Reaper101202

Time of My Life~3

Chapter one: Italy and weddings.

Bum, bum, bum-bum. Bum, bum, bum-bum. Yeah, I always get that confused with the death march too. But that didn't matter. I was humming the death march (much to my new step-brother, Seth's amusement) as I walked down the aisle on his arm. Hey, if I had to wear this puke-green dress then I get to hum whatever the fuck I want. And I doubt that Seth was all that pleased with how he had to wear a tux. My bio-brother definitely wasn't pleased. Then again, he was emo so he basically hated anything. I was wearing a puke-green dress that was shredded at the bottom quite fashionably and had red spaghetti straps. Then there was the teeny tiny bow at the waist that was red to match. Then I had to wear the red pumps to match my dress. Holy Jesus, I looked like a Christmas wreath!

My dad, Colin Green, was marrying my new step-mom, Sue Clearwater. Don't get me wrong; I love Sue to death. She doesn't take shit and she doesn't give it either so she's basically an older version of me. But I looked nothing like her whatsoever. I was pale while she was tan. I had bright red hair while she had black hair. I had green eyes while she had brown. I was carrying the bouquet of lilies as the bridesmaid (it's kind of a given when you're the new step-daughter) along with Sue's real daughter, Leah. Leah looked like a younger duplicate of her mom. Seth was the male version!

Meanwhile, my bio-brother, Jason, was totally into his emo look. He had dyed black hair and pale skin with his ears pierced (three hoops at the tips of his ears, one stud in the lobes) and basically a blank expression 24/7. I left Seth's side to go to Leah's side on Sue's side of the Alter. I gave her a small smile but she only scowled at me. Oh, great; I get the bitch for a step-sis. You see, my mom died six years ago when Jason and I were about nine years old. Despite my age, I was the sister. Jason was the brother. He tried not to show his emotion but that didn't matter; what mattered was that I saw his emotion. I helped him and dad get through that. Now dad and I were happy and Jason was kind of…left behind when the happy boat sailed off.

Don't get me wrong; he was totally waving us off from the dock. He did not board only because he wasn't willing to get on. Now he's in his emo state and I'm my own self. Seth and Leah; their dad died about two years ago of a heart attack. When I met them Seth and I were indifferent whereas Leah just plain-out hated me. Jason was his self and he and Leah were both indifferent to each other.

I curled my toes inside my pumps. Damn; Dr. Scholl was not helping right now! I'd tried putting the gel soles in the pumps but that did nothing about the pointed toes. I was totally toe-cramping here! I bit my clear-glossed lip and tried to hold in the scream I was building up. I was ready to just ninja-throw these shoes all the way into the wall on the opposite end of the church. That would've totally made Leah laugh, no doubt. But at the risk of ruining dad and Sue's wedding? No way. I stared at the door of the church right as the flower girl, Claire, skipped into the aisle with a smaller duplicate of mine and Leah's dress and a small wreath of flowers on her head. She was so adorable! Some adults laughed while I just smiled.

Then Sue came in…oh, man; she was beautiful. While my hair was spiked on either side of my face, hers was curled into curly locks and left over her shoulders. The veil was already hanging down the back of her head and her long satin white dress was strapless with a comfy looking bodice that seemed to be crinkled cotton with a satin sash separating the two parts.

You couldn't even see her feet with the puffy satin skirt but I had a feeling she'd done the right thing and gone barefoot. I smiled to myself as she came in. She was carrying her own bouquet of lilies. God, she was beautiful. I knew that if my mom were here, she'd approve of her. I could feel the tears well up in my eyes and thanked God that I had worn water-proof mascara. She approached the Alter and took my dad's arm. "We are gathered here…" The priest started off. But I zoned that part out. Instead I was just watching Sue and dad. They were so happy…

I bit my lips on the inside of my mouth as I felt a tear roll down my cheek. I quickly reached up and swiped it away. I saw Leah roll her eyes out of the corner of my eye. Oh, man; the only reason I wasn't jumping her with a blade right now was because of Sue. I watched as dad and Sue said their "I do's" and then kissed. My mind stopped zoning at that moment and I heard the applause of the crowd. There were especially loud cheers from Seth's friends. I saw that Sue was crying too. She smiled as Seth and I both came over to her. She grinned at me as I hugged her. I had no clue what to say. Welcome? Congrats? It all seemed so cliché so I just said something incredibly stupid. "Hi," I said. Seth, Sue, dad and I all broke out laughing at that along with some bystanders. "At the risk of sounding cliché and cheesy I welcome you to the family," I said, giving into my cheesiness. Sue laughed and hugged me again.

The photographer came after a few moments and took the family photos. When I looked later, I found out that Seth's friends had climbed into the photo and held up bunny ears behind him. The photographer took a few shots of Seth, Leah, Jason and me. Jason refused to smile so I cornered him at the reception party. "Damn it, Jason, what the fuck is your issue?" I hissed as I finally pulled off my shoes. Okay, so I lost some major height but hey, I've always been short stuff! "What are you talking about?" Jason asked, sounding bored. "Smile," I hissed at him. It wasn't advice; it was an order. "Excuse me if I don't want to fucking smile," Jason hissed back sarcastically. I ground my teeth and just knew that the angry look I had on my face was ruining the look. "Why the fuck not? This is good for dad and your bad attitude is just screwing it all up!" I hissed at Jason. He narrowed his eyes at me.

"I doubt that; he's going on perfectly without me smiling." He snapped at me. "He may be but I bet it would make him extremely happy if you just smiled." I snapped back. "Do you hate dad? Is that why you're doing this? You hate dad and me?" I growled at him. "Of course I don't hate him or you; but look at what you're doing, Alex!" Jason said and held out his arms to gesture at the surroundings. "All this without mom. You two have gone on and acted like mom never existed." Jason shot. I narrowed my eyes. "We didn't do this to act like mom never existed. You know damn well we remember and miss her. But at least we're trying to make it work. Would mom really want you to be so fucking emo all the fucking time?" I growled at him. At that Jason flinched. "Well, at least I haven't gone on and just accepted a replacement." Jason snapped back. He walked away with that, obviously done with the conversation.

I growled at the spot where Jason was a moment ago before walking back into the reception room where everyone else was. I plastered a fake smile on my face as I walked into the room. Soon enough it was pretty easy. Seth came over to where I was sitting and grabbed my hand. "No!" I cried out as he pulled me up. I couldn't help but laugh as he made me dance. "Why not? You got to dance," Seth said jokingly as he twirled me around. Sure enough I wasn't wearing my shoes so it was all cool! I noted that Sue wasn't either, just as I had assumed. "I guessed so," I said as we passed by her. I pointed at her feet to explain. She laughed. "Those shoes are killer!" She growled jokingly as dad spun her around. I nodded as Seth jokingly waltzed with me. I giggled as he passed me onto his friend, Paul. "Well, hello there!" He said.

Paul was obviously surprised. "Dance with her; I got to get something to eat," Seth said to Paul before walking away. Paul chuckled as he did the same as Seth. "So, you're Seth's new sister?" Paul asked. I nodded. "Otherwise I wouldn't be wearing this dress and I would've attacked Leah by now." I said. Paul chuckled as he gave me a twirl. "Obviously; most people don't attack Leah but I'm guessing she's been especially rude to you." He said and glanced in her direction. She scowled at us and I gave a small wave. She obviously heard.

"Oops," I giggled as Paul twirled me again. "Don't mind her; she's always like that." Paul snickered. I nodded. "Why?" I asked. Paul blanched at that. "Why what?" He asked. "Why's she always like that?" I asked. "Oh, it's complicated." Paul said and sighed. I rolled my eyes. Ever since I met Sue Clearwater, that phrase has come up more than it has ever come up in my life. "Uh-huh; one day you guys will have to tell me what's up." I said, smirking. Paul rolled his eyes. "Doubt it," He scoffed. Seth came by and whispered something into Paul's ear. "Someone wants to have a dance with you," Paul laughed and gave me a final twirl. Before I knew it I had ended up dancing with the bride. "Well, hello, Sue," I laughed as we playfully waltzed. "Fancy meeting you here," I chuckled. She laughed and nodded. "I wanted to say thank you; you've been so supportive." Sue said. "No big deal," I said. "You make dad happy so it's all cool," I said. "Thank you," Sue said and gave me a final hug before being pulled away by dad. Then I was alone…on the dance floor. I smiled sadly as I stepped off the dance floor. They'd be away on their honeymoon…why not?

PART B:

I heard the call for my plane at the airport. "Flight 103 to Italy; I repeat, flight 103 to Italy is now boarding." The person called over the PA. I smiled as I rushed forward. I may be young but that doesn't mean I don't have a fake ID. I've been told on more than one occasion that I could pass for a twenty year old when I'm actually fifteen years old. So I used my fake ID and got myself a plane ticket. We're not exactly the poorest family in the world…we're better off than most so I had my own account with my own money saved up. I had enough for room and board for a couple weeks. "May I see your ticket please?" The woman asked at the podium. I handed her my ticket and she smiled before giving it back. "Have a nice flight, Ms. Green," the woman said. I smiled and nodded before heading off. I had stopped at home and packed my bag, leaving a note for Jason and Seth and Leah.

The note said I needed a small break. I had added my cell phone number in case of an emergency. I had also changed into my outfit that I loved. I wore a gray men's V-neck along with a pair of black skinny jeans and a pair of flat black suede boots and my favorite black leather jacket. I had a couple weeks worth of clothes in my black leather duffel bag. I carried everything on carry-on. I had already bought my ticket for the flight back home online and so I was all set. It was open at all times; no specific date for me to be back.

I climbed the stairs onto the flight. My hair had gone straight since the wedding. It was just red chin-length hair with bangs that swept over my right eye. I have to admit, it looked good this way even if it was messy. I turned off my cell phone as soon as I got onto the plane. That was just regulation. I wouldn't ignore the calls if they called. That would just be mean and I hadn't left to ignore them. I had left just 'cause I had no reason not to. I smiled as I closed my eyes and buckled my seatbelt to prepare for takeoff.

By the time I woke up the flight was halfway through. I ordered a meal of lasagna and quickly ate it. "You may now turn your cell phones and electronic devices back on." The woman over the PA said right on cue. I smiled and turned my cell phone on. I had three messages.

I also had an incoming call. "Hello?" I whispered to the phone as I dove my fork into my lasagna. "What? Are you in a library or something?" Jason's voice snapped at me. I rolled my eyes. "Nope; plane," I said as I took a sip of my bottled soda. "Where are you heading?" Jason asked. "Italy," I said, smiling. I took the bite of my lasagna and gave a thumb up to the flight attendant. "Why are you going there?" Jason asked. I rolled my eyes. "'Cause I wanted to and dad and Sue are going on their honeymoon in China while I'm gone so there shouldn't be an issue." I said. "Did they already leave?" I asked. "Yeah, they left. They didn't even know you'd left." Jason said. I heard a muffled voice then the phone passed to someone else. "Where are you, Alex? Are you safe?" Seth's voice asked. I chuckled and rolled my eyes. "Yeah, I'm fine. I told you guys; I just wanted to leave for a bit." I said. Now that I thought about it a "break" seemed rather harsh to say. "Where are you going?" Seth asked. "Italy, why?" I asked as I took another bite of lasagna. "What part of Italy?" Seth asked urgently. "Volterra, jeez," I said. "I heard they have a castle and I want to check it out." I said.

"No! Don't check out the castle; whatever you do, stay away from the castle." Seth said urgently. "What?" I heard someone shout from the background. "Why? It sounds cool," I said as I finished off my lasagna. The flight attendant came over and took my plate. "Thanks; it was excellent," I said to the attendant. "You just have to, Alex. Don't go to the Volterra castle, no matter what." Seth growled into the phone. I rolled my eyes and sighed. "I guess I won't. There might be something better to look at, I guess." I said. Hey, he wasn't all Leah-like to me so I guess it was the least I could do. "You want a souvenir or something?" I asked. Seth sighed in relief and chuckled. "Sure thing," Seth chuckled. I rolled my eyes. "Okay, I'll get you a souvenir." I said. "Now descending to Italy," The person over the PA said. "Oh, got to go! I'll see you when I get back." I said before hanging up. I hadn't taken my seatbelt off once so I guess I didn't need to do much to prepare for the descent.

Finally we got off the plane and I instantly noticed that it was a hell of a lot brighter here. I dug through my duffel bag before retracting a pair of sunglasses and placing them on my face. I quickly hailed a cab and gave the address of the hotel I had reservations at. I reached the hotel and was sent up to my room. Oh, man. It was beautiful. I felt like I was in a mafia movie or something. The room was drab yet classical at the same time. It had a wrought iron railing around the balcony and a single bed. There was a pair of curtains veiling the glass doors that led to the balcony. There was a single dresser on the side of the room opposite of the bed. It was all so…peaceful. I quickly dropped my duffel bag by the bed and pulled out my toiletry bag and towel before heading to the bathroom. After a quick shower I practically did a Wonder Woman and changed into a pair of jeans along with a black T-shirt and my black leather jacket. By the time I was in my boots there was a knock at the door. "Ciao," I said to the room service.

"Pranzo in omaggio," The room service dude said. Complimentary lunch, eh? I smiled as I accepted the food. "Grazie," I said as I reached into my wallet and pulled out a twenty dollar bill. "Spiacenti per l'inconveniente," I said. "Nessun disagio," The dude said, waving it off. Sorry; I said "sorry for the inconvenience" (because I had an American twenty) and he said "no inconvenience". He turned to leave but I stopped him, my curiosity getting to me. "Scusi!" I cried out, holding a hand out to stop him. He turned back and looked at me politely. "Se cosa c'è di sbagliato con il castello di Volterra?" I asked. Translation: do you know what's wrong with the Volterra castle? "Si; ci sono miti che spaventare alcune persone." He said. Myths? Translation: yes, there are myths that scare some people. "Miti? Che tipo di miti?" I asked. Translation: myths? What kind of myths? The dude glanced around to check if there was someone around. "Vampiri," He whispered. Vampires…huh?

"Pura fantasia," I said, waving it off. (Pure fantasy.) The dude chuckled. "Si, la fantasia. Tuttavia la gente ci crede." He said. (Yes, fantasy. However people believe it.) I nodded. "Grazie per le informazioni. I'll essure sicuri di mettere a buon uso." I said. (Thanks for the information. I'll be sure to put it to good use.) "Buona giornata." He said before leaving, giving me a wary glance. I went over to my complimentary lunch and gazed at the lasagna admiringly. Okay, I'll admit it; I love pasta!

I glanced around at the crowds of Volterra, smiling. Vampires in Volterra? No way. Sure there was that old saint that chased away all of the vampires but that didn't mean vampires were real. Unless, it was a bunch of old murderers that went around drinking blood like Dracula. Dracula was an old man who believed that he could gain immortal life by drinking and bathing in blood. I sighed as I approached one of the vendors. I had exchanged my American money for the currency for Italy. I bought a small silver gondola charm that was hanging off a leather string. I hoped that Leah would be cool about it. Then again, I didn't know about her. I mean, she doesn't seem very materialistic but still…every girl loves a necklace. Even one with as cold a heart as Leah. I smiled and placed the necklace in my purse.

Next I bought a snow globe of the Volterra castle for Seth (he just seemed to love the castle) then a pair of matching dog-tags for Jason and Seth together. I also bought Jason a t-shirt that said "My sibling went to Volterra and only got me this crappy T-shirt. Yeah, they can go die in a ditch." It seemed like something he'd say. I bought an apron for my dad (he loved to cook) and a chain coin necklace for Sue. I just had to buy one of the super cool jackets for Sue and Leah. I was nearing my end by the time that the sun went down. I smirked as I looked up at the Italian night sky. It was so much clearer than in Forks…

"Ciao," A woman's voice said. No, it was better than a woman's voice. It was like a soft soprano… "Would you like a tour of the Volterra castle?" The woman asked me. But no…she was so different from a woman. She had inhuman beauty and she sure as hell didn't look like a tour guide. She was so pale you couldn't even dare compare her to snow. She had long dark hair and the oddest part about her was her eyes. They were so…red. "I'm sorry; no. I have to get back to my hotel." I said. The…thing looked disappointed but shrugged it off. "Very well; perhaps another day," She said in a thick Italian accent. I nodded, trying to give off my best fake smile. But truth was…she was beyond scary. I gripped onto one of the woman's followers. She looked at me in shock. "I beg of you; don't follow her." I said to her, glancing at the thing. She was sending me a death glare. I didn't want to be here anymore. "I mean; I just want someone to walk me to my hotel. I'm kind of scared of the night." I said, blushing. The woman glanced between me and the thing. Then she shook me off and began to follow the thing to the castle.

I could almost swear that I saw the thing flash a smug smirk at me before heading off. But it was so fleeting that I'd most likely lose that bet. I flinched as she and the people began to walk off. I don't know why but I felt so fearful and so sorry for those people…

I turned and began to walk away just as the thing led the people into the castle. Then I don't know how I was the only one to hear it but then I heard the screams. I stared at the castle in shock and horror. Did I just let that woman walk into her death trap? I felt my throat close and my stomach dropped. "Holy…." I said. I was definitely leaving now. I ran to my hotel and ran into my hotel room. I would leave first thing in the morning. That woman; she couldn't go into the sunlight. I packed up my stuff. It had only been a few days since I'd gotten here. I checked my purse and sure enough everyone's souvenirs were there. Vampires…they were real.

I walked up to my spot in line at that time. But then the worst thing possible happened. "I'm sorry but flight 103 to Forks, Washington has been cancelled." The woman said over the PA. I flinched as soon as the woman began repeating the message in Italian then English again. "When will it be available again?" I asked the woman. "I have no clue when. I'm sorry," The woman said. I nodded. "Can you call me as soon as the flight is available again?" I asked the woman, giving her a pleading look. She must've taken my look seriously seeing as she nodded and took my number. "Thank you," I said. I went back to my hotel and waited.

The flight wasn't available again for three days. I spent those three days….just sitting in fear.