Sway

Chapter eight

                                    Chapter eight

                                        Spencer

   “I made a new friend today.” Her voice is quiet and she doesn’t look up from the comic.

   I look across at her, not for the first time. She must be able to feel my eyes burning into the side of her face but she refuses to meet my eyes, simply looking down – not quite reading.

   “Hmm?”

   As I wait for her calculated response, I run through the process of me inviting her over. I’d been nervous at first, as I always am around girls, but I managed to work up the courage. Her mom answered the door.

   She smiled at me brightly enough, but I could see the tell-tale signs of stress and anxiety – the bags beneath her eyes, the gaunt cheeks, the lines around her mouth.

   But still, she had called her daughter down as cheerfully as anything.

   Henri had been coated in paint. She still is. Smeared across her face and arms. She’d been timid in her response, stammering a little. I’d asked her if she wanted to come over and read some comics, talk about what happened to her. So far, all we’ve done is the former.

   “Yes. She said that you and your friends are the biggest nerds in school. That if I befriend you, I’ll have no chance of anyone liking me.”

   I can’t help the wave of disappointment as it washes over me. I feel my face scrunch up as I frown at her. She looks up finally, her green eyes meeting mine.

   “I told her I didn’t care. I’m already a huge nerd anyway.” She smiles slightly, just the curling of her lips.

   I find myself smiling in return, relieved at the choice of her words. I’ve always thought the word Nerd was a curse. Maybe not. “Well, I’m happy to hear that.”

   I find my eyes drawn to her shoulder. In her tank top, my eyes just brush the skin there. I find myself thinking for the hundredth time how it could be possible that there’s no mark.

   “I don’t know how either.” She sighs.

   I blink. I had no idea I’d spoken out loud. “What if... and bear with me – what if the ‘animal’ that attacked you was something... supernatural.”

   She blinks sluggishly, runs a hand over her face. “I don’t know. I’d like to rule it out... but this isn’t normal. I felt those teeth – it hurt like hell. And that blood wasn’t fake.”

   “I know, I know.” I sigh, closing my comic and sitting more upright. “I just don’t understand how it’s possible.”

   “Neither do I – no matter how I run through it in my head, it’s always the same result.”

   “Okay so... what if it’s a Vampire?” I offer.

   She smiles an amused smile and shakes her head. “Vampire? Seriously?”

   I shrug my shoulders, feigning nonchalance. “Well yeah, why not?”

   “I don’t know – it just seems silly, doesn’t it?”

   I pause. “Well at first – yes but... okay, you know what? I’ll show you.”

   I climb to my feet and make my way to the computer. I throw myself down into my chair and give it one very business-like, professional spin before opening the page I’d minimized earlier.

   She follows a moment later, kneeling down beside me. When she’s this close, I can actually smell her – a faint paint-like smell mixed in with some kind of herby mixture... almost as if she’d been cooking.

   I clear my throat and instead focus on the screen in front of me, refusing to be distracted.

   “See? Just read this.” I scroll down to the section.

   “Vampires needed to adapt to survive – after all, if every victim had the same bite marks wouldn’t you begin to wonder?

   There’s something in the saliva, something that humans and animals lack – it causes the blood to clot and scab over within seconds of touching oxygen. This means that the wound would be healed in the space of only a few moments...” Her voice trails off and for a moment there’s just silence.

   “Who write this stuff?” She mutters finally and her hand absently drifts over to where my hand rests on the mouse.

   I move my hand away automatically and she takes control, scrolling and clicking through the website. Finally after a short while, she sits back, frowning at the screen.

   “This can’t be right. Vampires aren’t real.”

   I shrug. “All I know is that the bite wasn’t normal. Unless you yourself are a Vampire – and you’re just trying to hide it from me.”

   She turns to me and raises her eyebrows slightly. “If I was a Vampire and I wanted to hide it from you – you’d be dead.”

   I run a hand through my hair. “Yeah, I guess you’re right.”

   She shakes her head. “I don’t want to talk about this anymore. I’m tired and I just... I don’t know.”

   I look around my room, knowing instantly that she just wants to go home and sleep – I can see it in her eyes.

   “Want to play Soul calibre?” I ask weakly, desperate to keep her here.

   Her eyes brighten considerably, her mouth quirking into a smile. “You have Soul calibre?”

   “Yep, you like it?”

   “Like it? It’s like the best game ever.” She says in a high-pitched voice.

   I laugh and set about putting it on. “Best out of three?”

   “As long as you’re ready to lose.” She laughs, lively once more.