When Darkness Falls (Book 1, the Darkness Falls Series)

Star in the Dark

This is a bonus chapter that was originally written for the Wattpad Block Party. It details the first chapter of When Darkness Falls as seen from Luke's perspective, and I hope everyone enjoys it.

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Standing just beyond the ring of light cast by the bonfire, Luke reflected that being a vampire really wasn't what most people thought. Thanks to Hollywood, people thought of vampires as vaguely romantic creatures, rather than understanding the reality of them being hunted, persecuted victims. Not that anyone actually believed in them – except vampire hunters, which was precisely why the life of the average vampire was a far cry from the one depicted on TV.

A girl, walking past him to the fire, paused and gave him the once-over. "Cheer up. It might never happen," she said, and pushed a plastic cup into his hands. It wasn't worth refusing, even though the smell of the beer tied his stomach in knots. Refusing to drink at a party was a good way to encourage awkward questions, which was the one thing Luke tried to avoid. He smiled politely at the girl and when no one was looking, he tipped half the beer out of his cup and onto the grass. It wouldn't kill him, but drinking anything other than blood was the equivalent of a human eating mud – doable, but hardly pleasant.

Maybe it was a mistake to come here tonight.

The town of Dalwick was a small one, hemmed in on all sides by rolling English countryside, and there was precious little for kids to do. But the patchwork spread of meadowland just beyond the outskirts of town offered the perfect place for impromptu parties. A blazing bonfire carved the darkness into flickering shapes, casting shadows on the faces of teenagers who thronged around the flames, all clutching plastic cups of booze. Most of them knew each other from school or college, and the buzz of gossip was louder than the crackling bonfire.

Luke stared around, letting it all wash over him. Vampires couldn't do normal things like go to college, not unless someone had the bright idea of holding off classes until the sun went down. Vampires weren't even supposed to befriend human kids because it ran the risk of too many questions being asked. Questions led to suspicions, and suspicions led to vampire hunters sniffing around. They were the constant threat in the shadows, but you might never know who they were until they stuck a knife in your chest.

Luke knew better than anyone what vampire hunters were capable of.

He sighed, and surreptitiously tipped away the rest of his beer. Bad pun or not, sometimes being a vampire really sucked. More than anything else it was suffocating. Any self-respecting vampire knew to constantly be on their guard in case of hunter threat. They knew that getting too close to humans was usually more trouble than it was worth. They knew that keeping their heads down and sticking to the shadows was the safest way to live. But exercising that kind of caution all the time wasn't really living.

Ultimately Luke was lonely. He loved his parents and the other vampires that made up his clan, but hanging out with them every night wasn't enough. He was seventeen years old – he wanted more. Though he could never go to college or really make friends with local kids, sometimes he turned up at the parties they threw because it was the only slice of normal he could grab.

His lip bitterly twisted. It was pathetic when he thought about it.

"This is stupid." One voice rang out slightly louder than the others, and Luke turned in that direction.

Two girls about his own age stood on the other side of the bonfire. The taller one had a wild mass of dyed red hair and a silver ring through her lower lip. She was gesturing wildly as she talked, her drink slopping out of her cup and splashing anyone that stood too close. The other girl – Luke blinked. The other girl was beautiful. Petite build, blonde hair that whipped around her face with the wind, features set in a determined expression. But it wasn't just her appearance that caught Luke's eye. In a crowd of pretty girls, something about her stood out. It was the way she held herself; one arm folded across her stomach, the other holding her drink out in front of her like a barrier. There was a look in her eyes that Luke recognised, a certain wariness that matched the tension in her posture – probably imperceptible to most people, but not to Luke who spent his life on the lookout for a threat.