Lost Blood

Chapter 1

I opened my eyes. My sight was a little blurry at first but slowly I could see a clear vision of my room. It was simple: walls painted khaki, hardwood floors, a bedside table with a candle and some flowers, my closet door, drawers built in my wall, one desk with a flat screen TV and game system, a floor lamp and fan, and finally my bed with a red comforter. My walls were bare except a painting that my aunt made for me when I was very young.

            I forced myself up off the bed and stumbled to my closet. I needed to get ready for my cousin's birthday. She was going to be seventeen and was kind of jealous that I already was, but we still loved each other more like sisters than cousins. Her party was going to be at our Aunt Kat's house because she had a pool, and Raven loved swimming. I slipped a tank top off a hanger and headed for my drawers.

            I snatched my bathing suit out of the left middle drawer and some denim shorts out of my top right one. The tank top was hunter green which brought the green of my eyes out. My eyes were hazel and were usually like a mood ring, but sometimes just matched up with my shirt color. My bathing suit was a blue bikini. It was plain and simple like me. I dressed myself then headed for the bathroom.

            I began brushing my teeth when I heard yelling from downstairs. "Mom! Mommy!! I have something really important to tell you!! Mom!" It was Clint, my little brother. He was a lot like me, but I looked like my dad and he looked like a mix between his dad and our mom. He was seven and was a smart kid, but I had always been ahead of him. I was going to be a senior next year and he was going to second grade. When I was his age I was in the challenge program and he had taken the test but didn't get in. That made him angry.

            As soon as I finished brushing my teeth, I glared at my hair. It wasn't frizzy today, but that could change. It had perfect ringlets dangling around my face, but there were always those few strands that were straight or too wild. It messed up going outside with a completely natural hair style. My dark burgundy hair fell past my shoulders a couple of inches and the best thing for today was probably to put it up in a ponytail. I brushed it back and tied it high up. The bottom of it tickled my neck a little. The shorter strands fell over my eyes and seemed to behave at the moment so I left them as they were.

            My eyes were already popping out green and the orange flecks seemed to lighten, become less dominant. I continued to stare at my reflection. I wasn't tan. I was pale, but not pale enough to fit in up north, in the colder places. I didn't fit in down here in Georgia either. Everyone was tanner than I was down here, even Clint. I gave up on wishing for my skin to tan immediately and rushed down the stairs. I almost fell, but I caught myself.

            "Mom!! Where are you?! I saw a VAMPIRE!!!!" Clint was still yelling.

            "You should stop reading my books, Clint." I brushed past him and into the kitchen. He followed me.

            "It's not because of your stupid books, Blair. I saw a real vampire. I swear I did."

            "You shouldn't swear." I opened the fridge and fumbled around until I found the pulp free orange juice.

            "Fine! But I still saw one!" He was angry now. I didn't believe him and he knew it. I pulled a glass out of the cabinet and poured some orange juice in it. He was glaring at me the whole time.

            "Look, I know you have a great imagination kid, so maybe you saw someone who looked like a vampire and your brain registered it as a real one instead of a look-a-like."

            "Nope. No way. It was real. I don't care what you think."

            "Well alright." I shoved the carton of juice back in the fridge and headed for the pantry. There wasn't much for breakfast. I found a small bag of chips and settled on those. I was going to eat a big meal in a couple of hours anyways.