Frightful Reunion

Ch 6

Slowly blinking awake, you glance around your room and smile. Finally, you awoke with no pain, and a full memory of the previous evening. You had stayed up with your dad for a bit, happy to spend time together when it felt so rare the last few years.

He even brought down quite a few boxes of his old show props and costumes, and proceeded to help you dig through them. It had been quite late when you finally went to bed, but you were happy to have a costume picked out. While your dad was partial to the old style, blood dripping from your mouth and a ton of jewelry type of vampire, you wanted to go a little more subtle; a modern vampire if you will. Whatever that may be.

To you, this meant a black corset that had a hood attached, black skinny jeans, and a pair of your converse. Heels would usually be your go to, but as intimidating as Jerry is, you're actually the same height.

Stretching, you decide to get out of bed, opting for a shower before attempting to take on the day.

As you step out, you wipe steam from the mirror as usual, and smile tugs at your lips when you catch your reflection. The bruise on your neck had completely healed, leaving no trace it had ever existed in the first place. Even though you could have made it work with your costume, you no longer had to worry about your dad seeing it. As if he wasn't suspicious enough of Jerry as it was, seeing a bite mark on your neck might cause him to implode.

With the party not being until tonight, you throw on something casual. You grab your phone before heading downstairs and notice a few messages. Swiping your thumb across the screen, it unlocks to show they're from Jerry.

'Goodmorning beautiful.'

'I can't wait to see you tonight.'

'You're more than welcome to come over if you want to figure out the costumes.'

'I was thinking more casual, less cliché.'

When you look up, your dad has a rather large smirk, letting you know that you must have been smiling at your phone like an idiot without even realizing.

Rolling your eyes, you both share a laugh, and he pushes a plate of your favorite breakfast toward you. "Thought you'd enjoy this."

Eyes lighting up, you giddily sit at the opposite side of the counter, immediately digging in to the delicious meal. "I didn't even know you remembered how to cook this."

Shrugging, he leans back in his seat, seeming quite proud of himself. "I'm pretty great when I want to be."

Finding yourself rolling your eyes again, you manage to tap out a quick message in response to Jerry, letting him know you had thought the same about the costumes.

"So." Your dad's voice tears your attention away from your phone, he sets a small box on the counter between you, sliding it slowly in your direction. Immediately knowing what it is, you sit a little straighter. "I managed to find a little something when we were digging around, thought you might need it."

Bringing the box closer, you flip the latch and push it open, smiling with fond memories as it reveals custom made vampire fangs. "I'm surprised you still have these."

With a chuckle, he throws his hands up. "I'm not even sure they'll still fit. Afterall, we got them done when you were what? 18? 19?"

Running your thumb along one of them, you think back to that day. You had just told him you were moving away, and instead of freaking out like you had anticipated, he ended up taking you out for what could only be described as the perfect day. A trip to the museum, your favorite restaurant, he even took you shopping for nice luggage, but the day ended at a specialty shop run by of his old friends. That's where you were fitted for custom teeth, which you're sure would have seemed weird to anyone else, but for you and your dad... it was special. It was his way of saying goodbye, and it meant a lot.

After breakfast you sit and reminisce with your dad for a bit, but when you part ways, you realize the day had almost gone by. Having been snacking during your chat, you knew you wouldn't be hungry again until the party, so you opted to go ahead and figure out your makeup.

The first step, of course, is brushing your teeth, followed by trying on your fangs. Carefully, you pull one from it's safe little velvet cushion, and then lean over the sink to get closer to the mirror. It pops on almost effortlessly, and you jump with giddy excitement.

Although you could have figured something else out, these fangs were going to be the best part of your costume, you're certain of it.

Placing them both back in the box, you begin playing with your makeup. With plenty of time, you end up starting over several times, trying numerous different looks before deciding on one. Finally feeling happy with your eye makeup, you lean down to grab your lipstick bag. You take out every dark shade and arrange them in a line on the counter, trying one after the other.

You pop off the cap on a dark burgundy shade, twist the bottom, and then trace your lips. Turning your face to one side, then the other, you wiggle your brows playfully at your reflection and giggle. A mix of giddy excitement and nervous butterflies turning in your stomach. Your look had turned out just how you wanted, and you couldn't wait to see Jerry's reaction.

Leaning in closer to the mirror, you smile wide, running your tongue along your teeth to ensure there's no lipstick on them.

Just as you're about to zip up your makeup bag, you feel the hairs on the back of your neck bristle. Your entire body goes rigid, and your eyes slowly trail back up to your reflection. Hesitantly, you lean in closer again, feeling your heart beating through your chest as you slowly bare your teeth.

Jumping back, you bring your hands to your mouth, feeling 2 fangs. But you could have sworn you took them out!

Quickly, you rummage along the counter to find the box, tossing everything back into your makeup bag. Yanking a towel away, you hear the box clatter to the floor, and spin to retrieve it. Luckily, it's unharmed, but also somehow remained shut. Picking it up, you slowly press the latch and pull the lid back, revealing your 2 fangs sitting perfectly still in their cozy home.

You can actually feel the color drain from your face, and your entire body runs cold.

Slowly, you turn back to face the mirror. Your eyes wide and lips pressed firmly together. With a deep breath, you set the box carefully on the counter, staring at the contents in panic before returning your attention to your own reflection.

You bare your teeth again... and exhale a large sigh of relief as you expose only your normal teeth.

A loud ding startles you, making you jump. With another breath, you manage to laugh at yourself, chalking it up to obviously having some sort of sickness in the previous few days. Picking up your phone, you check the new message from Jerry.

'Do you wanna come over for a few minutes before the party?'

Taking one last look in the mirror, you again confirm your regular teeth. Tapping out a quick reply to Jerry, and taking a few calming breaths to lower your heart rate back to normal, you shake your head, laughing again at your strange daydream. Because there was no other explanation, it had to be in your head right? Afterall, you had been feeling really strange lately. But tonight would be fun, and you felt the excitement from earlier welling up in your chest again as you grab your keys.