Chapter 20: so not only do I not own the Lost Boys, but it's pretty obvious I don't own the 80's music referenced in this chapter. so, all rights go to their respectful owners:) (Warning: ever-so-slightly gruesome details. This is, after all, the bonfire scene.)

Once we reached the boardwalk, Marko placed a hand on my back and guided me towards one of the bars. "What are we doing over here?" I asked. He laughed. "Don't look so nervous. Everybody's hanging out up top." I bit my lip but followed him up the stairs, and sure enough, David, Dwayne, and Paul were leaning against the railings, smoking and laughing. I grinned and walked over, jumping on David's back. "Woah!" He said, catching his balance, before smiling. "Hey squirt, I heard you're staying over again?" I nodded, grinning. "Yeah, long story short, I'm staying with you guys."

I got off of his back and sat on the railing, facing the boys as they talked about this, that, and everything in between. Paul sat next to me, and pretty soon, we were rocking out to tonight's band down on the beach. They were pretty good. Far from my favorite, but pretty good, and they were currently covering "Don't stop believing."

I knew right away from the first guitar riff. Paul threw an arm around me and started singing. "Just a small town girl, loving in a lonely world. She took the midnight train going anywhere." I laughed and joined in, the boys howling at our antics. "Just a city boy, born and raised in south Detroit. He took the midnight train going anywhere"

These were the Lost Boys I knew. Not that scary hoodlum gang who constantly got into fights with Surf Nazis, or the guys who wooed pretty girls, or the tough bikers who tore up the neighborhood and caused trouble. No, my cousin and his friends, dare I say my friends, are goofballs. There's no way Sam, Edgar, and Alan knew what they were talking about.

"A singer in a smoky room-" Paul's crooning was interrupted as he was pushed aside, bumping into me, causing me to almost fall off the railings as he reached out and grabbed me. "You alright kid?" I nodded, my heart racing from my almost brush with death, as we turned to see that it was Michael who had pushed his way through, and was currently clutching David's shirt, in his face. "Where is she?" David blew his smoke in Mike's face and laughed. "Take it easy Michael."

I glanced at Marko, who winked at me. Why were they so calm? "Where's Star, David?" Michael hissed. I started to put two and two together. Mike said he was going to figure out what was going on, tonight. So does that mean Star caused whatever was going on? David looked at me, reaching in his pocket and fishing out some cash. "Kid, go get us a couple of beers from downstairs." My mouth dropped open. "David, I'm fourteen!" I pointed out. He shrugged. "Tell Billy at the bar who your cousin is. Now go on, scram!" He pulled me off the railing and lightly pushed me towards the stairs. I glanced back at the five of them, not liking what was going on, but deciding I couldn't be stupid either.

I walked to the stairs and acted like I was going down, but hid behind the wall, and watched as David led his little gang to the other flight of steps. I followed, staying far enough behind that they wouldn't see me, but close enough that I could still see them (and hear them, the loud mouths they are!) and weaving my way in between the crowd.

Down the stairs they went, and I followed. Across the sand they went, and I followed. At one point, Marko had turned around, the look on his face screaming concerned, as though he was watching for someone, and I quickly ducked behind a garbage bin until he turned back around.

I followed them across each sand dune, until they stopped in a tree, seemingly watching something. When I approached a nearby bush and ducked down, I could clearly see what they were staring at, a bonfire party, with about 10 Surf Nazis dancing around to Walk This Way. I suddenly got a sick feeling in my stomach. I mean sure, David despised the Surf Nazis, but what was he doing here? It felt like every step they took had been calculated, every movement purposeful, as though they were lions, stalking their prey. Was David looking for a fight? What did this have to do with Mike questioning Star's whereabouts?

If I had blinked, I would've missed the transformations of the boys faces, lit up by the glow of the fire. They looked... Animalistic. Their eyes grew bigger, their faces morphed into something I had never seen before and, at least from where I was standing, it seemed like they were hungry, starving. For what, I didn't know.

And then, in the blink of an eye, four of them were rushing forward, at an inhuman speed, and as though it was as natural as digging into a steak, all but Michael were literally biting the heads off of the party goers. Their screams were revolting. My stomach turned at the sight of all that blood, and I'm sure my face was green.

I could see Mike at the bottom of the tree, his face transforming the same way theirs had, but it looked like he was struggling, as though his body wanted nothing more to dig into the flesh of the surfers, but something held him back.

Within less than two minutes, all of the surfers were dead, and the boys screamed with laughter, as they dragged the bodies into the bonfire. The scent of scorched flesh reached my nose and that was it, I was bent over, heaving my breakfast, lunch, and dinner into the bush.

When I regained my composure, I saw the boys approaching the spot where Michael lay, David wiping the corners of his mouth with the back of his hand, chuckling. "So, Now you know what we are, now you know what you are. You'll never grow old Michael, and you'll never die, but you must feed"

I couldn't hear what exactly he said, but Marko opened his mouth next. And suddenly, as though a spotlight came out of nowhere, all five boys suddenly turned to face me. I gulped, knowing I was spotted, and debated my next move. I could make a run for it, but there was certainly no guarantee I could get away. They all were taller than me, stronger than me, faster than me, even without the vampirism. But if I stayed put, what was guaranteeing I wouldn't be the next meal? Then again, if David and Uncle Max were truly vampires, and had been for a long time, I had been safe countless nights at their house. If I was to be a meal, I most likely would have become one a long time ago, and besides, isn't there some rule in cannibalism about not eating family?

As my thoughts swirled around me, my body decided to do what it felt was best, run. I mean after all, I guess that was my survival instinct. I would've done the same if I had come across a bear or a venomous snake or even a mountain lion. But I may have been able to outrun one of those. Possibly.

However, I couldn't outrun a vampire, and I knew it.

I screamed when David caught up to me, trapping me in his arms as I screamed and squirmed and kicked. "Shut up!" He yelled, putting a hand over my mouth, a hand that I bit. "Shit!" He exclaimed, clearly hurt, but not letting go. I stared in fear as he turned me around, and all four of them stood behind him. Dwayne and Paul were each holding one of Mike's arms, leading me to believe that he had been trying to get to me. Well, at least one of my cousins loved me. I was about to die in the hands of the other.

"If I take my hand off, will you promise not to scream?" He asked. I nodded, and as he did so, I did exactly the opposite of what I was told. "Uncle Max!" I screamed, knowing he probably couldn't even hear me, wherever he was. "Help-" David scowled and covered my mouth again, picking me up. Before I knew it, we were flying through the air.

I gasped and wrapped my arms around his neck, burying my face in his shoulder. He had effectively stopped my screams. "Finally" he sighed, as we flew higher and higher, and faster and faster. "Just hold tight Lilah, I'll explain everything to you when we get back."

I realized pretty quickly that if he was going to kill me, I would already be dead, so I relaxed a little, well as much as I could, in his arms. Before I knew it, we were flying into the cave he had shown me just last week. The boys, minus Michael, who had disappeared, had come in behind us, and both Star and Laddie looked up at us, shock on their faces when they saw me. Star immediately gave me a sympathetic glance, and I realized she knew all along. Laddie grinned. "Does this mean she knows?" He yelled, running over as David put me on the ground, and reaching his little arms around me, hugging my waist. I almost fell backwards from the impact, but David caught me.

"Hey buddy," Dwayne said to Laddie. "How about we go play a game?" I shook my head. "No, if you're all vampires, you need to stay here and explain this to me." One by one they all sat down. Dwayne, Laddie and Marko on the couch, Star and Paul on the edge of the fountain, David in the wheelchair. I looked at each of them, and every single one had the same look on their face, a bunch of emotions wrapped up together. Sadness, pity, excitement, happiness, dare I say, joy.

"Where do you want to start?" David asked. I bit my lip. I don't know why, as the answer was obvious, but the first question out of my mouth was "You kill people?" He stared at me, and I slowly nodded, digesting the information. "Okay. So that's a yes. Do you have to kill people, in order to feed?" David shook his head no, and Paul spoke up. "But imagine Lilah, imagine what would happen if we let them go afterwards, and they ran around screaming about vampires" I flinched at that word, the word that up until a half hour ago, didn't register as real.

"Okay. Um, how long have each of you..." I drifted off, looking around the room. "Six months" laddie spoke up, making me realize that it was around the time he came to live with us. "Five and a half months" Star said softly, and I nodded my head. Star, the "babysitter." Marko spoke next. "Eight months now, I guess." I cocked my head to the side as I looked at him, once again doing the math. "Eight years" that was Dwayne. I would've been six, almost seven years old. It was right after I met David for the first time. "Come your birthday, it'll be 14 years, for David and I both" Paul said.

I frowned. David became a vampire on my first birthday? I shook my head. "Why my birthday?" I asked softly. Paul looked at David, who sat still, staring at me.

After what felt like forever, he started to speak. "That was the day that Lily overdosed." I opened my mouth, before closing it again, shaking my head. None of this was adding up. All these years, and she had died? My family lied to me?

"My mother?" I asked, and he nodded. "But what does you joining the un-dead have to do with my mother?"

I felt my heart beat faster as I anticipated his answer.

"Fifteen years ago, my daughter came into this world bright pink, crying, screaming. And ever since then, she's given me a run for my money" I knew it wasn't possible, but as he spoke, it felt like my heart had stopped beating.

"Lilah, that little girl is you"

A/N: Ooop there it is! What do we think? Surprising? Unsurprising? Expected, but still surprising? Let me know:)