I was racing through a dark forest, feeling out of breath. Every cell in my body was screaming with an indefinable pain and every nerve in my body told me to keep moving forward. I could sense the danger behind me and I knew stopping was not an answer.
I couldn't get enough air into my lungs. A faint web of nerves on my hand showed I hadn't fed on blood in a long time and was near desiccation. I didn't have the strength to move forward but I kept going.
I stumbled on a loose branch and went flying. The hooded figure that had been following me smiled wickedly. He knew he had me in his claws. He approached silently while I cowered on the ground.
"Feed," he growled.
"W..what?" I stammered.
"Feed," he snarled again and inclined his head.
I turned to where he pointed and saw Aiden standing in the middle of the forest. A single beam of sunlight fell on his head and he looked beautiful. I swallowed and turned back to the hooded man.
"Well?" he said.
I shook my head, trembling. He dragged me over to where Aiden stood and threw me on the ground. Aiden had a cut on his arm from which blood dripped on to the ground.
I snarled, feeling nearly mad with a pang of hunger that shot through me. My fangs shot out and I moved closer to Aiden, ready to pounce. And then I looked at his face.
He had a pained expression on his face but when he met my eyes, he smiled understandingly. I took a step back, nearly stumbling again.
Aiden would let me kill him and still understand. And I knew at that moment that I couldn't harm him, I just couldn't.
"No," I said to the hooded figure standing beside me. He growled again and pulled out a bejewelled dagger from his robes. He caught hold of my hair and dragged me towards himself.
I yelled and kicked trying to get away from him.
"Do it or die," he said, holding the dagger directly over my heart.
I stared at him and then looked at Aiden standing a few feet away from me, gesturing and yelling at me to save myself. And I knew I wouldn't be able to do it. Escape was impossible. With a scream, I grasped the dagger and plunged it into my heart.
I woke up trembling and covered in sweat. The dream's images were still sharp in my mind. I got up and gulped in deep breaths of air. With a trembling hand, I gathered up my long dark hair and tied it up with the hair tie looped around my wrist. I was feeling terrified.
It's just a dream. It's just a dream. I chanted slowly over and over again. I finally calmed down a little and sat there hugging my knees in the dark.
I knew it was just a dream. But a small part of me couldn't deny that if it had been a situation in real life, that was exactly what I would have done without hesitation.