Bloodline | Maknae Line (21+)

16:

Chapter 16

That night you were plagued with more nightmares.

Violet eyes and fangs and splatters of blood on white walls and you in the middle of it all. Something hit you on the back and you collapsed in a pool of crimson red blood as thick as syrup. You cried, pushing yourself up on your knees, which only made it worse since now your entire front and legs were covered in the blood. You stared at your trembling hands and tried to wipe them on your jeans, but the motion only made it messier. Your tears felt as thick as the blood and you heard a cackle above you.

You looked up to see a girl with a long braid down her back and piercing violet eyes. You gasped when her face came into view and you realized that it was you, not Rosemary. You whimpered in fear as you watched yourself grin cruelly, revealing sharp fangs.

"Don't you get it? This is who you are..."

You jolted awake with a yelp, sitting up in the bed abruptly. You looked around for a few seconds, trying to piece together where you were. You rubbed your eyes, trying to dispel the horrible, ghoulish images that were already fading from your mind. The events from the day before flooded your brain and you let out a deep sigh when you remembered Taehyung and Rosemary and the new information that she might be related to you.

You felt a numbness in your chest as you tried to figure out exactly what you were feeling in that moment. You should be feeling something, but it felt as though ice had frozen over your heart and instead of allowing yourself to feel, your body froze any and all emotion in order to protect itself. You sighed and pushed yourself to your feet, feeling your stomach rumble loudly. At least you knew that you could still feel the important things... like hunger.

You left the bedroom and walked to the top of the stairs, wondering if there was anything left for you to eat. Perhaps you'd have to break out the bags of rice. Rice for breakfast, you smiled wryly to yourself.

Just as you reached the top of the stairs, you stopped in your tracks when you saw Taehyung and Jimin on the floor below you, arguing in hushed voices. Taehyung was holding a duffle bag and Jimin was standing in front of the front door, as if blocking his exit. You quickly crouched down, hoping they couldn't hear you as you listened in on their conversation.

"Get out of my way, Jimin, you can't stop me." Taehyung growled. Jimin stood his ground and crossed his arms.

"I'm not letting you leave, Taehyung. You'll have to go through me first." He said firmly. You gripped the balusters of the stairs as Taehyung stomped his foot angrily.

"There's nothing for me here!" He exclaimed. "Lazarus promised that if I did this, if I did what he said, he would tell me where Rosemary was. He'd give me her location and I could do what I wanted with her." You gaped at his outburst, a piece falling into place. so that was what Lazarus had promised him, a window to his past. You understood all of a sudden why Taehyung had sworn obedience to the Elder vampire. "Well, I found her already so there's nothing keeping me here." Taehyung threw his hands up, almost in defeat. Jimin shook his head, his eyes ablaze with determination.

"You took an oath. You know better than anyone that you can't make an enemy out of an Elder." He said, his voice grim. You shivered at the way he phrased it. Taehyung rolled his eyes and crossed his arms as well, so they were mirrors of each other.

"I don't give a crap about the stupid oath." He snapped defensively. "And Lazarus isn't even a real Elder. He goes against them every chance he gets. It's a wonder they haven't kicked him out yet."

"Watch your tongue." Jimin snapped, his voice ringing with warning. You couldn't see clearly, but you were pretty sure Taehyung flinched.

"Whatever. I'm leaving, now move." He grumbled, taking a step forward. Jimin side-stepped, blocking his path.