Romance of a Rock Band

Hawk

It was the day after practice and I couldn’t stop thinking about her. She was so beautiful. Not the normal kind of beauty, but her own unique kind of beauty. And her voice was amazing. I was listening to her voice, but now I had no idea what she said.

She probably thinks I’m an asshole now anyway. Especially after that “we hear you’re not human” crap. I could hardly even talk to her after that. I really don’t know what to do now.
When I got home yesterday my brother, Leo, and sister, Maria, were there. They knew something was wrong; they wouldn’t let me be! “Will you play with me?” “Can I borrow your skateboard?” I barely escaped last night.

This morning, however, the house is quiet. They had all left last night. Leo was at the point where he needed to be eating someone about every other day and it had been a while since Maria had eaten. My dad wanted me to come too, but I told him I was still tired.

I got up off the bed and started looking through my music shelf. I put a CD into the stereo and turned it up loud. I settled back onto the bed and fell into a deep, dreamless sleep.

Yes, vampires do sleep. In a bed not a coffin.

“Wake up, Hawk!” screamed Maria. I jumped out of bed and looked at the clock. Three hours had passed. It was now one in the afternoon.

“Hawk!” she screamed again.

“What?!” I screamed back. “What do you want?”

“Dad wants you and Leo in the living room!” she said. I got up, turned the stereo off, and walked down the hall, around the corner, and into the living room. My “father” was there with my “brother” on the couch and Maria.

I say “father” and “brother” because they’re not my biological father or brother. My “father” is the man who forced me into vampiredom. My “brother” was forced into vampiredom by my “father.” Maria was adopted. My “father” fell in love with her “mother.” Her mother was found guilty of letting a human know of our existence. She was executed. At the time of her execution she was taking care of Maria. Obviously, she can’t now so my “father” has been taking care of her. She is ten years old.

“Did you want something?” I said to no one in particular.

“I did,” said my “father.” “I want you two to teach your sister to ride her bike while I’m at work.”

“What?” I moaned. Well, half moaned; half yawned.

“Why does she not know how to ride a bike and why can’t she learn herself?” asked Leo.

“Mommy didn’t teach me,” Maria whined.

“Fine,” I said.

“Yay!” shouted Maria running up to hug me. She likes to hug me. I always hug back. We’ve gotten pretty close since she came to live with us. She ran away into the kitchen.

“You’re on your own,” said Leo following Maria. “I’m meeting someone this afternoon.”

“Fine, but you cut the grass then,” I said.

“Whatever,” he said. He knows he’ll find a way out of it and so do I. He always does.

“Well, I’m going then,” said my dad.

“Bye,” I said to him as he walked out the door. I waited a few minutes before moving into the kitchen where I saw Leo grinning and nodding at Marie and she was almost to tears.

“What’s going on?” I demanded taking two steps into the room. She ran away. I looked at Leo.

“I have no idea,” he said with a smirk. He walked right past me, through the kitchen door and continued out the front door. I followed Maria down the hall.

“Maria?” I called. She didn’t answer. “What’s wrong?”

“You don’t have to show me anything on the bike,” she said quickly. She opened the door to her bedroom.

“I’m going to teach you how to ride it,” I said.

“Leave me alone,” she shouted, slamming the door.

“Why?” I asked.

“You know why,” she said.

“If I did, why would I ask?” I said. A thought struck me. “What did he say to you?”

“Nothing,” she said.

“That’s a lie!” I shouted. I heard footsteps inside the room.

“You don’t have to shout,” she said, opening the door. “I can hear you.”

“I’m going to shout until you tell me what he said,” I screamed even louder.

“You’re scaring me,” she whimpered. She was crying now.

“I’m sorry,” I said. “Will you tell me what he said now?” She didn’t answer. “If you don’t tell
me what he said, there’s no way I can fix it.”

“How do you know something needs to be fixed?” she said.

“There’s tears running down your face and you can hardly get the words out,” I told her. She didn’t answer. “Say something!”

“He told me that…” Maria started.

“What did he say?” I demanded.

“That the only reason you agreed to do it is because Daddy told you that he’d ground you
from your band practice if you didn’t,” she confessed, crying harder now.

She believes him without question every time, I thought.

“That’s not true,” I said. “You heard him ask me.”

“Leo said you staged it,” she said.

“Why would we bother?” I asked.

“He said it was so that I wouldn’t feel bad…” she mumbled. Wonderful ten-year-old logic.

“Remember when Leo told you that we bought you a puppy, but when we got him home he
ran into the street and was run over?” I asked her.

“Is this like that?” she asked, the tears finally gone.

“Exactly like that,” I answered. She looked at the floor for a minute.

“I’m sorry I got so mad…” she said quietly.

“S’alright,” I said. “Let’s go out to the garage and get the bike.”

She hugged me quickly before running outside. I knew her happiness wouldn’t last and I was right. The first time she fell off, she ran inside, crying again and wouldn’t get on it the rest of the week.

It wasn’t a bad day, all things considered. The only really weird thing about it was how distracted I was. Not even that I was distracted, but that the person that was distracting me wasn’t even present.