The memory was so vivid it was like I was there again

The memory was so vivid it was like I was there again.

I was 12, and my mom had dropped me off at the old cinema to meet my friend Violet. We had been best friends and joined at the hip since kindergarten. We did almost everything together. She was like the sister I never had but always wanted.

We were going to watch a movie and then I would stay over at her house for a couple of days while my parents went to some convention. I was really excited because it was the first time our parents had let us go to the movies by ourselves. We lived in a really nice neighborhood. Nothing ever happened.

I remembered it was supposed to storm that day. The sky was so dark because the clouds were purple and almost black.

After the movie was over Violet went to the bathroom and I went outside to wait for her mom. I saw something move in the alley out of the corner of my eye. I was curious to see what it was. I walked around the corner and was horrified at what I saw.

The alley ended in a brick wall, and cowering against it was a woman. She was wearing a long tan coat and jeans. There was what looked like a man standing over her. I didn't think anything of him when I noticed that both of her legs were bent at odd angles and realized they were broken. I went a little closer to get a better look at her. She had her arm out defensively in front of her. It had what looked like bite marks on it.

She looked like someone had taken an aluminum baseball bat and beaten her with it. The areas of exposed skin that I could see were covered in black and blue bruises. There was blood coming from her mouth and nose. She barely looked conscious.

Then I got a look at the man, I hadn't noticed before but he was shirtless and as pale as moonlight. I couldn't see his face but he had long sandy hair that was pulled back into a ponytail. He was crouched in front of the woman like he was about to pounce on her. I wasn't sure I had caught the movement, but he looked like he had bent down to kiss her. It looked as if he had brushed his lips gently across the skin on her neck, but he moved his head slightly to the side and I saw a long slit on her neck and blood was pouring out and into his mouth.

I let out an involuntary scream and he whipped around to look at me. It was clear he hadn't noticed me before, because he had a look of pure malice on his face. Then his expression changed to one of desire. He was the most beautiful person I had ever seen, so beautiful it was terrifying. He had a wild look to him, and his eyes were a strange shade of crimson.

I tried to run away but he was fast as lightning. I tried to break free when he grabbed me but he was so strong. He was rock hard and cold. I remember him whispering in my ear that I smelled mouth watering and that he was really going to enjoy this.

He picked me up and threw me against the wall. I heard a snap but if it was me I didn't feel it. I was too petrified that I couldn't feel anything. I landed by the woman, and I turned my head to the side to look at her. I knew once I saw her pale, lifeless face that she was dead.

The man came towards me again and this time he stepped on my legs. I heard the crack and crunch of bone being turned to powder before I felt the pain. It was so intense that I lost consciousness.

The only thing I remembered after that was pain and then a burning that started in my hand and worked it way up my arm. I opened my eyes but didn't see any fire. All I saw was blood and bruises. Then I saw my legs. They were so mangled that I thought they would have to be removed. That's when I saw the man. He was just as beautiful as the one who had done this to me but his eyes were warm butterscotch instead of angry crimson, and he was blonde unlike the other man. I noticed the other man was gone, and realized that he must have done something horrible to make the other man go away.

I was scared that this man would break me even more than I already was. I tried to move away from him but I couldn't move. The man had the saddest expression on his face. He said he wouldn't hurt me anymore that he was going to make the fire stop. I didn't believe him at first but then I knew he was telling the truth. He lifted the arm that the fire in it and put his mouth on the crescent shaped cut on my hand. At first I didn't feel a difference, but then, slowly the fire receded into my finger tips and then it was gone completely.

He told me he was going to take me to the hospital. Then I remember feeling like I was flying. I know it should have taken longer than a minute to get to the hospital, because it was on the opposite side of town than the cinema.

He rushed me the emergency room and the lady at the desk greeted him by name. He carried me to a room and laid me on a bed. He stuck me with needles and I cringed at the slight pain. He asked me for my phone number so he could call my parents and let them know what happened to me. It took a great effort but I finally got it out.

He must have given me some pain killer in my i.v., because all the pain went away and I slipped into a deep and dreamless sleep.

When I woke up I had a very bad headache. I felt like I had slept for days without moving. I was stiff so I stretched and gasped at the pain that ran through my body. I would have to remind myself to not do that again. My mother seeing that I was awake came over and put her hand on my forehead. I looked at her and her eyes were red and puffy like she had been crying for hours on end. Her make up was smudged and looked like it had been running and here hair was a mess.

"Oh honey, I'm so glad you're awake. You had us so scared. We thought we were going to lose you. Do you feel alright? Do you need any pain killers?" I shook my head. I noticed my dad in the far corner of the room. He was looking blankly out of the window. Then I noticed that the blonde man wasn't there.

My voice was horse when I spoke. "Mom, where's the blonde man, the man who saved me?" My mother looked at me with sorrow in her eyes.

"He left before we got here. He told the nurse what happened and left." I had a feeling that he wouldn't be back and that I would never see him again. Suddenly I yearned for the man who had saved my life. I wanted to know why he saved me and what he did to the red eyed man and the woman. Then I knew that I should find out what my mother knew about what happened.

"What happened? I can't remember."

"Well, the blonde man told the nurse that he saw a man drag you into the alley. He saw the man break your legs and that's when he intervened. He hit the guy and knocked him out. He saw that you were unconscious and severely hurt. He called the police to pick the guy up and took you here. I don't know why he didn't just call an ambulance. He must have thought it would have been faster to get you here if he took you himself."

I knew that the man had kept what really happened a secret for a reason so I would keep it a secret too. Then something else came to my mind.

"What happened to Violet? Is she okay? Did her mom pick her up?"

"She's fine sweetie. When she saw you weren't outside she started looking for you. She said she looked for a few minutes when here mom showed up. They started looking together. When I got the call that you were here I let Violet know. She came to see you a couple hours ago but you were still asleep."

"Oh." I was glad that Violet got to her mom. It had completely slipped my mind.

I tried to sit up but it was a little difficult. My mom gently pushed me down and pushed a button on the side of my bed that made it move. It rose so now I my torso was vertical and my legs were horizontal. That's when I looked around the room for the first time.

It was just like any other hospital room. Beige walls, tacky sitting furniture, coffee table, and lots of beeping machines, which unfortunately hooked up to me.

I looked down at my body to assess the damage that had been done to me and gasped. I was covered in black, blue, and purple bruises. My left arm and right leg were in casts. My left leg was in one of those slings that hang from the ceiling. My right arm had the least of the harm done to it. The only damage done was a couple of scratches, some bruises, and on my hand was a crescent shaped bite mark that was already a scar. I slowly moved my left arm to touch the odd scar. It kind of shimmered in the florescent lighting and was a few degrees cooler than the rest of my skin.

I shrank back at the memory of the blonde man sucking the fire from my arm out of this wound, and my mother thought I was in pain so she pushed a button on my bed and a nurse came in and put something in my i.v. that made me sleepy.

The rest of the days in the hospital went by in a blur of visitors and pokes and prods from the doctor. The only thing that indicated that time was passing was the light out side the window. After two weeks of being in the same room I was allowed to go home.

When I got there I saw mountains of boxes. At first I didn't understand the meaning of them, and then it hit me.

"Are we moving?"

"Yes, your mother and I thought it would be best if we left this town behind and with it the memories of what happened two weeks ago." I couldn't believe it! I had lived here my whole life. Plus I was in the middle of my second semester in school. I tried to get them to stay so I could finish up the school year but they wouldn't listen. They wouldn't even wait for me to get my casts off. I quit trying to change their minds when I over heard my mother and father talking about it one night.

"I don't think its going to make her any better, leaving all her friends, especially Violet. It's just going to hurt her more."

"You don't understand Renee. Just to be in the same town as the man who did that to her makes me sick." I got chills when he said. Is the man who did this to me still out there? If so then I had to get as far away from here as possible. I didn't listen to the rest of the conversation. That was the last time I heard them talking about it and it was the last time I was going to think about it. I pushed it completely out of my mind until now.