Darlin', won't you ease my worried mind (pt. 1)

Street lights flashed by like falling stars. Soft Cell’s “Tainted Love” blared through the speakers of her small blue Honda Accord as Layla sped down the highway at insane speeds.

“Oh baby, baby, baby, where did our love gooooo." She was singing off key terribly loud and pumping to the beat. She wasn’t normally a singing or dancing type but tonight was worth celebrating. A new dominance club run by vampires called “Fresh Blood” had opened up in Gadsden, just over an hour away, less if you ignored all the speed limits. In her wake she left the Birmingham skyline and the old downtown house she shared with her boyfriend, Brenan, and his long-time roommate. She was on her way to party. Alone. The agenda for the night was simple enough; to meet a vampire who was interested in bleeding and bedding her, and then let him. If he was smoking hot that would be a bonus. She pictured someone with dark hair, dark eyes, and a strong muscular build. A chill ran up her body as she imagined his touch.

It had been nearly seven months since Layla had gone clubbing alone, or been intimate with a vampire. Brenan had insisted that he or her friend Melissa accompany her for safety’s sake. Sometimes it felt like they were smothering her, keeping her on a leash like a small child, but it was out of love. She knew that much to be true. And to be fair to Brenan, his fear was not without cause. Layla had nearly gotten herself killed. Brenan knew she’d been “intimate” with the vampire responsible and had forgiven her for cheating. He let it be known that Layla was his world and his only true fear was losing her forever. The hospital had released her after three days and two blood transfusions; three days she could barely remember, but Brenan would never let her forget.

It was something of a miracle that Layla got to keep her boyfriend and her vampire addiction. Brenan had tried giving her an ultimatum; it was him or the clubs but he didn’t understand. He couldn’t understand; it wasn’t that simple. It was no longer a choice. She couldn’t just stop going to the clubs. She had convinced Brenan that she would never sleep with a vampire again, but that she was addicted to their bite, to their venom. Asking her to simply walk away from it was like asking a heroin addict to quit cold turkey, and every bit as difficult. The effects from a vampire bite were much stronger than any drug off of the streets; it lingers in the blood so you don’t need it every day. She was not a common street junkie, it was different. She had to make him see that. He thought her addiction was tragic but how could tragedy feel so much like clarity and joy? She felt happy, floating on cloud nine for two weeks after she had some vampire juice and it was nearly three weeks before intense withdraws set in. She had been doing just fine going once a week with Brenan and finding someone who would be interested in just taking blood without any sexual release. Most often the two went hand in hand. But with Brenan by her side to bargain for her safety, they were able to find vampires that would settle for just blood. Everyone was okay with the arrangement but no one was happy about it. She knew Brenan did not want to take his girlfriend to a club and watch a vampire drink her blood. She knew he did not want to then take her home and babysit her in her inebriated state. She knew the vampires did not want to wrap their arms around her and pull her into them, taking in her sweet life force, and then have to pull away just as it starts to get good. And she knew she certainly didn’t want to stop either.

But tonight she didn’t have to stop. Tonight she could go all the way. She had told her boyfriend that she was going to the club with her friend Melissa. Melissa is a tough girl and never has a problem being the dominant one, the top. That was one of the rules they had come up with for her. She always had to go with someone strong-willed, someone to top her. She had to go with someone who would say no for her because she found it hard to say no herself. They thought it was because she was weak. They were wrong. She didn’t refuse to stop the vampires because she was too weak to do so. She didn’t stop them because she didn’t want them to stop.

The song ended and she skipped through a few tracks on the cd, finally stopping on Marilyn Manson’s version of “Tainted Love.” The heavy bass kicked in and she started grooving in her seat again. She was really feeling these lyrics right now. They made her think of Brenan; of how it had been so good and now it had turned to shit.

As much as he tried, Brenan really just didn’t understand Layla’s need to be embraced by the vampire community. She loved him, really she did. Most of all she knew she needed him. Layla didn’t know how to take care of herself. She would wander off and do things that put her safety in danger. Maybe Brenan understood that better than she did, but he didn’t understand her. She was really tired of being told no, of being treated like a child and followed around. It was pushing her and Brenan apart. It didn’t help that she didn’t lust for him any longer. The only time they had sex was when she was high from being bitten, and then only because she would throw herself at him in her lust-driven impaired state. A part of her did want to be faithful to him but this other part.... a bigger hungry part of her that was embedded in her core... that part just wanted to be taken. She wanted to relinquish control and give herself - her blood, her body, her choice. She wanted to give it all to a powerful creature that could crush her if he so chose. That was a big draw for her, the uncertainty of each encounter. But the ultimate draw that kept her coming back over and over was their bite. When that first drop of venom entered her vein in a cold rush and made a mad dash through her entire body, it always took her breath away and left her gasping for air. She would feel like she was flying and the entire world was beneath her. She would float through a dream world where every touch is heavenly and every kiss orgasmic. The world looked so much more beautiful when she was high and a feeling of euphoria engulfed her. It was nothing short of amazing, and Brenan just did not understand.

She was approaching her exit and her cell phone was ringing. She reached into the passenger seat and grabbed it. It was Melissa.

“Nope. Sorry Miss Tattletale.” She clicked the button and sent Melissa’s call to voicemail. “Tonight is for me.” She tossed the phone back in the seat and it bounced onto the floor board.

The Gadsden city lights were coming into view and she took the second exit that looped around and took her towards the clubbing district. She navigated her way through the downtown streets, between old big buildings, past darkened alleyways, until she finally saw the club just a couple of blocks down. The building resembled a warehouse from the outside but had neon beams of light just barely escaping from the darkened windows and a roll of smoke tumbling out the front door. There was no parking to be found so she parked three blocks away on a curb. She decided to leave her jacket in the car even though it was just barely over forty degrees tonight because she knew that the inside of the club would be sweltering hot. She pulled down her rear view mirror to give herself a once-over, freshening up her cherry colored lip gloss before stepping out into the cold.

The line into the club was long and wrapped around to the side of the building. She walked slowly past all the people in line while she scanned the crowd for a familiar face that might let her cut in. Most everyone was dressed in leather. It was a black and silver sea decorated with patches of skin. Her own blue-tinted pleather mini skirt was short, tight, and cheeky, leaving little to the imagination. Her sheer black long sleeve top had blue glitter decorated in clever swirls that prevented you from seeing nipples through the material, so she hadn’t worn a bra. Not that her A-cups needed one. Her boots were black leather thigh highs with a 5 inch heel. They had four bright blue buckles on each boot. All the blue in her outfit matched her short bright blue hair and her mascara perfectly. She felt tall, slim, and fashionable as several eyes from the leather sea followed her.

“Layla! Layla, over here.” Her eyes followed the noise but she couldn’t see anyone she recognized. “Layla!” Then she saw him. He was bouncing up and down waving his arms frantically. A tall, thick, leather-clad man was standing directly in front of the smaller man making it difficult for her to see him at first. But she recognized the neon yellow hair with matching yellow fishnet top and the bright white smile. She pushed her way through the unwilling crowd to stand by David.

“Hey David. Hey Bobby.”

“Hey’s ass, bitch. You better get ova’ here and give your favorite VamStroker a hug!” David flung himself, all one hundred and thirty pounds of him, into Layla’s arms.

“I will never understand why you are okay with calling yourself a VamStroker.” This came from Bobby. He was David’s clubbing friend, though she often wondered if in private they were more than just friends. Just like she normally came with Melissa, David was almost always there with Bobby. They had been on the scene together for two years now and knew each other pretty well even though they had never hung out outside of a club before.

“What?” David gave Bobby a guilty smile. “Call ‘em like I see ‘em, sugar britches.” He winked at Bobby.

Bobby gave a deep thick laugh that rose above the sound of the crowd and the hard hitting bass from the industrial music that was seeping through the walls of the club. “You basically just called yourself a crack whore.”

David did a little spin in his roller skates, turning around and sticking his rear out, slapping it hard. It sounded like it hurt. Layla wasn’t sure if he smacked his own ass extra hard because of how much he liked it or if his bright pink leather daisy dukes had just amplified the sound. “I’ve got your crack whore right here,” David teased as he ran his fingertip right up the center of his butt. Bobby just shook his head and laughed more.

Though the two of them played casual friends really well, Layla speculated that they were sleeping together. David did not hide his sexuality one bit. A sassy and flamboyant man who loved false eyelashes and the color pink, he was very comfortable with himself. He worked in a funky, up-scale salon where his sunshine-yellow dyed half-shaved hair and his pink fingernails were seen as a bold fashion statement, even though most of the local public didn’t view it the same way. Bobby was more aware of how the public received him. Layla had seen photos of him on his social media in his street clothes and they were very plain. Bobby was a tee-shirt and jeans kind of guy, though you may not know it if you only saw him out at the clubs. She knew that he liked football, monster trucks, and big steaks. He was a very big man, though not fat at all. Thick, muscular, and tall would be how she would describe him. Layla wasn’t sure how Bobby had fallen into the vampire club scene. He didn’t seem like a typical clubber. But typical or not he was at the clubs most every weekend fitting in with the leather bound group. He wore a top that was more harness than shirt, comprised of only leather straps and buckles, a solid silver ring in the center of his chest that the straps latched on to and wrapped around his shoulders, ribs, and back. She was sure it took several minutes to get it on correctly. He wore fitted solid black skinny jeans and chunky combat boots with spikes to complete his look.

Bobby turned his attention towards Layla. “So hey, where’s Brenan?”

“Oh. He stayed home tonight.”

“And Melissa?”

“Um.” Layla hesitated. “She’s parking the car?”

“You lying little slut.” David was no longer grinning at her. “No, she is not. You left her. You came here alone, didn’t you?”

Layla was no good at lying. She was also no good at standing up for herself. “Okay. You busted me. I am here alone tonight”, she said with a giggle attempting to lower the tension that was playing on David’s face.

“Girlfriend!” David did an over-exaggerated hand movement. “You can’t go in there without a dom. A little slice like you? Those vamps will eat you up!”

“Well, that’s sort of the point, right? Maybe I want them to eat me up.” She scuffed her boots on the ground, refusing to make eye contact .

“Oooohhhhh! You are a naughty little thing. Give me that,” David said as he grabbed her hand bag off of her shoulder and passed it to Bobby who already knew the drill.

“What are you doing?” she asked without even trying to take her purse back.

“Oh, sugar. You know I can’t let you do this,” David said as he ran his hands over her arms, petting her like she was his confused little kitten. Bobby was digging through her purse now. “We’ve got to call your sweetie and tell him to high-tail his sexy little ass down here before you get yourself in trouble.”

“Phones not in here, David.”

David turned towards her and pouted his lips out. “Where’s your cell phone, honey?”

Layla remembered it falling into the floorboard of the car after Melissa had called. “I left it at home. So he couldn’t find me.”

“Damn girl! You are feeling fucking reckless tonight, aren’t you?”

“Maybe I am. Or maybe I just want to have a good time without someone breathing down my neck all night.” This protective shit was starting to really annoy her. Did people not understand that she was twenty-three, a grown woman? “Either way, I am an adult, guys. I appreciate your concern but I will be just fine.” Bobby handed her the purse back.

“Says the addict? It’s okay, lovie. You’ll stay with us tonight,” Bobby said matter of factly.

David clapped his hands like he was excited. “Oh yay! This will be fun.We can get blitzed together and dance the night away! I heard through the grapevine that there is supposed to be this really powerful vamp here tonight who owns the clubs or something like that. I heard he was over a hundred years old! Ugh! Just imagine the high his juice could produce! We have just got to find him, girl, and get us some of that goodness!”

“You don’t even know what he looks like, David. How are you going to ‘find him’?” Bobby asked.

“I don’t know. We will figure it out. I’m sure that sort of power will just radiate off of him. Mmmmm... I can hardly wait to get a taste!”

“That’s nice and all, you guys. Don’t think I don’t appreciate the offer. No offense, ‘cause really I am flattered, but I am not going to float around as a third wheel with the two of you tonight and watch y’all go at it with a vampire. It’s just not going to happen.” Layla was trying to be as polite as possible but she was starting to get majorly irritated that everyone always wanted to treat her like a child.

“Oh, poo,” David replied. “I can have Bobby here chain you up and slap you around some if you'd like,” he proposed.

“Oh goodie,” Layla said with sarcasm dripping from her words. “I can finally play with a gay, someone who is totally not attracted to me one tiny bit? Cause you know that's what I came down here for.” She rolled her eyes.

“Okay sugar, then what do you think you’re going to do tonight? Why’d you come down here alone? We are trying to help you. You know after what happened before that it is just not safe for you to be here without someone to top you. You are too much of a submissive bottom, doll face. You’ll end up hurt again! You know you’re not dominant enough to say when.” David was throwing the sassy right back at her.

The people behind them were starting to push up against them. The line had moved quickly and they hadn’t noticed. There were only a few more people ahead of them. They moved forward until they were nearly pressed against the back of the large, leather-bound men in front of them.

“I intend to have a good time, with a vampire, and without a babysitter telling me what I can and can’t do. I’m a big girl and I know what I want.”

“Oh snap, y’all. The doormat is growing some balls.” David joked with a high pitched giggle.

“Fuck you, David.” She never said the word fuck. She had hoped it would draw a reaction from him and make him stop teasing her but all it seemed to do was make him laugh harder until he was gasping for air. They were next. She spun on her heel and approached the velvet rope. The bouncer, a short bald man who was obviously human but bigger around than Bobby, handed her one of the private membership applications to fill out at the front desk where she would pay her cover charge. Places like this got away with so much illegal activity because of their private membership status. Having to wait for everyone in front of you to fill out the application and get their little laminated card made the line move painfully slow, but in the end it was worth it. Layla slid past the bouncer, thankful that he didn’t insist she have a friend with her. A lot of these places did. Maybe it was the display she just gave him, cursing at David. Whatever the reason she was happy. She looked over her shoulder at David and Bobby before she slipped into the shadows of the club.

“Tonight, you leave me the hell alone.”

(part 2 to follow)