I was sorely tempted to reach out and hug the girl, crushing her against me until she started pounding her fists on my chest furiously trying to get me to let her go. However, I sincerely doubted that Kathryne would be pleased by the action. At the moment she was quite pleased with herself, over having the privilege to witness my tiny slip up in logic.
Granted, I definitely deserved it for teasing her so much, but I still was loath to admit that I had made the mistake in the first place. I’d done something I hadn’t thought I’d ever do: I’d failed to properly think it through.
She was thoroughly enjoying my embarrassment; humming a tiny tune while measuring the different ingredients and dumping them into the mixing bowl. Her wide smile seemed permanently glued to her face as she prepared the dough to be baked.
Sighing in defeat, I turned away from her. “I’m going to go use the restroom.” I needed to properly compose myself before speaking with her again. Otherwise I was liable to do something stupid.
Kathryne snickered. “You go do that.” She replied, banging the spoon against the bowl.
She was far too amused by the whole thing. Not that I could blame her. “I’m an idiot.” I mumbled, splashing water on my face to try to make the heat in my face go away. At least I hadn’t made a larger blunder and accidentally insulted her. I’d rather her be laughing at me than ignoring me. At least if she was yelling at me I could try to do something about it.
“Oi! Adrian, you done yet?” Kathryne yelled, banging her hand on the door. “You have muscles, don’t you?”
Shouldn’t she already know that? She drooled over them often enough. Oh, she thought I hadn’t noticed, but I had. The glazed look in her eyes whenever she did it, so it was somewhat difficult to miss. I thought it was cute. “You stare at them all the time, don’t you?” I’d never understand why she was bothered when I caught her staring, but completely fine with me seeing her naked. Someone needed to get their priorities straight.
When she didn’t reply to my comment, I gathered that she’d probably walked away from the door. So I flung the door open, not anticipating that she might still be standing there, fuming. The door rebounded back slamming shut with a loud thunk. Though the noise might have been more Kathryne falling to the ground than the door.
Cursing, I opened the door slowly this time, peering out the crack to see her curled up into a ball a distance away, clutching her nose. “Kathryne, are you all right?!” Immediately rushing out of the toilet to make sure I hadn’t done any serious damage.
“Dumbass!” She snarled, glaring at me. “Do I look O.K.?!”
I’m going to take that as a no. “Let me take a look at it.” I said, kneeling down and gripping her arms. “I might be able to fix it.”
Instead of letting go of her nose, she kicked at my legs. “How the hell can you fix a broken nose?!”
Quite easily actually. Vampires can do a lot to a person, just by drinking their blood. Erase memories, heal minor to moderate wounds, form bonds…I couldn’t help with her arm and leg, the injuries were too old, but I could probably fix her nose.
Probably. “Same way I found out about the severity of your sleeping issues.” I replied, gently prying her hands away from her face.
I definitely needed to pay more attention when opening and closing doors. There were already dark circles forming beneath her eyes, and plenty of blood gushing from her nostrils. The dark liquid seeping from the injury looked absolutely delectable, something I could sink my fangs into.
I was lucky to have as much control as I did. Her blood was tempting enough without the added expense of me constantly trying to taste it. So long as she wasn’t constantly hurting herself, I’d be fine.
The thirst for blood wasn’t so much of a burning, or aching sensation in the throat, as it was an impulse. Like the impulse buy of a snickers bar at a store. You’re not really thinking about the consequences of buying the candy until you’ve eaten it.
And to dangle blood right in front of me was like offering that candy bar unwrapped, one bite taken out of it, just begging me to eat the rest of it. I sorely wanted to lap up every bit of blood off of her face, savoring every last delectable drop. However, licking the stuff off would probably net me a concussion or some other devious plot on her part. I’d have to settle for the vein, which was in its’ own way much better than the not as fresh crimson dripping from her nostrils.
“Either get me some goddamn gauze and tape or do what you do best you bloody vampire!” Kathryne finally had enough of my internal debating and punched my chest, glowering lividly at me through her own pain.
Yes, I should really take care of that, shouldn’t I?
Cradling her in my arms, I brought her into the bathroom and sat her on the counter, grabbing some toilet paper and cleaning off her face. “Just a moment. I am not going to be explaining to the teachers and principal why I have blood all over my shirt.” They’d love to think that Mr. Perfect Student had gotten into a fight. According to them, I was too impeccable, there had to be something wrong with me.
Oh, if only they knew. I felt a small smirk twitch at the corners of my mouth. My fangs, normally retracted, began to poke out a little, ready to pierce skin. Unlike another certain part of my body, I had complete control over my teeth. It was something I was rather proud of.
Once I’d finished with the toilet paper, I tugged at the collar of her shirt. “This might sting a bit more than usual.” I warned, bringing my mouth closer to her neck. “I won’t be able to heal it all the way either, just fix the break.” I hated being so limited, but unless I was feeling a little bit corpse-y, there was very little I could do about it.
What I could do what fix the break. She’d still be stuck looking like a raccoon for a little while though. “It can’t possibly hurt more than my nose does right now.” She scoffed, one of her thin hands tightly grasping the biceps of my arm.
I wasn’t about to keep arguing with her about it. Lord knew I could keep at it for hours and never get anything done. I was like my own personal congress. “True.” It was time to stop dilly dallying.
My fangs punctured her soft skin with ease, allowing the scarlet ambrosia to flow past my lips and down my throat. I’d never been a huge fan of blood drinking until I’d tasted Kathryne’s blood. Spiced pumpkins and cream, lavender, and cherries. Not all at the same time, mind. That would be disgusting. They came and went, mixing with each other in various intensities, dancing upon my taste buds like the sweetest sounding orchestra accompanying a talented gathering of ballet practitioners.
The good thing about Kathryne’s blood was that it didn’t burst forth from her veins like a fountain. It gave me significantly more time to do what I wanted, unlike with people whose blood was thinner. Healing her nose was simple. I merely had to find the source of the fracture and will it to repair itself. I couldn't care less about sating my own appetite. Making sure she was all right was my only priority. I wasn’t so far gone as to want to give up my life for her sake, no. Pain was an important part of life. Feeling happiness all the time would be the worst kind of hell I could inflict upon anyone. If anything, I wanted to be there to help lessen the burden, to suffer with her. At the very least I could make sure she wouldn’t crash into anything while she was lost in thought.
I couldn’t very well help her if I were dead, now could I?
Once I’d finished with the broken nose, I took a little more for myself. It didn’t take much to heal the fracture; less than a teaspoon. I’d say I couldn’t help myself, but I could. I just wanted a moment more. There weren’t many human foods that tasted quite like her blood did, after all.
As I pulled away, I felt something shift. It was a subtle movement; I wouldn’t have noticed it if I weren’t so focused on the young woman sitting in front of me. Because in a way, it had everything to do with her. There was no doubt in my mind about how I felt about her now. If I hadn’t felt strongly about her, it wouldn’t have happened.
A bond, of sorts. It was nothing major. Our activities would have had to have been a bit more...intimate, for a stronger link. No, it was simply a link between feelings, perhaps thoughts if they were strong enough. I was surprised one had formed at all. For that to happen the feelings had to be mutual.
So I wasn’t just teasing her after all. Stepping back, I eyed her with curiosity, wondering if she had noticed the change. “Feeling better?” I asked, knowing she would start pestering me with questions if she had picked up on something strange.
She shrugged, pushing herself off of the counter, using her grip on my arms to steady herself. “Tingly.” She answered, letting me do most of the walking.
I chuckled, leading her back into the kitchen. “You wanted me to stir something before I so rudely broke your nose?” I still felt awful about that, but I’d let her guilt me later. There were more important things to worry about, like getting those cookies of hers baked before it was time for school.
“I don’t know if I should let you stir it. You might break the spoon.” The spark was back in her eyes, that was good. Her nose wasn’t even crooked, which meant that I hadn’t screwed anything up. The skin looked terribly bruised though.
I smiled slightly back. “Only after I’ve mixed the dough.” Maybe she shouldn’t go to school today…the teachers would probably think she’d been abused or something. Having social workers buzz around the house would be a terrible problem, no matter how well her uncle Eric could handle it.
Kathryne shook her head, wincing slightly when the motion hurt her head. “I think I need to lie down.” She mumbled, taking a seat on the kitchen table.
Yes, definitely not going to school today. Not if I could help it.
“I think you should stay home today, if you’re not feeling well.” She probably wouldn’t listen to me, but I had to try. It was daytime, so she would be relatively safe, and with the bond, it was entirely possible that I could wake her if she did end up having a nightmare.
Taking the bowl from the counter, I quickly mashed the chaotic blend of ingredients into a tan sandy colored dough. After adding in the chocolate bits, I set the bowl aside and started hunting for a pan to put little blobs of the sticky stuff on.
Kathryne slid off the table, hobbling over the the cabinet on the other side of the kitchen. Opening it, she took out a large cooking stone. “Here. It’s nonstick.” She said, holding it out to me with one hand.
I took it. “Now to get a spoon.” Unless she wanted it to come out as some sort of giant cookie, which I seriously doubted.
“There’s a dough scooper thingy in the drawer under the counter.” She remarked, taking a seat in one of the chairs.
Ah, there the silvery contraption was. “Found it.” Now to bake them.
Or rather, let Kathryne do that, as she took the scooper right out of my hands and got to work herself. “You can put the stone in the oven, when I’m done with it.”
Was she always this bossy?
“That’s fine.” I’d let her get away with it for now. I deserved it for breaking her nose.
Shaking her head again, Kathryne smiled. “Quit obsessing over what happened. I’m fine now, aren’t I?” Had she figured out the bond already? “I can tell because you keep trying to do everything dummy. Well that, and I keep hearing you talking in my head…is that normal?”
Oh joy. Question time. “Sort of.” I replied, leaning back against the counter. “It’s rare, but it happens.” I needed to keep my internal monologuing to a minimum if I wanted to hear any of her thoughts. Chances were I kept thinking over them. I wasn’t sure; were her thoughts quiet?
Or was she just not thinking?
That would explain a lot. It would explain oh so very much more than I would like actually. If she wasn’t thinking that is.
“Rare?” She asked, peering curiously at me. After setting the timer on the oven, she plopped down in the chair next to me. “It’s not a bad thing, is it?”
I shook my head, amused. Of course she’d think that. “Not unless you hate my guts. Though if you did it wouldn’t have happened.” Hatred, while a strong emotion, couldn’t trigger a bond. I wasn’t sure why.
Kathryne sighed, looking slightly annoyed. “So I get to deal with hearing your voice in my head now? Wonderful.” She sounded none to pleased about it.
It wasn’t like I’d formed a bond on purpose. She didn’t have to sound so irked about it. “It wasn’t like you were thinking very much to begin with…” I grumbled, feeling my brow twitch. Great, her emotions were leaking over. Maybe that’s why I couldn’t pick up on her thoughts. The rest of her was drowning them out.
“Like I need another distraction!” She snapped, whacking me upside the head, wincing as the blow connected. Confusion crossed her face, causing her to frown and her eyes to widen. “What the hell?”
There was a first. I’d never heard of any physical ties happening. “I take it that you felt someone whacking you upside the head too?” I’d have to be extra careful not to injure myself then. Though it certainly took a lot more to hurt me than it took to injure a human.
Scowling, she rubbed the back of her head, eying me suspiciously. “Is there a way to undo it?”
Not that I knew of. Bonds were usually permanent until death, or until another bond superseded it. “Ah, not unless you know another hungry vampire that you’re somewhat close to…” I answered hesitantly, trying to gauge her reaction so I could avoid another angry punch.
She cursed, punching the table with her good hand, “You’d better stay out of my head, Adrian.” Oh, I’d have no problem with that.
On the other hand, if she accidentally dragged me into whatever she was thinking about, she couldn’t blame me for it either. I didn’t want to end up in whatever erotic dream she was having. They were creepy enough without me watching them…
It’s so weird to watch yourself do things you’d never thought to do before. I wondered briefly, if it were possible to persuade someone’s subconscious to stop doing something.
“I’ll try, but it’s not my fault if I accidentally overhear something.”
_______________________________________________________________________________
I really didn’t like the idea of him being able to catch the things going on in my head. At all. It was creepy. Not to mention that I wanted nothing to do with the things going on in his head either. Who knew what kind of nasty things went on in the depths of his weird mind. Ugh, I could imagine it now, and I really didn’t want to be doing that.
From what I could gather from his reaction to the whole thing, he wasn’t to keen about picking up my thoughts either. That made it a whole lot easier for me to reject the entire notion of reading his mind.
It certainly didn’t help that I was occasionally picking up on what he was thinking from time to time. He obsessed over the littlest things!
Well, at least being physically bound or whatever it was would enable me to get the most out of my little prank. I wouldn’t be able to see the look on his face, but maybe he’d be freaking out ‘loud’ enough that I’d pick up on it.
Muhahahaha! Oooh, I was looking forward to that far more than I should. The kitchen would not be enough to contain my sinister, yet hilarious, evil. I should get a jar or something.
Now I didn’t have to worry about going overboard. He had broken my nose after all. That alone was enough to deserve the utmost punishment from my intended cookie chaos.
Okay, that was enough gloating for the day. I needed to plan out how I would avoid Adrian after he got back from school. I knew he’d come back before leaving. He would want to get back at me somehow for the cookies.
Oh, you want to know what I’ve done to them? A shame. You’ll just have to wait and find out. Let’s just say it involves what happens when you eat too must fiber. Or what happens when I eat or drink any large amount of lactose. I do not miss you milk.
A loud beeping noise struck me out of my reverie, interrupting my devious thoughts. “Cookies are done.” Adrian noted, poking my shoulder. “Are you awake still?”
Crap, I’d zoned out again. I needed to stop doing that. “Why wouldn’t I be?” Sleeping sounded like a wonderful idea right about now. Waking up early was a pain. I should have made the dough last night or something.
Though that plan would have failed spectacularly. I’d pulled this particular stunt on my uncle a few times before. No doubt dearest uncle Eric would have warned him about the tainted cookies.
Adrian was kind enough to take the batch out of the oven, placing the stone on top of the stove to keep it away from the counter. That was probably a good idea. I’d lost count of the times I’d accidentally burned myself after forgetting that I’d placed a hot pan on top of the island. “Because I wouldn’t be surprised if you’d fallen asleep standing up, what with your love affair with sleeping in at odd hours.”
I would have hit him again, but I didn’t care for the sensation of getting hit that I’d feel as a result. It wasn’t so much fun to punch him if I’d feel it too. “I’m not tired enough to sleep standing up.” I replied, glaring at him. Maybe attacking him with pillows would work?
Oooh, another idea I could put into practice. I’d have to go pillow hunting while he was gone.
“Go lie down anyway. I’ll be back later.” Score! He was finally leaving.
Shrugging, I made my way to leave the kitchen, yawning for added effect. The ruse had to be absolutely perfect. “See you later.” I replied, waving absently. Must...resist...the...urge...to…cackle maniacally.
Oh this was going to be good.
_______________________________________________________________________________To be quite frank, I have no idea why there were differences between living and undead vampires. Nor do I quite understand why there were two different types to begin with. I suppose that if I believed in a God, or religion in general, I would associate the differences, and respective origins, to a myth of some sort. However, I am sorely lacking in faith in a higher power. I had no need for it. Far too demanding was the physical realms grip for me to worry about what might happen in the afterlife.
So, in that respect, I haven’t the slightest clue as to why living vampires could eat human food, whereas the undead could not. Perhaps it was to allow us to better understand the human existence before we moved on to a more predatory existence. To enable us to feel the futility of being the prey, before becoming a predator.
It wasn’t like I was required to eat food. If I truly wanted to, I could sustain myself entirely off blood. I would become obese if I pursued such a path, but I would not need to eat.
My life was also quite different in that I did not feel hunger three times a day in order to provide energy for myself. Once was enough. However, to avoid suspicion, I made sure to eat three very small meals a day.
Attending class without Kathryne present was similar to diving into a pool of lava, swimming out of it, and treating the burns with arctic ice. Without her seemingly repulsive presence to disperse my fellow peers, they swarmed around me like a gathering of flies, annoying the living daylights out of me. My classmates constantly asked disgusting questions, made crude remarks, and essentially made me remember the other reasons as to why I so loathed high school.
Not only did they chatter incessantly, they stole my cookies! By the time lunch rolled around and I felt inclined to eat them, I only had three or so left! Honestly, was stealing my food really necessary?! I wasn’t about to pay them any more attention than I had already. Taking my food was not going to pique my interest.
Besides, I was fairly sure that if I were to show interest in a fellow student, Kathryne would castrate me. I’m sorry, but I like my balls where they are, thank you very much.
I’m also certain that while losing my testicles was an exaggeration, her reaction would probably be very violent regardless.
Originally, I had intended to sit alone at lunch time. By hiding myself under a tree outside, I had hoped to avoid the majority of my irritating acquaintances.
Keyword being hoped.
“How do you even put up with her? She’s so creepy.” One of the girls who had followed me, I hadn’t bothered to remember her name, drawled. She was a blond girl who seemed to find a great deal of happiness in trash talking about people behind their backs.
Sighing, I ate one of the cookies before one of my other avid followers could steal the remaining ones. “She’s also fairly intelligent, if you would bother to talk to her properly instead of insulting her all the time.” I said, nibbling on another cookie. They were pretty good, for my having assumed that Kathryne couldn’t bake.. The cookies were really soft, not crisp at all.
The blond seemed to have taken offense to that, looking stunned by my offhanded comment. “Excuse me?”
Yeah, I’m not sorry at all. “I shouldn’t have to bother with repeating myself. If you heard enough of what I said the first time to take offense to it, then you are perfectly capable of understanding it.” Unless she was denser than a two ton brick. Then I’d have to spell it out for her; something I wouldn’t at all regret.
No wonder Kathryne had been so wary of befriending me at first. These people were assholes!
Snatching the last cookie away from the small bag I’d had them in, the blond quickly ate it, glaring at me. “Someone like Kathryne isn’t good for your reputation.” She warned, shaking her head.
I wasn’t aware that I cared enough to worry about having one of those. “Hanging out with you isn’t good for my mental health.” I’d have gone insane restraining myself from strangling her pretty little head. Was there a sign over my head reading, ‘please, steal my cookies. I don’t mind sharing at all!’ I’d only gotten two of them, out of the twenty-four that I’d brought with me.
Next time I ended up with any baked goods, I wasn’t going to bring them to school. Bloody vultures, the lot of them.
Before the idiot could say anything else, I got up from my seat under the tree and walked away. I didn’t have enough patience to deal with her ignorant barbs or her blatant threats. How did anyone tolerate a person like her?
A queasy growling from my stomach made me think that it liked that girl even less than I did. It struck me, for a brief moment, that the girl was probably the ‘Sarah’ that Kathryne had been talking about getting revenge against. I could see why; she wasn’t the nicest of people.
That was putting it nicely.
Another squeamish growl emanated from my gut. Deciding it would be best to head to the bathroom before I was sidetracked by another idiot, I made a dash for the toilets. Hopefully there wouldn’t be very many of my classmates there to bother me.
A wave of nausea rolled through me, knocking me slightly off balance. Encounters with disgusting people could not having possibly made me actually sick. Had it been something I-…
Then it dawned on me. I hadn’t thought anything of Kathryne’s sudden eagerness to be up and about so early in the morning. I’d taken her at her word when she’d said something about plotting against Sarah. My dismissal of her baking skills was even more humiliating now.
Of course she’d know how to bake. How else was she supposed to get revenge on her fellow classmates under little suspicion? Most people didn’t suspect an innocent looking baked good to contain any ingredient meant to cause a significant degree of discomfort in its’ victim.
By the way my stomach was reacting to the food I’d so naïvely ingested, and the cramps wracking the muscles like a rainstorm furiously pelting the ground, Kathryne had probably laced the dough with a very strong laxative. I’d only eaten two of them, and was already trying not to ruin my pants.
It was things like this that made me regret having a working digestive system. “Dammit Kathryne!” We were going to have a nice long talk when I managed to get back home.
A quiet cackling in the back of my head told me that Kathryne was very much enjoying the effect her cooking had on my intestines. “You are in so much trouble…” I groaned, nearly tripping over myself as I locked myself in a stall.
Next time, I was going to keep an eye on every ingredient she decided to put in the dough. If she so much as reached for something suspicious, I was going to step in and take care of the rest.
I suppose, in a way, she had gotten her revenge against Sarah. The blond had eaten one of the laxative-laced cookies too.
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Author's Note 2:
It's done now. =P