by Rue Volley
He shoved some popcorn in his mouth and opened it to me. I placed the licorice to his mouth and he bit into it. He let some of it slide from his mouth as I pulled it. I felt a vibration in my hands and looked at the screen. He chewed it and made a noise. I glanced at him.
“You like it?” I asked him. He looked at me and nodded.
“Yea… it tastes pretty good,” he said. I took a drink and the movie started.
I leaned back and watched the screen. The movie never really mattered at the Drive In… not really, it’s the fact that you are there. There is something so cool about it I guess. Josh put his drink down and stretched his arms out. He settled one over my shoulder and I giggled looking at him.
“Are you making a move on me?” I asked him. He grinned and leaned back. I did too.
We watched the movie in silence for a while and I really felt like it was just normal. I sighed and turned to him.
“Thank you Josh,” I said to him. He turned to me.
“For what?” he asked me.
“For giving me ‘normal’ today. It’s been awesome,” I said as I looked back at the screen.
Josh leaned over to me ear. “You wanna make out?” he whispered.
I grinned and turned my face to him. He slowly moved his face closer to mine. I closed my eyes and pretended like I was just a normal girl, on a date with a hottie at the Drive In. His lips brushed mine and I pulled my breath in. His kiss made my stomach do a flip. Unfortunately he felt it… guess that’s a disadvantage in these situations. He slowly pulled his lips away from mine and stayed close to my face. He leaned his forehead against mine and I kept my eyes closed.
“You are an incredible creature Rue,” he whispered. I grinned and he sighed.
He leaned back from me and looked at the screen. I sat there rubbing my hands. I picked up the chocolate covered peanuts and placed one in my mouth.
“Want some?” I asked him as I lifted the bag to him. He smiled and I poured some into his hand.
We heard a foot hit the window of the car next to us and we both looked over at it. Josh leaned forward and grinned as a hand reached up and hit the steamed up window. We heard some moaning and the car rocked a little. I laughed and looked at him.
“Thanks for bringing me here,” I said. He laughed.
“Oh yea… where the humans hump all around us and we sit here eating chocolate covered peanuts,” he said. I looked at him.
“Do you wanna get in the backseat?” I said to him. He turned to me.
“Now you know that I would love to throw you in the backseat, but I think we should stay right where we are Rue.” I raised my eyebrows at him.
It was odd for him to turn down an easy offering. He glanced at me sensing my confusion.
“Well, for one… I need to stay alert, just in case some asshole rogue pops up and two… well, two… I could not be responsible for my actions if I got you back there.”
He looked over the seat and made a noise then looked at me and shook his head.
“It’s a large back seat. I could do some serious damage to you back there.”
I reached over and touched his leg. He flinched and put his hand on mine and stopped me from moving it.
“I have to be on point here Rue… don’t,” he said.
I took my hand off of his leg and leaned back in my seat. I really just wanted to rip his shirt off and bite him. My hands vibrated and he looked at me.
“Settle down… please,” he said. I sighed and looked at the screen.
The first movie was coming to an end. The car next to us started to rock really hard and I heard them cry out. Then it stopped. I grabbed my legs and squeezed them. Josh leaned over and kissed me on the cheek. I smiled.
“Trust me Rue… I don’t want your first time to be in a car… I would prefer a bed… nice and big, allows for a lot more movement and its soft.”
I sighed and bit my lip. The idea of him even thinking about us together like that, made me sweat a little. I bit a little too hard and I tasted blood in my mouth.
“Okay… that means we have to leave,” he said as he started up the car and started to pull out slowly. I looked at him.
He grinned as he drove through slowly with his lights off.
“Did I make you mad?” I asked him.
He looked over at me and touched my face.
“You make me crazy… I can smell your blood,” he said.
He let go of my face and we pulled out of the Drive Inn and we headed home. We pulled up and the light was on in the living room. He turned the car off and sat back in his seat. I opened my door and started to walk towards the house. He flashed up to me and turned me around taking my hand as we walked onto the porch. We stood at the door and he raised my head to look at him then he leaned in slowly and kissed me on the mouth. I kind of collapsed onto him. He moaned in my mouth as my tongue made its way in. He gently traced his fingers along my chin and I felt the vibration coming from him. His whole body hummed and so did mine. He backed away from me and grinned. I swayed a little. He made me light headed.
He squeezed my hand and we walked into the house. Johnathan sat there with his arms folded on his chest, watching the T.V. I barely glanced at him as I walked past him and went up the stairs. Josh started to follow me and Johnathan looked at him.
“Did you have fun?” he asked him.
Josh looked up towards the stairs and back at him.
“Yes… but more importantly, she did,” he said.
Johnathan stood up and walked past him, bumping his shoulder. Josh shrugged it off and headed up the stairs. Johnathan went to his new room and slammed the door. I heard it, as I sat at my vanity. Josh stopped at my door and smiled at me. I smiled back. I would have invited him in, but it was such a perfect day that I didn’t want to taint it with something awkward. He lingered for just a moment then walked to his room. He closed the door and I looked at myself in the mirror. I grinned as I took the braid out of my hair and let it fall on my shoulder. It had a nice little wave to it.
I stood up and closed my door, leaned against it and smiled, really big. I’d loved today, I really had. Too bad it won’t last. I walked to my bed and took my clothes off, grabbed a t-shirt, put it on then crawled into my bed. I pulled my new comforter over me and lay there on my back, looking at the ceiling then I slowly closed my eyes. I thought about the kiss that still lingered on my mouth and placed my fingers there. I opened my eyes up and sighed. I decided to roll over and listen to the crickets chirp outside. I watched my window and then drifted off. The first great day had just happened in a long time. My favorite day so far… of course it had to happen with Josh by my side… how weird.
Chapter Seven
I Have to Do What, With Who?
Caine woke up and pushed the girl off of his chest. She laid there with no life left in her. He grumbled, threw the sheet over her body then rolled out of the bed. He stood up and Lily walked in… she had a sheer top on and just her underwear. He stared at her as she leaned over and placed a tray down next to him. She started to rise up and he touched her arm and let his fingers trace across her skin. Black swirled there and she grinned at him. She leaned in close to his face and Jonah coughed in the doorway. She grinned at Caine and walked back to Jonah slowly. Jonah watched her and she walked out. His eyes flashed back to Caine and he stepped in. He looked at the foot peeking out from under the sheet and grinned.
“Did you enjoy yourself?” he asked him.
Caine stood up and grabbed the cup from the tray Lily had brought to him. He shrugged his shoulders and looked at the girl on his bed.
“She was delightful, would have been better if she would have lasted a little longer. Humans do not have the stamina that we possess,” he said as he walked to the edge of the room and peeked out the tent.
He heard a lot of noise and watched as people shuffled around and things were being disassembled around them. He looked back at Jonah.
“Is this camp moving?” he asked him. Jonah ste
pped up behind him.
“Yes, this is a moving carnival. We go from town to town. We stay about a week or so and then it’s off to the next one,” he said to him. Caine grinned.
“Perfect,” he whispered.
Jonah walked to the bed and lifted the girl’s arm and let it fall back down.
“Okay… well, I would eat her, but dead blood does nothing for my stomach,” he said to Caine.
Caine turned to him. “Would you like for me to have Erik move it to the woods and burn it?”
Jonah smiled. “That would be lovely,” he said.
“Then it will be done, as a gesture of bonding between us,” Caine said as he walked back to the bed and stared down at her. Jonah looked at him and then to the girl.
“We did not have the opportunity to discuss this business you spoke of yesterday… with the little break to feed. Would you be so kind as to let me know what your intentions are?” He asked him.
“I intend to rebuild an army,” Caine said as he looked at him. Jonah rubbed his head.
“Oh… an army… is there a war looming?” he asked him.
Caine tapped his shoulder and smiled. “We have always been at war, have we not Jonah?”
Jonah shrugged his shoulders and walked to the doorway. “I did not realize that we were at the edge of combat. Lily and I simply feed ourselves with the generosity of these roaming creatures, who love to doddle around the carnival.”
Caine stepped towards him. “There is so much more intended for our kind, you do not have to tip your hat for an eternity and nibble,” Caine said. Jonah looked at him.
“You intend to build a new city, or take the one that exists then,” he said.
Caine laughed. “You are much quicker than I expected you to be.”
“Well. I am not a scholar, but I do pride myself on being able to read situations quickly… I assume that your nervous bride fits into this fairy tale you have spun.”
Caine flashed to him. “She is the key to the beginning, but first there must be an end, an end to hiding… an end to confining ourselves to roaming vagabonds and city walls. I intend to control this world, with her at my side. What she possesses inside of her is a new beginning.” Jonah grinned.
“So you intend to create with her… is it the creation you seek and not the girl?” Caine waved his hand.
“She is necessary to what I need to get. Her genetic code is unique, there are no others like he. She will create a hurricane, a protector of which we have never seen before. One who will rule with an iron fist, void of morality and weakness. One who will bring our people to the top of the food chain… where we should have been all along.”
“And my sister and I fit into this how?” Jonah asked him. Caine tilted his head.
“Why you and sister are already in the right state of mind. You are the closest to perfection that I have seen.” Jonah smiled at him.
“I find the outcome intriguing, to think of feeding at will, no shuffling about.” Caine flashed to him.
“I promise that you and Lily will rule your own piece of this wretched planet… nothing stopping you, no obligations… it will be heaven.” Jonah looked at him and grinned.
“I think that I would like that Caine. I would like it a lot.”
“Good, we are in agreement then. Wonderful.”
Jonah tipped his hat and Caine sat down on the bed and grabbed some fruit on the tray. He reached behind him and pushed the girl off of the bed. She hit the floor with a thud.
“You have a wretched smell,” he muttered to her. He bit into a peach and grinned.
***
Sophia Graph stood in Rue’s room in Valon and stared out the window. She scanned the sky and the door opened behind her then turned as a guard walked in and bowed to her. She nodded and the girl lifted her head and looked at her. Sophia waved her hand at her and guard stepped forward.
“What news do you have of Johnathan?” she asked her.
“We tracked him for quite some time and then his energy shifted.”
Sophia stared at her. “Shifted in what way?” she asked her.
“Well, it went from Johnathan’s to something else altogether, like he either disappeared or changed his signature.”
Sophia sat down on the bed and ran her hand across it. She closed her eyes.
“I think that we have been deceived,” she said quietly.
“Deceived?” the girl asked her. Sophia opened her eyes and they darted to the girls.
“Yes, I do not think that we are dealing with Johnathan,” she said.
The guard waited and shifted her weight to her other foot.
“Are you saying that we have had a traitor within her walls?”
Sophia sighed. “I believe it to be true.”
“Well there is more,” the guard said to her. Sophia flashed to her face and waited.
The guard looked up at her.
“We came upon Rue Valon, with a boy… another protector in the woods. We did not find it wise to try to grab her and her guard. I wanted to report this to you quickly.”
“Curious,” Sophia whispered as she turned back to the window. “So, she is living… how clever.”
The guard waited for any sign from Sophia to leave the city and retrieve her. Sophia watched the clouds.
“Is there any more you need to share with me?” The guard stepped up to her.
“It seems that Erik is gone and a human… one that was a host to Rue,” she said. Sophia closed her eyes and then turned to her.
“You will tell those who were with you to keep this information a secret. I will need time to speak to the council, then we will decide how to proceed.” The guard bowed to her.
“As you wish,” she said and then left the room.
Sophia turned back to the window and watched the clouds floating by.
“I will make this known to me,” she said. She turned and left the room, slamming the door behind her.
***
I woke up and stretched my arms out. I yawned big then pushed myself up and smelled food. I could not believe that my stomach had the nerve to growl after the pig out I had indulged in the night before. Well… you know, I am always hungry. I pressed on my stomach and pushed out of my bed. It was the most comfortable sleep I had ever had. This bed rocks, by the way. I stretched my toes and then looked up at my open door. I grinned, just knowing that Josh was in the bedroom next to mine. Maybe someday we would have our own bed. I leaned back and grinned bigger at that idea.
I stood up, let the comforter fall off of me and walked into the bathroom. I picked up my electric toothbrush, switched it on, letting it do all the work and then spat out the foam into the sink. I flinched when I stood back up and Josh stood behind me. I looked at his reflection and grinned as I placed my toothbrush on the counter. It didn’t even bother me that I stood there in my t-shirt and underwear. Of all people, Josh had seen me every way possible. I turned around and leaned back on the sink with a smile on my face. He looked me up and down and crossed his arms.
“You look even cuter in the morning,” he said.
I bit my lip and walked past him toward my closet. I reached in and grabbed some clothes out then turned to him and started to pull my t-shirt over my head. He turned around and looked at the floor. I watched his back as I pulled my shirt off and slipped another one on.
“You look amazing as usual.” I said. He grinned and looked sideways. I cleared my throat.
“I am dressed now,” I said to him. He turned around and looked at me. I pulled my hair back and put it in a ponytail.
“So,” I said. He looked at me and smiled.
“So,” he said.
I raised my hands and smiled at him. “I have to eat… I’m starving.”
He laughed and followed me as I walked down the stairs.
Everyone was already eating like Vikings at the table. We both walked up and Josh pulled out my chair and I sat down, as he scooted it in. I looked up at Sam and she winked at me. Kai was shovel
ing food into his mouth.
He raised his fork at Josh. “You better not of hit that last night,” he said to Josh.
I shot him a look. Kai looked at me.
“There was no ‘hitting’ anything Kai,” I muttered to him. Kai grumbled as he shoved some more food into his mouth and Sam hit him in the side.
“Of course not,” she said. I smiled at her. She took a bite and stared at me.
“So… did you have fun?” she said.
I looked at Josh and grinned. “It was amazing,” I said.
Johnathan half grunted and I shot a look at him.
“Josh took me on a normal date. We just had a normal day,” I said.
Johnathan pushed up from the table and took his plate to the sink. He rinsed it off and walked out the front door. I barely watched him but I flinched when he let the door slam.
“Anyway,” I said. “It was cool, I had fun. We went to the Drive Inn.”
Kai looked at Josh and shook his head at him. Josh raised his hands to him.
“I didn’t try anything dude,” he said to him.
Kai stood up and walked to the sink. “Keep it that way,” he said under his breath.
Sam looked at him and rolled her eyes.
“Anyway… I think that’s cool too,” she said.
Theo turned from the oven and looked at all of us.
“Well… it sounds dreamy, and everyone knows how I hate to kill a joyous mood but we have things to discuss.”
I placed the fork in my mouth and wanted for the nice mood to hold, but Theo sat down and took a bite from his plate.
He looked at Josh. “I do not know if I can stop a rogue protector,” he said to him. Josh lowered his fork and looked at him.
“You found nothing?” he said. Theo laughed.
“What is there to find? Until you two ran into them they seemed to a myth, but now I am left with guessing how to protect us from them.”
Josh looked at me and then to Sam.
“There has to be something, everything has a weakness. We just need to figure out what theirs is.”
Sam smiled at me. I think it was just a gesture.