8 CHAPTER EIGHT

Emerald couldn't get the scene out of her head. She knew talking about it to Evan was a bad idea but she didn't seem to care about that. All she needs right now is an answer and she won't stop until she gets it from him.

She walked up to Evan who was having his nap. Even though Evan was sleeping, he could hear her footsteps. "what do you want?". He asked with his eyes closed.

Emerald walked up to him, sitting right beside him with folded arms. She didn't say anything but to Evan, her silence meant a lot. "speak".

She took a breath in before letting all her complains out. "I know I do not mean anything to you anymore, I know you do not feel the same way for me anymore, I know you do not love me anymore but did you really have to do that?". She said almost shedding tears.

Evan sat up and looked at her. "what the hell are you talking about?". He asked still looking at her.

"you kissed her Evan. How could you?". It was then Evan understood what she meant.

"she kissed me first..Let's not forget that part".

"did you have to kiss her return?". She asked.

Evan has had enough of her complaint. He knew he has to make her understand that he is eligible to be with any girl he wants and so is she. It's not like their placenta were tied the same place. "Emerald listen to me". He told her with all seriousness. "I don't love you the way you want me to. The love I have for you is a sibling kind of love.... Then I was madly in love with you and I wanted more but with time I....".he paused refreshing his memory. "... I figured I just love you as a friend and a sister. It has nothing to do with what you did. It's just feelings Emerald and they change...people change".

" you're choosing her over me isn't it?". She asked.

Evan shook his head. This was a lot tougher than he thought. "I ain't choosing her over anyone". He laid down back on his bed.

"I just hope you know exactly what you're doing. Getting her involved in your life, I hope you're ready to pay the price". And with that she walked out on him.

Evan closed his eyes as he drifted to sleep. He was happy he had settled things with Emerald. Even though he knew Emerald would stop bugging him, he also knew he would miss her but he had to do this.

. . . . . . . . . . . . *********** . . . . . . . . . .

"whose blood are we talking about here?". Ashley asked again, licking her ice cream.

"I was just telling your mother about a movie I watched when I was your age". Jones said as his wife smiled.

"yeah he was and it was really interesting coming from him. You know how funny your dad can be". Martina said as her children left.

"what's the name of the movie?". Ashley asked.

Martina and Jones looked at each other before looking at Ashley who was licking her ice cream and waiting for their answer.

"it was.... ". Before Jones could say anything, a knock was heard at the door downstairs.

" I'll go get it". Ashley said rushing down to open the door. She opened the door and just stood there staring at the visitor.

"Ash who's at the door?". Laura asked coming downstairs. Since Ashley wasn't saying anything, Laura went straight for the door. Peeping to see who is at the door, she saw Reed standing right in front of her. She had no idea how he found out where she lives. She has no idea what he is doing here and the worst part is how is she going to explain this to her father.

"what are you doing here?". She asked.

"um.... I'm going to leave you to settle this".Ashley said as she left, leaving Laura and Reed alone.

"Aren't you going to ask me in at least?". Reed asking smiling.

Laura knew it was wrong to keep him outside but she also knew it would be wrong if she allowed him in.

"Laura, why are you keeping the young man out, let him in". Her dad said, startling the life out of her.

Reed looked at her waiting for permission to be allowed in. "well, are you going to let me in or not?". He asked as Laura gave way for him to come in.

Laura shut the door behind her as she gestured Reed to follow her. "please have a seat". She said trying her best to put a straight face.

Reed sat down smiling at her while Ashley sat opposite him with her eyes glued to his face.

"get something for him Ashley, stop staring at him like that". Her mom said.

"but he isn't my guest ". She said as her eyes went to Laura who was already sending her lasers with her eyes. " fine". Ashley said as she stood up to get drink for Reed.

"so who are you?". Jones asked appearing from the kitchen as he sat down on the chair in front of Reed. When their eyes met, time stopped for a while. Jones had to blink to bring himself back to reality.

"um...." Reed couldn't find his voice anymore. He was speechless. He cleared his throat.

"here". Ashley said with a glass of fruit juice in her hand. She gave it to him and Reed collected it gulping everything in the glass in a go not because he was thirsty but he wasn't comfortable. Something about Laura's father stirred something inside him and he knew Laura's father felt it too.

"thank you". He said placing the glass on the table. Laura and Ashley were giving each other weird stares.

"so who do you say you are?". Jones asked trying to ignore everything he felt.

"my name is Reed. Reed Fletcher". He said as Jones nodded.

"So who are you to my daughter?". Jones asked making Laura looked at her father in a weird way.

"A friend". Reed answered as Laura returned the stare back to Reed.

Did he just say friend? To her, he is a complete stranger that seem so familiar in a way she couldn't explain and now he called her friend?

"what about your parents?". Jones asked.

"come on, you shouldn't be asking him all that question on the first day. It's not like he is your daughter's boyfriend". Martina said.

"I'm only trying to know the kind of friend my daughter is keeping around". Jones said.

Reed smiled. "it's not a big deal. Um.... I stay with my mom... My dad.... I..... Um..... Have no memory of him. I don't know if he's still alive or dead or if he's searching or if he has any idea he has a son.... I don't know...". Reed said trying to stop the tears from flowing. He wanted so much to tell someone about this and he was glad he could. "I don't know if I should hate me or love him or.... Just not think about him but the truth is, I feel he's a coward for leaving I and my mom alone in this world". He said as everyone felt really sad.

"we're so sorry to hear that". Martina said.

"what did your mom tell you about your dad?". Jones asked.

"Darling, not now OK? This guy has gone through a lot and it's not nice to keep reminding him about something he clearly wants to forget". Martina warned.

"it's fine".Reed told Martina as he turned to look at Jones. "she told me my dad abandoned her after he knew she was carrying his child. She told me that she loved him so much but he didn't love her as much as she did. Because she needed time to heal from the hurt she was feeling, she had to leave Manhattan and moved in here".

When Jones heard Manhattan, he couldn't believe his ears. The story Reed talks about remind him so much of his ex girlfriend but he knew there are so many people who migrate from one state to another, so definitely this guy's story is just one of those stories.

"well, I'm sorry to hear that". Jones said as he pat Reed's shoulder.

"just make yourself at home, dinner would be serve soon". Martina said as Laura looked at her mom.

"he's staying over for dinner?". Laura asked looking at Reed then at her mom where it lingered.

"do you mind?". Martina asked Reed.

"of course not. I'd be honored ". Reed said earning a chuckle from Laura who couldn't believe this was happening.

Just as Laura was going to follow her mom to the kitchen to prepare dinner, the light went off.

" letting him stay here clearly shows it's a bad idea". Laura whispered but Reed heard it and he smiled.

"I think it's going to rain". Ashley said when suddenly, a thunder struck so loud that Laura gasped.

"don't tell me you're scared of thunder". Reed asked as Ashley chuckled.

"shut up". Laura said as she tried to find her phone or a touch when her foot hit something making her lose her balance but before she could hit the ground, Reed grabbed her. Despite how dark it was, he could see. Before Laura could crawl out his embrace, the light came back on.

Ashley was the first to burst out into laughter. Laura quickly pushed Reed as she ran into the kitchen with her mom.

"I like you". Ashley said winking at Reed. Somehow, Reed likes it here.... He likes the family, their simplicity and of course Laura.

. . . . . . . . . . .********* . . . . . . . . . .

Evan decided to go check up on Laura. He went to the same spot as he checked her room but he was surprised to see her room light wasn't on. "could she be asleep already?". He asked himself. Only one way to find out. He used his hearing power as he heard voices and the mention of someone's name that sounded so familiar. He couldn't be sure if it was the same person or not so he decided he was going to go in and find out.

He walked to the house and knocked at the door. Immediately a young girl appeared in front of him. She stared at him from head to toe.

"who are you?". She asked.

"Ashley who's that?". Laura asked.

"I think this is for you". Ashley said as she went to join the others at the dining while Laura came to attend to the visitor.

Evan wore a hood that was covering his head so Laura couldn't get a proper view of his face. "who are you?". She asked as Evan removed the hood. When she saw it was him, she tried to close the door but he was fast to grab the door.

"honey, who is that?". Her mom asked.

"it's no one". She yelled. "what are you doing here?". She whispered to him.

"what? Are you scared of me now?". Evan asked folding his arms. "listen, it's really raining outside in case you can't see it. Can you let me in first?". Evan asked.

"There's no way I'm letting you in here".Laura said. All of efforts to send him away or shut him out proved abortive. Evan decided to push his way through but how?

Then his opportunity came. A thunder struck came which made Laura so frightened that she rushed to meet hug, holding him so tight that it was hard for him to breathe.

"Laura, are you okay?".before Laura could open her eyes, Evan was already in. She knew there's no way he's pushing him out now that he is in.

"Oh it's you".her mom said as Laura looked at both of them in shock.

"Good evening ma'am. I'm so sorry to come by, I was around your house on my way home when the rain started and I needed a shelter. I had no idea this was your home". He lied. Convinced by the lie, Laura decided to let him stay since he wasn't really here for her or the kiss.

"Would you like to join us for dinner?". Her mom asked. Evan nodded as he joined the rest on the table where be met Reed of course and Laura's father who he's seeing for the first time. Evan was asked the same question too but his answers were simple and he didn't unveil the truth about his family and himself of course.

Laura wasn't really comfortable eating with these two guys in the house. First, Reed and now Evan. How many more does she have to encounter before you can be free? Laura asked herself as she ate her food slowly. While they were making jokes and laughing, Laura just sat there staring at the two guys sitting right beside her. Reed was sitting in front of her and Evan was sitting beside her. Could this day get any worse? She asked herself.

Evan decided to do something fun. Since Laura was sitting beside him, he decided to make her really uncomfortable. He placed his arms on her thigh as Laura gasped.

"sweetheart are you OK?". Her mom asked. Laura nodded as she took a glass of water and gulped every drop. Evan was enjoying the show Laura was putting up. He wants to see how long she can keep on pretending. He moved his hand up and down her thigh, making her give a false cough. She put her left hand under the table as she tried to pull his hand away but instead he grabbed her hand and filled the spaces between her fingers.

Laura knew she couldn't run away so she did the one thing she could think of, she purposely dropped her spoon on the floor without anybody knowing but of course Reed and Evan saw it. She bent down to pick making her necklace come out from it's hiding place. She made sure she pinned the spoon on his hard so strong that Evan quickly removed his hand. If he wants to play dirty then he's ready to.

Reed was there staring at them. He was the only one suspecting that something was going on between those two. After Evan stopped harassing her thigh, she sat down feeling fulfilled. Immediately she started eating, the whole scene started again.

Reed held his ears as the buzzing sound came again. He stood up as everyone stared at him. "He's at it again". Laura said feeling somehow.

"what?". Evan asked.

"This is the second time he's doing this".she told Evan.

"Reed are you OK?". Laura asked. The moment she stood up and tried to touch Reed, Reed pushed her but her father was quick to grab her.

"Are you OK?". Her father asked.

Laura nodded. Just as her father was going to set her down on the chair, his eyes caught the necklace she was wearing and his ears started buzzing.

He knew what it meant the moment he saw the necklace but how she got that necklace was the question. And if Reed was feeling this way too, does that mean Reed is a vampire too? He asked himself as he quickly rushed to the room.

Evan came closer to Laura as he saw that the necklace was blinking. He knew he couldn't get it off her but he knew he could hide it. He quickly pushed the necklace inside her clothes as the buzzing sound in their ears stopped.

Reed was breathing so heavily as if he just ran a marathon. He was out of breath too. Martina quickly rushed to check on her husband.

"Are you OK?". Laura asked as Reed removed his hand from his ears and blood were in his palms. "Oh my god! You're bleeding". She said as she quickly rushed to get first aid box.

"I've got to go. Thank your mom for the dinner". He said.

"but it's still raini....".Before Ashley could finish her sentence, Reed was gone. When Laura came with the first aid, she couldn't find Reed.

"he left". Evan said as he took the first aid from her. "but I know who needs that treatment". Evan said as he told her sit down while he raised her foot and there was blood gushing out of the foot.

Evan's eyes were failing as his body got thirsty for blood. He tried his best to make sure he had taken care of her feet without having a taste of her blood. It was really hard to concentrate. He thought he had gotten over his human blood thirst but he guessed wrong or is there something about her blood?

Martina got into the room only to see her husband with claws and fangs. She was shock. She quickly locked the door to make sure no one comes in. She stood far away from her husband as she watched her husband panting heavily, his eyes were red which means he's thirsty for blood. Martina had no idea what to do. She stood there like a statue, watching her husband become a monster in her very eyes.

"Where's your mom?". Evan asked.

"she's with dad". Ashley said. "but the door is locked". She said.

Evan knew what was going on in there. If Jones is a vampire then it's wrong for Martina to be in there. He has to do something before things go out of proportion but what? How can he save them both without things going wrong?