"Changed" Chapter 9

Chapter 9:

I opened my eyes suddenly and saw the bright light of the morning making shadows on the ceiling. Well, that was different. I had never noticed how many things your body did for you while you were asleep, until I was dead and it didn't matter. I reached my arms up to stretch, even though that wasn't necessary because I wasn't stiff. I wasn't even groggy, it was like I had blinked and it lasted for hours, then I had opened my eyes back up. Then I remembered.

I quickly rolled over to where Nicholas' body should have been to find the bed empty. I shot up in place and looked around the room. No one was here. What the hell? I lay back down to sulk when I saw something green at the end of the pillow Nicholas had slept on. I reached over to find a rose. Well not just a rose, this was the most beautiful and perfect red rose I had ever seen. Under the rose was a note, it said: “Good morning beautiful. When you wake up, come downstairs please.”

I smiled to myself and jumped up from the bed. I sprinted out of the room and down the stairs. I ran into the kitchen and stopped short. On the island, in the middle of the kitchen was a large glass vase holding the most beautiful bouquet of flowers I had ever seen. I looked around the kitchen, confused that I couldn't find Nicholas.

“I saw them and they reminded me of you,” I heard Nicholas softly whisper in my ear from behind me. Then he wrapped his arms around my waist and held me there.

“Why is that?” I asked.

“Because they are beautiful and unique, like you.”

I smiled to myself, “And the rose?”

“I figured that since you so graciously let me sleep in the bed with you, that this was the least I could do,” he said as he kissed me softly on the right side of my neck.

I turned to stare at him incredulously. “After everything you did for me yesterday, do you seriously think you owe me?!”

I could tell by his face that he did believe that but he answered anyway. “Charlotte, your allowing me to spend the night with you in my arms is a far better gift than anything I have done for you.”

His face was so serious that I couldn't possibly doubt his words. I knew there were no words that could sufficiently respond to that, so I reached up and kissed him.

We kissed for a minute before he pulled back and simply said, “Thank you.”

I laughed a little but composed myself and responded, “You’re very welcome. So, what are we doing today?” I asked, still smiling at him.

I noticed his face brighten slightly at the word ‘we’ and said, “Well I realized we need to shopping again. I forgot you still need...um...undergarments. I took it upon myself to do some necessary shopping for you before you work up.” He grinned widely, obviously proud of himself.

“What do you mean by 'necessary shopping'?”

He chuckled a little at the hesitance in my voice and replied, “You will have to find out for yourself. I have it all up in the bathroom.”

I looked at him, trying to guess what he could have possibly deemed 'necessary'. He just shook his head and pointed to the second floor. I rolled my eyes and darted away from him. It really wasn't necessary for me to run, but I liked the speed.

I walked into the bathroom, flipping the switch as I entered. Then I froze where I stood. On the counter, next to the sink were two clear storage containers, the drawers in them open to reveal their contents. What did he buy half of Duane Reade?. I heard him laugh loudly from downstairs as continued to stared wide-eyed and what he had bought me. The first thing I noticed was the makeup. It seemed that he had bought one of every kind of eyeliner, mascara, eye shadow, foundation, cover up, bronzer, lipstick, and lip liner he could find in every brand possible. A million thoughts flashed through my mind. Why is he always so damn thoughtful? How much did he spend on all of this? If he cleared a space on the counter for these storage containers, does that mean he plans on having me around for a while?

I was so caught up on my own thoughts, I didn't realize Nicholas had come upstairs and was standing behind me. “I want you to stay for as long as you want to be here. As long as you want to be here, with me.”

I can’t imagine there would ever be a time when I wouldn't want to be with this magnificent creature. He heard that and smiled. “There's more.”

I looked around me to see the doors on the shower open. Inside I saw that every available shelf and crevice were full of shampoos, conditioners, and soaps. It looked like he bought every different type from every expensive brand he could find.

“I didn't know what type or brands of make up you prefer, so I bought it all. I think you look perfect without any, but I know that women usually like wearing a lot of makeup, so I thought I would give you the option. I also didn't know what shampoo or conditioner you use so I bought a few of the most expensive. Usually if you have to pay more for it, it is of better quality.”

I couldn't find anything to say, any conceivable way of showing my gratitude for this. For everything. I would always be in debt to him. Not only had he saved my life-- or at least my mental health, but he has also done everything his power to make me feel as comfortable as possible. He was, to put it simply, incredible.

“The only thanks I need is the same smile you gave me downstairs. If you want to be generous, I would also gladly take another kiss.” How could I ever deny him? Why would I ever want to?

I ran the few steps it took to get to him, slamming into him and wrapping my arms around his waist. I could tell he was surprised because he hesitated before wrapping his strong arms around me shoulders and kissing the top of my head. I picked my head up, put my hand to the side of his perfect face and said, “Thank you, Nicholas.” Then I pressed my lips to his with enough urgency to shock him again. But, like last time, it didn't take him long to catch on.

This time I was the one to pull away. “I think I'm going to take a shower and get ready now for whatever you have in store for us today.”

He simply nodded his head, as he took my hand and kissed the back of it. Then he bent down to retrieve a towel from the cabinet under the sink, and left, closing the door softly behind him.

I walked over to the shower to more closely examine all of the shampoos, conditioners, and soaps Nicholas had bought for me. I finally settled on a pro-vitamin set because it sounded close to what I normally used. I took off my clothes and quickly entered the shower. I knew better than to examining my body again.

I turned the warm water on and I waited for it to heat up. When it didn’t, I began to slowly inch the nozzle toward the hot side. Finally the water was on its hottest setting allowed. Weird, the water barely feels warm. I quickly washed my body with one of the many types of soap available and took care of my hair.

When I was done in the shower, I stepped out and wiped the excess water off before wrapping the towel around me and knotting it in the front. I walked over to the sink and looked into the mirror. The reflection I saw there still surprised me. I looked around for a brush on the counter top but came up empty handed. I frowned and thought about going through the drawers. I was not the type to snoop but I need a hairbrush and it didn’t seem likely that he would overlook that.

I opened the top drawer and immediately found what I was looking for. In there were, as I suspected, one of every kind of brush and comb I could ever imagine. I smiled to myself and chose the biggest, thickest one. I have always had very thick, unmanageable hair, so this was the brush I normally had to use. To my surprise, the brush smoothly ran through my straight hair. Hmm…this must be another vampire thing.

I finished with my hair and began to examine the makeup. I decided to use black eyeliner and black mascara, with some light pink lip gloss. I didn’t want to use eye shadow because I wasn’t sure what I was wearing today and I usually tried to match the two.

I walked out of the bathroom, and downstairs. I saw Nicholas sitting on the black leather couch watching me as I walked in the living room. “I was wondering where you put my clothes,” I told him.

He immediately jumped up from where he sat and came over to me. “I folded them and put them in a drawer in the room,” he explained as he took my hand and led me up the two flights of stairs. We walked into his room and he immediately walked over to his dresser that was to the left of the door. I watched him open the drawer second from the top to revel all my new purchases from the previous day.

“Why did you put them away?”

“Why wouldn’t I put them away? No one likes living out of bags.”

“I just didn’t expect you to…move me in…I guess.” As I said this his face clouded over. I realized that something I had said must have upset him so I tried to explain further. “I just didn’t expect…any of this. I’m just… surprised.”

“Charlotte, do you want to stay here with me or not? Please don’t spare my feelings; I would rather hear the truth.”

His words completely took me by surprise. I involuntarily took a step towards him, “Of course I want to stay here with you. Why would you think I didn’t?”

“Every time I try to do something nice for you, I get a negative response. I’m trying to make you feel at home and comfortable here. Why are you fighting this so hard? Why does it still surprise you when I go to every length to make you happy?”

“I don’t know. I guess I’m not used to being taken care of. I’m sorry Nicholas. I never meant to make you feel bad or to give the impression that I’m not grateful. Because I am. Please forgive me?” I asked as I took another step closer to him.

He looked at me for a second, then down at his feet. He seemed to be deciding something. About what, I couldn’t be sure. Then he lifted his head and gave me a big smile. I felt my stomach flip at the sight of his happy face. This wasn’t butterflies; this was more like flying wildebeests in my stomach. I had never had this feeling before. And just from someone smiling at me? Well, obviously it wasn’t just anyone smiling at me. It was Nicholas. Then he quickly closed the gap between us, taking me in his arms.

“Of course I forgive you. How can I stay mad at you, especially when you are so warm and smell so good from your shower? I just want you to realize that I’m not going anywhere, and I don’t want you to either. You are living with me, at least for a little while, and while you are here you will have your own things, and a place to put them.”

I smiled at his declaration but stopped short. “I feel warm?”

He kissed my forehead, “Yes, you must have had the water in the shower very hot for it to warm up your naturally cold skin this much.”

“But the water didn’t feel hot at all.”

“Charlie, we can’t feel much, so of course you wouldn’t be able to feel how hot you really had the water running.”

I just shook my head, realizing there would be a lot I would have to get used to. He chuckled and released me. “I’ll leave you to get dressed now,” he said as he walked out the door, again closing it for me as he left.

I began to look through the drawer for something to wear. I finally decided on another pair of jeans and a maroon short sleeved shirt that had a few buttons on top. I put my clothes over my arm and walked back down to the bathroom to change. I put on my “under garments” from yesterday, because as Nicholas so astutely pointed out, I didn’t have any others. When I was done getting dressed, I unbuttoned the top few buttons on the shirt to reveal more of my extremely pale chest and looked in the mirror. Not half bad, I decided. Then I picked up my dirty clothes and the towel I had used.

“Nicholas? Where do you want me to put the dirty clothes?” I yelled downstairs from the open bathroom door. He was in front of me in a flash with his arms spread out.

“I’ll take them for you.” Then he disappeared only to return a few seconds later. He wrapped his arms around my waist and I hugged him back. Suddenly he put one arm around my neck and the other he used to scoop me into his arms. He ran with me downstairs and gently placed me in the spot I had found him sitting in earlier.

Before I could ask him what we were going to do he answered my thoughts, “I thought that we could go shopping first. Then if you don’t mind, I would like to introduce you to my friends.” His face told me he wasn’t sure if I would agree to the second part or not.

“Sounds good to me.”

He seemed relieved as he took my hand for us to leave. When we were in front of his apartment, he walked out into the street and raised his hand to hail a cab. The first one that drove by stopped for him. We got in and Nicholas gave the driver the directions to the store he was taking me to. He sat back and put his arm around my shoulders. I nestled into his side and watched the buildings go by as we drove through the city’s endless traffic.

When we arrived, the cab pulled over and Nicholas paid him. We got out and Nicholas turned to me pointing at the store in front of us. “You should be able to find everything you need in there. I’m going to go a few stores down so I can give you some privacy. When you’re done just think my name loudly. I’ll hear you and come back to pay for whatever you want. Please don’t worry about money, and get anything you want.” With that he leaned in to kiss my cheek before turning to leave me in front of the store.

I walked in the store, immediately searching for the bra section. I grabbed about ten of the bras in all different colors to try on. I walked to the back of the store and found the dressing rooms. Once inside I tried on each different bra, checking my reflection in the mirror to see how they fit. I was thankful that Nicholas had had the foresight to let me do this shopping alone.

When I was done in the dressing room, I went off to find the section that sold underwear. There I picked out a bunch of pairs, all different colors and some matching the bras I had already decided to get. Then I remembered I didn’t have any real pajamas.

I found that part of the store and picked out a few tops and bottoms. When I was done, I felt stupid, but I did what Nicholas asked me. I thought his name in my head a few times, not able to stop the images and memories that came along with it. I was standing near the doors so I saw when Nicholas came walking in.

Then I felt that “thing” in my stomach again. The feeling of large wings batting against the sides. GRR, I wish I knew what was wrong with my stomach. I thought vampires couldn’t get sick. I pushed the idea to the back of my head as I led Nicholas to the cashiers. He paid for my purchases and once again took the bags for me.

Once outside he hailed another cab, this time giving his own address. When we got to his building, Nicholas paid the cab driver and we exited the bright yellow car. Then Nicholas turned to me and said, “Why don’t you wait here and I’ll just run these upstairs for you.”

“I hope you mean walk,” I teased.

He just smiled hugely at me and turned to enter the building. I stood there staring after him. I used the time he was gone to think about that weird feeling I kept getting. In the twenty one years I had lived as a human I had never felt this, and even in the one day I had been a vampire, nothing could compare. I saw Nicholas walk out the front doors of his building. Damn, there it was again!

“Are you ready to meet my friends now?”

“Sure, I guess so.”

He laughed again and took me by the hand. “Diana and Christopher only live a few blocks away so we might as well walk. With the traffic it would probably take us twice as long if we took a cab,” he explained.

I laughed at how right his comment was as we walked side by side down the block. After a few minutes of walking, Nicholas stopped abruptly and pulled me to the side of the building we were now standing in front of.

“This is where Diana and Christopher live. Before we go in I want to explain to you their past so you aren’t confused later on. Diana and Christopher are brother and sister. They were made about 250 years ago. One night, a savage vampire attacked their whole family. Diana and Christopher were the last two alive and by the time their attacker made it to them he wasn’t hungry anymore but too deranged to stop feeding. They woke up together in the room where their family was slaughtered. It was very traumatic for them but they have since moved on. They usually live together but every few decades they get into a big fight and one leaves to live by themselves for a few years. Its average sibling fights and one always feels bad after a while and goes to find the other. They are two of my best friends and I hope you like them,” He finished.

I tried to digest everything he had just said to me before he pulled me up the stairs to the front door of his friend’s apartment. Before he had a chance to knock a young man that looked to be no older than seventeen answered the door, smiling. He had short blonde hair and the light grey eyes that I was getting used to seeing.

“Hey Chris, I brought my…um…friend Charlie over to meet you. I hope that’s ok.” That hesitation did not escape my attention.

“Of course it is. Hi, Charlie, I’m Christopher. Welcome,” he said as he opened the door wider for us to come in. “Please come inside and meet my sister Diana.”

Nicholas and I accepted his offer and walked past him into his apartment. The first room we were met with was their living room. The walls were painted a dark mossy green color and the carpets were another shade of green I was having trouble naming. There was a large, curved, brown couch in the middle of the room. There on the couch, sat a beautiful girl who looked no older than eighteen or nineteen herself. She had long blonde hair that was almost the same color as her brother’s. Her eyes, although grey, were warm and welcoming.

As soon as she saw us come into the room, she stood up and walked over to greet us. First she went to Nicholas, grasping both his hands as she reached up and placed a small delicate kiss on his cheek. Then she turned to me.

Nicholas spoke up, “Diana, this is Charlie, Charlie I would like you to meet my friend Diana.”

Diana walked closer to me, holding out her hand to shake mine. As I took her hand she said, “It is very nice to meet you Charlie. You are very beautiful.”

I looked down at my feet, embarrassed by her comment on my looks. I heard her laugh a small laugh and say, “Please come sit down.”

“If you don’t mind Diana,” Nicholas started, “I would like to talk to Christopher in the other room for a few minutes. While we are gone, the two of you can get to know each other better.” Nicholas put his hand on my shoulder, as if to relax me, before exiting the room after Christopher.

As soon as they were gone I turned to see Diana looking at me with a question in her eyes. “Why don’t you come sit on the couch with me and tell me how you came to share this life with us. I’m sure Nicholas has already enlightened you about Christopher and me.”

“Yes, he has actually. I am very sorry for what happened to you,” I said as I walked over to sit next to her on the couch.

“It was a long time ago. We have dealt with it in our own way. We are no longer upset by our past. But please, tell me what happened to you. I can tell that it wasn’t pleasant.”

She could tell? I didn’t know what to make of that comment. Instead of questioning her about it, I told her what had happened to me two nights ago.

“That’s horrible. I’m so sorry you had to wake up alone. Now, how did you come to meet our dear friend Nicholas?” She asked me when I was done with my story.

“He saved me. He pulled me off the street, literally, and explained what had been done to me. Then he took me shopping because I had no clothes and helped me plant evidence for the faking of my death. He is also letting me stay in his apartment until I can afford a place of my own.”

“And when you can afford an apartment, do you think you will leave him?”

I paused for a second before answering, “I don’t know.”

“Hmm….,” was all she said. She sat there looking-- no studying me for a few minutes.

Finally I cleared my throat and asked, “Why are you looking at me like that?”

“I’m trying to figure out what your aura means. I think I almost have it though,” she replied absentmindedly.

“My what? Aura?”

“Didn’t Nicholas tell you that vampire sometimes have ‘powers’?”

“Yes he did. In fact I found out firsthand about these powers. What is your power exactly?”

“Well I can read people’s moods. When someone is feeling happy, or sad, or angry, or any other relatively strong emotion, I can see colors around them. Each color means the person is in a different mood or feeling a different emotion. It is just a faint glow of a color around the person.”

“Oh, wow. That is incredible. Do you see a color around me?”

“Yes…um…what did you mean by ‘finding out first hand’?”

“Oh, I have visions. I just found out yesterday.”

“How long have you been one of us?”

“I woke up yesterday. Why?”

She just stared at me for a minute in quiet amazement. “That is incredible. Usually, it takes a new vampire years to show signs of their power. I didn’t see the auras until I had lived this lifestyle for over ten years.”

Nicholas had told me this yesterday, but for some reason hearing it from someone else made it even more incredible. Especially because Diana had just told me that she hadn’t found her amazing power for over ten years! “I didn’t realize how weird it was for me to already have my power,” I explained my silence.

“Yes, it seems you are very special Charlie. I can see now why Nicholas is in love with you.”

“What did you say?”

“You are special?”

“No, the other thing.”

She just looked at me incredulously, “You cannot tell me you don’t know Nicholas is in love with you? Hasn’t he told you how he feels yet?”

“Well he has told me he likes me, and that he wants me around him. Nothing more than that though.”

“Ah. It seems I have gotten myself in the middle of this. Well I guess it’s safe to assume you haven’t told him of your feelings yet either have you?”

“I already told him I returned the feelings he has for me.”

She laughed, a small melodic laugh, “I see you two are more secretive than Nicholas and Elizabeth were when they were together.” She must have seen something in my aura, but I’m sure my face would have given away the dislike I had for the mention of Nicholas’ ex. “I’m sorry; I didn’t mean to upset you. It is just very odd for me to see two people feel so strongly about each other with out telling the other.”

“How do you know how strongly we feel about each other?”

“When someone is in love the color that surrounds them is blue. I don’t know why it’s blue; I theorize that it has something to do with the peace they feel inside them when they love someone. Now the stronger those feelings of love are, the darker the blue looks.”

“And how does the blue around Nicholas and I look?”

“Very dark blue. I have only seen a blue that dark a few other times in the over 200 years I have been seeing auras.”

I sat there thinking, not wanting to ask the question I so wanted the answer to. Finally Diana laughed her dainty laugh again and said, “I can see that you are torn between emotions. I’m assuming you want to know whose blue is a darker color. Am I right?”

I looked down at my hands, not wanting to meet her eyes. She was good.

“Charlie, I can honestly tell you that when you two were standing next to each other, I couldn’t tell whose aura was whose. The colors were so close to each other that it was almost the same aura around the both of you.”

I looked up suddenly, “Are you sure?”

“I will never lie to you Charlie. I don’t lie. I have lived too long not to be myself.”

“Thank you Diana.”

“For what?” she asked.

“For explaining the feelings I have had all day. My stomach has been doing ridiculous things since this morning and I couldn’t figure out what it was. I have never felt like this before. But I’m worried…what if Nicholas knows how he feels and just doesn’t want to tell me?”

“I have known Nicholas for a very long time. He is very capable of love and loves to be in love, if that makes sense. When things didn’t work out between him and Elizabeth, Nicholas was devastated. I don’t think he knows his true feelings for you yet, otherwise I am sure he would have told you. I would also like to impart a bit of a warning to you, not that I think you need it. When Nicholas loves, he loves hard. Please, if you do tell him of your true feelings and he of his, do not hurt him. I can’t bear to see him like he was after Elizabeth. He is a wonderful man and you seem like a simply lovely girl. I have a feeling I don’t have to worry about either of you.”

“But Diana, I don’t want to tell him of my feelings now. If he doesn’t know his yet, how am I supposed to just unload mine onto him? What am I supposed to do? The moment he walks back in the room he will know.”

“Charlie, calm down. All you have to do is think about different things. If there is nothing to look at or think about, start reciting songs in your head. If you find yourself beginning to think on your feelings, quickly change your mind to thinking about something else. It is very easy to hide your thoughts when you need to.”

“Thank you so much Diana. You have helped me out today more than you can ever know.”

“I am very happy that I can help you in any way. I have a feeling that you and I will become very good friends. I have been reading your auras for a half hour now and can tell you are a very honest and genuinely sweet person. I would be honored to count you among my friends.”

“That is very nice of you Diana. Thank you. I agree with you, I think we will be friends too and I’m glad about that.”

She just smiled at me and put her hand on my shoulder, “Don’t worry Charlie, everything will work out. No one would be able to hide or ignore love that strong for too long.”

I smiled at her, feeling really relaxed, but trying not to think about my newly discovered feelings. We sat there in their living room for about another twenty minutes just talking. We talked about our pasts and about my becoming a vampire. We talked the most about my visions. Diana was intrigued by my power and made me recite the two visions I have had over and over to her.

Finally Nicholas walked back in the room with a big smile on his face followed by Christopher. I can’t believe I—then I stopped myself from finishing that thought. I began to run lines of my favorite songs through my head. Nicholas’ face looked confused for a moment before he said, “Would you ladies like to go hunting tonight?”

Diana and I looked at each other and smiled. I turned around to Nicholas, “Where are we going to go?”

“Do you like to dance?” Nicholas asked me.

“I love to dance. Why?”

“Well we normally go to bars to hunt, but I thought since it is your first time that you could pick where we go. If you want to dance tonight we can go to a club instead.”

I was immediately ecstatic at the idea. I ran through my head all of my favorite clubs before settling on one. “How about Webster Hall? It’s always crowded and noisy, so it should be easy to blend.”

“That sounds like a great idea.” Nicholas responded, “What do you two think?”

“I have been dying to go dancing. I definitely would love to go,” was Diana’s response.

“Sure, I’ll go.” Christopher said.

“Alright then. I think I’ll take Charlie home so we can get ready for tonight. How about we meet you here at around midnight?”

They both nodded in agreement. I grabbed Diana’s hand and squeezed it, giving her a small smile. Then I walked over to Christopher and thanked him for his hospitality. Nicholas led me to the door then and we left. Out of all the information I had received over the past day and a half, this was probably the most exciting and at the same time hard to believe. How can anyone so perfect lo--.