Sorry everyone that I've taken so long updating!!! I've just been so busy with everything and I've gotten ahead of myself again......so here it is finally!

Oh yeah, I changed the name of Erik's older sister so you'll see when you read....

Otakugal

VampiresxTeamEdward-Erik

wolfgurl23

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shar76

Stergoni-Benefici-15

Rosalie Thomas

Sinistera of the Akatsuki

LadieSlytherin

inuyashafriend

Dazzled By Emmett

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jasperthewalkingchillpill

Thanks for the reviews!!!

Chapter 10

While I was spending the evening packing my light blue mini suitcase, the Twins, Stevie Rae, and Damien were in my room watching T.V. watching dumb romance movies........well everyone except Damien was watching T.V. He was helping me pack since I was visiting Erik's family for the weekend and wouldn't be back until Monday morning.

"Can we puh-lease watch something else?" Shaunee asked, sounding annoyed with the movie.

"I agree. Stevie Rae, could you please change the channel?" Erin questioned, stuffing her mouth with a handful of Skittles.

"If it makes you two feel better, then yes." Stevie Rae replied, flipping through channels.

"Hey, I think Madea's Family Reunion is on." Shaunee chirped, grabbing more Skittles.

"I know what you two can do, why not help Z and I pack?" Damien inquired, sarcastically.

"Ummm, how about no. No offense, Z." Erin responded, smiling up at me.

"It's okay, I'm just about done." I told her, putting my makeup bag underneath some of my clothes, "I'm really nervous about meeting Erik's family."

"Zoey, honey, there's nothing for you to worry about." Damien said, zipping my suitcase.

"He's right, Z. Erik's probably told his family a lot about you already." Erin agreed, sitting up from her lying position on the floor.

"Yeah, he's probably told them about how I cheated on him and now they'll probably call me a ho." I mumbled, sighing

"They probably forgot about that. I'm pretty sure he told them that you fixed things up again." Shaunee added, sipping her soda.

"Yeah, but how do I know that?" I asked, still seeming a little skeptical. I mean, there's the possibility that they hate my guts. Plus, I don't know if his family are vampyres or if they're human.....I've always wondered that.

"Zoey, just think what is there to hate about yourself......and I don't mean physically." Stevie Rae suggested.

"I don't know, but that still doesn't mean they'll love me as soon as I walk through the door." I said, moving my suitcase near the door, "I'm going to sleep."

With that being said, everyone decided to leave.

****

Early the next morning, Erik and I woke up at about four in the afternoon. I mean, it felt a little awkward because everyone else in the school was sleeping and we were the only people up at this hour. At the moment, I was chillaxin on my living room couch on my laptop taking care of a few school related things before I left for about a five days. It may seem like a long time to be away from school but come on, it's about to be summer vacay. Teenagers could care less about an adult being away.

After taking care of my business, I made sure that I had my suitcase, my purse (brand new from Forever 21), and my carry on bag while we were on the road. I slipped on my sunglasses and walked out to the parking lot. I noticed that Erik was standing by his car babbling on his phone. Once I got to the car, he hung up.

"Ready to go?" Erik asked, helping me with my suitcase.

"You mean am I ready to face humiliation like no other? Why of course I am." I responded, sarcastically.

"Come on, Z, there's nothing to worry about. My parents are dying to meet you." Erik told me, shutting the trunk.

"How do you know? For all I know, they'll melt when they look me in the face." I muttered, putting my seatbelt on.

"Trust me, you'll be fine." Erik said, starting his car.

Knowing the ride would probably be long, I reclined the seat, took out my fleece blanket, and tried to fall asleep. In my mind, I focused on the wedding. I always pictured it in the summer. The sun setting, there being tons of white and peach roses, and above us would be an arch decorated with white roses. It didn't matter what I had, just as long as I could be with Erik.

****

I guess after about an hour of driving, we were finally at Erik's house. I gotta admit, the people in this neighborhood must make mad money. The house was huge, had a two door garage, a bench on the porch, and flowers all around the front of the house.

"I feel like I'm gonna vomit." I muttered, holding my stomach.

"Zoey, everything's gonna be okay, I promise." Erik replied, lacing his fingers with mine. For the time being, it made me feel better. While we walked to the front door, I was starting to evaluate myself. I was wearing a forest green dressy tank top, black super skinny jeans, low top chucks, and my thick frame glasses. I looked pretty cute.

Okay, Zoey, he's ringing the doorbell....OH GOSH THEY'RE GONNA ANSWER THE DOOR! My mind scrambled with worry as someone answered the door.

"Erik! You're home!" A little girl chirped, as she threw herself into Erik's arms, "I missed you."

"I missed you too." Erik smiled, as I stood there not understanding what was going on, "Z, this is my little sister, Taylor."

"Oh, so this is the Zoey you were talking about. Nice to meet you," Taylor said, smiling. Her jet black hair lied straight but had nice waves at the ends. She had ice blue eyes that looked like they could pierce your soul.

"Same here." I muttered, returning the smile.

"Momma.....Papa, Erik's home." Taylor called, while two figures appeared from another room.

"Oh, my little baby is home." A woman said, embracing Erik.

"Mom......," Erik groaned, hugging the woman.

"It's good to see you, son." The man added, patting Erik on the back, "Who's the beautiful young lady behind you?"

"Oh right, this is my girl.....fiance, Zoey Redbird. Z, this is my mother, Caitlynn, and my father, Jason." Erik introduced, while his father shook my hand.

"Nice to meet you, dear." Mrs. Night greeted, giving me a warm hug, "Congratulations, Erik. I'm so proud of you."

She out of everyone in the family stood out. She had golden blonde hair that was in neat curls and her eyes were hazel like mine. Her marks were quite interesting. It was a design of leaves. Erik's father had marks that were designs of two shooting stars coming away from the filled in crescent moon on both sides of his face. The very last thing I noticed was that Taylor didn't have any marks. I found it weird that a little girl was living in a house full of adult vampyres. I'd have to ask Erik about that later.

While I was giving Erik's mom a hug, I saw another figure at the top of the staircase. It was girl, but the only thing I noticed were her menacing eyes staring at me. After a few seconds, the figure headed back up the stairs.

"Oh, that was our other sister, Kristen. She's not too social whenever it comes to Erik dating girls." Taylor whispered, patting me on the back.

"So, Zoey, are you excited for the wedding?" Mrs. Night asked, starting meaningful conversation.

"Uh, yes, I am." I responded, shyly.

"Well, why don't you and Erik go get your things so we can get you situated." Mrs. Night suggested, sweetly.

"Okay." I mumbled, walking to the front door. So far so good with meeting the parents. Hopefully they're not talking about me behind my back. I had no clue who that other sister was or why she looked at me the way she did. After Erik and I grabbed our suitcases, Taylor showed me where the guest room was.

"You're room is down the hall, third room to the left." Taylor said, giving me another smile before going into her room and shutting the door, "Oh yeah, my dad said that he would prefer you and Erik in separate rooms."

"Why did Dad say that? Zoey and I are engaged." Erik pointed out, shrugging nonchalantly.

"What she's trying to stay is that it's proper for a couple to stay in separate rooms when they're not married, especially when you're visiting family." I told him, helping Taylor out. I remember Grandma taught me that rule too. In a way didn't make sense, but in a way it did.

Once I opened the door to the guest room, I was even shocked at how beautiful it was. Even though it was white, it still had that sort of elegance to it. The entire bed had silk sheets, pillowcases, and even the comforter was made of silk. It was also one of those beds that was hard for short people to get onto, seeing as how there was a nice little stool that helped you up.

While I set my things near the dressers and vanity, I decided to explore around the hallway. There were vases with plants and family photos. After walking in my own little world down the hallway, I heard shouting.

"I can't believe you brought that girl to meet our family!" A feminine, sultry voice shouted. It was coming from Erik's room. I knew I shouldn't be snooping, but I couldn't resist.

"Kristen, you need to understand that Zoey isn't like that anymore." I heard Erik's voice say, quietly.

"Yeah, how do we know that? For all you know, she could be cheating on you just like last time. I just don't trust her after she hurt you like before." The girl's voice argued, sounding frustrated.

Wait a minute.....after she hurt you like before......so Erik told his family that I cheated on him before? So this whole time they didn't like me from the start? Was this all just a joke?

"That's the thing, Kristen, you never trusted any girlfriend I've had. You didn't trust Aphrodite, and now you don't trust Zoey. What's with you?" Erik questioned, sounding pissed.

"What's with you picking up the wrong girls?" She countered. Before I knew it, she opened the door and found me standing there. All she did was glare at me and stomped down the hall.

"Z....," Erik muttered.

"You told your family about the whole Loren thing?" I asked, as my voice cracked.

"Yes, I did. But back then I was upset, Z." Erik responded, trying to reason with me.

"So now your family thinks that I'm a whore." I stated, as tears started streaming down my face, "Why....did you even ask me to come, if you knew they didn't like me?"

"Zoey, that's not it......," Erik said, before I cut him off.

"Just leave me alone." I cried, rushing downstairs. As soon as I got to the front door, I didn't look back. I just couldn't believe it. I understood that was his family and of course he was going to tell them eventually, but he didn't even bother to tell them how horrible I felt. He didn't tell them nearly everyday we were apart I was on the edge of tears. And he most certainly didn't tell them that I'm the one who has to bare that burden everyday of my life, not him.

Erik's POV

It's been at least an hour since Zoey left the house and I don't know where she is. I called her at least twenty times within the hour and no call back. I felt really bad for what happened. If it weren't for Kristen and her huge mouth that she can't ever shut, I wouldn't be this worried.

"Hey, where did Zoey go?" Taylor asked, looking around our living room.

"She stomped off an hour ago because a certain bitch could shut her huge mouth." I said, purposely loud since Kristen walked by.

"How am I a bitch for telling the truth? Your fiance brought this on herself." Kristen muttered, getting a soda out the fridge.

"You brought that up again? Really, Kristen, you can't hold a grudge against everyone." Taylor sighed, rolling her eyes, "I'm pretty sure you're not the one who has to live with the burden of cheating on your boyfriend for the rest of their life."

"There's no point of reasoning with her, Taylor, because your older sister is a heartless bitch." I added, keeping my eyes away from Kristen's gaze, "Don't look her in the eye, she might turn you to stone."

"Hahaha, very funny, ass wipe." Kristen grumbled, heading upstairs.

"Why are you and your sister arguing?" Mom asked, coming in from the backyard, "I was out watering the plants and I could hear both of you."

"Kristen scared Zoey off." Taylor told her, plainly.

"Scared Zoey off? What is she talking about, sweetie?" Mom asked, looking confused.

"Zoey found out that I told you guys that she cheated on me, then she overheard Kristen and I arguing. Now she thinks that everyone except me hates her." I explained, sadly.

"Oh, poor baby. Have you tried calling her?" She asked, running her hand on my hair.

"Yeah, but she won't pick up." I mumbled, sighing, "Do you guys really hate her?"

"Honey, of course we don't hate her. I saw what she did as a honest mistake she made. That Loren Blake guy you were talking about did sound like someone who would seduce a girl like Zoey." Mom responded, holding me.

"Yeah, but Kristen was way out of hand before." I told her, still frustrated. I mean, no matter how many girls I dated in my life, Kristen would never like them. Just because she holds grudges against people who have hurt her, doesn't mean I should have to be that way.

"I think Kristen is being the way she is because she's your big sister and she cares a lot about you. Plus, she knows first hand about what you're going through. Remember when her boyfriend cheated on her?" Mom asked, looking through the fridge.

"Yeah, because she was depressed for like three weeks." I answered, plainly. I remembered that. It was a few months before I was Marked. Kristen was a fifth former and after Christmas break, she caught her boyfriend cheating on her and cried like a baby since. It wasn't until her grades were bad that she finally got herself together.

"Anyway, I'll talk to Kristen later. You go find Zoey, and I'll be making dinner while your out." Mom told me, shooing me away, "Go on."

"I'll be back, Mom." I smiled, grabbing my car keys.

Normal POV (Zoey's POV)

It had been at least an hour since I walked off from Erik's parents house. I know what I did was a tad dramatic, but Erik's sister really hurt my feelings. I mean, it seemed like everyone else was friendly with me besides her. I mean, she acts like I tried to deny that I cheated on my fiance in the past. At the time, he was my (one of the three) boyfriend and I was caught up in a love thing with three guys.

After a little bit, I decided to take out my phone and call Stevie Rae. I hadn't called anyone since I've been there.

"Hey, Z! I'm so glad you called! How are you?" Stevie Rae chirped, happily.

"Not good. Erik told his family that I cheated on him six years ago and now they hate me." I told her, wiping my tears away.

"Well, did they sound like they hated you?" Stevie Rae asked, curiously.

"Everyone was nice to me, except his older sister, Kristen. She was so cruel and hateful." I replied, sighing.

"Just try your best to be nice, Z. That's all you can do. I gotta go, I'm tutoring a fledgling. I'll call you back." Stevie Rae said.

"Okay, thanks for listening." I responded, smiling a little.

"That's what best friends do. Talk to you later." She said, sincerely.

"Bye." I muttered, hanging up. I was sitting on a park bench watching little children play in the park.

"I knew I'd find you hear." His voice said. I didn't need to turn around to know that it was Erik behind me.

"Why are you here?" I asked, softly, keeping my back to him.

"I want you to come back." Erik replied, almost as quiet as I was.

"Why would I want to come back to a house full of vampyres who hate me?" I questioned, trying not to raise my voice.

"My family doesn't hate you, Zoey. Yeah, my sister can be a hateful bitch, but the rest of my family likes you." Erik told me, starting to get angry.

"Well, I'm still hurt. She said all those mean things about me." I whispered, nearly on the edge of tears.

"I know. I'm sorry that you had to listen to that. Please come back." Erik murmurred, pulling me into a hug.

"I will, I'm sorry I scared you." I apologized, quietly. While he held me, I realized I was crying. I just didn't know why Erik's sister hated me so much. I know that cheating on him before was the most terrible thing I could have done, but it happened six years ago. Erik and I were over it and we amended everything we did wrong.

"Come on, let's go. My mom's making dinner." Erik said, changing the subject.

"I thought you guys could afford a cook." I pestered, grinning at my own little joke.

"Watch it." Erik muttered, bumping his shoulder with mine. The park wasn't too far from Erik's house so when I saw his car near the curb, I wondered why he drove it such a short distance.

"Oh yeah, how does your sister live with a family full of vamps when she's still a human?" I asked, referring to Taylor, "I mean, I thought that its tempting for vamps to be attracted to human blood."

After shutting his car door, he responded, "It's not as hard as you think. Even though vampyres can have children like humans, the children aren't born vampyres. They still have to be Marked. Plus, when two vampyres have children, they don't feed off their children. It's just like when you have an Imprint with someone. They're blood doesn't smell right since you have a bond with your children."

"Do you think Taylor will be Marked?" I questioned, curiously. It must be hard for her feeling left out and out of place from her family.

"When you're in a family full of vamps, that's what most likely happens. There was a point when I was her age that I felt like I was never going to be Marked like my parents or Kristen. Two years later, it happened." Erik answered, pulling into the driveway.

"I'm afraid to go back in there. Your older sister scares me." I admitted, slowly taking my seatbelt off.

"It'll be fine, I promise." Erik replied, as we got out the car. Just like when we first arrived, I was horrified to go in that house. My life might be a living hell for the next week since Kristen hates me.

"Oh good, you guys are back." Taylor said, opening the door, "I hope Kristen's bitchyness didn't hurt your feelings."

"Too late for that now, kid." Erik responded, patting her head.

"Oh, thank Goddess you're safe." Mrs. Night said, giving me another warm hug. I was already starting to like her better than my mother, "Dinner should be ready in a half hour."

"We're having baked zetti, mashed potatoes, and greek salad." Taylor chirped, grinning.

"Why is it that we have something you like for dinner, when I come visit?" Erik asked, rolling his eyes.

"Because I'm the baby and they like me better." Taylor mumbled, as Erik knuckle rubbed her head, "Do you mind if I take Zoey shopping later? You know have a little sister-in-law bonding."

"If it's okay with Zoey." Erik said, as they both looked at me.

"Oh, that's cool....yeah." I muttered, snapping out of my thoughts of fear.

"See, at least my darling baby sister, and not the evil wench, bothers to get to know you." Erik mentioned, making the part about the evil wench louder than the rest of his words.

"I think she gets she pissed you off." Taylor whispered, patting his back.

"Ummm, I'll be upstairs." I added, discreetly going upstairs. As I approached the stairs, I saw Kristen coming down. This was the first time I actually saw her face. It was flawless. Her long, dark brown hair and body structure made her look a little like Khloe Kardashian. Her dark cobalt eyes looked like an ocean at night. Her tattoos were a pattern of designs that looked like tiny stars mixed with spirals.

All she did was grimace me and kept on walking. Feeling intimidated and embarrassed, I rushed upstairs. Really what was with that girl? It's like she was gonna kill me in my sleep or something. While I walked down to the guest room, I passed by what looked like Taylor's room. Her whole room was decorated in hot pink, white, and black (the black and white was zebra patterned.)

The walls were decorated with posters of Lady Gaga, Cobra Starship, The Academy Is, 30h!3, the Jonas Brothers, Lil Wayne, and other artists she likes. She had two huge corkboards near her bed that had photos (there was a cute one of her and Erik at a concert), little notes, index cards, stuff from magazines. Her bed was had a bed set that matched the color theme of the room. Her shelves were full of books, stuffed animals (mostly Beanie Babies), a bunch of burned CD's, and lasty a bunch of trophies with a white teddy bear that had medals and pins on it.

"I see you found my room." Taylor said, making me jump.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to come in here." I responded, blushing, "What are all those trophies and medals for?"

"Figure skating. All of those are from competitions I've won." Taylor told me, looking up at her teddy bear, "I always keep my medals on the teddy bear."

"Most of them are gold medals. You must be really good." I responded, still wowed by her achievement.

"It happens when you've done it since you were two years old. Actually if you look under this clutter, I have silver medals." Taylor smiled, lifting up her teddy bear, "I've been competing in regionals since I was eleven, but I've always been too young to compete in the Winter Olympics."

"Will you be able to make it this year?" I asked, taking an interest.

"Most likely." Taylor answered, plainly, "It's just sometimes it's hard living with my family."

"Why? They seem so loving." I said, not understanding her sudden sadness.

"It's just so hard trying to keep up with their success. It's like ever since they've been Marked by Nyx, they all have something that they're super talented at. It's gotten my parents to be know business executives, my sister has her own fashion line, and Erik is getting noticed on Broadway and Hollywood. Then you have little ol' me, a human who doesn't equate to their success." Taylor rambled on, sighing.

"Have you told anyone how you felt?" I questioned, feeling a little bad for her.

"No, because they wouldn't understand. I don't know what it is, but I trust you more than I do my family." Taylor admitted, holding her teddy bear.

"Maybe you should talk to them and tell them how you feel. They won't ever know unless you tell them." I suggested, smiling.

"Thanks, Zoey." Taylor mumbled, trying to smile.

"See? We've already done some sister-in-law bonding and it hasn't even been a day yet." I perked, trying to brighten the gloomy mood.

I heard rumbling coming from somewhere in Taylor's room. Before I knew it, she picked up her cell phone, "Oh, dinner's ready. Let's go."

While I walked downstairs, I realized that I haven't been this nervous since I came to the House of Night for the first time. I had a bad feeling that dinner wasn't going to go well....at all.

"Hi. What have you been doing?" Erik asked, pecking my cheek. His kisses still made me blush.

"Doing some bonding with Taylor. I feel bad for her sometimes. She seems like she's left out so much." I whispered, while his mom and Taylor were setting the table.

"I know. I wish there was something I could do." Erik muttered, as we walked over to the table.

"Instead of holding hands, why don't you be a dear and help set the silverware?" Kristen questioned, drying off clean silverware with a yellow dish towel.

"Sorry, I don't give help to the bitchy." Erik sneered, ignoring her.

"Will you two calm down please?" Mrs. Night asked, handing Erik a stack of plates, "Remember what I told you, Kris."

"I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings from earlier." Kristen muttered, sounding like she regretted apologizing to me.

"If you don't mean it, then don't bother." Erik responded, cutting me off before I could speak.

"Good, so we're on the right page." Kristen snided, setting a pitcher of raspberry lemonade on the table.

"Okay, everyone sit...now." Mr. Night said, as everyone sat down at the table. I sat down in between Erik and Taylor, while Kristen sat in between Taylor and Mr. Night.

"So, Zoey, since you probably don't plan on being High Priestess forever, what do you plan on doing?" Mrs. Night asked, passing around the dish full of zetti. I could smell that she added fresh pepper and garlic to it.

"Well, the old High Priestess agreed to help me pay for college if I agreed to take over the House of Night. I've been taking courses online and hopefully I can become a veterinarian." I replied, as Erik passed me the bowl full of chicken greek salad.

"I think it's great that you have an interest in animals." Mr. Night added, smiling.

At the same time, I couldn't help but notice that Kristen was staring at me for the umpteenth time. It was really starting to irritate me that she just had this random problem with me ever since I walked through the door. Seriously, she doesn't know a thing about me, just that I cheated on Erik before....but that's pretty much it. I didn't need her to tell me that it was my fault and that what I did was low down and dirty.

"Hey, Erik, are you ever gonna get on Broadway or something?" Taylor asked, sweetly.

"Ummm, I don't know yet, but I know I don't want to be a drama teacher forever." Erik told her, pinching her cheek, "Why do you wanna know so much?"

"Because you're super talented....and I'm kind of picturing your mansion once you get famous." Taylor joked, playfully smacking his hand away. It hadn't even been a full day yet, but I loved his family already.

***

Once dinner and dessert was done with, I spent that evening taking a bubble bath. I mean, who wouldn't? A huge marble bathtub and fancy bubble bath and soaps to go along with it. I loved how all the suds and foam covered me and how I could stick my feet out. As I enjoyed my nice bath, I heard a knock on the bathroom door.

"Who is it?" I asked, playing with suds.

"Erik." He said, but his voice was muffled by the door.

"Is everyone gone yet?" I questioned, noticing he closed the door to my room.

"My parents went to the movies, the she-devil went partying, and Taylor is in the family room watching cable." He explained, sitting on the toilet.

"Since we're kind of alone, I wanted to talk to you about--" I said, before he cut me off (yet again.)

"Kristen....I saw it coming." Erik responded, rolling his eyes.

"It's just, I don't understand what her problem is. I mean, has she ever heard that old shit stinks?" I questioned, wrinkling my nose, "Plus, it seems like you two don't get along either."

"My relationship with Kristen isn't how it used to be. When we were younger, we always got along just fine. People thought we were twins because we were so much alike. Ever since her boyfriend hurt her, well, our relationship is strained. She's dramatically overprotective of me when it comes to having someone, and she'll go to the ends of the earth to make sure I don't end up like her." Erik explained, sighing.

"I had no idea. That must really hurt you." I muttered, quietly.

"Yeah. I would understand if she was a little overprotective but the way she approaches people with her protectiveness drives people away. I just want Kristen to understand that not everyone will end up heartbroken like she did and that people can make their relationships last." Erik replied, biting his lip.

"You mean like ours?" I questioned, raising a brow.

"Yeah, like ours, but we had to work hell of a lot harder to get here." Erik smiled, taking my hand.

"Since we're vampyres, it only makes us work more harder to make it last forever." I told him. And I would always be willing to work my ass off to make sure we last forever.

Yah, I know cheesy ending......but whatevs, it happens. Next time: It's only been two days since Zoey and Erik arrived to meet his family. Zoey still continues to have problems getting along with Kristen and it seems things won't ever get better. During their visit, Zoey keeps herself occupied with planning the wedding but she feels that the wedding is approaching too fast. Will she become overwhelmed with wedding planning and a cruel future in law? R&R plz!

~Cherriez