Page 57 of The Neighborhood Vampire

“Then would you have met me?”

Alice lowered her head and half smiled to mask her sadness. “I guess not.”

Hugo leaned forward. He pulled up her chin, directing her face so he could look her in the eyes. Their faces were inches from each other. She sensed his breath, his aura, his presence. A jolt ran up her spine. Her stomach fluttered.

“Then it’s not your fault,” he said. Alice’s smile grew as his words gushed over her. “I couldn’t imagine my life without you. You’re the light of my world. I couldn’t stand the thought of you hurting. I had to try something. It almost worked too.”

Alice chuckled. “Yeah, almost. What was your grand plan?”

He tilted his head to the side, never breaking eye contact with Alice. “I met them at the restaurant. My plan was to stab Sebastian with a stake I made out of a wooden hockey stick. I taped it to my forearm, so they wouldn’t see it. After I took him out, I was going to fight her and stake her as well.”

“It’s not the worst plan. Not the best, but not the worst.”

“Your reflection called it ‘the dumbest fucking thing she ever heard.’”

“I was being generous. Two vampires at once? By yourself?”

“She said the same thing. It almost worked. I stabbed him, but I hit something. Must have been a rib. I tried to push it in, but the stick broke. He grabbed me. She pushed me over with the table. I was on the floor, pinned between the table and chair. The last thing I remember was her toying with me before biting down. At least they didn’t take all of my blood. I do feel lightheaded, though. And my mouth hurts.” Hugo rubbed the top of his mouth.

Alice leaned back, her hands dragging to Hugo’s knees. Any sense of relief faded as her face turned pale. “Hurts like how?”

“It’s like a sharp pain. Stronger than a toothache. Like something is pushing against my teeth.”

Alice stood up. She shook her head in disbelief. “Oh, no. Please no.”

Hugo let out a howl of pain. He rubbed the front of his mouth. He rocked back and forth on the couch, trying to ease the pain. He covered his mouth with his hands.

Through a muffled voice, he said, “The pain is unbearable. It’s like my mouth is ripping apart.”

Max tucked her head and backed away in horror. She ran and hid under the black, high-back chair. Guinevere remained unfazed, floating in the air, not moving.

Alice took a step backward. “Hugo, I need you to be still.”

A shriek came from upstairs. “Get your ass up here now,” Alice’s reflection yelled down. “I need you.”

Alice sprinted upstairs. Her thick soled boots stomped down onto the hardwood like a thundering herd. She flew through the bedroom and into the bathroom. She nearly slipped on the tile floor, catching herself on the porcelain sink. Horror filled her eyes, widening as she was forced to watch the events unfold on the other side of the mirror.

“Fix him,” Alice’s reflection pleaded, holding back tears. “He just woke up, and now look at him.”

“What’s happening to me?” Hugo’s reflection asked.

He stumbled toward Alice’s reflection before falling forward. She caught him, propping him up. His body dematerialized, first his arms, and then his legs. The dematerialization spread to his torso.

“I don’t want to leave you,” Hugo’s reflection cried.

“I love you,” Alice’s reflection cried through her tears as she held on to what was left of Hugo’s reflection.

“I love y?—”

His reflectionvanished.

“No!” Alice’s reflection yelled as she collapsed to her knees. She buried her head into her hands and sobbed. “No. Please no.”

Alice cupped her mouth in horror. Her greatest fear was coming true. They did more than drain Hugo’s blood. They did so much worse.

“Alice,” Hugo said from the bedroom. “I think I have a problem.”

Filled with a sense of urgency, she rushed out of the bathroom and found Hugo standing in the bedroom doorway, his fists clenched.

---