• CHAPTER 28 - I'M ENGAGED TO A VAMPIRE, NOW WHAT?

    You've made the best decision of your life but you're stuck...what do you do? Panic.

    So, Matsuda and Orihime took Takeuchi to wherever Miku lives so that he could stay the night and have dinner with them. Kira was still in the city after over a week and after he nearly killed me by sucking me dry, and now I'm...engaged...to his brother. That word doesn't feel right, it feels weird. Engaged. Fiancée. Marriage.

    Kai came into the bedroom after noticing my long dormancy. I was still lying on the bed with my hand to my forehead. Kai sat next to me and looked down at me and rose an eyebrow.

    "You okay?"

    I closed my eyes and nodded. I felt okay, but at the same time, I felt sick to my stomach. Kai slid his hand onto my forehead, slipping my hand off of my forehead.

    "You don't have a fever," he said.

    He seemed to be able to hide his nervousness, or ecxitement, better than I can. I looked at his other hand and he was holding little Momo securely against his torso, taking away the manly appearance he donned. I sat up while laughing at him and took Momo from him while he sighed and looked away. Momo seemed pretty tired; he curled up on my lap without hesitation and was out like a light. I stroked his silky-soft head and turned towards Kai again.

    "Thank you again," I said, "For everything."

    "It's nothing," he shrugged.

    "It's everything," I argued kindly.

    "I could have gotten you something else," he suggested.

    I thought for a moment and came up with the perfect idea, "You should have gotten me a party cast," I demanded.

    Kai stared at me with one eyebrow raised, "A what?"

    "A party cast," I raised my right arm, "For my arm."

    Kai snorted, "What the Hell is a party cast?"

    "You know, a mini T.V. installed...blinky lights...Twix dispenser," I spun my finger in little circles at the part of the cast my dispenser would go. Kai frowned at me and I interrupted him, "You said before that you have the money."

    "I ain't giving you no damn party cast," Kai sighed.

    I stared at him for a moment longer at the purple rings under his eyes again. I sighed and frowned at him, "Kai, get to sleep,"

    "I'm fine," he scoffed.

    "No you're not. Go ahead and sleep, Matsuda and Orihime will be a couple more hours." Kai stared at me unpleasantly. I rolled my eyes, "I'll be right here."

    It took a little longer and a little beating to finally get Kai to sleep. I kept my promise and stayed within the area of the room, trapped with no other than Momo who I am dragging into becoming a victim of Kai's protectiveness. I cruised around the room in silence, cleaning out of boredom while waiting for Matsuda and Orihime to come back and watching Kai sleep. He still had that childish peaceful face whenever he was sleeping, no matter how disturbed he was.

    ~*~*~*~*~*~

    "Seriously, you guys, you don't have to take us here," I panicked as we stood in front of one of the most expensive restaurants in Japan. I was freaking out again that they were spending so much money in one day.

    "It's all right, Arisa," Matsuda reassured, "It's just dinner."

    Yeah, probably a dinner that will cost more than I will make in a year with my waitressing job. Even though I was dressed more formal than I usually do, I still looked too casual compared to everybody else walking inside. Kai was wearing his typical black khakis and a dark olive-green collared shirt halfway tucked in. Matsuda and Orihime entered, linking arms and I looked up at Kai.

    "Should I wrap my arm around yours?" I whispered.

    "Just hold my hand," he whispered back, a little agitated with either Matsuda and Orihime or me and when he said that, he grabbed onto my hand.

    After waiting for nearly fourty-five minutes and some small disagreements with Kai, we finally got our seat and waited patiently for our food after we ordered. Our food had finally arrived and I ate mine properly...like a good little girl.

    "Hey, Orihime?" I asked and Orihime turned her attention towards me, "Did you and Matsuda adopt Kai, Kira and Takeuchi or something?"

    Matsuda and Orihime nearly choked on their food, "Good Lord, no!" laughed Orihime.

    "What gave you that idea?" Matsuda asked curiously.

    "Um, I just was curious. They've been living with you for all this time and they're younger than you...they're immature enough."

    "Hey," said Kai, getting irritated with me. He didn't find the adoption thing as funny as Matsuda and Orihime did.

    "So, um," Orihime started, sounding as though she were trying to suppress a laugh, "What is this we hear about a hickey?" and she nearly lost it.

    I spat my tea back into my glass after nearly choking on it. Kai put down his chopsticks and buried his face in his hands and I copied him soon after than while Orihime and Matsuda did the best they could to keep their laughter quiet.

    "There's no hickey," Kai reassured.

    "Are you sure?" Matsuda asked, "Becasue we heard Takeuchi congratulating you and he was talking about it on the way to Miku's."

    I lowered my head onto the table and groaned. For some reason, I wasn't feeling wrong from the fact that Matsuda and Orihime found out about that love mark Kai managed to make on my neck without his fangs, but that I really felt sick, and I could feel something wrong. Kai sighed and closed his eyes, subtle red in his cheeks.

    "Kai?" I breathed barely above a whisper.

    Kai turned his attention towards me and his face filled with worry, "What's wrong?"

    I must have looked worse than I felt, "I think I'm sick," I groaned, wrapping my arms around my stomach.

    Before Kai could react again, I sprinted to the closest bathroom, thankful it was right around the corner. I didn't hear Kai come in after me, but he gently pulled my hair back as I did my sick business in the toilet.

    "You need to lay off the alcohol," Kai joked.

    I ignored his joke and continued my business, niether of us paying attention to the woman who walked by our open stall startled at the fact that there was a man in the woman's bathroom. Kai rubbed my back gently and kissed my shoulder.

    "Just take your time," he whispered.

    I finished my business and Kai supported me at the sink as I rinsed out my mouth twenty times. Kai reached for some paper towels and dabbed my forehead and frowned.

    "Wow, your forehead is going to burn my hand off,"

    "I'm sorry," I moaned, "I ruined our dinner."

    "We were almost done anyways. You did nothing wrong."

    My hand shook like crazy from weakness as I moved my bangs from my face and my forehead was sweating up a storm. Kai chuckled, "You're as pale as I am,"

    Holy crap I really was sick.

    ~*~*~*~*~*~

    I released Matsuda and Orihime before Kai and I so that they could get to their car first and take off so they wouldn't have to walk at my pace. Kai and I sat at our table for a little longer and Kai sat me on his lap so I could press my forehead against his neck. I finally told him I would be able to make it to the car and we left the restaurant. Kai kept one strong arm around my shoulders for support in case I would collapse.

    "You sure you'd rather me not carry you?" Kai asked once again.

    "I'm sure. I'm fine." I sighed.

    We walked in silence for a little bit longer until a question came up, "Should we tell Matsuda and Orhime about...us?" I asked hesitantly.

    "What do you mean?" Kai looked down at me and raised an eyebrow.

    "About us...you know...bloody kiss thing?" I blushed, although it probaby didn't even show up in my pale cheeks.

    "Oh," Kai said and he extended the silence again, "Not unless you want to."

    I sighed in relief. I wasn't ready at all to tell Matsuda and Orihime, not until I can get adjusted. It really didn't feel that different unless I would really get into it when I thought about it. My train of thought was knocked off course when a deafening shriek shattered the twilight of the Christmas night.

    I pressed myself against Kai's side and he held me closer, "What was that?"

    "Something not good," Kai stated the obvious.

    "I know that!" I shouted at him, "We need to see if she's okay!"

    "You're too sick," Kai burrowed his eyebrows together.

    "I don't care! Somebody could be hurt!" I was surprised at how serious I was taking somebody's agony.

    Kai stared at me for a moment, searching my eyes to see if I were telling the truth. He sighed and scooped me up into his arms and walked quickly to where we heard the shirek. It took us to an alley where the screaming was dying down gradually. Kai lowered me onto my feet but still held me close to his side as we stood at the end of the alley. There were two figures I couldn't make out; a girl no older than I was lying on her back on the snowy ground, struggling without success, and a man above her, leaning down at her neck.

    "Vampire," Kai whispered under his breath.

    I was horrified at what I was seeing. There was blood that started where Kai and I were standing and it trailed down to where the two figures were. At first the Vampire didn't acknowledge our presence, not until he was done with his meal. He stood up with his back towards us, leaving the girl's body lie lifeless on the ground. I'd have thought Kai would pick me up again and we would take off, but he didn't seem to move any more than I did. The man turned around dramatically and the familiar, red, glistening eyes made me collapse onto the ground with a high-pitched shriek. Kai broke my fall and kneeled on the ground and held me up but never took his eyes off of the Vampire.

    "Kira?" Kai breathed.

    I coverd my mouth, afraid of vomiting again and afraid of letting out another shriek. Kai buried my face in his chest and held me to him as close as he could as Kira made his way towards us. Kira stopped in front of us for several seconds and I could tell he was looking down at us. After a while, I could feel Kai nod once slowly and the next time I looked in front of us, Kira was gone. When I knew it was safe, I let out a cry and sobbed on Kai's shoulder at what I had just witnessed.

    "Kai? That--" I cut myself short as I started hyperventilating.

    "Yes, it was Kira," Kai answered my thoughts.

    "He just...I don't...," I didn't understand anything.

    I didn't understand myself at first, how I was overreacting more to Kira killing somebody than when Kai brutally murdered a Werewolf boy in front of me. Until I did the math; this girl was a human. And Kira just ate her alive, sucked her dry for no purpose except for his own uncontrollable craving.

    "Welcome to a Vampire's life," said Kai.

    I continued to cry and I wanted to find Kira, talk with him, but I knew it would only kill me in the process. How did this holiday night turn out so abrupt? What went wrong to start all this Vampire crap? I didn't notice Kai pick me up and put me in his car until we were already halfway home. Kai was lightly playing with my fingers that were sticking out of my arm cast--which I probably didn't need anymore--and was just as silent as I was. I wrapped my free arm around my stomach and groaned again. Before I said anything, Kai rolled down my window so I could get some fresh cold air in my system.

    "I'm sorry," Kai finally spoke.

    "It's not your fault. It just startled me." I said with a shaky voice.

    "You've already seen that side of me. I didn't want you to see that side of Kira either." Kai sounded traumatized.

    I turned my attention to Kai as he gripped my fingers, not able to hold my entire right hand yet, "Arisa, that was almost you," Kai hissed through his clenched jaw, "You were so goddamn close to meeting the same fate as that girl."

    I ignored him and faced the window, letting the breeze pass through my hair and over my forehead. I didn't want to think about it anymore, I was done with tragedies. I was done with blood being spilled, deaths on the news, pain of myself and others. I was done with everything.

    ~*~*~*~*~*~

    I looked down in silence as Matsuda removed my cast...finally. Kai stood nearby, but looked away in as much silence as I did. Matsuda didn't even try to make conversation the whole time. He knew something was wrong other than my sickness and he opted to let Kai and I think to ourselves. I finally made my way up to the bathroom and bedroom and collapsed as soon as I got into my pajamas, leaving my evening clothes on the ground. After a few minutes when I was almost alseep, I heard a subtle poof and Kai was standing at the bed next to me. I was about to move over to invite him onto the bed but he teleported onto the bed next to me so I wouldn't have to waste too much effort. I flipped myself over so I could watch him face-to-face and we only stared at each other for so long.

    "Arisa," Kai broke the silence, "I've done worse."

    "You had a purpose," I whispered.

    "You've seen the worst of Kira and I,"

    "Then I know what a true Vampire is, I know what to expect of other Vampries,"

    Kai didn't say anything else as he reached under the covers for my hand and he pressed the palm of my hand against his cheek.

    "Kai, Kira almost killed me," I whispered again.

    "I almost killed you!" Kai shouted, his eyes frustrated and purple, on the verge of turning red, "When I first attacked you!"

    "Kira wanted to kill me,"

    "As did I!" Kai's eyes were red, "That was my only intention when I bit you for the first time!"

    "But you didn't," I halfway glared at Kai, "And you made the stupid assumption of saying I'd be better off with Kira." I hissed.

    "You would be," Kai whispered.

    "No I wouldn't! He wants to kill me!" tears brimmed my eyes, "I love you, Kai! I don't care if you're a Vampire or not!"

    I slid myself closer to Kai, not caring if he would allow it or not. I slipped my arms around his torso in his unbuttoned shirt and pressed myself against his cool body and my forehead against his neck again, trying to cool down my fever.

    Kai stroked my back, "I'm sorry. You're sick."

    "Quit trying to convince me you're not good enough. Quit trying to sound like the bad guy." I sobbed.

    Kai said nothing, only making me assume that he wasn't savvy with it. This holiday or this newborn engagement wasn't working, it wasn't starting out right. I didn't want our lives together to start out like this. I pressed myself against Kai harder and he continued to stroke my back as my fever started taking over and I passed out, tears still streaming down my pale cheeks.