Between the Lines - Chapter8

I blinked to shake the darkness off my eyelids. The first thing I saw after finally focusing my vision was Gabriel’s face. I didn’t even feel how scream erupted from my throat.

“Don’t, please Isabel!” Only few seconds later I saw hurt and despair on his face.

“What happened to Tony?” He winced at his name.

“I lost him. He will be coming again.”

I sighed in relief. “Thank God…” I whimpered.

“What? Izzy, listen to me. He want to kill you, he isn’t human anymor-”

At that second everything come back to me, the fight, the story Gab told me this morning. Antonio trying to rip my throat open… I felt dizzy with fear and confusion. How? Things like this don’t happen in real life, vampires and werewolves exist only in movies and novels and sick daydreams…

“I know it is difficult to believe, but please don-” Gab seemed to be reading my mind. I shuddered remembering Edward in Stephanie Meyer who could hear what people were thinking.

“Difficult to believe? Not really, not after what I saw few minutes ago. Maybe more - hard to understand.”

“Izzy...? It wasn’t few minutes ago. You were passed out for nearly four hours.”

“What? No way…” I started to think quickly. It was a fact, I couldn’t deny it in any way with the facts that I have. And he didn’t kill me yet, although I have been out for hours, so he doesn’t mean harm, another Hollywood theory denied.  “I need to know few things.”

“Of course.” He said solemnly

“Your family. You said that they wouldn’t like that you told someone about… about what… who you are. What would they… do?” I stammered at the sentences with huge awkwardness.

“They wouldn’t hurt you because… Well, they just wouldn’t. I would just get in trouble, and, we might need to move if there is a risk of you telling anyone about it.”

“They would have me committed if I would.” I mumbled quietly.

“You wouldn’t believe what some people might believe.” He said in a stern voice. It was too obvious that he was remembering something from his past.

“You said they wouldn’t hurt me, why?” Only now I noticed that I was barely audible, but probably the Hollywood fact of vampires having super hearing was true.

“Stupid calling.” He cursed under his breath.

“What?” I was too confused about all of this to make any sense out of anything.

“What as in ‘what is the calling’ or what as in ‘why they wouldn’t hurt you’?”

“Both.”

“Okay… The calling is when a vampire falls in love. It is something eternal and unconditional, and towards the object of their affection they have a surge of human emotions, they can feel just like humans can.” He paused, but I decided not to interrupt, he was telling something really important though I wasn’t too sure where he was going with it. “And towards that object of affection…they… well, vampires cannot cheat on their lover, they can’t even lie to them as time progresses and they will most likely end up killing themselves without them, that is why my family would never hurt you. Usually vampires fall in love with vampires, but sometimes there are exceptions.”

He turned his back at me, and I got worried he will kill me after all, because I couldn’t see what he was doing, but it was far more complex than that.

He spun around quickly so he was facing me again. “Isabel, I love you.”

And this hit me; it hit me so hard I couldn’t feel the floor beneath my feet.

“But... But…How? And…” I stammered.

“That Sunday on the roof, the second I sensed your presence I knew this was it. It probably seems insane to you, all of it, but that is how my world works.”

I tried to think it all through, but my mind resisted to work.

“I need to go.” This was the best I could manage without starting to hyperventilate.

Gab looked like he just got a piano thrown on him – destroyed. His eyes seemed to stop shining and his face went grey. ‘Stop that nonsense, he is a vampire you fool!’ I repeated in my head. ‘Vampire with feelings, who loves you.’ I contradicted myself. Arhh… I needed to get out before I did something I would regret.

“Don’t be afraid, I will be protect you from him.”

“I’m not scared of him.” I quickly put my shoes on, which were neatly lied down on the floor beside the bed I was laying just ten minutes ago, and marched out.

I wasn’t sure where the main exit was so I just relied on my gut feeling to lead me out. Gab didn’t follow me and I was glad. I finally found the main door I last used before I knew their secret, but the giant door didn’t seem any different, neither did the house, and Gab didn’t look like much of a vampire either. But I couldn’t deny what I had seen in the forest today. I truly must be a freak to get involved with two guys that are both mythical creatures. I tried to open the door, but handle resisted.

“It is closed.” Gabriel appeared out of nowhere. He had one of his hands on the handle, on top of mine, and the other one had the key in it. He lightly pushed down the handle together with my palm and the door opened.

I started to walk down the drive but he was still standing in the door. “Gabriel?”

“Yes?” He got by my side in a split second.

“Christ’s sake! You scare the hell out of me, with that super fast vampire stuff.”

“Sorry.” He chuckled. For a second he was just like the old Gab I met that day on the roof, and who followed me around the school, and who wasn’t a vampire.

“I just… I… Thank you!” I didn’t know what I was doing then, I leaped that last step that was separating us and hugged him. He wound his arms around me but didn’t do anything.

“I love you Izzy, don’t forget that, okay? And never ever be afraid, I can’t hurt you.”

I felt tears pouring down my face. “I need to go.” I stammered again. My Porsche was parked outside their house.

“Ben isn’t back yet, but hurry up.” He said, rather casually considered the last words he whispered into my ear.

“What?”

“Well, you just look like you got yourself into a muddy puddle and took a bath there. After all, it would have been unethical for me to change you into clean clothes and wash anything else than your face.”  

I laughed at that, but it seemed too loud in the quietness of the house. “It seems that the old Gab is back.” I climbed into the car and drove away before he said anything else, setting the fallen leaves flying behind me. Some trees, just like their owners seemed dead.