Black & White

           "Here we are! Finally, at a school dance!" Cynthia exclaimed as they neared the entrance of the party. 

        "Cynthia, you're the only person I know that would be this excited. Really, it's not as beautiful as-,” Justin's ballroom, she thought walking through the auditorium doors, even so aloud she said, “I imagined.”

        “It was a high school decoration collaboration. This is as classy as high school gets.” Cynthia commented standing beside her. “I'm sure it's gorgeous next door.”

        The room was just an auditorium with colorful balloons and streamers everywhere filled with high school students from the schools in the county. Not as crowded as Alyssa originally assumed it would be.

        “Cynthia!” Kendall called out holding her mask away from her face.

        “How did you know it was me with this mask on?” Cynthia asked, lightly touching her black mask.

        “Alyssa's hair is a dead giveaway.”

        Of course, Alyssa thought scornfully.

        “I just love your dress, so vintage!” Kendall exclaimed, staring at the nude and black strapless full-length dress. “The embroidery is just beautiful and is this bottom half lace?”

        “Yes, it is. Both of these, beautiful gowns, were made by the ever so talented Susan Wong.” she smiled brightly “This beautiful French twist by my darling sister.”

        “Wow, you did her hair, Alyssa? Did you do your own too? It looks great, not to mention professional.”

        Thank you, Jenny! She thought before replying, “Thank you. I'm going to get something to drink.” Subsequently, briskly walked into the adjoining room where the refreshments were located.

        “Fancy finding you by the food,” Dana said from behind her blue mask. Her dress was beautiful but neither black nor white. The skirt was crimson red with a square neck black top covered in colorful daisies.

         “Dana you look-”

        “I know! I only wish Philip was here to witness it. You also look fantastic. All you need is a tiara, princess,” she commented, popping an olive into her mouth.

        “But Dana, you’re not wearing black or white,”

        “Yes I am. Can't you see the black sash around the waist?”

        “There's no use trying to talk to her about it, Alyssa. She's too stubborn to actually follow directions correctly.” Charlie called out from behind her.

        “Charlie! What are you doing here?” she asked spinning around.

        He was dressed in a black dress shirt and pants. Hair still in a carefree nature. Eyes sparkling as he looked at her from head to toe. “Wow, you look so beautiful.”

        Alyssa blushed. “Oh, thank you. What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be next door?”

        Dana chuckled. “I talked him into chaperoning. That's why he's not wearing a mask.”

        “I wouldn't feel right hanging out with my parents anyway. Our family has a reputation for being the life of the party.” Charlie defended.

         “Apparently that managed to jump right over him,” Dana added. “Aside from that, it's not uncommon for vampires to show up at these kinds of gatherings.”

        “Vampires?” Alyssa asked, a bit surprised.

        “Yeah, every now and again they show up to find a victim. Philip is keeping watch on the area.” Charlie informed her.

        Alyssa gave a slight nod. When she heard the word vampire, she immediately thought of Justin. Did he actually come alone?

        “Well, I'd better get back to my post.” Charlie smiled before walking towards the dance floor.

        “Did you see the way he looked at you?” Dana asked.

        Alyssa blushed. “He just looked.”

        “Yeah, he did alright. Why don't you go and see if he's willing to dance with you?”

        “Dana, you're always trying to push us together.”

        “What are you talking about? That's not true.”

        “Yes, it is, as if you didn't know.” Alyssa shook her head.

        Dana shrugged her shoulder, “I suppose I can see how honesty can be seen as pushy.”

        Alyssa giggled. “I'm going to look around.”

        “You can find me right here indulging in cheesecake, if you need me.”

        Alyssa sighed as she walked off. She couldn't stop thinking about Justin. Was he here looking for her? She couldn't help but hope that he was. Her stomach was tied in knots as she walked through the crowd on the dance floor hoping she would be able to find him. She bumped into someone as she reached the center. “Oh, I'm sorry.”

        “It's alright.” They shouted over the music continuing to jump to the song. 

        Alyssa looked across the room hoping she would be able to get to the other side without getting trampled.  A girl in front of her jumped back causing her to stumble backwards and into someone’s arms. 

        “Oh my gosh! Thank you so…” she trailed off as she had found herself staring at a full-face mask with glowing eyes. “Justin.”

        He abruptly let her go walking out of the crowd and through the door.

        Alyssa's heart was in her throat as she watched him leave. Justin! She cried silently before running after him. When she reached the street she frantically looked around. There! She saw his black tux just as he turned down the next street. She quickly ran after him to find herself running down an alley away from the ball. I'm not even sure he's down here but I know he can hear me. “Justin? Justin, I'm sorry. I thought- I thought I could just forget you. I tried. It shouldn't be so hard for someone who was only a friend. But it was hard. It hurts so much more than I ever imagined. I-”

        Instantly he appeared right before her, his eyes never breaking contact and brighter than ever.

        “Justin,” she whispered, getting lost in his gaze.

        His hand gently caresses her cheek before making its way behind Alyssa’s neck tilting head backwards. He lowered his lips leaving a trail of kisses following the very same path as his hand.

        She could feel his mouth hovering over her neck before she felt his lips and something sharp.

        Without hesitation he opened wide and sank his teeth into her flesh.

        Her loud moan was covered by his howl as he leaped away in pain sending cold chills down her back, sobering her up, making her very aware of her situation. This isn't Justin. He's around the same height and shape but he removed his mask to kiss her making it all too clear that she was alone in an alley with a vampire. Her blood ran cold as she began to panic. She backed up slowly watching him gasping in pain. Alyssa run, she urged herself and tried to do just that only to find him in directly in front of her moments later.

        “What did you just do to me?” he asked angrily, her blood dripping from his mouth as he reach out to grab her.

        Instinctively, she used her mixed martial arts training to dodge out of his grasp and land a roundhouse kick right to the side of his face. The impact of her foot was like kicking a brick wall, but it proved effective causing him to fall backwards. She ran through the dark towards a brick building she had passed earlier. Her heart leaped with joy as the main road appeared in her in front of her. Victory was short lived as her body was tossed through the air colliding with the brick wall. She cried out in pain falling to the hard concrete below her feet. "Help me, Justin!” she screamed silently as she was yanked up by her hair. She tightly closed her eyes waiting for the impact again only to hear a very deep and low growl. Her eyes snapped open. Was that an animal? No, a dark figure was standing nearby. Not an animal but, “Philip!”

        “Put her down now or I will rip your throat out.” Philip commanded stopping just beyond the streetlight. 

        The vampire chuckled menacingly. “I'd like to see you try.”

        Alyssa's eyes bulged in horror as she realized her feet no longer touched the floor. Instinctively her hands tried to pull her hair out of his grasp as they towered over the buildings.

        With his arm around her waist and an evil grin he yanked her head to the side, “I was in the middle of something here that I must finish.”

        “No!” Alyssa screamed using all of her strength to twist away only to find herself falling through the air. Her bone chilling scream filled the night as her eyes snapped open to find the vampire's headless body falling beside her. She searched the sky frantically as she fell into Philips arms. There she found Justin was holding the head of the vampire. Quickly he swooped down, picked up the body then was gone without a word. “No! Justin!” she cried out.

        “He's taking care of it Alyssa.” Philip said peering down at her. “Are you okay? You're bleeding? We're you bitten?”

        Alyssa desperately tried to pay attention to the words coming out of Philips mouth, but they were fading in and out replaced by a buzzing sound. She tried to read his lips instead, but they were becoming harder to see clearly as darkness engulfed her.

                “How's it going Dana?” Charlie asked walking into his bedroom.

        Dana sighed placing the gem down while rising from the full-sized bed. “Everything is healing up pretty quickly. She purified the water unconsciously. The minute it touched her body she took control of all the water. It was quite a sight and pretty helpful.”

        “Interesting, come on,” Charlie motioned for her to leave the room after him.

        Philip was pacing in the living room. “If it had been anywhere else, I would have had it.” he said angrily.

        “That's not important.” Dana insisted, sitting on the couch. “I can't believe she's the one to get drawn out by a vampire.”

        “I wonder just how that happened.” Charlie said joining her.

        Philip snorted. “All I know is she didn't sound as upset when she saw the local blood sucker.”

        Dana shook her head saying his name softly, “Justin.”

        What a headache! Alyssa thought rolling onto her back. Finding her limbs tight and stiff memories of the vampire came rushing back. Shivering as she touched her neck finding very tiny holes. Taking a deep breath, she opened her eyes. She sat up abruptly to find herself looking a reflection of her sitting on a black comforter. Her appearance was a disaster. There wasn't the slightest resemblance of the neat hair she had earlier.  At least I still have hair after that bastard, she thought to herself with tears welling up. Being one on one with a vampire was far more terrifying than she had originally imagined. She honestly thought she was more than strong enough, skilled enough to handle herself. She was startled by a soft knock at the door.

        “Hey, how are you feeling?” Dana asked walking in without invitation.

        “I-I'm alright.” she answered wiping away her tears with fingers.

        “Are you hurting?”

        “No. No I'm not. Where am I?”

        “You're at Charlie’s. We thought it would be best to take you to the nearest place. Don't worry I told Cynthia I would give you a ride home tonight,” she sat down beside her. “What were you doing? “

        “I,” she paused. She couldn't tell Dana she thought she was following Justin. “I thought it was Paul. Somehow when I saw his face, I knew it wasn't but I couldn't do anything. I couldn't move. I felt so powerless.”

        “There's no reason for you to feel that way ever. The truth is you do have powers. It's a matter of usage. I know you know martial arts but in the world of beings stronger than you are, you have to use other means. Like I use my magic, you must learn to use what you have for your protection and the protection of others.” Dana said squeezing her hand.

        “The protection of others when I can't even protect myself?”

        “You haven't tried. If you had used your powers when he tried to bite you, he could have possibly been wounded deeply. Besides, you wouldn't be alone. We are a team, Charlie, Philip and I. I am the healer. Charlie is the brains and Philip, is more or less, the true hunter. We all have a part to play to keep this neighborhood, our families, safe.”

        A team? Protect the neighborhood? I almost got killed tonight! “I can't think about this right now. I have a headache.”

        “I'll get you something.”

        “No. I will get it myself. At home.” Alyssa said dragging herself out of bed.

        “Alyssa! Are you okay?” Charlie asked hopping up from his seat as she marched into the living room.

        “I'm fine. I just want to go home.” she declared while giving all her attention to the front door.  

        “I'll take you.” Philip said entering from the kitchen.

        Alyssa became aware for the first time of his blue uniform. “You're a cop?”

        “Yes.”

        Alyssa slowly nodded. “Okay, let’s go.” Without looking at anyone or any formal goodbye she left the apartment.

                As Justin sat in the dark of his living room drinking a glass of whiskey, waiting for Aviva to return home, he decided he was going to control his anger and give her a chance to speak before he ripped her head off as well.

        The front door gently opened and closed.

        “What are you doing in here in the dark?” Aviva asked gliding in.

        Justin's words shook with rage. “My threat to you last night wasn't good enough? You think sneaking around and attacking Alyssa-”

        “What are you talking about? Alyssa was attacked?” She interrupted while pouring herself a drink from the bar.

        “Don't play the concerned role.”

        “I'm not playing anything.” she insisted temporarily placing her glass on the mantel as she lit the fireplace. “I had decided to accept your decision. I want to honestly be friends with her and see what it is that makes you love her so deeply.”

        Justin couldn't argue with her. No, I don’t want to, he thought. He could only hope that she was being honest. “A vampire lured her out of the ball and into an alley. He had already bitten her and was about to kill her just before I arrived.” If I didn't make it on time, he decided not to finish that thought staring into the fire.

        “Where is he now?”

        “Decapitated and burned.”

        “Did Alyssa witness his death?”

        “More or less,” he answered honestly.

        She raised an eyebrow sitting at the ottoman by his feet. “Where is she now?”

        “I'm sure the gypsies are taking care of her.”

        “In that case, I hope she doesn't come to despise our kind and join the gypsy version of the Scooby-Doo club. I really can't stand them.”

        That's all he could think about since it happened. What if she seriously hated him because he is a vampire? If that ever happened, he would have to take matters into his own hands, something he had been trying so hard not to do. One way or the other Alyssa would be mine and mine alone.

        “Justin, I'm home. Please come.” Alyssa called to him.

        Aviva didn't miss the change in his expression. “What is it? You seemed to have gone from a look of depression and desperation to one of, hope?”

        Justin couldn't help but to smile. Any contact is better than none at all. “I'm going out. Do not follow me.”

        Aviva took a sip of her drink. “Go right ahead. I wanted to spend the night in anyway.”

        Without a moment’s hesitation Justin flew out of the house into the night sky.  He made it there in record time quietly landing not too far from where he usually waited for her. She wasn't there yet so he waited patiently. It wasn't long before he heard her feet on the porch. He looked up, stepping into moonlight only to be stopped dead in his tracks.

        Alyssa hair fell in waves about her shoulders. Seeing the look in his eye made her so thankful the fight didn't completely ruin her dress. She blushed but never took her eyes off of his. The butterflies in her stomach were fluttering at full speed as she stopped right in front of him.

        He could hear her heart beating rapidly and prayed it was for the reason it always was when she was around him. “You look like an angel.”

        “Thank you.” she whispered. “Thank you, for saving me.” Why is it so hard to breathe? It's as though every breath is being taken over by my pounding heart, she thought, moving as though pulled by some invisible force into his arms. “Justin, I missed you so much.” she closed her eyes taking in his smell of the wind, the warmness of his body against hers. “I don't want to lose you.”

        “As a friend?” he asked still unmoving.

        She snuggled herself even closer to him. “Oh, Justin. I didn't understand until tonight how much I do love you,” when she finally felt his arms tighten around her tears of joy poured down her cheeks.

        “I've waited so long for you to say those words.” He said into her hair. “My beautiful angel, I was so frightened you wouldn't come back to me.” He cupped her face in his hands to passionately kiss her lips. “I no longer have to be a secret?”

        “Never again.” she answered.

        He kissed her cheek, “From this moment on, I am yours and you are mine.”

        “Justin,” she blushed bashfully turning her face downward.

        He leaned down whispering, “Alyssa Oh, I love you more than anything in this world.”

        This time he kissed her gently, soothing every ache she had for him while they were apart, bringing life back into her body, confirming what she already knew. There was room for no one else in her heart. She had always belonged to him.

        “I want to dance with you. Let's go to the ball.” Justin suggested.

        “But you aren't dressed. And how are we going to get there?”

        Alyssa's question was answered with a smile. “Hold on to me.”

        For the second time tonight, Alyssa found herself flying only this time it was spent in the arms of the one she loved. With her face turned into his chest she could only imagine the speed of which they flew by the wind cradling the parts of her body that weren’t against his. When it got too rough, she only needed to squeeze him tighter and he would slow down.

        “We can walk from here.” Justin said placing her feet on the ground.

        She looked around lightly running her hands through her hair. They were at the park just a block away from the community center. Holding hands, they walked into the masquerade ball and onto the dance floor. He bowed slightly before putting an arm at her waist. Elegantly they began their waltz unaware of the fact that all had stopped to watch as they twirled around the floor gazing into each other’s eyes, completely unmasked.