Vampire Boys Of Summer (Completed!)

Episode 29: Mother At Midnight

Midnight. I was back at my computer trying to find something that was relevant about the neighborhood vampires. Just like before, as big as the net was, I couldn’t find anything of use. Ryo had told me a lot in a few minutes, while the web told me nothing. I guess the information, the questions I wanted answered, would have to come from a vampire.

I sighed and scooted back from my desk. The night was quiet. Mom had come home and went to bed. She hadn’t said much to me beyond hello, and she didn’t mention anything about being late because of a guy. I wondered if she had had a hot vampire distraction, but this was something I didn’t want to get into a discussion about. As long as she wasn’t cheating on dad, it wasn’t any of my business.

I got up and walked around the room, pacing one might say. I was restless and didn’t know what to do with myself. Everything that happened today had gotten me so keyed up there was no way to unwind. Thoughts of everyone passed through my head: Amanda Trump, Angela, Colin, Chinatsu, Luhan, Ryo, Haru, the jigsaw man, Mrs Winston, The weird boy lurching himself along the sidewalk, Mr. Tomoko, my dad…a whole myriad of characters and dilemmas that were building up so much there wasn’t a way I could sleep tonight.

I got up and walked to the window and looked out onto the night. I heard a siren off in the distance, and then another. Crazy night in Chelsea Valley, I thought. I looked down into the yard. Lightning bugs were putting on a tiny light show, and I saw my cat Myavi chasing them and getting frustrated. I looked over at Haru’s place. I was hoping to see him outside so I scanned his porch and yard. It was so dark over there I couldn’t tell if he was outside or not.

Part of me wished he would show himself; call me down to him for another night of intriguing conversation. But the night was still and he wasn’t there. Then, out of the corner of my eye, I saw movement across my yard. A figure, dressed head to toe in black, was moving across the lawn, heading over to Haru’s.

“Who the heck is this?” I thought, when I realized the black outfit was a dress, and the bottom hem of it trailed through the damp grass. The person turned and looked back before continuing on their way. I stood there by the window, rendered speechless, as I’d seen who it was in the moonlight’s glow. Mom.

I thought she’d gone to bed. Or at least that’s where she told me she was heading. But now here she was creeping over to our vampire neighbors next door. I’ve never been much of a jealous person, but my first thought was if she’s going over to see Haru, there was going to be a fight.

I slipped into my shoes and went to the closet for a shirt to throw over the flimsy one I had on. I chose a black one that had Hyde of Vamps and L’Arc En Ciel on it. I looked in the mirror and fluffed my hair a little, then bounded down the stairs, taking off into the night in pursuit of my mom.

I didn’t call her name or anything, but moved quiet among the trees, trying to follow her without being seen. I watched her saunter up onto their porch. She raised her hand to the door as if she was going to knock. Before she could rap on the door frame, I bounded up onto the porch.

“Mom! What are you doing?”

Startled, she spun around so fast I jumped back away from her. On her face was a look of complete confusion. “Nora, what on earth?” she asked, before looking at herself and seeing what she was wearing. Up close, I realized it wasn’t a long dress, but a sheer slip, and she was just as embarrassed at the realization as I was.

“Mom, what is going on with you?”

“I..I don’t know,” she stammered. “I was dreaming. I heard a voice in my head telling me to come next door.”

“Did you recognize the voice?”

“I..I think so. Oh my, I don’t belong here like this. I need to get back home.”

Mom went down the steps and ran home. I watched her disappear across the yard and heard our front door slam. I took a long look at the vampire house, wondering who had summoned her. It was obvious by how she had dressed herself that she wasn’t being summoned to fix a pot of coffee. I turned to follow my mother’s trail home, but then I felt the boards of the porch creak behind me. Before I could turn, I heard the voice. “Nora,“ it said. I didn’t need to turn. I knew it was Haru.

“Nora, what are you doing out here?” Haru asked.

I spun on him. “I might ask the same of you.”

“What do you mean?”

“Were you expecting someone?”

He gave me a curious look. “Well, I was hoping to see someone, yes.”

“Someone like my mother?”

“Your mother?”

“I realize she is closer in age to you than I am.”

He laughed and shook his head. “Nora, I’m only a year older than you at best.”

“Yeah, but you’ve been that age since the 1200’s.”

He looked away for a moment. Maybe it stung. When he looked at me again, I thought I saw a hurt look in his eyes. “What is the matter with you?” he asked.

I put my hands on my hips. “What’s’ the matter with you?”

“Well, the matter is there’s someone I really like. A lot. But she’s weirding me out at the moment.”

“And how is that?”

“She keeps talking crap about me trying to hit on her mom or something.”

Now I was angry. “You mean to tell me you didn’t summon my mother over here in her slip?”

“Um, no. Why would I do that when I can summon you in your…oversized Hyde t-shirt?”

He was making light of this and I didn’t like it. I was about two seconds away from slapping him. “I’m serious, Haru. Did you summon her?”

“No, I didn’t.”

“Can I believe that? Can I trust you?”

His face was expressionless, the bangs of his long pale blond hair nearly obscuring his eyes. “Do you think you can?” he countered.

“That’s not what I asked.”

“In that case, I guess you can’t.”

It was not what I wanted, nor needed to hear. This wasn’t just about my mom sneaking over here in the dead of night, this was about everything. The Trumps and Ryo, they couldn’t be trusted. I was unsure about Chinatsu and Luhan. Though they helped me, I wasn’t sure why. I could trust Angela to a point, but not enough to tell a secret to. I needed to know there was someone in this crazy world that I could trust, and now Haru was telling me it wasn’t him. It was too much. I began to cry; not the loud sobbing that you see in all the movies, but quiet tears falling from my eyes and running down my face. I was too proud to wipe them. Let them fall, the jerk.