My Life isn't a Fairytale prt 6, a short story by J.Morgan. Date added: 2011-11-24. Times viewed: 638.
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***Beth***
Viper leaned into me as we sang out the last note to the song. When the drums and guitars went silent I smiled at Viper who gave me a wink. We’d only known each other for a few days, but already I knew I liked him. It had been a rush, I wasn’t even sure how long we’d been playing. There were a few people who clapped, some hooted, but over all most of the patrons in Keno’s only cared about the people they came in with. That was fine, in fact that was how I pushed away the absolute vein freezing fear that I felt for the first few songs. It was still there, but instead of making me nervous, it was a rush.
I suddenly wished that I had taken more chances in my life. To try new things and see new places. I didn’t care about classy or expensive things, I preferred real people, real places.
“Alright, this is our last song for the night!” Viper came up to his mic and said. “Let’s hear it for the newest member of our happy little band. Liz Lightmen!” Beth wasn’t a "rock band" enough name so Viper began calling me Liz, I didn’t mind.
The crowd cheered for a moment, but then the lights on the stage went out. This was Edgar’s idea. Since all his other singers were men, he wanted to play up my feminine charms. A clever way of saying, sex sells. Viper leaned into me and whispered. “You want to know what my real name is?”
“Sure.” I whispered back, peering at his shadowed face.
“Carl.” He grinned, and stepped back.
I laughed under my breath as the spot light hit my legs. I looked out into the room, seeing Sam chatting up a waitress that he’d been talking to all night. No doubt charming her into his bed. Viper started playing and Ant joined him in the intro.
“I see your face before my eyes, I’m falling into darkness.” I started as the spot light slowly expanded. This song was one I chose, I thought it would be a dramatic ending. The boys seemed to be all for it. All three of them had mics to sing back up and everything went perfectly. Until my eyes drifted to the door. Viper took over in his small solo and Ant came in halfway to back him up. Of course I was busy panicking. Drake stood only a foot from the door, staring right at me. I heard the Bull giving me my cue to start the second verse.
I tried to focus, but my blood was pumping. If I choked I wouldn’t be able to live with myself. Not in front of Drake. But somehow I found a different kind of focus. One that fed a euphoria that flooded my system. The words just came out, flowing together in a blanket of adrenaline. Of course my eyes couldn’t leave him for too long, he just stood there, like a stone statue. I would have thought he would fit right in with the kind of people that frequented bars and things, but he didn’t. He was clear and held himself with a different kind of strength. The music faded and the lights to the stage came on, I just stood there as Viper and the rest of the band cheered and whooped in a muffled noise.
Then Drake just turned and left. The spell was broken, and all the noise of the room came crashing down on me like a tidal wave. “Well Liv, see you on Wednesday for practice?” Viper turned me, probably thinking I was in shock that it was over. I nodded numbly.
“Sure, oh and don’t worry I won’t tell anyone your secret.” I managed the small joke, forcing myself to forget about Drake.
“Thanks,” he said and I hugged him, then I went to Ant and had to lean over the snare set to get a fist bump from Bull.
“We rocked it,” Bull said and I nodded.
“Damn straight. See ya.” I went to get off the stage.
“Hey, you sure you don’t want to hang out for a while?” Viper commented stopping me. “We usually chill out and have a few drinks before calling it a night after a great set.”
Part of me was tempted, the fact they were offering meant their tight nit little band really wanted me to be officially a part of them. “Um, not tonight, though how about next time. Yeah?”
Ant gave small strum on the strings then stopped them quick with his fingers. “Alright, next time the drinks are on me.”
With that Bull hooted and Viper gave me a grin that lit up his eyes. I felt bad for not staying, but I wasn’t used to being out so late and my body was still recovering from being shot. Plus there was something I wanted to check, but first I had to get my money.
Edgar handed me the fifty bucks by sliding it across the bar, of course as I put it in my pocket I looked around for Sam. When I didn’t see him I thought that waitress he was talking to would know, but she was nowhere to be seen either. Shaking my head I headed towards the door.
When I got outside I saw Drake just mounting a black and chrome motorcycle. “I guess I really didn’t think about how you got around. Where were you hiding that thing?”
He stared at me with his usual intensity. “In the shed beside the house.”
Ok, I wasn’t sure at this point what to say. I was still reeling from seeing him there, out of the blue, while I was on stage. I mean, it’s not like I was stripping or doing something embarrassing or sexual, but singing is a very personal thing. The other patrons of the bar saw me as just another chick, but when Drake looked at me, he was seeing me, as I was baring my soul.
“Sam left,” Drake said suddenly.
I looked around the small parking lot. “Not alone I’m sure.” My eyes settled on him. “So you’re going to take me home?” He nodded once. “Are you in a hurry, is that why you walked out like that?” He looked away and at this point I was starting to get mad, and not really sure why. “Oh right, I forgot you don’t like talking.” I walked over and got on the back of the bike, crossing my arms. Drake sighed.
“I don’t do well in crowds. Any place with more than a few people.”
“Oh,” I said, “So it wasn’t my singing?” It was meant as a joke, but I was still surprised when he laughed a bit, craning his neck to look back at me.
“No, it wasn’t you.”
I began to shiver rubbing my arms. “Good, because I was fantastic.” I lift my chin cockily.
He smiled again, the expression still seemed alien on him. “Are you cold?”
That wasn’t exactly what I was expecting him to say, but I nodded. “If I had known I was going to be riding on a motorcycle tonight, I would have brought a heavy jacket.”
Drake slid off the bike and smoothly took his leather jacket off. “Here.” He pushed it towards me.
“What about you?” I asked slowly taking it.
“I live in an icebox remember?” he said getting back on the bike in front of me. He was right, so I put it on. Normally leather jackets are cold when you first put them on, but his felt as if it had been put on a heater. It felt good against my skin.
“Thank you.” I leaned to see the side of his face, and he nodded turned his head again.
“You should hold on,” he told me, then started the engine, it roared to life. Now I had a choice, there was a curved bar behind me that I could hold onto, but I wasn’t going to do that. With my heart in my throat I slid my arms around his waist, trying not to cling like I wanted to. I wanted to leaned my head on him and feel his heartbeat with my fingertips.
As he clicked up the kickstand and took off slowly I remembered that I had never been on a motorcycle. This was certainly a night of firsts for me. At the mouth of the parking lot I was smiling. There was nothing that could upset me now. I was warm, with Drake and on a motorcycle, in the middle of the night when not too many cars were on the streets. Of course then we took off like a shot. I screamed in shock and gripped onto Drake tightly burying my face into his back; that was still quite warm even though he was only wearing a thin t-shirt. We were going at least twice the speed limit and I was like a tight knot hanging on for dear life.
Oh my god. I kept thinking I was going to die, I even tried to tell him to slow down but he didn’t hear me over the engine. At this rate we were going to be home in no time, and then I was going to kill him. That is if I survived. I turned my head to watch the blur of the world go by, and for a moment the wind didn’t deafen me, I could feel him breathing, it was such a subtle movement that if I wasn’t clutching to him like a frightened child I wouldn’t have noticed. My fingertips pulsed and relaxed on his chest and I breathed out and shifted trying to get closer. Drake didn’t seem to notice as he drove, unconcerned for the cars in his way. He weaved us between them, barely obeying traffic lights and completely ignoring the speed limit.
We drove up onto the side walked in front of the house, Drake put the kickstand down and turned off the engine. I tore my arms away and sighed petting down my hair and sliding off. “Wow, I’m actually alive.” I tried to sound angry, but I really couldn’t manage it. Drake didn’t say anything as we both walked up the steps, he was just behind me when I got to the door. I was taking out the keys when I felt him here, right behind me. His breath moving my hair, making it hard to think straight enough to get the key in the lock.
Finally I managed to get the door open and walked in. I turned expecting Drake to be right behind me, but he was in the doorway. “I’ve got to put the bike away.”
I nodded feeling a slight twinge in my middle. Deciding that I wasn’t going to wait around like some love sick puppy, I went to the bathroom to wash my face. I slid his jacket off and laid it on the laundry basket in the corner. Just as I finished and was drying my face clean of the smudges and dark runny eyeliner streaks, I heard the front door open and looked over at his jacket.
“Drake,” I called grabbing it quick hoping to catch him before he went upstairs and forgot. I stopped seeing him standing on the other end of the couch. “Your jacket.” I slowly walked to him and he took it, without looking away from me.
“Beth,” he said stepping closer, now leaving less than an inch of space between him and me. If I ever believed in energy it was then, there was an electrical current flowing between us, I swear that if I pulled away I would collapse, like an appliance being unplugged.
“Yes?” I breathed lifting my chin as his face came down to mine, his hand came up, his warm skin sending ripples of warmth down into my body. Of course it was nothing compared to the inferno his lips caused. After the first second, there was no gentleness in his kiss, his lips were urgent and strong. I found myself melting, not only from his heat but from a strange sensation that began where his lips touched mine.
I wanted to wrap my arms around him, but I just couldn’t find the strength. He dropped his jacket on the couch, I heard the clank of the zipper and buttons as his other arm snaked around my waist. The sensation that numbed my lips spread down and through my skin and into my legs. I felt as though I was being plunged into a freezer, being held by a fire that burned wherever it touched. Drake was shaking, I could feel the vibration of his arms and skin. I couldn’t breathe with my heart racing, his fingers digging into the back of my neck like he was trying to force us together into a single being.
Then Drake broke contact and I gasped for breath, some of the warmth in my body returning. His mouth grazing my chin, I felt him breathe in through his nose and move down to my neck as I tilted my head to the side. It was like being hypnotized, the way we nuzzled each other and caressed. My hands finally able to move, they came up and traced the hard muscles of his chest. I stared into his eyes that were so close my vision doubled. His lips were soft and his hot breath enveloped me making my eyelids heavy. His arm that was around my waist loosened. My body screamed knowing that this moment was over, I didn’t want it to end. The need to have him touch me was more intense than I had ever felt before.
Drake moved back just slightly, his fingers dropping slowly from the side of my neck. “Make sure you turn off the porch light before you go to bed.” His voice was gritty and sensual, as his eyes broke from mine. He grabbed his jacket and didn’t turn to even glance at me as he headed upstairs.
***Drake***
I closed the door and dropped my leather jacket on the floor, my heart pounding in my chest. I caught myself from falling with my shaking hands, in fact my entire body was trembling with a sensation I hadn’t felt in many years. I never imagined that I could feed in that manner. The entire thing took me by surprise, it was so enticing I almost didn’t stop myself. I knew what she was since meeting her, but I never imagined this. The power she had inside of her, the remnants of ancient worlds long dead. The taste of her kiss soured with the thought that I could have killed her, if I had held on just a little longer. My muscles were relaxing, the energy I’d ingested began to seep into them and I felt the surge of strength. The world shifted and blurred, as though I had taken a drug.
I bit my tongue as my form began to slip. I had to change before it became too much and I lost control.
It wasn’t as simple as changing clothes, but I always thought of it like that. Changing the outside to match my true self, the floor groaned at the added weight on it, and when the change was finished I stood up and lumbered into the parlor, not having any issues since I took out most of the walls, for the express purpose of being able to navigate around in my Draconian form without trouble.
I was lucky that I’d already gone out to feed, my body was still working to digest the amount of meat I had consumed. It would sustain me for another two months, of course now with manna surging through me my metabolism would increase. I would have to turn off the air conditioner to force my system to slow down.
I touched the smooth scales around my mouth and closed my eyes, allowing the subtle scent of her to envelope me.
“Drake!”
I opened my eyes slowly and saw Sam with a frown marring his face. I groaned and sat up from the wall. “What’s wrong, didn’t your latest conquest want you to stay for breakfast?”
Sam growled. “Breakfast? It’s five in the afternoon. And look at you!” He stood up and tromped across the floor closing the door. “What if Beth came up and saw you like that?”
I shook my head and looked down at myself, the rusty dark colors of my scales held a luster they hadn’t showed in decades. Everything was still a haze but slowly I forced my body to revert to its human form. It was like shoving an elephant into a zebra’s skin. My memory snapped back into focus, I shivered from the secondary effects of having manna in my system, my senses were intensified, even the colors around me were sharper and more vibrant. It was subtle, but I noticed. “Sorry,” I said leaning my head back smiling. I felt like laughing, in fact I was laughing, that was until I noticed Sam watching me, his eyes narrowed.
“If I didn’t know that alcohol didn’t effect you I’d say you were drunk.”
I stood up easily. “Maybe I just had a good night.”
I could still see that Sam was wary, but then a small smile flittered across his lips. “You mean….”
I shook my head. “Not everything is about sex Sam.” His smile turned into a shrug but then it came back.
“Well I guess that’s why she isn’t out of bed then either huh?”
The euphoria of the moment was washed away instantly, I rushed down the steps with Sam on my heels. Our footfalls thudding hard on the wooden stairs to the floor that groaned. “Drake, what’s up?”
I didn’t answer, I was too busy worrying that I hadn’t pulled away quick enough. I walked through the parlor and into the kitchen not even bothering to knock before entering her room.
“Drake!” Beth shrieked pulling her recently discarded nightgown over her front, her hair draping carelessly over her bare shoulders. Sam came in after and whistled approvingly. “Sam! Get out!” She yelled glaring daggers past me, her face turning a bright red. Then her eyes focused on me and I realized I hadn’t moved. The heart stopping fear I felt had faded, but it didn’t go away.
“Sorry.” I turned away and dragged Sam out by the arm. When I let him go he rubbed it absently and watched me as I went into the parlor and sat on the couch.
“What the hell was that about?” He whispered coming to sit beside me.
I rubbed my head and forced the calm, blanking my expression. “Nothing, I was just worried that she might have overdone it last night. That’s all.”
Sam chuckled. “Wow, you admitting you were worried. She really has you head over heels doesn’t she?”
I glared at him, but there was no help for it. He was going to enjoy his little victory over me.
“Is there a reason that you both decided to walk into my room without knocking?” Anger vibrated her voice as she came out. I didn’t turn around, though I did glance at Sam who gave me a look that said he wasn’t going to help me.
I tried to think of an excuse, but when nothing came to me I got up and turned. She was standing with her arms crossed, wearing a tight pale orange blouse and a pair of stone washed jeans. “I was going to go for a ride, and I thought you might want to come.” It was plausible, except for the fact I hated going out. Sam was staring at me, but I couldn’t bother with him and went around the couch. “It’s late, maybe we could get something to eat.”
Her eyes darted to the wall clock and she sighed, the tension in her neck relaxing, even though her pulse quickened. “I suppose it is late. I hadn’t realize how long I slept.” She turned away and walked over to Sam. “I was feeling really drained before I went to bed.” She punched Sam lightly. “If I ever catch you in my room again.” Beth let the threat drop as he rubbed his shoulder.
“Alright, sorry.” He apologized weakly. “I don’t see you abusing Drake, and he got more than an eye full.” Sam grinned at me until Beth smacked him again, not really hard but in a playful manner.
“I’ll be out in a bit, and we can get going.” She said turning again and coming over to me. Fear wrenched through me as she leaned up lightly kissing my lips. The moment she pulled away I realized that nothing happened, I was more aware now of her manna, so I could sense it now, but there was no transfer this time. I managed to keep my composure and even gave her a brief touch to her arm as she walked past to the bathroom closing the door behind her. The relief of it allowed the breath in my lungs to be released, I sighed.
“I’m going now,” Sam said curiously.
“So that’s it?” I asked him skeptically. “No comment? No joke?”
Sam, who Sienna once told me was a man who enjoyed life to the fullest, gazed at me amusedly. “Oh, just to know you’re going out, in public, just to get yourself out of hot water with a woman, is all the amusement I need. I think I’ll be content for days in fact.”
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