Garlic Is For Vampires (#Wattys2016)

Chapter 4: First Meeting

The next day, when I didn't work, I was at home catching up on sleep. Then, I woke up and called Brendon to see how he was doing. He sounded sleepy, so I invited him to go out for breakfast and grocery shopping. He agreed, and once I was up and dressed, I met him outside in his car.

"Morning," I said. He looked at me and yawned, showing only how tired he was. Then he pulled out of the front of my apartment.

"How's the case going?" I asked.

"Busy. Nothing good." He had a grim look on his face. I pursed my lips. I felt bad for him. It was obvious that he hadn't got much sleep last night. I could see the formation of circles under his eyes.

"What about you? How are you doing today?"

"I'm fine," I replied, wondering why he was asking me. He never really asked how my day went, he just knew when I was in a good mood or not. I remembered Shawn and smiled.

"Something funny?" Brendon asked.

"I'm just remembering something from yesterday."

"Oh."

We stopped by a place to eat. Brendon ate more food then I did, and when he asked if I was going to eat my loaded bagel, I said no and gave it to him. He took it proudly and began to eat uncontrollably.

"Are you okay? You're eating like you've been starved for days."

"I am starving," he said in between bites of the bacon and egg of my bagel. "I've been busy."

"So you don't go on lunch breaks?" I leaned back in my booth and finished off the last of my smoothie. He shrugged and wiped the corner of his mouth with the pad of his thumb.

"No. I rarely leave the precinct now." What? He doesn't leave work to even go to the bathroom? Well, New York is a hella big city, but even I would allow him to go to lunch. He would need all of his strength just to get some new information for his case. His boss is harsh, and I've never met him.

Brendon buys more food and lets me drive his car to the market while he eats in the passenger seat, storing up the carbs he needs. We don't talk much since he's so busy eating, and I don't mind.

Once we're pushing our own shopping carts through the aisles, we start to talk. He asks about work and I say it's going great. He seemed more reluctant to speak about his work, and since I was a bit curious about it, I asked if I could help him with anything. He paused to grab a jar of orange juice and then looked over at me with heavy-lidded eyes. He was tired. That much was noticeable.

"Just be careful. You and your friends should always be careful." He swallowed. Then he cleared his throat and smiled at me. "How's the college thing going?"

"Great." My voice came out croaky so I cleared my throat. "It's going great." I was accepted into NYU, and I planned on living in New York, so I was glad my grades were able to score me a college at home. I didn't plan on moving anywhere else until after college, so then I could travel and do all the things I wanted. I had the option of living in the campus-and I could get my own room because my parents were so damn filthy rich-but I liked the idea of being independent. I had fun being my own woman.

"So..." I said. "Are you seeing anyone?"

Brendon gave me the evil eye. Okay, I knew he wasn't one for long-lasting relationships-who was in their twenties?- but I didn't want him to be the crazy cat man either.

"No, I haven't." He added bread to his grocery cart. "Are you?"

"No, but this guy at work is hot."

His head turned to the side, considering, and then he shrugged. "Cool. What's his name?"

"Dylan Shaw."

He paused and gave me a face. "You're into a fashion designer? Didn't think that was your thing."

"It wasn't until he walked into the shop yesterday and practically blew my mind away." I grinned. "I was helping him choose clothing fabrics, and he's coming back for the silk."

"Okay-I've heard enough of that."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We didn't notice the girl on Brendon's car until she started laughing. While we were loading up I stood holding a bag of potatoes when a strange chill traveled up my spine. Brendon noticed me shiver and he stood up straight.

"What's up?"

"I don't know," I mumbled. "Maybe just-"

"Maybe you need a taste of something different," a baby sweet voice sang towards us. We both turned our heads and noticed the black hair. Brendon frowned and was the first to walk around the car. I clenched a hand into a fist and walked around the other side. There was a girl leaning back on the hood of the car. She studied her tattered leggings.

"You'll like a sweet, sweet taste," she continued crooning. Brendon finally stepped in front of her. I studied her. Those gray eyes were frowning at the both of us, and it wasn't just because of the sun which was hitting her right in the face.

She wore black clothing-some sort of tight corset with a short skirt and torn arm-gloves. Her hair was a faded gray in some places, and an inky black in others. Something about her face was innocent. She looked younger. Her face was round and soft in some places, and her mouth was pulled into a pout.

She was picking at a scab on her knuckles while she hummed and swung her legs. "Sweet things make me happy. You'll want to keep me happy." She glared straight at me. "You won't like it when I'm unhappy."

"Excuse me but who are you?" I asked. Brendon glanced at me and then at the girl. She tilted her head back and began to laugh. Then she closed her eyes and lowered her head. She flew at Brendon-knocking them both over the bushes Brendon's car was parked in front of.

"Brendon!" I shouted. We were in an empty section of the parking lot, and the other cars were parked a good distance away from us. I hurried towards the bushes where I could hear hisses and low growls of anger. The bushes rattled. My fingers dug into the twigs but I couldn't feel anything. Then I pricked my fingers on sharp thorns and felt the bushes grow still.

A blur of black exploded from within the bushes. A hard body slammed into me and I was airborne. My body made impact with the side of the car, and then I was sliding to the ground. Thwack! There went my head. I couldn't feel my limbs as my vision darkened and my back slid to the concrete ground.

"Brendon-" I gasped. My mouth hung open, and then I smelled something stale. I shivered, not daring to blink the stars out of my eyes. Whatever was above me was better left unknown. But my vision cleared and I saw sharp, drooling canines directed right above my face.

A scream tore itself from my mouth and the girl whipped her head around before she finally settled down and looked down at me. Her eyes were a liquid black and I saw no remorse in them before I tore my gaze away.

Suddenly, the girl was gone and instead I was being lifted into Brendon's arms. He held me like a limp doll, cradling the back of my neck as I stared up at the sky in shock. I couldn't say the word, but I tried anyways.

"Va-va-va-vamp-"

Who is the mystery girl? Hello, it's been a while. Been busy with school. Hope you enjoyed this chapter and keep your fingers crossed that I update soon. Like, rate, comment, peace.

                                            -Redbird