Shadows in the Dark: Rise of Three

Chapter IX

"Do you seriously not know what your deepest thought is?" I ask a few minutes later, still a little shocked that I didn't see it earlier.

"I do, or at least I thought so."

"You have feelings for me. That's what I saw."

"Yup. That's it."

"How did I not see it? I usually notice these things. How are you different?" I ask.

"I can hide my feelings pretty well. Especially feelings for someone else, but it was hard trying to cover my feelings for you." At that moment he takes a step toward me and closes him eyes.

I close mine too, our lips touch and I feel a spark of heat rush through me. He puts his hand on my waist and pulls me in closer, and I let him. I encourage him to deepen the kiss and he does. I wrap my arm around his neck and my other to the hem of him shirt.

The doors open and Isabelle walks in. "Bloody hell!" Jake and I jump apart. "That was not what I thought I'd see at six in the morning."

"Is..." Jake says desperately.

"Not now Jake. I just want to get some early morning training in."

"Ok. We can go then."

"She has a lot of work to do probably to make a convincible Nightwalker."

"She's actually not that bad Is." Jake says.

"I don't care. She could still use more work. Even I need more work and I've been training since I could walk."

"You don't need more work. You just like to stay in practice."

"Same thing Jake."

"Why are you mad about this?" I ask Isabelle.

"I'm not mad Veronica. I'm shocked, and we have a certain way of doing things in our family. That way is that we stick to dating people that are Nightwalkers. Not half-vampires or any vampires for that matter."

"Sorry I don't fit your standards. If you didn't want us here then you could've just said so!" I shout at Isabelle.

"That's not what I'm saying." Isabelle says.

"Well it sounded like that's what you meant. And I can sense that deep down that what you meant. We remind you of your parents and you hate it. You hate that they died and that they let themselves become what did you call it, 'gross bloodsuckers'?"

"Veronica..." Isabelle and Jake say at the same time.

"Just don't. I'll get out of your way." I think about going somewhere far away from here. I feel the tugging feeling and I'm in the red vortex. I land like Iron Man on some island. I don't see any towns or people or animals. There's no one here. I'm all alone. I sit down on the sand I watch memories of my past flash before my eyes like they are being reenacted in front of me.

I sit there and watch the sun rise into the sky. I start to feel the sand around me getting hotter. Here I can just think in silence. I can here my own thoughts and I can't get them mixed up with anyone else's. I'm tempted to just stay here. I get off the sand and I turn away from the ocean to explore the island. Around the middle of the island is a wall of trees. I walk into the wall of trees and keep walking.

I don't hear any noise, it's just me and the crush of the occasional branch under my Nightwalker black boots. I keep walking deeper and deeper into the forest, enjoying the silence that follows. No one can get to me here. I don't have to worry about my mom, Michel, Jake, Zach, Reese, or Isabelle. I don't have to worry about training, or these feelings for Jake. I can just stay here, get over him, and live my immortal life in silence.