Flirting with Danger

I wrote this story for a swap on http://www.swap-bot.com. It involves vampires (I just had to write something Halloween themed for October.). I hope you enjoy it!

Flirting with Danger 

By Candace Shultz 

I woke up underneath the bleachers on the football field. I felt hunger in my belly and fire in my veins. I opened my eyes, looking up at the night sky. The stars shined brilliantly, almost close enough to touch. I could even see the rings of Saturn. Wait, that's not normal. I sat up quickly and looked around. Everything was clearer, sharper, and closer. I peered between the bleachers to the football field, empty except for a grasshopper chirping loudly in my ears. I heard cars driving on the highway and voices from inside the school. Then I heard a rustle behind me, so I whirled around. I saw him and the memories came flooding back.

~ ~ ~ 

I liked him the moment I saw him standing at his locker in the hallway, surrounded by girls. He was a new student. I had been going to this school my entire life and never saw him before. He was tall with dark brown hair and piercing gray eyes. He had on his black leather jacket and jeans with holes in the knees. He looked dangerous. He was a bad boy. I had to have him. So I flirted without actually talking to him. I'd make eye contact and smile coyly. I dressed in tighter clothing. I showed more skin. Other boys became interested, but I just ignored them. I had eyes only for him: Derek. It didn't take long for him to notice me. We had a football game a week after I first saw him. That's where he made his move.

I had just arrived to the football game and was looking for my friends when I heard my name. I turned around to see who called me.

“Sierra,” Derek said. I looked into his eyes and became mesmerized.

“Yes?” I replied, my heart beating faster. He knew my name.

“Hi, I'm Derek,” he said. He wore his leather jacket again.

“Yeah, I know. I've seen you around,” I said as I flipped my blonde hair behind my shoulder.

“I've seen you around too,” he smiled, flashing his dimples at me. “So, do you want to sit together?” He motioned towards the bleachers. The game had already started, and most people had already sat down to watch the game.

“Sure,” I nodded. We found a seat next to my friends. I introduced them before turning to watch the game. My brother played quarterback on the team, so I was here to cheer him on. During the game, Derek and I chatted and flirted. At half-time, he asked if I wanted to get some food.

“Yeah, let's go,” I replied. We stood up and he nodded towards my friends.

“Do you want to come too?” he asked.

“No, I'm sure they'll be fine,” I looked pointedly at my friends, hinting at my need to be alone with Derek. They nodded their agreement and giggled as Derek and I walked away from our seats. He grabbed my hand as we walked down the bleachers. We headed towards the food stands, but suddenly he twirled me into his body and kissed me. Then he whispered in my ear.

“I've been wanting to do that since I first saw you,” he said. I no longer cared about the football game, whether or not my brother won. The only thing that mattered was Derek at that moment. We sneaked behind the bleachers and sat on the grass. He kissed me again. I let him put his hand on my thigh as the kiss deepened. Then he trailed kisses down my neck. I was enjoying the feel of him against me until he bit me.

“Ouch! I don't like that!” I complained, but he didn't stop. He sucked on my neck. Within seconds I felt dizzy. The sounds of cheering and people talking faded and the lights dimmed until everything was black. The next thing I knew, I woke up on my back staring at the stars.

~ ~ ~ 

I looked at Derek standing across from me in the dark. He moved towards me, but I stepped back and yelled, “Don't you come near me!” He just smiled at me, though he stopped walking.

“What did you do to me?” I asked. I still felt like my body was on fire, and my stomach really hurt.

“I made you into a vampire,” he shrugged his shoulders. I stared at him. I remembered the feel of his mouth biting down on my skin.

“Why?” My body started to shake.

“Because I like you,” he smiled again and walked towards me. This time I didn't stop him. He caught me as I fell, my hands clenching my stomach.

“Why does it hurt?” I cried.

“You need to feed. You need blood,” he replied. He held me against him.

“No! That's gross!” I yanked my body away, but my stomach had me doubling over in pain.

“Here, take a little of mine.” Derek bit his wrist, then he offered it to me as blood dripped down his arm. “Hurry, it'll heal soon.”

I turned my head away, but he put his wrist to my mouth and forced me to drink it. I felt a pain in my gums as two teeth began to sharpen. The smell of his blood was intoxicating. It didn't matter that he was offering the blood he had just taken from me, altering my life forever. I sunk my teeth into his flesh and drank. The burning in my veins and the pain in my stomach abated a little, but he moved his hand away before I could satiate my hunger.

“That's enough,” he said. “It's time to hunt.” He grabbed my hand and pulled me out from the bleachers.

“Hunt?” I looked at him with confusion, but then I understood all too clear as I heard the voices again in the school, voices I couldn't have heard if I was still human. Derek dragged me towards the sound. “No!” I yelled as I yanked my hand from his.

“No?” He turned around and glared at me. “I am your owner! Your creator! You'll do as I say.” The power of his words blasted into me. I cringed. His eyes softened. “We'll deal with our relationship later, but if you don't eat, you'll feel excruciating pain, then death. So come on.” He held his hand out towards me. I hesitated, but as I felt the gnawing hunger return to my belly, I decided to take his hand.

We walked into the school towards the voices. Soon we saw two janitors. One man mopped the floor as the other leaned against the wall, a cigarette lit in his mouth. They never saw us. One second Derek stood next to me, the next he had his hands wrapped around the neck of the man with the mop. A loud snap resonated through the hall, and the cigarette fell from the other man's open mouth. Before he could scream, Derek broke his neck too. He turned towards me.

“Couldn't you just have hypnotized them or wiped their memories afterward?” I asked. I stared down at the lifeless bodies.

“Yes, but it's easier this way for your first time. There will be no survivors today,” he replied. He knelt down and bit into the smoker's neck, drinking his blood. He paused and lifted his head. He looked me in the eye and said, “Except you.”

“Now eat,” he commanded me. He waved his hand towards the other janitor. His power washed over me again, and I felt compelled to walk towards the body. I felt my vampire teeth against my tongue as the smell of blood filled my nose. I bit into the man's neck and hungrily drank his blood. The sound of mouths sucking on flesh filled the otherwise empty hallway.

100 words a day (September 24 - 30, 2011)

This is the final week of September's batch of 100 words a day. You can find my entire batch here: http://100words.com/member/9692/154.


09/24

Stream of consciousness, easily used when one can't think of something specific to write about. However, stream of consciousness tends to be erratic and doesn't often make sense in the long run. But one cannot be picky when one is having a hard time thinking of anything to write about. It seems that the void in my head has not closed, but I will fix that hole brick by brick, word by word, until the void is gone. In its place will be a fire spewing out sentences and paragraphs until stories and poetry will be etched in the flames.

09/25 

I dreamed that I lived in a dorm, and I wanted to get a shower. I grabbed my shampoo, soap, clothes, and other toiletry and walked to the community shower. I put my stuff in the bathroom; then, realizing I had forgotten something, I went back to my dorm room. When I returned to the shower, the door was locked and I couldn't get my stuff. Though a community bathroom, it only had one shower. For the next hour, I kept going back and forth from my bedroom to the bathroom in frustration and anger because the door remained locked.

09/26 

Dear Mom,

As you hold this postcard in your palm,

Here I am in Germany

Wishing you were here with me.

The weather has gotten cold.

The leaves have turned red, orange, and gold.

Right now Oktoberfest is the place to go,

But alas, this year we must say no.

Instead we'll enjoy the Frankenstein Castle

Where ghosts and vampires will be a hassle.

Every room will be a fright.

I'm sure I'll scream with all my might.

I still can't wait to go to Italy,

So many places I want to see.


I hope you visit soon.

Love,

Candace

09/27 

The young boy threw a rock into the lake. It plopped into the water, forming ripples from the impact.

"Here, l'll show you. Like this," his older brother said. He threw a rock, and it skipped across the lake four times.

"Wow," the younger brother said. "Let me try again!" He picked up a small rock from the ground and threw it into the lake, but it landed only a short distance away from where they stood. His face fell in disappointment. "I can't do it!" he complained.

"Yes you can," his older brother replied. "You just need to practice."

09/28 

Gurgling, growling, pinching, pulling, queasy, incessant pain. Nausea. My stomach has become a stranger to me. I don't know how to satisfy it. What's too much food? What's too little food? How long do I wait to feed it? When am I even hungry anymore? My mind has been reduced to just feeling the pain. All other thoughts flew away when my stomach took over. I had hoped to avoid this stage, but my stomach had other plans for me. And to spite me for hoping against nausea, my stomach decided to give nausea to me all day long. Pregnancy.

09/29

Two boys stand outside a dilapidated home. They talk in whispers about the old man who lives there, rumored to lure children into the house on Halloween with candy only to capture them and eat them. One of the boys does not believe the rumors, so the other dares him to knock on the house for candy on Halloween. He takes the dare, but only on the condition that they both go in the house. So they knock on the door. The old man answers and beckons them in for candy. They both go in, but only one comes out.

09/30 

Ginger ale has become my new best friend. So have ginger snap cookies. Finally, I found something that helps even a little bit with my nausea. Peppermint made it so much worse. Dry foods like crackers and pretzels don't really do much for me. Since I started drinking ginger ale, I can actually tell when I'm hungry. The angry pit of my stomach isn't hiding my hunger pains anymore. So that's good. I hope it gets even better so I can concentrate on my writings and on housework. I have better things to do than curl into a tight ball.

One-Minute Writings (9/25/11 to 10/1/2011)

9/25/2011

One Word - "pressed"

The train didn’t stop. The conductor didn’t see it. Already too late, the train just kept moving along, leaving behind a pressed, flat penny on the rails.


The One-Minute Writer - I am going to be the next great...

I'm going to be the next great friend to someone in my future.


9/26/011

One Word - "evidence"

The evidence before their eyes, they had no doubt the husband killed his wife. The cops had walked in on the husband still holding the knife as he knelt at his wife’s dead body. Still, they had to do a proper investigation or risk letting him go free on a technicality.

The One-Minute Writer - Write about a messy area in your home, workplace, or life.

My computer desk used to be tidy. I could move my arms around comfortably and not hit anything. However, for the last month or so, my desk has been collecting items upon items until I can barely see the light-colored wood of the desk and my arm space has become limited to the area in front of my keyboard. It's pretty bad when my husband can say his desk is cleaner than mine.


9/27/2011

One Word - "playground"

The two children ran to the playground. The youngest girl immediately ran to the swings and held her arms up for her mom to lift her. Then she squealed in delight as her mom pushed her gently on the swings. She wanted to go higher and higher until she felt she was flying in the bright blue sky.


9/28/2011

One Word - "dense"

She walked through the dense trees in the forest, following behind her father who looked for the gorilla that had killed his wife last Spring.

The One-Minute Writer - Write briefly about one thing in your life that is simple, and one that is complex.

In my life, living day to day is simple, but dealing with a first-time pregnancy is complex.


9/29/2011


One Word - "half"

I love being married to a man who views the glass as half full, especially since I tended to look at it as half empty. He knows everything will turn out okay, and so far he’s been right.


The One-Minute Writer - Write about a line you won't cross in your profession.

As a writer, I will not plagiarize, at least not intentionally. As an editor, I will not change the author's voice.


9/30/2011

One Word - "romantic"

He led me to our table with a candlelight setting and a bottle of wine. He pulled out my chair for me, and waited for me to be seated. He kissed my hand, then sat in his chair before pouring me some of my favorite wine. It looked to be a romantic evening with my husband, a delightful treat with our three children at home with the babysitter.

The One-Minute Writer - Write a brief bit of fiction using the prompt, "Month."

The month of September has ended,
But please don't be offended.
October is here.
Thanksgiving is near
And Christmas soon thereafter.

10/1/2011

One Word - "braid"

My mom used to brush my hair for me when I was a child. Sometimes she’d braid it. I loved the feel of the brush against my scalp and her hands in my hair. Now that I’m older, I brush her hair instead.