Running Wild (Sequal to I'm Not A Vampire)

A Death for Every Life

**DRAKE'S POV**

        Blade was alive. He was alive, and our baby was alive. For now, that was all that mattered to me. I kissed him back, forgetting everything for a few blissful seconds until he pulled away. "What about the baby, Drake?" he asked.

        "What about it?" I replied as he took the child from me.

        "Is it a boy or a girl?" he inspected the baby closely as I looked over his shoulder.

        "That would be a girl," I answered, unable to stop smiling. "She's beautiful."

        "She is," he murmured. "What are we going to name her?"

        I shook my head. "I have no idea. I can't focus on anything but you right now."

        Blade turned and grinned. "I missed you, Drake."

        "I missed you too, Blade," I kissed him again, relishing the warmth brought on by his lips beneath mine. "So, so much."

        "Drake!" a panicked voice broke the perfection of the moment. Blade and I both looked up to see Ashlyn standing in the doorway. Her black hair was messed up, her white T-shirt stained with splatters of bright red blood. She was breathing heavily and staring at us with eyes the size of dinner plates. "Drake, you need to come upstairs. Now."

        I stood, suddenly wary. "Ashlyn, what's going on?"

        She sniffed. "I-it's Matt...."

        That was all I needed to hear. Without waiting for them to follow me, I raced up the stairs from which I had come, my heart thundering in my ears. Every thought vanished from my mind, and I was only left with the repeating words, It can't be. It can't be. But, when I reached the top, it was very obvious that it was. 

        A few feet away from the foot of the stairwell, amongst the countless bodies of dead vampires, Matt lay in a pool of bright red blood. Even with Ashley and Andy gathered around him, I could see the shining silver dagger protruding from his gut. "Dad!!" I yelled, practically shoving Andy and Ashley out of my way to get to him.

        "Hey, Drake," Matt smiled faintly when he saw me. I could see the pain that even that small movement caused him in his eyes. "Did you find Blade?"

        I nodded slowly. I couldn't speak, my throat had closed over itself. 

        "And he's okay?" his voice was little more than  a strangled whisper.

        "Yes," I breathed, struggling to keep myself from crying.

        "Good," he let out a small breath. "I think this might be it for me, Drake."

        I shook my head feverishly. "No, don't talk like that, Dad! You're going to be fine!"

        "That's my boy. Keep thinking positive, it'll get you far in life. I just wish I could be here to see it."

        "Stop! Dad, please, you can't die! I need you here with me!!"

        "No, you don't. You have these lovely batch of vampires now," he motioned toward Ashley and Andy. "You'll be fine without me."

        By now I'd given up trying to hold back my tears, and they streamed freely down my face. "No, I won't! I just got you back, you can't leave me now!"

        Matt gave a weak laugh. "I'll never leave you, Drake. There will always be a part of me here with you, remember that."

        "B-but I want all of you here!" I grabbed his hand and squeezed it. "Please, you're not hurt that bad! We'll call an ambulance and everything will be okay. Just hold on!"

        "Not that bad?" this caused Matt to wheeze out another laugh. "Have you seen the gaping hole where my stomach used to be?"

        It amazed me how, even on death's door, my dad was still able to make a joke. "I-I don't want you to die," I whispered. I realized I was shaking now.

        "I know, Drake. But sometimes things happen in life that we don't want, we just have to live with them," he looked past me, at Andy and Ashley. "Wh-where's Blade?"

        "Here," Blade's voice right behind me made me jump slightly. He kneeled down beside me and smiled sadly at my dad. "Hi, Matt."

        "Be good to my son, you little bastard," Matt smiled slightly to show he was teasing some.

        "I will," Blade and I glanced at each other, and we couldn't help but smile. "I promise."

        "Good," Matt turned back to me. "Drake, I want you to do three things for me."

        I nodded. "Anything."

        "First, don't fuck with this kid," he motioned toward Blade. "He's a good little boy, I can tell."

        I laughed a little. "I won't."

        "Second, tell Jayy I love him for me?"

        "Of course.  What's the last thing?"

        Matt squeezed my hand, staring me right in the eyes. "Don't forget me."

        This brought on a fresh wave of tears. I cried uncontrollably for a few minutes before I was able to speak again. "I-I w-w-won't," I gasped through my sobs. "N-never."

        "Good," Matt gave me a weak smile. "I love you, Drake."

        "I love you too, Dad."

        Matt nodded, and I watched as his eyes slowly closed. After a few moments, his grip on my hand loosened, and I knew he was dead. Still, it took about a half hour of coaxing and pleading from the others to get me to let go of his hand. Finally, Blade was able to pull me away. I allowed him, turning and burying my face in his shoulder. My entire body shook with the force of my sobs as I cried into his shirt. Having handed the baby off to Ashlyn, Blade wrapped his arms around me in a tight, comforting embrace. He whispered soothing things into my ear and allowed me to cry, not seeming to mind in the slightest that his shirt was almost completely soaked through now.

        Eventually, we had to leave. Someone outside must've heard the fighting and called the cops, because we could hear sirens in the distance. Blade had to tell me about four times that we had to leave before it actually registered in my head. Reluctantly, I left my father's body behind, lying where it was. When we walked outside, my eyes lit upon a cluster of wild daffodils growing just outside the door of the building. Pulling away from Blade's grip, I offered as my only explanation, a quick "Hold on," before snatching up the flowers and running back inside the building. I walked up to Matt's body and yanked the dagger out of his chest. Then I placed the flowers over his stomach, arranging them so that they completely covered his wound. "Bye, Dad," I whispered. Then, I turned on my heel and ran out of the building before I could start crying again.

        We pulled away just before the cops arrived. I could see the lights in the rearview mirror as we drove down the highway. I sat in the back seat, curled up beside Blade, my head on his shoulder. On the other side of him, Ashlyn sat, holding the baby in her arms and singing it a soft lullaby. She'd found a blanket in the trunk to swaddle it with and clean off the blood all over it. 

        "Are you okay, Drake?" Blade whispered in my ear softly. I could hear obvious pain in his voice. 

        "As okay as can be expected, I guess," I replied. Everyone else seemed at a loss for words, so they all remained quiet, though I knew they could hear us. I heard the soft sounds of Andy crying from the front seat, but my tears were gone for now. After everyone had gone to sleep, however, I knew they would return. And I knew the hollow pain in my chest would only grow, the farther away I got from my dad.

YES I PUT THE PICTURE UP THERE JUST TO TORTURE YOU! SORRY LOVES I'M EVIL I KNOW, BUT IT MAKES THE EFFECT HIT HOME DOESN'T IT?