Since the incident, I did not dare make new friends. I was afraid, afraid I might eventually lose them in the end. For years I kept to myself. I didn't talk to anybody. I stopped dreaming of a normal life and stayed indoors. The castle was my cage. My father was happy about it. He was relieved I was finally listening to him. I spent the days absorbed in my studies, and spent the nights drowned in my nightmares. The scene kept repeating in my head over and over again. I always woke up drenched in sweat and cold tears. I grew accustomed to it. I got used to the shadow that will always follow me for the rest of my life. My life didn't go the way I wanted, but it was better that way. The years went by and my heart grew more withered.
Four years later, the incident had almost been forgotten. Nobody talked about it again, probably because there had been countless incidents with the low-level vampires throughout the city. The Church, with the cooperation of the Council, issued an alert for any suspicious person or people which might have been involved in creating the low-level vampires. Curfew was implemented and children weren't allowed out of their houses. In the middle of it all, something was brewing between the half-bloods or part-human vampires. There were rumors circulating that the human-vampire citizens were finally going to make a move against the law which tore their families apart. The human-vampires had been subjected to bullying and discrimination. The humans criticized them because they had evil vampire blood; while the vampires couldn't fully accept them because they were part-human. They were stuck in the middle, lived their lives questioning their identities and existence. They lived with suffering and it wasn't surprising that their patience ran out, and they finally decided to voice out how they felt. I kept hearing the rumors but did not dare mention anything to my father. I knew him enough to know he would do something unthinkable.
I kept my thoughts to myself and went on with my life as usual. I went to school and was usually buried in books. I kept bumping into that annoying guy and he was able to turn my day into a disaster, always. The day of the school's founding celebration came and a festival was held on campus. Almost every student took part in it, not me though. I was assigned to cleaning duty. My class decided to run a café for the day and it was exhausting. Well, I should have been exhausted if I actually did something. Nobody noticed me sneaking out and leaving my classmates behind to do all the work. The event just wasn't interesting to me, not one bit. I found my way through the hallway filled with visitors. When I finally reached the library, I was able to breathe. The library was empty, as expected. Everybody was enjoying the festival. After all, it only happens once a year. I walked past the shelves - my footsteps sounded louder than usual, and comfortably sat on my favorite spot – at the far end corner. I sat on the carpet and reached for a book in the shelf in front of me.
I got too immersed in the book I was reading that I screamed in surprise when I heard the sound of books falling. I got up and followed the sound.
"Ah! You scared me!" Kai started picking up the pile of books that toppled over. "How long have you been here? I didn't hear the door open."
"Why? This is the school library. Any student who wishes to read books can come in. I don't believe there's a need for me to explain myself to you." He said with that annoying arrogant tone of his. He continued picking the books up. For a vampire, he was rather slow. I chuckled silently on my head. I got down and picked up the other books. He looked at me with surprise. His gaze made me feel uncomfortable. I broke free from his stare and placed the books back on its stack.
"So, why aren't you out there enjoying the festival?" He asked surprisingly genuinely.
"I'm not really into festivals or parties or…fun." I gave him a half-hearted smile. "And you? Shouldn't the student body president be doing something on such an important occasion?" I initially intended to make it sound a rhetorical question, but the innocent look on his face changed my tone midsentence.
"I already did my part. It's time for the others to do theirs. That includes you. I expected the Church leader's daughter to be more responsible, I'm a little disappointed." His expression suddenly changed and turned dark. It was too sudden; I was speechless for a moment.
"What are you going to do about it then? I don't care about this festival and I don't care about you. Go on and whine about me being lazy, it won't change anything. It won't make this stupid event less boring." I turned my back on him and stormed out of the library. Seriously, that guy was just too annoying. That night, I couldn't sleep well. My blood was boiling with rage. The next morning, I woke up with bags under my eyes. I just wanted to poke those deep eyes and scratch his perfectly smooth skin. My father looked at me in a weird way at breakfast. I could only tell him I was anxious for the exams.
"Don't forget to come home right after class. I don't want you to wander around, especially after dark." He said full of concern.
"Why? Is something wrong?"
"Nothing. Just some rumors. There are rumors the part-human vampires are planning a coup d'état. They're just rumors for now but there's no harm in being cautious. I don't want you to get caught up in a riot. Come straight home as a precaution. Do you understand?"
"Yes father. I understand."
When the bell rang, I quickly collected my things and almost ran the way home. It was more than just the warning my father gave days ago; it was because of the uneasy feeling that I was being observed. I couldn't fully explain it, but the sense of security in my life had vanished. I grew more cautious every day as more incidents and protests were reported. It didn't seem like it was ending soon. The day of the exams, I left the house earlier than usual. I needed some time to calm my nerves and chose to pass by the coffee shop I used to hang out at with my friends. I walked calmly, trying to relax myself. Before I reached the coffee shop, someone grabbed me from behind and the world went dark.
I felt the cold hard pavement where I was lying on. My wrists were tied behind my back and my eyes were blindfolded. I could hear voices around me but I did not recognize them. I heard a few weird snarls though, and concluded that they were vampires. They must have seen me wriggle a little because they started to talk.
"You are the Church leader's daughter, correct?" His voice sent chills down my spine.
"What do you want from me? I've done nothing to you." I fought back the tears that were forming in my eyes.
"You haven't done anything, but your father did plenty. I wonder if he'll actually listen this time since we have his precious daughter."
"Cowards. If you had some business with my father, you should have confronted him yourselves. But no, you lack the courage to stand up to him. You're nothing more than cowards." The vampire kicked me so hard on the rib; I stopped breathing for a while. "Ah!"
"You are definitely his daughter. You always speak your mind without hesitation. Furthermore, you have no respect or consideration to others. You have no idea what we've been through."
"I am not interested in your lives. You make your own choices and make your own mistakes. Stop trying to blame my father and be a better person instead."
"Why you little---"The vampire stopped talking and gave a loud grunt. I heard him collapse in front of me.
I heard the others shout and it sounded like they were fighting. I was more confused than ever. I tried to loosen the rope around my wrists and wriggled hard. Then I felt a cold hand on my shoulder. I jerked up and felt the rope getting untied. The person removed my blindfold, and I stared at the warm red eyes of my savior. His red eyes weren't scary at all, they made me feel safe. They made me feel protected.
"It's good to see you're in a better condition than when I saved you four years ago."