Disclaimer: I own nothing to do with The Lost Boys and never will. Just a big time fan of the film, like everyone else. :-)

Thank you all so much for your reviews. I always appreciate them and it makes me so happy to read them. Hope you enjoy this chapter! CK X

Chapter Nineteen

"Ruby?" he repeats again, in a low voice full of warning as he looks up at us.

What did he think we were doing? There's a long moment of uncomfortable silence, where David and I just look at each other. His eyes seemed to hold me in, each and every time, goading me on, willing me to spill the beans right then and there; I could never seem to bring myself to look away.

"Susie and I are going for a ride on here," I answer miserably, and David makes a face and smirks, obviously enjoying my discomfort on revealing such truths to him, of all people.

"Oh, I can see that!"

He stands leaning against the railings as the man nonchalantly fills the seats below us. And then Susie tries to change her position, scooting as far away from him in the seat as possible, as he steps over the railings. What is he doing? Oh my God! The machinery of the Ferris wheel groans as David opens up the protective latch and sits right beside me.

"I think I might just join you two girls..."

Oh, please tell me he is only kidding around with us!

"What are you doing, David?" My voice comes out in a groan.

So here we were, Susie and I, seated on the Ferris wheel in a dangerously small seat, so closely next to this young man who we feared more than anything right now, his legs and elbow touching mine. The very thought was inconceivable; I was the only thing in the way, the only thing offering Susie protection and coverage if he decided to hurt her for getting in the way of him feeding on that surfer tonight. As if I would be enough to keep him from hurting her if the time came for him to do so...

David looks pleased with himself – as though he knew how much discomfort he was inflicting on us by joining us on the Ferris wheel – as he removes the cigarette he has placed behind his ear and sticks it between his lips, before delving a hand into his coat pocket, clearly searching for his lighter.

The seat of the Ferris wheel raises another inch and I exhale shakily.

David seems to notice this. He looks over at me and raises an eyebrow. "Scared, Ruby?" he asks, his low, icy voice muffled slightly from the cigarette he has between his lips.

Shit... I ignore him, looking at the seat positioned diagonally above us. A little boy is seated with an elderly woman, who I am presuming is his grandmother. I hear him exclaiming loudly over the scenery of Santa Carla from high altitudes, pointing his hand in all directions excitedly.

I glance over at Susie quickly, who is trying to keep a large amount of distance between David. She is staring right at my face, scared, with an expression full of pleading. What do you want me to do, Susie? I ask her desperately, but don't say out loud. Of course, I would never dare to. Not in front of him, anyway. Do you want me to push David off or something?

"Very enchanting idea, Ruby," I thought I heard David murmur.

My breath hitches in my throat. What? Could David hear me? Could he read my thoughts? I shake my head at the silent question. No, of course not. That's childish of you to even think so, Ruby...

My stomach lurches as the Ferris wheel goes an inch higher off the ground, and I clutch onto the protective rod out of fear. Please don't let the wheel collapse, I plead to a higher power. And please don't let David hurt Susie!

"Oh God," I breathe, as the seat goes gradually higher and higher.

I make the mistake of looking down below, past my feet, and try not to gag. Being elevated high up in the air, the temperature is swiftly dropping. Yet looking down, everything felt curved, the Boardwalk looking like a big and bright colourful dome of wild flashing lights. The sight left me both breathless and nauseous.

Oh, please! Don't let us fall!

"Usually you look straight ahead and not down, Ruby," David says offhandedly, tearing me out of my momentary lapse of dread and fear. He leans over and the seat groans. "Besides, Ruby, if you do manage to fall, you won't die. You're already dead – nobody dies twice!" He leans away from me and I peek over to find David lighting his cigarette, looking pissed off for reasons unknown to me. He blows a huge cloud of smoke out into the darkness surrounding us.

"I can't stand heights," I say weakly. I feel almost as if I am about to pass out, David's cigarette smoke vastly becoming a contributing factor to that.

My eyes are smarting against the biting wind, and I close them, trying to control my breathing. "Then why'd you do it, Ruby?" David asks, sounding confused. There's something in his tone that I catch – some sort of implication...

I inhale through my nose sharply. "Do what, David?" What on earth is he talking about?

"Take Susie up here." Oh. That. "What did you think I mean?" He snorts derisively.

I open my eyes and glance over at Susie. She has her head sticking out of the chair, peering down at the wondrous sight of Santa Carla unfolding below her. Her dark, curly hair ripples against the breeze.

"Well, you made Susie very upset, David." I try to lower my voice to a hushed whisper, so that she wouldn't have the slightest chance of overhearing. "This was the only thing I could do that would make her happy." I shrug.

"Well, here's the deal, Ruby." David shifts his position, his elbow jabbing uncomfortably against my hip. "I like to feed on fresh, human blood. That's just who I am. Sometimes I like to do it alone, and other times I like to do it with my boys. Now if someone, like little precious Susie over there, gets in the way, forgive me, if I get a little too overbearing..."

I look over at him. His face is inches away from mine, his slate blue eyes squinted in thought as he looks through the haze of his cigarette smoke, out past the Boardwalk. Despite everything, his words seemed heartfelt and honest. It was then that I realized it wasn't his intention to make Susie upset in anyway. That was most definitely human. A bizarre feeling of warmth plunges through me over this newfound revelation that perhaps David wasn't as callous as he could seem to be at times...

"Well, still," I continue softly, trying to gather my wits, "you made her very upset."

He laughs, somehow not humorously, an embarrassed tinge to the sound, and then combs a hand through his blanched hair. "Well, then. I'm sorry." He says it quietly, gently, as though admitting to an inexorable fault. There's a flash of deep regret in his eyes.

I stare at his face, absorbed in a new kind of curiosity, as he takes a deep drag on his cigarette, grimacing, the corners of his mouth pulled down. It was then that it dawned on me that he looked genuinely bothered for upsetting Susie, and then I have this overwhelming urge to reach out and touch him, put my hand on his shoulder and comfort him. But why was I feeling this way? Why was I feeling this profound weight of sympathy toward David? It was certainly something I hadn't felt before, especially not toward... him.

But there were so many things I could do wrong – and comforting him was especially one of them. No matter how different he was than what I assumed was possible, the fact remains that he did this to Susie. He did this to us. He didn't deserve my sympathy. Or did he?