Sink your teeth

Chapter two

Andrew couldn't explain the nightmares, but ever since that early morning at the diner, his dreams always seemed to contain either that man, or that strange house...

The nightmares always contained both. The nightmares were the same every night, Andrew is walking through an abandoned forest, when he finds a clearing. He walks into the clearing and he gets transported to that road where the house stood. He feels drawn towards the house and walks into it. He soon stumbles upon a room where it sounds like there is a wolf eating it's prey. He creaks open the door to find the man eating a woman dead on a large bed with silk sheets. The man hears him and turns to him with a growl, fangs protruding his mouth, his lips coated in blood. And then he wakes up, feeling as though someone is watching him.

He writes the dreams off as paranoia, telling himself that the only reason both the house and the man are in his nightmares is because they both have the same aura.
While that's true, he still can't explain the man's fangs, or why he remembers every single last detail of that room with the large bed and silk sheets.

This night was the same. He has the nightmare, he wakes up with a jolt, and tries to fall back asleep. He turns on his side and stares at the wall with a sigh.

"Stop being superstitious, Andrew." He murmurs to himself, then turns over to his other side. He stares out the large window next to his bed, the branch looking like a hand scraping at the window. But he wasn't scared of it, he wasn't a child. The wind howls outside the window as rain coats the roads, it had been raining an awful lot lately. Of course, meteorologists are on the news every night talking about it, but Andrew hates the news. It gives him anxiety about real things, like global warming or tornadoes.

Andrew puts his hand to the glass pane to find it surprisingly hot. It burns his skin and he hisses as he quickly retracts his hand.
"The hell?" He sits up in bed and looks towards the ground, he lived in a third story apartment, so the ground was a pretty long ways away. He glances around the outside through his window, finding nothing that could be making the window hot...

Wait, why was it only the window that was hot?

His brows furrow and he squints, when his eyes land upon a dark figure near a grove of trees. A shiver runs down his spine.
Though he couldn't see any features of the figures face, he could tell...

That was the man...

~

Andrew couldn't sleep the rest of the night, so when he had to go to school the next morning, he could barely keep his eyes open for more than five seconds.

Michael eyes him, then sighs and puts his hand on Andrew's back, making Andrew flinch and sit up with a jolt. "Damn, you good man? You've been awfully jump-"

"I'm fine!" He cuts Michael off, he hadn't had time to get coffee that morning so he was both tired and grumpy. "I am perfectly fine." He huffs, folding his arms and looking away, pouting like a child.

"..."
"Uh... huh... sure..."

Andrew shoots him a glare, and Michael chuckles, swinging an arm around Andrew's neck, "You been hooking up with a hot girl and not telling me? Is that why you've been so tired lately?"

Andrew rolls his eyes and pushes Michael off, "As if."

"Sorry, did I hurt the virgin's feelings?"

Andrew glares at him again, and Michael laughs again, "You know I'm kidding, Drew. I know you would never hook up with anyone. you're too scared, right? That's what you told your therapist?"

Andrew sighs and glances away, "You have no business..."

"I know," Michael sighs, his smile long gone now, "But you need to tell me... us... your friends things, Drew. We care, y'know."

Andrew sighs again and nods, "Yeah, I know..."

"That's why we pester you all the time, you never tell us what's up! We didn't even find out why you don't drink until we came to your house an-"

"Michael." Andrew hisses, cutting him off and putting his hand over Michael's mouth to shut him up.

Michael's eyes widen and his eyes flick around. He carefully lowers Andrew's hand and whispers; "I was being too loud again, wasn't I...?"

Andrew sighs and pulls his hand back, "Yeah, kinda..."

"Sorry, I didn't mean-" Michael pauses when he notices the bandaid wrapped around Andrew's hand, "What's this?"

"Huh? Oh, I, uh, burned myself while pulling something out of the oven..." Andrew couldn't tell Michael, or anyone for that matter, about the dreams, or about the hot glass, or how he saw the man outside his window... they would call him a wuss or a baby, even. He couldn't have that.

"Man, you gotta be more careful when cooking, you've cut your arms and hands enough while chopping vegetables." Michael says with a sigh and a smile,

"I try to be! Cooking utensils and shit just hate me." Andrew grumbles, glancing away.

Michael chuckles and ruffles Andrew's hair playfully, "You're such a klutz, but it's oddly endearing, heh..." Michael stares for a moment, before catching himself and clearing his throat, turning back to his notes, "So, how was the homework yesterday?"

Andrew raises a brow at the subject change, then shrugs, "Dunno, I don't remember it. All I remember is that I finished it."

"You really need to figure out how to remember shit. Your short-term memory is kinda concerning, man..." Michael smirks at him with a sigh, "You're Dory 2.0! Y'know? Heh..."

Andrew rolls his eyes and laughs softly,

"Ah, also, before I forget, wanna stop by the coffee shop on our way to our next class? I can use a mini donut, and you can use some coffee-"

"Please!" Andrew nearly shouts, "I forgot to make a batch this morning and I'm dying because of it!" Andrew lays his head on the table and feigns sobbing,

"Haha! You should have taken a drama class!"

Andrew peeks up from the table and smiles.

"Read pages 127-128. That's it. I'm not going to torture you kids, y'all get enough torture from your other teachers... now, get out, you maggots!" The professor announces, before pushing his glasses up his nose and sitting at his desk.

Michael cheers silently and gathers up his things, while Andrew laughs and yawns, "Hurry, Drew! The quicker you pack up, the quicker you get coffee!"

"Ah! Right!" With a clearing of his throat, Andrew sweeps his things into his bag and stands up, "On ward to the Starbucks!" He cheers and begins running with a sudden jolt of energy.

"Wha- hey, wait up, idiot!" Michael calls after him, running after him.

Soon, Andrew arrives at the Starbucks with a grin, but quickly freezes with a sharp intake of air.

There, taking a sip of coffee and typing on a laptop at one of the tables, sat the man from the diner.

~1195 words