The Week I Was A Vampire (19 page)

             
“Gotta keep the attractive family tree going,” Jude teased and Daniel chuckled.

             
“Something like that,” he said, “although I’ll admit I was hoping you’d fall madly in love with me.”

             
“We’ve got time,” Jude said.  “Besides, if I don’t fall in love with you, Lux no doubt will.”

             
Daniel frowned and a sick feeling erupted inside Jude.

             
“You know,” she said, “don’t you?”

             
Daniel nodded and watched Jude take a shaky breath.

             
“Last night,” he said, “Tess was here talking to her about it.  I had my suspicions, but it was difficult to get a true scent with all that perfumed stuff she’s always wearing.”

             
Jude smiled, but it was nothing but bitter.

             
“If there was any justice in the world,” Jude said, “it’d of been Lux you saw at the lake house and not me.  If anyone should get to live forever, it’s that girl.”

             
“Actually,” Daniel said, “I did see her first.  Purple hair is kind of hard to miss.”

             
Jude chuckled, thinking about the wacky hair colors Lux had sported throughout the years.

             
“She’ll be okay,” Jude said.  “She’s going to make it through just like I’m going to make it through.  We’re both too stubborn to quit.”

             
“That’s the spirit,” Daniel said and then inclined his head politely.  “Goodnight, Jude.”

             
“Goodnight, Daniel,” she said.  “Please thank Daphne for throwing me a party when she, you know.”

             
Daniel chuckled and nodded.

             
“I will.”

             
He disappeared out the window and Jude stood staring at the spot he’d once occupied before she readjusted the blanket covering her window and prepared for bed.

            
 
Only twenty-four hours
,
she told herself as she started to doze off.
 
Only twenty-four hours and I’ll be human again.

            
 
Somewhere in the back of her mind, she wondered if she really wanted that anymore.

Sunday Morning

Cross My Heart

Jude woke up feeling more like a vampire than she had all week.  The sun was too harsh, her brother’s music was too loud, and even the lightbulbs in her room were too much for her to handle.  She suddenly understood why Mafe kept the Ward household so gloomy. 

            
 
Being a vampire sucks
,
Jude thought as she got ready for church, not even in the mood to laugh at her own, unintentional joke.  Lux would’ve laughed, she knew that, but she tried to avoid thoughts pertaining to Lux because they only made her think of her best friend who was dying.

             
Jude fixed her cross necklace around her neck, wincing only slightly as it settled onto her skin.  Across the hall, Simon was attempting to control his unruly dark hair as he emerged from his room.

             
“Do I look halfway presentable?” he asked, holding his arms out and spinning around.

             
Jude shrugged before replying.

             
“Maybe a quarter presentable,” she said and Simon sneered at her before following her down the stairs.  Their parents stood waiting in the foyer, both dressed and ready to go.  Jude hugged them both before pulling on her jacket, adding a scarf and gloves for effect.

             
“You kids didn’t have too much fun while we were gone,” Meredith asked as her husband drove them to church, “did you?”

             
“Nope,” Simon said, beating Jude to the punch.  “I didn’t burn the house down and Jude caught the flu.”

             
Meredith turned in her seat to look at her daughter, frowning as she took in her appearance.

             
“You are looking a bit pale,” she said and reached out to touch Jude’s forehead, but she swatted her mother’s hand away.

             
“I’m fine, mom,” Jude said.  “I went in to school on Thursday to take an English test, but that was not the smartest move.  Come Friday afternoon, though, I felt fine and Mr. Harmon said I could take a makeup test.”

             
“Alright,” Meredith said, “if you’re sure you’re okay.”

             
“Why did they never believe me when I said I had the flu?” Simon muttered to Jude who smiled.

             
“I’m a better actress,” she said and winked at her brother.  He glared at her playfully as they pulled up to the church, stepping up as the gentleman and opening his mother’s door for her.

             
“You’d think,” Jude said as her father held open her door, “that’d he at least have a girlfriend with all the training in chivalry and dance he has.  But no, he doesn’t.  He has his video games and he has his music.”

             
“I’m fine with that,” Marcus Carstairs said as his daughter looped her arm through his.  “If he got a girlfriend, I’d have to have The Talk with him.”

             
“I hate to break it to you dad,” Jude said, “but he was a teenager at a public high school.  He’s already had The Talk.”

             
Marcus groaned in good humor before patting his daughter’s hand.

             
“So long as you haven’t had The Talk, I think we’re good.”

             
Jude held up a three fingered salute, making her father smile.

             
Meredith and Simon joined them and together, the Carstairs family headed towards the front door of the church where a steady stream of people were filing in.

             
All the while, Jude was praying
,
Please don’t let me go up in flames.

•§•

“Pancakes?” Meredith said, watching her children bump into each other as they tried to cook Sunday brunch.

             
“Something wrong with pancakes?” asked Simon, looking down at the sizzling griddle where a row of flapjacks were already cooking away.

             
“Yes,” Jude said, picking up the jar of chocolate chips and hip bumping her brother out of the way.  “You don’t have nearly enough chocolate chips.”  She proceeded to add an extra smattering of chocolate chips to the pancakes, laughing when Simon caught a few mid-air and popped them into his mouth.

             
“Alright,” Meredith said, not caring what was made for brunch so long as her children were getting along, “I’ll leave you two chefs to it.”

             
“I’m the chef,” Jude said and pointed to Simon.  “He’s just my minion.”

             
“Please,” Simon said, turning away from the griddle to slice some fruit.  “Minions, for your information, are usually brain dead individuals, or at least wackos.”

             
“Sounds very scientific,” Jude teased as she whipped up a batch of vanilla flavored whipped cream.

             
Simon glowered.

             
“Like Renfield,” he said suddenly.  “The guy was a total loony and he was a minion.”

             
Jude frowned, wondering why the name sounded familiar.

             
Simon noticed and sighed dramatically.

             
“For someone who hangs out with a girl like Lux,” he said, “I’m amazed you don’t know who Renfield is.  Dracula’s minion?  He ate bugs, sis.”

             
Jude burst out laughing as she spun around to flip the pancakes, taking a deep whiff of the melted chocolate tainted with only a hint of Simon’s blood.  For once, she was thankful for the cheap and pungent cologne he liked to bathe in.

             
“Have you been watching too many Mel Brooks movies?” Jude teased, remembering where she’d heard the name.  “I remember Renfield being a fairly incompetent individual.  Hardly an effective minion.”

             
“You never called me an effective minion,” Simon said, tossing the chopped fruit into a bowl.

             
Jude smiled.

             
“So you’re my Renfield?” she said and Simon groaned, shaking his head and muttering about his sister being a lost cause.

             
“Just get mom and dad,” he said.  “Brunch is ready.”

             
Jude handed over the spatula as she stepped around her brother, finding her parents in the living room and letting them know it was time for pancakes.

             
As the Carstairs family ate, the parents telling their children about their week away, Jude couldn’t help but be impressed with herself.

            
 
I haven’t felt hungry once today
,
she thought, recalling how she hadn’t felt even the slightest brush of hunger while at church.
 
Maybe it’s over now.  Maybe the cravings aren’t as bad as everyone though.

            
 
“Jude?  Jude?”

             
“Yes?” Jude said, snapping to attention and looking at her mother who was staring intently at her.

             
Meredith’s gaze shifted to her son for a moment before turning back to her daughter.

             
“I was going to ask you what you’d like to do to celebrate your birthday,” she said, “but you seemed a little lost in thought.  Were you thinking about that boy your brother mentioned?”

             
“Boy?” Jude said, looking over at Simon and trying to figure out who he was talking about.  “What boy?”

             
“Jemima’s brother,” he said.  “Looks like a ponce to me with his suits and perfect hair, but if that’s your thing, sis, have at it.”

             
“Wearing suits and taking care of your physical appearance does not make you a ponce,” Jude shot back before stuffing her mouth with pancakes.

             
Meredith continued to stare at her daughter and Jude knew she wasn’t off the hook yet.

             
“Daniel,” she said, swallowing and then taking a sip of orange juice.  “His name’s Daniel Ward.  He just moved here last week.  No big deal.”

             
“So it’s not serious?” Meredith said and Jude choked down a laugh as her father looked at his wife with a horrified expression.

             
“Dad,” Jude said, “relax.  There’s definitely some interest, but we’ve agreed to get to know each other a little more before we even think of the possibility of dating.”
 
Or living forever as a vampire couple
,
she silently added, deciding her parents would freak if they heard that tidbit of information.

             
“You can date,” Marcus said, although his tone said he’d rather his little girl not date until he was dead, “but I want to meet him before then.”

             
“Absolutely,” Jude said and toasted her father with her orange juice.  “I expect him to receive a full interrogation and feel free to threaten to bury him in the woods out back if he hurts me.”

             
“Would he?” Meredith said, latching onto the end of Jude’s statement.  “Would he hurt you?”

             
Jude didn’t hesitate before answering.

             
“No mom,” she said, “Daniel would never hurt me.  Next to dad, I think he’s one of the best guys I know.”

             
“Gee, thanks,” Simon said from across the table.

             
Jude sneered at him.

             
“You’re not a guy,” she said.  “You’re like a mutant that crawled out of the toxic goo that’s in your bedroom.”

             
Simon tossed his fork onto his plate with a clatter and rose from his chair.

             
“That’s it,” he said, “you’re going to get it.”

             
He dashed around the table and Jude rose calmly, ducking around him as he tried to grab her.  Grabbing his arm, she spun him around before gracefully shoving him into her chair as her parents looked on.

             
Simon stared up at her, surprise on his face.  He rubbed his chest tenderly as he stood, looking curiously at his sister.

             
“You’ve gotten stronger,” he said, a suspicious tone to his voice.

             
Jude shrugged.

             
“Lux has me participating in this thing called dance class now,” Jude lied and smiled at her parents.  “Who knew dancing could increase your coordination and strength?  I feel like a new person.”

             
Meredith and Marcus smiled, but Simon continued to frown as he grabbed Jude’s empty plate and stalked off towards the kitchen.

             
Jude shrugged at her parents before clearing the rest of the table, depositing the dishes in the kitchen for Simon to help her wash.  But when she arrived in the kitchen, Simon was gone and a scan of the house with her hearing said he was upstairs in his room.  With a sigh, Jude dropped the dishes on the counter and headed upstairs, knocking on his door with enough force she could’ve splintered it if she’d hit just a little bit harder.

             
“I get it,” Simon yelled in her face when his door swung open.  “You’re like, the freaking Hulk and I’m just weakling Simon.  You get to hang with Lux and her friends and if I’m not in my room, I’m teaching kindergarteners how to dance.  You’ve been hanging out with the cool new kids who won’t even give me the time of day.  I get it, Jude.  You’re so much cooler than me, but that doesn’t mean you can rub it in my face.”

             
Simon went to slam his door, but Jude caught it, holding it open.  Simon stared at her and she frowned, mouth puckering.

             
“Is that what you think?” she said.  “That I’m cooler than you?  You know, when we were in school together, everyone wanted to be your friend.  People would talk to me, but only to ask about you.  I grew up wanting to be you and it made me so mad that these people wanted to be your friend, but you’d just brush them off.  Why?”

             
Simon flushed and stepped away from the door, retreating into the depths of his room.  Jude took that as an open invitation to follow and stepped inside, closing the door and letting her eyes adjust to the dimness that was Simon’s room.

             
The walls were painted black and covered in a myriad of posters.  A small bookshelf was overflowing with video games and memorabilia from events Jude had never heard of.  The windows were covered with black sheets and in the center of the room sat Simon’s bed, covered in a black duvet speckled with crumbs.  Jude opted to remain standing as Simon sat down in the midst of his black room, his feet knocking over a pile of clothes gathered on the floor.