The Forgotten Bride

She sat alone in a dark corner of the club, her presence only to be noticed if she wished it. The place carried the stench of cheap perfume, even cheaper cologne, overpriced alcohol and worthless sex. The strobe lights pulsed in tune to the stale techno rhythm as she watched girls far too young to have been allowed into the dank pit getting hit upon my men old enough to be the fathers that they were trying to get away from. She watched as some thug put a tiny tablet into the drink of a woman who should have know better than to accept a drink from a stranger in a place like this. She was beginning to think she'd have to settle on something less than what she wanted. Then she saw him.

He had just walked in and was alone. He was young, no more than twenty, and had a lean and muscular body. A head full of wavy brown hair sat over a clean-shaven and flawless face. Bright brown eyes went wide and then he flinched as the lights and loud music overwhelmed his senses. Her lips stretched into a thin smile. Here was someone who didn't come to places like this; here was someone she wanted to meet.

She slid out of her shadowy corner and made her way across the room. People moved out of her path without even realizing what they were doing. They parted before her like water and flowed back to fill the wake of her passing, completely unaware that she had ever been there.

The young man took a seat at the bar and ordered a bloody Mary. He shyly looked around at the mass of people, searching for a friendly face. All he found were dull looks of intoxication and lust. He sighed and thanked the bartender for his drink. He suddenly felt a pair of eyes on him. He twisted in his seat to see a gorgeous woman sitting beside him. He couldn't believe that he had somehow missed her. Her long black hair fell like rain from her head. Her skin was very fair, almost white, and her lips were a deep vermilion. There was an air of perfection about her and he couldn't tell if she was wearing make-up or not.

Her dark blue eyes smiled at him. She asked, "Aren't you going to say something?" Her voice was lovely, almost musical.

"W-what?" he sputtered.

"Most men have some sort of opening line. Something like, 'Come here often' or 'Don't you hate places like this?' " She could read his body language and already knew what he was going to say before he opened his mouth.

"Actually, I've...I'm mean, this is my first time in one of these clubs." He said. "I didn't realize how noisy it would be."

"Oh yes," she responded, turning her head to the dance floor, but never taking her eyes off of him, "The lights, the music, the drinks and drugs, it's all noise. This is a place for those who can shout over the noise. The loudest and most obvious people do well here." She cast her hand out to the crowd. "It's a place to deafen your soul."

His eyebrows shot up, "Wow...I really didn't expect to hear something like that in here."

She asked innocently, "What did you expect to find here?"

He paused for a second and said, "I really don't know...I guess I just wanted to hook up with someone...try to forget about life for awhile."

An expression came over her face that he couldn't quite identify. She said, "Life is something that you can never forget about, no matter how hard you try." She glanced at his drink, "What's say when you're finished with that, the two of us go some place a little quieter?"

She could read the question on his face. Should he leave with this woman he just met? She saw a moment of indecision and then he pushed the drink away. "I'm ready to go right now."

They left the club and walked out into the street. It was a busy time of year and tourists were milling about like ants following the trail of those who came before them. Most not even sure of where they were headed, only knowing that if others were here, there must be something to experience.

He walked a half step behind her, letting her lead the way. He broke the silence by saying, "Well, I guess introductions are in order. My name is Gary."

She laughed, not a sound of actual humor, it was more like someone trying to remember humor. "Oh, of course, where are my manners? My name is Dania, it is my pleasure to meet you Gary." She tipped her head in his direction.

He got up beside her and asked, "Well Dania, what place did you have in mind when you said somewhere quieter? Is there a nice restaurant or something around here? I'll gladly pay if there is."

She smiled, "You don't think that I can afford a meal?"

He shook his head and tried to explain, "No, no, no, that's not what I meant, I wanted to offer, that's all."

She patted him on the arm, "Don't worry Gary. I know what you meant. It was very gentlemanly of you to offer." She pointed to a building a few blocks away. "I have an apartment near here."

Gary looked shocked. His head went back and forth between Dania and the building several times before he said, "Uh, are you sure you want to take me to your place? I mean, we don't know the first thing about each other..."

Dania broke in, "I'm sorry, I don't want you to get the wrong idea. I just thought that you'd like to talk for a while. My apartment is right off the street and it's comfortable and private. If you don't feel right..."

Now he interrupted her, "No, I'm cool with it. It's just, you know...your apartment, and... Uh...well usually it takes longer than two minutes for a girl to ask you back to her place." He grinned sheepishly. "Sorry, I don't mean anything by it."

They made small talk the rest of the walk to her building, although it was Gary doing most of the talking, Dania said little more than was necessary to show that she was keeping up with the conversation. She unlocked the front door and led Gary up a dark stairway filled with long, strange shadows cast by a single emergency light. She opened the door to her apartment and motioned for Gary to come in.

The place was large and open. An ancient writing desk stood side by side with a giant plasma screen television. The entire room held the same feel of the antique and the ultra-modern.

Gary stepped in and said, "Wow, this place is huge." He looked around the room. "You must have the whole floor to yourself."

Dania went into the kitchen and came back with a bottle of wine and two finely detailed wine glasses. "Actually," she responded, "the whole building is mine. I live on this floor. The rest is..." she poured a bit of wine into a glass and handed it to him, "unused."

Gary shook off the offer of the wine, "No thanks, I don't drink." He looked around in wonder, "You own the whole building?"

She put the glasses down and said, "Yes, I was once a bride of a very wealthy...husband. He was lost to me long ago. He was quite well off, however, and I am able to exist without want or need of material things."

He focused his attention back on Dania. "I'm sorry, I didn't know. It must be very hard for you."

"Not really," she replied, "as I said it was a long time ago. Besides, I was never the only one. He had many such as me. Most of the time he didn't even know I was there."

A slight twinge of guilt touched Gary. He didn't even know she was in the club until she had spoke to him. He tried to change the subject. "You don't look old. You must have gotten married when you where very young."

She tipped her head on her shoulders and asked, "How old do you think I am?"

He smiled and shook his head, "All right, I'll admit it. I walked into that one, but I'm not going to play a game I can't win."

"You play at life, Gary. Everyone loses that game eventually."

A boyish grin crept over his face. "Not me, I plan on living forever."

Dania motioned for Gary to sit on the couch. He did and she said, "Some never die, but none live forever."

He looked up at her and shook his head in wonder, "I've never met anyone like you. You're so...I mean, it's like you think differently..." He trailed off as she sat down.

"Gary." She said as moved very close beside him, letting her leg rub up against his. "What did you think when I told you I wanted to go back to my place?"

He blushed and her eyes seemed to lock onto the redness in his cheeks. "Uh, well, I guess I thought that you wanted to fool around."

She smiled, "Fool around?"

He tried not to look at her, "You know, make out or something."

She traced her long fingernails down his arms, "You mean 'or something'."

He nodded, but still wouldn't look at her, "Yeah..."

Her long fingers walked their way up across his shoulders and neck to his chin. She grabbed it and gently forced him to look at her. "You've never had this happen to you before, have you Gary? You've never had a woman come onto you this strong."

He suddenly couldn't speak, his eyes were fixed on hers, and he only shook his head slightly.

"Well Gary, you were right, I do want to fool around with you. The second I saw you in that club I knew that you were just what I was looking for." She began to unbutton his shirt, her eyes never leaving his. "It's so hard to find such youth and innocence anymore."

His eyes were glazed over, he could hear and comprehend what she was saying but the only thing he cared about was her fingers on his body.

She opened the shirt and kissed at his smooth chest, " I love innocence, naivety, whatever you want to call it. She licked at his nipples, and could hear his heart racing through his chest. "It's just so much better this way.... don't you agree?"

He swallowed and whispered, "Oh yes, so much better."

Her hands ran up and down his thighs and pulled his legs open wide. He couldn't believe this was happening to him! Women as hot as she was never paid any attention to him! She knelt down in front of him and worked his fly open with her teeth. He felt his sex begging for release from the confinement of his pants.

She knew what he was feeling and pulled his pants down around his ankles and pulled his rock hard member out of his underwear. She dug her long nails into the throbbing flesh. Gary winced as she almost dug in deep enough to draw blood. She relaxed her grip and said, "Sorry, I sometimes can't wait."

She kissed the head of his penis and began to slowly rub her hands up and down the shaft. "What I've been trying to say is that when people lose innocence, a tiny part within them dies. You still are completely alive Gary, and I want to recapture that feeling, that's why I choose you."

Gary closed his eyes as she took him into her mouth and began to work him over. He moaned softly as her mouth and tongue worked magic. It wasn't long before he felt her bite down on him, he gasped in pain, but then felt a tremendous orgasm grip his entire body. He felt wave after wave flow out of him. It was the most powerful and prolonged orgasm in his life. In fact, he was beginning to worry. He didn't seem to be able to stop.

He looked down at Dania she was sucking hard on him, drinking in as much as she could. She looked up at him and, with his member still in her mouth, smiled. A small stream of blood rolled out of the corner of her mouth.

Revulsion and panic grabbed his soul. He quickly tried to push her off of him but she was too strong. He tried to stand up, but she pinned him down on the couch with one powerful hand. He screamed and tried wildly to get her off but she held him fast and continued to drink. What added to his terror was that he wasn't losing the erection or even the feeling of orgasm. He never felt less aroused in his life but he was still rock hard as she drank more and more of his life away.

He began to cry as he got light headed and he began to lose feeling in his arms and legs. He couldn't find the strength to fight her anymore. He just sat there as she did her work. His penis finally lost its rigidity and she sucked hard for a few more seconds before letting it fall away as she licked her lips.

He was barely conscious at this point and began to feel very cold. She stood up and looked down at his tear stained face. "It's so hard to feel alive these days...you gave me a bit of that old feeling again, thank you."

Gary managed a horse whisper, "Who are you?"

"My name is Dania."

His eyes began to lose their focus and he asked, "Will I become like you?"

She smiled sadly and knelt down before him. She brushed his hair back from his pale face. "No Gary. I wouldn't do that to you. I would never curse you to stop living, but not die. You don't deserve it."

She watched as the light went out of his eyes and his body took its last breath. She patted his head and stood up. The warmth of his blood flowed through her body. His blush brought a red glow to her cheeks and she smiled. He was strong and good. She could almost remember what it felt like to be alive.

A wave of insects and rats started to pour out of the walls and descend upon Gary's corpse. Now that her meal was over, theirs would begin. Within a few hours, there would hardly even be bone left.

She left, locking the apartment behind her. The night was still young and the new blood inside her demanded some entertainment.