Unreal.
That’s the only word I can think of to explain the way I feel.
Slowly I stretch my arms out in front of me and touch my skin, examining the strange texture of it. It is no longer is the warm, dry smoothness that I am used to; now it is cold, soft but slightly rubber-like, the type of skin that only belongs to one type of person…
A dead one.
I throw the sheets off, pull myself to the side of the bed and turn my standing mirror towards me.
My god…I have no idea who I’m looking at!
What I do see looking back at me is a pale-as-a-ghost, half-naked, confused, twenty-five year old, re-animated dead man.
“Jeeeezzzus Christ man, look what he did to you.” I think to myself as I touch my face, sending a cold chill down my spine.
“This…is so not natural!”
I run my hands through my knotted hair and look at the new, slightly altered (and I use that term very loosely) me; feeling like everything and nothing at all at the same time. It is going to take some getting used to, you know, being the living dead and all, and seeing as I really didn’t have much of a choice anyway. Confused as to my next step? Most definitely, and now I find myself just sitting here, staring at the blood-stained sheets by my feet, as the memories slowly start creeping back to me of that unforgettable night at that Bar I worked at and all the following strange events that led up to my unholy demise.
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See, I lived in the Bronx; and the thing about living in that part of New York is that if you’re not too much of the social type, it can be a sickeningly lonely place, and it is so easy to get lost in the myriad of tall buildings and people of all shapes and sizes that littered the streets Twenty-four hours a day.
The Essay on Fferent Types Of Bridges
The quest for travel has always been one that man has tried to conquer. First, he traveled on foot, and then developed methods of transportation such as boats, but one of the first obstacles that he had to overcome was getting across rivers, waterways, and canals. Today, bridges have become a part of everyday life; hence without them, people would have a much more difficult time going from one ...
I myself was a lonely man, with nowhere in particular to go except The Big Chugg Bar where I worked as a bartender every night except Wednesdays and Sundays.
My routine life was really beginning to get to me, but really, there was nothing much I could do about it. I’d sleep from 7:00 a.m ‘till 4:00 p.m, exercise, get down to the bar by 5:30 p.m, work from 6:00 p.m ‘till 5:00 a.m, go home, lie on my couch, eat a Hot-Pocket and eventually let the T.V. watch me while I had one of my countless nightmares about me being attacked and killed by Monsters that looked like greasy food.
But it was that one particular night; when business was unusually slow and I was even thinking about groveling for permission to leave out early, that the ‘man’ in question sauntered through the door.
He was a little over six feet tall with long, nut-brown hair, which was mostly thrown about his head so that it hung in his face. He had that ‘Sunglasses-at-night’ thing going on which complimented his Black Leather Jacket, Black Buttoned Shirt and Worn, Dark Blue Jeans.
At first I didn’t even give him a second glance; deciding only to throw him a ‘Need anything?’ without looking up from my newspaper, but after about twenty seconds and no response I looked up to see if this guy heard me. What met me instead, was the spookiest pair of eyes I had ever seen in my entire life, staring straight at me from over the shiny pair of designer Shades. Within about three seconds they changed from an icy blue to bright silver with the luminescence of a small flashlight.
Now, my first impulse was to just fuckin’ split before this dude turned into the Antichrist and try to suck my brain out through my ear or something; but he held me with his stare, I mean really held me…no matter how much I tried, I just could not move!
“Don’t be afraid of me, Jordan Lee Miller.” He said slowly, in a calm, smooth, deep but subtly stern voice.
“Too late.” I managed to whisper in reply, feeling like I was about to pee my pants.
The Essay on The Glass Menagerie 8
THE GLASS MENAGERIE The rules about raising children are the most sacred of all rules. They are authenticated by religious teaching and reinforced in our school systems. Our families are the places where we have our source relationships. Families are where we first learn about ourselves in the mirroring eyes of our parents, where we see ourselves for the first time. In families we learn about ...
“What is he…and exactly how in hot hell did he know my name?” I began to wonder if maybe he was one of my cousins from out of town that my folks hated talking about. They always used to say they were Hell-spawn.
“I know your name…among other things…because your mind is easy to read. As I said, don’t be afraid of me Jordan; I like you, and I only want to be your friend.”
“Why me?” I asked, unable to even move my finger.
“Why not you?” He laughed taking his glasses off to reveal a very pale, but very good-looking man with a demon’s eyes and an angel’s warm smile plastered on his slightly gaunt face. Suddenly all the initial fear I had began to drain away and I felt my body relax in his eerie grasp.
“So I take it that you won’t run away from me then?” He said, maintaining his smile.
“Alright, I give up. Just release me for Christ’s sake!”
The abruptness with which he released me from his ‘power’ subsequently caused me to fall squarely into a basin full of drinking glasses on the floor.
“You really mustn’t be so resistant; you might lose your balance.”
He looked at me from over the counter.
“Miller! You Dumb-Ass! What’ve you done this time?” That infernal raspy shout always gave me a headache.
“It wasn’t my fault!” I shouted back.
The back door opened and out came my bald, fat, sweaty, ugly excuse for a boss, Mr. Pennuch, in his worn Hawaiian T-shirt.
“Look Miller, I barely make enough money as it is to have your clumsy ass fallin’ all over my stuff, alright?”
“But boss, it really wasn’t my fault! This guy here shoved me!” I pleaded, pointing a shaky finger to my right.
Mr. Pennuch glanced to my right, then back at me. “Look kid, I’m figurin’ that this is either one of two things; either you’re lyin’ to me or you’re just fuckin’ delusional, okay?”
I then turned around to find that my new…god-knows-what, had taken the opportunity to make like Scarlet and be gone with the wind.
“Look boss, I’m not lying alright? There was a guy right there but he musta split when he heard you coming.”
Pennuch sighed. “Miller, you know and I know that you’re my sometimes favorite employee, but no matter what just happened here, them glasses is comin’ outa your pay, understand?”
The Term Paper on Arthur Miller And His Distorted Historical Accuracies
In 1953, Arthur Miller wrote his famous play The Crucible, in response to a fear of Communism that had developed in the United States during that decade. The Red Scare, as it was later called by historians was led by Senator Joseph McCarthy, whose paranoia of a communist takeover spread through the nation like a wildfire. Men and women alike fell victim to McCarthys pointed finger and as a result ...
“Yeah boss.”
My slave driver/boss gave a huge yawn and reached over to pour himself a beer. “This place is beginnin’ to look like my final restin’ place…
I’m lockin’ up early.”
“I’ll lock up for you boss.”
“Nah, I got it, so…do me a big favor and just…make like a tree and split huh?”
“Umm boss, it’s, make like a banana and spli…”
“Fuck off and go home, Miller.”
And with that, Pennuch returned lazily to the back room.
“That was a close one Jordan.”
I spun around to discover that my new creepy friend had unfortunately reappeared.
“I have returned to give you a proper goodbye, and to tell you that I do intend to see you again. I’ve been watching you for quite a little while and you really do interest me very, very much. I…I will tell you about me when next we meet…either here or…at your apartment maybe? I’ll see you soon.”
“Hey wait a goddamn minute! When next we meet? What…” but I was interrupted by the reemerging of Pennuch.
“What Miller, you plannin’ on stayin’ here till tomorrow night?”
“No boss.” I muttered, reaching for my things; but I didn’t even bother to look around for the lab test reject, I knew he was probably already long gone.
About two paranoia-filled days passed and I began to think that ‘Spooky-eyes’ must’ve just either changed his mind or found some other sucker to amuse himself with. I had decided to take the opportunity, seeing as it was Sunday, to visit my sister’s family. See my folks died a couple months ago, so my roaming Aunt Jennifer, my big sister Sandy and her two kids was pretty much the only family I had left; but then with the gracious help of the father of her children, poor Sandy had spiraled helplessly into one heck of a nervous breakdown, which ended up with her being placed in an institution.
Just before she went there, she made me promise that I would visit her kids as much as possible; both of us knowing full well that their father Bobby had the tendency to be very unpredictable sometimes and she feared with all her heart the fact that they were there alone with him.
The Essay on Romeo Juliet Honour Family Don
How is honour the driving force with the texts The Godfather and Romeo & Juliet? The Godfather and Romeo & Juliet are complex texts which the readers of them barely see pass their superficial meanings. The Godfather on the surface is about the mafia underworld in the Italian American underworld, however underneath the facade it is also a fantastical tale of many types of honour. Romeo and ...
I agreed with her…I really didn’t trust the stinkin’ pile a bit myself.
My best friend Laney had a name for him…what was it? Oh yeah, ‘Son of a diseased Mule’.
Yup, I can see his picture under that title.
Anyway so, a little after three in the afternoon, I took a train to Manhattan, bought a stuffed toy and a remote-controlled car, and then slowly made my way to see the only remnants of family I had left.
I loved Millie & Mark, they were the type of kids that I wanted to have in the future; that is if I had one.
But I was worried, worried that their father was going to ruin the bright future that they had ahead of them. I just didn’t want them to end up the same way I did, tired, broke and alone.
Even as I reached the top of the stairs, I could hear the muffled sounds of shouting and screaming coming through their apartment and down the hall.
For a long time I stood there, knocking ferociously at their door.
“Hello! Hello! Mark? Millie! It’s me, Uncle Jordan!” But between Bobby’s loud voice and Millie’s sobbing, no one was hearing me.
Finally, after about five minutes, Mark opened the door.
“Uncle J! Thank god you’re here…Dad just hit Millie!”
“Why’d he do that?”
“I dunno….I guess ‘cause she told him to leave her alone or somethin’…it don’t take much to start him up.”
After taking a deep breath, I patted Mark on the head and stepped inside to see Millie curled up in a corner and Bobby pacing and shouting hysterically in front of her, so I threw my coat down on the couch, which caught his attention. Slowly my eyes moved across the room to the two empty Vodka bottles badly hidden behind his favorite chair, then back at the hideous man in front of me. What did my sister see in him?
“Bobby…what the hell.”
Bobby glanced one last time at Millie then walked over to face me.
“Look Jordan, no offence, but this is none of your business okay? These are my damn kids. Millie’s got no respect for me.”
“Hey look man, I know Millie, and the only way she would ever do or say anything disrespectful is if you disrespected her first.”
Bobby spun around and glared at his cowering fourteen-year-old.
“Millie, tell your nosey-ass Uncle about how much you like to back-talk me!”
The Essay on Stumbling Blocks Mountain Friend Didn
While stumbling on my own path of avoiding drugs and alcohol, I began to notice others tripping and many crashing through their personal journey. Our lives consist of many cracks, blocks, and sometimes entire trenches; this mountain will always be traveled and only a few can survive the trip safely. Only six months ago I discovered that my best friend was becoming involved in drinking. It started ...
She shot a look up at Bobby.
“Don’t you even try to turn this on me, Dad…You know what you did, and I’ve never been more humiliated in all my life!”
“She doesn’t know what she’s talking about, Jordan; she’s losin’ it just like her…”
“Uncle Jordan, he came in the bathroom on me and tried to touch me!”
“Stop your goddamn lyin’!”
“I am not lying Dad, and you know it!”
“You’re just like your goddamn mother!”
That was it. I was ending this right now, because Bobby was spitting crap left, right and center.
“Look, I really need you to shut the hell up right about now. If I hear about you bothering her again I’m bringing the Police over here, and I’m gonna make sure they’re sent down to Aunt Jennifer. She smokes way too much but at least she’ll take care of ‘em better than you ever will.”
“Are you…callin’ me a bad father?”
“Well actually I was going for a Perverted Jackass, but if you wanna throw that in, sure.”
“Get the hell outa my house you little shit!” He blasted, pushing me into the wall.
A sharp pain ran up my back as he charged towards me. Implementing my reflex, I lifted my foot and gave him such a surprisingly hard kick that he went flying over the couch. As he lay there on the floor gasping for breath, I leaned over to look in his red, sweaty face.
“Stop messing with these kids Bob, you know I don’t joke when it comes to them. I’m coming back again real soon to check on things; don’t make me take them away, you got it?”
“Boohoo, I’m so scared…bitch.”
“You better be, Bob.”
And with that, I gave Mark his car and a hug, helped Millie up, gave her the stuffed toy and held her for a minute, then reluctantly left the apartment; only glancing back briefly to see Millie’s tear-stained face staring sadly back at me.
Completely depressed, I walked across the road and sat on the side of a wall. I felt so damn helpless! I didn’t want to leave them; I couldn’t stand to know that Millie would have to sleep with one eye open tonight and that pretty soon, Bobby was gonna start beating up on Mark too.
Their just kids, damn-it! I had to call Aunt Jen, if only I knew her new number or where the hell she moved to.
The Essay on Do The Right Thing
The movie Do the Right Thing, a group of people in the district of Brooklyn, have had enough and tensions are growing in this black ghetto area. The only local businesses are a Korean grocery and Sal's Pizzeria. Mookie, Sal's delivery boy, manages to always be at the center of the action. The movie Do the Right Thing is a movie about a neighborhood that suffers from lack of diversity. On a hot ...
Happy hunting to me.
That evening, as I walked through my door, I immediately sensed that someone was in my apartment. Nothing was disturbed or anything; something just…felt different. Quietly I began looking around, first in the living room, and then into the bedroom.
Instantly, I saw the figure of a man standing at my window with one hand on the glass. With sudden swiftness I grabbed the Baseball bat I had leaned up in the corner.
“Who the fuck are you and what are you doing in my house?” Slowly, the figure turned around and flashed a small smile.
“Jordan! You’re finally here.” That smooth voice and those icy eyes were all too familiar.
“You’re the…dude-thing from the Bar! How…did you find my apartment? Have you been following me?” I asked, with Baseball bat still in hand.
“Like I said when we first met, your mind is easy to read. You can put the bat down now.”
I lowered it, but I didn’t put it down. I walked across the room to face him, but I took great care not to get too close.
“Look, you’re trespassing. I’m gonna call the Police in 10 seconds if you don’t get out of here.”
“But I’m here to fulfill my promise; to tell you about myself and…what I am.”
“I don’t even wanna know what you are.”
“Let’s sit a little first before I go, shall we?” He beckoned with a smile, moving towards the living room.
As he walked out of the room, I couldn’t help but notice the faint ‘glow’ that he had around him. It wasn’t a bright glow; more like some sort of…concentrated…essence…or something that seemed to have a severe stranglehold on my curiosity.
“Oh, damn. How’d I get to be the person that this has to happen to?” I thought to myself, throwing the bat down on the bed and taking my Jacket off. “Do I have ‘sucker’ written all over me? Well…maybe I should sit and hear him out for a minute…but I don’t even wanna go near him…man…he’s a bit more freak show-like than I’m comfortable with. He’s like…a walking commercial for Clorox Bleach! It’s almost like he’s…dead or something!”
But then I remembered that I had to be careful not to think too much around him, he did say he could read minds.
Without looking away from him, I grabbed a Beer and sat down on the opposite end of the couch.
I watched him silently for about a few minutes, staring into his eyes that were reading my every expression and most likely my every thought.
“Alright then,” I said finally, “you could just…tell me your name or something.”
“My name is Victor, Victor Wilcox.”
Sighing at the realization that I really did want to know more, I decided to indulge him in some fact-finding conversation.
“So, I’ve noticed that you’re…British.”
“I have realized that you’ve noticed my accent! I thought it wasn’t very strong any more, since I’ve been in America for so long.”
“Not so strong?” I thought, “He sounds like James bloody Bond fer crying out loud!”
“There was no need to be so harsh, Jordan.”
“Huh?”
“I am referring to your comment.”
I didn’t say anything!”
“In your thoughts Jordan, in your thoughts.”
Out of quiet frustration I bit my tongue and submitted to silence, giving Victor the opportunity to continue.
“I left my friends in my hometown many years ago because I wanted to see America.”
“Uh-huh? Okay, so…how many years ago was that?”
“About a hundred and ten.”
“A…a hundred and ten years? Exactly…how old are you?”
“Two hundred and five.”
I almost laughed.
“Well! You’ve been around for a while!”
“Yes, Vampires have the tendency to do that.”
My eyes widened. “So that’s what the hell you are!”
“Why yes…your suspicions are correct.”
“It’s been said by most people that Vampires don’t exist.”
“Well, let’s hope it stays that way. I don’t like people knowing my situation…it would make things a bit more difficult.”
“Okay…so Baseball bats are redundant…are you by any chance allergic to Garlic Powder?”
Victor shook his head and smiled to himself. “Jordan, I…”
But I didn’t look up at him because I suddenly realized that an old ring I had on was turning my finger green. Painfully, I tugged at the stubborn old thing, to no avail. Victor grabbed my hand.
“Hey!!! Let me go!”
“Hold still.” And with a swift, effortless twist he slipped it off and threw it aside.
“Thanks. Hey, you’re pretty strong!” I said uneasily, trying to pull my arm away; but his cold, terribly strong hand would not let go. I made an uneasy laugh. “Victor, you…you can let go now.”
He drew me towards him.
“Look at me. Do you know the reason why I chose you?”
“Chose me? No, I don’t. Will you let me go?”
“Well allow me to explain.” He eased his grip, but…it really didn’t matter…because he held me with his spooky stare again, which had such an unwavering intensity and seriousness, that he had my attention in a headlock…and he knew it.
“I had many friends long ago, back in Britain; most of them being Vampires and the rest humans who were too afraid to defy me.
But…
there was one particular Vampire that I had held in great regard; you could well say he was one of the best friends I ever had…He was made by the same one who made me. He looked a lot like you…same blond hair…same sad blue eyes. He was a little older than I was, and we were close friends for almost ninety years; but he was quite a depressed man, so when I finally told him I was leaving for America he…didn’t take it very lightly.”
I leaned back on the couch with my face turned towards him.
“So, what happened to him?”
Victor exhaled softly.
“Unlike many of us Vampires who were able to drift through the passage of time and enjoy our existence, Rennie…or so we called him, could not. He was a depressed man when he was alive, and so after his transformation, things got only worse. I think I was the only one that would encourage him and show him how to let go of his accursed depression and just…relax. But among other things, he had a great fear of being alone. When I told him I was leaving he took it to heart; and Vampires feel emotion stronger than humans do, so after him repeatedly begging me to stay and I being steadfast in my decision, he just broke down…and soon after, in a fit of sadness and I think…insanity…he set the house that we and our friends stayed in afire and burned himself, along with 3 others, to dust.”
After a moment’s silence I sighed and ran my hand through my hair.
“That’s sad man. But why didn’t you ask him to come with you or something?”
“I did, but he wanted to stay where he was…he hated traveling.”
“It must be tough having that on your conscience.”
“Oh, it doesn’t bother me much these days…after over a hundred years…I think I’ve had enough time to get over it. But it’s been so very long since I’ve had a friend Jordan, and I’ve sifted though your mind and have seen qualities in you that I like very much.”
“Like what?”
“Like Rennie was, I see that you are for the most part, honest, sincere, dependable…and something else that I…can’t quite explain.”
“Depressed, maybe?”
“No…I’m afraid you don’t hold a candle to him in that department.”
“Fine…is that all?”
“Oh, and also, you look like someone I could have lots of great adventures with.”
“It’s as simple as that huh? Well, as creepy as that sounds…ahh, whatever.”
There were other things I wanted to ask, but then I decided not to drag on the conversation. I guess if you’re going to live forever, you’re gonna need a least one good friend…plus anyway, two hundred years of living death (half of which was devoid of any friends), would probably make someone pretty damn desperate…and eccentric.
Then my mind ran on my best friend Laney. “Why hasn’t she called? She was supposed to tell me if she got the restraining order for her ex-boyfriend.”
“Talk to me about this ‘Laney’. You seem to constantly have her in your thoughts.”
“Will you stop reading me? If I wanted you to know something, I’ll tell you!”
“Sorry, I can’t help it.” As he smiled I noticed two small, sharp teeth of death peeping out from under his upper lip.
I quickly slid out of the couch and was about to go get another drink of something, when the phone started to ring. I turned to look at Victor, and then picked it up.
“Hello?”
“Hi, it’s me, Laney. I got it man; I got the restraining order!”
“That’s good! That’s very good! So maybe now he’ll come beat me up instead of you for a change, huh?”
“No! Well, I don’t think so. Anyway, we gotta talk, so when can I come over?”
“Not…right now, come by later.”
“I gotta go somewhere later. But why can’t I come now? Who’ve you got over there? Someone of the sexy, feminine nature I hope?”
“Why…yes Laney. As a matter of a fact, when I get off the phone I’ll be joining her on my living room floor where we’ll have a hot, sweaty hour of oral sex; after which, we’ll join up with five of her friends and spend about four hours having Wine, Chocolate and an Orgy. Care to join?”
“Uhhh…are you serious?”
Victor, who was watching and listening intently, literally lit up like a bulb when I said that to her.
“God woman, you are so gullible.”
“And you’re so sad, Jordan. When are you going to get a girlfriend?”
“How do you know I even like girls anymore?”
“Say what?”
I laughed. “You know what, forget I said anything. Now come on, go away, I have a guest to get back to.”
“Do you or do you not have a girl over there?”
“No! Will you go away? I’ll call you later!”
“Fine! Snappy tonight, aren’t we? Later.”
I hung up and looked at Victor, who had an interesting smile on his face.
“I want to see Laney in person.”
“No you don’t. But you’re going to have to go now, ‘because I need to make a few calls.”
“But I don’t want to leave yet.”
“Well, tough. Come on, I’ll walk you to the door. Do…Vampires…use doors?”
“We will talk another time then, my new friend.”
I picked up the phone book and turned around to find that the immortal Brit had completely disappeared.
“How does he do that?” I exclaimed with a sigh.
I felt like I was going crazy. I just had a conversation with a Vampire.
A Vampire!
“I gotta pull myself together. Christ, the kids…need to find Aunt Jen…”
I locked up tightly, steadied my thoughts, threw myself on the couch and started to flip through the Yellow Pages for my Aunt Jennifer’s new number.
Ages and a couple wrong numbers later, I finally reached her. She must’ve reamed me for about twenty minutes for not calling her all this time, but I did eventually manage to cut in and tell her with much detail, the situation with Mark, Millie and their father.
“So what exactly do you want me to do J?” She had asked me, “You haven’t called me in a year and a half, and now you want me to take care of two children? I can’t just march in and take them away now can I?”
“We both know those kids deserve better, and things like these tend to escalate after a while, so if things get any worse…we’ll probably have to take it to court or something…and I’d love to know that they won’t get split up and sent away.”
“Alright…but why don’t you be their guardian?”
“I am in no position for that and you know it!”
“Oh, fine then J. Look, just…call me if anything else happens, alright?”
“I knew I could count on you. I’ll see you later Aunt Jen.”
Well, since that was taken care of, I could finally get some rest. I really wasn’t used to going to bed at 8:00 p.m., but my tense back was telling me otherwise. With considerable effort I took my clothes off, took a quick shower and slipped into bed without even bothering to put any back on.
As I laid there with my aching body brushing against the soft, cotton sheets; I began remembering what it felt like to have someone curled up beside me. I could almost feel the sensations that the naked, inviting body of a loving woman gave me.
I missed my last girlfriend Janine. I was with her for seven years…till she died.
“Janine & Jordan, will they ever break up?” Everyone used to say.
Janine and I loved each other deeply, though we had a lot of little problems back then…but no one had any idea about her reoccurring drug habit.
I had often cursed myself bitterly for fighting with her as harshly as I did that last terrible night; for pushing her around like I did…for saying what I said and letting her run away crying into the street and straight in front of a speeding car a few blocks away.
She was doing drugs with some naked guy in our bed!
Still, what hurt me the most is that her death wasn’t exactly quick and painless.
She had stayed for more than an hour in the emergency room…suffering…while the doctors worked on her relentlessly, until her body finally gave in to the damage.
I shouldn’t have fought with her, or even so, I shouldn’t have let her run away like that! I still didn’t know if I could ever forgive myself for acting like such a violent idiot…I mean, despite the circumstances.
But hey…she was doing drugs with some naked guy in our bed!
“I’ve lost so much in my life…my folks, my girl, my mind…maybe I should be locked away too…just like my poor sister.”
For a little while, I was lost in the remembrance of bliss and tragedy; then I glanced over at my window just in time to see the shadow of someone swiftly move away. “That figure looked familiar.” I mumbled to myself, getting up and running to check out the fire escape. I looked down to see the person, who had already reached the sidewalk and was heading across the street, stop briefly to look at me.
Those goddamn eyes. It was none other than ‘The spy who annoyed me’…Victor.
“So you’re peepin’ in on me now!” I thought as loudly as I could, knowing he was still reading my mind. He flashed a quick, toothy smile at me before literally disappearing into thin air.
I really wondered about him. “What was he hiding from me? Does he want something else from me other than his so-called friendship? Is he in …love with me or something? What the hell am I thinking?”
I reluctantly shook it off and decided to just go to bed, because if I started worrying over it I would never have gotten any sleep. So, with one last vision of Janine and a really sore back, I rolled over on the bed and at last, drifted off to painless dreamland.
The next two days were pretty hectic down at the bar, which was odd since it was a Monday & Tuesday. But those two packed days were not without their minor disturbances and altercations. Unfortunately, many of those altercations had to be dealt with by me, yes, the Bartender/Bouncer…I had managed to receive over a dozen more bruises to my already sore back, my arms, my stomach, my head and wherever else they could get to. But it was the Tuesday night at around 11:15, after about the sixth fight, that I decided that enough was enough.
I slipped swiftly through the crowd at the bar and went in the back room.
“Boss.” I whispered, touching the sleeping mass of cellulite. “Boss, wake up!” Mr. Pennuch snorted and flew up with a start.
“Whaddaya want, Miller?” He growled, rubbing his eyes and coughing. “The place is packed boss! How can you sleep through all of this? Look, I can’t take this any more. I’ve already had to part six or seven fights, all of which would not end before I got beat up. Larry said he’ll take over for me, so I’m leaving.”
“Like hell you are! You’re stayin’ Miller, and you’re not leavin’ ‘till closin’ time!” By this time I was getting really desperate. “Boss, I’m hurting so much, I don’t know how much longer I can stand up! Please, at least give me a little break!”
The sweaty whale thought hard for a minute, looked at the crowd outside then back at me. “One hour, Miller! Then you get right back behind that bar, you hear?”
“Yeah…thanks boss.” Then I left as quickly as I could before he changed his mind.
I moved quietly through the crowd and towards the door avoiding as best I could the men I had just finished fighting off, but as soon as I was out the door I walked right smack into one particularly large man who was still pretty drunk and angry.
“HEY!” he said rather loudly, grabbing on to my hand. “Aren’t you tha’ guy that pushed me into tha’ table?” His speech was severely drawled and his breath stank.
“No, you must be mistaken.” I replied as calmly as I could.
“Naa…I…remember you!” And with that, he literally picked me up off the ground.
“You’re goin’ in tha’ garbage where you belong, fucker…”
As he was about to introduce me to the large metal garbage can in the corner, I was hauled out of the giant’s hands by someone really, really strong. When I hit the ground and looked up, all I could see was the big guy, flying through the air, bouncing off the wall and into the same garbage can he was about to make me kiss.
Victor walked over to me with an outstretched hand.
“Why were you about to let that man toss you away like rubbish?”
I pulled myself up by his hand and brushed myself off.
“Well, read my mind and find out for yourself. What are you doing here anyway? Why are you stalking me?”
“I just came to see you, so we can talk some more.”
“Well…okay, but let’s go somewhere where no one wants to kill or hurt me, alright?”
“An excellent idea.”
So we walked two long blocks down then climbed to the roof of an old, abandoned building. We wandered around in silence a little, then made ourselves comfortable on a ledge and looked over at the city. I must’ve looked at him for a while, hoping that he’d see that I was waiting for him to start talking.
“What did you want to say to me now?” I eventually asked, losing patience.
“Isn’t this a great night?”
“Is that what you wanted to tell me?”
“It’s quite bright tonight, you can see out for miles.”
“Cut the crap Mr. Victor, tell me what you want to tell me!”
“I want you to…hang out with me…on a more permanent basis.”
“What?”
“I want you to be what I am.”
“You’re…shittin’ me, right?”
“No. I was afraid to tell you when last we met.”
“You have got to be kidding me! You want me to be a Vampire? Like you?”
“Well that’s…what I am.”
“No…No! No Victor, no way.”
“At least think about it.”
“No deal. And guess what? I’m leaving now!” So I climbed off the ledge and headed towards the stairs.
“Wait Jordan, Don’t be angry!” But I left with no reply. I could not believe what he just asked me. “So the Pale Avenger’s suddenly in need of a sidekick!”
When I reached the bottom of the building I looked at my watch.
“Aww man! I gotta be back at the bar in ten minutes!” And with that I ran top speed towards my prison.
“Miller!” My boss blared over the crowd as I ran in. “Get your ass behind that bar and help Larry out! You’re two minutes late!”
Someone tapped me on the shoulder; it was Victor…again. This man was really beginning to get on my nerves.
“The last thing I want you to be is angry at me, so just forget I said anything about it, alright?” I marched through the crowd towards the bar. “Please understand.” He whispered, walking very close behind me.
“I hear you…now just leave me alone…I’m too messed up to even think.” And that was my final reply before warily going back behind the bar to tackle the noisy crowd of beer drinkers and assholes.
Later on that morning on my way home, I began thinking about Victor’s offer. “So that’s what he really wants,” I thought, “a partner for eternity. I don’t wanna live forever! I think. Why does he feel that I really want to spend the next couple of centuries looking at his British ass…I mean face…every night?”
But I must admit, the thought of immortality did appeal to me somewhat; but what didn’t appeal to me was the killing part. “I definitely didn’t wanna kill anybody! I’m not that kind of guy. And besides, I couldn’t bear to leave this life without knowing that my best friend and my family were gonna be alright. Okay, even if I did take the offer, what would I do? Sit around and watch the world deteriorate? Travel? Take up a second language?”
I was conflicted.
“Here I am, finally being given a chance to get away from this goddamn life, and now I wanted to stay in it? Was I going mental?”
I was asking myself too many questions that I couldn’t answer in my current position; so I figured the best thing to do was to go home and sleep on it.
Yeah, like I don’t usually do that anyway.
Later on that Wednesday morning, (my day off as you may remember), I was rudely awakened by the monotonous ringing of the phone. I wildly grabbed at it, and it fell, but I managed to catch the receiver in time.
“What?” I barked.
“Good morning my sleepy bartender, it’s Laney. So I was wondering… could I come over today?”
“Huh…for what?”
“What do you mean, for what? To talk about my most recent order of freedom, you know, from the Budding Psycho Killer?”
“Oh yeah, sorry, I’m still half-asleep. Alright, but come in the evening though, ‘cause I’m exhausted.”
“Fine, see you later then, oh nocturnal one.”
I Hung up the phone and lay back down. “Oh, if she only knew how nocturnal I might just get, she’ll probably flip!”
I didn’t sleep for much longer than that, so I got up and put a Burrito in the microwave. That was my type of food you see, I didn’t eat anything that didn’t take more than four minutes to make. I spent the rest of the morning and into the afternoon watching T.V and thinking. I then decided to take the opportunity and check up on Millie & Mark.
Mark answered the phone. “Hey Uncle J, I miss you.”
His voice was low and feeble. “What’s wrong Mark? You don’t sound too hot.”
“Dad’s getting worse. He keeps hitting Millie all the time and calling her names, and he pushed me down today for not taking my stupid car out of the kitchen. When are you gonna take us away from him? I wanna leave! When are you coming back?”
That was it man, I was gonna murder him. Apparently he’d forgotten what took place the last time I was there! I looked at my watch.
“I’ll be there in about an hour, alright?”
“Uh-huh, but hurry up and come quick…because I think he’s going to start up on her again real soon, ‘cus she hasn’t washed the dirty plates yet…and y’know…like, anything makes him crazy.”
I showered, brushed my teeth, flung some clothes on and jumped on the train to Manhattan.
On reaching the apartment door, I wasted no time in knocking it to pieces.
“Mark, it’s your uncle! Open the door!”
Mark opened up. “He’s in her bedroom! I don’t know what he’s doing, but I heard Millie crying!” Even as he spoke, I was running across the living room towards the bedroom door. I banged hard.
“Open the door Bob; I know you’re in there!”
No answer.
I told Mark to stand back as I began kicking the door down as hard as I could, feeling the sharp pains traveling up my leg to my tired back as I kicked harder and harder. Bobby’s fierce, muffled shouting and Millie’s weak whimpering literally sent my testosterone level through the roof.
“Get outa my house Jordan!” Was Bobby’s raspy reply before the lock broke free. I ran in and literally pounced on him, but he pushed me off and I landed on a lamp which made my back reach a whole new level of pain.
“Why are…fuck…why are you in my house again, huh? Why can’t you leave me be?”
He was terribly drunk.
“Why were you touching Millie?”
“None of your…goddamn business…” I grabbed him and backed him into a corner.
“Oh, but it is my business Bob, so it has always been and so it always will be. Do you recall what I said the last time I came by? Well…I meant it. I’m taking your fat ass to court and get these kids away from you, Jackass.”
Mark ran over to hold his sobbing, defiled sister. I glanced over at Millie for a moment and gave a slight wince at the black-and-blue bruises on her face and body. “Jesus, Bob…you’re gonna pay for this.”
As I turned back around to grab him, he tried to swing a hit at me, but I ducked and slammed him hard into the wall. “Feel that pain in your back, fucker? I’ve been feeling that times ten for the past few days since you did that to me! Now shut up and stay put.”
At first I thought of calling the Police…but I’m not exactly sure why I decided not to.
I reached for the phone and called Aunt Jennifer.
“Aunt Jen, its Jordan.”
“What’s wrong now?”
“Could you get over to Mark & Millie’s place please? Certain problems have developed…bigones.” I lost balance and grabbed at the big mirror, which fell on the floor.
“Oh no. I’ll be there as soon as I can!”
I threw the phone down and started towards a dazed Bobby in the corner. He looked up at me, then picked up a small trash bin and threw it at my face. As I tried to dodge it, he got up and ran top speed for the front door.
It was definitely a heck of a chase as I sped after him out the apartment, passed the ranting Spanish lady from next door, down the stairs, outside and down the road, but…alas, I lost him at the bottom of the street.
As I stood there out of breath, someone jumped off the side of a building and landed beside me.
“I saw everything; I even saw what he was about to do to her.”
“Victor…for tha’ love a’ pete, will you stop following me?”
“Those children are your niece and nephew.”
“Stop acting like you don’t already know.”
“I had a wife and children once, and I would never even think of doing that to my daughter.”
“I didn’t know you were married?”
“Well…I was, forever ago. What do you want me to do with him then?”
“You can make a meal outa him for all I care; I’m going back to the apartment to wait for my Aunt.”
“Whatever you say, Jordan.”
“I’ll see ya later, Batman.” I coughed out, patting him on the back.
For a moment as he looked at me, his eyes flashed a strange, faint glow. I felt extremely funny at first; almost loosing my balance, but only for a brief moment before my vision settled.
“Victor…”
But he was gone, yet again.
About thirty to forty minutes after I returned, Aunt Jennifer, followed by a thick trail of cigarette smoke, finally walked in. She hugged the kids half to death, and then helped them pack some stuff.
“Where’d Bobby go, J?” she asked, helping Millie with her jacket.
“I don’t know, he just…ran off and disappeared.”
“Well, I hope he doesn’t come back, it would be a lot easier for everyone.”
As if sensing something, Mark came over to me and held my hand.
“Are you alright?”
“Yeah, I’m cool kid.”
But, I wasn’t…That funny feeling was coming back stronger than before, and it was making me dizzy. I looked at my watch.
“It’s after Nine… you’re tired and beat up. You should go home.” Millie whispered, holding me to keep me from falling.
They helped me to Aunt Jennifer’s car, and after going through a half-hour of traffic and enough cigarette smoke to kill a small cat, we pulled up at my apartment building.
“Uh, Uncle Jordan, do you need any help getting up?” Millie asked in a soft, shaky voice.
“No…I’m fine Sweetpea. Aunt Jen’s gonna take you to the Hospital now. I’ll see you guys later…be good.”
I watched them drive off before making my way upstairs. I had to do that so they wouldn’t see how really messed-up I was.
Man was I feelin’ bad! My eyesight kept blurring-up and coming back and my stomach felt like I had just finished a two-hour rollercoaster marathon. I crawled slowly up the stairs and stumbled down the hall; and after trying my key in one or two wrong doors, I was finally able to get into my apartment, make a dash to the bathroom and puke for three whole minutes.
I must’ve sat there in front of the toilet staring at my own throw-up for good long while. When the stench eventually became too unbearable I got up, washed my face and weakly made my way to the living room; collapsing on the rug.
“Hey man, you look bad. What happened?” I looked up. Laney, who was curled up on the couch the entire time, looked down at me with a tear-stained face.
“Laney…what happened to you?” I said after a moment’s silence.
“Bruno violated the Restraining order. He…came to my house while I went for some groceries, and when I came back…he…grabbed me from behind…he tied me down and threatened me.”
“Oh, shit.” I murmured, rolling over on my stomach, which just made my head hurt.
“He…smacked me around for a while…threatened to kill me for placing an order against him. I think…he probably would have done something else to me, but it seemed like he suddenly developed a conscience…so he untied me and left.”
“Jesus! Didn’t you call the police?”
“Yeah, I even went down and made a report. They’re out searching for him now.”
A sudden silence consumed the room. Laney leaned her head back on the couch and made a small, strained sigh. “Do you hear the silence? My mom used to say that it meant that an angel was passing over. Do you believe that, Jordan?”
“I don’t know what to believe anymore.”
A single tear rolled down Laney’s cheek.
“I’m scared, Jordan.”
“Don’t worry Laney, if…if the Police don’t do something…I will.”
“What do you mean? What are you gonna do?”
“Just trust me on this, okay? I’ll tell you soon. Just take it easy and get some sleep. Did you put something on that shiner?”
“I had some Ice on it for a while and I took a couple of aspirins. I’ve found…that if I just don’t blink, it won’t hurt as much.
I managed a short, painful laugh before rolling over to sit up.
“By the way…where’d you get my house key?”
“You gave one to me about a month ago, remember?”
“Oh, yeah. Hey…look, there’s something I gotta tell you Laney, something about a very unusual person I met recently.”
“Oh, you mean the Vampire?”
My heart stopped.
“Wh…what?”
“I know about him. I talked to him a little before you came.”
I couldn’t believe it. Victor actually talked to her! He had some nerve.
“You seem really calm for someone who’s just seen a Vampire for the first time in their life…weren’t you at least a bit shocked?”
Laney chuckled then held her face in pain.
“Well…” She shifted herself to ease the cramp in her abdomen. “I was more than a bit shocked when he climbed in through the window a little while ago.”
“Yup, that sounds like him alright.”
“Anyway, I was scared shitless for about a minute. But he did something to me, somethin’ that made me calm down really fast.”
“I know exactly what you’re talking about Laney…he did it to me too…that is some freaky shit!”
“Hey, he’s an actual real-life bloodsucker…which is mind-blowing enough, but…once you get over that, he’s not all that bad!”
“You’re unbelievable, you know that?”
“Well…he told me how you both met and stuff, and about where he’s from, and that he’d asked you to be a Vampire like him but because he asked you that, you got upset with him, but he says you’re still thinking about it though.”
I was about to ask her how he knew that I was still thinking about it, but then I remembered that he spies on me.
“Like I said before, you are really handling this well!”
“Yeah, I’m talkin’ about a Vampire like I always knew they existed. Aren’t you proud of me? Oh, and even though he never said it, I think he kinda likes you.”
“Yeah, we’ve actually become friends.”
“No…I mean…he kinda likes, likes you.
Silence again.
Naaa, he…” I paused.
“He doesn’t like…” I paused again.
“Oh shit. No frickin’ way!”
“Yeah man, at least…I dunno…hey, I could be wrong! Heeey, calm down! I’m just messing with you.”
“You better be, cuz if that’s true…that would not be good.”
A sudden severe weakness overtook me and my headache started to get worse, but I still managed to crawl over beside Laney and hug her.
“I am so weak. I need to go to bed. Do you want the bed or the couch…or maybe you could…share…my bed?”
“What? ‘Mr. Jordan’ attempts to re-affirm his manly-ness? Well, I could share…the bed…or maybe I could just save you the torture of helplessly looking at tits and not being able to touch them…and just go home.”
“No you’re not! No way, not with that Mutated Crotch running around.”
“Yeah you’re right. On second thought, I’ll take the couch, I hate beds. Besides, I don’t wanna be giving you blue-nuts on top of all that discomfort you seem to be going through.”
“You sure?”
“Yes! Now go get some sleep before you die of…whatever you seem to be dying of. What happened to you anyway?”
“I’ll tell you in the morning. Was that all he said to you?
“Oh, not really…he also said that Bobby’s been disposed of. He buried him in some old abandoned building or something. Good riddance I say, it’s about time someone ended his revolting existence.”
I couldn’t believe it. He actually did it. And to think I was only kidding! Oh well…at least it would make getting custody of the kids a little easier for Aunt Jen.
I pulled myself up and staggered towards the bedroom.
“Jordan, do you think he could get rid of Bruno for me?”
I gave her a stern look. “Maybe.”
Laney gave a tired smile, then gingerly settled herself down and closed her eyes.
“I can’t believe she can still manage to give such a beautiful smile after all she’s been through today.” I thought as I looked at her, “She’s such a tough chick! My hero.”
“Good night Laney, I love you.”
“I love you too…honey.”
Her eyes went heavy.
“J…you think about…what your friend said…”
And then she dosed off.
I took my clothes off and with a great deal of pain and discomfort, sprawled myself out on the bed; making sure to throw both pillows over my head before falling asleep almost immediately.
Now, at first, it was a pretty peaceful sleep with very little tossing and turning, but then, I began to dream.
I really wish I could remember the dream in more detail. I don’t even remember how it began! It wasn’t…a normal dream. It was a pretty rough sleep, but it was also such a heavy sleep that I just couldn’t wake up, even if I had had the ability to try.
Next morning, I opened my eyes and stared blankly at my dusty, old window. I hadn’t made an attempt to move myself in any way, so I really had no idea of my current state until about five minutes later, when I tried to get up and go to the bathroom.
The first thing I noticed was that the sheets were wet. Really wet. Then I realized that I myself was absolutely drenched in sweat.
“Did I have a fever last night?” I thought. I began to slide over to the other side of the bed, that made me come to the embarrassing realization that the lower part of my bed and my underwear was twice as wet as anywhere else.
“Did I frickin’ wet myself?”
I lifted the sheet and gawked at it for a brief moment before smacking my forehead. “Aww jeeez Jordan Miller, you did not have a wet dream! Awww…man, I thought I was too old for this shit!”
As I peeled myself off the sheets and dragged them along towards the bathroom I tried as hard as I could to remember what I had dreamt.
Finally, as I stood in the shower, things began to come back to me.
‘I couldn’t recall how it started, but I remembered that I could hear voices; like a million people whispering at once, telling me the same thing over and over again but the words were difficult to make out. I remember something standing over me; like an angel or a…spirit…telling me things and moving its hands across my face…down my chest and around my waist, but every simple, little touch…made me crave more and more. I was lost in it…I didn’t know who was doing this, but the only thing I could comprehend was how wonderfully addictive it all felt. Then it came right up to my ear…I couldn’t picture the face…couldn’t see the gender, I just knew it felt unlike anything I had ever felt before. It seemed as if I was floating; as if I were in an endless void of soft sheets…then I felt my body begin to go tense and cramp up…the pain was excruciating, but it didn’t last for long…the pain went away…then it was if I released something from my body…it was frightening……but it felt…orgasmic! The release came in waves…each wave stronger than the next…I cried out as the one beside me held on…it felt as if I were changing…but it was like I’d been waiting for it all my life. The waves stopped…everything went black…and then…
There was nothing.’
I shook my head as I snapped out of my eerie recollection.
“Fuck! What a mind-trip!”
I washed off, dumped the sheets and pulled on some jeans.
“Jordan! The Police called!”
I ran out the bathroom to Laney in the living room.
“They can’t find him; he’s probably hiding out somewhere.”
I sighed, sat down beside her, took a piece of her Pop-tart and put my arm around her.
“Hey man, everything’s going to be fine! Don’t you trust me?”
“Yeah, I guess. I can’t…I can’t deal with much more of this J; our lives are so goddamn shitty! There’s gotta something better to life than all this drama! Hey…there’s something I wanted to ask you.”
“Go ahead.”
“Are you gonna do it? You know, take Victor’s offer?”
“I’m considering it. How do you feel about it?”
“It’s crazy, but if you do, it’s okay I guess, just as long as you never forget me, and visit me as much as you can.”
“You’re honestly alright with this?”
“Uh-huh…whatever decisions you make, even if it’s to be a walking dead person, doesn’t change the way I feel about you. You’re my best friend J, always.”
“It’s good to know that you’re there for me with this.”
“Well, at least now you know, so I won’t have to repeat myself again. I trust you’ll remember?”
“Definitely.”
We spent the rest of the day trying to forget all the madness; eating junk food, watching Movies, laughing and loudly reminiscing about the many insane, embarrassing…but memorable times we’ve had with each other.
Come to think of it…that was the last good memory I have of her and I, before the following series of events.
It was almost 5:00 in the afternoon when I was just leaving for work, the phone rang.
“Hello?”
“Hello, is this Jordan Miller?”
“Yes, who’s this?”
“This is the Police. Laney Bender gave us this number in case we needed to contact her about Bruno D’angelo.”
“She’s in the bathroom right now.”
“Okay, could you please tell her to meet us at her house at around 5:30 or so? The neighbors reported a disturbance and we came down here to investigate. We’re calling from inside her house…and right now we haven’t seen anything except two dead animals in her front yard. We would appreciate it a lot if she’d come down and talk to us. We’ll be waiting for her.”
“Sure, thanks a lot; I’ll tell her right away.”
I hung up and ran over to the bathroom door.
“Hey! The police just called! They’re asking you if you could come down to your house at about 5:30.”
Laney literally flung the door open.
“You’re kidding! What happened? Did they find him? Did they shoot him?”
“I don’t know, but they said some dead animals are on your lawn.”
“Oh God, I hope it’s not Skip and Greta! My poor Doggies!”
“You want me to come with you?”
“No…it’s fine; you gotta get down to the bar before you get fired!”
“Yeah, I’d be real broken-up if that happened! Really I would. ” I thought.
“Look, call me at the bar as soon as you can okay? If you don’t call by the latest 7:00 sharp and tell me the deal, I’m coming down there, alright? No later than that, or you know I’m going to worry.”
“No problem! I always call on time, you know that.”
But little did I know that this night was going to be one of the most unforgettable nights I had ever experienced as part of the living.
It was fairly quiet down at the bar that night, the type of quiet that Mr. Pennuch wasn’t very pleased with.
“I hate nights like this. If I wasn’t so badly in need of cash, I’d just close this place up for the night and go have me a couple of beers and some dinner.”
“The night’s early boss-man, just give it some time.”
I looked up at the clock and realized it was 7:15.
I was pacing and rubbing my forehead.
“Why hasn’t she called yet?” I left out from behind the bar and went outside for some fresh air. I was worried. Laney, in the entire time I’ve known her, has never ever called any later than she said she would; give or take two or three minutes.
“Jordan.”
“Oh, hi Victor.” I was getting pretty used to him popping out of nowhere.
“You worry about Laney.”
“Yeah, and I think I want to go down to her house, right now.”
“Then let us go.”
“I can’t just leave the bar like that! Wait…stay right here while I try to convince the boss.”
I ran inside and glanced at the clock. “She hasn’t called. Something has got to be wrong.”
Pennuch, as unsanitary as he was, had always wasted no time in moving in on any pretty face that happened to be hanging around in his vicinity.
“Boss, I really need to go take care of some business right now…can I just go do that and come back real quick?”
“Look Miller, can’t you see I’m busy with somebody?”
“Please boss, I…”
“No! Now get back behind the bar where you’re supposed to be.”
This was proving to be an extreme waste of time, but I wasn’t about to give up yet.
“My best friend may be in some sort of trouble and I’d like to go see if she’s alright. This is very important sir, please! Go with me on this.”
He whispered something to his prospective conquest then turned to me.
“Look into my eyes Miller, do I look like I care?”
That was it…that was the last draw. I was tired of repeatedly kissing his ass. I really wasn’t going to put this oversized piece a shit before Laney, so I threw my cap down and headed towards the door.
“Where are you goin’?”
“To do what I said I was gonna do.”
“I swear Miller, if you walk through that door, you’re fired! I mean it!”
I stopped at the door and looked at him. My heart raced as I felt newfound courage begin to rise up in me.
“I’ll try to swing by tomorrow night for my pay. It was nice working with you Pennuch. See you later…stinky.”
And with that, I let out a huge sigh of relief and made my final walk through the door as an employee of The Big Chugg bar, ignoring the screaming curses of my now ‘former’ employer. I kept thinking that I may regret it later; but it didn’t matter right now, I just wanted to get to Laney’s place A.S.A.P.
Victor waited patiently outside; picking god knows what out of his teeth with a toothpick.
“So he fired you.”
“Couldn’t you just pretend you don’t read minds so I could actually tell you myself for once?”
“I heard him when he said you’re fired.”
“Uh….right, let’s go.”
Within Twenty-five minutes we arrived at her little house. The first thing that caught our attention was Laney’s two Dogs lying dead on the lawn and the empty Police car parked in the driveway. There were no visible lights on in the house, and when I tried the front door I realized it was locked.
“What is going on here?” I whispered.
“I smell blood.” Victor said flatly. “I could break down the door, but it would make too much noise…plus I loathe using doors. Let us look around for any alternate entrances.”
We moved silently through the yard, finally spotting an open window. With lightening speed, Victor leapt up and through, disappearing for five seconds before sticking his head out and signaling.
“The coast is clear!”
He helped me through the window and slowly we began moving through the house. “The smell of blood is coming from the kitchen.”
As we entered the kitchen we saw the bodies of two police men sprawled out on the floor; blood draining from their heads and mouths. I glanced over at the broken table leg, which was apparently used to beat them to death.
“Shit! Well…at least we know where they are now.” I said, “But where’s Laney?” After looking around a bit more, Victor suddenly froze.
“I heard something in the bedroom.”
Quickly we marched over to the bedroom door and barged in.
There in the middle of the room we saw the one and only Bruno D’angelo on the floor, pinning down a squirming, gagged Laney; trying to disable and tie her up without getting kicked in the stomach.
In a flash of rage I picked up Laney’s heavy bedside lamp and hit the walking steroid across the head. As he laid there stunned, Laney scrambled across the room and crouched down into a corner delirious with fear.
Not wasting another moment, I grabbed his head and proceeded to repeatedly hit the floor with it.
“I’m gonna…kill you…mutherfucker!”Bruno growled, grabbing my neck and tearing me off of him. Victor, in the mean time, was trying to comfort Laney.
“Please Laney, try to calm down. Everything’s going to be fine.”
“Never mind me right now Victor, there’s someone else that really needs your help over there!” she said in a shaky voice, pointing at the wrestling match happening on the other side of the room.
Frankly, at that point I wasn’t doing too well with Bruno. He must’ve punched me in a million different places and now he had my neck in his hands, squeezing every ounce of life out of me. He had had me that way for about a minute now, and my eyesight was getting blurry.
“Jesus…Victor, help him damn it!”
Victor leapt up; about to strike. At that same moment, Bruno grabbed a pair of scissors that was lying on the dressing table and shoved it into my stomach.
Laney screamed.
With one swift movement, Victor ran over and ripped the massive hulk of man from my neck just seconds before I would’ve lost consciousness.
As I struggled to regain my eyesight, I could hear Bruno wailing loudly, Laney screaming, and what sounded like the snarling of a violent, rabid dog.
Seconds later my eyesight returned; and what I saw when it did, was to eventually become an extremely important part of my very existence.
There was Victor, straddled on the struggling giant; his hands pinning him down, his eyes fixed unblinkingly on his face, and his long, sharp teeth firmly planted in his stiffened throat. Bruno was using every ounce of his strength trying to free himself; and I must admit, he did put up a good fight, despite his…predicament.
A few moments passed, and gradually Bruno’s struggling became weaker and weaker until finally, Victor pulled away right before he drew his very last breath. He paused for a moment, looking at his new victim, and then turned his glowing eyes and blood-stained face to look at me.
“This was what he wanted me to become?”I thought unbelievingly.
Reading my mind, he held his head down and pulled himself away from Bruno’s lifeless body.
“It is…something you get used to after a while.”
He said softly, as if trying not to make things seem so bad.
A strong, disorienting pain overtook me. I looked down at my stomach and realized that I was slowly forming a pool of blood.
“Oh my God Jordan, don’t die on me!” Laney screamed hysterically, grabbing on to me.
Victor walked over to me and lifted me up in his arms.
“Laney, you must leave this place and hide somewhere.”
“I…I have a friend of mine I can hide out at…”
“Well leave here right away…and try to stay out of sight will you? We will find you as soon as possible.”
“Where are you taking him?”
“No questions now…just go…right now!” And so, with inhuman movements, he leapt through the window and carried me back to my apartment.
He laid my weak, dying body on the bed, leaned over and looked straight into my eyes.
“Jordan, listen to me…this is an important question. You’re going to have to make your decision right now. Do you want to do this, or do you want to die?”
I could feel the fear welling up inside of me. I thought of my Aunt and my Niece and Nephew, and I thought of Laney. Laney would understand, I knew this, but what about the rest of them? She’d find something to tell them. I knew her too well to doubt that. But I had to face the fact that I wanted to do this…I didn’t want to admit it to myself…but I wanted to do this.
“Let’s get this shit over with, Vic.”
I coughed up some blood.
“Are you positive of this?”
“Can’t you read my mind? Come on…let’s do this already, before…I go…”
Victor took a deep breath and drew closer to me.
“Do you remember the dream you had last night?”
“So it was you that gave me that dream.” I whispered weakly, beginning to fade away as the pain grew worse and worse.
“I was showing you what the transformation felt like. Now close your eyes and be as relaxed as possible.”
My breathing was now very shallow.
“If…I were any…more relaxed…I’d be…dead.”
My eyes were rolling over. Raising his hand, Victor bit hard into his wrist; letting the blood flow a little before holding my head and bringing it to my mouth. I felt the warm liquid touching my lips and running down my throat. Suddenly a sharp, cramping sensation ran down my back and through my limbs, making me cringe a little before I lost all touch with reality.
A lot of it was just a blur, but like the dream, I heard the echoing whispers, the momentary surge of pain and that addictive sensation that made me want more and more…and I did take more…I drank his blood as if it were water…
Until there was no more whispering…
No more sensations…
No more…anything.
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And so…that was it.
That’s why I’m sitting here in my room, as dead as a doorpost.
It’s difficult to explain how I feel now; but I can say that it’s a strange mixture of fear and raw excitement. I hate Victor for making me want to do this, but I know I wouldn’t hate him for long. He’s going to be my partner in crime now, so I guess I should just start getting used to it; even if he might have weird…feelings for me. Besides, he’s not that bad anyway, but he better not go trying to confess his love for me or whatever; that’s one street I’m certainly not going down. At least, I hope not.
“How does it feel being undead?”
“Victor! You’ve been there all this time?”
“I wouldn’t dare leave you at such an important time like this!”
“Yeah, it’s my Deathnight. Well, I hope you’re happy now…now that I’ve decided to become…this.”
He’s smiling at me now…sitting there, beside my blood-soaked clothes; his teeth, still a little stained with Bruno’s blood.
“Oh no my friend, I…have just begun. You look hungry.”
“So…are you going to show me to my first victim or not?”
“Eager aren’t you?”
“Not eager, just gut-twistingly hungry. Come to think of it, I’ve never felt this hungry before! Damn, but we need to find Laney first…we gotta keep her with us! The police will be all over her if we don’t hide her.”
“You mean if she even wants to stay with us…you realize she is now a part of our only food group! We keep her…and maybe she’ll be just sitting around one night and I’ll be hungry and not in the mood to leave the house.”
“Yeah, sure…you know…maybe we could just keep her on the top shelf of our Refrigerator, right? You know, beside that big container with the middle finger on it full of ‘Fuck-off Victor’?”
“Jordan, the effulgence of your humor is simply…staggering.”
“I’d give you a suitable response to that, Vic… if I knew what the hell ‘effulgence’ meant.”
“Remind me to pick you up a dictionary.”
“Gee…thanks.”
It’s strange, I don’t feel as violated by him as I did once; it’s almost as if…he can’t read my mind anymore.
“Well, what are we waiting for? I have so much to show you, trust me Jordan; you will grow to love this existence. I know you will. Come on! We could start…”
“Wait!”
“What? Don’t tell me now you’re scared?”
“No.”
“Nervous?”
“No!!!”
“Then what are we waiting for? What’s wrong?”
“Uhh…I’m…only in my underwear.” [