Blood Angel

She looks horrified.

That's the first thought I have when she walks into biology class.

I'm not sure why, but ever since this semester began, my body has been sluggish. Always full of energy, I'm unaccustomed to this. It feels...well, it feels almost human, for lack of a better word. Having been so long since I was one, I am hard-pressed to consider the fact that I might actually be coming down with some type of virus.

For my kind, this should be impossible, however, and so I'm clueless as to what is happening to me. It's alarming, but in a novel and entertaining kind of way. It's been so long since anything unusual happened to me that I almost welcome this feeling. It's different and that makes it interesting.

Not sure what that says about me, but hey, what can I say? As a vampire who's lived through it all and seen it all, any deviation from the norm is welcome.

I'm getting ahead of myself, however.

Back to the girl.

I've never seen her before. As she tip-toes past my desk I lift my head in time to catch her eyes, which she promptly hides from me.

What was that?

Anytime I want someone to look at me they do. That's all there is to it.

It's very simple. I want them and the girls want me back.

When I was first turned I thought it fun to put them in a trance; have them follow my every whim, but these last few centuries, I've discovered it's more interesting when I let them think they have free will against my powers. If I actively disarm my compulsion, they can go about their business without feeling the tug of my strings upon them.

This girl, however, turns her head as if she can do so without my letting her.

I sit up at attention when I realize, in fact, that not only did she turn her head but she walked away from me as quickly as possible. As if my presence repulses her.

It's tiring having to relax my compulsion. I'm not sure what's in my blood, but it draws females to me like a bee is attracted to pollen. They can't help but want to be near me. It's great for my survival. I am reliant upon them for sustenance after all. But, it does get trying keeping them at bay all the time, especially the groupies.

I turn my head and see the girl searching the back of the room. I think she's trying to find the farthest seat from me.

Isn't this interesting?

Maybe I should spice things up.

I grab my Bio text and notebook and walk close behind her before she can make a decision. When I'm about a foot from her, she whips her head around and stares right at me, yelping.

"Get away from me!"

I take a retreating step, having been caught off guard.

"What?" I ask her incredulously, feeling an invisible shove against me. There's no pain, but some kind of slight pressure urging me to move away. I scrunch my eyebrows in confusion.

"I said," she tells me, sticking her fingers to her throat where she finds a charm on her lace choker. She worries it as she continues. "Get away from me. Leave me alone. I want you to move back to the front of the classroom and stay as far as possible from where I am."

Speechless, and still feeling pressure against my chest, I turn to do as she says, retaking my seat. The pressure dissipates and I'm left confounded by it all.

I park myself at my table and look over my shoulder to where the girl is now sitting. Before I can get my bearings, another student enters the classroom; a male student. I don't recognize him anymore than I recognized the girl.