My Vampire Roomate

The beast in the backseat

Three minutes. That’s all I had left before I’d be turned into ashes. For seven agonizing minutes, I’d screamed my throat raw, the sound dying in the empty house. Sebastian was nowhere, and I’d accepted my fate—tied to a pole, a helpless piece in Eric’s sick game of revenge. My parents’ faces haunted me, their grief already clawing at my chest. I’d messed up everything—my shot at independence, my survival. All of it.

My mind rewound: Rose’s smooth talk about that Ponzi scheme, my first text to Sebastian, staying despite his vampire truth because of some dumb, magnetic pull. Regret stung worse than the fear. Would he show? Did he even give a damn? The timer glared: 00:59. My pulse thrashed, drowning out the silence. I yanked at the ropes one last time—useless. Each tick was a bomb in my skull—00:30. Hopelessness crushed me. This wasn’t a bad dream I’d shake off in my old apartment, ready for class. This was it. Ten seconds. Fear, regret, and rage boiled over, and I let out a final, guttural scream. “f**k!!!” I braced for the end.

BOOM!!!

The world exploded—flames, debris, a deafening roar. But I wasn’t in it. Strong arms held me, sunlight scorching the skin of the man who’d ripped me free just in time. Sebastian. His speed had beaten the blast, and the house crumbled behind us in a storm of dust as he lowered me to the ground. His eyes locked on mine, fierce and searching.

“Are you hurt?” His hands traced my arms, my face, frantic for signs of damage. I lay there, stunned, adrenaline buzzing like a live wire. “You came back for me,” I whispered, gratitude shaking my voice. I’d given up, but he hadn’t.

He stood, staring at the wreckage of his home. Silence stretched as guilt ate at me—if I hadn’t let Eric in, he couldn’t have compelled me, and this wouldn’t have happened. A groan snapped me out of it. I turned—Franklin, bloody and beaten, slumped nearby. Eric’s doing, I figured. But why? Was he just Sebastian’s friend, or deeper in this mess? No answers now—just relief at still breathing.

“We have to move,” Sebastian said, scooping me up and carrying me to his Bentley. He dragged Franklin into the back, then took the wheel, firing up the engine.

“Where are we going?” I asked, my voice thin but firm.

“Back to where it all started,” he said, dark and determined, shifting into reverse with a hand behind my seat—way hotter than it should’ve been. I glanced at Franklin, questions swirling. “Long story,” he muttered, gripping his side. So he was part of this—vampire or something else, I couldn’t tell. I just wanted my old life: college chaos, weekend laughs with Rose.

Rose. She was who I needed to spill this to, but what if she’d known all along? She’d been with Franklin over a year. I grabbed my spare phone—Eric had taken my main one—and typed: “Hey Rose, call me when you get thi—” Sebastian snatched it, tossing it into the console.

“You trying to get her killed?” His eyes stayed on the road, cold and sharp.

Relief hit—she didn’t know. But she was my best friend, and I needed her. “She deserves to know your kind exist. I’m protecting her,” I snapped, reaching for it again.

“Her death’s on you, then,” he said, voice like steel. Doubt crept in, and I froze. The text sat unsent as I dropped the phone.

I stared out the window, Eric’s story gnawing at me. If he was right, Sebastian was a liar—first the fake cancer tale, now this lab fire nonsense when it was something else entirely. I was done. I’d confront him when we stopped, wherever we were headed. He wouldn’t even say—just kept it cryptic. Elmwood City shrank behind us, endless road ahead. Still, he’d just saved my life, and that trust outweighed the lies—for now.

His rough hand landed on my thigh, and my brain short-circuited. Heat flooded my cheeks, my stomach doing flips. “Glad you’re okay,” he said, voice deep and smooth, sending shivers racing down my spine.

“Is that a carnival?” Franklin cut in, pointing. A mini carnival glowed in the small town ahead. “I don’t think you’re in—” I started, then stopped. Franklin had torn off his shirt—abs ripped, no wounds, just like Sebastian after his stab healed. “You’re a vampire too?”

“Don’t lump me with those demons,” Franklin grinned, and Sebastian smirked like it was a private joke I didn’t get. I didn’t bother to push it.

He parked by the carnival, stepping out. “We could use some fun,” he said. Franklin bolted from the car like he hadn’t been half-dead minutes ago. “See you lovebirds later—we leave at 8 p.m.,” he shouted, vanishing into the crowd.

Then it was just us, carnival lights painting the night. I wanted to call him out, but his hand grazed mine, and my resolve wavered.

I’d never felt so alive. The Ferris wheel spun me dizzy, wind tangling my hair into a mess. I popped balloons with darts, laughing like a kid, and gorged on cotton candy and fries until my stomach groaned. It was wild, messy joy. Time slipped away, and soon we were sprawled by the fountain, water glinting under the moon. We should’ve been planning against Eric, but I was still riding the sugar rush.

I bit my lip, words bubbling up. “You know… Eric told me what really happened. Five years ago.” My voice was quiet, but it hit him hard. His eyes darkened, jaw clenching—he knew I had the truth. “Is it true?” I leaned closer, heart pounding. “Did you… kill his lover?”

His gaze dropped, silence stretching. Then he spoke, raw and low. “I didn’t kill Riya. I loved her.” The words crashed into me, thick with pain. My breath caught. Loved her? This was a tangle I hadn’t seen coming.

“You and your brother… you both fell for the same girl?” I asked, curiosity shaking my voice. I needed the full story.

He tipped his head back, staring at the sky. “After my rampage, I went to Riya’s apartment for refuge, but when I got there…” His voice broke, hands balling into fists. “She was already gone. Lying in her own blood, dead. I dropped beside her, sobbing, holding her. That’s when Eric walked in. He saw me, covered in her blood, and assumed the worst.”

My head reeled. “So he thinks you murdered her?”

Sebastian nodded, grim. “We fought—fists, fangs, all of it. The house caught fire in the mess. I begged him to leave, but he wouldn’t. I had to save myself. Left him there, screaming her name.”

I swallowed hard. “Then… who killed her?”

His eyes flashed with something old and dark. “Another vampire, maybe. We weren’t the only ones who escaped that night.” His voice was a whisper.

I glanced at the clock—8:20 p.m. We were late. The carnival should’ve been done by six. Sebastian stood, brushing off his jeans. “We need to find Franklin and go.”

But I wasn’t ready to let it end. I grabbed his wrist, pulling him back. “Franklin can wait,” I murmured, soft and bold, yanking him into a kiss—fierce, desperate, like the world was collapsing. His hands gripped my waist, strong and claiming, lifting me like I was air. “We really should go,” he mumbled against my lips, but he kept kissing me. I didn’t stop either.

We stumbled to the car, a mess of heat and hands, barely inside before clothes flew—my shirt on the dash, his jacket on the floor. Our kisses turned ravenous, his touch igniting my skin. I arched into him, breathless, and just as he leaned over me, ready for more—

OWOOOOO!

A howl sliced through the night, chilling my bones. Sebastian froze, eyes wide with panic. “Oh no… I forgot. It’s a full moon.”

My heart sank. “What? What’s that mean?”

“We need to get out—now!” He scrambled to the driver’s seat, shirtless and wild, fumbling the keys.

“What about Franklin?” I shouted, gripping the seat, mind spinning.

He shot me a look, dark and terrified. “That’s who we’re running from.”

I turned to the window, and my blood froze. A monstrous wolf—six feet of muscle, eyes glowing—charged at us. Before Sebastian could start the car, it slammed into us. Metal shrieked, glass exploded, and the world flipped as the car rolled.