Til Death (Immortal Memories) by R. M. Webb Page B

All his analogies revolve around it now. “Take just one strand in your hand, uncooked of course. This only works when the spaghetti is firm, yet brittle. Now bend it. What happens?”
    I roll my eyes. “It breaks, of course.”
    “But if you hold many noodles, gather them all together and try to bend them, it takes much more force to bend them, and even more force before they break.”
    “I know, I know, I get it.”
    “Do you?” He touches my chin with his finger, his lovely eyes waiting until I’m completely focused on him. “Because I don’t think you do. Humans are meant to work together. You’re weakest when you’re alone.” I definitely notice his use of the word ‘human.’ You’re weakest when you’re alone. He recognizes that he lives outside of humanity, that he’s strong enough to operate without any help from anyone. Does he know how much I want to be strong like him? Outside humanity like him? I don’t dare bring it up, so I put my wine glass down and press my lips to his. I’m afraid I’m falling in love with him.
    More days and nights pass and more secrets are shared. I’ve gained some weight. My smile comes easily. I laugh often and I’m either with Thomas or anxiously awaiting those two precise knocks on my front door. I see Mia watching us as we move in and out of my apartment. Sometimes she’s peering through her windows, watching as we stroll hand in hand through the courtyard on our way to wherever it is we’re going. Other times she’s with Mr. Sexy Coffee Man - Elijah - on their way to wherever it is they’re going.
    We don’t speak. We don’t even really wave. Our eyes bounce nervously off each other, afraid of what the other might say.
    After a few weeks, I’m no longer afraid I’m falling in love Thomas. Because I am in love with Thomas. I’ve offered him my blood time and again. He continues to refuse, kissing me, holding me, but keeping that part of him separate. The thing that I found the most appealing about him is the thing he won’t share with me anymore.
    “But don’t you see?” I ask. “Sharing my blood with you makes me feel close to you in a way I’ve never felt close to anyone. Ever. And having your blood?” I blush. Afraid he’s going to think I want it only because of how good it makes me feel physically. How can I word it so he knows that it’s the most intimate feeling I’ve ever known?
    “I know you enjoy it.” Thomas won’t make eye contact. I’ve learned he really doesn’t like this conversation. But I press on anyway.
    “I do enjoy it. But not just because it makes everything about life … better. More vibrant. Thomas, I enjoy it most because it’s my chance to understand how you see things. To get to know you. ”
    He presses his lips to mine and I know the conversation is officially over. Whatever it is that keeps him from wanting to drink my blood isn’t going to go away. But I have to continue trying because if he won’t agree to drink my blood then he’ll never agree to the thing I actually want.
    To become a vampire.
    To escape the confines of normal human life. To operate outside the norm. To truly be the master of my own fate. And to spend the rest of forever with Thomas. The only being I’ve ever let know me. The only being I’ve ever let help me. The one person I’ve ever felt safe with.
    “What’s it like?” I ask one night as we stroll through the city at twilight, watching the streets come alive.
    “What do you mean?”
    “You know, you . Being what you are. For as long as you have.” No one’s paying us any attention, but I’m vague anyway.
    Understanding causes him to nod and look away. “Ahh.” He doesn’t answer right away, but I’m patient. Stay quiet and let him mull over his thoughts.
    Just as I’ve decided he’s not going to answer, he does. “The years pass quickly, little blips of time, yet when I look back over the entire span of my existence, it seems to stretch on and on, so long. So much