Bite, p.73
Bite, page 73
I shake my head, as I say, “No it doesn’t. Let’s make this quick so we can get back to the house.”
With worry on his face Joseph says, “There is a slight problem. We do appear to be quite pale.”
Amber smiles as she says, “Well if anyone has shit to say, I’ll just tell them to shut up and lay off my brothers and sister. I’m not exactly sporting a tan myself so saying we’re related should do the trick.” She lets out a giggle while playfully adding, “Or we can just say we’re part Albino.”
I let out a nervous laugh as I say, “You are crazy girl.”
“Yes I am.”
We get out the car and make our way into the supermarket after grabbing a couple of shopping carts. Evan and Amber go to pick up the dairy items and vegetables while Joseph and I go to the meat department. We place our order and after the butcher realizes that our four hundred dollar order is real and begins putting it together, I stand there thinking about my dream.
“Gina what’s wrong,” Joseph asks with concern.
I quickly shake my head as I huff out, “Nothing. I guess I’m still bothered by my dream. I can’t believe it really happened. I can’t believe how out of control she’s making Sam behave. It’s just breaking my heart.”
“Yeah. I can’t imagine how you must be feeling.”
“Shitty,” I say with an uneasy laugh. “But we’ll worry about it when we get back to the house.”
He gently rubs my back as he whispers, “Well if there’s anything I can do for you, just let me know.”
“I will Joseph thanks.”
He then gives me a light hug and I begin to feel a little better. I pull away and as he stares deep into my eyes, he leans in to give me a passionate kiss. My brain is screaming at me to pull away but I can’t find the strength to push him away. After a few moments, we pull apart while starring at each other.
“Gina, I’m sorry,” he says quietly.
“No, no it’s okay.”
We gaze at each other nervously unable to find something to say next. Joseph runs his hand through his hair as he says, “I better see how much longer the butcher is going to be. I’ll be right back.”
He walks over to the counter as I analyze what just happened. This is the second time Joseph kissed me and I did nothing to stop him. I love Sam with all my heart but does it mean that me kissing Joseph is because I like him as more than a friend? I am totally confused on what to think but I feel I’m about to get an earful when I feel my friend approaching. Amber walks to me with a sly grin and I can already hear the million and one questions that she’s going to ask me. When she finally reaches me I frown as I sternly say, “Don’t say a word Amber.”
While ignoring my request she responds, “Shut up Gina. You and Joseph? Oh my god when did that start?”
“It hasn’t,” I curtly reply as I walk over to the bakery and begin grabbing some rolls.
She follows me as she says, “Gina, I just saw the two of you swapping spit or I guess in your case swapping venom. You can’t tell me nothing is going on between you two.”
Getting agitated I firmly say, “Amber, listen to what I’m saying. What we did was a mistake. Joseph and I are just friends and nothing more. There is nothing more between us.”
“Could have fooled me.” I roll my eyes and cut her a glare that ends any more teasing she had planned. Instead her voice softens as she gently asks, “Well does he know that?”
I’m about to argue further but guilt washes over me when I look into her eyes. My shoulders sag and I let out a heavy sigh as I murmur, “Amber I don’t know how all this even started. Ever since he shared his transformation story with me while I was still human, I felt this connection with him that I can’t shake off. And what’s so fucked up about it is I don’t think I even want to lose it. I value his friendship and I know that’s all it should be but I’m so confused. I don’t know what to do about him.”
“It’s okay Gina. You have so much shit on your mind now that you don’t know which end is up anymore. It’s understandable that you just needed a little comfort.”
“That’s no excuse. I’m a married woman and I should know better than to let Joseph think there is a chance for anything to happen between us. I don’t know why I never stop when we crossed that line because I love Sam.”
“I never said you didn’t.”
I let out a long sigh as I say, “It’s just that there’s something about Joseph that makes me want to be near him. I love him Amber but only as a friend.”
She squeezes my hand as she says softly, “Well you know we’re here if you need help figuring things out. I’ve done the whole juggling two guys shit before and let me tell you it can be stressful. But that doesn’t matter. The point is you don’t have to go through this alone.”
“I’m not juggling two guys!”
“I know. I’m just saying just because you’re a vampire now don’t think we can’t help you. Don’t shut us out.”
She squeezes my hand and I feel bad for not talking to her or my other friends sooner. I guess I figured if I can deal with the possible fight with Ursela by myself, I would be able to figure out what my feelings are for Joseph. I give her a quick hug as I respond, “Thanks Amber. I really do appreciate that.”
“Anytime Gina,” she responds with a smile.
Joseph signals that our order is ready and as I make my way over to him, I wonder if he heard our conversation. Our hearing is exceptional but I’m hoping he was a gentleman and ignored us completely so we could have some privacy. Then again he knew we were talking about him so…
“Okay with the meat I think you guys are all set,” he says as he interrupts my train of thought while he loads it into the cart.
Evan makes his way over to us as I say, “Great. Do we have everything else?”
“Yep, we’re good to go.”
I smile as we start to head towards the cashier. I feel Joseph gently grab my arm as he murmurs, “Gina when we get to the house can neither one of us mention what happened? Especially to Charlie; I don’t think I have the energy to fight with him again.”
Neither do I especially when not too long ago I just told Charlie that we didn’t do anything. Keeping this quiet is the best idea right now. “Of course Joseph. We’ll keep it between us.”
He lightly kisses me on the cheek as he says, “Thank you.”
It’s my turn to grab him as I say, “But you and I will have to figure out and soon.”
“Yes we do.” He tenses up as he says, “But now is not the time.”
“Joseph what’s wrong?”
“We need to get out of here now.”
He just briskly walks over to the registers with me tailing behind him. Evan and Amber see our faces and she nervously looks around for any signs of a threat as they hurry over to join us. I silently wish Charlie were here so he can look ahead and tell us what is going to happen so we can be somewhat prepared. And as if he was reading my mind, I feel my phone vibrate and I smile as I answer, “Hello Charlie.”
“Gina, you guys need to hurry and get out of there.”
“Well the cashier is ringing our stuff up now. We’ll be home as soon as we can. At a normal speed of course.”
He chuckles as he says, “Sucks right? Well you and Evan stay close to Joseph. This is definitely one vision I don’t want coming true.”
I don’t ask for the details because I’m afraid of what Charlie is going to say. I curtly say, “You got it. Did you find the story on the news?”
“Yes, definitely not good. We’ll discuss that as well when you get back.”
“No problem. See you in a bit.”
I end the call and patiently wait for our groceries to be rung up. Once I swipe my black Amex card (and silently laugh at the casher’s face when she sees that I actually have one), we hurry out to the car and start putting the bags into the Hummer. Just as we load up the last grocery bag, we pause, including Amber who just follows our lead, as our eyes scan over to where the delicious aroma comes from.
We spot three teenage boys that are heading towards the store. One of them is nursing his arm, which has a massive gash where blood is pouring out. His friends are trying to comfort him as they head inside to get bandages. The three of us stare until they disappear into the store. Panicking, Amber grabs my arm and tries to pull me into the car and I finally turn my gaze from the entrance of the store back to the Hummer. Evan starts to follow but we both pause as we see Joseph is slowly starting to walk back towards the store. I quickly scan the parking lot to make sure no one is paying attention as Evan rushes over to him and grabs him before bringing him back to the truck. Joseph’s fangs are exposed as he tries to break free from his grip but Evan holds on tightly and slams him against the Hummer (and giving it a dent in the process, ugh). A woman pushing a cart full of bags glances in our direction but Amber shoots her a dirty look and the woman quickly walks away.
Joseph growls as he continues to fight off Evan’s grip. Evan doesn’t slack off once as he urges, “Joseph you gotta calm down buddy.”
“I’m trying to but the blood just smells too damn good,” Joseph says through gritted teeth. “I don’t think I can walk away this time Evan.”
“Yes you can man. You just have to try a little harder. Come on man you can do this. Don’t let the blood lust control you.”
He doesn’t comply and he nearly breaks free until Evan adjusts his grip and keeps him against the Hummer. I force Joseph to look at me as I say, “Joseph, people are already feeling skittish about the possibility of vampires existing so you can’t draw attention to us. Please Joseph, you gotta focus your mind to stop thinking about the blood and get into the Hummer.”
We continue to coax him as his fangs grow longer and his thirst continues to build. I’m really starting to panic because Joseph has a hard time controlling his thirst and if he gets passed us, everyone in the supermarket might die. Suddenly, Amber’s eyes light up with an idea but I’m too busy trying to help Evan keep Joseph contained to find out why she appears excited all of a sudden. She runs into the Hummer and scrambles around for something and I now I start to wonder what she’s up to. After a few moments, Amber turns on the ignition and lowers the back window and crawls into the backseat. Joseph pauses and slowly turns his head so he can peer inside and without saying a word he walks around to the door to the backseat. Evan looks at me in confusion but he sees I’m just as lost as he is until both of us freeze and immediately stop taking in air as I stare at the cut on Amber’s finger that’s dripping blood. She puts on a brave face as she sternly says, “Joseph please get into the car. If you want blood, you can have some of mine.”
“Amber, what have you done,” I ask softly while trying not to inhale her scent. “Why would you cut yourself?”
She looks at me sheepishly as she replies, “I had to do something to get Joseph into the car.”
“This is a bad idea,” I say.
Ignoring me she looks at Joseph while saying, “Joseph my offer stands. Please get into the car so we can go.”
Fangs exposed he murmurs to her, “You sure about that?”
If Amber is afraid she’s doing a good job of hiding it as she responds, “You won’t take too much because you know hurting me will upset Gina and we both know you don’t wanna upset her.”
Evan doesn’t catch it (well he didn’t catch Joseph and I kissing) but I hear her true meaning behind her statement. I slightly narrow my eyes at her but her plan is working. Joseph lets out a sigh as Evan goes around to the driver’s side and seconds later all the windows go down. “It’s only a ten minute drive. We should be okay but we need to get him out of here,” he says.
I look at Joseph as I say, “Get in the front seat with Evan.”
He nods and before climbing in whispers, “I won’t hurt her Gina. I promise you.”
“I know,” I respond and I climb in so we can be on our way.
As Evan drives, Amber grabs a roll of paper towels from one of the shopping bags and she rips off a couple sheets so she can cover up her fingers. I keep my eyes glued on Joseph who is sitting perfectly still and keeping his gaze straight ahead. I monitor his thoughts and I cringe as he imagines what her blood might taste like. He even goes as far as to debate in his mind whether he should take her up on her offer but he thinks about how much it would hurt me and that instantly turns his thoughts to the two of us and I squirm a little as I see the images in his head. I know he isn’t a virgin so the things he is imagining that he would like to do to me is not really that shocking. I’m not a prude since Sam and I have had some incredible moments ourselves and I like to get a little kinky with him any day. But as Joseph’s fantasy continues, I nearly choke when they almost turn pornographic and I’m talking about the hardcore type. I don’t want to think about the details but if I had hooked up with Joseph instead of Sam, based on his thoughts, I would have needed to know gymnastics. His fantasies is helping him relax a little and as much as it makes me uncomfortable, I rather he thought about making love to me (even though what he has in mind is way beyond making love) than feeding on Amber.
Evan makes the turn onto the driveway and once we arrive at the house, Alex and Harry come out to meet us. Joseph opens the door and the three of them take off while Charlie grabs Amber so he can treat her hand. David and Evan unload the groceries while I go inside to check on Amber who I find fussing with Charlie.
“Dude I swear I’m fine. None of them bit me or anything,” she says while pouting as he places a few bandages on her cut.
“I know but do you want this to get infected?”
She sighs, as she replies, “No.”
He smiles in victory as he says, “Good. And don’t you do anything like that ever again. You got lucky this time but trust me when I tell you purposely cutting yourself around vampires is definitely stupid idea number one.”
Surprise in her eyes, Diane asks, “Amber why the hell would you do that?”
“Because I had to get Joseph in the car so he wouldn’t follow those boys into the store.” She quickly explains about the one with the nasty cut and how Joseph was almost hypnotized by the blood and when she finishes she says, “I didn’t know what else to do.”
I smile as I say, “What Amber did was very stupid but also very brave. We can’t fault her for helping.”
“Yeah but Joseph is unpredictable. What if Amber never made it home because he decided to have drive-thru,” Mark asks.
Tiffany slaps him on the back of his head as she says, “You can be so callous sometimes.”
Amber sighs as she says, “No Tiff he’s right. I should have thought it through a little more first before doing anything.” She turns her gaze to Charlie while softly adding, “I promise to never do anything like that again unless there is no other alternative.”
“I guess I can accept that,” Charlie responds and smiles when he finishes administering first aid to her.
After all the groceries are brought in, Steve and Diane fixes their breakfast while Charlie and I discuss the events that took place in New Jersey. It disturbs us both that Ursela displayed our powers so publicly but I feel reassured when he states the police are ruling it as normal homicides. I guess they didn’t want to believe vampires are real and that is fine with me. Joseph, Alex and Harry return and I smile when I see Joseph’s bright ice blue eyes. I look around and say, “Well let’s get to it and practice some more.”
“Good idea,” Harry chimes in.
David inspects his car and after finding the dent where Evan was holding Joseph he yells, “What the fuck happened here?”
After glaring at Evan for not taking it out, I let out a deep sigh. I guess I’ll be improving my fighting skills now. Shit!
Hippie Boy Has Got To Go
(Sam)
“No please! Don’t hurt me man! Here take my money and shit but please don’t hurt me!”
“I’m not going to hurt you. I’m just going to drain you of all you blood.”
“W-what? No man wait! Please don’t…”
I cut off his pathetic begging when my fangs go deep into the male human’s neck and the blood rushes down my throat. Once I’m done, I lightly growl with satisfaction (I guess a vampire’s version of a burp) as I toss the body back onto the couch. I look around the living room in the human’s house and debate on whether I should wait for his female companion that I see in several pictures but I decide against it. His blood satisfied me enough and I instead smirk at the surprise she’ll get when she returns home.
I exit the house and walk down the street smiling at the memory of my meal. I look around and see the other vampires are still feeding as well in the new town Ursela had us invade. I take a seat in front of an abandoned house and kick back while the others are running around. When I glance across the street, I see one human who felt like being brave and was holding a broken bat in Angela’s direction. The end facing her direction has been broken off so it is pointed and sharp which has her somewhat afraid. I’m already full but what this human is doing is a big no-no. In a quick flash, I come up behind him and rip his throat wide open and begin to feed while he screams. Angela comes over when he drops the bat and I let her finish him off.
Once she’s done, she licks her lips as she says, “Thanks. I don’t know why a stupid piece of wood had me shitting my pants so much.”
I shrug, as I say, “No biggie I’m sure you would have done the same for me.”
She’s hurt by the sarcasm in my voice and responds, “Yes I would. When are you going to see that I’m just trying to be a friend?”
