Jane sent me a couple texts, demanding to know had happened last night. I didn’t really feel like explaining vampires in text message form, and I definitely did have the strength for that kind of phone conversation. So I ignored her, even though I knew she deserved an explanation.
Eventually, I fell asleep on the couch, and Mae woke me up a little after six in the morning. She dropped me at home, where I could shower and get ready for school. She’d sent me with vitamins and iron, as that would help produce more blood and combat my weakness. I felt frail and out of it, and I wasn’t sure how I would make it through the day.
After the August heat, I walked to the bus stop in a rather chilly mist. It still felt incredibly strange going to school by myself. Going back to school was like a return back to real life, but I was going alone. Milo was no longer a part of real life.
On the bus, I pulled out my iPod with the intent of listening to it, but nothing sounded good. I felt so disconnected from everything. I just wanted to sleep, but I didn’t want to go back to my apartment. It didn’t feel like home anymore, and everything about my life felt wrong.
I stumbled blearily through the first couple hours of school until Jane cornered me in a stairwell. I had put on my headphones to listen to MGMT very loudly to keep me awake, and I didn’t hear her calling my name or chasing after me.
I made it up a flight of stairs when her face appeared directly in front of mine. Her makeup was caked on heavier than normal, trying to hide the fact that she looked pale and freaked out. Otherwise, she looked like her usual perfect-Jane-self.
“What the hell is going on?” Jane hissed, ripping the ear buds from my ears.
- 23 -
“What?” I tried to play dumb since people streamed down the stairs around me. I would’ve tried to get away from Jane, but she had me backed up against the wall.
“You know damn well what I’m talking about.” Her face was so close to mine I could smell the Red Bull on her breath and the strawberry gloss on her lips.
“I don’t want to talk about it here,” I said warily. People slowed down, stopping to watch the scene she was making.
“Maybe you should’ve thought about that last night when you weren’t answering my calls,” Jane growled.
“I wasn’t thinking about anything.” I dropped my eyes to floor so I didn’t have to look at the frightened glare she gave me. “I slept a lot yesterday.”
“Come on.” She grabbed my hand and started yanking me down the steps I had just walked up.
“What are you doing?” I asked, but I didn’t even try fighting her.
“We’re gonna talk!”
She dragged me to the nearest girls’ bathroom and practically threw me inside. I stumbled and fell to the ground, but I blame that on my own infirmity. A freshman washed her hands at the sink, but Jane sneered at her, so she finished quickly and hopped over me on her way to the exit.
As I got to my feet, Jane checked underneath the stalls to make sure we were alone, and then tossed her heavy book bag in front of the door to act as doorjamb.
“What the hell happened, Alice?” She went over and dug her cigarettes out of her bag. I walked over to the counter and leaned on it. “What are they? Who were those people that chased after us? And what the hell did your brother do to me?”
“One question at a time, Jane.”
I ran a hand through my hair and tried to ignore that haunting, pale reflection that stared out from the mirror. I turned my back to it and using every bit of my strength, I hopped onto the counter.
The bell rang overhead, announcing that the break had ended and class had begun, but neither of us made any move towards the door.
“Start with whichever one you want,” Jane gestured vaguely as she lit her cigarette.
“They’re vampires.”
When she took a drag from her cigarette, her hand shook. She stared at the yellow bathroom floor tile, and she exhaled smoke out of the corner of her mouth. Her expression didn’t look surprised and her skin didn’t pale, but I wasn’t sure if that was a good thing.
Maybe she just thought I was insane. She took another drag of her cigarette and waved for me to continue with her other hand.
“I don’t really know who the other vampires were,” I said. “We met them at a club a little while back, and they were obsessed with me because Jack wouldn’t share me or something. I don’t really know what they want with me.” I kept watching her, but she stayed the same, nervously smoking and looking down.
“They happened to be at the club that night. And they chased us. Milo lost blood in the attack, and he was kinda desperate to replace it. So he bit you.” I swallowed hard. “I’m sorry. We never meant for you to get involved.”
“Milo is a vampire?” Jane said, almost interrupting me. “How long?”
“Over three weeks.” It sounded so weird saying it aloud. My brother’s been a vampire for almost a month.