Ineffable Plan

Aaron's P.O.V

"Aaaaahhhh!"

I woke up to Justine's screaming. She wasn't in bed. I glance around the room frantically.

"Ohmygod! Ohmygod! Aaaaaaahhh!"

I turned my head sharply to left and found Justine with her back pressed into wall. She was staring cautiously at me and she looked petrified. I was at her side in an instant.

"Justine?" She didn't answer. She just kept screaming.

"Justine!" I yelled. I put my hand on either side of her face, trying to calm her, but the screaming got louder and was joined by hissing.

"Don't touch me! Get away from me!" She screamed clawing at my hands and arms. "Help! Help! Someone help me!"

"Justine, baby, what's wrong?" I asked, desperate for a way to help her.

"Get off of me! You're too hot! You're burning me! It stings! Help! Help!" Tears were now streaming down her cheeks. I immediately released her face and placed my hands on the wall on either side of her. I stayed close, keeping her trapped between my body and the wall.

"Baby, what's going on? What's happening?" She was still sobbing heavily and trembling uncontrollably.

"Leave me alone! Please! Please! Go away! Help!"

"Aaron, what's wrong?" I shot a glance to the doorway of the bedroom. Manny and Ryland were standing there looking concerned.

"I dunno. She won't stop screaming. She keeps telling me to get away. I think she's afraid of me," I whispered the last part.

"Emmy! Help!" She screamed, struggling against me, her arms outstretched towards Manny. "Help me! Get him away!" The tears were flooding down her face and her voice broke. It was nearly gone from all the screaming. I didn't know what to do. I looked at Manny, pleading with him to tell me what to do.

"Let her go," he said to me warily. As I did she stumbled forward and ran to Manny, clutching at his shirt momentarily before running behind him. I stood there stunned, staring at Justine. She was hiding behind Manny, trembling violently. Her face was still streamed with tears and her eyes darted frantically from behind Manny's back to look up at me.

She was hiding from me.

I took a step forward, towards Manny and Justine, but stopped when I saw her fingers grip Manny's arms tighter and heard her whimper slightly.

"Justine, what's wrong?" I asked softly from where I stood.

She didn't answer. All she did was peak over Manny to look at me.

"Justine! What the hell is that on your neck?"

My eyes darted from Justine to Julian. He was standing next to Justine, poking her in the side of her neck. She spun around and flung herself into Julian's arms, her face buried in his chest and her arms wrapped tightly around his waist. For a moment, jealousy and anger surged through me. I gripped my hands into tight fists at my sides and felt a low growl rumble through my chest.

Bad move.

Justine pressed closer to Julian and a fresh stream of tears cascaded down her face.

Calm down, Manny's voice echoed in my head. I frowned slightly at him. You're only going to scare her more, he reasoned. I winced as if he had hit me. I was scaring her.

"Julian." Manny spoke. "Get her out of here. Bring her into Jeremy's room. Have him take a look at her neck. He knows more about this thing than any of us do."

This thing? I thought staring at Manny. He nodded. I knew he heard me.

I'll tell you in a minute. Let Julian get her calmed down.

I watched as Julian walked out of the room with Justine hanging off him. My mind was clouded with questions and my heart was crumbling. She didn't want to be around me. She didn't want me to touch her. She was terrified. What did I do?

Julian's P.O.V.

"Come on Justine." I whispered as I led her to Jeremy's room. She was clinging to me tightly and I was tugging gently on her arm to get her to loosen her grip.

"Jeremy?" He had gone out to feed this morning and I wasn't sure if he'd gotten back yet. Something about Justine seemed to make him thirsty all the time.

"Yes?"

I jumped slightly at the sound of his voice behind me. Sneaky bastard.

"What's wrong with her?" he asked brushing the hair out of Justine's face. "Where's Aaron? Is he alright?"

I cut him off before the panic rose. "Aaron's fine. Something's wrong with her. We thought you might've been able to figure it out. She woke up this morning screaming and terrified of him. Aaron's freaking out. There's something on her neck." I lifted her hair so he could see it. "Manny thought you might know what that is and how to fix this."

We walked into his room and I sat Justine on the bed. She seemed to have calmed down a bit. She'd stop crying, though her face was still moist from before. Jeremy knelt in front of her and tilted her head so he could see her neck better. I noticed his finger twitch. There was a small amount of blood covering the small wound. I tensed and looked up at his face. His face was flushed at the sight of the blood.

Easy, Jeremy, I warned mentally. He nodded in acknowledgement.

"Get me the first aid kit. It's in my bathroom. I can't really see it with the dried up… blood covering it."

I got the first aid kit in a flash. Justine hadn't even noticed I left. She gasped quietly at the kit in my hand that seemed to appear out of thin air. Carefully, Jeremy cleaned the wound and took another look at it. I waited as he gently ran his fingertips over it and froze.

Jeremy hadn't moved for a few moments. "Jere…you alright, man?"

He seemed to snap out of it and shook his head. "I'm fine. She's not. Get everyone in here."

I looked at him and flashed my eyes at Justine. "Even Aaron?"

"Especially Aaron."

Manny's P.O.V.

After Julian left with Justine, Ryland and I just stayed silent as Aaron stood motionless in the center of the room. I wasn't sure how I should approach him.

"Aaron?" Ryan spoke cautiously, taking slow deliberate steps towards him. "You alright, bro?"

"What's happening? What's wrong with her?" He croaked. He looked very close to tears now.

"Don't worry." Ryland continued. "Jeremy will figure this all out." He cooed.

"And what if he doesn't? Or what if there isn't anything to figure out? What then? What happens if she's just decided that she doesn't want to be with me anymore? What if she doesn't want me? I can't-"

And that's when he lost it. I'd known my brother all his life, nineteen years. I've never seen him cry like that. He was sobbing. He had collapsed onto the floor. His entire body was shivering violently and he ever so often you could hear him gasping for breath.

"Aaron?" I stepped closer. Ryland was holding him now; not saying anything.

Manny, I think maybe you should clear his head for a while. I can't stand to see him like this.

I nodded and kneeled down in front of them. I grabbed Aaron's head in my hands. "Aaron, I need you to look at me." I spoke softly. "Aaron?"

"Manny!"

I turned my head to look at Julian. "Jeremy thinks he knows what's wrong."

Aaron's P.O.V.

"Jeremy thinks he knows what's wrong."

I barely heard him. I felt like I couldn't breathe. I felt like I was being torn apart. She didn't love me anymore? I couldn't even comprehend the thought. My face was hot with tears and before I knew it, I felt my knees hit the ground. I felt sick. I wanted to throw up. I wanted to scream and cry. I wanted to fight. I wanted to kill. With every tear that I shed, I felt my hunger for blood grow. I was shaking. I needed to feed.

Did you hear me Aaron? Jeremy wants us in his room, now.

I looked up at Julian. I couldn't hear anything. My heart was pounding in my ears. I needed to pull myself together; to stop the tears and the sobbing; to get my heart to stop trying to kill me. I took a deep breath to try to calm myself down.

Another bad idea.

The scent of Justine filled my nostrils. I could almost taste her fear and it was making me sick.

Aaron! Julian screamed inside my head. Jeremy wants us in his room. Justine needs you.

I cringed. "I can't see her right now." I answered, my voice strained.

Manny understood instantly. "He needs to feed."

Julian nodded. "Ryland you go with him. Hurry back and meet us in Jeremy's room. Make it quick."