He goes back to his wife

Part 2, Segment 1

Gary opened his eyes, and the world looked different. The red light was still there, but instead of pale and indistinct, everything was clear and sharp. He saw the window, and through the window the bird flying overhead. In the corner, he saw the spider scurrying towards the gnat which found itself hopelessly caught in a web.

And he saw Vanessa in all her glory. She was gorgeous, but in a different way also. She was literal perfection. He could see no flaws. No wrinkles, no blemishes. Nothing that showed signs of age or change or mortality. And somehow, he knew that to her, he looked just the same.

He heard things differently also. The faintest sounds were his when he wanted them, but he could block out the blaring jukebox as if he had a remote control. He heard voices and laughs and heartbeats.

And the smells, even they were magnified. Especially one smell. It was rich and deep, like an old fine wine. It was complex and tangy and spicy. He could almost taste the air itself as he savored the aroma. It made his mouth water, and he felt a pressing in his mouth.

“You just smelled the blood,” Vanessa said simply. “Isn’t it amazing?”

“How could you tell?”

“Your fangs are out. It’s going to take you a while to control that reaction, so you’d best be careful for a few days when you’re around people.”

Gary inhaled deeply at the intoxicating odor. “How can you resist it? Of all the things I thought I’d feel, this is... powerful.”

“You don’t resist it. It’s what drives you. It makes you keep going, because if you don’t, the smell becomes like a need. You either give in, or you die.”

Gary tuned in his other senses again. “You are beautiful,” he said. “You’re perfect.”

“I am, aren’t I?” she smiled. “Like I said, being a vampire leads to changes, but a lot of them are quite nice. And you’ve had them too.”

Her eyes had trailed down to his crotch. Gary looked down and saw that he was longer than before. And almost on command, he became hard and huge.

“One more good side,” she said. “You’ll always be ready for sex. There’s no better way to feed than bedding your victim, and you’ll never be able to have too much of it.”

“Vanessa, I don’t know what to say...” He trailed off.

“Then just promise me you’ll be good and decent, like you were before. You’re going to be tempted, and you’ll give in to it. But when you think about what you’re doing, just remember what the consequences are. If you weigh your actions, you’ll probably be able to figure out what’s worth it, and what isn’t.”

“I promise,” he said solemnly. “I owe you that.”

“Babe, you don’t owe me anything. You’ve paid handsomely.” She blew a kiss to him. “And feel free to call me, if you like. I slipped my number into your pants while you were out. Or e-mail me, even. I’m a 90’s kind of vamp!”

With that, she opened the door, walked back to the bar, and left Gary alone with his thoughts.

The first thought was of Lisa. And the second. And the third. Gary smiled when he noticed that his dick was now as hard as his fangs.

* * *

There was a faint glow through the hotel curtains, bathing Lisa in pale light. The air conditioning had turned off, and the room had warmed up a little bit. Lisa had kicked off the comforter, leaving her covered by only the sheet.

She tossed and turned fitfully, caught in a dream. Like most of her dreams of this sort, she was a damsel in distress, needing to be rescued by her prince. Lisa had never told Gary about her dreams, because she didn’t want him to know that underneath her strong exterior, she really wanted to be rescued and ravished. If he knew that, she thought, he would control her just like the previous guys did. Of course she loved being controlled, but when those other guys did it, they got mean.

But in her fantasies, Gary was powerful and dominating, but also gentle and caring. And these dreams always made her wet, even just thinking about them in the middle of the day. Her therapist told her that she should tell Gary about them, but Lisa couldn’t get herself to do that.

Lisa sat up, awake, as the door opened. She realized that Gary wasn’t next to her.

“Where’d you go, honey?” she asked.

“I... went out. I needed a drink.”

“Why don’t you come to bed now,” she said softly as she put her head back down on the pillow.

If she could have seen in the dark, she would have seen Gary’s smile. “That’s exactly what I was thinking.”