ââ¦ly? Emily? Emily, wake up.â
My eyes snapped open when I heard my name being called. Disgruntled, I sat up too quickly, sending my head reeling. A soft chuckled erupted from the person hovering above me and I found myself staring into a pair of brilliant emerald eyes.
âGood morning Sleeping Beauty,â the brunet greeted me, his eyes twinkling in amusement. âCongratulations! You survived your first night, if you donât count the night you first arrived here.â
Blinking in confusion I took in my surroundings. Everything was pink. Suddenly memories came back to me in a rush, and my mouth dropped open. Sebastian raised a perfectly arched eyebrow at my reaction. I gawked at him, unable to believe it. He was right. I didnât remember when Iâd fallen asleep, but I made it through the night without a problem. In fact, Iâd gotten probably the best sleep that I had in a long while.
âAh, morning,â I responded, remembering my manners. âDonât take this the wrong way, but why are you here? And whereâs Fiona?â
Sebastian chuckled again. âIâve come to wake you up. You wouldnât want to miss breakfast would you? Especially since Vince might not be so willing to cook twice in a three hour time span.â
A yawn escaped my lips and I rubbed my eyes tiredly. Hearing vampires ate breakfast still threw me off guard a little. It was hard to believe how human they were. All those horror movies were so misleading⦠Fionaâs warning ran through my head, but I quickly shook it away. Even if those types of vampires did exist, I could pretend they didnât. âWhoâs eating with us?â I questioned, pushing myself off Fionaâs flashy couch.
âJust Fiona and Vince,â Sebastian responded, leading me out of the room. âOnly the whole family gets together for dinner.â
âHow many people are in the whole family?â
âAround thirty.â
My eyes widened. âThirty? Do they all live here?â
Sebastian shook his head. âNo, they live on our estate though. We quite a few acres of land.â
âWhere are we?â I asked, realizing I had no clue where theyâd taken me. Youâd think Iâd ask that sooner? I thought with a grimace.
âMassachusetts.â
My eyebrows furrowed together in confusion. We were still in Massachusetts? Well, maybe it shouldnât have been such a surprise. When Vince and Joel kidnapped me, we werenât in the van for too long. âWhere in Massachusetts?â
âLook Park.â
I froze, a startled gasp leaving my lips. âWhat?â
Sebastian gave me a concerned look. âWhatâs wrong?â
âWhy are you lying to me?â I demanded, feeling a little hurt. Sebastian seemed so nice. âWhy does it matter if you tell me where you are? Vincent told me a little about you guys!â
âEmily, Iâm not lying,â Sebastian responded smoothly, looking confused. âI donât have a reason to lie about it.â
I shook my head at him. âWe canât be in Look Park. Itâs barely big enough for the house, let alone the many acres you say you claim.â
A mysterious smirk appeared on his lips. âThis might not be something a human can comprehend.â
âHuh?â
âThereâs a little bit of magic involved,â Sebastian explained. âYou canât get to our estate if youâre human.â
I frowned. âIâm confused.â
He smiled in amusement. âSince youâre human, if you were to take a walk around the lake before meeting us, youâd just be walking around the lake. If you walk around this building, youâd be taking the same path. But since a vampire brought you here, youâd walk around the lakeâ¦â He trailed off, his cheeks reddening. âIâm sorry⦠I shouldnât even try to explain things.â
âDonât worry about it!â I rushed, feeling my own blush coming on upon seeing him blush. Could he get any cuter? No, I admonished myself roughly. Heâs a vampire. No thoughts like that. I huffed at myself. Now that my fear was gone for the most part, wasnât it okay for me to be a normal human for a moment? People were still good looking whether they were human or not!
âI guess in simpler words why Iâm trying to say is our estate canât accessed if youâre human,â Sebastian continued, oblivious to my inner turmoil. âYouâd walk right through it.â
I nodded my head slowly. âI gotcha. Is it okay for me to know that?â
Sebastian laughed. âYouâre a human who knows that vampires exist. Youâre free to know anything about us that you want. Itâs not like we have to keep it a secret.â
âReally?â
âReally.â
âSoâ¦â I hesitated for a moment, trying to choose my words carefully. Vincent nearly bit my head off when I asked, but surely Sebastian would be more accommodating. âAbout Fionaââ
Sebastian suddenly stopped, making me run into him. Pain spread through my nose at contact with his hard body. Another shock ran through me when I realized Sebastian was opening the door to the kitchen. I hadnât even realized weâd started walking again! My mind raced back over the past few minutes, trying to remember when I started walking, but nothing came to mind.
âTaboo subject,â Sebastian whispered in my ear as he brushed past me.
I stared after him, my heart speeding up the slightest bit. So even Sebastian wouldnât talk about it? I clenched my fist. Even though it wasnât any of my business, I was now extremely curious.
âAre you coming in or are you just going to stand there?â an irritated voice snapped.
My eyes shot to Vincent, who was scowling at me, a spatula in his hand. I glowered back at him. Did he have to be a jerk so early in the morning? Fiona flittered towards me, smiling widely.
âDid you know you talk in your sleep?â she inquired. âYou must have been dreaming about your boyfriend.â
I raised an eyebrow. âI donât have a boyfriendâ¦â
âWhoâs Jake?â
The name made me blank. Jake⦠Jake! Panic coursed through me now and my eyes widened significantly. Sebastian said he could change my parentsâ memories, but what about my brotherâs? Did he think I was on vacation too? Or did he think Iâd been kidnapped and my parents were crazy? What about Leah and Alli? How could I have not thought about them once this whole time? What was wrong with me?
âEmily?â Fiona called, placing a gentle hand on my shoulder. âWhatâs wrong?â
âMe! Thatâs what!â
Vincent snorted from the corner, earning a glare from me. He gave me a sarcastic look. âMaybe your brain is the problem.â
Sebastian gave his brother a disapproving look. âVince, canât you see Emily is upset?â
âCanât you see Iâm not interested?â
Fiona sighed lightly. âIs it something you want to talk about?â
âIâd rather not talk about the family and friends Iâve seemed to forgotten,â I muttered darkly. How could I not have worried about them?
She smiled gently at me. âEmily, I think youâre over-thinking itâ¦â
I gave her a deadpan look. âReally?â
âYou were kidnapped to a house full of vampires⦠I think youâre excused.â
I blinked at her. Was I excused? That was a pretty good reason⦠And itâd only been two days since Iâd left. Technically only one since Iâd been asleep most of the time. Maybe I shouldnât be too hard on myself⦠After all, I still had been kidnapped.
âSo,â I started, deciding to change the subject, âwhatâs for breakfast?â
âYou are.â
Before my mind could process the words, somebody slammed into my back with enough force to send me sprawling. Just as my feet slipped out from under me a hard arm wrapped around my waist, setting me straight again. I turned, the top of my head bumping into someoneâs incredibly hard jaw. A chuckle erupted from the person holding onto me and I raised my eyes to see Joel smiling at me in amusement.
âI expected more of a reaction than that.â
âWhat did you say?â I responded, quickly pushing myself away from him.
His brown eyes twinkled mischievously. âI said you are.â
âWhat, are you resorting to cannibalism?â I joked, and then paused when I realized that was close to the truth. An awkward silence washed over us. âEr⦠That was too close to home plate, huh?â
Joel pursed his lips at me. âWeâre not cannibals.â
âYou suck other peopleâs blood. Thatâs cannibalistic,â I pointed out, half grossed out at my new concept, half-amused.
âCannibals eat human flesh, stupid.â
I turned to scowl at Vincent. âStop calling me stupid!â
âDoes it irritate you, stupid?â he responded with a self-satisfied smirk.
âI donât know. You tell me, Vivi.â
He rolled his eyes. âWhatever, stupid.â
âViviââ
âCall me Vivi again and I will put poison in your mean,â he snapped, shooting me daggers.
I resisted the urge to blow a raspberry at him. No, I was too mature for that, so I settled on glowering at the back of his head as he returned his attention to the frying pan on the stove. âWhat are we even eating?â
âFood.â
I ignored, Vincent, turning to Fiona. She smiled at me. âBacon, eggs, and ham.â
âYou guys eat that?â
Joel slapped me on the back, none too gently. âWe eat normal food, Em. If you donât consider that normal food, you arenât a true American.â
âYou arenât,â I shot back. âRemember?â
Joel gave me a sarcastic look. âI didnât mean true that way.â
âSure.â
He frowned. âYou know, for a prisoner youâre awfully mouthy.â
âYou think?â Vincent interjected loudly.
I squared my shoulders. âActually, Iâm not a prisoner. Iâm a guest. The queen said so herself.â
âYou are a guest,â Sebastian told me with a smile. âJoelâs just joking around with you.â
âFoodâs done. Sit,â Vincent commanded, turning toward our group. âLast one seated has to do the dishes.â
A gust of air ruffled my hair, and I swatted away, noticing how greasy it felt. I definitely needed a shower. When I looked up again, all three vampires who had been standing around me were now seated at the table. Joel snickered while Fiona simpered. I blinked at them. Vincent appeared in my field of vision, taking a seat next to Joel, a complacent expression on his face.
âLooks like the human does the dishes.â
âDonât you have maids for something like that?â I protested. I didnât even do dishes at my own house!
Vincent nodded. âSure. We recently got a brand new maid too. Sheâs a human. Named Emily.â
âHaha,â I laughed sarcastically, stomping over to the table, and taking a seat between Fiona and Sebastian. âDo you guys eat breakfast together every day?â
Sebastian nodded. âOur parents like us to.â
âForce us to,â Vincent corrected him, âbecause apparently we donât see Sebastian enough. Personally, I think I see him more than enough.â
Sebastian sent him a disapproving look. âWe hardly see each other, Vince.â
âIâm okay with it.â
I copied Sebastianâs look. Why was Vincent so cold to his own brother? He was civil to Fiona! âWhy donât your parents eat with you guys?â
âTheyâre busier than me,â Sebastian informed me. âBeing King and Queen isnât all fun and games.â
âI know thatâ¦â
Fiona lightly slapped Sebastian on the shoulder. âLetâs talk about something else.â
Sebastian tensed, stealing a quick look at Fiona. She smiled at him and he slowly relaxed his stance. âFine.â
My eyebrows furrowed at the silent exchange between the two of them. Joel and Vincent seemed to not have noticed it. Sebastian caught me staring at him and offered me a small smile. âWould you like some eggs, Emily?â
âAh, sure,â I responded quickly, adverting my gaze.
âSo what do you plan to do today?â
My eyes snapped back to him. âHuh?â
âIâm not going to allow you to wallow in your room the whole day again,â he informed me with another gentle smile. âThere are lots of things to do in this house. Iâll have Vincent show you aroundââ
âNot happening.â
Sebastian frowned. Joel quickly spoke up. âIâll do it!â
âWhy canât you do it, Sebastian?â I questioned, throwing Joel a quick look. âNo offence!â
He held up his hands. âNone taken.â
âI would love to show you around, Emily, but I have matters to attend to,â Sebastian responded forlornly. âIâm sorry.â
I quickly shook my head. âNo! Itâs fine. Joel will be fine!â
Vincent rolled his eyes. âDevloping a crush?â
âNo,â I stated firmly. On a vampire? Ha. It was impossible for me to develop a crush on a vampire. Even if he was handsome and talked so gently and his eyes were the one of the prettiest colors⦠I shook my head. No. Impossible.
I caught Vincent staring at me and I cocked an eyebrow curiously. He gave me a hard look. Taken aback, my heart skipped a beat. What was that look for?
âEat your food before it gets cold,â he demanded. âAnd afterwards take your iron supplements.â
âYou remembered?â
âIâm not stupid like you.â
I held back my retort. This was going to be hard to get used toâ¦
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First of all, the drawn picture to the right was made by Ashley Finney! She's awesome!
Second... What's today? The 9th? So I'm supposed to update the 13th, but I'm going to an ETF/Alesana concert this weekend soooo... I might actually have time for the 13th. I'll try my best! Then it's Valentine's Day :D Then it's my birthday on the 16th! Woop! ... No proofreading xD
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Today's song... What I Should Have Learned In Study Hall by Ice Nine Kills. This song is so cute. In coloooraadoooo with the mountains, did you like theeem? Did you find what you're looking forr? Because I'm still searching, for the life I was livin' beforeeee.