Chapter Three (Alexander)
"Let me go downstairs first to let my parents know. You stay here." I ordered.
Mark scrunched up his nose, but reluctantly plopped onto my bed, one leg folded over the other as if he were mocking me. I rolled my eyes and disappeared from the room, shutting the door behind me. I made my way down the hall and only made it to the top of the stairs when I saw him.
My hand clenched the wooden rail, my eyes flickering at the sight of the man I was supposed to marry in three months. The last time I had seen him was when I was ten-years-old, and he sixteen. Now, I was almost eighteen and he was twenty-four.
He looked like a super model.
His hair was jet black and cut short, lightly spiked. A stark contrast to his bright blue-green eyes that cut through the house like blades of ice. Dark stubble shadowed the lower part of his face, giving him an older, more powerful look. He wore a sleek black leather jacket, a pair of Calvin Klein sunglasses sitting on his head. His pants were tight black leather, hugging his hips and trailing down long, muscular legs.
He was gorgeous.
It didn't surprise me. He was one of the most powerful creatures of our species and his father was even more powerful. However, I noticed that it was only Storm standing beside my mother and father, who were showering him with attention and affection-- the kind they never gave Amber and I.
I had only stood there for a moment when Storm looked up, his pale eyes glinting in the light of the chandelier above his head. I stiffened, every muscle in my body going rigid. My mother frowned and followed Storm's gaze before gaping.
"Alex, what are you wearing?" She demanded in disgust, referring to my jeans and long-sleeve black shirt. I frowned, but didn't respond and instead came down the stairs cautiously to greet my fiance for the first time in almost eight years. He was taller, just like he was before, only this time, I was a little bit closer to his eyes.
"Storm," My father began before my mother could chide me for my plain outfit, "This is Alexander. He's been anticipating your arrival for months now." That was stretching it. I wasn't anticipating it out of joy, but nervousness and sickness. I didn't want to marry this guy.
He was handsome, yes. Hell, handsome didn't even cover it. He was like a Greek God torn out of a history book. His manners were impeccable as he reached out, taking out my hand in his. He brushed his thumb over my knuckles, making me expect that he was going to kiss them. However, instead, he leaned in and brushed his lips over my forehead before withdrawing.
I felt a chill course up my spine.
And he was romantic.
But I didn't love him and the thought felt like it was bold in my eyes. Storm didn't react, though. He was very calm and placid, formal and polite.
"It's a pleasure to see you again after so much time." He greeted me. I blinked, snapping out of my stupor to nod in agreement. I didn't know what else to say and my parents looked irked that I had yet to respond, so I searched through my head and finally came to a response.
"I couldn't agree more. I'm honored that you're staying with us." I replied. Storm didn't smile, just nodded in achknowledgement.
I had a feeling, that despite the arrangements that had been made, Storm didn't love me either. At least, he didn't act like it. He was just being proper with my parents in the room. I had a feeling he wasn't really like this.
"Well," My mother exclaimed, clasping her hands together to fill the awkward silence that followed, "I'll have Amber get us some drinks. What would you prefer?"
"AB positive, please." Storm requested, making my mother beam dreamily at the sound of his deep, baritone voice. My father just smiled pleasantly until his smile melted and he sniffed. His eyes locked on me and I stiffened under his gaze, before quickly looking at Storm.
"I wasn't expecting you so early," I admitted, making Storm look at me, "I took the liberty of inviting a friend from school over, so I hope you don't mind a human dinner." Storm didn't seem the least bit surprised and shook his head.
"No problem at all." He responded. I could tell my parents were silently fuming, but to avoid exploding, my mother rushed in to help Storm take some of his new things to the guest room. Passing me, my mother shot me a death glare before looking at my father with a nod. We stood there in silence until Storm's door shut behind him. My father took his chance and whirled on me.
"How dare you! Inviting a human! I thought you didn't have any friends!" He exclaimed in disbelief, making me give him a sour glare.
"Thanks. And he's not a friend. If you want to yell at anyone, yell at Amber. She invited him." I responded flatly, folding my arms over my chest. My father glared at me harshly for a moment, then threw his hands up in exasperation.
"Fine! I hate having to cook, you know that. This is the last time you can have someone over, Alexander."
"Of course it is." My life ends in three months, I wanted to tack on bitterly, but my father ignored me and went to the kitchen, growling about incompetent sons. Even though I was the only son, which explained why I was stuck in this predicament in the first place.
I sighed, disgruntled as I headed back to my room. I opened the door to see Mark leaning on my window sill, watching the pool outside ripple and glitter in the sunlight. He looked like he had been deep in thought before he popped back up, turning to face me and leaning on the frame of the window.
"About time. What's going on?" He asked curiously, reaching up to give the little silver hoop in his nose a tug. I grimaced and he dropped his hand immediately as I shut the door behind me.
"Unfortuantely... Family is visiting too, so you'll really have to impress us." I answered, making Mark stiffen uncomfortably.
"Family?" He asked. I nodded. I wasn't about to tell Mark that the sexy beast walking around my house was my fiance. He always thought I was a faggot. No reason to tell him I was betrothed faggot, I thought dryly, then shook my head to clear my mind before I looked at Mark sternly.
"Best manners you can manage. That side of the family is filthy stinking rich and proper. If I were you, I'd just be as quiet as possible."
"Nooo problem." Mark drawled, running a hand through his hair uneasily. I frowned, watching him poke his snake bite with his tongue.
"Getting cold feet?" I asked. Mark blushed and glared at me, shoving his hands into the pockets of his jeans, stiffening his shoulders.
"Well, jeez. If I had known I'd have to work this hard, I wouldn't have come over." He grumbled, making me raise an eyebrow and fold my arms over my chest.
"I thought you liked my sister." I pointed out. Mark blushed harder and scowled, but said nothing as he looked away. I sighed and shook my head. We mostly just sat around my room and occasionally argued before the smell of cooked meat filled the house. Mark's stomach growled loudly, making him shift uncomfortably. My stomach ached at the smell. I wasn't a fan of cooked meat, but humans just simply couldn't digest it.
They were lacking the powerful acids that broke down the bacteria in raw meat, which explained why they ended up with bacterial contamination whenever they decided to stupidly go cannibalism without cooking their victim first. The thought made me roll my eyes, rubbing my temples before I rose to my feet.
"Time for dinner." I said at last. Mark blinked and looked up at me uneasily, but rose to his feet too as I led him out of the room and down the stairs. We didn't run into anyone on the way down, but judging from Storm's open bedroom door, he was already waiting downstairs.
I came into the dining room first, seeing the steaming warm dinner set out on the table. It was strange having a family dinner like this. We hadn't done it for quite some time. Amber was already seated, having changed into a nice white blouse with ruffled sleeves and a band under her breasts, pushing them up. She wore a short peasant skirt with a multi-colored band around her waist. Just like my sister, adorning herself in the boho fashion.
"Hey, Mark," She greeted brightly, rising to her feet politely, "Glad you could make it!" Mark seemed to be fighting the urge to blush and his heart beat was making my head ache. I could hear the blood rushing through his circulatory system, driving my senses wild. I felt my fangs throb in my gums, but I resisted and excused myself to the kitchen.
I went straight to the fridge, puling it open and taking out a bottle of O positive. I popped the top off with my hard fingernail before tipping my head back, pouring the entire bottle down my throat. I sighed heavily afterwards, leaning on the counter.
"You could get blood drunk doing that." A voice said, making me glance up to see Storm standing there, looking as handsome as ever in a black V-neck and his black leather pants. Man, his ass was firm.
"I skipped breakfast." I admitted, throwing the bottle in the toxic waste basket under the sink. Storm studied me for a moment, then looked away as my father came in to fetch us for dinner. We walked to the dining room, the sound of our footsteps making the wooden floors creak.
I sat next to Mark, who sat uncomfortably between me and Amber. My father had the head of the table and Storm the other head while my mother sat beside my father obediently. We just started passing the food around, pretending to enjoy it while Mark seemed to be fighting the urge to devour everything.
Like he promised, he stayed silent until my mother spoke up.
"So, Mark. How long have you been friends with Alexander?" She asked, her voice oozing false politeness that made my blood boil. She was planning something rude and I could tell by the way her blue eyes glinted in the chandelier. Mark swallowed his potatoes, biting into his lip for a second, just barely avoiding his snake bite before shrugging a little.
"I'm... not sure, ma'am. A while." He answered cautiously. My mother seemed mildly impressed with his manners, but she wasn't going to let him get away that easily.
"Mm, must be quite a while if you've forgotten the time. Well, what about any career paths? Have you decided on a college?" She asked, not looking at Mark, who was getting tense. Little did my mother know that Mark's GPA was so low that they had to admit him into the Special Education classes so he could at least keep at the heels of our classmates.
"Mother, quit badgering him," Amber came to Mark's rescue, much to my surprise, making Mark slump in relief, "Not all seniors have their lives planned out to the very last budget." My mother glanced at her, but kept the fake smile plastered on her face.
"I suppose so. I just wish kids nowadays had their lives planned out like we did, Kornelius," She directed the words at my father, who just nodded curtly, "It'd be a much simpler world." Silence followed that and I knew Mark was beating himself up mentally over the questions. I glanced at Amber, who frowned a little and I knew she was regretting her decision to invite Mark over.
Good.
Storm was also silent. I noticed the way he stared at Mark every so often in a way that made my stomach sink into an abyss. I really hoped Storm knew control because I don't think Mark would appreciate becoming his dessert. I finally caught Storm's eyes and he stared back at me for a moment before looking down at his meal, kindly eating with his eyes closed like he was trying to block the rest of us out.
"So, Mark, when did you get your piercings?" Amber asked to avoid the awkward silence. Mark shifted a bit uneasily, forcing a smile.
"Uhm, I got the nose ring a couple years ago as a birthday gift. The snake bites I got with the money I earned." The last part was total bullshit. He probably stole the money from me, which is why I had trouble buying my own rebellious items, like pornos and cigarettes. I frowned at myself for being so negative as Amber nodded, then smiled at Mark.
"What about the tattoo?" She asked, pointing to the space under her right eye. Mark blinked, then smiled a little.
"Last year." He responded kindly. I was surprised. I didn't think Mark would be this nice and, oh, I don't know... Human? It was a little funny to think about, but I kept my laughter to myself as Amber questioned Mark a little more. Mark made sure to answer politely and calmly. And bullshit pretty much everything he said, talking about his nice suburban home that he shared with his grandparents.
I was so relieved when dinner finally came to an end. Mark's clothes were also cleaned, so I sent him up to my room as I went for his clothes, folding them up on a rack nearby. I started to leave, but my mother stepped in front of me, making me grimace.
"You are not to invite anymore friends to this household, do you understand me?" She demanded harshly, his dark painted nails cutting into the wooden doorframe. I stared at her for a while, wishing I could just tell her to shove her order somewhere else, but I was still seventeen. A minor and under my parents' wishes. Everything they wanted, they got.
"Yes, ma'am." I answered quietly. My mother studied me for a while, then seemed to relax, taking her hands off the doorframe and cupping my face, her nails making my skin tingle.
"Sweetheart, you know we love you. Your father, myself, your sister, and especially Storm. We want whats best for you. And hanging around those dirty humans will only drag you into their useless affairs. Ignore their chaotic nature and let yourself fall into our peace and harmony." She soothed, then kissed me on the forehead before departing.
I sighed, averting my eyes and wishing I could do just that. Maybe this was a phase. A phase that lasted almost eight years.
No, it didn't matter what I tried to tell myself.
I didn't want to be lonely.
I didn't want to be a bloodsucking creature of the night.
And I most certainly didn't want to marry Storm Van Gothica.
I came out of the laundry room with Mark's clothes, heading up the stairs when a sudden scent hit my nose halfway up the stairs. I froze, the heavy stench of blood filling my nostrils. I bolted up the stairs and only took one step down the hallway when I saw the source. I dropped Mark's clothes to the floor as I watched Storm pin Mark to the wall, his mouth buried against his throat.
Mark was panting for breath, his fingers gripping Storm's muscular biceps. His skin was paler than usual, which told me that Storm was intent on killing him.
"No!" I yelled. Storm immediately withdrew, wiping his mouth on the back of his hand. I rushed forward and just barely caught Mark before he hit the floor. I managed to get Mark into my arms, his head resting against my chest.
"Mark? Mark, say something!" I ordered, patting his pale cheek. Mark didn't say anything, just stared up at me past hooded eyelids like he had no idea what he was looking at. I patted his cheek again, then jerked my head up to glare at Storm.
"Why did you do that?!" I barked angrily, surprised that I had dropped all formalities. Storm licked one of his fangs, then closed his mouth to study me with blue-green eyes.
"I don't know." He admitted. I only managed to sputter incoherence at him in disbelief before Mark mumbled something, immediately diverting my attention to him. I took his chin in my head, tilting his head up toward me.
"Mark?" I asked again, studying the faraway look in his dark blue eyes. Mark's eyelids fluttered a little.
"Mmph... Hurts..." He managed at last. I grimaced and tilted his head, studying the puncture wounds in his throat. Blood oozed free, trickling down his pale skin and making my fangs twitch excitedly. I kept my mouth shut now and struggled to get Mark up, heaving him up from under his arms. Storm just watched Mark intently, like he was debating whether to finish him off or let him get more blood so he could feed again later.
I only shot Storm a sharp glare as I managed to pull Mark into my room. Storm followed and went to say something, but I cut him off after I laid Mark on my bed.
"Get out of my room." I ordered. Storm stared at me as if he were stunned at the rebellion, but I didn't let his size or power intimidate me.
"I said get out! And bring an IV in here so he can get the blood back that he lost! We have everything down in the basement. Make sure it's O negative! " I added angrily, ignoring Storm's frown. He reluctantly left the room, closing the door quietly behind him. I turned to Mark, who was lying on the bed, staring up at the ceiling sleepily.
I went to the bathroom, grabbing a roll of gauze and returning quickly. I propped Mark up against me, wrapping the gauze around his throat snugly, but not enough to choke him or cut off any blood that was left trying to circulate.
To my surprise, Storm came back moments later with an IV filled with dark red blood. He also brought a couple bottles of it for himself and me in case the transfusion got to us. We got Mark hooked up and gave him an ice pack for his head. He seemed to be on auto-pilot, holding the pack to his head, but not reacting to anything.
I frowned when Storm handed me a bottle of O negative. I took it hesitantly, then watched as Storm just nodded his head, giving Mark one last, long stare before departing from the room. I got up and locked it behind him before coming back just as Mark seemed to slowly come out of his trance.
"That didn't just happen..." He mumbled, holding the ice pack to his face as he leaned against the wall, his arm flopped out to the side as the IV fed him the blood. I grimaced, taking a quick sip of my bottle before looking at him. He was looking at the bed, then lifted his eyes to me for a second, then averted them quickly.
"You're still woozy and confused from the shock," I assured, setting my bottle on the nightstand and sitting in front of him, "It looks like nothing else has happened other than that." It was probably the wrong thing to say because now Mark was panicking.
"Nothing else?! Nothing else?! I was just bit in the throat by some gay vampire!"
"Mark-- Wait, what?"
"What'd you mean wait what?! I almost died! T-That thing almost sucked all my blood out! I could feel it! And he kept touching me! Ugh! My body hurts! It burns!" Mark managed, his voice shaking. Part of me was relieved that the color was returning to Mark's cheeks, but another part of me was worried as he tried to get off the bed, almost ripping the IV out. I caugh him by the shoulders, holding him back.
That only seemed to hurt him worse as he hissed past clenched teeth, arching his back against the wall. I caught his wrists, holding down the arm with the IV in it, checking to make sure it hadn't torn out before I looked at Mark's flushed cheeks, his breathes coming out in sharp pants.
Damn it. As if biting him wasn't enough, Storm had done something else to him. Something that most of our kind didn't really have to do when we wanted to romance our victims. Something that, if my parents or his found out, both of us would be destroyed, Mark included.
"Mark, stop moving," I ordered as he writhed on the bed, trying to rip away from me, "You're just feeling the effects of a light aphrodisiac. It'll go away in a bit if you just calm down." Mark grabbed at my arms, grimacing as a trickle of sweat ran down the side of his nose.
"I-I can't," He breathed, his legs trembling, "It burns! I feel like I'm on fire! How is this light?!"
"You're just sensitive to it." I assured, frowning as Mark tilted his head back against the wall, arching his back again. I was surprised an aphrodisiac would effect him this much. He was a junkie. He'd done things worse than this.
"Make it stop," Mark begged, pulling at the sleeves of my shirt, "I can't...! I can't...!" He couldn't even finish his sentence as he writhed, grabbing onto me tightly. I winced, watching the IV pump more blood into his system, just fueling his adrenaline even more. I gripped Mark's arms tightly as he held onto mine, panting and sweating.
If he weren't in danger, I'd probably be a little turned on right now from the way he looked, but I was too busy trying to finish the transfusion. By the time it was done, I managed to slip the IV out of his arm, forcing him to hold his fingers over the wound as I went for a Band-Aid. I came back and the aphrodisiac seemed to slowly be wearing off.
He just panted, leaning against the wall as I put the Band-Aid on, pausing to study the gauze around his neck. I could vaguely see the blood past the whiteness, but other than that, he seemed stable for now.
"Mark, can you understand me?" I asked for confirmation, touching his cheek. He turned his face away, giving me a dirty look.
"I speak fucking English!" He snapped angrily, making me roll my eyes.
"Okay, what's my name?"
"Douche bag bloodsucker."
"No, Mark, really. What's my name?" I demanded impatiently. Mark glared at me a little bit longer, then scowled and looked away.
"Alex." He grumbled. I frowned, still studying his face. His pupils were dilated before, but seemed to slowly return to normal.
"What's your name?" I asked, reaching out to take his wrist in mine. He tried to wrench his grip away, but there was no point in pretending I was weak now when he knew everything, so I easily held his wrist in my hand, pressing my fingers around his wrist to feel for his pulse. It pumped steadily as Mark growled.
"Mark! What else do you want from me? Birthday? Pet names?" He snarled, then winced as I roughly let go of his wrist to frown at him.
"Tell me exactly what Storm did to you." I commanded. Mark blinked, then glared at me again as he scooted away from me.
"He fucking bit me!"
"No, I mean how! Did he just walk up and bite you?" I asked. Mark stared at me for the longest time, then looked away.
"Basically." He grunted, but I knew he was lying from the lack of eye contact. I rolled my eyes and grabbed his shoulder, slamming him against the wall and making him gasp in surprise.
"I need to know specifically because that guy isn't family, he's my fiance." I snapped. Mark choked on his breathing and coughed for a few seconds, covering his mouth and them his face.
"Oh, God. I knew there was something wrong with you. And your family. I hate myself so much right now. I promise to never, ever flirt with blondes, ever again. Please--"
"You can hate yourself later. I need to know what Storm did to you, Mark. My kind doesn't just release aphrodisiac to all their victims, only certain ones. What did Storm do to you?" I demanded harshly, leaning in closer. Mark suddenly looked afraid.
"My kind? W-Wait. That means--"
"Yes," I answered impatiently, smacking my hand into the wall by Mark's head, making him jump, "I'm also like Storm. Now tell me right now what he did or I'll pump you so full of that aphrodisiac that you'll fuck my bed post." Mark squeaked and stumbled for words quickly.
"W-Well, uhm, I was heading to your room like you told me to. I sort of forgot which room it was, though. I mean, there's, like, a lot of rooms in this house, so I didn't know, you know? Well, I got nervous because I didn't wanna, you know, walk in on someone. So I just stood in the hallway for a bit until whatshiface-- I mean, your guy. Your fiance or whatever. Yea, him! So he comes walking out and-and I didn't do anything! I mean, he just came up to me. He didn't say anything and I asked what room was yours and he said he didn't care. And I thought that was kinda mean. I mean, aren't you guys supposed to be getting married? But yea, so I told him he was being rude. Er, okay, not exactly like that."
"Mark!"
"He just said he could smell something and I had no idea what he was talking about and I was about to tell him to buzz off because he was way too close and then he bit me, okay!" Mark cried in exasperation. I frowned, leaning away from him to sit on the bed again.
Something was weird.
Storm probably smelled the death that coursed through Mark's veins. Was he so excited to bite into a living mean that he accidentally let loose?
No. Impossible. Someone like Storm wasn't that careless.
Which meant that Storm didn't love me.
He liked Mark.