HUNGER
"WHAT IS THIS place?" Aera whispered, doubt coloring her voice as her eyes raked over the scene.
"Oriole." I responded gently, my words soft.
Long, paper lights hung from the ceiling like light pieces of origami. Black leather chairs were tucked underneath hard tables, covered in soft white cloth. Stemless glasses sat at each spot symmetrically, silverware folded neatly in smooth napkins.
Still the same.
Scanning my eyes over the room, I found a pair of eyes that belonged to a bored waiter, and pressured him with a hard look. He scrambled from his plate of food and rushed to the desk.
"Hello, I'll be your waiter for today. Table for two?" he asked slowly.
"Yes," I responded formally, then glanced at Aera. She was still gazing around the room of staring strangers. I planted myself on the padded black chair, waiting patiently for Aera to sit before shoving my hand inside my lap.
The waiter dealt out the menus like poker cards.
"What would you like?" I asked Aera gently.
Her eyes went wide with surprise, as if she were shocked at my question. She glanced down at the menu and said the first drink she saw.
"Lemonade, please."
"She'll have a lemonade." I told him sternly.
"I'll be back soon with your drink." he said politely, and I nodded in response. He bowed before leaving.
"Are you comfortable?" I asked, feeling like an overly concerned guardian rather than a friend. I struggled to find the right words, shadows of doubt making me cringe at my own uncertainty.
Don't feel.
"Yes," Aera said, her voice the only one I heard despite the overlapped chatter of useless thoughts and whispers.
"But I do have a few questions," she added, her voice wavering at the end.
Oh, shit.
"Go ahead," I responded cautiously, the two words simple in contrast to the dozens of haunting images that slapped my vision.
Her screaming. Running. Leaving. Dying.
"Do you wear contacts?" She looked away shyly at her fidgeting hands. I became mesmerized with each brush of her finger as they met a runaway hair, curling them behind her ear.
She stared at me, waiting for my answer.
"No." I answered honestly.
Aera nodded, but didn't say anything. I frowned, trying to pinpoint a way for her questions to be answered truthfully.
"Here is your drink," the waiter grumbled under his breath. He set the glass bottle of lemonade in the middle of the dark oak table.
"Call me when you're ready to order." His flat voice filled the silence.
I nodded as he sprinted to the kitchen.
"Do you have any more questions?" I asked politely, knowing she had thousands of questions that came and fell like sticky notes inside her mind.
I paused.
Aera's bright, chocolate brown hair was now straightened and jet black, her eyes remaining the same as her cheekbones became more prominent.
Hana.
She smiled softly at me, her white straight square-teeth glistening under the light of the restaurant.
As if someone had called her name, she turned her head, revealing the wound on her throat.
Fresh ruby blood still ran freely down her snow-white skin, gushing from the sharp bite-like puncture that still penetrated deep into her skin. I could see the white of her bone poke from the pool of blood. She turned back to me, her skin now peeling from her bones like thin creases of paper. My chest constricted, tightening with waves of pain. Agony churned inside me.
Hana... I'm so sorry... Please forgive me...
I opened my mouth to whisper the words into her ear, only to have her reach for my shaking hand.
"Kira?" she whispered softly, the musical sound of her voice making the emotions brim inside me, threatening to spill.
The moment her skin met mine, the touch washed away the illusion. Instead, a wide-eyed Aera sat in front of me.
No...
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"How are you feeling?" the man asked me, his long white lab coat like a thin sheet of snow wrapped around his scrawny body.
"Fine." I hissed. My teeth were chattering so hard I thought they would crack. It sounded as if a speeding clock was sitting between my lips, hiding around the dark corners of my mouth.
EAT HIM EAT HIM EAT HIM
I blinked back the tears that moistened my eyes, pain wrapped around my head. I shut my eyelids tightly, wishing for the burn in my throat to subside.
His heart sped, and I opened my eyes and stared at the jumping muscle in his clenched jaw. I heard the run of his blood as each droplet slid through his veins, breathing in the deep musk of the hot sweat that layered his body.
"Do you need anything?" he asked, voice breaking. I felt a small part of myself break, too. Until all I felt was hunger. All I smelled was his blood. All I heard was each... shallow... breath...
All I felt was his soul on my lips.
"I'm so sorry."
DELICIOUS