(for story info, see Part 1)
Part 4:
"Seth."
"Huh?'
"Mystery Guy. His name is Seth."
Dean had been dying to tell Roman what happened earlier that night. However because the night had been so busy and he and Finn had a lot of deliveries, he's just now relaying his discovery while they're both closing the store. Roman was at the counter looking over the day's receipts when Dean came out of the kitchen to tell him the news. A warm grin to match the warm gaze the tattooed man gives his friend.
"So you finally met him?" Roman inquires.
"Well, not exactly 'meet' him." Dean replies as he leans back against the wall near the door leading to the kitchen. "He talked to me. I was grabbing for the money and he said Hi."
Roman starts to ponder about telling Dean about the phone call. "So…he only said his name and Hi?"
"He said other stuff too. Like, thank you and that he liked the pizza and goodnight. I told him my name since he told me his."
"Anything else?"
Dean shrugs. "Not really. Just grabbed the cash then left."
Roman gives a small chuckle as he goes back to the receipts. "It's a start."
The other man hums in agreement. Although nothing else is said about it, Dean's brain replays the scene over and over. It only serves to fuel his curiosity. Why is he hiding? An hour later, JoJo's Pizza Place is closed for the night and the owners head home for much needed rest.
A Necessary Evil
"Baaabbbbyyy!"
"Get out."
"Please don't do this to me. Let me make you feel better."
"I swear to god woman if you don't get out of the car, I will shove you out."
The passenger door on the gold colored 2016 Volvo XC90 is thrown open. Seconds later, Eva Marie gets out, her knock off Jimmy Choos almost causing her to fall on her face. She slams the door and the car speeds off.
"RYBACK IS A STUPID NICKNAME!" the redhead yells after it.
She straightens her strapless mid-thigh length multi-colored animal print dress while she tries to survey her surroundings. Asshole! He could at least taken her home. With a loud over dramatic sigh, she starts walking. Party girl she may be, she still knows how to get around thanks to her dad and three older brothers. Yet her dad was the one that made her get that boring job at that pizza place. "Learn how to get your own money.", he said. Whatever old man. Croak already so I can get some money!
Eva Marie's manicured hand brushes her loud red hair from her shoulder while her heels click against the concrete with each step. So consumed in her journey that she doesn't see nor hear the black Audi R8 Spyder roll up beside her.
"Need a ride, pretty lady?"
Her steps slow to a stop. She looks over then leans down a bit to get a good look at the driver. Cute. Nice chocolate eyes. Even though facial hair is a turn off for her, it looks good on the stranger. Blond and black hair pulled back into a ponytail. A black dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up and matching dark grey dress slack. Rich boy probably looking for a girl to have fun with for the night.
"Nah." Eva Marie straightens up then continues her walk. The car slowly follows beside her.
"Aw come on." The driver says. "I know those sexy little feet of yours must be hurting."
"Look, I'm not a hooker!"
"Didn't say you were. Just seeing a pretty lady that probably needs a ride home."
Again, the red head stops. To be honest, she does not want to walk. She looks back over to the driver. He offers her a cordial smile as he opens the door for her. After a silent prayer about this not being a psycho, Eva Marie gets into the car.
"Thank you." she says as she shuts the door. That's when she noticed the acoustic guitar heavy music set to a moderately low volume.
"Welcome." The Driver says. "Where to?"
She gives him the location near her house. Of course she wasn't going to give him the exact location. She'll just walked the block to her apartment.
"Wow. And you were planning to walk the whole way?"
"Yeah. Done it before."
"Brave girl."
Her responds is to snort.
Soon the only thing heard inside the car is the soft playing music from the sound system. After a few moments, Eva Marie is finding it a bit hard to keep awake. The low hum of the music is actually relaxing her body. The world slowly starts to blur around her. She tilts her head back and close her eyes, a soft breath passes through her pretty red lips.
Seth briefly glances at his passenger as he pulls into a darkened parking lot behind a row of buildings then turns the car off. He reaches over to adjust the seat so that Eva Marie ends up lying back. Any other creature of the night, especially those older and set in their ways, would have snatched the pretty red head by force and that would have been the end of her. Fortunately for her, he's not that kind of vampire. He takes just what he needs then lets them go. Sure the donors are a little loopy for a day or so, but it's better than unnecessary killing them and drawing attention to the vampire community. And it doesn't hurt to know how to trance a donor so they have no memory of being bitten.
Bottom line, blood is key to living. A necessary evil.
The sent of plasma causes the bloodlust to kick in. Nostrils flare. Eyes become darker. Fangs ache. Sanguine brain threatening to take over rational thought. Let's get this done, Rollins. The young bloodsucker climbs out of the driver's seat then onto the passenger's, his body pressing against Eva Marie's prone one. He studies her face for a brisk moment.
"You're beautiful." Seth's voice is low but still bathed in a growl. He dips his head, trailing a wet trail up her neck with the tip of his tongue. His eyes narrows in annoyance. Scented cheap water trying to cover up the good stuff. "But you're shallow. And fake."
The vampire sinks his pointed teeth into the flesh. A satisfied hum comes from him as the crimson life force coats his mouth. A mute sigh comes from his donor, yet she doesn't wake up. When he gets his fill, he pulls away although his vampire side gives a modest protest. He licks over the wounds he caused to finalize his feeding and also heal them. Seth slides back into the driver's seat. His head tilts back onto the headrest. His eyes fall close as he gives himself a moment to let the newly acquired hemoglobin flow though him. His breathing starts to even out. After becoming relaxed enough, Seth's eyes open; they are now back to their normal golden color. He adjusts Eva Marie's seat, starts the car then pulls out of the parking lot heading to the original destination.
"Pretty Lady?" The driver says with a chuckle as he gently shakes Eva Marie awake. "We're here."
Eva Marie comes to, groggy and disoriented. She lets out a groan as she looks around and tries to figure out what happened.
"Wha…we're here?"
"You okay? You just passed out as soon as we started moving."
The redhead just nods slowly.
"Do you need me to help you out?"
Eva Marie shakes her head slowly as she opens the door. "I got it." She gives an unfocused look toward the stranger that helped her out. "Thank you."
A smile is returned. "You're welcome."
Eva Marie gets out of the car, although unsteadily. However she manages to walk toward her apartment. When he is sure that she is going to be fine, the stranger drives off.
Something's not right. He shouldn't be burning up like this. She was just a regular donor!
By the time Seth made it home, his breathing was shallow and he was sweating profusely. He was literally peeling off his black dress shirt as he entered his home from the backdoor. His skin was flushed and perspiration bubbled in shades of light pink through his pores. His hair has fallen from the ponytail and the blond and brown stands cascade over his shoulders, some stick to his face and neck. Seth barely made it up the stairs that lead to the main floor before he collapsed on the floor. The last thought he had before falling into the painful abyss is of dark blond curls, blue eyes, dimples and pizza.
It's the most wonderful night of the week…
Dean climbs the stairs to the familiar brownstone. Probably the only thing that has been normal. Roman had a family emergency, so he was left with all the new people to run the store. The day started off a little rocky, but by close to evening time, everyone found their grooves. Dean made sure to give everyone the hook up about the regular on Tuesdays and Thursdays. He didn't tell them Seth's name. For some reason, he wanted to keep that to himself. And since Becky was the one that made the pizza instead of Roman, Dean hopes Seth likes it. Not that Becky's a bad cook. It's just the principle!
The second Dean steps into the house, the hairs on the back of his neck raise. He gets an instant feeling of something's not right washing over him. Another clue is the money on the marble top side table. It's all crinkled and haphazardly tossed there. The money's usually flat and stacked neatly. Blue eyes focus on the darkness at the end of the hall.
"Seth?" Dean calls out. "Are you there?" He places the pizza down. His eyes never leave the end of the hall.
After a moment he hears Seth's voice. "I'm here, Dean."
"Is everything okay?"
"…yeah. I'm fine."
Dean's bullshit meter is painfully loud. The vibe at this instant is so off from the last time he was here. Before he could question it, a thud followed by glass shattering cuts through the blackness into the lit hallway.
"Seth!" Screw that rule! Dean quickly makes his way to the end of the hall, but before he can breach the darkness…
"Dean stop!"
And the pizza guy does. He's concerned yet scared. "What the fuck, man? What's going on? Let me help you!"
"Please.." the request sounds winded. "You have to go…"
Dean tries to make another attempt to walk through the darkness. "Let me help you, Set-"
"NO! GO DEAN…NOW!"
The echo in the hallway. A gasp. Wide cerulean eyes. A quick step back. A cap falls to the tiled floor. Silence and tension takes control. From his spot in the room, the young vampire can only watch the confusion on Dean's face turn to hurt. The tightness in his chest gets more pronounced as he watches the most important person in his unlife turn away. He doesn't even grab the money. He just leaves the house.
I'm sorry….forgive me.