The following morning, everyone lightly packed to go on a hunt for a new hiding place, or according to Delsin, a new "man cave." It was currently six in the morning and everyone appeared dead due to the chaos from yesterday evening which caused their lack of sleep. The seven of them lined the entrance of the abandoned building and gazed at its imperfections with their bags in hand. Violet brought everything she originally packed in her duffel bag and added the oversized shirt and pants Aiden bought her while everyone else carried at least two or more bags.
Delsin sniffled and pouted at the sight of the building. "I'm going to miss this place. All of our best memories were here."
Colette patted his back gently. "There, there. You'll be fine."
"Alright guys, it's time to go," Colton said aloud before walking to the van. "Take one last look before you go."
Delsin blew a kiss towards the building and turned away. "I think I'll leave before I get too emotional."
They laughed and followed him to the van but then dropped their jaws at the sight of the BMW behind it. "Now look what we have here!" Riley exclaimed. "Can I ride it?"
"It's mine," Aiden said boldly as he got closer to the new car while clutching the keys. "And I'm not going to drive with you in it so how about you get back in the van?"
So back in the van they went as Aiden rode solo in the separate car. This time, Riley rode shotgun which left Violet with Em and Delsin and Colette in the back. The windows were opened, inviting in fresh air.
"So how do we find a new place?" Riley asked Colton who hadn't started the van yet.
"I'm thinking we should aim for somewhere unknown in the state. Portland's nice but it's too busy here," he replied loudly. "We'll find one, don't worry."
"We're still staying in Oregon?" Aiden yelled from his car in the front, sticking his head out. "I was hoping to get away."
Riley snorted. "Aren't you tired of traveling?" She added, "How was Los Angeles by the way?"
He rolled his eyes and answered, "It was shitty but at least I didn't see any of your dumb rich friends."
"My dumb rich friends are good friends just fyi."
"They probably don't even miss you," he said with a smirk.
"Says the guy with no friends."
He shrugged and began rolling up his window. "Whatever."
After they started driving for a bit, Colette cleared her throat and asked softly, "Do we have any bags left?"
"They're in my suitcase in the back. Just lean over and grab one," Colton replied.
By "bags" they meant blood bags, which Violet later realized once one was pulled out. She averted her gaze from Colette and focused on the city view outside instead. At least they had bags instead of an actual person, she thought. Her eyes wandered onto the silver car that was now following behind them and almost laughed when she remembered their car ride when Justin Bieber songs soared through the speakers and she couldn't resist the urge to sing along. In the van though, it was always quiet but as of right now, she could hear music coming from the BMW which was slightly vibrating with noise.
"My god! Why is he playing it so loud?" Riley complained. "I'm trying to take a nap after getting barely two hours."
"At least you get the opportunity to nap! Colton has to drive all day," Em hollered over the music. "And this music isn't half bad!"
Riley suggested, "Okay Em, how about you drive then?"
"I'm fine," Colton said. "Just take your naps."
"They're always so cranky in the mornings," Colette said before laughing. "Delsin's already fast asleep."
"No, I'm not. I'm just too tired to yell at them," Delsin muttered sleepily.
"But-" Em started.
"Really guys, just take your naps so I can take mine!" Violet said before yawning. Everyone quieted down now that she actually spoke.
"So the girl talks," said Riley with an over-exaggerated expression.
Violet shot her an unamused look. "Just call Aiden to shut if off."
"Will do." Riley dialed Aiden but when he answered, Drake played over the speaker. "Turn it off!" she yelled.
The music stopped. "Sorry," Aiden said and hung up.
She scrolled through her phone for a minute and turned it off. "Can't believe it's already The eleventh. It's almost Valentine's Day which is my favorite."
"Wait a second, it's the eleventh already?" Colton asked while the van paused at a stop light. He turned to Violet with a silly grin but she returned a look of confusion. "Don't you remember?"
Her face was blank. "What?"
"Tomorrow's your birthday."
Violet just stared at him for a while. She didn't even notice the date or her own birthday. "Um wow. I totally forgot."
"How old are you turning?" Em asked as the car resumed to action.
"Seventeen."
Almost everyone gasped. "You're barely turning seventeen? I thought you were already seventeen like the rest of us," said Delsin.
"Same," added Colette.
"Seventeen's a huge deal," Colton said, "we should celebrate it tonight."
Violet almost choked on the water she was sipping. "Celebrate it? Don't we need to find a place first?"
"I think we'll head to Enterprise which is about five hours away so we'll get there by night. I'll book us a hotel and we'll hunt for the new place tomorrow morning."
"Enterprise? Never even heard of it," Riley said. "But fine by me."
"Oh my gosh, will there be cake?" Em asked.
Violet groaned. "I never asked for this." She never celebrated her birthday, so bringing this up made her feel weird.
"Hey, it's good to have fun once in a while." Colton turned to wink at her.
She blushed and instantly recalled her fifteenth birthday where she spent the day with Colton. They tried to bake a cake for her at Joe's house and Franny kept throwing flour at them, but since the four of them had the place to themselves, there were no limits to their fun.
After many snores and several naps, they were woken up at a gas station. Everyone stuck to the routine of getting out for a bathroom break. When Violet finished her business, she fanned herself and looked around for the van. Before she could spot it, a blue popsicle was waved in her face.
"Here," Aiden said. "I got one for everyone."
"Oh thank goodness." She felt like she was being cooked in an oven at the very moment.
He handed her the treat and chuckled. "How's the van ride?"
"Annoying," she answered. "Colton brought up my birthday and now everyone wants a party."
Aiden raised his eyebrows. "It's your birthday?"
"Tomorrow. But I guess we're celebrating it tonight."
"Are those for us?" Riley's eyes aimed the popsicles in Aiden's hands and came running along with the others.
Delsin snatched one from Aiden and immediately unwrapped it. "You're the best!"
Once everyone got their own, Colton told everyone to return to the vehicle. Violet hesitated to go back and gave Aiden a help-me-out look.
He nodded like he understood and smirked. Turning to their group he said, "Violet's coming with me. Is that okay?"
Colton stared at them for a few seconds. "Yeah sure."
Back in the van, Riley was the first person to speak. "Now when did Aiden and Violet ever get along?"
"They seem closer in a way," Em said. "I'm actually surprised."
Colette joined in. "You think something happened on their way back here?"
"Who knows?"
That evening they reached Enterprise which was completely opposite from Portland. Barely anyone walked the streets, and it had more of a town vibe rather than a city feel. As boring as the place was, it was the perfect area to settle if they wanted to hide securely despite the chilly weather.
The clock revealed it was seven when they were all huddled together in the dim hotel room. They sung happy birthday to Violet while she stood there awkwardly and stared at the flickering candle on the cake in front of her. It sat there on the table with its white vanilla frosting and mint chocolate ice-cream filling. They almost drooled at its appeal.
"Whooo!" Delsin cheered and handed Violet the knife to cut the cake. She ran her finger across the icing and tapped it on Delsin's nose. "Hey!" he cried. Not before long, they were having a mini cake fight. It was hilarious; the look on everyone's face when they came in contact with frosting. The room filled with laughter and giggles.
"Guys!" Violet smiled. "Let's not ruin the cake."
Five minutes later they were gobbling up the slices of heaven. "Mmmm..." Colton forked a piece into his mouth. "This hits the spot."
"No kidding." Colette wiped her frosting-covered lips and burst out laughing when Delsin looked at her with disgust.
Em laughed as she finished her last bite. "This is seriously delicious....but I'm still hungry."
"Me too," Aiden said. "Do we have anymore bags?"
Colton shook his head and pointed to the others. "These knocks hogged the rest of it in the van."
"We still have time to hunt right?"
"Yeah," Colton said after checking the clock. He turned to Violet with worry. "Um-"
"It's fine." She nodded. "I can stay here by myself."
Soon, they were out the door. From the window, she waved at them as they filed into the van. When it drove out of sight, she turned to the empty room. What would she do now? Her eyes fluttered to the television. No, she thought. Last time she turned the T.V. on, it was a disaster. The alarm clock on the nightstand read nine-thirty.
"Maybe another bath," she muttered to herself. She definitely needed one this time.
Violet awoke in the room-temperature water with an uncomfortable feeling. She was still in the tub and groaned as she dragged herself into the cool air. Her body was freezing and she rushed to get changed. Why was it so cold? When they first arrived at Enterprise, the temperature was already low but now it was worse. Stepping out the bathroom, she saw that it was eleven forty-five now and nobody was back yet. Her eyebrows raised when she realized that the heater was turned on. Was it broken? A harsh cough escaped her throat and suddenly, fatigue crept through her entire being. "Well shit," she said. She was probably sick after falling asleep in the tub for two hours straight.
Eleven fifty-five. Riley bursted through the door to their hotel room. "Ah, it feels nice to be back with the heater on. Do you know how cold it was walking around trying to find people?" She shut the door and noticed Violet sitting on one of the beds. "Everyone's still in the lobby. What are you doing?"
Violet folded her arms around her stomach with her eyes shut, not acknowledging Riley's presence.
"Geez...what happened to you? Too much cake?" Riley tried to crack another joke but when there was no response, she bit her lip. "I'll go get Colton."
Twelve o' clock. Midnight. "I don't know. She was hunched over acting really weird," Riley whispered as their group entered the room.
Violet dropped to floor with a thud. They ran to her side and watched her body tremble with sweat.
"Violet!" Colton yelled, but the call of Violet's name wasn't heard by her. There was only a high pitched ringing and the heavy pain sprawling across her body rapidly. It only got worse and worse until all she could do was scream. There was no words to describe how much it hurt. All she could think about was the desire to make it stop even if it meant killing herself but she could barely move. Whatever it was, it was controlling her, decreasing her body heat and making her twitch. It was also hard to breathe when it felt like her own soul was being sucked out of its shell.
"This is...." Colton stared at Violet whose eyes revealed only whites. "Colette, hand me a blood bag." She thought it was ridiculous but raced to their hunting bag and threw him one anyway. He tore it open with his teeth and tried to get Violet to remain still. Gently forcing her head up, he tipped the bag into her pale lips.