The Vampire With The Pink Handbag

The Apple Tree

The Apple Tree

After school, Oriole took the girls home with him. He knew his parents wouldn't be home and he did not want to be alone again. Pear walked right in, but Jamie stood at the door pacing.

"Are you going to come in, Jamie Lynn?" he asked.

"Well it's your home," she replied, as if it was obvious.

"What about it?"

"Oriole," she replied, almost exasperated. "Can't you feel that?"

"Feel what?" Oriole was oblivious.

"The energy is bad, so I can't come in, but I can talk from here," Jamie said, sitting down at the door, with her head awkwardly bowed towards the wide open door.

"Okay," Oriole replied hesitantly.

"We can talk from here, Jamie. It's all cool," Pear reached for Jamie's hand, squeezing it reassuringly.

Oriole sat beside Pear and crossed his legs. He felt completely in the dark about Jamie's odd request.

"Baby girl," his voice was affectionate. "You have got to hold your head up. What is it with your bobble head thing?" he demanded.

"I don't like to hold my head up at times. I told you that already, just leave it alone." Jamie was clearly trying to dismiss the issue.

"Okay, wow. I, ah, really just don't get it, Jamie Lynn. But if you want to give off the impression that you're insecure, then go right ahead, it's your choice."

"Don't be like that. You're so close minded, Oriole!" Pear cried, reaching over and pinching him.

"I love her - I loved her instantly. She is my eclectic friend now, and I am willing to embrace all her madness," he said now, touching Jamie's hand as well, "But this is one thing you cannot do to yourself, dear. It's such a shame, you have such pretty eyes."

Jamie smiled, trying to hide her despondency. She hated that she could not explain the reasoning behind her actions. She liked Oriole and was discovering that though he was direct at times, that smile of his was contagious and open-heartedly innocent. Only a good guy could be blessed with a smile like that, she thought. Also, his touch was electric.

"I don't mean to destroy the whole touchy-feely mood, but are we really going to sit at the door?" Oriole asked, successfully destroying the mood anyway.

"Yup," Pear grinned to torture him further. "So how did you like you're first day at an all-vampire school?"

"It was fine," he said quickly. He had more interesting things to talk about. "So, what do you owe him, that cutie Rayon the 4th?" Oriole asked, making it clear from his grin that there was only one thing on his mind.

"Well, we have sex all the time and I owe him a BJ," Pear replied, casually.

"Oh, okay," he said, with a straight face, obviously trying not to show any judgment.

"I should tell you that I am sort of a slut," Pear said nonchalantly.

"Don't call yourself that!" Oriole looked serious for the first time since they had met him and he seemed truly annoyed by Pear's statement.

"I don't want to come off like a know-it-all, because I'm not. In fact, I sometimes feel ignorant and completely clueless, but I am raw at times. I tend to tell it like it is, no bullshit, and I do this because there is no other way in my mind. I don't like it when girls down themselves. You're too precious to do that." Pear was surprised at his earnestness and when he hugged her, she felt that it was her first real moment with him. Oriole was perplexing to her - he was either really even-tempered or really concentrated, it was very sporadic.

"I like the way you are Oriole. You can be so easygoing and relaxed to be around, but then there is this fervent side to you as well that comes out when you feel something strongly, I like it. Even your voice was different; you were really into what you felt."

"True, I was," Oriole admitted. "But I guess I just hate any feelings of worthlessness from others. It's like looking in a mirror and I can't stand it."

Pear felt connected to him after he said that. She could tell he had issues like she did; there was something in his eyes, some feeling of desolation. Oriole seemed to be very subterranean in certain ways, but it didn't bother Pear, because in other ways he was very straight up, an open book.

"So I assume you have been giving yourself to that boy casually, but you like him deep down inside, don't you?" Oriole questioned.

"Yeah, I just know that sex is the only thing I've got to give him. He isn't goanna like me for me, I'm a realist." Pear felt her heart sink when she said it, but it was true in her mind.

"Well, you can't say that because he doesn't know you like I do. You hide all the real sides of yourself from him," Jamie protested.

"It's like, I want to act real and I want to be visible to him, but it hurts to be myself. It literally hurts me to be Pear." At that moment Oriole felt a strong correlation to Pear; she was singing his feelings with her words.

"What happens is, when you treat your body like it's nothing, you start to feel like nothing," Oriole stated, quoting someone who had once told him the same thing. "You've let your body become numb and you think you didn't feel anything because it didn't matter to you, just being his plaything. Then you realized it's just a slow burn that creeps up later, because you do feel pain when you just screw boys like that. You're real and full of emotions and it hurts you, but you keep doing it because that pain is all you've got. There is nothing else but emptiness inside you and you wonder how you got so hollow," Oriole said solemnly.

"Yes," Pear said, in a tone that showed she was desperately agreeing with him. Her body moved forward towards him. "You're very poetic. You're words were like a melody, they just flowed. They really touched me," Pear said, obsessed with the truth in Oriole's words.

"I think that I'll lose my virginity when I'm in love," Oriole said.

"Love is good and you should wait, don't be careless with yourself," Pear replied, speaking from experience. She looked down at the floor.

"You'll do the same from now on," Oriole said, more a statement than a question.

"I can try, but no promises." Pear liked the pushiness in his words; it sort of made her feel taken care of.

After the girls left, Oriole decided to take a walk and check out his new neighborhood. He would do things like that to cure his loneliness. He was fearful of the idea that he would never find a soul mate. When those feelings crept up on him, he needed to walk to clear his mind. Oriole had been walking for a bit when he felt something hit his head. He looked up to find a boy sitting in a tree, throwing apples at vampire speed. The boy jumped down and the moonlight slowly revealed his face.

"That was your welcoming to the neighborhood, new boy," Joshua Toby said condescendingly.

"Gee thanks. That was very welcoming," Oriole replied sarcastically.

"You know, you humiliated yourself with that pink bag you choose to wear. I can't relate to the color choice." This was exactly what Oriole had feared, judgment from his own kind.

"It's my taste. Lucky for you it doesn't matter what I wear, because you don't have to wear it," Oriole said snidely, turning to walk away.

Oriole hated boys like Joshua, who fed off humiliating people. Joshua reminded him of someone he had hated in the past, so he wanted to get away from him quickly. Suddenly he felt Joshua tackle him to the ground, but he could tell that he wasn't using all of his strength; he was being mischievous. He held Oriole's arms down and pinned his legs to the ground with his knees. He was huge on top of Oriole, and they were now face to face.

"Admit it, you're a little faggot. Say it, 'I'm a fag,'" Joshua growled aggressively.

"No! Get off me, you big jerk! Guys like you have got to prove their manhood. I'm not hiding anything!" Oriole replied defiantly.

"Make me get off you, pussy cat. Do something." Joshua was now using more strength, which made Oriole nervous. Joshua's voice was taunting and Oriole could tell that beneath the straight face, there was real anger.

"Get off me, I mean it." Oriole kicked him hard in his stomach then made a rapid run for it, but Joshua was faster. He ran with immense speed. Oriole had never seen any vampire move that quickly. He had seen some fast ones at the prior year's track contest, but nothing like this. Josh was now directly in front of him, and Oriole was terrified. This was a big vampire boy and Oriole wasn't sure of his motives. He knew that Josh could easily lose control.

"Relax, I'm not going to hurt you. You look like a weak girl, I would feel bad." Joshua's voice was still mocking, but he seemed calmer now. "Let me walk you home, little buddy. Really, I didn't mean to scare you."

Oriole was somewhat relived. Joshua Toby seemed perfectly composed now, walking with his hands in his pockets. Joshua was hard to read. He had a very mystifying way about him because he showed no emotion. His face expressions never changed. He was all physical, it seemed, and showed his feelings only through his actions. This was weird to Oriole. Most people's feelings showed when they were doing something extreme or feeling strong emotion. He found Josh to be very attractive, just too manly, in his eyes. He could not understand why Josh was bothering him. This came from nowhere. Josh had seen him all day at school and never showed any sort of interest, bad or good. He seemed completely impartial to Oriole.

"Look, dude, sometimes I get all stressed out about new people. Also, girls make me crazy. I feel the need to show so much masculinity all the time, not to mention all the extra testosterone we vampire men have - it's three times the amount of human men! I was just taking my frustrations out on you. I needed somewhere to direct my stress. We're cool right?" Joshua asked, his voice and facial expressions still devoid of emotion..

"Yeah, it's cool. I'm over it. You don't have to walk me home; I can get there, but thanks for offering."

Joshua looked surprised, almost disappointed, but he kept walking him anyway. He seemed to be getting closer and closer to Oriole. There was something spine-chilling about him, Oriole thought to himself.

"I don't mind walking you. You're just a little dude and some vampires hate gays. I just want to be sure you get there safe."

"Okay, cool, but what makes you so sure that I am gay? Have you ever even seen a gay vampire?"

"It's not about what you are; it's about how apparent it is. There are many gay vampires, but it's sinful to just wear it on your sleeve. It's a direct embarrassment and insult to our kind. Back in the day, you would have been put down like a dog for that. Essentially, you're a weak link to our kind and we don't tolerate weakness from our men. We have to be protectors."

"How am I wearing it on my sleeve?" Oriole asked, with a bemused look on his face.

"If you don't know the answer to that, then you're not only weak, you're senseless."

"Well, I just don't see how you can call me something I am not even sure that I am. Even if I was gay, I'm no embarrassment to our kind. I represent myself. That's the reason I stayed so separate from vampires. I 'm just my own person; I don't feel the need to be everyone else's idea of a strong vampire male."

"You're are so gay." Josh looked him over as he said the words. He was finally showing slight emotion; there was disgust in his voice. "So, why did you move here?" Joshua seemed to be asking just to change the subject.

"My dad likes to move around a lot, so we came here to Virginia Beach. I guess it was just our next stop."

"May I ask you something? And please don't take offense," Joshua asked, as if he genuinely cared about offending Oriole.

"Yeah. What?"

"Why do you look like an actual girl? I mean, you're actually pretty."

"I don't know. Sometimes I wish I was a girl, because it would be easier than being a feline vampire boy, but I'm not, and there's nothing I can do about it."

Oriole stared up at the sky. He was becoming tenser. Talking about the one thing that he was most insecure about made him anxious. This question was something not many people had asked him to his face, and it mattered.

"I know that. It's just bothering me because your face, it's really appealing," Joshua said awkwardly, staring at Oriole. But once again, Oriole could not get a read on him because there was no sentiment when he spoke, just words Oriole felt uncomfortable and Joshua was confusing him. He was kind of glad his house was coming up.

"This is my house, so I'm going to go in, but thanks again for walking me."

"Your parents cars aren't here. Can I come in to chill out?" Joshua's query was awkward to Oriole and he wondered why he wanted to come in.

"How do you know their cars aren't parked in the garage?"

"Because I can't smell them."

"I know we have strong senses and all, but me, myself, and I can only really smell humans fiercely, or trees... things like that not... ah... cars." Oriole said, sounding perplexed.

"Anything that has a scent, I can smell exceptionally well, and everything has a scent, no matter how faint or unimportant the object may seem. I can smell everything profoundly. It took me years to control it and not feel like I was being attacked by the scent of things."

"It's that severe, your sense of smell?" Oriole asked surprised.

"Yeah, it is." Josh eyes grew large. He squinted and held his ears, tilting his head a bit, like he was hearing something that annoyed him.

"What?"

"Nothing. It's just that damn cat in the alley."

"Where? I don't hear it." Oriole said, craning his neck to look around.

"It's on Johnston Street. You probably wouldn't hear it."

"I don't. I can't hear things that are that far away. You sure you can hear it?" Oriole questioned.

"Yes, I can and yes, I am. So are we going to go inside?"

"Ah... you sure you want to hang out with someone you assume to be gay?" Oriole asked, in a lighthearted way.

"Yeah. I know who I am. You being gay doesn't change me," Josh said confidently.

Oriole let him in and they sat in the living room quietly watching TV for about a half an hour. Joshua seemed perfectly comfortable.

"This is a nice house. Your parents are loaded," Josh said.

"Yeah. Lucky me, spoiled with money, but neglected when it comes to love. Next subject. So, what's up with you? What's on your mind?" Oriole seemed to rush him, like he wanted to get to the point of the visit. He was impatient.

"So have you, like, had sex with dudes?"

"No Joshua, I don't do that. I'm not a whore."

"So having sex makes a person a whore?"

"No, not really, dude, but I guess if I had sex with a guy, I would be a whore," Oriole replied.

"Having sex with a guy means you're horny. It doesn't make you a whore. Why do you think that way, Oriole?"

"All vampires think that way. I mean, if a girl sleeps around, she is a whore. The only way a vampire man can be considered a whore is if he goes too far. The only way a vampire man can ever go too far when it comes to sex is if he did it with another guy, right?" Oriole reasoned.

"Some say that, but some also say that all vampire men are whores in general, when it comes down to it," Josh shot back.

"Well, then wouldn't that mean that all vampire men are gay or bi?" Oriole questioned.

"No. You're so simple minded, Oriole. So, ah, you've never been with a guy before?"

"No, and why doesn't this topic disgust you, Josh?" Oriole asked.

"I'm just trying to show you that I'm cool about this. I mean, you being gay and all."

"You don't have to show me anything. Just chill and let's watch the game."

"Okay cool," Josh replied.

Oriole could feel him still staring, then felt Josh unexpectedly running his hands through his hair softly. Suddenly he touched Orioles face. Oriole could not figure out what was going on. He was stunned. Josh's gentle touches felt so good, so affectionate. He'd never felt that loved before.

"Your face is so soft, like a girl's. And honestly it's prettier than any girl I have ever seen. I was hard all day, thinking about your face."

Oriole felt staggered at those words. He jumped back, but Joshua only moved closer, his big body almost crushing Oriole. He moved on top of him and started kissing his neck, placing Oriole's hands around his waist. Joshua was breathing heavily against his neck and whispering his name softly. He kissed Oriole's neck deeply, then he turned him over, pressing his crotch against him. He was so big that Oriole could feel him through his pants. He felt that he wasn't ready for that kind of contact.

"I want your body. I want to be inside you," Joshua said aggressively, breathing heavily.

"No. I can't do that right now. I don't even know you and I am not going to do this." Oriole was firm.

"Why not? Let me take you, right here, right now."

"I'm not ready for anything like that yet, seriously."

"Why? Are you scared? I will be gentle to start, don't worry."

"Please, just let me up. I don't even understand where all this is coming from. I'm not ready for sex, Josh."

Joshua grabbed his neck and bit into it hard. It was pleasurable, but Oriole also felt that it was unwelcome. Oriole shivered. He had never been love bitten before.

"I marked you. Now all the secret fags at school will know that you belong to someone."

"Whom do I belong to?" Oriole asked, puzzled.

"Me. You're mine now. From the moment I saw you in class, I knew I was going to have you," Josh announced.

Oriole shuddered at the thought. He felt uneasy and a little taken back. Josh wasn't making sense to him. Josh's physique worried him as well. He was big, and he reminded Oriole of someone he hated. He was attracted to Josh, but this was so new to him, he needed time to adjust. It was surprising that someone wanted him, and by the feel of his manhood, badly.

"So, fine then. Today you don't have to give it to me. I guess we can go slowly, for now. I'll be back tomorrow night, and don't you dare tell a soul."

"I'm not. I wouldn't do that to you, Josh, just let me up please. I don't understand this. Why are you telling me that I belong to you? It's like you went from one thing to the next within the blink of an eye. "

Josh let him up, then pulled him to his feet, like he was a rag doll. Joshua kissed Oriole deeply then scratched his neck. He was marking him again, this time he grabbed his face with one hand and his manhood with another.

"Don't give this to anyone else but me. You're mine," Joshua said aggressively.

"Are you gay, Josh?" Without any warning, Josh smacked him so hard that his face felt like it was on fire, Oriole was staggered.

"Look at me. LOOK AT ME!" Josh screamed. He grabbed Orioles' face, moving his head up and down and forcing him to look at him from head to toe.

"Someone like me doesn't have gay DNA. Use your brain, kid."

"Then why do you want to have sex with me?"

"Sex does not determine your sexuality. Sex is simply a physical act, but sexuality is mental. You're gay, Oriole, not me."

"That doesn't make sense. Josh."

"Yes, it does. If you were taught anything about life, you would know these things. You're very ignorant, but sexy all the same. I've decided I'd like to have you physically, and that's that. Let's be serious, you welcome it. Deep down, you want me too, Oriole."

"Truthfully, I don't know if I like you very much, Josh. Personality wise."

"You don't have to like me; you just have to want to bone me."

"I don't just 'bone.' That's not who I am."

"Are you a male vampire or a girl vampire? Because you don't have the ways of a male."

"I don't have the ways that you interpret as a male vampire is what you mean to say."

"It's not a matter of interpretation, it is a matter of facts!" Josh snapped back quickly, still showing his strange lack of emotion.

"You think you know a lot, Josh."

"Think? I don't do too much thinking, Oriole, if you have not noticed. I act first. I will see you again soon."

Before Oriole could blink, Josh was gone. Everything about Josh was convoluted, making Oriole feel unsure. He knew that he disliked Josh, but for some reason he also felt intrigued by him and turned on by his ego and robustness. These were all qualities he usually hated to see, but there was a mystery to Josh. He seemed to be beyond any other vampire, as far as his abilities, and this was attractive to Oriole. He was angry that Josh slapped him, but he also knew that vampire men were rough, and for them fighting was second nature. They were animals, and like bears and lions, this was part of their nature. It was their way of portraying power over the pact.

Oriole never fit in to the norms, which was why he liked to go to school with humans. They didn't have as much animalistic tendencies. They just left him alone, which he was fine with, though he was lonely. The alternative was to be around his own kind, but he knew he was different in ways that could really hurt him in life. This was a constant battle that he fought inside - the desire to fit in but also the determination not to.

Preview of next chapter: Joshua stood there staring at Oriole he bent down and picked his head up, Orioles face was red he was crying so hard. “Don’t think you’re off the hook because I’m going to get you when your alone.”
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I will post edited versions shortly, this is just the rough draft.

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