When I opened my eyes at last, it was slowly and uneasily. I had slept deeply for goodness knows how long, and I couldn’t begin to guess where I was. My head was still woozy with the fog of heavy sleep, and my limbs felt as though they were made of lead. Next to me lay a vampire. His arm was thrown over my stomach and his legs were tied in with mine.
‘Kaname,’ I shrieked, aiming to sound indignant. ‘What did you do?’
He looked at me with calm, unreadable eyes. ‘I got you away from a group of bloodthirsty vampires before they had the chance to kill you. If that doesn’t deserve your thanks then I don’t know what will.’
I was furious, and tried to let it show – despite sharing a bed with him. Thankfully, I was fully clothed and hadn’t been bitten (I checked thoroughly). ‘You were the one who drew my blood in the first place. If you hadn’t hit me, the problem wouldn’t have arisen,’ I reminded him icily.
Thankfully some sensation had returned to my body, and I slid out from between Kaname’s silken sheets. ‘You’re despicable,’ I muttered, starting towards the door.
‘How so?’ murmured Kaname. He was in front of me in a flash; of course. He was a supernatural being, I reminded myself.
I folded my arms over my torso and set my jaw. ‘You let your pride come before your feelings for me. You told me you loved me, and yet you hurt me just to prevent yourself from losing a fight. Akatsuki didn’t. He was willing to lose to you to protect me. That’s love,’ I explained obviously, ‘so what you feel isn’t.’
‘I am a vampire, Cassandra. I can’t change my nature; the very fibre of my being.’
I exhaled crossly. ‘Just because you’re not human, that doesn’t change the logistics of love. Love means transcending your own feelings and putting the other person first. It means tending to their needs before your own. It means looking after them, and doing what’s in their best interests, and caring for them.’ I paused. My hands were shaking with anger, and they balled into fists. ‘Love is not forcing yourself on someone, even for just a kiss. And it is certainly not raking through their skin with your nails if they want to prevent a fight.’ I sidestepped Kaname neatly and marched out of the door.
Hesitating at the door for a moment, I whispered, ‘You aren’t despicable, Kaname. But you’re making it impossible for me to love you. You say that’s what you want – for us to be together – but I don’t think you’ll let that happen. You’re sabotaging your chances for happiness. I wonder why?’ I didn’t wait for an answer, and instead slipped away to find Akatsuki.
