Renata
She took two stairs at a time, crushing through the eight flights like it was nothing. The chemicals responding to her fear and anxiety allowed her to ignore her struggling lungs and aching muscles. She practically tore the floor's exit door off its hinges and booked it toward her apartment.
The front door popped open, revealing a wide-eyed Diamond. Renata was unable to stop her rapid speed and plowed into her best friend. They tumbled onto the ground, the impact not quite registering as they both shouted in surprise and relief.
"Are you alright?" Renata demanded, scanning Diamond from head to toe, finding nothing out of place. She backed off of her, not quite strong enough to rise off the ground yet.
Diamond nodded, eyes shiny with unshed tears. "I'm okay. Just a little freaked out." She rose and shut the front door. She locked it, almost laughing as she did so for whatever reason. It felt like a strange time for Diamond to be amused.
Renata was thoroughly confused. "Your texts scared the shit out of me. What happened?"
Diamond got back on the ground to be near her. "Is Rocio your sister?"
Renata frowned. "Yes. How do you know about her?" Renata looked around like Rocio was going to jump out of one of the rooms.
"I came to see you, to make sure you were okay, and she was just here. I mean, she looked right at home." Diamond's eyes darted around like she was thinking the same thing.
Renata was trying to catch up. "Rocio was here, in my apartment? But she wasn't supposed to be here for—wait, how did she get in?" She was trying to remember if she locked the door, but of course she did. She didn't recall Rocio being a lock-picker.
A shudder went through Diamond. "She told me to tell you something."
"Okay." Renata was going mad with impatience but tried her best to not let any hint of it show. While Diamond seemed physically okay, she was still shaken up by whatever took place.
"I don't remember much, honestly. She just said to ditch the bastard, and that she was..." Diamond hesitated, worrying about something.
Renata took a very deep breath. "It's okay, Diamond. It's gonna be okay." She put a hand on Diamond's shoulder, giving a gentle squeeze, and leaned in closer. "Talk to me."
"None of it made sense." A funny feeling began to grow in the pit of Renata's stomach. Not quite apprehension. Not quite fear. Not quite anything. Maybe a mix of it all. Either way it was heavy and foreboding. "She said she was undying, and then...she did something to her eyes, and they were red. They were fucking red, Renata, I swear on everything."
Renata sat back in disbelief. "No. That..." Considering who she'd just met with red eyes, there was only one conclusion to come to. But...it didn't make a lick of sense. Renata grew up with Rocio, watched her throughout it all. Vampires don't grow up, that's the whole point, right?
Diamond must have been watching the gears turn in Renata's head. "What does any of that mean? How can anyone be undying?"
Renata had no intention of lying to Diamond. She was Renata's closest confidant and vice versa, there was no way to keep this kind of information concealed from each other. "Diamond, I need you to listen to me. Do you trust me?"
Diamond quirked up a brow of suspicion. But her answer was immediate and steadfast. "Of course I do."
Renata cleared her throat and looked straight into Diamond's beguiling eyes, eyes Renata had gotten lost in many times, had watched fill with tears of joy or terror and everything between the two. They were eyes Renata would know anywhere at any time. They were the eyes of a person she trusted more than anyone else. "You know I wouldn't fuck with you, not about something like this."
"Yes..."
Renata was going to tell Diamond everything, but needed to be sure that this revelation about Rocio was just what it sounded like—she'd probably hunt down Keone after this and have him confirm. "And that's exactly what she said, that she was undying? And she had red eyes."
Diamond was calmer, or at least farther from a state of fear at this point. Now, she was just confused and ready to not be confused. "Just tell me what is going on. Please."
"Okay, I told you how I was meeting with someone to get answers." Diamond nodded along. "Well, I kind of did get them. A lot of information was dumped on me, Diamond. Shit that makes me wonder whether I'm sane. And even though I think I'm not quite processing this situation with Rocio, I can tell you who attacked me." Renata paused and willed Diamond to believe her. "A vampire. Well, they use 'undying'. But basically a vampire."
Diamond swallowed and Renata was sure that her friend was seconds from a breakdown of any kind. "Vampire." The word echoed in the small space between them. It was a scary word, one that changed everything. Not that anything had been the same since Renata had been murdered.
"Listen, I just learned about it hours ago. I know it sounds crazy, but it's true."
"So, red eyes means..."
"Yup."
"That fucker who attacked you had red eyes..."
Renata kept nodding along as Diamond pieced it altogether. "Undying." The term felt bitter in Renata's mouth.
Diamond sat up straighter. Her eyes were alarmed once again as something else came to her mind. "Wait, who told you all of this? Who were you meeting with? Where are they now?" Finally, Renata wasn't certain of how much to share. Diamond noticed the hesitation. "Tell me the truth, Ren."
"A little while after he killed me, something happened," Renata began to explain with a shaking mind. "He visited me again." Diamond had a sharp intake of breath. "In my dreams. I don't know how. I'm sure it's some kind of weird ass vampire magic trick. The point is, he visited me and told me that he would give me my space. I was so angry, I could barely register what he was saying. What I did remember was him telling me that he would give me a year. When that year was up, he would return."
Diamond was trembling again, though with something far stronger than fear: unfiltered fury. "He did, didn't he? Tell me that's not who you met with. Who you ditched me for."
Renata wished she didn't feel so much shame. "I didn't ditch you. I didn't have a choice."
Diamond had a fierce grip on Renata. "He didn't hurt you, did he?"
Renata shook her head. She didn't even know what to say anymore. She knew how nothing she would say would really make any sense. Renata couldn't even make sense of it to herself let alone for Diamond. "No, no. Apparently the fucker wants to do the opposite."
"The opposite?" Diamond demanded. "He killed you, left you to bleed out. I remember because I cleaned it up. Please tell me you're not actually teaming up with him."
Renata was being cornered into a very small space. Her chest was caving in, slowly but surely. She just couldn't breathe. "I don't know!" She scrambled away from Diamond. She was heaving in breath after breath. "I don't know what I'm doing! I don't know what I am! I don't know why I just won't fucking die!" Tears sprung out, but all they did was burn on the way down. Renata felt powerless, unable to control anything, not her rage, her hate, her anguish, none of it. "I'm sorry!" She went into her room, ignoring the calls of her name as she slammed her bedroom door shut behind her.
Renata crumpled into a ball of frustration and pain. She cried, feeling so weak as Diamond knocked on the door, begging to be let in, and apologizing for no good reason.
Renata sniffled and rummaged around for her phone, finding it in her jacket pocket. Her impulse control was nonexistent as she dialed the number. It rang once. Twice. Three times. Four. The ringing was cut off by a calm Rocio. "I didn't think you'd call so soon, sister."
Renata still couldn't quite catch her breath. "Tell me it isn't true. Tell me you're not..." She couldn't contain the sob dying to be released. There was so much happening. Too much to understand in too little time. Her brain was rightfully slow in catching up, if it could. God, she hoped it would, because she couldn't stand feeling like this much longer.
Rocio surprised Renata and softened her voice. "I am, Nata. I should have told you myself, but your friend caught me off guard. You know me. I can get...frazzled sometimes."
Renata shook her head. She didn't even have the energy to entertain her banter. "When?"
Rocio hesitated. "Two years ago." Two years. Rocio has been a vamp for two years. And Renata was completely clueless the entire time. It made sense. They hadn't carried a full conversation in over five years, but it still left Renata breathless—well her lungs were already on the verge of a collapse, but that was neither here nor there.
Her heart was cracking, exposing her to the dirty air, the shadows which sought to harm her. She clutched the silver jewelry on her neck, tried to remember her mother's face and came up blank. But just that little action was helpful. "Is that why you were here? To tell me?"
"Yes," Rocio confirmed, "I shouldn't have lied to begin with." Who the hell was this person accepting responsibility, and what did they do with Rocio? "There is no job. I just made up an excuse to see you—listen to me, Nata. There's been buzz about you in the undying world. Let me help you, you know you can trust me."
"I'm just really scared and confused right now." She didn't have the energy to lie either.
"Let me be your anchor. Like old times when I was a proper sibling." Rocio made a light, depressed sound on the other end of the line. "Plus, I hate the idea of Keone being your ally."
The name allowed Renata's thoughts to resume focus. "You know him? Do you know what he did to me?"
"I know of him, and that he's been your designated stalker this past year—wait, what did he do to you?" Rocio's voice was laced with venom. "I'll fucking kill him. Did he hurt you?"
More tears streamed down her cheeks. "I made a deal with him." It was a regretful whisper. Renata was beginning to realize what she'd done. She willingly agreed to breathe in the same vicinity as her murderer.
Her words were clipped and worried. "What deal?"
"He promised to help me figure out what I am—"
"But you're human...right?"
Renata hesitated. Then, Diamond gave another insistent knock.
"I'll be out in a second," Renata called out. "I just need a second."
"Uh, okay. But there's someone at the front door. Says he needs to come in. I have no idea who he is, and I told him to fuck off, but he's still there."
Rocio must have been listening in. "Who's there?"
Renata looked around and realized she left Keone in the middle of their drive without any kind of explanation.
Diamond sighed. "I have no idea. Buzz cut. Rugged hot. Said his name is Keone."
Well, fuck.