After two subject classes, in the cafeteria:
Mia and Sheila were talking with each other while Annie and Eve watch them talk about how they hate boys till a boy with auburn colored hair spotted them.
“Hey, Mia...!” he called out from across some tables as he was walking towards their table while Mia groans.
“Here comes trouble…” Mia muttered as she placed her elbow on the table.
“Who’s he?” Eve asked in a whisper, leaning near Annie.
“He’s Mia’s brother, Ryan…Unfortunately, they don’t get along very well…” Annie replied.
“So, what are you girls chatting about?” Ryan asked as he placed both of his hands on the table with a huge grin.
“None of your business, Ry…So, buzz away to your own group. Or are you coming here because you’re admitting that you scream like a girl?” as Mia crossed her arms with her eye brow raised which made Eve snickered.
“Hello, who’s this?” Ryan continued asking as he looked at Eve.
“She’s new here…Her name’s Eve…” Sheila responded normally with her earphones still in her ears.
“She’s still wearing her earphones? I guess she’d rather listen to music than to listen to teachers…” Eve thought as she looked at Sheila then back at Ryan, who started introducing himself.
“I’m Ryan and this guy here is my new pal…” Ryan introduced as a familiar boy walked up beside him with a small smile. Seeing the same boy surprised Eve. The boy looked a little muscular as if he has been working out or so. His eyes are as dark as black with his dark brown hair. To Eve, he seemed like he’s almost six feet tall…taller than her.
“Girls, this is Jake Burten, he’s also new here…So, I guess we made new friends this year, huh?” Ryan asked while Jake tries to look away from Eve.
“Hey uh let’s go, man…” Jake muttered as he was about to leave until Ryan grabbed his arm.
“Why don’t we sit here, anyway? Besides, I bet that all the best tables here are already taken…Jake, you sit next to Eve…” Ryan instructed as Jake looked at Eve sipping her juice and gulped silently.
“Uh o-ok…I guess…” as he sat down on an empty chair beside her then the others started chatting and laughing while they kept silence. This makes Eve feel awkward being as quiet as she watched her new friends talk, laugh and argue so, she let out a silent sigh. Jake looked uncomfortable either, he looked at Ryan who is actually busy talking to the girls.
“Boy, Ryan can easily get used to girls…I can’t even think of anything with the new girl beside me. Why…?” Jake wondered.

After a very awkward lunch time and three boring subject classes, Eve walks into the last subject of the day, Biology, with Annie and Sheila. Then to her surprise, she spotted Jake sitting at the last row of the room.
Then Annie leaned next to her and whispered, “Hey I think you should sit next to Jake…I noticed that you two haven’t been talking to each other earlier in the lunch time, so I guess this is your chance…See ya later.”
This surprised Eve when she looked at Annie’s wink as she sat down on the first row beside Annie which gave her no choice but to agree since there were no longer seats available in the front row so, she walked towards the table where Jake is sitting.
“Uh is-is this seat taken?” Eve stuttered.
Then Jake looked at her with a reply, “Not yet, but if you sit here then yes, it will be…” as he smiled then Eve chuckled softly.
“Thanks…”
She sat down beside him while a man with curly hair entered the room with books in his arm as he placed them on the teacher’s table, who Eve assumed he is the subject teacher.
“Ok afternoon class, I’m Mr. Alfo…I suggest we’ll save our intro for later so for now, let’s just start with our review from what you had learned from your previous grades or school.” Mr. Alfo said as he turned to face the board and started writing something. Meanwhile, Jake was looking at her without even moving his head but unfortunately, Eve has this feeling when someone is staring at her or even talking about her, so right now, she can feel that Jake is looking at her until he spoke, “I guess we didn’t get to talk during lunch, huh?” then Eve faced him with a reply, “Uh yeah, I guess so…” then Jake looked at the teacher, who was still facing the board, as he asked in a low voice, “So uh why’d you come here?”
“Well, m-my uncle found a better job and a –uh- better house to live in so…we-we moved here to start a new life.” Eve answered without looking at him. Then he looked at her with a confused look on his face, “Why…? What happened to your old life?” Jake’s question made Eve hesitant as she looked down with a sad expression on her face then took a deep breath and answered, “My old life was…just another accident waiting to burst open and give problems.”
“So, you couldn’t stay there because you couldn’t take it anymore?” Jake assumed then Eve shook her head as she placed her elbows on the table without looking at him and replied, “No, it was my aunt and uncle who couldn’t take it anymore…They wanted me to have a normal life so, they decided that we should move somewhere far from there. They said that it was for my own good and that I can just forget all my childhood memories if we move here but, I guess they’re wrong because I can never forget my past.” This kept Jake quiet for a moment until he apologized to her, “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t be asking things which are personal…”

“No, its fine…It doesn’t matter anyway. So, let’s just concentrate on biology…” Eve suggested as they both listened to Mr. Alfo’s discussion about the parts of a snail which kind of disgusts Annie, Sheila and the rest of the students which includes Eve and Jake. During discussion, two students a black haired girl with red streaks and boy with dark blue streaks on their hair, who were actually sitting in the last row beside Eve and Jake’s table…Since the moment Eve sat with Jake they watched her till the school bell rang then everyone immediately stood up with their bags and rushed out the room. Some students rushed to the toilets to vomit after a boring yet disgusting lesson, others just can’t wait to leave.
“I have to go, bye…” Eve notified as she stood up, carrying her bag and a notebook.
“Yeah, see ya…” Jake waved as she left the room then the black haired girl and boy approached him.
“Who is she, bro?” asked a boy with blue streaks then Jake answered as he inserted his books inside his bag, “She’s new just like us…”
Then a girl with red streaks sat on top of the table saying, “You know, to tell you the truth, she’s not that bad looking…I mean she’s pretty…”
“Are you saying that she’s prettier than you, Regina?” Jake asked as he looked at her with a cheeky grin.
“Hmph…Don’t push your luck, Jake…I don’t feel like arguing with you.” Regina snapped as she tossed her black, red streaked hair over her shoulder and got off the table.
“Hey, then why do you always feel like arguing with me?” asked a boy with blue streaks as he walked with Jake and Regina through the hallway. Then she answered, “Because you always bother me for no reason and besides, you’re much fun to argue with, Reggie. So don’t complain about it…” this made Reggie frown as he hit her on the arm.
“Ow! How dare you hit me?” Regina yelled out as she keeps hitting Reggie with her bag while Jake muttered, “You know, maybe I should call you guys the Streaks Pair…” as Reggie and Regina continue to argue with each other.

After a while, Eve reached home as the school bus stopped in front of her house then got off the bus and ran inside, “I’m home…!” then Aunt Clara walked out of the kitchen section with a question, “Well, how’s your first day of school?”
Eve replied with a smile, “It’s alright…See ya later…” and ran upstairs to her room then closed her door. While Sam came downstairs from the bathroom with a confused expression on his face asking, “What just happen?”
“I think she enjoyed her day…” as she walked back into the kitchen.
Meanwhile, Eve dropped herself on the bed as she stared at the ceiling remembering the times of her past when she was just twelve years old, she was already one of the chiropterans and was already trained to hunt blood thirsty vampires with them. When she was brought in by them, she was already part of them ever since she was born, she is a half chiropteran and half human. Sam, Clara and the chiropterans knew that her blood would kill vampires just like her mother used to have. So she was trained to kill, fight and hunt vampires with the use of her blood. And as she grow in being a professional vampire killer, she drinks sheep’s blood after a night’s hunt just to heal her wounds or even strengthen herself. This is the reason why she, Clara and Sam moved to Jacksonville because of their fears that she will never have a normal life. “All this time, my plans were just to run away from who I am and from where I originally belong…Ever since I discovered that my blood can kill vampires, it makes me feel scared. I guess this is the reason why I don’t like to kill but, I got no choice.” Eve thought it out inside her head until she heard Clara’s voice from downstairs saying, “Eve, you have visitors…!”

“Visitors…?” Eve repeated as she sat up and got off her bed then walked out of her room. Then as she walked downstairs, she saw a familiar boy with two unknown faces. The two unfamiliar faces have streaks on their hair. The boy has blue streaks, he looked a little like Jake with his black eyes and his well-developed body. Then a girl with red streaks looked really cute with her black shoulder-length hair. She looked really white almost like the moon which made Eve thinking that she might be a moon princess. Her eyes are the same with Jake and her eyelashes went perfect with her eyes. She is almost too perfect looking, according to Eve.
“Hey, Eve…” Jake greeted as he smiled at her while she greeted back, “Uh hi…What—how did you get my address?”
“Oh uh well uh—“
Reggie interrupted Jake by answering her question, “I checked into the principal’s computer.”
This surprised Eve especially Clara and Sam as they were eavesdropping and peeking into the living room from the kitchen section.
“You what…?” Eve asked then Regina explained, “Our brother won’t stop talking about you so we figured that we should find your address.”
“Just to shut him up…” Reggie added with a grin.
“Hope you don’t mind—“

Regina was interrupted when Jake demanded, “Ignore my brother and sister…they don’t know what they’re talking about. They are really annoying…”
“Haha very funny…” Reggie said sarcastically as he rolled his eyes.
“Its fine, I don’t really mind at all…Actually, I’m just surprised to see you guys here…” Eve replied then Jake and Reggie looked at each other while Regina just smiled.
“Why…? You don’t want us to come?” Reggie asked as he crossed his arms.
“No, no, I mean—“
“Idiot, can you get anymore stupid? She’s just surprised to see us because she didn’t expect us to come so soon…” Regina scolded as she hit Reggie in the head then he answered back, “Ok, ok, you don’t have to hit me in the head when I just asked a simple question!” while the two are arguing, Jake looked at her and apologized, “I’m sorry, my brother and sister are always like this…They’re the dogs of the family…” then as the two heard him, they protested in unison, “Hey…!”
This made Eve chuckle till Jake requested, “I was wondering if I could copy the lectures we had in Biology cuz’ my brother threw my notebook into the mud…So I bought a new one and I was thinking -since I’m here- that I could rewrite the lectures?” then Eve nodded as she agreed, “Sure, uh my notebook’s upstairs…” then she and Jake stood up.
“Ok, you guys better head home now…” Jake instructed as Reggie and Regina stood up as well and walked towards the door.
“Alright but come home before dinner or else mom won’t forgive you just for missing it.” Regina reminded as the ‘Streaks Pair’ walked out the door and left. Then they walked upstairs and entered her room. This surprised Jake as he saw many books on shelves, table and one book lying open on the bed but, still clean though.

“Wow, you have a lot of books…” Jake mentioned as he looked at the book shelves while Eve rubs the back of her neck and said with a nervous chuckle, “Uh yeah, I like reading…” then Jake turned to her with a smile and replied, “Cool…” while Eve smiled as she stared at him looking at her shelf full of books. “His eyes are so black…It’s like they’re unreadable. But I can’t seem to stop my staring, he’s not like other guys but then again, I might be wrong again…” Eve thought as her eyes were still staring at him. She couldn’t resist staring at his smiles and expressions as he scanned every book in her shelf.
“So uh where do I write?” Jake asked as he looked at her. And she immediately walked towards her bag and brought out her notebook then handed it to him as he thanked her.
“You can sit here…” Eve said, pulling out her chair from underneath her study table and he sat down then opened his notebook.
“I’ll bring in something to eat—“
Before Eve could leave the room, Jake rejected, “N-No it’s ok, I-I uh ate already. Thanks anyway…” then Eve replied as she tied her hair, “Ok…Just tell me if you need anything.” and laid herself on her soft bed then started reading. After five hours of writing and studying, Jake was finally finished as he closed his notebook and stretched out his arms on the chair as he announced, “I’m done, Eve…Eve…?”
He realized Eve was already asleep as he stood up from the chair and looked at her sleeping silently.
“Guess she’s tired…”
Then when he turned to the clock that was hanging on top of Eve’s bed, he realized that it is already twelve o’clock.
“What the…? It’s already twelve? I gotta go…” said as he picked up his notebook and pen then rushed downstairs as quiet as possible- trying not to wake everyone- and was about to turn the doorknob until Clara and Sam switched the lights on in the living room.
“Where are you going, Jake?” Clara asked, clad in a pink night robe while Sam stood beside her, clad in blue pyjamas.
“Oh uh home, ma’am…I didn’t realize that I was here for five hours ‘cause I was busy writing and studying…I’m sorry for disturbing you…” Jake apologized then Clara looked around as if she is looking for someone and asked, “Where’s Eve…?”
“She fell asleep…” Jake replied then Clara looked upstairs and said, “I’ll ask Eve to walk you home—“
“No, no, it’s alright, ma’am…I don’t want to disturb her. I’ll just go ahead…Bye, Ms. Clara and Mister…” Jake said as he hurried outside and ran.
“He is such a nice boy…” Clara complimented as they walked back inside the room.
“Yeah, well he remembers your name but doesn’t remember mine…” Sam mumbled as he laid himself on the bed while Clara laughed as she combs her hair.

Later on, in a big dark mansion with huge rusty gates...
Jake reached his place- which seemed more like a scary horror fun house but he was alright with it- and slowly opens the door. The mansion was full of candles, roses and mirrors (most were broken mirrors). The curtains of every window inside were always closed which seemed a little dark in every corner of each room in the mansion. It was never opened during day time. As Jake quietly closed the door, he turned and suddenly out of nowhere, found Klorifa standing close behind which startled him as he gasped.
“Where have you been, young man?” Klorifa asked with her eyes full of anger and disappointment as she stares at him, clad in a red dress and black shawl with black high heels. She still look incredibly beautiful with her dark brown hair and her beautiful glowing blue eyes.
“Mom—“
“Do you know what time it is?!” Klorifa scolded as she walked in the living room while Jake followed her and muttered, “Yeah, I know…”
“Isn’t it a bit too late for explanations, Jake?” said a woman smiling as she walked down the stairs, clad in a black dress and white high heels with a white shawl wrapped around her waist.
“Mila…” Jake called with a glare as she walked in between Klorifa and him saying, “Now sister dear, why don’t you let me handle this?” then Klorifa protested in her loud voice, “But Jake is my son, not yours, Mila!” Mila walked around Klorifa replying, “I know, I know, but you were having a tough day so I insist that you should get yourself something to eat…” this leaves Klorifa hesitant until she finally sighed and agreed, “Right…I think I deserve something to eat, excuse me…” as she left the living room, Mila said, “You are excused, my dear…”

Then as Mila looked at Jake, he looked down…
“You know Jake, you shouldn’t stress your mother. After all she had done for you, you should repay her back by being a good boy and not make things worse for her.” Mila advised as she sat on the couch which was in front of a glass table while Jake hesitated.
“Now tell me honestly, where were you, Jake?” Mila asked then Jake looked at her with his eyes turning glowing blue saying, “I-I was just at my friends’ house.” Then Mila sighed and asked, “And what were you doing there?”
“I was studying and rewriting all my notes…Reggie threw my notebook into the mud so, I bought a new notebook…” Jake replied as he looked away with his hands in his pockets. Then again, Mila asked, “Who is your friend?” Jake raised his eyebrows in surprise and replied, “She’s a new girl in school…”
“I’m asking for the name…” then Jake sighed and answered, “Her name—W-Why would you want to know, anyway?” Mila suddenly smiled answering, “I was just wondering if you could invite your friend here for…dinner…” this shocked Jake which made him disagree, “No…No way…I will never let that happen again…”

“Oh come now, we’ll be very friendly to her…I promise” Mila insisted as she giggles. Jake glared at her as his eyes grew bluer.
“No, don’t you dare touch her, Mila…” Jake muttered then suddenly, Mila stood up and suddenly zoomed near him, whispering, “You know, that sounds very familiar when you say that…Do you want to know why?” then all of a sudden, Jake pushed her hard as he answered in a loud voice, “No…!”
Mila was pushed to the wall then as she stood up, she noticed Jake’s eyes were full of anger and his fangs showing as he growled.
“I wonder why you are so protective of humans; it makes me think that you are so different than us. Reggie and Regina doesn’t like to drink human blood because of you, which is why I hear their stomachs rumbling…” Mila muttered as she walked towards the glass table and placed her shawl on it then Jake answered back saying,
“And I wonder why I was born amongst the vampires when I can be born into the chiropteran—“

“I will not tolerate anyone talking like that about our kind! We are better than those low-life monsters!” as her loud voice echoes around the mansion, she smashed the glass table into pieces.
“What has happened here?” Jase asked as he came out of the shadows while Reggie and Regina rushed downstairs together with James and Klorifa.
“Hey, Jake’s back!” Reggie announced as he pats his brother’s back while Regina noticed the broken table with shattered pieces of glass scattered around the carpet then looked at Mila who was glaring at Jake a while ago and she asked, “What’s happening here? Aunt Mila, are you alright?” then Mila sighed as she picked up her shawl and walked towards Regina with a reply, “I’m fine, dear…You don’t have to worry.”
“Alright, you two better head to your rooms and let the adults handle this…” Klorifa instructed.
“But what about Jake—“
Reggie was interrupted when Klorifa insisted, “Now…No questions…” then the two had no choice but to walk up, leaving Jake with them.
“What is going on here, Jake?” James asked while Jake kept silence and looked down then Mila walked towards Jake and said, “This discussion is over…” As Jake turned to leave, Mila added, “And Jake, I do NOT want to hear you talking like that again…Understand?” Instead of Jake answering, he just left to his room.

Next morning, at school:
Eve was reading a book while walking and Jake, on the other hand, was looking for his extra shirt for Sports class inside his bag as he walks until they accidentally bumped into each other.
“Whoa…!” Eve exclaimed as she accidentally drops her book and was about to trip but luckily, Jake was able to save her by catching her waist. This startled the both of them as they froze in the middle of the hallway till Reggie and Regina approached them.
“You know, someone might be recording your scene and soon they’ll be uploading it into Youtube…” Reggie mentioned then Regina added, “Better get some privacy next time. Haha…!”

When the laughing siblings left, Eve and Jake manage to stand up.
Then, Jake picked up Eve’s book and handed it to her, saying, “Here ya go…” Eve looked at him, “Thanks…Uh for catching me as well…”
“You’re welcome…”
“So, what’s your first class today?” Eve asked as they both walked through the hallway.
“Sports class…You…?” Jake said.
“Likewise…” Eve answered then eventually the school bell rang and Jake declared, “See ya in the gym…” as they both left to the changing rooms.

At the gym:
“Ok class, I’ll be your P.E teacher, Mr. Roy and I’ll be discussing with you about the high jump. As you can see here, we have these poles, a bar and a big cushion for you to land safely. Any questions…?” asked a tall brown haired man, clad in jogging pants and a loose shirt. But no one answered.
“Alright, I know some of you students have studied here last year and learned about the different kinds of high jump…So, if any of you, new students, are familiar with the high jump-any kind of jump- from your previous school, please raise your hand.”
Unfortunately, the only person who raised his hand is Jake Burten, this surprised Mr. Roy, “Well, I’m surprised to see only one person raising his hand, anyone else besides him? Don’t be shy now…”
“This is the worst lesson I’ve had in P.E…” Mia muttered then suddenly, someone raised her hand in the middle of the crowd.
“Well, well, well…I guess there is another one who’d like to participate. Who ever you are please come in front…” Mr. Roy instructed then as the person walked up in front, it surprised Jake and the rest of the students especially Mr. Roy to see Eve Starlit standing normally in front.
“My, my…Look what we have here, a confident girl…What’s your name, young lady?”
“My name is Eve Starlit, sir…” Eve answered as the students murmured which she assumes they were murmuring about her.

“Alright, only two students appear to be brave enough to be participating in my subject, so I’ll be giving them A+ on their grades…” Mr. Roy announced then all of a sudden, almost all students raised their hands which gave a sudden surprise to Mr. Roy, Jake and Eve.
“Wow, all of a sudden you guys raised your hands…Well, I guess when it comes to A+ you guys started participating…” Mr. Roy said while Mia muttered, “I’ll do anything to get an A+…”
“Alright, alright, calm down, people…Let’s let these two students go first...Now what’s your name, young man?”
“Jake Burten, sir…” Jake replied then Mr. Roy asked, “Ok Jake, why don’t you go first? In which height do you prefer the bar to be?” While Jake looked at the pole then at his P.E teacher and answered, “In your height, sir…” this impressed the students including Mr. Roy and Eve.
“I’m thoroughly impressed, Jake. Well, if you say so…” as Mr. Roy lifted the bar into his height.
“Alright, when I whistle you go, ready?” Mr. Roy asked while Jake prepared and bent down then as Mr. Roy blew the whistle, Jake ran and as he reached near the bar, he jumped with a single twist of his body. And rolled off the cushion then landed straightly on his feet as the students cheered.
“Wow, Jake, you are very impressive…Let’s just see if Eve can beat you to it…” Mr. Roy said.
“Alright Eve, what height?” he asked then Eve replied immediately, “Till the top end of the poles, sir…” this shocked everyone as they started murmuring about her again.
“Uh are you sure, Eve? You can just go for my height—“
“Its fine, sir…I’d rather go for the top end of the poles…” Eve insisted then Mr. Roy left to the storage room and came back bringing a medium ladder to place the bar on the tip of the poles then climbed down and removed the ladder.

“Uh ok, on the whistle you go, ready?” Mr. Roy asked as Eve bent down. Then as he blew the whistle, Eve ran fast and jumped very high as she did a double twist over the bar then landed on her feet and hands. And as she stood up, she realized that everyone’s jaw dropped while Jake, on the other hand, chuckled softly as he clapped then everyone followed him and suddenly, the claps converted to loud cheering as she passed by Mr. Roy, who was still speechless.
“Wow, Eve, you were great! Are you really human?” Mia asked.
“Yeah, I just had a lot of practice before…” Eve answered as she smiled then Jake approached her, “Hey, nice jump…” as they both shook hands as she answered back, “You’re not bad yourself, Jake…” she chuckled till the bell rang and the students ran out the gym, leaving Mr. Roy alone, still speechless.

In the hallway, during lunch:
“You should’ve seen her, I mean, she was totally amazing! She jumped higher than the poles and landed like a cat!” Mia conveyed while Eve and Jake were laughing.
“She beat Jake to it…And same as Mr. Roy, he was standing like a statue when he saw her high jump…” Annie added.
“Wow, it seems like I missed an incredible show…” Sheila said then Mia placed her arm around her shoulders, saying, “Don’t worry, you’ll get to see it someday, Sheila…” and unfortunately, Sheila removed Mia’s arm from her shoulders replying, “Yeah, as long as you don’t get too close to me…” this made Eve and Jake continue to laugh.
Then, Sheila asked as she looked at Eve, “Hey Eve, I’m gonna have my birthday party at my house and I was wondering if you’d like to come—“
“Yeah, come, Eve! We’ll have extreme fun at her house!” Mia interrupted as she suddenly, pushed Sheila off the chair. Then, Sheila stood up and pulled Mia’s hair as she yell at her ear, “You don’t have to push me if you need to lean on the table!” Mia pleaded, “Sorry, sorry, sorry, I didn’t mean it do it!” this made Eve and the others laugh as Sheila and Mia continue to argue.

“So, what do you think, Eve?” Sheila asked.
“Uh—“
Before Eve could finish, Ryan asked, “Hey, what about Jake and I?” then Sheila and Mia replied in unison, “No boys allowed…”
This made Ryan frown except for Jake. Again, Sheila asked Eve, “Well, are you alright with it?” then Eve hesitated and asked, “When…?”
“Tomorrow…” Sheila answered then again, Eve hesitated once more and finally replied, “Sure, why not?”
“Yay…! Eve’s coming!” Mia announced. And Sheila handed a paper to Eve and said, “That’s my address, it’s not that hard to find. And if you want to sleep at my place then you’re surely welcome…” then Eve questioned her, “Who’s gonna be there?”
“Uh, girls in this table, I guess…I don’t really like to invite that many people, especially boys…” Sheila replied while Roy continued frowning until the bell rang then Annie said, “See you at Sheila’s, Eve…” And Eve nodded as they all went to their subject classes till the school’s dismissal when the school bell rang and everyone came out then walked to their buses while Eve walked to her locker.
“Hey, jumper…” Jake greeted as he approached her then Eve asked as she placed some of her books inside, “Since when did I agree on being called by nicknames?”
“Me, of course…” Jake replied as he chuckled while Eve smiled and asked, “So, what time you left last night?” then Jake’s smile suddenly faded away as he answered, “Uh midnight…” and as Eve closed her locker, she looked at his upset expression on his face.
“Did somethin’ happen when you reached your house?” Eve asked and Jake sighed hesitantly.
“Well, my parents and my aunt were kinda mad at me being late for dinner…” Jake answered as he placed his hands inside his pockets then Eve looked down and asked another question, “What is your family like actually?” this leaves Jake hesitant once more until he took a deep breath and answered, “Well, I can’t exactly explain about them. Uh, my mom is strict about everything, she’s the one making the rules of the house and for my dad, he’s like the bodyguard of the house…” then Eve chuckled softly and questioned, “What does he do in the house?”
“When we’re doing our chores, he always watches us when mom’s away. He keeps an eye around the house if there are strangers or even animals entering the mansion…” Jake answered.

“Wait, you’re living in a mansion?” Eve asked then Jake replied with a nod and continued, “My aunt may seem like she’s kind and friendly and all, but on the inside, she’s very strict than my mom but she doesn’t like to be so uptight all the time. Usually, she and Regina just do girl talk while they manicure and pedicure themselves like little kids...Which grossed me and Reggie…” then Eve chuckled again as Jake continued explaining, “Then for my uncle, he’s the second bodyguard…He’s mostly quiet but at times, he talks when he wants to which kinda irritates me. He even talks in his sleep and shouts out ‘I want blood’…”
“Wait, what did he say?” Eve asked as she stopped walking then Jake bit his lip then turned to her and answered, “I meant that he shouts out ‘I want meatballs’, he loves eating uh spaghetti with meatballs…” as he chuckled nervously then they started walking through the hallway again until they reached the exit door and found Eve’s bus left.
“Oh man, I missed my bus…” Eve muttered then Jake suggested, “I’ll walk you home then…” Suddenly, Eve looked at him then hesitates and shook her head as she walked down the stairs and looked back, “No thanks, I can handle this…See ya tomorrow…” and she started walking while Jake watched her and smiled.
As Eve walked on the road, her cell phone rang.
“Hello, this is Eve…” Eve answered then nodded and said, “I’m on the way…I just missed my bus but I’ll be there…”
As she disconnected her phone, she started running to an alley and looked around until she found a big garbage bin and a ladder of the building then she kept her phone inside her bag and bent down then ran up the garbage bin and climbed up the ladder till she reached the rooftop.
“Alright, here we go…” Eve muttered as she wore her cap and bent down again then started running and jumping over small and big gaps between buildings till she reached the last building then jumped off and walked towards her house.

“Clara, I’m home…” Eve announced as she entered and found her P.E teacher, Mr. Roy sitting in the dining room with Clara and Sam.
“Uh hello, Mr. Roy…” Eve greeted while Mr. Roy smiled.
“Is there some kind of problem?” Eve asked as she looked at everyone looking at her then Clara put a paper on the table then slid it to Eve as she picked it up and reads it until she looked at Clara and asked, “Are you allowing me to accept this gymnastic competition?” then Clara replied, “Well, I just go for what you want…So, what do you think? Do you want to join in or not?” this leaves Eve hesitant for a while till Mr. Roy said, “If you don’t like then its ok…I’ll just ask Jake if he’d like to participate.”
And Eve finally place down the paper and answered, “Yeah, better ask Jake cuz’ I don’t think I can show my talent to the public…So, my answer is no, sir…” this made Clara and Sam smile proudly at her as Mr. Roy stood up and took the paper saying, “Alright, no problem. Well, thank you for the tea and good bye…” as he left while Clara closed the door.
“Sorry…” Eve apologized then Clara sighed with a reply, “It’s alright, as long as you don’t show yourself to the public, so you made a wise choice for rejecting that offer…” Eve smiled as she removed her cap and walked upstairs to her room. And changed her clothes then walked down stairs and found Sam reading a newspaper.
“Hey Uncle Sam, what’s the news?” Eve asked as she jumped on the couch and sat beside him as she looked into the paper while Sam answered with his eyes still in the newspaper, “The news is…there’s been another person who died somewhere in the middle of the road going out of Dallas.”
“Really…? Do you think that it might be vampires?” Eve asked as she focused on the article till Sam folded the paper and said, “Or it might be a car accident…Don’t think about vampires, we came here to forget about them and live a happy normal life like you wanted to…” then Eve muttered, “Or like you wanted it to be…”
“What did you say?” Sam questioned then Eve stood up and walked upstairs without answering while Sam and Clara looked at each other. After a while, Eve was reading a book till Clara knocked the door asking for permission to enter then Eve accepted as she turned herself to face the wall while Clara sat down beside Eve.

“Eve, can I ask you something?” Clara suggested while Eve nodded.
“I know we didn’t get to ask you this before we moved here but…do you really want a normal life?”
This took time for Eve to reply as Eve twists her body again to face Clara with a sigh.
“You preferred for me to have a normal life and forget about my past about vampires and even chiropterans, which is part of us. All this time, I’ve been thinking about this when we moved here…I realized that we kept shifting from one place to another just to escape from who we are and where we belong, I guess this is the reason why I’m always feeling so lost whenever we’re in a new place.
Like an animal that can’t easily adapt in its new habitat…” Eve explained as she stared up the ceiling.
“I’m sorry, Eve…It’s just that we’re scared to lose you, we thought that it would be best if we’ll move here to protect you but instead, we’re making you suffer from lack of knowledge of what we’re putting you into…” Clara said as she touched Eve’s cheek then Eve sits up and muttered,
“Uh I forgot to tell you about Sheila’s party tomorrow…” then Clara asked, “Who’s Sheila?”
“Sheila’s a friend of mine, she invited me to her party tomorrow. It’s her birthday tomorrow…” Eve answered.
“Sure, you’re allowed to attend…” Clara agreed then Eve smiled at her. Then Clara asked, “Are you going to her house right after school or are you coming back to the house to change?” Again, this took time for Eve to think till she finally decided, “I’ll just come back here to change…Besides, her party is gonna be at night…”
“Oh, alright then…What are you going to give her?”
“I uh haven’t thought about that yet…I’ll go out now and check out what’s in store today.” Eve answered as she got off her bed and brought out her wallet then wore her cap.
“Be careful, dear, alright?” Clara warned as Eve rushed downstairs and out the house then brought her bicycle out of the garage and rode away in it.

When Eve reached the town, she had already walked in some stores but couldn’t find a single gift that Sheila would like, even if she doesn’t know what Sheila wants.
“I seriously hate shopping most of the time…” Eve muttered to herself till she heard someone calling her name from a distance then as she turned, she spotted Jake Burten walking towards her from across the street.
“Hey…” he greeted her as Eve smiled.
“So, what are you doing walking out here?” Jake asked then Eve sighed as she answered, “Uh window-shopping, eventually…”
“Are you looking for a gift for Sheila’s birthday?” then Eve nodded as they both started walking together.
“Hey, maybe I can help you…” Jake suggested then Eve paused for a while and asked, “Really…?”
“Yeah, besides from what I saw from across the street, you seemed seriously tied up…” Jake said as he and Eve chuckled.
“Thanks, Jake…” Eve muttered as they both walked inside a store and looked around.

“So what does Sheila like?” Jake asked.
“Uh I didn’t get the chance to ask her…” Eve answered then Jake paused and faced her.
“You mean to say that you didn’t know what she like and we’re here looking around aimlessly?” Jake asked as he raised his voice a little at her.
“I’m sorry, ok? If you don’t wanna help me then don’t help…!” Eve answered back which kind of made a scene as some people murmured then Jake and Eve turned their backs at each other. Then when Jake faced her again, she was already leaving the store so he followed her.
“Hey, Eve, wait! Eve…!” Jake called out as he catches up with Eve till she stopped on her tracks and faced him with her arms crossed.
“Look, I-I’m sorry for yelling at you. I-I didn’t mean to blame you, I’m sorry…” Jake apologized then Eve sighed then replied, “Fine, but if you yell at me again for no reason then I’m gone…”
Jake smiled at her as they both walked back into the store and started looking around.
“You know maybe I should just call Sheila and ask what she wants.” Eve suggested till a female voice called Eve’s name and as they both turned to see who was calling her, they spotted Mia and Annie walking towards them, each carrying an item which was gift wrapped. For Mia, she was holding something inside a box while Annie was holding an item that seemed big and soft.
“Mia, Annie, hey…What are you guys doing here?” Eve asked then Mia and Annie brought out the gift wrapped items which Eve assumed were the gifts for Sheila.
“Oh, I see…” Eve muttered.

“What are you two doing here? Are you guys dating or something?” Mia asked. Immediately Jake and Eve protested, “No…!”
“Uh we’re looking for a present for Sheila, too.” Eve answered as Mia and Annie nodded understandingly.
“Hey uh what did you pick as presents for Sheila?” Jake questioned then Mia and Annie looked at each other and smiled.
“Mine’s a teddy bear…” Annie replied.
“And mine’s a portable DVD player.” Mia answered second while Eve and Jake looked at each other then Jake asked, “Are you guys sure it’s what Sheila wants?” then the two girls shook their heads as Mia replied, “Sheila doesn’t tell anyone what she likes or what she’s interested in. She’s been the secretive type ever since when I first met her…”
“And how long were you and Sheila been friends?” Eve questioned.
“Uh I think, two weeks ago…” Mia replied then suddenly, Jake slapped his hand on his forehead while Eve raised one eyebrow and crossed her arms.
“But Annie and Sheila had been best friends since they were in kindergarten…” Mia added as everyone looked at her.
“Well, Mia’s actually right…Sheila is really secretive, even if she and I knew each other since then. To tell you the truth, she didn’t really tell anything personal about her when we first met…She only told me that her parents are fighting or other things like, she’s hungry or something…” Annie explained.

“Ok, I guess you guys just picked out whatever you thought would fit her?” Eve assumed then Mia and Annie replied with a nod.
“Alright, then I guess I can buy this for her…” Eve said as she walked towards an electronic stand.
“Excuse me, can you gift wrap that please?” Eve requested then after the employee finished gift wrapping it, she walked back to the group. She was carrying a very small gift wrapped item which puzzled her friends.
“What did you pick?” Jake asked then Eve smiled as she replied, “An Ipod…”
“But didn’t Sheila have her own Ipod already?” Mia questioned.
“Didn’t you notice that she isn’t wearing her earphones or even carrying any electronic gadget anymore? I believe that hers is already broken…” Eve explained and Mia said, “Wow, not only you’re a good jumper but you’re a very smart girl as well.”
This made Eve laugh and replied, “Nah, I just have that feeling inside that tells me what’s right and wrong…It’s more like an instinct to me…”
So, as they all left the store, Eve and Jake parted ways from the two girls.
“So, uh I wanted to tell you this before…” Jake spoke as they both stopped in front of a water fountain which is in the center of the park.
“What do you wanna tell me?”
“I uh got a call from Mr. Roy and he offered me to join the gymnastic competition…” Jake said then Eve asked, “Good for you, did you accept that offer?”
“Uh yeah…And I was wondering if you can…be there and uh watch me in the competition…?” as Jake rubbed the back of his neck and Eve took some time to answer until she finally decided, “Sure…I can even watch you practice if you want me to.”
Then suddenly, Jake’s eyes were lightened up with excitement and happiness.
“Thanks…”

And they started walking till they noticed a banner showing fire breathers coming to town next week.
“Wow, fire breathers…” Eve muttered while he stared at her with a smile glued on his face until she realized the feeling of someone looking at her is filling up her whole body so she looked at Jake and asked, “Uh why are you staring at me like that?”
“Nothing…I was just uh—“
Suddenly, Eve’s phone rang then she flipped open her phone and answered, “Hey, Clara…..Yeah, I got it…I’m coming home now…bye”
“Uh we’ll go…?” Jake suggested then Eve nodded and started walking together till they reach Eve’s house.
“I’ll see ya tomorrow…” Jake declared as Eve walked up the porch and smiled at him.
“Good night, Jake…See ya” Eve said as they both parted ways and left.

“Clara, I’m back…”
“Eve, how’s your shopping spree?” Clara asked as she walked out the bathroom and suddenly, Eve was startled when she saw her Aunt’s face covered in green face mask.
“What happened to you?” Eve asked as she looked at her Aunt.
“Why, it’s just a face mask, Eve. Nothing else…” Clara replied as she walked inside the bedroom.
“Yeah, a weird and scary face mask…” Eve muttered as she walked downstairs and jumped on the couch as she turned the TV on while Clara walked down as well and towards the kitchen section.
“Where’s Uncle Sam?” Eve questioned as she set her eyes on the TV then Clara answered, “Sam has to work the night’s shift tonight so he might be back tomorrow early morning…”
“Ok…”

Somehow, Clara started sniffing a mysterious and unfamiliar scent somewhere in the living so she followed her nose which led her to Eve.
“What’s up with you, Clara?” Eve demanded, a bit annoyed by her sniffing around like a dog.
“You smell like…” Clara paused to get a clear whiff of Eve.
“I think you should take a shower, Eve…You smell like a dead dog.” Clara advised then Eve sniffed her own clothes with confusion.
“W-What the heck…? I can’t believe this…” Eve mumbled as she walked upstairs to the bathroom for a shower as Clara advised her to do.
Then in a few minutes after showering, Eve came back to the living room with a frown stained on her face and again Clara sniffed the air around, “See, now you’re clean…”
“You should’ve kicked me out of the house if you can smell me…At least I won’t have to take a shower at this time of night…” Clara heard Eve mumbled.
“You should be grateful that I didn’t do that to you…Usually, when some of our kind get a whiff of that stench, they’re going to kicked you out of this world. So be grateful that it’s just me who smelled you…” Clara answered back, smiling as she sketched something with incredible speed on a paper.
“What are you doing, Clara? Are you sketching another picture?” Eve asked walking to the table and to her surprise she found her blonde haired aunt drawing a baby girl with a sweet smile.
“Do you like it? She’s cute, isn’t she?”
“Yeah…Who is this?” Eve asked as Clara handed her the paper.
“It’s you…”
This surprised Eve when she looked at her aunt who was still smiling at her then stared back at the baby on the paper.

“I realized that I haven’t been drawing you anymore since we left that place…”
Eve looked at her when she emphasized the word ‘that’ and waited for her to continue.
“So I figured why not draw you as a baby since I have so many drawings of you all grown up…”
Clara chuckled with her eyes gazing at Eve. “You looked so much like your mother now…You have the same eyes and the same hair like your mother. Even your blood and everything about your form…”
Eve continued to keep her mouth shut and stared at Clara, who looked away with a sigh.
“To me, you have the same similarities as your mother but none from your human father…And yet, you act more like your father sometimes…”
“Clara, you don’t have to tell me anything about the past. The past is past now, besides, isn’t that why we moved here for?” Eve spoke as she placed down the paper and sat beside Clara.
“I may not remember much about my parents from the beginning but, I’m sure I had enough time to get close to them and remember them. I just have to find them within my heart and my useless brain which reminds me that I have to do my math study for tomorrow…” then Clara chuckled at the mumble while Eve stood up and looked at her before she walked upstairs.
“I’m sure you’ll find them, Eve. I believe you can find those memories about you and them…” Clara thought as she looked at the drawing one more again.

In school, Eve was already placing her unwanted books inside her locker and brought out her wanted subjects for today till she heard a familiar voice calling her name.
“Eve…!”
She turned to her right and found Jake walking towards her with his handsome smile, clad in black cargo pants and a dark blue polo shirt while she was clad in a black mini skirt and black stockings with knee-length brown boots then as her top she wore a dark red shirt with a pair of blue checkered arm warmers.
“Mornin’, Jake…What’s up?” Eve greeted with her usual smile as she closed her locker then walked through the hallway with him.
“Uh, I didn’t want to ask this but, can you give this to Sheila please?” Jake requested as he gave a small boxed item with a perfect green ribbon tied around it.
“What’s this?”
“I thought about what you said last night when you noticed that Sheila’s Ipod was broken so I was thinking if I could give her earphones…” Jake replied nervously as Eve looked at the note which was glued unto the wrapping.
“Have a nice birthday with all your girlfriends. From Jake and Reggie…” Eve read aloud then looked at him with a confused expression and Jake answered her confused expression.
“Reggie doesn’t really like to buy anything for her since he doesn’t know what she’d like and he’s still mad at her for not inviting him. Yet he still thinks that it would be appropriate if he and I can share the gift for Sheila, so I agreed…”
“What about you?” Eve suddenly asked with a concerned look on her face which Jake assumed that she was feeling bad for him about not being allowed to Girls Party.

“Nah, its fine…I’m not even allowed to attend parties at night.”
“Why…? Something happened?”
“Nothin’, just my mom planning to ground me for the rest of my miserable life...” Jake said with a soft chuckle.
“That’s harsh…”
“Yeah, I know…But then again, moms know best.”

Then as they both finished their first two subject classes, students rushed to the lunch room while some just like to eat outside in the school ground. Eve and Jake were the first to reach their usual table then Ryan came second, Mia and Sheila came third then the last was Annie since she was cleaning up the library. They were talking and laughing, Ryan was the joker in the group while Mia seemed to be on the opposite side. She’d rather be talking about movies and what was showing in the cinemas.
“So Eve, are you coming with us?” Sheila asked as she leaned herself on the table and looked at her.
“Uh, going where?”
“To the mall, of course…! We were planning that since Sheila’s party will start at eight in the evening, we might be able to entertain ourselves by going into the mall and shop!” Mia replied in a loud voice as usual which took quite a while to keep her quiet. Of course, nothing can stop her when it comes to going out or having fun- as Eve had known- she is the energetic part of the group.
“So, are you coming?” Annie asked in her shy, soft voice which almost seemed like a soft blow of wind.

“I-I think I can try…I have to get home to change and to get my- uh- surprise.” Eve answered as she cleared her throat at the end, not wanting to make Sheila excited about the present but instead, it was way out of her expectations about Sheila’s reaction. To Eve, Sheila didn’t react at all as if she didn’t hear what she said or even she hadn’t heard the word ‘surprise’.
“Uh ok…Sure, we’ll just wait for you inside the mall…” it was all Sheila had said with her usual calm expression on her face then the school bell rang and everyone started heading back to their lockers and to their subject classes.
Eve and Jake walked together to the same class, Biology. It seemed as if the disgusting lesson had continued on as Mr. Alfo discussed about the parts of a human body including some parts which seemed way more disgusting than their last lesson. When Eve looked at Jake, he didn’t seem to be bothered at all by the lesson Mr. Alfo is discussing which puzzled her a little till school was finally over for the day and Eve walked to her locker then Jake followed her.
“So, how’s your stomach now?” he asked. During their discussion about the human body, Eve had been complaining about her aching stomach for hours since the lesson started.
“Its fine, I think…How’s yours?”
“Mine’s still the same…I didn’t really think that the human body could be so interesting.” Jake muttered then Eve closed her locker and faces him with confusion, waiting for him to explain.
“I mean it doesn’t seem that bad…”
“Oh so you mean to say that you’re into Biology now? What about the complaints about parts of the snail? Are you into collecting them now?” Eve snapped as heat rushed through her veins, heating up her blood.
“Hey, what’s up with you anyway? You don’t have to snap at me like that…”
Eve let out an exhausted sigh. “Sorry, I don’t know what came over me. Maybe you should leave me alone for a while, Jake—“
“Not until you tell me what’s going on in your head…” Jake demanded as he grabbed her arm and looked into her eyes till she looked away.

“Can you please let go of my arm? You’re kinda hurting it…”
Jake released his grip then inserted his hands inside his pockets and waited for her explanation.
“I-I was just wondering about Sheila…I was scared that I might have gotten her the wrong gift after all. I don’t know why I feel doubtful all of a sudden but…Never mind.”
Immediately, Eve left without waiting for Jake to stop her or even apologize to her for bruising up her arm. She couldn’t take it anymore, the real reason why she had been in a bad mood was because she was lost again…She imagined herself standing alone in the dark, helpless and lost with no one around till she spotted a familiar black haired woman standing near the light pole alone as well.
“M-Mom...? Mom?”
Eve walked slowly towards the woman but then her image that was standing in front of her, disappeared. And Eve opened her eyes then looked around her and realized that she reached her room already.
“Did I walk all the way to the house with this irritating image inside my head? Did I just leave my friend without even telling the truth?” Eve wondered as she threw herself unto her bed with a sigh. Then her cell phone rang and she answered it.
“H-Hello? Uh Sheila, I don’t think I can go to your party. I’m sorry, I’ll just give my present to you tomorrow…I don’t think I feel well…Yeah, maybe tomorrow, bye.” Eve flipped close her phone and let out another sigh.
“I need to let everything out of my head…I need to walk.” Eve thought as she changed her clothes and walked out her room.
“Eve, where are you going? Are you alright?” Clara asked with a worried and concerned look on her face.
“I-I’m fine…I just need to take my mind off things for a while and I thought walking will do some good.”
Clara didn’t say anything that can stop Eve because Eve had already left without waiting for a response.

“Why am I having this weird image about me and my mother together but yet, alone in our own worlds? If only I had told Jake about this, I think he would help me…Yeah, I think so. I need to call Jake...But I didn’t bring my cell…” Eve sighed at her thought then suddenly, she spotted Jake walking across the street.
“Jake! Jake!”
She was glad to see him again as her feet automatically dragged her to the middle of the street and suddenly a truck was running towards her. Frightened, Eve froze still and waited for the impact till someone pulled her out of the road and into his cold arms with her eyes shut tight.
“Eve, are you ok? Eve…”
The voice of her savior faded away in the darkness till she saw another image which seemed very familiar. She was standing in a room with pink decorated walls, pink curtains and toys scattered around the floor.
“W-Where am I? Is this—“
A woman with straight long, black hair walked inside with a baby in her arms and walked right through Eve as if she was invisible and cannot be touched.
“This can’t be…This is my old house…with…my parents.” Eve thought as she watched the woman cooing at the baby.

Then again, blackout…

“Eve, can you hear me? Eve…Eve, come on, don’t joke around…”
Eve opened her eyes slowly and her sight became clear. Her savior who rescued her from a truck was none other than Jake. His eyes were filled with fear and shock.
“Jake…” she mumbled as she struggled to stand but her legs are all feeling squishy and shaky so she couldn’t. Then Jake carried her on his back and walked out of the concerned crowd when a woman asked, “Is she alright? Do I have to call an ambulance?”
“No, she’s fine…I’ll just take her back to her house. She’s fine, people! No need to worry, I got this!” Jake announced which convinced the crowd to disperse.
“W-Where are we going?” Eve whispered in his ear as she tries hard to stay conscious.
“Hold on, we’re goin’ to the park. I have to check up on you…”
When they reached the center of the park, Jake slowly released Eve and put her on a bench then waited till she was able to stay awake and look at him.
“Are you alright?” Jake asked.
“I’m fine, don’t worry…”
“Good, because I have somethin’ to tell you…What the hell is wrong with you, huh?! Are you tryin’ to get yourself killed?!” Jake scolded her but instead of answering back, she just kept silent until Jake finished throwing everything at her so he sat down beside her and looked away with a sigh.

Silence…

“I’m sorry…” Eve finally opened her mouth in a faint voice only Jake can hear then he looked at her.
“What’s happening, Eve? Ever since the Biology class you started moping around as if you didn’t have anyone at your side. Don’t tell me lies and even if you think I can’t understand you can tell me, I’ll try to help you…” Jake said but Eve extended her silence till she let out a sigh.
“I-I don’t know where to start—“
“Well, start at the beginning—“
“But how, Jake?! All my life I’ve been asking these questions to myself every time we move to another place! My soul is lost forever and I won’t be able to find my home where I really belong. No one can help me, not even Clara nor Sam or even you!” Eve yelled as she stood up and faced him.
“I’m like a stray dog that can’t find its real home…Always running away from its adoptive home and searches for another. I’m not satisfied with my life at all, I’m always running away like a coward…Ever since I lost my parents, I have nothing left inside of me. Nothing…”
Tears roll down Eve’s cheeks while Jake watched her cry with his mouth open as if he wanted to say something but yet, nothing came out…only silence.
Then when she couldn’t stand the worried look upon his face, she was about to walk away till Jake stood up and wrapped his arms around her. This surprised Eve, no matter how much she struggled he won’t let her go so she let out all her tears that nearly soaked Jake’s t-shirt. To Eve, it seemed that Jake’s arms were not as warm as other people, it felt cold like ice but she didn’t mind at all.
After a while, Jake realized she stopped crying and suddenly, her weight seemed to be pulling him down.
“Eve…?—“
“She fell asleep already?! You gotta be kidding me!” Jake thought as he looked at her peaceful sleeping face so he smiled sweetly and carried her on his back again then looked at his watch.

“It’s almost ten…I think I have to use the shortcut…” Jake said to himself then suddenly disappeared and started jumping tree-by-tree and building-by-building till they finally reached Eve’s house. Then walked to the porch and to the door to knock, he could hear footsteps coming from inside the house walking to the door and can smell a sweet orange scent which he assumed was Clara.
“Yes—Eve, Jake, what happened?” Clara said as she opened the door wide and let in Jake with Eve on his back.
“She’s just sleeping, Clara. Don’t worry, nothin’ happened…We just talked…” Jake explained as he walked up to her room and laid her on the bed.
“I apologize on behalf of Eve for troubling you in carrying her all the way here…”
“No, it’s fine. No need for apologies, Clara…Anyways, did you guys enjoy Sheila’s birthday?”
“Uh no, Eve said that she hadn’t been feeling well so I called her friend’s mom and apologized for not coming.”
“Oh, I see…” Jake muttered then looked back at Eve’s closed eyes.
“Ok, I have to go back home…I need to do my assignments. Bye, Clara…”
Jake walked out the room then downstairs to the door and left while Clara sighed.

Next morning, Eve woke up and realized that she was lying on her bed and in her room inside her house.
“Who—“ Eve paused and recalled the memories of last night…and of Jake.
“Jake…”

After two morning subject classes, Eve realized that she hasn’t been seeing Jake since she talked to him last night.
“Where is he?” Eve wondered as she twists her head around the lunch room.
“If you’re lookin’ for Jake, he’s in practice…His final practice.” Sheila answered Eve’s silent question as she sat with the others and somehow Eve noticed that Sheila’s wearing Jake’s earphones and holding her gift. Eve had already given hers and Jake’s gift to Sheila once she reached school.
“Hey, I guess you chose the right gift for her…Congrats, Eve. She likes it…a lot.” Annie whispered to Eve’s ear which made her smile.
“Anyways, what’s Jake practicing for?” Ryan asked as he ate.
“Don’t you remember? This is the last practice for his high jump, today’s the competition…” Mia answered then Eve was shocked at the news because she had forgotten her promise to Jake so, she froze for a while.
“What time?” Eve asked.
“Uh I think everyone’s goin’ to the gym now—“
Before Sheila could finish, Eve stood up and rushed out of the lunchroom then through the hallway till she reached a huge crowd covering up the gym’s door.

“Alright, let us begin the gymnastic competition!”
Eve heard as everyone cheered and clapped then she took a deep breath.
“Alright, it’s now or never…” she muttered to herself then charged through the huge crowd. As Eve moved further and further into the gym, nothing can stop her even by being foot stomped, hit in the head, being pushed and hit in the stomach till she finally spotted an open bench with a clear view of the gym’s center.
Meanwhile, Jake looked around the huge gym with huge crowds scattered in the benches till he got a hint of a very sweet and familiar scent which came from the right side of the gym. And when he turned his head, he finally spotted Eve looking at him with her usual smile.
“She came, she actually came!” Jake cheered inside his head and smiled back at her.
“Ok, sorry for the slight delay…Let us now start the high jump competition starting from Dylan Forks!”
After the speaker called out the players for high jumping one by one, it was finally Jake’s turn to do his high jump.
“Now, our last competitor, let me introduce you to Jake Burten!” the speaker announced then Jake walked to the center and crouched.
He can hear others cheering for him but mostly, he concentrated on Eve’s voice. He smiled at her cheers then when the whistle blew, he ran fast and finally did his highest jump ever with a perfect landing. And everyone in the gym cheered louder than ever, especially Eve as he bowed and left to his bench.
Luckily, Jake won his first high jump trophy!

“Wow, you were great out there! It’s a good thing I didn’t miss it…” Eve complimented as they both walked through the hallway.
“Thanks, I guess now I’m better than you.”
Eve snickered. “Don’t push your luck, Jumper…”
“Oh so now I’m nicknamed as the Jumper…”
They both laughed till they reached Eve’s locker.
“Uh Eve, can I ask you somethin’?” Jake asked as Eve placed her things inside.
“Are you alright now? You’re not goin’ to explode in tears or either in temper today, right?”
There was a pause in Eve’s actions then she looked at him.
“Yeah, I’m perfectly fine…”
“The truth…?”
Eve nodded as a reply without looking at him.

“Alright, I believe you…Now there’s another thing I wanted to ask you about.”
“Uh, o-ok…”
Then Jake sighed. “W-Will you go out with me?”
Eve suddenly froze without turning her head.
“W-What did you say?” Eve asked.
“Will you go out with me?”
This took some time for Eve to answer.
“Uh, sure why not?” Eve finally gave her answer and Jake’s black eyes were lightened up with happiness.
“When…?” Eve asked.
“Uh is it alright if we can go out tonight?”
“No prob, where?”
“It’s a surprise…” Jake replied which made Eve frown a little.
“Then how will I know if my outfit is right for the date?”
“Just wear anything that suits you…You don’t have to worry about anything.”
Before Eve could open her mouth, Jake had already left.

When Eve had announced the date to Clara and Sam, they approved it. Afterwards, Eve came out of the room, clad in mini jean shorts and a white shirt with a purple checkered polo shirt over it then converse.
“Wow, Eve…It has really been a long time since you wore these shorts. You look really cute!” Clara said then she rushed into the master bedroom and came out with a notebook and pen in her hand.
“Oh no…Please don’t do this, Clara…” Eve pleaded.
“Oh hush, Eve…Hold still, it will just take a second.”
Clara looked at Eve once but yet very long then faced her notebook and drew in an incredible speed within a second and finished.
“Ta-da! What do you think, Eve?”
When she showed the drawing, it surprised Eve for she saw a very cute fourteen year old girl in the paper and blush a little. Then a doorbell rang which caught everyone’s attention.
“That might be him. I’ll get him…” Clara said then she zoomed straightly to the door and opened it. To her surprise, she saw Jake clad in jeans and a black long sleeved shirt with a navy blue polo shirt over it as well then lastly white sneakers.
“Uh evening, Clara. Is Eve uh ready?” Jake asked.

“I think you should answer that yourself…” Clara answered as she let Jake come in and then Eve walked down the stairs with a smile.
“Whoa…” Jake said in awe.
“So uh can I know what this surprise place will be?” Eve asked with a smile.
Jake opened his mouth for his answer to come out but it didn’t go as planned for his answer.
“Uh…” was what Jake said till Sam, who was standing next to Jake, hit him lightly in the arm.
“Uh, it’s better if I’ll just bring you there…” Jake finally replied as he placed his hands inside his pockets.
“Ok…Uh Clara, I’m going now…Bye.” Eve notified as they both walked out of the house while Sam and Clara waved at them.

Then when they reached the place, Eve noticed many people entering the park with spotlights lit to the sky.
“What’s the surprise again?” Eve asked as she looked at him.
“Uh remember that banner we saw last week?”
Eve nodded.
“Well, that’s the surprise…Surprise!” Jake chuckled with his hands up in the air.
“The fire breathers…How did you know that I wanted to see them?”
“Duh, before we left the park you were staring at the banner so of course I know you’ll like it.”
“Oh, thanks…”
“Don’t thank me yet…Come on, let’s go before the seats are all gone.” Jake took her hand and found an empty bench near the trees of the park. Then after two minutes when people have already finished up all the seats, the fire breathers made an exclusive entrance which amazed the audience including Eve as Jake looked at her with his smile.

Meanwhile, as the show goes on and as Jake and Eve watched the fire breathers, Jake’s family: Klorifa, James, Jase and Mila were watching him from a distance behind the trees.
“It seems like our son is with a female…a human female…” James muttered as he glared at Eve.
“Her scent is not very much like a full human…It could be trouble for us.” Klorifa said as she looked at Mila.
“Hmm, I suppose so. Her smell reminds me of a family we killed ten years ago.” Mila tapped her finger unto her chin as she observed Eve.
“Do you mean the Starlit family?” Jase assumed then Mila smiled evilly.
“Yes, exactly…”
Klorifa continued glaring at Eve. “Just as I expected, she has the same deadly blood like her mother…She is trouble.”
“Like mother like daughter…” Mila muttered.
“We should leave now. My instincts are telling me that Jake senses our presence near by…” Jase demanded with his expression as cold as ice and disappeared into the shadows with the others while Jake looked at the trees and glared at the shadows. Sheila was sitting somewhere far from Eve and Jake but can see them very clearly.
After two hours, they went into the cinema and looked around for the recent movies.
“So, what do you wanna watch?” Jake asked as he turned to Eve who was looking at the posters of different movies.
“Uh, what about that one?” as she points her eyes at a poster then Jake looked as well.
“Goosebumps: The Movie?”
“Y-Yeah, if you’re ok with it…”
“Sure, anything’s ok with me.” Jake answered as they went inside the theater while Sheila spotted them again as she sipped her juice. It was dark when they’re walking up the stairs slowly.
“Be careful, it’s getting dark…” Jake whispers then Eve accidentally hit her knee and tripped on the stair.
“Ow…”
“You ok?” as he helped her stand up.
“Y-Yeah, I think—Hey—“
Before Eve could protest when Jake carried her on his back the audience shushed them as the movie had already started so they walked slowly and quietly as Jake held her on his back.
“Don’t worry, I can see better than you…” Jake whispers as he placed her down on an empty seat while Eve looked at him waiting for an explanation but instead, he just smiled and turned his head to the big screen. During the movie, there were some scary scenes which nearly scared Eve when she suddenly held Jake’s hand which made him blush and smile. After the movie, they got up and walked right out of the cinema and laughed together.
“Wow, what a movie! They should get a price for that…” Jake said as he laughed then suddenly, they realized that they were still holding hands so Eve let go as she chuckled nervously while he looked at her with his usual smile.
“So, did you enjoy the…date?”
“Um…Yup, uh thanks for everything…”
“Yeah, sure no prob…So, can we do this again, maybe some other time?” Jake asked then Eve looked at him with a smile.
“Sure, of course…”
Before Jake could open his mouth, he saw Regina and Reggie coming but then, they didn’t look at him as he immediately pulled Eve to an alley to hide from them.
“Jake…”
“Shh…” Jake pinned her to the wall as his eyes looked at Reggie and Regina walking pass the alley but then, he noticed Reggie looking at him in the corner of his eye when they passed them.
“Shoot…” Jake muttered as he looked down with his arms still pinning Eve on the wall.
“Uh Jake, can you…?”
Jake looked at her then suddenly backed away. “S-Sorry, I didn’t mean to…I was—“
“You were trying to hide from your brother and sister weren’t you?”
Jake looked at her again as her face became serious but still smiling then he nodded slowly.
“Don’t worry…I won’t tell anyone about this if you—“
Eve was cut off when she heard a faint cry from a distance which she assumed came from a chiropteran. Jake, on the other hand, heard it as well but pretends he doesn’t hear it.
“What were you saying, Eve?”
Eve snapped out and looked at him. “I-I have to go…I’m sorry.” Then walked up to him and surprisingly kissed him on the cheek and ran away, leaving him frozen.
Meanwhile, Eve ran to another far alley and climbed up unto the building’s roof then ran up and down the buildings until she reached the forest.
“Where are you?” Eve muttered as she looked around.
“Eve…!”
She turned around and found Clara and Sam approaching her.
“Clara, Sam, what are you—“
“We were supposed to be on our way to the super market till we heard the cry coming from here, so we came here to check…” Sam answered.
“What happened to Jake? Is he here?” Clara asked then Eve shook her head which made Clara nod sadly.
“L-Let’s look for—“
Clara was interrupted by a chiropteran’s cry.
“It’s coming from there...We have to go—“
“Eve, wait…” Sam called out then brought two daggers which seemed a bit long for normal daggers. Eve looked at him with her eyes widened with surprise.
“Just in case—“
“No, no…No—“
“Take it…Safety first.” Sam insisted but Eve continued to shake her head.
“No, I-I can’t—“
“Please, Eve, we’re not sure if this is a trap or not…Just take it and I know that we moved here because of that but, just take it…” Clara begged while Eve hesitated for a while then finally let out a sigh and took it as she left with Sam and Clara.

Sam, Clara and Eve looked around until they spotted a small limping creature walking towards them.
“There…” Sam muttered then Clara rushed to it and carried the creature in her arms.
“It’s a baby chiropteran…What’s it doing here?” Eve wondered as she cautiously scanned the place. Eve suddenly got a hint of something as she continues to sniff the air.
“Hold on…”
“What is it, Eve?” Sam asked.
“Do you smell that?”
Then she tightened her grip on the daggers. “Someone’s here…”
Sam and Clara sniffed the air as well. “It seems like the stench is coming from—“
“Us…?” a deep voice said as three mysterious looking people came out of the shadows: two males and one lady.
“Ooh, another addition to our game…This is fun.” The lady giggled evilly with her eyes glowing blue.
“Dessert time…” another male smiled, showing his sharp fangs and glowing dark blue eyes.
“Vampires…” Eve muttered then Sam immediately transformed into his chiropteran form while Clara tightened her arms around the baby chiropteran to protect it. Then two male vampires attacked Sam and started fighting.
“Clara, take that chiropteran and got out of here!” Eve ordered then Clara answered with a nod and ran with the chiropteran at her fastest speed. Eve turned around and found the lady walking towards her as she giggles.
“It’s just you and me, little girl…”
“Don’t mess with me, lady. You don’t know me or what I can do to you…”
“You’re boring for a girl…But since my brothers are playing with your chiropteran friend, I have no choice but to just fight you.”
Eve smirked. “Fine…”
Eve brought out her dagger and pinched both her index fingers on the blades. Her blood slid down the blades gradually as her eyes turned glowing bloody red then when her blood dripped onto the grass, the vampire lady attacked first but then Eve suddenly disappeared in thin air.
“Wait, w-where--…?” as the lady stopped on her tracks and looked around with total confusion until mysteriously she received a cut while Eve appeared standing on a big rock with her eyes glowing bloody red.
“Y-You, brat!—“
She was cut off when she realized that her wounded arm is crystallizing. From her arm to half of her body was crystallizing as she started screaming. Then Eve darted towards her and stabbed both of her daggers unto the lady’s chest and whispered in her ear, “Like I said, you don’t know what I can do to you…”
When she removed her daggers, the lady was completely solid crystal and broke apart which caught the attention of one of the male vampires.
He growled. “No…!”
He zoomed to her but again, she disappeared. All of a sudden, he has been receiving a lot of wounds on his arms, legs and back until he completely gave up then turned to crystal and broke apart as well. Lastly, Eve darted towards the third vampire and stabbed him on the leg but still was able to run. Eve covered her other dagger with her blood and threw it towards the vampire’s chest and turned him into solid crystal. When Eve removed both her daggers, the crystallized vampire broke into pieces then finally, her wounds automatically healed while Sam transformed back into his human form.
“I hope they’re the last…” Sam said as he let out a sigh and looked at Eve’s eyes turning back to her human color then was about to collapse but luckily, he caught her and carried her on his back.
“Let’s go home, Eve…”
Then they both darted through the forest until they reached home and entered the living room.
“Where’s the chiropteran?” Sam asked as Eve got off of him.
“I called the others and they took her to safety, so it’ll be ok…” Clara answered then looked at Eve’s blank expression.
“Hey, Eve, I think you should go get some sleep…” Sam suggested and without hesitation, Eve walked upstairs to her room while Sam and Clara looked at each other worriedly.
Eve lay down with a sigh and closed her eyes.

Meanwhile, back to the forest, Mila and the others appeared from the shadows.
“I smell something here…” James said as he sniffed the air while Klorifa walked towards some crystal rocks and picked one.
“It seems someone was able to kill three of our best hunters…” she muttered as she crushed the rock with her bare hand.
“Hmm…Too bad, they were supposed to bring some food for us as well. I wonder if that girl has anything to do with this mess…” as Mila tapped her finger unto her chin.
“And what if she has?” Jase asked as everyone looked at her for an answer.
“Then, we’re going to get even with her, once and for all…”
“Let’s hurry; I received a call from Reggie and Regina. They reached home…” James reported.
“Alright, we’ll just talk about this tomorrow. I don’t want to upset the children…” Mila said as they all left. Jake, who heard their conversation, jumped off the tree and looked at the pieces of crystals on the ground.
“Who would do this?” Jake wondered then sniffed the air.
“This-This scent…it’s similar to…Eve…”
Eve suddenly appeared inside his head then he shook. “No…No way.”
“It’s true, Jake…”
He turned and found Mila standing in the shadows with her eyes glowing blue. He glared at her. “Mila…”
“That girl you’re with is an actual chiropteran…A vampire killer.” She said as she walked around him.
“You can’t lie to me…”
“Who said that I’m lying, Jake? She’s the one who’s lying to you.”
Jake hesitated as he looked away.
“This is why I’ve decided that I’m going to get even with her…An eye for an eye. That’s our motto in our family…”
“No! Don’t you dare lay a finger on her!
“She’s a chiropteran…she killed many of our kind before. Don’t you want her dead? You cannot break your promise, Jake…Not to your own family.”
“What promise? I didn’t make any promise with you people…”
“Oh, you did make a promise with us…You promised that when we find the chiropteran that killed our kind, you will kill it yourself…No matter who it is…Remember?”
“I never made that kind of promise!—“
“Stay away from her! If I see you near her, I swear I will kill her and you will stay in the chamber forever! Understand?!” Mila yelled out while Jake kept quiet.
“Jake, we are from the killer tribe. We kill to survive, do you want to become like her? Do you want to suffer without the blood of a human? They are not like us. The queen says so herself, she doesn’t like anyone in the tribe to betray her…”

Jake looked down and continued to keep quiet.
“Jake, if you are going to protect her then I’ll have no choice but to kill you right here and right now…So, promise me that you will fight alongside with us…for the tribe’s and the queen’s sake.”
Jake hesitated for a while and let out a sigh. “I-I promise…”
“Good…I’ll see you in the house. Keep your promise, Jake…” Mila muttered her last words as she disappeared completely into the shadows then suddenly, Jake screamed in anger as he hit his fists on the ground.

Meanwhile, back to Eve’s house, Eve was asleep.
“Jake…” Eve called out as she got up when she heard a faint scream from the forest.
“Knock, knock…Eve, are you ok?” Clara asked as she slowly opened the door.
“Y-Yeah, I’m ok…”
“I thought you were having a nightmare, so I came to check on you…” Clara said as she sat on the bed.
“I’m fine but…for a while, I thought I heard Jake’s voice outside…” as Eve looked out the window while Clara smiled.
“So…I didn’t get the chance to ask you…How was your date?”
“Um uh it-it…was fun. We went to the park to watch the fire breathers then we went to the movies…Just two places, nothing more or nothing less…”
“Well, did something happen between the two of you? Hmm?”
Eve shook her head. “No…Uh nothing happened. Why?”
“Nothing…I’m just asking…Ok, now go back to sleep, you have school tomorrow.”
Eve lay down as Clara kissed her fore head. “Good night, sweetie…”
“Night…”

Next morning, Eve reached school and spotted Jake standing outside the school campus near the buses, looking around.
“Jake…?”
Jake turned his head and smiled a little but when he approached her, his smile disappeared.
“What’s wrong? What were you doing standing here?” Eve asked while Jake looked around for a while until he let out a sigh and faced her.
“Uh, I was just waiting for you…”
“Uh ok…Let’s go then.” Eve said as they both walked inside the campus. Meanwhile, Mila was standing on the roof top and spotted him near Eve.
“He broke his promise…” Mila muttered with her eyes full of anger and disappointment then left.

After two morning classes, everyone set out to the lunch room.
Jake and Eve reached their table then realized that Mia and Annie were talking about something while Sheila was sipping her juice and Ryan was just eating.
“So you know I really love this anime called Sergeant Keroro…” Mia said as she giggled.
“Yeah I know, right? It’s completely cute and funny!” Annie remarked while Eve just chuckled softly at their conversation.
Jake leaned his back on Ryan. “What’s up with this anime they’re talking about?”
“It’s just a stupid kid show or serial—ugh, just make them stop please!” Ryan moaned as he placed both of his hands on his head.
“Hey, I almost forgot, I saw you two last night at the park and at the movies…What’s up with that?” Sheila spoke.
Then Eve and Jake looked at each other with their eyes widened with surprise. “What?”
“What the…? Are you guys dating each other?” Mia asked as they looked at the two but didn’t receive an answer.
“I can’t believe it…Did you guys do it?” Ryan asked in a lowered voice and a cheeky grin on his face.
“Eve and Jake sitting in a tree. K-I-S-S—“
Annie sang while Eve stammered until Jake shook his head.
“Alright, alright, we went out but nothing happened between us, ok? No reason to make a joke out of it…” Jake revealed.
“Are you sure?” Ryan questioned.
“Yeah, nothing happened. We just uh simply went out…” Eve seconded as she looked at Jake.
“Ok then…Besides, if nothin’ happened between the two of you then what’s the point of getting excited for the juicy details when there are no details to tell…” Mia muttered until the bell rang and immediately Eve and Jake stood up at the same time.
“Gotta go, bye!” Eve said.
“Yeah, see ya!” Jake added as they both ran out of the lunch room leaving the rest quiet.
“They’re hiding it…” Mia spoke as she stood up and carried her bag.
“So, you can see it, too?” Ryan asked.
“Of course I can see it, I’m not dumb…”
“Well, just let them be…We can’t force them to tell the truth.” Annie said.
“Yeah, let them have their privacy…” Sheila seconded as they all left to their subject classes until dismissal time and students rushed out of their classes while some walked to their lockers then to the bus.

“Hey, Eve!”
Eve turned her head away from her locker and found Jake running towards her.
“Jake…”
“You think I could walk with you for a while?”
“Sure, why not?” Eve agreed as she closed her locker then walked through the hallway with him.
“So, what do you wanna talk about?” Eve asked then Jake sighed.
“I w-want to ask you a question…”
“Ok, what’s your question?”
Jake hesitated for a while until he gave out. “W-Where were you when—“
“Jake…!”
When they both looked behind, they spotted Regina and Reggie gesturing him to come back.
“What was your question again?” Eve continued.
“Uh…Maybe next time, bye…” as Jake walked away while she just kept quiet and left as well.

When Jake, Reggie and Regina entered the dark mansion, Mila darted from the living room towards Jake and slapped him hard which made Regina gasped in shock.
“Uh-oh…” Reggie muttered while Klorifa, James, and Jase watched Jake’s blank reaction.
“You broke your promise. Now you’re going to regret everything you’ve done…” Mila said in a low cold voice.
“No…You’re going to regret everything.”
Mila chuckled softly. “You don’t know what you are talking about…I will have no choice but to let you suffer…Bring him to the water at the back, let him stay there until I can finally get my fingers on the girl…”
“What? No…You’re not going to touch her! I will not let you touch her!” Jake protested as Jase and James dragged Jake to a dark room with big wide doors while Reggie and Regina looked at each other in fear.

Meanwhile, Eve reached home and walked inside.
“I’m home, Clara…”
“Welcome, how’s school?” Clara asked as she washed the dishes while Eve looked around.
“Where’s Sam?”
“He went out to buy some food stuff. He’ll be back, don’t worry…”
Eve walked upstairs to her room and lay on her bed with a sigh then took out her cell phone.
“Maybe I should call him…I’ll try.” Eve thought as she dialed the number and waited but no one answered the phone.
“Maybe he’s busy…I guess I’ll try later.”
Then when Sam walked out the grocery store with two plastic bags, a man walked up to him.
“Hello, Sam…We meet again.” He said then as Sam turned around, he was taken.
After a while, the telephone rang in Eve’s house.
“Hello? Yes, this is Mrs. Starlit…” Clara answered while Eve came down and saw Clara put the phone down as if she’s in shock.
“What is it, Clara? Who called?”
Clara looked at her with fear and worries in her eyes. “Sam’s in the hospital…He’s badly wounded.”
This shocked Eve as she gasped. When Eve and Clara were in a cab going to the hospital to see Sam, Eve had been looking out the window with tears filling her eyes.
“Please be ok, Sam. Please be ok…” Eve repeated her words until they reached the hospital.
“Excuse me, I’m Mrs. Starlit. I’m looking for Sam Starlit; do you know which room he’s in?” Clara asked the recipient then when the recipient pointed at the room, they both rushed inside and found Sam’s face filled with bruises, cuts while his arms and legs were filled with wounds and burns.
“Sam…” Eve muttered as they walked towards him while he opened his eyes slowly.
“Sam, who did this to you?” Clara questioned as Sam tried to look at her.
Eve scanned the burns and wounds on his legs and arms. “He’s been burned many times, he can’t heal properly…They knew that he’s a chiropteran, that’s why they tortured him.”
“Sam, please say something. Who did this to you, Sam?” Clara repeated.
“I-I…don’t remember…” Sam muttered in a weak, faint voice then his eye lids were getting heavier for him to keep them up so, he slept which left Clara and Eve speechless in fright.
“Miss, I’m sorry but right now visiting hours for him is over. You can come back here tomorrow…Thank you.” Said a nurse then they both walked out the room and rode back home.

The next morning, after two morning classes:
Eve was looking around the lunch room.
“Jake’s absent today…” Ryan said, knowing who she was looking for.
“Absent? What happened?” Eve asked.
“I don’t know…I tried his cell but he didn’t answer except for his mom.”
“You think he’s in trouble or something?” Mia questioned.
“No way! Jake’s a nice guy, he can’t be in trouble if he didn’t do anything…I think.”

Something’s going on here. One of my family members is tortured by someone and is in the hospital right now. Clara said that she’ll keep checking up on him just to make sure if he’s alright or if his body can heal. Today, Jake was absent…I was alone in all classes…I was lost in my fears and worried for everyone. Then the next day, Sam was already healing some of his wounds but Jake still didn’t show up in school…only his brother and sister, Reggie and Regina. I’ve noticed the two were trying hard to avoid me…To avoid any questions about the absence of their brother, Jake. I tried calling Jake every time I got the chance but, no one answered. Jake, I’m lost again…You were the only one I would want to be with right now. Please, help me…

After two days of Jake’s disappearance, Eve sighed every time she thinks about him until she spotted Reggie and Regina talking near a couple of lockers.
“Reggie! Regina!” Eve called out as she walked towards them.
“Uh, Eve, long time no talk…Uh what’s up?” Reggie asked while Regina looked down behind him.
“I know you’re trying to avoid me because you’re afraid that I might be asking for your brother but please tell me, what happened to him? Where is he?”
Reggie and Regina looked at each other then back at her. “Uh he’s—“
“He’s having flu…So- uh- he stayed home.” Regina spoke.
“What kind of flu? Can I see him?”
“No!” Reggie and Regina protested then froze for a while.
“No, sorry ‘cause our mom is very strict about visiting hours.” Regina answered in a low voice.
“But—“
“Please, Eve…Jake also told us to not let you near him. He doesn’t want you to get hurt…Even we tried to see him but then, our parents won’t let us. They made us a tent to stay away from the mansion and him for a while…” Regina explained which left Eve confused and worried at the same time.
“Sorry, Eve…” Reggie muttered as they both left to their classes when the bell rang.
“Why?” Eve wondered as she stood still in the middle of the hallway.

This never made sense to me…Regina said that he doesn’t want me to get hurt…Get hurt by who or what? I hated being clueless. It was never my best description about me…Since the day I met him, I had this feeling like this is going to happen but I never knew why nor would I want to know why I had that feeling…I just ignored it and see what happens.

Eve reached home right after school, still wondering about Jake’s whereabouts.
“I’m back…”
“Welcome back…” as Clara baked some cookies and placed them in a blue box wrapped in a white ribbon.
“Is uncle Sam ok?” Eve asked as she watched Clara wrapping the box.
“Yes, his body is healing gradually but he’s gonna be ok. I’m going over there to give him his favorite cookies, do you want to come?”
“No, I’ll just stay…” Eve answered then Clara nodded and walked towards the door.
“You have to be careful if you feel like walking outside. We don’t know what’s going to happen next…Alright?”
Eve nodded as Clara left the house.
After a few hours, Eve’s phone rang and when she looked at the number, it was Jake.
“Hello? Jake?” Eve answered. Instead, she heard a soft evil chuckle from a woman.
“Hello, Eve…You’ve sound so much like your mother. I hope you will forgive Jake for not attending school, he has some things to do…”
“Who’s this? What happened to him?”
“Well, I hope that you can come here for him. He has been feeling lonely and he wants to see you right now…Are you available at this time?”
“Y-Yes, I am…Where’s the place?” Eve asked as she took out her pen and paper.
“Oh, you don’t need to ask. You can easily find it by sniffing the stench of a vampire while walking…Don’t be scared, we didn’t do anything to him…yet.” She said with an evil laugh then disconnected the call.
“Jake…”
Eve stood up from her bed and opened her closet. She wore her clothes when she went out hunting with the others before. She walked towards her bedroom window, clad in black t-shirt and black leather shorts with black netted stockings and below-the-knee black boots as she placed her daggers on her black belt with a cloak wrapped around her. Then she walked out the window and climbed on the roof top as she sniffed out the air until she finally got a whiff of a vampire’s stench. And she followed it till she reached a dark mansion with big rusty gates.
“This is it…I’m coming, Jake…” Eve muttered under her breath as she quietly walked through the garden filled with withered roses but still fresh thorns until she reached the front door.
“She arrived…” James said as he climbed down the roof.

Eve entered the mansion and saw a woman dressed in a black dress and white high heels with a white shawl wrapped around her waist.
“I’m glad you had no trouble in finding this place, Eve. How does it feel to use your wild instincts again? I bet that it must feel good to wear in that hunting costume of yours…” Mila said with a smile.
“Where. Is. He?” Eve asked word by word.
“You don’t have to worry about him. He’s preparing himself for you…Come.” As Mila turned her back on her and walked while Eve followed her, still cautious about the surroundings until she was pushed to the wall by Jase with his hand grabbing her neck.
“Hon, please don’t scare our guest. She hasn’t even seen Jake yet.” Mila requested as she walked inside a room with big wide doors.
“I promise I’ll be very gentle with you so that you can see my nephew…Before it’s over—“
“For you!” Eve yelled as she brought out her knives and slashed a wound on Jase’s arm but then, it healed in a second.
“I knew it…You’re a vampire.”
“Let’s be fair about this. Drop your weapons and fight man-to…girl.” Jase said as he smiled evilly revealing his white fangs and blue glowing eyes.
“I don’t do fair…” Eve muttered as she squeezed her fingers unto the daggers then her dagger was covered in her blood which made Jase alert as he snarled. Then as her eyes turned bloody red, she attacked him but he managed to dodge her first attack.
“Fine, let’s do this the hard…and fast way.” Jase suggested as he pinned her to the wall by his grabbing her neck again and scratched her face with his small knife.
“Ahh!” Eve screamed in pain but was able to heal faster than Jase and pushed him off. Suddenly, James darted behind her and grabbed her wrists and neck to take her daggers from her hands.
“Your beloved is waiting for you, Starlit girl…” James whispered in her ear as he and Jase cuffed her arms and dragged her into the wide, huge room filled with melted candles. In the middle, she saw an indoor deep pond with a big chain sinking into it like there is someone under water.
“Where is Jake?” Eve asked as she saw Mila and Klorifa standing near the pond.
“So impatient…Bring him up, sister.” Mila ordered then Klorifa pulled a lever which is beside the pond as the chains were pulled back up. And to Eve’s shock, she saw Jake cuffed in heavy chains around his arms and legs as he coughed out water and looked up.
“Jake!”
Before Eve could move, Mila and Klorifa darted in between her and Jake.
“Eve…” Jake called in a weak, faint voice as he continued to cough out water while Eve tried to break free from the metal cuffs but couldn’t.
“What did you do to him?!” Eve demanded as her voice echoed around the wide room.
“We didn’t do anything…We just simply taught him a lesson he’ll never forget.” Jase answered as he released her from the cuffs and dropped her daggers in front of her.
“Go ahead, my dear…Take them and try to use your blood to kill your beloved vampire.” Klorifa insisted then Eve looked at them in confusion.
“W-What are you talking about?”
“You see, Jake is…not what you thought he’d be.” Mila spoke as she darted towards Eve and circled around her.
“I don’t believe you…”
Mila laughed. “You still don’t believe me? Then I’ll just have to prove it to you…Klorifa, do it.”
Klorifa nodded then darted towards Jake as she brought out a knife.
“What are you doing? No, don’t touch him! Don’t touch—“
Eve was cut off when Klorifa slit a cut on his face and suddenly, it healed just like the others…only it heals fast. This shocked Eve as she looked at Jake’s eyes turning glowing blue and his skin turned pale as James opened the curtains and the moon shone unto all of them, including Jake.
“This can’t be happening…” Eve muttered as tears gradually fill her eyes.
“But it really is happening, Eve. You cannot deny of what you have seen in your own eyes.” Mila said.
“You are risking your life for a vampire with an immortal body but…can die by your blood.”
Eve froze as her sad eyes stared at Jake.
“He betrayed you…” Jase said.
“He used you to kill you. He doesn’t love you at all…” Klorifa added as she smiled evilly.
“Don’t listen to them, Eve! They’re just saying that so they can weaken you! Don’t listen to them!” Jake shouted but it seems like Eve doesn’t know what to do.
“Now, who says that we’re weakening her? We’re trying to help her realize the truth.”
“Jake…” Eve called in a breaking tone as her knees gave up and broke down with her hands touching the floor and her tears falling.
“No…Please, Eve…” Jake muttered as he watched her cry silently until Mila bent down and whispered in Eve’s ear.
“Do you feel your heart tearing apart like madness? Do you feel the pain growing inside you?”
Eve froze as Mila stood up. “Because the pain is about to start!”
She kicked Eve to the wall which made a crater unto the smooth walls. Then James pulled her out and threw her to Jase then grabbed her neck and pushed her to the ground, dragging her around.
“No! Don’t you dare kill her! Eve! Please!” Jake begged out loud at the top of his lungs.
Then Mila darted towards him. “She can’t hear you, Jake…She’s waiting for her death. And once she’s dead, you’re next in line…”

“Bring down the stone bed…She can finally rest.” Mila ordered as Klorifa pressed a button and the roof was opened while a stone bed lowered down until it reached the ground.
“No! Don’t do this! Please! Eve, wake up!”
Jake tried to free from the heavy chains but then the chains were too thick and heavy for him to even move. Jase and James strapped Eve unto the bed while Mila and Klorifa darted beside the bed with a remote on their hands.
“You’re going to love this, son…” James said as he smiled evilly at him.
“Klorifa, if you would do the honors please…” Mila offered as she handed the remote to her and Klorifa smiled then pressed the button.
“Ahh!” Eve screams as electricity from the bed and straps surrounds her whole body.
“Stop it! Eve!”
Mila looked at Jake’s expressions full of fear that his beloved will die. “Stop, Klorifa…”
By the time, Klorifa stopped the electricity, Eve panted very heavily and fast as Mila touched her cheek.
“One thing I need from you…Where is your tribe?”
Eve didn’t answer. Instead, she just glared at her as she growled at Mila.
“You’ll regret ever doing that to me, you filthy beast…” Mila said as she looked at her sister and the electricity started again while Eve continued screaming out her lungs.
“NO!”
Jake finally broke free from the chains then zoomed towards Eve. He appeared with daggers in his right hand while the body of Eve on his left arm as he growled fiercely at his family.
Then the family froze as he placed Eve down on the floor and brushed his hand on her cheek.
“Eve, wake up…Please, Eve…” Jake muttered while Eve gradually opens her eyes to find Jake’s eyes filled with fear and sadness.
“Jake…” Eve called as she forced her paralyzed body to stand up.
“Don’t get up. You’re gonna worsen your wounds…” Jake demanded but then he noticed her wounds are closing and disappearing.
“I’m ok…”
“Jake, are you choosing her side over your family?” Klorifa questioned as she grits her teeth.
“You’re no longer my family…Once this is over, I’ll take Reggie and Regina with me. They don’t deserve this kind of life…”
“Why would you say that they don’t deserve this life? They are like us…Vampires.” Mila said.
“No, they are not like you. They may be vampires in blood but in mind, body and soul they’d rather be humans like others.”
Suddenly, Mila bursts out laughing. “Humans are the weakest creatures on earth. Humans are so fragile and we are powerful than them. Reggie and Regina don’t want to be like those weaklings—“
“You don’t know them! You don’t know a thing about my brother and sister!” Jake snapped.
“Do not insult us by saying that we are not their creators! We are the parents and we know exactly what they want! It’s you who do not know them! It’s you who is filling their minds with human imaginations!” James shot back.
“Jake, give me my daggers…” Eve whispered then he handed it to her.
“What are you gonna do?”
“You’ll see…”
Jase chuckled. “You think that you can defeat all four vampires? Pathetic…”
“And irritating as well…” James added.
Then Eve squeezed her hands unto her daggers again and bled as her eyes turned red.

“Jake, help me…”
“What am I supposed to do?”
“Throw me…”
“What?—“
“Just do it…”
This left Jake with no choice as he nodded and grabbed her by the waist. “Where?”
“Throw me to the wall…”
“I’ll try…” Jake said as he threw her with speed towards the wall. Eve manage to use her feet to bounce off the wall and aimed towards James. Before James could do anything, she stabbed him in the heart.
“You brat…” James muttered as he pushed her and gradually turned to solid crystal breaking apart.
“James!”
Klorifa growled and darted across the room towards Eve till Jake snapped her neck and Eve stabbed her as well.
“I’m sorry, mother…” Jake apologized before she turned to crystal and broke apart.
“Why, you little—“
Jase was cut off when Mila stopped him. “You’ve irritated me long enough…You’ve killed my brother and sister. What else can you do to increase my anger?”
“I’ll kill you if that’s what you mean…” Eve answered, tightening her grip on the daggers.
“Not on my watch…” Jase walked in front of Mila.
“I think we should make a deal. We will kill you and we will spare your Jake…Hm, how’s that?”
“Not when I’m still around.” Jake also walked in front of Eve.
Jase chuckled again. “Good. At least, I can see what you have learned in your training…”
“I’ll enjoy playing with the girl…” Mila added as she and Eve faced each other while Jase and Jake walked on the other side to fight.
“Let’s play then…” Eve demanded as she attacks then Jase and Jake started fighting as well.
Mila managed to dodge Eve’s first attack. “Fine, let’s do this.”
“Can’t wait…” Eve seconded as they both attacked at the same time.

Jake pushed Jase to the wall then continuously punched him on the face till Jase was able to stop him and dragged him to the floor then to the wall. Finally, Jake pushed him away and snapped both his right arm and leg which Jase cannot heal immediately.
Mila kicked Eve to the ground. “You think that you’ll just take away everything I have for free? You know there’s always a penalty when you steal someone’s property…You don’t know what I’m capable of…yet.”
Mila grabbed Eve’s head and dropped her to her knees. Suddenly, Eve can feel a sharp pain entering in her head which made her scream loudly for the pain was caused by Mila’s ability to destroy anything and anyone, in or out.
“Eve…”
Before Jake could go after Mila, he was strangled in the neck by Jase. “I think you should mind your own opponent, Jake…”
“Yeah well I think that you should wear more appropriate clothing…” Jake shot back as he pulled the neck tie and flipped him over then strapped him on the bed.
“Stay here…”
Jake zoomed towards Mila but she grabbed his neck and strangled it gradually.
“Do you really think you can do whatever you want without my permission? You shouldn’t let yourself lose without a guardian, you know?”
“I don’t…need you to tell me…what to do…You don’t own me.”
“I will own you once I kill her…” Mila looked at Eve struggling on the floor.
“You…cannot kill…me…”
“We’ll see, shall we?” Mila’s eyes glowed once again and Eve screamed.
“This is the end, chiropteran…”
“Jake…” Eve moaned as she looked at him.
“No…You’re not going to hurt her anymore!” Jake scratched her hand and kicked Mila towards the wall then rushed to Eve. “Eve…Wake up! Eve!”
“Now you’ve done it, boy…” Mila got up and walked towards the both of them as her fangs grew.
“Eve!”
Eve brought out her dagger and slit her wrist. “Jake…”
Jake carried her as he held her hand with the dagger then zoomed towards Mila and stabbed her.
“N-No…I-I cannot be killed by a girl—“
Mila turned to crystal and broke down.
“I-It’s over…it’s over, Ev—Eve? Eve, wake up…Eve!—“
Eve was unconscious by the time Clara, Sam, Reggie and Regina barged in with the chiropterans at their flanks.
“Jake!” Reggie and Regina zoomed towards him.
“Reggie—“
“Don’t worry, they know what we are. They won’t hurt us…” Regina explained while Clara and Sam followed.
“What’s happening?” Sam asked as he saw Eve unconscious.
“S-She’s not breathing…” Clara said as she took out a small bottle of red liquid.
“Reggie, Regina and Jake, I think you should close your eyes and cover your noses…This is sheep’s blood. It may not be appealing to you but it may make you thirsty…” Clara instructed then the three followed and backed away from Eve.
“Please, Eve…” Clara begged as she dripped some blood unto Eve’s lips. Then Jake came back and brushed his hand on her cheek until she opened her eyes and suddenly grabbed his neck.
“Uh Eve…Can you--?”
Without hesitation, she released his neck. “Sorry, Jake…”
“I’m glad you’re back…” Jake muttered as he surprisingly embraced her.
“Thank you, Jake…”
After that, Eve looked at everyone with a smile.
“Eve…Thank goodness you’re ok…” Clara said as she hugged her while Sam placed his hand on Jake’s shoulder.
“Thank you, Jake…So, where are you going to stay?” Sam asked then Jake looked down as everyone waited for his answer.
“I don’t know…But I was thinking if we could go to Vancouver ‘cuz we have a house there. I have to bring them there then I’ll have to leave them after a few days.
“What?” Reggie and Regina questioned in unison.
“What are you talking about? How can you leave them alone?” Clara asked.
“Because if the others found out about my betrayal then they’re gonna go out looking for me. I’m already a wanted rogue, but my brother and sister are not. They still have many years to live until they reached the mature age.”
“Wait, how old are you?” Eve asked.
“I’m a hundred fifty years old…Reggie and Regina are a hundred twelve.”
“Uh can you convert it to human age?” Eve requested.
Jake chuckled softly. “I’m fifteen. They’re still thirteen…”
“Well, you should’ve answered her question that way instead of giving a very specific answer. It makes me feel very old…” Regina muttered which made everyone chuckled until a chiropteran approached Sam and roared softly.
“Jake, the sergeant is asking about your uncle…”
Everyone walked towards the stone bed and found Jase chuckling like crazy. “Just finish me off, you beasts. What are you waiting for? I’m ready to die now!”
“Jase, you can have another chance to live if you’ll try to like them…” Jake offered.
“Never will I come to like you beasts! You are just cowards to drink blood! You can die out of hunger all you want!”
“If you wish to die…then so be it.” Eve said as she brought out her dagger and slit a wound on her palm with it then lifted up the dagger. Eve looked at Jake then he placed his hand on top of hers and thrusts the dagger unto Jase’s chest. As the dawn of another day has arrived, Jase turned to solid crystal rock while Reggie, Regina and Jake looked down.

“You know, there are extra rooms available in the house…” Sam revealed which made the three orphaned vampires look up at him as he smiled.
“Yeah, maybe we can clear the things out of that room. We can just buy three beds for you guys…” Clara seconded.
Reggie and Regina looked at Jake for a response while he hesitated for a while until Eve held his hand which surprised him.
“A-Are you sure?” Jake asked then Eve smiled at him and nodded.
“We can protect you, you know. You’re safe with me, Jake…” Eve said but Jake continued his hesitation as he looked down till Eve lifted up his chin.
“If you’re going to run away then, I won’t have any peace of mind at all. I promise that I will do everything to protect you, Reggie and Regina…You can count on me.”
Jake sighed. “Usually, I don’t feel comfortable giving you all my burdens and letting you suffer for it. I don’t want to see anyone get hurt because of me…Especially you. I don’t want—“
Jake was cut off when Eve kissed his forehead which surprised him.
“Just say yes, idiot…” Eve said with a smile then Jake chuckled softly.
“Yes…Fine, we’ll stay with you…”
Reggie and everyone smiled.
“But…I’m going to protect you if I’ll stay…Because I can’t stand seeing myself as a coward and making you my shield so, I’ll be your bodyguard from now on…” Jake declared.
“It sounds like you wanna be my chevalier…”
“What’s a chevalier?” Regina asked.
“Well, a chevalier is French which means Knight…” Eve explained.
“Can a chevalier fall in love with his master?” Jake asked with a smile then Eve laughed.
“Yes, it is possible. Why, do you want to fall in love with me?”
“You know that answer already…”
Eve and Jake chuckled as they were about to kiss until Reggie came in between them. “Can we go cuz’ I feel kinda hungry right now…”
Suddenly, everyone looked at him. “What? I can try to eat human food or if it’s possible, I can try to drink animal blood instead of human.”
“I think I agree with Reggie. Maybe the three of you should try to drink animal blood…I know it may not be the best idea but at least, it can help you survive for a year or half.” Clara suggested.
“What do you mean? Can the animal blood stop our hunger for human blood? Does it really work?” Jake questioned.
“Yes, but it can only pause or freeze your hunger for a year or half…That’s why I’ve asked my fellow comrades to hunt for the blood of a deer or a sheep…Although I think I’d prefer you drink both ‘cause I think it might help stop your human blood appetite.” Sam added then everyone nodded and walked out of the mansion as the chiropterans disappeared into the forest.

When they reached home, someone was watching them from across the house hiding in the tree.
“We will be together soon, Eve…I’ll protect you as I always have.” A boy said with brown hair and black colored eyes then a russet skin.

** TO BE CONTINUED**