Make Your Move Katherine

I Need Blood

Kat stared up at the man and blinked a million times before she reacted. A deep furrow set on her forehead was the only move she made for her thoughts were scattered yet clustered at the same time. She brought her hands up, grabbing her upper arms, on opposite sides, in a crossed hold. She rubbed her palms against her flesh, feeling the chill of his words settling in.

‘Why is he so cruel? Why did he even resort to such a lie? To hurt me? Why? Why would he want to hurt me so deeply? Is it really me he hates this much, or am I a stand-in for someone else?’

“I’m sorry. I didn’t know at first and I just thought you should know,” she heard him saying while he slowly walked up to her. But he made Kat feel like he was prowling- like a hunter to prey. As if he was creeping somehow- his vibe was just dark- sinister even.

Of course, she did not know because it was a lie. Kat shook her head in denial, thinking back to her childhood when her father would hug her so tightly. She remembered on each graduation day how proud he was of her. He might have been a busy man but he always made time for her.

Kat sniffed heavily and stood up just as he reached her. She was angry now…just how much did he actually want to hurt her that he would come up with this? To stoop this low.

“My father is dead, why can’t you just leave him alone?” she said in a hollow tone.

“Look, I know how it sounds, but trust me, I’m telling you the truth.”

“And just why would you want me to know the truth?”  she uttered, pressing her knees firmer together and folding her arms across her chest now. She couldn’t explain or understand the empty feeling her mind was undergoing now. Her calm words.

“Well because- you’re like this. I thought you should not feel bad because he’s not your real-”

“Not my real father? So, let’s just say he wasn’t, you think I’ll stop grieving because he didn’t share his DNA with me?”

Oscar struggled with his words, “Er- yes?”

“I don’t know what I did that made you hate me so much but this -this.”

“What you did? I’m telling you the truth,” Oscar's forehead crinkled and his mouth stretched to a thin line. Still, his red lips were pouty and full.

Kat released a heavy breath, a bit unnerved that she was actually admiring his mouth and muttered, “You’re not killing me?”

She was feeling so exhausted and feeling defeated. Her body was weak. Kat needed sleep but the sight of his canines was keeping her on high alert.

“Why? Kill you? I thought we got over this- no. Why- why what? Oh, my teeth?” Kat stared at the muscular man in front of her as he tried to form words. Liars always had a difficult time with words. Why did he loathe her so much? Because of prom? Really?

“That’s because I need blood.”

She gawked. He was hungry? Vampires only bit when they were hungry right? Well except in -er- with Nuwa- that was different. She knew it had something to do with the whole s*xual experience, on a higher lev- Kat shook away her X-rated thoughts.

“So, you were trying to bite me earlier?” Kat was grateful for her tear-stained face then for he would have seen the embarrassed blush that crept up her neck and face. Still, she bent her head, looking at her tracks. Oscar forgot his own game- he forgot he was trying to convince her that her father was not her biological one. Good, she was not in the mood for his sick humor at the moment- she still was in the grieving process…why couldn’t he understand that and give her space to …breathe.

Her brain hurt, her heart hurt, she was sleep-deprived too. Her thoughts were not clear either and she found herself fighting to concentrate on the present situation.

Earlier, she had thought he was going to kiss her- well what else to think after the whole bathroom stunt he pulled. How could he want to kill her and try to kiss her at the same time, she had wondered as she turned her face up to stare into his gray eyes. The same eyes that used to captivate her as a teen, now had her fearing life.

The sight of his elongating teeth had her remembering he wanted to kill her. He couldn’t do it publicly, she had thought then. His fangs. He had intended to kill her indoors by draining her blood. The realization that death was here had Kat in a panic. She forgot all about being ready to die because ‘a deal is a deal’, then.

Never in her life had she been that frightened. Kat wanted to live- even though she had nothing to live for. Her half-sister came to her mind then and Kat wanted to live for her. She wanted to see her grow up, little Maddie. And she had pushed Oscar away and ran out into the living room area.

And now he was saying her father was not her father- because he needed her blood to drink? She doubted that. It had to do with hurting her for-

“Prom?”

“What?”

“Do you hate me because of prom? Isn’t that a bit childish? You’ve been walking around with this vendetta since high school just waiting to get me? We were practically kids back then.”

Oscar stared at her for the longest time before he graced her with a response. but an unexpected one, “When did you cut your hair?”

When did she what- she stared at the man who switched up his emotions so much that she couldn’t keep track of them. He took the last two-steps towards her and Kat’s heart threatened to leap out of her chest. She couldn’t help but think, this is it- the moment she dies- despite what he said. She just did not trust Oscar.

“I- Miss Moon- ugh- just after the wedding- she said it was inappropriate to have my hair-” Kat broke off when she saw him frown at the mention of the older woman and it had deepened with the word inappropriate. She sucked in a breath, “No, I have it wrong, she erm, no me, I, I-”

‘Too close, too close.’

“You?” he encouraged as he stooped down flat in front of her, balancing on the soles of his feet. He dropped to her eye level and Kat swallowed leaning back to the backrest of the sofa. Gray eyes met violet eyes.

“I wanted to have them not tie my hair so tightly- the plaits hurt when they pulled- I couldn’t turn my head properly that is- headache?” she stuttered lamely.

“Right.”

“Sheila said the plaits were needed because my hair was too long-”

“Sheila?” he interrupted her…gently, but Kat could feel the pull his eyes were having on her. What was this intense feeling?

 “-and she did not approve of my scrunchie, so I- we agreed to cut it.”

“Scrunchie?” he murmured, and dropped to his knees and straightened his back, leaning forward and smoking up the room with his gaze still holding hers. Too close to her, Kat thought again.

“I liked your hair in the long braid.” He reached out and held the tips of her hair between his fingers. Kat felt the roots of her hairs tingle when his fingers rolled the strands between them. It wasn’t that short, just about a trillion inches shorter, at least that’s how it felt anyway. Kat was a little vain when it came to her hair. Honestly, it was still long but now midway on her back instead of the original waist-length it had been. Her bangs were trimmed to just on her eyebrows, which came as a surprise to her but she did not protest it as that was how she had it before it grew out.

‘Oh dear God.’

“My-my, hair tie,” she gulped, and refusing to look to him, she broke away and averted her gaze to the bookshelf on her right. But she could still see him from her peripheral view and he was still staring into her face. Kat couldn’t tell if she was more frightened or nervous.

‘What is he doing? Is this the vampire thing? Was this what he meant by, ‘forget all you think you know’? He had a smoldering charm- no wait- that was Dracula. Draculas’ have the charm…but he did say forget so that could mean that he did have it- the charm, right? Besides Dracula isn’t real.’

So are vampires but yet here we are, Kat.

“You shouldn’t have, a simple tie to the side would have sufficed,” he half-whispered and Kat could take no more. She pulled her hair away and stood up but it’s as if Oscar anticipated her move, for he stood up with her too. But his hand had circled her waist.

Kat’s blood ran cold- definitely more frightened than nervous. If not from his bar-like heavy-handed grip, on her small waist, his words sure did the trick. " I need blood," he cooed near her ear and reared his handsome face for her to see he was not smiling.