BitterSweet (Book Two) (The Blood Moon Chronicles) (2 page)

I watched as he walked away.  I always caught myself watching him.   Any girl at our school would love to date him, and I had the chance. To be honest, I wanted nothing more than his strong arms around me.  But I couldn't let it show. It would ruin everything between us.

-zelenia-

I loved walking home at night. Shadow Valley is a nice, quiet small town of about five hundred people, located about sixty miles outside of Atlanta.   

Shadow Valley gets its name from the trees that provide shade through the entire town. The air here is nice and fresh; I love to sit and take it in.  It's far away enough to get away from the hectic life of the city, but it's also close enough to go into the city when you need to.  Everyone knows everybody, and when someone new moves in, they are the talk of the town.

I started down the long gravel road that led to the small two-bedroom shack we call home.  Mamá does her best with what she has.  And for that I am grateful.  She is so small and fragile; sometimes I wonder how she does it. 

Somehow I don't think I was born here.  Maybe we came here from another place.  If so, she has never mentioned it .

I sometimes wonder if I even belong. Maybe that psycho psychic actually knew what she was talking about.

***

My head pounded.   I shoved down some medication in hope that it would go away before my graduation party.

In the last two weeks , I experienced several major migraines so bad I wanted to cry.  Mamá took me to see a specialist, but he was just as baffled as we were. 

Just as I headed to my room to change the doorbell rang.  My head pounded in time to the chimes.  

It’s just as well, I thought to myself. I didn’t really feel like dressing for the occasion anyway.

Here we go, I thought as I opened the door.

"Congratulations, Zelenia!" Zoriada said as she entered.

Right behind her was Zeeb.  "Congrats, kid," he said as he leaned in to hug me. “Where's the food?" He headed towards the kitchen.

That boy can eat. I swear every time I see him he’s eating something.

"Men, you can't live with '
em
and I can't live without '
em
,"  Zoriada chuckled.

She was right about one thing: that girl loved her some boys.  She lives by the thirty day maximum rule when it comes to dating.  She says that after thirty days, the boy has expired, so it's time to move on.

As the kids from school started to show up, I hid away in the corner. It looked as though everyone was enjoying themselves.  Zeeb spotted me and came over to offer me a drink.

"Thanks," I told him.

"Lighten up, Zelenia, this is your party. Go mingle with the crowd." He stretched out his hand.  "I know what you need, let's dance!"

I had never danced with a boy in my life. Hell, I'd never danced with anyone, for that matter.

"I can't dance," I said shyly.

"Oh come on, just one. Please!" he begged.

What the hell, I might as well. 

"Well since you begged...”

I was dancing in the middle of the crowd before I could even finish my sentence.

"That's
not so bad, is it?" Zeeb asked
.

It actually wasn't as bad as I had thought it would be.  I
kind of liked being in his arms
.  He was tall and I fit perfectly to his body.  I could feel his heart beat faster.  He looked down at me and I could see the love in his big black eyes.  It would be easy to lose myself with him, but I just couldn’t.

“Zelenia, why do you wear those ridiculous glasses?" he asked, as he reached to pull them away from my face.  "You don't need them; your eyes are beautiful." 

He was right.  I didn't need them.  I just wore them because they hide me away from the world.  I didn't want people to see who I really was.  I knew deep inside that the Psychic Lady was right.  There was something dark about me that I couldn’t e
xplain, but I knew it was there
.

The music slowed and Zeeb pulled me in closer.  My cheeks flushed; they must be blood red.

“It’s warm in here,” I said, still feeling strangely flustered.

“But your skin is ice cold.  Are you okay?"

He held me so close that I could see his
blood pulse through the vein on his neck. For some reason, this mesmerized me and a strange sensation took over my body. I wanted nothing more than to kiss that blood-filled vein.

“Zeeb,” I whispered.

“Yes,” he whispered.  In that moment, the world stood still and there was no one around but me and him.  I leaned in and kissed his neck.  The touch of my lips upon his skin made my heart skip a beat.  I could hear his slight moan at my touch. 

As I kissed his neck softly, my lips parted and my tongue felt the warmth of his blood flowing through his veins.  His body stiffened at my touch, but I couldn’t resist any longer.

The sudden taste of something bittersweet on his soft skin sent chills down my spine. Heat and desire exploded within me. My teeth had somehow pierced his skin and a stream of blood flowed steadily down his neck.

Realizing what I'd done, I tried to pull away, but he pulled me closer with a soft moan of desire.  ”Don’t stop,” he said eagerly.

I couldn’t let go.  The bittersweet taste kept me latched to him.  

He moaned louder, and then it all came to a screeching halt.

“What the hell are
ya’ll
doing?" Zoriada screamed.  She jerked me out of his arms and threw me to the floor.

Still tasting that wondrous bittersweet taste on my lips, I stared up at her with a dazed expression.  Glancing shyly at Zeeb, I suddenly realized what I'd done.

“You're bleeding,” I said in shock, wondering what had just happened.

Why did his blood taste so good to me?  Why hadn’t I been disgusted at the thought of it?  Even now, my heart raced for more.

I had so many questions and no answers.

"Look at her eyes.  They're red and glowing," Zoriada backed away from me. She edged for the door.

"My eyes?" I asked dazedly as I came around.  Everything looked red and somewhat fuzzy.  In my confusion and panic, I wasn't able to say much more than a few words at a time.  "Red?"

The other kids all started to panic and their words cut through me like knives.

“Freak!” one kid yelled.

“Let's get out of here,” another one yelled as the crowd surged toward the door.  Soon only the three of us remained in the house.

I
glanced at Zeeb and he looked like he was in some sort of trance or something.

“Zeeb?” I asked sympathetically.

"Leave him alone." Zoriada pulled Zeeb behind her.  She dragged him toward the door.

Zeeb followed reluctantly, but stared back at me with a strange look in his eyes.

What had just happened? What was wrong with me?  I knew in that moment that there was really something different about me.

"Zelenia, I’m home," Mamá called as she hung her keys on the hook by the door.   

"Mija, what happened? Where’d everyone go?  You would swear they saw a ghost or something.” Mamá helped me off the floor.

"I bit him, Mamá," I said in a low, horrified voice.

“You did what?" She looked almost as horrified as Zoriada had.

"I bit him for his blood," I said, my voice full of desire.

"His blood, Zelenia? What about his blood?"

"I couldn’t resist.  It was incredible," I managed to mumble.  I curled up on the sofa and buried my tear-filled eyes in my arms.

“Listen to yourself, mija. What are you talking about?"  The terror in her eyes broke my heart.

I couldn't take it anymore.  I kissed her on the
forehead and ran to my room.
With the memory of his blood upon my lips, I crawled under the covers hoping to hide from the rest of the world. I closed my eyes and prayed that sleep would come quickly.  With any luck, this would be just a bad dream in the morning.

    -
Zelenia
-

Unable to sleep that night, I crept out of the house, as I had done many times before. While I didn't have a destination in mind, something drew me towards the small, tree-lined beach area by the lake behind my house.

This was a good choice, I thought, mesmerized at the moon's reflection on the water.

A distant rustling in the trees startled me. Must have been an animal, I thought, peering at the trees.

Instead, I saw the dark shadow of a man watching me.

"Who’s there?" I asked nervously.

As the figure silently approached, my heart beat faster. Just as I had convinced myself to run, I recognized the way he walked.

"Zeeb, what are you doing here?" I asked, feeling numb.

I did not expect to see him so soon after what happened earlier tonight.

How could I face him?

What would I say?

I stood frozen as he neared. His eyes were wide and curious.

“I knew you would be here,” he said.

Zeeb knew me all too well. He knew my deepest thoughts. I told him everything. Well, almost everything. If only I could tell him the crazy changes I was experiencing the past few months.  How could he understand?  Could anyone?

“Mind if I join you?” he asked.

With tears in my eyes,
I blurted, “Oh, Zeeb, I'm so sorry for what happened back there. I don't know what got into me. It’s like I was this other person.”

“Don't cry,” he said, wiping away the tears from my cheek.

Grabbing my waist and pulling me close, he whispered, “I love you Zelenia.  Whatever happened between us back there was strange, but it felt right. Tell me if I’m wrong.”

My mind and heart raced. I couldn’t lie.  Not with him holding me so close.

“Yes, it was amazing,” I admitted.

The memory of his blood in my mouth filled my mind.  I had liked it.  Ashamed, I lowered my head.

Lifting my chin, he whispered, "Since you feel the same way, don't apologize." 

He leaned in to kiss me.  The touch of his lips made my own part in desire.

This time I did not pull away from him. He kissed me harder, and I returned the kiss with equal passion. He turned his head slightly, and I kissed the red line where his blood had flowed so freely earlier.

This time my only urge was to love him. I wanted to show him the deepest parts of my soul. My body heated at his touch. 

He held me tighter.  “I love you, Zelenia. I have always loved you.”

Lifting my head to gaze into his deep dark eyes, I murmured, “I love you too.”

He twirled me around and laid me on the warm sand.

“Make love to me," I moaned as he kissed my neck.

Rising
to look me in the eye, he asked, “Are you sure?”

“Definitely,” I answered. 

As I slowly pulled off my shirt, I heard his heart beat harder. I watched him take off his own shirt as my heart pounded in my chest.

His body was amazing. A shudder of deep, animal urges run through me. Our bodies intertwined as one. Our hearts beat the same rhythm.

I awoke with the sun shining brightly upon me, with a smile to match.

That
’s when I realized: he was gone
.

TO BE CONTINUED …