Monday 7th July, I scribbled the date down in my history book. Jethro was back today and sat in his usual seat next to me. I was trying my best to ignore him completely. But his presence had such an impact on me; I had to strain myself to keep my gaze on my history book. Mr. Clarke was ranting on about World war two; no one was paying attention in particular. It was all things we already knew. This lesson was going to kill me, not talking – or even look at Jethro. Just being in the same building as him hurt me. I needed a distraction, I glanced frantically around the room, looking for something to occupy myself with. I made sure to keep my gaze as far away from Jethro as possible. Mr. Clarke wasn't much help; his boring lectures wouldn't occupy me for long.
There was a knock at the door. Everyone's head turned. Perfect, I thought, a great distraction. I might be able to pick up some of the conversation and let that occupy me for a bit. But as the person entered, my smile widened. I heard Jethro gasp beside me. I couldn't help it; I turned to look at him. His beauty still shocked me; I was dazzled for a minute and then managed to focus. There was a mixture of shock and horror upon his face as he stared ahead at Aiden.
"Hi, I'm new here…um…" Aiden said handing Mr. Clarke a piece of paper. Mr. Clarke looked it over once.
"Welcome Aiden. Yes your in the right place…" Mr Clarke looked closely at the piece of paper for a minute, "Yes" he said to himself, nodding as if understanding.
Mr. Clarke looked up from the paper, "Helena," He said now looking at me, "You and Aiden seem to have the same timetable, would you mind showing him round?" he asked.
Aiden smiled at me, I noticed he still had his sunglasses on; today he was wearing a cream sweater with the sleeves rolled up, light blue jeans and converse sneakers. He looked very attractive. Every girl in the room was smiling and there were a few whispers and giggles amongst them. The boys looked envious. But Jethro looked horrified. Jethro spoke finally, "I'll show him around, I've been here longer." His voice was weak.
"No, no." Mr Clarke said, looking back at the piece of paper, "It specifically asks for Helena." Jethro looked at the desk, I couldn't read his expression because his sunglasses were mirrored on one side so I couldn't see his eyes at all.
"I'd be happy to show him around" I said politely. And smiled back at Aiden.
"Ok," Mr Clarke sighed, as if this was going to waste valuable time, "Andrew move next to Jethro. Helena and Aiden go sit together at the back." I took my bag from under the desk and shrugged it onto my shoulder and then grabbed my book off my desk. Aiden was already sat at the back table and Andrew was walking over. I was just about to stand up, when I felt something restrain me.
Jethro hand was grasping firmly around my arm, his face was turned towards me, but I was sure his eyes were on Aiden. What was this all about? Why was he holding me next to him?
"Today, Helena." Mr Clarke said, a little frustrated. Slowly, Jethro loosened his grip on arm until his hand fell away in defeat. What was wrong with him? I thought as I sat down beside Aiden. All the girls were smiling at him and I could tell most of them were whispering about him. Evan Courtney was looking, she waved and smiled, it was a very flirty gesture and I began to get jealous of her straight away. Her and Aiden were going to end up together. Why couldn't she go for Jethro? The person I needed to stay away from, not my new best friend, Aiden. I had a small crush on Aiden, not love, a small attraction to him. I was in love with Connor and also in love with Jethro. Connor was taken now and I couldn't upset Jethro. And he was way out of my league anyway. Aiden would be more suitable, but I'd prefer to just be friends with him for now. I looked away from Courtney, anger building up inside me. My hatred for her beauty began to grow.
"Don't worry," Aiden said, his voice as smooth as silk, "I think you're way more beautiful than any of these girls." I felt a wave of calmness rush over me as his cold hand took hold of mine. I smiled at him.
Aiden and me talked all the way through History, the girls continued to stare. Aiden answered all the questions Mr. Clarke asked about world war two.
"It helps if you were there for it." Aiden whispered to me and chuckled to himself. I didn't understand but laughed anyway.
"I hear there's a prom on Friday night." Aiden said when the bell rang for the end of school. The prom! I'd completely forgotten, I needed to get a date soon; otherwise I was going to suffer Courtney's choosing.
"I was wondering if you wanted to go with me." Aiden said, nervously playing with his bag strap, "You know, so I'm not alone and I really like you, Ella. And if you don't like me in the same way, it's ok we can still be friends, and it's ok if your already going with someone else but…" He was babbling now, he seemed to be faking this nervousness, because he was smiling as he said it.
"Aiden, shush, I'd love to go to the prom with you. And yes I do like you the same way." I smiled, hoping he was joking about this. Aiden smirked, and moved closer. I noticed he was just a bit taller than Jethro, I had to tilt my head back a bit to see his face.
Aiden took my hands in his cold ones and held them there for a second. I could feel the envious gazes of other girls upon me but I couldn't look away from Aiden. I could feel Jethro's presence; maybe that was whom Aiden had been smirking at. No it couldn't be, Jethro wasn't interested in me in that way I reassured myself.
"So, will you be my girlfriend?" Aiden asked, shrugging nervously, and now his smile was nervous.
"Of course." I whispered. Aiden kissed my forehead and then we turned to face the crowd that was staring at us now. I couldn't tell for sure because of the sunglasses, but it looked like Jethro was glaring at Aiden. Aiden had a smug smile on his face. There was a moment of silence as Jethro and Aiden stood opposite each other, then Jethro turned around and disappeared into the mass of students behind him.
Prom night. I rummaged through my closet to find something nice to wear. I managed to find my black frilly, strapless dress. I put it on and zipped it up. I examined my appearance in the mirror. Maybe it was a bit too short; it looked a bit sluttish now I'd put it on. It'd have to do, I only had and hour before Aiden was picking me up. I had a shower, curled my hair, got dressed and did my make up. The doorbell rang.
"Ella, it's for you." My dad's voice drifted up the stairs. My dad hated my new boyfriend; he wouldn't talk to him much and would always be happy to throw him out if it got too late. I ran downstairs in my stilettos, almost tripping on the bottom stair but managing to stop myself on the banister. I swung open the door and there he was. Looking more stunning than ever.
His long sandy coloured hair, his black tux, his deathly pale skin that stood out against his black tux, and - as always – his black sunglasses. How could he see? It was dark outside.
"You look beautiful." He said, taking my hands in his and kissing me gently on the forehead.
"You look amazing, as always." I smiled, squeezing his hand lightly. It was true; he did look amazing.
"Bye dad." I shouted over my shoulder as we made our way to his car.
Half an hour left of the prom then me and Aiden could escape to somewhere quiet to talk. We'd danced a lot; Aiden had gone to get me a drink and returned a short while later with a plastic cup full of an orange liquid. The disco lights flashed around the room, lighting up different sections of the room in different colours. The room pulsed with the music, vibrating the floor on each beat. Couples started making their way to the dance floor, Courtney danced over to us and held out her hand to Aiden,
"May I have the next dance?" she asked, smiling.
"Well...um…i…um…" Aiden glanced at me, as if asking what he should say.
"Go on." I said, trying to smile. Aiden nodded, took her and led her onto the dance floor. I sighed as I saw them dancing together, I felt a hint of jealousy as I watched Courtney wrap her arms around him; he shrugged them off quickly. I turned away and took another sip of my drink. I placed it on the table. I pretended not to be bothered about Courtney and Aiden and started to examine the food that was laid out. Pizza slices, small cakes, break sticks; crisps and dips, chicken wings and all of it looked so tasty but also made me feel sick. I didn't want to risk eating anything.
"May I have this dance?" A beautiful familiar voice asked. It took me by surprise and I had to grasp the table for support. I turned to see Jethro dressed in jeans and a black leather jacket. Not exactly dressed right for a prom. And he still wore his sunglasses. What was the deal with these sunglasses? Why wasn't I allowed to see their eyes? I had only seen Jethro's eyes once, and they had been as black as midnight. Was there some secret behind it? Or were they just too good to show us how beautiful their eyes were? I realised that I'd been stood in silence, his expression looked hopeless.
"Ok." I replied slowly. He took my hand and led me to the dance floor. His movements were so graceful, why hadn't I noticed that before? His movements had always been graceful; I had always just too busy staring at his face to notice it. Now as we danced, I noticed. But there was something else to it, something else to the way he moved. Like a predator stalking it's prey, so balanced, graceful, silent, but deadly. Deadly. The word repeated over and over in my mind. He twirled me, but I lost my footing at the end and fell into his arms. I felt him take a sharp intake of breath and he tensed up. I lifted my head up out of his chest to see that he was looking down at me. The song finished and a slow song started. I felt his body relax and he put his arms around my waist, I automatically responded by putting my arms around his neck. I wasn't as graceful as him, but I tried my best as we danced together. This felt so right, to be here in his arms, I felt at home. One of his hands left my waist and brushed my hair behind my ear. There was a longing deep inside. This is what I wanted, Jethro and me. Together forever. I moved my head closer to his without realising. Our lips only an inch away from touching. All I had to do was move my head forward a bit more and they would be touching. Not even Aiden would kiss me on the lips. He would kiss my hand, my forehead or my cheek, but never my lips. I was just about to close the distance when Jethro spoke.
"I don't think Aiden would be very happy, if you did that." He chuckled, but there was a sad tone to his voice. He wanted it too, I thought in astonishment. How can something so beautiful like him want something so dull like me?
"Ella." I heard Aiden say, there was a touch of anger in his tone. I turned my head slightly to see Aiden and Courtney standing right behind me.
"Get off of her, Jethro." Aiden said angrily. I released my hands from around Jethro's neck. Jethro and I both turned to face them, but Jethro kept one arm around my waist. He didn't want to let go of this moment either.
"I don't think that's fair, Aiden." Jethro replied coolly. His expression was blank of all emotion.
"What's not fair?" Aiden said, his face was now controlled and the anger had faded from his voice.
"You get to go dance with Courtney while Ella stands alone, is that fair?" Jethro smirked slightly when Aiden looked away from him quickly.
"No, you're right, that isn't fair." He said in defeat then turned and strode away. I felt bad for upsetting Aiden and wanted to go after him but that would hurt Jethro; but if I stayed with Jethro that would upset Aiden more. I just couldn't win.
"I'm going out for some air." I told Jethro, I gently pulled myself away from him. "Alone." I added when he started to follow me. He nodded once and walked away onto the crowded dance floor.
The bitter wind stung my face. The night air was cold and the streets were dark. The pavement bathed orange by the dim glow from the streetlights. I walked along the pavement. I was freezing, maybe I should go back? No, I wouldn't upset Jethro or Aiden. I walked to the old cemetery, I loved it there it was peaceful and a nice place to relax.
I sat in the old part of the cemetery where the gravestones were old and worn by acid rain. Alone at last, I used the time to think. What a mess, I thought hugging my knees, I was with Aiden and I really liked him, but I needed Jethro. There was something about him. I always felt at home around him and it was like a strange force was pulling me toward him. My heart longed for him, for his love, for his touch. I sighed and remembered Connor. What would he think of all this? He'd always help me make the right decisions in situations, but would he help me in this one? I doubted it; Connor was a very jealous type of guy and wouldn't like this at all. Aiden or Jethro? I thought. This was so hard. I could tell Aiden loved me but I didn't feel the same way about him and it was wrong to lead him on like this. But if I went after Jethro and he didn't like me in the same way, what was I going to do then. And if I got Jethro and Connor had only thought he'd found his soulmate and came back for me, what then? No this was way too complicated for me. I was just going to go for it, I would have to tell Aiden the truth about my feelings and see if we could still be friends. I would stay friends with Jethro and – as much as it hurt me – hide my feelings from him. From his actions around me lately he didn't like me, even tonight when we had danced he had made sure there was no skin contact and he had kept his distance until I had moved in on him. He hadn't argued but I could tell he hadn't been happy about it.
"Helena!" An enthusiastic voice boomed. It was an unfamiliar and alarming sound. I swung round; a boy only a few years older than me was walking toward me confidently. I didn't recognize him at all.
"H-How do you know my name?" I stuttered in fear.
"I know a lot of things about you." He smiled smugly, closing the gap between us and sitting down next to me. The way he'd moved, so graceful, like a predator stalking it's prey. He was gorgeous; he had long black hair like Jethro and deathly pale skin. He wore a dark blue T-shirt and dark jeans. I saw his eyes; they were a bright liquid silver colour. His eyes dazzled me for a second and I had to tear my eyes away to focus again. He was just like Jethro and Aiden. They obviously had different facial features, but each as beautiful as the other.
"You know," he began, noticing me staring. "You look good enough to eat." He smirked enjoying a little joke to himself. I didn't get it; I just sat there frozen, staring into his eyes.
"I'm Tyrone," He introduced himself, "And I already know you're Helena." He snapped his fingers in front of my face to get my attention; it jolted my mind back to reality. I really was in the mood for his jokes.
"Just leave me alone," I snapped, "I don't know how you know me and I don't care, just go away!" I laid down on my back and stared up at the night sky, pretending to ignore him.
"Don't be like that sweet-heart." He smirked; I was an evil smirk. He leant over me, his face right over mine so I couldn't see the sky.
"Piss off!" I shouted in his face, "Can't you see that I don't want you here?" I slapped him hard, trying to get him to leave, but instantly regretted it. My slap did nothing, his skin was cold and as hard as rock, if anything all I managed to do was hurt my hand. He smiled.
"I'm very hungry you know." His smile turning into an evil grin. I tried to keep my face angry and block out my fear, I wasn't sure if it was working.
"So? What do I care? I don't have any food. Go away!" I snapped again, he suddenly pinned my arms down to the ground on either side of my head. I squirmed to try and break free but he had a grip like a vice and all my efforts were useless. He laughed slightly as his head moved closer to mine. His lips traced a line from the base of my throat up to my ear, then he whispered, "You don't seem to grasp what I'm saying."
"Get off of me!" I screamed, trying – unsuccessfully – to push him away. I heard him laugh quietly then he whispered in my ear again.
"If you keep quiet, I'll tell you a secret." There was humour in his voice. I kept fighting to get him off of my, he seemed to be getting bored waiting for me to reply. "I'll tell you the secret to my looks." He whispered. I stopped fighting him instantly. How had he known I'd wanted to know that? Or maybe it was just a something to shut me up. He chuckled when he realised that it was what I wanted to know. "I'm a vampire." He whispered. Panic started to bubble up inside me. It explained everything. The beauty, the graceful predatory movements, the eyes, the strength, everything. Aiden and Jethro were vampires too. I was paralysed; I couldn't fight back anymore. Tyrone lifted his head again to look down at me. I stared into his eyes, into the eyes of death. My eyes wide with fear, my breath coming up fast now. He laughed.
"But now you know my secret, I'm afraid I'm going to have to kill you." He smirked at me. His eyes glowed then the beautiful liquid silver colour of his irises disappeared to be replaced by a blood red. He opened his mouth and I watched in horror as his two top canine teeth grew and became longer and sharper. He laughed yet again. This was the end; I was going to be killed by a hungry vampire.