Chapter Seven (Julian)
I really didn't want to go to school with all of this shit racing around in my head, but parents seemed to think that your personal life can't mess with your education.
What a load of bullshit.
I wanted to stay home and just sleep for the rest of forever, but it wouldn't be possible. I even had trouble sleeping because Daimonas kept waking me up with visions. Adam looked refreshed and in a surprisingly good mood, though, so I didn't really talk much to avoid sounding like a jackass.
"We have band practice tonight," Adam told me as he leaned against the locker beside mine as I got out my thermos for lunch, "Seth and Kipp agreed we could do it at Seth's house since his parents are gonna be gone on a business vacation thing, so we get the house to ourselves." I frowned at that, closing my locker and giving Adam an uneasy stare.
"Do they really wanna do this?" I asked. Adam frowned at that, pushing off the locker and turning to face me fully. He reached out, brushing his fingers by my cheek before tucking a lock of my hair behind my ear.
"It's all right, Julian. Seth's the one who suggested it anyway." He added, probably trying to make me feel better, but that only made me grimace.
"That sounds safe." I muttered, referring to the fact that the other day Seth tried to trick me into biting him, which failed miserably. I hoped he wouldn't try playing his guitar with bloody hands just to tease me again. I might actually be tempted to just bite his arm off and get it over with so he'd get a new hobby. Vampire hunters were the last thing I wanted to deal with right now.
"Julian! Adam!" I frowned, looking up as Katie, the student council president, came toward us. I blinked and Adam and I shared confused looks. We were pretty much the deliquents of the school and Katie was Miss. Perfect in Every Way. Why would she want to associate herself with us?
She wasn't exactly mean. In fact, she was pretty nice. She was your stereotypical girl next door, auburn hair pulled up into a ponytail, glittery blue eyeshadow over bright green eyes to match her sweater and blue jeans.
"Can I ask you guys for a super huge favor?" She asked as she drew near. I frowned, but said nothing. Adam raised an eyebrow at her, folding his arms over his chest. Katie, being a little oblivious, didn't seem to notice our defensive behavior and took that as her chance to continue as she clasped her hands together tightly in prayer.
"The Winter Ball is coming up this weekend and I was put in charge of finding a band to play at the fling, but I can't find anyone who's willing to play at a high school dance and I heard you guys have a band and yeah, so is it okay... if I book you guys? You'll be paid, of course!" She added brightly as if that made it all better.
Personally, I liked the idea. It was an actual gig that might get us noticed a little more. People from other schools were coming to this dance and they'd go back and tell everyone about us. I looked up at Adam eagerly to see him considering her offer.
"Tell you what," Adam said at last, making Katie perk up hopefully, "I'll have to check with our other two members. I'll get back to you by the end of the day."
"Oh, thank you so much! You guys are life savers!" Katie cheered, then caught me by the shoulder, placing a kiss on my cheek, then one on Adam's before she took off down the hallway in a flurry of excitement. I watched her leave, scrunching up my nose, then yelping as Adam took a hold of my face, rubbing his sleeve on my cheek.
"What the heck?" I complained as he wiped my cheek so hard it burned once he pulled away, shaking his sleeve off.
"That's my cheek." Adam told me nonchalantly. A thrill rushed through me at that and I smiled, glancing up at him before we headed for the cafeteria. Even from down the hallway, I could hear what sounded like a huge commotion. Adam's lips worked into a frown as he looked at me and I shrugged, holding up my hands in defense. I had nothing to do with this. We pushed open the doors to find a few guys standing around Walter, who was sitting hunched over his paper bag lunch.
A couple of the guys belonged to the gang Walter used to hang out with as well as a couple of the junkies that hung out in the boys bathroom before and after school. Walter just sat there, teeth gritted as one of the guys taunted him about being a psychopath.
"Pricks." I muttered, taking a step toward them when Adam caught my elbow and pulled me back, making me scowl at him in confusion before he gave me a hard stare.
"Don't bother him, Julian. We already have enough shit on our plate. The last thing we need is the school lunatic following us around again." He warned, glancing up toward Walter, who had finally gotten up out of his seat to leave. I followed his eyes, my body still tense and ready to move, but Adam was right.
Walter had his own troubles to deal with. Karma was bitchslapping him hard... But I couldn't help feeling guilty about this whole thing. It was my fault Walter was kicked off his pedestal. Well, kind of anyway. I mean, he was the idiot who drank from my thermos, but all the things he said about vampires was true-- mostly. That didn't make him crazy. It made everyone around him stupid because they wouldn't believe him.
What did it feel like to face people who called you crazy, when you weren't?
And, then there was the fact that the people he once called friends had turned on him. Now that was something I could relate to. While Kipp and Seth were being a lot more cooperative than Walter's ex-friends, they were still lashing out at me. Kipp didn't want to touch me. He also avoided eye contact every so often. And then there was Seth, who watched my every move, like he was afraid I'd attack at any moment-- like I was a beast on the loose.
And that's what Walter looked like now.
He was cornered near the table his friends had abandoned when he tried to sit with them. He was on his own against a handful of guys that were mocking him and pretending to see vampires everywhere, making Walter twitch. I could hear his heart from here, pounding out of control with rage, frustration, and pain. The look in his eyes told me he wanted to get away from there.
"But it's my--"
"It's not your fault," Adam interrupted me firmly, making me turn to him now as he reached out to put his hand on my arm, turning me away from the scene, "And this is probably something the prick should learn from. Sometimes you need to be kicked in the face by life to learn a lesson."
"Yeah, but--"
"No more," Adam insisted, looking impatient now, "We need to talk to Kipp and Seth about this gig. And I need to ask Katie how much they're willing to pay us. The D.J. that used to work for the school did it for eight hundred. I'm thinking we have a chance to ask for a little more and we can split it evenly amongst ourselves." He seemed engrossed in the idea, and while it was extremely attractive to me too, it was really hard to turn my back just as Walter received a blow to the gut.
By now, the teachers in the cafeteria decided to take action and got up to start yelling at the kids, sending them off to the principal's office.
Adam and I sat down at the table where Kipp and Seth were sitting. Seth was watching the scene with Walter and the teachers, sipping at a juice box. Kipp sat beside him, wearing an oversize sweatshirt that probably belonged to his older brother, Richard. His hair was pulled down a little low, his bangs across his forehead, and a scarf around his neck. Judging from his occasional sniffles and groans, he had a cold.
"You better not be sick." Adam told him as we sat down. Kipp scrunched up his nose, then hesitated and made the oh god gonna sneeze face before he covered his nose and sneezed into his gloved palms. Seth wrinkled his nose in disgust, rolling his eyes before looking at us wearily.
"What's it matter?" He asked. Adam frowned.
"Katie offered us a gig at the Winter Ball this weekend." He stated. Seth choked on his juice, thumping his chest to get his oxygen back. Kipp's eyes widened and he brightened instantly.
"That's awesome! We finally get to play! What time is the Winter Ball? What is the Winter Ball? We don't have to dress up or anything do we?" He asked, cocking his head in question. Adam raised an eyebrow at him, then looked between him and Seth as he spoke.
"The Winter Ball is just some dance they have every year. You've been going here since middle school, Kipp. Where have you been?" He asked. Kipp made a face.
"I don't keep track of these dorky high school dances, but hey, if we're gettin' paid for it, who gives a shit? How much are we getting paid?" He added curiously. Adam shrugged, taking out the lunch my mom had packed him and taking out the thermos of cherry juice that he purposely asked for. I think it was his idea of a sick joke.
"Not sure yet, but I'm ready to negotiate a price," He answered, popping the thermos open and taking a drink that made both Kipp and Seth stare at him when the drink left a red stain on Adam's bottom lip, "And we need to start lining up songs to play. Not just originals either. We need to look into some songs to play that people will like. Things you'd wanna hear at a cheesy dance."
"What, like, baby it's cold outside?" Kipp asked with a snort, still eyeing the red on Adam's lip. Adam seemed oblivious to it, that or he was purposely ignoring it.
"Doesn't matter. Whatever songs you want. Think up a few and we can practice them after school today. We decided on Seth's place, right?" He asked, turning his head to look at Seth, who nodded.
"Yeah, and we have the house to ourselves, so we can play as loud as we want. My parents also left cash for pizza and pop, so I need to stop by the store before any of you come over. Kipp's coming with me." He added. Kipp looked puzzled.
"I am?" He asked.
"You are." Seth told him in a tone of voice that dared him to argue. Kipp whined, but didn't argue as he went back to drinking chicken noodle soup out of his plastic bowl. Seth ignored him, then turned to Adam with a flat stare.
"You got a little..." He used his thumb to gesture to his own lip, indicating the juice on Adam's. Adam paused, staring at Seth and pretending not to notice. And this time, I was sure he was just screwing around. I tried not to smile at that as I took a gulp from my thermos, setting it on the table in front of me.
"Adam, what are you even drinking?" Kipp asked at last, making a face.
"Baby blood." Adam replied bluntly, then took a particularly deep drink before handing the thermos to me. This time, I couldn't resist a snicker, watching Seth scowl and Kipp grimace at Adam's morbid sense of humor.
"Oh," Adam added, continuing his conversation, "And I'm not sure about dressing up either. I'll ask Katie, and if we do, we can just rent tuxedos from that place in Jackson." Kipp made a face, resting his cheek in his palm.
"I don't wanna wear a penguin suit." He complained. I shifted uncomfortably, rubbing the back of my neck as I glanced at Adam.
"I kinda already have a penguin suit," I replied, making Kipp scrunch his nose up, so I shrugged as a response, "I have a couple of them, actually. My family is kinda... uhm, popular, I guess? So we go to a lot of parties. Doesn't help that Alexander is married to Vlad. That just makes us even more popular."
"Then we don't need to worry about you," Adam decided, taking the thermos off the table, "The rest of us still need tuxes. Unfortunately, I don't have any cash on me. I'll have to see what I can do."
"All right," Seth sighed reluctantly, "I'll probably have to go rent one. I don't make it a habit of collecting those things. They just make me... uncomfortable." I had a feeling he was going to say make me look shorter, but changed his mind and went for something less personal. Kipp started to speak, then sneezed into his palm and moaned, dropping his head on the table, burying his face in his arms.
"And you need to get rid of that cold," Adam told him with a frown, "It's a good thing you don't sing, otherwise, we'd have a real problem." Kipp grunted as a response. Adam went to drink from his thermos when I realized he had mine and I had his.
"Wait, wait!" I protested, taking the thermos from him. He raised an eyebrow at me and I held his thermos out to him.
"This one's yours." I told him. Adam frowned, giving it a little shake before shrugging and taking a drink from his thermos, looking pleased with the cherry flavor instead of my O negative drink. I took my thermos from him and took a few sips, noticing that Seth was staring at me. I frowned.
"What?" I asked, irritated. Seth shook his head.
"You might wanna bring that over today. I don't have money to be break into hospitals to steal blood bags for you." He told me. I shrugged, but didn't argue with him. The rest of lunch was eaten in silence and it still bothered me that I would have to spend the rest of the day with Seth and Kipp. Once upon a time, that would have been fantastic and I would've been totally pumped for it, but that was before they knew who I was.
Now I knew for a fact that they were uncomfortable around me. They were walking on egg shells, afraid to do things that they think would make me go blood crazy. I'd never been in a frenzy before, ever. I hadn't even known a vampire to go into a frenzy. And I drank enough blood so that I was pretty well off. I could miss a whole day and still be good for the next day most of the time.
The bell finally rang and I'd never been so grateful to go to class. Of course, Adam shadowed me the whole way there, his eyes scanning the crowds like he was looking for someone.
"Who're you looking for?" I asked as I stopped by my locker, putting the combination in as he leaned on the locker beside me.
"That creep that Takahashi sent." He muttered under his breath. I blinked, remembering the shapeshifter that Takahashi had sent in to watch us. Declan Calhoun. Apparently a shapeshifter with a double personality that sometimes made it difficult to keep up with him. And while I hadn't mentioned it to Adam, I actually wanted to talk to the guy again. He said Takahashi was coming up with a way to get the demon out of me. If they could do that, I'd be free of one huge problem in my life. It might even clear up a couple other problems on my plate.
And then I'd only have to worry about normal vampire things. Like people such as Walter, for example. Of course, Walter wasn't exactly a concern considering that everyone thought he was crazy and he was being drugged up on medication that he didn't even need.
Okay, now I just felt guilty.
I groaned and leaned into my locker, yelling inside of it in frustration before pulling my head back out to see Adam studying me with an intense stare that made my insides quiver.
Stop being so sexy! We're in school.
"It's gonna be fine, Julian." Adam told me. I relaxed to a degree, looking away for a second. Adam took his chance to lean forward and kiss my cheek. For a second, I was nervous that someone might see us, but now that I thought about it, Adam was always showing off how much he loved me and nobody in the school seemed to think twice about it. Maybe because they knew if they made fun of us, Adam would kick the shit out of them.
"I hope so." I said at last. Adam pursed his lips, giving me a faint smile before his expression became aloof. I shut my locker and we seperated to go to class. I went down the hallway, taking my time even though the first bell had already rang, warning me that I had two minutes to get to class. People rushed around to get to their classes, papers and books clattered, people laughing and talking without a care in the world.
A few people bumped into me, but kept going on their merry way as I didn't really exist anymore. It should have bothered me, but I actually didn't really care. I paused in the middle of the hallway, though, as an odd feeling swept over me. I suddenly felt cold, despite my jacket. It chilled me right down to the marrow of my bones and the world seemed to tilt for a split second before it surged forward and I opened my mouth to curse, but nothing came out.
Shit!
Are you kidding me?! In the middle of school?!
The world around me vanished and I found myself in a room that was pitch black. I could hear a faucet dripping somewhere and it sounded like music was thumping outside the room. I couldn't hear what song was playing, though. I could just hear and feel the bass vibrating the room. I felt a chill course up my spine, the hairs on the back of my neck rising, indicating that someone was behind me.
I whirled around, reaching my hands out, but I felt nothing. I bit my lip uneasily, dropping my arms to my sides when I heard something that sounded like someone shuffling past me. I whipped around again, waving my arm out, but I only felt air.
What's going on? Daimonas, what the hell is this?!
I turned around again, looking around for some kind of light. I took a few steps forward when a pair of icy cold hands grabbed my arms. I gasped aloud, trying to pull away, but the person behind me was stronger and tore me up against their chest. I panicked, writhing and trying to shove the person off me, but they were huge!
It was definitely a man, tall and muscular. He didn't speak as he struggled to keep me still. He didn't have to struggle much longer, however, because a second later, I felt a pair of razor sharp fangs puncture my throat on the side. I choked, my body going rigid now, hands grasping at the man behind me as he buried his mouth against my throat.
A moan slipped past my lips as a dull throbbing pain started in my neck, spreading up into my skull, giving me a splitting headache. My breath left me in short gasps, my grip on the guy loosening as he sucked deep and hard, draining me quickly. My whole body ached and quivered like jelly.
A second later, the fangs left my throat and I stumbled forward, slamming into what felt like a door and as soon as I opened it, a bright array of lights assaulting my eyes and I hissed at it, withdrawing back into the darkness, but the lights followed me and engulfed me entirely.
A second later, I found myself lying on the floor in the hallway, body trembling violently. Several students had gathered around to stare and the biology teacher knelt over top of me, shouting at the students.
"Someone call an ambulence, now!" She shouted, then looked back down at me, her expression concerned. I tried to sit up or reach out and tell her not to do anything, but my whole body felt numb. I couldn't control my own body, everything was numb. Panic started to set in when I realized that I couldn't move no matter how hard I tried. I watched the teacher's lips move, but I couldn't understand what she was saying.
What's happening?!
Daimonas, say something!
Freaking out here!
I got no response, which only made me panic further. My vision blurred out for a moment so all I could see were the blurry forms of the teacher shoving students back as a couple more classes opened up and students were peering out. I could hear their voices, but I couldn't understand what they were saying. It all sounded like whispered gibberish.
I felt sick to my stomach the longer I laid there. My lungs were tight and I tried to suck in breathes of air, but I only choked on them. The blurry form of the biology teacher shifted and it took me a moment to realize she was stroking my cheek and trying to get me into a weird position.
What's going on?
Ssstop!
Daimonas! Why weren't you answering me?! What's happening?!
Your brain couldn't handle the vissssion I jusssst threw at you and now you're hurting me, you brat!
I'm hurting you?! What're you doing to me?! I can't move! I can't breath! I can't feel anything!
Ssstop panicking! You're only making it worssse.
I can't help it! This is... scary! I don't know what to do. What're they doing? I can't see anything, everything's all blurry and I don't know what to do and I can't have them call the hospital and-and--
I sssaid sssstop! You're desssstroying both of usss!
I could barely hear Daimonas now as I listened to the weird gibberish going on around me. I could hear noises, but they were all muffled, as if they were wrapped in a blanket or something. I could still see the teacher in front of me and my vision was clearing slowly, but only for darkness to settle in.
And everything disappeared.