On the Edge of Eternity

That’s when the gifts started coming. I got the first on January 20th. There was an email saying that I had a package in the mail room of my dorm. I did have an addiction to buying things on ebay, and amazon but I was fairly certain that the last thing that I ordered had came a few weeks before.
“A package?” Lindsey asked, Lindsey was a very pretty girl, with long light brown hair, that had thick blond chunks in it and on either side of her head two of the blond chunks had hot pink coon tails stripes dyed in. She had a short and pointy nose, her cheek bones were high and her cheeks were plump and rosy, and her jaw was firm, her hazel eyes were warm and welcoming , “ What did you order now?” She asked as we let Matt into the building and walked to the front desk.
Matt was only about 5’10 or so, his mop of curly dark brown hair was normally covered with a knitted ski cap, that drew many insults from Lindsey and I , about him being a hobo. His oval shaped face was never without a patchy five o’clock shadow. Matt’s pretty green eyes were framed with a pair of rectangular glasses that sat atop a wide nose that had it been on someone else’s face it would not have fit, but as it was it gave him an air of clumsy handsomeness.
“Nothing, that’s why I’m all confused,” I said showing the RA my student ID. He disappeared for a moment and when he reappeared he was carrying a large and thin packed rapped in brown paper.
“Who’s it from?” Lindsey asked. As the three of us sat down on one of the couches in the lobby of James hall.
“There’s not a return address,” I said ripping the paper off the package and handed it to Matt who was seated on my right. The box was light pink and looked as if it had came from one of the high end lingerie stores. I lifted the pink lid and sat it on the leather ottoman in front of us. I lifted the tissue paper off of the contents of the box. I lifted the long satin night gown out of the box it was a pale cream color with a slit up to the thigh . The neck line was trimmed in lace, and little pearls. Remaining in the box was a matching chiffon robe trimmed in lace and pearls, when I lifted them both out a small piece of heavy parchment like paper fell to the floor.
“Who do you know who’s name that starts with an L?” Matt asked looking up at me.
“What?” I asked taking the note from his hand. It read, ‘ Enjoy- L’ it was written in very beautiful script hand writing, “No one. Do you know anyone Lindsey?” The stupidity of my question hit me at once.
She gave me a funny look , soled her eyes and said “ Besides me , No. I know no guys who’s names start with L.”
The gifts continued, and always with a note that was signed ‘L’. Next came a set of black satin sheets, and black velvet comforter. Then expensive wines that Lindsey and I didn’t savor but drank to get drunk. Then the expensive jewelry, that Lindsey and I took to have apprized at the Jeweler up town . They were real diamonds not cubic zirconium. Then there was the expensive perfumes, a 1,000 dollars for an ounce. There were designer dresses that fit perfectly. There were Louis Vatton , Channle and Coach hand bags. Then the shoes, oh god the shoes, The shoes were the only thing I had no qualms about wearing or using because I am a shoe girl. Whoever this was Lindsey and I concluded, he was over 21, and rich, he was probably ugly, possibly a metosexual as he had such good taste in things, but a sugar daddy named ‘Larry’ was noting to snub you nose at, just hope that he didn’t want me to sleep with him if he was ugly . I was soon the object of every girls jealousy. How was it that I caught the attention of some rich guy. The RAs knew me as the package girl, and Lindsey and Matt made bets on what gift I would get next.
Then one night in April everything was to change. It started out as a normal evening, okay perhaps not, Lindsey and I were both sober. We decided to do our usual, go to the video store and rent a horror movie or three. As soon as we stepped out in to the cool spring air I felt it, the presence. I felt more unnerved than I ever had before. I turned around and around trying to see into the shadows that I knew that whatever it was, it was in them, and by now I was getting sick of it and I wanted it to stop. I again said nothing to Lindsey and Matt about it. And so the night went on as usual. A trip to the video store. A trip to Wal-mart. Then back to the dorm to watch the movie. I don’t even remember what it was, that is how common place this was. How absolutely normal this night began. Then at about one, we took our usual evening ending trip to speedway to get hot dogs. Oh how I love speedway hot dogs. On mine is always chili sauce, cheese, and onions. And so we sat outside on out beloved ‘stoop’ even thought it wasn’t a stoop it was the area around the stoop. And me feeling the presence, it seemed that it was getting bolder it felt ever closer and ever stronger. But I pushed it to the back of my mind as we three sat chain smoking cigarettes, and on occasion trading them with each other, for a different taste as we each smoked a different kind. Me Marlboro reds, Lindsey Marlboro 27’s and then Matt, cheap ass peach cigarillos. It was a peaceful night, and we sat arguing about random and stupid topics, watching a heavy fog roll in.
“No! Angel is so much better than Buffy!” Matt said to me, our arguments about our two favorite tv shows it was one of our favorite things to bicker about.
“Okay Angel is good, but it in my opinion aimed more for guys than it is girls, I am a girl so I am going to say Buffy!” I yelled back laughing.
“Yeah but I mean come on Buffy went to shit during the fifth season cause of the cunt Dawn.” Matt told me.
“Yes I hated Dawn, but the fifth season is my favorite, that and the second. And don’t tell me that Conner wasn’t as big of a cunt on Angel. He shouldn’t have even been there!”
“That’s not the point!”
“Your reasons for liking Buffy better are stupid.”
“That and Amber is in love with Spike,” Lindsey said looking at me.
“Ewww Amber! He’s so skinny Angel is so much hotter!” Matt said laughing.
“You are the Gayest straight guy we’ll ever meet aren’t you?” I asked him smiling.
“But don’t ever question I am straight!” He said smiling at me, it was one of those moments where I thought I actually stood a chance with him, where our eyes locked and we would smile little smiles at each other leaving Lindsey completely out in the cold. Just then a branch from the tree that hung over out heads fell on the brick path right in front of us, if had been a few feet off it probably would have killed us. And then I felt the presence, it was so close, I felt that all I needed to do was reach out and I could touch it.
“Holey fucking shit!” Matt shouted, “ How the hell did that happen?”
“Donno.”
“Its not even windy!”
“That could have killed us!” Matt said before we descended into a comfortable silence. I knew what was on my mind. I needed to tell my friends what I had been feeling, I could no longer keep it to myself. I wrestled with myself for a few moments, before I said anything.
“You guys are going to think I’m insane,” I began.
“No I know Lindsey nothing you say can make you seem insane.”
“I’ve told you all my crazy shit Amber.”
“I think I’ve been being followed.”
“By what?”
“Haven’t the foggiest.”
“So you have a stalker?”
“No, no its not like that, its like an almost constant presence.”
“Like a ghost?”
“ I don’t know I’ve never, let me see your lighter, seen a ghost before,” I said lighting a cigarette.
“Is it like the feeling you get when your being watched?” Lindsey asked truly concerned.
“Only so much stronger.”
“How long have you felt like this?” she asked.
“God now you sound like a shrink.”
Ignoring Michael I said, “ Since January.”
“You started getting the gifts in January.”
“Do you think that it could be Larry?” I asked referring to my secret admirer.
“Then Larry must be pretty damn slick and creepier than we thought.”
“Okay Amber,” Matt began, “How do you know its you they’re creeping? I mean you spend 90% of your time with Lindsey and 70% of you time with me, how do you know they’re aren’t following one of us?”
“Don’t you think that you would feel it?” I asked.
“Maybe your just more sensitive than either of us, that must come with the tracking skills for hunting down escaped slaves that you southerners have.” Matt always like to make jokes about me being from the south, and making crude jokes about me being raciest, and saying that we lost the war and I needed to get over it. But he also called me his southern belle, and that always made me smile.
“Matt, I’m being serious!”
“I know you are, I’m sorry, Paly. “
“Its okay, I forgive you,” I said play pouting.
“Hey its getting late its almost two,” Matt began.
“That is not late you know we don’t go to bed until like four or five!”
“I have a test that I have to go to in the morning!” He said as he jumped off the ledge on which we sat.
“You suck!” Lindsey said hitting her cigarette.
“Not as much as you or your mom, god Lindsey your mom loves to suck my dick!” Matt also loved to make your mom jokes about Lindsey’s mom, they had an on going joke that Matt was the father of Lindsey’s 14 year old brother. Matt called him, ‘Josh, the bastard child,’ but her little brothers name was Andrew.
“Wanna have another cigarette and then head to bed? I might actually make it to class tomorrow at 10 if I go to bed now!” Lindsey said with a hint of sarcasm and a hint of hopefulness.
“Text me tomorrow!” Matt said as he headed down the path to his car, “ Amber, call me if Larry gets to creepy!” There was sarcasm in that statement, but a vary serious undertone, that said to me, ‘if you get scared, I really do want you to call me, I’ll be back here in a second to kick Larry’s ass.’
“Shut up!” I called after him.
“Byyyee!” He called to us from around the corner.
“Bye!” Lindsey and I yelled in unison.
“You believe me don’t you?” I asked as I lit my cigarette.
“Of course I do!”
The two of us walked back up the stairs, at a snail’s pace to our third floor home, and parted ways, “Good night, Lindsey!” I said.
“Text me when you get up!”
“How about you text me when you either get back from class or wake up,” I said laughing.
“Night!” She called as I walked down my hallway.
I unlocked the door to my room, room 331. I tossed my lanyard with my keys and money pouch on the top of the dresser. I flipped on the over head light and watched as it flicker on, “Hello ghost!” I said, as I was fairly certain I had a ghost in my room, as odd things were always happening. I lived in a triple, but I only had one roommate. Sarah had taken to never being in the room, and tonight was no different. She had a boy toy and she spent all of her time with him. Though I thanked god, because I don’t think that I could have dealt, with them screwing in the bed beneath me all night long. How she managed to have a boy toy I did not know, she wasn’t even that pretty, She had stringy short dirty blond hair and her face looked like a horse wearing thick round glasses, But I was always nice to her, I always gave her a shot or a beer when we were drinking in my room. Besides she was better than, thebitch, and the blond without personality, who were my ex roommates and they had basically kicked me out of my room. It was times like those that I thank god for Lindsey, she and her roommates allowed me to keep my things in their room and to sleep on their floor until I found a new room where I was welcome. I glanced at the clock on the microwave, and its digital green numbers read, 2:07. Stepping on the heels of my silver slip on shoes I kicked them off paying no mind to where they actually went. I had a terrible habit of running the air conditioner and leaving the window wide open. I slipped off my purple hoodie leaving it lie on the floor, as I walked to the window. I leaned out it feeling the cool breeze on my face. The fog that had rolled in was unnaturally thick. I felt it again, the presence, I knew it was down there. If the fog hadn’t been so supernaturally think I knew I could have seen it, “Your losing your mind Amber!” I told myself as I pulled myself away from the window. I yawned, and tucked my cell phone underneath my pillow, before turning to my dresser to pull out my pajamas. It was then when I opened the drawer, something caught my eye, well rather I felt it’s softness on my fingers and I pulled it to the top. It was the first gift that ‘Larry’ had sent me, the beautiful silk and lace night gown. I always thought if I wore it I would feel dirty. But it was too beautiful not to at least try on. I slipped my pants off as they pooled around my feet, and I stepped out of them. I lifted off my tie-dye tee shirt, unsnapped my bra, I slipped the beautiful night gown over my head, the silk caressing my skin, never had I owned something as luxurious as this. It seemed as if it had been made just for me, the way it cupped my breasts, and hugged my hips and then flowed gently and elegantly away from my body. It was then when I realized that this night gown was not meant for sleeping in it was meant for seducing. And a dark thrill of excitement went through me that I could not explain. I then pulled on the matching robe, and how it too fit me perfectly completing the ensemble. I spun myself around watching myself in the mirror. I who never thought I was pretty felt like a dark temptress, masking myself in the white of the silk. My dark hair fell over my shoulders ever so slightly curling on the ends in the humidity of the early spring. I smiled in spite myself. Maybe I did want to meet this mystery, ‘L’ guy. Maybe his name wasn’t lame like Larry, perhaps is was something like Leopold or Leonardo, something romantic like that. Because in this night gown I felt as if it could have only been picked out by someone with such a name like Leopold, not someone a skuzzy as a Larry might be. Who ever had picked this out for me had a refined taste, that no Larry could have. I slipped off the robe and lay it carefully on my chair as if I thought I could break it if I weren’t gentile. I then climbed onto my top bunk, I pulled the black velvet comforter and silk sheet back and slid myself in-between them, and my head hit my pillow and I fell fast asleep.
I thought that it was a text that had woke me, then I thought that it was school bell tolling three, but no it was something else. It was if I could hear someone calling my name, but there was no sound other than that of the air conditioner. I sat up looking around my room, as if that would bring me an answer, of course it didn’t. I felt an unearthly draw to outside. I then knew it was the presence. I knew then that I was about to find out what or who it was, and part of me thought that the presence just might be my mysterious ‘L’. Perhaps both mysteries were about to be solved. I felt the dark thrill of excitement again, as I climbed carefully off of my bed. I stepped down on the soft carpet, it was if my senses were in hyper drive, I never really noticed how the carpet felt beneath feet, but my mind was some where else. I slipped on the matching robe and left my room. I didn’t bother to put shoes on or even pick up my keys, so as soon as my door shut I was locked out. But it didn’t seem to matter , I had one thing on my mind. The steps in the stair well were cold, and rough as I made each step slowly and deliberately.
The dewy grass was cold on my feet as I stepped off of the path. I had to look like a ghost, coming out of the fog, me being so pale and my white night gown. I had never felt the presence as strong as I did then. I felt it drawing me to it. All apprehension was gone, the excitement and curiosity mounting. When I came to the big oak tree in the middle of the green I stopped, “Who are you?” I asked, my voice full of curiosity. I was straining my eyes, I thought that I saw some movement from behind the oak tree, but it was far too dark and foggy for me to see, “Who are you?” I asked again a hint of irritation in my voice.
Then in my ear I heard a soft voice with a French accent say, “My name is Lestat de Lioncourt.” The smooth voice sent a chill down my spine, making my hairs stand on end. I let a soft gasp of surprise escape my lips, when I turned to face the voice. I found myself face to face with the most beautiful man I had ever seen in my life. His skin was pale almost white, he had the most piercing, but beautiful cobalt blue eyes I had ever seen, they seemed to pull me in and threaten to not let me go. This Lestat, had almost shoulder length thick curly blond hair, a very narrow nose and perfectly shaped lips, that could have been a bit too big for his face if he wasn’t so beautiful. Lestat? I knew that I had heard that name before. Lestat, that started with an L didn’t it?
“But you already know who I am don’t you?” I whispered examining his face carefully with questioning eyes.
“Yes,” he whispered, “Amber,” he reached out and caressed my cheek, with the back of his hand. I wasn’t expecting his touch to be cold. In that one second all my suspicions and fears of what this… man was seemed to be confirmed. Even thought I knew that it could not be possible.
“You’re the one who has been following me aren’t you?” I asked, already knowing the answer, but not sure I wanted to hear it and confirm it.
He nodded, “You felt me?” He asked.
“Yes but how, how did I never see you or hear you? Why? Why me?” I stammered.
“I have my ways and reasons,” he said softly.
I knew I should be frightened, but I wasn’t I was completely enthralled with this beautiful creature. “Perhaps,” I began, bringing my little warm hand to his that rested on my cheek, “Instead I should have asked what are you.”
“I think you know the answer to that, ma Cherie,” he whispered to me.
My knees were shaking, this beautiful man, that I had an unexplainable desire for, was speaking French to me . I cocked my head to the side contemplating him and what he had just said, “ Non,” I whispered, “C’est impossible,” I said closing my eyes, as I reached out and caressed his cheek with my hand, it was cold and smooth beneath my warm questioning fingers.
“Que me pensez-vous suis-vous ?” he asked.
“Vous ne pouvez pas être. Ce n'est pas possible,” I whispered shaking my head, refusing to believe what I knew had to be true.
“Is it?” he asked in English again, as he walked around me coming to a stop behind me his hand on my waist, his touch felt so sensual, it sent a shock thru my body.
As I began to speak he pressed his nose to my neck, “ Yes,” I whispered my voice shaking, “This is a dream.”
Turning me to face him he asked, “A dream or a nightmare, mon Cherie?”
My lips only inches from his, I could feel them quivering begging, pleading for his kiss. I felt and heard myself let out a ragged breath. I could feel the lust and desire for him pounding through my veins ,“I’m not sure,” I answered, his pale lips almost touching mine.
He brushed my ebony hair off of my shoulders and way from my neck, “Perhaps this will help you decide,” he said bringing his lips to my neck, I felt his teeth graze my flesh. Then I felt a slow and sharp pain where his cold lips had been, and I felt the warmth of what must have been my blood on my skin. I let out a soft moan, not sure whether or not I was liking this and if I was did that make me a masochist, I think my last thought before I fainted or passed out was, ‘best nightmare ever.’