Hey, sorry I haven't written for a few days but I've had to study for semester tests. Yuck. But its a snow day tomorrow so I can write. Yay! :) Thankyou everyone who has reviewed. And please continue to do it, I appreciate the feed back. Happy Holidays! *= =}- (I guess that's a menorah. I know it doesn't have enough candles but whatever) :P
**Claire**
"Hello?" I say picking up the phone, confused. It's the land line that's rung, and no one's called on that well ever. That and its twelve o'clock at night.
"Claire," A cool crisp voice says. It's Amelie and that surprises me even me more that she didn't just call my cell.
"Yes?" I ask warily.
"Shane has killed Henry, his maker. We believe he may be coming after you next. You must be careful." The line goes dead. I stare at it, numb with shock.
Shane had killed Henry? As far as I could tell, one vampire killing another was one of the highest crimes in Morganville. And Shane was most definitely not a favorite among the vampires. That meant—that meant that they could kill Shane. The phone falls from my hands and clatters to the ground.
"Claire?" I distantly hear Eve say voice filled with worry. "Claire are you okay? What was that noise?" She is suddenly right in front of me, face anxious.
"Amelie was on the phone. It's Shane—"I say and trail off. Eve grabs my shoulders and shakes me.
"What about Shane? What the hell happened Claire?"
"He—he killed the vamp that turned him. Henry. Amelie thinks he'll be coming after us. Me. They could kill him Eve." I finish, my eyes finally brimming with tears.
"Oh—oh no," Eve says eyes wide. "Oh shit," I can't hold it back anymore, I burst into tears. "Oh Claire, oh Claire don't cry!" Eve says enveloping me into a tight hug. "It'll be alright. We'll get out of this somehow."
"How?" I sob pushing her away. "How Eve? How many times can we get lucky and win? One day, this town is going to beat us, and we'll end up dead." I finish flatly and turn to race up the stairs.
"Claire!" I hear Eve call behind me. "Claire wait!" I ignore her. I had just realized the truth. We couldn't always win. And it seemed like there was no way that everyone I cared for would make it out of this alive.
**Eve**
"Michael?" I call softly, lightly knocking on his door. I had come free of Goth makeup- in a simple T-shirt and jeans, I knew he liked seeing me this way. A few seconds later, he appears looking like he just woke up. His bleary eyed look quickly evaporates when he sees the look on my face.
"Eve, what's wrong? What happened?"
"Amelie called and—and she told Claire that Shane has killed the vamp that turned him. She thinks that he'll come after us next. Claire—Claire thinks that they'll kill him," I say voice breaking. "Claire doesn't think we're going to win this one Michael. She says our luck has run out." I finish in a whisper, looking at the floor.
"Eve—" Michael starts to say and then he simply wraps me in his arms, I relax against him, fighting off tears.
"I never thought that Claire of all people would give up. But she has Michael and if Claire's given up, if she sees no hope, what chance do the rest of us have?"
"Eve, it'll be alright," Michael soothes, his face pressed into my hair. "We'll figure it out, we always do somehow."
"But what if Claire's right?" I ask looking up into his fierce blue eyes. "What if our nine lives are up and this is it? What if—what if not all of us make it?"
"So are you saying we should just give up?" He asks face carefully blank, stepping away and crossing his arms. "Should we all just sit down and wait to die Eve? Is that what we should do?"
"No!" I say in horror. "No! That's not what I'm saying at all Michael. I'm saying—"I pause and take a deep breath. Michael looks at me, waiting. "I'm saying that we need to make our chances of survival as high as we can. Michael I—I want you to turn me. Now. Tonight."
"Are you sure this is what you really want?" Michael asks eyes wide. "This is not a decision to be taken lightly. You shouldn't do this out of fear Eve. You'll end up regretting it. And you'll have a very long time to consider those regrets."
"I'm sure," I say although I'm not, not in the least. I know he can hear the rapid beating of my heart, can see just how petrified I am. "You talked to me about it remember? The pros and cons. I had to talk to Amelie for you to get permission to do this. I'll admit that I'm doing this right now because I'm scared. I'm scared for myself, for you, Claire, Shane, the whole town. I know that if I'm—if I'm a vampire I'll have a better chance of surviving this and of helping those I care about. I would do this even if our lives weren't in danger. And let's face it, when aren't they? I would wait a while longer; make sure this whole marriage thing works out if I could. But, I don't have time for that. I'm doing it because I love you Michael," I say giving a small, shaky smile and grabbing both his hands in mine.
"It's not like I really, really want to be a vampire. I'd rather not be if I could. But you are one. And nothing will ever change that. And I want to be with you forever, no matter what. So please Michael, please just do it." I finish, trembling and with tears in my eyes.
"Are you really sure Eve?" Michael asks, staring so deep into my eyes, it's as if he can see my thoughts, see my soul. He gently wipes away a tear with his thumb. "Amelie said she gave permission so long as I did it somewhere private where no one would see or get hurt. But you have to be sure Eve. One hundred percent sure. You can never take this back. Ever."
"Yes," I whisper. "I'm sure. Just get it over with." I look back up and I see a strange, deep sadness etched on his face, but he quickly masks it, and leads me into his room, our hands still clasped together and he gently brings me to the bed, where I practically collapse from shaking so hard.
He cups my face in his hands and kisses me, hotly, desperately and I cling to him, knowing we are both afraid. Knowing that this could go horribly wrong and that he could kill me. Or I could become a monster.
This was almost a goodbye kiss, bittersweet. I knew it was to be my last kiss as a human. The last time vampire Michael kissed human Eve. The last time I was this person, for I knew without a doubt that I would change; for the better or for the worse, only time would tell. I'm saying goodbye to my humanity, and I cry but Michael kisses away the tears, holding me fiercely to him.
And when his kisses trail down my face, to the side of my neck and his breath hits there, light and cold, making me shiver I know that it's time. Time to say goodbye, although I really wish I didn't have to.
"Do it." I whisper, squeezing my eyes shut tight against the future. His lips touch my skin and gently kiss the spot. Then, I feel the sharp pinpricks of his teeth an instant before they sink in.
I gasp at the initial pain and then sink into his arms. He clutches me tighter, as if he'll never let go. Strange that I feel so safe as my life is being drained away. I feel myself growing weaker, and he pulls away.
"I can still stop Eve; you'll be fine in the morning if I don't take anymore." He says breathlessly.
"No Michael. Please just finish it." I whisper, not even opening my eyes. He hesitates, before he drinks again. I feel myself slipping. The world is becoming distant. It's almost as if I'm in a dream.
"I could take you to the hospital now and you'd recover." He says pulling away a second time as I begin to lose consciousness.
"No." I say my words barely more than a breath of air. I seem to lose track of time for a little bit, I'm just floating away.
"Eve," I hear someone say urgently. Was that my name? Eve? I couldn't seem to remember…"Drink." Something is thrust to my mouth and a warm liquid pours in. It's like nothing I've tasted before, salty and bitter and laced with power. I don't like it and I try to turn away, but I'm held firmly in place. The liquid keeps coming and coming and so I have no choice but to swallow or I know I'll suffocate.
It freezes my throat despite how hot it is in my mouth. The arctic cold travels through my body, freezing everything in its path. It's the worst pain I've ever felt; it freezes me to my soul it seems. I try to squirm away and I hear myself scream. I feel a sudden warmth, easing the chill, and I relax, hoping it's over. Then, an even worse pain erupts, a blazing inferno that incinerates me into billions of pieces. I know I'll go crazy if I can't escape it. Then, the cold settles back in, but this time, it's pleasant, easing the burning, seeping gently into my core.
My eyes flash open and I can see everything. The clarity of it all is astounding. I can see every minute detail of the person beside me, all of the little cracks in the wall. I can hear the distant ticking of a clock; I can smell the dusty wind out the window. I can feel every fiber in the blanket beneath me. It's amazing.
"Hurts." I say softly, in pain to the boy in front of me as a dry burning encases my throat. "Make it stop."
"Wait right here." He says, face filled with concern. Who was he? Why couldn't I remember? But he's gone suddenly and I'm all alone. Was I not supposed to follow him? I couldn't remember. But I wanted to. I walk up to the door and grab the handle, marveling at the smooth coolness of the metal as I turn it.
But stepping out into the hall is painful. I cringe away from the harsh lights that hurt my eyes. It was so bright. Why was I here again? Suddenly, I hear a distant drum beat. Da-dum. Da-dum. Da-dum. I wonder where that was coming from?
"Eve!" I hear a voice call in alarm and a strong arm firmly grabs me and pushes me back into the wonderfully dark bedroom.
"Hurts." I whisper again, my throat feeling like it's filled with burning sand.
"Shh," He soothes. "It'll be okay. Here ." He gently puts something into my hands. A bag, filled with red stuff. Koo-Aid…?
"What is it?" I ask confused.
"Here." He says giving me a small smile as he makes a slit in the bag with his finger nail. Then, the smell hits me. It's deliciously sweet, and somehow I know I need it to live now. That it's simply life.
I feel something sharp indent my lower lip on either side and I reach up to tentatively touch one. They were my teeth. How strange. I let out a little laugh. Then, the bag distracts me again and I raise it to my lips in wonder. I flick my tongue out to taste it, and quickly begin to guzzle it all down.
It quenched the flames in my throat. It made me feel stronger, faster, and more alert. It was strange, salty, sweet, bitter, hot, and cold all at once.
I quickly finish it, and then I remember. Oh God, I was a vampire. Trembling, I sink to the floor. It was just too much.
"Hey," Michael says quietly sitting down beside me, and wrapping me in his arm, rocking back and forth. "Eve its okay. It'll be okay." I just wished I could believe him. What the hell were we going to tell Claire?