LUX

The Stranger was hiding behind a book, peeking over the cover, staring at me with his green-gold eyes. I sat behind the checkout counter and tried to stop shaking, but he was gorgeous, and the way he looked at me was so intense that I could barely take it.

'Dangerous' was the word that ran through my mind. The Stranger had been coming to the bookstore for weeks now, and every time, it got harder and harder not to wish he'd finally say 'hi'.

But I had to force myself to keep a safe distance from him. I still looked seventeen, I still was seventeen in my head, but I'd belonged to a vampire for almost twice that. 'Damaged', 'Addicted', 'owned', 'used', were the only words I had to describe myself. I was way too broken to ever date another human again.

I hid behind the ancient computer monitor and clicked around on some stuff that didn't matter just to keep myself from thinking about him. But so many questions were going through my mind. Why was a high school kid hanging around an all-night bookstore at four a.m.? Who was he? Was he really staring at me for the same reason I was staring at him?

My thoughts were interrupted when I heard the front door slam open.

I looked up and felt my heartbeat groaning in my ears.

A man in a well-fitted suit was standing just inside the bookstore. His voice was calm, but his lips twitched, just barely hiding his fangs.

He held a hand out in my direction, "Would you like to come with me?"

The Stranger put his book down on his lap as he tried to figure out what was going on. There was no way he could've known that he was facing a vampire, but the man in the suit's behavior was too odd for anyone to ignore.

I blushed, managing to feel as embarrassed as I was scared. To vampires, the scent of a human who's Addicted is like the scent of a dog who's in heat. He wanted to know if I was desperate enough to leave with him, no questions asked.

"No, thank you," I said.

I hadn't had been with a vampire in two years and the withdrawal hurt, but the thought of letting anyone use me for pleasure and blood made me feel sick inside.

The worst part in that moment was that I still had to be polite to him. Pissing him off was something that I did not want to do. He was the first vampire that had ever approached me when I wasn't alone. For him to take that kind of risk was proof that he was starving. If he lost it, he would kill me, and the Stranger too.

He breathed in deeply, then exhaled slowly, "I said come."

"-He said 'no'." Slowly, the Stranger stood up from his chair. His chest and shoulders tensed. His fists clenched at his sides.

Before I had time to respond, the vampire did.

"You should stay quiet."

"He said 'no', and I said 'leave'." Stranger took a step forward and it was clearly a threat.

"Wait!" I scrambled from behind the counter and stood between them. "Everything's fine. Nobody has to fight."

"If I have to go with you, I will," I mouthed the words at the immortal. The Stranger couldn't see. He was standing just behind me, concentrating on the situation at hand, "But please, don't hurt him."

The vampire's face changed as he read my lips. The determination in his eyes faded to irritation. He huffed my scent out of his nose, then spit on the ground and wiped his mouth on his sleeve. He shot the Stranger an angry glance before charging out the door.

It banged on its hinges and slammed back shut. The Beautiful Stranger was right behind him, rushing to turn the lock. The second it clicked into place he wheeled around, moving towards me, "Are you okay? God, that guy looked like he wanted to… " he shook his head like he was stopping himself from saying the words 'eat you'.

I answered by stumbling back and knocking into the chair. I hadn't breathed for so long that I'd started seeing stars. I wobbled and fell into the seat.

"Whoa," gently, he reached out to steady me.

"Sorry. I'm okay. I'm fine."

"Are you sure? He crouched down in front of me, the concern in his eyes lighting the shades of green and gold. "That guy was insane. Maybe I should call the cops?"

It took me a minute to speak. He was so close. Just the smell of him was making me dizzy all over again. "No. It's fine. It's the night shift. Crazy weird stuff like that happens all the time. And if I call the cops my boss would just panic and I… I really need this job."

"Okay," he nodded like he understood, "Then no cops." He glanced towards the door. "But, can I hang out for a while, then? Just to make sure he doesn't come back?"

I short-circuited. I wasn't supposed to let him to stay. I needed to tell him to get away from me and my messed up life as fast as he could.

"Just for a while?" He asked again.

"Um… Yeah." I said, as I realized it was literally impossible for me to tell him 'no'. "That would be okay."

"Alright. Good." He stared up at me, looking relieved, "…I'm Lux, by the way."

"I'm Gabriel. Gabe. Or anything. I mean, either one," I rambled like I didn't even know my own name.

He smiled softly as he put his hand out to shake mine, "Hi, Gabe. Nice to meet you."

KISSING IN THE DARK

"-You dig a moat and fill it with oil!" Lux's brow furrowed as he argued, "When the zombies get in, you set it on fire and you're good!"

"Zombies don't care if they're on fire! Now they're hungry for you, engulfed in flames, and they're gonna eat your brains while they burn down your house!"

He burst out laughing. "Okay, good point. You're the first person I'm calling when the zombie apocalypse hits."

"I don't know anymore, Lux. You might just slow me down."

He laughed, "Really?!"

"Only a handful of us are gonna make it. I can't save everyone!"

He shook his head as he laughed harder.

I couldn't believe how easy he was to talk to. We'd been talking about zombies for hours.

He smiled at me, his head tipped to the side. His gaze started to do that heart-stopping thing again. I hurried up and found something to say before I forgot my name for the second time.

"So… I kinda noticed you come in a few times. Do you live around here?"

"Actually, my dad owns the place down the street, Marsettes," he said, "So I'm working for him this summer. He wants me to help him run it after I graduate."

"Do you like it there?"

He raised an eyebrow, "All I do is count produce at five a.m., so it's not exactly riveting. But my dad made me a deal that if I started working now I could still play football when school starts back, so it's worth it.

Quitting senior year would've been way too hard. Varsity's been together since we were kids. Missing our last chance to all play together would've been insane, you know? Especially since Whitmer's actually got a chance to take the championships this time.

What about you? Where do you go to school?"

"I um…" I felt sick to my stomach. I hated talking about myself, especially since I could never tell anyone the whole truth. "I used to go to Saint John's, but I had to quit a couple years back. I got my GED though." I winced. "It wasn't because I was doing bad in school or anything. Some family stuff came up, and… I just to deal with that first."

"-No. I get it. Really. That's pretty much how I ended up at Marsette's; family stuff. My brother, Mark, was supposed to take over but when he couldn't I had to step up. I was hoping it wouldn't be until after college. OSU was saying I had a good chance to come down on scholarship, and I wanted that pretty bad… but I had to give it up.

When it comes to family, sometimes you just gotta do what's best for everybody else. You just gotta deal."

He was trying to keep his voice steady, to keep the regret from showing on his face. I wished I could tell him how much I understood.

"True," I said, "But honestly, sometimes I get sick of 'just dealing'."

He nodded, "Me too. Everything I've given up to make my dad O.K., it's kinda been the things I wanted the most."

"-The things that would actually make you happy-"

"-the thing I can't stop thinking about." As he stared at me the look in his eyes turned from want to need.

It was so intense that it made me feel something I'd never felt for a human before: thirst. Without thinking, I licked my lips and that's all it took. The next second, he was pressed against me.

He started gently, then let himself go. His teeth bit softly against my bottom lip while his fingers pushed their way up the back of my shirt.

My chair scraped across the floor as he pulled me closer. His hands slid higher as he kissed his way down to my neck.

I forgot every single reason that I should've stayed away from him.

He jolted away from me and I gasped. The headlights passing over us through the front window had him looking like he'd be caught committing a crime.

When he realized it was just a car passing by, shame clouded the spark in his eyes. I pulled my shirt back down, feeling embarrassed and exposed.

"I'm sorry," he said, "That was stupid. It was a reflex, and it was wrong. I just… haven't told anybody yet, that I'm…"

"-It's okay," I said, and I meant it. After all, he was a normal kid whose biggest secret was that he was gay. I was a blood-addict who attracted vampires that could kill us any second. I'd be just as wrong for judging him as I'd been for letting him kiss me in the first place.

"No, that was a jerk move. I'd completely understand if you think I'm a disaster, but… I promised myself that if I ever got up the nerve to talk to you, I wouldn't leave here without asking you out. If you give me another chance to be someone you'd say 'yes' to…"

I shook my head as I fought against how much I wanted him, "No, you should go." I stood up from my chair.

"Gabriel," he winced against the rejection, "I'm sorry, and I really want to stay. Please?"

"-Lux, trust me, you're not the disaster. I am.

You're still trying to figure out how to be yourself, that's all. But I know who I am, and it's not that great-"

"-Yes it is." He said calmly, and it shook me for a moment. He sounded so sure.

I tried to regain my composure, "You can't say that. You don't know me. I'm just not good at keeping people close. I try so hard but it always breaks and maybe it's because I'm broken. So if your first instinct is to pull away from me, you're probably right. Maybe you should run."

He frowned and he looked so hurt, "Why? Tell me what happened."

"I just did-"

"No. I mean tell me everything." He pulled his chair closer.

"It doesn't matter."

He didn't move. "Yes it does."

He was so concerned that I didn't know what to say, except for some part of the truth. My heart beat faster as I thought about the worst part of my life, "-I wanted my mom to come with me when I moved out, but she wouldn't. She swore my dad would stop hitting her once I was gone. So I left, and I loved her so much for all the times she'd stopped him from destroying me, and hated her for loving him enough to stay behind.

But after being on my own for a few months, I met Aryl. He was so angry that my parents would choose to let me go before they'd learn to accept a son who wasn't straight. He told me he loved me and it felt like he was saving me from drowning.

A couple years later he disappeared. He left without saying anything. I was back underwater all over again.

I called home, for the first time since I'd been gone. I knew I couldn't go back there, but I needed to hear my mom's voice so bad. But when she picked up she sounded scared. She said she loved me, but I should never call. My dad hadn't ever stopped hurting her, and after all that time, she still thought I was the reason why.

We were both so alone, and we needed each other so bad. But she couldn't save me, and I couldn't save her. No matter how much she loved me; she'd never believe my dad was the broken one: I was.

And after that, I didn't call. Because deep down inside I knew… maybe she's right."

I'd said the whole story without a single pause. I'd just wanted to get it over with.

Lux flinched at the ending, "Gabe, I'm so sorry," he looked shocked. "But you have to know that wasn't your fault."

"You don't get it-"

"No, I can't sit here and say I know exactly how you feel. But I do know what it's like to feel broken. I felt broken too when Mark died, and my mom left, and my dad fell apart. He's still falling apart.

I wanted to be strong enough to put him back together, but my dad knows I'm different and he blames that every day for why I'll never be as good as Mark. The way he sees it, I'll never be what he wanted Mark to be. I'll never be the son he wanted to have.

So I know what it's like when you're trying so hard to save everyone, and I know what it's like to think you can't because all they see you as is broken."

He put his hand on the counter next to mine, reaching out for me, but too afraid to touch. "But being gay doesn't make us broken. And we can't keep living like everything shattered because of us.

It wasn't us." He slid his hand towards mine until our fingers interlocked, "Whether we go on a date or not, maybe I could be the one to prove it to you, and you could be the one to prove it me. Maybe we could prove it to each other."

His words pulled their way through my heart like a needle on a string: I needed to believe them so badly that it hurt. I shook my head up and down.

"Is that a 'yes'?" He asked softly.

"Yes."

And that was it. That was the moment that Lux's fate became entwined with mine. My past was already rushing to change his future, and he'd barely even learned my name.