without a home very suddenly and Jenny offered me a place to stay." She nodded towards the house, where her friend had just appeared in the doorway.
"Oh, hello there." Jenny smiled as she joined her younger friend. "And who may you be? I'm Jenny." Her eyes was turned to Mitchell, and to Katie it seemed as if she didn't even notice Annie standing there. She frowned. What was her friend playing at?
"Oh, this is Mitchell and..." She was broken off by Mitchell sending her a warning look, his dark eyes burning into hers, telling her not to say any more. She did not know why he did it, and why she actually listened, but she pressed her lips together and turned her eyes away. What was going on?
"Yeah, I'm from across the street there. It's nice meeting you, Jenny." The most honest smile Mitchell had produced since he and Annie had come over, passed over his lips, and Katie frowned. What was he doing?
"It's nice meeting you too." Jenny nodded towards him. "Let me take this for you, Katie, and I will go inside. See you in a bit." She took the box from her friend, and flickered her a meaning smile, before she headed back inside, leaving Katie standing there awkwardly.
"I... um." She looked up at Mitchell, her brow knitted heavily in thought as she looked at him.
"Don't even ask about what just happened. It's better if you don't know. Never speak of it, either." His smile was now gone and he took a step closer to her, his dark eyes burning once more by a dark flame.
"But what happened? Why didn't she notice Annie?" She took a step back from him, the confusion and fear written across her face as he gripped her wrist tightly, keeping her from escaping.
"Don't ask questions, do you understand? Don't speak of it." His eyes had been dark before, but now, suddenly, they turned black as night, while his voice was no more than an angry growl.
"Mitchell..." Annie's voice rung out behind them, causing the man to release his grip and quickly step back, his breathing shallow and hard. "There is no need for that." The other woman took a step closer to Katie. "I know this is confusing, but you have to listen to him. You can't speak to anyone about me." Her eyes that had been sparkling so brightly earlier, had now caught a dull glow. "I'm sorry."
Katie looked from one to the other for a moment, before she nodded. She had so many questions, so many questions without answers, but she knew she could not ask them. Not here. Not now. Not ever.
"I understand." Her voice was weak and shaking, as she took another trembling step backwards. She nodded slowly, mostly to herself, as her eyes flickered between the two. She did not understand a thing, really, but it was best not to say. She could not ask questions.
Taking another deep, shaky breath, she quickly turned her back and hurried towards the house. She could not stay there another minute. This day had been too upsetting.
Watching Katie leave, Mitchell sighed deeply and ran a hand through his hair. This had been going great. Just great.
"Thanks, Annie", her murmured angrily and threw the ghost a quick look. "Thanks a lot." Turning on his heel and heading back towards their own house, he sighed again. He was not even sure if he was thankful or just angry. Probably both.
Author's note: Right, another fanfic. Great, just what I needed. Haha, just kidding, I love writing, but I'm just bad at updating stuff. Anyway, this is a fanfic based on the series Being Human. I would recommend you to have at least seen the first series to be able to understand the plot. As the series contains a lot of blood and other things, this will have a T rating to be safe, if I feel like writing a scene like that sometime (Which I probably will). Anyway, I hope you will like it and that you will take your time reviewing.
And yes, before you ask: I'm basing it on the UK series, with Aidan Turner as John Mitchell, Lenora Crichollow as Annie Sawyer and Russell Tovey as George Sands. NOT the American rip-off.