Chapter 23: Chapter ☾ XXIII ☽

It was raining today. After a few days of perfect skies and sunlight, the clouds rolled in this morning and it began to drizzle lightly during the day. I thought about going out. I did have to pick up my book for my assignment due next week. Maybe I could make it home before it storms.

“After school, you need to go home and stay there.” Ty said to me.

He tried to be stern, too, but he was more cute than authoritative. He can be protective and that shows when I’m in immediate danger. He’s not much for telling me what to do though, so I found it cute that he was trying.

“Yes, sir.” I flashed a smile at him as I opened up my locker. Ty didn’t seem to enjoy the joke.

He sighed. “Gabriel-”

“Where am I going to go, Ty?” I asked since I don’t have much to do nowadays. I’ve gotten used to staying home more. “But, I do have to go to the library and pick up my book for the Lit project.”

“After that, go home.”

“Yes, sir.” I said again, and this time I did hope he would go along with it, but he kept a straight face as he looked at me. “You know I’m taking this seriously.” I groaned.

Channing decided that today would be a good day to go against the vampires and scare them off. It’s raining and from the news this morning, it’s going to get worse. More people will stay inside instead of being out, so that gives the Martin brothers a clear way of dealing with the vampires instead of having to worry about others as well. Henri told them what to do, how to do it, and who would be the best to do it against.

So tonight, I have to stay home.

“Can vampires come in the house?” I asked as a serious question. He didn't answer me. “Henri warped into my room that one time.”

“We’re hoping that they run for their lives...” Ty said, letting his sentence trail off. “Or die trying.” He added. “Henri said they’ll try to split us off and deal with us one-on-one so we really have to be a unit tonight.”

“Watch each other’s backs, okay.” I wanted them to be safe.

“Yeah.” He said, a plain tone to his voice. I rolled my eyes at the way he answered me and shut my locker.

After school I have to go to the library and go straight home.

That’s easy enough to do.

Before I could do some flirting, mostly to get Ty’s mind off the fact that he and his brothers are about to fight another set of supernatural beings, his younger brothers came over, and they were as happy as can be. I was concerned because they only looked like that when they were doing something devious.

So what's going on with them?

“This is going to be awesome.” One twin, Lowell, was definitely excited. He had this brightness in his dark eyes, one that was hard to explain.

“I can’t wait to rip these guys to shreds!” Lowe had the same hype, having similar excitement to his brother. They both high-fived each other since they displayed the same energy.

I figured they were excited about their expedition tonight. “That’s a little harsh.” I said slowly, not really sure if I should be saying that to them.

They did have a few rough encounters with vampires, and I have to admit they’re lucky they were able to save themselves and Monique from such a horrible fate.

“There’s a full moon tonight, Gabriel.” They both looked at me with a wide smile.

I’ve been asking Ty if that meant anything for the past few months but he never tells me the truth. So what were the twins trying to imply about the full moon tonight? “Okay...”

“The wolves come out tonight.” Lowe said.

Of course. My expression couldn’t be anymore plain than it was right now, but Lowe and Lowell did not care about that.

“This is so awesome!”

I looked at Ty but all he did was shrug. He wasn’t going to tell them to calm down or at least take this more seriously. Then again, it seems like the twins have been waiting for their chance at revenge.

Henri had walked over to us, not to talk to them but they happened to be around. The twins lost their smile immediately and tried to conceal their happiness since they were excited about killing others that were like Henri.

“Sorry...” They both murmured.

“No, it’s fine.” Henri beamed, almost brighter than how excited the twins were before. “I could literally watch them all burn and I’d be fine with it.” He said.

The twins were back to being excited immediately and they high-fived Henri eagerly since he was on their side. I put my hand over my face and sighed quietly. I wasn’t surprised that they were acting this way, just a little disappointed. I can’t believe Ty was worried about me not taking this seriously when it’s them who’re going to have fun.

“Henri, please watch them.” I begged him.

“They might have to watch me-”

I sighed loudly.

He’s literally one of them. Lowe and Lowell couldn’t be any more excited than they were now. I think out of everyone, the two of them like Henri the most. Them and Leo. But Leo likes everyone. The twins gravitate towards people who cause a bit of trouble and are rebellious. Henri fits that role perfectly.

The twins had turned away to leave, already talking about what they’re going to do and how they were going to do it. Henri let that behavior go on and Ty did nothing.

Henri turned to me once the twins were far enough away. “Anyway, I just wanted to say that you better stay home tonight.” He said.

“I know.” I grumbled because I was already told that. “But quick question. Can’t they just go into people’s houses?”

Henri thought about that one. Though I don’t think he took the question seriously. “It’s either they go for a quick snack or fight for their lives. I think surviving to eat another day is more important.” He laughed.

“But...”

“If you’re concerned about them terrorizing people while we’re terrorizing them, I don’t think it will happen.” He wasn’t that concerned. “Plus, they’ll love a good brawl with the wolves. As long as there’s limited people outside and we get them in the forest, everything should go smoothly.”

There was that hope that’s been missing for a few days. I could see it in his eyes today. Even his smile was brighter than it has been. He did say this is his revenge as well and it seems like he’s excited to get it. I can’t imagine what he’s been through and I won’t lecture him on his behavior.

That and I remember him comparing himself to a psychopath so I was slightly worried about him.

“I’ll see you in sixth period.” Henri continued to smile as he waved at me before walking away.

The bell rang but I didn’t move. Maybe I was trying to take all the information, the fact that the Martin brothers are going on this “hunt” tonight in the hopes of ridding the town of vampires. I would be stupid to think that things go smoothly. The point of them heading for the forest is to not have any severe casualties. From there they’ll probably go at it with the vampires.

I don’t know for how long.

I didn’t want to show Ty how worried I was but he felt it. When I turned to him, I met his calm gaze. He probably had that same plain expression so I wouldn’t see how worried he was. He and his brothers have a lot to protect tonight.

Instead of leaving for class, I leaned against the locker. “The other day when you kissed my nose, I got butterflies in my stomach.” I said.

He wanted to roll his eyes. “Do you honestly like that?”

“When you show me affection?”

He pressed his hand to his forehead. He even sighed because of my question. I teased him on purpose to ease his mind. Hopefully, focusing on something else makes getting through the day easier.

“We should skip class.” I suggested, though I knew better than to be a bad influence. Yet I still continued with my suggestion. “I can’t send you off to war with nothing.”

And by that I meant we could fool around for a little bit to help him relieve stress.

He stared at me with that plain expression he always does. The halls were clearing and soon we would bee the only two left. He has to make a decision now before we’re forced to go to class. As much as he has control over himself, I’m hoping that he gives in because I wanted to spend some quality time with him.

“Okay.” he agreed.

I wrapped my arms around him and smiled widely. If I were being honest, we could just stand here and I would be okay. As I looked in his eyes, I could see the change, the way he looked at me like he would risk it all. When he looks at me like that, my heart begins to race with so much excitement. “I love you.” I said quietly.

His hands cupped my face, his thumbs brushing against my cheeks. When he came closer, his lips pressed on my forehead. I practically exploded when he did that. I absolutely adore when he shows me affection. My heart burst with all this emotion and I couldn’t stop smiling. Forehead kisses are so nice.

I just held him closer to me while he nuzzled his face in my hair. His arms wrapped around me and he held me closer to him, too. For a moment, I realized that it was going to be hard to let go of him. Sure I’ll see him throughout the day. But if everything is going as planned, he’ll have to leave with his brothers to protect their home. I didn’t want to let go of him. I wanted him to stay. At least when he’s with me, I know he’s safe.

“Be careful.” I whispered.

I desperately hoped that nothing bad happens.

Despite being around three in the afternoon, it was almost as dark as night. The clouds were a menacing grey, but it didn’t pour down rain just yet. It was enough time for me to go to the library. As I got out of my car, I noticed there weren’t a lot of others around. It’s probably because of the weather. I planned to go into the library to pick up my book that’s on hold, and come right back out so I can go home.

There was a sound of thunder. I had to admit that my heart jumped at the loud clash. The panic made me take quicker steps. A bright flash of lightening ripped through the sky, and I prepared myself for another burst of thunder. As the sound rolled through, I hit something.

...Someone.

I looked up at his face, not recognizing who he was.

And that’s what gave me the clue that he was a vampire. His eyes weren’t red, but he had a subtle smile on his lips that made me scared. It was like all the blood drained from my body as I stared up at him.

There was no one around.

So what do I do?

My mouth opened but he was quick to put his hand over my face. Though, just as quickly as he touched me, he flinched away from me because of the sudden pain. My ear piercing was the only thing to give me enough time to turn away to run. Hopefully he won’t want to endure the pain of hurting me.

The quickest thing I could think of was running back to my car -as if that was going to save me- but at least I was trying to do The last thing I was going to do was just stand there and let that vampire try to break me in two.

“Gabriel! Duck!”

I crouched down immediately as I heard someone shout at me. My arms moved over my head and I took deep breaths to calm myself down. I could hear a choked sputter behind me, really close behind me, probably a few feet away.

Then there was a thud and it was quiet.

That’s when I started to move from my position, turning back around to see a stone like body on the pavement, a wooden stake sticking out of his chest.

“Nice!”

“That was a lucky stab. I really thought I wasn’t going to make it.”

Every part of my body was throbbing from sudden fear. The danger was gone, yet I was still frightened. I turned sharply to the youngest Martin brothers who were expressing their excitement about their most recent kill.

Leo waved at me. “Hi, Gabriel!” he said loudly, the brightest smile on his face.

He was the one who told me to duck a moment ago.

He seemed absolutely delighted to see me considering what just happened.

He looked like the polar opposite of Jackie, who stood with his arms crossed and an uninterested expression towards me. I think I was still in shock because I couldn’t find my voice. I couldn’t even mutter a “thank you” to them for saving my life. My heart was racing so fast that I thought I was having a heart attack. It was terrible.

“He’s pale.” Jackie said.

“He’s fine.” Leo said as they walked over to me. He put his hand on my shoulder abruptly and shook me, with more strength than I thought he had. “Gabriel! You okay?” he was still loud as he asked the question directly at me.

“Thanks...” I mumbled, my throat tight.

Leo put his other hand on Jackie’s shoulder just as abruptly as he did to me seconds ago. I hadn’t realized Jackie was about to say something but Leo stopped him. “It’s no problem.” He smiled kindly. That was a much better response than what Jackie would’ve said to me. “We have to get going though. Think you can make it home?” he asked.

Can I drive...

As scared as I was...I had enough strength to make it home. I nodded towards him. Another spark of lightening burst through the thick clouds. A few seconds later was a loud clash of thunder.

They had to get going.

I had to go home.

For now I was safe, so it was easier to breathe. Everything will be fine. I’ll be fine.

Jackie stuck his hand out towards me. For a second, I didn’t realize that he was trying to hand me something. There was another wooden stake in his grasp, but he was giving it to me. “Just in case you need it.” he said, more of a grumble because he didn’t want to be nice to me. “We have a few already so we can spare one.” he added to make it seem like it wasn’t a big deal.

That made me smile a bit.

“Thank you.” I said as I put the wooden stake in my jacket pocket.

“...Whatever.” he looked away sharply as Leo pulled him on with him.

“Get home safe, Gabriel!” Leo waved at me before they ran off.

My mom was preparing to leave for work in the evening. It’s not so rare to be alone in the house with my dad. We’re probably going to eat on the couch and watch a movie like my mom doesn’t want us doing for dinner. It’s a bad habit and I take after my dad in that sense. My mom works night shifts sometimes, and that’s when my dad and I do things that we’re really not supposed to.

Though, tonight he was talking about the weather and how dangerous it was.“You sure you can’t call out?” Dad was looking outside the window in the dinning room. The weather got worse over the past few hours, and my dad had this concerned look like he wasn’t going to let mom outside.

“We’ve been through worse weather.” She said. “What’s going to happen to me? I get blown over by the wind?” She laughed.

My dad turned to look at her and he wasn’t amused with the comment. “How about you go in an hour later?” He asked, though I had a feeling he was telling her instead of asking.

“Calm down.” She wasn’t as concerned. “I’ll make it to work just fine. I even have my umbrella in the car, and I’m wearing my rain coat.” She held out her arms to showcase her large navy blue jacket. She was ready to go, the only thing stopping her is her husband apparently.

It had to be much worse weather outside for her to consider going to work a little later. So I didn’t expect her to stay. “Bye, mom.” I said.

“Bye, my ray of sunshine.” She hugged me tightly. “I’ll see you in the morning.”

“Don’t drive too fast.” My dad said, which my mom responded to pleasantly but he had more warnings for her. “Don’t drive over puddles either. And park close to the entrance so the wind doesn’t blow you over.” He added.

My mom smiled and went to hug him, too. “You boys behave.” She said as she let go.

She really should define behave before she leaves.

When it was just us, my dad and I looked at each other without saying anything at first. If anything, we would have to have a debate about what movie we’re going to watch first. And if it’s something I want to watch, it’s either now or never because my dad has a tendency to fall asleep if he sits on the couch long enough.

“Horror.” He said, walking towards the living room. I groaned miserably. I hate horror movies! He heard my disapproval but he began laughing. “Trust me, you’ll like this one. There’s no jump scares.”

I followed him. He was already turning on the TV. “The last time you said that, the first thing that popped up was a demon-” I complained but he didn’t let me finish.

“I hadn’t seen the beginning for that one.” Was his excuse. “Your mom won’t watch this movie with me.” So he wanted someone else to be scared with him.

“She tends to know when things have bad vibes, Dad.”

“You haven’t been using her tarot cards, have you?” He asked me seriously.

“No.” I said plainly. “But she did tell me my fortune one time, and-” I stopped abruptly when his expression changed, like he was appalled by what I just said. “You know it’s not real.”

“Whatever, let’s just watch this movie.” he turned to sit on the couch. “There’s no jump scares, but you have to be okay with blood.”

Considering everything I’ve gone through in the past couple months, I had no difficulty with the sight of blood. I’m not a kid. Then again, if there’s one thing my dad truly does enjoy -besides his responsibilities in life- it’s horror movies.

I sighed as I laid down on the other portion of the couch. “I can handle a little blood.”

He scoffed. “‘

’.”

“Dad.”

“Okay." he wasn't going to tease me anymore. "Just don’t tell your mom I let you watch this one.”

That’s already a bad sign. If he doesn’t fall asleep by the end of the movie, maybe we can watch what I want. It’ll have to be a comedy to deal with the sheer fear of what we’re about to watch. My dad tends to pick the hardcore stuff.

About an hour into the movie -which wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be- his phone started ringing. He didn’t pause the movie either. I was too caught up in the plot to pay attention to him talking on the phone. It wasn’t until he said my mom’s name that I tuned in a little to hear his side of the conversation.

She forgot her badge.

“Gabriel.” My dad said to get my attention. I looked at him plainly, though I still was focused on the movie. “Can you drop off your mom’s badge?”

“But...I don’t want to.” Especially not in this weather. It’s one thing to drive in the snow, but during a thunderstorm makes me question my capabilities.

“I to be nice.”

If he's making me go, then I might as well get something fun out of it. “Can I take your car?” I asked. When his eyebrows rose at my question, I had to defend myself. “I don’t have gas in mine!”

He sighed. “Fine.” My immediate excitement was enough to worry him. “Just drive slow!”

I was already up and going through the kitchen draws by the fridge to find all the miscellaneous stuff, one of which was my mom’s badge. Another was my dad’s keys. He was still warning me about driving his car but I wasn’t listening. It’s always fun to take a nice car out for a spin, even during a thunderstorm.

Of course I was going to drive slow.

“I’ll be back!” I raced out of the house before he could change his mind. He didn’t have a chance to lecture me about driving responsibly.

There was a bright flash of lightening that went off in the sky. Thunder followed seconds after, and the sound was not pleasant. The rain poured hard and was being pulled by the wind. More lightening flashed in the sky and I got a better view of the thick clouds.

This is definitely a spring storm.

I should get going just in case it gets any worse.

I pulled my jacket hood over my head and ran towards the car as I unlocked the doors. The rain water splashed against my jeans as I rushed quickly to the driver’s side.

But I didn’t make it.

Something hit my back and I was knocked over on the ground. A heavy weight kept me from getting up. It was like someone was stepping on my back. My wet hands balled up as I tried to move but I couldn’t. The force that was pressed against me was too strong.

And before I knew it, everything went black.