Devils Roses 01 - Cursed

The fact I wasn’t graduating was bothering me, beyond belief. I knew I could get my diploma instantly, just with a few phone calls. All of my finals had been in January, and generally the last classes were labs and advanced placements. I could have done them all over again in university.
    I missed my guild on World of Warcraft and I missed just chilling, eating a bowl of cereal with my dad, and watching the Discovery Channel. From the inside and safety of my home, I had wished for excitement and adventure, before my mom had died.
    I sat in the middle of a real life adventure and instead of having fun, I was very ready to turn in my hiking boots for flip-flops and boredom. I wanted regular. I wanted Giselle’s million text messages about hot doctors. I wanted to hear where she was going to get a tattoo. She had millions of things to say about tattoos. Firstly, it would have to be nice enough to hide her scars. Secondly, she would want to still have it when she was old, like thirty-five and shit. And thirdly, it would have to enhance her sexiness, not make her look trashy. Exotic not stripper. I smiled recalling the conversation.
    I couldn’t make myself get past the fact, my happiness had been the price of Aleks. I knew it wasn’t entirely his fault, but I saw him as the catalyst that had brought me to that moment.
    “ You’re not in love with me are you?” he asked looking me in the eye, demanding an answer.
    I was amazed at how easily he had read my face. I forgot that he had spent months memorizing everything I did.
    I shook my head. “I don’t know. I don’t know anything anymore.”
    He nodded and stood up. He walked to where I sat. He did look sexy in the firelight, I had to give him that.
    He stood in front of me. “I will wait as long as you need to figure things out. I’ve waited over six hundred years for you. Every day I died being forced to live without love. You’ve taught me to love again and given me a renewed sense of hope.”
    In the darkness, his blue eyes stood out even more. They sparkled. He knelt in front of me in the sand. He brushed my hair from my face on either side. His warm hands sent chills up my spine. I watched his eyes for a moment. They changed and became cold and hard. They burned with a hatred, frightening me. His face twitched, as he spoke to the side of my head, “What are you doing here?”
    I realized he was speaking behind my head. I was off my driftwood, being pulled roughly to the far side of the fire, and placed behind him, before I could register what was going on. I couldn’t see anything, only feel his tense body holding me still.
    “ Son, I just wanted to see you. I’ve missed you all these years. I know you've missed me,” a man spoke. He laughed.
    I looked through the rigid arms holding me in place, to see a naked man. He was in his forties, if I had to guess. He was as large as Aleks was, he looked like Aleks. His eyes were the same white blue. I knew him instantly to be Aleks' father."
    “ You’ve missed me by running from me every time. I have spent six centuries cleaning up your messes.” Aleks' voice was a deep growl. I had no idea what he was capable of, until that moment. He had always seemed like a friendly gentle giant with me, but he was not the same man confronting his father. At that moment he scared me, even though he was protecting me.
    The naked man stood proud of his physique. I managed to avoid letting my eyes fall below his face, but it was a struggle.
    He held his arms out as if in peace. “Son, I just thought that maybe you would want to bury the hatchet, besides, I haven’t met your young lady yet. You’re being rude, Aleksander.”
    His dad maintained his Norwegian accent, more than likely because he spent most of his time alone.
    I felt Aleks' grip tighten on me, his muscles were flexed in his back and arms. “She is none of your concern. This is between you and I.” His dad looked as if he were starting to get upset. His body shook in a way I’d only ever seen in a person having a seizure.
    His eyes were fixed on me as he licked his lips. His stare was beyond menacing. Instantly, we were moving. I closed my eyes and we stopped.
    I was standing outside Shane’s house. Aleks faced me, looking down at me. “I need to do this, I’m so sorry, but I’ve waited for over six hundred years to be able to stop him.”
    “ Kill him for me too.”
    He bent and pressed his lips to mine firmly. There was no messing around with