Watching | Michael Jackson *HEAVILY EDITING* ✓

Chapter 10. Under The Influence

Michael's POV:
   I wake up in my bed and stare at the ceiling, rubbing my eyes for a moment as I come out of the world of dreams. I take a moment to stretch and feel something next to me, quickly remembering that it's Tatiana. The memories of the previous night fill my mind as I stare at her, moving a single strand of her curls out of her face as I remember how our bodies were united for the first time. Tatiana's presence in my bed is almost like a souvenir of a precious moment in history in which two souls merged flawlessly in a dance of love and lust—hers and mine. I sigh as I slowly lift myself out of bed and look in the mirror, noticing how exhausted I look. I decide to wash my face with some water and head over to Tatiana to kiss her on her forehead before making my way downstairs. 

   After making myself some eggs and toast, I wash up the dishes and look at the time, realizing that it's seven in the morning. I decide to check if Tatiana is awake and tune into her thoughts, only to be met with nothing. Suddenly, I find myself feeling ridiculously thirsty—thirstier than I ever have been before. My throat feels incredibly dry and shrivelled, and I now realize why I must be so exhausted—I haven't hunted in days. But this...this feels different. I swiftly put on a hoodie, baseball cap, and sunglasses as I feel myself rushing to go out—almost as if the thirst is forcing me out the door. 

   Once I'm outside, I start walking, scoping out the area. My hunting senses feel heightened and I find myself smelling scents and hearing sounds from farther away. It's then that I pause and deeply inhale, smelling a sweet vanilla scent from up ahead and hearing a fast heartbeat echo in my ears. From the sound and smell, I deduce that it's a young woman jogging. Out of nowhere, I feel as if my consciousness takes the back seat as my hunting senses go into overdrive, causing me to dash at an inhuman speed toward the woman. It takes me less than five seconds to reach her, and when I do, without any sort of hesitation, I check my surroundings, see that no one is around, place my hand on her mouth so that she can't scream, and sink my teeth into her neck. The immediate, invigorating taste of iron and plasma filling my mouth and the sound of her gasping makes every single cell in my body go into a frenzy—I have never, EVER felt this way while feeding before. Realizing that we're out in the open, I use my speed to duck the woman and me into an alley, thrusting her against the wall as I hold her against it with my hand on her mouth and continue to feed. As I take a gasp of air for a moment, I look into the woman's eyes, only to find confusion and fear present. The reflection of myself in her eyes makes every humane part of my being scream at the top of its lungs to stop this primitive behaviour, but the part of me—the hunter—that's in control isn't kind enough to lend me its ear. In a mere few moments, the woman can no longer stand on her own, but I don't stop—I can't! I follow her body onto the ground and continue to extract her blood, sucking every single drop I can. In a few seconds, the woman is lifeless and the blood runs dry, making me realize that I've sucked all of the blood out of her body. She's dead. I take a step back and stare at her, eyes wide as I slowly begin to regain control. I feel as if my body has been possessed by a blood-desiring monster. As I'm coming to terms with the fact that, for the first time, I murdered a human being for my own gain in a merciless way, pain strikes my head as I get a vision. I see myself and Tatiana, she's staring at me with immense fear in her eyes. I see Austin and Tatiana together, but I'm not with them, followed by an eerie image of myself staring into a mirror with bloodshot eyes and a rather devious-looking grin. Of course, as usual, the vision ends as abruptly as it started, and I find myself leaning on the brick wall of the alley for support as the dizziness subsides. I really wish that I could get used to having visions already—you'd think after twenty years you'd get used to it. Once it passes, I make my back home, leaving the woman's body there for someone to find. 

   I unlock the door and close it behind me, taking a moment to kick off my shoes as the familiar sound of the news plays from the TV in the living room.