teeth ↣ joshler ✓

5. Forever

Tyler let out a sigh as he wiped his mouth, seeing the familiar red substance smeared all over the side of his hand.

Involuntarily, he brought his hand back up to his mouth and licked the rest of the blood off of his hand.

He fucking hated this.

His eyes glanced down at the now dead rabbit resting in front of him. He wished he felt guilt towards the animal but all he felt was hatred. He didn't feel guilt anymore. Just anger.

Jenna sat next to him. He watched her eyes turn from red back to blue as she licked her lips. She had been doing this three years longer than Tyler so she managed to feed without getting anything on her. Tyler still got some blood on him but it was always worse when he fed from a person. At least he didn't kill then. 

Tyler let his head fall on Jenna's shoulder. "What's wrong, babe?" She asked.

He let out another sigh. "Everything."

Jenna sighed as well. "I know."

Tyler felt that same anger surge through his body. He was never an angry person before it happened. Now? It was all he felt. Anger or sadness. "It's not fucking fair!" He expressed in a frustrated voice.

"I know," Jenna repeated. "I didn't ask for this either."

Tyler picked his head up from her shoulder in favor of leaning it against the tree trunk they were sitting against. He swallowed roughly. "How did you do it? All alone?"

Jenna twiddled her thumbs. "I don't know. I guess I just started looking at it as me needing to survive. I'm not doing anything wrong when I feed because it's the same as like a regular person eating cooked chicken or a lion hunting a zebra. It's predator and prey."

Tyler sighed. "I shouldn't be a predator though. A monster. I was a regular teenage boy with no solid friends and now I'm popular and into sports and a fucking storybook myth. I'm not supposed to exist."

Jenna grabbed his hand. "You'll learn to stop hating this. I don't love it but this thing has its advantages."

Tyler scoffed. "Like what?"

Jenna smiled. "I'm strong enough to lift you up."

Tyler found a smile making its way onto his face as well. "Yeah you are not doing that again," he chuckled.

Jenna giggled and took the liberty of putting her head on his shoulder that time. Her grip on Tyler's hand tightened. "I'm a firm believer in everything happening for a reason. Maybe something good will come out of this. Maybe this will make you stronger inside and not just outside."

Tyler glanced down at her, his heart warming. "How did I get so god damn lucky to have you here with me?"

Jenna picked her head up and gave him a sad smile. "How did I get so god damn lucky to find you in the woods that night?"

Tyler laughed. "We both know the only reason you found me was because you followed the scent of my blood."

Jenna laughed too. "Shush," she lightly pushed his face away. The two sat there quietly with smiled on their faces. Jenna lifted her hand and Tyler saw her pinky finger was up. He lifted his as well and they tangled them together. "Me and you. Forever," she spoke.

Tyler smiled. "Forever."

"Speaking of things happening for a reason..." Jenna continued. "Does the timing of Josh's arrival feel strange to you?"

Tyler looked at her, scrunching his nose up in confusion. "What do you mean?"

Jenna let out a hum. "I don't know. I have a good feeling about him. I feel like he came into our lives at the right time."

Tyler laughed. "Are you a psychic or a vampire?"

Jenna giggled. "Why can't I be both?" She teased. "No, for real though... I just think Josh will be a good addition to our lives. One way or another," she glanced at Tyler. "Thank you for giving him a chance."

Tyler shrugged. "I tried to warn him. I told him I was an asshole sometimes and that this town had its secrets. If anything happens to him I won't feel bad."

Jenna rolled her eyes, smacking him on the arm. "Tyler," she spoke his name disappointingly. "Nothing's going to happen to him. We won't let it."

"That's what your mom said."

Jenna sighed. "I can't afford to let anything happen to him. He doesn't know what goes on here and he doesn't have to. He'll more than likely be leaving this area to go to college. We don't need to rope him in to our problems."

Tyler felt the anger return. "This problem isn't my fault," he snapped at her. He realized he had snapped so he took a deep breath. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay," she replied quietly. "It took me awhile to get my emotions in balance too."

"Look," Tyler sighed. "I never said I wanted to tell Josh. I agree with you— he shouldn't find out. All it'll do is complicate things. I just tried to warn him in case something does happen. I mean I obviously didn't plan on this happening."

Jenna nodded. "Okay. I just want Josh to feel safe here. Socially, mentally, physically, and emotionally. He seems like he needs safety."

Tyler let out a dry chuckle. "He's got a mouth on him though."

Jenna cracked a smile. "So do you," she giggled. "You guys have a lot on common."

Tyler stood up and dusted the dirt off of his basketball shorts before holding his hand out to help Jenna up. "Do we? I mean I think one big difference is that I'm a bloodsucker and he's not."

Jenna smiled and shoved him what was supposed to be in a light manner. However, due to their supernatural strength, Tyler stumbled slightly.

Jenna's eyes widened and she covered her mouth with her hand as she stifled a laugh. "Sorry," she said but Tyler could see her smile.

"Oh are you?" He raised an eyebrow before quickly picking her up and tossing him over his shoulder.

"Ty! Put me down!" She squealed as she hit his back.

"No can do," he hummed, a huge grin on his face.

Tyler made his way out of the woods with a giggling Jenna on his shoulder and a happy heart.

Not everything was so bad.