Learning to Fall

The rest of lunch was awkward. Nonnie sat in silence picking at her food for a bit until I kicked her foot this time. She gave me the dirtiest look.

“What?” Nonnie asked annoyed.

“You are letting your food get cold.” I said.

“So?” She replied.

“So I thought that we could all go to the movies if you were up to it.” Paul replied sweetly to Nonnie. Instead of her frown, she smiled and started to focus her attention back on Paul.

“Really?” Nonnie beamed.

“Actually, the two of you can go to the movies. I have some errands I need to run after lunch anyway.” I said.

“I don’t know, maybe I should go with you, Alex.” Nonnie replied looking worried at me.

“Nonsense.” I said.

“I can take you home if you want. The movies will be my treat, um non date of course. We can go as just two friends trying to get to know one another.” Paul replied using his charm on Nonnie. Heck, if I didn’t have a thing for Martin I would probably go after Paul myself.
Wait, what am I saying?

“Ok. Non date, then it’s a date, um, you know what I mean.” Nonnie laughed.

The mood seemed to go back to normal and Nonnie ate her food. After lunch we said our goodbyes. “Don’t have my best friend out too late.” I warned Paul.

“Yes mommy.” Paul laughed.

“Alex, you are embarrassing me.” Nonnie replied as she gave me a hug.

“Oh, I am?” I laughed.

“We aren’t done talking about this whole mess though, got it missy?” Nonnie said as she started walking to Paul’s car.

“Don’t call me, I’ll call you.” I shouted laughing as I walked to my car.

I decided I needed information on my uncle and went to the library. Somewhere there had to be public records or articles on file through their databases from past newspapers with the name of my uncle on them. I searched and at first came up short. I found my parents deaths in an article. I shivered as I read about the car crash that killed them.

I closed my eyes and started to remember the day I was told about their deaths. I was a senior in high school and had been hanging out with friends after school. I got home really late to find a cop car in the driveway of my home. Nonnie was with me because she was going to stay the night. I remember the cops telling me about the accident and collapsing. The cops said it was a hit and run and they never found the driver of the other car.

I started to think about my accident. I remembered about how that vampire jumped out in front of me making me swerve. Maybe this wasn’t a random car accident. Maybe my parents were killed from vampires but then again there are too many car accidents in the world that this could have just been that. My head hurt from thinking too much.

I started to read more about my parents. It said that both were mangled pretty badly. I remember the funeral. My parents’ bruises if they had any were carefully concealed on their faces. I was too upset to notice any bite marks. Bite marks. No, I refuse to believe that a vampire caused their deaths. Besides, it has been five years and the first thing that they would have done would have been to come and find me if they were turned.

I started searching again, pushing my parents’ accident out of my mind. This time, I went back some years. I found an article on my uncle. What I read shocked me. No wonder my parents never mentioned anything about my uncle and his family to me. I was young and would forget about it. That is why they hid that photo album to the back of the closet.

Jonathon Anderson murdered his wife, Jane and four year old Sara was the sole witness to the crime. That picture of me and Sara with her parents and my mother was taken before he killed my aunt!

In another article, my uncle had escaped before his trial which is why my cousin was taken away. Sara had to be put into a witness protection program which explains why I never saw her again. She was only four and saw her mother brutally murdered. That is horrible.

So how did Sara end up back here in L.A.? Did my uncle die? Was he found? All these questions hurt my head. I looked down at my watch and noticed that it was almost seven pm. I had been here at the library researching for over four hours. I quickly exited the library and prayed I made it home safe and sound. It was getting dark and it was my fault I was out this late. I lost track of time with all of the research I found.

I made it home and pulled into my driveway. I let the gate close behind me, then unlocked the door to my house and ran inside, locking the door behind me. I had this killer headache from all the worry and walked to the kitchen to get some aspirin. It must have been hard for Sara to be taken away from everything that she loved. For the first time, I had some insight on who, my cousin was before she was turned. Something brought her back to L.A. Sara just didn’t know it would be the death of her in coming back to the city.