Chapter 1
The chill of the early summer air brushed past me as I rode home from the college campus. It was supposed to be a half moon tonight, which was a relief to many. No one could blame them, especially with the weird phenomenons that go on whenever the moon reaches its' full potential. I soon made my way up the driveway towards the house that I lived in. It was the home me and my parents shared, before the incident only two years ago. Placing my bike in the shed, I grabbed my bag and the keys in my pocket to unlock the door. Upon entering, the whole house was engulfed in blackness. The curtains and shades of the windows drawn, the door leading downstairs was opened and as soon as I shut the door behind me, a little black pug made his way down the stairs to yap at my entrance. I giggle as I leaned down to rub his fur and kiss his nose. "Hey buddy, how are you doing?" I asked him, to which he replied with another yap. "Alright, alright. I'll put my stuff away, take you out and get you some dinner." And that was what I did. Heading upstairs and turning towards the left, I entered the door closest to the end and opened it, to reveal my teal and green colored room. Placing my bag down, I headed back to the entrance to deliver my promise to Oliver, my pug. This had become my routine for my life; get up, get ready and head off to college, come back to take care of Oliver, eat dinner, and do some homework before bed. At least that was my schedule for about half a year.
Once Oliver and I came back in after he did his business, I walked upstairs to get him his dinner of dry food with some biscuits in the mix. My dad taught me that he would like the food better and actual eat it this way. Satisfied with how he was enjoying his meal, I began making dinner for myself. Deciding to go with steaks for tonight, I preheat the oven and went to the fridge to take out the steaks. As I reached for the cabinet to decide whether I should go with stuffing or potatoes for a side dish, the lights in the kitchen went out. Frozen in place, I listened to the menacing voice approaching.
"I closed my eyes for one second and you tried to betray me."
I turned around and saw behind me the one who had said that. A tall man with black hair that fell to his left side of his face. He had a white dress shirt and black dress pants. I rolled my eyes and glared at him. "Dark, seriously?"
"Come now, Child. I was only making sure that I still had the element of surprise."
"It's less surprising if you do this every time I come back home."
It was his turn to glare at me. "Would it kill you to at least pretend to be somewhat scared of me? Do you even know who I am? What I am?"
"You are Dark and you are my house guest!" I answered his rhetorical question as I crossed my arms over my chest. "And trust me, I'm more likely to die in a car accident than by your hands. Now, unless you want to hunt your dinner tonight, you can either help me with dinner, which I know you won't, or you can play with Oliver to keep him out of the kitchen."
Dark muttered to himself as he walked past me to pick up Oliver. He then walked downstairs with the dog as I began to get the potatoes ready. You'd think that after living with me for almost two months, he would have some decency to help out around the house more often. Then again, being some form of monster, I suppose that would be asking too much. Still, he's been living with me for quite a while now and no one knows about him.
Soon dinner was done, and I made a plate for Dark and left it on the counter. Making my own plate and grabbing a glass of milk, I headed to my room to eat while doing my homework. We pretty much never really ate together, since it would just be awkward eating without much to talk about. This was also part of my routine. I would cook dinner for both me and Dark and we would eat in different rooms. Usually he would eat in the living room and watch TV or he would just guzzle his food whole and leave the plate spotless. For me, I eat in my room and take a look at the homework I have to do or study. Once I ate, I would head back in the kitchen and clean up, because Dark never does. Then I would head back to my room and finish up my homework, If I had enough time, I would usually work on some animation projects or even some of my stories. But I typically save those for the weekend because I have more free time to do it. So after I'm done with school stuff, I take a shower and head off to bed with Oliver. I don't have to worry about Dark, he does his own thing. I've stopped worrying about him since the first week. It gets me nowhere to put up a fight with him.
I finished my steak and headed back to the kitchen with my plate and cup. I see that Dark just ate the food and left in a hurry. I quickly washed the dishes and clean up the kitchen before going back to my room. I didn't have much homework for once so I just spent the evening lying on my bed and playing one of my games. I didn't have enough motivation to work on an animation or story today. I seem to be lacking that trait a lot lately. I guess I just have a lot on my mind that it's hard for me to find time for my hobbies. It's times like this I miss my simple life, before… well everything.
A couple of hours have passed since I ate dinner. The battery on my Nintendo Switch was getting low and I was feeling tired anyways. I figured I would call it a night so I placed the device on its charger and went to my dresser to get myself my nightwear for my shower. I walked out of my room and was turning to head to the bathroom next door, but I stopped in my tracks as I saw Dark standing near the open patio door. His tall back towards me as he stared out into the darkness that was the night. I looked at the clock on the oven and saw that it was past nine. I walked up to him until I was only a few feet from where he stood. "Dark?" he turned to face me, his face was long yet very serious and even cunning. Still, his red eyes that were held in black sockets gazed at me. "Are you heading out?"
He doesn't say anything, only nods. He walked out onto the deck and hopped over the beams with such agility. He dashes off into the night through the backyards of the neighborhood. I sigh as I close the door and lock it. I don't have to worry about locking him out, he always finds a way in. I just have to lock the other ones out. Turning around on my heels, I head to the bathroom and take my shower. As the water beats down on me, all I can do is just think about Dark's face as he was leaving. He does this every night. I tell him that he shouldn't worry. He needs to keep a low profile to not just my kind, but his as well. I get it, he can't stay in my house all the time, he needs to get out now and then. But there are times when I do worry he won't be able to come home. That I might wake up one day and find that he hasn't returned. I would go searching for him only to find his corpse all torn up and beaten to the point I wouldn't be able to recognize him. I shudder just thinking about what I would do or how I would react should that ever become reality. I know what he is, I know he can take care of himself. But I also know that there are those that could be stronger than him.
I finished my shower and put on my pajamas. I walked to my room after my nightly routine of brushing my teeth and washing my face. Oliver is already waiting for me on the bed, nestled in the sheets. I kiss him again and smile at those brown eyes that are so innocent and blissful. He's the only family I have left and yet he can't truly be there to comfort me. He didn't know what was going on or how to feel. He was an animal that couldn't talk to me or give me advice. While it was nice to have him give me some pity like putting his face on my lap, it's not the same as human sympathy. Dark doesn't get emotions, but at least he can be there for me when I need him. I know you all are probably confused about a lot of things. Such as, who exactly is Dark and where did he come from? What exactly is he and why is he living with me? Well, it's kind of a long story. And I mean a whole year and a half a year long.
I turned off my lamp on my bed stand and lay in my bed, having my phone set my alarm. As my eyelids close over my sockets, memories of the first encounter with Dark as well as that moment that changed my life come flooding through me like a damn after it bursts.