Austin wakes up in his and Talia's bed with the sun beaming through the window, making him sit up quickly. He looks to his right and quickly picks up and puts on his daylight ring that he takes off every night before bed.
Austin sighs in relief when the little parts of his skin that started to glisten from the sun went away. If you're wondering what would happen if a vampire stayed in the sun too long without their daylight ring, then you should know that they explode. Yeah, you heard right.
There's a knock at their bedroom door at the same time he notices Talia isn't there by his side.
"Um... come in." He spoke with a groggily voice. Sarah showcased her face with a slight smile as Austin got up in his boxers yawning.
"You want to go for a morning walk with me and Tommy?" She asked kindly.
"Where's Talia? She's not exactly a morning bird." He wondered, heading towards the bathroom.
"She went out for breakfast... but we all know what that means." She replied with a roll of the eyes before covering her mouth as Austin looked at her puzzled.
"What is that suppose to mean?"
"Um, I uh... never mind. Thomas and I are gonna go on that morning walk now." She leaves quickly but what no one knows is that she did it with a devious smile on her face because her 'accidental' slip up was successful.
Austin's POV
What the hell was that about? 'We all know what that means?' No, we don't. I sure as hell don't. What does that mean?
I get in the shower for about 10 minutes before brushing my teeth. What? Yeah, we're dead but that just means we have to keep up with our hygiene 100x more than the average human.
I can't help but smile when Ally crosses my mind. The talk we had was unlike any conversation I've experienced with anyone in my life, and that includes the talks I had with Talia even before I found out who she truly was.
It was so natural, easy and felt like I knew her for a lifetime. It was mind blowing.
After brushing my teeth, I decided to go out and get some breakfast myself because I'm starving. And by breakfast, I mean catch some kind of animal of course. I usually go for the typical rabbit or squirrel but if I'm lucky, I'll find something a little bigger and filling. Vamps can eat human food as well, which is awesome for allowing us to fit in and can taste great! But does it actually satisfy our needs? No, as vampires it'll never be fulfilling. We're made to feed on blood. Human blood. Though, I refuse to do that again after… Anyway, I choose to get by with small animals instead of hurting humans.
When I go outside, I appreciate the air and slight wind considering it's almost summer time.
I begin to stroll down our walkway when I hear a noise on the side of the house. I inch closer and closer to it when I realize it's the sound of munching which speeds up my pace to around the house when I see Talia feeding from an older man's neck.
"Talia!" I yell loudly as she quickly looks to me with red eyes and her sharp fangs out as blood drips down her chin.
"What the hell?!" I shout speeding over to them as she lets go of the man causing him to drop to the floor. I hurriedly check his pulse realizing he no longer had one.
I'm in shock as I look up to my girlfriend who casually just wipes her mouth of the blood in satisfaction as her eyes return to her human eye color, green.
"What the fuck, Talia?!" I scream standing up as she tilts her head to the side.
"I thought you didn't like us cursing at each other?" She said smartly.
"You killed a guy!"
"Whoopee freaking doo. I've killed a lot of people in my life."
"Not anymore! That's what you promised me the day you asked me to join your pack. You fucking promised not to hurt a human soul ever again if I joined you and gave you another chance."
"And I kept my promise! …for a long while..." She trailed off walking away.
"How could you do this? How could you lie to me? How do you live with yourself?!"
"That's enough, Austin!" She roared turning around to me with an angry expression.
"Enough with the good guy act and the not letting go of the past. I am a vampire and I have been one for three hundred and forty nine years! I've had centuries with the pleasure of tasting sweet, sweet human blood and that's not something I'm gonna apologize for. Vampires are suppose to drink human blood, that's not something made up. Animal blood is for the weak and that's why you'll never be as strong as me. I mean seriously, babe... doesn't it get tiring for you to crave it?" She asked trying to touch my face as I flag it away.
"No, it doesn't! Because I think of the outcome. A human dead. Unlike you, I don't want that on my conscience." I said walking away from her.
"Sure about that? It's not like you haven't done it before." She said stopping me in my place and even though I wasn't facing her, I knew she was smirking.
I decide to ignore her and keep walking, not giving her the satisfaction of the situation.
"What's the matter, baby? Don't like hearing the truth?"
"That's not the truth." I said continuing to walk away.
"Are you sure? Because I remember seeing her cold, limp, not moving body on the gro-"
"Shut up!" I yell as an outburst shocking her and myself.
"Geez... I'm sorry, babe." She replies while grabbing my arm and turning me around.
"This is who I am. You knew this when I first told you the truth."
"You still lied to me! You said you wouldn't kill anymore."
"I have urges."
"And you think I don't?! But I hold back because I don't wanna be a killer. They may be just humans to you but you need to remember you use to be one. They have lives and deserve to live them and not have that choice taken away from them just because you're hungry, when you have other options!" I shout as she rolls her eyes not wanting to hear it.
"How long?"
"What?" She responds not knowing what I was referring to.
"How long after did you start feeding on humans again after you promised me you wouldn't back in 1984?" I asked her wanting nothing but the truth.
She looked down a bit sighing, knowing I wasn't gonna like the answer which frustrated the hell out of me.
"10 years. 10 years after I promised." She confessed as my mouth dropped.
"Only 10 years?! Are you kidding me right now?! It's 2018 now, so you've been feeding on innocent humans for 24 years?!"
"I did what I had to do."
"Stop with the bullshit, Talia! You didn't have to do any of that."
"I did! The more I feed on human blood, the stronger I become. Are you forgetting about the Twin Towers?" She asked with passion in her eyes and I don't recognize them anymore. A familiarity feeling the night her eyes first turned yellow right in front of me.
"Will you let that go?! You don't even know if Thomas will be including himself in that!"
"Of course I do. Even my 'too kind for his own good' bro isn't dumb enough to pass up the opportunity of a lifetime to be the most powerful vampires in the world. I mean, come on babe. He'll eventually come around to it." She said cheerily at the thought as anger just filled my cold dead veins.
"Will you stop? God, Talia. Nothing you say will make what you just did okay. Now, I have to drop his body off at a hospital so they can pronounce him dead and identify his body for his family and friends."
"No, you don't. I just drop them off a cliff or push em' down a mountain." She said as if it was like eating candy.
"They are people, Talia! They have family, people who care about them! What if that was Thomas? Would you be okay with someone throwing him away like garbage? Like he meant nothing? Without you having the chance to say goodbye?"
"Of course not, but that's different."
"How exactly?"
"Because we matter more than humans! It's just a fact, darling. Words can't explain how mediocre I felt as a human but when someone proposed the option of this kind of life... this amazing life, I couldn't pass it up. I finally knew I wasn't crazy for feeling... average when I knew I was capable and destined for so much more. I was meant to be spectacular. I was meant to be powerful." She told me and there was that gleam in her eye again whenever she started talking about any kind of power.
"Whatever." I say walking away again before turning around visibly still upset.
"You know, I was actually looking forward to spending the day with you like I promised but I don't want to even see your face right now."
"Austin-"
"No, stay the hell away from me." I tell her as someone coughs causing us to turn around to see both Sarah and Thomas standing there.
I sigh because I don't like talking to her like that, especially in front of her brother. I respect women a lot but I get angry just the same as them when I feel betrayed, lied to or worse.
"Um, we're done with our morning walk..." Sarah said awkwardly looking around as Thomas just looked at us annoyed before heading inside because it was nothing new.
"I'll just... go too." Sarah said as she went into the house as Talia faced me.
"Let's just go somewhere. We can talk more about it."
"No. I meant what I said. I don't feel like being around you, let alone looking at you. You seem to do nothing but disappoint me more and more each day."
"Well, I'm sorry to upset you father." She said rolling her eyes and going inside as I sighed running my hands through my hair before going to the side of the building apologizing for what happened to the man, picking him up and speeding over to the nearest hospital then speeding away.
Ally's POV
My phone rings after I finish rinsing off a puppy named Hugo, which is very ironic considering how tiny, adorable and sweet he is. I look at it to realize it says Austin and my eyes go wide with excitement as I hurriedly dry my hands with paper towels before picking it up.
"Hello?" I say calmly so my extreme excitement wouldn't show.
"Hey, Ally. This is Austin."
"Yeah, I know. Caller ID." I chuckle as I sense he mentally slaps himself.
"Right, of course. Don't know how I constantly forget things like that."
"It's not a problem. So, what's up?"
"Do you wanna hang out again today?"
"Um, sure but I can't right now. I'm at work. I'll call you when I'm free okay?"
"Awesome. It'll be nice to talk to you again. I really liked that."
"Me too." I reply blushing just a bit.
"I uh... I guess I'll see you later?" He asked as I smiled cheerfully.
"Yes, you will. Bye."
"Bye." He said as I hung up with a dopey grin on my face.
"You're only allowed to take calls on your break." Lucky said coming from the back room making me jump slightly.
"Right. Sorry. It was um... important."
"Important? I may not have heard the whole thing but it sounded like you were just making plans which qualifies as not important." She told me with a hand on her hip.
"Okay, I was making plans with someone but he is so worth it." I squealed.
"So, a date plan? Gross, Dawson. I told you everyone in this town are creeps."
"I know but he's not. He's honestly one of the most normal people I've met here besides you and Dr. Webster. We've hung out twice now if I'm being honest."
"Well, good luck. I don't trust anyone here."
"I understand that considering you had some weird run ins with people but you can't hide out forever."
"Yes, I can. Until I save up enough, this town is dead to me." She said as I shook my head with a small smile. That girl has got to learn how to open up more.
"I just put Hugo's new collar on him, can you please put him back in his cage?" Lucky asked me as I nodded picking the small dog up as he licked my face.
Before I could walk to the back, the doorbell rang as three people walked in. That's when I realized it was the same three people from the other day, who just stared at me from across the street. I couldn't help but feel a shiver down my spine as the dog in my arms start to go wild. I guess he doesn't like eerie strangers either.
This time, I take a really good look at there faces just in case there are future problems because these are the kind of creeps Lucky was talking about. The guy and girl who looked around my age both had dark brown hair but the guy had dark brown eyes and the girl had light brown eyes. The young girl who looked like a preteen looked very similar to the older gentlemen.
"God, you people again. For the last time, no!" Lucky shouted annoyed causing my eyebrows to raise shockingly.
"What's going on... Lucky?" I ask a little concerned while still keeping an eye on them.
"These guys always give me a hard time over the dogs."
"What about the dogs?" I asked confused as the guy walked towards me quickly frightening me a bit.
"They should be let go. They shouldn't be locked up in a cage." He said as I finally heard his voice.
He stares into my eyes intensely, as I do his and man… if he didn't creep me out so much, I would totally be into him because he is super cute up close. Wow. My dad is kinda right. I need to take a chill pill with guys.
"Um, they're animals... we can't just let them go." I replied as the young girl got angry pushing past the older gentlemen.
"Yes, you can. Let em' go, now!" She screamed, jumping at me as the older girl grabbed her shoulders pulling her back.
"Seems like you still don't have the little one under control." Lucky said casually and I don't understand how calm she is with these people that are clearly unstable.
"I'm not little." The girl replied upset.
"Dude, you're like 10."
"I'm 12."
"Whatever. You're a kid. You should be out doing kid things except you're in here harassing me about dogs. Though, I should be blaming your parents here for that." She said causing a scoff from the older guy and girl.
"Do we look old enough to have a 12 year old daughter?" The girl said smartly as I heard her voice for the first time and surprisingly it was smooth and sweet and not at all threatening.
"No, but I just wanted to insult you since you come in here and do the same thing to me." She said as I smile a little because Lucky was truly a savage.
I mean she preaches to me everyday how she can't wait to get out of this town because of all the strange people but she doesn't seem scared to stand up to them and never shows her fear and it's truly impressive.
"Well... it seems like you got this Lucky. I'm gonna go put Hugo back in his cage." I tell her as she nods her head as I take the dog that is still in my hands to the back room.
Once I'm in the back room, I go down the row to Hugo's cage opening it and putting him inside as he licks my hand before I close it.
"There ya go, buddy. I'll bring you and Timmy your dinner in a couple of minutes." I tell him with a smile before he starts barking causing me to look at him strange. It's not long before the other dogs are also going crazy, causing their cages to shake violently.
I turn around to leave when I jump and scream at the sight of the gentlemen right in front of me. My hand is over my chest as my breathing goes up and down from the mini heart attack I just had, not to mention the ear bleeding I'm sure will happen soon enough because of the constant barking.
"Sir, you are not allowed back here. This is for employees only." I tell him as he didn't say anything but stare into my eyes.
"Hello?" I ask as he stays mute as I notice a lot of the barking is facing and towards him.
"Wow. Dogs do not like you."
"That's ironic." He spoke finally.
"Why is that ironic? Oh... because you're trying to 'save them' right?" I say with a slight roll of the eyes.
"Actually, I didn't mean it in that way but if I did, is that such a bad thing?" He tilted his head eyeing me up and down.
"Of course not, but there's nothing to save them from." I say with a raised voice because of the barking but also so he would get what I was saying and not just hearing words.
"I can see where it might look like they are being held against their will in cages and all but they are well taken care of. They are fed on time, they have their own toys, we take them out for daily walks twice a day and they're happy." I tell him truthfully.
"Wow, you learn all that from working here a couple days?" He said as I back up a little bit.
"How did you know I just started working here?"
"Never seen you before. So, you're obviously new."
"Jeez, I know she said you guys have come here before but how much? That means you show up at least once a week." I said even more creeped out.
"Yeah, and?" He said as if nothing was wrong with that.
"Okay, you need to go. Now." I tell him as he looks at me for a few seconds before smirking and turning around leaving as I follow him out back to the front.
That's when I see Lucky cleaning Pepper, a new Dalmatian dog that came in just today as she ignores the badgering from the little girl as the older girl stays quiet. It seems like she doesn't talk that much... but if she doesn't, what was she gonna say to me that night before the guy stopped her.
"Leave her alone, please." I say going over to where Lucky is as the guy stops the little girl and brings her to his side.
"It's fine, Dawson. I told you I had it." Lucky said getting up, washing her hands then taking her rainbow hair out from a bun before turning to them again.
"There are people in this town but more so outside this town who could give these dogs a good home. You don't have to believe that because frankly, I don't care but whatever you keep wishing is gonna change... is not. Get over it." She said going over to the phone.
"So, are you going to go now or do I have to call 911 on three strangers harassing me and my work place?" She said with an attitude and a tilt of the head.
"We'll be back." The guy says before they exit the store and she rolls her eyes, rubbing her temple.
"I have got to get a restraining order on them."
"Yes, we do." I tell her as she looks at me before smiling a bit.
"It's nice to have someone else around for once if I'm being honest. Not only do I now do half the work but I only take half the harassment as well." She joked as I chuckled a bit.
"No worries. As long as we work together, I got your back." She says looking me in the eyes to see if I meant it.
"Thanks, Dawson. You impressed me today."
"Really?"
"Yeah, you kept your cool and stood up for the clinic. You're not at all what I expected when Dr. Webster told me she hired someone named Ally Dawson." She said as I giggled a bit.
"Well, I'm just happy we get along." I tell her as she nods with a small smile before we begin to close up the shop together after giving the dogs their dinner for the night.
Austin's POV
"What is wrong with you? In what world do you think this is okay? You're killing people!" I yell at Talia who I get into another argument with about the situation from earlier.
"Which is my job as a vampire! I'm sorry, Austin. Did I ever give you the impression that we're just suppose to not age because it's much more than that." She said sarcastically as Sarah came in the living room instantly regretting it.
"Oh no." She said turning around.
"No, stay. I need your input."
"Fine." She groaned turning back to us.
"But only if Thomas gets in this mess as well." She said before calling Tommy and him coming downstairs shortly after.
"What's the fight about now?" He said irritated.
"Same thing as earlier. Your sister killing people."
"Whoa, who did she kill today?" He asked now into the conversation.
"An old man. Will you tell her yourself that feeding off innocent humans isn't right." I say as he sighs.
"I could tell her a lot of things but it won't make her listen. I've learned that from being her twin for 26 years and then another 349 as us being vampires."
"Fine. Sarah, can you talk some sense into her." I say facing the more non opinionated redhead of the group.
I watched as she looked in between us both before shuffling her feet around.
"Sorry, Austin. I agree with Talia. Drinking human blood is in our nature." She said shocking both me and Thomas.
"Sarah, how could you say that? You're the kindest person I know." I say in disbelief.
"Well, I may not drink human blood because of the guilt I would have from hurting someone but it doesn't mean I don't miss it. I can't fault a fellow vampire from doing what we're meant to do." She told me as I am stunned from the defensive argument.
"How could you say that? You of all people-"
"Cool it dude. She's her best friend." Thomas said pressing his hand on my chest because of how upset I was at the situation.
Sarah looks at Thomas as he says that and she looks away and I guess that means she feels as if she does have to take her side just because they're best friends.
"Why do you care so much anyway? He was a nobody who meant nothing." Talia said sipping her champagne.
"Yeah, I'm sure he meant nothing to his family and friends." I say smartly as she rolls her eyes.
"You don't know that he had any of that. He could have been absolutely alone in life."
"Which would make it 100x worse!"
"Lord, Austin! What do you want me to say? Sorry? Well, I'm not and I won't. I drank human blood and I've been drinking it for centuries and you feeling bad for those people is not gonna stop my thirst and need for it." She told me surely as I just look at her disgusted.
"Then... we're done." I told her as she just looked at me for a while.
"What do you mean..." She trailed off.
"Exactly what I just said."
"You're breaking up with me?" She scoffed.
I didn't say anything but nod and I saw Thomas and Sarah's face go tense as the air in the room thickened.
"Wait... you're not serious?" She said with a little laugh before it went away as she stared at my face.
"We're done, Talia. I'll be back later to get my stuff." I tell her once again before heading for the door.
"Austin. Austin. Austin!" I hear her yell my name but I ignore her as I open the door and race over to the north side to see the person I've been trying to avoid because she's a huge distraction but also the best one.
Ally's POV
After work, I packed up and walked home alone in the dark. That's when I realized it's time for me to get myself my own car. My father's car was transferred this morning.
I already have my license and I've had the money to buy myself a car for at least two years now but I haven't because it's another added bill on top of half the bills I pay in the house and my phone bill.
Yet, I'm gonna have to chalk it up because now that I'm living in this town and no longer in the city, I need my own transportation because of the strangeness.
The creepy people and the almost purse snatcher is proof enough that I need it because I want to feel safe and these walks home alone don't make me feel safe, even in the daytime.
My dad is still at work just like most days. He thinks I don't know that he keeps himself out extra hours so he doesn't have to come home. He likes to keep himself busy and working so he won't have to deal with his own pain from the loss of my mother.
I just hopped out the shower in a towel before putting on some comfortable shorts and a regular top for my hangout with Austin later then I go downstairs to get a quick snack.
When I come back up, I sit down in front of my dresser with a huge mirror attached and start blow drying my very much wet hair.
As I do, I see a shadow behind me at the window causing me to scream and drop my blow dryer as I turn around to see it's Austin.
I put my hand over my heart with a sigh going over there and opening the window.
"God, Austin. You gave me a heart attack!" I said out of breath as he had a face of regret.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you. I threw rocks at your window but you didn't answer so I wanted to check if you were even in here."
"It's fine. I was just in the shower and then I changed and went downstairs for a snack." I tell him as he nods understanding.
"Why don't you just knock at the front door like a normal person anyway?" I ask with slight amusement.
"I don't know." He shrugs.
"Your window is a lot more fun." He said as I just smiled.
"So, you didn't call me..." He said referring to what I said earlier so we could hangout.
"I would have if you had given me the chance to finish blow drying my hair." I reply as he blushed embarrassed that he interrupted me.
"Sorry..." He trailed off as I chuckled motioning for him to come in as he did while I continued to blow dry my hair.
"So, what do you want to do? Watch some show marathons?" He asked as I looked at him as if he was crazy.
"No fucking way."
"Ooo, she curses." He says as I smile.
"I've only been inside this house and around dogs since I've got here. I'm not staying here any longer than I have to. I need to be somewhere else, somewhere new." I told him with desperation in my voice.
"Okay, okay." He said twice to make sure I knew he was listening.
We sat there for a while as I continued to blow dry my hair while he brainstormed.
"I may know a place..." Austin finally said as I turned around as my hair was finished being blow dried as he smiled innocently and I did too because how could I not?
Talia paced around hating the fact that Austin was willing to leave her over something that she couldn't control. Well, she could definitely control it but she also didn't want to. Human blood was just too good and she never wanted to let it go. But she also never wanted to let Austin go. In her mind, they were a team. He was hers and she was his. The way it's meant to be. At least in her head it is.
She suddenly got a great idea that made her face light up in ways only power and Austin did. She grabbed her infamous black leather jacket and sped out the door.
Austin's POV
Ally and I have been walking for about twenty minutes and I could tell she was getting confused on where we were going because it looked like a path to nowhere.
"Are you sure you're not a serial killer? Cause that would truly suck because I'm not the strongest… which is something I shouldn't tell a serial killer." She joked as I chuckled shaking my head.
"Don't worry. We're almost there." I tell her as she nods but I can still tell from her eyes that her surroundings scare her so I slowly take her hand in mine and intertwine them. She looks at me a little caught off guard but smiles and blushes looking down which makes me do the same thing.
After a few more blocks, we arrived in front of the abandoned building I was taking us too. I can tell by her face that she regrets following me here which I find amusing.
"Austin... why are we here? This is creepy... just like everything else in this town." She said with an annoyed scoff.
"You don't think I'm creepy, do you?"
"Well, you did bring me here." She said with a teasing smile causing me to smile too.
"Just follow me. No need to be scared. No one will ever hurt you if I'm around." I tell her surely as I watch her loosen up a bit as we walk hand in hand in the building.
We make our way to the staircase as I lead the way up the three story building until we get to a building door that says exactly my goal for tonight.
I open the door as we are exposed once again to the nice breezy wind as Ally looks around at the empty squared off area.
"The roof? This is where you wanted to go? Why?" She asked curious of the location choice.
"I know the building itself is not pretty to look at but the view from the roof is just... absolutely breathtaking." I told her remembering the first time I ever saw it.
"Come on." I say as we walk over to the edge of the building sitting down with our legs dangling off.
"What made you come up here in the first place? This place looks like it's been abandoned for decades."
"It has. I think it was an old beer distributor company."
"I wonder why it went out of business."
"Midnight became a ghost town is why." I say looking away.
"So, this town use to be lively? What the hell happened to make it go so silent... do you know why?"
"Um... I have no idea." I lied regrettably but it's not like I can just tell her that a bunch of vampires, werewolves and witches moved here and took over and started killing a bunch of innocents scaring the rest out of town.
"Well, I would have loved to see how it was like before. I guess all I have now is my imagination. I bet it was pretty cool."
"You know what else I think is pretty cool? Your job." I said as she looked at me amused.
"My job?" She repeated with a chuckle as I nodded my head.
"Yeah. You get to be around dogs all day. That has to be the coolest and easiest job ever." I say as she chuckles.
"Coolest? Sure, if you're a dog person. Easiest? Not in the least. They may be cute but they can be difficult when they wanna be. The cleaning, the tick baths, sometimes constant barking, the food and water schedule and the stressful walks when they bark at every other dog they see." She explained as I look at her impressed.
"Wow. I had no idea it took that much to be a vet." I said honestly.
"Yeah, animals are difficult but it's my dream profession so it's definitely worth it." She tells me and I can tell by the gleam in her that she really enjoys her job and it's very attractive when someone has a passion.
"Maybe you can visit me someday. Show you some of the dogs." She said with a little smile and a bump of the shoulder.
"Really? How about tomorrow? I would love to meet some of your furry friends." I tell her which makes her giggle nodding her head.
"Okay, yeah. Come tomorrow. Noon." She tells me as I nod with a smile making sure to remember that time.
_
Talia was back from doing the great idea that popped into her head and she felt good but Austin still wasn't home and that upset and worried her. She went up to their room and tried to take a deep breath but she was getting anxious.
She paced and paced until she noticed Austin's phone on their night stand. He left it which wasn't really shocking because they don't take their phones everywhere because they rarely need it. She picked it up and she guessed it was just sensitive because it opened right up. She was happy that it didn't have a password. In her dead heart, that means he has nothing to hide from her.
Though she couldn't stop the curiosity in her mind of where he's been going for the past couple of days. He'll just go and come back and won't speak a word of it. There's no way he's just taking walks. She looks through his contacts who only consist of her, Thomas and Sarah until she sees another name making her eyes widen.
Jeanie. NS.
Who the hell is Jeanie and why is she in Austin's phone? That's all Talia thought about when she saw the name. She looked at it again to realize it also had the initials NS next to it. She kept thinking it was initials for a middle name until she put it together when she realized they lived in a town that had a south side and a... north side. NS.
Humans.
That's all she thought about when she heard the words north side. The humans Austin has always asked her to stay away from. The reason she goes to the city to get her food because she loves him that much.
What the hell is he doing there and why is he friends with a human? Or worse. Cheating on her with a human. That's possibly the worst thing she could think of but it doesn't stop her from thinking about it.
She feels herself grow angry and pissed and she doesn't need a mirror to see her eyes turn red. She was gonna find this human who was distracting her soulmate from his life and teach her a lesson, even if it hurt him. She sped down the steps and out the house and towards the north side, not caring if she had to knock on each door.
She was gonna find this Jeanie.
Austin's POV
"How is it possible for me to feel this peaceful with you, Ally?" I asked as she smiled while our feet dangled off the rooftop still and her head laid on my shoulder.
"I could ask the same thing, Austin no last name." She said as I chuckled.
"You're never gonna let that go, are you?" I asked as she looked at me before lightly punching my shoulder.
"Of course not! You know mine."
"It's different."
"How's that."
"I'm different."
"Again... how's that?" She asked as I looked in her big beautiful brown eyes.
"You are persistent, aren't you?"
"I am... does that bother you?" She asked curious.
"No, not at all. I like it. You know what you want." I said as her eyebrows raise.
"Do you?" She asked flirtatious as I glanced at her soft pink lips, finding myself slowly leaning in, as well as her but before our lips can touch, the worst thing possible… happens.
I smell the scent of my girlfriend.
Well, my ex girlfriend. What can you expect? I literally just broke up with her. It's gonna take some time to get use to the change.
Ally looks at me strange for pulling away randomly.
"Is something wrong?" She asked innocently.
"No, I'm sorry." I apologize as the scent grows stronger.
What the hell is Talia even doing on the north side?! I made sure her or no one else followed me like always. I stand up quickly as Ally does too, not having any idea why I'm being so weird.
"Can you please explain what's happening right now?" She asked confused and frustrated.
"No time, we have to go."
"Why thou-" I cut her off by taking her hand and running off. I said running, not speeding so don't worry. My cover is not blown.
Talia's POV
I've gone to a lot of houses and knocked on a lot of doors. Most people answered tired and annoyed but none of their names were Jeanie or even close. Well, the closest I got to someone named Jeanie is this woman's sister who lives in Connecticut and I know it's not her.
As time goes by, I get angrier and angrier. The irony of Austin being upset with me because of me keeping secrets from him but he's out here doing the exact same thing to me.
I finally get to a street with only about four houses and I smell a familiar scent, but I let it go when I knock on a door.
Austin's POV
I see Talia in the distance knocking on Ally's next door neighbors' door which confuses me because that means she's suspicious of me coming here and I don't know why. I've been making sure this was a well tight secret.
"Why did we stop? Aren't you gonna walk me home?" Ally asked me.
"Um, no I'm not. I can't." I tell her honestly.
"What? Why not? That's a bit rude." She said looking offended.
"I'm so sorry but a friend of mine is in the hospital. I have to go."
"Oh, I'm really sorry to hear that but it's only one block and it's night out." She said making me sigh because I felt horrible and like the worst guy ever.
"I'm sorry Ally..." I said not making eye contact because of the shame I felt because I couldn't walk her home at night after taking her out.
"Wow. Thanks for being an asshole." She said as that hurt the heart that no longer beats inside me.
"Ally-"
"Bye Austin." She said walking away.
"Wait! You can't go home now." I say holding her arm and turning her around.
"What are you talking about? Why not?" She said now upset and annoyed pulling away from me.
"I... I can't explain right now."
"Well, that's not exactly enough. Don't you have a friend to visit in the hospital? Please go to him and leave me alone." She said pulling away a final time and walking away towards her home as my breath hitches.
I couldn't follow her because Talia would see me and then she would kill Ally for sure. So, I would just have to hope and pray that she didn't do anything to harm her but if I see anything close to her hurting her, I'm stopping it and I'll deal with her rage later.
Ally's POV
As I walk home, I'm saddened and angered by how good the night went with Austin to how strange and rude he acted just now. What kind of guy doesn't walk their date home?
When I'm walking up my path way, I notice a girl a couple of inches taller than me, dressed in all black knocking on my door.
"Um, may I help you?" I asked confused as she turned around and something about her face creeped me out.
She was very beautiful with her medium length black hair and sparkling green eyes but something about her facial features were very devious.
"Yes, you may. What is your name?" She asked approaching me as I took a few steps back at her sudden movements.
"Why?" I answered with an attitude because of Austin but looking her up and down not having a clue who she was or why she was here.
"Just tell me." She said more as a statement getting aggressive but it didn't scare me even though she was beyond strange.
"Like I said the first time... why?" I said folding my arms as her eyebrows furies looking at me for a while before she laughs.
"What's so funny?" I asked now irritated.
"You got balls. I can't get mad at that." She said before quickly snatching my wallet out my purse and looking through it.
"Hey, what the hell are you doing?! Give it back!" I say trying to snatch it out her hand but unsuccessful.
"Just a second..." She trails off casually before sighing annoyed then looking at me.
"Ally Dawson. I guess that makes sense. A boring name for a boring girl." She said rolling her eyes.
"You know nothing about me."
"Yeah, let's keep it that way." She said coming closer to me.
"If we ever cross paths again and you give me a hard time. I won't be so forgiving next time." She told me before throwing my wallet on the grass, walking over to my neighbors house across the street.
Who the hell was that girl and what the hell is wrong with her? Why did she need to know my name so badly? I get my keys out, pick up my wallet and open my door and quickly lock it.
I think about calling the police but I obviously wasn't the person she was looking for and I know my old lady neighbor won't be either. I know I put a good show on but I wouldn't want to be the person she's looking for. She seems absolutely ruthless.
Talia's POV
I head towards the neighbors house across from that girls house which is the last on this block and it sucks because I got a vibe that it was most likely that girl but the name doesn't match up at all.
I knock on the door annoyed especially cause it's taken a whole three minutes until a real old lady comes to the door. I sigh, knowing it isn't her because come on… but I have to ask anyway so it doesn't seem fucking weird that I knocked and didn't say anything.
"Hello, is your name Jeanie?" I say dull and bored because I know the answer already.
"Yes, it is. Who are you?" She answered as my eyes widen as I take in what she just said.
"Wait, what? You're actually Jeanie?" I asked again as she slowly nodded.
"Jeanie Goldman. Who are you?" She asked as I scoff confused before laughing.
"I'm sorry, darling but what's so funny?" She asked as I turn back to her.
"Well, I can't hurt you. He'll definitely leave me permanently." I say nonchalantly.
"What?" The old lady gets frightened at what I said closing her screen door.
"Never mind. You'll only see me again if there's a real problem on why he comes here." I say honestly.
"Who?"
"You may be old but don't play stupid with me, okay? But congratulations, you get to live another day. Though, you don't have too many left on your own anyway." I say with a laugh before I walk away far enough where she can't see me and then speed off back home.
Austin's POV
I watch her approach Ally and Ally seems upset and Talia seems to interrogate her but I can't make out what they're saying so I use my hearing sense and that's when I hear everything clearly.
She's asking for her name but I have no idea why and she takes her wallet which was hard for me to see but I had to keep my cover unless she did something that actually could harm Ally. Eventually, she left her alone and Ally went inside but I hate that she threatened her.
She then went to Ally's old lady neighbor who is very sweet especially with her cat, Mr. Whiskers. She asks if her name is Jeanie and seems shocked that it is and that's when I realized she found out about me visiting north side but I don't know how. That's when I touch my pockets and my phone isn't in either of them which means I stupidly left it at home with no passcode. That's only because I never had anything to hide before but now I do and she just found out what.
All I can hope is that she doesn't kill that poor innocent old woman for something I stupidly caused. She doesn't deserve that at all and I'll hate myself forever if she harms her.
After she discovers that's the name of the old lady, I start to walk towards her but I hear her talk herself out of hurting her because she knows how I would feel about it and shortly after, speeds off.
Wow. That was actually mature of her to do. She thinks she's so incapable of controlling herself but she just did.
I wait a few minutes before racing home myself but not before looking in at Ally just to see her watching TV in her living room by herself, obviously upset which hurts me that I made her feel that way.
_
"You're here, finally." Talia said when I walked through our mansion door.
"Yeah, I'm here. Doesn't change a thing. I'm getting my things like I said I would." I tell her as she stops me with her hand on my chest.
"Will you stop being so dramatic, Austin?"
"I'm not being dramatic, Talia! I'm done with you." I tell her seriously looking her in the eyes and she notices and I see her show a sign of nervousness for the first time.
"Okay, okay... I hear you but before we talk about this, can you explain this to me?" She asked holding up my phone in front of me and showing the contact Jeanie NS.
Talia looks at my face to look for shock or any kind of indication of guilt but I don't give it to her because I'm prepared and I already planned what to say on my way back.
"Oh, that's Jeanie. She's an old lady who lives on the north side." I say telling the truth because she already secretly met her.
"Yeah, I'm aware. I went there tonight looking everywhere for this Jeanie. Gotta say... didn't expect an elderly." She said with a tilt of the head.
"Sorry to disappoint." I say smartly.
"Why the hell do you go there, Austin?" She asked with her hands on her hips.
"She's very old so she needs help with gardening and taking care of her cat. Sometimes I go grocery shopping for her. It's hard for her to get around." I lie as she looks at me for a few seconds before she sighs with relief.
"Well, that makes sense. You being you and all." She said with a roll of the eyes.
"I just don't understand why it had to be a secret."
"It was never a secret."
"You were coming and going as you pleased. Seems like a secret to me."
"I guess a little. Only because I was going to the north side and you know how I feel about us staying over here."
"Yeah, saving the humans..." She trailed off as I shook my head at her uncaring nature.
"Dude, you're back!" I hear Thomas say coming down the steps as Sarah follows behind him with a smile on her face.
"I was actually starting to get worried there." He said pulling me in for a hug as I smiled missing my friend as well.
"Are you really going to leave?" Sarah asked with sadness in her voice and Thomas and I separated from the hug.
"Yeah, Sarah. No point in staying here. It'd be... uncomfortable." I say as Talia sighs coming in front of me.
"Okay, before we make any rash decisions... can you all come down to the basement? There is something important I need to show all of you." She says as we all look at her suspiciously having no idea what she was talking about.
"Can't you just tell us what it is? Why do we have to go to that creepy basement?" Sarah said with a shiver.
"Because it's something you need to see with your eyes. Plus, you're a vampire Sarah. What do you have to be afraid of?" She teased.
"Okay, whatever it is... just show us." I said still irritated as she turned around on her way.
We follow Talia's shallow footsteps in the cold, dark basement that neither of us have been in for a very long time. A couple years at least and that explains the spider webs on the corner of the large, dull room. We look around at the dust on the unstable tables and hardwood floor.
"What could you possibly have to show us down here sis?" Thomas said covering his nose not wanting to inhale the dust filled room though it didn't matter because it's not like we can get allergies or anything.
The only thing that can make us ill is if an animal we ate has something wrong inside of them. I think the reason it can affect us is because it's not human, but anything humans can get affected by, we can't.
"It's in here." She said going over to the storage room that has always been empty which confuses us even more.
"And please don't freak out without letting me explain first." She said which made all three of us look at each other concerned when she slowly opened the door.
Our eyes widen when we look at about 8 racks containing what looks like to be at least(italic) a hundred blood bags.
"Jesus..." Thomas trailed off in shock slowly walking inside as we all did.
"This is human blood?" Sarah asked not looking at her but just touching the bags in awe.
Talia nodded with a smile before looking at me not being able to read my facial expression.
"Aust-"
"Is this from the hospital?" I asked with a stern face as Thomas and Sarah looked over.
Talia looked at me for a few seconds before slowly nodding.
"If you let me expla-"
"What's to explain? You took blood from a hospital. A hospital, Talia. People who donated and gave their blood to save their family and friends or strangers. There's no explaining that." I tell her as she just sighs.
"Are you guys really okay with this?" I ask facing the other two who just look at each other.
"No... but it's so tempting, Austin." Sarah said as her eyes turned red as she sniffed one of the blood bags.
"It's like our own personal blood bank." She added as I sighed.
"This isn't right." I say shaking my head.
"You're right, it's not." Talia says facing me.
"But it's better than taking the blood straight from them right?" She said as I couldn't argue with that.
"At least, this way I don't have to kill them to get it."
"You're killing them by taking the blood they need away." I say as she holds onto my right arm.
"Look, Austin... I love you. I also love being a vampire. I know you have always seen that as a flaw but I can't help who I am. I love you and I love human blood. So, I thought of a way that could benefit the both of us. I still get my human blood and no one dies." She said as I just looked between her and the blood bags that were starting to look really good.
"This is enough to last all four of us a good month and when we run out, I can just go back and get more. We can finally live life having what we actually want without hurting anyone, which is strange coming from me." She said as I thought more and more about it.
"I know this is hard, dude... but I think we should give it a chance." Thomas finally said as I looked at him and I could tell he meant it.
That's when I realized at the look of Thomas and Sarah, how hard resisting human blood was for them the past three decades. Well, centuries for Thomas since he always went the animal route, unlike his twin.
"Okay..." I accepted lowly as they all looked at one another stunned.
"Wait, seriously?" Sarah questioned surprised.
"Yeah. Talia found a way for us to get what we want without hurting humans. We shouldn't have to live without it anymore." I tell them as they are still in disbelief by my response but laugh and cheer with excitement.
I watch as Sarah and Thomas take a few bags for themselves before running up the stairs happily like children.
My eyes stare intensively at the blood bags as if it was an ex lover that suddenly came back into my life.
I've only tasted human blood once over three decades ago but I still remember exactly how it tasted and it has been a challenge resisting the thirst and taste for it and now I want it more than ever which scares me.
"It's okay to miss it..." Talia says lowly putting her hand against my cheek.
"It's strong, I know." She says as I feel and see my eyes turn red in the downstairs mirror as my breathing starts to get out of control.
"It's okay, I'm here." She says before I walk out of her grasp going over to the blood bags.
My bones tense up as the adrenaline rushes through my body while I lean down taking a whiff of the liquid I haven't had in decades but have been craving even though I repressed it for so long.
Then I shock myself by how quickly I snatch one of the bags off the racks and slicing it open with my now sharp nails out.
I drink the blood harshly with eagerness and satisfaction making up from all the times I said no or shamed it away.
After about 10 seconds, all of it is gone and I'm left there breathing heavily when I make eye contact with Talia who is staring at me in shock with pure lust.
I turn around to face the full body mirror seeing my face and my eyes that are red with blood dripping down my mouth as my chest heaves up and down out of breath.
It comes to my realization that Talia has never seen me like that since that one night so long ago. The one night I did something so heinous and fills me with such regret.
I turn to face Talia again and she has a gleam in her eyes that she hasn't had in a long time. She races over to get a blood bag herself before going across the room from me again and drinking from it herself.
My body starts to get turned on watching the blood drip down her chin as she looks at me seductively while draining the blood bag aggressively before throwing it down harshly when she's done with it.
She smirks at me with red eyes before I speed over to her pushing her up against the wall kissing her hard and deeply as she returns it gladly wrapping her arms around my neck.
Our mouths wildly go at each other with nothing but lustful and dirty thoughts on our minds. The blood from our mouths collide into the messy kiss as I pick her up to put her body against the wall and she moans into the kiss.
A feeling of normalcy filled my body with everything we did before and are doing now and I think it's what Talia has been trying to tell me about this whole time.
For some reason, it scares the hell out of me.
END OF CHAPTER REVIEW QUESTIONS
1.) Who do you think those two young adults and little girl were?
2.) What is your opinion on Talia?
3.) Thoughts on the ending?
4.) Do you like the story so far?