Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Fire, my lungs are on fire. My clothes feel wet and the nightly breeze now is chilly, but I don’t feel cold. Everything is dark. I think my eyes are closed, but I’m not sure. My body isn’t really responding to me; I can just feel it.

I hear water too. I hear someone breathing, and I hear a few cars in the distance. There’s something somewhere not too far away, crushing twigs as it hobbles through tree cover. The person who is breathing is also, I now notice, crying. “What do I do, Sam? I don’t know what to do,” the voice pleads. I feel something land on my face. It feels warm and wet. Perhaps it’s a tear. I now notice that arms are holding my torso, holding me against something warm. It’s the person that is with me. The lowness of the voice leads me to believe it’s a male. I hear his heart beating, blood pulsing through his body as he silently cries. I open my eyes.

Light is the first thing I take note of. It’s not a daytime light, but just the light that shines from overly bright stars on a night gifted with an overly bright, full moon. “Sam?” the male voice whispers, his voice filled with shock. My stare moves slightly to the right, observing the face lingering over me. I know this boy, though his voice sounds different. This is Darrian, my best friend.

“Dare,” I address. “What happened?” I question, sitting up.

“I don’t understand,” he says, still in a mere whisper. He is staring at me intently, wide eyed and mouth slightly agape.

My shirt is completely soaked, but as I sit up I notice something much more troubling. We are on our favorite dock by the well-known lake in Granite Falls. However, there are two other bodies present with us on said dock, and neither one has life flowing through it. The two bodies lay lifeless and without a heartbeat on the dock. Then I remember everything, the scene replaying in my head.

With this newfound recollection, I remember why my shirt is wet. I was shot, certainly not too long ago as it was around two in the morning at the time and the sky is still evenly dark. Darrian’s heart beat is speeding up, while the hearts of the other two remain inactive. Then I realize…Darrian’s heartbeat is the only one I hear. I press my first finger into my neck, just below my jaw and search for my pulse. However, I feel nothing.

“Sam, what’s going on? You…How are you alive?” Dare questions, still staring at me intently. I realize it’s been mere seconds since his last words, his heart still racing. Without waiting for an answer, he throws his arms around me, squeezing so tight I’m surprised I’m able to breathe. Actually…I’m not breathing. Dare is though, cycling through lung full after lung full of oxygen, his heart still racing, his warm O negative blood racing through his body, keeping it warm and lively. I hear it rushing through his veins, especially now, with him leaned over, arms around me, neck inches from my face. I can almost see it, rushing through his arteries, warm and rich.

I hear a twig snap in the distance, by a weight greater than whatever animal I heard before. I’m suddenly on my feet, facing the parking lot. Our two vehicles are the only things here. I c**k my head, listening intently. I hear some grass make that soft, crisp sound it makes in the summer when stepped on. It’s one person, less than a mile to the left of the dock. I remember the other docks and houses over there. But then I also remember that some time ago, I fired one shot and a stranger fired another.

“We have to get rid of these bodies,” I say, spinning around back towards the edge of the dock, the two lifeless strangers, and Dare. Dare stands up next to me, slower than I stood up moments ago.

He places his hands on my shoulder and turns me to face him. “Sam, you were shot. You…” he gets choked up for a moment and looks down, clearing his throat. “You died in my arms, choking on your own blood. How are you standing? How are you alive right now?”

I pause for a moment and contemplate the whole ordeal. I place my finger back to my neck and feel for a pulse. I take note again at the fact that I’m not breathing. My lungs don’t burn either. They feel strange and slightly uncomfortable, but I don’t feel lightheaded or deprived. I think for a moment and also consider the fact that my back hasn’t hurt once since I opened my eyes, in spite of me having been shot mere hours ago, if that. Darrian’s heart rate still sounds elevated. He seems tense.

 “You’re not answering me,” Dare snaps, his heartbeat speeding up still yet.

“Calm down,” I say, taking note at how smooth my voice sounds. It doesn’t have that tired sound, nor does it have that seventeen year old girl sound. I sound like my vocal chords have fully matured. My voice is smooth and even, slightly deeper than it normally is. I raise my arm and feel for the bullet hole on my back, but there isn’t one. I look down at my torn shirt for the other side but it’s not there either. My finger probes the spot where life poured out of me mere hours ago, but the skin is smooth. My skin is also cool, cooler than it should be. My overactive brain tries to tell me I must be superhuman, but I know better than that.

“We have to get rid of these bodies,” I say again. I don’t want to think about the lack of life in my body, mainly because I don’t have an answer for what is going on. And this scares me. What happened to me? I…I can remember going cold.

Suddenly I wasn’t looking at the moon anymore. Everything was just kind of black…

I remember feeling the life rush out of my body, soaking my shirt and dripping off the dock. I suddenly can smell the blood on my shirt. It has a strange smell, not the metallic, copper smell blood normally has. It smells…indescribable. I look down at my shirt, a ruined mess at this point. It smells rich and thick, though the coldness of it makes it slightly less appealing. I then realize I smell Darrian’s blood too. He must have been nicked somewhere. His blood smells like mine, rich and thick too, but so much better. His blood smells warm and sweet as well. It reminds me of hot chocolate, the richness. The lively-ness reminds me of freshly cooked beef, medium-rare, like I’ve always eaten it. The smell of his blood is quite literally indescribable. My gaze finds his neck. I imagine the blood rushing through his neck again.

My mind becomes more alert than before, something I assumed to be impossible. I feel all my senses heighten just a little more as I hear his blood pulsing through his veins, taking note of every noise in a five mile radius: a few cars here and there, cows grazing and sleeping in a nearby field, deer trekking through the woods, people out walking here and there, and Dare. I can almost feel his heart beating. My mouth begins to water as I think about his blood rushing, what it would feel like for that warm and rich elixir of life to flow from his neck into my mouth. I feel something adjust in my mouth and my tongue probes my canines that are now extended lower than normal with sharp and pointed tips. They’re just sharp enough to perfectly break his skin without shredding it or any surrounding skin, making two small holes just big enough for his blood to flow through. My mouth waters more. My mouth has opened just slightly now as I rub my tongue over my teeth.

“What the hell…” Dare whispers, taking a small and hesitant step back as he sees my teeth. “Sam…”

I notice my hands just as the right one grabs his wrist and the other is going for his hair. I take a small step forward and his eyes meet mine, vulnerable like before and similarly scared. However, it’s not a bullet he’s afraid of now. It’s me.

I jerk back, releasing him, retreating to the other side of the narrow dock. I feel my teeth pull back up and round out, though they’re not as shapely as they’re supposed to be. What the f**k is going on?

I have no heartbeat; my body doesn’t need oxygen. My body is cooler than normal; I can hear everything that moves within a radius of at least a mile. And I just tried to suck the life out of my best friend’s neck. Is this even possible? This can’t be real. This is something out of the books. I can’t be…no. That’s impossible. They don’t exist. But what other answer is there? I died. Dare felt me die. I felt the life leave my own body as I drifted to sleep. And now here I stand, but I’m not…alive.

“Dare…” I whisper. He’s looking at me still, but he isn’t afraid like before. He is confused and concerned. “I think I’m dead.”

“What do you mean?” he questions, articulating every word carefully.

I focus on my canines again. I curl my upper lip slightly and instinctively the previously present…fangs represent themselves. I take one careful step forward and reach for Darrian’s hand. At first he doesn’t move, but as he realizes I won’t continue forward without a notion from him, he places his hand in mine. I take his hand carefully and slowly to my teeth and direct his hand to the point. He rubs the tip of his finger over my tooth for a moment. I then guide his hand to my neck and allow him to feel for a pulse that isn’t present.

“This isn’t possible…” he says, sounding amazed.

“I think…Darrian, I think I’m like…a vampire,” I admit both aloud and within myself.

“Sam, vampires aren’t real,” Dare challenges.

“You think I don’t know that?” I snap. Somehow I’m able to snap a sentence at him, but my voice still sounds smooth and collected. “How else do you explain this? I have no heartbeat. The blood in my body isn’t pumping anywhere. My bullet wound you tried so hard to fix? It’s gone. My teeth can grow and shrink both instinctively and on command. None of this is possible.”

He lets his hand drop back to his side. I see him struggling to piece everything together, desperately searching for an answer less insane. I wish I could do the same, but I’m the one standing here, dead. I know how insane it sounds, and I know how impossible it is. Yet, there’s no other explanation for what is occurring right now.

“Well, alright then,” Dare says. I study his expression. He seems confused but accepting. Darrian loves me. He’s happy I’m alive. And if I’m something that doesn’t actually exist, then he’s willing to accept that. This has always been Darrian’s way: reluctantly but willingly accepting and open-minded. “We’ll try to analyze this more later. Right now we need to figure out what to do.”

There’s only one thing we can do, though he must not realize this right now. “Darrian, we have to get rid of the bodies. I’m a dead girl walking. If we call the police, they’ll want to take us both into custody. I’ll be charged with…something. My prints are on the gun. Being in the system, they’ll realize something’s not quite right about me,” I explain, suddenly realizing how screwed I’m going to be for the rest of my life.

Darrian suddenly seems uncomfortable. “I’m not okay with just disposing of two human beings, worthless or otherwise”

I think for a moment, knowing there’s no other option. “I mean, I’ll be okay with you waiting in the car,” I offer. I realize how cold and detached this sounds, referring to him waiting in the car while I dispose of the two people I murdered. However, I feel perfectly comfortable with it. Maybe it’s true, what the books and movies hint at: vampires are soulless monsters.

He looks at me and I see a touch of humor dance across his eyes. He’s in denial, shock. Then again, I seriously think I am too. He takes a small step forward. “Sam…” he starts, looking me in the eyes now. He wraps his arms around me and hugs me tightly, again. “I thought you were gone,” he whispers.

I wrap my arms around him in return, slowly. “Yeah, me too…” I say, still slightly confused at how this can even be happening. “Go wait in the car, Dare,” I direct. I’m so easily focused on this moment. I am focusing on Dare, his warmth and his heartbeat, though not in a dangerous way now. I’m focused on the presence of the two other bodies, the sound of the water and wind, and the sound still yet of nearby life. It’s amazing and fascinating. It’s incredible.

Darrian pulls away and walks to his car. I pause for a moment. This just isn’t okay. I know I’m in shock now because I died. I’m dead and I’m so calm. I’m walking around with a dysfunctional body and this isn’t bothering me yet. I’m in denial as well. Maybe I just can’t feel my heartbeat. Yeah, that’s not wishful thinking at all. I don’t know what to make of any of this. I’ll have to deal with it later. I don’t have time to stand here trying to put all this together right now. I just don’t. I have to let my mind flip the switch and just ignore emotions for a little bit. I need to regain control of everything.

I turn around and try to think of the best way to dispose of these two bodies. I pick up the closest gun, the one I used hours ago, and place it in the back of my waistband. I quickly step to the other body and pick up his gun, sticking it in the side of my waistband. I take note of how fast I naturally move now. When I stepped back from Dare, it was in less than a second. And just now, it took me a mere second to walk from halfway down the dock to the end where the other body lay. The books seem to have gotten a lot of things right about this. The thought of considering me a vampire is still absurd and makes me uncomfortable. I don’t think I’ll acknowledge myself as a vampire just yet. For now I’ll just accept that I’m not alive. I’m not really human, walking around without a pulse.

I decide to experiment and place my right hand on the man’s left ankle. I easily lift his whole body with one hand, extending my arm up to about a one hundred sixty degree angle to my body to lift him completely off the ground. It’s easy. It’s like lifting a shirt from my bedroom floor. I use my other hand to rotate his body, head up, and throw him over my shoulder. It’s honestly the equivalent of laying a loaf of bread over my shoulder. I walk back down the dock to other body and contemplate before picking him up. If I put them in the water, they may easily be found, though I don’t have many other options. I removed our keys from the man’s pockets, placing them on the dock. I forget where our phones went, but they’re not on either of the men now. I pick up the body by the ankle as I did the first one and think for a moment. I focus my eyes on the body of water. My senses are so advanced, In spite of it being dark out; I can see everything perfectly, just as I would in the daytime. I can look at the water and tell how deep each area is, something I couldn’t do at any time of day. I wonder if the physical abilities realistically affect my speed and overall strength as well. I brace myself and tighten my grips on the men, take a deep, pointless, breath, and jump with all my strength approximately forty yards across the lake, to an area that’s around twenty yards deep. It’s good enough for now and will successfully conceal the bodies as the lake is murky and dirty. You can see deeper than a foot into any spot. I feel my body submerge into the water and immediately begin sinking. It then occurs to me that I released my breath and have absolutely no oxygen in my body. I know I don’t need to breathe but having oxygen in your body makes it a great deal easier to return to the surface. I let myself begin sinking and then let the body slide off my shoulder, grabbing it also by the ankle. I point my body downward and begin to swim to the bottom.

It is pitch dark in the water at this time of night. There’s not enough light to shine through all the dirt and mud in the water. However, I can see everything. I see the bottom which is now just less than ten yards away; I can see the watery plants on the bottom of the lake. I can also hear and feel, in the movement of the water, nearby fish avoiding venturing too close but swimming near enough to try to ease their curiosity. I make my way to the bottom and lay the two bodies side by side, careful to not inhale at all. In spite of not needing oxygen, that doesn’t mean inhaling water, especially this water, won’t still be extraordinarily unpleasant.

I pause for a moment to make sure the two bodies aren’t going to float to the surface. After thirty or so seconds, I’m satisfied and race to the lake’s surface. I break surface and realize how uncomfortable swimming is when you have no heartbeat, no oxygen, and no flowing blood helping your muscles feel more active. It’s hard to swim when your body is dead.

However, my unreasonable advanced speed makes it a little easier. It takes me less than thirty seconds to clear the forty yard swim back to the dock. I pull myself up with one hand, placing the other a foot from the edge to brace myself as I stand up. I find, however, that things like that aren’t even necessary anymore.

I search the dock for our phones. While they are broken, we’ll need them to get them replaced. It’s amazing how level headed I am. I remember the anxiety from taking two lives, killing two men and erasing them from the present and future. However, now, I am comfortable with this and find myself logically thinking of what I need to salvage from the situation. This is, also, absurd. However, in the books, vampires were always level headed about things like this. They were always calm and didn’t regard the taking of someone’s life as a big deal. However, vampires did not just happen in the books. They’re turned. However, I’m pretty sure there was no exchange of blood with an immortal at any point tonight. In some ways, this all makes perfect sense. But in others, it makes absolutely no sense whatsoever.

I find my phone near the end of the dock and Dare’s near where the first body had been resting. I pick up our keys as well and make my way to the car. Walking in wet clothes in a cold body is insanely uncomfortable, so halfway to the car I take off my shirt. I pop my trunk and search for my spare work clothes I often leave there. I find one of my Cookout shirts and pull it over my head. I close my trunk and open my backseat door, looking for the shorts I had left back here the other day. I find them and remove my jean shorts, pulling up my gym shorts. I feel much better. I look for my brush and walk to Dare’s car with it, brushing my hair as water drips down my arms. I open his door and hand him his keys. He gives me a strange and analytical look.

I stop brushing my hair and let my arms hang at my sides. My sides feel harder than normal, something I hadn’t noticed changing. I lift up my shirt and look at my sides and stomach. “Sweet Jesus,” I whisper, examining my body. What little bit of noticeable fat I had obtained over the years is now gone. My body looks lean and solid, but still soft with my womanly curves. I pull up one of the legs of my shorts and see that my thighs and calves are also nicely shaped now, no excess cellulite. I look at Darrian and he only briefly examined my body before looking at my face again. “Please say something…” I say, letting my clothes slide down to their proper position.

“I’m not sure what to say,” he admits.

“Okay…I understand. I’ll leave and…you can pretend none of this ever happened,” I say, letting my head hang a little, feeling the first bit of real emotion since opening my eyes again. I feel…disappointed and hurt. However, it’s more intense than emotions were before I died. I feel alone. I feel like a freak.

“Babe, I don’t want you to leave. I just don’t know what to say. I don’t understand. This is supposed to be impossible, but it’s also amazing,” he reassures. My eyes meet his again and I lean down, hugging him again. He waits a moment and then lets his walls slide down, opening up. He wraps his arms around me tightly and exhales. I feel him smile over my shoulder and I smile too, feeling reassured for the moment. “You’re going to be okay, Sam.”

I feel happy now, very much so. I let my smile grow. I know I’m dead. I know that I died. Yet, here I stand, and Dare’s right. Things are going to be okay. I’ll be okay, I think. I just have to figure this bizarre freak occurrence out. It still doesn’t make any sense.

“I have to get home now,” I say, pulling back. He lets me go and just watches my face. “How do I explain what happened to her?” How do you tell your mother her seventeen year old daughter who is standing before her is actually dead?

“I don’t know…” he says.

“I’ll figure it out,” I say determinedly. “I’ll come by your house later today, okay?”

“Definitely,” he confirmed. In the meantime, I’ll go get a new phone.”

“Yeah I need to do that too,” I agree, slightly annoyed that I’ll have to make time for something so trivial after dying, when I still have to let my mother know that I died. My poor mother…she drives me crazy sometimes, but I love her so much. And I do believe that she loves me too. I’m her daughter. ‘I’m so sorry, mom…’ I think to myself, feeling as though tears should be slipping slowly from my eyes, but they don’t even water.

“I feel like neither of us have really accepted what’s happened,” he admits, a small frown coming across his face.

I thought for a moment, realizing that I really did die on that dock. I’m dead, but I’m standing. Therefore not only am I dead, I’m not human anymore. However, my main focus is…I’m dead. I’m seventeen years old. I haven’t even graduated high school. And…I died. “I think you’re right.”

Author's Note

If you read this, please go ahead and let me know what you think. I would really appreciate some feedback. Thanks!

Reviews

[StefanC]

Again a good chapter.

I think the only thing I'd put forward in way of suggestion is that whilst the internal dialogue is really good it starts to feel a little repetitive in parts. I wouldn't suggest getting rid of any of it, perhaps just making it a little more dynamic and approaching her feelings/situation from some different angles.
It's a minor quibble though (I'm clutching at straws).

A brilliant chapter, well written and interesting. Looking forward to see where it goes.