Not Even Human

Chapter Two

It was that bad. The minute I walked into the gymnasium, I could feel her glare radiating from where she sat down with her two subordinates. I almost froze when I saw her pretty face, but then I set aside my feelings and met her glare with a smirk, then sauntered over to the line of girls waiting to audition. The music was blaring as one girl danced, or cheered, to it. I suddenly realized I hadn’t really prepared anything, and I’d have to wing it the best I could.

One by one, the girls tried to do their best to the music from their speakers. I studied carefully, seeing some of their moves and wondering how I could top it, maybe do it better. Not to mention, I’ve seen a lot of movies, I’ve seen some moves in my time. Then it was my turn, and I made my way over to the middle of the gymnasium and in front of the table.

The captain raised an eyebrow, before she looked me up and down. Her jaw clenched, and I couldn’t help the grin that enveloped her face, but apparently it only made it worse. A scowl was set with her pouty, plump lips.

“Take off the sunglasses.”

“As you wish.” I say as I take them off and tuck them into my backpack I set aside, and I can hear some snickers across the gym. Her scowl deepens, and I can’t help but widen my grin. For a moment her eyes are cold and calculating, before they slightly widen when they see my eye color.

“Yeah, no. This isn’t going to work, you can leave.” She wasn’t pleased with me, and for some reason, I wanted to get under her skin more.

“Is this a tyranny or a democracy? All three of you judge, not just you.” The two other cheerleaders look pleased for a second, and they raise their chins in pride. I continue, “I already filled out a form and everything during study hall, so you can’t reject me until you’ve seen what I can do.”

She stood, messing with the speaker before a song started to play. She then sat with her arms crossed as she leaned back, waiting for me to begin. All it took was one second before I moved into action, swaying my body and sticking out my arms in sync with each beat of the drum. I took off my flannel, throwing to the side as I prepared for my next movements. I could tell from memory that the song was coming to the climax, and I sauntered over to the end of the gym before I turned and commenced.

I dove forward, remembering exactly what I watched from the movie Bring It On, because if a human could do it, I could do it better. I landed with a small grunt, turning to see shocked expressions. I raised an eyebrow, slightly confused as to why they were surprised. They do this kind of thing all the time, don’t they?

“Ta-Da.” I smiled, resting my hands on my hips, feeling smug at being able to impress her. “So, how did I do?”

She stood, and scoffed. “How did you do? What kind of question is that-“

A girl beside her tried to calm her by placing a hand on her arm, but she swatted her hand away. I felt confused, wondering what the problem was.

“You didn’t even cheer. You danced around, did some flips, and expect us to let you join?”

“I didn’t just dance. I cheered physically, the way you would to the music, and I did some good flips. Not to mention, you wouldn’t have been able to hear my ‘cheering’ over the music, even if I did.” I pick my flannel up and run a hand through my hair, feeling frustrated. She didn’t budge, just raised an eyebrow. “It’s not up to you anyways. It’s up to them.”

I pointed to the other judges besides her, and she huffed. They looked at me apprehensively, and I scoffed once I realized they didn’t care. They would just follow her lead like lost puppies.

“Whatever. I’m out of here.” I turned, grabbing my backpack and walking out of the gymnasium in a hurry. I could feel my anger radiating off me, as my emotions always have, they have always engulfed me and made me feel consumed by them. I felt deeply, passionately, no matter how little it was about. In reality, I didn’t want to be in cheerleading, and I didn’t care if I was rejected. Who did she think she was anyways? I was a godsend, I would’ve been a wonderful addition to the team. I stared down the hall as I walked through them, turning left with my fists clenched.

I felt a hand grab my shoulder and I turned with a snarl, and my voice was out of my mouth before I could control it. “WHAT?”

I saw one of the cheerleaders cower back, I straightened my demeanor as I cleared my throat. I had lost it for a second, so I took a deep breath before rephrasing myself, “I’m sorry. What is it?”

It was the one with ginger hair, and her lips red as blossoms. Pretty, but not as interesting as the captain. She smiled, sheepishly, “Monica changed her mind.”

“You’re kidding.” I looked at her incredulously as a chuckle escaped my mouth, “She was furious.”

She laughed, “Yeah, but she still can’t deny the fact you’re good. So you’re on the team.”

I smiled back, feeling relief sink in as the anger faded.

“Practice is at five on Tuesdays and Thursdays. You can buy the uniform and stuff at the office.”

I nodded as she turned to go, and I grinned to myself. The campus seemed to be empty, and it was nice to see the sunset as I walked the streets of my new city. I was walking home, letting my eyes wander into the windows as I pondered today’s results. I had gotten most of what I wanted, but it was still troubling when I thought of the plant guy from the store. I made it home in no time, feeling exhausted immediately.

I went to the closet, about to change into my sleepwear before my head started to pound. I realized then, that I hadn’t fed for almost a month. Whenever I wouldn’t feed, my body would start to ‘alarm’ me. I didn’t need it to survive, but most of my abilities were because of it. Without it, I’d be close to human, and weak. I tried it once, and it was practically deadly. I don’t understand how humans did it, it was a pain to be so natural and vulnerable. Not to mention, I lost all inhibitions without it, so it was not ideal.

Instead of my sleepwear, I changed into a hoodie, leggings, and boots; all black. I was going to hunt after all, I needed to blend in. I put my hair in a high ponytail, hiding it inside my hood. This was the part I hated about not feeding in a while the most; looking for the kill. I mostly killed criminals, but it wasn’t every night that something illegal would be happening, so I would have to sacrifice a poor soul. An innocent. That’s why I stopped, that’s why I hunted almost every night, because I couldn’t sacrifice someone who didn’t deserve it. Fernandez didn’t like it, but he knew what I had to do.

The night chill was refreshing as I went outside the window and onto the fire escape; the roof was just above, and easy to access this way. I made it with ease, and breathed in slowly as I looked over the city. My apartment building wasn’t that high, but high enough that even the street lights looked minuscule. I grinned as I ran to the building next to me; the feeling of being free as I leapt and sped around the city was amazing. It was always my favorite part about being somewhere new, to be challenged with the new buildings and learn their crack and edges.

A loud curse word got my attention just minutes later, and I sped close to the scene. From above, I could spot two men scuffling in an alley. Crimes always happened in an alley, it seemed. In my neighborhood, no less. I couldn’t decide if finding crime fast tonight was a good thing or a bad thing.

I narrowed my eyes, trying to see more detail about what was going on. It was tough, being so weak that I couldn’t hear them from far. I gasped as one fell to the floor, and I saw one huff as he looked at the bloody knife in his hand.

I wasted no time. I jumped down from above, landing with a loud thud in front of the man who had just stabbed the other.

“What the-“ I ignored his comment, knocking the knife out of his hand and pouncing on his body. I sunk my fangs into his neck, as disgusting as it may sound, and drank the blood from his system. Bitter, but still savory. I pushed him away, panting as I enjoyed the taste of him, and I could feel the power returning to me.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him move and I kicked him backwards. Instinct took over; I lost myself. I hissed as I sped towards him, ready to kill him now. I wanted him dead, and I knew I would savor the kill just as I savored his blood.

I was pulled suddenly, and thrown on my back. I groaned, feeling my mind clear a little, but still confused as to what happened. I was glad I didn’t kill, but I was also alerted. Something was strong enough to stop me. Someone.

I sat up slowly, the cold pavement rough underneath my smooth palms, and saw what appeared to be a male speaking in a low murmur to the male who I was just about to kill. The human male seemed to stand and walked past me, a glaze over his eyes as he left the alley. I looked to the body of the other human male, now dead, and felt grief prick at the edges of my chest. If I hadn’t let myself get too lost in the hunt, he’d be alive.

“Lose yourself?” I recognized the voice immediately. My eyes snapped up, widening a fraction when I saw him.

“Plant dude.”

His lips formed a crooked grin, “Plant girl.”

“What are you…” I trailed off, looking to the ground as my thoughts went a million times a minute. Clenching and unclenching my hands as my nerves went haywire. Would he kill me? Would this be the place I die, in some alley? I held my breath, scared to death to actually speak.

“Stopping you from doing your worst, I suppose.” His tone sounded casual, and I hesitantly met his eyes. Except he had his sunglasses on, still, and at night, so I couldn’t see his actual eyes. Weird.

I frowned, wishing I could see his intentions. The eyes are the window to the soul, after all. Suddenly, I raised my chin with pride. If he was a threat, he would’ve said so already. And even if he was, I wouldn’t mind fighting him now. It would be a good way to go, I guess.

Seeing my change in stature, he furrowed his eyebrows, confused. He wore a black form-fitting tee and cargo pants. Attractive still, and annoying. He held out his hand, and I raised a brow.

“Come. We need to have a chat.”

I walked closer, the distance between us was great, and I stopped when I was an arms-length away. His fingertips almost brushed against my chin, and I c****d my head in thought. Was he dangerous? Of course.

I slowly took his hand, then gripped it firmly, testing the waters. He smirked, and I wanted to wipe it off his face. Who was he to be smug about my apprehensive approach?

“Shall we?” His voice was smoother now that we were in close proximity. I smirked back, feigning indifference.

“Do I have a choice?”

“Not really,” He said with a chuckle.

He suddenly picked me up, and I gasped when he sped and jumped above the buildings. He was holding me, and I grimaced when I thought about how I could run beside him instead. No doubt he knew that, but wanted to hold me for the sake of it.

“I can run too, you know.” I huffed in his ear, the wind loud as he sped us across rooftops. His chuckle vibrated through him, but he didn’t make any comment back. I held on tighter, digging my nails in as to show my irritation. It didn’t seem to faze him in the slightest.

It wasn’t long before we made it to the front of an extravagant looking building; practically a skyscraper. It was the tallest building in the city, and the jewel of Jade City.

I looked around as he placed me on my feet, bewildered as to why he’d take me here. He seemed to sense my questions.

“These are our headquarters. Or, sanctuary.” I felt more confused, and he shrugged. “The main place we go to the most, I suppose.”

I nodded, but I was still confused. Who was we? Who was ‘our’? He started to walk inside, and I felt dumb when I realized I was meant to follow.

“What are we?” I stopped him just before he placed his hand on the handle to the entrance, searching for his eyes through the sunglasses he wore. His lips parted, and he seemed to be contemplating what to say. He had just met me, but couldn’t he tell? Even now, when our skin touched, our temperature was the same. We were the same.

“Vampyr.”

I stood still as he went inside. I knew it, it was obvious after all, but to hear it confirmed made me feel all the more sane. I wasn’t crazy, I wasn’t some anomaly alone in the system. I was a natural phenomenon, and I was a normal person. Vampyr, actually. I could feel my emotions swirl inside me, and I took a deep breath to calm myself before entering.

My breath hitched. There were a lot of us. Talking at the coffee tables, walking up and down the main lobby stairs, and even lounging around what seemed to be a receptionist desk.

I felt someone approach me, and I looked at him, still awe-struck. He smiled the devil’s smile, and nodded his head towards the elevators. I walked beside him, suddenly aware of eyes on me before the elevator pinged and I glanced before I stepped inside. Some curious stares, some glares, and some murmurs. Was it because I was new? Most likely.

He chuckled as he pushed a button, “Don’t worry, love. We get newbies all the time.”

“What do you mean?” I withhold my scowl. I wasn’t technically ‘new’, I was just kept out of the loop.

“You know, turned ones. New vampyrs. It’s totally normal.”

I scoffed. He gave me a puzzled expression, and I shook my head.

“I wasn’t bitten or whatever.”

“What do you mean?” He looked even more confused, I sighed.

“I was born this way.”

He frowned, as if he thought it was strange. He took my arm, leading me out of the elevator as it pinged for the floor we were now on. It was an elegant suite, like an apartment but just much better. The rugs were blood red, the floor was polished marble.

“Is that bad?” I felt myself start to panic. Was I truly an anomaly?

“No.”

“Then why are you being weird about it?”

He didn’t answer, but instead stood still for a moment before leading me to barge into an office. I paled, seeing the most intimidating man I’ve ever seen. His hair was black, shoulder length, and dangled elegantly in his face. His skin was paler than mine, porcelain really, and his eyes were bloody red and calculating. Now he was a Vampyr.

I wondered what made him different than I, besides my Hispanic race that made my skin a bit more tan, that made him seem so much more of a Vampyr than me.

“I assume you have a good reason for barging in here, son.” His voice rang out, mirroring his son’s accent but stronger. It was smooth as silk, with a sharp edge at the end of every word.

I couldn’t help the way my eyes bulged. They were related? He’s a dad? No way. Couldn’t be.

I stilled, scared about the way he’d present me. His father raised his eyebrow, and scoffed as if he’d heard something preposterous. I frowned, wondering what was going on.

“And why didn’t you go through with procedure?

Plant dude looked pensive, wondering how to word his thoughts no doubt, before speaking. To my surprise, he said nothing.

“I see.”

What was I missing? Are there telepathic powers I haven’t unlocked yet?

It was a millisecond that I stood there in confusion before the man was suddenly in front of me. I gasped, suddenly terrified of his presence. He stared down at me without saying a word, and I felt like I couldn’t breathe. It was a long minute before he said something.

“What are you, my dear?”

I looked away, wondering in thought to myself about my abilities. When growing up, I never had a hint of these things I was capable of, but my parents must have known. I mean, I needed to feed on human blood, so maybe they snuck it into my food? Why keep it a secret? Was it that I didn’t remember? Did my mother know? I couldn’t come up with an answer, and could only assume at this point. I would have to guess at his question.

“Oh, she’s a Vampyr alright.” I looked up at him in shock, wondering how he could’ve possibly confirmed it.

“Oh, I can read your thoughts.” He smirked, and I huffed in disbelief. The idea of it alone made me marvel, but at the same time, I was a vampyr after all. Did plant dude have any special powers too?

“Plant dude?” His laugh was kind of scary, but he quickly went serious as he went over and patted his son’s shoulder. “Yes, he does have wonderful gifts, my boy.” He turned over to me, as if suddenly realizing something.

“Oh! How rude of me!” He stepped towards me, taking my hand with a Cheshire grin, and I couldn’t help but flush as he tenderly placed his lips on the back of my hand. “Benjamin Romaro.”

Benjamin waved over his son who discreetly frowned at his dad’s behavior, and I withheld my laugh.

“This is my dashing son, Gabriel Romaro. He will be your new guide for all things Vampyr. Or vampire, whichever term pleases you.”

I looked at Gabriel, doubting he would be so helpful. I mean, he did approach me at the store and helped me here, but would he be able to withstand me? I was clueless, and probably stupid to him. Why would they help me?

“Don’t you dare think such nonsense, darling. You're one of us, and Gabriel would be more than happy to help. Won’t you?” Benjamin gave his son a smirk, and Gabriel gave him a firm and fake smile.

“Yeah, sure.”

“Alright, now see to it you give her a detailed description of our rules. And make sure to assign…”

I somewhat zoned out as I smiled to myself. I was a part of something now, I knew now what I was, and would learn even more about what it meant to be a vampire.

“Are you still breathing?” I felt a finger flick against my forehead, and I swatted Gabriel’s hand away. He laughed as I rolled my eyes and walked out of the office, waiting for him to come out as well. It took a second, but he sighed as the door closed behind him.

“So, vampire 101. Let’s get to it then, shall we?” Without waiting for my response, he walked over to the elevators and I followed eagerly. I wanted to know everything. The doors opened, and he continued speaking.

“First, let’s address the rules. One: no feeding on the locals. Two: no revealing ourselves to humans.” I already broke two of those rules without even knowing it. Just my kind of luck. “Three: no killing others of our kind unless absolutely necessary. Four: make sure to drink a cup of human blood at least once a day, we need to have full potential.” I wasn’t going to protest that one. “And five…” He trailed off as he turned to look at me, and I felt breathless at the close proximity. “It’s the hardest one to follow.”

I gulped. What else could there be?

“No falling in love with me.”

“Oh, please. It’s you that has to restrain yourself from me.” I say as I push him away playfully, a smirk growing on my lips. Gabriel smirked back, seeming pleased with my response. I liked this banter, and I was convinced then and there that he would be a good friend.

“Done flirting with this one, Gabriel?” A young woman, resembling Benjamin a lot in the way her raven hair was shaped as well as her porcelain skin, stood in front of the elevator with disdain. They all had the same accents, no surprise there.

“Actually, Victoria, I’m her new guide.” Gabriel said with a smile as we stepped out of the elevator. The woman suddenly looked at me with a sharp glare, and a frown etched on her lips. She wasn’t just looking down because she was tall, this time she was figuratively looking down on me.

“So she’s a turned one.”

“And so what if I was?” I could feel my heart beat faster as I raised my chin in a challenging manner. “How does that make me any less than you?”

She scoffed, “Because you’re weaker.”

“Now, hold on just a second-“ Gabriel tried to intercede, but we ignored him.

“Wanna test that?” I stepped closer, narrowing my eyes. Sometimes I let my anger get the best of me, and this was one of those times. As I got closer, I can see her eyes were a burgundy, somewhat like her father’s but different. Did everyone have unique eye colors? I wondered briefly what Gabriel’s were.

“The training mats. Follow me.” She turned with a huff, and Gabriel and I trailed after her eagerly. After all, I’ve never fought one of our kind and lost. We went through a hallway to enter double doors, which led to somewhat of a studio. There were mats everywhere with people, fellow vampires, sparring here and there. It was unlike anything I’ve ever seen, they were faster than lighting and as skilled as Bruce Lee. They weren’t trying to kill, obviously, but they were really good. Usually, my fights lasted a minute or so before they were over. Was it because I was born and not turned? Was that why she looked down on the turned ones?

She led me to a mat in the middle of the studio, and I raised an eyebrow as I looked down at it. It was a pretty big mat, not really small, so we would have plenty of room to spar.

“Take off your shoes,” I did as she asked while she continued to speak. “We pin each other down. We have to stay on this mat. Those are the only restrictions. You ready?”

“I was born ready.” I probably looked arrogant when I looked up with a smirk, but she simply furrowed her eyebrows as she started to stalk around the mat. I was bewildered for a second before I started to do the same, then really focused and honed halfway into my instincts. The reason I only did it halfway was because leaning on them too much could be bad, since I was animalistic at times. I needed to use my head as well.

Victoria made the first move quickly, pouncing with her fist forward. If I was human, I wouldn’t have been able to tell she had moved at all, but I gladly wasn’t. I stood still, letting her get close before twisting my body around and grabbing her arm, then using my strength to slam her around with her back onto the mat. I could hear her little breath hitch in surprise, but she bounced back quickly once she hit the mat that I didn’t have a chance to try and pin her.

She turned and immediately grabbed my legs, pulling me down. I gasped as she pulled me towards her, then jumped to restrain me. I acted fast, wrapping my legs around her midsection before she could straddle me, and used my right hand to wrap it around her throat. She struggled while she grabbed at it with both hands, groaning loudly with effort, before twisting it. I let out a shriek before using my other hand to swat at her face, and use the momentum as leverage to turn us so I could straddle her now. I ripped away the arm she was twisting while simultaneously wrapping my other around her throat again, then pulled at her arm to keep the pressure on. I had pinned her, I had won.

She tried to twist her body, swatted at me with her only free arm, but even then she couldn’t do much else.

“Okay, I give.” Victoria gritted through her teeth. I laughed when I let go, slowly getting off her with a smug expression painted on my face.

“I tried to tell you Victoria,” Gabriel clapped slowly, his signature grin on his face. “She’s not a turned one.”

“Yeah, no kidding.” Victoria groaned as she stood, stretching her arm I had pulled hard on. “If she beat me, she must be a royal as well.”

“Oh.” He suddenly looked at me, and raised an eyebrow. I ran a hand through my hair, annoyed at what else I must be. First, vampire. Then a born vampire. Then a royal, born vampire. Stick to one thing at a time, people.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” They ignored me, and I huffed in frustration.

“No, it couldn’t be. She would’ve had training, Vic.”

“Yeah, she just happened to be stronger than us royals.” She laughed heartily.

“Stronger than you,” He crossed his arms, “We are not the same, little sister.”

“Au contraire, brother. We are royals. No vampire, neither born nor turned should beat us unless they are one of us as well,” They looked at me with curiosity, and I twiddled my thumbs. “But if you insist you’re better, why don’t you have a go?”

I felt him closer suddenly, and I glared up at him. Gabriel has no respect for boundaries, I learned.

“Fight me.” He c****d his head while licking his bottom lip. I was confused whether he was trying to be seductive or just annoying. “Come on, love. Don’t be frightened.”

“You asked for it.” I say as I push him backwards and walk towards the other end of the mat. As I look back, he’s already in motion, and I don’t have time to think before my instinct takes over. With every swing he does, my body dodges without a change to swing back. I try to think of a way to hit him, but there’s barely any time. He was really, really fast. But so was I.

When he punches and misses, it takes more energy than it would if he had hit his target. He was counting on coming at me so aggressively that I wouldn’t be able to fight him like I had with Victoria, that he didn’t think about the energy he was wasting.

I wait for it, the break in his fast attacks. I find my in where he falters slightly, and instead of just dodging, I spin behind him. I use the little time I have before he realizes to whack him on the back of the head with little force.

But I hadn’t counted on him to turn with the speed he did, I had forgotten how fast he was. I couldn’t stop myself either. When I swung, it hit him a little too hard. His neck broke when it turned from the impact, and his body fell limp on the mat. He was dead.

I gasped, stepping back with wide and teary eyes. I killed Gabriel.