AS SOON AS I ENTERED the large, spotless bathroom, I burst out in tears. I just couldn't hold them back any longer, not after everything that had just happened. It was all just too much for me to take in, especially since vampires shouldn't exist - they couldn't exist. How was it even possible for mythological creatures to be roaming the earth unknown?

Zayn had been a suspicious character from the start, but I had never expected him to be such a dick. He was charming, quiet and polite for the majority of the time I had known him, and until recently, he was nothing like I had first thought he had been - he was evil; a monster who took what he wanted whenever he wanted.

I couldn't help but feel devastated about the sudden turn of events, remembering all the nice things he had ever said to me, which at the time, had all been lies that I had been too naive to see. He had said so many things that had made me smile, made me shudder and some things that had even made me laugh. But things were different now. I doubted that he would even be able to make me laugh again.

"You're worth drawing, babe."

"Trust me . . . I'm no magician."

"How convenient."

"I don't feel the cold."

"Why would you not want to kiss me?"

"Well, everyone has their secrets. This, Laura . . . this is one of my secrets."

The more I thought about all the things he had said to me in the past, I couldn't help but hate myself for being so blind. He had made it very clear that he was different in some way, and yet I still hadn't been quick enough to realize what he was - before it was too late.

The way he said everything with confidence baffled me. He had been so casual around me and my friends while hiding his true form, something that had tricked us all, and not only myself. Marielle had said she wasn't going to fall for his charm, meaning she hadn't been won over by him like everyone else, myself included. She had will power and managed to see that there was more to him that met the eye. 

I couldn't help but shudder at the memory of walking home with him alone after we had left Kate's. The way he had casually made conversation about the killing of the Morgan and McFadgen families as if he were scared himself. It had been him. He had killed those poor families and yet, he acted as if he didn't have a care in the world. I vaguely remember him calling the murderer 'a sick bastard'. Back then, I hadn't known he was referring to himself so that no one would have suspected that it was him.

I wiped away my teas with the back of my hand as I slowly closed the bathroom door behind me, the faint click assuring me that it was shut securely. I trudged over the blue rug that lay in the middle of the room, and looked to my left, dreading what I would see looking back at me. As soon as I looked at the mirror, I let out a groan - I looked more like a zombie than a vampire  now. My make-up had run where my tears had mixed in with the foundation, the perfectly applied mascara, eyeliner and eye shadow had smudged around my eyes and my red lip stick had smeared slightly after Zayn's rough kisses.  To make things worse, my hair was a mess, loose strands escaping the once perfect bun on top of my head.

At times like these, I would become fussy about how I looked, but in the current situation, I couldn't care less. I carefully pulled the hair bauble out of my messy curls and let them hang loose, down past my shoulders before I slipped the hair accessory around my wrist. I turned to the shower in the far corner and slowly started to walk over to it, the need to wash myself clean from all the night's happenings, increasing by the second.

I turned on the water and waited until it was hot enough before I started to undress, cautious to make sure Zayn didn't decide to reappear at said time. I slipped the vampire gown over my head and let it fall to the floor before I quickly removed my bra and underwear, hiding them under the gown as a precaution. I didn't exactly want Zayn to try anything weird, now did I? With a shaky sigh, I jumped into the shower and quickly pulled the curtain shut after me, making sure it covered me completely with no gaps available for any peekers.

I looked around, my eyes landing on two small shelves behind me, holding various shampoos, conditioners, sponges and shower gels. At least the dirty bastard keeps clean, I thought to myself as I picked up a bottle of shower gel and a sponge. I scrubbed myself clean until my skin turned pink, the heat of the water stinging a little. I took the time to wash off all of my make-up, the sponge turning a different colour as the make-up smudged off, onto it.

When I was positive that my face was make-up free, I lathered my hair in shampoo and rinsed it out quickly, desperate to jump out of the shower and put my clothes back on. Throughout my time in the shower, many more tears fell, mixing in with the clean water.

"Laura?" I heard a voice call over the running water and my eyes widened as I recognized it as Zayn's, and he was in the room with me. I froze for a moment as I heard him shut the bathroom door behind himself and his footsteps neared. I quickly lowered the power of the water and grasped the shower curtain close, sticking my head around to make sure he didn't come any closer.

"Get out!" I shrieked as I watched him standing in the middle of the blue rug, a smirk on his face.

"Relax, I'm only dropping off some things for you." he said as he walked over to the toilet with a pile of clothes in his hands, a small blue bag resting on top. I recognized it as my toiletry bag and my eyes widened as realization hit me.

"You were in my room? My bathroom?" I shrieked as he neatly placed the items down on the closed toilet lid. He looked up at me with no emotion in his eyes before he stood straight again and ran a hand through his dark hair.

"Only to pick up your stuff. Your parents agreed to let you stay the night. We're going to have so much fun." Zayn said with a grin and I squeezed my eyes shut.

"No, they didn't - you made them agree. They would never agree to let me stay over here for the night." I said. I opened my eyes and held the shower curtain a little higher when I noticed that  Zayn's gaze had dropped from my face to my chest, a blush crawling over my cheeks.

"Well, there's nothing I can do about it now, can I? Looks like you're staying." he said before he looked over at the clothes he had dropped off for me.

"You can leave now." I snapped at him as he continued to stand in the middle of the room, doing nothing but looking around, his hands tucked into his pockets and a tuneless melody escaping his lips.

"I know I can." he retorted, his dark eyes capturing my own and I felt myself freeze. "Like I said, I was only leaving you some things. That is . . . unless you want me here for other purposes?"

My mouth fell open at his suggestive tone and I glared at him, shaking my head quickly. "No. Leave."

He chuckled. "Nah. I think I'll stay. It is my bathroom after all." he finished as he sat down, cross legged on the blue rug, clasping his hands together and resting his chin on top, his eyes locked on mine. I looked down, avoiding his gaze as he refused to leave.

"If you're trying to make me uncomfortable or even scared then you've already won." I said. "Please leave." I pleaded and he chuckled once again. He tilted his head to the side as he observed me and I suddenly felt a surge of power run through me as my eyes locked with his. I knew he was using his freakish mind control thing on me, and tears stung my eyes as I thought of what he could do to me while I was helpless, nude in the bathroom with him.

"Please don't make me do anything. Please?!" I desperately asked him and he frowned. Slowly, lithely he stood, dusting off his trousers as he did.

"I wasn't going to, Laura." he said grinning, clearly amused at my sudden terror. He loved scaring me - scaring people full stop. I wondered how he had went about killing those families - had he slowly killed them or quickly? Had he seduced the young woman of the family like he had with me? Had he ripped their throats open and sucked them lifeless? A shiver ran down my spine at the thought of all the many thing he could have done - what he could do.

Just when I thought he was going to speak, he turned around and started to make his way over to the door, whistling to himself as he did. He opened the bathroom door and looked over his shoulder at me before he left.

"I've got some tea boiling downstairs if you'd like some?" he asked and I slowly nodded, not really caring if I was offered something to drink or not - I wanted him out of the bathroom so I could finish showering.

"Yes?" he prompted and I looked up, into his eyes.

"Please." I whispered and he smiled at me before he continued.

"I'll order a pizza for you if you're hungry. Are you?" Zayn asked me and I couldn't help but frown, confused at his offer. Why was he offering me food and drink after claiming to be a heartless monster who played games of death? Mood swings seriously didn't suit him in the slightest.

"I'm fine." I mumbled, not wanting to accept anything from him. For all I knew, he could easily slip something into the food while I wasn't looking - he just couldn't be trusted.

"Laura." Zayn said sternly as he lounged against the bathroom door. "I can hear your stomach rumbling just as easily as I can hear the blood running through your veins. Don't be silly about this - just accept the offer. Be grateful you're even being offered anything." he said before he left the room, closing the door behind him. I stayed where I was for a few moments, listening to his retreating footsteps before I fixed the curtain once again and finished my shower.

I double checked the room before I hopped out of the shower and looked around for some towels. On the far wall was a railing with multiple towels hanging over it, all different colours and sizes. I picked up the largest towel and wrapped it around my body before I used my hair bauble to haul my wet hair up into a wet bun. I wrapped the smallest towel around my head before I made my way over to the toilet where Zayn had left me my things.

I picked the toiletries bag off of the top of the pile before I looked at the chosen pieces of clothing Zayn had picked from my wardrobe. My pyjamas were folded neatly on the top with a bright pink pair of knickers and a matching frilly bra.

My eyes widened as I realized he had been through my underwear drawer and had chosen the only pair that I swore I would never wear. As a cheeky joke on my sixteenth birthday, Niall and Sophie had decided to buy me the extremely revealing fluorescent pink lingerie, which had earned a blush and awkward chuckle from me afterwards. 

I had been relieved when they had revealed they were only for a birthday joke. They had been hiding at the bottom of my drawer ever since, never to be worn. Apparently, Zayn had thought otherwise. I groaned as I pulled on the inappropriate undergarments, biting my lip as I did. Why would someone make such small clothing?

I pulled on my pyjamas, which were simply a faded yellow tank top and polka dotted bottoms. I couldn't lie about the fact that I felt extremely uncomfortable.

I gathered up my Halloween costume and the other clothes that Zayn had brought over for me to wear the next day, not exactly sure on what to do with them. I placed the small blue toiletry bag beside the sink before I left the bathroom, looking left and right for any signs of the vampire.

I slowly made my way down the stairs, knowing that there was no point in trying to escape - Zayn would only hear me and catch me before I could blink. He was just too fast for me. The unmistakable sound of Zayn humming to himself sounded through the hallway as I neared the living room door. Through the crack in the wood, I could see the bright light of the fire hitting off of the ground, casting shadows to dance around the darkened hallway I was stood in. Hesitantly, I pushed the door open and peered around the corner to see Zayn sitting on the couch, hunched over something in his lap.

"Come in, Laura." he said and I cleared my throat before I slowly - reluctantly - pushed the door open further and stepped into the room. I made my way over to the arm chair that sat opposite the couch where Zayn was seated, scribbling away at a piece of paper, a drawing being crafted perfectly before my eyes. The arm chair was right next to the fire, so the warmth that consumed me made me feel slightly more relaxed - being alone with Zayn didn't help at all.

We sat for a few minutes in silence, my eyes watching his every move, from the smudging of his fingers against the paper to how he would take his bottom lip between his teeth as he concentrated. As much as I hated him, there was no denying his talents - he was an artist.

I looked away as soon as his dark eyes met mine, keeping my gaze low, locked on the burning logs in the fire place. However, with my averted gaze, I could still feel his gaze on me and I shifted uncomfortably, hugging my clothes tightly to my chest.

"Cute pyjamas." he commented after what felt like ages. I briefly looked up at him, catching his grin and quick wink before I looked down again. "They look better on you than they did on your bed." he continued.

I heard shuffling from the couch and out of the corner of my eyes, I saw Zayn push his drawing aside before standing and stretching his long limbs. I gazed down at the abandoned sketch and blushed when I recognized the girl in the vampire gown - it was me from the Halloween party.

I watched as Zayn leaned over and picked up a mug of steaming tea and a plate of pizza I hadn't noticed lying on the table before me. Slowly, he made his way over to me, holding the food and drink in my direction, waiting for me to accept the offer. 

Ever so slowly, I reached out and took them from his grasp, my fingers brushing against his for a brief second, causing shivers to run down my spine. I carefully placed the plate on top of the pile of clothes and brought the cup to my mouth, hiding behind the rim as Zayn headed back over to the couch and resumed his artistic work.

I looked down at the plat of pizza sitting in my lap, my stomach grumbling as I did. I hadn't eaten for hours, way before we had left for the party and I was rather hungry. I slowly picked up a piece of pizza and started to nibble on the end of it, my eyes drifting over to Zayn. I was a little shocked to see him too, eating some pizza while observing me.

"I thought you only drank . . ." I paused for a second before I could finish the sentence. "Blood."

Zayn snickered as he chewed his food and swallowed it down. "Am I not allowed to enjoy human food?"

"I didn't say that." I said quietly and he grinned at me as he finished the triangular piece of food.

"I can eat human food easily, but have to drink blood to survive. Like humans have to drink water to survive." he said with a small shrug before he took a sip of his tea. "Is this you back to asking me questions?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Only if you're going to answer them." I said and he pondered the thought for a moment, frowning at his mug as he did.

"I'll answer them." he said, nodding slowly. "Ask what ever you'd like."

"How can you walk at day time? Vampire turn to dust in the sun." I said quickly and his loud laughing once again echoed around the house.

"You honestly believe in every single legend you hear, don't you, Laura? You humans are so gullible about these kind of things. Vampires don't burn in the sun - we simply weaken. We can't use our powers as well as we can when it's dark."

"But in P.E - you were so fast and strong . . ." I trailed off, remembering how he had moved as quick as lightening  to hit the ball, making it zoom over my head and hit the back of the room.

"Just like I am in bed." he said with a wink and I blushed and looked away, biting into another piece if pizza as I did. "But no, all it does is weaken us."

Still feeling slightly awkward at his remark, I asked another question. "Can you turn into an animal? Like a bat or a wolf?"

"What shit have you been reading, Laura?" Zayn asked and I shrugged quickly waiting for him to answer the question and quit putting off.

"No we can't. That's just a stupid legend that some dickhead thought up." Zayn said with a shrug before he bit into another piece of pizza.

"Stakes." I said as I picked at another piece of pizza, peeling the tomato slice off of the cheese.

"Whether they're wood, silver or just something sharp, it can kill us." Zayn said and I slowly looked up at him. He was very brave telling me ways in which he could be killed. He almost made it sound easy. "A good jab through the heart," he thrust his hand forward as if to show an example. "and we're goners."

"You just told me how I can kill you." I pointed out and he chuckled loudly before he sat back on the couch, crossing his legs as he did.

"Yeah, I did but it's not as if you'd manage to kill me." he said. "You're too slow compared to me. All humans are."

"You say it as if you hate humans." I said, my eyes narrowed. It was surprising just how much he made it look like he couldn't stand them, especially when it was the blood of humans that kept him alive and his games playable.

"I do hate them - they're puny and vulnerable. I only enjoy playing with them." he said with a shrug and I looked down, mortified at his words. All those times he'd said something nice to me, held me close and even kissed me were his idea of 'playing'. He was a sick, heartless monster to me, nothing more.

"Why don't you drink animal blood?" I asked, still disgusted at his attitude towards my kind. "I'm sure it tastes the same."

"You're sure? You're sure?" he said, an eyebrow raised in question. "Laura, you haven't the slightest idea how much the tastes of human and animal blood differ from each other. Human blood is richer, sweeter and animal blood is weaker in all aspects. It lacks the amount of power human blood gives us."

"Oh." I said, my ears picking up one particular word that made a shiver run down my spine. "Us?"

"Oh, yes. There are others in the world, more than you might think. I actually have a friend coming over sometime next week for a visit. A vampire too, of course." he said when I looked up at him quizzically. "Don't worry, I'll introduce the two of you. I'm sure you'll both get on extremely well." he finished with a sly grin. I couldn't help but notice the sarcasm in his tone and I gulped before I averted my attention back towards the burning logs. 

I despised the thought of meeting another creature like Zayn - especially if he were exactly the same as Zayn. From the way he acted, he made it seem like all vampires were heartless murderers.

"What if I don't want to meet this friend of yours?" I asked, narrowing my eyes slightly.

"It's not l like you have much of a choice." Zayn said, grinning. I bit the inside of my cheek to stop myself from yelling out at him. He thought it was great to be a control freak. "And in case you're wondering, we're completely the opposite."

"How so?" I asked, curiosity getting the better of me. Maybe his vampire buddy was nice and caring, that much opposite to how Zayn was.

"Falls in love too easily. And to make it worse, sometimes humans are the love interests." Zayn said, shuddering slightly as he did. I narrowed my eyes at him and looked down at the empty plate on my clothes.

"Why is that so bad?" I asked. "If you love someone then it doesn't matter what race, religion, colour or species in this case." I said, defensively. He was so against the thought of human socialization that it made me feel sick. How could he be so stupid? How could he be so repulsed by the beings that kept him alive?

"Because vampires are monsters, Laura. Or haven't you learned that yet?" he asked, leaning forward in his seat. "We're mysterious, seductive, and oh-so deadly creatures. We all like our games, but not everyone is as twisted as I am. Falling for a human makes a vampire look weak, vulnerable in some ways." he finished and I blinked twice, trying to hide my tears. It hurt what he said - I had originally thought he had feelings for me. I guess I had been wrong.

That's when a thought hit me: If he were as heartless and evil as he claimed, surely there must have been an answer as to why I was still alive. He had said I was different from other girls he targeted, but that wasn't a good enough answer. Not for me anyways.

"Why didn't you kill me?" I whispered. "Tell me the truth. You had so many opportunities to do it - so many times when the two of us were alone together, and yet you never made an attempt to kill me."

Zayn shrugged once again in response. "The funny thing is, I was absolutely dying to drain you dry that time when we were in the woods. It was you and I all alone in a hidden area." he said with a smirk.

"And yet you didn't bother." I said, my voice croaky as I remembered back to that day when he had met me walking Jet.

"Because I thought of a plan. I actually have a date written down for when I'm going to do it - kill you, that is." he said, his dark eyes locked on my face. I couldn't help but let the tears spill over when hearing how he said 'have' a date and not 'had'. He was still serious about ending me and soon.

"A-and when is that date?" I asked quietly, shaking in my seat. I knew that the answer, whatever it may be, wouldn't be pretty, and would leave me even more terrified than I already was.

Zayn's smirk widened as he watched me shudder in fear. "A week today."

That was all it took for me to break down in hysterics, sobbing loudly at the announcement of my soon-to-come death day. The urge to storm over to him and slap him across the face was increasing by the second and it took all my will power to not carry out the action.

"Don't cry again, Laura." Zayn said in a mockingly cocky tone, a smile on his lips. "You knew it was going to happen sooner or later."

I continued to sob, hugging the pile of clothes tightly to my chest, making the empty plate fall to the floor. I squeezed my eyes shut as I watched it land with a clatter.

"Why me?" I whispered to myself. I knew Zayn could hear me easily, but I didn't care. "Why the hell did I have to get involved with a vampire?"

"I think you'll find that it's actually the other way around. The vampire became involved with you. Unlucky for you of course, but never the less, entertaining as fuck for me."

"Shut up!" I screamed at him, not able to hold back any longer. I wasn't going to sit there and listen to him boast about how he was able to do whatever he wanted. He knew that he was more powerful, more stronger and more capable of things that only I could attempt in my wildest dreams. I didn't need him to constantly remind me.

"So," Zayn said after a few minutes. I wiped my tears away with the back of my hand and looked down at the discarded plate, not bothering to pick it up. "What do you want to do?"

"Go home." I said stubbornly and I heard a low, almost growl like sound escape from the back of Zayn's throat. I slowly looked up into his dark eyes. He didn't look happy - he looked angry. I found myself slowly shrinking back into the cushions on the armchair, trying to put a little more distance between the two of us.

"It's only half past eleven." Zayn said as he looked up at the clock sitting on the mantle piece. "What do you feel like doing?" he asked again, his eyes locked on mine. I gulped at the onyx depths gazing at me and I slowly shrugged before I took a deep breath and looked away.

"Well, seeing as you don't have a clue, you'll just have to follow me." Zayn said before he pushed his plate to the side and stood up, strolling over to me with a hand out stretched. I shied away from him as he neared and hugged the clothes tighter to my chest. "Don't be awkward, Laura. All I'm asking you to do is come with me."

"Where?" I asked quietly, lowering the clothes a little so I could see him more clearly.

"Upstairs." he said with a wink and my eyes widened. No, there was no way I was going to let him have his way with me, no matter how much he tried to make me give in. I wasn't going to let him touch me, not without a fight.

"You're crazy." I said. "If you think that I'm going to let you-"

"Don't flatter yourself," he said, cutting me off. "We're going to the study." he said, and before I could do anything, he grabbed my wrist and hauled me to me feet, taking the clothes from me just as quickly. He pulled me along, towards the door and up the stairs into the dark corridor, me tripping over my feet as he did.

"I can't see anything." I complained, tugging my wrist every now and then, only to fail in pulling it loose from his grasp - his vice like grip wasn't letting go of me anytime soon.

"Stop moaning. We're nearly there." he sad before a door was opened and a light was switched on. Zayn pulled me inside, closing the door behind us and dropping my clothes on a small table beside the entrance.

"Why are we up here?" I asked as I looked around the room at the multiple paintings and books that I had ogled at once before. I looked around at Zayn and he chuckled before he leaned forward and pulled the towel that was wrapped around my hair away from me. I groaned when I remembered that my hair was tied up in a wet bun, loose strands hanging loosely around my neck.

"We're going to have some fun." he said with a smirk, his grip on my wrist tightening ever so slightly. My eyes widened at his emphasis on the word 'fun', knowing all to well that his idea of fun, wasn't going to be the nicest.

"What-" I started but Zayn laughed at me, clearly finding my shocked expression hilarious.

"Do you want to read, paint of draw?" he questioned. "One of those, and I don't care which one."

I let out a relieved sigh and looked around the room at the multiple creative utensils splayed randomly around the study. My eyes landed on the unfinished paintings on the canvases at the other end of the room and then the large bookcase beside me. I had to admit that I was surprised that he had even offered me to read - something he knew I loved to do.

"Read." I said quietly and Zayn gestured to the bookcase before he let go of me and made his way over to the canvases, my eyes following his every move. I couldn't let my guard down while I was around him - I couldn't let him take advantage of me - at least not anymore.