Chapter 6

For the first time in his life, he was the only guy within his circle of friends who didn't have a girl. Well, with exception of Blaine Anderson, that was. He liked to get cozy with dudes, not that Finn had a problem with that or anything, but even he had a guy with him tonight. Finn, on the other hand, was completely and utterly alone.

With that thought, he stood silently as his friends discussed things that he couldn't really give two craps about. Instead, the uncomfortable feeling in his chest from before crowded his mind. It tugged at him, like a dog waiting for its owner to throw the bone.

He'd be lying to you if he said that part of it wasn't because of her, because most of it was. It wasn't that he missed her or wanted to be with her again. He'd gotten over that within seconds. In actuality, he was relieved he'd no longer have to deal with her. It was more along the lines of the change in it all. Quinn had been at his side for as long as he could remember. All of the convincing in the world wouldn't allow him to escape the fact that he missed her. No matter the bad she'd done recently, she was always that resort when things went awry. As for now, he no longer had that option and that's what killed him.

Then, there was the thought of the other her. He wasn't much of a puzzle solver. When it was clear that he was disliked by someone, he would be the first to back off. But, something was different with her. Rachel hadn't given him that vibe yet. If anything, she kept him guessing. She was this code that he knew he could figure out, but still kept struggling with it. Good enough to jump all in and not feel a hint of regret about it. And that was saying a lot, seeing as though he'd known her for a course of just two days.

His chest tightened when his mind trailed on. He wondered where she was tonight. Not that she'd be here, sitting around the fire with her many friends and sipping down her second beer. However, that didn't stop him from hoping that she'd show her face.

Becoming disinterested standing around a group of friends who didn't pay him a lick of attention, he tried to look for Percy and Toni. He found them leaning against a tree, laughing at what the other said. Finn only sighed, knowing that it wouldn't be right to disturb them. If they didn't live together and the situation wouldn't be weird, Finn swore the two of them would be good hook-up candidates.

Heading in the opposite direction, he never realized that he caught the eye of Puck; the guy who used to be his best friend before he caught him screwing his girlfriend in the backseat of his car. Leaning over to scoop through one of the many ice chests, he pulled out a cold bottle of beer and turned around to find he was no longer alone.

"Are you still upset with me?" Puck asked, grabbing a beer of his own. It's been a matter of months since they'd spoken, what did he expect?

"I don't get upset." Finn remarked coldly.

"Good because I really want to talk to you," Puck suggested before taking the last swig of his old bottle.

"That's actually not really a good idea right now," Finn shook his head in instant rejection. "I just want to go drink this beer somewhere quiet."

"Well, you better not stay out there too long. Beer pong starts at nine o'clock sharp."
Puck's voice remained neutral despite the tension weighing down on the both of them. Nodding his head, Finn turned and headed past the orange glow of the big fire in the middle of the crowd. He didn't exactly know where he was heading to but he decided he would just continue to walk until he got to a part of the woods where he was completely alone.

Before he could continue his stroll away, he heard his name being called behind him. Turning around, he watched the figure of a tall brunette make her way towards him. Her face was lit with the bright orange glow while her crystal blue eyes made their way up towards his.

"Do I know you?" he played it off, but he recognized her. They had a few classes together this semester.

"I'm sorry." She laughed. "I'm Brandie."

"Well, hi, Brandie." Finn smiled politely. He knew now that the thought of even going on his own for one moment was near impossible. He was at a party that held catching-up purposes for the new school year ahead.

"I just wanted to introduce myself to you." From the smell that she projected, Finn knew that she was already drunk. "I sit behind you in history class. Well, I did. You moved desks this afternoon." She giggled. "You smell really good, I do have to say."

"Uh, Thanks." He didn't know how else to respond to that. It must've satisfied her. She shyly tucked a strand of hair behind her ear as she bit her lip and stared at the ground. "I've always had a big crush on you, actually…"

His heart dropped. He knew where this was going and somehow, he let her continue. His mind was too distracted with other things; other girls. He wondered, again, where Rachel was right now.

Too distracted, he didn't notice the girl jumping onto her tippy-toes and connecting their lips in an anything-but-passionate kiss.

Olivia

They were running late. She'd like to say that it wasn't her fault, but even she'd have to disagree with that. It was just that she had been having trouble finding the right thing to wear, and when she finally did they were ready to go and she still needed time to fix her hair and makeup. She knew that they were aggravated with her, but she didn't care. She had to look perfect tonight because he'd be there.

Once they piled into the car, she was glad to know that her family was coming with her. Well, that was, except for Rachel. She wished that she was there with them, however. But, she knew that Rachel was going through things and she understood that she couldn't go with them. So, she decided to talk off Elliot's ears in the backseat. She told him about how much she liked her outfit and what she was looking forward to about tonight. She knew that he didn't mind.

Sam pulled up to where many other cars were parked on the town edge, and before long they were getting out of the car. As soon as the cold night air hit her, she could smell the many teenagers mixed with the unfamiliar smell of what she assumed to be alcohol. She felt the rush of a bad feeling deep within her but then Santana nudged her forward and all previous thought was lost.

Excitement built within her, thinking that he'd be waiting for her grand appearance. She followed closely behind the other three, looking in every direction and corner for the tall quarterback. Disappointment seemed to make its way to her chest when she realized that he was nowhere to be found, but that didn't stop her from glancing every time someone moved in the corner of her eyes.

Elliot and Sam roamed off to go with their football friends, so Olivia decided to go with Santana and her cheerleader friends. She stood in silence as Santana introduced her to the group of girls.

Olivia knew what everyone was thinking. Of course it'd be easy for her to hit it off with the cheerleaders. With her excessive style and pretty blonde hair, she'd fit right in. But, it was the exact opposite. She always did have trouble making friends with the girls of her generation. If anything, she was the one they'd stand in corners and gossip about. It sucked because she loved making new friends and having people to talk to, but from previous experience, people just didn't like her. Maybe it was because of her voice or the way that she dressed. She didn't know, but she hoped that these girls would be different.

"Olivia, this is Ashley, Marina, Izzy, and Brittany. They're my friends from cheerleading tryouts that I was telling you about." Santana explained.

"It's nice to meet you guys," Olivia flashed her pearly smile. "I'm Olivia."

"Yeah, Santana's told us all about you." The auburn headed girl spoke. She assumed it was Marina by the order in which Santana introduced them. "I love your shoes."

"Thanks." Olivia smiled, loving the compliment. She knew that she picked the right outfit. She was wearing her black leather jacket, a white designer t-shirt, dark blue skinny jeans, and black high heels. "I got them in Chicago."

They all smiled at her before turning to a conversation of their own about something that happened earlier today. Santana seemed to be just as lost as Olivia was, but jumped in leaving Olivia on her own. After a while of standing there, she became bored. She wanted to go about and wander on her own.

"Santana, I'm going to go walk around okay?"

"Okay, just don't go too far. We've got to be back by eleven, remember?" Smiling, she nodded and headed out.

Taking in her surroundings, she found herself to be standing in the middle of many different types of groups of friends. There were people singing, dancing, laughing; she even came across a few couples making out against the trees that surrounded them. She smiled as she slowly walked past them. She always did find human life fascinating. Now, it was barely a memory for her, but she remembered the small parts from it; like the feeling of being completely satisfied from hunger after sitting down for a meal with her family. She missed it more than anything in the world.

It seemed like she was walking around in circles once she approached a group she recognized from before. Still, there was no sign of the glorious, tall boy that influenced her interest in the party in the first place. Fear crept into her mind when she thought of the possibilities of his whereabouts.

Maybe he just couldn't make it, she tried to convince herself. She knew that she was probably overthinking things, but every girl did when their crush wasn't there yet.

Coming across a group of guys including Sam and Elliot, she approached a guy with a Mohawk. She thought she'd give him a shot. Maybe he wouldn't let her down. Lightly, she tapped him on the shoulder and waited for him to face her. Once he did, a smile of what seemed to be amusement appeared across his features.

"Can I help you?" he asked. Olivia seemed to notice that he was looking her up and down like a piece of meat.

"Are you familiar with Finn Hudson?" she asked.

"Well, that depends, who's asking?" he slurred as he held onto the nearest tree for support.

"Me," Olivia answered with confusion, she didn't clearly understand why he just asked that question.

"He went into the woods." He answered, flinging his index finger forward, almost poking her in the eye in the process.

"Thanks," she smiled, heading off. His drunken calls interrupted her movement.

"But, hey," he yelled. "If things don't go so well between you and boy wonder, let me know. We'd have a good time, princess."

Heading off in the pointed direction, a feeling of relief settled within her chest. She was feeling better, knowing that Finn did, in fact, show up. She knew she did something right this time. All she needed to do now was find him and she'd be content.

The smell of the many humans around her began to leave her nose as the glow of the fire became faint. As she entered into the pitch black, a chill ran up her spine. Yes, she knew that she wasn't supposed to become easily scared, seeing as though she was a monster herself. But, she guessed the young human girl she once was within her, felt otherwise.

The loud sound of rapidly beating hearts, as well as the crackling of leaves on the forest floor and a female's giggle stopped Olivia in her tracks.

"Brandie-"

That's when she felt her heart come to a complete stop. She knew whose voice sounded from behind the tree she was standing in front of. Finn Hudson stood behind this tree. With another girl, might she add?

She had him pinned to the tree. In the swiftest motion, they were now kissing, causing
Olivia's stomach to curl.

"C'mon, let's get out of here." The girl started afterwards, with drunken words. "Have you ever been to the Falls at night? Because, they're really pretty and I could show you if you want..."

She didn't stay there long enough to hear anything else left to be said. Instead, she hugged a tree all the way across the forest, silently cursing herself. She knew the fact that she was upset over a guy she barely knew was completely absurd. She knew that if she told the others about this, about how her "soulmate" was in the woods with another girl, she'd get eye rolls and lectures about her stupidity. And somewhere along the way, she knew they'd be right. But, at this moment, she was hurt, and no other alternative reaction could come to her mind…

That's when she felt the burning sensation rising from her chest and the heating up of her face. But, for some reason, she was holding on so tight. For some weird reason, she wanted to take this moment to prove people wrong. She wanted to show the world that she wasn't that little girl who always threw a fit when she didn't get what she wanted.

Her insecurity and unstableness always got the best of her, and she lost it. Just like the last time, she reminded herself, thinking of her long string of ex-boyfriends. Then, the one person that she promised herself to forget forever came to her mind.

She sighed, trying to push the thought from her mind. That made her more depressed than anything else. Turning around, she headed back toward the people; hoping one of the others would be nice enough to drive her home. If not, she figured she'd run or walk. It didn't really matter, as long as she would get home.

"You belong in an asylum,"

She remembered the voice so clearly, even though she was trying to push it all back.

"It's not my fault that you are insane. Stay away from me!"

She abruptly stopped once the words got to her head as they had when they were last spoken by him. Looking down, her hands were shaking and the only thing crowding her head was the smell of everyone surrounding her. Anger instantly built within her chest, shooting the fangs straight out of her gums.

"Olivia!" she heard her name from across the bonfire. Looking up, she met Santana's fear-stricken eyes. She knew then that her face must've been transforming; around all of these people.

"Liv, it's okay. Just, come here; I'll help you." Santana whispered low enough for her to hear across the crowd, careful not to catch the attention of any human ears. "What's happening?"

Ignoring her sister and going against all good judgement, she turned in the opposite direction once more, heading back into the dark forest.

She decided that she needed to go as far away from human life as possible. She didn't want to cause a reason for them to pack up and leave again. Despite everything, she really liked it here. She also knew that Emma and Will did, as well as the others, so she took off towards the edge of the forest.

Although the smell of the warm, red liquid clouded her mind, she felt the wind against her face, hinting at the large water fall sounding in the distance. Plopping down on the floor, she allowed her legs to hang over the cliff.

She couldn't think. She couldn't even blink. All she could do was stare forward with the left over tears pooling onto her cheeks. She was feeling a certain type of way. She couldn't really even explain it. But, she knew that it was a very familiar feeling. It was a certain feeling that she struggled with long ago; one that overcame her once he left her behind.

She remembered everything about him. Xavier was the most handsome man that she had ever laid eyes on. He had these hazel eyes that she just couldn't forget. The way that his light brown hair flowed down to his ears, to this day, still sent shivers up her spine…

It was the mid 1950's and they finally decided to give Olivia a chance to pick where they resided. Immediately, she chose California. It was always her dream to live by the beach. And, having daylight rings allowed them to do just that. So, once they settled in, she decided she'd stroll down the long beach down the road.

She felt like she was in a movie, with her red and white polka dot dress, her black Mary-janes, and her long blonde hair in a high ponytail with bright red lipstick dabbed over her lips.

She caught eyes and somewhat unwanted attention, but she smiled and brushed it off because she loved the way that she looked. She was so confident back then, she smiled remembering. She didn't care what people thought of her. She didn't know the hurt that heartbreak could bring yet, but she'd soon find out.

There he sat, watching her like a hawk. In the parking lot, surrounded by all of his friends, he sat in his black Chevrolet Corvette watching her swing her dress around as the wind blew through her ponytail, pointing her small black camera towards the horizon.

At that point she didn't know that he had put out his cigarette and said farewell to his friends, who were watching the two of them closely… Little did she know that he was trailing behind her, taking off his Ray Ban sunglasses and straightening out his black leather jacket.

"Excuse me, ma'am." He smiled, flashing his pearly whites that somehow matched hers. "I hope it's not too much for me to ask to get your autograph?"

"I'm not famous, silly." She giggled.

"You could have fooled me." He told her. "You sure are the prettiest lady I ever seen."

"You're not so bad yourself." She tucked a loose strand of hair behind her cat eye sunglasses.

"Let me take you to dinner." He pleaded. "I mean, unless you have another man waiting at home." She didn't miss how his perfect left eyebrow rose a little.

"Ahh, I can't." she guiltily confessed. She could smell the cigarette smoke from a mile away and she knew by his facial features that he wasn't anywhere near the 17 year age that she kept. However, there was just something about him drawing her in. "You seem a bit too old for me. My foster parents wouldn't fancy it much." She smiled sheepishly. "I've got to keep up my image, Mr. Leather Jacket. It was nice to meet you, though." She complimented, turning to continue her stroll.

She remembered the struggle trying to walk away from him. She held her free will in her hands, knowing that she was pursuing it in the correct way. Then, he called her once more, and she didn't know why but everything flew away from her mind. All she could do was stop, turn around and face the guy and a relationship that would make her so happy and at the same time, ruin her life.

And in the beginning she was; genuinely happy, that is. It was date night pretty much every night and he made her feel like she could walk on clouds. They'd go out to the local drive-in cinemas, hang out at the local diners; she even remembered the dreadful poodle skirts. Grease in a nutshell, she'd call it. But, instead of being Sandy, Xavier always referred to her as his "little Marilyn".

Everything was perfect. And then… And then…

Olivia's mind wandered immediately. A certain smell filled the air around her. Of course, there was the smell of smoke from the fire and water running in the distance. There was also always going to be the same smell of the people in the far distance. But this smell was a lot more…persistent. It was like it was poking at her every nerve.

Getting up slowly, she followed it. It took her a while, but once the smell crowded her nose, she found the source. Finn's girl sat on the floor of the forest, looking around completely and utterly confused. And right on her forehead, sat a huge and nasty gash.

"Are you okay?" Olivia asked, crouching down to meet her face.

"I'm… fell," she slurred, giggling as she proceeded to attempt to return to her feet. "I fell." She corrected herself.

"Are you drunk?" Olivia already knew the answer.

Holding up her index finger and thumb, she nearly pressed them together to note that she was only a little drunk.

Without thinking, Olivia reached forward. She pressed her fingers against the damp redness on the girl's forehead. Pulling back, she studied her fingers as if her life depended on it. All the while, her judgement pooled around in her mind.

She knew it was wrong and that they'd hate her for it. She knew that they'd spent most of their time trying to teach her morals and boundaries; all of which would go down the drain right now if she chose to give in. But, at the same time, she was angry. She was feeling lost and heartbroken and nothing more would make her feel better than to get what she'd been craving for so long.

Pressing her fingers to her lips, she got the smallest taste. Then, there was no going back. Going in for more, she gathered as much blood on her fingers as she could… She felt the fangs once again, and knew that her eyes wouldn't be too far behind.

"What are you doing?" Disgust was clearly present in the girl's facial expression. Olivia didn't blame her. Somewhere deep inside of her, she felt the same.

"Shhh," she pressed the bloody fingers to the girl's lips. Looking her deep in the eyes, she spoke again. "You're okay. Don't scream."

It took her a minute to debate whether or not she should go forth with all of this, but once her mind was made she threw her head back and sunk her teeth into the girl's neck. She couldn't believe she was actually letting herself do this, but at the same time she couldn't stop.

"I'm so sorry." She cried to the limp figure. "I'm so sorry."

Finn

Letting Brandie down did something with his emotions tonight. It turned them sour. He didn't know why. It's not like she wouldn't get over it tomorrow. The amount of alcohol running through the girl was well past the legal limit. However, that didn't stop him from feeling guilty.

As he pushed his way past the large crowd of people, he still did. After letting her down as easy as possible, he left her to collect herself alone in the forest. The truth being, he just needed to get out of there. Reason number 500 why he hated being this guy in high school, he thought. He wished that he didn't always have to hang out with the same people every night.

Scurrying past all of his drunken friends, he grabbed his jacket perched on one of the lower branches, and headed back towards his car.

"Guys, I'm heading home," he informed Percy and Toni.

"What? No way, it's not even ten yet!" Percy exclaimed. The two of them were just as intoxicated.

"I've got a quiz tomorrow morning," he informed them.

"How are we going to get home?" the two of them asked.

"Puck's going to bring you," he replied, catching the scene of his drunken former friend flirting with his unamused ex.

"What about you?" Toni asked. "You've been drinking too."

"I'll be fine," he assured them. "I just have to get out of here."

He left before they could say anything else. With his rock music blaring in the small space of the Porsche, he never even noticed the man standing in the middle of the road. He knew that he was screwed the moment he swerved to the side and lost control of his wheels.

Closing his eyes, he hoped for the best. The last thing he remembered before darkness took him was the jolting forward of his body and the feeling of an air bag banging against his nose.


Sorry this took me so long, you guys...