Melabeth the Vampire (31 page)

That left Lizzie, Michael, Lea and I. We all had a good laugh of the retelling of what had happened at David's house. Lea thought it would be a good idea that I forgive David; she was relentless.

I told Lea, fat chance.

Lizzie was a lot of help. She threw half of what Michael and Lea had bought away. She helped me and Michael set up Goth outfits. She pulled old clothes of Lea and Michael's out. Lizzie said we couldn’t come to school in all new clothes. She mixed and matched our outfits until she had made us a sizable pile of clothes. With enough different outfits we could pass for Goths, and we had at least nine days before we would be wearing something over again.

Michael and I dyed our hair jet black. Then Lizzie did all the makeup. She also showed us how to do it ourselves. It wasn’t too hard, a lot of white followed by some black lipstick and eyeliner. When I looked into the mirror, I was horrified. I was staring at myself in a full length mirror. I looked like some girl from the eighteen hundreds; that someone had just dug up.

Then I said,
"Well, Devon will never know it's me. Hell, I don’t know it's me."

Everyone laughed
at my reaction. It was early in the morning when Lizzie called her dad. I could hear him screaming across the room. Lizzie hung up on him, and then she said. "Well it has been fun. See you two at school Monday, that’s if my father doesn’t kill me."

S
he cast her teleporting spell, and off she went. I didn’t know what I thought about Lizzie. She was really hard to read. I could never tell what she was thinking. She was smart; that was clear enough. I didn’t know what she thought of me, but I felt like she was studying me like I was some kind of plant. I liked her; we would get along just fine.

I needed to go to bed. It was going to be impossible to change my hours, but I needed to get used to sleeping at night. It was three in the morning, and I was wide awake. Tomorrow was Sunday, and then we go to school Monday morning. Not a lot of time to switch the hours around. Michael warned me that we would be tired at school, but we must not fall asleep. If someone tried to wake us, they would probably call 911 because we were dead.

When we sleep, we don’t breathe; hell, we don’t move. In fact, I remember seeing Ezra and Charlotte in bed. I had walked in to ask some question, and there they both lay on their bed face up. They didn’t bother getting under the sheets or even getting out of their day clothes. I realized right then how weird it must have been for David the first time I slept in front of him on the bus. It was like staring at two corpses. If I hadn't known better, I would have thought I was at a wake.

I just lay down on my bed, when Ezra came in my room. He never knocked; then again he never needed too. I a
lways knew when one of them was about to come into my room. I was still staring at the ceiling when he sat down on the edge of my bed.

Ezra said with a soft voice. "Nervous about school?"

"Yes" I said simply.

"You will be fine. Here is your ID. Your name is Melabeth Alice White."

I took the ID out of his hand. I looked at the photo; the girl looked like me, but it wasn’t me. "Let me guess who thought up my middle name." Ezra laughed. "Who is this girl?"

Ezra looked at me then at the ID. Then he said. "No idea, she looks like you. Just in case, it is always a good idea to use someone else's face on your ID."

"No one will question this?" I asked.

"If you ever looked at most people’s drivers’ licenses, you wouldn’t be asking me that. Plus you're not taking out a loan, and if you're wearing all the makeup you are right now, trust me, your own mother wouldn’t know who you are."

I looked over at Ezra’s kind face. He had soft eyes when he looked at me. "Thank you." Then waving my hand in front of my face, I said. "Do you like?"

Ezra shook his head in a no pattern. "Goodnight Melabeth."

He left, I guess Goth wasn’t his thing.

The First Day

M
onday came without a warning.

It was four thirty in the morning.  Michael and I were supposed to leave for school at seven. I only had two and half hours to go. I was almost ready, Goth gear was all on and makeup applied. I just needed to paint my nails
black. Gee, I wonder if it would match with the rest of my outfit.

I felt like a checker board.

The fact that I didn’t sleep at night and my nerves were a mess, I didn’t get a wink last night. I don’t think it will matter. I would be too nervous to sleep at school; in fact, I am two hours away from going and already thinking about chickening out. Maybe I should just let bygones be bygones. Get a grip, Melabeth.  I can do this.

I could hear two vampires heading toward my room. They always made a little noise so that you knew they were about to come in. Otherwise, you could not hear any of the vampires moving around in the house. My guess was Michael and Lea were about to come in.

The door opened, and in came Michael and Charlotte; I guessed wrong.

Charlotte smiled at both of us, and then said. “My children are off to school. I feel like I should make you
lunch in a brown bag or something. I hope both of you enjoy your first day. Also remember I am proud of both of you.”

Michael laughed. “You do know we are just going so we can kill someone?”

Charlotte gave him an over the top frown. “I can still be proud. I just will have to skip the bumper sticker.
My kid is an honor killer.
You two watch yourselves, and I mean it. You both will be outside during the day and putting yourself in danger if anyone figures out who you are. I will be worrying every day.”

I said,
“Charlotte I promise not to do anything dumb during the day. We are just there to get info, not to start a fight. The fight will be later in a place and time of my choosing.”

Charlotte then said. “Still, I think that you are both old enough that we have a little talk. Now that you both are in high school I think if you… you know; you should have protection.”

I said, “What?”

Michael burst
out with laughter and followed with. “What are you talking about? It can’t be sex; we don’t catch diseases.  And we can’t get, or become pregnant.”

I looked at Michael as I felt… loss. I knew I couldn’t get pregnant, but something about hearing it out loud bothered me.

Charlotte was giggling, and then she pulled two small hand guns out from behind her back. “I am alluding to using this protection.” Then she tossed a handgun to me and Michael.

W
e all laughed, and Michael said, “I wondered where you were going with that.”

After that, we sat around and talked. We were soon joined by Ezra and Alice. I knew, with them in the room, Lea would not make an appearance. Ezra and Alice gave us gifts.

Alice gave a box to Michael, and Ezra handed me a small box, then said. “These will take away from the beauty of your eyes, but I doubt it will affect you as much as the outfit you are wearing.”

“More like a costume, Ezra.” I huffed at him, and then I took the box from him and opened it. Inside there were two contact lenses.

Alice explained, “Your eyes will not be the right color, and it will mess with your vision, but you will look more human. In the past we wouldn’t normally worry about hiding our eyes, but Devon will know what you are in a second if he noticed your eyes. So have a nice day and make lots of new friends. Of course, when I say new friends, I mean, snack pals.”

The conversation took my mind off of the time. We all talked about the day to come. The next thing I knew, Michael said. “Well it’s that time… ready Melabeth.”

“Ready as I’ll get.” Everyone said their goodbyes, and Michael and I went out to his Jimmy to leave for school.

Michael and I were in the truck headi
ng to school when Michael asked, “Are you ok? You know this will be no big deal.”

“I don’t know that. I don’t know shit; I have never been to school in my life.”

Michael stared at me funny, and then turned his eyes back to the road. “Don’t worry, you'll be fine. Less resourceful kids go to school every day. Trust me when I say it’s not hard, just painful. It is kind of like a mind torture.”

I laughed. “Well, you took my worry away. Then you replaced it with a whole new one.”

“Is that all you’re worried about?” Michael asked.

“Well no, there is David. I want to see him, but I also would like to eat his face off.”

Michael burst out laughing. “Well, hold off on that second emotion until we are off school grounds. Remember, no biting and no eating faces off while we are at school.”

That brought a smile to my face.  “Yes, sir.”

The car ride felt as if it had only taken a few seconds. The next thing I knew Michael was fighting for a parking space. If I had a heart, I would be having a heart attack right about now. I had never been so nervous in all my life. Yet I have always wondered what it would be like to go to school.

I remember
ed living back in California with my father. I had just turned fourteen, and was still taking care of him. Life there was always crazy; you never knew when a drug head was going to do something stupid. My dad was really worried about me being spotted by the cops during the day. He knew if I were seen around town during school hours, I could be picked up by the police. So, I was on lock down at the house during school hours. All I could do was clean, read and watch TV, also try my hardest to stay away from the drug heads hanging around the house.

I remember asking my father,
“Dad, why can’t I go to school?” Of course, this was a question I had asked him more than once.

My dad answered. “I have told you Mel, I would have to sign you up. Then they would take you away from me. Your grandparents told them lies about me. Do you want to end up in an orphanage? Well, do you? Because that’s what's going to happen to you… if you don’t learn to listen.”

With tears in my eyes, I replied. “Yes daddy… sorry.” Then I went to my room and cried.

I watched through my window as all the children my age left and came back from school. Someday I thought, someday I will go to school. Of course, when I was thinking that, I was imagining I would be alive.

I stepped out of the Jimmy. I had to already put my sunglass on; the sky was so bright. I followed Michael as he led the way. He told me first thing we had to do is check in at the office and get our schedules.

My time in the sun had been limited. I remember being outside in Colorado in February, while there was cloud cover and the snow still lay on the ground. It was now March in southern California. The sun was out, and it wasn’t even eight in the morning. I could already feel its rays.

As we walked from the student parking lot, we had to cross a wide open area. There were no trees and we moved at a human pace. The students moving along with us were slowing our pace. More than once we had to move around groups of students congregating.

The sounds of all the students talking sounded like a factory of noise to my ears. They spoke loudly and with the same words over and over again. Words like, dude, word, what’s up, and then all the sounds were mixed up with a soundtrack of swearing and laughter. By the time we reached the office door, I thought I may be getting a headache.

Once in the door, things were not much better. Everyone was talking. Kids and administrators were moving around and making noise everywhere I looked. Then there was someone talking over the intercom. Only with my hearing, it felt as if a thousand bees where trapped inside my head. I rubbed my temples and tried to focus.

Michael put his arm around me, and then he said quietly, so that no one else but me could hear him. “You will get used to it. Give it a second, it is hard because our senses are so much better than humans, and you have been living at the Whites for a month. If you think about it, the mice are loud at home.”

He was right; it was always quiet. Vampires make no sound when we move; the only time we do, is just to let the other vampires in the house know we are coming. Even when we spoke it was in a whisper. No reason to speak loudly when everyone could hear you in the next room.

“Next… can I help you two?
” I realized about the same time as Michael, that the lady was speaking to us. She had her brown hair up in a bun and wore really thick glasses. She spoke to us with contempt as if her punishment in life were to sit at this job and deal with us. “Earth to whoever you two are. Do you need something?”

Michael spoke up. He spoke with a charm that I had never heard him use. “Yes ma’am; we need to get our schedules. This is me and my sister’s first day.”

It took me a second to realize that Michael had thrown in some of his mind power. The woman’s look of torture melted away. It was as if she was ten years younger.

She looked at David with… well the way grown women should not be looking at a student. “And what did you say your name is?” She may as well have asked him out.

“I didn’t; my name is Michael White, and this is my sister, Melabeth.”

She smiled at him; she couldn’t peel her eyes off him, not even to take notice of me. “Oh, let me look that up for you. It will only take a sec; would you be a dear
and just sit over there?” She pointed at some seats against the wall. Then she added. “My name is Mrs. Corke, but you can call me Jess.”

As we headed toward the seats she had pointed out, I caught the eyes of another student. She was looking at Mrs. Corke, then Michael, and then back again. She had a look of astonishment on her face.

I whispered over to Michael. “Knock it off. We are supposed to blend in, not make the adults want to hook up with us.”

Michael sat down and laughed a little bit, then said. “Sorry, couldn’t help myself. When I meet a woman that unhappy in lif
e…well, I just want to make her smile.”

“Do it again, and I will do something to wipe the smile off your face.”

Michael looked over at me. He was trying his best to keep a straight face. “Yes, ma’am...just don’t eat my face off.”

“Shut up.” I said as I hid my smile from him by turning my head.

We had been talking so quiet no one would have heard us. I also noticed that it helped me deal with all the noise. I guess I can filter out sound or at least manage it. If I keep practicing, maybe I will not go crazy before the day’s out.

A girl handed me and Michael a schedule. Michael had thought it best if we were twins. Therefore, we were both the same age and had all the same classes, except that someone in the administrative office must have felt differ
ent. All of our classes were different.

Michael went up to Mrs. Corke and started up a dialog, but, as much as Mrs. Corke would have loved to help Michael out, she couldn’t change the schedules. Michael came back in a huff. I told Michael don’t worry about it, but, before I could say much more, a girl
walked up next to me and said, “Melabeth?”

“Yes.”

“Hi, my name is Jessica. I will give the grand tour and take you to your first class.” She started to walk away turned back toward me and said. “Come on.”

“What about my brother?”
I spoke up and pointed at Michael who was now engaged in a conversion with some boy.

Jessi
ca smiled, “Jason will take good care of your brother. So, come on girl; I promise I will not lead you into the lion’s den, Girl Scout’s honor.”

I followed Jessica out of the administrative office. I told myself, do not panic; not everything always goes as planned. You must learn to adapt your plan to the circumstances. At least that is what Ezra was always telling me.

As I followed behind Jessica, I took a look at my new schedule.

First period, English from 8 to 8:55 with Mrs. Trexlor
, Room 133.

Second period, Science from 9:00 to 9:55 with Mr. Carter, Room 136.

Brunch 9:55 to 10:15

Third period, Social Studies, 10:15 to 11:10 with Mr. Boyd, Room 204.

Fourth period, Art 11:15 to 12:10 with Mrs. Zacky, Room 220.

Lunch 12:10 to 1:05

Fifth period, Physical Education 1:10 to 2:05 with Mrs. Miller, Room P2.

Sixth period, Math 2:10 to 3:45 with Mr. Wright, Room 523.

It looked as if I would be in for a treat by the end of the day. Devon Wright, Room 666 would be my Sixth period Math teacher. I hadn’t even really thought about it until this very second.

I hadn’t realized why I had been so nervous. I kept thinking it was because I have never been to school before. Seeing his name on this little white slip…well I knew that I would have to face him sooner or later. Just how do I look
at a man who filmed me…dying and more? How can I remain calm?

I put the little white piece of paper into my pocket, took a deep breath and then tried to concentrate on Jessica’s voice. Jessica asked to see my schedule; I handed her my little white paper.

She looked at it for a minute, and then said, “We have five minutes between classes. It looks like all your classes are close together so you will have plenty of time to get to class. All your classes that are in the one hundreds, are in Building One. The building we are standing next to, is Building Two. That’s Building Three over there, but you don’t have any classes there. Oh, and Building Five isn’t really a building.”