Stefan stood at the window looking out into the blackness of the night, the silver moon high in the sky. His cheek resting on the cold, glass pane. Lisa moved on the bed, slowly coming out of her faint. He didn't want to turn around.
"What the hell are you?" Lisa whispered, her voice cracking with emotion. "No! Don't answer that, I know what you are but you're not real, vampires don't exist -- Oh God, I'm going mad!"
"You're not going mad, I'm very much real" Stefan said gently, finally turning to look fully at Lisa.
"Show me, change again, I want to see you change!" Lisa said with an edge of panic to her voice.
"I don't want to scare you," Stefan said carefully.
"No, I need to see what you are," she said firmly.
Stefan moved back to the side of the bed, first taking in Lisa's scent. She was excited and nervous but not quite as scared. Quickly he changed and then looked fully at her, his fangs long, sharp and white, his eyes bright yellow. Lisa gave a gasp as she again saw the vampire Stefan.
"Does it hurt when you change?" she asked hesitantly, leaning a little closer as though to inspect him.
"No" Stefan smiled, unintentionally giving her a full view of the extended canine teeth.
"Why do your eyes go yellow?" she murmured, still fascinated with his face "Do all vampires have yellow eyes?"
"All the vampires I know do, I think it's something to do with better night vision."
"How long have you been a vampire?"
"Nearly two hundred years now" he said truthfully.
"You've killed a lot of people then?"
Stefan gave a slight nod.
"Was I to be your next meal?" she asked suddenly pulling back and searching his face for the answers she already knew. "You don't need to answer that, there is only one reason you're at a place where people are going to die anyway -- so what are we? -- easy pickings?"
Stefan quickly changed back to human. "I'm sorry" he said.
"No, don't be sorry, all the stories I've read about vampires make them out to be heartless bastards and you are just proving them true!"
Stefan could see anger in her eyes, the friendly fascination had gone.
"I'd like you to leave my room please, leave and don't come back here." Lisa gestured with her hand towards the door. "I have no intention of letting you touch me again!"
When Stefan didn't move, Lisa suddenly surprised him by pulling back her bedding and after hesitating for a second getting unsteadily out of bed, leaning heavily on the bed and then the cabinet, she slowly made her way towards the door, finally reaching it and holding it open for him.
"I said get out of my room!" the anger giving her voice an harder edge.
Stefan watched her movements, full of admiration, knowing the effort it had taken her to struggle out of bed to stand up to him and order him out of her room but now she was swaying slightly, her grip on the door getting tighter, small beads of perspiration forming on her forehead.
Then with a groan, she lost her hold on the door and started to fall. Stefan moved with the grace of a big cat and before Lisa had touched the floor, had scooped her up and into his arms. Immediately she started to struggle, pushing against his chest with her hands. "Put me down!"
Stefan's cock developed a life of its own, going hard from the friction caused by Lisa's struggling. "This is what you do to me!" Stefan said roughly, lifting her a little higher then moving her down so that the side of her thigh rubbed over his rock hard member.
Lisa went rigid in his arms, the cock still pressing painfully into her leg. "Put me down, please Stefan!" She fought to keep the panic from her voice. "Please, you're hurting me, my head's going to explode, please Stefan." And then with a groan of pain, her head was in her hands, pain spasms shooting through her fragile body like an electric current. "No, oh no!"
Stefan carried her back to the bed and reluctantly put her down. Lisa lay there with her head still in her hands, rubbing frantically at her forehead, her breathing heavier and heavier. "Get the nurse!" she whimpered.
Stefan quickly moved next to her on the bed, getting close to her face "Relax" he said fully expecting her to stop writhing in pain. Instead Lisa let a howl of pure torture out. Stefan realised that he wasn't going to get through to her, she was too caught up in the agony.
He pulled her further down on the bed until she was lying flat. "Lisa, you're going to have to trust me, I'm going to make it go away!" He got a whimper in response. Stefan moved quickly, he could hear Lisa's heartbeat going faster and faster, until he feared her heart would give in.
Lisa fought back, but with very little effort Stefan managed to get her hands away from her head and held both her wrists in one hand, while his other hand held her face still. "Lisa, listen to me, I'm going to kiss you." Stefan needed to get his blood into her and quickly so without waiting for a reaction he ran his tongue over his teeth, little droplets of blood appeared instantly. Then he was leaning down, forcing his tongue in-between her lips, pushing the droplets of blood into her mouth.
Lisa gave a shudder as the blood got to work, sobbing gently as the pain finally started to fade. Quickly, Stefan stripped his coat off and got on the bed behind her trembling body, pulling her close. Eventually, an exhausted Lisa fell into an uneasy sleep, Stefan listened to her heartbeat slowing down. With a frown, he realised that Lisa's body was close to its pain thresh-hold, and although his blood had helped, it was temporary and if he didn't act soon it would be too late and he'd lose her.
Just before dawn he slipped away, leaving Lisa wrapped in her bedding and still sleeping deeply.
Stefan made it back to his room just as the first rays of the sun struck the skies, the golden glow hurting his eyes.
Stefan lay in his makeshift bed up against the wall, unable to rest and fully aware of the fact that Lisa had been dying. It had been his blood that had brought her back but if it happened again or during the day then her fragile grip on life might be snuffed out. He decided that he wouldn't let that happen, she deserved life, albeit a vampire one. Now all he had to do was to convince Lisa!
It seemed an eternity before the darkness came again, Stefan was hungry but eager to see Lisa, he decided food could wait.
The door to Lisa's room was firmly shut, slowly Stefan pushed it open. Lisa lay in the middle of the bed, looking as pale as the white sheets she lay on, her breathing was slow and laboured, her chest hardly moving. A drip was attached to her arm, the white tape holding the needle in place was almost as white as her skin.
"Lisa" Stefan whispered her name, not wanting to surprise her.
Slowly her eyes opened and a ghost of a smile flickered on her lips "Stefan, my vampire friend, I didn't think I would see you again -- I'm sorry I'm not going to be much of a meal for you!"
Stefan moved quickly to the side of the bed, taking her cold, pale hand in his. "I could never harm you, when you suffer, I suffer when you hurt, I hurt -- you know what I am Lisa, be like me, let me change you."
Sadly Lisa looked at him then shook her head, "I could never be like you Stefan, I couldn't kill, I've made my peace with God and I'm ready to die."
Anger bubbled up in Stefan, "I'm offering you immortality, the chance to start your life afresh, with me -- I'm not letting you go!"
"I'm tired, I need to sleep, I'm sorry Stefan." Her voice trailed off as if even talking was too much effort. Quickly her eyes closed.
Stefan tried to read her emotions but the drugs were keeping her sleepy, he guessed they now had her on the highest doses of painkillers.
Making his mind up, he moved around the bedside to the drip attached to her arm. One swift yank and the needle was out. Lisa immediately started to convulse, going rigid on the bed then shaking. In a heartbeat, Stefan had pulled up the sleeve to his coat, bit into his wrist and let the blood splatter into her mouth.
Lisa's eyes shot open, the convulsions and shaking seemed to end instantly, Stefan's blood cutting straight through the sedatives and painkillers and dulling the pain. "What have you done?" she said her hand coming to her face, feeling the wetness of blood still on her cheeks. She pulled her hand back, looking at the sticky red liquid staining her fingers "You've given me your blood!"
"Will I be like you?" she snarled "I said no, Stefan -- How dare you do this to me!" Tears of pure rage and anger poured down her cheeks as she sat up in the bed, then, flinging off the bedcovers got out to stand next to the bed.
Then the realisation of what she'd done hit her "I'm not hurting, and I'm standing! -- have you given me your blood before? The first time you came to see me and gave me a drink, the pain went for the first time in weeks, was there blood it that too?"
"It's only temporary Lisa, a few hours at the most then the pain will come back."
"So I won't turn into a vampire then, even though you've given me blood before?"
"No, for you to become a vampire I'd have to drain most of your blood, then you'd have to drink mine, all I've done is to give you a little of my blood to help control your pain."
"Why are you doing this Stefan? -- the first time you saw me I was a potential meal but now you want to spend eternity with me! You don't even know me?"
"Then tell me about yourself!"
Lisa sat on the edge of the bed "Would you like to sit?" she asked Stefan. Stefan gave a slight nod and, with a smile, settled himself next to her on the bed.
Lisa looked guarded "I had a pretty normal life before this, I worked at a music shop, I love playing piano, well I pretty much love music full-stop, playing and listening. My parent's are dead and I have no siblings -- The cancer took me down pretty quickly and I've been at the hospice for just over five months now, I was originally given twelve months but my cancer has progressed more than my Doctor would like. I like to think I'm a pretty decent person." Lisa finished and Stefan noticed a little smile playing around her lips.
"So Stefan, tell me about yourself and convince me as to why I should spent eternity with you!"
"I think I would rather show you why you should consider spending eternity with me rather than a slow death!"