My Vampire Bromance

Chapter 24: I Just Need A Friend

Sweat rolled down my back as I stared at the clock– 9:45 pm. Victor would be on his way to pick me up soon, but the issue of Thomas Langerty weighed heavy on my mind. How was I going to explain to Victor what was going on?

The figure of a cat on the bookmark Victor had given me appeared, eyes shifting to the side, tail twitching. I could tell something was up. "Do you know who spoke to me earlier today?" I hissed at the picture of the moving cat. I kept my phone close by so it would look like I was sending a text message by voice. The script on the bookmark twisted.

No, but I know that the boy you and I know to be a vampire has been waiting outside the library for an hour now!

"It's him!" I looked around– grateful the library was basically dead. Almost everyone had gone home for the night. In ten minutes, I would shut it down. "He came here in the afternoon, asked me what time I was off! I feel stupid now. What if he attacks me?"

The text changed again. He won't. He knows I'm watching. But, for now, he doesn't know that I am associated with you. Let's keep up that front as long as we can!

I bit my lip, my eyes wandering all over the library. I could still hear the rain outside pelting the cement. I wished I could hear Victor's footsteps instead.

What does he want anyway? the text asked.

"I don't know..." I pushed my glasses up, "He said he wants to be friends."

"Who are you talking to?" the voice startled me so much that I jumped. The chair backward. I went with it, crashing down on the floor with my world literature book and Victor's bookmark clutched tightly in my hand. Thankfully my phone still sat on the library checkout desk.

Swiftly I picked myself up, sandwiching the bookmark between the pages of my literature text. "Um, my friend. She was asking me something."

"About me?" Thomas Langerty smiled, and maybe it would have knocked me off my feet if I didn't know that he was the campus killer.

"Yeah," I readjusted my glasses on my face. "You know, she wanted to make sure you're not the person killing people all over campus."

He raised his right eyebrow at me, "You really think I look like a killer?"

"No," I took a step back, beginning to busy myself with shutting down the computers. "You're just new, and unfortunately, I've not heard great things about you. You come off a little bit..." I hit the library closing announcement button and let the prerecording do the rest. "How do I say this?"

"Snobbish?" he volunteered.

"Creepy," I countered. "People think you're creepy."

Thomas's wide smile fell– his composure immediately dwindling. I watched as his shoulders slumped forward. His eyes roamed the ground before meeting my own. "That sucks. I mean...I am a...well...uh."

I shook my head, "Look, I've got to shut this place down." I hit the announcement button again and watched as a few students headed to the front and said goodbye to me. I waived back. Sighing, I realized Samantha never showed today. I'd have to text her or call her. I picked up my phone, immediately worried about the company I was keeping, and dialed her number as I went to close the library down.

"You coming? Or are you just going to stand there and wait for me?" I motioned for Thomas to follow me. I supposed now was as good a moment as any to have this weirdo take advantage of me. Maybe I'd get to finally join my parents. My chest caved as I listened to the phone ring.

"Phillip?" Samantha's voice sounded from the other side. "Oh shit! Phillip! I'm so sorry! I completely forgot! My hair appointment got moved to today. I completely spaced it."

"It's fine. I just wanted to make sure that you were doing okay."

I could almost hear Samantha blushing on the other end, "Yeah, I'm fine. I just forgot. I'm at home, safe."

"Good," I replied. "I'll see you later then."

"Okay."

"Bye."

"Bye."

"So that girl couldn't handle the truth about you, eh?" Thomas strode up next to me, and I wish he hadn't. I didn't hear him coming. "Too bad," he rubbed his thumb over the tips of his fingers.

"Why are you here again?" I rolled my eyes as I went through the library to the main power switch.

"It's not safe to walk alone here at night anymore." Thomas shrugged, his white linen shirt tugging around his shoulders. I wondered how old he was? Twenty-one? Twenty-two?

He was in the same class as Jenna in biology, but that was the only one I knew of. Otherwise, I'd just heard of how he tried to walk Jenna to her car...and then Brinley. I wondered how many other girls he'd walked to their cars– how many other girls he'd killed. Was I next on his roster? I wasn't a girl, but he was definitely interested in me. I was sure Victor would save me if anything happened on the walk home. I was completely safe, right?

All I had to do was walk to my car with Thomas in tow and somehow find out whether or not he was the vampire that Victor saw last Thursday night. If he was, what then? Well, then Victor and I had to come up with a plan to stop him. Unfortunately, that plan most likely involved killing Thomas. I looked to the side and saw him staring at me– glaring like mad. "What?" I snapped.

Thomas Langerty looked down at me, "Nothing...you just...have a pretty face, is all." He motioned to my clothes, "I like your style too. Your glasses fit your face. They're...unique." He bit his lip.

What the hell is going on? I shook my head and killed the lights in the building. Only the emergencies shone now. "Are we the last ones in here?" he asked.

"Most likely, if not, they'll start heading out now that the lights are out. You know humans, they're afraid of the dark." I'd said it on purpose.

"Yeah," Thomas murmured, "I remember being afraid of the dark. Now I'm only afraid of the light." My eyes widened; he clapped me on the shoulder, "Kidding, dude! What's your name again?"

"Phillip," I said out loud. My voice echoed in the darkness of the library. I was starting to get uncomfortable. That weird feeling that Victor incited when he was hungry was starting to crawl its way up my back. I shivered.

"I'm Thomas," he dug his hands into his pockets. "I'm not sure if you remember me from last week or not. It was a big day with that girl. Do you know if she's okay?"

I didn't want to tell this guy anything about Brinley, "I guess so."

"So, he didn't kill her?"

"No, Brinley luckily got out alive thanks to me," I said. "You seemed shocked."

"I mean, there is a serial killer on the loose who has yet to leave anyone alive. She only made it because of you. Do you know if she saw anything?" He seemed stressed– like he was hiding something.

I shrugged, "I don't know. I haven't been to see her. I don't know her outside of work."

Thomas nodded, "Oh, okay. Cool. Do you know what hospital she's at?"

I paused at the front library desk– glaring at the security screen to ensure no one else was inside the building. "No, I don't, sorry."

Why is he so interested? Oh, you know why Phillip, because he's going to finish the job! I smiled up at him. "All done, you ready to go?"

"Yeah," Thomas heaved a too large breath. Although, come to think of it, I hadn't seen him breathe for a long time– not since he arrived in the library and knew he was alone with me.

"You okay? You seem stressed," I let the words hang in the air as we approached the library doors. I motioned for him to go outside. I locked them, then turned around, waiting for his response.

Thomas's face had gone ghastly white. A translucency that meant severe thirst wracked his body. His veins shone through like wires inside a clear box. The upper part of his lip protruded a little too much.

"You alright?" I asked again. I looked around me and spotted a little black cat in the bushes. Oh, thank god! I inhaled, looking at Thomas Langerty's sallow face. This is it. I'm going to die.