Her eyes fluttered open again to find the room shrouded in darkness. Her head quickly swiveled towards the door and she felt a sigh of relief exit her as she saw it was closed. She closed her eyes and allowed her ears to see for her. Their was a shuffling down the hall, as if somebody was pacing in a room and a bit further then that was the buzzing of machinery working. She could hear a dishwasher, a fridge, and an ice box, that must be the kitchen then. Up the hall she could hear a washer and a dryer going through their cycles of laundry and two people mumbling in soft tones, lover’s voices. She opened her eyes again and sat up. She glanced around the room she was in and felt confusion rise in her again. The room had a dresser, its own bathroom, a desk, a bed, a closet, and a nightstand. She threw the covers of the bed back and lowered herself to the floor slowly, remembering what had happened last time she had gotten up to quickly. The carpet was soft and she briefly wondered when the last time this room had been used. Realizing she was wearing nothing but her undergarments she walked over the dresser and opened the first drawer glancing inside, surprised to see womanly undergarments there. She slammed the drawer closed, fire burning in her cheeks. She opened the second drawer and found shirts there. She quickly pulled out a black one and pulled it on. She opened the third drawer and found shorts and skirts; she shut that one quietly before opening the last drawer. This one was almost empty, all that was inside it was a golden locket with the name Casey engraved on the front of it. She shut the drawer quickly and turned toward the closed. She opened the door and was pleased to see it filled with pants. She pulled a pair off its hanger and slipped into them. She glanced at the floor and saw pairs of shoes lined up neatly. She grabbed a pair of flats and slipped them on before turning to the door. She shook her head, knowing it would be locked. The doctors wouldn’t want to lose one of their experiments. She spun towards the bathroom and flicked the light switch on. The lights flickered for a minute and then remained on blazing the room with a fierce light. She looked in the mirror and let out the groan she had held in last time. She stared at her reflection self before reaching for the hairbrush on the counter. She placed it on her head and yanked it through her knotted hair. A yelp escaped her lips but she didn’t let that stop her. She placed the brush once again on the top of her head and yanked it through. It took her what she could only estimate as an hour to brush the knot completely out of her hair. She now stared at her straight high-lighted brown hair. Her hand rose and moved toward the mirror until her fingers lightly brushed her reflection. She shook herself and exited the bathroom turning the light off as she went. She approached the door and reached her hand out to touch the knob. She gripped the handle tightly, silently laughing at her foolishness for trying a locked door. She turned the knob and was surprised when it swung open easily. Her hand quickly released the handle as the light from the hallway flowed into the room she occupied. What was going on, she wondered as her feet inched towards the open door. She stepped into the hallway and glanced up and down it, checking for any doctors or nurses but there was nobody. She glanced behind her towards the room and then started to walk towards the sounds of the kitchen machines. She poked her head around the corner of the hall and felt a smile tug her lips as she saw the plate of cookies on the counter. She stepped closer to them and sniffed at them trying to detect if anything was placed in them to keep her sedated but her nose picked up nothing but cookie ingredients and blood. She looked over her shoulder towards the hall of bedrooms and felt her heart soften towards the three strange men. She turned back towards the plate of cookies and lifted one up, biting into it greedily. A gasp of pleasure shot in her mouth as the cooked practically melted in her mouth. She stuffed the rest of the cookie in her mouth and then grabbed another. A shuffling behind her stopped her from shoveling that one into her mouth as well. She slowly lowered her hand and turned towards the man standing in the hallway. He was the light-haired man and she couldn’t help herself from staring. His abs were clearly visible now that he wasn’t wearing a shirt, and his body was nice and lean. She tore her eyes away from his chest and gazed into his eyes which she noticed were filled with happiness and pleasure.
“I was hungry,” she whispered her voice barely audible to her own ears she doubted he had heard her. The man nodded and walked towards her to stare down at her.
“I would be surprised if you weren’t. Darke thought you looked half-starved so he made you some of your favorite cookies,” the man whispered down to her, his eyes locked on hers, looking for something. A tickling rose in her brain and she felt her eyebrows draw together. Her gut clenched and she felt as if she had forgotten something. Something important, she shook her head and the feeling went away. Her eyes once again locked on the man’s and she almost lost herself in them.
“I don’t have a favorite cookie,” she whispered back and was saddened when the man drew away from her and started around the counter to one of the cabinets by the fridge. She watched as he pulled down a few canisters from it and placed them by the sink. He then proceeded to pull out two cups from anther cabinet. His movements were graceful and she couldn’t tear her gaze away from him. He turned to look at her a smile plastered on his face and she felt her knees go weak. No, she admonished herself, this man was a stranger. Had she already forgotten the lose she had suffered? The disgust she had had to face for what she was? No she hadn’t forgotten. She straightened a bit and tried to smile back but couldn’t.
“What do you say to a cup of hot coco?” He asked casually his voice giving off a lazy lilt. Her eyes shot to the canisters behind his back and then back to his gaze.
“What’s coco?” She asked and tilted her head to gaze at him. She was certainly asking a lot of questions lately. A habit she would be sure to be rid of before the doctor came back to retrieve her. The man’s smile widened and he turned back towards the canisters, dumping spoonful of what was in them into the cups he had gotten out. She watched him noting how he never measured the stuff out evenly.
“You asked me the same thing the first time I made you hot coco. Only you asked what chocolate was. I was so shocked to find out you had never had chocolate but what was I supposed to suspect. You were a vampire, I’m pretty sure there were a lot of things you hadn’t tried out,” he spoke over his shoulder as he filled the cups with water, stirred the contents together, and then placed them to heat up in the microwave for 45 seconds. He turned to look back at her and she felt fear tighten in her stomach as she realized he knew what she was. She took a step back and kept her gaze focused on him.
“Excuse me but I’ve never met you before sir,” her voice cracked with fear and she took another step away from him. She needed to get away before that look of disgust filled his eyes. The man only stared at her and stayed where he was, crossing his arms across his chest, his smile growing even wider.
“Yes you have Casey,” his voice was filled with laughter and she froze where she stood. Casey, the name whispered across the space between them settling in her ears, swimming around in her head, trying to connect with something. Who am I, she asked herself as she stared at the man before her. She looked down at the cookie in her hand and her eyes widened as her head shot back up. Darke, the name rang in her head, dancing around, flirting with her memory. Uetsi, the name came unbidden to her and she let the cookie slip from her hand. Who am I, she asked once again, who are Darke and Uetsi? She gripped her head as a headache began to grow and throb. The man rushed to her and gripped her shoulders his concern filled eyes meeting hers.
“Lyte,” the name shot out of her mouth before she could stop it and the man’s hands tightened on her shoulders. “Where is Lyte?” The man tightened his grip on her and she focused on his face. Anger flashed like lightening in his face and she shot away from him. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to say that, I know what you guys said is true. Lyte is dead just like you all said. He’s dead.” The words rushed out of her mouth rapidly as her back hit the wall. The man marches over to her and places his hands flat on the wall, trapping her between him and the wall. She met his anger filled gaze and feels her lip quiver in fear. The man leaned down and she felt her breath catch as his lips gently brushed hers. Her hands came up and grasped his face while his wrapped around her waist and pulled her against his body. A shock ripped through her and her hands traveled into the man’s hair and tangled there. The man’s arms tightened around her and she felt the stirring of a moan rise up in her throat.
“Well I’m glad to see you two are getting along so fine now,” a cheery voice said from the hallway entrance. The man shot away from her and cold seeped into her body now that his heat wasn’t there. She turned her head and stared at the black-haired man who once again had a smile on his lips. Heat rose into her cheeks and she glanced down at her feet feeling as if she were a teenage girl who’s dad had just found her making out with the school reject.
“What are you talking about Darke?” The gray-haired man’s voice floated into the kitchen now too and the heat in her cheeks rose as she saw him enter the kitchen. She turned to him slowly and glanced up at him from beneath her lashes.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to, I know that wasn’t proper protocol,” she let the words slip out quietly, unsure how she was going to be punished for making out with a nurse.
“There’s a proper protocol to kissing somebody?” The gray-haired man asked laughter dancing in his voice. Her eyes widened as she glanced at the light-haired man before looking back at the gray-haired man.
“You’re not going to punish me?” She asked not being able to hide the surprise in her voice as she took a step closer to the gray-haired man. She heard a chuckle come from the dark-haired man, who she now knew was called Darke. Her eyes flashed to him and she felt another smile tug at her lips as she saw his. The gray-haired man shook his head before turning back to Darke and the hallway.
“The one who kissed you can punish you, Darke and I are going to bed,” the gray-haired man shot over his shoulder as he grabbed Darke and hauled him down the hallway. She turned slowly back towards the light-haired man who was staring at the floor now instead of meeting her gaze. She stepped toward him and placed a hand on his arm. His head shot up and his gaze locked on hers and she smiled her first smile in 6 months. The man stared at her and she felt her smile waver but held it in place.
“What is my punishment?” She asked not letting her fear shake her voice this time. If she showed fear the punishment would be worse then it probably already was going to be. The man grabbed her hand and drew her nearer so that his other hand could grip her chin. His blue eyes sparked with untold emotions and she was surprised to find herself unafraid of this man.
“Your punishment is this, you shall permit us to call you Casey,” his breath washed over her face as his words penetrated her ears. She stared at him and then slowly nodded her head. The man’s lips curved up in a soft smile before he released her to walk towards the microwave which was now flashing the word END. She sidled over to the counter and sat down on a stool where he then placed a cup of brown liquid in front of her. Casey stared at it a while before gripping it and raising it to her lips and taking a big gulp. It slid down her throat and warmed her up from the inside out. She set her cup down and smiled at him trying to convey that she thought it was good. They finished their hot coco in silence and when Casey finished hers she was saddened about the idea of going back to bed. She stood up and walked to the sink, gently placing the cup in it before glancing up at the man.
“What do I call you?” She whispered to him as her eyes traveled over his profile. His eyes glanced at her out of the corner of his eye before gazing straight ahead again.
“Why not just call me Lyte?” He whispered back, his lips barely moving against his cup. She felt her hands tighten on the sink as the name he whispered hit her like a rock in the gut. Casey turned her eyes back to the sink before she slowly nodded her head in assent to his wish. She turned away from the sink and headed towards the hallway.
“Good night Casey,” his voice came out of the dark and wrapped around her and made her stop in her tracks. She looked at him over her shoulder and stared as the twinge of recognition flirted with her brain again.
“Good night Lyte,” she sent back to him and then she felt the snap as her brain grasped hold of the flirting recognition. Casey spun her whole body around to face him this time as her hands clenched at empty air. Lyte, Darke, why hadn’t she seen it before? The man she loved, the man she thought dead, was here, standing in front of her. Her knees buckled and she felt Lyte’s hands catch her before she could hit the floor. Casey wrapped her arms around his neck and stared into his eyes, seeing now the same man who had looked at her in disgust all those months again. “Lyte,” she whispered and as he nodded his head slowly she felt the darkness close in around her again. Casey laid her head on his shoulder and let the darkness over take her. Lyte was alive, she thought before she lost all consciousness.