Chp 23
~Chapter 23~
Denise came down the next morning and found AJ snoring on the couch with his head under a cushion. She chuckled to herself then entered the kitchen to make breakfast. AJ woke up to the smell of pancakes. It was only morning, but he couldn't fall back asleep. He sat up, yawned, stretched, then dragged himself into the kitchen.
"Good morning, Mom."
She didn't pay any attention to him.
"Mom?"
She continued doing what she was doing without acknowledging his presence. AJ rolled his eyes.
"Are you still mad at me for yesterday? Sorry, but you got back at me at the end! If I had known what you would be thinking, I never would've read that sick little mind of yours!"
"Pbthhhh!"
"Yeah, that's mature!"
He opened the fridge and took out a bottle of blood and started drinking it. Denise scrunched up her nose.
"AJ, that's disgusting! The least you can do is drink it from a glass or something, not the bottle directly! You don't know where that's been!"
"What? I'm the only one who's going to be drinking it! Besides, I don't care about germs, I don't get sick."
"Good for you. Oh God, how can you drink that stuff?! Just the sight of it…*shudder*!"
"You have to be undead to enjoy it, I guess. It's just like drinking V8! Only, it's not. Here, you wanna try it?"
"Get that away from me!"
"Ok. Mom, do you think I'm fat?"
"Where the hell did that come from?!"
"I don't know. Do you?"
She looked at him disbelievingly.
"AJ, if you lost anymore weight, you could be officially reported as a missing person! How much are you now, 105?!"
"120."
"Good Lord! Gain some more weight, for heaven's sake!"
"I can't. I'm stuck like this forever."
"You're lucky!"
"Not really. I'm too pale. I want a tan."
"That's impossible, dear. You'd fry, literally!"
"I know."
Toni called AJ that night.
"Hi, honey, how ya been?"
"Toni? Where are you calling from?"
"The pay phone at the McDonald's where we had our first date," she giggled.
" *lol* I remember that! That was great! Are you having fun? Was the flight ok?"
"Yup, everything ran smoothly just as you said it would! Listen, I can't talk very long, but I missed you so much!"
"I miss you, too, but don't you have my pictures?"
"Yes, but I miss the sound of your sexy voice," she said in a sassy manner.
"Oh, ok. So how's everyone?"
"Everyone's fine. I told my whole clan about you. They want to meet you."
"Are you sure they just want to MEET me and not just BEAT me?"
" *lol* No, they're really becoming fond of you!"
"Well, you do have good taste."
"I know."
"Hey, have you seen or heard anything from Val?"
"No, sorry. I went to the castle, but no one was home. They must have relocated. I have no idea where. I'm sorry, AJ."
" *sigh* That's ok. I guess it is for the better."
"Yeah. Sorry again, but John's yelling at me! Hehehe. I have to go now!"
"Ok, say hello to him for me!"
"I will! See you in two days! I love you, bye!"
"Love you, too, buh-bye."
He hung up the phone. Hearing her voice would've normally made his day, but now it just made him sad. Denise came downstairs.
"Hey, who was that?" she asked.
"Toni."
"Really? She called you from Romania?"
"Yup."
"Oh how nice! How's everyone?"
"Her clan's fine. Mine's disappeared without a trace. I've been abandoned by my own kind."
"Oh, I'm so sorry. I'm sure they're ok."
"No doubt, they're ok. Val's a great leader. It's just that, I feel like I don't belong anywhere. I'm not human, and now I've been ousted from my clan. I'm being shunned from both societies. I'm an outsider. I'm an undead outcast."
"Nonesense! Alive, dead, or undead, I love you and you belong here!"
"Thanks, Mom, but I've got some personal issues I have to think about. I'm gonna take a walk. I'll be back in an hour, ok?"
"That's fine. Just be careful."
"I will."
He walked out the door and started strolling down the peaceful streets of his hometown. It was a very quiet night except for the chirping of the crickets and the winds' rustling of the trees. It was beautiful, but AJ felt uneasy for some reason. 'AJ, snap out of it! Nothing's gonna get you! The evils are gone and humans can't hurt you!' He shook the feeling off and continued on his walk. The farther away from home he got, the stronger the strange feeling became. He knew he should trust his instincts. The sixth sense wasn't there just for nothing.
"Ok, who's ever out there show yourself!"
Nothing.
"Ok, fine, but expect to get your ass totally kicked if you try anything!"
Suddenly, AJ felt a sharp pain in the back of his head and everything turned black.
Chp 24
Chp 22
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