An Unfortunate Healing

Part 1

  The wet street of Manhattan glowed in the dark night, the twinkling city lights setting it ablaze in colors. Nicholas found himself wandering back to a certain house. It had been the place of his last kill, a young homosexual named Dominic Griffan. He knew it was dangerous to always be going back, but he couldn't help himself. After the deed, something felt off. He felt like he was trying to find a pebble he had thrown into a pond. He just couldn't shake the feeling that something monumental had occurred. The more Nicholas looked back upon the killing, the stranger it seemed.
         The man hadn't been scared; in fact, he had seemed amused. A smirk captivating his face almost as if he had been egging him on. He hadn't even fought back as Nicholas choked him to death. The man looked him straight in the eye from beneath his long shaggy hair. Nicholas recalled thinking he ought to cut it off until it stood no taller than the width of his fingernails. In the end he hadn't bothered and disposed of the body. Ever since that night he hadn't been able to find comfort in his hotel sheets. He needed to find out why.
         Nicholas made his way to the front door and, as he was about to pick the lock, the clacking of heels pulled his attention. A woman dressed in a fitted short dress strutted along the side walk. Her eyes met with his and she winked at him; it was an invitation. The act made him sick to his stomach. Bile coated the back of his tongue. He smiled back at her through his distaste as she passed. Her dark crimson brown hair bounced as her hips went from side to side. She turned onto some steps two doors down and smirked in his direction.
         "A handsome man like you has to be taken, right?" She wanted him to say no. He pondered for a second. Secrets were trapped behind the man's door, but this woman needed to be taken care of. A plan formed quickly in his mind. It would be easy enough. After all, it wasn't like the house would be gone after he returned.
         "As it happens, I am currently very much untaken," Nicholas replied slowly, turning so he was now facing her.
         "Well, as it happens," she smiled,"my bed is empty too. Maybe you should come fill it." He descended the stairs and moved to hers. She waited for him, a sly smile filling her face. Knowing that she wanted him to make the first move he pulled her in for a heated kiss.
She instantly responded, her mouth synchronizing with his. The keys rattled as she swung open the door and dragged him in with her. Nicholas was relieved, as the door closed behind him. Breaking the kiss he pinned her to the nearest wall. How long had it really been since he had constricted another's neck? Felt one's being whither to nothing but a rotting body? Too long it seemed to him.
         "Oh!" She squeaked in surprise as her body collided with the wall.
         "You whore." He spit in her face, revolted by what she was.
         "So what are you gonna do about it?" She cooed, oblivious to the truth in his words.
         "You don't deserve to live," he growled and latched on to her throat. Her eyes grew wide as the reality of the situation took hold.
         She thrashed around, trying to break free of his hold. Her attempts were useless, for he had his body plastered to hers so she couldn't correctly fight back. Nicholas's smile was wicked as he relished the discoloring of her skin, basked in the feeling of her figure weakening. The light was about to retreat from her pupils when something strange happened.
          She started regaining strength. It started with her eyes and then her skin. It almost felt like she was drawing energy from his hands and into herself. He could feel his hands reluctantly loosen around her neck. Disoriented, his fingers released their hold and set her free. Her ragged breath was a distant sound as the earth spun around Nicholas. He had fallen to his knees in an attempt to regain control. His hands reached out to grasp her hair, but they fell short. She disappeared out the door seconds before the world straightened itself.
         He looked down at his hands, unable to comprehend what had just occurred. She was almost dead, a second away from her death even. Questions echoed in his mind: How had she healed? What had changed? Had he done it?
         "Tisk, tisk. Such bad manners Nicholas. Choking her on your first date is hardly gentleman-like." A man's heavily accented voice rung through the room, making the hairs on Nicholas's neck stand up. He turned his head, thinking that it couldn't possibly be who he thought it was. Leaning casually against the doorframe was Dominic Griffan, his last kill.
         "I'm sure you can't possibly believe what is in front of you, but I can assure you that I am  alive." He smirked, strolling to Nicholas's side and placing his soft hand onto his shoulder. The shock of seeing him remained, but it didn't change the fact of why Nicholas had killed him. Dominic was a disgrace in his eyes, but the man knew something he didn't. Nicholas had to know the truth.
         "What have you done to me?"
         "Clever boy," Dominic replied, a chuckle erupting from his throat  "I'm a warlock, have been since birth. I knew you would come for me; it was only matter of time. You see, I have been waiting since you strangled my cat years ago. I'm still rather upset about that actually."
         "What have you done to me?" Nicholas repeated, anger seeping into his voice.
         "Alright, alright. To put it simply: I've given you a gift." He smirked.
         "What exactly are you saying?" Nicholas stood so close to Dominic's face that he could smell the peppermint from his breath mints.
         "A gift, a present, a favor. All the same thing really."
         Grabbing  his collar, he shoved Nicholas to the wall.
         "Ahh. Are you going to swap spit with me as well? If I didn't have a boyfriend I'd say you were my type."
         "You make me sick."
         "One of us had to say it," he replied curtly and shrugged.
         "Tell me what you've cursed me with or you will never see another dawn."
         "I disagree, and on the contrary, it's a gift."
         "Tell me!"
         "I'm pretty sure you can guess what it is."
         "I swear to you, I will never have as much pleasure as I will when I see the light leave your eyes!"
         "Go ahead, try to kill me. I won't die!"
         Nicholas's hands shot for his throat but latched onto nothing but air. Dominic was gone. He whipped around in search of the man. The empty room gave him an answer he didn't want. His breathing grew grave as anger surged through him. He wanted the release of a human soul, the beautiful grace of limbs dragging along a floor, the way a body drapes elegantly from a rope. But most of all, the tenderness eyes emit when they finally fix vacantly on the distance. He realized the need to experience the pleasure again wasn't something he could ignore.
         He stormed out of the house, his face engraved with rage. Every part of him ached. He was a bloodthirsty animal roaming the streets in pursuit of worthy prey. Before long a victim came into his sights. All he could think about was tenderness. He had to prove that Dominic was wrong. That he couldn't possibly have cursed him. It was a man walking with a younger women, whom he had kissed passionately for what seemed like an eternity. But once the woman left, he slipped on the wedding ring that was hiding in his jacket pocket. He was perfect.
         As soon as he entered the house, Nicholas followed close behind. Stupidly, the man had left the door unlocked, an invitation to unwanted guests. Immediately after intruding into the building, the man fought back. Nicholas had a much more cunning wit and within a matter of seconds his hands encased a struggling boy. Nick could sense his excitement swarming in his insides. A bomb was nearing its time limit. His body was vibrating with anticipation. But it never came. Just as the woman had, he recovered. Nicholas could feel everything start to slip into a haze.
         "Noooooo!" Nicholas boomed, the sound slicing the air into pieces. He grabbed ahold of the man's neck through the fog and squeezed as hard as he could. A snap echoed in the air. He thought maybe it had worked but the neck immediately popped back into place. His blood felt like it was boiling as he choked the man again and again. Each time he failed, the ache throughout his body screamed for liberation. The wife arrived home, and she too was immune to his efforts. He only paused to move back and forth between the two.
         Hours passed as torture for the three. Time blurred into days. Adrenaline pumped fuel into his body. Cries of agony poured out of Nicholas as he suffered through his worst nightmares. As more hours passed his hands became looser and breaks grew longer until all that was left of him was a river of tears. There was no hope for him anymore. His heartbeat was no more than a slow melancholy tune. The couple had gone out the door, undoubtedly in search of authority. His blurry vision managed to land on something that would take the pain away: a long rope. The next thing he knew, it stretched from a doorframe and curled around his neck. In his head he sang to the sound of his beating heart.

         One.

         Two.

         Three.

         Minutes later, Nicholas's eyelids fluttered open to reveal all too familiar surroundings.