A New Life

Chapter 19 - Bathe in the moonlight

It was a relief for once, no more waking up to guys wanting a taste of your blood. However; that is probably what the new girl is dealing with. Over the last couple days, the attention towards you to Yui shifted exponentially. From the small whispers around the mansion, Yui was unable to swim yet was thrown into the pool. Then there was something about her accidentally wondering into Kanato's doll collection room. That must've ended pretty badly. Only Ayato had a taste of Yui's blood, the others blame it on him just being possessive. School seemed to be the same as usual. Same old tests and assessments. I was actually doing quite well, enough to keep Reiji off my back. I wonder when the Mukami family will find out about Yui? *knock knock knock* "Hey (y/n)! Can you come out? Something interesting is going on downstairs." That voice couldn't be anyone but Laito's. It was almost irritating to leave the comfort of a warm and cosy bed. This better be worth getting up. You walked over and opened the door with caution, slowly opening. Laito was leaning on the opposite wall to you. He wore the same signature fedora, and red and green striped shirt and an oak brown pair of shorts. "What do you want now?" I ask, hopefully, intimidating him. Laito caught on to the slight irritation and gave a small chuckle. "You should see this, Ayato's getting pissed cuz Shu decided to have a drink himself." I just roll my eyes, typical Ayato. "Anyway, I'm taking you there cuz something is about to go down and you don't wanna miss it." Before I realise, Laito grabbed my hand and suddenly we were in the games room.

My stomach began to drop, teleporting is probably not good for the human body. Shu was resting on the couch, listening to music as usual. Ayato was standing to the new girl Yui looking quite frustrated at Shu. What is going on? "I challenge you to a game of darts." Ayato declares against Shu. Shu just scuffed and I raised a brow, why? "That's a good idea! Why don't we make bitch-chan the prize for the game?" Laito had butt in, standing behind a naive Yui locking eyes with me in a plea for help. I gave a helpless look to her, I already knew that it was useless to refute. "What is this commotion?" Reiji now appeared out of thin air, leaning up against the pool table, adjusting his glasses. "What a pain, there's no point in me doing this. Remember she is all of her food, not just yours." Shu had declined, not even opening an eye. Reiji scoffed in response, "Of course you would deny his challenge. If you were to look up the word 'spineless' in the dictionary; you would find a photo of him there. You good for nothing deadbeat." Geez isn't that a little harsh. There were points in time where this sibling rivalry was prevalent, but it was never this brutal. And coming from Reiji of all of them. Reiji's insult must've clicked in Shu as he rose up slowly. "Ayato, I'll play your game." Oh my gosh, they are actually gonna fight over a girl with a game of darts? This is ridiculous. I look over to the other two, Laito displayed a mix of glee and intrigue, almost as if he was on the verge of chuckling. On the other hand, Reiji stood there emotionless. 

It was getting down to the wire, both were close to reaching zero. Ayato was on edge, Yui began to increase in concern for her fate as the two 'fought' it out. I was just annoyed and bored. What was I still doing here? I figured that it wouldn't really matter if I left, so I did just that. Before I left, I heard a dart hitting the board and Laito proclaim. "And Shu is the winner with the ton-80." Good luck to you Yui. "Hey (y/n), what are those idiots doing in there?" That deep voice, I knew it, "hey Subaru." I look up from the ground to see him looming over me, I wasn't really in the mood to deal with anyone now. "I asked a question, it would be polite for you to answer. Oh actually, I think I can guess now. Anyway, did you wanna go outside for a little while?" I lock eyes with him, maybe this wouldn't be so bad? "Sure, you lead the way."

Subaru and I followed the path of the garden, wondering in silence with nothing but the sound of our footsteps and the occasional gust of wind. The white roses reflected the smallest amount of light from the moon. "If you actually wanted to know what was going on, Ayato challenged Shu to a game of darts for some reason. Shu first declined, then Laito suggested Yui be a prize. Then Reiji roasted Shu, whilst also convincing him to play, which he then did. I left after Shu won. And that's it." I explained in a spark notes summarisation. "Gee sounds like fun," Subaru replied, with heavy sarcasm I might add. "Have you seen the gazeebo around here? It's actually pretty nice, especially around this time of night." It sounded intriguing so I shook my head and followed him once more. "Out of curiosity, where do you guys get like all the flowers and who even tends the gardens?" I ask. "It depends, most of the times its a familiar but other times I like looking after them too. Well, only the white roses." He replied. "Why the white only? Are they something significant to you?" As soon as I asked, he stops. Looking down at the ground almost in shame. It was a mix of melancholy and longing. "The white rose. That's what my mother was called by many. But." He really tried to continue, but something was holding him back. This wasn't right. "You know, you don't have to tell me. I have no right to pry in like that. Come on let's keep going!" I encourage. Stepping forward and pushing him further. Subaru just looked back in a state of shock. "Thank you (y/n)." He was smiling, it was genuine and warm. "We're nearly there come on. Also, you may wanna work on your strength in your upper body. It's about a two or even a three out of ten at the moment." "Hey, says the vampire. Besides, I haven't had the time with the whole vampire fiasco anyway." I gave a large smile, this may be one of the only fun times with him. After all, Subaru just seems to be a constantly annoyed and never happy. 

Finally arriving, the place was beautiful. The stone path leads towards a white two-metre-tall gazeebo. Surrounded by even more white roses and luscious green vines climbing the wooden beams. Lanterns were all set out but there was no need due to the moon illuminating the entire area. It almost felt magical. I took a seat down under the gazebo, looking up at the intricate design of the wooden beams above. "This place has been here for as long as I can remember, it never loses its beauty." Subaru took the seat opposite me and copied my actions, looking up. "So did you all grow up together?" I asked. "No, but I did meet my brothers every so often. As for me, I stayed in the demon world until Shu asked me to live with him." Subaru explained. "Don't you all hate each other so much? Why would you all live in the same household?" I ask again, completely contradicting my earlier statement. "Well, it mostly did with us escaping the demon world. That place can be a real pain, it was a common thing for us to all get nagged by women who wanted to marry us. Of course, they just wanted us for the money and the title. All of us just wanna relax, for the time being, wait until the time is right for that kind of stuff. It's like the medievals all over again, being married off at fourteen with some arranged marriage." Who would've thought that the demon world would have such an old fashion vibe about it? Sounds stupid for all I care. "What about you? What was it like back where you lived?" Subaru asked me. Looking back, I see memories with my family and friends. My old school, the mall, even the local shopping centre. Who would've thought that a place like that could bring such joy? "I mean it was pretty average. I had my circle of friends, a nice family or so I thought. That's until they sold me off to you guys. But school is just like this one. I guess I just miss the freedom, but I gave up on that a while ago." I was gonna ask him why he was acting so nice and out of character. But that would just turn the conversation downhill. "Here's a question that always hilarious. What was the common thought on vampires back at home?" He asked once more. I gosh where do I begin? "Well, it had been a while since Twilight so the hype has really died down. But I did have one friend who was always obsessed. She told me that she always believed vampires were real and I shrugged it off. I mainly denied their existence due to how many stupid myths there was about their weaknesses." I was gonna continue but Subaru interrupted. "Let me guess, first off there is the sunlight which is just wrong. There is the mirrors and our reflections which isn't true. If that was the case then Ayato wouldn't take half as long as he does when getting ready for anything. Holy water, garlic and crosses are just weird. But counting rice and seeds is a hilarious one." "I was gonna say, that must've been confusing. Oh and running water too. But you have an indoor pool so that one is out the window. Also sleeping in coffins and -" "I sleep in a coffin." Then everything went silent. Who would've thought he actually did that. 

"I really should get back, I'm starting to get a little hungry and I have some stuff due tomorrow. Thanks for the chat, I'll see you around." With that I left, waving back whilst still walking forwards. I made sure to memorise my path on the way there, I didn't want to repeat any mishaps, like Ruki's room in the Mukami mansion. I wonder what it means to be a vampire? What is like? Thrilling? Or tiring? What would be better, to continue with my humanity, or to throw it all away and embrace vampirism? Either way, I'll enjoy what I have, and stop procrastinating all of my homework.