Night. Part 1

Note to Reader

Dear reader!

I’m glad to welcome you, and to know that you’re here! And before you open the door to the mysterious “Night”, I want to share with you a secret… The book that now in front of your eyes is a part of my soul.

It is indeed so. Because when I was writing it, I input to it only what resonates in me. You will see a world that, like many other things in life, is multifaceted and ambiguous. It is captivating and beautiful, someway idealistic, and somewhat even instills fear and awe. But it’s real. It is filled with sincere emotions and feelings. And, of course, the main of these feelings is love, which so much is sometimes lacking in our world.

It is not enough just to say that the book is dedicated to love. I praise and exalt it because I believe it lives! It hides, trying to escape from rudeness and rough edges, from meanness and cowardice, from selfishness and hypocrisy. But it exists! It lives! And I am eager to give you, my reader, at least a small part of this love. I sincerely want you to experience it in the pages of my book, and your heart sang with mine.

Love! Create! And remember, you came to this world in order to overcome all obstacles and adversity, and be happy!

Yours sincerely, Anna Fox.

I. Reborn

There’s always special charm in night. It’s like a guide to another existence, to another reality. This shrouded in darkness world frightens and attracts at the same time. Night gives a feeling of incredible freedom and independence. People open their hearts to unknown. They forget about worries, everyday problems, sometimes even about morality. They forget themselves or, on the contrary, find themselves. In soul of man awakens another being, not like one he shows to condemning public before sunset. Whether it’s terrible or beautiful depends on what is behind eyes. It can be darkness. Or indomitable spirit of divine that breaks through borders and limits to freedom. And it flies like moth on trembling flame, forgetting about danger, while others become this danger. Revealing yourself, someone may inevitably get in set nets of ruthless fate. After all, it’s night that accompanies transformation of man into animal – both internally and externally…

* * *

Once again, hurrying home in the evening, Francesca caught herself thinking that dark time of day instills in her inexplicable prickly fear. Not that she was afraid of dark – but rather of unknown behind veil of night. Black alleys, crooked shadows from the light of streetlights, people’s faces hidden in darkness. And these sounds… Now they are floating and annoying with their dull monotony, then abruptly exploding with some horrific screech. Ugh… Even goosebumps ran over the skin. All this is so unfamiliar to Francesca – both in feelings and in character. She did her best to avoid such walks as this evening.

But she has the necessary obligations, which she had to fulfill. First of all, of course, studies, which often ended quite late. The rest of the time, she worked in a bookstore that closed at eight in evening. Her friend Tammy worked there too, who replaced her while she was in school. So, Francesca often had to work the last shift, which meant walking home in dark.

Sometimes Tammy accompanied her and even stayed at her place for night. No one was against it, because Francesca lived completely alone. Her parents died during the train crash just three months after she turned fourteen. Accepting this, she lived with her grandmother in a suburb for the first year, and then decided to move to a city. Here she rented an apartment until now.

It was on the outskirts. Small, perfectly simple, but comfortable – Francesca didn’t complain. School and work were, one might say, two steps away. So, her routes seemed very short and simple. And as for the city center, she’s never even been there. It was too far away and too luxurious to go there for nothing.

She lived on her own money, well, the grandmother helped her with what she could. Every day the girl was closely busy with household chores. There was almost no time for rest. Except for the nights when she was sleeping, of course. This, by the way, was also the reason for her dislike for such walks. Francesca believed, that night exists to ensure that people slept. She admitted that she felt some contempt for those incomprehensible to her personalities that stagger at night. And, of course, she was afraid of any criminal manifestations, that coming into force mainly at night.

All in all, she wasn’t friendly set up to this time of day and moved her legs quickly to get home.

It was warm outside, and Francesca was already steaming from the rush. But it remains to pass quite a bit – now it will be the last turn and she will be at home. She will immediately take a shower and lie down in a soft bed to get enough sleep. This thought encouraged her, and smiling to herself, she quickened her pace.

But as soon as she reached to the corner of the street, a strange chilling feeling pierced her entire body. Goosebumps rapidly ran on her neck. Francesca froze, feeling someone’s gaze on her back.

That’s what she was always afraid of! God, it’s just a little left. If I hurry, I’ll probably be able to… get away, she thought. Although she sincerely wanted to believe that she’s wrong and really her no one was watching. That it was just her fantasy played out. But, again finding the strength to move, the girl immediately darted around the corner and just in case sprinted from spot, running on the stone road to the house.

Surprisingly, while Francesca was running, she didn’t hear a single sound of pursuit. And, slowing down, she decided to stop to catch her breath and listen better.

She leaned against а high brick wall and, trying to breathe as calmly and silently as possible, listened to the silence. Nothing disturbed it. Francesca stood there for a moment to be sure, and when she finally realized there was nothing to worry about, she chuckled softly:

“Silly,” she said softly. “I twitch at every rustle.”

Lightly slapping palm against forehead, she lowered face, as if ashamed of her own reaction. Watching… It’s necessary to think of this! – She was amazed at herself.

With sigh of relief, Francesca took a step forward and…

…bumped into someone. Searing ice wave covered her with an attack of fear and panic. Breathing froze, and a heart pounded wildly somewhere near а throat. And before she looked up, she struggled with herself for a long time.

A black silhouette of tall man appeared out of nowhere in front of her. In the dark he wasn’t to be seen at all, and see facial features seemed impossible. He didn’t move and didn’t seem to be breathing at all. Francesca’s knees shook treacherously. In confusion, she tried to pretend that she didn’t notice him (in which she didn’t succeed at all), turned around and wanted to leave the stranger. But suddenly he grabbed her by the throat with his strong hand and pulled her back against the wall.

Now her fear was definitely justified. She bumped her head against the wall, causing hundreds of nasty annoying bells to ring in her ears. The stranger moved closer and leaned directly into her face. But Francesca still couldn’t see him: he squeezed her throat too tightly with his tenacious fingers so that her eyes were covered with a whitish veil and beads of tears stood out in the corners. She opened her mouth convulsively in a silent scream and pounded her feet on the stone wall and the pavement. He kept looking at her, as if studied. Her fear gradually turned into colossal horror, madness raging in her head.

But less than fraction of second his nimble hand slipped from her neck, grabbed the girl by the waist, and the stranger pressed burning lips to her carotid artery. Francesca didn’t even have time to make a sound and at first didn’t understand. She began to push him away desperately with her elbows, but then she felt sharp pain and instantly enveloping weakness. He bit her! He bit through her skin… to blood!

Suddenly, thoughts began to scatter, as discovered traitors, and the strength to swim away with blood flowing from a wound. She distinguished the quiet sounds of sipping among the indomitable noise created by a panicked brain. The stranger drank slowly, and with every drop of life leaving her, her eyes more and more closed.

Am I dying? … this last horrifying thought came and stood at her right before she lost consciousness. Her body went limp in his arms and her mind helpfully sailed into a deep black abyss.

* * *

Francesca woke up early in the morning, before sunrise. From a sudden impulse in the body she suddenly opened her eyes and sat down on the bed. What a horrible dream she had tonight. So frighteningly realistic. She could still feel the thin fingers clutching her throat.

“Ugh,” Francesca shook her head, trying to banish the thought of the dream. But still on a skin the small shiver has swept.

Head was spinning, the blood was throbbing in temples. She carefully put her feet on the cold floor, afraid that it would slip out from under her feet.

Looking around a modest room, she noticed that her things were hanging peacefully on the back of a chair in the corner. And then Francesca realized that she didn’t remember how she got home. She began to think hard, trying to remember last night: she came out of the bookstore, said goodbye to Tammy, and walked down the street toward the house. She walked… walked… walked… That’s all, everything she remembers – nothing.

Reflections tired her and, in order to relax a little, she began to massage the back of her head with her fingers at the base of the skull. But after this simple action, the hand involuntarily slid across the neck and touched the two small wounds that failed to heal.

At that moment it seemed to her that she was hit by a pile of books on the head. Eyes widened in surprise and fright. She rushed to the mirror, in a moment throwing back the hair from shoulder. On the other side of the glass the pale seventeen-year-old girl was looking at her, with long golden-dark hair that fell to the middle of her back, and fathomless gray eyes. Glancing her neck, she saw two red dots that brazenly flaunted on her skin under her ear. Hands fell limply, and mouth opened in a silent exclamation.

The gift of speech didn’t return immediately, only after some time.

“Nonsense! After all, it can’t be!” she told herself. “It was a dream! Doesn’t it?!”

Francesca sank down on the bed with frozen face, plunged into a maelstrom of disorderly thoughts.

Confusion swept her with such persistence that she didn’t notice how the sun rose and beat to her window. It seemed that unless an earthquake or flood occurred, she would never recover. But the earthquake wasn’t needed. Just a monotonous rattling of a phone. And that trill made her turn around. On the nightstand was a black machine, signaling her with a red light, announcing the incoming call.

Francesca picked up the phone, but she didn’t speak first.

“Good morning! Wake up, sleeping beauty!” Tammy’s cheerful voice was heard. Francesca was silent.

“Hey! Can anybody hear me?” receiving no answer, cried the friend.

Francesca rubbed her temple nervously.

“Tammy, I need to talk to you…” she only squeezed out of herself.

“Speak.”

“Uh…” stretched the girl. Probably not on the phone…”

“Well, let’s meet after school?”

Tammy was talking about Francesca’s school, of course. She had finished her studies a year ago and had a work now. For now, in a bookstore, but she always said with burning eyes that someday the whole world will know about her. Tammy dreamed of becoming a dancer. And I must say, she was really amazing at dancing.

“Okay.”

“In the park?”

“Agree.”

“See you then!”

“Yes…”

There was a long pause.

“Franky, are you all right?” finally asked the friend.

“Mmm…” Francesca ran her neck with the tips of her trembling fingers. “Yes.”

“Okay. See you!”

“Yeah.”

Francesca put down the phone and twisted her face again. Unbelievable…

At breakfast she drank two cups of tea, but ate almost nothing. Thinking about what had happened, she paid no attention to anything around her, as if she was present in some other reality.

What kind of person could bite her first, and then bring her home, undress and put her in bed? At first, bad suspicions arose in her head. A man undresses a girl and puts her in bed… Francesca threw a stern, as if accusing, glance in the bedroom. But for some reason, an inner voice assured her that nothing of the sort had happened.

It’s also possible that she unconsciously got to the house… took off her clothes… and went to bed… Hmm, not very believable. Maybe she hobbled back to the house, and there the neighbor found her, Mrs. Brown – an old, kindhearted woman living on the floor below – and helped her get into the apartment? Yes! I like this version. I’ll have to ask Mrs. Brown.

Then her attention finally got to the word “bite” and she was horrified as soon as she realized its meaning. Before eyes immediately began to appear the images of bloodsuckers from old legends and tales, which she never really believed. Well, let’s say he bit her skin. Then, most likely, he could be banal psychopath – this is a more like the truth option version. But he drank the blood… Francesca felt a pang of nausea.

“Okay, I’d rather think about it as little as possible,” she dismissed her anxiety from herself and went to school.

In the first two lessons, the girl couldn’t gather her thoughts and concentrate on her studies. Every break Francesca sat in a school cafeteria, which she usually did only after school. But now she was a little worried. It’s not every day you get attacked by psychos and even bitten.

She again began nervously rubbing her neck. Maybe she should inform the police? What would she tell them? “I was bitten!”? Would they send her herself to a nuthouse? Or maybe she should forget about what happened, and the end of it? Heal someday these foolish traces. And if he infected her with something? … Now that has acquired a dangerous meaning.

A saving bell rang, clearing the mind of obsessive thoughts. During the break she drank a whole bottle of water and, taking with her another, came out of the dining room and began to climb to the second floor. How she wanted to forget everything. She’s already pretty tired of thinking about it. But the screaming thoughts crowded queues into the brain pan. Some left and others came to their place, more intrusive and noisier than the previous ones. Enough! I have English now. I need to focus on English. Nothing else! – she was determined.

Entering the classroom, she sat down at her desk, put books on it and put the bottle of water next to it. Stared on the board, she tried to focus on the lesson topic, hand-drawn in chalk on a green background. A little later the teacher entered the classroom, said hello and began the lesson. But still, half of what he said, Francesca unintentionally missed the ears.

It became worse when twenty minutes after the start of the lesson her stomach ached. Maybe it was just hunger? She opened the bottle and took a little sip from it in order to relieve an unpleasant feeling. But the stomach ached even more. Now the unbearable pain was cutting and pricking all her insides. The girl wrapped her arms around herself, bent down and laid her head on the desk. God, it hurts… She groaned hoarsely.

“Francesca, are you all right?” suddenly, someone’s alarmed voice could be heard. Seemed that it sounded through a thick wall, but the girl realized that it was the teacher, who was talking to her. “Are you not feeling well? Maybe you want to go out?

“Yes,” she said in a choked voice, thanking the teacher in her mind. And, jumping out of the table, Francesca quickly left the classroom, slamming the door behind her.

Her eyes were dull, and she felt sick, and her legs carried her not to a medical center, but straight to a toilet room. Crouching almost in half, she finally reached the toilet, pushed the door with her hand and ran inside. Fortunately, there was no one there.

At first, Francesca rushed to a sink and coughed uncontrollably into it. A saliva mixed with blood flowed along the brilliant ceramic edge to a hole. In fright, she made a grunting sound and, turning, jumped to the toilet. When she felt another push from below, she immediately vomited heavily.

But all she got rid of in such an unpleasant way was only water with a strange pink tinge. Just water, which she, without even noticing, managed to drink before noon. And, apparently, there was either some blood present. However, from this she wasn’t as disgusted as expected. Yes, and the pain immediately gone.

She wiped her lips with her hand, washed off the water, straightened up and returned to the sink. Leaning on it, Francesca looked in a mirror. Her face turned pale, but otherwise she felt much better. And yet it would be better to go to a doctor for an examination.

Rinsing her mouth and washing her hands, she turned to the door. She can return to the class. There are still three lessons left, and she so wanted to talk about all this with Tammy. But I can wait. And with this thought, she left the toilet and, slightly swaying, walked along the corridor back to the lesson.

The waiting was becoming unbearable. Every break she went to the dining room and bought another portion of water. She had never been so thirsty. But for some reason Francesca still didn’t seem to care about it. The only thing she wanted right now was to talk to Tammy.

When, finally, the last lesson ended, Francesca stormed out of the classroom and, not forgetting to drop into the dining room for a bag of juice, hurried to the park.

After walking a little among the trees of a shady alley, she came to her and her friend’s favorite bench near the fountain, hidden in the depths of the park. They both loved this place because it had a simple, low-key beauty: crystal water calmed thoughts, gave rest to the eyes and emotions, all around smelled freshly cut grass and sounded the chirping of birds. There they like to chat about some unimportant matters or, conversely, about global issues, share news and secrets. This place has been humbly keeping their secrets for a long time.

Tammy wasn’t there yet. Francesca sat down and slowly began to sip a scarlet cherry juice through a straw, drawing out patterns on the grass with a boot cape. Five minutes later, in the distance, a familiar figure loomed. Francesca was approached by a pretty girl of medium height with tanned skin and large waves of brown hair, gracefully lying on thin shoulders. Tammy smiled warmly from afar, hurried to her friend and flopped down next to her on the bench.

“Long wait?” she has begun to babbling in a cheerful voice.

“No.”

“Well, what did you want to talk to me about?” she asked.

And at that moment Francesca suddenly realized that the desire to talk about what had happened left her without a trace. The serene atmosphere cooled her ardor, and all she wanted to do was sit and be quiet. She slowly drank the juice and looked puzzled at her friend. But under the watchful gaze of Tammy, she still pulled away from the straw.

“You know, nothing special. I panicked in vain,” Francesca smiled tightly.

Tammy squinted in disbelief. There was a pause.

“Hmm… I know. Have you got a boyfriend?!” cheering, asked a friend.

“No,” Francesca said lazily.

“But is this clearly related to the guy?”

“No.”

“You’re not lying?”

“No,” the third time, the answer was firmer.

“But I met…”

And Tammy started her regular long story about a new boyfriend. Francesca has long ceased to count these guys because her friend has never been stayed long with them. She charmed them, dated them for a while, and then became interested in someone else. And so, it was repeated endlessly.

In fact, Tammy wasn’t a heart breaker. No one was hurt by her love. She was just very funny, but a flighty person. Francesca loved and valued her as a friend. She was at peace with Tammy, even if she chatted incessantly. Tammy, of course, knew that Francesca was listening to her halfheartedly, but she wasn’t offended: they understood each other well, as if they were sisters. And when her friend looked especially happy, Francesca even tried to pretend that she was listening very carefully, although at this time involuntarily hovered somewhere in clouds.

She didn’t even really understand, why she was so suddenly unwilling to talk about what had happened. This is probably intuition. Francesca felt that she had better say nothing. So, relaxing, she continued to slowly drink the juice and look at carefree shining Tammy.

Suddenly, after some time, Francesca felt the growing pain somewhere in the solar plexus. Her eyes widened involuntarily, as soon as she realized what it threatened.

The pain intensified and became unbearable, as if her organs, all cells and tissues were torn apart. In the eyes darkened. She bent, her head buried in her knees. From afar was coming the troubled voice of Tammy, but her words were muffled by the ringing noise in her ears.

Somewhere in the depths of her body there was a dull crunch, and the first push hit the throat. Francesca slid off the bench and fell on all fours. Nearby, her scared to death girlfriend was shaking her shoulder. And inside, as if a bloody battle unfolded, not for life, but for death. The ribs seemed to be cracked now. Then invisible knives pierced the lower abdomen – it seemed as if the meat grinder was working. Another push and she vomited on the smooth emerald grass near the bench.

The ringing in her ears stopped, and Francesca heard her friend’s exclamation:

“… did you get drunk yesterday?!”

And she felt better again. Francesca saw the same water in front of her, only now with a more pronounced red tinge. Tammy lifted her up, put her arms around her shoulders, and quickly dragged her along. Almost running, the friend pulled Francesca out of the park, still supporting her waist, thinking that she could fall at any moment.

“I’m better. Better!” Francesca slightly raised her voice so that Tammy would let her go. They stopped.

“Sure? Bring you home? How’re you feeling?” Tammy’s voice trembled. She was seriously scared. And there were reasons for this.

“Yes. For sure. I’m fine.”

Francesca didn’t dare to say that this had already happened in school.

“Can you walk?”

“Yeah.”

“I’ll take you home after all. And don’t you dare argue!”

She wasn’t going to. Contradict the friend? No, the consequences of this even an enemy doesn’t wish. And in her company, in any case, it was much calmer and better. Tammy threw her arm around and looked at Francesca with a worried look. Girl was taken aback.

“What? I’m alright.”

“Are you sure there’s nothing you want to tell me?”

“Yes, of course. I probably got poisoned in the school cafeteria,” if you lie, then lie to the last.

“But you wanted to talk to me about something this morning. Didn’t you?”

Francesca lost in thought. She didn’t like to deceive, and, in fact, didn’t know how. What would she have to think of so that Tammy would stop worrying?

“I just wanted to ask you to help me with my homework. I began to lag behind a little,” she felt, as on a forehead the inscription in large letters emerges: “I am a liar”.

“Well. If you don’t want to tell me now, don’t tell,” after a short silence Tammy said.

She postponed the sentence for later. But Francesca was grateful even for that.

Francesca was walking to the bus stop this morning, so she didn’t have a chance to walk past the place where she met that psychopath last night. More precisely, he met her. And if more precisely – attacked. But now she and Tammy were walking along this road. Francesca recalled the trajectory of yesterday’s path. Here she turned the corner and ran. Then she stopped to check if anyone was watching her. And she blundered when she decided that she herself was imbued with this fear.