CHAPTER SIXTEEN: ATTITUDE CHANGE part 4

[©Lynnifer Ice – January 29, 2023]

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I could feel my skin prickle, my following words dying in my throat as the next thing I felt was a heavy pressure pressing into my skin before a searing burn ripped through it, tearing into my veins. A scream was lodged in my throat, unable to escape. I could feel the hot salty tears leaking from my tear ducts, but they were stuck from falling.

The burn increased tenfold, surging through my veins. My body wanted to crumble, to curl in on itself, but I couldn't. I was helpless to do anything as my body refused even the slightest of movements. The pain seemed to drag on and on, refusing to yield even as the pressure against my skin lessened.

Why? Why is this happening? I never yearned for anything like this. Why couldn't I just live an everyday life and attend a normal university? Why did it have to be with people that aren't even human?!

A small, barely audible whimper ghosted past my lips. I felt like cattle that had just been branded by their owner. To say I felt mortified would be an understatement. The tears that had been stuck, slowly trickled over my lower eyelids. I could feel the twitch in my limbs, as if they had just been released by whatever invisible power that had held them back.

The very moment that Xinith's weight began to shift, my legs screamed and begged me to run. At the same time, it was as if an imp had settled inside me and beckoned me to stay. My willpower to escape was more potent than the force that tried to coax me to stay. With as much force as I could muster, I pushed back on Xinith just enough for me to escape his hold from the side.

I grasped my shoulder that still felt like the skin was being burned; it ached. I gritted my teeth to keep myself from screaming but I couldn't hold back the faint whimpers of agony. My tears of pain collided with fresh tears of anger. I was expecting Xinith to grab me but he just stared at me, his eyes still silver.

A cold chill ran down my spine as an eerie smile spread across his lips. He leaned the side of his hip against the nightstand, where he had held me down only moments ago. He crossed his arms over his chest, his eyes glued to every move that I made. I could feel my body trembling, but unsure if it was because I felt cold or fearful.

"Come now, Alex. What's the problem?" Xinith mused as he spoke slowly, his voice dipping down, "Are you afraid of me?"

What kind of absurd question is that?! Is he blind or ignorant???

"You-…," I strained, but my words fell short, "I…." No matter what I wanted to express, my hatred for what he had done, the words would die in my throat as if I was being prevented from saying them. So, I tested a different approach as I backed toward the door, "Just stay away from me."

"Why should I?" Xinith's gaze darkened as he stood straight, arms still folded.

"I don't w-wan-…," I struggled to speak again as if I was being restricted from saying impactfully pessimistic things to him. To my horror, Xinith darkly chuckled as his arms fell to his side the moment my hands stretched out behind me and took hold of the doorknob.

"Cat got your tongue, Alex? Finding it tricky to insult me?"

My heart nearly leaped out of my chest when he lunged forward, but I twisted the doorknob just in time to slip through his grasp. I could feel my heart beating against my ribcage. To say that I felt terrified, was an understatement. Tears of anxiety replaced my angry tears, and as much as I hated crying, I knew this wasn't the time to be picky.

Not even caring that I was still in just an oversized t-shirt and a pair of panties, I sprinted down the hall toward the dorm door. I knew I had to get out of here before something worse happened. Just as I began undoing the locks on the door, I could hear Xinith walking up behind me. My hands worked even faster as his voice carried through the air.

"Where are you off to, my sweet? There's nowhere you can hide on this planet from me," Xinith deeply reasoned.

I was not about to turn my head to check how close he was, let alone answer him. I flung the door open and rushed across the hall, beating frantically on the only other room that I knew in this building. My breathing was becoming uneven, the panic rising within me at an alarming rate. My hands collided with the door more quickly with a resounding knock as I could somehow feel that Xinith was closing in on me.

"Alex…," Xinith warned, his voice dipping down to an icy chill.

The door finally swung open, revealing a half-naked vampire with silver-blonde hair who yawned, pastel green eyes slowly blinking as he started up his greeting, "Who is knocking this early in the mor-…," he stopped short when his eyes landed on my trembling frame. His gaze swooped to the angry demon coming up behind me. Without a second thought, he drew me into the dorm, narrowly evading Xinith's lunge toward me. "Holy shit…," Liam inhaled, examining me before snapping his head back in his dorm room hall and shouting, "BLAKE!"

"Give me back, my woman," Xinith growled, approaching Liam, who put his body in front of mine, blocking Xinith's way.

"Uh-uh," Liam shook his head, barricading the doorway, "You know as well as I do that demons and vamps aren't allowed to come into another's dwelling without permission. So, don't even ponder about crossing this threshold."

"What could conceivably be wrong at this ungodly hour," a vampire with dark hair and a copper red stripe that I knew to be Blake came stumbling down the hall, rubbing his eyes but halted just a few feet from me. He took in a deep sharp breath before his eyes flew open, a light red hue to them as they found me. "What the hell?" Blake took quick strides toward me, gently peeling off my hand that grasped my shoulder. I saw his eyes turn from a light red to a dark blood red at the sight before his eyes snapped toward the entrance when he heard Xinith's voice. Blake lightly shoved Liam aside before he bellowed at Xinith, "You goddamned demon! What the fuck did you do to her?!"

"What's it to you, huh? Hand her over," Xinith snarled back.

"Are you fucking kidding me? You MARKED her! AGAINST HER WILL! Her veins around the area, circulating up her neck and down her shoulder and chest, have turned BLACK! You know damn well that means she didn't consent to your actions! What the hell is wrong with you?!" Blake lashed out. I could feel the waves of rage oozing off of him from even several feet away.

"What are you talking about?" Xinith demanded, sounding puzzled, "Her veins were a dark red just seconds ago! That means her body accepted the mark even though her mind and soul rejected it. How could her veins blacken just like that?!"

"Look at her!" Blake roared, pointing two fingers down toward me as Liam moved aside so that I was in Xinith's line of sight.

I saw Xinith's stormy silver gaze lock on me, and the moment his gaze traveled to my veins, down to the mark he had created, his eyes faded back to their dark blue. The fury in his expression dwindled, replaced with sheer shock. His face fell, shame taking the place of the shock. His eyes narrowed, carefully inspecting the various courses of my veins. He shut his eyes, looking away from me before reopening them when he looked at Blake.

"I didn't realize she-…," Xinith began in a meager voice before a sharp, piercing sound cut him off abruptly, his head being swung harshly off to the side.

SLAP!

"You fucking disgrace!" Blake bellowed dangerously, "Mark my words, Xinith; I'll make sure you pay for this. I've looked away from all your antics over all the years I've known you, but this crosses the line. Just you wait until the headmaster finds out. Destined to each other or not by the red string, you don't deserve her."

- End of Chapter Sixteen -