Stay in the Dark

So, I changed a little bit, and I know I first put it on here, like a thousand years a go, but oh well! =-D

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CHAPTER I Cami

I sat on the edge of the river, remembering how it felt to sit in the sun, how it felt to feel the cool water after the long, hot day. I miss that the most, the sun, I didn't mind that I lost all my 'friends,' or that my life ended and started again. I don't mind that I have the sudden urge to kill others... All I miss is the sun, the way it felt, the way it warmed my body, the way it seemed to attract everyone outside, the way everyone planned pool parties and barbecues around them. I really just miss it.

That's when I saw him. He was the only one that was in wolf form instead of human. Something about him, it may have been that he looked at me too, or how he had brown fur that feel over his eyes, seemed to pull me towards him. I wanted to know everything about him. I wanted to know how he got dragged into this terrible rivalry, how he feels about it, how long he had been here, how often he misses his old life, everything.

I knew he probably hated me just by my sight, just by looking at me and seeing that I was a vampire. It was that simple.

That ended every thought I had, or it should of. It's was just impossible. He was a freaking werewolf; I was supposed to hate him!

How could I though?

It was his smile, that's what pulled me towards him. It shined even through the darkness of the night. It was like the sun I missed so much. I stepped into the water, to swim across, and meet him.

"Careful, Cami," Aballa, my favorite of my new 'family', said calmly, coming through the trees. "He looks harmless, but he's just as dangerous as we are."

"I know... I just, um... I just wanted to get my feet wet..." I tried to lie.

"Cami, let's just go back to the house, we don't want to start anything." I knew she was right, so I followed Aballa.

She had a face of an angle, as any six year old would have, but in reality almost a hundred years old. She had short brown hair, blazing blue eyes and skin that was pale white. She moved through the trees with a graceful ease that I knew would take years for me to accomplish.

I was the newest member to our family; I guess you could call it. It was really more like a college dorm room, full of people who disagree on everything, even eating habits. I've only been a vampire for two months, and I'm already wishing to get out of it.

"Cami, please stop being so negative, it's making me angry." says Aballa, flashing her heated blue eyes towards me.

"I'm sorry, I really kind of..." I Replied.

"Forgot that I can read minds? Yeah, I know."

"Oh yeah."

"What are you trying to hide, Cami?" Aballa said as though she didn't already know the answer.

"I don't, I can only see what you're thinking at the time."

"Oh, good."

"Cami, tell me now! You know I'll find out soon enough anyways!"

"You really don't want to know," I said, trying to be as convincing as she could be.

"You know why I was chosen to be the pact leader's right hand man? Because I dig for things. I don't give up, ever! Either you tell me now, or I'll find out the hard way, and then I could get you in so much trouble you wouldn't ever be able to leave your coffin," she said the last words with a smile.

"Aballa, do you remember any of your human emotions? Like how it feels to envy what others have?" I asked, carefully placing the right thoughts in my head. Sun, I thought, I miss the sun.

"Really, Cami, that's it! That's really sad. You must still have a lot of your human emotions on the surface. Now, let's hurry up so we don't get caught by the sun."

* * *

The noise from another time filled the room as I sat at the piano, listening to what I was playing. It was soft and gentle, just like the birds that fly through the air. Concentrating on every note, and every beat, I played without mistake, not even stopping to change songs, just passing right into them. As the tempo slowed, thoughts filled my mind, of my old life with my dad and brother. The time was different, harsher, and wasn't as complicated.

"I didn't know you could play," Javier, the oldest vampire, said, sitting beside me on the bench. "Oh, please don't stop on my account. I love the sound of the piano."

My fingers moved over the keys once more. The sound of two seats of hands filled the room.

"I love Beethoven," he said looking over at me, not missing a note. "I remember when he first started, I was about 15 then. Everyone was so shocked that a six year old could play so well. Did you know my father was the one who baptized him?"

"No I didn't," I said, trying to stay focused on the keys.

"What were you playing before I interrupted? It didn't sound familiar to me."

"It was something I wrote a while ago," I replied, hoping he couldn't here the edge to my voice.

"It was very beautiful, was there an inspiration?"

"No, there was not." I stopped playing, and stared at the empty wall.

"That's very surprising to here."

"I guess so," I said, confused.

"Now, will you play for me some more?" Javier asked, in lighting the mood.

"No, I'm afraid she won't," Aballa answered for me. "Tonight, we must hunt." She walked into the room and stood next to us.

"Oh, yes, please do," he said with a smile. "You must play for me another time then."

"Of course," I said, as I stood silently, happy for the chance to leave his side.

"Let's hurry, please," Aballa said harshly, dragging me towards the door. As she shut the door, the room was filled with music, once more.

"What's the rush?" I asked wishing to know the edge behind her voice.

"Nothing to do with you, just walk out the front door," she said, with the same sharp edge. "Have you been hunting with me yet?"

"Yes, you're the only one so far," I answered calmly.

"Good. Please keep up, Cami, I can't afford to lose you," Aballa said, infuriated for some reason.

"What's going on, Aballa?" I asked, but immediately wished I didn't, for her angle like face turned sharp, and her eyes dark.

"I already told you, it is absolutely nothing you need to worry about! It's none of your business so just back off and keep up," Aballa whispered sharply. She turned around, and walked into the trees.

Just as she know I would, I followed her, and for the first time, I felt hatred towards her, and Javier. I hated them, what I have become, and everything that crossed my mind.

"Stop here, Cami," Aballa whispered, the edge gone.

"I thought we were hunting," I replied, watching her sit on the mussed covered log.

"We hunted last night. I just wanted to talk to you."

"What?" I asked harshly, crossing my arms over my chest.

"Cami please, don't be like that, I really need someone." The pleading look she was giving me looked like a true six year old.

"Okay, what do you need," I asked, once more in the same tone.

"I need a friend, someone to be on my side. Not just someone to listen to me, I can find several people for that." Her eyes widen, and filled with tears, and I know, I wouldn't say no to her.

"What's going on?" I asked, this time leaving out the attitude.

"I need to know your story. Every piece of it, from what you left behind, to what you had to go through as a young child, tell me everything. Can you do that? Please? If you don't, I'm going to die," Aballa whispered.

"What do you mean? What do you want me to say?"

"Everything. Start from the day you were born and don't stop tell you get to this very moment."

"I was born on the sixteenth of June. I was born a happy, healthy baby, but my twin sister had brain damage, and my mother got the worst end of it. She had, died. I'm not sure how, but she did. I don't remember anything of my first two years, but when I turned three; my sister was in the hospital for the third time that year. The doctor gave her five weeks, but she only toke one. I remember my dad remarrying that same year.

"When I was five I got a brother, they named him Caleb. He was the joy of there life, everything they needed. I was negated; I was no longer visible to my 'parents.' The only time the said anything to me was if I was in there way. No one cared for the five year old girl sitting in the corner with two broken Barbies.

"Once I started school, I discovered that this, my home, was not normal. When we had to tell everyone about are parents; what they did for a living, how old they are, how tall they are, I had told everyone my dad didn't have a job, and I don't have a mom. Then the teacher said 'So he stays home and take care of you?' I answered truthfully.

"'No, that's just my brother, he's a baby.'

"'But your dad makes your supper and makes sure you take a shower, right?' she asked, not believing that my dad did not care.

"'No, I do that on my own,' I whispered. That was when I promised myself that I would never talk about what was going at home.

"Everything changed when I was nine years old, but not for the better. After that day it got worse then ever. My 'mom' woke up in a worse mode then normal. She grabbed Caleb, and started yelling at every little thing. The only one in the house I played attention to was Caleb. I wanted to hold him, like I always did but when I tried, she slapped me out of the way. I cut my arm that day, falling on the coffee table. That, was the first day I felt the pain of an abused child.

"She left after that, with Caleb in hand. We never saw her again, except for in the coffin at the funeral three days after that. Caleb was ours again."

"How did she die?" Aballa asked in a slight whisper.

"Car crash," I said simplify. "That next day, after she left, was the worst day of my life. I woke, and out of no where my dad, he had been drinking all night, hit me, shoved me, kicked me. I remember thinking it would never stop. He kept saying I made her go, that if I wasn't here she would stay. He wouldn't stop, not for the longest time! I remember it going, and going till I had passed out. I didn't wake up again until it was already dark out.

"After that night, the beating became a daily routine. Everything that goes wrong, it was my fault. I was nine years old, and I was blamed for taking his bear, his weed, anything that disappeared, anything that wasn't clean, anything that wasn't how he wanted it. I was blamed for it all.

"It was my tenth birthday, and he remembered, but he only remembered his wife dieing. I tried to wake up as early as I could, hoping he had something for me. Sadly, he did. As soon as I walked in to the house he said 'Cami, come here." I did as I was told, and walked in to the kitchen, where he stood with a pot of boiling water.

"'Yes Dad," I said, happy he remembered. "'Give me your hand," he said, with a mischievous smile on his face. As soon as I did so, instantly regretted it. He pulled a metal spoon out of the put and pressed it to my wrist. 'This is for my first wife that you killed,' he said staring at me. I managed to not scream, even though it hurt like hell. He let go, and placed it back in to the water, not letting go of my arm. 'This is for my baby girl you killed,' he said, placing the spoon directly above where he out it the first time. Tears ran down my face, but I still covered the scream. He pulled it off, and once again placed it in to the pot. I tried to pull away, but he wouldn't let me. He did this once more, for his second wife I killed. Then, instead of placing the spoon back in the pot, he set it on the side and picked me up. 'You see how bad murder hurts?' he asked. I nodded. 'This is for anyone else that you will murder,' he said, dipping my hand in to the boiling water. That time, I couldn't hide the scream.

"He came into my room that night, just like always after a day like that. He told me he loved me, and that he was so sorry. He told me he would take it back if he could and that he would never do it again. I trusted him that tomorrow would be better."

"You trusted him, how? It makes no senses!" Aballa said, looking at me with confused eyes.

"Of course I trusted him. You might not be able to remember, but when you're a little kid, you believe every word that comes out of your parent’s mouth. It’s like you having to have someone in the world to trust, and there the ones you look to. You understand?" I asked.

"I think I do."

"Well, after he left, my little brother came in. He was four now. Caleb was so confused about everything, and at the time, I was too. All he knew was that I was hurt. 'Can I sleep with you tonight?' he asked calmly.

"'Of course,' was my only reply. That night was the night that I decide to never let him go through this, never have to be tortured, like I was. He was not going to have to deal with that too! And now, I can't even be sure to keep that promise. For all I know, he's already dead." I stopped, thinking about my brother, wondering if he had taken my place, or if he was still unharmed.

"I'm sure he's fine," Aballa whispered.

"You don't know my dad," I whispered. "Will you go on?" She whispered once more.

"Well, the next day, I went to school, as always, but it was not a normal day. My teacher saw my hand, and asked me what happened, so I lied, telling her I had fallen and a pot of water was on the stove, and that spilled on top of my hand. I could see she didn't believe me, but all she said was go to the nurse. I got there, and when the nurse asked what happened, I told her the same thing. She wrapped my hand, and sent me to the principal. I got there and started to ask me questions about my dad. They wanted to if he ever hurt me and all of that. I was so mad, that I didn't even bother answering. They called my dad, told him to come up to the school. When he got there, he told everyone I was his daughter, and he loved me to much to hurt me. He told them that I had fallen, just like I said. They told him just to watch after me a little more, and to go a head and take me home.

"'You little bitch!' he yelled at me as soon as I got in the car.’ How could you go tell on me like that? You know I could get sent to jail for that!' I expected him to hit me, beat me up worst then ever, but he didn't. At the time, that confused me."

"Why didn't you tell them that he did it? Wouldn't you be taken away, along with your brother?"

"But what would have happened to me then? Where would I go? I don't have any relatives, no one I trust. It was better for me to stay there. Anyway, for the next three years there were a few things that stuck out. The first was that I realized what was going on in my dad's bedroom when he brought a different girl home every night. The second was that I started changing; I was no longer a little kid. I started fighting back, trying to show him that I'm stronger then he thinks.

"The last thing that changed was when I was 13, I got a job. It was most likely one of the worst thing I've ever had to do, but of course I had no idea what he was doing to me. He brought of his hoe's home, had her show me what to wear, how to do my make up, how to be appealing to the men, and most importantly, to make sure they have the money. Then, when it got dark outside, they toke me and dropped me off at a corner, they said not to come home with out money. "I wouldn't have done if it wasn't for my dad telling me I was saving Caleb. That Caleb could have what ever he needed, but I would have to do this right. It was scary at first, no, it was always scary, but the first night was the worst, by far. I had no idea what I was doing, only that I let him do anything to me, as long as I got my money when I was done."

"He made you sell your body?!" Aballa said, shocked. "Isn't your dad supposed to love you?"

"He always loved me, even through the beatings. Drugs can do terrible things to people,” I added when I saw her confusion. "I will not go it to details about those nights, but everything seemed a little better. I stopped getting hit; I didn't have to worry about what was going to happen tomorrow. It was almost good, almost. It didn't last though. "Three weeks later, Caleb started crying, and Dad started yelling.’ Shut up, shut him up you dirty hoe! Come on you slut, you get your way with ever other guy, why not with him? Why can't you make him do what you want?' I finally calmed him down, and gave him something to eat. Dad got tired of not hurting me, and because his words didn't get to me, he went back to hitting. I knew it would be back, but that didn't make it ant better. If anything it was worst then before.

"About that time, I was old enough to know that there was something terrible wrong with my dad. I had sat through the abuse speeches at school, and I knew it wasn't my fault, or I was told it wasn't. Every night though, especially night like these, I lay in bed thinking I did something to disserve this. I didn't know why I was being punished, just that I was. I thought maybe it had something to do with the God person everyone talked about. I heard that he punished people for what they did wrong, but I didn't know what I did. I almost thought that it would have been better if I was the twin who died, but that would mean another person would have to deal with this mess. How would that have made it any better? I was lost and confused, hoping for answers.

"For the rest of that year I stayed confused, but, on my 14th birthday, things began to change. I was working again, of course, and I wasn't really paying attention to the people who walked by. Not until one of my previous costumers came up with a new boy.

"'Here you go, treat him well.' With that, and a hundred dollars, I was left with boy, whom I realized was as scared as I was my first night.

"I felt sorry for him. I could tell this was forced on him, as it was on me. 'We can just walk, if you want,' I whispered quietly.

"He smiled, and I could tell he saw everything good about me in that one spilt second. He knew what to think of me, right then. 'That would be great,' he whispered back." I looked away from Aballa, hoping she couldn't tell I was crying, but of course she did.

"What's wrong?" Aballa asked me, gently.

"Through all my life, I had been trapped; never being able to realize that there were good people out there. When I met Taylor, everything changed. I no longer wondered if I could make it through this life alone, because I didn't have to anymore. From the time my brother was born, I had watched over him as though he was my life, never wishing that he wasn't there. I had always protected him, but I had no one to protect me. No one was there for me the way I was there for him. But he changed all of it, Taylor did it. He loved me the way no one ever had, and, now, I lost him, for forever. It's a pain that hurts so much worst then my dad hitting me, or calling me names. It will never heal, for as long as I live."