"You boast about being a killer, so why didn't you add your little boyfriend to that list? Didn't you play a part in killing him too?"
It takes all the self control Axel has not to punch the irritating smirk off Kane's face, which seems to widen as the blond vampire realises he's struck a nerve.
"You have all these so called skills but still couldn't manage to save him. You did the one thing every vampire here would never do, you turned a human. And for that, you're pathetic."
"No, pathetic is what you'll be when you're outmatched on the battlefield." Axel looks around at all the disapproving and disgusted looks targeted at him and shakes his head. "Fuck this." He exclaims, walking away and ignoring Fraser's frantic calls.
"Axel, wait!"
"We don't need him Fraser!"
"You, shut up!" She says, turning to face Kane with a dangerous glare before running to catch up with Axel, who has already stormed ahead.
"Axel, hear me out. Please! You owe me this!"
He pauses abruptly, causing Fraser to almost crash into him, and turns to face the woman.
"Look Fraser, I'm grateful for your hospitality and everything you've done for Miles, but I can't stay here. And I definitely can't teach here. You'll have to find some other way for me to pay you back. I'm sorry." He continues walking, this time determined not to stop. But it seems as though Fraser is just as stubborn as him, refusing to back down just yet.
"This is bigger than them. Bigger than us. There are hundreds of vampires just like me and you, like Sydney and Miles" she purposely emphasises the last two names "counting on this war. On change. And you're going to walk away because one guy hurt your feelings?"
"Fuck you, Fraser. You know that's not it. I don't belong here. I've been here what, 3 days, and have already broken 2 of your precious rules before even stepping foot onto your grounds. I drank blood from humans. I drank blood from my own fucking boyfriend, and then I turned him into an addict! I've got him hurt. I've got him killed. And the cycle just keeps fucking repeating itself. I've watched him die too many times. Too much death. I can't do it again. War? I-I can't do that."
Death. Vampires know it all too well. A clingy friend that keeps pestering you. Keeps knocking at your door.
Death. It's what vampires know best. How to cause it. How to delay it. How to manipulate it and overcome it. And through death, they learn about life. How delicate and frail it is. How short it can be, and how incredibly long.
•••••••
"Come on, we're leaving." Axel says as he grabs Miles' wrist and motions for Sydney with his head to follow him out the cabin.
"What?" Sydney says, confusion clear in her voice, the remnants of sleep still clinging to her as she rubs her eyes trying to wake herself up.
"Leaving?" Miles asks, alert from the abrupt wake up.
It's dark outside now, much different to when him and Sydney had fallen asleep when the sun was still out. It was amazing to finally be able to sleep in a bed and not the dusty floor of the Stupidly Tall Building, or the reclined seats of a small cheap rental car.
"Yes, leaving." He says quickly, heading towards the part of the woods that would lead them out the camp and onto the main roads.
"But why?" Sydney asks, having to walk faster than she would like to keep up with the boys, Axel still clinging on to Miles' wrist.
"Did something happen?"
Axel cringes at the sudden shock and fear in his boyfriend's voice, not having a good enough excuse to justify it.
"I just- I don't like it here alright. This place isn't good for us. We can find somewhere better."
"Somewhere that'll accept rogues like us? I highly doubt that. We got lucky with this place." Says Sydney.
"Well let's hope luck is on our side again."
"Axel, have you thought about this? Like really thought about this?" Miles questions.
"No, but our plans always go to shit anyway. We'll be fine as long as we stick together."
"Oh come on Axel." Sydney says as she ducks under a low branch. "Do you really want to go back to sleeping in a car with no food or blood? With no place to go?"
"I've always known where I've wanted to go. I'm going to visit my mom."
"Well you can't stay there forever and you know it." Sydney stops walking and so do the other two. "All of us have had to leave our families at some point. And you know better than anyone else that it hurts to leave just as much as the first time."
"I don't care Sydney. Not right now. I'll think about that when the time comes. For now, let's go." Axel turns to walk away again but stops quickly when he hears Sydney's firm voice.
"No."
"Syd?"
"I was lucky enough to find the bar when I first turned. The people there helped me and looked after me." Miles can't help but notice how Sydney absentmindedly plays with the gold J on her necklace. "They made me feel like I belonged in a time where I barely even recognised myself. That's what the people here have. I'm not going to let their home get taken away from them like mine was. I owe it to everyone who died at the raid, everyone who was captured, to fight. They're probably being locked up like animals right now. That could have been any one of us. They deserve to be free. I can't keep running any longer."
Axel stares at his friend, her dark brown eyes brimming with tears, pleading with him without having to say it to stay.
Please stay.
There's a long silence before Axel finally whispers "Okay."
Sydney lets out a sigh of relief, knowing he had answered her silent question, and ran into his arms, hugging him tightly. Her tears fall, ones of relief and of sadness, for finally letting herself think about the people she left behind at the bar. Silent tears quickly turn into sobs but Axel's embrace keeps Sydney from breaking down any further.
"It's going to be okay." Axel says soothingly.
Sydney might even have it in her to believe him.
YOU ARE READING
Infinite Miles
Teen Fiction"Because you Miles, are infinite." It was never supposed to go that way for Axel and Miles. And it was definitely not supposed to end like that too. But this is the story about what happens after the end. Follow Axel, Miles and Sydney through their...
