Dystopian Dream

Chapter Eleven

I woke up alone. It was pitch black in the basement and it took me a few moments to find the stairs. Last nights or should I say days, experience was lingering on the sidelines of my mind. I refused to let it on the playing field.

Moving slowly and trying to keep my eyes everywhere at once, I walked into the living room. A quick look around told me that I was alone. That made me even more nervous than before. Was this a test, to see if I would stay if I had the chance to go? What would happen if I tried to leave? Or was this a real chance to get away from this nightmare?

My heart slowly but steadily started to speed up again. I tried to work against the oncoming anxiety by taking deep breaths with closed eyes. Imagine how the air is flowing inside you and fills out your lungs, I told myself.

"Do you really think it is a good idea to stand around with closed eyes and making as much noise as you do?"

The goosebumps I had felt seconds before had been a warning but James sullen voice still startled me. When I turned around I expected the worst. He stood under the doorframe that seemed to lead to what once was a kitchen. His eyes weren't the dark red I had feared but they were not  their usual blue either. They were dark and cold.

"Were is Dean?" I asked, hoping that would make the persistend starring stop.

It did not. Instead he started walking towards me while shrugging his shoulders. Apparently he did not plan on saying anything. He sat down on the tattered couch. We were only a few feet apart and I felt the urge to put several million between us. Thinking back to what had happened a few hours ago it occured to me that I should take a different route dealing with moody vampires. Trying to stay out of their way and being polite had not worked. After one more moment of hesitation, I walked over to the couch and sat down next to him.

"You should be worried, you know," his voice sounded indifferent enough, that I did not immedeatly get up and try to rund away. Instead I replied in what I hoped to be a relaxed voice:

"What exactly should I be worried about?"

"Dean. What else?" It felt like a rhetorical question but maybe there was an unexpected answer.

"I know and I am worried about him but that is nothing new." It took me some willpower to aks the next question. "Did he tell you something or...," I trailed off because his smile was irritating me.

"Haven't seen him and even if I did he didn't have to tell me anything. I heard."

My cheeks flushed bright red. I hadn't even thought about that.

"Wh- What did you hear?"

"Calm down. When I realized what was going on I stopped listening. Thats what causes me to say you should be worried, by the way." After seeing my confused expression he was generous enough to explain further. "Last night at the lake, it would have taken Dean about one word to convince me to do to you what he has been dreaming of since he met you. But he didn't. He did the opposite, by handling the situation in a way that would ensure your savety. Sure, later he did get," James hesitated for a moment before saying, "a reward, but still. He wanted you for his own more importantly, he did not want you to die. That means something and that is what you should be worried about."

"And what exactly does that mean?"

James had stopped looking at me while talking but now he turned to me again.

"It means he is in love with you."

Of all the things he could have said, that sounded the most ludicrous. I had absolutely no idea what to say to that. For a few moments we sat in silence. When James realized that I was not going to say anything in the near future, he explained further.

"He doesn't know that he is in love, yet. For the next few days he is probably going to be a bit nicer to you. Then when he realizes what is going on he is going to get very hostile. Probably worse that what you are used to."

That had finally rattled me enough to speak again.

"But why?"

"I guess because he doesn't want to have the weakness of being in love. After all, he just saw what good it did me."

"Thats not what I mean! Why do you think he is in love with me?" I had never yelled at James before but this was the perfect opportunity.

"I would tell you but I think Dean will be here soon." With that he got up and walked to the window, leaving me utterly confused and thoroughly horrified on the couch.

It turned out very quickly, that James was right. I spotted Dean, strolling towards the house. It would be the first time we would speak after what had happened last night and I did not look forward to it. James opened the front door and he walked in. He quickly glanced around the room and upon seeing me, he started smiling. Not his usual smirk, that made me feel uneasy and worried, but a genuine, pretty smile.

"Look who finally got up. You two have had a good sleep in, haven't you?" Up until this moment, I would never thought about describing Dean as chipper, but that was exactly what he was.

"You have been hunting?" James asked.

"Sort of," he answered while sitting down next to me on the couch. "I didn't find anything to eat for us, but something for her. It's in the car." Remebering what James had said ealier, I started to feel like I never wanted to eat again. Nevertheless, I thanked him quietly, which he completely ignored.

Apparently that was all the information James needed. He started towards the car and did not look back. I followed Dean when he went after him. The cherry on top of my icecream of misery, was the fact, that Dean opened the car door for me.