I Know It's Hurting You, but It's Killing Me

I took shelter in an abandoned warehouse. I had nowhere else to go. Michael knew where to find me, and I couldn’t allow that. My brother had put himself in harm’s way with his foolish human ways already. I was being a horrible elder brother if I let him do it again, wasn’t I?

The urge was getting harder to fight. I was so weak, so hungry, and my instinct was reacting negatively. I couldn’t help myself anymore. Instinct took over. I drained three hobos dry. No one would miss them, just as no one would miss a horrible creature such as I. We were loners, a life not chosen by us willingly, but by our actions, and our fates. It was far too late for any of us to change it, so we lived alone and died alone. Well, those who were lucky enough died. I never had much luck, it seems.

Fully fed and bored of sitting around, I wandered the streets. Chinatown was beautiful at night. I was almost enjoying myself, until I ran into them. I hadn’t been watching where I was heading, and slammed straight into a beautiful Chinese woman, all of her belongings scattered, and her small child knocked down with us. Fear pulsed through me. I had hurt them. I’d hurt a woman and child. The woman started to shout when I tried to help her.
“Get away from me, monster! I know what you are!”

“Please, ma’am, I’m so very sorry. I didn’t mean to knock you over,” I apologized, feeling my eyes get wider in fear as her yells continued. Her little boy, looking no older than four, left her side and stumbled towards where I crouched. The woman fell silent, fear obvious in her features, only worried about the imminent murder of her child.

The boy stopped in front of me, staring up at me with the deepest brown eyes. I fought to keep myself from harming him; the vampire part of me always liked a little dessert. I fell back a bit, shocked, when I felt arms around my neck. The boy was hugging me?

“Shinji! Come, now! We go now!” the woman shouted. The boy turned to glance at his mother, then back to me, a curious expression.

“Zai jian!” he said, turning back and running to his mother. She scooped him up and carried him away quickly, leaving me alone in the small alley.

I buried my head in my hands and cried. Someone so naïve as a child didn’t see the threat I posed. I cried because that boy had heart. I cried because he reminded me of Frank, never seeing the evil in anyone. I cried because I was a monster, and could've taken his life at any second. And I cried because I’d never be free.