She looks horrified.

That's the first thought I have when she walks into biology class.

I'm not sure why, but ever since this semester began, my body has been sluggish. Always full of energy, I'm unaccustomed to this. It feels...well, it feels almost human, for lack of a better word. Having been so long since I was one, I am hard-pressed to consider the fact that I might actually be coming down with some type of virus.

For my kind, this should be impossible, however, and so I'm clueless as to what is happening to me. It's alarming, but in a novel and entertaining kind of way. It's been so long since anything unusual happened to me that I almost welcome this feeling. It's different and that makes it interesting.

Not sure what that says about me, but hey, what can I say? As a vampire who's lived through it all and seen it all, any deviation from the norm is welcome.

I'm getting ahead of myself, however.

Back to the girl.

I've never seen her before. As she tip-toes past my desk I lift my head in time to catch her eyes, which she promptly hides from me.

What was that?

Anytime I want someone to look at me they do. That's all there is to it.

It's very simple. I want them and the girls want me back.

When I was first turned I thought it was fun to put them in a trance; have them follow my every whim, but these last few centuries, I've discovered it's more interesting when I let them think they have free will against my powers. If I actively disarm my compulsion, they can go about their business without feeling the tug of my strings upon them.

This girl, however, turns her head as if she can do so without my letting her.

I sit up at attention when I realize, in fact, that not only did she turn her head but she walked away from me as quickly as possible. As if my presence repulses her.

It's tiring having to relax my compulsion. I'm not sure what's in my blood, but it draws females to me like a bee is attracted to pollen. They can't help but want to be near me. It's great for my survival. I am reliant upon them for sustenance after all. But, it does get trying keeping them at bay all the time, especially the groupies.

I turn my head and see the girl searching the back of the room. I think she's trying to find the farthest seat from me.

Isn't this interesting?

Maybe I should spice things up.

I grab my Bio text and notebook and walk close behind her before she can make a decision. When I'm about a foot from her, she whips her head around and stares right at me, yelping.

"Get away from me!"

I take a retreating step, having been caught off guard.

"What?" I ask her incredulously, feeling an invisible shove against me. There's no pain, but some kind of slight pressure urging me to move away. I scrunch my eyebrows in confusion.

"I said," she tells me, sticking her fingers to her throat where she finds a charm on her lace choker. She worries it as she continues. "Get away from me. Leave me alone. I want you to move back to the front of the classroom and stay as far as possible from where I am."

Speechless, and still feeling pressure against my chest, I turn to do as she says, retaking my seat. The pressure dissipates and I'm left confounded by it all.

I park myself at my table and look over my shoulder to where the girl is now sitting. Before I can get my bearings, another student enters the classroom; a male student. I don't recognize him anymore than I recognized the girl.

Like her, he walks by me unaffected by my compulsion.

Much to my dismay, men are as equally attracted to me as women. Whereas I enjoy toying with the women, men hold no interest for me. Another drain on my resources, I have to keep my walls up against them at all times.

To have two students go by, however, unaffected by my compulsion sets me on edge. Combined with the manner in which my body's been acting lately, it makes me sit up in my seat straighter to take stock.

What is going on?

Following the male student's stride, I see him sit at the table with the new girl. She jumps up to hug him and I can hear her exhale from here. She's relieved to see him. He gives her a friendly hug in return.

Curious to find out what is going on with these two characters, I follow behind them as they exit the class at the sound of the bell. We're about two classrooms away from bio when the guy turns to me, gently moving the girl behind him, as if to provide her protection from my approach.

"Something you need?" He asks me, staring wooden stakes into my eyes.

A small grin lifts the corner of one side of my mouth.

I'm going to enjoy this.

Finally, someone who has the gumption to stand his ground in my presence.

"Yeah, her," I respond calmly, pointing behind him. "Why don't you step out of the way and she and I can have a little chat."

To my astonishment, instead of moving aside gracefully like I expect him to, he moves closer to me. "Get lost."

I laugh out-loud.

This guy just stepped into my grill.

Oh, this is going to be so much fun!

I'm just about to answer his chest pumping display when suddenly a sharp pain interrupts me in my tracks. Cringing in discomfort, I wince reflexively and look up.

It's the girl. She has reached across the man's chest and has moved him behind her!

Even more surprising is the fact that the pain I feel intensifies with each step she takes in my direction. Not only that, but as the pain increases, so does my desire to reach out and touch her.

Is she compelling me?

What is happening to me?

"Wait," I reach out to her, to try to prevent her from moving. "What are you? What are you doing to me?"

The girl squints at me. I think she's angry, but I can't figure out why. I've never met her before, let alone given her a reason to dislike me. Never mind the fact that no one dislikes me unless I want them to. My compulsion ensures their admiration.

For the first time I can't help but notice how beautiful this girl is. Her hair is long and blond. It falls in waves down her back and stops between her shoulder blades and heart-shaped bottom. Her eyes are alive; a crystal clear blue that shimmers in the sunlight streaking through the nearby hallway blinds. Her skin is a creamy white, so light it is almost translucent. It should make her look sallow but doesn't. She is absolutely breathtaking.

The closer I get to the girl the more I am drawn to her. Her fingers are delicate and small with short nails that glisten with clear coating. At least I think she's wearing clear coat. Maybe they look that healthy naturally. Heck if I can tell. With my vision I should be able to tell, though. Why can't I?

I frown. What is wrong with me?

Desperate for answers, I reach out my hand to touch hers while repeating myself. "What are you?"

"I am Aingeal Fola," she answers me powerfully, moving out of my reach and daring me to question her further.

With wide eyes, I retreat backwards and slam into the lockers behind me. "No!" I stammer. "It can't be!"

Instead of leaving me, she moves closer again. The pain in my chest intensifies. "Yes."

"It's not true," I say, wanting to stay in a state of denial. "You're not real. You're a myth. You can't possibly be-"

"I can," she affirms, cutting me off. "And I AM. If you know what's good for you, then back off. Never approach me again. Stay away. For both our sakes."

Turning my head, I realize what she has just said. "It's true then?"

She moves back, taking some of the pain with her. I feel the grip on my cold heart loosen. "It would kill both of us?"

Shaking her head in mockery and disgust, she looks away for a moment to exchange a glance with the guy behind her. When she rolls her eyes and looks back at me, her mouth twists into a sneer before she replies. "Yes and no."

Getting my feet under me, I stand up off of the lockers. "What do you mean?"

"My blood won't kill you right away, but a piercing kiss will destroy me the moment your lips leave mine."

"If you can't kill me, then-"

The girl holds her hand up. "I said it won't kill you right away," she starts to explain. "But you will die. Eventually. Just one taste and you will become human again. You will grow old. You will age and you will eventually die. Your immortality will be lost. If you are injured, you can be killed. It's as simple as that."

"But one kiss will also kill you?" I ask, turning my head in surprise.

"Yes, as soon as you pull you lips away from mine," she answers with a sigh.

Having said her piece, the girl turns to leave. The boy behind her wraps his arms around her shoulders and they walk towards the cafeteria.

For 600 years I've been living alone surrounded by people. I've had my fill of their company and no one has ever tugged on me the way this girl is. There is a stirring inside me. I have become the bee. I need her pollen. I want her like I've never wanted another since I've been turned.

The days pass and I cannot get her out of my head. I feel her soul pulling on mine like an invisible filament jerking me towards her. Like an addict, I crave her touch, her body, her blood.

As a vampire, I know all about desire and compulsion. I know the need for blood all too well. This is different, however. This is an obsession.

The semester moves forward taking my sense of will and control with it. Every time she enters biology I have to keep myself from leaping across the room at her. I want to tug on her curls; make them bounce playfully in my fingers. I want to stare into her ocean blue eyes and get lost. I want to touch...my mind is turning to mush.

I realize that the sick feeling I've been having is her. Just her presence weakens me. I drop Bio and sign up for Physics instead. Anything to get away from where she will be on campus.

At various times of night, however, I find myself standing outside her house. I can't leave her alone. I follow her when she is not watching; when she is unaware.

Until that day; that one day. I give in to her compulsion. I find her alone at the library and I pounce. I press my lips against hers and bite, savoring the moment. At her shocked face, I pull away from our kiss afterwards regretting that she must now die.

But I was wrong.

I should never have kissed her.

Instead of watching her expire before my eyes, it is I who falls to the ground. It is I who shrieks in agony as the demons of hell come to tear me apart as she watches. A look of triumph blazes in her eyes and she smiles down at my crumbling form.

"You lied!" I scream as she laughs vengefully.

"I told you to stay away from me."

THE END.