Vampire Boys Of Summer (Completed!)

Episode 45: Bestie Fight

There comes a time in a relationship when you realize you can’t live without the one who has come into your life. They are so much a part of you that you wonder how you even existed before them, as if life began with them, and the old life before belonged to someone else. That’s not to say the old sorrows and loneliness go away, but you know what can stop it now. You know the touch, the kiss, the very warmth that can save you. Haru, to others who didn’t know him, would perhaps seem a cold, undead vampire. But to me he was a warm, loving boy, and I craved him more than I craved anything before. And I hoped he yearned for me, too. I worried that maybe he didn’t, at least not in the same way. I felt like he liked me, even loved me perhaps, but what was it like for a vampire? What did they think of when they were resting? Did they dream of love and passion, wanting someone with an insatiable desire so bad they’d wake up bathed in sweat amid soiled sheets?

I stood up and turned off the shower. Wrapping a towel around me, I stood there a few minutes, berating myself for my worries and wanting. The bathroom had a small window, a half one really, that allowed light to filter into the otherwise private room. It was dark out now though, and the only light came from star shine and the glow of the moon. I looked out the window, and saw it afforded me a view of the house across the street. The Winston House.

Of course I thought of Haru. Was he still over there, being nursed back to health? Or was he home now, resting and recuperating? How long did it take a vampire to get their strength back when they have neglected to feed anyway? I wished in that moment that I knew something of his fate. Even a phone call to let me know would be welcome at this point. And then my cell phone went off in the bedroom.

Haru! I sprinted from the bathroom and into the bedroom. My cell was on the desk and I snatched it up. Across the screen was an unknown number. I pressed answer. “Hello?”

There were a series of crackles and pops on the line, and then someone cleared their throat, much in the same way one does before making a public announcement. But there was no announcement; only silence. Another crackle and pop, and I thought I could hear a faint something, but couldn’t determine what it was.

“Hello,” I repeated, and this time there was an answer. It was barely discernible, but there it was. A giggle. Like a child’s mischievous laugh without the innocence. It repeated itself to make sure it was heard, then an exhale of breath and a word rendered in three syllables: Ick-uh-russ.

“Excuse me?” I asked, not sure that I heard it right. It had been faint, and in a childlike voice, but it sent chills up my spine. I don’t know why. Perhaps the tone, as it did seem to be of sinister intent. “Who is this?”

Whomever it was, they hung up. I heard the click, louder in my ear than the voice had been, and I wondered if the person had called from a landline. The clicks on a cell were not as loud or prominent in my experience. I looked at my handset. Unknown caller. I thought about hitting redial, but before I could, it went off again in my hand. I almost dropped the phone, but then I saw Angela’s name on the screen. I answered it.

“Hey,” I said.

She was a bit surprised. I never said hey; I always answered with hello, even with her. “Hey yourself, “ she replied. “Everything alright over there?”

I sat down on the edge of the bed. “Yeah, Ang. Just a little freaked out. Had a prank call or something.”

“Lucky you. Was he a heavy breather? Did he talk smut?”

I laughed and it was a relief. Angela always had a way of cheering me up with her perverted sense of everything. “No, I don’t think so,” I replied. “If he did, it was garbled.”

“Too bad. I’d kill for a smut call.”

“I’m sure. So, how’s it going?”

“It would be better if that hot neighbor of yours would crawl through my window and bite me.”