“Father would kill me if he knew. He wouldn’t love me anymore, I can’t tell him. Why did I have to get myself in this situation? Why did I have to do it? Well, it was worth it. Wasn’t it? Well, I guess I just don’t have to tell; I can still go through with it. No one will have to know. It can just be between me and him until we think of a better plan. Yes that will work perfectly.” My mind raced a mile a minute. Arianna had to think of a way out. I was stuck in a bad situation, and yet I couldn’t bear the thought of hurting either one of them. But I had to choose, didn’t I? The scandal of the town kept replaying through her mind. What would people say? What would my dad think? He would be so disappointed, my spoiling the perfect Blakeslee name. I had always played the part perfectly, acting like the little angel daughter of the famed William Blakeslee. Everyone thought I was perfect, no secrets, and the girl everyone loved. I had never been that girl; that had always been an act. Now it was all getting tiring, and now I found a reason to come free. I was in love.

I never meant to fall in love. I never meant to fall so hard for him, for anybody, but especially not him. My plan had been to act my way through life, getting everything I wanted till college, being the perfect daughter, the epitome of perfection. I would get everything I wanted in life, go to college far away from the pitiful Sunset Valley, and never go back. Ever. My plan had worked perfectly until that day when I met him. He ruined everything, well, he changed everything. For the good, and for the bad. I was not the same person I was before, love can change a person. Once I gave my heart away that never forgotten day at the picnic, I never was the same.

If I had known who she was, I would have never talked to her. Heck, I would have even been scared to look at her. Her father was the most influencial man in the whole town, and everyone knew it. If you messed with his daughter, you were for sure messing with him. I never planned for it all to happen, but I guess fate said otherwise. My hands were shaking as I approached her, but there was something inside of me that was so attracted to her. It was not only that fake, superficial attraction, but something real, something deep and lasting. “Hi. My names Landon, I haven’t seen you around here before” I stuttered. She twisted her hair around her finger and said “And my name is Arianna. I go to Harvey Prep. I’m in the 11th grade”. “Oh!” I then realized who she was. I had always heard of the famous Arianna Blakeslee, but I had never seen her, because we lived in different worlds, per say. I continued to stammer “uh um oh that’s cool. I go to Jackson High”.

It should have been an immediate give away. I mean come on, who goes to Jackson High anymore? Anybody who was anyone went to Harvey Prep. But I guess I was thrown off my game, probably distracted because of his good looks. His light blond hair was all messy and wavy, contrasting his lightly freckled cheeks and tanned body were his dark brown eyes, almost black. They were mysterious and all the more attractive to me. It was something more than his looks though, it was his smile, his innocence, more importantly it was something I couldn’t define, pulling me towards him. I invited him to go on a walk around the lake, and that is where it really began. I knew he wanted to go, I could see it in his eyes. He stuttered and tried to think of an excuse not to, but he came anyway. When we were out of sight, I grabbed his hand. It took him by surprise, but he liked It, I could tell. I could always read him like a book. We talked about our likes, our dislikes, our fears, and our plans for our life. We talked about anything and everything, except our differences. It was clear that we were both aware of that giant elephant in the room, that is, we came from different worlds. Even though we lived different lives, there was something there. We both knew there was something more than just a physical attraction; it was an emotional attraction as well. We stopped talking, there was nothing more to say. We both knew what was coming, and even if we tried, we couldn’t have stopped it.

She stopped walking, looked into my eyes. I knew what was coming, I wasn’t naïve. I had been with girls before, but I had always said no. They were all skin deep, no true depth. I knew it wouldn’t be worth it, so I just never bothered. But now, there was nothing inside of me stopping me. I wanted her more than I wanted anything in my whole entire life. She waited for me to make the first move, I lifted my hand and-

I could tell he was hesitant, but not because he didn’t want to. I could tell he wanted me just as bad as I wanted him. I knew it was my father who was holding him back, back from more passion I had ever experienced in my whole life. I suddenly became angry at my father, but that soon passed as I decided to take things into my own hands. My heart was pounding as I lifted my hands to his face, and suddenly we became locked in an embrace that felt like eternity.

The feeling of her body next to mine, running my fingers through her hair- every little detail I remembered for days to come. It was so hard to say goodbye that day, to leave her, to leave my new everything. I thought about her for days, her memory flooding my senses- the only thing I could think about. Her gorgeous face filled my thoughts; the way she looked into my eyes was the only thing I could think about. I wanted to see her again; my heart ached to get to be with her again. Something deep inside of me told me I shouldn’t; we were from different sides of the universe. I told myself she probably hasn’t even given a thought to what happened, she doesn’t even care about me. I said that to myself, but I wasn’t kidding myself. I saw something in her eyes that I had never seen before. It was some sort of raw passion, something that filled her whole body till the point where she was shaking. I could tell she wanted more, there was no lying to myself. As the long week drew on, I couldn’t help going back to wondering what she was thinking.

I had to call him. It was the only thing to keep me from growing crazy. I tried to resist, honestly, I really did try to resist. I tried filling my life with busy, mindless activities, trying to distract myself, trying to forget my feelings. It was a strange feeling, love, that is. I couldn’t describe it. It was like I gave part of myself to him, willingly, and I couldn’t stand being apart from him. My heart ached to be with him, I wanted to get to know him more. I knew this wasn’t one of those cheesy and superficial romances, I knew it was real. And trust me, I have been in many of those relationships, and it didn’t work out. They were all jerks who only wanted my body. But this, I knew this was different. I had to call, just couldn’t help myself any longer.

We decided to meet tomorrow night by the lake again. It was our spot, and we knew we would be safe. Her parents were away with business, so there wouldn’t be a big risk. I replayed the sound of her voice over and over again. I could hear the sweet ring of her voice, I kept remembering the sound all throughout the next day, until that night when we met again. This time there was no need for talking, no need for words. We expressed our passions in the most beautiful way that night, and after we were satisfied, we just sat and talked. I learned everything about her, and she learned everything about me. She knew my weaknesses, I knew hers. It was hard to leave, but my heart was filled with the promise to meet tomorrow again.

Every night, all night, we came together and expressed our love. Sometimes it was physical; sometimes it was just sitting and enjoying his presence. He never forced anything, he was always a gentleman. I knew he was the one, and he knew I was the one for him. Everything would have been so simple, so pure and right, if my father wasn’t so stubborn. He didn’t know yet, and quite honestly we weren’t planning on telling him. We had talked about marriage, running away and starting a new life with each other, but we were both just too unsure to make a final decision. My junior year passed in a blur, I met him almost every night. We both knew we were in love, we just didn’t know how to take the next step forward. We were planning on just staying this way another year, till I graduated. That was the plan at least, until it happened.

She said she would tell me one Thursday night. It was a full moon, and we were sitting on a log, watching the reflection of the moon on the ripple of the lake. I knew she wanted to tell me something, she was about to say it when we heard a sound. A hissing and slithering sound came from behind me, and before I could move, I green, yellow, and red snake slithered up my arm. I jump in surprise, and it sank it fangs into my arm. I could feel my arm growing numb and I knew I needed to get the venom out. Before I could even say anything, I could feel her mouth on my arm, sucking out the poisonous venom from my arm.

I didn’t even have to think about it. I needed to save him, and I was willing to do it. It was working; I could see the relief spread across his face. I kept sucking the venom, and spitting it out. The taste, it was strange. It tingled my senses, the taste made me get excited. It was probably the venom, not the blood that made me feel so strange. I shook off the feeling and wanted to tell him my secret. At that time, I was three months pregnant. Imagine what my father would say-I shudder at even the thought of finding out. I told Landon that night, he gave me a hug and told me he loved me. We finally made the decision. We were going to run away and start a life together. Just me and him, him and me together in a world of endless possibilities. It would be so easy for me to pick up and leave, I never created any emotional bonds, and I could leave any day and never look back without thinking.

She could just get up and leave, but I couldn’t. My poor mother, she raised me. How could I leave her? But I loved Arianna so much that I couldn’t bear to see her hurt either. I had my whole life in front of me; I had to go with her. I was going to be a father, and I couldn’t let my child growing up like I did, without a father, wondering what I did to have my father not love me. No. My child would know it was loved and treasured. I knew she would be a great mother; she would protect our child and love him forever. I had complete confidence in her then. We would be the parents we both wished we had.

We left a week from the day I told him. We took all the money I had been saving for when I was going to leave, and trust me, it was plenty. We both could have not worked a day in our life and lived off of my father’s money forever. I never said goodbye, and I was glad. We left a week from the day I told him. We took all the money I had been saving for when I was going to leave, and trust me, it was plenty. We both could have not worked a day in our life and lived off of my father’s money forever. I never said goodbye, and I was glad. We boarded that plane to South Caroline and never looked back. The beach house was everything we dreamed of and more, the perfect place to start our family.
After we were officially married, the next six months passed in a blur. I found work while she got ready to have the baby. We knew she was a girl, and we decided on a name. Her full name would be Isabella Rose, but she would go by Rosie. She was born on a Monday, April 16th. She was everything I dreamed of, her cute curly blonde hair, her deep blue eyes and her porcelain white skin. Arianna was a perfect mother at the time, doting on her every whim. We slept little those first three months, but it was alright.
We both were trying to be the parents we never had. It was exhausting, but it was worth it.
I loved being a mother. It made me feel alive; my protective and motherly instincts were vibrant. I’m more in love with Landon than I have ever been. Everything was perfect. I kept thinking back to the time where I saved his life. The snake almost killed him, and I was willing to risk my life. That part was fine, but there was something else. I couldn’t get the strange taste out of my mind. It consumed my senses, filled my body. I tried everything to get the feeling back, the rush, the adrenaline, the terror. As hard as I tried, I couldn’t recreate it. I became addicted to the feeling, even though I only felt it once. My search for it consumed my life, I became a different person. Landon could tell something was different with me, but whenever he asked I just denied it. I didn’t want him to know, it was somewhat embarrassing-searching for a feeling that I didn’t know where it came from. I began to ignore Rosie, I couldn’t help it. Something inside of me was driving me to find that feeling again; that feeling of satisfaction and fulfillment. I came to the point where I would do anything to get that feeling again. Anything.

She started changing, somewhat gradually at first, but then more dramatically. I began to have to do more and more with Rosie. Some days I had to take her to work with me, since Arianna did not feel like getting out of bed. I didn’t know what to do, I tried to talk to her, tried to get her help. It was all useless. I tried to not give up on her, tried to continually love her. She was not the woman I fell in love with, but I still loved her. I would do anything for her, anything she wanted me to. Anything.

It was time do something about these feelings inside of me, it was extreme but it was worth it. I hated asking him to do it for me, but I knew he would. He would do anything for me, and I was positive he wouldn’t mind. It was a warm August morning, and I had decided to talk to him then. We dropped Rosie off at a new friends house a mile or so down the road, so it was just the two of us, alone.

I couldn’t believe she asked that from me, of course I said yes but I never would have dreamed it would have been so absurd. She got this look in her eyes, and I couldn’t resist. Her eyes shot straight through my skin and penetrated deep into my heart. I could sense the hurt in her, and my body ached with the feeling of her hurt. I had to do it to help her, anything to get the love of my life back to normal. She explained the situation to me. Once she asked, I slowly nodded. It was only a little blood, a little of my blood that she wanted to taste. All I had to do is prick my finger, and give her a tiny amount of blood to taste. I would have given her my left hand to make her better, and a little blood was nothing to me. I just hoped it would make her better.
I was ecstatic that he said yes, and I couldn’t hold my joy in any longer. If I could just get that exotic feeling inside of me one more time I would be better.
Just one taste is all I told myself. He went into the bathroom and pricked his finger. He gave me blood, and I gave him a kiss on the lips and told him I would be downstairs in five minutes. I could hardly wait for him to shut the door. Once I heard the door shut, I slowly lifted the cup to my mouth and took a sip. The feeling of life rushed through out my body, my senses were flooded with relief. I couldn’t believe the heavenly feeling that consumed my body, I was numb with joy. As I took the last sip, I was suddenly filled with an even bigger void than before. I suddenly didn’t care about anything or anyone else, all I wanted was to feel that way again.
She came downstairs and said she was better. She told me she was alright, and she was back to normal. I sense of relief flooded my face as she said the words. We came together in a loving embrace because we thought that everything was better; that everything was back to normal. Life moved on, we acted like everything was ok, nothing was wrong. We spent that week loving each other and falling more and more in love. It was perfect, until we came to the day. She woke up, extra excited. A peaceful glow filled her face, light shining within. I thought this was her breakthrough, she was honestly better now. She was herself again, and everything was alright. She got super excited and joy filled her face. I was super excited, but something stopped me. I kept remembering her, her changing her ways, becoming someone different. I still loved her, even though she was not herself then, I loved her no matter what she did. I would sacrifice anything for her; give her my everything to make sure that she would be okay. I got back in the moment, and watched her run down the stairs, her face glowing with life. She said she figured out what was wrong, that she was all better. We walked into the kitchen, and I saw that she had made breakfast. My heart went out to her, I was so thankful to have her as a wonderful wife. We sat down together, and I ate a wonderful breakfast.

I felt no guilt as I did, as I watched his face become pale, his body began to shake, and finally, he collapsed onto the floor. I knew he wouldn’t care, he’d told me over and over again how much he loved me, how he would do anything for me. I dragged his limp body down the stairs, and into the basement. I laid him on the table I had set up, and tied him down. I knew he would let me do it, but I had to be sure he wouldn’t finish. While I was waiting for him to become conscious again, I thought about the easiest way to do this. I was hungry, not for food, but for human flesh. I had tried to fight the monster inside of me, but there was no use. I decided to embrace it, to leave everything I had behind. I could always find more men, more people to fill the void in my life. Rosie would have to go too, no one could know about me and this new life I chose to live. Yah, I did love Landon, but I could always find people to “love” again. He began to stir, and the thirst inside of me was so great that I could not wait to get started.
There was a sharp pain ringing throughout my body, it was like nails were piercing into my skin, and a thousand pound restraint was holding me down. I tried to lift my head up, but I was tied down. My first thought went to Arianna, was she ok? I needed to get to her, protect her from whatever evil had found us. I cringed at the thought of anything happening to her, I would never forgive myself. I slowly opened my eyes, my strength was coming back. I saw her standing over me, with that same peaceful, yet eager look in her eyes. To say I was confused was an understatement. I could not figure out why she had tied me down, why she was looking at me so excitingly. I heard a piercing scream, I looked over, and Rosie was there next to me, tied down as well. There was a huge cut on her leg, her blood flowing into a red container. I could tell she was in pain, I tried to reach out to her but couldn’t. I didn’t know what to do; Arianna was standing over me, looking at me as if I was a giant steak and she was ready to eat. She was rambling random things, how she was sorry and didn’t want to this but she had to and how she had never meant for this to happen. It was almost impossible to understand, impossible to make sense of anything she was saying. My protective instincts perked up when she mentioned Rosie.There was a sharp pain ringing throughout my body, it was like nails were piercing into my skin, and a thousand pound restraint was holding me down. I tried to lift my head up, but I was tied down. My first thought went to Arianna, was she ok? I needed to get to her, protect her from whatever evil had found us. I cringed at the thought of anything happening to her, I would never forgive myself. I slowly opened my eyes, my strength was coming back. I saw her standing over me, with that same peaceful, yet eager look in her eyes. To say I was confused was an understatement. I could not figure out why she had tied me down, why she was looking at me so excitingly. I heard a piercing scream, I looked over, and Rosie was there next to me, tied down as well. There was a huge cut on her leg, her blood flowing into a red container. I could tell she was in pain, I tried to reach out to her but couldn’t. I didn’t know what to do; Arianna was standing over me, looking at me as if I were a giant steak and she was ready to eat. I tried to talk to her, reason with her, tell her I loved her and that we could get her help. She didn’t want to listen. Her stubborn mind was set and there was nothing I could do about it. All I wanted at the moment was to be able to help Rosie, my paternal instincts kicking in, I tried to bargain. I told her that I would do anything to save Rosie, anything for Arianna to stop hurting her own daughter. We made a deal, I would give her another pint of blood if she would free Rosie. I watched her take Rosie upstairs, and heard the neighbor drive away with Rosie. I had a sudden moment of peace and relief, before I realized how serious the situation was. I still loved her, and she stilled loved me. There was just something wrong, she must have something sick in her mind. I tried to tell her that; that we could take her to the doctor, but she screamed and cut me. It wasn’t deep, but blood was flowing consistently from my leg. Suddenly she started apologizing, saying she was sorry and that she didn’t know what was wrong with her. She started to free me, but then she snapped back into the crazed maniac. I was thoroughly befuzzled, confused to say the least. She said she loved me that, she was sorry she had to ask, but it was the only way she could get better, the only way she could be a good mother to Rosie, the only way she would be happy. This time I hesitated, it was a huge demand, I was confused. Why would she want that from me? She started yelling at me, screeching and saying how I didn’t love her, how I never cared about her. She started talking nonsense how I married her for her money and her looks, none of which was true. I couldn’t bear to hear her talk like that, bear to see her in such agony. Finally, I agreed. As long as the love of my life would be better, I would do anything. I told her that the day I told her I loved her, and I was a man of my word. I sighed and said “I still love you”. And those were my last words, to her, to anyone. Some people say their lover stole their heart, but I gave mine.