Bleed

Chapter 4
Too Close For Comfort
I woke up the next morning by myself, sprawled out on the bed. I walked out to the hallway, making my way to the main room. There was no one out there. Then I heard noises coming from the gym room. I peeked inside & saw Zack punching the punching bag. I opened the door & walked in as he looked over at me.
"Oh, hey." he nodded, going back to his punching bag.
"Hey. Having fun?" I chuckled, folding my arms over my chest.
"I'm just working out a little. This is a bit of a stress reliever for me." he sighed, slipping off his boxing gloves & wiping the sweat from his brow.
"I can see that." I said, looking around me.
"Did you sleep well last night?"
"Yeah. It was okay, I guess."
"Come on. I bet Jimmy made some breakfast for you." he said, walking ahead of me & out the door on his way to the kitchen. Sure enough, Jimmy had made some breakfast. When we walked in, he handed Zack a dark red pouch that looked like a Capri Sun.
"Does it...." my voice trailed off as I was looking at Zack.
"No, actually. It literally tastes like cherry Kool Aid. As odd as that sounds. Maybe it's just me." he shrugged, sipping his red pouch.
"Well, I think I may have fixed one of your problems, boys." Jimmy announced, handing me a plate of eggs, bacon, sausage, & toast.
"What's that, Jimmy?" Zack asked him, curious.
"You'll still need to drink your blood pouches, BUT you won't need to drink as many. You can eat food like a normal human again if you wanted. Want to try it?"
"Fuck yes I do!" Zack shouted, excitedly. Jimmy laughed as he motioned for Zack to follow him into the lab. I sat at the table, still eating. After I was done, I walked to the lab & joined them.
"How do you feel?" Jimmy asked Zacky.
"Pretty good, I guess."
"Give it about an hour. I can almost guarantee you that you will feel more energetic from now on."
"Awesome." he grinned, looking over at me.
"Now, every morning, you have to take one, just one, of these purple pills. If you don't take one, try to drink about four blood packs. With the pill, you only have to drink one pack a day."
"Oh my god. That will help keep our supply stocked a lot! Thanks, Jimmy. The guys are going to be so excited about this."
"I'll tell them when they wake up."
"Tell us what?" Brian & Matt walked in, looking at all of us. Jimmy explained what was going on &, of course, they were all about it. They each took their one pill & downed a blood pack shortly after. I snuck out behind them to the main room & bumped into Johnny.
"Oh, hey. What's up?" he asked me.
"Nothing. Jimmy just showed me the new pills he made."
"Oh, yeah. Pretty awesome, huh?" he said, putting his hands in his pockets.
"Yeah." I nodded, walking out to the main room after grabbing a book from my room. I sat on the couch, opened the book, & started reading. I'm not sure how long I'd read before I fell asleep again. When I woke up, I was in Zack's bed. I opened my eyes & he was at the end of the bed, playing video games on his PS3. I sat up & crawled forward, sitting next to him.
"Hey, sleepyhead." he said, keeping his focus on the tv screen.
"Hey." I said, rubbing the back of my neck.
"Aw, damn it." he sighed, putting his controller aside. His character had died. He looked over at me & I almost melted. He had his black beanie on again with pieces of his black hair peeking out from underneath, his teal eyes piercing my soul, & his lips were practically begging to be kissed.
"Are you okay?" he asked me with a small chuckle.
"Yeah. Why?" I said.
"You just look nervous." Honestly, I was. My heart was racing & I desperately wanted to kiss those lips.
"I'm gonna go back to my room." I said, standing up, but his hand grabbed my arm, stopping me.
"I have a better idea. Come with me." he grinned. He held out his hand & I was so nervous, but I took it. He led me down the hallway, past the lab, past the rec room, & at the very end of the hallway, there was a door.
"We never go out here. I do, though, on occasion." he opened the door & there was this huge tree not too far off from where we were standing. The moon was out & shining down on the tree, making it look so beautiful. He led me over to the tree & we sat it its trunk, indian style.
"This is where I go to think about...things." he sighed, looking at the ground, fiddling with the grass.
"It's really beautiful out here. This tree is gigantic. I've never seen such a huge tree."
"It's really, really old. We all think it's hundreds of years old." We sat there for a few minutes in silence.
"Do you like it here?" he finally spoke.
"Yeah, I suppose. It's better than my old life. Much more interesting." I chuckled.
"Your life could not have been that boring."
"You have no idea. I did the same thing every day. Day in, day out. Work, home, sleep, repeat. No friends, no boyfriend. I don't really talk to my family anymore. They're all in different states, anyway."
"I'm sorry." he whispered.
"I'm not. I kind of liked it, but I definitely like this better." I grinned, touching his hand. He grinned back, looking into my eyes. Then he pulled away really quickly, looking nervous.
"What is it? Are you okay?" I asked him, worriedly.
"Yeah, yeah. I'm okay." he stuttered. His eyes were darting everywhere like he couldn't focus on anything.
"Zack, look at me." I said, grabbing his chin & making him look at me.
"Stop. Just stop it. I have to go back inside. I can't do this." his voice sounded like it was starting to break as he stood up & walked inside, leaving me alone by the tree.
"What the fuck?" I whispered, hanging my head in my hands. I stood up to walk back inside when Matt stormed outside towards me.
"What the fuck did you do to him?" he yelled at me, slamming his hand on the tree by my face.
"I didn't do anything. We were out here, just talking. That's it. He started freaking out & went inside. I don't know what his problem is."
"Just stay the fuck away from him from now on. You need to quit fucking with his head." he scowled, glaring right into my eyes.
"Fine. Will do." I whispered as Matt backed off & walked inside.
"You fuckin' better." he said, turning his head to face me before closing the door behind him. My mind was racing with questions. Why was he acting like this? I totally didn't understand what had just happened. I walked back inside, mind still racing as I walked past the lab. But Jimmy stopped me.
"Hey. Come here for a minute." he called.
"What's up?" I said, leaning against the door frame.
"You okay?"
"Yeah. I'm fine." I lied.
"What's with Zack?" he asked me, looking up from his test tubes.
"I don't know. We were talking, I touched his hand & he started freaking out. Then Matt stormed out, yelling at me to leave Zack alone. I don't understand what happened."
"Um, I think I do, unfortunately." he said, hanging his head.
"What is it? What'd I do?"
"Close the door." he nodded. I did as he said & walked over to where he was standing.
"He can't get close to you. He doesn't want to. I think he's slipping. He likes you, Zoe. It must be scaring him or something. I know Matt & Brian would raise hell if they knew. But even so, you could never be together anyway."
"What? Why?" I asked him, confused.
"He's a vampire. They're destined to walk this Earth forever. Us humans, we're not. The way Zack looks now? That's what he's going to look like fifty years from now & so on. He won't age. We will. He won't die. We will. It just won't work out."
"It's not a big deal anyway. We're not that close. We're just friends, I think. I don't know."
"He trusts you. I know that. He doesn't understand why he does, but something about you allows him to."
"Well, he's a great guy, but he is a vampire. I understand. Look, I'm going to go to bed." I sighed, running my fingers through my hair.
"Okay, Zoe. Just be careful. With Zack. You don't have to stay away from him, but don't spend too much time with him. This could never be." he warned, laying a hand on my shoulder. I nodded, turning to leave for my room.
Once I walked into my room, I laid on my bed, staring at the ceiling. I must have fallen asleep because I woke up, still laying in my bed. When I walked out to the main room, Matt, Brian, & Zack were packing equipment into backpacks. Matt looked at Zack, nodding towards me.
"What's going on?" I asked Zack.
"We have to go out for supplies."
"Why can't Johnny or Jimmy go?" I asked.
"Because. This is a mission for us to go on. Not them." he said, turning back around.
"Hey, can I talk to you for a minute?" I asked him, nervously.
"Yeah, give me a minute or two." he nodded, packing things into his backpack. Matt just glared at me. I walked into the office & sat down in a chair. Zacky joined me shortly after.
"I'm really sorry about last night. I'm not sure what happened, but you..." my voice trailed off.
"No, it's fine. I, uh, I just needed to re energize. I was just really tired. It wasn't your fault." he sighed.
"Be safe." I told him. He looked at me, confused.
"What?"
"Be careful. Come back safely."
"Why do you care?" he asked me, trying to understand me.
"You're my friend now. We've gotten to know each other a little bit. I don't want you to get hurt."
"But I could hurt you. I wouldn't & I won't, but I'm dangerous. I'm a fucking vampire. What is with you?"
"I don't know, but I trust you." I said, standing up to leave.
"Why?"
"Like I said, I don't know. I'm just as lost as you." I sighed, closing the door behind me. They left to go on their mission & I was a little nervous. I really wanted them, Zacky mainly, to come back safe & sound.
Meanwhile on The Fallen's mission...
"Zacky, you need to get your head in the game, man. Forget her. She's screwing with your head." Matt scolded him.
"I'm in control." he said, walking down the dark alley way.
"No, you're not. You were shaking like a leaf when you came inside last night. I could see it in your eyes. The fear." Matt scowled.
"I just needed sleep. It's not her. I swear."
"Zack, Matt's right. You need to stop spending so much damn time with her. It's not good for you." Brian added.
"Guys, stop. I have this completely under control."
"Even if you did like her, vice versa, it could never be. You know that." Matt said.
"You think I don't know that? Besides, it's not like that anyway."
"Whatever, man. Just stay the fuck away from her." Matt hissed. They had been scavenging for a few hours in an old warehouse & they were finally ready to leave.
"Move out." Matt said, walking out the door to the dark alley way.
"Well, well, well. Look what we have here." Edward Nolan, the leader of The Bleeders walked into view. His two other fellow members, Trent Nielsen & Percy Cantrell, in tow.
"What do you want?" Matt asked him.
"We want the girl. We know you have her." Edward said, examining Matt's group.
"We killed her. She's dead. Her blood has been sucked dry & her body has been disposed of." Brian piped up.
"I call bull shit!" Percy shouted, pointing at him.
"Percy, shut up." Trent looked over at him.
"What?" he shrugged, looking at Edward.
"So, Shadows, is it?" Edward spoke, clapping his hands together & walking towards Matt, Zack, & Brian.
"You & I both know that you didn't kill that poor slut." Edward shook his head.
"We did. There's nothing left to do, but to go back to your turf now." Zack spoke up.
"Why are you lying? There's no sense in it really." Edward said, smirking.
"Fuck you, Nolan!" Brian growled, clenching his fists.
"Now, now, Synyster. Don't be so crass. We can talk about this like civilized gentlemen." Edward sighed.
"There's nothing to talk about." Matt spoke.
"If you say so. BUT if we find out you've lied to us, you all will die. No questions asked. Let's move." Edward said, his eyes burning into Matt's soul.
"Fuck you, Edward." Matt whispered as The Bleeders walked away.
"Move out!" Matt demanded, angrily.
"Good going, Vengeance." Brian scoffed, walking behind Matt.
"Fuck you, Brian." Zack said, defensively.
"Hey, both of you shut the fuck up. Brian's right even though he's being an ass about it. You're endangering the entire group keeping her there with us." Matt said, quietly.
"I know, I know. I'm sorry. I told you, something inside me told me to save her. I don't know why. She must be important somehow if I couldn't ignore it."
"Well, still, you need to keep an eye on her. Stop spending so much damn time with her, but keep an eye on her." Matt told him.
"Yeah, I got it." Zacky said, rolling his eyes.
Meanwhile back at headquarters...
"I'm going to bed. I'll just see the guys in the morning." I yawned, looking over at Jimmy.
"Yeah, go ahead. Sleep tight, Z."
"What'd you call me?" I asked him, turning around.
"Z?"
"You just gave me a nickname." I said.
"Uh, yeah. You are part of The Fallen family now. Besides, we're friends now. It's about time for nicknames." Jimmy chuckled.
"Alrighty then, Rev." I chuckled.
"Night, Z." he waved as I walked away.
"Night, Reverend." I laughed.
I crawled into my bed & slowly drifted into sleep, hoping to see Zacky in the morning. Why was I getting so attached? He was a vampire. He was dangerous to be around. He wasn't human. I'd die before him because he'd live forever. It wasn't natural. Damn you, Zacky Vengeance & your insanely good looks. I woke up the next morning to the sound of the guys in the main room, talking amongst themselves. I walked out to join them & they all suddenly stopped talking, to look at me.
"What?" I said, staring back at them.
"We need to talk. Sit down." Matt said, rolling his eyes.
"Oh, boy." I whispered, slightly scared.
"You need to learn how to defend yourself in case something happens." Matt told me.
"What do you mean if something happens?" I asked him, looking at everyone else.
"Zacky, Brian, & I ran into The Bleeders last night. They know you're still alive. I don't know how, but they do. If they find you, you need to know what to do to defend yourself long enough to get away or long enough for any of us to get there to you." Matt explained.
"Okay. Sounds good." I grinned, perking up a little.
"I still want you dead, though. I don't like you & I probably never will. But, I will have to teach you. Brian & Zack have other things they're doing. So it'll just be you & me." he said, coldly.
"Oh." I said, frowning.
"We start in an hour. Every day for one hour, we will practice & I will teach you how to fight off your enemies. This is important. I expect you to give one thousand percent. Don't waste my time." he growled, walking past me. I looked to Zacky & he didn't even look at me. Almost as if he was trying not to. I started walking towards him & he just walked away from me, leaving me there alone.
"Just give him some time." Jimmy spoke to me.
"Yeah. I guess." I sighed. An hour later, I met Matt in the gym, prepared for my training.

Notes