Disclaimer: I don't own anything but Layla and a few of the plot twists. Also, the song lyrics in Ch. 1 are from 'Goliath' by The Mars Volta.
Layla pulled into her driveway and saw a little dog sitting in front of her door. It was adorably scruffy and friendly looking. She got out of her car slowly and walked up to it.
"Hey there, buddy." she said, holding her hand out. The dog licked it and barked once happily. Layla smiled and scratched him behind the ears, turning her head when she heard the sound of a car coming down the street. It was pretty late, usually people up this late aren't fit to drive. The dog growled as the beat up Chevy parked right behind her car, blocking it into the driveway. The jerk from Merlotte's climbed out along with two of his friends. Layla felt a shiver of fear ripple through her, and adrenaline shot down her spine. She had lived in the city her whole life and luckily hadn't been mugged once, but now in a rural Louisiana town she had three creeps following her home? What gives?
"What the hell are you doing here?" she asked, her feet planted firmly on the ground and fists balls up by her sides. When it came to her fight or flight instincts, fight tended to take precedence. The dog stood beside her, growling and barking at the men. She was thankful for the backup. It helped a bit. She didn't feel quite so alone.
"You got a lotta nerve, missy." one of them said in a drunken slur. Layla jaw muscles jumped as she ground her teeth against each other. The one she recognized came closer to her.
"You're gonna learn how to treat a man right." he threatened quietly. Layla's hand shot out and closed tight around his throat. In one, easy movement she threw him to the ground and sat overtop of him, pressing him into the concrete of her driveway.
"I don't mess around you arrogant asshole. Try anything and I'll kill you." she said through gritted teeth. He sputtered and began to turn blue but Layla didn't release him. One of the friends stepped forward and put a hand on her shoulder, in a vain attempt to drag her off, but all her got for his efforts was a broken wrist. The third just stood there shaking.
"If I let your friend up I want you idiots to get in your car and leave me the hell alone." she said in a deadly even tone. The man beneath her hand was slipping slowly into unconsciousness. His two friends nodded in agreement, the one nursing his wrist and holding back tears. Layla released the jerk and stood quickly, getting out of their way as they ran toward the truck.
"Vampire bitch." he muttered as he stumbled into the driver's seat. Layla rolled her eyes and shoved her hands in her pockets to hide the fact that they were shaking. She wasn't a vampire. It's called an adrenaline rush. Maybe if they hadn't been seeing double it wouldn't have gone so well for her. Layla glanced down at the dog who was staring up at her with his head cocked to one side, as if studying her.
"I'm not a vampire." she reassured him. He only wagged his tail in response. "Do you want a bowl of water, buddy?" she asked him as she walked to her front door. The dog stared as she held the screen door open for him and waited in the threshold for him to decide. After a minute he trotted inside. Layla closed the screen door and debated for a moment before deciding to leave storm door open. She wasn't going to let three drunk rednecks scare her, and she was too damn hot in here. The cross breeze was welcome. She rummaged in one of the boxes she had stacked on the kitchen counter until she found a bowl and filled it with water, setting it down on the cracked linoleum. The dog came over and lapped it up.
"Thanks for backing me up out there." she said, petting him gently. A yawn overtook her mouth and she left the dog in the kitchen before waling to her bedroom. She wasn't sure if she could really call it a bedroom yet though, as it had no bed, just two mattresses stacked on top of each other covered with sheets and a quilt, incase she got cold. She kicked off her sneakers and changed from her baggy cargos to a pair of boxers. She didn't bother changing her top before letting herself fall onto her makeshift bed. Layla groaned as her muscles began to relax. The dog's face appeared in her doorway and she laughed lightly before patting the space beside her.
"If you don't have fleas you can bunk with me tonight. Protect me if those guys come back." she joked with the animal. The dog trotted forward and climbed into bed beside her. Layla stretched and closed her eyes to go to sleep.
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Layla woke up to someone knocking on her front door. Judging by the sunlight streaming in through her window it must have been an ungodly early hour. She stumbled out of bed and noticed the dog had left. Oh well, she survived the night so it really didn't matter. At the front door, wearing a bright green sundress was Sookie Stackhouse. Layla rubbed the sleep from her eyes as she came to stand in the doorway.
"Good morning." Sookie said in a cheerful voice.
"What time is it?" Layla asked sleepily.
"Almost noon." Sookie told her. Christ, it wasn't even 12:00 yet. "Mind if I come in?" she asked.
"Sure, I'm sorry." Layla said, opening the door for Sookie to enter. The blonde was only a few inches shorter than Layla's 5'8, but for some reason it seemed like she was much daintier. It was probably the girlish innocence she exuded like a perfume. "So what brings you by?"
"Well, you're new, you don't know anyone. I figured you'd probably need a friend." Sookie said honestly, glancing around at my empty living room. I felt bad that I didn't have a place for her to sit but what was I supposed to do? Magically produce a chair?
"Is that really the only reason?" I asked. I practically feel her covering ulterior motives. She was fairly easy to read. She shook her head and stared at me.
"Are you trying to glamour me?" she asked in a whisper. I raised an eyebrow.
"I'm not a vampire!" Layla reminded her, moving to stand in the sunlight streaming through the front windows to further prove her point. Sookie sighed and stared at her.
"It just...it felt like-"
"Look, I'm pale and admittedly a little cold, but I am not a vampire. Here, feel my pulse." She said, holding out her wrist to the girl. Sookie looked like she was seriously considering taking it but instead shook her head.
"No. I believe you." she said. Layla nodded.
"Good, so is that the only reason you came here? To make sure I'm human?" she asked, her voice scratchy with sleep sounding much harsher than she had intended to sound. Sookie looked a bit miffed.
"Look, I just wanted to let you know that if you ever need anything, you can come to me. I don't live too far and I wrote down my cell phone number for you." she said, holding out a tiny piece of paper. Layla took it carefully, feeling bad for being so rude.
"I'm sorry about my attitude. It's just...early and I had a rough night. That guy who asked me to dance tried to start some shit. I didn't think I'd be fighting someone my first night here is all." Layla explained. Sookie had that look on her face like she was concentrating again but nodded just the same.
"Like I said, if you ever need anything don't hesitate to call." she said, before turning to leave. Layla bit her lip and then spoke up.
"Are there any other bars you could recommend? Don't get me wrong, Merlotte's is cool and all, but I was wondering if there was something a bit less, uh..." Layla trailed off, searching for the right word.
"Gossipy?" Sookie offered. Layla nodded in agreement. "Well, the only thing that springs to mind really is Fangtasia. It's a vampire bar up in Shreveport. It's not my favorite place but unless you're a vampire or obsessed with one, people won't really bother with you."
Layla shrugged playfully. "Meh, what the hell?"
Sookie looked positively aghast. "You're just gonna go to a vampire bar by yourself? Just like that?"
"What do I have to lose?" Layla asked with a grim smile. Besides my life.
"You're life is a pretty big thing to lose!" Sookie told her angrily. Layla's expression went from calm to confused, and Sookie realized the latter half hadn't been said aloud. Oops. She recovered quickly.
"Just, come to Merlotte's. You can hang out with me, and I'll introduce you to my friends Tara, and Arlene and Sam. My boyfriend, Bill might even show up." she said excitedly. Her whole face lit up when she said her boyfriends name. It was cute...and nauseating.
"Maybe another night, but thanks for everything Sookie, I really do appreciate it." Layla told her. Sookie looked like she wanted to say more but instead turned and left. That girl was so stubborn!
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Layla spent most of her morning unpacking. Her place now looked a bit more like a home, instead of a halfway house. She even hooked up her TV in the living room and had dragged out a beanbag to be her makeshift couch for the time being. When the sun started going down she decided to take a shower. Going to the local watering hole in the sweaty clothes you'd worn all day was one thing, going to a vampire bar tended to be just a tad bit classier. Her goal wasn't to stand out, but instead to fit right in. She considered this part relaxation and part research for her book. It was about the trials of a woman struggling with an addiction to vampires. Gritty, realistic stuff. She had been inspired by an old friend who became a V-addict and traded sex and blood for drugs. When the people back home had found out she was basing her story off of that, well, let's just say they weren't thrilled. It wasn't as thought she was going to write a tell-all biography. Layla's book was entirely fictional, and she didn't even mention V. Her main character just had an unhealthy relationship with a vampire. That didn't stop her from losing almost every friend she'd had.
After her shower she pulled on an outfit she had worn to some vampire bars in Philly. It was a black leather bustier and black skinny jeans with chains around the belt. To top it off she pulled on her black, stiletto, ankle boots. They had a four inch and made her 6'0. For a girl, that's pretty tall, but Layla had always ignored the unsaid rule that girls of a certain height should steer away from tall heels because it intimidates men. Maybe men should wear heels and be tall too. She wasn't going to stop wearing her boots for anything. Layla noticed that her hair had once again curled loosely in the heat as she applied her dark make-up. Wine colored lipstick and black, smoky eyes. Standard vampire bar attire, really.
She made sure to lock her front door as she left and placed the directions she had printed offline in the passenger seat as she drove to Fangtasia. Hopefully she would have a better night here than she had at Merlotte's. It took a little while to get there but she did arrive. Walking up to the front door she waited in line behind other people waiting to pass through the velvet rope. When it was her turn she came face to face with a tall blonde woman. They were at roughly the same height when the woman's icy blue eyes locked boredly onto hers.
"I.d.? " she asked, sounding like it was biggest pain in her undead ass. Layla wasn't sure how she knew the woman was a vampire, but it just seemed kind of obvious to her. She handed over her id without a problem. At 22 she didn't have to fumble around with fakes anymore.
"Layla Dahlin. Swedish?" the woman asked. Layla raised an eyebrow. Most people didn't know what heritage her last name was, and she certainly didn't look Swedish with her near black hair and brown eyes. She took after her mother's Irish side, and truth be told, she considered herself more Irish than Swedish.
"Yes, it is." Layla told the woman, who looked interested all of a sudden.
"Go on in." the vampire said dangerously, nodding for Layla to pass. The brunette offered up a brief smile of thanks before going in. Her stomach twisted, not in fear or anxiety, just a jittery feeling. Somehow she knew that things weren't going to go the way she planned here tonight.