A Lovers’ Tiff

Laura approached him. She hadn’t seen him in days, nearly a week. She touched his shoulder, and he spun to face her instantly. She saw that the reports had been not entirely exaggerated. His face was horridly scratched up, and his brows were bent irefully, with a look in his eye easily describable as rabid. She backed away, turned away. She breathed deeply and turned back to face him. He had walked up behind and was already upon her, looking down into her eyes with the same harsh gaze. She stood quietly under him, in his shadow. He grabbed her arms firmly, not as to hurt her, but to keep her from turning away again. She just stared up at him.
"Laura, what is it?" he finally asked, his voice slightly more gruff than she remembered.
She finally found her voice. "John, I’m worried about you. You’ve been so... Distant lately, so cold. And when you beat that guy the other day... You were down right vicious. You beat the hell out of him, John!" She stopped for a moment to regain her composure. With a gulp, she continued, "You’re changing, John. Right in front of my eyes, I can see that you’re changing..."
She trailed off, and he broke in, "Listen, Laura, it’s nothing. I’m just... Going through a hard time in my life right now-"
"No, John! It’s not just the coldness and the distance... You’ve been acting... Odd. I hear people talking... They say you talk to yourself sometimes, John. Even your friends say you’ve lost your mind. I was talking to James the other day, and-"
He put his finger to her lips. "Laura, listen... It’s really nothing."
She grabbed his finger and threw it away from her face and stuck her own finger against his lips, staring into his eyes. "No, John, you listen... You’re not the same gentle soul I love." She turned from him again. "I still love you, John," she said with her back to him, "I’m just... I’m just worried that maybe... Maybe you don’t love me anymore?"
He placed his palm on her shoulder and kissed her neck. She turned and saw that the rabid look was gone. His eyes had regained that soft glow they once had. He cupped her cheek in his hand. "Laura, my love, my one." His hand slid down to her neck. "And." He grabbed her throat firmly, and the rabid look snapped back into his eye. "Only," he growled wildly.
She rasped and began beating on his chest with her fists. He looked into her eyes, which were beginning to expand and redden. "You feel that burning in your chest? Feel like you can’t breathe?" She grabbed his arm and dug her nails in, raspily squeaking in desperation. "Heh, yeah. That’s how I felt." Blood began streaming down his forearm where her nails dug in. "The first time I saw you." Her eyes rolled back, and only a pinkish white showed. He kissed her unresponsive lips and let go, letting her limp body drop to the floor. Looking down at her, he said, "It’s really nothing, my beloved. Nothing at all."