Chapter 14

As promised, Kaname didn't come to the park at night for the next three days. He would come and talk with me after school at the park. I told him to not walk with me home so he would leave school and run to the park. I had to admit, it was fun when I was chatting with Kaname. The followers were also starting to relax. They were self-assured that I wasn't talking to Kaname anymore, or so they thought. School became difficult for me during this time. I was often tired when I came to school. Despite drinking blood on the night of the new moon, the morphing was using a lot of my energy and I was always late for school. Hino and Kisa asked me what was wrong on the second day of the new moon.

"Are you okay, Karin? You look like you need major sleep right now." I nodded.

"Yeah. I just recently got a job and the job was so busy that I was staying extra hours. But then, when I get home, I can't sleep, so now I'm like this. But don't worry about me. I'll be fine. The job is just for another few days." I said. My friends still looked worried.

"At least let us help you. You can go to the nurse and get some rest. It's just homeroom for now and we can take notes for you." They offered. I smiled.

"Thanks. I think I'll do that. See you at second period." I said. I got up and left the classroom and headed for the nurse's office. The nurse was an old friend to me. I opened the door.

"Hi, Michelle-chan." I greeted. Michelle turned around from her desk and smiled at me. When she had gotten a full look at me, worry creased her forehead.

"My! You look pale, Karin. And you look like you could use some sleep." I nodded.

"Get in bed. I'll wake you up at second period." She said. I smiled at her.

"Arigato (Thanks) Michelle." I got under the covers and soon drifted in to sleep.

"Wake up, Karin. Its time for second period." Michelle's voice woke me up. I stirred and moaned. I heard Michelle laugh.

"Get up. Come on." Michelle encouraged. I sat up in bed and rubbed my eyes. I was feeling a lot better now that I had gotten some sleep.

"Feel better?" Michelle asked. I nodded. She handed me a cup.

"Here. It's a cup of hot tea. Drink it. Tea can help you feel more awake and keep you up." Michelle ordered. I nodded and sipped the drink. It tasted great to me. Once I had finished the drink, Michelle sent me back to class. I slipped into the classroom and handed the pass to sensei (teacher). Kisa and Hino smiled at me.

"You look better." Kisa whispered. I nodded.

"I got some sleep and feel great now." We turned our attention back to the teacher. I felt alright throughout class. Drinking blood at night lasted all day and I didn't need to worry about going berserk during the day. I even decided to bake Kyo a cake when I got home. In home ec class, I made cookies and tied them in a bag for Kaname. "Hope he likes them." I thought. I smiled to myself. I left Hino and Kisa at their neighborhood and went to the park to find five girls instead of Kaname. I was surprised.

"What are you people doing here?" I asked.

"We have evidence that you have not heeded our warning have been meeting Kaname-sama here after school." They accused. The leader held out a yellow envelope. I guessed that it contained pictures of our meetings.

"So? He chose to come here of his own free will. I have no control whether he comes here or not." I said.

"That's none of our concern, but you decided to talk and get along with him too. That is the issue at hand." She announced. "Oh great. Talking to this one person is a problem?" I thought. They surrounded me from either side. Suddenly, one of them pushed me from behind, I fell forward and another push hit me, sending me sideways. The girls laughed as they pushed me around. I tried to find away to escape, but they had caught me and it was too late to escape. As I was being pushed around, I figured that if I pushed one of them back, I could get an opening to flip and run. I did and indeed it opened a path for me to run. Another girl got in my way, but I did a round off in the air and landed behind her. They chased after me, but I was ahead of them and I soon lost them. I ran far away from them and stopped at the next park, less than a mile from my house. I stood there, panting for a while and looked around to check if there was anyone. Grateful that I was alone, I collapsed on the sidewalk and morphed into my other form. I had sprained my right ankle running away from them. I was sure that I had bruises all over my body. I was too tired to even lift my head and look over my injuries. I lay there, falling in and out of sleep. I was tense because it was the night of the new moon and I was afraid what would happen if someone came by. Two small children walked by and came over to me, but their mothers pulled them away, leaving me behind in the cold. Then, as I was drifting back into sleep, I felt someone walk past. The scent was familiar and the blood smelled familiar. The person came over and stroked my face. I opened my eyes and looked into a pair of deep, striking green eyes. They showed kindness and worry. It was familiar to me. Who was this person? The person, I could tell it was a boy, picked me up gently and cradled me in his arms as he walked away from the park. I was too tired to notice the direction the boy was walking. I lulled into sleep as he patted my head and assured me with a crooning, smooth voice.