My Guardian Vampire

I needed to blow off some steam.

"You better fucking get back here you whore!" my lovely mother called out to me as I busted out the front door into the wall of chilly December air. Cutting through it quickly, I made my way away from our single-story home, out of the cracked driveway, and onto the street, my pace brisk and determined to reach my destination of Away. I turned on my iPod to block out the echoes of her rage that attempted to chase me into the darkness. My own sense of anger stormed through my mind, though I tried to calm myself down by focusing on the beat of my steps, matching them to the music pounding waves through my head.

I turned the volume down after I was far enough away from the three-bedroom hell—partly so I could listen for cars, and partly so I could just tune into the world around me—to the bugs in the woods surrounding the road, the constant teeter of the branches in the breeze, and the tap-tap of my converses hitting the rocky unkempt pavement.

I walked a fair distance in the dark; there were no streetlights on the quiet road. My eyes eventually adjusted to the darkness, the moonlight my guide. I didn't really need the moon by this time in my life—I've walked this road so many times I could do it with my eyes closed. It was simply a comfort, keeping away the bad things in the night.

Eventually I stopped down the road and sat down wearily on a now-familiar rock, safely hidden from the road by a couple of trees. If my brother or dad came looking for me, they would probably not notice me, but a friend that knew the location could find it easily. I took out my cell phone, the invading air planting soft tingles of kisses on my exposed hand as I called my cousin, Katy.

"Hey Katy, what’s up? I was wondering if you wanted to go to that concert tonight?" I asked. A bit out of the blue, but the first thing my mind grabbed at, I prayed to any welcoming being out there that she'd be able to. I had no plan for what to do if she couldn’t—and I was not going back to that house right now. It was too cold to stay out in the woods all night, but if I had to go back home, I would at least wait until the beast calmed herself down.

"Yeah, sure. I haven’t been to one of the local ones yet like I promised, so now’s my chance to redeem myself," she said with a laugh, and I laughed briefly too, my own mirth more from a sense of relief.

"Great! I was wondering if you could pick me up? I kinda had to leave again...." I trailed, grinning embarrassedly even though she couldn’t see me.

"Sure honey, it’s no problem. Mom kick you out again?" She knew very well of what often happened at my so-called "home."

"No, tonight I left. Thanks though. I’m at The Rock, I'll look for you."

"Okay, bye," she said.

"Peace," I said before quickly ending the call. I hated having to ask to be picked up when I’m the person who asked them out. In my family it's viewed as rude, but Katy at least knew I was left with no option. I turned on my iPod to distract myself from the passing time, though I kept it low enough so I could hear well enough in case of an animal behind me. Even though I had been here time and time again, I was constantly on edge.

Even suburbia has a few murderers.

Suddenly, as if by that deep animal instinct not yet primed out of my system, I felt the air drastically change, causing me to tense up. I had that awful, gut-wrenching feeling that someone was watching me. A tiny "snap" of a branch confirmed this in my imagination, the sound seeming to resonate crystal-clear in my cochlea, striking me alert.

I turned around quickly, and standing behind me was simply a shadow of a person, totally hidden by the darkness of the forest.

"Um... Hello?" I hazarded, backing off the rock and standing up.

'It's just Fast Eddy,' I tried to convince myself in my mind. My town was so small we had only one really homeless person, called Fast Eddy. He was homeless through an alcohol addiction, but I knew him well and he was harmless.

The pale moonlight coming shredded through the trees illuminated only part of his face as the shadow stepped forward.

"Hello," he purred, smiling, the light reflecting off his sugar-white teeth, the display almost cartoonish in nature but certainly without humor. I took another step backwards towards the road, my pulse beating wildly through me. The man took yet another step to match mine.

'I've never seen Fast Eddy stand straight, or have sugar-white teeth,' I thought.

"I didn't mean to startle you, love. I was simply wondering what a pretty girl like yourself was doing all alone in a forest." I narrowed my eyes at him.

"Bullshit," I said, suddenly feeling lightheaded. I tried to shake my head as a fog started to wrap my mind in a thick cotton, probing my consciousness and not allowing me to think straight.

"What part sweetheart?" he asked, tilting his head, seeming to feign confusion as he took another step towards me. I took a replying half step back, but I could barely concentrate on walking as the fog was making my head pound, a chorus of drummers beating on my mind.

"The...the pretty part...I think?" I shook my head again, and concentrated hard, trying to mentally will away the pounding. Something told me to turn my iPod up, so I began to blast it, pushing the earphones against my head. The fog began to quickly disappear as the music echoed through my head. "I’m... I'm not pretty, and you’re...dangerous." He looked at me like I was crazy, still grinning and slightly wrinkling his nose. Since he had moved forward I could see most of his face: his smooth pale complexion, part of his hair that hung around his cheeks as neck, his smooth lips and...

'No!' I thought, a voice yelling in my head. 'Try to get away from him! He’s dangerous!' I grabbed my head.

"Who’s that love?" I stared at him, having no idea who he was talking about.

"Who's who?" I asked, momentarily forgetting where I was. 'Get out of there!' The voice boomed in my head again. Suddenly, a car pulled up, loudly beeping its horn. It completely took me out of the fog. I ran, knowing it was Katy's car, and jumped into the passenger seat.

"Drive!" I screamed, and Katy floored it without asking questions.
Once we got onto the highway, Katy and I calmed down. She hit my shoulder.

"What the fuck was that all about?" Katy asked, gripping the wheel tightly. I sighed, resting my head on the cool window, trying to calm myself from her outburst as I shut my eyes. They shot open again as I realized what might have happened.

"I almost got raped!" Katy almost stopped the car, but concentrated hard on the road so she wouldn't crash, her knuckles whitening on leather as she doubled her grip on the wheel.

"What?" She asked. I took a long breath in, and quickly as possibly told her what had happened. By the time I finished, her making me go over every detail, we had reached the local high school where the concert was. She and I stepped out of the car, and Katy put her arm around my shoulders as we walked.

"I don’t want you walking around outside anymore," she said, and I looked at her crossly.

"You’re not my mom," I said, my tilting my head up, avoiding her gaze as she looked at my defiant pose thoughtfully.

"I know, because if I was you'd never listen to me," she said, and we both laughed. "But honestly, if you need to leave, just call me and I'll pick you up."

I stared straight ahead, feeling guilty as ever, not saying anything. I didn’t want to bother Katy; she had enough going on in her life right now. She studied my face for a moment.

"You're thinking that you shouldn’t bother me because I have a lot going on right now, aren’t you?" she asked.

Damn. She was getting too good at this.

I said nothing, just quickened my pace and walked into the doors of the warm building. Katy just laughed, and walked in behind me.

I paid my $5 and took the breathalyzer test they make everyone take. Walking in, I took in my surroundings. This was my place, the home I wish I could have.

Every day would be perfect if it ended with a concert.