I'll take the lie [open]

[Concieved D'maggio]

Con grinned to himself as he witnessed for the first time her smiling.
She was beautiful when she smiled, but she still had that reserve all around herself. She made it seem like there will be no one who could break her resolve.

He ran after her, keeping a normal human pace. He began walking with her down into the stair well.
"Well it will be quicker if we walk, I don't really sense anyone, and no scents of anyone so far. There is a small general across the way."

He threw his arm to her extending his elbow. He tried to stop himself, but he always acted in the old ways.
"Sorry old habits are hard to break."
He lowered his elbow, sighing to himself. This chick was not the one for older mannerisms, or at least that's what he had read from her.

As they reached the door again he did the same thing. He opened the door for her and stepped to the side. He lowered his head and made an embarrassing grin.
"Again, I apologize. I haven't been around much woman in the past years."

An old memory flashed before his eyes. He was sitting with his first and only wife. They were having lunch by the countryside. His kids were playing near an old oak tree and laughing and having a good time.
He smiled up to his wife and ran his hand across her face slowly. He told her he loved her and the memory ended abruptly.

He noticed he was just standing there, holding the door open and a stupid look upon his face. He let the door go and cleared his throat.
"Sorry I . . . I really don't know what that was. It just came over me like a cloud."

He ran his hand over his hair and sighed. This was weird, but she looked almost like her. He really couldn't stop looking at her, but the features were uncanny.

well this just made things very complicated.
He thought to himself.

[nada harper]

Quietly Nada shook her head at his over the top manners. When she'd been normal she would have thought them charming, well she still thought they were charming. But then she would have voiced it, now she couldn't and wouldn't run the risk. Though at the moment she couldn't think of a single reason not to. It wasn't like he was going to call the state psych ward on her or something. He needed her to find his family. She was safe until then, she hopped.

"It's no big deal." She shrugged to his offered arm, as she continued down the stairs. Absently trying to recall when anyone had offered her their arm. Or any limb for that matter. None came to mind. Thought she hardly found that surprising. but again she found herself wondering when the last time someone had been this nice to her, as he stood holding the door for her, and apologizing for it.

"You really don't need to apologi--" she stopped when she noticed he wasn't really hearing her. That he was in his own little world. A world she knew far to well if she was reading his features right. He was remembering something, the tells were all over his face from the blank expression, to the stare that seemed to pass right through her, the way his upper body relaxed. And then there was the one small thing that told her all she really needed to know.

"Sorry I . . . I really don't know what that was. It just came over me like a cloud." he stated, seeming overly bewildered by the admission.

"It was a good memory." she replied. "Your...eh your mouth." she raise she hand gesturing to his lips "The corner of your lips quirked up a bit, when you were seeing it. It happens when it's a good memory. Different memories, different tells." she explained with an awkward smile, stepping away from him, stuffing her hands in pockets as she did.

Knowing that if she touched him, she'd see what he had. The memory was so fresh, but she refused to traipse across another persons memories. Especially the good ones. She somehow thought if she saw them she'd taint them. What she saw were cries to be known, that someone should know. What he saw was private and deserved to stay that way.

"So which way's the general store?" she asked, hopping to change the subject. Food was far safer, then her knowledge of body language.

[Concieved D'maggio]

Con looked her up and down, checking every detail of her. Her voice matched and so did her body, but her personality was way off. He didn't mean to ignore her question, but the likeness was way to creepy.

He just continued to stare at her. Again his hand began to move unconsciously. He stepped forward and stroked her right cheek. He removed his hand quickly and looked around nervously.

God she feels so warm, and I'm so cold.
He thought to himself. He shook his head and stepped back from her.
Yeah, the grocery store. Its just two blocks from here down south. He strode through the door and began to think again.

Just calm down Con. There is no reason to freak out. If you freak out then you cant control yourself, and we can't do that in public. It's just a coincidence thats all. Just a very, very weird coincidence. She is dead, I've looked time and time again and I know for a fact that she is dead, but I never really remembered what she had looked like much less her voice.

He continued at a fast pace, but he was leaving her behind. He stopped and ran back to her and smiled a very awkward smile.
"Look I'm sorry, but that memory was just to real. You said when you touch something you can see that memory right? Like you did with that picture? If so than I think you need to see this."

He held out his hand and held it out to her. If she took his hand than she could see for herself. This was just way to weird and she needed to see this. Something inside just screamed that she should know about this.

"Just trust me please you need to see this. With your gifts you can make this so much easier for me. Please just trust me."
He hoped he made the right decision, but if she freaked and ran than his only helped was lost forever.

[nada harper]

Nada couldn't see the hand he was offering her. She was still stuck on the memory that had hit her when he'd touched her cheek. The same way he had his wife. Had she actually known he was going to touch her she would have run down the block and then some to stop him. But once again she proved to have all the foresight of a corpse.

His wife. He thought she looked like his wife.That she was the spitting image of his dead wife. If it wasn't for the fact she knew this news was freaking him out as much as it was her. She would have been running. The last thing she needed was a vampire thinking she was his wife. But she knew that's not what he was thinking. It was just the appearance that he had related to her, nothing else. So Nada settled for keeping as much distance as was politely possible between them.

Blinking once, then several more times she finally broke from the memory. All he'd said to her while she been seeing it, filtering through to her in one steady rush of words. "Look I'm sorry, but that memory was just to real. You said when you touch something you can see that memory right? Like you did with that picture? If so than I think you need to see this.Just trust me please you need to see this. With your gifts you can make this so much easier for me. Please just trust me."

For several seconds she stared past his hand then directly at it. "I'm not your wife Con." she said numbly staring at his hand. "It's more likely that I'm related to someone in her family." she stated shaking her head to clear her shock. "My looking like her doesn't make me her."

"And look for future reference, please don't touch me.I don't wear long sleeves and gloves because I get cold easy. And it's my fault for not telling you that before. But please don't." she added with a weak smile. "It's hard enough sorting my emotions. I don't want to feel a total strangers to." she added off hand, wincing as she did.

Wow we have no brains whatsoever. Now do we? Now he's going to know you felt what he felt. You're just brilliant this evening Miss Bernadette. Brilliant. Idiot! she brain scolded.

[Concieved D'maggio]

Con lowered his hand and lowered his head slightly in respect. He looked back up at her and grinned at her.
"It seems that I'll be apologizing allot to you. Your just like that one chick from the X-Men. I wont touch you I promise, so long as you don't touch me. He laughed and winked at her. He was trying to lighten the mood, and was probably doing a bad job.

He smiled ounce more to her and continued to walk.
"How long have you had this gift? Does it work with everything you touch? Wow it's just allot to sort through if you really think about it. I guess that means you cant . . . uh nevermind.
He laughed and rubbed the back of his head. He always had a way of making things awkward and that was probably the last thing she really wanted to hear.

He laughed a bit more and shook his head.
"Sorry, that was kind of a common sense thing. Which I don't have allot of, but that has to be hard though. I'm sorry that you have to live with this. Believe it or not its kind of hard to find a woman as a vampire. Either I'm killing one or trying not to get killed by one. There are allot of homicidal woman vampires. There was once a woman who was actually not frightened of me. I had turned her and three weeks later she was gone. Haven't heard from her sence.

He looked down and smiled to himself. He missed indeed, but she was gone just like the rest of them. Con didn't mind being alone, actually it kept his life easy and carefree. Oh sure there were woman in his life and most of the time they were gone the next day, but none that actually made him feel happy.

To have someone living with him now was off the norm for Con. He smiled and shook his head thinking he would have to control his flirty and sometimes off the wall ways.

He shook his head and sighed.
Uh Con did you forget? No touchy. Even if there was an interest what would you do? Give her a friendly handshake instead of a kiss?
He laughed at the thought and shook his head again. He looked up at her and gave her a goofy looking grin.

"The store is right up ahead, in fact were already here.
He pointed to the small store with a couple of cars in the parking lott. He strode up to the store and opened the door for her.
"After you Nada.

[nada harper]

"Thanks" she replied with nod, before going in and snagging a hand basket by the door. Then going straight for the junk food. "It's been seven years more or less. The Doctors diagnosed me as being schizophrenic. When my...gift first started showing up. Kept me on a steady diet of drugs A through Z. To this day I'd rather down a box full of tacks than take a pill." She shrugged with a small shudder.

"And no it's not everything I touch. Just certain things. There has to be a strong emotional tie. Joy, love, despair, fear, hate, anger. Those are usually the ones that trigger me. The last four more than the first two. People are more of a problem than actual items. We tend to flit back and forth. Where as things like that photo of your granddaughter don't have that option. They sort of absorb the emotion we direct at them." she explained, pulling a box of coco pebbles from the self.

"As for the sex aspect. I can. I just have to make sure my partner isn't thinking about anything else. And that I don't stick around after for a play by play on their end." she added, with another shrug, before turning the isle looking for the peanut butter.

Out of curiosity Nada why are we telling him all this? her mind questioned.
Because I haven't talked to anyone. And I want to talk to someone. Besides he needs me and it might be nice to have someone pull me out of the really bad ones rather than having to watch till the very end.

"I need someone to know my tells." she added absently almost bitterly as she stared at a jar of Jif extra chunky. Almost as if she wanted to kill the poor little jar.

Blinking she shook her head and took the jar from the self, tossing it into the basket with her cereal. "Look. Don't, worry so much about right or wrong with me. I don't read this world in words. Too often they say one thing an mean another. If you do something that bothers me I'll let you know. But other wise don't worry about it. I'm not some little princess that needs pampering." I got enough of that before Mom died. she added mentally. "You just do you. And I'll do me. And for the most part you won't even know I'm here."

[Concieved D'maggio]

Con looked down and frowned.
"But I enjoy your company.
He looked up and grinned his signature grin. He grabbed her gloved hand and turned her to face him.
"I know you have had a troubled past and you have trouble opening up to people. I on the other hand have no memory of my past. You were admitted into a psych ward and you may hear some voices. I feed from people like some sick little leech to survive and not lock up like a dead corpse. The point is we all have are downfalls, but we should like past all those things. I'm not one to be preachy, but I think most of your adult life you've looked at all the negatives. Let me try to show you all the positives."

He smiled and squeezed her hand lightly.
"When you feel like you need to talk about you past than please do I'm all ears. Your secrets are safe and sound with me. I'm not really your normal Count Dracula. I feed when I need it be, which is usually when I can barely move at all, or when I get a very strong urge.

He looked down into her basket and cringed. He snatched it away from her and began walking her down to the vegetable aisle.
"And if your living with me than your eating something besides just Coco Puffs. You need vegetables, meat, and grains. I'll be damned if you end up dying in a diabetic seizures."

He laughed and started grabbing the items he needed.
"I taught myself how to cook out of sheer boredom and seeing as how I am Italian thats what I make the best."

He finished loading the grocery cart, and just to show he was playing fare he also stuck in a couple boxes of chocolate cupcakes. He stepped to the register and started to load the groceries onto the counter.
"Hey Kyle! Long time no see eh? Why you no come to the store anymore? Ooh you have a lady friend yes?
Said the cashier with a heavy Italian accent.

Shit, he used my other pseudo name. Con thought nervously to himself.

He looked at the cashier and began to speak his language to him. Explaining that this wasn't his girlfriend and that she was just crashing for a couple of nights. He apologized for not stopping in often, or going to see the mans grandson as he had promised last month.

As soon they checked out and he paid the man he turned to Nada and grinned.
"Now I can explain about the name thing."
He said nervously to her.

[nada harper]

"No need. I've got several of my own." she shrugged, taking the bag from him setting it on the ground as she began to fish for her cereal. "I am surprised you corrected him though. If you said I was your girlfriend, wouldn't it keep those big Italian noses from saying. 'Kyle. What the matter with you? She's a good lookin' girl. What's the matter? You don't like girls no more?" She said doing her best impression of an old Italian and ending up sounding like the godfather.

Shrugging, she rolled her eyes at her pathetic attempt of sounding Italian. "Sorry, I never was very good at impressions." she stated giving the bag back to him as she tore open the cardboard box, pulled out the bag ripping it open before plunging a hand full in and munching on the crispy chocolate flakes. A small happy little moan escaping her throat as she devoured one of her many fave foods.

"And by the way this is Coco pebbles, not Coco Puffs." she corrected after the second hand-full "Pebbles are the Flintstone's, Puffs have that dorky bird that make's me think of the Tricks Rabbit." She stated with mock annoyance for his insulting her beloved junk food. "But since you don't eat normal food I'll forgive your oversight this time. But just this time. Mess up again and there will retribution in chocolaty proportions." She stated looking her most threatening without meaning a word of it.

"And don't worry so much about my past. There isn't that much to tell. Normal happy childhood, until I turned twelve and Dad found out Mom was hooker. Now she's dead, he's in jail and I'm here. See nothing to tell. You on the other hand have me somewhat confused. You remember your mother, father, and siblings, but you told me you don't remember you're past. Exactly what do you remember? Go as far back as you can."

[Concieved D'maggio]

Con frowned and tried to think as hard as he could.
"I remember allot from my childhood, that memory is crystal clear. Its just after my transformation that it gets dark. I remember some stuff, like my wife and some of my children. The rest is just blank.

He sat down on the pavement, his head laying inside his hands. He made a heavy sigh and looked up to her.
"And what was that comment earlier about correcting him? You don't really seem like the dating type anyway. You wont really let anybody get to know you, and when someone tries they just get the bitch shield. No offense of course."

He smiled and grabbed the bag from her, digging into the bag and trying out a hand full of the cereal. He let it linger in his mouth, but all he could taste was nothing. It was like tasting a cardboard sandwich for all he knew. He handed her the bag back and laughed.
"I see why you like them so much. They taste just like nothing!"

He laughed a bit more and stood up next to her.
"I could go in there and tell him that were engaged. Could make things look less . . . conspicuous?"
He gave her a wink and grabbed the grocery bags from the ground. He thought about grabbing a carrot and make her eat that instead. He shook the thought out of his head and chuckled to himself.

"We should be getting back soon, it will only be about an hour before the sun rises, and then I'm a well done vampire."
He smiled and grabbed her hand again, leading her down the street to his apartment. He laughed to himself about how she would take this one. She had said that they should act that way, well at least not like that.

"I'm probably gonna get a good chewing out, but hey its worth it. At least I get to mess with her just a bit more before I have to rest.
His eyes gazed the horizon as it started to become less and less black.
I wonder what she'll be doing in the day, and if I can trust her enough not use the locks on my door?
He shook his head again and smiled. It was a chance he was willing to take. He would only lock one lock tonight on his door.

[nada harper]

When they got back the apartment, Nada went about putting the groceries away, putting produce and cold items in the fridge and the rest in the cabinets. Being as most of the were empty she guessed at their proper locations. Once everything was put away. when went back into the living and snagged the clothes he had given her to sleep in. Normally she was a 'whatever shirt she happened to be wearing and panties' kind of girl. But given that she was his guest, she supposed ceding to his idea of sleep would be fine until her got her things tomorrow.

Out of habit she reached into her shirt pulling out the thin ball link chain barring four different locker keys. Each a different color, but overall the the same bulky circular head and thin metal body. Quietly she recited which key went where. "Yellow, grand central. Green, Union. Blue Denver. Red, Evertt." she finished with a small tug on the chain. Before taking it off and setting in on the coffee table in front of the couch.

"Bathroom?" She asked, looking where Con had pointed she took the top and bottom he had provided and got changed. Carefully holding the pants jacket and shirt she'd been wearing before coming back out. Running a hand through her hair, trying to straighten out the mess of waves that was now hanging down around her shoulders.

She hated wearing her back so tight for so long. It always molded her hair to the same form, like a shirt that had been left on the floor for too long. Setting the clothes on the table next to her keys she plopped down in the middle of the couch shaking her hair out, running both her hands through it for like of a brush.

"I suppose you'll be going to bed here soon." she said idly as she worked on her hair. "I'll probably be up early tomorrow. Don't know if that means anything to you or not. But just so you know. I'll do run some errands and see if I can track down anything on you family. If you remember you family name that would help. Write it down for me and I'll see if I can run up some leads for you." she said, tossing her hair to the side once she consider it smooth enough.

"Oh and ah, thanks Con." she said before sprawling out on the couch and going to sleep.

[Concieved D'maggio]

Con watched as she drifted into sleep. He grabbed an extra blanket and draped it around her body. He sat down on the floor next to her and rested his head on the cushion.
This had to have been on the top five longest nights list.
He looked over at her and then to the keys on the coffee table. He wondered what were they for and why they had such great meaning to her?

He grabbed the keys and let it dangle around in his hand, they looked like one of the keys the humans use on the metro station around the lockers. Each were a different color and she had religiously stated which each one goes to. He wondered what each one was to, and what was inside those secret lockers?

He sat the keys back down and grabbed her clothes from the bathroom and sat them in the laundry room for cleaning later on. He walked one last time into the living room and hovered over her. He sat down on his knees and kissed her on the cheek goodnight.

He walked to the window placing his hands on the glass as he watched two vampires staring directly at him. He smiled and gave them a wink. This woman who had come into his life so abruptly was in some kind of trouble. She had said that she was a psychic of sorts and could help people, and back at the club she said she was waiting for a client?

Something just didn't sit right with Con, whoever her client was he was setting some kind of trap for her to fall right in, or maybe it was just a coincidence that the vampires were there at the club. Whatever it was something just wasn't right.

He knew the vampires wouldn't come and attack at his own house. He knew these vampires. They would wait until he forget, and then strike at him cold and fast. Just like the last time they had attacked.

He walked into his bedroom and closed and locked his door. The bedroom was small and painted a dark shade of blue. A king sized mattress sat in the middle with a nightstand holding a single lamp stood.
The windows were covered in a special black paint that allowed no sunlight to come through and no one to look in. He removed his clothes and laid in the middle of his bed.
Most interesting human I have met in a long time and she is on some kind of vampire hit list.

He shook his head laughing and rested his eyes.
Either way they'll have to get through me.