Trigger warning in this part for anyone who may have been attacked at some point in their lives. If reading it may trigger bad memories feel free to skip to the happy ending/my post chapter comments.



If there was one thing that would kill me more than a stake through the heart, it was attending a party hosted by the largest Greek chapter on campus. I stood in a corner next to the food wearing a long-sleeved mini-dress holding onto a beer bottle. Carmen and I arrived to the party early and about fifteen party goers also arrived early, the hosts not included.

I watched Carmen easily start conversations with people she knew from her time as an undergrad. With her distracted I could've left and changed out of the stupid mini-dress. Sure it hugged the shape of my ass and my breasts, which is useful in playing the seductress, but I never, ever, liked the idea of being the seductress. Why was it she and I have to wear those constricting things when at least two girls wore yoga pants?

As I began to make my way out of the party, one of Carmen's friends came to the food table. She stopped me in my tracks and exclaimed, "Oh there you are! Carmen said she invited a few friends. You're her roommate Elena, right?"

"It's Lena, actually." I clutched the bottle to the point I heard a tiny crack.

"Why are you loitering in the corner? Come join us." She grabbed two chicken wings and left to rejoin the Borg.

I guessed it wouldn't kill me to say hi to them and leave, so I walked away from the corner. I scanned the living room and more people had arrived. Another of Carmen's friends joined her circle and if I cut across the room, I'd be in eye contact with Alyssa. Alyssa, the name she used back then, was studying at the university in the same history program I got kicked out of. She too was a vampire but didn't object to the curriculum. She cheated around it through hypnosis and promising to turn the prof. For all I care she can claim Mickey Mouse was the first president of the USA and she'd get a pass on the paper.

Oh right, the crowd. I looked around again to find Carmen, and she moved. Good. I dodged Alyssa along the way. I stepped into the crowd and a few steps in someone blurted, "Nice ass!" Was that for me? It might be for me. No, there was another girl wearing ass-embracing clothing. A few more steps and—I was hyperventilating? I had to get out of there fast!

I took in a couple more breaths and somehow I made it outside. If Carmen asked me why I left, I'd tell her my ninety minutes were up and I headed home. A deal's a deal, fair's fair, and all that jazz. Also, the cold didn't bother me. I realized I was far from the frat house and didn't bother to retrieve my coat. As I waited for the bus, some drunk, seemingly around the age of the party goers, approached me. He leaned against the post and out came the vomit. I covered my nose to block the stench, but that wasn't the worst of it. He looked up, face all red, and hy-yucked.

"Well, hello there cherry pie. Say, why don't you come over to my place so I can have a slice?"

I stepped back. Probably took two or three just to give extra space. He could ask for directions and I'd still think he's making advances on me.

"Come on, don't be shy, let me help you." He slurred his words and wobbled in his steps. His hand to eye coordination, you'd think they'd be off, right? While he had missed the gutter when he threw up his hands didn't miss the target that was my ass.

Un-fucking-acceptable!

I gave the lecher a kick to the head and walked away but no — the motherfucker saw my ass and made a second grab. Was I asking for it? Fuck no! What I did next he didn't ask for either, but the second time he grabbed me pushed it. So I snatched his right arm, twisted it behind him, jumped on and wrapped my legs around his torso — all in one swift movement. Then I went in for the kill.

Literally.

I bit into his main artery in the neck. Normally I don't go for arteries as they tend to shoot out like shotgunning a beer can, but it's the fastest way of draining someone. Just for good measure I snapped the motherfucker's neck before I let him go, landing on my feet gracefully before his body plopped to the ground. I stared at the body, still oozing blood. Yeah, I made a mess, but I was hella proud of what I did. I, Ileana of clan Darvov, have vanquished the—

"What the fuck happened here?"

I looked up and saw Carmen standing opposite. Convenient enough she also brought my coat. The situation couldn't get more awkward.

Carmen walked over to the body and used her foot to turn him face up. "Girl, you just single-handedly took down the suspected party groper. Dude's been sneaking into college parties for the past six months."

I was confused by her reaction. Dead body, vampire, those were enough to shock someone, but her response indicated she had seen this before. Hell, I was confused by my own reaction of not attacking her. "I did?"

"Yeah, he was in the news for months and — why didn't you tell me you're a vampire?"

I hung my head low. "I wasn't sure if you'd want me for a roommate. Aren't you, uh, aren't you afraid I'll sneak into your room at night and drink your blood?"

Carmen placed a hand on my shoulder then grabbed me into a hug. After letting go she said, "If you told me I wouldn't have tried to manipulate you into coming to this party. I've lived with a vampire for a bit and yes, he did nick me a couple of times while I was sleeping. My sister has an interesting taste in boyfriends."

I was relieved. The past few times I roomed up with a human and they found out, I was either kicked out or ended up draining their pet cat. Carmen didn't care about the blood dripping from my mouth or that I stained her dress in the process. She also confessed that she wasn't afraid of me.

"So you wouldn't mind if I–"

"Hell no! Unless I'm dying of something then I'll let you drink from me. You need my consent first even if it's an emergency."

"You're right, consent is the key. Apparently he didn't get the message." I kicked the body and again he was facing the ground.

Carmen handed me my coat. "I think we should leave before someone finds you. If you left him alive you'd get away with it. The Metropolis has started to crack down on random vampire attacks."

"Crack down on random vampire attacks, huh? Guess some things definitely have changed since I've last been here."

"You lived here before? That means you know of the good bars in town! Or at least ones that are still around."

"Yeah, I don't go out a lot. Maybe you've heard of the pub at the edge of the Metropolis — Talia's Tavern?"

"I may have, but people warned me not to set foot there." She glanced down at the body. "What are my chances I'll end up like him?"

"You'll be fine. She has decently priced drink specials and she'll make sure you're not a drink special."

"Do they host karaoke there?"

"Every Sunday."

Carmen grabbed me and pulled me in closer to her. "I'm sold! Let's go now! The frat party was starting to suck when I left."

And that's how I made a friend out of Carmen. The remainder of the night we stayed and partied at Talia's. Since it was her first night, she had to drink Talia's house special. If there is anything special about the house special, everyone who drinks it passes out from the first sip. She definitely did. From that night on we made it a habit of going to Talia's whenever she needed a drink. I love to stay home and read a good book, but it kept me off Carmen's back for not being so outgoing. That and the hangover she got from the house special.For now, I'm just a nice normal girl in an ordinary world.

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And finally we have some vampire action. Remember, know your boundaries, make sure your friends and family know whether you're okay with surprise hugs or not. When one person says no or stop (or the safe word when if it's one of those situations) respect that. If you're pressured into doing something that makes you feel uncomfortable, you can back out (and it doesn't make you less of a person). Don't be afraid to seek help from others (friends, police, family members you haven't spoken to in ages to name some) if you're stuck.

I can ask stuff about parties. Are you a party person? Do you like to party with people or by yourself? What kind of parties do you like to host or attend? (The things I do to make this interactive)

And we're at the end of Episode 1. If you like what you read, you know the drill. Overlooked issue? Let me know! Up next: Episode 2

Edited 27/08/2017 Might as well add in the cultural note that the Greek parties I'm referring to are those hosted by fraternities and sororities who use Greek letters to name their groups. I think this is more of a North American (mostly in the USA) thing but to some degrees exist outside (a university I went to didn't allow them to be associated with the student union because of equality issues if I can recall).

Song featured: "Hangover" by Alestorm (cover of Taio Cruz song)