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Authors: James Michael Larranaga
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love is? If you’re bitten and in love with her, she’s imprinted onto you, Darius. Has Jack explained that to you?”
I shake my head. “No.”
“The first bite a person receives is the most powerful. If you love the Biter, you’re forever devoted to that person. If you bite somebody who has never been bitten, and if that person loves you, then that person is forever devoted to you,” she explains.
“Jonathan loved you. Is he devoted to you?”
“If he were a Vampire, yes, he would be devoted to me.”
“He’s on the Reds so he’s not devoted to you?” I ask.
“I assume so. All I know is Jonathan eventually married and has two children. If he wasn’t on the Reds, he’d be searching for me.”
“Why would he search for you? You broke up with him .”
“He would want to mate with me. A First Bitten always wants to mate with his or her biter,” Mom says. “For Vampires it’s the natural law of attraction.”
This is the most open and honest conversation I have ever had with my mom. I’ve learned more about her in the past hour than I have in the past fifteen years of my life. I think about Shelby, how I want to get to know her and maybe even go out with her; but all this talk of biting freaks me out.
“If I were to stop the Reds and drink the Blood Orange Soda, then I could protect myself from bullies and also Vampire girls like Shelby. The Soda helps me transform without the urge to bite, right?”
Mom knows my logic is sound, I can see it in her eyes. She drums the steering wheel with her thumbs. “I agree with Jack. It’s not the bullies that put you at the most risk, Darius. It’s the female Goths. If you want to date girls who are transforming into Vampires, then you need to transform as well, and the Blood Orange Soda is the fastest way to get you to become a Vampire.”
She puts the car in gear and we ride along, feeling the rhythm of the road as traffic speeds by in a blur of red and white streaks of light. It’s as if time is flying in front of me. My life is in fast-forward, and all I need to do is jump onto that Vampire track. “Okay, how do I begin?”
Mom hesitates. She’s having second thoughts. “Let’s just sleep on it. Once you start transforming, there’s no turning back.”
Sunday, October 12
Sundays are church days for the Hunter family. That sounds odd to most Normals, who look at us Vampires in stereotypical ways; however, many Vampire families are quite religious. I’m sitting in a wooden pew of St. Mary’s Church, with Kira to my left and Mom to my right, and Mom prays harder than usual. She’s got her rosary beads wrapped around her right hand as she silently recites her prayers. She’s praying about our decision to let me transform, I’m sure of it. There must be a part of her that wants me to grow up as a Normal, and yet another part of her that wants me to live as a Vampire.
At some point after my dad left us, Mom began taking the Reds to ease her own cravings for blood. But anybody who looks closely at her would know she’s a Vampire. She’s got alabaster skin and dark pools for pupils that draw you in, and of course, she has sharp teeth that she hides with Botox injections that puff up her lips. Her lips whisper her prayers to the heavens while Kira’s phone vibrates in the pew.
A woman next to her sighs, and Mom grabs Kira’s phone before my sister can see who’s texting her at church. This is pretty much our Sunday worship—me daydreaming between my mom and sister. Sometimes I pray here, knowing my requests are nothing more than a selfish wish list of desires. I ask God to give me a passing grade on my math test or to make me cool enough to meet a girl. Does God answer prayers like those?
If it weren’t for my dad, we probably wouldn’t be Catholic. This is his family’s religion. Mom found solace in Catholicism after they married, and as I look around the church, it kind of makes sense to me why she gravitated to this faith. The cross
I shake my head. “No.”
“The first bite a person receives is the most powerful. If you love the Biter, you’re forever devoted to that person. If you bite somebody who has never been bitten, and if that person loves you, then that person is forever devoted to you,” she explains.
“Jonathan loved you. Is he devoted to you?”
“If he were a Vampire, yes, he would be devoted to me.”
“He’s on the Reds so he’s not devoted to you?” I ask.
“I assume so. All I know is Jonathan eventually married and has two children. If he wasn’t on the Reds, he’d be searching for me.”
“Why would he search for you? You broke up with him .”
“He would want to mate with me. A First Bitten always wants to mate with his or her biter,” Mom says. “For Vampires it’s the natural law of attraction.”
This is the most open and honest conversation I have ever had with my mom. I’ve learned more about her in the past hour than I have in the past fifteen years of my life. I think about Shelby, how I want to get to know her and maybe even go out with her; but all this talk of biting freaks me out.
“If I were to stop the Reds and drink the Blood Orange Soda, then I could protect myself from bullies and also Vampire girls like Shelby. The Soda helps me transform without the urge to bite, right?”
Mom knows my logic is sound, I can see it in her eyes. She drums the steering wheel with her thumbs. “I agree with Jack. It’s not the bullies that put you at the most risk, Darius. It’s the female Goths. If you want to date girls who are transforming into Vampires, then you need to transform as well, and the Blood Orange Soda is the fastest way to get you to become a Vampire.”
She puts the car in gear and we ride along, feeling the rhythm of the road as traffic speeds by in a blur of red and white streaks of light. It’s as if time is flying in front of me. My life is in fast-forward, and all I need to do is jump onto that Vampire track. “Okay, how do I begin?”
Mom hesitates. She’s having second thoughts. “Let’s just sleep on it. Once you start transforming, there’s no turning back.”
Sunday, October 12
Sundays are church days for the Hunter family. That sounds odd to most Normals, who look at us Vampires in stereotypical ways; however, many Vampire families are quite religious. I’m sitting in a wooden pew of St. Mary’s Church, with Kira to my left and Mom to my right, and Mom prays harder than usual. She’s got her rosary beads wrapped around her right hand as she silently recites her prayers. She’s praying about our decision to let me transform, I’m sure of it. There must be a part of her that wants me to grow up as a Normal, and yet another part of her that wants me to live as a Vampire.
At some point after my dad left us, Mom began taking the Reds to ease her own cravings for blood. But anybody who looks closely at her would know she’s a Vampire. She’s got alabaster skin and dark pools for pupils that draw you in, and of course, she has sharp teeth that she hides with Botox injections that puff up her lips. Her lips whisper her prayers to the heavens while Kira’s phone vibrates in the pew.
A woman next to her sighs, and Mom grabs Kira’s phone before my sister can see who’s texting her at church. This is pretty much our Sunday worship—me daydreaming between my mom and sister. Sometimes I pray here, knowing my requests are nothing more than a selfish wish list of desires. I ask God to give me a passing grade on my math test or to make me cool enough to meet a girl. Does God answer prayers like those?
If it weren’t for my dad, we probably wouldn’t be Catholic. This is his family’s religion. Mom found solace in Catholicism after they married, and as I look around the church, it kind of makes sense to me why she gravitated to this faith. The cross
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