[b]Alley of Adrianna's in Kenan[/b]

His eyes rolled up...the sun was unforgiving as its energy shot rays of light and warmth from its essence down upon the young man below. He was laying in his own piss and puke, his head ached from what he assumed was a good night of drinking. Although never had he ever found himself this lost after a late night. Then again, never has he ever turned 26 before and maybe drinking like he was still 21 was not a smart choice on his behalf. His eyes were glazed and his finger nails were noticeably dirty as his hands reached in front of his face and planted into the ground in order to support his body weight up into a sitting position. What happened last night?

Still dressed in his old clothes, with only one shoe on his foot he decided to take another step toward putting this night behind him. He situated himself to his knees and then forced himself up using his legs. His neck was sore and when he ran his hand to check the spot where it was sore, only a scab was there. He felt something off in his stomach but pushed the thought of throwing up to the side and began his walk of shame back home.

He was at Adrianna's Bar & Grill, he came here frequently with friends to shoot the shit after work and drink. What made this night any different besides for it being his birthday night. As he walked in the direction of his apartment building he stuffed his right hand in his pocket and took out his wallet which surprisingly was still intact. His drivers license, cash, credit cards, and other sorts of cards were all still in their respective places. He wasn't robbed...then why did he feel as though he had the shit kicked out of him.

He hobbled his way up the steps to the 5th floor of his apartment complex, room 504. Taking his left hand he clumsily shoved it in his left pocket and began crawling around the inside to snatch the keys resting at the bottom. He took the keys, slid them through the lock, and unlocked the door, while doing so his roommate swung the door open and yelled his name,

"Tristan!"

Tristan instinctively brought his hands to his ears, "Dude, my fuckin' head hurts, try not to scream like a little girl when you see me Kyle."

Kyle was Tristan's friend since college, they both decided to room up together when they were offered jobs in Kenan. Kyle moved first and then Tristan only a few weeks later, but a majority of the art on the walls was done by Tristan himself. Kyle was an engineer and a good one, but his lack of experience has had him working for a firm instead of owning his own.

"Sorry man, I just didn't know where the hell you were, and typically you do not stay over when you meet a girl, she must be something special...or you just couldn't get enough I guess, just glad your alright."

Tristan did not understand what Kyle was talking about, all he could remember was waking up in a trash filled alley with one shoe and dirty from head to toe.

"Kyle...what are you talking about...what happened last night?"

Kyle took a second and scanned Tristan from head to toe, 

"Fuck dude, you don't look so good, are you saying you don't remember?"

Tristan made his way to the couch and plopped down with no regards to controlling his own bodies fall. He placed one hand on his forehead and the other supported him on his knee.

"Kyle, I woke up in the back alley of Adrianna's...I have been lying in my own piss for who knows how long, and my head feels like a hammer is beating it. I can only remember leaving work, heading here to shower, everything else is a blur."

Kyle's jaw dropped, "Holy shit...well go take a shower, get off the couch, and I'll explain everything up until you left."

Tristan wanted answers now, but Kyle was right, he needed food in his stomach, water in his body, and above all else sleep, but there would be time for that after he showered and got everything else done.

Wiping himself down Tristan was feeling slightly better, his stomach was still growling from no food and the head ache although weakening was still very noticeable. He made it to his bed room before collapsing on the bed, the room was spinning and so was his mind. He just had never felt so out of control before, it was a place he did not want to be for long and so seeking answers was necessary. With whatever strength he had left, he clothed himself and exited his room and made his way sluggishly with heavy feet to the island in the kitchen. There lay a large plate of eggs and toast, without talking Tristan immediately began crushing his food.

"Yeah, figured you were hungry, here is some water for that head ache."

Kyle handed over a tall glass of water and ibuprofen in the other hand,

"So what do you remember?"

Tristan continued eating his food and when the question was asked he took a few more bites and then placed the fork down, "I remember showering and getting ready for the bar for my birthday, after that...I don't remember anything."

"Jesus...well we were waiting for you at the bar and you arrived just a few minutes late, we had the first round of beers ordered and ready for you when you came into 'The Stone', we began drinking and just talking about a bunch of different shit and then we realized once we had a few beers in us that the bar we were at wasn't exactly full of life."

Tristan began eating again after swallowing the ibuprofen and drinking some water,

"We made our way to 'The Broken Mug' and then hopped over to Adrianna's, it was here where you met some chick while heading to the bathroom...I don't know...you were so drunk it was hard to understand you but it seemed like you were having a fun ass time."

Tristan choked on a piece of egg from eating to fast and coughed it up into his mouth and then swallowed it back down,

"You ok?"

"Yes I am fine...continue."
"You left with her dude, straight up dipped, you obviously asked for our permission to leave first so it didn't seem like you were ditching us, but it was your birthday...we weren't going to cock block you."

Tristan pushed the finished plate to the side and his head slammed on the table,

"You let me leave...completely hammered, with a complete stranger, who you never once even saw?"

Kyle smiled, "No, we saw her man, that's why we let you go home with her."

"Kyle! I didn't make it to her place! What part of waking up in an alley do you not understand!" 

"My bad, I'm sorry, I mean you're fine now and it's not like you're body is cut open and your chilling in an ice tub."

Tristan wasn't even about to reply to that comment and instead thanked Kyle for the meal and headed back to his bed room. Sleep...sleep is what he needed, he'd sort everything else out after sleep.

[b]Reflection of Mystery[/b]

Tristan's eyes opened from his slumber, palms were sweaty and his face was flushed with red. He was already on his knees but where he was had been the question, he rose to his feet only to be greeted by his reflection staring back at him.

"Hello Tristan!"

Tristan was taken back by seeing himself and before he could speak his thoughts were interrupted by the reflection.

"Welcome Tristan, Welcome home!"

Tristan was very familiar with home and this place, the place he was in now was not all home. It was cold but he was warm, it seemed empty and distant but he was present and existing. The place he was in right now did not make sense in his head at all.

"I understand! You areeee Confused! Don't be, just accept what is here and believe it is home! I promise you that it will give you everything you would ever want!"

"I don't want anything! I want out of here! You are not me, what are you!"

"I am you Tristan, in fact I am you right now! Don't worry, answers will come, I promise, but first...open your eyes!"

The reflection clapped its hands and suddenly Tristan awoke from his bed, he pushed the sheets that were draped over his chest and shoulders off to the side so he could then get up. It had only been 30 minutes since he laid down and he was rushing to the bathroom puking up the eggs and toast. His headache was still present and after he puked he actually felt slightly better but still hungry and weak from insufficient food. Tristan walked to the kitchen and grabbed a glass of water, quickly chugging the water, he then made himself a sandwich. Only able to finish half the sandwich he headed to the T.V. to see what was on, nothing...

It was not even 20 minutes later that he found himself throwing up the turkey sandwich he made earlier. Tristan was tired of hanging his head above the toilet bowl and wanted out of this seemingly endless ride of pain and frustration. He wanted his body to slide back into normalcy and unfortunately that seemed like such a distant thing right now. 

-knock-
-knock-
-knock-

Tristan's ears picked up the sound of someone's knuckles cracking on his apartments wooden door. Wishing to see no one and talk to no one, he simply stayed put, until another sequence of knocks followed and another and another.

"Kyle! Kyle! It's me Christie!"

Tristan uttered the f-bomb under his breath and gripped the toilet seat until he could muster the strength to pull himself up. Why does Kyle's girlfriend have to be knocking now...he wasn't even home, or at least Tristan didn't notice that he was home. 

Making his way to the door he swatted his hand on the handle twisting it and unlocking the door with his other hand. A easy pull toward himself and there was Christie standing in front of him, 5'6", slender build, and just right in all the places that counted. Her hair was blonde with curls and it touched the mid-section of her back, she regularly worked out and it could be seen in her figure. Straight pearly whites with green eyes and a strong head on her shoulders.

"Hi Christie...Kyle isn't here I don't think, and I am feeling like crap."

Tristan just turned around and made his way back to the couch, plopping down once more he threw his feet on the coffee table and just closed his eyes for a second.

"Huh...I tried reaching his cell but no answer, you definitely don't look good, what happened are you hungover or actually sick?"

Christie stepped in and shut the door as she asked her question,

"Christie...I just remember waking up feeling like crap and have been feeling this way all day, so yeah..."

Tristan really wasn't in the mood to talk, his body was aching more than ever but there was something that caught his attention and it happened when Christie walked by him to head to Kyle's bedroom. He could smell something strong, unsure exactly what it was but the scent made him water at the gums and he could feel his upper fangs aching just a bit.

As soon as Christie opened Kyle's bedroom door and walked in, the scent and sensations all left. Tristan could not understand what was happening he just wanted everything to feel better. Christie edited Kyle's bedroom just as quick as she had entered and then walked back out to the living room where Tristan was sitting, she chose to sit on the other side of the couch holding a bowl full of marijuana. She slipped the end of the bowl in between her pink lips and took a lighter torching the marijuana inside the bowl. Taking a big inhale she placed the bowl to her side and then let out all the smoke, after a few coughs she then handed it to Tristan.

"You want some? Typically helps with my hangovers, and well generally everything."

She smiled and seemed to of popped a wink after she asked.

Tristan and Kyle did not smoke as much as they used to back in college but they did share a lot of their stash with one another on week nights when they did not go out. It would be just around bed time that they'd both get together in the kitchen or living room and smoke. An hour later they usually would head to bed. 

Tristan gently took the bowl from Christie and took a hit before coughing up a lung and giving the bowl back. Christie moved a little closer to hand the bowl over a second time and when she did Tristan noticed a band aid around her thumb,

"What happened?"

"Oh, my thumb was cut when I was cooking the other night."

Tristan could feel that aroma slowly drip through his nose and down the back of his throat. His fangs began to ache as they did before as the scent returned. This time however the smell was so overwhelming...his eyes locked on the band aid.

"Its nothing to worry about, I promise...see!"

Christie unraveled the band aid revealing a small, but deep cut. Tristan could feel the smell of the dry blood on her skin that has clotted the area in order to prevent future bleeding. He could not understand how he could feel the scent of her cut but something was driving him in to a frenzy. He no longer felt hungry or sick, no longer was he hung over...instead his eyes closed and everything after was a complete blur.

[b]Living a Nightmare[/b]

Tristan woke up with zero pain, he in fact was feeling like he was back to normal. It was when he opened his eyes that fear struck him with a bolt of lightning. Tristan's eyes opened wide as he jumped up to his feet and looked down. He had been laying on top of Christie...her blouse unbuttoned and bottoms off. Dry blood dripped from her forearm that lay to her side palm facing up. Another bite was identified at her neck, there were no bruises, no indications of struggle, and Tristan could not figure out what was going on.

He swiftly walked to the bathroom to check a mirror once he spotted blood on his hands. When he looked in the mirror there was dry blood all over his face. Tristan quickly washed his lips and brushed his teeth but when scrubbing his teeth, he noticed his fangs were much longer than usual with a distinct point...that is when he realized

"Holy shit!"

Tristan yelled out loud at his epiphany, Tristan could only assume what had happened, he had heard of these types of incidences before but never in a million years would he believe it would happen to him. Just stories...that's what he thought, they were just stories.

Tristan walked out of the bathroom to examine Christie, standing there was his best friend Kyle Fraye. Standing over his girlfriends dead body, tears in his eyes, 

"W-what-"

"Kyle I can explain! Just calm down, it is as bad as it looks but not in the way that you may think!"

"Shut the f-ck up Tristan."

Kyle's voice was demanding, low, and scary, it was the voice of a man who had lost everything and felt nothing. His head rose from hanging low and his hands began clinching and opening.

"Kyle, we were smoking...and then I saw blood on her finger from a cooking cut last night...next thing I know I'm waking up and she is laying right there!"

"Are you serious...that's your explanation!"

Kyle rose his hand and swung at Tristan, Tristan without even thinking or hesitating dodged the punch by blading his body to the right, with his left hand he grabbed the wrist that was now in front of him from the punch. Tristan with his right hand latched onto the trap of his best friend and then he pushed Kyle back. Kyle was typically stronger by a mile, but today Tristan felt stronger. His left foot stepped passed Kyle, and Tristan's right foot came swinging passed and up, then it came down in a pendulum motion, his heel kicking the heel of Kyle. At the same time Tristan would push Kyle's trap with his right hand and pull the wrist with his left hand. Sending Kyle off balance and on to the floor with a loud thud.

Kyle's head would slam into the floor rendering him unconscious and on instinct Tristan followed up with this sweep and lunged at Kyle's neck. His fangs pierced his best friends artery and the warm blood began flowing from Kyle's body and into Tristan's. Tristan tried pulling away, he tried stopping himself the minute Kyle swung, but he couldn't. Something animalistic, something inside him kept driving him forward. More blood shot from his friends neck and the taste filled Tristan with satisfaction. His belly was beginning to feel warm and full as his fill was coming to an end. 

It was when Tristan no longer felt he was drinking, that's when he let go...

Tristan shot back on his heels falling to his butt and then backing up into a wall. He could do nothing but stare for the moment. Trembling in his own body he took his hand and began wiping the blood off his chin he had to now figure out a way to clean all of this up. He just needed to first feel his legs again.