If I Die By Sunrise

What Are You?

The truth is hiding in your eyes

And it's hanging on your tongue

Just boiling in my blood

But you think that I can't see...Decode- Paramore

I stood in the doorway of Jerry's bedroom twiddling my thumbs and trying to focus on breathing, despite the fact that I wanted to practically jump out of my skin; I hadn't even fully entered the room, yet the powerful aura was able to trap me in its hold once again.

Naturally, my fight or flight responses were kicking in and though everything within me screamed 'flee', I remained where I was and tried to calm it.

When I finally managed to get my feet past the doorway, it took all the strength I had not to pass out right there on the floor.

It had been an exhausting day- I had spent most of it worrying about the plan and its execution and outcome, wondering how much I could get away with pushing my powers and hoping insanity wasn't waiting in the wings when it was done. I didn't even know if it would work. Would I end up making a big fool of myself?

Jerry had been extra perceptive today, making it harder for me to fake normal. I bet he was trying to see if I'd chicken out and many times my mind did scream at me to quit this crazy idea, but it was absolutely imperative that Jerry see what I saw. Even if he couldn't help me or had no idea what to make of it, I had to show him if it would help me feel less alone.

Jerry's giant king sized unneeded bed mocked me as I approached it with caution. Unlike everything else in the room practically wafting with the essence of vampire, Jerry's bed had the least effect since he used it less. In a way, I was grateful; it would be easier to pretend like it was just another night and focus more on calming my nerves then being suffocated by the spirit of the soulless.

I had the duvet up to my elbows and was finally as comfortable as I could get when Jerry appeared at the doorway as silent as a pin drop and at a swiftness that would put the speed of light to shame.

He had found another victim today- a girl. That was all I knew. He had moved her to one of the smaller cells, the ones he used for quick meals. I heard her screams from the early hours of the morning and refused to look Jerry in the eye all day in shame, because apparently my sacrifice wasn't enough to save someone else.

"Are you going to be fine here for tonight kid?" He asked twirling a green apple in his hand and successfully pulling off concern.

"What do you mean? Aren't you going to stay with me?"

He took a bite of the apple, casually staring off into the distance. "I fed today. But I'm afraid that isn't going to be enough for me to stay the whole night with you."

When I was about to express my displeasure he stopped me. "I will, however be upstairs all night so if anything goes wrong or in your case right, I'll be here the second I'm needed."

I huffed, it wasn't exactly what I had in mind but it would do. After all, it was all in my head, there was no real danger. All I had to do was fall asleep and somehow have Jerry experience my dreams by closeness alone. Piece of cake. Maybe Jerry didn't have to be in the room with me.

"Okay." I conceded. "Let's get this started."

And with a wink and a devilish smirk he disappeared, leaving me alone so I could finally catch up on some much needed sleep.

They found me. I don't know how but they did. In my vain efforts to run away and hide, they caught me just when I was about to save the human...

She stood no chance. Once again, I couldn't interact with any of them and instead had to watch helpless as they grabbed her, ripping their razor like, venom-coated fangs into her throat and draining her of her remaining life.

I had to cover my eyes because although this scene was familiar, it was never easy to watch.

When they had their fill they tossed her like a rag doll, at the mercy of whatever transformation was going to take over her and would lead to her new second life as an immortal.

I fell to my knees, crying for her, for their cruelty, uncaring of whether or not I was next.

Before I could recover, more of them came. Like shadows from the dark, they came to fill the clearing in the middle of the desolate forest.

One of them, dressed in Victorian garb like the bunch, lit a fire while the rest turned to face me. I was immediately more frightened than ever, especially when I realized their number was alien to my previous nightmares. Never had I seen or sensed so many vampires before. What were they all gathered here for? Surely it couldn't be for me, whoever I was at this particular time.

The one who lit the fire came to my side in an instant, grabbing me by my hair so I was forced to look up at him. His red eyes flashed dangerously, peering down at me with sadistic amusement. The light from the flames made his shadow dance while his consorts watched me expectantly, their faces as grave as their temperament.

"Empath." He spat and the word almost sounded like an expletive. It took me a second to realize he was calling me that and I stared at him confused.

The head vampire beckoned one of his cohorts, a skinny one with eyes as red as his master. "It appears we caught an empath, Luke." The leader declared to his follower. "What should we do to him?"

In unison, they all chorused: "Throw him into the fire." And I was deafened by my own screaming.

Cold hands and a familiar voice tried to shake me from my slumberous prison but to no avail- I still saw the flames and the angry pairs of red eyes.

"Charley!" Jerry shouted, practically commanding me to wake up.

From somewhere, some semblance of self-preservation awoke in me, I opened my eyes, meeting Jerry's red ones, and for a moment, it was as if all time stopped.

When I woke up, Jerry was on top of me, frozen in some immoveable stance.

Experimentally I waved a hand across his unblinking vision, but he seemed as lost as I had been moments before. So I shook him and called his name and that seemed to help because the next thing I knew, he was back to the present.

He looked at me solemnly with the same torn, shaken up stare that I probably matched and said with gravity. "Charley this is dangerous. I recognized Aumone, Demetria's assistant. For a second, when I touched you, I could feel the evil of his power, the closeness of his presence. Do you know what this means?" He paused and answered his own question. "They're coming for us. They know what you are and they want to destroy you. It's a sign."

I frowned, I had no idea what he was talking about. Demetria? Aumone? How did he know who those vampires were. What was going on? "How do you know that?"

He stood up and raked his fingers through his night-black hair. "Because the past is repeating itself."