Author's Note: To be honest, seeing your reviews make me so happy even if its something really simple and straightforward! I've already written up to chapter 5 so I'll be uploading this frequently!
Before any of them could sink their fangs into me, I brought my knee up to hit Raito in the crotch, punching Ayato in the face right after. Everyone watched in surprise as I was released, jumping onto the banister and sliding all the way down, passing Kanato then Subaru, who had no interest in tormenting me. I made a break for the front door, grabbing onto the handle and pulling it open. I had made it!
"Where do you think you're going?" Ayato was there on the front porch, preventing me from escape. "You punch pretty hard for a human girl. Where did all of this resistance come from?"
"I've traveled all over the world with my dad. I walk around most of the time by myself so of course I know how to fight," I said harshly.
"That hurt," Raito cried as he came walking down the hallway. "You're getting me all fired up inside. I think you should be punished for getting me so riled up."
"Stay away from me, you freak! You too!" I barked as Ayato entered the house, shutting the door behind him. He took one look at me and dragged me back in, throwing me down on the steps before the blond and the boy with the glasses.
"Shu, Reiji, what should we do with the girl?" he asked.
"Keep her, naturally," Reiji responded, calmly gazing over at me. "After all, she was given to us. There is no turning back now that she knows what we are."
"So she's the sacrificial bride?" Kanato questioned in excitement, an eerie smile on his face as he eyed me. "Great, I've been feeling a bit thirsty lately..."
"G-get away from me," I said, running to the top of the stairs. As I scanned their multitude of expressions, I realized Reiji and Shu were the only ones I could appeal to and tried to reason with them. I hoped that remaining composed and offering benefits on their side would help my case. "Please, let me go and I promise I won't tell anybody what I saw here. I don't want to trouble you by staying here."
After a long pause, Shu smiled in amusement. Reiji pushed his glasses up, his beautiful ruby eyes shining in the light. "You're not going anywhere, especially in this storm," Reiji answered.
Panicking, I refused to give up. "I've been in worse conditions. I'll call a taxi myself. I'll walk if I have to."
Thunder shook the house, a flash of lightning striking down outside the window. I watched in desolation as Reiji shook his head. "No, that wouldn't be very kind if we let a lady walk out in the rain like that."
"Well this isn't a very hospitable home in the first place," I argued, feeling slightly irritated with his unwillingness to comply.
"If you try to run, you're dead. Simple as that," Ayato announced as he came up the steps. "Reiji, I don't know why you couldn't just say it like this."
"Putting it like that..." he trailed off, then seeming to abandon his original train of thought, he nodded his head. "If I were you, I would stay put."
Horrified, I was powerless to do a single thing as they all eyed me hungrily. I knew that even if I begged and pleaded with them, they would devour me without even hesitating for an instant.. My survival instinct kicked in and I dashed down the hallway, my heart pulsating loudly in my ears. I ran down dark, icy-cold corridors, praying that some way, somehow, I would find an exit and get out alive. From the looks of it, I wouldn't be able to survive a single night here, much less several months. I checked my cell phone for reception only to be devastated with the error symbol that popped up onto my screen. There was nobody who could save me, was there?
"Don't run," Kanato said, spontaneously appearing by one of the windows. "I just might chase you."
"So eager to leave already and the fun hasn't even started yet," Raito scolded, licking his lips as I rounded a corner. "I'll make it so that you never want to leave."
Terror coursed through my veins as I continued, my adrenaline kicking in as I desperately searched for a place to hide or an exit. I could hear their voices and their laughter taunting me as I ran and ran and ran, finding no way to escape them. At last, I saw a door leading outside and burst through it, slamming it shut only to realize it was a balcony with no way out except the door. The fall from all the way up here was far too great for me to survive, even as tough as I was. Mortified, I stumbled back, hitting the cold, hard wall and covering myself protectively as I stared into the distance at the very gates that had originally trapped me in this place.
No... There had to be some other way out. Perhaps if I climbed across the rooftop and slid down by holding onto the storm pipe, I might be able to survive. However, when I saw just how hard the rain was falling, and how much water was currently rushing down the sloped roofs, I knew that method would result in nothing but a disaster. There was nothing I could do, was there? I was imprisoned in a home with blood-sucking monsters who were out to torment me. If only I hadn't been so naive and had never come here in the first place...
"Looks like you hit a dead end," Ayato said, as he joined me on the balcony. "I told you not to run. You're bringing us all this trouble and it's only the first day. Yours Truly will forgive you once you give yourself up."
"No..." I tried to dodge, but to no avail. He seized the same wrist he had grabbed two times before, trapping me in my place. Now powerless to fight back, I begged for him to stop; only to find that he only smiled wider the more I pleaded. "Stop! Stop it!"
"Shut up, you noisy girl," Ayato warned, his tongue darting out and touching my neck. I screamed in pain when he sunk his pointy fangs into me, instantly getting weak to my knees.
"Ayato, having fun without me?" Raito sulked as he came over, claiming the other side of my neck and breathing hotly onto it.
"It's so rich," Ayato gasped, withdrawing to grin at me. "Your blood is sweeter and richer than anything I've ever tasted before."
Raito only seemed to get more excited by the second, embedding his fangs into my exposed skin as Ayato resumed his feasting. The strength gradually slipped from my body, my vision clouding over as I fell in and out of consciousness. Raito prevented me from falling over, his cheeks flushed as his leg pressed itself in between my thighs.
"I love the expression on your face," he murmured. "How about I take you right here, my little slut?"
Just when I thought I would be over with, I heard someone cough, interrupting their feeding frenzy.
"Disgusting."
Reiji appeared in the doorway, a scowl of distaste on his lips as he watched them. Raito withdrew, followed shortly by Ayato, who caught me in his arms before I could fall. Feeling utterly drained, I could only gaze up at him as he studied me, an unreadable expression dawning upon him. Ayato wiped the blood from my mouth, his brow twitching in annoyance as Reiji stood over me, staring down at me as if I were a pitiful animal. He ordered Ayato to bring me inside before walking off, cursing me for causing so much chaos.
"Reiji always interrupts just when the fun is about to begin," Raito whined as I was carried into the house, half-conscious. The last thing I remembered seeing was Kanato, asking me if I was okay, and Shu, whose sea blue eyes never left my own. Then... darkness.
When I next awoke I was lying in a bed, the blankets pulled up to my chest. I was dressed in pajama clothes, my camera missing from around my neck. Who the heck thought it was okay to change me out of my clothes without my permission. I sat up, shocked to find Raito and Ayato were standing at the foot of the bed, watching me sleep. I glanced to my left and found Kanato rocking slowly on his chair and on my right stood Reiji, who was carrying a strange-looking vial.
"Drink this," he ordered, handing it to me.
"What is it?"
"It stabilizes your blood and replenishes whatever vitamins or minerals you've lost," he explained. "It has an unpleasant taste but you'll feel better instantly."
Groggy and with my head throbbing painfully, I had no other option but to trust him and drank it all down in one gulp. Almost immediately after, I felt myself regaining my strength and the pain in my head slowly subsided. I thanked him and watched as he silently poured me a glass of water. Pushing my suspicions aside, I eagerly accepted it from him, drinking all of it down in three big gulps. Reiji placed the cup on the bedside table and crossed his arms over his chest.
"How do you feel?"
"Better than before," I responded and looked up at Ayato and Raito, who were both smiling at me. "Get out."
They both were surprised at how blunt I was, even after all that had transpired. "Huh?"
"I said get out. I'm tired..." I said, feeling drowsy. As I plopped down onto the pillow once more, I saw Reiji rub his chin thoughtfully, mumbling something about side effects that he didn't know about. I fell asleep before I could begin to even process that I was exhausted, my eyes drawing shut and easing me into a peaceful slumber.
When I next awoke, the sun was shining brightly outside and I could hear the birds chirping by the window. I slipped out of bed, waddling over to the window and opening it up to gaze out at the garden below. There were rows and rows of beautiful rose bushes, the assortment of colors creating a strikingly beautiful image. I fumbled around for my camera and found it sitting on a chair, picking it up and snapping a few photographs of the garden. As I lowered my camera and turned around, yawning, I suddenly was hit with the realization that this was no time for me to be relaxing. It was daytime and a perfect opportunity for me to make an escape.
As I recalled the events of the previous night, I felt myself shuddering in disbelief. As a child, I had loved the concept of vampires and wished that they were real. Only now, when I discovered they truly did exist, did I realize how foolish I had been to ever want monsters like them to be real. I had nearly died after being attacked yesterday and I was determined to make a run for it while I could. I threw on my backpack, grabbing my suitcases by the door and throwing the door open.
"Ah!"
I let out a scream when I saw that someone was standing right there in front of the door. When I realized it was just the butler from yesterday, I let out a sigh of relief, realizing he could be my ticket out of this insane house.
"Thank goodness, finally someone normal around here," I mumbled to myself, smiling at him. "Excuse me, sir, do you think you could arrange a driver to take me from here? I will pay whatever costs that come with it. I would call a cab myself but it seems like I don't get much signal here."
"My humblest apologies, but that will not be possible," the man answered gravely, looking as morose and pale as death itself. "I am under strict orders to make sure that you are taken care of here at the Sakamaki household."
"Really?" I asked. "Whose orders were those? I would like to speak with them."
"He is not available at this time."
"Why? When I can I speak with him personally?" I asked, already fearing the worst.
"I cannot reveal that information," he stated. "To make things simpler and easier for the both of us, please cooperate and put your belongings back in the room, Miss."
I reluctantly did as told, putting my luggage back where it originally was. The butler informed me that breakfast was currently being prepared, so I decided it was safe to stay in my room and unpack. Instead of laying out my souvenir boxes like I had originally anticipated, I put them away in the drawers, fearful that they would be stolen, or even worse, broken. The boys most likely were able to easily come in and out of my room, so I put everything valuable in a safe place. I unloaded my clothing, placing them on top of my treasure boxes to hide them from view. As I was going through my things, I uncovered a recent photograph of my dad and I and felt an aching pain in my chest.
"Dad, wherever you are, I hope you're okay," I murmured to myself, placing the picture by my bed.
I removed my laptop from its case and turned it on, glancing around the room before logging in to my account. To my disappointment, there was no internet access anywhere close by. That ruled out contacting people online to save me from this hellhole. I hid my laptop under the bed mattress and resumed my unpacking.
I finished by the time breakfast was done, and after brushing my teeth in the bathroom down the hall to my bedroom, I went downstairs, cautiously checking my surroundings every few seconds in case someone decided to attack me. I wandered into the dining room to find only two people were in there and seated at opposite ends of the table. It was only Shu and Reiji – I breathed a sighed of relief. At least the others had not decided to show up just yet.
I quietly sat down in a random seat in the middle, forcing a smile and greeting the two of them. Shu ignored my existence completely while Reiji at least acknowledged me with a brief glance. I was seated for only a minute or two before Raito entered the room, his arms folded behind his head as he smiled at me. I felt a chill run down my spine when he took the seat to my left, gazing at me and toying with my hair.
"I was beginning to think last night was just a dream, but when I woke up, I could still smell your sweet scent," he spoke. "My little slut has the nicest tasting blood ever. I've never felt so alive."
I stood up, moving away and taking the seat beside Shu, who had hardly even moved an inch since I had come into the room. Raito was now sitting across of me instead of beside me, allowing me to relax a little. His surprise quickly morphed into amusement as the butler came in to serve the food. None of the others showed up to breakfast, resulting in several empty seats and a tense, silent atmosphere the whole way through. Shu, who had originally been my stand-in shield against Raito, left halfway, his plate still with food remaining on it.
"He left without even finishing," I said.
Reiji huffed, sneering distastefully at him. "What do spoiled good-for-nothings like him know about wasting food? Don't let it go to waste – eat it."
"Um. Okay."
As I took what food Shu had left behind, Reiji stood up, irate, and left the dining room as well. Raito laughed as soon as he had gone as he took a sip of his drink.
"You would never guess that they're full blood brothers, would you?" he inquired.
"Huh? Really? They look nothing alike," I commented in disbelief.
"The six of us are all brothers, but we have different mothers," he explained. "Ayato, Kanato, and I are triplets - quite unfortunate isn't it? Shu and Reiji share the same mother. Shu is the eldest of us and Reiji is second. Well, he has always come second, even since his birth."
He laughed at his own cruel joke and I felt myself with a sick taste in my mouth as I looked at him. "Then what about Subaru?"
"Oh, him? He's the youngest one out of the six of us and he's the only one out of us without a full blood sibling. He's a bit of a loner, if you get what I'm trying to say." He finished eating and rose to his feet, heading towards the door. "See you later, Slut-chan! I'm getting back to sleep."
It never felt better to be alone in my entire life. I enjoyed my independence for a while more before taking my leave as well, taking a tour of the mansion and taking a picture of anything that spiked my interest. I stopped when I saw a familiar painting hanging on one of the walls on the second floor. I had seen a replica of it in a gallery in France two years ago. The quality and hue of the paint on this one, along with the genuine feeling that emanated from it insinuated this was most likely not a replica, but the real thing.
If such a famous painting was here, in this house, I could only imagine how much wealth and influence the Sakamaki household had. I paced around for a little longer before exiting through the front door, taking a panoramic photo of the house from close by the gate, where I had been standing the day before, completely clueless as to what kind of situation I had gotten myself into.
I turned around and walked over to the front gate, closing my hands around the steel bars and attempting to pull them open. I pulled and pulled, but to no avail. I was suddenly reminded of the warning I had received from Ayato about trying to escape and hurriedly withdrew from the gates before anyone could see me. If word got out I tried the gate, I would most likely suffer for my curiosity. So instead, I decided to wander about the property, utilizing my free time to snap pictures of everything I saw. I finally reached the rose garden I had seen from my bedroom window and entered it, taking a leisurely walk through the small haven.
Feeling at peace for the first time in a while, I let out a sigh. If only Dad were here to enjoy this beautiful view with me.
I stared up at the sky, the sun shining down brightly upon me, providing the warmth I needed. Being outside never felt any better – it was abnormally freezing inside of the house, even in spots where the sunlight reached. Taking advantage of the situation, I deemed it best to bathe now and allow my hair to dry naturally than to wait until it was late and freeze myself to death. I stole up to my bedroom, trying my best not to make a peep in fear that I would catch unwanted attention. My room had been untouched, so I fetched a fresh change of clothes, some shampoo, and a bar of soap and ran to the bathroom.
As soon as I got in, I closed and locked the door, sighing as I placed my belongings on the counter. Gazing into the mirror, I could clearly see the two pairs of bite marks on each side of my neck. Just looking at it made me want to puke. I touched a hand to one of the holes and winced in pain, instantly pulling my hand away and covering the ugly marks with my hair.
"Soon enough your body will get used to getting bitten and the skin will close up faster," a voice said, jerking me out of my thoughts.
Whipping around in bewilderment, I saw that Shu was standing by the bathtub, still fully dressed and with his earphones still in.
"Oh my god," I cried out. "You scared me nearly half to death. I didn't even see you there."
"Because I came in after you did," he answered, almost teasingly as he moved to get into the bathtub.
"What are you doing? You'll get sick if you go in wearing your clothes," I said, sighing in defeat when he ignored me and sunk inside, lying back in a state of relaxation. He didn't even bother to remove his earphones and left them on in spite of the risk of getting electrocuted if his iPod fell into the water. I noticed that his iPod was attached to a choker he wore, probably fashioned that way by him so that he could wear it even when he took a bath. He was strange, that was for certain…
"Er, if you're going to take a bath in here, I'll just go find another bathroom."
He didn't bother responding so I took my things and left, wandering around opening random doors and peeking inside. After over ten minutes of scouting, I finally stumbled across a bathroom and went inside, going in to check the bathtub to make sure nobody was in there before going back to lock the door. Ayato was leaning against the doorframe, waiting for me.
"Get out," I ordered.
"Don't order me around, human," he said, entering the bathroom and shutting the door behind me. The lock clicked shut as he began to approach me. "You know this is my bathroom, right? You have no right to be in here."
"Then I'll go and find another one," I stated simply.
"Not so fast." He blocked the exit, smirking at me as he cornered me against the bathtub, pushing me inside. He began to climb over me, his stark green eyes boring into my own. "I'm feeling thirsty."
"Feeling thirsty? Then drink some of this."
Switching the shower on, I turned the dial towards cold and watched as it blasted Ayato away. Laughing, I crawled out of the tub and ran for my life, grabbing my things and making a hasty escape. I could still hear him yelling by the time I got away and grinned to myself in victory. Served him right.
