The Awakening (Daray Hall #1)

by Samantha Hoffman

  Chapter Six

  After dinner, Tara holds me back while the others leave. Austin shoots me a quick, sympathetic look, but doesn’t say anything. Tara doesn’t say anything while the rest of Daray is filing out of the dining room, and for some reason that makes me incredibly nervous.

  When the room is entirely empty, the door opens, and Jillian walks in. She’s holding an old-fashioned goblet on a tray, and it instantly takes me from nervous to intrigued, because the goblet looks like something out of an Indiana Jones movie.

  It’s golden, and the rim is lined with emeralds and rubies. They catch the light and sparkle, capturing my attention. But that’s not all that gets my attention. There’s something else that draws me in, and it’s the most heavenly scent I’ve ever experienced.

  When Jillian sets the tray down on the table in front of me, it takes all of my willpower not to lunge for it. Tara must sense my eagerness, and she grips my shoulder tightly, almost painfully. I’m tempted to fight her off though, rip her hand away from me, and go for the goblet anyways.

  Jillian takes a seat on the bench across from us and folds her hands on the table. She just stares at me, and I’m aware that I’m practically salivating onto the table. “Kylie, this is a goblet of fresh blood-wine.”

  Blood-wine? That sounds so disgusting!

  But it smells so good that I’m leaning forward until I’m peering into the goblet of blood. “I get to drink that?”

  Jillian nods. “Yes, you do. The first couple of times can make someone a little bit uncomfortable, but you’ll get used to it eventually. Sometimes the first taste of blood can make a fledgling a little bit…strange.”

  “Strange?”

  “Depressed, angry, giddy, violent, etcetera. You name it, they feel it. Sometimes fledglings have been known to lash out at those around them, or cry on their friend’s shoulders. If you’d like, I can ask Tara to leave the room.”

  “No, I want her to stay,” I say quickly, looking at her. “You’ll stay, won’t you?”

  She nods. “Of course. I remember how nervous I was the first time I tasted blood. Don’t worry; it’s not as bad as you’re thinking it’ll be. I took my first sip, and then downed the whole goblet in like one gulp. It tastes so good.”

  Jillian clears her throat, and Tara stops talking. “Kylie, take the goblet, and drink. This right here marks the beginning of your new life. Drink, and embrace your future.”

  With trembling hands, I reach out and grab the goblet, and slowly lift it to my lips. The scent of the blood so close to my face is overwhelming, and I lick my lips in anticipation. When the first drop of blood touches my tongue, I gasp, and start to gulp it down as fast as possible.

  The flavor is so rich and wonderful as it flows down my throat, I can feel it replenishing my body and mind. It warms my heart, and I can feel my own blood humming in pleasure. As the last drop finally touches my lips, I pull the goblet away, and lick my lips, trying to keep the beautiful taste on my tongue for as long as possible.

  Even though the goblet is empty, I try to use my tongue to reach the bottom. I want every last drop available, and I’ll do anything to get it. I can feel the fingers of my left hand clenching as tight as possible; the nails are digging into the soft flesh of my palm hard enough to bleed.

  Tara reaches for my hand, or the goblet, I’m not sure which. Either way, she’s too close for comfort, and I lunge at her hand, snapping with my teeth. She shrieks and recoils, pulling away from me. “Kylie, it’s just me!”

  I flinch, and drop the goblet with disgusted hands. The aroma of blood in the air causes a sort of frenzy, and my head is foggy and unclear. I can’t hear, or think, or see anything but the red haze around my senses, choking me.

  Jillian slowly reaches for the goblet, and I can feel my muscles tensing up. If her hand moves any closer, I can lean forward and snap. I don’t want that though, so I try to warn her away with a feral snarl. She just smiles, but her hand pauses. “Kylie, it’s alright.”

  Something in her angelic voice stops me, and I feel myself begin to relax. “I’m sorry,” I say, trying not to cry. “I don’t know what came over me.” My behavior scares me, and I can’t believe I just almost attacked my best friend.

  “Kylie, it’s alright. We’ve all been where you are right now. The first taste of blood can be difficult to handle,” Jillian says gently. I can tell that she’s really trying to make me feel better, but nothing she can say will make me forget that I just drank someone’s blood and liked it.

  I shove the goblet as far away from me as possible, and shrink back away from the table. “Who did this blood come from?”

  Jillian waves dismissively. “That’s nothing to worry about. Rest assured that the blood was donated willingly, alright? There are several thousand people in the world that know about the existence of vampires, and quite a few of them donate biweekly to our “blood bank”. It’s a very simple process.”

  “So, the person whose blood I just drank enjoys giving us the blood we need to survive.”

  Jillian nods. “Yes. The donors are given regular health checkups to make sure that their prolonged donation doesn’t have any serious health risks. We take very good care of our donors. They allow us to feed without harming innocent people. If we don’t harm people, our existence stays hidden, and people don’t come after us with torches and pitchforks.”

  “Have people done that in the past? Torches and pitchforks just sounds so…barbaric.”

  Jillian nods once more. “Yes, Kylie, I’m afraid people have come after us in the past. When our existence has been revealed, we’ve been met with fear and aggression. It’s for the best if we stay hidden in the shadows.”

  “So wait, can we not go out in the daylight anymore?” I ask, terrified at the thought of living only in the dark.

  “Kylie, the sun will not cause you to burst into flame. But, if you haven’t properly fed, the sun will burn and cause headaches, along with sensitivity to light. But as long as you feed regularly, you’ll be alright.

  “However, you are not a vampire yet. The sun will not affect you at all. However, after the Transformation, your body will become less tolerant of the sun. As long as you’re careful, you’ll be fine. Do you have any other questions?”

  “Will I have to sleep in a coffin after the Transformation?”

  Jillian laughs again, and the remaining traces of my anger completely fade away. “Of course not! We’re not monsters, Kylie. We sleep in nice comfy beds just like everyone else.”

  “Can we change shape? Like into bats or wolves?”

  “No, Kylie. Despite the persistent rumors about it, we are unable to take a shape other than human. Think about it: all of those bones and muscles breaking and reforming into another shape, it’s impossible for anyone, even vampires.”

  “Can we hypnotize people?”

  “Not in the way that you’re thinking. We tend to have a very calming yet powerful appearance towards normal people. We’re very…convincing. We can get people to do things they wouldn’t normally do, but it has nothing to do with actual mind control.”

  “What about turning into shadow or mist? Can we do that? Or how about climbing up the side of buildings?”

  Jillian smiles. “No and no. We can’t turn into anything, and we don’t have the ability to scale walls with our bare hands. Besides, using the elevator is much easier, I would think.”

  I giggle, and try to hide it with a cough. Jillian isn’t fooled though. I can tell by the way she’s smiling at me that she likes me, and that makes me happy. Before coming to Daray Hall, the only person that actually cared about me was Tara. Now I might have someone else.

  Tara places her hand on my arm again, and this time I don’t snap at her. “Come on. If you’re gonna start your training tomorrow you should get some rest tonight.”

  I don’t wanna leave yet, but I know she’s right. The Protectors look like serious trainers, and I want to be able to keep up with them tomorrow. It would be terri
ble if Carlos spoke up and offered me a chance and I blew it.

  So Tara shows me back to my room, and she promises to speak to me tomorrow at breakfast. She tells me that I’ll find out my schedule for the day then, and she’ll help me find my way around. With that, I turn in for the night, ignoring Chloe’s sneers.

  In the morning, I shower before Chloe is even up, and I’m dressed and out the door without having to speak to her. I doubt she’ll be sad she missed a chance to get to know me. In fact, she’ll probably like it, because it’ll feel like she doesn’t actually have a roommate, which is what she wants.

  I find my way to the dining room by myself, and surprisingly Tara’s already there waiting for me. I grab a tray of food and take a seat next to her. Within ten minutes, both Andrea and Austin have joined us. Austin and Tara spend the rest of breakfast arguing over who has the worst roommate.

  Apparently, it’s me, because they start to giggle about Chloe. Tara rooms with Andrea, who seems nice, if not a little shy, and Austin rooms with a boy a year younger than him. His roommate is really immature, kind of like Austin seems to be, and they get alone fine.

  So, the only person with a terrible roommate is me. Go figure.

  “Don’t worry too much, Kylie,” Andrea says. “There are some other people here that don’t have good roommates. Just remember that this living arrangement isn’t forever. After you experience the Transformation, you can leave this place and start your own Chloe-free life, doing what makes you happy.”

  Something in the way she says it makes me feel just a little bit uncomfortable. It’s not overtly mean, but it makes me think that she not only hates Daray Hall, but maybe everyone in it. Tara told me that she was shy, but I’m not sure that’s it.

  There’s something about Andrea that I’m not sure I like.

  “So Kylie, do you know where you have to go first?” Austin asks, breaking my silent reverie.

  “No, not yet.”

  Tara slaps her forehead. “Oh, duh. I was supposed to give you this. Jillian found me in the halls and asked me to make sure you got around alright.”

  She hands me a slip of paper, and I unfold it to find neat handwriting that I presume is Jillian’s. The note reads:

  9:00 – 11:45Protection Training

  12:00 – 1:00Lunch/Free time

  1:15 – 2:30Controlling Bloodlust

  8:45 – 9:15Worship

  I glance up at Tara and frown. “What does she mean by worship?”

  “Every night we gather in the chapel that’s here on the grounds, and we pray to Selene,” Andrea explains. “That’s the last thing we have to do at night. After that it’s free time until dinner, and then we get more free time after. The only things we have to do are the basic self-defense class, and the controlling bloodlust lessons.”

  “Kylie doesn’t take basic self-defense, because she’s agreed to be my Protector when she finishes the training. If Selene will allow it, of course.”

  “Of course,” Austin cuts in, “You don’t have to take the basic self defense class, since you’re obviously more skilled than all of us! So you have the Protection Training instead. Wow, I wish I could see you train.”

  “Sucks to be you,” Andrea says, picking up her breakfast tray.

  “What’s that supposed to mean?” I ask, staring her down until she looks uncomfortably away.

  “I just meant that the Protection Training is seriously hard. A lot of people think they have what it takes and end up dropping out after like the first week. Kind of like the Marines or something. I didn’t mean to upset you.”

  She keeps her head down and walks away, avoiding eye contact with everyone in the room, and I watch her go. There is seriously something about that girl that irks me. At least Chloe is outright rude to people.

  “Don’t take it too seriously, Kylie.”

  I look at Austin, who’s finishing his toast. “Andrea takes a little convincing. After you earn her friendship, she’s the most loyal person there is. You just have to prove that you’re worth it first. I’m sure you’ll have no problem with that. Trust me; pretty soon you two will be like inseparable. I can see it now.”

  Austin finally stops talking, and I look at Tara. “Where do you go first?”

  “Controlling Bloodlust. After that I have an hour long lesson with Jillian about controlling my gift. I’ll see you again at lunch, ok?”

  Tara gets up with her tray and follows Andrea out into the hall, leaving me and Austin alone at the table. Aside from one girl to our left, we’re two of the only people in the dining room.

  “So, did you ever consider Protection Training?”

  He laughs, “Of course not! Look at me, I weigh a hundred and fifteen pounds soaking wet. I’m practically anorexic. Andrea would make a better protector than me.”

  I did notice that she was a little on the heavy side. I’m just glad I’m not the only one that thought so. It makes me wonder if that’s why she’s so shy around others.

  “I mean, for the love of Selene, don’t tell Andrea I said this, but she could stand to lose a little bit of weight.”

  “She’s not fat,” I say, unsure why I’m defensive of her. Probably because she’s Tara’s friend…

  A surge of jealousy shoots through me, and I try not to let it show. While I’ve been grieving the loss of my best friend, she’s been here, making all new ones. And now I’m the outsider, and I don’t like it.

  I stamp down on my jealousy, surprised by its appearance. Normally I’m not the jealous type.

  Tara’s never really had other friends before.

  I ignore that thought, pack up my tray, hand it off to be cleaned, and head down to the gymnasium, where my first lesson of the day is.