𝐖𝐇𝐄𝐍 𝐍𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓 𝐂𝐎𝐌𝐄𝐒

𝖈𝖍𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖊𝖗 𝖙𝖜𝖊𝖓𝖙𝖞 𝖔𝖓𝖊

Hunger hit you fast and hunger hit you hard.

Nights bled into a steady routine that you were barely even aware of. Your transformation into a half-vampire sucked the spirit straight from your body and spat it back into you all knotted and frayed and unrecognizable. You stole passing glances into a shattered mirror on the wall of the hotel lobby and didn't recognize the girl glaring back at you in the reflection.

You had to give it to the boys—they had this whole babysitting thing down pact. Each of them took turns lingering behind to watch over you while the rest took off to wander the boardwalk and feed.

On your first night, you learned that you were the only half-vampire left among them, not counting Star or Laddie. The three of you could survive on human food but it didn't come remotely close to truly satisfying you. Not like it used to. The biggest takeout box from your favorite Chinese place was only a drop in the ocean of your insatiable hunger.

Dwayne watched you pace the room from his seat on the sofa. His half-lidded eyes slid over your figure, mapping the nervous twitching of your fingers without ever moving a muscle. Marko promised to bring you the biggest, greasiest burger he could find on his way back from the boardwalk but until then you were left nibbling on the stubs of your fingernails, battling the clawing hunger that tore at your stomach and made the idea of sitting still resonate like needles to the eyes.

The pillar candles stacked in the corners had all been lit before you woke up and the only sound aside from their soft crackling was the flickering of Dwayne's silver lighter that he kept dutifully stored in the front pocket of his jeans. It sounded off every few seconds and you watched out of the corner of your eye as he flipped the lid and snapped it shut with the flick of his wrist the dozenth time over. It kept him occupied as he stirred in what must've been his own lethal dose of boredom.

With a low huff, you ran both of your hands back through your hair and let them rest against the nape of your neck as you turned to make your way back across the room. Come on, (Y/N). Think about anything—literally anything but food.

"You hungry?"

Dwayne shattered the silence with two words—his voice gruff from not speaking all evening. You shook your head quickly, desperate to deny the truth for as long as you could. He didn't seem the type to push you for the truth, which is what you were counting on. Instead of prodding, all you heard from him next was the rhythmic flick-and-snap that you'd been subjected to for the last odd minutes.

Flick, snap.

Flick, snap.

Flick, snap.

Flick—

"How do you stand it?"

The question flew out of your mouth before you could reel it back in. You slapped a palm over your mouth and ceased your pacing in front of the couch.

A smile twitched at the corner of his lips. Dwayne snapped the zippo shut a final time and folded his hand over the small object. He didn't have to stand it. He ate people. Not everyone at this party was still riding their moral high horse like you were.

"Never mind."

"There's other ways," he said just as you were about to turn and continue burning your path into the ancient tile floor. You swore you could feel your ears pricking up at his words. Your stomach grumbled, eliminating any denial you could have voiced just then. The human part of you—it must've been the human part—begged you to turn around and dive back into the soft-scented linens of Star's bed. But the part of you that hungered like a caged animal was much bigger. It shut her up pretty quick.