Bloodstained Lily

Chapter 8-The Beast; Tender or Tough?

"Zayn, your eyes...they're...they're..."

I felt my feet take a few steps back and when he followed by taking a few steps forward, Harry's arm shot out and his hand pressed into Zayn's chest signalling him to stop. Zayn's eyes mirrored the colour of blood, a deep red shade or at least a few shades lighter than blood but the colour was very similar.

It wasn't a usual part of being a vampire as Harry's eyes never changed and if it was usual there would be a lot of red eyed people living around the city. The whole time his eyes never ventured away from mine and he refused to even do as much as blink. It was as if he had become unconscious but standing up and eyes open.

"Please, don't be afraid. It's a zombie thing, I'm sorry. My eyes tend to turn red when I'm hungry."

He took another step forward and when Harry tried pinning him down, he threw Harry into the air and watched as he slammed down into the rock beside the hut. It didn't matter whether you were human, vampire, zombie or anything else that had to have hurt. He looked back at me but I just stood there. My head was telling me to run but for some reason I remained completely calm as if I knew he wasn't going to hurt me or anything.

I heard footsteps behind me swiftly getting closer and I held my arm out as Harry did the second they came up to my side.

"Jordan..." I breathed, refusing to move my eyes from Zayn who had now continued to stare.

Zayn took a step back and held his hands out to his front, making my feet meet each other and I stood there, silent.

"I won't eat you if you were wondering. Youngster's bones are far too brittle." He said jokingly but that just made Jordan clench his fists and I took another step back.

He laughed some more and rolled his eyes before looking over to Harry with a large grin across his face.

"What have you been teaching these kids, Harry? They are almost as serious as you!" He laughed and looked back towards me.

I smiled and took a few steps forward, ignoring the devilish sound that left my brother's mouth.

"My how you've grown in two years! Has it really been six years since I saved you? Seems like such a short period of time ago yet you look so much older."

"One of the perks of being human." I laughed but it didn't seem to sit well with Zayn.

He stepped forward and put his hands on my shoulders and I swear I heard Jordan growling behind me. For some reason, it seemed to alarm both Jordan and Harry who came rushing over but I felt extremely calm and loved in a way.

He smirked and leant down slightly so he was looking at me directly in the eyes. I had to admit, when I first saw his eyes I was terrified but after having them so close, they seemed almost...beautiful.

Suddenly his gentlemanly personality disappeared and a malicious side of him shone through and I wished for anything that it was simply just his half zombie instincts taking over and not his obviously genuine personality which was enhanced by his vampiric side. He smirked devilishly and started walking towards me which made me take a step back with every step he took towards me.

"You feel calm when you see me don't you? You feel like you know me even though we've only talked twice and you find yourself wanting me, don't you?"

I frowned. Did his ego just inflate dramatically? Why was he being so pushy and acting like he was? It came to the point where he had trapped me into the side of the hut and as I looked behind him I saw Harry slowly nodding at me as if he had a plan. I went to move to the side when Zayn's hands crashed into the wood of the hut either side of me, trapping me entirely in his grasp.

He leaned in close to me and I turned his head when I felt his breath close to my ear.

"One day you won't just want to see me, you will want all of me and when that day comes you just-" he cut himself off and moved away from me slightly, dropping his hands down by his sides.

He looked mortified and I had no idea why. Surely nothing could scare the most powerful creature on earth?

"I'm so sorry, I have no idea what came over me!" His eyes turned their usual shade of brown and I sighed with relief.

I looked up at him and my eyes widened as I saw a tear escape from his eyes. Sure he gave me a good scare but he didn't physically hurt me, so why was he so upset? He said he wouldn't hurt me before and if I didn't believe it then, then I most certainly believed it now.

"Zayn, its fine. That was just...just um..." I paused, unable to find the end to that sentence when Zayn finished it for me.

"My zombie side?"

"Yes, it was just your zombie side." I smiled but he shook his head.

"If that vampire hadn't bitten me all those years ago then I maybe I would have been able to talk and maybe I would have been smarter than other zombies due to my age but I wouldn't have been able to stop myself from continuing back there and I would have killed you the minute I first saw you."

I found myself completely silent. I had no idea how to respond to something like that. Deep down I knew that if he was a full zombie things between us would be completely different but for some reason, up until this point I chose to completely ignore it. I didn't want to think that such a kind hearted man could ever become such a beast but now that I had seen his other side, and I guessed it wouldn't be the last time, I knew what he was really like. He was born the gentleman he had previously shown me and no political position or change of species could change that about him. Though now we did occasionally have to deal with the beast inside of him.

He looked up at me with tear filled eyes and as the wind picked up, his long, black leather trench coat swept along with it, leaving his white shirt underneath and his black skinny jeans to stick tightly to his body.

"I know this isn't in my place, but I want to help out somehow. I can't bring you back to the castle, even though you would be safe with me you would have to deal with hungry vampires all the time and that would exhaust you but if you let me, I want to help in any way possible. I can train Jordan, I can train you whilst Harry trains him, I could buy you guys supplies-" He sounded frantic and desperate which is why I almost wanted to hit Harry for interrupting him.

"Sorry, mate. I already buy them everything they need and train them. We are fine in those areas and we don't need your help. Besides your presence will only draw enemies towards us and the whole reason they are out here is so that they can live normal lives."

"What kind of normal lives is keeping two children out in the middle of nowhere with a stranger?"

They sounded like two kids fighting over a candy bar, it sounded so stupid! I was only fourteen, I barely knew anything but even I thought they were pathetic for acting the way they did.

"Girls! Here's what's going to happen. Harry will stay with us like he's been doing for the past two years and Zayn we will permit you to visit frequently but not too frequent because as Harry said, we can't draw enemies' attention towards us. For a while, you can train Jordan and if he decides he wants Harry to continue teaching him then you will let him do so. You and Harry will take turns guarding the fence because if I'm being completely honest, it does get lonely not having anyone to talk to especially when Jordan is training." During this speech Jordan had made his way over to us and in plenty of enough time to hear that last sentence.

"I'm not getting trained by this beast! I saw what he did with his eyes, he's not just vampire is he? He's something more agonisingly disgusting! I'd take Harry over him any day!"

I laughed out of pure frustration. It sounds weird but I tend to laugh when things get too rough for me but as I looked up at Zayn, thinking he'd be angry he just smiled and nodded. It wasn't an easy alliance but technically it was still the three of us, just with a new temporary addition. I couldn't help but have multiple emotions run through me, the two most defining ones were nervousness and uncertainty.