Blood Infections

Frank was short, but his personality's enormity more than made up for it. He was prim, proper, and old fashioned depending on who you asked. His style hearkened back to the golden era of punk: torn up clothing that exposed the ink painted across his skin. His eyes always shined as if the sun was trapped beneath the hazel haze of his eyes. His hair brushed his shoulders and perfectly framed his pale round face that was free of any signs of aging. Maybe some aspects of him would signal red flags for anyone else, but not me. But, it's not like I never asked him about it. When I did he would always give the same reaction and response: nervous and afraid and " I can't tell you that, it's not the right time." He was always very guarded and it was obvious he was keeping something from me. But I never pried. He wasn't ready to tell me, and I didn't have the heart to force him too. I was too afraid of ruining what we had. We've been together for about a year, and I was madly in love. Something about him drew me in, like how a spider entices it's prey so it can trap it in it's web. The only time we ever could go out was during the night, which should've been another red flag. But I was always working, and the only time I was free was during the night, so I didn't care. The way he did it was adorable: throwing pebbles at my window and climbing up the fire escape to crawl through the window to my apartment when I opened it. He always needed me to invite him in, which was also strange. Tonight was no different, the familiar sound of the pebbles hitting my window echoed through the small dingy apartment. When I opened the window and stuck my head out I saw him standing just below the fire escape.

"Come on in, Frankie!" I shouted down. He jumped up to grab the edge of the ladder and pulled himself up to the fire escape. He quickly made his way up and to my window and waited until I moved away to crawl through. I noticed something was...off about him. Instead of his normal cheerful disposition, he seemed anxious. He just...stood there. I grabbed his hand and squeezed it in an attempt to comfort him. He jumped and pulled away as if he was scared something would happen if we touched.

"Frank, are you ok?" I asked.

"U-Um, Yeah, I'm alright, Gee." He stammered. I could tell he was lying. His eyes darted about the room and refused to look at me. His hands were shaking at his sides and his head was down.

"Frank, you know you can talk to me if anything's going on."

"I-I know. It's just...I've been a bit stressed lately is all.

"About?

"This date." Why would he be stressed? I grabbed his hand again and pulled him over to the bed. I sat down and tugged on his hand so he would sit too.

"Explain." A hand reached behind him to scratch at his neck and a sigh passed through his lips.

"Can I ask you something, Gerard?" His tone changed into seriousness. Something about tonight must really be eating away at him, which filled me with worry.

"Of course."

"Do you trust me? And do you love me?" Why does he need to be sure of that? He knows I do. Hell, I stopped talking to my friends for a while because of my feelings for him. They hated him and kept trying to break us up. He almost did until I convinced him otherwise.

"Frank, of course I do. What's with you? Why ask these questions?

"Because I'm afraid of what you'll think of me."

"Why would I do that?"

"Because I'm not like you, Gerard. I'm not human. I don't want what I am to ruin what we have."

"What do you mean."

"I'm a vampire, Gerard."

"You're kidding."

"No I'm not, Gerard." He opened his mouth to reveal two razor sharp fangs where his canines should be. He closed his mouth and placed his fingers over his eyes to pull something out. His hazel eyes changed to a blood red. On his fingers were what looked to be contacts that changed his eye color. The red looked downright menacing, a predatory aura lying just beyond them. Somehow I felt no fear towards him. Even through all of this I wasn't scared of him. He was still Frank, no matter what he was. My hand reached out to grab his and I pulled him close to me. This action seemed to shock him. I suppose he was prepared for every bad outcome, but didn't think I'd be alright with it.

"Wait..you're not afraid?" He asked

"Why would I be?"

"Because I'm not like you. I'm a monster, Gerard."

"I only see Frank Iero. You're not a monster. So, why tell me all this now?"

"I figured it'll make what I'm about to do to you that much easier."

"What do you mean?"

"If either of us want this to continue, I need to take something from you."

"And that would be?"

"Your humanity. Your mortality. Your life. After tonight, you'll be like me. We'll be together forever."

"Do it then."

"I mean, you don't have to give me an answer right now, I don't mind- what?"

"You heard me, do it. I'm not afraid. I love you, Frank. If doing this means I'll be by your side, I'm game." As soon as I finished speaking, Frank pinned me to the bed with inhuman speed and strength. Kisses, nips, and licks were peppered across my neck. His hands snaked under my shirt and lifted it off, throwing it somewhere in the room. He paused and rose to kneel above me. His fangs were longer, poking out from under his lip. His eyes were a deep red, almost black, a predator dancing behind them.

"Are you sure you're ready for me to do this?" I pulled at the edge of his jacket to bring him closer to me. I pressed my lips to his in an intense kiss that was over quickly.

"Yes." His head leaned down to nuzzle at my neck. His fangs grazed the flesh before plunging in. A sharp pain coursed through my veins only to be quickly replaced by numbness tinged with pleasure. He greedily sucked at my neck until he had his fill, once again kneeling above me. My vision was blurry and faded almost like I wasn't even there. He raised one of his hands to his blood-stained mouth and sunk his fangs in. Blood dripped down his wrist and stained his jacket. He moved his wrist over to my mouth and let it hang over. Blood dripped from the wound and into my mouth. The wrist pressed closer and more blood poured in, the taste of it quickly making me addicted. Before I could have any more, he pulled his wrist away and wrapped me in his arms to hold me close and tight. My vision blurred even more after I drank from him and was quickly fading to black. My body was heavy with the fatigue that I succumbed too, pulling me into a dreamworld.