Lucas, who stood up as well, said, “No, thanks. If I go out with you, he will hate me more than he already does. So you go on ahead.”
“Okay,” Becca mumbled and pulled Lucas into an unexpected hug. “Thank you for telling me the truth.”
He rubbed her back. “Call me whenever you need me. I will always be there for you. I have counted you as a genuine friend ever since we met.”
“So did I,” she said and smiled.
After they broke apart from the hug, Becca got out of the classroom and headed to the garden where Alexander was waiting for her.
Noticing Becca, Alexander said in annoyance, “What took you so long?”
She marched to him and replied, “Sorry, I was in the washroom.” She further asked, “Were you eager to see me?”
He shook his head with a wry sigh, saying, “You want me to be eager for you, and at the same time, you accuse me of molestation and murder at the drop of a hat. What do you want me to do?”
She grinned and grabbed his arm. “Stay with me,” she breathed out, her eyes intently meeting his. When she found him arching an eyebrow, she added, “Stay with me all the time while I will be in the vampire world since I know nothing about this new place.”
“Don’t worry,” he assured her. “Ness and I will be there, so will Phil and Pristine. As I said, the vampire world is kinda similar to the human world in case of buildings and roads, but it is always nighttime there.”
“Wow,” she uttered. “How do you know the time then?”
“We aren’t savages, we do have a clock,” he deadpanned. “Let’s head to the Bellmor jungle.”
“Why?” she asked in confusion. “That jungle is near my home. Are you planning to expose me to my dad or wh—”
“Because the portal connecting the human world to the vampire world is in Bellmor jungle,” Alexander cleared her confusion.
She was surprised after hearing it. “It means, that day we met for the first time, you just entered the human world from the Bellmor jungle. This jungle is for the vampires. No wonder why it is labeled as the most dangerous jungle ever,” she spoke all at once.
“Yes,” he told her. “Ness is waiting for us, so we should get going.”
###
Becca, Alexander, and Vanessa were standing in front of a banyan tree in the middle of the Bellmor jungle.
“Wow, this tree is huge,” Becca murmured, looking at the giant banyan tree under whose shade they were standing.
“Only registered vampires are allowed in the vampire world, so you have to hold my hand and come with me when I go inside,” Alexander informed Becca.
She looked at him. “We will go inside a tree? How?”
“We just have to show our eyes at this red mark on the bark of the tree,” Vanessa announced and looked at the mark. Soon, there appeared a black hole. “And then, we go inside.” With that, she went inside, and the hole disappeared, making Becca bewildered.
“This is magical,” Becca murmured after Vanessa went to the vampire world.
Alexander chuckled. “For you, it is magical, but for us, it is common,” he said and looked at the red mark with his green eyes. Once the portal opened for the second time, Alexander entwined his hand with Becca’s soft ones and asked, “Ready?”
With a small smile, she said confidently, “Yes.”
The two of them walked into the big hole, disappearing into the vampire world.
Chapter 31: Sleepless Night
Becca was awestruck after seeing the vampire world. It was fully dark, just like Alexander told her. However, there were small lights everywhere to illuminate the area, and the shiny stars in the sky made everything look even more beautiful.
“Wow,” she breathed, wanting to free Alexander’s grip from her hand and roam around, but he tightened his grip.
“We have to reach the Insworthe manor first,” he instructed, which made her frown. Seeing that, he offered, “How about we walk to our destination so that you can have a mini-tour of the vampire world?”
“Perfect,” she agreed, grinning widely.
Vanessa cleared her throat, letting her presence be known. “Let’s walk then,” she told them and the three of them started walking.
Becca saw a lot of similarities between the human and the vampire world. It had tall buildings, open fields, beautiful gardens, constructed roads with the latest model of vehicles, and plenty more.
“I can’t believe this is all real,” Becca mumbled. “It is like I am in an alternate universe.” She spotted a few vampires gawking at her, so she bowed down her head a little, showing the vampires respect.
Wow, she is so nice, Vanessa said aloud in her mind, which didn’t go unheard by Alexander.
I know, he replied to her.
Do you like Becca? Vanessa asked, making Alexander stop on his tracks.
Do I? he questioned himself.
“This garden is so beautiful, Alex, and Ness, look,” Becca said, snapping Alexander from his trance.
Vanessa joined her in a garden, filled with beautiful white and red flowers. Vanessa plucked a red lily and placed one in Becca’s hair. “You look so beautiful,” she told Becca, who giggled.
“Yeah, you do,” Alexander blurted out, enraptured by her innocent beauty, which made Becca blush furiously,
Composing herself and hiding her red cheeks with her hair, she said, “Don’t you have any shame? You were the one who said I wasn’t attractive enough for you.” Alexander was baffled at what she was saying. Before he could protest, she continued speaking, “Oh, wait, that must be the reason you wanted to molest me.”
“No, that’s not it,” Alexander tried to deny but she paid him no mind.
“No, Alex. I know your intentions now,” Becca declared while Vanessa found their little show entertaining as always.
“If you don’t drop that now, I’m going to bang my head on the wall in frustration,” Alexander groaned in annoyance.
“But it won’t hurt you,” Vanessa remarked with a smirk on her face.
“Will you two just go back to admiring those stupid flowers?” he let out, and the two girls giggled before turning towards the garden again. He sighed and leaned against a tree, his eyes still focused on Becca.
Alexander loved watching Becca’s face glow with a smile and unadulterated happiness while gasping at the abundant beauty of the vampire world. She really looked beautiful, he thought again. She has always been nice to him and always supported him, never letting her personal opinion affect his motive, which was to get the vampire potion. She even understood when he didn’t tell her about Phil biting her for the potion. She was his soulmate too, but did he like her? Maybe, he answered Vanessa's question at last, which she failed to hear as she was busy explaining things to Becca.
All of a sudden, Alexander sensed something and a vampire jumped on Becca, trying to bite her. “Ah!” she screamed.
Alexander ran to her in a haze and pushed the vampire roughly away from her. “Her blood is poisonous for us,” Alexander informed him.
Vanessa looked at the male vampire, saying, “If you want to die, feel free to take a bite.”
The male vampire grunted, “Fuck.” With that, he ran away.
“I am happy that my blood is poisonous,” Becca mumbled and took out the flower Vanessa had put in her hair. “I have seen enough. Let’s see Insworthe Manor.”
###
Becca stepped into a beautiful mansion. The red and black shades of everything emitted a dark yet intriguing aura, something that made one attracted to its elegance. The big golden chandelier on the top was the thing that got her attention the most, due to its crimson-like lights. Insworthe Manor was like a palace and the most beautiful place in the vampire world.
“Hello, Becca,” Pristine said from a distance and walked towards them. “Welcome to the world of vampires.” She smiled at Becca, who returned the smile.
“Thank you,” said Becca. Since he could sense an uneasy vibe from the mansion, she entwine
d her hand with Alexander in fear. At least she had faith that as long as he was there, she didn’t have to worry much.
“I will check on something,” Vanessa said and walked away.
Pristine said to Alexander and Becca, “Follow me.” She was walking with her heels clicking sharply on the floor, Alexander and Becca were following her slowly.
“This is weird,” Becca murmured.
“What is weird?” Alexander casually asked.
“I was feeling okay when I was roaming outside, but as soon as I stepped into this mansion, I feel weird and uncomfortable,” she answered, earning a chuckle from him in return.
“Maybe it is because you are stressing on what torture you might be put through just for the potion,” he pointed out.
“Yeah, I guess so. But you will be there for me, right?” she asked, looking at him with hopeful eyes.
He gave a curt nod.
They stopped in front of a large black double door.
“This will be Becca’s room for now,” Pristine announced.
Becca looked at another door facing the door of her room. “Whose room is this?” she questioned. “Is this Alexander’s room?”
“Oh, this is Phil’s room,” Pristine corrected her.
“My room is on the other side of the manor,” Alexander informed Becca. “You can visit me sometimes, alone,” he whispered into her ear, making a shiver run down through her spine.
Pristine cleared her throat pointedly and said, “Becca, why don’t you go inside your room and get some rest? I tried to make arrangements for a human, which I have never done before. So if you don’t like anything, just let me know.”
Becca rubbed her shoulder and assured her, “I will definitely love it. Don’t worry.”
Pristine nodded and turned to Alexander. “Alex, Phil wants to speak with you. Let’s go.”
“Okay.” Facing Becca, he mumbled, “See you tomorrow. Take care.” With that, he and Pristine left Becca alone.
Becca pushed open the huge door and walked inside the room.
The room was in the same color palette as the other parts of the manor in red and black. Old beautiful antiques were placed at one side of the room on a big shelf. The shelf also contained different books which she could read as a way to pass the time. The king-sized bed was in the middle of the room, with two nightstands on each side. There was a separate black door, which must be the closet next to the washroom.
Becca looked at another corner of the room, where she spotted a few couches, along with a big coffin next to it. She had a sudden urge to sleep in there, wanting to feel how it was like to sleep in the coffin similar to the vampires.
She took small steps towards the coffin. As soon as she opened the coffin, she could feel someone coming, so she hurriedly closed it back and ran to the bed. She sat on the bed and heard a faint knock on the door.
“Come in,” Becca uttered.
The door opened and Vanessa stepped in with a bright smile on her face. “I thought you needed some company, and since I am your roommate, I can sleep with you here as well.” She glanced at the coffin, her eyes glinting in excitement. “You can take the bed while I sleep in this coffin.”
“Okay,” Becca agreed unwillingly. She watched Vanessa making her way to the coffin as Becca laid back on the bed, pulling the blanket up to her chest. Becca didn’t know why, she still wanted to sleep in the coffin instead of the comfortable bed.
Chapter 32: Kiss For Potion?
Becca wore a red blouse with black skinny jeans: she has been wearing long sleeves ever since she got her sunburns—she wanted to hide those marks. She was afraid of letting Alexander know about it, or even Vanessa.
Why do I feel this way with Alexander? she wondered. Lucas was also her good friend, but she never got such feelings for him as the ones she felt for Alexander. The emotions she had for Alexander were more of a romantic nature, instead of friendship. She deemed this as friendship plenty of times, but his teasing, her blushing—these weren’t friendly at all, rather it was a sign of affection.
She never understood what it felt like to fall for someone, but she believed that she would be madly in love one day. She walked out of the closet and asked Vanessa, who was sitting on the couch, waiting for her, “Ness, what do you think about me and Alex?”
Vanessa closed the book she was reading and turned to her. She arched an eyebrow and questioned back, “You mean, as a couple?” When Becca nodded her head, Vanessa said, “Well, in my opinion, you two are perfect for each other. I mean, considering you are his soulma—”
“Wait, what?” Becca’s eyes grew as wide as saucers. “His soulmate?”
Vanessa hummed in response. “Remember, I gave you a theory on the heart of the vampires when they meet their soulmate?”
“Yeah…” Becca trailed off.
“Well, Becca, the same thing happens with Alexander when you are with him. His heart beats for you, which means you are his soulmate.”
“What?” She could feel her heartbeat quickening at the thought of being Alexander’s soulmate. She liked the fact because it meant even if Alexander tried leaving her, they would be together forever at one point. “I am his soulmate,” she uttered; as if she was informing herself. “Why didn’t he tell me though?”
Vanessa shrugged her shoulders. “Ask him yourself.” She got up and said, “Let’s go. After you eat your food in the dining room, you have to come to the living room where you will find us. So, I have to show you the way.”
“Okay,” Becca said and followed the instructions given by Vanessa. She stepped into the dining room, only to find the table full of delicious food. She was alone in the room as Vanessa went to the living room.
“All these foods are cold,” a familiar voice spoke from behind.
Becca didn’t turn back, knowing the owner of the voice. “I see. But can I eat all of them? It seems like a lot of food.”
“You do realize that you are the first human ever who has stayed here?” Alexander questioned, walking closer as his strong cologne hit her nostrils.
“I do,” she answered and turned to face him. She smiled at him softly, remembering that he was her soulmate, and also the fact that she liked him.
“What?” Alexander arched an eyebrow. “Are you going to accuse me of sexual assault now since we are alone in this room?”
She shook her head with a chuckle. “No. I was wondering, why didn’t you tell me that I was your soulmate?”
He averted his gaze, mumbling, “You should stop wondering.” He added, “Finish eating so that we can head to the living room.” He pulled out a chair for her and waited for her to get settled before pushing her chair in.
“Ness said you were supposed to be there already with her, Phil, and Pristine. So, did you decide to turn up late just because of me?” When he didn’t respond and served her a slice of pizza, she said, “Aww… how sweet!”
He rolled his eyes, not wanting to admit the truth that he came for her. “Just eat. Hurry up. Phil is waiting.”
“Geez, I need some time to eat because I am not a vampire like you,” she retorted and took a bite even though she didn’t have any appetite to eat. “Why don’t you have a seat as well?”
Alexander narrowed his eyes in her direction. “Becca,” he said sternly.
“What, Alex?” she mimicked his voice.
He sighed and took a seat next to her. “Happy now?”
She grinned. “Very.” She continued eating and spoke up, “You know, even if you try to run away from me, you can’t.”
“I am aware of that,” he said calmly.
She glanced at him, meeting his intense gaze. “Then why don’t you do something?”
“Like what?” he whispered.
“You know better,” she replied and focused on eating, without uttering another word, while Alexander observed her intently..
After eating, Alexander and Becca went inside the dark-colored living room.
Pristine and Vanessa were si
tting on one couch while Phil was on another. All had a glass in their hands.
“Welcome, Becca and my dear brother,” Phil said with a smile. “Please, have a seat.”
Alexander and Becca sat on another couch.
Phil took a sip of his drink and got up. “We are drinking blood,” he said to Becca and handed a glass to Alexander as well.
“Oh,” it was all she could answer in the uncomfortable silence.
Phil poured another glass of blood and stood behind Becca’s sofa. He leaned closer, suddenly smelling her neck.
Alexander tightened his grip on his glass, not liking the scenario at all.
Becca stayed silent, listening to Phil carefully whispering into her ear, “You smell delicious, sweetheart.” He offered her the glass filled with animal blood. “Since the potion is in you, maybe it will come out if you drink the blood. Do you want to drink the fresh lion’s blood?”
Becca inhaled the smell of the blood, finding it tempting.
“Phil, she shouldn’t drink blood,” Alexander said to his brother, who avoided him and focused on Becca.
“You promised to help, Becca, come what may,” Phil reminded her of the promise she made to Alexander.
She sucked in a deep breath, taking the glass from Phil’s hand, and drank the blood in one go.
When she drank the blood, everyone waited eagerly for her reaction.
An immediate frown took over Phil’s lips when nothing happened even after Becca drank the blood, even her eye color remained the same. He took the glass once she finished drinking and went back to his seat, clearly displeased with how things were proceeding.
“Are you okay?” Alexander asked Becca, who closed her eyes and opened them once again. He sat closer to her and placed an arm over her shoulder.
Vanessa rushed to hand her a glass of water. “Here, have this,” she said.
Becca took the glass and drank the water. Even though she felt disgusted while drinking blood, she couldn’t help but like the taste of it. She wondered what made her feel that way, but she decided to not put so much thought into it.
“This didn’t work,” Phil announced, getting lost in his thoughts. “I cannot wait for long, since keeping Becca here means more vampires going against me and trying to attain the potion from her.”
The Vampire Potion (Vampire World Book 1) Page 15
