The Worst Summer Ever

28: Upside Down

I cried, running into the woods. The whole friendship was a lie? I knew we hadn't been friends for long, but it still hurt.

"Aurora, why did you leave the funeral?" Vasile asked, walking towards me.

"Oh Vasile, it's terrible!" I cried, running to him. Vasile hugged me, looking confused.

"What happened?" he asked.

"Ana said that she used me and that our friendship was never real," I wailed. "Am i really that terrible that I am only spoken to when I'm being used?"

"That's not true," Vasile said. "Who cares what Ana thinks? You are a good person who cares about others. You are the first person I have seen who has tried to be patient with Kaito. You aren't obsessed with immortality, and you aren't greedy either. I don't think there is anyone in the world who could compare to you."

"You really think that?" I asked, looking at his red eyes.

"Yes, you are perfect and you don't even know it," Vasile responded, and he kissed me on my lips. I gasped. It felt like as if a hidden feeling inside my brain was being awakened, and I felt happier than I ever have before.

But...but...

"This was a mistake," I said, pushing Vasile away.

"Aurora, do you like me back?" Vasile asked. "Am I making a fool of myself?"

"I need to leave," I choked, running back to the funeral. 

"No, I won't let you," Vasile said, chasing after me.

When we reached the funeral, Vasile was about to grab me, but Nicholae said, "Vasile, it is your turn to give a speech for Bora."

******

"Not many people like to read in New York," I said, grabbing a torn up copy of Wuthering Heights.

"Times are changing," Nicholae agreed, "but I'll always be stuck in the 19th century."

I sighed, sitting next to Nicholae in the sofa. "Kaito has been ignoring me for a while now," I said. "And all I did was ask if he liked me!"

"Kaito is really messed up from his past," Nicholae said, closing his novel he was holding. "His own mother betrayed him."

"Didn't the same happen to you?" I asked, and Nicholae just looked down.

"Come to think of it, you haven't told me your past yet," I said. "I know that Kaito was a writer and that Felix and Vasile were in love with the same girl. But what about you? How did you die?"

"I would rather not talk about it," Nicholae whispered.

"You can trust me," I said. "I won't judge you. I won't even tell anyone."

Nicholae sighed. "I guess it is time that you know. But mark my words, you will judge me."

He then grabbed my hand and bit into my finger...