ADRIA’S POV
Immense joy exploded in my heart, and I couldn’t help but watch her as she ran.
I followed her carefully as she ran with all she had, and I didn’t stop following until she walked into a house, knocked, and knocked while looking around frantically.
A guy opened the door, and when he saw her, he knocked her head.
“What are you doing out this late? Parties again?”
“Xander. Cut the crap. Let me in.” She said shakily, brushing past him.
“Mum, dad! I request you to ban Asha for three weeks!” The guy shouted, holding her neck, and shaking her affectionately, as they walked in, and closed the door.
My smile grew wider because I knew I had prevented the grief that would have befallen that family. If they suddenly heard she was missing, or dead, they would all cry, but I had prevented their tears from falling.
Through the windows, I saw a middle-aged woman setting the table for dinner, a man playing with a baby on a sofa, and a young girl reading a novel.
I saw Asha pass by the window, and race up the stairs while her brother took a shrimp from a plate, and got a slap on the hand in return from the middle-aged woman who was definitely their mum.
She had a happy family. I had saved them from heartache. I had kept their joy going. If only I had done stuff like that earlier.
Other families might still have their joy.
I got to the store, and walked around to get the milk my mum had asked for. Even though I stopped, would Derek stop? I was no match for him, that was a given, so what if he continued to hunt those young girls who still had lives to live, and a lot to look forward to?
“Here.” I said, dropping the cartons of milk I had gotten, in front of the lady at the counter. She checked their prices, and I gave her the money my mother had given me. If I hadn’t placed it in my pockets, then I would have lost it.
I returned home, and met my mum having dinner.
“You took so long, Adria.” She said, as I put the milk into the refrigerator.
“I’m sorry.” I apologized with a smile, pulling back a chair.
“Did you fall? Your clothes are dirty.” She said, and I sat on the chair, and adjusted it closer to the table. I didn’t know how to approach the matter, but I knew I had to tell the truth.
“My vampire friend found me, and wanted us to keep hunting for humans, but I told him no.”
“Oh, Adria. Did he hurt you?” She asked, looking at my lip.
I touched it, and realized it was sticky.
“It’s… it’s not my blood.” I said in amazement. I had not licked the smudges of Asha’s blood. How possible was that? “Just a second. I’ll wash it off.” I said, happily, and ran to the sink.
~
The next day, I told Lucien all about saving Asha, and he was very proud. He kept on throwing compliments my way, and even though I knew he was exaggerating. I couldn’t help but blush, and want more.
I also told him about losing my phone. I had no recollection of where I had dropped it. If it was the place Derek has grabbed me, or while we were jumping over buildings, or in the forest, I had no idea.
The phone hadn’t even been on my mind the previous night. It was that same morning when I had been about to phone Stacy that I discovered it was missing.
“Here. A gift for you.” Lucien said, handing me a black tumbler with my name written on it in curly golden letters.
“Wow.” I exclaimed softly, without meaning to. He helped bring out its straw, and held it to my lips.
I took a sip, and to my surprise, found out it was blood.
“This is…” I said, dropping the tumbler, and he smiled.
“I went hunting, caught a deer, and thought it didn’t have to go to waste.” He said casually, but I didn’t believe him.
“A deer? Never in all my nights in the woods have I ever seen a deer, not to talk of catching one.”
“Well, that’s you. I guess you’re only smart when it comes to books, then.” He said, with a guilty look on his face, and I smiled.
I didn’t know where he got the deer from, but it was very kind of him.
We were under a tree in the park, and that park that I had always randomly passed by, seemed like paradise at that moment with Lucien.
~
“Oh, this is terrible. I’m having exam fever.” Stacy said, as we sat on the large steps in front of the large building meant for classes.
“Why don’t you ask Daniel? He can help. When it’s you and me studying, you never listen, you always talk.”
“And anytime it’s I and Daniel, he is the only one talking. He’s like ‘Write down your questions Stacy, and listen. Don’t interrupt when I’m explaining. It cuts off my flow.’ Damn.” She said, mimicking Daniel, and I laughed.
“And what’s reading with Tommy like?”
“What? It’s like you’re asking the three idiots to read together. Only we’re two.”
I cracked up really hard at that one. Oh, Stacy was hopeless.
That evening, Lucien and I hung out at the park reading since I wanted us to stay at the park, which was bright, and lively.
He asked questions, I answered, and we played games that helped my studying. Lucien was just the best, and I thought, ‘Now, everything’s getting better.’
The next day, I went to school feeling a little excited. I, Stacy, and the guys stayed up the night chatting, and providing random information. Luckily for me, mum was sleeping, so I had made use of her phone. It had been so fun, and even though I worried that I ought to be reading, the exams were still like weeks away, so I thought… ‘Why not just chill, and relax, Adria?’
I walked into class, expecting to meet a buzzing atmosphere. Instead, there was silence.
I stopped, noticing something was off, and just then, Stacy got up from the window seat we always took, and said to me with her voice breaking.
“Halsey… Halsey… Adria, Halsey is missing.”
What? Halsey was missing? Halsey was a beautiful girl who always seemed to have a book with her. She was quiet, and read all kinds of books. She never looked for trouble, and was always nice to everyone.
Clubs were never her thing. She was a complete introvert, and her schedule was always from home to school, and vice versa.
And if she was missing, it only meant one thing.
Derek had taken her.