Night Shade | The Lost Boys

Chapter Three

The next day found Belladonna Emerson waking as the sun was going down. She could not remember the last time she had ever slept so late. The bed beside her was cold, indicating that Michael had long ago awoken and left her to her slumber. No dreams haunted her sleep after she returned to sleep that night. Blinking slowly, Bell looked up at the ceiling and attempted to make sense of what her mind was telling her. The dream that drove her to her brother was unlike anything she had ever experienced. It felt so real. The very idea of it being just a dream did not sit well with her. That answer seemed wrong in the aspect that Bell felt like there was more to it. But it would make no sense to say that they were actually in her head. That would be impossible. The very idea of it made zero sense. But Bell was never one to shy away from the abnormal. There was something more to what was going on than what she knew about. Rubbing the sleep from her eyes, she rolled out of the comfort that her twin's bed provided. Warm air kissed her bare legs as her sock clad feet made contact with the chilled floorboards. She could make out voices downstairs as she neared the open bedroom door. Laughter emanated from the kitchen and Bell knew her brothers were goofing around, the very thought of it bringing a smile to her face. Despite what her mother thought, her children were more effected by the divorce then they let on. They may not have been particularly attached to their father; Michael having grown out of his worship of the man once he hit his teen years. Their father never really understood Sam. Little Sammy was not what the patriarch of the Emerson family expected of his son. Sam was never interested in much outside of what the television offered and clothing trends. Belladonna, named after her great-great-great grandmother, was not the perfect daughter. Despite her doll-like appearance, Bell usually found herself rough housing with her brothers as well as causing a ruckus at school. It was never anything serious unless you count the time that she broke an upperclassman's nose because they made a joke about Sam's preferences. Family was everything to Bell. She may feel like an outsider most of the time in her own family unit but that did not mean that anyone could disrespect them. Hearing her brothers so carefree brought the softest of smiles to her face. Hitting the bottom step, Bell made eye contact with her mother and saw that she was smiling as well. Nodding her head to her mother, Bell launched herself into the kitchen and toward her siblings, laughing the whole way.

After almost an hour of sitting in the kitchen with her siblings and laughing over dumb things they had done over the years, Bell finally approached the topic that had been on her mind the entire night.

"Michael, can we go to the boardwalk?"

Michael stopped mid rinse on the plate he was holding by the sink. He turned around to face his twin, a worrisome furrow embedded in his brow. He had always been overprotective of her. It had been a common thing that Bell had gotten used to growing up. Older by barely a minute, Michael had always considered her safety and well being important. Bell also knew that Michael had a good heart and head on his shoulders when he wanted one.

"Are you sure you should be out tonight? You slept in real late. Maybe you are not feeling too well."

Bell rolled her eyes at her brother. She saw Sammy out of the corner of her eye smiling at the two of them. A soft smile curving her lips, Bell responded to Michael with, "I feel fine, Mike. The move just wore me out is all."

He still did not look convinced. Putting her plate down on the chipped kitchen counter, Bell walked over to the sink, her arms wrapping around the thicker waist of her twin. Michael wrapped an arm around her shoulder and held her close. Humming deep in his throat, he pulled back and caught her gaze, his own questioning. Bell held his gaze and lifted up one brow, defiance in her posture. A deep sigh left Michael and he chuckled softly at her. Shaking his head, he muttered, "Yeah we can go to the boardwalk."