Stuck with my Vampire Mate

23 - Life is always a drama

"Granny......."

It was all I could muster. My chest felt like it was being constricted by a thousand barbed wires, and I couldn't even swallow my spit as something round blocked my throat. The air around me grew heavy, each breath a struggle.

"Yes, dear, I am his grandmother. Have we met before?"

Am I mistaken? No. How could I mistake my own grandmother for another woman? She had the same white hair, soft and wispy like clouds, the familiar eyes, the same face etched with the gentle lines of time, and the same voice. This woman was indeed my grandmother.

"Granny, how are you here? Don't you recognise me?" I asked, my voice trembling as tears welled in my eyes. My heart clenched painfully at the sight of her confused expression, a mixture of puzzlement and something else I couldn't quite place. Was she pranking me?

"I am afraid you are wrong, Atarah."

Ryan's velvety voice didn't register in my ears. It felt like the world around me had dimmed, leaving only the beating of my heart echoing in my chest. I got up, placed a half-awake Nyle on the seat, and held my grandmother's wrist gently. The warmth of her skin seeped into my own. They had never fully considered me family, but they were my connection to the human world, the threads that tied me to my childhood and the memories I cherished. My entire life in the past revolved around them.

"Granny, it's me, Atty," I said, my voice breaking as tears streamed down my face, uncontrollable and desperate. My grandmother glanced nervously between Nyle and me, her expression shifting from confusion to unease.

"Sorry, dear. I guess you have mistaken me for someone else," she replied, her voice tense.

"What's taking you so long, Sara?" came a voice from the entryway.

I turned, my heart pounding, and there stood the man whom I had called 'grandpa' for the past eighteen years. He was a tall figure with a familiar, robust frame, yet his presence now felt like a shadow looming over me.

"Grandpa?" The word slipped from my lips, heavy with disbelief.

I swallowed another lump that was forming in my throat. Ryan briskly walked towards me and held my hand tightly. He nodded at my grandmother in greeting, a gesture that seemed to carry its own weight, before leaning down to whisper in my ear.

"Calm down. I can explain everything once they leave."

I wanted to argue, to scream at him for keeping secrets and for the absurdity of the situation, but instead, I just stood still, feeling like a spectator in my own life as I stared at my 'once missing' grandparents. They were both so familiar yet so distant, like characters from a story I thought I knew by heart.

Ryan slowly picked up a pouting Nyle from the chair, cradling him with tenderness. He handed Nyle to Granny, who accepted him with delicate care, her hands moving with the instinctual grace of a woman who had done this countless times before. She bowed her head slightly at us, murmuring a quiet thank you, but her gaze quickly shifted back to me, filled with concern. I could see the worry etched on her features, and it made my heart ache even more.

The room felt heavy with unspoken words as they prepared to leave for completing the verification purposes. I remained silent until they finally stepped out of the waiting room. As the door clicked shut behind them, I was left alone with Ryan, the air thick with tension and uncertainty. I needed answers, but the weight of everything was almost too much to bear.

"Do you want some water?"

I nodded my head. Ryan handed me a disposable glass filled with the transparent liquid, and I took it from him with trembling hands, gulping down the contents in one swift motion. The coolness slid down my throat, but it did little to quench the turmoil roiling in my chest. I sat there, staring at him, feeling utterly defeated.