Bella Notte (22 page)

I took the glass in
my hand, closed my eyes, and put the glass to my lips. It was cold
when it hit my tongue. But the flavor was amazing. Something hard to
explain- it was watermelon, mango, strawberry, and sugar. I took
another sip and sighed at the great taste.

“
Good. Just a
little trust.” He smiled at me.

I put down my glass
and watched as the room started to fill up.

Many people were
dressed like we were- all black- others were dressed in a mix of
colors and fashions. No matter what they wore, they all looked over
at the booth when they came in. I felt anxious. I knew what Dominic
had told me, but I didn't know why we were treated like royalty and I
sure as heck didn't understand why they all looked this way, but
stayed a distance. I felt like my entire life had become some sort of
conspiracy theory thing and that we must be hidden royalty or
something, I just couldn't put my finger on it.

“
They fear
you. No, that is not correct … they fear what you think of
them. Let us dance.” He stood and took my hand. I finally
noticed that there was music playing. It was like Irish punk. I
greatly enjoyed it. It helped to calm my nerves as I walked
unsteadily beside

Dominic. He looked
like he could easily rule a mass of people. I felt shy, but I knew
that I fit here. These really were
my
people.

The melody changed
into a slow song- it felt like it was filled with sorrow. I knew it
was in the language I didn't know- the one from my dream- but that
I'd understood.

Dominic turned me
into his arms and we rocked back and further to the sway of the
music.

I listened to the
lyrics and felt as though my heart was tearing. It was a song of
loss, pain, and war. It was of the history of these people. They had
been plagued by a war that had no end in sight. They were born into
the struggle of life- of light and dark. The middle switched on me-
it turned to hope. They dreamed of the pair that would end the wars.
Peace would come when she chose.

Dominic twirled me
around the room. Faces flashed by as the people watched. No one else
danced though. I felt like I was in a strange dream.

The song continued
to speak of the dreams the children were raised with- a queen that
held the love of the enemy king. They were destined to be apart, but
they loved each other greatly. They each went with their own kind and
fell in love, but it was their love that ended the wars. They held
great celebrations to honor the other kind and to rejoice at the
marriage of their lost love. No, not lost, but held back. They chose
their fate; they chose to save a fighting people, then to save their
love.

The song shifted
once more. The time of peace would last until the death of one-
caused by the rebel of their people. Then war would erupt inside
their own kind. The love would fight even against the words of their
partner. The other would die. But in that death a new peace would
form. A peace that was created once more by their very love. It would
be that love that held the peace in place for thousands of years.

My cheeks were wet
when we stopped dancing. I did not understand the full meaning of the
song, but I knew that I did not want to think that this peace hadn't
happened and these poor people were still stuck in a loop of chaos
and death. I wiped my cheeks and stepped back from Dominic. I could
see in his eyes that something important was transpiring, but I
couldn't put my hand on it.

The music picked
back up into another song, this was a fast bouncy song.

I felt the urge to
lighten my mood and wanted so badly for these people with their
fangs, collars, spikes, ties, and other oddities, to be happy. I
started to bounce around Dominic, playfully. I messed with his
perfectly manicured hair and then slipped out of his reach. He played
with me and followed me into the crowd of bystanders.

My mood became
infectious and soon the room was moving with the beat. I had been
accepted amongst them and they knew I had accepted them. I finally
felt fully at home. I never wanted to leave.

The night passed
with my dancing with various different people of various different
ages and genders. I laughed and they laughed with me. I exhausted
myself. I was so tired I lied down in the booth. Dominic covered me
with a light blanket as he talked with a few people.

I listened as the
words colored my sleepy thoughts. “You really believe that she
doesn't know?”... “Has she been so sheltered?”...
“Why would they not tell her?” I couldn't hear his
responses, but I knew the feelings he would convey of the idiocy of
my family. I fell asleep.

When I woke up, I
was in my room at the castle.
How
did I get here?

I remembered the
night before with perfect clarity, so I knew Dominic didn't lie about
the liquid. I felt happy and yet sad. I could easily explain the
happiness I felt, but the sadness was a mystery. I got up to check my
email. There was one from Mike.

Emma.

I am glad that you
are enjoying Italy. It sounds like a bunch of fun. I am so sorry that
I do not have answers to the questions you asked. I have had only my
family until I found you, and that makes it hard to completely ignore
their wishes. Her name is Acacia- it means thorn and she has only
been kind to me. She is your age, but she has already had her change.
She doesn't really need to enroll in classes because she has tested
out of home school, but because she will be here she must be enrolled
for some funky reason. I think you would like her. Her family is from
Ireland – like mine. She speaks fluent Gaelic though, I think
it sounds awesome. I am glad that you have had some answers to the
questions that I cannot answer. Yes, I know about the “change”
but my family has sworn me to secrecy. I am sorry. But they say we
won't wait much longer, if that helps. I miss you, if you can believe
that. I know I suck right now. I hope one day this will all be clear.

Mike.

I sighed and shut
off my computer. I didn't want to read about how great this girl was.
I knew I didn't like her, but it wasn't her fault. I was still
dressed in last night's clothes so I changed into some yoga pants and
a huge gray sweatshirt. I washed the makeup off my face, and tied my
hair back into a pony tail.
Screw
him today. I am not writing back.

I glared at my
computer like it was the cause of this chaos in my life.
It's
your own fault for putting all your eggs in one basket!
I really hated my internal voice sometimes.

I grabbed my
Dracula
book and went downstairs. I went to the kitchen and put together my
breakfast picnic. I found a small pack and filled it with pastries,
fruit, and a bottle of apple juice. I took my pack and headed to the
beach.

I got to the edge of
the cliff and stared down. I knew I could do this. It was all about
landing. I tried to figure out another path down to that beach, but I
couldn't find one. I had taken tumbling classes and such, but jumping
off cliffs wasn't covered in that.

I thought about it
for a few minutes and decided that it was about fate. If I believed I
would be fine then I would be. I crouched down and took a breath. I
slid to the very edge and pushed my legs over the edge and down the
face. My arms held me to the wall and my feet clung to a very small
ledge. I must have looked like a huge spider. I took one more deep
breath and jumped.

I didn't die- but
both my feet hurt from absorbing the impact.
Clearly
didn't land that one correctly, Emma. Oh, shut up!
I was talking to myself. I must be losing my mind.

I walked in the
opposite direction from the cave and found a little cove. It
obviously wasn't disturbed often, so I decided this was a good spot.
I sat down in the warm sand, dug my feet in and felt the cool damp
sand underneath wrap around my toes. I slipped my pack off and began
to munch on the contents. I laid back and watched the clouds drift
across the sky. The sun was hiding now, and I wasn't sure if it
mattered. I was enjoying the solitude of this secret place.

I read a few pages
of
Dracula
and then I switched to lying on my stomach. I watched the waves roll
in and out. I tried not to think about everything with Mike, Dominic,
and last night. It was difficult, but I managed.

The sun moved on in
the sky, as I could see the bright bulb hiding behind a cloud toward
the west. I heard the footsteps before he said anything.

“
So, Emma, you
have found my beach.” He smiled at me.

“
I'm sorry,
but I thought it was a pleasant spot.” I looked up at him,
shielding my eyes from the brightness that hung behind him.

“
Oh,
no worries,
mia
bella
.
What's
mine is yours. I thought you might like some lunch, being that you
only took breakfast stuff.” He nodded toward my now empty pack.

“
Well, yes,
that would be nice.” I patted the sand next to me.

He sat close to me,
but did not lie down as I was. He put the bag of food between us and
noshed as he stared out into the sea.

“
What's wrong,
Dominic?” I sat up because his face looked concerned to me.

“
I was
thinking about how I still know so much about you because your
parents are always visiting and sharing news, but you know nothing of
me since we were children.” He looked over at me.

“
That isn't
entirely true. I know about you from what I have experienced. The
good and the bad.” I winked at him.

“
Yes, but you
do not know how I got to this point. I would like to share with you.
If you don't mind?” He looked back out to sea.

“
Of course, I
don't mind, you nut.” I laughed and punched him lightly in the
shoulder.

“
After we
left, I was miserable. Issy was sad but she made friends quickly. I
didn't want to make friends, I wanted to go back and be with you. It
took me some time before I got involved in our own culture. I became
deeply involved when my teenage years came to be. That was the time
when I was told the truth. I wanted to experience it all. I left home
and traveled. I went to see the places that we had stories about. I
talked with many scholars. Then I came home. I had a much better
understanding than my parents- certainly more than your parents. I
heard your prophecy. I knew I had to see you. The time wasn't right
though, you needed to be closer to your time of change. So, I went
and experienced my change. I celebrated it. I enjoyed it. And I
founded the club you went to last night. I created a safe haven for
our kind. I got the tattoos on my body from my travels, and I tried
to share the knowledge with those that came to my club. I never
forgot you. I never forgot what I felt when I was with you. I waited
until the time came and our families arranged it all. I was
overjoyed. The rest you know.” He continued to stare out at the
crashing sea.

I smiled at him. I
felt very important to have earned his confidence.

“
Dominic. You
are a very interesting person. I am glad that you came to talk to me.
Definitely more interesting than Dracula.” I smiled at him.

The rest of the
afternoon was passed sitting on the beach making small confessions
about our lives and such. He showed me how to get back up the cliff-
which I thought I'd surely die doing. Then we ate dinner and he told
me that we had been invited to attend a celebration for the change of
a close friend of both families. Of course I couldn't say no. He said
that it would be different slightly because they all knew about me
and wanted to include me in the affair. He also told me that I had a
dress waiting for me in my room. I wanted to rush up and find it, but
he said I had to wait until tomorrow. I would be wearing the dress
for most of the day and he didn't want me to get sick of it. I sighed
and agreed.

I went to my bedroom
and found a garment bag hanging on the back of the bathroom door. I
wanted to peek, but I didn't. Instead I went to bed.

My room was cold
when I awoke. It was raining and the darkness from outside had crept
into my very being. I got out of bed and stumbled to the bathroom. It
was nice and warm inside, so I greatly appreciated that. I took a
shower and felt a little better.
I
am getting so tired of that stupid dream and its constant shift. What
the heck happened to its stability?