A warm, wet touch on my cheek.
This is my first memory. It isn't very clear, rather fuzzy and faint. But sometimes, if I think and try hard enough, I can still feel that pressure.
My next memory is clearer. It's my first image. A beautiful, yet tired young woman with dirty-blonde curls and ocean blue eyes: My mother.
That warm, wet pressure was her blood-caked fingers brushing my cheek in a sign of affection. My mother was so beautiful, and it made me sad that I never got to know her. She died as soon as she touched my cheek. In fact, that's my third memory. My mother's deep eyes rolled back in her head and she fell backwards.
The next thing I remember is someone picking me up, holding me close. It's a man, and his face is full of absolute wonder, awe. He has burgundy eyes, and a lovely face. Dark brown hair frames his face. This is my father.
Dad told me that my blue-eyed mother was named Indie, and he hadn't even meant to get her pregnant. He didn't even love my mother, he said. He said that when I was born, it was different, though. He said as soon as he saw his human green eyes copied onto my face, he lost his mind. I have my mother's short, big, dirty-blonde curls. I stopped aging at age eighteen.
I stalked through the woods around the castle, thinking about Indie. I wished I had the chance to know her, to learn my mother. I wished that my parents had time to fall in love. I just knew Dad would love Indie if she had lived through birth. I felt guilty that I killed my mother, especially when she loved me so. I had a cat named after her, anyway. Dad had gotten her for me on my eighteenth birthday, nine months ago. Indie was a ginger colored short-hair.
I was holding her as I walked through the dark trees. I took a seat on a cool, smooth boulder, sighing. I looked up at the sky, scratching Indie behind her ears. She purred and I cupped her little head. I kissed her nose.
The moon was shining brightly, and the stars twinkled as if they had a secret. I did. My whole life was one. Dad knew, of course, and I knew. No one else knew about my existence. There was the occasional pal, but usually I had to say goodbye to them before they noticed I was aging at hyper-speed. I was really close to this one boy named Marshall, but he was thirteen and when I had to leave him behind, I looked as if I was already sixteen. Or at least, I could have passed for sixteen.
Indie craned her neck up and demanded attention. I gave her what she desired and kissed the cups of her ears, stroking her back.
"Oh, Indie," I said in my soft, grown voice. "It seems like you may be the only friend I won't have to say goodbye to after only a few months."
Just then, I heard footsteps coming my way. Dad. Of course, he would have heard my steps before I heard his because he was a full vampire, while I was only a halfa. I whirled around and was staring at Dad's chest. Dad was huge, the biggest person I had ever seen. He was almost seven feet tall! I was tall, too, 5'10, but not like Dad. Dad picked me up in a hug and spun me around like when I was a child, which wasn't too long ago. He set me on the ground, and Indie ran off, peeved. She always came back.
"Hey, Daddy," I said. Dad ruffled my hair.
"Hey, Haleigh," he said.
Yep. That's my name. Haleigh. Dad said he named me that because that was all he knew. I tried to get him to let me spell it like Haley or Hayley, but he said that Haleigh was the Italyan way to spell it. I had since grown used to it, even fond of it, suggesting my heritage.
"How was your day today, Dad?" I asked.
"Well, today I was told that I will be going off as soon as possible," Dad said.
"You. What?" I asked, surprised. "But, Dad! You just got back from your last deal. What happened now?"
Dad pushed his hair back.
"I know, Haleigh. I'm sorry about this, really, I am. But this time, it is important. A vampire's coven mate came in today. She said that her creator, a man named Cyrus, lost his mate to a lone vampire. He's gone insane, and must be taken care off at once."
I felt my green eyes fill with tears, but I held them back and bit my lip.
"Can't I come with you this time?" I asked, my voice the slightest bit shaky. "Just this one time?"
"No!" Dad said back feverishly. "Not this time, honey."
"Who else is coming with you?"
"Demetri and Alec."
"So? Who cares if two people know about me? I could use some friends that I can hang onto."
Dad ignored my pleading.
"I'm sorry, Haleigh. If even one person knows about you, who knows how many else will find out eventually? I know you want a friend, but you have Indie."
"I know, Dad, and she's the best. I've always wanted a pet, and I'm very grateful, but I need a real friend. I'm part human, aren't I?"
I immediately knew that that had been the wrong thing to say. Dad looked at my forearm, where I had a little scar. Why wouldn't he point that out? He meant to remind me that, even though I wasn't as fragile as a human, I was still vulnerable.
I sighed, remembering how I had gotten the scar. Contrary to popular belief, we hybrids could scar. It took a lot more than for a human to scar, but still Dad wouldn't let me forget.
My friend, Marshall, and I had been messing around in the streets, in the alleys. We were hopping around on the trash cans, just being stupid kids. Marshall jumped into a murky, nasty, brown puddle and the sick water splashed all over me. I yelped and made a disgusted face.
Then he called me a girl.
I got really annoyed at that. I was just as tough as anyone, even tougher than a mere human boy, for sure! And I wasn't going to let some rancid water and him make me look weak.
So I tried jumping into the puddle, purposely tricking up my footwork to topple the can over after me. Only, a big black, alley cat was inside of it, and it jumped out, furious. He went right for my friend, and I reached out to grab it, knowing it couldn't hurt me, but it couldn't have defiantly done some damage to Marshall. The cat whipped its anger onto me and my first, protective instinct was to bite. So I did. But I missed biting the thing's tail and my teeth sank into my own pink flesh. It hurt like Hell! It even drew blood.
The mark clotted and healed within seconds, but I had tasted my own blood. It was much thicker and hotter than human, and it was nasty! It tasted like rusty, salty dirt. It wasn't like the stuff Dad gave to me. I wondered if that was what human blood tasted like to the humans.
I shook my head, my mom's curls bouncing, trying to forget the taste.
"Dad, I'll just miss you," I said sadly. "Sometimes you leave for so long."
Dad wrapped his huge arms around me again, and this time, the hot tears came whether I wanted them to or not. I heard Indie padding her little way back to us. She wound herself through my legs, trying to comfort me, kitty-style. I pulled away from my father and bend down to pick her up.
"Look, Haleigh," he started, "this next mission is very important. I know you want to come and help, but just not this time."
"Next time?" I asked, daring to hope. Dad just looked at me, his expression was tired. I knew it was no use to fight with him about it. I just sagged my shoulders defeat. "Okay, Dad."
My voice is distant and tired. I patted Indie once more and put her on the ground. My dad is suddenly wearing a pained face.
"It doesn't seem fair, but I promise. Next time, I will really try to get a way for you to go, okay, Haleigh?"
"Good enough for me," I said, giving him one last hug. "I love you, Daddy."
"I love you more, darling."
With that, Dad dodged away, and I was left alone again. But I was all too used to being alone.