None of this was supposed to happen: CH. 1

CHAPTER ONE

Stars sprinkled in the sky as I raced down the abandoned street. My car humming along to the crunch of gravel beneath its tires. Suddenly, the blue 2002 truck bumps from a large rock in the road and I cry out, pathetically. I clutch my pale hand tighter to the dirty cloth pressing against my bloody shoulder, blood pouring over my fingers.

I press harder on the petal, forcing the car to move faster than it was intended for. My shoulder stings sharply and I start to feel dizzy making the dark trees blur together. *You're almost there, come on, two minutes and you're there.* the song, Thunderstruck from AC/DC, plays loudly in the background. But between the sound of my heart beating and my head pounding against my skull I could barely hear it.

As more trees blur together, I swerve off to the side for a second.

"Dammit." I mutter as I rush back onto the street trying to focus my eyes on the road. Finally, I see it and relief washes over me. For a second, I want to smile but then suddenly the car crashes into something. I'm so out of it, I can't comprehend on what exactly I hit.

I stumble, almost drunken like, out of the car slamming the door behind me. A man in a scruffy beard and an old baseball hat rushes out of the house in front of me.

He runs as he yells, "What in the hell, is going…." His voice trails off as he gets closer and he stops only feet away from me. I lean on my uninjured arm against the hood of the car. When I speak, my voice comes out tired and almost slurred.

"Hey, Bobby."

"Natalie?" I'm too tired to speak again and instead smile wearily at him, readjusting the soaked cloth on my shoulder. Bobby's eyes flicker towards it and walks forward, immediately putting his arm under me and I put half, if not most of my weight onto it.

We hobble over and inside the house, Bobby eventually dropping me onto a hard arm chair and I groan. In minutes, he comes out with hot water and some small tools. When he sits down, I move my hand out of the way exposing my bloody shoulder.

"Are you going to tell me what happened or just sit there with that stupid look on your face?" Bobby says gruffly, pulling out a wet cloth. I don't say anything and eventually the silence becomes unbearable.

I force a laugh and say, "You know me Bobby, just getting myself into trouble as always." He glares at me and I shift uncomfortably in my seat as he finishes up sewing the giant claw shaped gash on my arm, "Werewolf." I finally tell him and he angrily puts the needle down.

"So, what happened?" He asked,

"I told you, already-"

"You know what I mean." His glare made me uncomfortable and I glanced over his shoulder. Anything to not feel like a little kid being scolded by her father. He sighs and starts wrapping gauze around my injured arm.

"I don't know, Bobby, I tried so hard. I tried. I don't even know why I went after that stupid Werewolf in the first place."

"I tell you why, you idjit, it's because it's who you are. Even though you are so deathly scared of every monster or demon that you fight, you are still a hunter. A damn good one too." He breaths heavy and I look at him, "If you'll just get that through your thick skull and stop running from who you are…" He trails off, he looks more disappointed than upset and my stomach drops.

"Look, I'm sorry, okay? I'm sorry." I shift in my chair favoring my shoulder as Bobby leans back in the seat across from me. It's quiet for a while, just us two staring at one another like idiots twiddling their thumbs.

Finally Bobby gets up and taps my knee, saying,

"You should get some sleep."

And then he left.

If I had the strength I'd smack the back of my head for being such an idiot and getting myself hurt. I can't help but feel tired. Tired of this job, of this life, of all of it. No matter what I do, no matter how many times I try to give up and live normal something always seems to bring me back in.

I can only imagine what my big brother, Josh, would be saying right now. He'd sit me down and stare at me all stern and rough and finally he'd give this short speech about how being a hunter is more than just a way of life. Sometimes Bobby would remind me of him. Then Josh's serious face would wash away because he'd never be able to keep it on longer than a minute and then he'd laugh.

I miss his laugh the most.

I shake my head but it was too late. I could already see Josh's goofy grin and the way his eyebrows would furrow together when he was mad. He was more family to me than anything.

I was 14 and Josh woke me up in the middle of the night. He kneeled at the edge of my bed, his hand resting on my shoulder for comfort. He looked excited, wild even. Just like he always did when he found a hunt.

"Hi," I said groggily, rubbing my eyes with the back of my hand. He smiles.

"Hey,"

"What are you-" I cut myself short when I see the green duffle bag lying next to his feet. He was going on a hunt. I remember hating this the most about him. Him leaving me with our parents for days at a time, never being able to tell them where he really was or what he was doing. Never knowing if this would be the time he never came home.

Before I can speak again he opens up the duffle bag, pulling out a small berretta. Quickly he places it in my hand.

"Still, remember how to use this?" I smile and easily release the clip out and back in. Unlocking the safety, aiming it at the wall in front of me before clicking the safety back in place.

"Good." He smiles again, "I think there's a job in Pittsburg, I'm gonna check it out. If I'm not back by next Saturday, you know what to do." He kisses my forehead and stands to leave.

"Wait." I say, pulling the sheets off of me, "let me come with you. I can help," He sighs but before he can rebut I say, "Please, Josh, I can do this. I'm not a kid anymore."

He drops the duffle bag and gently grabs me by the shoulders.

"Natalie, I need you here." I glare at him, "I promise one day, I'll take you but for now I need you here to take care of mom and dad. Okay?"

I sigh reluctantly and say, "Okay." He hugs me tight so my head is pressing firmly against his chest, he smelled like apples and cinnamon. Finally he lets go and grabs the bag.

"See you next Saturday, kiddo."

Only he didn't make it home. For weeks I didn't hear from him or see him. I should have called Josh's buddy Aaron the minute he didn't show up on Saturday. But I was just so scared and alone. Mom and Dad thought Josh was on a road trip with some friends and it's not like I could have told them the truth.

I didn't see Josh again for a month. Not until, something woke me up in the middle of the night. I walked down stairs, the gun Josh gave me, cocked and ready to go. When I reach the bottom of the steps, I walk towards the sound of glass bottles clinging together. A figure stood at the open fridge and I raise the gun, my hands shaking. The figure turns around, closing the door in the process and my heart leaps.

"Josh?" I ask,

"Hey, kiddo," I didn't know what to say so instead I run towards him but he stops me.

"Natalie…" Something was wrong. He looked sick and his eyes were bloodshot. I stepped back.

"What's the matter?" I ask, his eyes glance away for a second before resting back on me.

"Something happened…in Pittsburg." My heart pounded and I scan his face. Dread spreading all over me.

"What?" He walks toward me but instantly I take a step back, keeping the space between us.

"I need you to do something for me." He says, avoiding my question.

"No, no, what happened?"

"Natalie, please-"

"What happened," I say almost too loud and we both glance upstairs, making sure I didn't wake our parents. When I look back at him, he seems tired and defeated.

"I found a vampires nest," he says finally, "I killed most of them but it was six to one, Nat, eventually they got me."

"How did you get out? They wouldn't have-" finally it hits me and I feel like everything in me just died. "No, they…"

"They turned me." He says, finishing my sentence.

I walk towards him, my hands shaking so much I had to place the gun on the counter.

"Have you…" I trail off, unable to get out the words.

"Fed? No, but Natalie, it's not long before I will," tears start to cloud his eyes, "That's why I need you…I need you to stop me before I do."

My head started to spin.

"I can't, no way. I can't do that Josh."

He grabs my wrist, "Please Natalie, you have to. I can't do it myself." I stand there, tears pouring down my face.

"This wasn't supposed to happen!" I say, my words coming out in muffled sobs, "You were supposed to come home on Saturday and tell me stories while I made fun of you for saying things like Okeydokey and…this wasn't supposed to happen." Josh wipes the tears from my face meanwhile his own start pouring down his cheeks and I can't help but reach up and wipe them off too. He grabs a large machete from his waist and hands it to me.

"We can find another way, please Josh, don't make me do this."

"There's nothing, I've looked. Please, you're the only one who can do it. I don't want to hurt you, just please." He was begging.

I look at the silver knife in my hands and then back up at him. He always looked so strong and brave. I remember looking up at him like he was undefeatable, like nothing could touch my big bad brother. But now he just looked broken.

"I'm scared." He laughs and it should feel uncomfortable but all I feel is warmth from it.

"Me too," and the he grabbed my face with his hands and kissed the top of my head, just like he always did when he was saying goodbye. This time for good.

He kneels down in front of me and the blade shakes as I lift it up. He closed his eyes tight and I remember wanting to do the same thing but instead, I swung.

When it was all done, I couldn't stop crying. I fell to the floor, Josh's blood soaking my pants. This was all my fault. If I hadn't messed up and done what I was supposed to, call Aaron. Than he wouldn't have been alone when he raided the vampires nest. And he wouldn't have needed me to…

I thought becoming a hunter is what he would have wanted but now every time I hunt I can't help but feel haunted by the fact that I'm going to mess up and get someone killed. I've tried giving up but like tonight, it seems my past won't ever let me go.

I grab the bottle of whiskey, Bobby left on the table and take a drink. And another and another until the pain in my shoulder goes numb and my vision blurs. None of this was supposed to happen. None of it.