The remaining light was disappearing now, and in the distance, I could hear the diurnal animals settling in while the nocturnals were starting to stir. This was beyond my favorite time of day, in between the shifts of consciousness for all living beings. A time when both predator and prey coexist. A very dangerous time perhaps.
I heard a sharp sound and it took me a minute to place. It was Alice's teeth. She had been exceptionally content the entirety of our time together, I had all but forgotten of her basic human necessity for warmth. How complex this situation was going to be was starting to dawn on me.
"I was wondering when you'd start to get cold. We should probably get you home Darlin'."
I took in her beautiful frame in the twilight light. She was beyond picturesque. The way she moved as she rose from the ground ever so gracefully was enchanting. For a creature that was as fragile and meek as a human, she possessed an elegance that was preternatural.
It was just then she had stumbled and I managed to stifle my laughter, an exigent task indeed.
Instinctively, I reached forward and offered her my aid. This was yet another southern charm instilled within me from birth made effortless with the venom coursing through my body.
A familiar urge began to rear into my consciousness. As I guided her back to stability, my arm intuitively drew her nearer. I ached to feel her newfound warmth. I dared not move, for as I've come to realize, twilight is a time for danger.
It was then that Alice relieved me of my privations.
I reacted as I had many instances prior. My hand raised to cradle the back of her neck, to guide her enviable pillow-like lips with mine. My other found its place in the stark curve of her waist, demanding she be closer to me than physically possible.
It was mandatory that I be controlled in my actions so as not to cause her any harm. I could feel venom pooling in my mouth as her hands danced there way along the limits of my body, finding their final resting place tangled within the curls at the nape of my neck. This was all overwhelmingly familiar. It was impossible at this point to deny Alice's re-existence.
I let out a hesitant breath that I had unconsciously been holding.
"Alice." I faltered. I was getting carried away. It was ever so taxing to maintain a track of mind for her survival. Taxing, but crucial.
"Jasper?" She pulled away deplorably. "Are…Are you okay?"
"Alice, I'm better than I have ever been." I issued with a laugh. It had been the absolute truest statement I have made in my two centuries on this Earth.
"We should probably go while I can still feel my toes."
"Just once more Darlin'." I bargained selfishly. All the while lifting her from the ground to cradle her body even closer to my chest. The warmth of her being was extraordinarily addictive. I longed to maintain the feeling indefinitely. We kissed again with the intensity of a raging inferno. I was becoming increasingly more aware of that inferno igniting in my lower stomach.
It was then I made the conscious effort of withdrawing from her intoxicating aura. I could feel myself skirting closer to the edge of insanity and an unbridled loss of control.
I quickly issued a statement to convince my own self of letting her go. "Now, how about I stop monopolizing your beautiful self and let you go back to your homework I'm sure you have."
"Ha-ha-ha. You're so very funny Mr. Hale." My name sounded like honey on her lips. How I wanted to kiss her again. Taste her saying my name. I hurriedly returned my train of thought to the track of which it belonged as I placed her on my back to run home.
I used every ounce of remaining energy I had to get her back in as brief of a period I could muster. I needed to be around my family, I needed a reason to be more conscious of my decisions.
I shook my head to myself. Her life was reason enough, and I was stronger than I believed. I had made it this far with my amount of control. I had resisted an essential and primal urge to which I was not accustomed to saying no to with her. She would make it to her apartment alive, I would be the one to get her there, and I would not need any assistance.