The Awakening (15 page)

The following day I invited Gavin round to my flat I hadn’t spoken to him in over 24 hours and had received several text messages and missed calls, which I had left unanswered. When he arrived, I could tell from his face that he was worried and expecting bad news. “Hiya Lauren,” he said with a sad smile and hovered uncertainly in the hallway. “You ok? Although that is probably a silly question as you obviously aren’t. Is it the dreams again? Has something happened? Bloody hell I’m just blabbering. Look what’s going on?” He finished with an exasperated sigh, reached forward, and held my hand.

“Why don’t we go and sit down for a minute.” I said loosening my hand and walking towards the sofa. “Would you like a drink or anything?” I said feeling uncomfortable.

“No thanks. Lauren just tell me what’s going on?” Gavin replied as he sat on the edge of the sofa and again reached for my hand. I felt a jolt of electricity rush up my arm and my heart began to beat faster as I wondered if I could really live without him. I looked at my hand our fingers intertwined and felt awful but I knew I needed a bit of space and it was unfair to Gavin for our relationship to continue whilst I had doubts.

I looked at Gavin and then the floor, “Gavin I’m really sorry. I’ve had a lot going on and I should have talked to you about it sooner, but I didn’t and now it’s just like my head is all over the place. I saw Annalise yesterday and I feel a bit clearer about things, but well um, it’s just I um don’t think we should be together anymore, I need some space and normality. I’m really sorry,” I said in a rush and finally looked him in the eye. “I’m sorry.” I repeated. Gavin looked me steadily in the eye, then squeezed my hand and dropped it.

“I thought that might be what today was about. What’s been going on? Is it Daniel? Your witch stuff? Me?” he said sadly and with frustration creeping into his voice.

“It’s not Daniel although he is part of it, lots of weird stuff has been happening with regards to a witch called Elizabeth. Do you remember Annalise telling us about her in the beginning?” Gavin nodded and I continued, “Well she has been communicating with me. She’s a ghost obviously just to make things that bit weirder and she kept telling me Daniel was bad and to keep away. I didn’t want to tell you as you and Daniel are so close and I didn’t even know what she meant. So, I tried to keep away from him to begin with but he seemed to be around more and more and I actually grew too really like him. However, Elizabeth kept giving me strange messages and I’ve just been a bit freaked out. I thought things were getting better, but I just really need some space. All this vampire and witch stuff is too much!” I replied feeling a mixture of relief to have finally told him and guilt for not explaining things to him sooner.

“Oh my god Lauren why did you not tell me any of this sooner? No wonder you have been freaked out. Why is this Elizabeth woman communicating with you and what does she mean Daniel is bad?” Gavin said full of concern.

“I think a lot of it got lost in translation,” I said with a sad laugh. “My Wiccan strengths aren’t quite strong enough for her to communicate with me properly. From what I can gather from Annalise, the basics of it are that Elizabeth feared that Daniel may be a bad influence, spilt us up, and take me away from my normal life. I know it sounds rather farfetched but she made me worried. That’s why I was so freaked out about the whole nightclub thing and why I didn’t get on with Daniel when he first arrived. I don’t know all your vampire relatives and lifestyles and I became a bit worried that perhaps he was like the vampires you read about in stories and see in the films. Elizabeth seems to think she needs to look after me, as she is my direct ancestor. It’s all just weird and confusing and I’m sorry I didn’t tell you earlier.” I sighed and then continued feeling the need to get everything out in the open. “I really think all this has made me realise I need a break from everything vampire and witch related. I just want to be normal for a while. I do love you and this is a really difficult discussion. I think your mum and dad and Nathaniel are all great but I can’t be near any of you for a while I need some time to just be with my friends and family. You know just go to the pub, cinema and hang out without worrying about secrets, ghosts, and anything else supernatural.” I finished and stared at my hands, which I realised, were tightly wound together.

“I do understand Lauren,” Gavin said sadly “When you first found out I wondered if you would want to get as far away from me as possible. Nevertheless, we worked things out and I thought we were doing ok. I know it’s an awful lot for you to take in and I understand. I’m so sorry this ever had to happen to you. If I could remove the entire vampire and witch stuff from your memory I would. I hate to see you worried or upset. I wish we could be as we were in the first few weeks. This is my all my fault, I got too close to you but I never ever thought this could happen. I’m so sorry.” Gavin finished with a tear in his eye.

“God Gavin, don’t you keep apologising it’s me. None of this is your fault. I’ve been having a rough time and not explained or given you the chance to help and now it just seems to have gone too far and I need a break. I’m sorry it’s ended up like this.” I replied and hugged him and for a split second, I thought I can’t let him go but then everything came crashing into my thoughts again and I knew I had no choice. “Look at the pair of us both apologising.” I smiled sadly.

“Lauren I love you, but I know you need this. Maybe in a few months when things have settled down things will be different. Or maybe you just need a normal boyfriend.” Gavin said miserably. “Lauren if you need me you know where I am. Don’t let things get on top of you and struggle. I’m still here to help if you need me remember that won’t you.”

“Yeah I will, thanks Gavin. I so still love you but I just can’t do this at the moment.” I kissed him gently on the lips and he hugged me hard.

“Right well I’m gonna go. Take care Lauren.” and he quietly let himself out the flat leaving me sitting on the sofa alone.

A few days later Daniel came to my flat unannounced. I was surprised to see him standing there but had a feeling he would seek me out eventually. “Can I come in?” he said and gestured to the inside of the flat.

“Um yeah I suppose,” I replied, let him in, and quietly closed the door. “Do you want a drink?”

“No thanks Lauren. I think we need to talk.” Daniel said sounding very serious and for the first time not having his cocky attitude.

“Um I suppose so. Do you want to sit down?” I went towards the sofa and perched myself on the edge and Daniel sat on the single chair opposite.

“I’ve discovered that your ill feeling towards me is because you were warned I could be trouble and I wanted to let you know I mean no harm to you or your friends.” Daniel began staring at me thoughtfully.

“Have you spoken to Gavin?” I said feeling flustered.

“Yeah he’s pretty cut up but he knows it’s for the best. I’m really sorry you two were a brilliant couple. I know it’s not directly my fault but I do feel too blame. Your ghostly friend made you uneasy about me and therefore made you worried about everything vampire related. Lauren I’m not perfect and I’ve experimented more than Gavin will ever do, but that doesn’t make me evil or a threat to you. I think whoever thought they were helping you has actually just made you confused and stopped you communicating with Gavin and things have come to a sad end. It’s weird really that your ghostly friend thought I’d split you up but really it’s her who ended up doing just that.” He stared at me intently and continued.“In different circumstances I think we could have been really good friends or maybe more if I’d met you first. Still, I’m 100% not in the business of stealing girlfriends away from my family regardless of how I feel. I just wanted you to know I’m safe around your family and friends.” he paused and pushed his hands through his hair exasperated. “Although now you and Gavin have split up, I don’t suppose I’ll be seeing any of them anytime soon.”

“Um ok right. Thanks for explaining.” I stammered feeling bewildered and unsure. “Thanks for coming, you really didn’t need to.” I eventually said to fill the silence in the room that was making me feel uncomfortable. I wondered if he would leave now he’d finished his speech. I suddenly thought, well whilst he’s here, I may as well get some things sorted out in my head, clear up some niggling feelings and doubts. “The thing is so much has happened recently,” I began feeling a bit uncertain and felt my cheeks blush. “The whole Elizabeth thing has just freaked me out for sure. However, you are so different from Gavin and I always get a strange feeling around you, which I can’t explain. You say you have experimented, but what do you mean? The nightclubs? What was that trick with the cut on my finger? Could you guys just turn one day?” I finished feeling frustrated and overwhelmed.

“If you mean will we suddenly become blood sucking monsters 100% not. Lauren I’m not sure how much you have been told but we have a very strict vampire council that regulates and keeps track of the vampire population. They know how many vampires are in existence and where they reside. Any illegal activities are taken very seriously. The nightclubs aren’t illegal, it’s as I was saying to you the other day some humans become alcoholics or drug addicts, and some vampires crave human blood and get addicted to the biting craze. Feeding of humans will never happen and the vast majority of the vampire population are very happy to be fully integrated and live in safety, have job security, wealth, and happy personal lives with marriage and even children. None of these things would be possible if we were discovered. Some vampires crave fresh human blood in larger quantities than we are allowed as it makes them feel stronger and can resurrect some skills from our old existence such as better hearing and eyesight. Some just like it because it makes them feel superior to humans but they are a very small minority and I think even these vampires would not like the upheaval and widespread change of a full-scale discovery or takeover. The vampire council deals with any vampire that is involved in forbidden activities such as showing their fangs or feeding off a human in public and they will banish them. The general vampire population does not know exactly what happens but they rarely reappear on the social networks again. If a vampire causes a human death, the punishment is very clearly defined and the vampire will lose his or her own life. It is vitally important that our secret remains just that and the council are very powerful. I have visited underground nightclubs but so have most other twenty something vampires and no one is ever hurt or killed and the general public population have no idea of these places. They are usually on industrial estates away from residential areas and have signage that only a vampire would understand. I would never do anything to harm a human. I like living a bit on the edge but never to the extent would it cause harm to my family. I know you probably find it unlikely but vampires have very strong family connections and it’s why I have been considering moving back to England. I can’t explain the odd feeling you get around me but I always feel something too, maybe it’s just mutual attraction or a witch thing I really don’t know.” He paused as if to gather his thoughts and shook his head sadly. “Lauren I promise I will keep out of your way and not complicate your life any more than it is already. I’m sorry you have become too wrapped up in everything and I think maybe you have made the right decision in splitting up with Gavin. You deserve to be happy. Lauren, take care and remember you and all your friends are 100% safe.” Daniel kissed me on the cheek and got up to leave “But I’m not sure I want you to leave me alone.” I said suddenly and quite unexpectedly my brain whirled and I couldn’t understand why I had just said that and blushed furiously. “I um… I’m not sure what I feel at the moment.” I continued feeling tears spring to my eyes. 

“Look I know you need a break from everything for a while. You can always get in touch with me if you need too. I think some time out is needed for me as well as you. You are a very special girl Lauren. Remember to chill out a bit and enjoy your life.” He kissed me again and then walked out of the flat leaving a card on the table with his contact details on and me sitting on the sofa feeling empty.

My head swam and I felt guilty for everything that had recently happened I had been unfair to Daniel and had excluded Gavin. The more I thought about things the more I felt anger towards Elizabeth. Everything has been going fine until she appeared with her odd warning about Daniel. I know she was only trying to look out for me but she had just made things ten times worse and I had no desire to ever want to reach out to a spirit guide again. As I mulled things over and my emotions flitted from anger to feelings of guilt and unhappiness I realised I had made the right decision splitting up with Gavin. I needed some time to myself, no vampires, no ghosts or spirit guides just normal nights out with my friends and perhaps even a holiday. The only problem was I kept coming back to the fact that I had liked and fell in love with Gavin before I knew everything about him and I couldn’t help but wonder if we would have been happy if all of this hadn’t happened. If I didn’t know, he was a vampire and I hadn’t become a witch we would have been a normal couple and probably still be together.

Newly single, I decided a change was in order and dyed my blonde hair dark brown, had my nose pierced, and got a tattoo. I had found the perfect motto for myself and visited the tattoo parlour alone feeling rather apprehensive. However, when it was finished I felt amazing and I had found it surprising painless. I had In Somnis Veritas tattooed just under my collarbone. It was Latin for ‘in dreams there is truth.’ It seemed extremely fitting given my dreams had warned me of Gavin’s secret and my own witch ancestry. My dreams really had shown me the truth. When I returned home and gazed in the mirror at my new reflection I felt reenergised and tougher than in previous months. Although I missed Gavin every day I was growing used to the separation and was starting to enjoy being alone. When I visited my mum, the following weekend, she was alarmed at my transformation and could not hide her surprise. Although, my sister Katie thought it was amazing and begged my mum for her own nose piercing; much to my mum’s dismay.

I had also decided to throw myself into work and took the new position helping to train four new temporary staff members. Two were 18 years old and just finished their A levels and were earning some cash before going travelling. The other two were 22 and had just finished four years at university and were doing temporary work whilst applying for graduate jobs in their chosen careers. I thought it would be nice to meet some new people my age and have a new focus instead of thinking about Gavin and vampires and witches. The trainees all seemed really nice and I quickly went through the basic computer training and health and safety packs that were compulsory in the office. However, I had an odd unsettled feeling with one of the male trainees and a familiar feeling came over me when I had to sit directly with him to go through some training material. I realised he was a vampire and my heart sunk. I knew vampires were all around us but it still surprised me when I encountered one whilst going about my day-to-day life. His name was David and he had just finished university. He seemed like a really nice lad, but I decided instantly that I would keep a polite distance, as I didn’t need any more vampire connections in my life.

The first weeks training went really quick and we were all getting on really well my manager was happy with progress and I realised I had hardly thought about Gavin or Daniel. The trainees invited me out after work for a drink and to say thanks for making them all feel so welcome, but I declined; primarily because I didn’t want to get chatting to David too much. In work, it was easy to maintain a polite distance but socially it would probably seem rude not to engage in chat with him as much I did the others. They were a bit disappointed, but too buzzing from finishing their first week at work and getting a pay packet to dwell on it. I noticed David give me a slightly quizzical look but I decided not to read too much into it, went home, and chilled out in front of the TV. During the weekend, I busied myself with visiting my parents and sister who I had been neglecting recently and going to the cinema. When Monday rolled around, I was actually quite looking forward to work and was happy to see all the trainees come in. They were all chatting about their weekends and the two younger trainees Alex and Michelle were full of plans for their forthcoming travels, as they had been browsing the internet all weekend looking at locations and trips they could do. They all said I’d missed a fun night out Friday, but no more was mentioned and we quickly got down to work.

We had been given the task of updating the filing system and were in for a week of sorting out mountains of paperwork. Anything over three years old was to be shredded and all the paperwork to be kept needed to be sorted into alphabetical order and by date. Although the job was not that interesting the week passed quickly as we were all chatting and getting on so well and on Friday they all invited me out for a drink again. I felt bad but declined again but this time I did have a proper excuse as it was my Vicky’s birthday and we were going for a Chinese at a local restaurant just down the round from my office and then a few drinks in town. They all tried to get me to go just for one drink, but I pretended I didn’t have time. Just as I was leaving, David caught me by surprise as he grabbed my arm, I flinched, and the light briefly flickered as the surprise contact from a vampire always gave me a chill and David had caught me off guard. I managed to quickly compose myself and smile, “Lauren are you ok?” he said as I straightened out my jacket.

“Yeah fine thanks David. Sorry I can’t make tonight maybe another time,” I said knowing full well if they asked me again I’d need to make another excuse.

“Ok it’s just you seem a little jumpy. I was just going to wish you a good weekend. Have a nice time with your mates tonight,” David continued.

“I’m fine really you just surprised me. Thanks I’m sure it will be a good night Vicky’s birthday usually end up being eventful” I smiled “Well have fun tonight with the other guys and see you Monday,” I said as I opened the office door.

“Yeah, you too. See you Monday.” David replied with a little shake of his head. I wondered if he had noticed the light flicker and if he had any idea I knew he was a vampire but decided not to worry about it. From what Gavin and his family had told me there weren’t that many young witches around so it was unlikely, he had encountered one before and probably just thought I was being a bit strange and the electricity was being a bit faulty.

I had a great night out with my friends and, as it was the first time I’d seen some of them since me and Gavin had split up, naturally talk turned to why we had ended. Me and Gavin had already agreed we would just say things weren’t working out and we wanted some time apart but were still friends. Although it sounded a bit vague, it meant no awkward questions should be raised. Most of my friends were surprised as they thought we were such a good couple and I wished I could tell them the truth, but knew that would never be able to happen. However, Sophie wasn’t convinced everything was so civil and said I could talk to her about anything if I needed to. I appreciated her concern and wished I could share the truth with her. She was my best friend and I felt awful always lying to her but I knew that would never happen so just gave her hug and said thanks and hoped no more would be said. Thankfully, after a short time the subject was dropped as they could tell I was feeling uncomfortable and talk turned to my transformation. I was beginning to regret my impulsive decision to dye my hair, but everyone was very complimentary and it was just the confidence boost I needed. We went on to have a good laugh and fabulous Chinese food. As the evening went on, we decided we’d try and organise a 'girlie get away' and I said I’d do some research into going away for a spa break; somewhere we could sit around, be pampered, and have a good old gossip. When I got home, I felt happy and relaxed but a part of me did miss Gavin as over the last year we had seen and spoken to each other almost every day. I sent him a quick text message just saying I hoped he was doing ok, I was fine and had been out for Vicky’s birthday and work was going well. I wondered what he was doing and hoped he was doing ok. I knew he felt a great sense of guilt about me finding out all about the vampires and my resulting Wiccan powers, but it wasn’t his fault and I hoped he wouldn’t continue to feel bad about it. I was managing to move on and adjust and I hoped he was too.

The following two months went by so quickly. I was busy at work and although David caused me a slight problem, I just avoided him as much as possible but was always polite and helped him when the job required. I went out with Sophie, Charlotte, and Vicky several times and loved just being normal and not having to worry about anything. Every now and then, they would politely mention Gavin but could see it was a sensitive subject and I tended to end the conversations very quickly. It was sometimes slightly odd if he came up in random conversations as we still shared some of the same friends and I’d sometimes unexpectedly hear about what he’d been up to especially as things would crop up on Facebook. We had decided it was for the best to unfriend each other on Facebook but other people’s links sometimes meant I would still see the odd photo or he’d be tagged in a check in and I could see where he’d been. It made me feel happy to see him getting on with life and seeing his friends but weird that I was no longer part of it. Sometimes I felt a feeling of unease, as I wasn’t always sure I’d made the right decision.

I went to the cinema and had lunch a few times with my other friends and family and I enjoyed getting to know Vicky’s boyfriend Matty who I had hardly met due to all the other stuff going on. I also spent some much-needed time with my sister Katie who I had been neglecting and did some girly things like getting our hair and nails done and having a shopping trip and lunch in Milton Keynes. Annalise got in touch with me a few times to check I was ok and to let me know that if I needed any help she was there. She also said she knew I wanted to avoid my Wiccan side for a while but she reminded me it would never go away and if I ever needed help with training or learning about my other ancestors I could ask her day or night. I got the feeling she was checking up on me for the sake of Alice and Marcus who I knew felt very sad for me and Gavin but understood my decision. I had a couple of texts from Gavin but he knew I needed the space so he never called or turned up in places he knew I’d be with friends and seemed to have thrown himself into finishing his course and was spending increasing amounts of time in London.

One Monday morning as soon as I arrived at work, my manager asked to see me “Morning Lauren. Good weekend?” Wendy, my manager, asked.

“Yeah, great thanks. Hope yours was relaxing?” I replied smiling, as I knew how busy she always was. She has three kids, one of which is football mad, and her husband helped coach the under 10’s team. “Oh you know, housework, rushing about with the kids, busy, busy, I come here for a rest,” she laughed. “I just wanted to let you know you’ll only have one trainee with you for most of this week as we need to borrow three of them for another job that’s come in. They really need the extra resources downstairs so it will just be you and David sorting the filing for a few days,” she continued. “Is that ok? You look a bit worried,” Wendy asked.

“Um yeah that’s fine. It will just mean we don’t get as much done that’s all.” I said as calmly as I could, inside I felt worried, as I wouldn’t be able to keep my distance from David if it was only the two of us working together and he might notice me being a bit odd. I tried to remember the spells Annalise had taught me to calm down, but my mind went blank and my heart raced so I just reached up to the necklace instead and hoped I’d make it through the day.

“Don’t worry if you don’t get much done this week just plod on and I’ll let you know about Wednesday what’s going on workwise?” Wendy explained.

“Ok that’s fine thanks for letting me know.” I said as I left her office and went to my desk hoping that a few minutes peace and quiet would calm my racing heart. I sorted my stuff out and then went to the little room we had been working in where stacks of paperwork were still waiting to be sorted. I took a deep breath and entered. David was already there putting paper into differently labelled piles “Morning Lauren. You ok?” he said with a hesitant smile as I entered the room

“Hiya. Yeah I’m fine thanks it’s just us today. Wendy has had to borrow the other three for some extra work downstairs so we just need to get as much done as we can.” I said with a tight smile and sat down grabbing a pile of papers.

“Ok cool no problem. I had wondered where the other guys had got too. I thought maybe they had all had busy weekends and were sleeping of hangovers” David smiled and we had some general chit chat for a while and then settled down into a quiet rhythm of work. The only problem seemed to be when David passed me some papers or we were lifting a heavy box together and our hands connected. I would get a sudden chill or jolt and I was finding it increasingly hard to cover up my slightly odd behaviour, but we got through the day and I hoped that maybe the others would join us tomorrow instead of later in the week.