The Dark Heroine: Dinner with a Vampire. Abigail Gibbs

Birthday!’ Fabian sung, a little too delighted.

      ‘Go away,’ I groaned, kicking the wet sheets off the bed and rolling over.

      ‘Nope!’

      ‘It’s midnight,’ I told my pillow, smothering myself with it. When they didn’t go, I grabbed the other pillow and chucked it at the end of the bed in their vague direction. Immediately, it came back my way and landed on my back. I sighed. ‘What?’ I snapped, sitting back up and placing the pillow in my lap. ‘Can’t you just let me sleep? I need sleep, remember?’

      As my eyes adjusted to the gloom, I could see Fabian and Cain glancing at each other, grins widening. ‘Oh, I don’t think that will be possible,’ Fabian said.

      ‘To hell it is.’ I threw myself back down onto the mattress and was just curling up when a pair of arms wrapped around my waist and hoisted me up.

      ‘Hey! Let me down you stupid leech!’ I screeched, pummelling Cain’s chest as he lifted me up into his arms. My legs flailed and I wriggled, but he wasn’t going to let go.

      ‘No,’ Cain replied, still grinning as we passed Kaspar, who held an empty bucket. I glared at him.

      ‘But–’

      ‘No.’

      He sped up and everything hung in the air for a moment before we were downstairs and standing outside a room I didn’t recognize. He let me down and I landed on the cold floor.

      ‘You might think we are totally heartless, to quote you, “murderers”, but we’re not. And to prove that, we decided we can’t ignore your eighteenth birthday.’ A wicked grin spread across Fabian’s face, and my stomach clenched in dread, suspicious.

      ‘Bah, stop looking so worried,’ Cain said, placing his hand on the doorknob. ‘And don’t tell father. Or Sky or Arabella.’ With that he threw open the door, revealing a large living room I was sure I had never seen before. He stepped through and after Fabian motioned, I followed, apprehensive about what I was going to find. But my face soon lit up when I saw what was waiting on the table: bottles and bottles of alcopops. A bottle of champagne came flying my way and I caught it clumsily, almost dropping it.

      ‘Many happy returns and all that shit, Girly,’ Kaspar said, twisting off the cap on a bottle of vodka. ‘And crack open the bubbly before I get old, will you?’ he added, gesturing at the bottle in my hands. I shook it and pressed my thumb against the cork, holding it as far away from my face as I could get. I screwed my eyes shut, waiting for the resounding pop which turned out to be a bit more pitiful than I hoped. Instead of going flying, the cork landed at my feet and a few bubbles dribbled from the rim – not exactly Formula One worthy.

      ‘Less wasted, I suppose,’ Kaspar said, taking the bottle from my hands and pouring it into several glasses, handing them around. ‘To Violet’s first legal drink!’ He raised his glass in the air and everyone followed. I stared at mine and blushed. Kaspar must have already had a bottle or two. He was far too jolly. I watched as he downed the champagne in one and then picked up the bottle he had just opened, taking a long swig from that too. Staring at the label, I realized it was neat vodka.

      Fabian turned to me, pouring himself a second glass of champagne from the bottle which was practically empty now. ‘How do you feel about getting totally wasted?’

      Something in my brain said vampires, but something else far more overwhelming said alcohol. I smiled. ‘I’m totally fine about it.’

      ***

      Four shots of vodka, three alcopops and two glasses of champagne later, I wasn’t so fine about it. My head was swimming, my vision wavering and my words didn’t sound the same as they did in my head. I clutched at another alcopop, sipping it whilst watching Felix down his sixth bottle of neat vodka – he wasn’t even tipsy. Stupid vampire tolerance to alcohol.

      I leaned against the back of one of the sofas that had been pushed against the wall, swaying to some music I knew but couldn’t name. I watched as Lyla flirted outrageously with Fabian, her usual vodka and blood substituted for the straight stuff. Fabian kept flashing me looks and something seemed to click in my brain, but it didn’t register. I shook it off, refusing to think.

      Kaspar sauntered over, but in my not-quite-with-it state, I didn’t give a damn. The clock struck one and he reached me, resting up against the sofa.

      ‘Hey babe,’ he slurred. ‘You’re not wearing very much, are you?’

      I wrinkled my nose in disgust. ‘Eww, how much have you had to drink?’

      He immediately sobered up and smirked. ‘Not enough.’

      I inwardly groaned as I realized he was nowhere near as drunk as he was feigning.

      ‘Why are you doing all this?’ I asked, gesturing with my bottle towards the other side of the room where the pile of alcohol was growing as more people arrived. ‘My’ party seemed to be in full swing now – vampires I didn’t recognize were dancing at the far end of the room where a large space had been cleared; the lights had long been switched off and the music turned up. Girls and guys openly groped, kissed and grabbed, regardless of gender and watching them, I felt my heartbeat quicken.

      ‘You only turn 18 once,’ Kaspar said, shrugging and taking another mouthful from the litre bottle of vodka he was holding. I didn’t even want to know how many of those he had already emptied. ‘And besides, it’s an excuse to drink.’

      ‘And there was me thinking you did it out of the kindness of your heart.’

      ‘Do I look like a saint?’

      I chuckled. ‘No, not really.’ There was an awkward silence for a few minutes, which I filled by sipping more of my drink and watching as Felix tugged at the skin on a girl’s neck with his fangs. Pressed up behind him, a guy, his features strikingly caught between male and female, groped at the chest and crotch of the fiery-haired man. I felt intrusive for looking, yet it was so alluring as his face split into a smile and he took their hands, leading them from the room. I felt my cheek burn and glanced to my right to see Kaspar’s gaze darting between the door and my face, a smirk playing on his lips. I stared at the floor, waiting for him to make a snide remark, but none came.

      I tried perching on the back of the sofa but slid right back off again, struggling with the concept of balancing. ‘You know, next time you don’t have to use cold water to wake me up,’ I complained.

      ‘Oh, that was just a last minute idea of mine,’ he shrugged, taking another swig of the vodka. ‘We were going to shout boo, but you were snoring so loud you wouldn’t have heard.’

      I went bright red and crossed my arms across my chest. ‘I don’t snore.’

      ‘Do.’

      ‘Don’t!’ I punched him on the arm, annoyed. He did the same back, but I wasn’t expecting it and the bottle I was holding fell to the floor, shattering. It splashed everywhere, drenching me. ‘Idiot! Now look at what you made me do!’ I exclaimed, gesturing at my tank top that was now dripping wet. I side-stepped out of the way of the glass, conscious of the fact I was bare foot. ‘Why is it that when I am around you, I always seem to get really wet?’

      He laughed, side-stepping the glass too and pressing me up against the back of the sofa. ‘I generally have that effect on girls,’ he growled into my ear, clearly amused. For the second time that night, I groaned in embarrassment. ‘No need to be ashamed, Girly. It’s all natural,’ he added, stroking my flushed cheeks and then wrapping his arms around my neck.

      ‘Get off me, you manslut.’ I pushed him away and he stepped back, chortling.

      ‘Manslut? Seriously? That’s not really a comeback.’

      But this is, I thought, raising my hand to slap him. He caught my wrist – of course – before I got anywhere near his cheek.

      ‘Whoa! Ease off.