"It didn't mean anything. It was a spur of the moment thing. Of all people, Kai isn't the type to do something stupid. He knows the law. It's just impossible. He—", I was talking to myself again. I couldn't remember how many times I woke up that night just to remind myself of reality, or else I'd start fantasizing. I didn't know what to feel anymore. I needed to stop thinking too much about it before I fall into a pit I couldn't get out of.
The next day, I tried avoiding him as much as I could. I did not dare go to the library in case he was at our spot. Ah, our spot. I was really going crazy. I was very cautious the entire day, like walking on thin ice. I didn't go to the cafeteria during lunch. Instead, I went hiding behind the gym and ate my sandwiches in silence. Afternoon came and there was no sign of any of my friends. I walked to the school gate after classes, humming to myself and thinking about the cake I was planning to buy at the café. I thought I was in the clear, but I was wrong. I was almost out of the school premises when someone placed his arm on my shoulder.
"Someone has been avoiding me." Kai said, his voice threatening.
"Oh? Who?" I was nervous, I stuttered. "Where are the others? How come you're alone?" I tried asking casually while shrugging his arm off my shoulder.
"I hope you didn't forget about our trip. You said there's someone you want me to meet." He said instead of answering my questions.
"Of course, I did not forget. I'll call you tonight to talk about it. I have to go." I said before running away frantically. I didn't know how to act in front of him. It was odd. His presence was making me so nervous. I was going insane, no doubt about it.
We met at the café the next morning. I gave him the directions and we drove for four hours to my family's property. I had him stop the car just outside the eastern part of the property. The fence was high, but since I was with Kai, it was easy enough to go over. We walked quietly through the forest until he broke the silence.
"So, why are we sneaking in? This is your family's property. We could've used the front gate."
"And risk people knowing about it? I didn't tell anybody we'd be coming here. The less people know the better." I explained.
"What exactly are you hiding? And what's with this big backpack full of supplies? Are we staying here for a month?" He asked sarcastically.
"Don't be ridiculous. The weekend doesn't last that long. You'll know when we get there."
We reached the cabin in an hour and a half. I slowly pushed open the door. It was a mess. There were plastic bags and food packs and leftovers on the floor. I was alarmed.
"Amelia? Amelia!" I shouted while running, looking for her. I breathed a sigh of relief when I saw her playing on the tub in the bathroom. "What happened here? Are you alright?"
"Yes. Why did you come so late? I kept waiting for you." She said, almost crying.
"I'm so sorry. I had things to do. Come on. You might catch a cold." I lifted her out the tub and helped her get dressed. I held her hand and pulled her along. When we came out of the bedroom, the place was already clean. Kai was sitting on the couch, reading one of the books I brought. "Ahem."
Kai closed the book and faced us. I saw the look of surprise in his eyes. He didn't say anything. He stared at Amelia for a long time before walking towards us. "Hello. My name is Kai. It's nice to meet you." He said with a friendly tone.
"It's nice to meet you too. My name is Amelia." She greeted back.
"You must be hungry. Come and eat." He guided her to the dining table. The child immediately started chewing on the food. "Krista, I need to talk to you." He turned away then got out of the cabin.
"You stay here and eat, okay?" I said to the child who was obviously enjoying her food.
Kai was standing a few meters away from the cabin. I approached him. "What's wrong?" I asked.
"That child, who is she? Why is she here?"
"She's from the orphanage. I found her in the cabin the last time I came here with my cousins. She's the reason I asked for a week off from school. I wanted to know more about her."
"What did you find?"
"Well, I went to the orphanage to ask about her and they all said she had been adopted. Even the other children believe it. The people there were obviously lying. She clearly told me she ran away from the orphanage. She said they do bad things to them. This is why I wanted to do some digging. I had to know what was going on in that place. Of course, to no avail. We didn't find anything."
"Maybe we should hand her over to your father, or to mine. This is dangerous."
"Are you insane? What if she gets hurt? And how is she dangerous? Don't tell me she's---"
"No, she's not a vampire. She's not turning into one as well. If she was, she shouldn't be sane right now. I'm not really sure what she is. She doesn't smell completely human. There's a faint smell of vampire blood in her, as well as vampire venom. Then there are more scents I don't recognize." For the first time, the top student was unsure of himself. It was the first time I saw him looking dejected.
I excused myself to get some coffee to help him relax a little. I walked to the cupboard and grabbed two mugs and poured coffee from the thermos I brought. When I turned to get back outside, I bumped into Amelia. I didn't notice her coming from behind. The coffee spilled a little, onto her hand. I saw her expression change and the next thing I knew, she was biting me. I lost hold of the mugs and they fell to the floor and broke to pieces. I screamed. Kai got inside the cabin immediately and forced open the child's mouth to let go of my hand. He pushed her to the wall. The child made a cry of pain then ran towards him, her teeth barred. Kai didn't waste a second and flung Amelia over his head. Thankfully, she landed on the couch where she instantly fainted.
"Give me your hand." He grabbed my hand and I felt his lips on them. I also felt his tongue on my hand…tasting my blood? When he let go, he let out a sigh of relief. "As I thought, she's not venomous. Does it hurt?" He asked me with a concerned voice. My heart fluttered.
"No." I lied. "It was my fault anyway. I spilled coffee on her hand. It's just one of her tantrums."
"This happened before?" He asked, now furious.
"Not like this. She was weak when I found her. She only cried and shouted back then. What's wrong with her? Are you sure she's not turning---"
"No, she's not. But something is happening to her that we don't know yet. You have to be careful around her, do you understand? You can't be near her alone, do you hear me?" He stood up before I could respond. He went to get the first-aid kit and tended my wound. He did it swiftly, but his hands were very light and gentle. I didn't notice I was staring at him the entire time. I averted my eyes when I came to my senses. After putting on the bandage, he walked to the sleeping child. He lifted her and put her to bed.
We went home that night. We wanted to stay in the cabin to observe Amelia but eventually decided not to. I didn't ask permission from my father, I thought he'd be worried. We came back early morning the next day. Amelia was still sleeping when we got to the cabin. She looked so peaceful when she slept, so different from the rage I saw in her eyes the day before. Kai spent the entire day interacting with her. It was the first time I saw him with a child. It was a sight to see – a good one. Before we left the cabin, we promised Amelia that we'd visit her the next weekend.
At school, we were interrogated. Our friends somehow found out about the trip.
"Don't you dare lie to us. We know you were together the past two days." Ethan stated. "How can you go and have fun without us? Are we even your friends?"
"It was something important. I can't tell you about it unless Krista agrees." Kai said before facing me. "What do you think? Maybe they can help."
"Well, I, uh, I don't know. Maybe we---"
"Krista!" A familiar voice called my name. I turned around to see someone I haven't seen in years. I smiled, and called his name.
"Philip!"