Two fangs pierced through the break in his lips. He tried to cover them with the back of his hand.
“You need me as much as I need you,” I said, pulling his hand away. “It’s okay. You don’t have to fight it anymore. You don’t have to be strong.”
I could see in his eyes that Alexander struggled, wondering what it would be like to finally taste my blood, as Sebastian had tasted Becky’s.
“I’d still have to bite you. To turn you, like me.”
“Perhaps it’s time. We’d finally be together. Like I’ve always wanted. I’ve always needed you, Alexander.”
“I need you too, Raven.”
He took my arm and drew it up to his mouth. He closed his eyes, and I watched as he licked his lips and opened his mouth.
Suddenly, Nightmare jumped in front of the window and I was so startled, I was lucky I didn’t fall off my desk and really bust my arm.
I wanted the reassurance that Alexander needed me just as much as I needed him. That he craved me, as Sebastian craved Becky. But I knew Alexander wasn’t about to make that decision lightly. And did I want it, after all? I’d put so much of my thought into this magical and darkened world when right before me I was seeing vampires struggle with their lifestyle, as I struggled with mine.
At this point, I could only imagine Alexander biting me and taking me into his world. The fantasy of it thrilled me. I could only hope the reality, should it ever show itself, would be as good.
8
Friend and Feuds
The hours ticked away painfully slowly during school. I was tormented as Becky raved incessantly about our previous evening at Hooligans. She went on about how she and Matt had a blast hanging out with the three of us, how we all could be “best buds,” and what a shame it was Sebastian was going to leave. She had no idea the evening had ended with a nightmare—one caused by Sebastian. I was in a fog all day. I couldn’t get my mind off of Alexander and Sebastian’s falling-out. Did they make amends? Had Sebastian left Dullsville? I begged for the sun to set as fast as it could, but it seemed to toy with me as it hung over the trees. When it lowered below the rooftops, I jumped on my bike and took off. I had no idea what I might find when I reached the Mansion.
The Mustang was still in the driveway, but the front door of the Mansion was open.
“Jameson? Alexander?” I called. But no one answered.
The house was eerily quiet.
I scaled the main staircase and passed a half dozen rooms until I came to Sebastian’s.
I tapped the door and it squeaked open.
The room was spotless. There were no signs that Alexander’s best friend had even visited the Mansion. No coffin. No iPod, boxer shorts, or wallet. Not even a trace of Romanian dirt remained.
I felt as hollow as the empty room.
I ran throughout the Mansion. “Alexander!”
No response.
“Jameson?” I called.
The Creepy Man was nowhere in sight.
I entered the kitchen and found Alexander’s best friend sitting alone at a rustic dinette, staring vapidly at a tiny plastic sword in his hand. His hair was unkempt, his eyelids droopy.
I stood for a moment. Sebastian wasn’t talking. He didn’t even acknowledge my presence.
I approached him tentatively.
“I’m sorry you’re leaving,” I finally said. “Apart from the fact that you want to break up my best friend and her boyfriend, we actually got along pretty well.”
“Are you really?” he asked, gazing up at me.
“Sure. You brought light to the Mansion—literally,” I teased.
But Sebastian didn’t even smirk.
“Raven—what have I done? How could I have been so reckless—so selfish? A girl should never come between friends. I’m sorry things didn’t turn out better than this.”
“Alexander’s still mad at you? I was hoping—”
“Not only didn’t I find true love, I lost my best friend.”
It pained me to see Sebastian hurting. He wasn’t as controlled as Alexander, or as menacing as Jagger. But like all the vampires I’d met, he struggled with his place in the mortal world—just as I struggled.
“I’ll talk to Alexander. I’m sure you’ll be able to repair things—with some time. When are you heading back to Romania?”
“I’m not sure…. I can’t return like this. What do I say to my parents? To his? I thought I might stay nearby for a few more days.”
“Then you’re not leaving town?” I was happy at the thought.
“I’m not sure. I might just take a few days to think things through. And figure out how to make amends.”
“Does Alexander know?”
“We didn’t talk much,” he said with a nervous chuckle.
I pulled out a chair and sat by him. “Where are you going to stay?”
“I’m still not sure….”
“Are you planning to crash in a hotel with a coffin?” I asked exasperatedly.
“I thought somewhere more obscure. In the woods—or perhaps in an old barn.”
We both paused with dead concern.
“No—not that barn!” he corrected. “Not anywhere near that barn!” he said. “That’s what has gotten me here in the first place.”
For a moment I deliberated taking him into my house. But I knew it wouldn’t work. Not only would I feel awkward getting in the middle of the two guys’ feud, but how on earth could I hide his coffin bed?
“I’d invite you to my house…,” I said, wanting him to know I was trying to help, “but I think you might understand the massive complications in that plan.”
“That’s very kind of you—even after I did that to your friend? Well, both friends really…”
I sympathized with Sebastian’s dilemma. He was a vampire—for better or for worse—and Alexander’s best friend. If anyone knew his struggle, it had to be the gorgeous guy I was in love with.
“If you’ll excuse me…,” I rose and backed out of the kitchen. “Alexander!” I called, running upstairs. Out of breath, I burst into Alexander’s attic room.
I found my boyfriend sitting on his bed with a paint-brush in his hand.
On his easel was a beautiful painting of Alexander, me, and Sebastian. It was the very one he’d been working on so intently and that was bringing him so much joy. The one he’d never sell or auction off—the one that was created for only his possession.
“I guess I’m going to have to paint over him,” he said.
“Don’t you dare.”
He had a quizzical look. “I thought you’d be…”
“Your best friend is downstairs, as upset as you are. You should understand him and his desires more than anyone.”
“But I thought…”
“I can see that he doesn’t have the same personality as you do. I know it’s not easy for you to understand how impulsive he can be.”
“Why do people think it’s so easy for me, too?”
“It’s not?” I prodded.
But Alexander didn’t elaborate.
I held his hand. He was so strong yet so vulnerable at the same time. It pained me to see him struggle in any way, whether it was with the tribulations of being a vampire or the normal conflicts of anyone with emotions.
“I didn’t say it was easy for either one of you. It’s just the way you handle it. Becky is my best friend…. However, she’s the total opposite of me in many ways. She would die before she’d ever confront anyone or defend herself. She is terrified of silly things like the dark and spiders and would rather visit a mall than a graveyard. I’ve protected her for years, like you’ve protected Sebastian with his loose lips and impulsive actions. But if I didn’t have her—if she didn’t stick by me, too—then I wouldn’t have anyone.”
Alexander folded his arms.
“Sebastian knows he messed up. But he’s not going to leave Dullsville until he finds a way to reconcile with you. To me, that’s a best friend.”
“But I thought
you’d be mad at him, too. After all, he was almost stalking Becky.”
“I’m not happy about it. But your friendship is more important to him than she is. I want you to have a best friend just like I do, for better or for worse.”
I waited as Alexander decided on his next move. He gazed at the picture he’d painted of the three of us together.
He stood up and placed the brush on the easel. He took my hand and led me downstairs.
We entered the kitchen, but it was empty of vampires. I followed Alexander outside, where Sebastian was loading his final bag into his trunk. Alexander left me on the steps and walked quickly to Sebastian. I winced, prepared to see fists and fangs fly.
I waited. And waited. And waited.
The two began talking. I was out of earshot, burning to know the contents of their conversation. At any moment, Sebastian was going to get in his car and drive off. I wasn’t sure if I’d ever see him again. I wouldn’t even get to say good-bye.
I felt a small pang in my stomach. I hated to see Alexander so upset with someone he cared about. I heard a car door close.
Just then, Alexander reached into the Mustang’s trunk, put a duffel bag on his shoulder, and summoned his best friend. The two vampires returned toward the Mansion.
“Jameson,” I called. “Prepare those smoothies with the tiny swords!”
9
Morbid Matchmaker
I met Alexander at the Evans Park covered bridge the following night. The old pedestrian bridge was unused and unkempt. Wooden slatted shingles worn off over the years had gone unfixed. Paint had chipped away. Even the birds’ nests were forgotten. I always thought the bridge was beautiful. A trickling creek ran beneath it and a tiny broken bench overlooked a dead bed of flowers. Tonight, however, I found the bridge decorated with twinkling yellow and white lights, which hung like sparkling icicles, making it a truly romantic and magical scene.
I crept inside to find a table with a flickering candelabra on it and two champagne glasses filled with soda.
Alexander emerged from the shadows, dreamy and gorgeous. I was breathless. There wasn’t a place I’d rather be than in Alexander’s presence. I rushed to him and squeezed him with all my might. It seemed like ages since we had been alone, and I planned to take advantage of our solitude. My fingers begged to touch his skin, to feel my boyfriend close, sense his breath against mine. His strong hands grasped my smaller ones and he intently kissed them, as if he, too, had missed our moments together. I gently stroked his face and ran my fingers over his lips, my black nail polish in striking contrast to his alabaster skin and pale red mouth.
Alexander and I had only a short time for our date. Becky was in the safe company of Matt and the soccer snobs at a scrimmage, and Jameson was doing his best to keep Sebastian entertained with a newly purchased Guitar Hero.
I curled up in Alexander’s arms. The electricity between the two of us seemed unbreakable. When he kissed my neck, I wondered if it was as much a torture for him as it was for me.
Alexander had the power at any moment to turn me—whether I wanted him to or not. Was he thinking what it would be like to pierce his fangs into me and take my blood into his? But Alexander was thoughtful and cautious. If I were in the arms of another kind of vampire, perhaps like Jagger or Sebastian, I might have blood dripping down my neck. I wondered and admired how he could be so different.
“I don’t know how you do it. Sebastian can’t.”
“It’s not easy. I’m sitting with the most gorgeous girl I’ve ever seen in my life and she wants to be a vampire.”
I melted at his compliment. “It seems easy to me….”
I couldn’t help but want to be bitten—if only to become a vampire before my best friend did.
A few pings of raindrops began to hit the roof of the bridge. A few moments later, it began to pour. It only added to our magically romantic night. I snuggled even closer to Alexander.
“Imagine it,” I began. “We’d live in the Mansion together. I’d make you smoothies, and if we ran out—then you’d have me.
“We’d have a beautiful coffin together,” I continued. “I’d decorate it with the most comfy pillows and blankets and tiny portraits that you’d paint of us. And we could wire it so we could listen to morbidly melodic music.”
“I could take you to Romania and you could see my home,” Alexander added. “We would dine outside on our balcony overlooking the twinkling city lights with my parents, and I’d take you into town and we’d dance until dawn.”
I was excited by Alexander’s enthusiasm. “You’d become a famous painter and I’d be an editor of a gothic magazine,” I continued. “We’d travel to Paris for your showings and we’d attend gothic fashion shows. We’d hang out all night long and sleep all day.”
“But you do that now,” he joked.
“By myself. But if I were like you…we’d never have to be apart again,” I said. “We’d be together, hidden away from the sunlight.”
“And holding hands in the moonlight,” he imagined.
“You’d never be alone. Not for a moment.”
“Not for one moment?” he asked coyly.
“Well, maybe one. If you wanted some space.”
“Forget it,” he assured me. “I’ve been waiting for you all my life.”
Alexander kissed me again.
“We wouldn’t only have stolen moments like tonight,” I urged. “We’d be together longer.”
Raindrops continued to fall against the roof as he kissed my wrist. My vein showed prominently. Alexander’s attention was drawn to my blue blood vessel.
“Are you ready?” I asked. “We’re not on sacred ground, but we could go to the cemetery. We could finally be together.”
Alexander paused. He stared deeply into my eyes, and so intently, I felt as if I were staring back into his soul. Then suddenly he turned away.
“It’s not fair,” I said, clasping my hands. “Sebastian wants to turn Becky and you don’t want to turn me.”
Alexander sat up. “First of all, he doesn’t. He feels strongly for her—and now that he’s crossed the line he’s put all of us in jeopardy. He tasted her blood. He has a stronger pull to her than he already had.”
It was a mistake to have brought up Sebastian. Now I’d distracted Alexander from his thoughts about me.
“I know,” I said. “It’s just that sometimes—”
“Raven, it’s hard enough for me—with you, as we are right now.”
I couldn’t push him any further. I’d already spoiled his mood and the gorgeous night he’d created for me. I could tell he was just as concerned for Sebastian as he was for himself.
“I guess I shouldn’t have let him in,” he lamented.
“Are you kidding? He’s your best friend. Sebastian is a sweetie,” I reassured Alexander.
“He’s much more impulsive than I am. Kind of like someone else I know,” he said, lightening up.
“He’s just fallen for the wrong girl,” I said with a sigh.
“Then we have to find someone else for Sebastian to fall for,” Alexander thought aloud.
“That’s a great idea.”
“He hasn’t really had a steady girlfriend. Not only would this be helpful for Becky, but it would truly be helpful to him.”
I was so touched—not only that Alexander was concerned for the welfare of my best friend, but that he felt such responsibility and loyalty for his own.
“Another mortal?” I asked. I thought about the Dullsvillian girls who had plagued me all my life. “There’s a bunch of cheerleaders at school that I certainly wouldn’t miss,” I offered. “But on second thought, I refuse to let one of them be turned before I am.”
“No,” my boyfriend said. “She has to be a vampire.”
“I’m afraid I’m short on vampire girls here,” I said. But then I had a thought. “But in Hipsterville, there’s a whole club full!”
Alexander lit up.
“I know two very eligible ones. Ony
x and Scarlet. One of them could be a perfect match!”
“How do we get them here?” he wondered aloud.
“That, I have no idea.”
“Let’s think….”
“They are party girls,” I said.
“Then we’ll have a party.”
“That’s awesome! I love parties. Though truth be told, I haven’t hosted many—or, in fact, any. No one would show up besides Becky.”
“It will be a small, intimate gathering.”
“Shall we have it at the cemetery?”
Alexander disagreed. “We’ll have it at the Mansion. That way it will be discreet and no one will find out about it.”
I gave Alexander a huge hug. I was excited to be hosting a party and thrilled at the prospect of seeing Scarlet and Onyx again.
“But how are we going to invite them?” he finally asked.
I reached into my purse and took out my cell phone. “I have them on speed dial.”
After a few minutes of canoodling, I strolled outside the covered bridge to get more light from the streetlamp. I avoided a few puddles, as the rain had ceased.
I scrolled to Scarlet’s contact number and pressed send. The line began to ring. And ring. And ring.
“Is she there?” Alexander asked impatiently.
I shook my head.
Just then, someone picked up. I could hear the pounding of loud music with overloaded bass in the background.
“Scarlet?” I said.
“Hello?” I barely heard her voice. “Hello?”
Then the phone went dead.
“I don’t think she wants to speak to me,” I said.
“I think she probably can’t hear you. That club can be deafening.”
“I’ll try again.”
I pushed redial and waited.
This time she picked up right away. “Raven, is that you?”
“Yes! Can you hear me?”
“Raven—is that you?”
“Yes!” I yelled.
“I think it’s Raven—but I can’t hear her,” she said to someone.
“Scarlet? Onyx? Are you there?”
The call was dropped. All I heard was my own voice shouting.