Status: Starting over
Sempiternal
Eight.
Training continued all weekend, making my little human body sore but strengthening my new found supernatural abilities. Cameron studied and made predictions on my supernatural abilities, thinking that they probably came somewhere from the prophecy. I was getting better each day, I no longer had to keep my eyes closed to fight and feel my internal vampire GPS. I did wish fate said something about superhuman healing powers and not getting easily hurt, because having my butt kicked three days in the row was seriously painful.
It was Sunday afternoon, I gave my mom the excuse that I wanted to head back to school early to talk to Angel about college. I hated lying to everyone, but I did plan on talking to Angel later when I got back. This was the only way I could justify lying to the people I loved, protecting them and staying to the truth as much as possible. Besides, I didn’t want them to deal with the consequences Joseph warned me about when humans found out about supernaturals.
We were just finishing training when Jonathan came down to the basement with a bag of extra greasy food I requested. Just because I’m training for a war doesn’t mean I can’t enjoy myself, these skills would still allow me to kick ass even if I did have delicious fattening tacos.
Smelling the greasy goodness my mouth started to salivate, I sat on the mat and began devouring the Mexican food before me. Jonathan grimaced and sat next to me, “Even when I was human I would never eat something like that.”
I swallowed and patted the dripping grease from my mouth with a napkin, “I’m sure when you were human things like this weren’t popular enough. You probably ate fancy soups and turkey legs.” I didn’t even know when Jonathan or the others turned, I just assumed they were all a hundred or so years old. Thanks to vampire movies and books from when I was an pre-teen a two hundred year old supernatural being seemed more normal to me.
“When I was human I didn’t eat meat. I did eat fancy soups, but I mostly ate salads, cheese, bread, and fish.” Huh, how about that, a pescitarian turned vampire. I wonder how he switched from eating meat to eating humans, and now that he was no longer human if he still didn’t eat meat. Did he consider drinking blood going past his dietary beliefs, or if he did it just to survive?
Talking with Jonathan made me remember that I wanted to know more about these boys I had to spend most of my time around now. What were they like before their change and after? How did they change? When were they born and what year did they change?
I decided that now was as great as a time as any to start with Jonathan. “When and how did you turn into a vampire?” I asked sheepishly, trying to take bites of my food slowly. I didn’t want to appear like I was prying into his business, but I did really want to know. I saw Jonathan as the short tempered one in the group, and I didn’t want to be on his bad side. Thankfully he didn’t look too mad or annoyed when I asked him.
“In the middle of the 20’s,” he answered. My eyes widened, wow, the roaring 20’s seemed so exciting, I had to remember to ask him about his time during that period. “I was in my late twenties, and getting married. I wasn’t aware that my fiance's family were in some trouble, so I wasn’t expecting to be getting jumped one night as I was biking from work. I was beaten up very badly, I couldn’t see out of my eyes and I had many broken ribs. The next thing I remember is waking up as a vampire, Trevor and a healing witch helped me back to life.”
Jonathan recalled his past and I could faintly hear sadness in his voice. The only thing worse than making someone angry is making them relive their horrible sad past. “And I always thought you were the bad boy type seeking out vampires to turn you,” I said, trying to lighten up the mood and to make him smile.
However, it didn’t make him smile. He turned to me with heat burning in his eyes and a tinge of sadness still lingering there. “Not everyone makes the choice of being turned, and not everyone wants to be turned. Most of the time we’re turned out of pity from other vampires, or just for the fun of it.” Jonathan stood from the mat beside me and turned towards the stairs, “And my bad boy period came after I turned.”
When Jonathan left I felt his sadness and frustration still lingering in the basement. It made me more uncomfortable than when I could feel vampires near and I was in defense mode. Sitting in the basement with Jonathan’s sadness filling the void he left began to make me feel guilty. I shouldn’t have assumed that he was a bad guy, even though he admitted that he was after he turned into a vampire. It was just everything that happened leading up to this very moment; when Jonathan threatened me in the woods and every time he snaps at the others. Jonathan definitely had a sass and a certain demeanor about him, but there was still a good side.
From the picture he painted it seemed that before turning Jonathan was a good person, kind and just wanting to live the American dream. It seemed like he didn’t even remember the time when he was nearly killed to when he was turned. He was turned without his consent and it made me wonder if he hated the thing he had become.
Suddenly, I wasn’t hungry anymore and I discarded the rest of my meal in the trash before going upstairs to find Trevor. My aching muscles followed the voices around the large mansion. After coming from the basement I turned to my right, going to what I guessed was the kitchen. The kitchen wasn’t as nice as the rest of the house, however, I guess you didn’t really need a fancy kitchen if you drank blood to survive.
In the kitchen were two large refrigerators, with a double oven on the left side and the stove on the other. In the middle was a dark marble island counter top with bar stools on either side. Trevor and Cameron were talking at the island with a old, large, leather-bound book opened in front of them and glasses in their hands. When I got closer I forced a smile, about to tell Trevor I was ready to head back to school, since he needed a ride from me. But, I stopped in my tracks once I realized what they were drinking.
It shouldn’t have shocked me, I mean they are vampires after all. No one would be shocked to see me eating my greasy Mexican food. Yet, I was still surprised to see the two drinking blood in front of my very eyes so casually. They were drinking it normally, as if it were beer, and not as if they didn’t drink it then they would shrivel up, turn to corpses, and eventually die out. They were drinking what was flowing through my veins and giving me life, they lived off of killing humans and taking their life force. They could be drinking blood from someone I knew, or worse, they could drink mine one day if they were desperate enough. Actually seeing them drink blood had me feeling deep in my gut that some vampires really are monsters that they all weren’t as nice as the ones I know.
I stared at the two for a moment, feeling uncomfortable when they turned to me and looked at me like I had just caught them in an illegal act. For an instant I imagined blood dripping down their mouths with a sinister smile on their faces. I shook the image from my thoughts and spoke with a shaky voice, “Hey Trevor, I’m ready to go whenever you are.” I swallowed the lump in my throat and slowly backed out of the kitchen and toward the front door.
Once out of the kitchen I controlled my breathing, letting go of the tension from Jonathan and the sight of blood drain out of me. Trevor rushed beside me, touching my shoulders gently to make sure I was fine. As a reflex I flinched back and stepped toward the car. I nodded, taking deep breaths, “I’m fine. I should get used to the sight of blood anyway, right?” I smiled and forced a laugh. “Ready to go? I think we should get to school before dark.”
He nodded and yelled goodbye to Cameron. We headed to the car silently and I drove off toward the school. There was an awkward silence between us, there had been for days. I suspected it was from when I went all ‘this is my life and I control it’ on him. I didn’t apologize, because it was my life and this prophecy thing has been dragging me by the feet for the last few days. Still, I was rude to him and I’ve been short with Trevor lately. Not to mention the awkward blood moment that just happened and the stuff Jonathan just told me about his human life. There was just a lot on my mind and I needed someone to vent to who wouldn’t go all ‘but the prophecy’ on me.
Trevor was the first one to speak and break the silence, “Sorry about the blood thing. You should be getting used to seeing it, but it’s still unsettling to see it for the first time.” I shrugged my shoulders. Yeah, it was unsettling, but I needed to suck it up. If I was going to be Mrs. Save-The-World I needed to put on my big girl pants and come to the realization that vampires drink blood, vampires kill humans, vampires are dangerous.
I let out a long sigh, “I’m sorry that I’ve been short with you lately. It’s just that all of this was just thrown on my lap. Imagine being a normal teenager for one minute and then the next realizing that you have to save the world from vampires and other supernatural beings going crazy and killing humans. It sucks to have all this responsibility, but I shouldn’t take it out on you. Besides, we have to work together so we might as well be civilized.” Trevor nodded in agreement.
Great, that was one thing off my chest. Now onto the next travesty of confessions. “After training Jonathan and I were talking a bit about his human life and when he changed. I was wondering if you’d tell me about your experience too?” I held my breath, I didn’t know if The Change was a sensitive subject for all vampires. I would have never guessed it would be for Jonathan, but I was wrong.
Besides, I suspected that Trevor’s Change would be different than Jonathan’s. Joseph was the leader or king or overseer or some crap for the vampires. There had to be a good and interesting story there. Plus, it had me wondering if Trevor was actually Joseph’s son, and if so how? I knew vampires couldn’t have children, and if they did then I needed to ask Cameron to brush me up on my mythology knowledge.
Trevor was silent for a long time, for a moment I thought I offended him and I was ready to hastily apologize. I was coming up with a script on how it wasn’t any of my business and he could tell me when he was ready, but he started before I could even come up with my apologetic monologue. “My father was turned before I was. Before either of us were turned we were a normal human family in the late 1800’s. My mother had died giving birth to me, my father was so grieve stricken that he turned into a drunk. One night I suppose he stumbled upon some vampires who promised him a better life if they could drink his blood.”
“Joseph was drunk and still devastated from my mother’s death, so he agreed to anything that would stop his pain. When they drained him they also forced him to drink their blood, having a sire bond with one of the men. Joseph raised me till I was eighteen, I was human and he was a vampire. When Joseph first changed he was different, he followed everything his Sire did, including destruction. When I was of age, the vampire that sired him convinced my father that turning me would be the only option for me to continue to live, so I wouldn’t go bragging about supernaturals. When I was turned I realized that this vampire was not what he said he was, he had the position my father has now. Only he was the one starting the war and trying to have supernaturals rule the world over humans.”
Trevor stopped for a moment when we got to the school and looked out the window. It wasn’t the same sadness that Jonathan had when recalling his past, but it was as if he were remembering the long ago past rather than remembering despair. “After we broke my father’s sire bond he became ruler of the vampires. The only way to get that position is to kill the previous overseer or have it handed down to you.”
Wow, well I guess that explains everything that I was wondering about Trevor. Joseph really was his father when they were humans, so that means that vampire’s really can’t have children. It also meant that Trevor was really old, obviously older than Jonathan, and maybe Cameron too. Despite all of that, it seemed that Trevor didn’t tell me the full story. Just as Jonathan hadn’t told me his full story. I didn’t want to push either of them, but hearing their stories left me with even more questions than before.
I wondered about the sire bond and how that worked. Was it different than being changed into a vampire and how were the two different? What else happened between Joseph, Trevor, and this other vampire that had Trevor so apprehensive? Did Trevor know that Joseph was a vampire before he was turned? Did all vampires have this awful eating humans and being evil type of streak?
Questions swimmed around my head once again, nearly causing a headache from over thinking. I wanted to know more about everything, but I knew that I wouldn’t have time as the sky got darker and the street lights turned on in the school’s parking lot. “Did you know that he was a vampire before he changed you?” I asked. Hoping to get some of my questions answered. Even though I wasn’t bold enough to ask all of them.
Trevor nodded, “Yes, it would be kind of odd if I went through my childhood without knowing why my dad only came out during the night and fed on human blood.” Trevor chuckled and got out the car. He came around to my door and opened it for me. I slid out the seat and got my bags from the trunk. We slowly walked toward the dorms, almost going our separate ways to the appropriate buildings before another question popped into my head.
I stopped in front of Trevor and opened my mouth. If I was going to ask it I better just blurt it out rather than standing here like a fish. “Do all vampires change after they’re bitten? Like are they all monsters?”
Trevor’s mouth formed into a thin line, “We’re not monsters. However, when we’re first changed it’s like we have to fight harder for the humanity within us. Everyday it’s a battle to do the right thing. We’re not alive, we have no souls, and there is no moral compass guiding us. We know we can kill to get what we need to survive, and it’s like we can do it, just for the fun, just to feel something. Most vampire’s change after they’re bitten, it’s if they can find a way back is the real question.”
Trevor gave me a long look before beginning to head in the direction of the boys dorms. I stared back after him, feeling the gloom he left. Standing there I wondered if Trevor and Jonathan had the same type of troubles when first turning into vampires. When Trevor said vampire’s change after they’re bitten I wonder if he meant that they turn into blood thirsty reckless beings. If that was the case I for sure didn’t want to be turned now.
I also wondered what type of things Jonathan and Trevor went through after their change. They both appeared to be upset when that was brought up or mentioned. Were they some type of blood sucking monsters that only wanted their next meal and didn’t care for human life? I wanted to know, but I also didn’t want to know. All I knew is that now they’re good people, now they didn’t kill any human they could get their hands on, now they weren’t monsters.
Groaning in the darkness and still staring at the direction Trevor just went, I swore to stop meddling in their lives. Working together to save the world or not, when I asked Trevor and Jonathan about their human lives and their change into vampires they seemed to get upset and become apprehensive as they remembered. Besides, Cameron would tell me his story when he was ready, I wouldn’t push him like I pushed the other boys.
It seemed that everyone had a terrible experience before and after turning, so awful that they wouldn’t go into detail and would only give me some type of brooding answer. From what Trevor told me it even seemed as if Joseph had a horrible experience as well. I had no clue why people seeked out everlasting life and fantasized about vampires. It sounded like the most lonely and awful experience, to be alive all eternity and fight the bad within you.
I sighed and slowly started towards the girls’ dorms. I was exhausted, not only from training and the giant headache and aching muscles it brought. I was also exhausted from the mental workout I kept going through with learning new things about vampires and other supernaturals, finding things out about the vampire boys I knew, and from the questions constantly streaming through my head. Tonight I definitely needed a long shower and a movie night with my best friend.
When I got to the dorms I did just that. I took a long shower and watched awful movies all night with Angel. We accidently fell asleep during a movie, laying in an awkward position on her bed. I woke up to her alarm going off, since she hardly ever wakes up to her own alarm I reached over her and turned it off. Still utterly exhausted I got off her bed and began to get ready for school.
As I changed into my school uniform Angel woke up, groggy and rubbing her eyes. “Ugh, how late did we stay up last night?” I shrugged my shoulders, I knew I had to have stayed up later than Angel since I was worrying about how the world is going to end. Angel stood up from her bed and joined me in the closet to get changed, “I will never drink soda that late again, the sugar’s got my head all achy and my stomach upset.”
I laughed and started situating my curly hair into a bun on top of my head, “You always say that, but then you always sneak into the dining hall before bed to grab a Coke.” My hair wouldn’t cooperate in the bun, strands kept falling in my face and the hair tie wouldn’t stay tight around my hair. I groaned in the mirror, curly hair was always a pain to style, this ugly messy bun will do.
“Coke is my weakness, I will never abandon her.” I laughed at Angel and grabbed my backpack from the floor, grabbing hers and handing it to her when she was done with her hair and quick makeup. We headed out the dorms and toward our first period class, actually having more than five minutes to get there for once.
Angel and I were slowly walking through the halls and talking about her excitement for college. Of course I was naturally jealous that she was able to go about her normal life, go to college, live in a dorm, make new friends. She didn’t have to worry about vampires, the world exploding, and lying to her friends to keep them safe. For a split second I wanted to trade lives with her, but I discarded the thought quickly, I wouldn’t want to throw this stuff on anyone else. That’s why I had to keep the secret and pretend like everything was fine, also because I didn’t want them to deal with the consequences.
We were standing outside the classroom, not ready to go in until the bell rang and we were forced to get to class. When I felt the familiar unease and skin crawling feeling I had all weekend. I was trained well enough to know what that meant, a vampire was near. I was ready to turn around and smile at Trevor, letting him know that I was sorry for the intrusion of his past last night.
However, the blood drained from my face and my fingers got cold as the pit of my stomach fluttered from the tension and I heard a familiar voice and a familiar greeting, “Hi kitten.” I should have guessed that it was Jonathan from the greeting, he would come back to my school and I would have to stop him from hitting on my friend. I should have apologized to Jonathan about the intrusion as well, at least trying to keep me on his good side. But the look on Angel’s face told me otherwise. She didn’t have the lust in her eyes like Emma did when she saw Jonathan for the first time, she looked surprised and terrified.
I should have known that my biological vampire tracker only went off in the face of danger or warning. But, I was stupid, I turned around and saw a face that I once loved. I saw my past, my happiness, my sadness, and my fears. The body attached to that face was the opposite of everything I once loved. Brandon, Brian’s twin brother who was the deceased love of my life, stood before me. With that ridiculously charming and wicked smirk written all over his face.
It was Sunday afternoon, I gave my mom the excuse that I wanted to head back to school early to talk to Angel about college. I hated lying to everyone, but I did plan on talking to Angel later when I got back. This was the only way I could justify lying to the people I loved, protecting them and staying to the truth as much as possible. Besides, I didn’t want them to deal with the consequences Joseph warned me about when humans found out about supernaturals.
We were just finishing training when Jonathan came down to the basement with a bag of extra greasy food I requested. Just because I’m training for a war doesn’t mean I can’t enjoy myself, these skills would still allow me to kick ass even if I did have delicious fattening tacos.
Smelling the greasy goodness my mouth started to salivate, I sat on the mat and began devouring the Mexican food before me. Jonathan grimaced and sat next to me, “Even when I was human I would never eat something like that.”
I swallowed and patted the dripping grease from my mouth with a napkin, “I’m sure when you were human things like this weren’t popular enough. You probably ate fancy soups and turkey legs.” I didn’t even know when Jonathan or the others turned, I just assumed they were all a hundred or so years old. Thanks to vampire movies and books from when I was an pre-teen a two hundred year old supernatural being seemed more normal to me.
“When I was human I didn’t eat meat. I did eat fancy soups, but I mostly ate salads, cheese, bread, and fish.” Huh, how about that, a pescitarian turned vampire. I wonder how he switched from eating meat to eating humans, and now that he was no longer human if he still didn’t eat meat. Did he consider drinking blood going past his dietary beliefs, or if he did it just to survive?
Talking with Jonathan made me remember that I wanted to know more about these boys I had to spend most of my time around now. What were they like before their change and after? How did they change? When were they born and what year did they change?
I decided that now was as great as a time as any to start with Jonathan. “When and how did you turn into a vampire?” I asked sheepishly, trying to take bites of my food slowly. I didn’t want to appear like I was prying into his business, but I did really want to know. I saw Jonathan as the short tempered one in the group, and I didn’t want to be on his bad side. Thankfully he didn’t look too mad or annoyed when I asked him.
“In the middle of the 20’s,” he answered. My eyes widened, wow, the roaring 20’s seemed so exciting, I had to remember to ask him about his time during that period. “I was in my late twenties, and getting married. I wasn’t aware that my fiance's family were in some trouble, so I wasn’t expecting to be getting jumped one night as I was biking from work. I was beaten up very badly, I couldn’t see out of my eyes and I had many broken ribs. The next thing I remember is waking up as a vampire, Trevor and a healing witch helped me back to life.”
Jonathan recalled his past and I could faintly hear sadness in his voice. The only thing worse than making someone angry is making them relive their horrible sad past. “And I always thought you were the bad boy type seeking out vampires to turn you,” I said, trying to lighten up the mood and to make him smile.
However, it didn’t make him smile. He turned to me with heat burning in his eyes and a tinge of sadness still lingering there. “Not everyone makes the choice of being turned, and not everyone wants to be turned. Most of the time we’re turned out of pity from other vampires, or just for the fun of it.” Jonathan stood from the mat beside me and turned towards the stairs, “And my bad boy period came after I turned.”
When Jonathan left I felt his sadness and frustration still lingering in the basement. It made me more uncomfortable than when I could feel vampires near and I was in defense mode. Sitting in the basement with Jonathan’s sadness filling the void he left began to make me feel guilty. I shouldn’t have assumed that he was a bad guy, even though he admitted that he was after he turned into a vampire. It was just everything that happened leading up to this very moment; when Jonathan threatened me in the woods and every time he snaps at the others. Jonathan definitely had a sass and a certain demeanor about him, but there was still a good side.
From the picture he painted it seemed that before turning Jonathan was a good person, kind and just wanting to live the American dream. It seemed like he didn’t even remember the time when he was nearly killed to when he was turned. He was turned without his consent and it made me wonder if he hated the thing he had become.
Suddenly, I wasn’t hungry anymore and I discarded the rest of my meal in the trash before going upstairs to find Trevor. My aching muscles followed the voices around the large mansion. After coming from the basement I turned to my right, going to what I guessed was the kitchen. The kitchen wasn’t as nice as the rest of the house, however, I guess you didn’t really need a fancy kitchen if you drank blood to survive.
In the kitchen were two large refrigerators, with a double oven on the left side and the stove on the other. In the middle was a dark marble island counter top with bar stools on either side. Trevor and Cameron were talking at the island with a old, large, leather-bound book opened in front of them and glasses in their hands. When I got closer I forced a smile, about to tell Trevor I was ready to head back to school, since he needed a ride from me. But, I stopped in my tracks once I realized what they were drinking.
It shouldn’t have shocked me, I mean they are vampires after all. No one would be shocked to see me eating my greasy Mexican food. Yet, I was still surprised to see the two drinking blood in front of my very eyes so casually. They were drinking it normally, as if it were beer, and not as if they didn’t drink it then they would shrivel up, turn to corpses, and eventually die out. They were drinking what was flowing through my veins and giving me life, they lived off of killing humans and taking their life force. They could be drinking blood from someone I knew, or worse, they could drink mine one day if they were desperate enough. Actually seeing them drink blood had me feeling deep in my gut that some vampires really are monsters that they all weren’t as nice as the ones I know.
I stared at the two for a moment, feeling uncomfortable when they turned to me and looked at me like I had just caught them in an illegal act. For an instant I imagined blood dripping down their mouths with a sinister smile on their faces. I shook the image from my thoughts and spoke with a shaky voice, “Hey Trevor, I’m ready to go whenever you are.” I swallowed the lump in my throat and slowly backed out of the kitchen and toward the front door.
Once out of the kitchen I controlled my breathing, letting go of the tension from Jonathan and the sight of blood drain out of me. Trevor rushed beside me, touching my shoulders gently to make sure I was fine. As a reflex I flinched back and stepped toward the car. I nodded, taking deep breaths, “I’m fine. I should get used to the sight of blood anyway, right?” I smiled and forced a laugh. “Ready to go? I think we should get to school before dark.”
He nodded and yelled goodbye to Cameron. We headed to the car silently and I drove off toward the school. There was an awkward silence between us, there had been for days. I suspected it was from when I went all ‘this is my life and I control it’ on him. I didn’t apologize, because it was my life and this prophecy thing has been dragging me by the feet for the last few days. Still, I was rude to him and I’ve been short with Trevor lately. Not to mention the awkward blood moment that just happened and the stuff Jonathan just told me about his human life. There was just a lot on my mind and I needed someone to vent to who wouldn’t go all ‘but the prophecy’ on me.
Trevor was the first one to speak and break the silence, “Sorry about the blood thing. You should be getting used to seeing it, but it’s still unsettling to see it for the first time.” I shrugged my shoulders. Yeah, it was unsettling, but I needed to suck it up. If I was going to be Mrs. Save-The-World I needed to put on my big girl pants and come to the realization that vampires drink blood, vampires kill humans, vampires are dangerous.
I let out a long sigh, “I’m sorry that I’ve been short with you lately. It’s just that all of this was just thrown on my lap. Imagine being a normal teenager for one minute and then the next realizing that you have to save the world from vampires and other supernatural beings going crazy and killing humans. It sucks to have all this responsibility, but I shouldn’t take it out on you. Besides, we have to work together so we might as well be civilized.” Trevor nodded in agreement.
Great, that was one thing off my chest. Now onto the next travesty of confessions. “After training Jonathan and I were talking a bit about his human life and when he changed. I was wondering if you’d tell me about your experience too?” I held my breath, I didn’t know if The Change was a sensitive subject for all vampires. I would have never guessed it would be for Jonathan, but I was wrong.
Besides, I suspected that Trevor’s Change would be different than Jonathan’s. Joseph was the leader or king or overseer or some crap for the vampires. There had to be a good and interesting story there. Plus, it had me wondering if Trevor was actually Joseph’s son, and if so how? I knew vampires couldn’t have children, and if they did then I needed to ask Cameron to brush me up on my mythology knowledge.
Trevor was silent for a long time, for a moment I thought I offended him and I was ready to hastily apologize. I was coming up with a script on how it wasn’t any of my business and he could tell me when he was ready, but he started before I could even come up with my apologetic monologue. “My father was turned before I was. Before either of us were turned we were a normal human family in the late 1800’s. My mother had died giving birth to me, my father was so grieve stricken that he turned into a drunk. One night I suppose he stumbled upon some vampires who promised him a better life if they could drink his blood.”
“Joseph was drunk and still devastated from my mother’s death, so he agreed to anything that would stop his pain. When they drained him they also forced him to drink their blood, having a sire bond with one of the men. Joseph raised me till I was eighteen, I was human and he was a vampire. When Joseph first changed he was different, he followed everything his Sire did, including destruction. When I was of age, the vampire that sired him convinced my father that turning me would be the only option for me to continue to live, so I wouldn’t go bragging about supernaturals. When I was turned I realized that this vampire was not what he said he was, he had the position my father has now. Only he was the one starting the war and trying to have supernaturals rule the world over humans.”
Trevor stopped for a moment when we got to the school and looked out the window. It wasn’t the same sadness that Jonathan had when recalling his past, but it was as if he were remembering the long ago past rather than remembering despair. “After we broke my father’s sire bond he became ruler of the vampires. The only way to get that position is to kill the previous overseer or have it handed down to you.”
Wow, well I guess that explains everything that I was wondering about Trevor. Joseph really was his father when they were humans, so that means that vampire’s really can’t have children. It also meant that Trevor was really old, obviously older than Jonathan, and maybe Cameron too. Despite all of that, it seemed that Trevor didn’t tell me the full story. Just as Jonathan hadn’t told me his full story. I didn’t want to push either of them, but hearing their stories left me with even more questions than before.
I wondered about the sire bond and how that worked. Was it different than being changed into a vampire and how were the two different? What else happened between Joseph, Trevor, and this other vampire that had Trevor so apprehensive? Did Trevor know that Joseph was a vampire before he was turned? Did all vampires have this awful eating humans and being evil type of streak?
Questions swimmed around my head once again, nearly causing a headache from over thinking. I wanted to know more about everything, but I knew that I wouldn’t have time as the sky got darker and the street lights turned on in the school’s parking lot. “Did you know that he was a vampire before he changed you?” I asked. Hoping to get some of my questions answered. Even though I wasn’t bold enough to ask all of them.
Trevor nodded, “Yes, it would be kind of odd if I went through my childhood without knowing why my dad only came out during the night and fed on human blood.” Trevor chuckled and got out the car. He came around to my door and opened it for me. I slid out the seat and got my bags from the trunk. We slowly walked toward the dorms, almost going our separate ways to the appropriate buildings before another question popped into my head.
I stopped in front of Trevor and opened my mouth. If I was going to ask it I better just blurt it out rather than standing here like a fish. “Do all vampires change after they’re bitten? Like are they all monsters?”
Trevor’s mouth formed into a thin line, “We’re not monsters. However, when we’re first changed it’s like we have to fight harder for the humanity within us. Everyday it’s a battle to do the right thing. We’re not alive, we have no souls, and there is no moral compass guiding us. We know we can kill to get what we need to survive, and it’s like we can do it, just for the fun, just to feel something. Most vampire’s change after they’re bitten, it’s if they can find a way back is the real question.”
Trevor gave me a long look before beginning to head in the direction of the boys dorms. I stared back after him, feeling the gloom he left. Standing there I wondered if Trevor and Jonathan had the same type of troubles when first turning into vampires. When Trevor said vampire’s change after they’re bitten I wonder if he meant that they turn into blood thirsty reckless beings. If that was the case I for sure didn’t want to be turned now.
I also wondered what type of things Jonathan and Trevor went through after their change. They both appeared to be upset when that was brought up or mentioned. Were they some type of blood sucking monsters that only wanted their next meal and didn’t care for human life? I wanted to know, but I also didn’t want to know. All I knew is that now they’re good people, now they didn’t kill any human they could get their hands on, now they weren’t monsters.
Groaning in the darkness and still staring at the direction Trevor just went, I swore to stop meddling in their lives. Working together to save the world or not, when I asked Trevor and Jonathan about their human lives and their change into vampires they seemed to get upset and become apprehensive as they remembered. Besides, Cameron would tell me his story when he was ready, I wouldn’t push him like I pushed the other boys.
It seemed that everyone had a terrible experience before and after turning, so awful that they wouldn’t go into detail and would only give me some type of brooding answer. From what Trevor told me it even seemed as if Joseph had a horrible experience as well. I had no clue why people seeked out everlasting life and fantasized about vampires. It sounded like the most lonely and awful experience, to be alive all eternity and fight the bad within you.
I sighed and slowly started towards the girls’ dorms. I was exhausted, not only from training and the giant headache and aching muscles it brought. I was also exhausted from the mental workout I kept going through with learning new things about vampires and other supernaturals, finding things out about the vampire boys I knew, and from the questions constantly streaming through my head. Tonight I definitely needed a long shower and a movie night with my best friend.
When I got to the dorms I did just that. I took a long shower and watched awful movies all night with Angel. We accidently fell asleep during a movie, laying in an awkward position on her bed. I woke up to her alarm going off, since she hardly ever wakes up to her own alarm I reached over her and turned it off. Still utterly exhausted I got off her bed and began to get ready for school.
As I changed into my school uniform Angel woke up, groggy and rubbing her eyes. “Ugh, how late did we stay up last night?” I shrugged my shoulders, I knew I had to have stayed up later than Angel since I was worrying about how the world is going to end. Angel stood up from her bed and joined me in the closet to get changed, “I will never drink soda that late again, the sugar’s got my head all achy and my stomach upset.”
I laughed and started situating my curly hair into a bun on top of my head, “You always say that, but then you always sneak into the dining hall before bed to grab a Coke.” My hair wouldn’t cooperate in the bun, strands kept falling in my face and the hair tie wouldn’t stay tight around my hair. I groaned in the mirror, curly hair was always a pain to style, this ugly messy bun will do.
“Coke is my weakness, I will never abandon her.” I laughed at Angel and grabbed my backpack from the floor, grabbing hers and handing it to her when she was done with her hair and quick makeup. We headed out the dorms and toward our first period class, actually having more than five minutes to get there for once.
Angel and I were slowly walking through the halls and talking about her excitement for college. Of course I was naturally jealous that she was able to go about her normal life, go to college, live in a dorm, make new friends. She didn’t have to worry about vampires, the world exploding, and lying to her friends to keep them safe. For a split second I wanted to trade lives with her, but I discarded the thought quickly, I wouldn’t want to throw this stuff on anyone else. That’s why I had to keep the secret and pretend like everything was fine, also because I didn’t want them to deal with the consequences.
We were standing outside the classroom, not ready to go in until the bell rang and we were forced to get to class. When I felt the familiar unease and skin crawling feeling I had all weekend. I was trained well enough to know what that meant, a vampire was near. I was ready to turn around and smile at Trevor, letting him know that I was sorry for the intrusion of his past last night.
However, the blood drained from my face and my fingers got cold as the pit of my stomach fluttered from the tension and I heard a familiar voice and a familiar greeting, “Hi kitten.” I should have guessed that it was Jonathan from the greeting, he would come back to my school and I would have to stop him from hitting on my friend. I should have apologized to Jonathan about the intrusion as well, at least trying to keep me on his good side. But the look on Angel’s face told me otherwise. She didn’t have the lust in her eyes like Emma did when she saw Jonathan for the first time, she looked surprised and terrified.
I should have known that my biological vampire tracker only went off in the face of danger or warning. But, I was stupid, I turned around and saw a face that I once loved. I saw my past, my happiness, my sadness, and my fears. The body attached to that face was the opposite of everything I once loved. Brandon, Brian’s twin brother who was the deceased love of my life, stood before me. With that ridiculously charming and wicked smirk written all over his face.