The Almost Kiss

The Almost Kiss
Viv slammed the vial down on Damien's desk, making him jump. His face was paler than she'd ever seen it, almost gray in the dim light of his bedroom.

"You knew," she said, her voice shaking. "You knew all along that I was supposed to die to save you."

Damien looked at the dark liquid sloshing in the vial. His eyes widened with recognition, then fear.

"Where did you get that?" he whispered.

"Your father gave it to me right before monsters broke into your house," Viv said. "Right after I found your family's secret book about blood rituals."

Damien closed his eyes, moving slightly. Through their blood bond, Viv could feel waves of pain washing over him. The curse was getting worse.

"You shouldn't have gone into the library," he said, his words barely audible.

"And you shouldn't have lied to me!" Viv yelled, tears springing to her eyes. "We're supposed to be best friends! I trusted you!"

Damien tried to stand, but his legs gave out. Viv rushed forward despite her anger, stopping him before he fell. She helped him back to his bed, noticing how light he felt, how his skin burned with fever.

"I didn't want you to know," Damien said, leaning against his pillows. "Not at first. But after our blood mixed in the ritual chamber, after we formed this bond... I've been trying to find another way."

"So you admit it?" Viv asked, sitting on the edge of his bed. "You knew I was supposed to be sacrificed to break your curse?"

Damien nodded slowly. "My father told me when I turned thirteen. He said a girl would come into my life with special blood. That when the time came, her sacrifice would save me."

"And you became my friend because of that?" The thought made Viv feel sick.

"No!" Damien reached for her hand. "I didn't even know it was you until last year, when my father showed me your picture. By then, we'd been friends for years. I already..." He stopped, turning away.

"You already what?" Viv asked.

"I already cared about you too much," Damien whispered. "That's why I started looking for another way. I've been searching through my family's old books, contacting other vampire families in secret."

"Is that why you missed so much school?"

Damien nodded. "Some days I was too sick. But mostly, I was hunting for a cure that wouldn't hurt you."

Viv's anger eased, just a little. Through their bond, she could feel his truthfulness. His fear. Not for himself, but for her.

"And did you find anything?" she asked.

"Maybe." Damien pointed to the vial still held in her hand. "But not that. Whatever my father told you, that blood is dangerous. It belongs to someone very old and very evil."

Viv put the vial carefully on the nightstand. "Your father said it would complete our blood bond, give us power to fight the Ancient One."

"The Ancient One?" Damien sat up straighter, hurting with the effort. "So it's true. We really did wake something in the ritual chamber."

"Something that wants to take over both the human and vampire worlds," Viv revealed. "But Lilith said your father was working with Erebus to sacrifice me."

"They both lied," Damien said angrily. "My father, Erebus, Lilith—they all want the same thing. Power. They just have different ideas about how to get it."

"So who can we trust?" Viv asked, feeling more lost than ever.

Damien's fingers tightened around hers. "Each other. Only each other."

Through their bond, Viv felt a surge of something warm from Damien. Something beyond friendship. She gasped, pulling her hand away.

"What was that?" she asked.

Damien looked embarrassed. "Sorry. Sometimes the bond... it shows feelings I'm trying to hide."

"Like what feelings?" Viv asked, her heart suddenly beating faster.

"Like how scared I am," Damien revealed. "Not of dying. I've known about the curse my whole life. But I'm terrified of something happening to you because of me."

Viv moved closer on the bed. "I'm scared too. But I'm not going to let you die, Damien. And I'm not going to be sacrificed either. We'll find another way."

"I think I might have," Damien said. He reached under his pillow and pulled out an old piece of paper. "I found this hidden inside one of my great grandfather's journals. It's a different ritual—one that completes our blood bond without either of us dying."

Viv took the paper, scanning the faded handwriting. "The Ritual of Shared Hearts," she read. "It says we would share one life force, one destiny."

"If one of us gets hurt, both feel the pain," Damien stated. "If one dies..."

"Both die," Viv finished. "That's a big risk."

"Bigger than you being sacrificed?" Damien asked. "At least this way, we both have a chance."

Viv read further down the page. "It says we need the blood of our greatest enemy mixed with the blood of our closest ally. How do we get that?"

"Erebus's blood, and maybe my father's or Sarah's," Damien offered. "But Viv, there's something else. Look at the last requirement."

Viv's eyes widened as she read the final line: "The ritual must be sealed with a kiss of true feeling, neither friendship nor duty, but something deeper."

She looked up to find Damien watching her, his eyes intense despite his sickness.

"I don't know if I..." Viv began.

"I understand," Damien said quickly. "It's just a ritual. We can find another way."

But through their bond, Viv felt his sadness. And something else, something he'd been hiding for a long time.

"How long have you felt this way?" she asked softly.

Damien wouldn't meet her eyes. "Since seventh grade. When you punched Tommy Wilson for calling me a freak."

Viv laughed despite herself. "That was four years ago!"

"I know it's stupid," Damien mumbled. "You're my best friend. I never wanted to ruin that."

Viv moved closer, suddenly aware of her rushing heart. "Maybe you wouldn't ruin it. Maybe you'd make it... different."

Their eyes met. Damien looked shocked, then hopeful. Slowly, tentatively, he leaned forward. Viv found herself leaning in too, her eyes closing.

She could feel his breath on her lips, the warmth coming from him despite his sickness. Through their bond, his feelings washed over her—fear, hope, and something much stronger that made her dizzy.

Their lips were just about to touch when a huge explosion rocked the house, throwing them both off the bed.

"What was that?" Viv gasped, scrambling to her feet.

Damien stumbled up beside her, suddenly looking stronger. "It came from downstairs."

They ran to his bedroom door and pulled it open. Black smoke billowed up the stairs. Through the haze, Viv could see strange shapes moving in the hallway below. Not human shadows.

"Erebus," Damien whispered, grabbing Viv's hand. "He's found us."

A chilling laugh echoed up the stairs. "Indeed I have, young Blackthorn. And this time, you won't escape."

Damien pulled Viv back into his room, locking the door behind them. "The window," he said quickly. "We need to get out."

But as they turned toward the window, the glass broke inward. A figure stood silhouetted against the night sky—a figure with glowing red eyes and huge bat like wings.

"Going somewhere?" Lord Erebus asked, walking into the room. "I think not. The Ancient One is waiting, and he's very hungry."

Damien pushed Viv behind him, but she could feel him shaking with weakness.

"Leave her alone," Damien said, his voice stronger than his body. "Your quarrel is with my family, not hers."

Erebus smiled, showing pointed fangs. "Oh, but it is with her, young Blackthorn. Her blood woke the Ancient One, and now her blood will feed him."

He moved forward with inhuman speed, catching Damien by the throat and lifting him off the floor.

"Damien!" Viv screamed, running forward.

But another blast rocked the house, bigger than the first. The floor beneath them cracked. Erebus lost his grip on Damien, who fell to the ground gasping for air.

The cracks in the floor widened, spreading like lightning across the room. Viv grabbed Damien's arm, trying to pull him toward the door, but it was too late.

With a terrible groaning sound, the floor gave way totally.

Viv and Damien fell into darkness, Erebus's laughter following them down.

As they fell, Viv grabbed Damien's hand. Their eyes met in the swirling dust and debris.

And then they hit something cold and wet—an underground river running far beneath the Blackthorn mansion.

The current swept them away, falling through darkness as Viv fought to keep their heads above water. She could barely make out Damien's face in the blackness.

"Hold on!" she shouted over the roaring water. "Don't let go!"

But their fingers were slipping. The last thing Viv saw before the current tore them apart was Damien's eyes, wide with terror as he mouthed three words she couldn't hear.

Then the darkness took her, and she was alone.