Sequel: Broken Wings ›
Status: Old version.
Broken Soul
Nine.
*Present day*
Evan stood hunched over in front of the venue’s dreary bathroom’s sink, his head was down. He didn’t want to look into the mirror and see his reflection. His body was weakening and shaking. The spell that had been casted on him to emulate breathing and a pulse was wearing away.
He hadn’t eaten in weeks. Human food did nothing for him. He had already tried it many times. Everyone knows vampires need blood to survive but out of desperation, he hoped real nourishment would at least suffice his hunger, but it didn’t. The others had no idea he wasn’t eating. He always lied and told them he had. For the first month, he had no problem with it. But the last time he tried to eat, he couldn’t stop. His killing impulse had overshadowed all the decency left inside of him and he devoured his victim’s blood without guilt or concern. Luckily, he was able to stop before he had killed her. The last thing he wanted was to murder. His instincts kept telling him to but he continued restraining them. It seemed next to impossible but he managed. On stage, he pretended to be normal and did his best to perform with the others. He was very convincing and hid his inner terrors flawlessly. He even let himself smile from time to time. But it was always because Dannie made him. Offstage though, he let his temper get the best of him sometimes. He didn’t mean to, it just seemed to happen on its own. Without blood, it was just going to get worse.
Finally lifting his head up to see himself, Evan stared at his pale face in the grey, dingy lighting. His eyes glowed like they always did. He hated looking at them. Their eerie light just reminded him he was a monster.
A few knocks at the door broke the silence and dark gaze he was forcing into his reflection. He quickly snapped out of his self-hating session. “Evan?…” Dannie asked standing just outside the door. “Are you okay? It’s time to go…”
She watched the door open and he walked out without a word or expression. The silence concerned her. “Hey, you alright?” She noticed he hadn’t applied his stage makeup yet. “You’re not ready? We go on in ten minutes. Where’s your makeup?”
Evan dreaded looking at himself again so he asked, “Could you do it for me tonight?”
This puzzled her. “I guess so. But why can’t you?”
“I just can’t.” He didn’t want to feed her anymore lies.
* * * * *
After the show, Evan felt like collapsing. He hurried backstage and told Dannie he wasn’t feeling well and went directly to the bus. As much as he wanted to stay and talk to fans, he knew he couldn’t do it. Masking his agony would be too difficult. The simple task of walking became unbearable now. All the pains he was feeling made him cringe. He felt like his insides were twisting and then being gutted out of him. The scent of blood suffocated him and enticed him at the same time. He knew he had to get away from everyone.
As quickly as he could, he stumbled inside the bus, slamming the door shut behind him. No one had seen him. He crawled up inside his bunk and closed the curtains. Laying on his side, he hugged his knees and closed his eyes tight. He wanted to endure all the torture and suffering in order to keep from killing. Of course he knew he couldn’t resist eating forever but he wanted to hold it off for just one more night.
A small bit of control was all he had left. He had to hold onto it.
Meanwhile back inside the venue, the rest of the band were finishing up their fan meetings. Many of them had asked where Evan was and they simply told them he wasn’t feeling well. Most of them didn’t question it.
While Dannie had just finished talking with her last group of fans, a young girl, probably no more than seventeen, approached her. She was small, very thin, was dressed in a white top and black jeans, and had two long dark brown braids resting on her shoulders. She smiled sweetly at Dannie. Her expression was returned. “Hi!” Dannie greeted cheerfully.
“Hey,” the girl replied, handing her a CD sleeve to sign. “I really liked the show. I had a lot of fun.”
Dannie jotted her signature on it then returned it. “Aw, that’s great, so did we! Glad you could come out.”
“Hey, um…where’s Evan?” the girl asked shyly. “I didn’t see him out here.”
“Oh, he’s probably on the bus,” Dannie answered. “He’s sick, I think.”
“I’d really like to meet him…Is there any way?” Her dark brown eyes looked so hopeful, it almost broke Dannie’s heart. This girl was clearly an Evan fan.
“Well…we can try,” Dannie declared. “Follow me.” She led her backstage and outside through the rear exit. They approached the bus and Dannie opened the door and called out, “Hey, Evan, you awake? There’s someone here who wants to meet you!” They didn’t hear a reply. Evan felt violently unstable and vulnerable. Dannie stepped inside the bus and walked toward the bunks. He could hear her getting closer and, for reasons he didn’t know, he was able to calm down. His pain was also deteriorating, even though it wasn’t much different, but he could tell. Evan pulled his curtains over to see his visitor. He saw Dannie instead and she saw him. “There he is,” she told his fan. “He’s up in his bunk. Go ahead and bug him, I’m sure he won’t mind.” She had to go back into the venue so she left the two of them alone. The second she left, Evan’s pain worsened again. He could smell that girl’s blood and he tried to resist the urge to kill her.
“Hi, Evan,” she said softly, stepping in front of his bunk slowly. She peeked inside and smiled at him. “My name’s Katie. I’m a big fan.”
His eyes glowed at her yet she was unafraid. She, like everyone else, believed the contacts cover-up. He stared at her, not moving an inch as he watched her.
“I loved the show, you did great,” she continued, curious why he was so quiet. “I play bass too. You actually inspired me.”
Still, all he did was continue to stare at her. He didn’t even blink once.
His silence bothered her. “Are you okay?” she asked, pulling his curtain back further. “You’re so quiet…” Evan still hadn’t moved. Katie was disturbed by the sinister look in his eyes. She froze and stared back. This meeting was far from the friendly, pleasant one she had expected. Her heart was pounding and he could hear it. Slowly, she began stepping away, her feet guiding herself backward. “I…I think I’d better go…” It was obvious to her that something wasn’t right. On her way out, she didn’t turn around in time and accidentally scraped her arm against the doorway, opening a scab that had been healing. She hissed in pain and examined her arm. Blood was seeping down from the scab and Evan could hear a single drop fall onto the floor. Even the scent of that tiny ounce of her life sent him right over the edge.
He moved with lightning speed and darted right in front of her. She gasped in surprise and had no idea of what to do. A loud scream erupted out of her as Evan grabbed onto her, then pinned her down onto the floor. Katie tried to break free but he overpowered her. He didn’t even bother hypnotizing her. “What are you doing?” she shouted, then screamed as he plunged his fangs into her throat. He drank her blood as he felt her body weakening more every second. “Please stop…” she cried while tears flooded from her eyes. Katie had never been more scared in all of her life. “Please…”
Evan’s mind was telling himself to quit now and let her live. But he had gone too long without eating. His hunger was dominating over his logic. It was like he had no control over it anymore.
He listened as her sobs grew fainter and softer. And then there were none at all. He finally woke up from his deviant state and looked down at the innocent girl he just fed from. She laid quiet, cold and still. He realized he had gone too far. Evan wanted to help her but he couldn’t.
The bus’s door opened and Dannie rushed inside with a look of worry on her face. “I heard screaming, what is going on-” she began, but paused when she saw Evan on his knees hovering over Katie. “Evan, what did you do?” Dannie saw the puncture marks on Katie’s neck and the tears of terror on her face. “Help her!”
“I can’t,” he replied. He wished he could but it was too late.
Katie was dead.
Evan stood hunched over in front of the venue’s dreary bathroom’s sink, his head was down. He didn’t want to look into the mirror and see his reflection. His body was weakening and shaking. The spell that had been casted on him to emulate breathing and a pulse was wearing away.
He hadn’t eaten in weeks. Human food did nothing for him. He had already tried it many times. Everyone knows vampires need blood to survive but out of desperation, he hoped real nourishment would at least suffice his hunger, but it didn’t. The others had no idea he wasn’t eating. He always lied and told them he had. For the first month, he had no problem with it. But the last time he tried to eat, he couldn’t stop. His killing impulse had overshadowed all the decency left inside of him and he devoured his victim’s blood without guilt or concern. Luckily, he was able to stop before he had killed her. The last thing he wanted was to murder. His instincts kept telling him to but he continued restraining them. It seemed next to impossible but he managed. On stage, he pretended to be normal and did his best to perform with the others. He was very convincing and hid his inner terrors flawlessly. He even let himself smile from time to time. But it was always because Dannie made him. Offstage though, he let his temper get the best of him sometimes. He didn’t mean to, it just seemed to happen on its own. Without blood, it was just going to get worse.
Finally lifting his head up to see himself, Evan stared at his pale face in the grey, dingy lighting. His eyes glowed like they always did. He hated looking at them. Their eerie light just reminded him he was a monster.
A few knocks at the door broke the silence and dark gaze he was forcing into his reflection. He quickly snapped out of his self-hating session. “Evan?…” Dannie asked standing just outside the door. “Are you okay? It’s time to go…”
She watched the door open and he walked out without a word or expression. The silence concerned her. “Hey, you alright?” She noticed he hadn’t applied his stage makeup yet. “You’re not ready? We go on in ten minutes. Where’s your makeup?”
Evan dreaded looking at himself again so he asked, “Could you do it for me tonight?”
This puzzled her. “I guess so. But why can’t you?”
“I just can’t.” He didn’t want to feed her anymore lies.
* * * * *
After the show, Evan felt like collapsing. He hurried backstage and told Dannie he wasn’t feeling well and went directly to the bus. As much as he wanted to stay and talk to fans, he knew he couldn’t do it. Masking his agony would be too difficult. The simple task of walking became unbearable now. All the pains he was feeling made him cringe. He felt like his insides were twisting and then being gutted out of him. The scent of blood suffocated him and enticed him at the same time. He knew he had to get away from everyone.
As quickly as he could, he stumbled inside the bus, slamming the door shut behind him. No one had seen him. He crawled up inside his bunk and closed the curtains. Laying on his side, he hugged his knees and closed his eyes tight. He wanted to endure all the torture and suffering in order to keep from killing. Of course he knew he couldn’t resist eating forever but he wanted to hold it off for just one more night.
A small bit of control was all he had left. He had to hold onto it.
Meanwhile back inside the venue, the rest of the band were finishing up their fan meetings. Many of them had asked where Evan was and they simply told them he wasn’t feeling well. Most of them didn’t question it.
While Dannie had just finished talking with her last group of fans, a young girl, probably no more than seventeen, approached her. She was small, very thin, was dressed in a white top and black jeans, and had two long dark brown braids resting on her shoulders. She smiled sweetly at Dannie. Her expression was returned. “Hi!” Dannie greeted cheerfully.
“Hey,” the girl replied, handing her a CD sleeve to sign. “I really liked the show. I had a lot of fun.”
Dannie jotted her signature on it then returned it. “Aw, that’s great, so did we! Glad you could come out.”
“Hey, um…where’s Evan?” the girl asked shyly. “I didn’t see him out here.”
“Oh, he’s probably on the bus,” Dannie answered. “He’s sick, I think.”
“I’d really like to meet him…Is there any way?” Her dark brown eyes looked so hopeful, it almost broke Dannie’s heart. This girl was clearly an Evan fan.
“Well…we can try,” Dannie declared. “Follow me.” She led her backstage and outside through the rear exit. They approached the bus and Dannie opened the door and called out, “Hey, Evan, you awake? There’s someone here who wants to meet you!” They didn’t hear a reply. Evan felt violently unstable and vulnerable. Dannie stepped inside the bus and walked toward the bunks. He could hear her getting closer and, for reasons he didn’t know, he was able to calm down. His pain was also deteriorating, even though it wasn’t much different, but he could tell. Evan pulled his curtains over to see his visitor. He saw Dannie instead and she saw him. “There he is,” she told his fan. “He’s up in his bunk. Go ahead and bug him, I’m sure he won’t mind.” She had to go back into the venue so she left the two of them alone. The second she left, Evan’s pain worsened again. He could smell that girl’s blood and he tried to resist the urge to kill her.
“Hi, Evan,” she said softly, stepping in front of his bunk slowly. She peeked inside and smiled at him. “My name’s Katie. I’m a big fan.”
His eyes glowed at her yet she was unafraid. She, like everyone else, believed the contacts cover-up. He stared at her, not moving an inch as he watched her.
“I loved the show, you did great,” she continued, curious why he was so quiet. “I play bass too. You actually inspired me.”
Still, all he did was continue to stare at her. He didn’t even blink once.
His silence bothered her. “Are you okay?” she asked, pulling his curtain back further. “You’re so quiet…” Evan still hadn’t moved. Katie was disturbed by the sinister look in his eyes. She froze and stared back. This meeting was far from the friendly, pleasant one she had expected. Her heart was pounding and he could hear it. Slowly, she began stepping away, her feet guiding herself backward. “I…I think I’d better go…” It was obvious to her that something wasn’t right. On her way out, she didn’t turn around in time and accidentally scraped her arm against the doorway, opening a scab that had been healing. She hissed in pain and examined her arm. Blood was seeping down from the scab and Evan could hear a single drop fall onto the floor. Even the scent of that tiny ounce of her life sent him right over the edge.
He moved with lightning speed and darted right in front of her. She gasped in surprise and had no idea of what to do. A loud scream erupted out of her as Evan grabbed onto her, then pinned her down onto the floor. Katie tried to break free but he overpowered her. He didn’t even bother hypnotizing her. “What are you doing?” she shouted, then screamed as he plunged his fangs into her throat. He drank her blood as he felt her body weakening more every second. “Please stop…” she cried while tears flooded from her eyes. Katie had never been more scared in all of her life. “Please…”
Evan’s mind was telling himself to quit now and let her live. But he had gone too long without eating. His hunger was dominating over his logic. It was like he had no control over it anymore.
He listened as her sobs grew fainter and softer. And then there were none at all. He finally woke up from his deviant state and looked down at the innocent girl he just fed from. She laid quiet, cold and still. He realized he had gone too far. Evan wanted to help her but he couldn’t.
The bus’s door opened and Dannie rushed inside with a look of worry on her face. “I heard screaming, what is going on-” she began, but paused when she saw Evan on his knees hovering over Katie. “Evan, what did you do?” Dannie saw the puncture marks on Katie’s neck and the tears of terror on her face. “Help her!”
“I can’t,” he replied. He wished he could but it was too late.
Katie was dead.