I Want Her

Jessica slid out of her crouched position, her thighs skimming the ground as she sat next to me. She removed my hand, and slipped her arms around my waist, hugging me into her pale breast. The contrast of her cold skin sent shivers through me, and therefore through her.

“Jessica, what are you doing?” asked Eric, looking at her strange embrace with me.

“I’ve never been high before. I’m enjoying it.” She said, pressing her cheek against my forehead. More sensations rocketed through us, including tiny white sparks that traveled between our touching skin.

“Well don’t get too accustom to it. We’ll be heading back to Fangtasia in about an hour.” Eric stated. He leaned against a tree staring out into the swamp, and seemed to turn to stone he was so still. Not a muscle in his body moved, and soon he blended into the scenery.

Jessica made sure to move frequently, so my high would take her feelings with me. A cool breeze sent shivers through us from head to toe, and at one point, an ant crawled up and over my hand, causing prickling tingles to spread all over our skin. Soon though, I began to come down, steadily coming back to reality until Jessica could no longer feel anything. We both started to come back to our regular senses, mine still foggy from my trip.

I hadn’t noticed, but Jessica had been tensing around me for a while, her arms locked around me in a tight embrace. I was tapping into my gift to see what she was feeling when she attacked. A fierce hiss left her lips, her long sharp fingernails gouging into my skin. I quickly began to struggle against her, but her grasp was too strong. Jessica had her mouth open, fangs ready to tear into my flesh, when Eric gripped her throat.

“Release her” Eric growled, and Jessica’s arms fell limp. I scrambled away from the two of them, vigorously rubbing my sore biceps.

“It’s not her fault. She’s just hungry again” I said softly, after letting in Jessica’s emotions. That commanding, insatiable hunger was ravaging her body, making her act on impulse.

“We’re going back now. I’ll find you something to feed on when we get there.” Said Eric, heading back towards the woods.

I followed slowly, trailing behind the both of them. Jessica’s reaction had scared me pretty badly. The way she snapped so quickly, without warning, would make me very cautious around her.

A strong gust of wind blew past us, tugging at my clothes. I wrapped my arms around myself. When I was tripping on V, I hadn’t noticed the cold. Now, I realized I didn’t have a jacket, or even shoes. My bare skin began to get numb with the cold, causing the flesh beneath to prickle unpleasantly. I began to pick up my pace, hoping to bring back some warmth. But after another hour of walking, my ears and fingers where pale and icy, and my teeth were chattering.

Eric turned his head to look at me, and slowed down. Then he slid off his leather jacket. “Here” he gestured, holding the coat out for me to take. My frozen fingers could barely wrap around it, but I got it on. Because of his cold skin, the jacket was just as cold as the air. I shivered inside it.

After walking a bit longer, Eric sighed. “We’ll never make it before closing if we have to keep at your pace, Rory. Come on, I’m carrying you.”

I walked over to him, still shaking like a leaf. His arms swooped under me, picking me up bridal style again. And then we were off, the scenery a multicolored blur. The only thing that reminded me we were still moving was the vicious wind tearing at my body. I curled into a tiny ball, burying my face in his chest, trying to avoid the bitter cold. In my head, I begged for it to stop over and over.

When we finally did, I was never happier to be inside Fangtasia. We moved fluidly through the back door, Jessica arriving a few minutes after us. The club was beginning to empty out, as it was getting towards closing time. Eric carried me into his office and set me down on the ottoman, before disappearing again into main bar. I was still shaking violently when he returned. He held the blanket I sleep with in one hand, and a shot of yellow liquid in the other. Eric wrapped the blanket around my shoulders after handing my the shot glass.
“Drink it, it’s whiskey. It’ll help warm you up.” He said, walking around his desk and sitting behind it.

I eyed the glass, opened my mouth and tossed it back. The whiskey washed down my tongue and throat, making me grimace. I was not a fan of whiskey. The feeling created in the pit of my stomach, however, almost changed my mind. Warmth radiated from my core, and I snuggled deeper into the blanket.

“Thank you” I murmured. Eric went off, probably to help close up. My core may have been warm, but my extremities were still frozen. I quickly crawled off the ottoman and went on search for an air vent. I finally found one in the corner behind Eric’s desk. Curling up next to it, I felt the warmth lightly seeping through the blanket. Slowly, I was getting feeling back to my body. The door to Eric’s opened, but the desk I was crouched behind blocked my vision.
“Rory?” Jessica’s voice floated over the papers on the table.

“I’m over here.” I answered. Jessica appeared around the desk, and she knelt down to my level.

“What are you doing?” She said, her eyebrows furrowed.
“Keeping warm.”

“Can I talk to you for a little?” Jessica asked awkwardly.

“Yea, sure” I said, and she sat on the floor next to me.

“What on earth was that today? How did you do that?” Sh asked, awe in her voice.

“Oh... Well, I’m an empath. I can feel people’s emotions and play around with them, I guess.” I said, tightening my blanket around me.

“Wait, did you do something to me when I was in the shower?” She said heatedly.

“Pam made me! She wanted me to switch what you were feeling with her.” I defended.

“So that’s what Pam feels like all the time.” Jessica said with a laugh.

“Yea...”

“What?” She asked. “How’d she react with my emotions?”

I was quiet for a moment. “She, uh... Well, she sorta attacked me.” I said awkwardly.

“She WHAT?!? Really?” Jessica exclaimed.

“Yea, but she snapped out of it pretty quick. She was on top of me when the snarl just sorta slid off her face. Then she sat up, and apologized. She said she hadn’t felt that kind of hunger for a long time.”

“So you think it’ll get better?” She asked, her eyes hopeful. I felt really sorry for her. She had almost no knowledge about what it meant to be a vampire, and she was learning from a girl who knows almost as much as she did.

“Yea, Pam, Chow and Eric don’t feel the same way. Yours is like this desperate ravishing starvation that controls your whole body. Theirs is almost like human hunger.”

“That’s a relief. I thought I was going to be pouncing on things for the rest of my life. Or... non-life. I don’t know what to call it.” She said, her voice trailing off.

“So was that the first time you’ve ever tried V?” Asked Jessica. I felt a rush of greed and wanting pulse from her.

“Yeah” I said cautiously.

“Wanna try it again? I really liked the feeling.”

“No, that’s okay. I don’t want to be addicted to it or anything. I don’t like being that out of control.”

“Oh, come on Rory. It’ll be fun for the both of us” She said, scooting closer.

“No really, once is good enough for me. No thank you.” I said, pressing up against the wall.
Jessica slid closer, and I guess she caught my scent, because her fangs popped out. She looked surprised for a second, and then smiled. She brought her wrist up to her mouth, and bit through it.

“Ouch” She muttered, than held up her bloody arm to my face.

“Come on, just lick it. It’ll be fun! I really want to feel it again. Come on, open up!”

She pressed her wrist to my lips, but I kept them tightly closed.

“Rory, quit being such a baby!” She said grinding her wrist into my firmly sealed mouth.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you.” Said Eric from the door. Jessica jumped, and whipped around, her wrist closing up and healing. I wiped the blood from my face making sure none went into my mouth.

“Why not?” Jessica snapped childishly.

“Well, for one, we don’t want Rory to become an addict” He said, walking closer. Jessica rolled her eyes.

“And two, with your blood inside her, you’d be stuck with feeling all her little emotions.” I was instantly listening.

“What do you mean?” She said, looking confused.

“By giving her some of your blood, it would survive inside her. And every time she was in danger, or feeling a strong emotion, you would know. You would alway be able to feel her, whether you want to or not. Now get out of here. Pam’s leaving.”

Jessica stood and left, looked disgruntled. Eric sat at his desk, and began to sift through papers, allowing me to think about what he had said. Could he really feel all my emotions? Was that what was making out connection so strong? My gift worked unusually easy on him after that first blood exchange.

“Why are you on the floor?” Asked Eric over his shoulder.

“Warming up. I think I’m okay now.” I said, standing up and leaning against the side of his desk. I watched him work for a little bit, before speaking my mind.

“Is that true? What you told Jessica?” I asked softly.

“Yes” He said, not looking up.

“But... How? How does it work?”

“My blood is living inside you. It’s apart of you, and it made a connection. I can find you anywhere. I know when your in trouble. That’s how I knew to come in here when Jessica was harassing you.”

“Thank you for that. I’m not sure how I felt about tripping on V. I don’t think I want to do it again.” I said.

“Don’t worry. Next time you need to heal, I’ll make sure to give you the correct amount.” Eric said, opening a drawer and placing a stack of papers inside. “It’s almost dawn. You’re going to need your sleep. You’re entertaining tomorrow.” He said, a tiny smile pulling his lips. I gathered up my blanket and we walked to the main bar together.

Eric stopped in the center of the bar, and turned to me. Then he bent down slowly and swept my hair back over my shoulder. His lips made gentle contact with my neck, and a shiver went down my spine. He inhaled deeply, pulling my scent into his memory. “I can’t wait to taste you again” He whispered, his breath tickling my throat, making goosebumps erupt all over my skin. I closed my eyes, my breath catching in my throat.

Eric pulled away, showing a fanged grin. “I’ll see you tomorrow night.”