Love & Blood

Sorry if it's too long, but please rate and review. the start needs work, but bear with me... enjoy!


The moon was high in the sky, a round white globe, staining the earth a sickly silver, casting shadows in the dark. Waves rolled onto the pale shores, wind rustling through the dried seaweed in search of hidden treasures. The eeriness of the night was disturbed, however, by a wild party taking place in the shack below.
“Cheers!” a boy laughed, clinking his Coopers bottle against his friends glass, laughing and sculling the rest of the liquid, smacking his lips and hurling the empty bottle into the night, grin widening as he heard it smash against a rock.
Staggering slightly, he made his way to the open esky in the centre of the large room, seizing another beer and walking back to his circle of friends. He suddenly pitched forwards, vomiting onto the floor, people around him jumping back with cries of disgust and amusement.
“Jeez, Garth, how many have you had?” A girl rubbed his back before taking him by the shoulders and leading him outside into the cool night air.
“No’ many,” Garth slurred, slumping back into the soft sand. The girl stood by him worriedly. “Don’ worry, Gwen, I’m fine,” he said, waving his hand. She shook her head and rolled her eyes. He grabbed her arm suddenly and pulled her down onto his lap. Smiling crookedly, he closed his eyes and leant forwards. He felt something smack against his cheek, and Gwen’s warm weight left his lap.
“You sleazy arsehole,” she said coolly. “Go to sleep.” With that, she turned and stalked off inside.
He rubbed his cheek absently, lying down in the sand, head feeling light.

A human, separated from the rest, sleeping on the beach. Sleeping deeply, drunk as hell. It hurried up the beach in long, easy strides, grinning, white teeth glinting in the moonlight, canines lengthening. Kneeling almost ceremonially, it breathed the boy’s scent in deeply, the rich earthy smell, saliva starting up in its mouth. Placing its lips on the human’s neck, it kissed the place tenderly, before jerking its head downwards, teeth cutting open the jugular vein. Blood started to spray out, and the human awoke, cry stifled by its hand over his mouth, blood flow interrupted as it placed its mouth over the wound, drinking deeply, warm blood filling its mouth. Expertly, it withdrew, clamping its other hand over the wound before poking around in its own mouth, touching a spot and causing more saliva to fill its mouth, mingled with tis own blood, which it dribbled over the wound, sealing it closed. The boy had fainted, and it took the opportunity to trace the number 6 on its belly in blood before turning, wiping its mouth and stalking away, feeling strangely light-headed.
Soon, a new friend shall rise, it thought gleefully.

Garth awoke with a yawn, neck stiff and sore. He rubbed it absently, feeling two faint scratches without worry. Sitting up, he blinked, expecting at any moment to feel the effects of his drinking the night before. Nothing. He stood, rubbing his head in anticipation of the splitting headache, but still, nothing.
Looking around, he saw others stretched out beside him on the sand, hair dishevelled, clothes crumpled. One stirred, groaning and rubbing their eyes, but Garth paid them no attention, walking back up towards the ‘shack’. He tried to remember the night before, but spots of memory came up blank, which seemed to indicate he had gotten smashed. But he felt fine.
More teenagers were sprawled across the living room, and he suspected more still would be in the bedrooms. Walking through the room, he decided absently to sit out on the porch, where the other people already awake would surely be.
The girl looked up as he walked out the screen door, expression cold and slightly shocked.
“Hey Gwen,” he said with a grin. He and Gwen were quite good friends, in the same year and class at school. “Morning.”
“Garth,” she answered curtly. “Thought you’d be sleeping all day. You were pretty pissed last night.”
“Nah, I wasn’t,” Garth said. “Can’t have been; I feel fine.”
“Really?”
“Yeah.”
“Do you remember last night?”
“Not all of it.”
“Hmm.” She looked away from him, and some of her iciness seemed to melt. Garth’s brain jolted into action.
“Oh shit,” he said, and she looked up at him.
“What?”
“I’m sorry,” he stammered. “I didn’t mean to… I mean…”
“You wouldn’t have done it if you were sober?” she said with a half smile.
“Yeah,” he nodded. “Yeah that’s exactly what I mean.” But he wasn’t sure.
She sighed and stood, not saying a word as she walked inside.

He caught a ride home with Tom, one of his friends. Tom's older brother, Terry, was driving.
“So, Garth, shouldn't you be wearing thick sunnies and wincing every time somebody talks?” Terry asked with a grin.
Garth shrugged. “Probably. But I'm not.”
“Well, obviously. You have a secret cure for hangovers or something?”
Garth shook his head. “Nope.”
Terry raised his eyebrows and glanced at him, then at Tom in the backseat.
“Guess you’re just lucky then,” he finally said.
They travelled the rest of the way without talking, listening to music. Finally, they reached Garth’s home, a white-washed, brick house that looked exactly like every other house, apart from the rose beds. He pulled his bag out of the boot with a yawn, waving at the brothers as they drove off before turning and walking inside.
“Have a good time last night?” his mother asked as he passed her in the hall. He simply nodded, walking off towards his room tired beyond belief.

PE. Garth’s favourite subject. He wasn’t a jock by any means; he just enjoyed running around and feeling like he was getting fit.
Today was basketball. Gwen smiled as she came to defend him.
“Ah, you’re standing me?” Garth said, with mock horror. “Damn, this makes it too easy!”
“Shut up,” Gwen said good-naturedly, hitting him softly on the arm. Tom and Alice went up for the jump ball, and Tom knocked the basketball towards Garth, who attempted to snatch it from over Gwen’s head. She jumped up to grab it, landing on his foot, going down. Garth, who had turned to wrench the ball out of her hands, staggered and almost fell too, but managed to stay on his feet, holding the ball tightly. The whistle blew as Gwen sat up, white with the shock of her fall, looking at her elbow, which had been cut on the asphalt, and was oozing thick drops of blood.
“Are you OK,” Garth started to say, but stopped around the ‘you’, nostrils flaring, vision going momentarily white as he felt a deep, unsettling hunger. Then his eyes cleared, and all he could stare at was Gwen’s elbow, at the blood. He shook his head slowly to clear it, wrenching his gaze away.
“Go up to the office and get a bandaid,” Mr Malcolm, the teacher said.
“I’ll go with her,” Garth offered, and Mr Malcolm just shrugged.
“Sorry,” he said to Gwen as they started to walk, trying to block the smell of blood unsuccessfully. He blinked, freaked out by his deep desire to kneel down and lick the blood from her graze. In his minds eye, he could see himself holding her arm, feel his tongue going over her skin…
“No problem.” She glanced at him. “You OK? You look kinda… pale.”
He rubbed his eye. “Yeah, I’m fine. It’s you I’m worried about,” he lied.

Once home, he sank onto his bed, exhausted with fighting his desires. What the hell was this? Was he insane?
“No,” he muttered, rolling his eyes, “everyone gets cravings for blood.”
Vampires, he thought. Vampires drink blood… well suck. What the fuck?! Vampires aren’t real! What’s going on with me?
He sank into an exhausted sleep.
“Garth.” A voice floated out of the darkness, mesmerizing in its softness. He looked around, completely blind. His limbs felt like jelly as he floated, twisting in the air.
“Garth.” He breathed in deeply, and the black suddenly went white as he smelled the sweet liquor of life. A slow smile stretched across his face, he stopped trying to move and lay back, closing his eyes, just breathing.
“Garth.” He opened his eyes, to see Gwen standing over him. Her blonde hair was billowing around her as if she were underwater. She was smiling at him, tracing the line of his jaw with one of her fingers. He realised he was lying down now, on a huge, soft bed, which was blinding white. Reaching up, he grasped her by her shoulders, pulling her down on top of him, kissing her. She laughed softly as he moved down, lips on her neck. Suddenly, he bit into her. She screamed, and the bed turned red. He wrapped his legs around her body, biting her again and again, listening to her tortured screaming with satisfaction.
“Garth!” Her skin was growing cold. He let her go and pushed her away, standing and licking his lips, looking around at the warped red world. The bed was in the middle of a forest. Twisted black trees pierced the scarlet sky, and blood seemed to be dripping down them as shadows of people danced around, weaving between them.
He blinked, turning in a circle, stance becoming more hunched as he watched the dancers. He leapt towards one, catching their arm, lashing out with clawed hands and slashing through their throat, moaning in pleasure as blood splashed over him.
“Yes!” he shouted at the sky. A hand grasped his shoulder and he whirled around, coming face-to-face with Gwen. Her neck was still dripping blood, and her face was ghastly pale. She leaned in.
“Don’t,” she whispered. Horror surged through him as the dream faded to nothing.

He awoke, confused, dream still swirling in his head, Gwen’s final word haunting his ears. Getting up, he got dressed slowly, slinging his bag over his back and walking out of the house without talking to his mother, or having breakfast.

“Hey, G-man!” Garth sighed as Mello hurried over. He thought he was cool, and strangely, so did everyone else. Garth didn’t really like him, but he was good for a laugh, and went to the best parties.
“Hey Mello,” he said, forcing a grin, punching Mello’s outstretched fist as was the usual greeting.
“Wanna come back down to the shack this weekend? We’re having another awesome party!”
Garth’s grin became genuine. “Aw, cool! Sure! See ya there, dude!”
“Gwen!” Mello said as the girl came over to see what all the fuss was about. “Come back down the shack this weekend?”
She shrugged. “I guess. Got nothing better to do.”
“You gotta get drunk this time,” Mello laughed.
“I don’t feel safe with all you sleazes around,” she said with a smile. “But I’ll be there.”
“See youse later,” Mello nodded in farewell, then turned grinning. “G-girl and G-man.”
Gwen rolled her eyes as he waltzed off. “This coming from a guy that calls himself ‘Mello’.”
“Hmm,” Garth said, nostrils flaring as a girl walked past, mind going blank for a second before he got a grip.
Gwen noticed the look on his face, but mistook it to mean something else. “Got the hots for Jess, hey?”
“What? No!”
“You can tell me,” she said mischievously.
“I would, if I liked her.”
She just laughed.

Garth bobbed his head to the beat of Pizza Pie by System of a Down, enjoying the music as he sat in the chair watching people dancing wildly, stopping towards the middle as the song slowed down, then resuming their mad moves.
He had only had two drinks; he didn’t feel much like getting drunk this early in the evening. Grinning as he thought of what his Mum would think of his plans to get drunk later, he looked around as Gwen slumped into the seat next to him, cheeks red from dancing. He held out his half-full bottle and she took a swig, screwing up her face.
“How can you drink this stuff?” she shouted in his ear. He shrugged. She smiled, and he shivered slightly as he remembered his dream. “Come dance.”
“I’m not drunk yet,” he said with a laugh.
“Ah, stop being boring!” She leapt up. “Nobody’s watching!” Downing the rest of his drink, he followed her towards a relatively clear patch of floor.
“I feel like I’m in a club!” he yelled. She nodded, and started to sway in time. With a manic grin, he started to do the monkey, and she followed suit, before attempting the robot.
“Damn! Can you do it?” she asked him. Garth shrugged and tried, feeling like a complete idiot, but somehow, a good one. Raising his hands to head height, he waved them around, kicking his legs out and accidentally hitting the guy behind him.
“Oh, sorry!” he blushed as Gwen laughed, grabbing his hand and leading him from the crowded room, towards the front porch.
“Wow nobody’s out here!” she said. “Normally people are smooching all over the place!”
“So, why did we come out here then?” Garth said innocently.
“Because there’s room out here.” Gwen looked at the ground.
“Why not the back?”
Gwen shrugged. “We can go out there if you want.”
“Nah.” Garth looked around in surprise as a slow song came on. “What? Slow music?”
Gwen grinned as it was quickly changed. “Oh, lucky! I might have made you dance to that too!”
“You might have.”
At that moment, Jess and another guy, Chad, stepped out into the night. Jess winked at Gwen mischievously before walking around the corner, Chad in tow. Jess’s scent hit him like the smell of a mouth-watering meal, and he felt immediately different. Before he knew what he was doing, he had Gwen tight in his arms.
“And I would have,” he breathed, not really thinking. She looked shocked as he hugged her. “I’m not drunk this time.” He leaned closer, kissing her firmly on the lips, a tingle running up his spine. Withdrawing, he stared her in the eyes for several seconds before going in again. They stayed interlocked for longer this time, before his tooth somehow cut the inside of her lip. She jerked her head back, hand going up to the small wound, but he took it in his own, staring into her eyes.
“Sorry,” he whispered, trying his luck a third time, tongue probing the inside of her mouth, surreptitiously licking at the blood. He didn’t notice anything else except the taste of it, and the feelings that flew after it, so hard to pin down and describe.
Finally, she pulled away, flushed. “OK,” she muttered under her breath, putting a hand on her head before turning and walking inside.
“Hey, wait!” Garth cried, wanting her to come back so he could taste her, feel her warmth beneath him, feel her heart beating, pumping blood, blood…
“Sorry Garth,” she said, not meeting his gaze. “I have to, I dunno, think.”
He grabbed her hand. “What’s to think about?” he said desperately. She stared at him.
“A lot.” She went to tug her arm away, but he held on, and for a second considered just pulling her to him, making her accept his touch, before nodding.
“OK,” he said, letting her go. She walked inside, and he sat on the porch, putting his head in his shaking hands. What was that? What was that? What had happened to him?
“Are you alright?” He looked up to see a gothic-looking boy standing over him. He had white skin, jet-black hair and dark eyes, wearing jeans and a black Metallica concert t-shirt. Thin and tall, if it weren’t for a certain set to his face that suggested he were nice and normal beneath it all, Garth would have been afraid of him.
“Erm, yeah. Sorry, but, do I know you?” he said, a nagging feeling in his stomach that he knew this guy from somewhere.
“Probably,” the boy smiled, showing perfectly straight teeth. “I’m Michelangelo, but call me Mike. I always come to these parties.”
That’d be it. Garth nodded. “I’m Garth.”
The boy sat, wrapping stick arms around stick legs. “Are you sure you’re alright?”
Garth looked Mike, then shrugged. “I dunno.”
“Think you stuffed that up?” Mike cocked his head in the direction Gwen had gone.
“Yeah, but more than that,” Garth said, not caring that he hardly knew Mike, and just talking. “I shouldn’t have kissed her. We’re great friends, and… I dunno.”
“Hmm fair enough,” the boy nodded. “You care about her, obviously.”
“Well, yeah,” Garth said, shocked.
“Hey, lots of guys are just interested in sex. We should know,” Mike gave a wry grin, putting his head on the side slightly. “Sorry if you think I’m prying, but you don’t have to make it go anywhere. It can be your little secret.”
“Yeah, if that’s what she wants,” Garth said helplessly.
“Hmm. So… you like Metallica?”
“Yeah, they’re cool,” Garth said honestly.
“Ah yeah. I prefer Cradle of Filth though, much better.”
“Her Ghost in the Fog is wicked,” Garth said enthusiastically.
“Yeah, and Nymphetamine.”

It smiled. Its friend was nice, friendly, and talkative. They shared common interests. Garth, that was his name. Garth. They talked, about anything and everything, into the night, and Garth seemed to relax. Good.

Garth awoke, and stretched. It was early in the morning. He hadn’t gotten drunk as planned, instead talking to Mike. He was a pretty cool guy, he thought as he yawned. Mike had certainly taken his mind off of his problems for the night.

He once again caught a ride with Terry and Tom, and went straight to bed.
Garth sweated and trembled in the dream, the smell of blood rich in the air. It was a constant pull, he was lured towards it. Nothing else mattered, other than he get blood. He must have it. He needed it!
He sat up as he woke, swinging his legs out of bed. He could smell blood. Walking down the hall, he saw Mike standing in the kitchen, talking to his mother, who was looking sceptical. It was nine on Sunday morning.
“Oh, hey Garth. Wanna come do something?” Mike asked. Garth nodded.

He could smell the blood on Mike, but wasn’t the least but apprehensive, just excited. Mike led him towards a tree on the far side of the park, hefting up a plastic bag from under a bush, red liquid sloshing within it.
“I know,” Mike said softly, opening the bag. Garth went crazy. He didn’t know what was happening; he wrenched the bag from Mike, pouring the blood over his head, licking it off his hands and lips before sinking his teeth into the raw meat, letting the blood dribble over his chin as he gorged himself. Mike stepped forwards, tentatively licking the blood from his cheek, and Garth turned his face, preparing to kiss him.
Suddenly he stopped, awareness hitting him. He leapt back, trembling.
“It’s OK,” Mike said softly, reaching out. “I went through the same thing. You get less scared of it after a while.”
“What’s going on?” Garth panted, slapping Mike’s hand away.
“You’re turning into a vampire.”
“What?”
Mike just nodded. “You must come with me.”
“Why?”
“I can help you with the transformation.”
“No! Stay away from me, you freak!” Garth hissed, well aware of how hypocritical that sounded.
“You must leave behind the human’s, otherwise you will go insane,” Mike said, not seeming too worried. “You cannot control yourself. You will hurt those you love.”
“No, I won’t! It’s just a phase! It won’t last another week!” Garth put his head in his hands.
“You have already hurt Gwen. You will again.”
“Shut up! Leave me alone!” He turned and ran, stopping behind a bush to strip off his t-shirt, using it to mop up the blood on his body, trying to ignore the blankness of his mind when he caught a whiff of it, then discarded of it in a bin, jogging home and having an icy cold shower.
“Garth!” his mother yelled as he was dressing in his room. “Garth, Gwen’s here!”
He walked into the living room, and sure enough, there she was, looking nervous. “Can we go for a walk?” she asked tentatively. He nodded, wanting a taste of the normal.

They walked along the road in silence for someway, before coming to the park. Garth felt uncomfortable being there, and so asked if they could walk instead to the other park, which was only three blocks over.
“Look, about the other night,” Gwen said awkwardly as they walked. “I-”
“No, let me talk first,” Garth said. “I like you, Gwen, I really do. That’s what makes it hard. Keep you as a good friend, or ask you out, and have something special for perhaps only a week. I’ve decided, it’s up to you.”
“I don’t know…”
They were silent until they reached the park. Sitting on the bench, the wind blew from Gwen to Garth, and his nostrils latched onto the smell of blood. He fought the blankness, but it was coming fast.
“I love you,” he said suddenly, grabbing her and pulling her close into a kiss. She tried to push him off, but he held her fast, biting her lip, drawing blood which he started to suck. She screamed, but it was muffled by his mouth. Jerking her head back, she wrenched away from him, standing, bottom lip bleeding profusely. She touched it in disbelief, and backed away from him.
“What the fuck?” she yelled. He stood.
“C’mon, Gwen. I love you!” he pleaded. Her eyes were wide with horror, she shook her head as he came closer, backing up and holding out a hand to halt him.
“Don’t touch me,” she said, voice shaking.
He grabbed her arm quickly, pushing it out to the side of her, other hand wrapping around her mouth and pushing her head up so he could lick the blood from her chin, which soon became salty from her tears. She struggled, kicking out and kneeing him in the groin. He groaned and sank to the ground, as she turned and ran, tongue seeming to have become stuck to the roof of her mouth.
He gritted his teeth against the pain as it reached its crescendo, then suddenly vanished. He leapt to his feet without thinking and chased after her. She was already half-way across the dirt road, but he caught up with her before she got to the other side, diving at her, crash-tackling her to the ground.
“Garth!” she screamed in anguish, thrashing violently, legs doing most of the work as her arms were pinned to her sides. “Stop! For Christ’s sake!”
“Christ was a bastard,” he growled, wrestling her onto her back. Her nose was bleeding profusely, and she had a cut on her head which was also trickling red.
“Get off me!” she thrashed and twisted in the dirt as he leant in, licking the crimson liquid slowly from her face, relishing the taste, relishing the feeling of ecstasy. He had never felt so alive. He laughed lowly, feeling Gwen’s heart pumping fast through his leg, each beat only serving to make him more eager.
“Garth!” Gwen sobbed, still wrestling with him. “Stop it! Stop! Please stop!”
His belly felt swollen, although he couldn’t have had that much. He took one last lick, and then came down from the high, trembling in shock. He rolled off Gwen, lying on his back and staring up at the blue sky, not really seeing it. The girl was sobbing next to him, shaking. He finally hauled himself to his feet. Gwen seemed incapable of moving, but when he crouched by her, she curled up into a ball. He wanted to say sorry, but then he caught a whiff of blood.
“Don’t tell anyone; don’t you dare,” he growled, turning and stalking off.

please check out the other two parts... this ain't the end ;P