While we were at the store, we came across another classmate of ours- Whitney. She was a quiet girl, as quiet as Evelyn, and was the president of the school chess club. Inviting her to join our sleepover was really a no-brainer, and after buying everything our hearts desired we drove over to her house so she could grab the necessities.
Not even an hour later, we were sitting on the couch in my living room, pajamas on, some random American show playing on my TV as we chatted.
"Don't tell me you've never watched how I met your mother!" Exclaimed Evelyn, leaning back against the cushions. Whitney looked at me curiously, munching on her popcorn in the meantime.
"I've never really heard of it before." I shrugged, grabbing a few kernels and putting them in my mouth to avoid answering further. How do I explain to my new friends that I didn't have a TV back home? Thankfully, we did have internet, although I didn't have much use for it. I communicated with my friends at school, and it was mostly Aro who used it to scout social media platforms for any reports of 'vampire sightings'. Even when we lived in America I never watched TV much, not that my parents would let me.
"Have you been living under a rock?" Whispered Whitney, her eyes wide in disbelief.
More or less.
"I haven't watched American movies since I moved to Italy at twelve. I watched Friends though."
"What did you do in your childhood then?"
"I traveled a lot, learned to play the piano... I spent a lot of time with my younger cousins. We live with them and our family is a bit... old fashioned when it comes to modern technology." I grimaced. Oh, if only they knew how old fashioned my family really was.
Whitney just hummed, going back to her bowl of popcorn. Seems like she didn't have any more questions, or maybe she was afraid to ask about anything else- worried she would make me feel even more like an outcast.
Just then I really understood how different I was from my peers. I didn't fit in. Not really. My lack of knowledge of Italian ensured I did not fit in back at my school in Italy, and now, that I came back to America, due to my lack of knowledge of pop culture, I did not fit in either.
The only place where I truly fit in was the castle, as sad as it was. The human world wasn't for me anymore- that much I knew. Although, it made me wonder if I would ever truly fit in with the guard. We loved each other, but I knew some pitied me- my life was forfeit before it even truly began. Not all of them had a choice in the matter of being changed, and not all of them enjoyed their time in the guard. Some strayed from the everyday life in the castle, standing on the sidelines, only showing their faces in the throne room when they were needed or it was time to feed.
I remembered several conversations in which even Jane admitted to not being perfectly happy with her new life.
"Sometimes... I wish" she once said "that I had burned at that stake. I enjoy the power my gift gives me but.. I just want to be a child again."
And I understood- we had both joined the Volturi at a young age, with me being even younger than Jane at the time. I couldn't imagine being stuck in that body forever, with the childhood mindset and unfulfilled dreams.
Maybe that's why our bond was so strong- we just understood each other. Our loyalties laid with each other. Jane took me under her wing when I came to the castle as a scared, merely twelve year old girl, and now I was returning the favor.
I tried my best to give Jane at least a part of her childhood back- ever since I found out her true feelings about being forever stuck at thirteen, I did everything I could to bring her at least a bit of entertainment- we had watched movies online, held sleepovers (during which we put clay masks on each other's faces and painted each other's nails) and ate junk food- well, only me. Jane would usually accompany me with a blood bag of her own and we would sit in complete darkness, some ridiculous Italian movie playing in the background, talking about whatever was on our minds.
Aro was nearly hysterical when he found out- he couldn't believe his elite guard would get up to activities like that, although it amused him greatly.
And I was happy. It didn't really matter that my human life would be ending soon. These vampires have given me the best childhood I could ever ask for and I would forever be grateful.
They could be cunning and ruthless, but they were still my family.
Most of the vampire community was terrified of them- and not without reason. I have witnessed first hand what happened to those who broke the law. The trials brought out the darkest side of the people I loved.
But light cannot exist without darkness, and I wholeheartedly believed that my family's darkness balanced out the world's light.
Despite my family's overall strong bonds, some of the guards cared only about one's survival. I had witnessed instances where the lower guards turned against each other in hopes of ranking up- it never ended well for either party. I also wasn't naive enough to believe that the family dynamics wouldn't change as soon as I was turned.
While the kings and queens might have a soft spot for me, I knew I would be put into an intense training program and be separated from both my parents and Jane. While my parents probably wouldn't ever leave Volterra, I would be expected to partake in 'assignments', as Aro called them. These 'assignments' consisted mainly of getting rid of threats- I would become a trained assassin.
And while the queens had jokingly called me a princess- because twelve year old me apparently stole everyone's hearts- the 'monarchy' wasn't your usual one. There was no need for anyone, other than the kings, because the sole purpose of the family was to uphold laws. They would stop fawning over me as soon as I was turned and didn't need their protection anymore. Though, I didn't doubt their love for me even for a second.
Evelyn's laughter pulled me back to reality, and I focused my eyes on the screen yet again. The movie was funny, I had to admit. I felt a pang of regret- I did miss out, after all. I made a mental note to find some more movies to watch before I ultimately had to go back home. Grabbing my glass of Coke I took a small sip, enjoying the bubbles on my tongue. It had been a long, long time since I last drank any carbonized drinks. The closest thing to sweet drinks I'd had for the last several years were the daily cups of sugary tea when I was younger, courtesy of Sulpicia.
I quickly emptied the glass, pouring myself another one. Might as well enjoy my carbonized goodness freedom while it lasts.
As the scene changed to the protagonist going shopping with her friends on Rodeo Drive, a pang of sadness hit me. I longed to have that experience- shopping with friends, at a human pace, grabbing food and drinks in between stores. That, too, was an experience I never had. Before, I had been too young to go shopping without my parents, and while I was living at the castle, my closet was being taken care of by Heidi. Anything I liked (that I mentioned to anyone) would be in my closet a day later, two at most.
"Damn, I wish I could go shopping like this." Sighed Evelyn dreamily, stuffing more popcorn into her mouth.
"What do you think about a shopping trip? Are there any malls here?" I looked at her curiously. I had just been shopping not that long ago, but I wanted to spend some more time with my human friends, no matter how repetitive the activities would be.
Evelyn's brows furrowed as she got lost in thought. "Forks Outfitters, though I don't think we'll find much there. There's Kitsap mall, but it's kind of far.."
"I could drive us there. It's no problem. When would you want to go?" I added, addressing Whitney.
"Tomorrow? I have a day off from work and I'd just have to text my parents."
Evelyn nodded, cementing our plan.
We left the house early in the morning, aiming to get to the mall as soon as it opened. Being teenage girls, we spent the whole day there, coming back with several bags each, stopping for food at a diner on the way.
After Whitney and Evelyn got their stuff from my house, I drove them both home. Although we didn't have to worry about school and exams anymore, they both had jobs. I wondered why I didn't think of getting one myself- it would occupy my time, and would serve as an additional part of my cover. Though it was a bit too late for that- my time in Forks was almost over, and getting a job I didn't really need, for just a month, would be an unnecessary hassle. I was okay with being a "trust fund baby", as some of the school gossipers called me, for the time being.
Days went by without a word from my family. My calls went unanswered, so did the messages to my parents. I briefly considered getting on a plane and going to check on them myself, but a deeper part of me knew they would be okay- they were protected by vampires, who had all the resources to ensure my parents' safety, as well as their own. It wasn't until four days later that I got a call from Aro- although this call had very little to do with them missing me- it had more to do with explaining the reason behind my extended stay in America.
When I expressed concern for my parents, Aro sighed- this couldn't have been good.
"Cara mia, there seems to be a problem in Romania. We got word of them building an army against us. Fear not, your parents are in Greece with one of the guards. They'll be safe there, even if the Romanians come for us. They had to leave their phones here to avoid being tracked- we had given them burner devices to contact us if the need arises." He explained in one breath, making me sigh in relief- at least they were safe.
When I expressed my other concerns, he reassured me that everything was, in fact, okay and that the guard was always prepared. They would be alright. He said they would be leaving at midnight, so I wouldn't worry if my calls to the castle went unanswered.
He had ended the call with the famous "no rest for the wicked." Oh, how wrong he was. The ones not getting much needed rest were definitely not the wicked. I so badly wished I had already been changed so that I could be of any help in case a war broke out. But instead, I was halfway across the world, unable to help my family in times of need- even though I probably wouldn't be of much help, I would be way calmer observing things go down from the confines of my chambers in Volterra.
It was moments like these when I wished I hadn't been human.
I knew my parents would be fine- I was mostly worried about Jane.
I didn't want to lose her.
I couldn't lose her.
She was my sister, the keeper of all my secrets, and my most loyal friend. And I was hers.
Jane explained that, due to her being forever thirteen, the possibility of there being a mate waiting for her was slim to none. And so, I took the role of her companion. I didn't entertain the idea of having a mate myself- I enjoyed my independence too much. Also, with me being a guard, it would be selfish of me to leave someone waiting back at the castle, while I might never return.
Catching sight of my phone momentarily, I decided to text her. It was four in the afternoon, that means it was ten back in Italy. Jane would be leaving in two hours- my message wouldn't disturb her.
With shaking hands, I selected Jane's contact name, before typing the message. I had to redo it a few times since my trembling fingers made it almost impossible to press the right keys.
Stay safe. And please, be careful.
Locking the phone, I set it down on the pillow, before laying down on my back with a sigh. I couldn't stop the tears welling up in my eyes. I was mad. Mad that nobody told me anything. Mad that my loved ones were in danger and there was nothing I could do to help. But most of all, I was worried. If the Romanians decided on attacking, that meant they had assembled a battalion against us. How well prepared were they? How many of my family members would I never see again?
I wished I could hug all of them one last time before they set off.
A/N
I am so, so sorry for publishing this chapter so late. I have rewritten it a couple times, yet I feel like it isn't my best writing. I will definitely come back to edit it, and you may have noticed that I've been editing the previous chapters as well- I'm hoping some plot holes are fixed now.
I'm absolutely not giving up on this book- I'm constantly writing down ideas, but it's hard to compile several random ideas into one chapter, and I don't want to push out boring chapters with no plot just for one scene. So the updates will be inconsistent, but I'm hoping the quality will make up for it.
Hope you enjoyed this chapter, and I hope all of you are okay and healthy.