James stood frozen, staring at Sarah and Nick. The shock of seeing his two best friends among a group of vampires was almost too much to process. They looked just as stunned as he felt, their expressions shifting between disbelief and confusion.
"Nick," James said, his voice barely above a whisper. "Sarah… What the hell are you doing here?"
Before either of them could respond, Nick raised a hand, addressing the vampires behind him. "Stand down. Don't attack."
James quickly followed suit, turning to Dean, Sam, and Ash. "Wait! Don't do anything. They're my friends."
The three hunters exchanged uneasy glances, their weapons still raised. Dean's eyes narrowed. "Your friends? Are you kidding me?"
"I'm serious," James said firmly. "Stand down. Trust me."
Reluctantly, Dean lowered his machete, though his grip remained tight. Sam and Ash followed his lead, each of them looking deeply uncomfortable.
The vampires James and Sam had attacked earlier shuffled toward Nick and Sarah, hissing softly as they regrouped. Meanwhile, Dean, Sam, and Ash moved to stand behind James, their postures tense and ready for anything.
Dean broke the silence, his voice dripping with disbelief. "They're your friends?"
James nodded, his gaze locked on Sarah and Nick. "Yeah. They are."
"What the hell happened to you two?" he asked, his tone a mixture of anger and concern.
Sarah didn't answer. Instead, she rushed forward toward James.
"Sarah!" Dean barked, his machete rising instinctively.
"Stop!" James said, holding out his hand. "She's not going to hurt me."
His Essence Sense told him Sarah's emotions were a chaotic mix of worry and relief. She wasn't a threat—at least, not to him.
Sarah flung her arms around James, hugging him tightly. "You idiot," she muttered. "You absolute idiot. I thought you were dead."
James groaned. "Sarah, you're breaking my ribs."
She smiled faintly and eased her grip, though she didn't let go entirely.
Nick approached them more slowly, his face unreadable. He stopped in front of James and patted him on the shoulder, but then, without warning, he punched James squarely in the jaw.
"Nick!" Sarah exclaimed, pulling back from James.
James barely flinched, though, rubbing his jaw with a sigh. "I guess I deserved that."
Nick glared at him. "You think? Do you have any idea what we've been through, thinking you were dead?"
Sarah lightly punched James on the shoulder, her anger bubbling to the surface. "Where the hell were you, James? We called you a hundred times! We searched for you! You disappeared without a word!"
James looked at the ground, guilt washing over him. "I'm sorry," he said quietly. "I didn't want to drag you into my mess."
Sarah's voice softened, though her anger was still evident. "What mess, James? You vanished, and then we…" She faltered, glancing at Nick.
James exhaled heavily. "It's a long story." He looked at Dean and the others, then back at Sarah and Nick. "But I owe you an explanation."
Nick crossed his arms, clearly still skeptical. "You better start talking, man, because this isn't making any sense."
James nodded. "Alright. Here's the short version. My dad was killed by a demon. My mom was kidnapped by the same demon. I had to drop everything to go after her, and I didn't want you two involved because…" He hesitated. "Because you were normal. You didn't deserve to get dragged into the kind of life I was about to live."
Nick's expression darkened. "Normal? That's your excuse?"
Sarah shook her head. "James, we're your friends. You don't just shut us out like that."
James looked at them, his face full of guilt. "I know. I'm sorry. I thought I was protecting you."
Nick snorted. "Yeah, well, guess what? We're not exactly 'normal' anymore, are we?"
James grimaced. "Yeah, I noticed. What happened to you two?"
Nick crossed his arms and leaned back slightly, his expression conflicted as he began to speak. "James, I'm a hundred and twenty-six years old."
James blinked, taken aback. "What?"
"All my life, I've roamed America, moving from town to town, living with my group, always trying to escape the hunters. It's not an easy existence," Nick said, his tone tinged with weariness. "A few years ago, I came to Palo Alto. That's where I met Sarah."
James's gaze shifted to Sarah, whose face flushed slightly as she avoided his eyes.
Nick continued, his voice softening. "The moment I saw her, I was drawn to her. I didn't know why at first, but she had this… spark. This life in her that made it impossible for me to walk away. We started talking, spending time together, and before long, I realized I was in love with her."
Sarah finally spoke, her voice quiet but steady. "Nick was the first person who ever really saw me for who I was. Not just the good parts, but all the messy, complicated pieces too."
Nick nodded, a faint smile playing on his lips. "When she graduated high school and went to Berkeley, I went with her. I didn't want to leave her behind. That's when I told her the truth about what I am."
James looked at Nick sharply. "You told her? Just like that?"
Nick sighed. "I didn't have a choice. She knew something was different about me. She kept asking questions, pushing for answers, and I couldn't keep lying to her. So, I told her."
James glanced at Sarah, who looked down at the ground, her expression unreadable. "And you didn't run screaming?" he asked her.
Sarah's lips quirked into a faint smile. "No. I didn't. I was shocked, sure, but it didn't change how I felt about him. If anything, it made me more certain that I didn't want to lose him."
Nick's expression darkened as he continued. "But then she started insisting that I turn her."
James stared at him in disbelief. "What?"
Sarah finally met his eyes, her gaze defiant despite the flush in her cheeks. "I didn't want him to leave me behind, James. I couldn't imagine a life without him."
Nick let out a heavy breath. "I tried to convince her otherwise. For over a year, I told her no. I told her how hard this life is, how dangerous it can be, but she didn't listen. She's as stubborn as ever." He gave Sarah a pointed look, though there was a flicker of fondness in his eyes. "She even threatened to jump off a building if I didn't turn her."
James's eyes widened, and he turned to Sarah. "You did what?"
Sarah looked away again, mumbling, "I wasn't actually going to do it. I just needed him to take me seriously."
James groaned, rubbing a hand over his face. "Sarah, that's not how you handle things."
Nick placed a hand on James's shoulder. "You know how she is, James. She wouldn't back down, no matter what I said. In the end, I… I couldn't stand the thought of losing her. So, I turned her."
The air between them was heavy as James looked from Nick to Sarah, trying to process what he was hearing. Finally, he sighed and patted Nick's shoulder. "It must have been hard for you."
Nick nodded, his expression somber. "It was. For both of us. Learning to live this way… it's not easy."
Behind Nick, the other vampires in his group shifted uneasily, their expressions a mix of sympathy and discomfort. Sarah, meanwhile, seemed to shrink into herself, her face lowering even further as guilt and shame flickered across her features.
James looked at her, his voice softer now. "Sarah…"
She didn't respond, keeping her gaze firmly fixed on the ground.
James turned back to Nick, his tone growing sharper. "So what now? You guys go around killing people and draining their blood?"
Nick's head snapped up, his eyes flashing with indignation. "No. That's not us. None of the people in my group have ever touched human blood."
James raised an eyebrow, skeptical. "Then how do you survive?"
"We feast on animal blood," Nick said firmly. "It's not ideal, and it's not as… satisfying as human blood, but it keeps us alive. And it means we don't have to hurt anyone."
James's expression softened slightly, but he remained wary. "So if it's not you, then who's responsible for the bodies piling up around here?"
Nick's jaw tightened. "There's another coven in town. They're the ones killing people, draining them dry, and leaving the bodies behind. We've been trying to stay under the radar, but their actions are drawing attention to all of us. It's only a matter of time before hunters come swarming in."
James frowned. "And you haven't tried to stop them?"
Nick shook his head. "We're outnumbered. And they're not like us. They thrive on violence, on chaos. If we go after them, it'll be a bloodbath."
James glanced back at Dean, Sam, and Ash, who had been listening silently. Dean's expression was hard to read, but there was a flicker of understanding in his eyes.
"You're not lying, are you?" Dean finally said, his voice gruff.
Nick met his gaze evenly. "No. We don't hurt humans. None of us do."
Dean looked at James, his jaw tightening. "Alright. But if I find out you're wrong about them, I won't hesitate to do what needs to be done."
James nodded. "Fair enough."
He turned back to Nick and Sarah. "We'll deal with the other coven. But after this, we're going to have a long talk about everything, got it?"
Nick and Sarah both nodded, relief and gratitude flickering across their faces.
"Thank you, James," Sarah said quietly.
James gave her a faint smile, though his eyes were still heavy with worry. "Don't thank me yet. This isn't over."
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