The Game [Jackson]

[Jackson Conner]

When he sneaked a peek at Mikaela he saw her climbing out of the water. Needless to say the look on his face was no longer "pitiful" but rather "awestruck" as he watched her slowly pull herself up onto the boulder. First came her shoulders, then her back, then her mid-section, then her legs; Jackson laid there, still floating and couldn't move. With the moonlight dancing off her skin and turning it into a dazzling, enchanting beacon, Jackson could do nothing but stare. He didn't even realize that he was sinking, little by little, and it wasn't until after she silently motioned for him to follow her, wrung out her hair, and disappeared behind the water fall, that he sank all the way underwater. Thrashing around for a second he regained his composure and moved as fast as he could to get to where she was now hiding. He too climbed up the same boulder that she had used and jumped through the rough waterfall hoping that he wouldn't slam into a rock wall.

As he entered this cave he took a look around and sighed. "Well, Dollface, this place is really b…" He trailed off at the sight of her, and couldn't remember what he had been saying. He moved slowly, and quietly closer to her, all the while staring into her eyes.

[Mikaela Conner]

Mikaela stared around the cave. It was exactly the same as she remembered it from her last trip a few years back. The walls were slightly dampened from the waterfall in front, but shimmered with the dim light, scattering rainbows off the smooth rocks. It was both beautiful and enchanting at the same time, just as Jackson was both handsome and charming. Mikaela could hardly believe that she had found someone like him. In all of her years of pointless wandering alone, she would have never expected to have found someone by literally running into him while hunting for her next meal. It was unexpected and the most unique thing that had ever happened to her, aside from becoming a vampire at the age of twenty-one, but she refused to think about that. As she waited, she thought of what she was actually doing, but had literally no clue. She was flying by the seat of her pants for one thing and trying to play it off as calm, cool, and collected on the other...it was definitely confusing.

Moments later, Jackson joined her behind the waterfall. He had started to say something, but completely stopped in the wake of seeing her up close. As he started to come closer to her, she backed up until she was up against the nearest wall, the cold stone hitting her back with a loud THUD, but not hurting her in the least bit. Looking into his perfect golden eyes, she found the one thing she thought she had lost a long time ago when she became a vampire...humanity. Jackson was the one who was bringing out her humanity for the first time in forty years and she couldn't help but adore him for it. Holding out her hand, she took his and smiled. "You were saying, Twinkle Toes?" she asked teasingly.

[Jackson Conner]

For the first time in fifty-four years, his entire existence, human and vampire, Jackson was speechless. The realization that he was there that beautiful place, with that beautiful woman made his head spin. He hadn't realized that she was backing away from him until he heard aTHUD. He stopped suddenly and watched as she apparently un-phased by the noise and extended her arm to take him by the hand. After staring at their hands, entwined, for a few moments and after she said "You were saying, Twinkle Toes?" he looked back into her eyes. "I don't remember," he said laughingly. "There really must be a first for everything…"
His eyebrows bunched together and thoughts began to crowd his mind again, this time they were thoughts from his human life. 'Why are you thinking about all that that right now, man? Don't be an idiot and DON'T screw this up" He shook his head to clear his mind, it helped, but only for a minute or two. The last time he had ever had feelings like this was a week or so before he had his wreck and was turned into a vampire. Those feelings then were only a fraction of how he now feels about Mikaela, but still, these memories were fighting to get out and to reek havoc in his mind.

[Mikaela Conner]

Mikaela was very aware of three things at the moment. First, that she was standing in a cave, against a rock, half-naked with a guy she barely knew but felt herself falling for every moment they were together. Second, that the guy in front of her was the most amazing thing she had ever seen...mortal or otherwise. And third, there was something vaguely bothering him...or so it seemed as his eyebrows stitched together in frustration for a moment before he became calm once again. Every instinct within her was telling her that something was definitely wrong. It was apparent to her that something about this situation was not right and it was bothering him.

Taking her hand, she gently stroked the side of his face. "Is something the matter?" she asked softly. Looking him in the eyes, she saw the pain there of something from his past or present that was lurking beneath. It was almost as if he suddenly remembered something in particular. Mikaela knew that she never went searching in her past in fear of finding something she didn't want to remember from her human life. Fortunately she had done a great job of blocking that out, but she couldn't deny that there were others who could not to the same. And unlike those people, she actually wanted to be there for Jackson through whatever he was going through in that moment.

[Jackson Conner]

Jackson nodded slightly in embarrassment and said in a small voice, "Yes, kind of…I want to tell you, but it's gonna be embarrassing, can I "show" you? I'll give you permission to read my mind for the next few minutes…

Flashback: He had been secretly in love with her. She was beautiful. Her name was Megan. They were best friends. They met in college and were in the same gradating class. Their relationship was a "love-hate" relationship but Jackson knew that underneath she must have SOME kind of feelings for him. The night before his accident she and Jackson were sitting in his car after a night out with friends, and they were discussing their futures. All night she was fine, until he began hinting at the topic that he really wanted to talk about, which was how he felt about her. He didn't want her to move and leave him, and yet here he was, being a pansy about telling her how he felt. He could tell that she was becoming uncomfortable with his mysterious mood and eventually he gave up and blamed it on the alcohol. Right then was the first time that he realized that he really was nothing more than a chicken-shit. Sure, he had the demeanor of a badass and the charm of being the "bad-boy" type, but when it came down to it, he had no backbone for commitment. And that had cost him everything.

The next night, he went to a party that was hosted by a mutual friend of theirs and she was supposed to be there, but when he arrived she was no where to be found. Since it was still quite early he decided to hang around for a few hours to wait and see if she would show up. Low and behold, just as he was about to leave, she steps through the door. Jackson wasn't drunk at this point in time but alcohol was heavy on his breath as he walked over and asked her if they could have some time to talk. She said sure so they walked back through the front door she came in and towards the street full of cars. Standing out in the front yard, Jackson calmly and as charmingly as he could muster up, told her what he should have told her the night before. As he finished he looked into her eyes and saw that what he had just done was a mistake. The look on her face killed him more than he had imagined. Her face didn't show a sorrow for not returning his feelings, but rather her face showed amusement. She was laughing at him; so much for being friends.

Jackson stormed off after another go round with Megan, he tried multiple times to let her know that this was no laughing matter for him and that it honestly was tearing him apart. Once he finally decide to leave, and quit trying to explain himself to the still laughing Megan he went storming back into the house and continued to get hammered. Megan, on the other hand had mentioned that she was going to be leaving and return to her other friends. He thought she had left, but snapped when he saw her again, she walked by him and snickered yet again. He decided it was time for him to go home and sped off on his bike…the rest is history. After his transformation into a vampire he made sure that he was never by himself, but he never was able to let someone really get "close" to him. He always kept a big emotional distance. That's why he was still in disbelief that Mikaela hadn't laughed in his face yet.

As Jackson blinked his eyes back into the present he turned his head to face away from Mikaela. He suddenly felt SO embarrassed.

[Mikaela Conner]

Without words, Mikaela could tell that whatever was bothering Jackson was both painful and something he was reluctant to share because of what had happened to him. But, when he admitted that he wanted to tell her and gave her permission to read his mind while he showed her what had happened, Mikaela felt very honored and amazed that he would be so willing to share with her because it was so obviously personal to him. No one had ever trusted her that much to let her in that easily to something like this, so she knew it was a big step for Jackson in the first place. Still holding his hand, she dropped her shield keeping her from hearing his thoughts and began to listen to what he had to say to her. And for the first time in forty years, she was literally amazed at what she saw.

He had been in love. The girl in his mind was both beautiful and sweet. She learned that her name had been Megan and that she was his best friend in college, but he had always been too afraid to tell her how he really felt, often blaming his inability to committ to someone in a relationship. She saw the night in his car where he tried to admit how he felt to her because she would be leaving soon, but his failure to do so when she walked away and blamed his behavior on alcohol. Mikaela watched the thoughts in his mind shift to the next evening at a party, where he was slightly inebriated, but still sober enough to think clearly. He had waited for her until she finally came to the party right as he was about to leave. She watched him ask Megan to go outside to talk and then the conversation that ensued outside like she was right there beside him. It was heart-wrenching to watch him be rejected like that, with Megan laughing at him.

Mikaela watched as Jackson recalled the arguements that followed with Megan, how he tried to convince her that he was being serious, but she never would take him seriously. Jackson then turned to alcohol to drown his sorrows and after walking by Megan one last time, when she snickered at him, he left the party and got into the accident that forever changed his life as it lead to his transformation into a vampire. Mikaela saw that he had never let himself get emotionally close to anyone since that time. Her heart broke for the sorrow he had endured and she understood that it had left him in a torn state.

As he turned away, embarrassed for the story he just shared, Mikaela reached out her hand and turned his face gently back to her. Keeping her hand on the side of his face, she looked into his eyes with compassion and tenderness. "I would never laugh at you," she said. "You are a good man. Compassionate, loving, funny, and sweet...any girl would be lucky to have you. That girl didn't know what she could have had if she hadn't been so heartless." Mikaela took a deep breath and pulled him closer to her. "But I want to be with you."

[Jackson Conner]

"I would never laugh at you, You are a good man. Compassionate, loving, funny, and sweet…any girl would be lucky to have you. That girl didn't know what she could have had if she hadn't been so heartless." Even though she turned his head back towards her it was hard for him to look her in the eyes, but he was glad that he did, for what he saw there he knew that she wasn't lying. Jackson knew somewhere deep inside, that she was probably right, but the shame and embarrassment that he felt didn't subside until after her last sentence sank into his mind. She breathed deeply and then he felt her pull him close and she said, "But I want to be with you."

She couldn't have said anything better. Her calm, compassionate words completely put him at ease with the whole situation. He now knew for certain that she wanted to be with him. She was beginning to feel how he was feeling towards her, as in - more than just "liking" each other, and it showed in what she just said and how she said it. Jackson smiled, unwillingly, but didn't want to worry her any longer, so he did his best to turn his feelings from sad to nonchalant. "Well, now that you've seen my pitiful display, why don't we shift back to what you wanted to show me." He hoped that this emotional interlude of his hadn't thrown her off of what she was trying to do by showing him this beautiful place that obviously had some kind of connection with her own past, maybe if he got lucky, he could know a little more about her now.

[Mikaela Conner]

Mikaela could feel her heart warm for Jackson...the first time that had happened in her entire vampire existence. She knew that this was special and different, unlike anything she had ever experienced before. A part of that scared the living hell out of her, but the other more powerful side told her that this was right. That Jackson was for her. As he looked into her eyes and smiled, she knew that something she had said got to him. There was nothing in the world she wouldn't do for him now, but she wanted to make sure that he could handle her. After all, she wasn't a smart ass for no reason.

As he changed the subject, Mikaela smiled and looked around the cave for what she had been searching for to begin with. It was a small memoir to her former life as a human and she wanted to find it. Her eyes scanned the walls until she saw it. Taking Jackson's hand, she lead him over to the other side of the cave to where the initials MJA were carved into the stone. Looking back at Jackson, she bit back a smile. "I came here once...when I was human," she explained. "My family took a trip here when I was about eighteen and I found this cave behind the falls. My dad carved my initials into the wall so others would always know I'd been here and found this beautiful cave." Turning around, she full faced him again. Her eyes were full of sincerety as she placed her hands on his chest. "After I became...this, I thought I had lost all my humanity. I thought would never be able to regain it, until I came back to this place about ten years after my transformation. I saw that and remembered my parents. Their memory keeps me sane." Mikaela bit her lip again, trusting that Jackson would understand what she meant. "And then I met you. You have made me happy for the first time in forty years." She smiled at him once before leaning forward and kissing his cheek.

[Jackson Conner]

His plan to change the subject worked. She began looking around the cave and this kind of confused Jackson momentarily as her eyes searched for something in particular. He felt her cool skin against the palm of his also cool hand as she began leading him towards her apparent destination. As he finally noticed what she was looking at he saw the initials MJA carved into the wet stone. She sheepishly began to explain some of her story, just as Jackson had hoped, and mentioned that she had been here once before in her human life. She also mentioned that her father had been the one to carve her initials here, in hopes of creating a kind of memory for them and a marking for other people to see.

She paused here for a moment and repositioned herself so that they were face to face once more, and her hands were now on his chest. He wrapped his arms around her and clasped his hands together; it felt nice, comfortable, right..and then she continued talking. She explained that after she was transformed into a vampire that she had been afraid of losing her humanity completely, and Jackson knew exactly what she meant. He had noticed that she brought his human qualities back into the limelight, and he didn't want those good feelings to go away. She said that coming here brought back some of those memories and helped her keep her perspective on things. He knew what she meant by that as well.

"And then I met you. You have made me happy for the first time in forty years." she said before kissing him on the cheek. He smiled, and had he been human his cheeks would have definitely been an embarrassing rosy color for a guy. He smiled his broad crooked smile and then kissed her cheek, but he wouldn't settle for just that. He kissed her other cheek, then her nose, then her forehead and then he leaned his head back slightly so that he could see her beautiful face, with a triumphant look on his own. "So, what is your full name Mrs. MJA?" He asked before planting his final kiss on her lips. He knew that it probably wasn't fair, asking her a question and then distracting her as so, but he figured she wouldn't mind.

[Mikaela Conner]

For the first time, Mikaela felt completely at ease with her life as a vampire. There was something about Jackson that made her feel this way and she was grateful that she had met him in the first place. As he wrapped his arms around her, she couldn't help but smile again. Jackson's arms were strong and comforting, just as the rest of him was. Mikaela knew that if she were still human, she would have been blushing about fifteen different colors of red by now, but that didn't matter because she was joyful. As he kissed her cheek, then the other, and then her nose and forehead before leaning back to look her in the eyes. For a moment, she averted her eyes playfully as he asked her what her full name was, but then looked back into his beautiful topaz orbs.

Before she could reply, he cut her off with a kiss on the lips. Her entire body relaxed on any tension she had as she just let everything go in that kiss. It was amazing to her how her body fit perfectly against Jackson's, like they were made for one another. Nothing else in the world mattered right then because she was with him. The sun, moon, and stars could have crashed into the world right then and she wouldn't have known. When their kiss was broken a few moments later, she smiled and licked her her bottom lip. "Well, you certainly know how to distract a girl..." she said teasingly before looking back at her carved initials. "My full name is Mikaela J'na Anderson."

Letting go of him, she walked over and ran her hand over the carved initials in the wall. Flashes of her human life flickered in her mind. Her parents were dim figures in her head, but she remembered that her mother had dark, curly hair and kind green eyes. Her father had short, jet black hair and blue eyes that reminded Mikaela of the sky. There were times when she missed them, especially now, but she knew that she had Jackson. For the first time in her existence, she didn't feel so alone and did not want to be alone. Turning back to him, she smiled a little. "Shall we continue the game?" she asked, laughing a little when she realized she was still only half-dressed.

[Jackson Conner]

Jackson smiled as she teased him about being able to easily distract her. "I do what I can, Doll face." Then he learned her full name and said, "I like it, it flows." He smiled and allowed her to move from him, even though he didn't want her to. She walked closer to her initials and gently touched the edges of the carvings. Her eyes filled with a sense of remembrance and then flashed to being filled with a kind of thankfulness as she turned to him and smiled. "Shall we continue the game?" she laughingly asked. "Why, sure thing. But first, let's get dried off and dressed again." He snickered and made his way to climb back up on top of the same rock as before.

He stood there and stretched out his hand to help her up and out of the water. And as he stood there the most random, sublime, and undoubtedly the most spontaneous thought of Jackson's entire life flashed through his head. 'She wouldn't know what hit her.' he thought to himself.

[Mikaela Conner]

Mikaela smiled as he complimented her name and agreed to continue the game, mentioning that he needed to get dressed first. It almost made her laugh because she felt the exact same way. As he hopped out of the cave onto the rock and held out his hand for her, she jumped and then took it. From there, she dove into the water and swam to the shore and stood on the rocks where her clothing was still laying. She got out of the water and wrung out her hair again before sliding back into her dress and heels. Turning around, she looked at Jackson and grinned. "Alright Twinkle Toes, you're up...I guess I'll see you in a few hours," she said, walking over to a rock to take a seat to wait.

This entire game was one big experience for Mikaela. One she was rather enjoying at the moment because of how much she was growing from it emotionally. To her, Jackson was like seeing a rainbow for the first time after being blind her whole life. He was both beautiful and enchanting. She loved this feeling and couldn't wait to begin the next part of the journey in this game.

[Jackson Conner]

As Jackson began to redress himself he couldn't help but smile. He knew that this plan was down right crazy and that she may not even want to follow through; however, from the information that she had given him in the past few hours they had been together, he felt about 95% certain that she wouldn't laugh in his face.

He kissed her on the forehead one last time as she said "Alright Twinkle Toes, you're up...I guess I'll see you in a few hours." and he was about to run off when he stopped and said, "Yes, yes, you will…but...ummm…there may be a little more involvement on your part this time…if you don't want to continue, then talk to me through your thoughts…but if you do want to follow through with the game to find me, then keep your thoughts to yourself." He winked at her and then turned and ran off towards the airport that they had used previously.

On the way he began to sort out some of the details. First, he had to reach his destination. Second, he needed to take a bit of a whirl-wind shopping trip. Third, he needed to find the perfect place to carry out this plan, and last but not least he was going to need some help from a friend who lived there.

As he entered the airport at about 4:30 a.m. he had no problem being discrete as he once again, wooed another lady behind the counter into saving a ticket for his 'fiancé' to follow him to his destination. He secured both of their tickets, and this time, the only thing that the note said was that she was PROHIBITED from sneaking a peek at her ticket because he had acquired a private plane for her so that she couldn't know her destination before she landed. He was going to have to wait about three hours for the first available flight out of there and when he finally boarded his commercial plane and they took off at precisely 7:29a.m.. Once more, Jackson endured the charade of being 'human' and hoped that this flight wouldn't be as long as the other two had been. Fortunately enough the airplane ride was only 16 hours long and Jackson had no trouble while he sat there looking 'normal.'

When they landed, it was all he could do to keep up his human appearance and NOT sprint as fast as his vampire body would take him out the doors of the airport; but instead, he walked at a brisk human pace and to other people it just appeared as if this man in a suit was late for an important meeting. He walked, and walked, and walked and finally reached the exit called for a cab and told him to go to the nearest hotel, he checked in and made appearances of taking the night to rest, while in actuality he was using the computer in his room to search for the nearest car dealership. He was in need of a car, and not just any car, he had his heart set on a bright yellow Camaro, with black racing stripes. For some reason, that's what he wanted. And the next morning, as soon as the dealership opened, he was there and a test drive and a few signatures later, that's exactly what he got. As he sat there in his brand new car, he took time to "breathe" and think things through. 'Ok, first thing checked off the list and a half check for number two on the list. Do you even know what your getting yourself into you dumbass? No, I sure don't , but it's gonna be worth it…I hope."

[Mikaela Conner]

As Jackson made his escape, he left Mikaela with a kiss on the forehead and the hopes of seeing him in the very near future, informing her that the next part was going to require more of her and if she did not wish to follow to let him know through thought. However, she very much did want to continue because she was falling more and more for this strange vampire that had wandered into her life and completely taken her by surprise. As she waited the alloted six hours before she could begin her search for him, she spent her time down by the falls and reminicing about her days as a human. She loved this area for all its natural beauty and could appreciate how spectacular it looked at sunrise as she took shelter from anyone seeing her in the sunlight who happened to be touring the falls. She hid in a neighboring cave where she sat on a stone and waited for the time to pass, thinking about how much things were beginning to change. She no longer wished to be alone, but was still scared of completely letting someone in like Jackson in fear of getting hurt. However, she knew he was worth the risk. He was worth putting her heart on the line for if in the end she could find someone to spend eternity with.

After her six hours were up, Mikaela disappeared into the marketplace where she found a wrap to cover herself so that she could travel without people noticing her skin glittering with the sunlight. She followed Jackson's scent to the airport where she approached the front counter and asked if a man named Jackson had left something there for his fiancee. The woman at the counter handed her an envelope with instructions not to open it by Jackson as he had booked a private plane going to an unknown location. That sneaky man... she thought to herself as she thanked the woman and went to her terminal. When she boarded the plane and took her seat, she prepared herself to act very human for the next few hours while she flew to God knows where. Sixteen hours later, she landed in wherever she was and stepped off the plane. Obviously, Jackson had some sort of plan in mind, but she had absolutely no clue where the heck she was...only that she was following some ridiculous man on a wild turkey hunt because she was falling in love with him. Looking around, she searched for a sign that would tell her where she was and what she was looking for exactly.

[Jackson Conner]

Mikaela was scheduled to land at about 3 or 4 am, and Jackson knew that. He was glad that he had planned the night before for a friend of his to pick her up when she arrived. This friend's name was Daniel. This friend was also the man who had decided to turn Jackson into a vampire instead of letting him die that night after his crash. He trusted Daniel with every fiber of his being; Daniel was a good man. Jackson had called his friend while at the hotel and explained everything to him and he agreed to help.

Daniel McReed: 3:45 a.m. - Las Vegas Air strip: (hours after Jackson had enlisted Daniel's help)
Daniel stood in the lobby and waited for the woman that Jackson had described. He was dressed to the nine's in the nicest suit he owned, and was wearing a driver's hat and holding a sign that said Mikaela J'na Anderson in big black, block print. Once he saw her he knew that Jackson was a lucky bastard, and couldn't believe that he had this beautiful creature following him in this 'game' that they were playing. But there she was, walking his way and apparently looking for a sign of where she needed to go. He held his sign up higher and waved curtly in her direction to get her attention. He thought back to the conversation that he'd had with Jackson; his mission was simple. He was to escort her out to the waiting limo, and drive her to the hotel, then escort her to the room that Jackson had obtained the night before. Then he was supposed to ask her to please wait there, relax, then freshen up, and wait for a change of clothes to be brought to her around 10:30. Sure, it would be quite a wait for her to actually see Jackson but the room was decked out in everything imaginable. It was the best hotel in all of Las Vegas, and he had gotten the Suite. She shouldn't be too terribly bored for a few hours, and she needed to be ready in tiime to be downstairs at 11 a.m.

The next morning: 9:30 a.m. (just after buying his car)
Jackson sped off in his brand new car and headed towards the nearest, biggest, and most elegant clothing store ever. He picked out a new suit and then unashamedly strutted to the lady's section and picked out the perfect dress, at least in Jackson's mind, for Mikaela to wear. After paying and getting a bunch of wild eyed stares by the women working he went back out to his car and carefully put his purchases in the seat next to him and took a deep breath. Trying to calm his nerves he kept breathing deeply, very unnecessarily, but as he did so he put his head against the steering wheel and tried to envision things going according to his plan. She would probably lounging around the room right about now, or taking a bubble bath, or watching any of the endless movies, or reading from the small collection of classic books, or watching the scenery out the balcony…he didn't know what she was doing, and he did want to know that she was safely there. So he called up Daniel who confirmed that yes, she was there safe and sound.

He drove to the hotel and thanked his lucky stars as a dense cloud cover took over the sky and blocked the sun. He knew he was going about this all backwards, and sideways, and wrongways, but he hoped that his plan wouldn't backfire. Things were going so smoothly already. He scrambled his way upstairs and into the room adjacent to Mikaela's and quickly got ready. He put on his new suit and adjusted his bowtie and crossed his fingers. Just then Daniel burst through the door and scared the living daylights out of Jackson, saying, "Wow man! Don't you clean up nice for the ladies?" Jackson just glared, "Shut up Daniel. You of all people should know how nervous I am right now. So, if you don't mind, make yourself useful and take her the dress now please." Daniel just nodded, let out a short laugh and hugged his friend Jackson, then he picked up the dress and knocked on Mikaela's door.

Jackson's Suit: media.photobucket.com/image/black%20suit%20and%20bowtie/richardpaul/77ca46af.jpg