Free William's Tale by Regina Morris

aged within a vampire’s body, it slowly thickened and turned purple — aging the vampire in the process. Over time, the blood within the vampire’s veins would become a blackened goo. The cells of the body aged until new blood was supplied, or until the blood could no longer be used, and the vampire aged to the point where his body turned to dust.
    William dispensed the second syringe into his arm, allowing the dose of crimson delight to travel the same path as the first. The wrinkles around his eyes ironed themselves out, his skin became more elastic, and he knew any aged spots had already disappeared, as well as any grey hair. Yes, five plus years could make a difference in a person’s appearance.
    He closed his eyes as he reclined on his couch. Tingling sensations spread across his body until the onset of blood lust hit him. His body had replenished itself, and now he had an innate desire to mate. That’s when his mind focused on the party and the possibility of seeing Jackie again.

Chapter Ten
     
    Jackie arrived at her apartment later than she expected. Spending the last few hours at the art supply store was not her idea of fun, but the task was necessary. She tossed the mail and her newly purchased art and music supplies onto her kitchen table and then walked over to the TV and turned the set on. The late evening news blared.
    Great. The time was even later than she had thought.
    She couldn’t remember the last time she relaxed in a hot tub and sipped a glass of wine while listening to soft jazz, or the last time she read a book just for the mere pleasure of reading a book. Even the last movie she went to was that stupid vampire movie, which was quite a while ago now.
    A green envelope on the table caught her attention, so she picked the letter up — hoping it wasn’t what she dreaded it to be. Unfortunately, the invite proved to be exactly what she had feared. There had been memos circulating around the school, as well as follow–up emails about the event, so she wasn’t too surprised to receive the formal notification by mail.
    She stared at her invitation to the annual masquerade party she now held in her hand. How did the summer get here so fast? Between the visits with her father, which were nice, but taking up a couple of nights a week, and the new art supplies and techniques she was learning, the time just flew by.
    Knowing she would attend, like she did every year, she wrote the date on her wall calendar in the kitchen. No other special events, specifically any dates, were marked for the month, so she figured she had at least one social event to look forward to. Her own school would be hosting, so she would definitely be there.
    She set the invite down on the kitchen counter next to some freshly washed paint brushes, and then walked to the refrigerator. Opening the door to the freezer, she searched the selection of frozen foods until she found the frozen cheesecake. She gave a wry smile as she took the cake out and set the frozen pastry on the counter. “Not for dinner,” she said to herself. The small cake would make a nice, yet a bit oversized, dessert. Finding the frozen, low–fat, single–sized lasagna dinner, she placed the meal in the microwave and waited the three minutes for her “Gourmet Italian Dinner” to be ready.
    Her kitchen table was filled with art supplies and one of the chairs held a box of music recorders. Jackie took in a deep breath and let the air out slowly. She wasn’t cut out to be a music and arts teacher, and she felt as though she was letting the kids down. There had been no complaints, and several of the children seemed to genuinely enjoy the classes she taught, but she wished she was either better suited for the task or for the summer to end so she’d be put into the freed–up fifth grade position.
    After chopping up a small salad, she placed her meal on the table with a glass of water and sat down. The more veggies she could add to the meal the better she