A Stand-in To My Vampire Lover

Alexander found himself walking alone in the wood. His heartbeat increased rapidly and he could clearly hear it, they were like music to his ears. He surveyed his surrounding and felt it was happening again, the turn of event, the pain, the terror.

As he navigated his way through the dense forest, he saw them. A pair of red eyes, those eyes which looked right into his soul, attempting to strip his off his very composed facade. Without wasting any time, he turned around, sprinting into the dark.

Behind him, footsteps thundered, and he could hear the low rumble and snarls of whatever was after him. He didn't stop, he continued, screaming and calling for help. It were faster, stronger, and he knew it would be upon him in moments. Just immediately, sharp claws tore through his flesh, leaving searing pain in their wake. Blood trickled down his arms and legs, but he didn't stop. He pushed his legs harder, forcing himself forward even as agony threatened to overtake him.

In the distance, a cliff loomed ahead, it's jagged edge leading down to a river that churned with violent currents. Alexander's instincts screamed at him to stop, to find another way, but the snarls grew louder, the sound of snapping jaws dangerously close. With a final burst of energy, he propelled himself forward and leaped from the edge, his body hurtling towards the river below.

The icy water hit him like a wall, knocking the air from him lungs. He was swept into the fierce currents amd waves, his limbs flailing as he was tossed against the surface of the water and slammed into jagged rocks. Pain exploded through his body, his shouts muffled by the roaring water as he struggled to keep his head above the surface. The river dragged him mercilessly twisting him around and sending his gasping beneath the waves.

Just as his vision blurred, and his consciousness slowly slipped away, his eyes shot open.

Alex was panting heavily, his chest rising and falling. He was staring at his celling which was supposed to be familiar with him, however it wasn't. He sat up, cleaning sweat from his brows.

Inhaling deeply, he dragged himself from the bed and headed into his bathroom, splashing water on his face to shake off the last of his morning haze. He stared at his reflection in the mirror, wondering why he kept having the same nightmares.

A knock came on his door, snapping him out of his thoughts. He left the bathroom and walked towards the door. He opened the door and there was his cousin, Amaya smiling at him.

"What?" He asked, not exactly in the mood for her banter.

"You were sleeping more than usual, my mom just asked to check on you, not like I would if given another choice," she rolled her eyes. "I don't want to come up here again, save both of us the trauma of seeing each other's faces and come down for breakfast." With that, she turned around, flipped her hair and climbed down the stairs.

Alex shut the door close and headed back into the bathroom. After a while, he was done having his bath, he picked up his bag and climbed down the stairs.

"You're late for breakfast," Charlotte said, giving him a cheerful smile.

"I'm sorry," he apologized, gripping his backpack tight. "I'll join tomorrow," he said.

Charlotte smiled. "That's what you always say. It's fine anyways," she placed a hand on his shoulder. "If ever you have a problem or need someone to talk to, I'm here for you, Alex. Know that."

Alex faked a smile. "Thanks, Charlotte. I'll keep that in mind."

"Charlotte?" She raised a brow.

"Sorry, mom," he corrected himself.

"Good. Now hurry down, Amaya is waiting," she said, giving him a slight push.

Alex faked a smile and headed out of the house. Amaya was already inside the car, frowning.

"You really should be given a degree in lateness," she snapped, her anger evident in her voice. "I just hate you," she added and folded her arms.

"Get us out of here, Timothy," she told their driver, a middle aged man with dark hair and cold appearance. He nodded and opened the car door for Alex who slipped in immediately and after he shut the door, he got into the driver's seat, driving away.

Timothy parked the car and Amaya was the first to come down, she bid him farewell and rushed into the school building. As Alex got down, Timothy spoke.

"You okay, kid?"

"Yeah, why?"

"You need to loosen up, you're so rigid, so stiff. Tell me, you got any friends?"

Alex frowned, Timothy's comment had hurt him but he wasn't going to show it. "Thanks for caring, but I'm fine."

"I know your parents death had a huge troll on you, but you've got another family and-"

"I said...." Alex snapped. "I'm fine, you don't have to remind me of them." With that, he slammed the door shut and walked away, his anger intensifying.

Alex inhaled deeply and walked into his classroom, taking his seat. He brought out his sketch book and started making sketches, that was his solace, his escape.

"Yoo, Alexander the great!" His best and only friend shouted on entering the class.

Alex rolled his eyes, Christopher was too loud and he had complained about it but Chris didn't want to stop. Chris arrived at Alex's desk and snatched the sketch book.

"Look at that, making another anime?" He asked.

"Give it back, Chris," Alex said, standing to collect the book. However, Chris escaped from his reach. "This is beautiful, you should show the class."

"Chris, that's enough," Alex said, praying deep inside that Chris would just stop playing around.

Chris chuckled and raised the book up for the class to see. Reacting on instincts, Alex rushed to collect it but mistakenly hit a class bully. Before he could utter a word of apology, the guy's fist came jamming against his face.

The punch knocked the breath out of Alex's lungs and he staggered backwards, hitting a girl who was standing behind him. The girl immediately became irritated and pushed him away but Chris was fast to catch him before he collided with another person who would do worse to him.

"Are you okay?" He asked, feeling bad and responsible for what happened.

Alex turned to him, anger flashing in his eyes. "I asked you to give it back!" He snapped.

"I'm sorry," Chris apologized, handling the book to Alex.

Alex snatched the book from him and returned to his desk, nursing his bleeding nose. Chris approached, squatting by his side.

"I'm sorry Alex. I swear I never wanted anyone to hurt you."

"Just go Chris, I'm fine," he replied, lowering his gaze.

"I can't, not when you're like this, listen, I'll..."

"You!" A voice shouted prompting the whole class to look up. "You hit my girlfriend?" The guy who's name was Tyler asked.

Alex looked up and realized it was him Tyler was talking to. He opened his mouth to speak but before he could, Chris stood up, standing in front of Tyler. "It was an accident."

Tyler scoffed. "Since when did you become his mouth piece?" He asked.

"I'm his friend, so back off!"

"You little..." Tyler raised his hand to hit Chris when a teacher got into their class.

"On your seats, everyone," Rachel, their history teacher said, walking in. As they looked towards the door, they noticed she was not alone.

A sudden hush fell over the students as all eyes turned to the newcomer, and a collective intake of breath was audible. The new student, a boy with captivating features, walked in with an air of confidence.

His chiseled face was accentuated by sharp jawlines, prominent cheekbones, and a straight nose. Piercing blue eyes sparkled beneath thick, dark eyelashes. His hair was a rich, raven black perfectly messy and styled to frame his face.

His athletic build was evident beneath his fitted white shirt, which highlighted his broad shoulders and toned physique. Dark jeans hugged his lean legs, and sleek black boots completed his effortlessly cool look.

Every student was mesmerized, and Alex found himself scanning him from head to toe.

"Everyone, this is Kaiden Lysander. He's a transfer student and will be a member of this class from now on."

"Hello," he greeted and the students melted, whispering inaudible words to each other. Alex inhaled deeply, tearing his eyes away but couldn't miss his scent – a subtle blend of leather and citrus – wafted through the air, enthralling his senses. He noticed the way his eyes crinkled at the corners when he smiled, and the faint dimple on his left cheek.

His gaze traveled down to his hands, strong and masculine, with neatly trimmed nails. He observed the silver watch on his wrist, the simplicity of which contrasted with his radiant presence.

Finally, he looked up and their eyes locked. Alex felt a jolt of electricity pass through him and he suddenly looked away, hoping and praying no one caught him staring.

"Were you in any way checking me out, Alex Blackwood?"

Kaiden observed the excitement in the class immediately he stepped in, it wasn't new to him as he had gotten such appraisal since he was a kid. As he scanned the class, his eyes fell on a certain student who was watching him with an intensity that sparked curiosity in him.

Immediately his eyes locked with the guy's, he noticed the guy's discomfort which made him look away immediately. He smiled, he knew people like them, and he knew how to deal with their kind. He stared at the guy and although the guy had looked away, he didn't tear his gaze off.

"Alex," his said, his deep voice carrying across the room and a hint of amusement dancing on his lips.

Alex's heart missed a beat as he heard his name, he looked up immediately and caught the new comer's gaze on him, the crazy part was not only his, but the entire class, including Mrs. Rachel. However, he wondered how the guy knew his name. He inhaled deeply, trying to play it cool, but his voice trembled slightly. "Y-yes?"

The guy's smile grew wider. "Were you checking me out?"

Alex gulped, frantically shaking his head, attempting to compose himself. "N-no, of course not!"

The classroom fell silent, with all eyes on the exchange.

Kaiden chuckled, his eyes sparkling with mischief. "Really? Because it looked like you were taking inventory."

Alex's embarrassment deepened. "I was just... admiring the decor," he stammered.

Kaiden raised an eyebrow. "Decor?"

Alex nodded vigorously. "Yeah, the... uh, classroom design."

Kaiden laughed softly. "Well, I'm flattered to be compared to the furniture."

Alex's face was now scarlet. He glanced around, desperate to escape the attention.

The teacher intervened, clearing her throat. "Alright, let's focus on the lesson. Welcome, Kaiden Please take a seat."

Kaiden smiled at Alex before turning to the teacher. "Thanks. Sorry for the distraction."

Kaiden walked in, looking for a vacant seat. He noticed how they students were willing to get rid of their friends so he could seat beside them. However, the same Alex guy who was seating with another guy didn't make any attempt to get rid of his seating partner. This intrigued him, someone wasn't paying attention to him for the first time.

He stopped by Alex's desk and bent slowly, using his finger to raise Alex's chin so he was looking at him. "I want to seat beside you."

Alex yanked his hand away, embarrassed about the early event. "I have a seating partner already, go find somewhere else to seat. I'm sure there are people willing to seat with you."

Kaiden smiled. He was stubborn and that was delicious, he loved them stubborn. "But I want that seat."

"Hey!" Chris intervened. "He doesn't want to seat with you, go somewhere else, you're causing a nuisance."

Kaiden chuckled, not seeming affected by Chris's comment. "I always get what I want."

"Not today," Chris said.

"What's the issue?" Mrs Rachel asked, facing the class.

"I want that seat Mrs. Rachel," Kaiden said, looking at the woman.

"If he wants it, you give it to him, do that immediately Chris!" She commanded, to the surprise of the whole class.

Chris stood up. "But Mrs Rachel, I want to seat beside Alex, and Alex wants it too."

"Alex doesn't," Kaiden said. "Isn't that right, Alex?" He asked looking into Alex's eyes.

Alex stared at those pair of blue eyes, captivating, hypnotizing and he immediately opened his mouth. "Leave Chris, I'm seating with Kaiden."

"What?" Chris asked, surprised. "Alex, you-".

"Now!" He snapped, startling the whole class, including Chris.

Chris stared at him in confusion before looking at Kaiden who had a triumphant smile on his face. "Your friend doesn't want you anymore, so leave."

"You won't get away with this, I promise." With that, Chris took his stuffs and left the seat.

Kaiden sat down and looked at Alex. "You did great," he whispered.

Alex looked at him, surprise at his outburst. "What did I just do?"

Kaiden shrugged. "You asked your friend to leave."

"I didn't.." he looked around for Chris and found him at a far end of the class, anger flashing before his eyes. "Chris-" he made to stand but Kaiden immediately place a hand on his shoulder.

"Seat right there," he ordered.

"What?" Alex turned to him and immediately their eyes locked, he found himself seating back down and picking up his pencil, ready to learn.

Kaiden smiled. "Good boy, although I know you were checking me out."

Alex's heart skipped a beat and he forced himself to look forward, focusing on the teacher. What was happening to him exactly, why was he doing all Kaiden asked. He decided not to look anywhere but at the teacher, he couldn't understand what was happening and was really hoping whatever it was wouldn't repeat itself.