Bad Taste (Part II) // Colby Brock

242 - Tara

Colby had left approximately two and a half hours ago, and we'd heard nothing from him. I didn't know what I expected when he brought Rebecca down to the studio, but somehow I was overwhelmed by the emotion on his face and in his run. Everything he did, he did with pain clear as day on his face. He didn't care about hiding it around us—which was progress I wish I could focus on.

But the beginning and end of it was that Rebecca was lying on that couch without a heartbeat and it didn't just hurt him to see it. Katrina couldn't stop going over there, which we knew we'd have to stop in a few hours in case she got caught up in Rebecca's awakening, to do the simplest things. She would brush her fingers through her natural hair or just sit there and stare down at her blank face. I would do the same, but I was using Jake for support across the room.

Sam hadn't looked entirely happy since Colby came to visit, either. Something about the destruction of his best friend had really gotten to him, had gotten to all of us.

I hadn't thought much of this whole changing thing—of course, it was a big deal that Rebecca was changing into a vampire finally but I meant more this transition period—because the vampires I'd witnessed being made didn't have someone who loved them before their change. Reggie changed Cassie too soon after meeting her to ever really have this kind of emotional reaction when he killed her; Griffin was the same. Corey hadn't loved Devyn as a vampire and they'd basically changed together. The closest to this we'd seen was Jake, though I of course didn't witness it myself.

For my turn, Jake was troubled by the idea that he had killed me. He didn't realise I was fed with his blood, so he watched my dead body for a couple of hours realising he had killed his One. And then Colby started getting mad with him, reminding him that we didn't kill unless we had to and how irresponsible it was. This made him remember that I had consumed some of his blood, which somehow made Colby angrier. Then later, when I woke up, he had already gotten over the whole thing and was just waiting to see me again in this new form.

Long story short, nothing compared to the anguish Colby felt because he had killed his One.

It made me feel bad for Sam, who'd known Katrina much longer than Colby had known Rebecca. I wouldn't say either guy loved their girlfriend more, they were both ride or die and had found girls perfect for them, but Sam was certainly more sensitive than Colby when it came to anything regarding Katrina. Everyone knew Rebecca was tough, she could handle things. Katrina was far from that.

By the time I checked my phone again, it had been another twenty minutes. I'd been daydreaming about the days to come with Rebecca as a vampire, how things would change around the house; how she would change, in particular. I hoped she wouldn't become aloof again.

Jake noticed that I was out of that daydream and gave me a forced smile, which I returned. He squeezed me, looked at Rebecca and said—as if he knew what I'd been thinking about, "She'll be kickass."

"Trust me," Corey agreed. "I think I'm going to be scared of her."

Kevin laughed. "You aren't already?"

"Are you?" I countered.

He turned to look at me. "Actually, yes. She's the one person here I believe could kill me and not feel bad about it." He crossed his arms slowly over his chest and added, "And she's about to be capable of doing that at any time."

"Well, you don't know that," Sam argued. "She might not be very strong. The strength of a vampire isn't based on actual strength, though you certainly looked strong as a human, Kev."

Kevin shook his head at him. "Nah, she'll be strong. It's based on will, remember? She's the only one who gives Colby a run for his money on that one. She's determined about every-fucking-thing."