Read Being Human for Free Online Page A

how I am?”
    “You smile a lot.”
    “That's not what I meant.”
    “You're overly emotional?”
    “Not what I meant either.”
    “You're smarter than most humans.” I was sure I figured what he meant.
    He laughed. “I imagine most people would think I was completely insane. Normal people don't have deep conversations with their vampire siblings.” He adjusted his position.
    “You move a lot.”
    “You don't move enough.”
    “Why are you worried about how I act?” I asked. “You know I'm not human, you accept it. Why does it matter if it makes me act different?”
    “It doesn't. It shouldn't,” he replied with a sigh. “Maybe it's something I need to get used to. You're matter-of-fact. This is what you eat and this is what you need to do to eat.”
    “It's survival,” I supplied and paused. “But I can learn. You can teach me.”
    “You want me to teach you to be human?”
    I shook my head. “That's impossible. You can teach me to have fun. Tell me how I used to be. I'm curious about it. I do want to know.”
    “You do?”
    “Sometimes you smile and it says you're thinking about something we did together when I was human, but I no longer have the memories. I wonder what you're thinking. I want to know everything about you and to do that I have to learn about me,” I explained.
    He considered my words a moment. When he spoke, he made no sense. “There are these soldiers and they receive a new tank. They're discussing the tank and the Sergeant says he wants to call it the warthog. The soldiers ask, Why warthog? Sergeant says, It looks like a warthog. It's got tusks . One of the soldiers disagrees and says it looks like a puma. Know what the Sergeant says?”
    I shook my head.
    “Stop making up animals!”
    I busted out laughing.
     
    ****
     
     
    My brother told me amazing stories. Stories about birthday parties, going to school, family vacations and other activities we did together when I was human. Every night I'd go to his window and he'd pop in a video game and we'd play for hours while he talked. He'd talk until he couldn't talk anymore or fell asleep, chin on his chest, controller in hand.
    I wouldn't say I learned about myself. I felt like I was listening to him talk about someone else. I couldn't see myself saying or doing any of the things he told me I did. I felt nothing when he talked about a crush on a girl we both had, had no feeling of friendship when he mentioned our friends and no feeling of pride when he said we were both on a basketball team and won lots of games. There was no connection between the vampire I was and the human I used to be.
    We did discover my sense of humor hadn't changed. I laughed at every joke he told. One time so loud, he had to pull the curtains, shut the light off and pretend to sleep while I hid as our uncle peeked in the door.
    “Hey? Are you awake?” My hand hovered, millimeters from the energy. It hummed at me, a faint crackle echoing. I pulled my hand away, accepting I couldn’t reach through.
    On the other side, my brother was fast asleep. He looked peaceful, mouth slightly open. It made me wonder. Was he dreaming? And what did he dream about? What went through a human's mind when they slept?
    I'd have to ask tomorrow night.
    Silently, I slid down the roof, landing on the ground. A feeling churned in me, one that had been growing all week. Need. I needed to hunt and feed. Once again, I had been putting it off because of my brother. We didn't talk about my hunger. I think he feared what I would say. I didn't hold back according to him, just blurted the truth out without considering how he'd take it. I didn't see what was wrong about that.
    Still, I felt I should explain how a vampire's hunger worked. I caught thoughts about my hunger when I looked in his eyes. How many humans died because of me? I wanted to let him know I didn't have to feed every night.
    Tonight, I was going to find a human to kill. Anticipation, need and hunger welled in me, fueling