A Change for George

   Darby sat in the soft grass nestled against George's chest. They had been together for a week and it was the happiest she had felt in a long time. George had such a unique way of looking at the world. He could find beauty in the smallest of things. A bee on a flower or raindrops on a spider web. His smile made her feel weak at the knees and she couldn't think of a sound more pleasant than his laugh. They talked about anything and everything and she felt relaxed like she could be her true self. 

  And when they sat next to each other and he put his arm around her shoulders or pulled her closer against him, she felt wanted. When he smiled and stroked her hair she was at peace. Nothing in the world could hurt her as long as she was next to him. 

   Her fears that all he wanted from her was to be turned seemed foolish now. They had stayed up late into the night talking about it and she agreed to do it when she felt he was ready.

 "Can you really ever be ready for something like that?" he had asked her. She shook her head remembering the night she was turned and how scared and lost she felt.

 "There is no way to really prepare yourself but I will stay with you the whole time. I wish someone had done that for me."

  George leaned over and planted a gentle kiss on her lips.

"Once I turn we never have to be apart." 

  "So you and Darby fell in love at a hippie festival?" Bailey asked, her one eye raised in surprise above the other. 

  "Yes I suppose we did," George admitted. 

  The sky outside was completely dark now but Darby had not returned. Bailey and George sat next to each other on the couch in the guest house, George patiently answering all of her questions about his past. 

  "Was it scary when she turned you?"

   George shook his head but looked down at his hands as if distressed.

  "Scary is not the word I would use but it wasn't easy. I was the first person Darby had turned and I'm not sure she was ready for it. But I wanted it a lot so I pushed for it." 

  "So is that why she left you?" Bailey asked, then quickly realized her bluntness and bit her lip. 

  "I shouldn't have said that."

  "No but it's a reasonable question after what I just told you. The truth is, she didn't leave me. I left her." 

  Bailey frowned.

  "Why would you do that? Darby is a wonderful person," she said, feeling suddenly defensive. 

  "She is wonderful. It broke my heart to leave her but I had to get away."

  "Away? Away from what?"

  George shifted positions on the couch and crossed his legs.

  "Away from Stephen." 

  "Oh," Bailey said, her eyes wide as if she just made a huge discovery.

  "He liked Darby too and he tried to take her from you."

   George threw back his head and laughed loudly, his curls bouncing up and down. 

  "Not at all," he breathed through peals of laughter. 

  Bailey folded her arms and assumed a pouty face. 

  "Well I'm just doing my best with what you're telling me."

  "I know, I know," George said, patting her arm with his hand. "I'm not making fun of you. It's just funny to me to think of Stephen wanting Darby."

  "He clearly sees you as a threat to his relationship with her whatever it is," Bailey observed. "Or he wouldn't be upset about you being here."

   "You're not wrong about that," George admitted. "Although I doubt he will come say that to my face." 

   "So what did you do to make him so upset?" Bailey wanted to know. 

    George sighed, not looking forward to reliving this painful memory.

   "Well what happened was-"

   At that moment the door swung open and Darby stepped inside. She was soaking wet from head to toe and looked none too happy about it. 

   "Oh my gosh, Darby. What happened?" Bailey asked, jumping to her feet. Darby cocked her head to the side and gave an ugly glare. 

   "I was hot and fancied a dip in the lake with all my clothes on," she said, each word dripping more sarcasm than the last.

   "I assume you didn't eat then since you're in some kind of mood," George interjected, also rising from the couch and stretching his arms above his head. 

   "I ate just fine," Darby snapped. "Maybe I just don't like being asked dumb questions when I get home." 

   "Well I was going to get you a towel but now I'm not," Bailey said, stomping over to the door where Darby stood. 

   "I'm going back to the house to check on Thomas. You two have fun together." 

  With that she opened the door and stepped out into the pouring rain barely aware of it pelting her in the face. The door slammed shut behind her and Darby was left alone with George.

   "When I turned her I hoped it would give her more self confidence and she would find her voice. Perhaps that was a mistake," Darby mused, walking to the bathroom and pulling a towel off the drying rack. 

  She tousled her hair with it and wiped her face. George watched her from where he stood by the couch. Their eyes met for a second and she gave him a coy smile. 

  "Did you have a good chat with her?" she asked, unbuttoning her shirt and letting it slide backwards off her shoulders. 

  "I did," George told her, his eyes never leaving hers. "She asked me if Stephen is jealous of our relationship and that's why he's angry that I'm here." 

   "Oh my gosh," Darby exclaimed, unbuttoning her jeans and pushing them down over her hips and down to her ankles. She stepped out of them and stood there in just her underthings looking intently at George. 

   "What did you tell her?"

   "Nothing yet," George admitted. "You walked in all soaking wet and that's all I can think about now." 

   "Is that right?" Darby asked, walking slowly over to the couch twirling a piece of hair between her fingers. She stood in front of the tall handsome vampire and let him look her up and down. 

   "And what do you think about it?" she wanted to know. He smiled from ear to ear. 

   "I think you know exactly what I'm thinking," he said. His strong hands reached out and grabbed her hips and they fell back together onto the sofa cushions. 

    All the excitement and happiness and passion Darby had felt when they were first together came rushing back. She pressed her lips hard against his and felt his hands go up and down her back scratching gently with his fingernails. 

  "Is this what you were thinking about?" Darby asked, sitting up on his waist, her legs on other side of his thighs.

  "That was just the beginning," he told her, pulling her down by her arms till their faces almost touched.

  "Let me show you the rest."

Darby and George

   Bailey went outside and peered through the dimming light of dusk to see George sitting in the front yard on an old stone bench. 

   "I was told very firmly to not invite you in," she said meekly, walking up to the strange vampire and twiddling her thumbs. He smiled up at her, his teeth perfectly white.

  "Of course you were," he said. "I expected nothing less from Stephen." 

  "Why doesn't he like you?" Bailey wanted to know. George sighed. 

  "That is a very long story that I would love to tell you. But first I would like to see-"

  George stopped midsentence and turned his attention to something behind Bailey. She turned to see Darby emerging from the darkened doorway looking more uncomfortable than Bailey had ever seen her.

  "Hello, George," she said with a half smile. She stood in front of him awkwardly avoiding eye contact.

  "It's been a minute, Darby. How have you been?" 

  "I'm alright. Turned another one," she said, motioning limply at Bailey with an arm. 

  "I see that. Your friend was asking about my past with Stephen before you walked out."

  "What did you tell her?" Darby snapped, her eyes suddenly boring directly into George's. 

  "Nothing," he responded, in no way phased by her change in tone. "I figured that was a story for another time." 

  "Or never. That works too," Darby countered, looking Bailey up and down. 

  "Stephen has never had such a visceral reaction to a visitor before. I think it warranted questioning," Bailey said firmly.

   Darby sighed and motioned for George to scoot to one side of the bench so she could sit down.

  "You're not wrong. But if you don't mind, I'd like to talk to George alone for a few minutes. Would you mind going in the back and making sure the guesthouse is presentable?"

   "Yeah no problem," Bailey agreed, trying to hide her disappointment at being dismissed so quickly from the new and interesting visitor.

   "Don't worry, you'll get your chance to interrogate him later," Darby called after her as she trudged through the grass to the guesthouse.

   "She seems like a sweet girl. I guess that means you haven't rubbed off on her yet," George said. Darby couldn't tell whether or not he was serious. 

  "Why are you here, George?" she asked with a sigh. 

  "At the risk of sounding cliché, I didn't like the way we left things."

  "You mean the way you left things," Darby interjected sharply. "You were the one who disappeared."

  "That was not entirely my choice."

  "You always had a choice," Darby argued, turning on the bench to frown at the other vampire.

  "You said you cared about me and then when things got complicated, you left."

  "That's not fair at all," George disagreed, standing up suddenly and scaring away a group of birds that had perched in the tree above them. 

  "I tried to fix things. I fought for you. For us. And you decided I wasn't worth it."   

   Darby looked up at George as if he had just staked her through the heart. 

  "Is that really what you think?"

  "What else am I meant to think? I left and you didn't follow me."

   Darby opened her mouth as if to protest but then thought better of it.

  "I'm hungry and you know I can't think straight when I haven't eaten. I'm going to hunt. Do you want to-" 

  She stopped short and rolled her eyes. 

  "Well no I guess you wouldn't go with me. Go find Bailey in the guest house. I'm sure she has all kinds of questions and you can tell her all about what a horrible person I was to you." 

  George reached out to take Darby's hand but she pulled away.

 "Have a good hunt," he called after her instead. If Darby heard him, she made no indication.

  George sighed and walked toward the backyard and the guesthouse. He opened the door to see Bailey wildly waving a broom around. Upon seeing him, she lowered it slowly to the floor and gave an embarrassed smile.

 "There was some kind of flying bug," she explained. "But uh, I think it's gone now so you should be ok."

 "I appreciate your courage in ridding my temporary dwelling of this beast," he told her. She knew he was mocking her but it somehow sounded nice.

 "May I come in?" he asked. Bailey's eyes widened. She had never had a vampire ask her permission to enter anywhere. It felt strangely powerful.

 "Uh yes. Yes of course."

  George nodded gratefully and stepped over the threshold. The guest house was dimly lit by a few overhead lights and a small lamp on an ornate old table against the wall. It was all one room furnished with an old fashioned sofa, four post bed and a modest kitchenette. 

 "I appreciate you all letting me stay here," George said, closing the door behind him and walking over to the sofa. It was covered in blue cloth with light green threads running through it. He sat down on one end and Bailey perched expectantly on the other.

 "You're just dying to ask me questions aren't you?"

 "Yes I am," Bailey admitted. "It has been quite a difficult week," she continued, pushing aside thoughts of Thomas suffering in his cell.

  "I would really like a distraction." 

  "Very well then," George said, leaning back against the couch and crossing one of his legs over the other.

 "What would you like to know?"