Xander's Love

Chapter one

I died. I mean I'm alive. If that makes any sense.

"Julian, how much longer till we get there?" I asked.
"Not much longer" he responded not even looking my way. I guess puking every hour makes me gross to look at. Well he's busy driving, I don't want to die. Ha! Whatever. I'm already dead. Let me rewind to what has happened in the past 72 hours.

"You are so lucky you get to stay home" my mom said. I smiled and continued eating my cereal. It was president's day but that only mattered in college and not in the real working world.
"Dad already left?"
"Yeah you just missed him, you got to sleep in" she laughed.
"Someone's jealous" I smirked. Mom shook her head and smiled.
"Any plans?" She grabbed her papers together.
"Nah, just a stay at home day"
"Okay well I'll be back at 5, make dinner please?"
"Sure" I responded.
"Alright, I love you" she kissed my cheek.
"Love you too"
The house was quiet. Emily was helping her new roommate at her apartment, the house was all to myself.

Ugh, I got to go to the restroom. I'll just pause the movie.

I always hear creaking around the hallway, it has always creeped me out. But we have wood floor so it's totally normal. I open the door, turn the corner and as I look up, my eyes met a tall man dressed in black with a mask over his head. My heart falls to my stomach. Immediately I want to scream but a sharp object punctures my stomach. A breathless gasp leaves my mouth. I look down to see a knife stuck in my abdomen then to the man who yanks the knife out. 
"Uhh...." It's like there are no words only gasps. He turns around and heads towards my parents room. I collapse onto my back. God this is so fucking painful. I need to reach a phone. I need to scream. But I can't. I put my hands over my wound. There is so much blood.

I'm going to die. This is it. I am going to die. A pool of my own blood begins to form around me. I hear the man rummage around the house. He steps over me with a bag of valuables. I hear the door open but I do not hear it close. I need to get someone's attention.
"H-He-elp" it comes out with short gasps but it's not loud enough. Fuck. I'm dying. I begin to feel woozy.

I start to have a sudden feeling of sleep washing over me and I'm probably not going to wake up. Then I hear heavy footsteps running through the living room. Oh my god. Someone probably saw the door open.
"Hello?!" Yells a voice. I try to talk but nothing comes out. Then from around the couch I see a man approach me.
"Oh god, you've lost a lot of blood" he crouches down to me. No shit! Call an ambulance!! He takes my pulse at my wrist and shakes his head in frustration.
"You won't last another five minutes, I can't even find your pulse" Goddamnit!!! And here I was thinking I was going to be saved.
"Okay I need you to listen, I'm going to bite you and you will die, I will come for you at the coroner's office and explain everything" what the fuck?? Bite me?? What for? He takes my forearm and I don't know if I am losing my mind but it looks like he has fangs! He bites down on me. I wince.
"Sorry" he says and wipes his mouth. All of a sudden I feel drugged and my eyelids are made of stone. My heart beat is slowing down and then I no longer feel it. I'm dead.....

I wake up and there is a white sheet covering me from head to toe. I take the cover off my face and realize I am completely naked. The table I lay on is cold and metal. I look around. Shit.... I'm in the coroner's. Just like the man said. I look down to my abdomen. No scar. Nothing at all. What is going on?!
"Hey how you feeling?" I turn around and see the man standing in the corner.
"Can you tell me what the hell is going on?"
"Okay calm down, Alice"
"How do you know my name?!"
"I heard your parents say it"
"My parents?" I look around hastily. Where are my parents?
"Alice, I need you to listen to me. You are dead. You are a vampire." He says calmly.
"What!!?" I yelled. I must be on something 
"Shhh! Quiet!" He says with a frown.
"Put on your clothes and I'll explain somewhere safe" he throws a plastic bag to me. It has clean clothes. My clean clothes.
"I got them right after you died" he smirks. He turns around and I slid off the table and put on my clothes.
"Okay done"
"Good" he smiles.
"What's your name?"
"Julian, okay I need you to hold your breath" he says putting his arms around me.
"Umm... Okay" I take in a deep gulp of air and the next second we are running faster than the human eye can see. We arrive to a small house.
"What the hell just happened?!" Then I got a wave of nausea. I lean over and puke up thick blood.
"Ugh that is so gross!" I yell wiping my mouth.
"Come in, I'll explain"

Julian brings a trash can over to me where I am sitting on the couch. The place is furnished nicely but it looks as if no one has been living here for awhile.
"What's with the trash can?"
"You aren't done puking"
"What makes you think...." More blood comes up to my throat and I cough it out.
"Why do I keep puking blood?" Julian hands me a wet rag and I wipe the blood from the corner of my mouth.

"Alice, you are a vampire. I am a vampire"
"I got that but I just can't believe it. I thought vampires were fictional"I say.
"Well humans aren't suppose to know, only to believe in their books and movies. But we're real alright. But okay first let me explain how I saved you. To become a vampire you have to die with venom in. You were about to die so I saved you. Usually the transformation is extremely painful but since you died not long after I bit you, there was no pain"
"Okay are we like...  Fast? Strong?"
"We can heal fast, run fast, and superhuman strength, we also can hear miles away. I heard your gasps from the street" well thank god for that. I guess.
"We are leaving tomorrow morning for the cult" he says walking over to a closet filled with pillows and blankets.
"Cult?"
"There are many groups of us around the world called cults. Our cult is called the Nix Saltus, Latin for snow forest."
"Where are we going?" That has snow.
"Colorado" that's a lot different weather then from the heat in Arizona.
"Isabella can explain more about the cult to you when we arrive" Julian hands me a pillow and sheet.
"I thought vampires didn't sleep" I yawn.
"You read too many books" he laughs. I feel the burning feeling coming up my throat again. I get up and lean over the can, puking more blood.
"What's with the puking?!"
"Oh yes, that. Being a vampire, your body no longer needs your human blood so you start to puke it up till there is nothing left. You bled out so you shouldn't be puking for more than three days. Good night." He grins softly and disappears down the hall.

My parents! What do they think happened? What about my funeral??
"Julian!" I turn on the light in his room. He squints his eyes and gets up.
"What?" He groans.
"What about my parents? You don't think they noticed my body's gone!" I'm fucking panicking right now! He opens his eyes and he frowns at my expression.
"Okay calm down. They ordered for your body to be cremated, I burned some stuff to make it seem like your ashes. Your funeral is tomorrow." I never thought I'd hear those words, tears begin to swell in my eyes.
"Can I go?" I ask with an obvious lump in my throat. Julian runs a hand through his hair and gives out a long sigh before making eye contact with me.
"Only for a little bit and we can't be seen" I nod.
"Thank you, sorry for waking you" I go to turn off the light switch.
"Alice"
"Yes?"
"I know this is a lot to take in...." I give a small smile and turn off the light.

It is sunny but cool outside, my mother wears her only black dress, the one she wore at nana's funeral. Dad comforts her while she cries and holding her hand is Emily. I search the crowd for Nathan and find him in the back with Lillian holding his hand. We all found out she was pregnant a few weeks ago.

I was going to be an aunt.
"Are you ready to go? We have a long drive to Colorado" Julian says.
"Yes..... Wait we're driving? Can't you just put your arm around me and run?"
"That's too exhausting and having to carry you is worse"
"You have a car?"
"Yes it's back there, I already prepared us for the trip." Julian told me that we can still consume human food but once a week we do have to feed. I don't have to feed until I'm done puking, because till my body no longer has a drop of my blood in it, I won't have an appetite.

I take one last look at my family and disappear behind the hundreds of headstones.

So here we are. On our way to the cult. I'm still not done puking, Julian says it's because I don't puke enough at once.
"We're here" I look up and see nothing but tall pine trees covered in snow.
"Umm... Where?"
"We have to ditch the car and run the rest of the way" He unbuckles his seatbelt and gets out of the car. Okay then. Ugh.... I'm gonna puke again. I open the door and let out more dry heaves then blood. I stain the perfect white snow with my blood.
"Dry heaving is a good sign"
"Oh really?" I say sarcastically.
"Alright, let's get going" Julian starts to scan around us. I gave him a confused look. He shrugs.
"Gotta make sure no one followed us" I lift myself off the side of the car and straighten myself.
"Ready?" He places his arms around my shoulders.
"Ready"