Ash to Ash

-He was like a shadow. A ghost. If you saw him, you might rub your eyes, blink. But you wouldn't see him twice. Was he ever really there?

I couldn't sleep. I huddled under my blankets, clutching a pillow to my chest.

Why won't they just shut up? I don't need to hear them. I don't want to. I tried blocking out their shouts with my headphones, but- of course- no luck.

-It was almost too easy to remain undetected. The night cloaked him like a second skin. White teeth flashed in the absolute blackness of night.

Did I just hear glass shattering? Stop it!

I pulled my duvet over my head in an attempt to block out my parents' altercation. It didn't work. Not for a second.

-He merged effortlessly with the shadows at the back of the house. Not long now...

I don't even know what they're fighting about. Something trite, that's for sure. I wish my parents would just split up, or divorce! I can't stand this constant arguing. I hate them for doing this to me. I hate them for making me hate them.

-I'm here, he silently shouted.

'I'm going out.' Not that they heard me. Not that they would have cared, even if they did.

-He was waiting. Of course he was waiting. He was always waiting. But tonight was different. Tonight was the night. He'd waited centuries for tonight.

-An unfamiliar smile worked its way onto porcelain cheeks. Not a smirk or a grimace: a genuine smile. I love you.

The stars were out, so I decided to walk through the park for an uninterrupted view.

Suddenly, I got the prickly feeling that I was being followed. I listened for footstep, or breathing, but I heard nothing. Surreptitiously, I looked behind me, but no one was there.

I couldn't shake off the feeling.

-He stepped out of the blackness, in front of the boy squinting over his shoulder. Studied the contours of his face, resisted the urge to touch his hair. 'Ash...' he breathed.

I whipped my head round in sudden fear. I was confronted with a terrifying sight. A man- no, he couldn't have been older than nineteen- towered over me. His eyes were hooded in shadow, his skin chalk-white. Oh god, please don't be a-

'I'm not a druggie.' He smirked around his words.

Am I that easy to read? Incredibly, the boy's smirk widened.

Suddenly, I registered his appearance. Properly.

He was beautiful. Like a girl. I didn't know boys could be so pretty. I didn't know anyone could be so pretty.

His eyes were old, older than the rest of him, yet sparkling with vitality and youth. Sculpted cheekbones framed a slightly crooked nose, which was impossibly charming. My gaze dropped to his lips, bright against pasty skin. I briefly wondered how they would feel-

Shut up, brain.

It wasn't until his mouth had stopped moving that I realised he had been talking. Crap. I didn't dare look at his eyes, so I studied my battered trainers. Somehow, I knew without looking what his facial expression was.

'Say something.' His voice was soft as rain, which almost- almost- made it sound like a request.

I had a bit of dirt on my right shoe. I tried to shake it off, but it clung on stubbornly.

Cool fingers lifted up my face by my chin. 'Do you understand?' I nodded dumbly, arrested by those intoxicating eyes. 'Oh, good,' he breathed, and then—

And then.

I shoved him away. 'What the hell was that? You can't just go around kissing people!' That was amazing.

He raised one cocky eyebrow and draped a lazy arm across my shoulders. 'Really?'

I didn't push him away the second time. I didn't stop him when he took me away from that park. I didn't leave when he told me what he was.

I didn't attempt to leave, even when I knew he was going to bite me. In my ear, he whispered, 'Now, my love, we have forever. Together.'

Perhaps I shouldn't have said that I loved him too. I think he knew that I was lying. I think he didn't mind.

I left every feeling of remorse for my parents, and longing for the friends I never had, back in my human body. I think that when he took my humanity, he took away my emotions as well.

I've found that I'm rather suited to life as a vampire.

Laura Stebbings Page 1