Forever and Always

by H. T. Night

  “He was the one who trained you?” Tommy asked.

  “Yup. He might be tiny but he is one of the toughest guys I ever sparred with.”

  “I could take him,” Tommy said.

  I looked at Tommy. “Maybe, after you drop ten pounds.”

  “Okay that does it,” Tommy said. “I'm starting the Atkins diet in the morning! Josiah keeps implying I'm fat.”

  “Who’s implying?” I said, jokingly.

  “Oh, that does it.” Tommy got up and grabbed me playfully.”

  “Sit down Tommy!” Yari said. Then she rolled her eyes at him and he gave her a weird look back. I might not be able to read their minds. But I damn well know there was tension between those two.

  The five of us continued to catch up for the next couple of hours. I was getting real sleepy and decided to excuse myself. “Is that back room occupied?” I asked.

  “Nope,” Yari answered. “We left it the way you like it, with the Phantom of the Opera poster still hanging on the ceiling. We know you like it when the Phantom watches over you while you’re sleeping.”

  “Ha ha, very funny. I’m not the musical guy. That’s Tommy’s department.”

  “I think Phantom has a great score,” Tommy said. “But it lacks in overall story. So if you want someone to look over you it should probably be Jean Valjean from Les Miserables.”

  “You really are a drama queen, Tom,” I said, laughing and walking to the room. Lena had gotten up and followed me into the bedroom. We closed the door and got in the bed and cuddled until I fell asleep. Oddly enough, she never said one word to me.

  Chapter Eleven

  I woke up from a deep sleep and nearly fell out of the bed. The bed that Lena was sleeping on really wasn't big enough for two people, especially because she was a major bed hog. I scooted out from underneath the covers and made sure not to wake her. I tiptoed to the door and quietly open it. I closed the door behind me and walked out towards the living room. Yari was awake and sitting alone on the couch. She looked up at me and smiled, “Good evening, sleepy head.”

  “Good evening, to you,” I said. “Is everyone else asleep?”

  “Yeah, Tommy is asleep in my bed, and Wyatt is asleep in the bathtub. He is so weird.”

  “What are you doing?” I asked.

  “I was thinking about going out and maybe doing a feeding.”

  “A feeding? Seriously?”

  “Yeah. Why not? Want to come?”

  “That’s not really my thing.” Just the thought of relying on other people’s blood for survival made me nauseous. To actually do it was a whole different story.

  “Oh yeah, I forgot. You’re able to still eat things like tuna casserole.”

  “Don’t be hater. Where are you planning on going?” I asked.

  “There’s a strip club I like to go to where guys are up for pretty much anything.”

  “Seriously?”

  “Yeah, they come out of the club horny as hell. It’s like shooting fish in a barrel.”

  “What do you say to them?”

  “I tell them if we go to their car that I'll make their night.”

  “Yeah?” I had to admit Yari's little story was kind of turning me on. “So, do you have sex with them and then drink their blood?”

  “Who said anything about having sex? I don't even let them kiss me. I tell them to put their seat back and close their eyes. Then I kiss their neck a little, and then I go in for a feeding.”

  “What do they do?”

  “They usually freak out at first, but I tell them it's a huge turn on for me, and I'll make it worth their pain.”

  “Wow.”

  “I can usually get two to three good feedings in on a good night.”

  I couldn’t tell if I was grossed out or turned on, but I looked at Yari’s hot little body and said, “Well, it’s doing wonders for you.”

  “A girl has to keep her figure up.”

  “Apparently so,” I said laughing.

  “So, do want to tag along?”

  “No, Yari. I'll pass. I can still eat steak.”

  “That is unfair. I can only suck the juice off, if it's extremely rare. The Triat hates me.”

  “I'm pretty sure the Triat is very fond of you.”

  “You think?”

  “Think about it. You played a pivotal role in all of this.”

  “I would like to think I did. But these days no one pays much attention to me.”

  “What about Tommy?” I asked.

  Yari started to say something, but stopped herself.

  “What is it?” I asked.

  “Ok, we don't have to go feed, but let's go for a fly.”

  “As birds?”

  “You can be whatever the hell you want. I can only fly as a bird. Like I said, the Triat hates me.”

  “Where do you want to go?”

  “Monterrey.”

  “Ha ha, very funny.” Yari was referring to the hot time we had in the city by the ocean.

  “I'm serious, let's go up north. How about San Francisco?”

  San Francisco? That did sound interesting. “How fast can we get there?”

  “In about an hour.”

  It sounded like fun to just get up and go. “Let's do it,” I said.

  “Really?” Yari was very excited.

  “Sure, why not? You want to invite everyone else?”

  “Let's just you and I go, plus Tommy is grounded.”

  “Grounded?” I asked. “He’s in trouble?” I asked, laughing.

  “No, silly. I meant he is not able to fly.”

  “That’s funny; I thought you were saying—.”

  “I know what you thought I was saying. Anyway, I think you and I need to have a heart to heart.”

  “Okay, hold on.” I went back to the bedroom to tell Lena that Yari and were going for a fly, but she was sound asleep. I decided to not wake her up.

  So, Yari and I both went outside and transitioned into our bird forms. Yari became Daphne, my red hawk friend, and once again, I became the great white eagle. We flew across the sky towards northern California. It was incredible! We hit remarkable speeds as we missiled our way towards the Bay area.

  I decided to show off a few times for Yari. I transitioned from vampire to eagle in midflight, and each time I became a vampire, I struck a different pose. I could tell I was amusing the gorgeous hawk. In not much time at all, we landed on Golden Gate Bridge, the heart of San Francisco. The bridge was breathtaking. In the dark we couldn’t appreciate the reddish orange tone but in the lights it felt like we were on a postcard. Yari and I immediately transitioned into our Mani forms. The Pacific Ocean was on one side and the bay was on the other. We decided to sit on the west side of route 101 with our legs hanging off the side of the bridge. Cars were blazing by behind us as we stared out into the Pacific blue.

  “That was fun.” I said.

  “You’re such a ham, Josiah. Was that the Heisman pose you did when we flew over the Grapevine?”

  “You liked that, didn't you?” I said, smirking.

  “I have missed you a lot. It’s not the same when you’re not around. ”

  I looked over at Yari and smiled at my dear friend. “I have missed you too.”

  Yari rested her head on my shoulder and snuggled up to me. “So, how was your first night back in the sack?”

  “You mean with Lena?” I asked.

  “No, I meant with Tommy,” Yari said, sarcastically. “Of course, I meant Lena.”

  “Nothing happened other than some heavy cuddling.”

  “Nothing?” Yari gasped. “Not even a little tug for good luck?”

  “Nope. No tug boat action.”

  “Wow, if you were my boyfriend, we wouldn’t have come out of that room for two weeks.”

  “I wouldn't doubt that, Yari. You definitely know your way around.”

  “No, Josiah, I know my way around you. Remember, I watched you for two years.”

  “Yeah, so.”

&nbs
p; Uh oh. I was afraid of what she was about to say.

  “I'll just put it this way. I learned to please you by watching the master work on his masterpiece every night.”

  “You really watched me?”

  “Sometimes, I transitioned to my Mani form and play with myself right outside your window.”

  Wow, she’s a handful! She knew how to push my buttons.

  Yari looked down at my crotch. “I see you still desire me, too.” Yari reached down and felt my penis over my jeans. I was hard as a rock.

  “Yari! Don't!” I said.

  “I know, Josiah. Your Lena's man”

  “That's right, I am,” I said, taking her hand off of me.

  “You’re right. You are her man,” Yari winked at me. “I mean, now that you’re back.”

  “What is that supposed to mean?”

  Yari was quiet.

  “Look Yari, I'm not sure what you’re trying to do. This is really an unusual spot to try to seduce me. Really, on the side of the Golden Gate Bridge? There are a lot of reasons why this needs to stop.”

  “Oh really, Josiah? A lot of reasons? Why don't you tell me one?”

  I was confused why Yari seemed so indignant. “Well, the obvious one is Lena and I are together. But also, what about Tommy? Aren't you two having a thing or something?”

  “Why don't you ask him? He's your best friend! Why don't you ask him what he's been doing the last month since you been gone! Better yet, why don't you ask your precious Lena what she's been up to?”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “You’re the fucking Houdini, Josiah. Why don't you tell me what your girlfriend and best friend have been doing while you were running around Dracula's Castle getting trained by some blue ewok!”

  My head began to spin.

  Could Yari be telling the truth? When I called they did seem real friendly to each other on the phone. What could they possibly have done in one month’s time?

  I grabbed Yari”s face. “You’d better not fucking lie to me. What are you talking about?”

  “Oh, now you’re interested. We put Lena on the table and now Josiah is all ears.”

  “Yari! What the fuck are you talking about?” I was now screaming.

  “I saw Tommy kiss Lena.”

  I nearly fell off the bridge. “What?”

  “I saw Tommy not only kiss Lena, but Lena allowed it.”

  “Where?”

  “At the beach.”

  “What the hell were they doing at the beach?”

  “Josiah, they have been doing everything together since you’ve been gone. They are like BFF's. I nearly barfed when I saw how they ignored each other last night. They went out of their way to not let on how close they have gotten.”

  “And you’re sure they kissed?”

  “I'm positive! I was twenty feet away from them when it happened. I was behind some rocks watching the whole thing.”

  “And they were both into it?”

  “Josiah, I know you don’t want to hear this, but Tommy has it bad for Lena.”

  “There’s no way.”

  “Why couldn’t there be a way?”

  “Because Tommy my best friend and he wouldn’t do that. There are lines he wouldn’t cross.”

  “Oh, he crossed them, Josiah. He’s been crossing them ever since you left.”

  I looked at Yari and I knew she at least believed what she was saying. She might have been wrong about Tommy’s intentions, but she definitely believed it. “How did this happen, Yari?”

  “You have been gone for a month. A lot can happen in four weeks.”

  “You’re telling me that they have gotten real close? Tommy and Lena?”

  “They have gotten more than close. I know that this is hard for you to hear. But you need to know the truth. I thought about not saying anything to you and just letting you figure it out, but that wasn’t fair to you, especially because the reason why you left is to improve as a Mani to keep us all safe.”

  I felt sick to my stomach. I didn't know what to do. If this was true, then this is the maximum betrayal by Tommy could commit. “So, did you confront them?”

  “Josiah, I'm over 300 years old. I’ve given the president of the United States a blow job, I'm not about to get all hung up on some werewolf. It's his loss.”

  “And you think they have gotten so close that Tommy might be in love with her?”

  “When you have been around as long as I have, you know what the signs are when a person has fallen for someone. Last night it was eating Tommy up inside that you and Lena were so close.”

  “I can't believe it! Tommy is like my brother. He would never do this to me.”

  “Josiah, I followed you for two years. I switched my allegiance from Atticai to you. I’ve stood by your side through all of this. I have seen too much bullshit to make something like this up.”

  I got up and stood on the bridge. A part of me just wanted to jump off into the water. Not to kill myself, but to just feel the sensation of falling. To have some release from this knot in my stomach.

  “What about Lena? How does she feel about Tommy?”

  “That’s what I’m not sure about. Lena looks at him the way she looks at you. Something is going on, I’m just not sure exactly what.”

  I looked back at Yari. “So, what was your plan tonight? To get me up here and try to seduce me to get back at Tommy?”

  “I knew I couldn't seduce you. Again, I have no desire to get back at Tommy. He was fun while it lasted, just like you were. Tonight, I thought we would have some fun before I told you what I really came here to tell you.”

  I felt sick to my stomach. This was the last thing I thought would happen. I believed Yari. She had no reason to lie to me. Even if she was still in love with me, there is no reason for her to go to this level of deceit. She's telling the truth. I didn't need any special Mani abilities to know that. Now the question was: What am I going to do about it?

  “Thanks, Yari,” I said.

  “You know I care about you, Josiah.”

  “I know… I care about you too.” I put my arms around Yari and she playfully reached down to grab my package again and I smacked her hand away.

  “I just miss little Josiah,” she said, mischievously.

  “You and I hooking up won't fix anything. It will only make things worse.”

  “Only for you. I could go down on you and not think twice about it.”

  I shook my head at Yari and looked out into the Pacific. “So,” I asked. “Which president?”

  “Oh, it’s been more than one,” she said.

  “Are you being serious?”

  “All I'm going to say is there's a lot a man can do even if he's in a wheel chair.”

  Chapter Twelve

  Yari and I sat on the bridge and took in the night for another hour. I didn’t know what I was going to do or how to handle this. We eventually got up, and transitioned and made our way back to So-Cal.

  We both soared through the air at double speed. I was pissed and hurt. How could Tommy do this to me? He was engaged to my sister and he betrays me like this? I was only gone for a month. How could the two people I care most about in this world do this to me?

  As we flew in over Hollywood, I circled Yari and transitioned into my Mani form mid air. We were at least a mile above the earth. I looked at the red hawk and said, “I need to be alone.” With that, I transitioned back to the eagle and flew towards the San Bernardino Mountains.

  My head was spinning and my heart was aching. How was I going to deal with this? I needed to clear my head. I needed a change of pace. I flew up into the mountains and made my way over to Flatlands. It had been a while since I’d been there. I saw the rocky parking lot from the sky and flew towards it. I knew this was Atticai's old stomping grounds and I might not be welcomed with open arms. Aside from my little group of friends, I had no idea what the average Mani thought of me, or if they were even aware I existed.

  I decided to land
up the street and walk down so I wouldn’t go on blast as a white eagle. I looked down at my cell and it read 3:11 a.m. I figured if there was a party going on, it must be winding down by now. But then again, these were freaking vampires and they lived by a whole separate set of rules.

  I stepped onto the Flatlands rock area and saw three separate bonfires. There was speed metal playing in the distance and there were large groups of people sitting around each fire drinking and partying. I saw Rubidoux right away standing by the bonfire towards the back. How could I miss him with his bleached-blonde hair? It practically glowed in the dark.

  No one seemed to notice, or care, that I was walking up to their group. I casually strolled over to the bonfire where Rubidoux was standing. I walked up to him and made eye contact. When he saw me, he nearly peed his pants.

  “Fucking eh, it’s Josiah!” He came over to me. He then turned and faced the entire Flatlands and yelled, “Everyone! It’s Josiah Reign!”

  Everybody at all three bonfires stopped what they were doing and made their way over to me. I wasn’t sure if they were happy to see me or they were getting ready to lynch me. I was surrounded by at least forty people. I wasn't sure if all of them were Mani. I scanned the crowd and tried to find any bad seeds by reading their minds quickly. I used all the tools in my arsenal taught to me by Goshi. There were a lot of Tandra and weak Mani because I could hear a smattering of voices.

  I heard things like:

  “It's him!”

  “Can you freaking believe it?”

  “I thought he'd be taller!”

  “Damn, he’s fucking hot!”

  I shut the voices down in my head, so I could hear clearly.

  “What brings you up here, Josiah?” Rubidoux asked.

  “There aren’t too many places you can go where you can be yourself,” I said.

  “That's why we all come here,” he laughed.

  I looked around the crowd. “How many Tandra are here?”

  Rubidoux scanned the crowd also and said, “Five or six. Why? Do you want them to leave?” He was really giving me respect. Sure was different from the last time I saw him.

  “No, as long as they are trusted, they can stay,” I said.