Diary of a Vampeen (3 page)

I flipped through a few more pages
sipping my coffee frappuccino between glances. It took me a moment
of utter silence to recognize the strange feeling that came over
me. It felt like someone was watching me. I looked up and scanned
the nearby tables but found nothing out of the ordinary. There were
no wondering eyes in our direction. I quickly gave up and returned
to my fashion guide.

“That new kid is so strange,” Mel
interrupted.

“Who are you talking about?” I asked
while shaking my head in confusion.

“The new kid. You know the one from
Spanish class. He’s sitting over there in the corner.” She tilted
her head with a quick nod in his direction.

I turned to look at him and
immediately blushed. It was the same guy from the hall and English
who, as Mel just pointed out, also shared Spanish class with us. It
was the one who’d haunted my mind randomly throughout the day and
even moments ago. He was a quiet guy from the little I’d observed;
he didn’t interact with any of the other kids, and aside from the
whole tortured soul vibe, he was a good-looking guy. He stood at
nearly six feet with dark brown hair. His eyes, again, the same
bright green as my mother’s, though hers hinted towards hazel and
his were more emerald. His jaw was taught and sharp in angle but
not offensive or too direct. There was just something about him
that drew me to him; something about him that I couldn’t shake or
resist.

I started drifting into a daydream
while my eyes lay fixated on him. He must have felt my gaze because
he lifted his head and peered directly at me. There was no
hesitation in his move as if he had a sixth sense. After one second
of a locked glance I returned to Mel.

“Yea. He’s definitely weird,” Mel
mumbled.

“Maybe he’s just shy. It’s his first
week; cut him some slack,” I offered. I couldn’t believe I was
defending him. I didn’t even know him, hadn’t even said so much as
‘hi,’ and was already speaking for him. Where was this coming
from?

“Whoa. Someone’s a little touchy.
Could that be because you have a crush?”

“Um... I don’t think so,” I replied
laying the sarcasm on thick to throw her off the trail. Truthfully,
he was attractive but I didn’t know him. All I knew was that he was
gorgeous; he’s weird yet alluring. Regardless, I had a boyfriend
and Mel knew that.

“What is he doing? Is he really coming
over here?” Mel interjected in a rushed whisper.

I returned from my mindless thinking
just in time to catch him walking towards our table. It was a Kodak
moment for the expression on Mel’s face. I really wish I could have
captured the pure divulgence her eyes depicted. She looked upset,
cocky, shocked and shaken while retaining a friendly overlay. It
would go unnoticed to the eyes of a stranger, but with me, I
uncovered every hidden emotion her controlled glare
gave.

“I have no idea,” I whispered back. He
made his way to the table without hesitation greeting us with his
eyes and a restrained smile.

“Hi, I’m Kellan,” he waved slightly as
he introduced himself.

Mel was still unconscious,
lost in her daze of shock and confusion, so I politely responded on
our behalf. “Hi. I’m Lexi and this is Mel,” I spoke quite
confidently…too confident.
What’s wrong
with me?
I usually clammed up around boys;
I was shy in their presence. I didn’t even speak to Mike until Mel
forced me into the conversation two months after our first
introduction.

“Nice to meet you,” he replied. He
studied us as inconspicuously as possible as he stood before
us.

I awkwardly stared at him, and that’s
when it happened. I was lost, caught up in his beauty up close. It
would only be a matter of time before my throat closed up and my
body finally realized that I was talking him, the one dancing in my
thoughts.

I guess Mel snapped out of her
momentary fart because I heard her say, “Do you like everything so
far?”

“It’s not too bad, just different.
Weather’s nicer here.”

“Where did you move from?”

“Seattle.”

I couldn’t even begin to fathom the
look on my face as their conversation continued. I was waiting in
terror for the shaking uncertainty to hit me, yet it didn’t. I only
survived non-choked conversations with gay men, Mike, and of course
my dad; I was comfortable with them. Could it be possible that I
was comfortable with this stranger before me? That’s never happened
to me before but what else could it be?

Why was I comfortable with him though?
He obviously belonged with the popular crowd based upon his looks,
yet he’s much nicer than they were. His eyes, I couldn’t get past
his eyes. They were the only thing approachable about him and
shined in the same palate as my mom’s. Maybe it’s the relation
between the two that controlled my confidence around
him.

“Lexi! Lex, snap out of it!” It took
me a several long seconds to realize Mel was speaking to me. I
really needed to work on this whole over-rationalization of my
thoughts in a daydream type manner.

“Sorry,” I offered with a quick shrug.
I looked up to see Kellan watching me with interest. I felt myself
blush and began running my fingers through my long, dark brown hair
to avoid direct contact. Mel shook her head slightly with sarcastic
disgust before continuing the conversation I obviously missed the
majority of.

“So Lexi can’t seem to decide what she
wants to do next weekend. She’s said no to a party.” She was quick
to cut me slowly and dramatically with her eyes before resuming. “I
personally think a party is an awesome idea, but to each their
own.”

“Oh my gosh. You are so not going to
let go of this thing are you?”

“Nope,” she taunted with over
exaggeration of the ‘p’.

I sighed in defeat. “I’ll consider
it.”

“Well good luck with planning
everything. It was nice talking to you both. Have a good
night.”

With that Kellan gave a quick nod and
walked away. As he drifted away from us I couldn’t help but stare
again. His form was ideal with each stride as his body emulated a
model’s performance. He’s proportioned in a magnificent way. No
part of his figure was out of balance like mine, and his voice just
melted away every layer of protection surrounding me. It was
masculine, slightly husky but still soft and melodic; it’s soothing
yet manly. A soothing voice coming from a mouth of pearly white
teeth and pouted lips that weren’t too big and weren’t too
small.

Snap out of it Lexi!
I couldn’t believe I was doing this. Here I was
daydreaming of a guy I didn’t even have a chance with not only
because he was ten times better than Jason in every way, but
because I already had a boyfriend. That’s when it hit me. Maybe he
liked Mel. That had to be it; he must have found her attractive.
Why else would he have approached us here? I couldn’t blame him.
She is beautiful. Long blonde hair, a golden tan and brown eyes
upon a petite girly frame. If she wasn’t my best friend I would be
jealous with hate towards her.

“Attention Barnes & Noble
customers. The store will be closing in approximately thirty
minutes,” Sam announced over the intercom.

“I suppose that’s my cue to call my
dad.” I reached for my phone prepared to dial but was prompted to
answer. “I guess he beat me to it,” I announced. “Hey
Dad.”

“I’m outside waiting when you girls
are ready,” he answered rhetorically though I hadn’t asked any
questions.

“Um, ok. We’ll be out in a minute.” I
closed the phone with a confused scrunch on my face.

“What’s wrong?”

“Well, it’s like I said earlier,
they’re just acting weird. My dad is already outside waiting for
us. He said we don’t have to rush but…” I trailed off.

“Stop overreacting. Nothing’s up.
Let’s just go. We need our beauty sleep anyways.”

“Yea, you’re probably right. Let’s
go.”

~~~

“How was your night?” my mother asked
as soon as I walked through the garage door.

“It was good. Met a new kid from
school,” I shrugged as I grabbed a bottle of water from the
fridge.

“Oh,” she instantly perked up. “What’s
his name?”

“How did you know it was a guy?” I
asked. My mother was fidgeting slightly. She never fidgeted. She
was the epitome of patience and good manners, which fidgeting was
not a part of.

“Just a lucky guess,” she replied.
Again, the feeling that something was off flared within me. “So
what is his name?” she prompted again.

“Kellan.” I studied my mother. She
almost appeared nervous which was very unlike her. “Are you ok
Mom?”

“Oh, yes,” she waved it off as nothing
with her hand.

“Um, ok…” I was confused by her
behavior. “Uh, I’m going to bed. Night,” I said before giving each
of my parents a hug and retiring to my room.

My phone buzzed right as I crossed the
threshold. I didn’t need to check the caller ID to know it was
Mike.

“Hey,” I cheerfully answered, closing
my door behind me.

“Hey babe. Have fun with
Mel?”

“Always. What did you do?” I asked,
sifting through my drawers for a pair of pajamas.

“Laid around and thought of
you.”

“Nothing like laying it on thick,” I
chuckled lightly.

“I’m only speaking the truth,” he
continued. I knew he was exaggerating, but it was flattering
nonetheless and gave my wilted ego a tiny boost.

“Give me a sec to change,” I said
setting the phone down before he could respond. “Ok, I’m
back.”

“Missed you.”

I rolled my eyes despite the smile
spreading across my face. “You’re going to spoil me with
compliments.”

“I’m trying.”

“I’m going to go to sleep. I’ll see
you in the morning.”

“’
kay. Sweet dreams,” he
lulled, his voice taking on a husky quality.

“You too.” I closed my phone and
plugged it into the charger.

Mike really was a great boyfriend, but
when I closed my eyes, he wasn’t the one I saw, and certainly not
the one I dreamed about that night.

Chapter 3

“What a crazy night that was last
night, right?” Mel chatted on our way to second period -
Spanish.

“Yea.” My thoughts immediately went to
Kellan. He’d officially taken over my focus from the moment I woke
up. I felt guilty with Mike because another man occupied my mind as
we kissed that morning. I couldn’t shake this mysterious stranger.
He was taking over my sanity.

“I wonder if Kellan will talk to us
today now that the ice has been broken,” I pondered absently. I was
silent in my wonder, but loud enough for her to hear.

“Ooh, I’ve got a crush on you,” Mel
sang reading between the lines of my comment.

“Oh stop,” I rolled my eyes hoping to
discourage her.

I secretly was hoping he would talk to
us again though. He had this lure about him that was unavoidable. I
longed for his masculine arms to embrace me and never let go, and I
desired the touch of his soft supple lips with their faultless pout
in a way that was certainly criminal. I hadn’t craved the touch of
a male in, well, never to this degree. The alienation of the guys
around me had left me sexually dull and lust-less until Mike
stepped in, and, regardless of what any adult says or believes,
teens have desires that cannot be subdued or redirected with
education. Puberty and peer pressure are only part of it. Given my
appearance though, and my label as an outcast, I hadn’t acted on
anything; I submerged it deep inside. The most Mike and I had done
was kiss. We hadn’t even progressed to groping while
kissing.

As we walked through the door, I
instantly scanned the room for him, but he wasn’t there. Amazing
how a night of clambering over a person could make you recall the
tiny details overlooked every day. I would be lying if I said my
heart didn’t sink slightly at this realization.

Immediately guilt overtook me again.
Mike was wonderful with me and treated me like a princess. He
didn’t deserve the betrayal I felt I was giving him in some way,
though I’d barely spoken to Kellan. I couldn’t help the instinctive
attraction I had to him though. I couldn’t help but feel drawn to
him. I had yet to decide if this was simply a lust lorded symptom
or if there could possibly be more to him, but I knew I couldn’t
pursue it without hurting Mike in the process.

Mel resumed the conversation as we sat
down. “I kind of hope he doesn’t. I got this weird vibe from him.
Something is definitely off about him.”

“I didn’t sense anything off or weird
with him. I found him rather nice.”

“O.M.G. You so like him!” Mel yelled
way too loud in the confined space of the room. She grinned wide
before continuing, “I’m right aren’t I? You like him!”

“Shh! Lower your voice!” I
demanded in a low hiss. “Even if I do, which
I don’t
, but if I did I wouldn’t
want the whole world to know about it. Plus, I already have a
boyfriend, remember?” I fumbled with my defense. Mel knew me better
than anyone and had already clued in on my new interest
though.