Blood Thirst

Chapter 17 Bloodlust

Link's POV

I cried out in pain as I felt the cold metal of the blade rip through my flesh. I felt the heat of my blood as it poured out from my severed wrist. I looked down at it for a a second, but immediately regretted looking. Blood was pouring out causing me to feel sick. I started to hyperventilate and panic. So much was going through my head right now.

"Jessie, please hurry with those bandages! I need them here so I can stop the bleeding when he changes back!" Rhett shouted to Jessie.

"Here they are," Jessie said, standing in the doorway.

She gasped when she saw me and dropped the bandages. Rhett got up and gathered them all in his hands. He placed them so the side moved away from me slightly.  I could feel the bloodlust starting. It was unlike anytime before when I felt I needed blood. I felt like I would die if I didn't get blood. I started thrashing around, the pain and thirst growing stronger with every second that went by.

"Rhett, please I need blood! You're my best friend, I'm dying! I need it!" I screamed, my voice was deep and gruff.

Rhett moved away from me and went over to Jessie. He protectively held her to himself. She looked terrified.

"No Link, you can't have any. As hard as it may be, this will make you well again," Rhett said firmly.

I yelled in anger and pain at the same time.

"You want to kill me! You don't care if I die from this! You want me gone! That's what you've been planning this whole time! This won't turn me back, it's just an excuse to be rid of me!" I accused.

Rhett's eyes got wide and he let go of Jessie. Slowly he approached me and looked me dead in the eye.

"Charles Lincoln Neal III, don't you ever say that again. I know you're not thinking correctly like this, but you should be able to realize how utterly false that statement was. Link, you are my best friend! I wouldn't have gone through so much to get you well again if I didn't love you, brother. Never say that ever, ever again," Rhett said firmly and stared into my eyes.

I looked back at him, but soon my eyes averted. The thirst was even stronger than before. I grabbed my wrist and doubled over. The pain from my wrist and the unquenchable thirst was almost too much for me to handle anymore. I looked up at Jessie, she was nervously holding Rhett's hand. It hurt, knowing she wasn't afraid for me, she was afraid of me. I couldn't control myself any longer and I clawed for them. They moved just out of my reach, but I couldn't stop. I couldn't even control myself anymore. I was being completely overpowered by the vampire part of me. Fear crept over me as I thought about my dream coming true. No matter what, I wouldn't let that happen.

"Rhett, Jessie, whatever you do, don't come near me! Ahh," I cried out in unbearable pain.

It felt like I was starving to death and to make matters worse, my wrist was constantly gushing blood. The only thing that could save me, or so I thought, was right there, but I knew drinking my own blood would do nothing. Tears welled into my eyes and slowly spilled out, rolling down my cheeks.

Jessie's POV

I firmly held Rhett's hand as I watched poor Link suffer so. He was sitting up right now, but suddenly fell to the floor and started thrashing about again. I looked at Rhett's face, he had tears in his eyes. I felt a wave of sorrow come over me as I realized how horrible he must have felt right now. His best friend was in unbearable agony and it was because of him. It really wasn't Rhett's fault, but I knew he thought it was and no matter what I told him otherwise, he wouldn't believe me. Link was crying in pain and still thrashing. He seemed to be getting worse every second. I pulled away from Rhett's grasp and slowly approached Link. Everything seemed to be going in slow motion as I approached the screaming man. Fear crept over me, but I knew it was just Link and he wouldn't intentionally hurt a fly. If something were to go wrong, Rhett was right there and could help me. I knelt down beside Link and placed my hand on his forehead, pushing away the hair that had fallen out of place. He was covered in sweat, blood, and tears. I felt so horrible for him. He never deserved this. His eyes slowly opened and he looked at me with thankfulness. I smiled, but he quickly moved away from me, fear coming into his eyes.

"Jessie, please stay away. I can't even tell you how hard it was to resist your blood. Just don't come near me no matter how much pain I'm in!" Link shouted at me and gasped.

His head went back and he clutched his wrist tightly. He cried out from the pain of touching the wound. I looked back at Rhett and he walked over to me and pulled me away. He protectively put his arm around my waist and pulled me close to him again. I watched as Link's chest rose and fell rapidly as he tried to breathe. He put his hand over his heart and his eyes closed. He slumped forward and hit the ground with a thud. I swallowed nervously and opened my mouth to speak.

"Link? Link? Are you alright?" I asked, my voice trembling with fear.

There was no reply from Link, but Rhett spoke up.

"Jessie, stay here. I don't know if he's changed or not yet, but I'm going to find out," he said and slowly approached Link again.

I watched as he cautiously checked for a pulse. The amount of blood that Link lost without dying was unbelievable. A normal person would have died a while ago after losing that much. Rhett grabbed Link's other wrist and held it until Link's eyes began to open. They were filled with tears. Rhett grabbed Link's hand and held it, trying to comfort Link. Suddenly, Link lurched forward and was reaching for Rhett's neck. It was so unexpected, Rhett wasn't able to react in time. Link almost made it to his neck, but suddenly he fell back. His back arched and his mouth opened completely. A dark, black mist poured out from his lips and disappeared in the air. Link was gasping for breath and his eyes closed as his body fell unconscious again. Rhett quickly grabbed the bandages and wrapped them tightly around Link's wrist. I ran to him and helped. We tightly bound Link's wrist and Rhett unchained his leg. He wrapped his long arms around the unconscious Link  and put him in the guest bed. He tucked him in gently, pulling the covers all the up to his neck. He stepped back and breathed a sigh of relief. He wiped his brow and sat down in a chair. I walked over to him and squeezed in next to him. I placed my head on his shoulders and let a few tears slip out. They landed on Rhett's shirt, but he didn't mind.

"It's over, Jessie. He's going to be well again and this whole nightmare will be over," Rhett said and put his arm around me.

I smiled and moved out from under Rhett's arm. I stood up and walked over to Link. I placed a very small kiss on his forehead and smiled slightly.

"Please make it out okay," I said and walked back to Rhett.

I sat down next to him and gave him a passionate kiss, showing him how much I loved him. He smiled as we pulled away and we left Link to sleep. I hope and pray he gets better very soon. I couldn't bear to see him in anymore pain. He's been through too much already.