The Missing Boy

Chapter 21 - Civilised

This time Miles isn't as lucky. His mom finds out about the fight (if you can even call it that) and Miles hears through her that he's been suspended from school for three days since he wasn't in school to hear it himself. This ultimately leads to Miles being grounded for three weeks.

That won't stop Axel from coming to see him though.

••••••••••••

Axel is scared of how angry he got. Of how much he wanted to hurt Lewis. Of all the ways that popped into his head of how to do it.

The videos Elias showed him in the mansion still plague his mind. And it's moments like that, when he's angry, is when Axel's most dangerous. Because that's when the videos play. And the screams aren't coming out from the speakers, they're coming out of Lewis' mouth. And the guy on the screen isn't killing the other man, Axel is.

"They're a disease, Axel. A plague. We need to kill them before they kill us. All rogue vampires must die, that's how our civilisation will thrive. They don't follow our rules. They don't have our morals. They don't even believe in the gift of immortality, so why should we allow them to keep it. If they wish to live a human life then so be it. To be human is to die. We're simply granting them their wish. Now, Axel, look at the screen."

•••••••••••

Don't bother coming over, my mom keeps checking up on me every 10 minutes. It's like she thinks every time she leaves you'll pop up out of nowhere. I think she's catching on to us.

That's what Miles texts Axel as he was just about to go to his house. So instead Axel decides to go to the bar (he needs to find some way of getting those rancid images out of his head). And doesn't even pretend to act shocked when he sees her.

Sydney. The model.

"You have no idea how long I've waited to see you walk in here." She says.

Axel leaves a seat between the two but she moves to the one next to him. Her dark brown skin seems to glow under all the lights, her eyes now a light shade of purple after putting in contacts. Another thing that's different about her is that her braids aren't black and blue anymore, they're red. The same colour as her lipstick. The same colour as her drink.

"I texted. I even called you once. I just guessed that you had given me a fake number."

"No. It's mine." Axel says, not looking at her. He's just about to order a drink when Sydney orders one for him.

"My treat."

The bartender hands Axel the glass. It's the same drink as Sydney's. The colour the same as her lipstick. And when he takes a sip, he's dumbfounded at the fact he didn't smell it earlier.

"Blood?"

"Bottoms up." She clinks her glass with his before chugging the drink, some of the liquid dripping down the rim of the glass. She wipes the back of her hand across her lips, smudging her lipstick in the process and not seeming to care about it.

"Are you-"

"A vampire? Yes. Everyone here is."

"What?!" Axel looks around at all the people in the bar, they all seem ordinary.

"Axel, honey, did you really not know?" Sydney laughs. "We don't let humans in. It's way too dangerous for them."

"But how did you know I was a vampire?"

"You have no heartbeat."

Axel blushes when he realises just how easy it is to detect a vampire. He just assumed he would never have to. The thought never crossed his mind that he would stumble across another vampire in his own neighbourhood, let alone a whole group of them.

But then again, Axel has always felt a slight tug to this place. Like a force pulling him towards here. Towards his kind. Perhaps he picked up on the scent of blood without realising it. Or maybe he was drawn to the silence. Because now when he listens closely, he realises that there's not one heartbeat in this whole place.

"So all you guys come here to what? Hang out?" Axel asks curiously.

"This is where us rogues come to get a drink."

If Axel's heart still pumped, it would have skipped a beat.

"They're a disease, Axel. A plague."

"Did you say rogues?"

"Please don't tell me you're one of those 'civilised' vampires who spent years 'training' in one of those prisons." She laughs as she says it, using finger quotes where appropriate. "Because if you are, we might just have to kill you."

Axel's eyes widen.

"I'm kidding." She jokes, but then she notices that Axel isn't. "Wait. Are you?" Axel can't help but hear the tinge of fear in her voice. She knows what the civilised vampires are ordered to do whenever they meet a rogue. Kill on sight. She looks around the bar, everyone here is a rogue so Axel is greatly outnumbered. But these rogues don't have the experience he has. They may know how to fight. But they haven't been taught to kill.

"I'm not going to hurt you." Axel says quickly. "I don't believe that rogues should be killed."

Sydney lets out a sigh of relief. There's something about Axel that calms her. That makes her believe him. "Is it really that bad?" Sydney asks. "All the things that they say about us?"

"Well it is bad. But we don't know any better. They don't know any better. All I know about rogues is what my mentor has told me." And showed him.

"So not a lot then?"

"Hardly."

"Just know that we're not the bad guys."

Axel nods his head, taking a sip of the blood. It doesn't taste as good. It's like a watered down version. Stale. Though Axel doubts that the blood is fresh.

"Ugh, you civilised vamps are so spoiled." Sydney says as she looks at Axel's (not so subtle) disgusted face.

"It's just-"

"You prefer it fresh? You know that's like drinking milk straight out of a cow's udder, right?"

"I guess I've never thought of it like that."

"Well if you're not gonna drink it, I am. This is the best we've got." Sydney takes Axel's glass and chugs the rest of the contents, a satisfied "ahh" leaving her mouth afterwards.

Axel was going to ask why they didn't just bite people like he did whenever he needed a drink, but then he remembers they were never trained.

A voice grabs both of their attention.

"Sydney!" A tan asian boy cries. He hugs the girl as he approaches.

"Julian!" She calls. When Sydney's friend notices Axel he says "Is this the boy you were talking about? The one you've been waiting for every day since you've met?"

"Julian!" Sydney slaps his arm. She turns to Axel. "FYI I wasn't here waiting for you every day." She sends daggers at Julian. "I'm just always here."

"Yeah, yeah. I'm Julian by the way as my friend has so kindly pointed out."

"Name's Axel."

"Nice to meet you Axel. I'm convinced my friend here is obsessed with you."

"Julian! How many times do I have to call your name?!"

"Oh." Axel blushes. "I'm flattered but I'm gay."

"I figured. Last time we met was fun but I could tell that it was either your first time or that you were gay."

It was both, but Axel is way too humiliated to tell them that.