Let Me In

Prompt: Rum doesn't invite her in and there are serious consequences. (Rated M)

For a while now Rum suspected there was something dreadfully wrong about his best friend Belle. He only saw her in the evenings and she always argued with her father (he could hear them through the walls). Then there was the incident with the candy on their little date (that hadn't turned out well). And of course, there was her poor choice or lack thereof of clothing during the winter weather.

She had said the cold didn't bother her and so far it was true. She never once shivered and her constant bare footedness never resulted in frostbite, hyperthermia, pneumonia, or even the flu! It was totally inhuman and bizarre, which he wondered if she was actually some kind of superhero with a tolerance for the cold. It was pretty cool in thinking his only friend could be a superhero incognito and to prove his loyalty he never once told anyone about her or brought it up when they were alone. If he acted natural, then she would see he was trustworthy and eventually let him in on the secret.

However, nothing happened until the other incident in the storage room. For the first time since they met, Rum was terribly frightened.

It all started when he cut his palm to make a blood oath with her to always be the best of friends. Her eyes instantly enlarged and the depths were as black as coal as her gaze riveted on the blood that gathered on his hand and dripped on the concrete floor. Her lips stretched into a snarl, her white teeth gleaming threateningly, as a low moan ripped from her throat.

When she fell to her knees, Rum could not help the tremble as she crawled to the tiny pool of blood and began lapping it up as a dog would do. Her nails were planted firmly into the ground as she lifted her crimson-stained lips and teeth upwards. "Run!" she commanded in that throaty growl.

So he did.

He ran all the way to his apartment, closing and locking every door and window, and huddled underneath his blankets all night long. He didn't get any sleep that night, fearful he would find Belle waiting outside his bedroom window. The image of those pearly white teeth covered in his blood and those dark eyes… so hungry so feral that he spent the next couple nights sleepless too.

He hadn't heard her next door those several days. The heavy silence was cloying and suffocating that Rum wasn't sure what to do. He knew instinctively that during the day he was safe, but as soon as the sun set… he stayed in his bedroom with the locked doors and window, the curtain pulled down. So matter what he tried to do to distract his mind… he couldn't shake that vision of sweet, little Belle from his memory on the floor like a wild animal and licking his blood.

And that was where the problem laid.

She was still Belle and at the same time she wasn't. They were friends, she said so herself, and he knew she wouldn't hurt him. Or did he?

In the storage room, she looked like she wanted to devour him. But… she told him to run. She stayed there while he fled and now he could only look back and wondered if he did the right thing or if he behaved cowardly. Perhaps she was in trouble or sick, and he abandoned her. Some friend he proved to be, and yet… he couldn't forget everything that has happened since he befriended her. There was too much that didn't make sense and then one by one… the pieces began to come together.

Thus was his dilemma when he opened his apartment door and found Belle standing in the hallway looking remorseful and scared. She always been small but she looked even smaller as she kept her eyes rooted to the hideous rose-carpeted floor.

"Hi Rum," she said shyly.

"Hi," he greeted, his hand firmly holding the doorknob. He wasn't sure if he should slam the door or not; not when he didn't know her intentions.

"Can I come in?" she asked.

"Can't you walk in?" he shot back and she visibly flinched. Her eyes shifted from him to behind him like she was staring at a massive wall and he wondered if his theory was true after all. "Well?" he challenged. "Aren't you?"

He was being mean, he knew it, but she frightened him and he wasn't sure what to believe or if he could trust her. Just because she told him to run didn't mean she was still planning on hurting him.

Crossing his arms over his chest, he raised his brow. "Let me guess… you can't."

"Rum—"

"Tell me the truth," he rejoined. "What are you?"

She closed her eyes briefly as pain flickered across her countenance. "I think you already know."

"It's true," he murmured. "How old are you really?"

"Twelve," she answered. "Well, I've been twelve for a very long time."

"Are you going to hurt me?"

The question seemed to physically hit her. "Never! I would never hurt you Rum."

"Oh? What about in the storage…?"

"I lost control okay? I held it back as long as I could so you could leave. Believe me. If I wanted to hurt you, then I would have done so when we met."

She sounded earnest and Rum felt his anger and fear slowly slipping away. She had many an opportunity to hurt him, but she chose not to. Why… he didn't know. But at least there wasn't a trace of that monster he saw a week ago.

"Okay. I believe you."

Relief overwhelmed her as she smiled happily. "I am sorry Rum for earlier. When I'm around blood it can be difficult to remember myself." She paused and cast a nervous glance on either side of the hall. "I'll answer whatever questions you have, but can we speak inside your apartment?"

"You need an invitation right?" he pointed out. "What happens if I don't? Can you enter?"

"Yes but something bad happens…"

"So? Just try," he encouraged. "If what you say is true and you don't mean me any harm… you'll try."

She was hesitant but this was a test about their friendship and her honesty. Biting her lower lip in determination, Belle shuffled her way into the room. Rum watched in fascination as she did so (though he was slightly disappointed that there wasn't a magical barrier or something that prevented her). He stepped back to make room for her and she got about a few feet in when her body suddenly seized up, her spine going completely rigid, and her eyes wide.

Rum shut the door and ran over to face her. So she could enter without an invitation! She was only trying to be polite with the whole asking—

He gasped when he saw blood trickling out of the corners of her eyes, nose, and mouth. He could only watch in horrified astonishment as trails of dark blood-red fell down her pale cheeks onto her dress and her feet. Then her ears began to bleed as she started to shake and convulse in the middle of the foyer, her throat gurgling from the blood pouring from her.

He wanted it to stop. She was in pain and the agony in her expression was much worse than the storage room. Yet, it was her silence that got to him and he realized this was her way of atonement for scaring him in the first place.

She did care for him!

Throwing his arms around her neck, Rum frantically cried, "You're invited! You can come in!"

Immediately, Belle's convulsing stopped and he gripped her tighter in his embrace. "I'm sorry Belle!" he sobbed. "I didn't mean for this to happen! I…"

Her slim arms came around him as she squeezed him back. "It's okay Rum. I'm all right now."

He drew back to look at her and bitterly snorted at the blackened red streaks all over her face. "It's my fault Belle. I did this to you."

"No," she adamantly insisted. "I did this to me. I knew the consequences and I did it anyways. You're my best friend Rum. My only friend. You mean the world to me and I can't lose you. I did this because I would do anything to protect you, even at my own expense and suffering. That's how much our friendship means to me."

Rum was floored by the sincere emotions and knew this wasn't a lie. Belle cared for him and she risked her life by proving it with his stupid request. Never again, he thought. He would never put her in harm's way again.

"You mean a lot to me too," he told her. "C'mon. Let's get you cleaned up. I checked out some books from the library I think you might like…"