Chapter Nine – Family Values
Even with nothing else being said for now, tears begin to well at my eyes as I feel that the happy family life I once knew is starting to fall apart. Suddenly everyone’s angry at each other, and now it looks like there’s a lot we still have to learn. From wishing the others would leave, I’m already grateful that Alec at least is still here, as I feel his hand stroking my shoulder. My hand rests upon his as Dad briefly addresses Autumn, who is by now looking uncomfortable.
“You’d better get yourself a morning-after pill,” he tells her, his eyes flickering back to the guy she’d unwittingly made into a man.
“Right,” she utters, looking among us, “Maybe I’d better go.”
He gives but a nod in reply, and as she leaves his eyes rest on Alec. Our relationship, however, is very different, and he makes that known as he speaks.
“I’m not going anywhere,” he states bluntly, snuggling closer to my side. I smile in my gratitude as he moves his hand across to my head, stroking my hair as the first of my tears escape the prison of my eyelids, smudging the eyeliner Emilia had applied with such precision earlier.
“Better get comfy then,” he offers, gesturing to the bed and loveseat, “This could take a while.”
“That’s what I’m afraid of,” I confess as I sit on the loveseat. Alec takes a seat by me, and pulls me into his chest as we await whatever story is to be told.
“Okay,” he commences, pacing the room a little, and I can only guess he’s trying to work out how best to begin as the others sit on my bed.
“I guess the best place to start is when Dad became a werewolf,” he explains, “He was the first to be bitten, so all this corrective therapy stuff wasn’t in place then. Without that his personality started to change, from the loving, caring father I knew to someone who’d be aggressive, hyper-active, even aloof. He chose my half-brother’s wedding to rip into his new son-in-law, making him one too. That was the first big clue that something was wrong, but there were others. Mum did notice too eventually, but it was so gradual, it took a while before it fully registered.
“When it did though, things went downhill pretty quickly. I couldn’t bear to be around him anymore, it felt as though my real Dad had died and I was grieving. I went into depression, I stopped going to school… I don’t know why, but one night I just thought to slip out to this bar, and that’s when I met your Mum. She offered me a shoulder to cry on that I’d never had before, and mainly through that I quickly grew very fond of her. We got together about a month after that, and dived in head-first, just like you two did.” At this point he gestures to Alec and I, before his manner becomes awkward.
“It was then she bit me, but I didn’t know it. Something else I was unaware of until Mum told me, was that vampires are still fertile. Sure enough, about a month later we found out about you three…”
I feel the blood drain from my face as I try to process what he’s saying. Fresh tears sting my eyes as I look back at him.
“We were an accident?!” I check, straightening up in my seat, “We weren’t meant to be here?!”
“Very happy accidents,” he admits, but his words are of no comfort. My jaw’s too pre-occupied in its shaking to allow me to say anything in reply, although I wouldn’t know what to say if it wasn’t.
“I’m sorry,” he utters, blood beginning to seep from his eyes, “We’ve done our best though… at least I thought we did.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?!” Jo exclaims, “It’s not as though you come home drunk or hit us or anything…”
“I was trying to teach you guys some valuable lessons in life,” he replies, looking back at Luca and I, “Don’t make the same mistakes I made, wait until you’re good and ready…”
“I was ready!” I protest, “It’s not as though we just met and had a drunken s**g in the bathroom!”
“That’s enough!!” Luca snaps, “I’m a big boy now, I can take care of myself, just like you…”
“Don’t you get it??” Jo chips in, “I’m not condoning what Leo did, but at least he
knows the guy! Men can’t get pregnant either…”
“Alright, alright,” he growls, rising from his seat and storming off a little.
“Tonight we are wasting our breath,” Mum tells us, “You are all intoxicated to some degree, and like it or not, it is affecting your ability to reason.”
“Some more than others,” I growl, slumped in my seat. I don’t know whether to explode into a fit of fury or crumble into a sea of tears.
“No, you’re right,” Dad agrees, addressing Mum before turning to my brother and sister, “Come on you two, let’s go before a real fight starts.”
Luca seems happiest to oblige as he marches out of the door. I follow them outside, where I spot an apologetic Autumn talking to him. I look back to Mum and Dad, my tongue once more bound by the events of the evening.
“I’ll send Andy round in the morning for you, okay?” he tells me, “See if I can get him to fix the hangovers you’ll no doubt be waking up with.”
All I can do in reply is nod, as I find myself leaning towards the tearful option.
“I’m sorry,” I begin, but Dad quietens me as he lays a hand on my shoulder.
“No, I’m sorry,” he says softly, “for everything.”
I look up at his face to find fresh crimson tears trickling down his cheeks. I want to tell him not to be so hard on himself, but all I can do is swallow the sobs rising in my throat.
“Come here,” he offers, opening up his arms.
“Luca!” Mum calls, at which Dad breaks away and looks back at me, running a hand along my face to wipe away the black streaks from my cheeks.
“We’ll see ourselves out,” he says, before eyeing Alec. “Look after him, huh?”
The straw to break the camel’s back. My folks are still on their way out when the dam bursts, and I wind up sobbing uncontrollably into Alec’s arms. I dread to think what must be running through his head by now.
It seems to last forever, but by the time it ends, my ears tell me I’ve attracted an audience.
“Leo?”
I don’t like to cry in front of others if I can help it, so I look around in dismay at the extra faces peering at me.
“Come on, let’s sit you down,” Kii continues, sobered up enough to speak clearly, “Looks like you need to.”
I note the absence of Zamir and Kat, but I don’t care anymore. At least they’re old enough to do what they please without getting their ears chewed off.
Alec sits by my side, nursing my shoulder as the others gather. “You okay now?” he checks.
I slowly nod, before turning to him. “I’m surprised all this didn’t scare you off,” I remark dryly.
“Hey come on, don’t be silly,” he soothes, before breaking into a smile, “You don’t get rid of me that easy.”
“I didn’t cause any trouble did I?” Autumn checks, swallowing nervously, “I wouldn’t have done it if I’d known…”
“It wasn’t just about that,” I tell her, “Things got very personal in there. I’m surprised Alec stayed, but I’m glad he did.”
“Look, um,” Ginny starts, “I didn’t mean to stir up all this…”
I scoff in reply as I look up at her. “Ginny, all you did was remind me never to let that brother of mine get drunk ever again,” I tell her, “From one of the nicest guys alive to cocky a***hole in… however long it took him to get through that much.”
“Seriously?” Autumn checks, “He was fine when he came out… okay, he looked hurt, but…”
“Hurt?” I check, chewing on things for a moment. “Maybe it’s a defence mechanism then… wonder if he’ll be like that after his hangover clears?”
“I’m so sorry about tonight,” I utter.
“Hey, don’t be silly,” he smiles, “It’s not like this was your fault.”
I lower my head in despair as my mind races. I nearly say some of it was, but Alec gets there first.
“So who’s this Andy?”
I smile at the brief encounters I had with him. “He’s one of my cousins,” I explain, “Last time we met I was about seven or eight, so I don’t know him that well. Dad does though, he’s told me a few things about him.”
“Oh, cool,” he acknowledges, before a huge yawn escapes my lips. “Yeah, good idea,” he agrees, “Think you need it more.”
I wearily nod, my body drained by all the crying. Before I undress, I decide first to remove the make-up still remaining on my face, and then I slip under the covers next to him in my briefs – not something I usually wear, but shorts wouldn’t look so good with those trousers.
The lamp is turned off, but as I cuddle up to him I can’t find the will to shut down. Instead I just lay there, enjoying the warmth from his bare skin as he embraces me, running a hand along the length of my back before tenderly kissing my brow.
“You okay?”
“Not really,” I admit, “Can’t sleep.”
“Can’t say I’m surprised,” he muses.
Despite the belief that I’d cried myself dry earlier, fresh tears sting my eyes as another thought intrudes on my already overworked mind. I cuddle up closer to him as I look into his eyes, adjusted well enough to the dark to know where they are.
“I’m gonna miss you so much,” I tell him sadly.
“Me too,” he says, kissing my head again as he caresses my face, “I love you.”
“I love you so much,” I reply, our heads moving in closer until I feel his lips upon mine. Our mouths delicately brush against each other for a while, a desire within building despite my physical tiredness. In fact it has the opposite effect, sending away the clouds shrouding me earlier. It allows me a breather as our lips part, and we eye each other in silence for a moment, my breathing deepening as I study his features. The sparkle in his eyes lights up the darkened room, and with a growing smile I kiss him again, my grip round him tightening as I roll on top of him.
“Oh my God, what do I look like?!”
One peek into the mirror is enough for me to tuck the eyeliner away for the day… guess tears before bedtime can do this to you.
Alec is still in bed, presumably sleeping off the excess alcohol still flowing through his system while I finish getting ready. I hear movement downstairs, telling me my cousin Andy has let himself in. A dhampir apparently, or “genetic vampire”, meaning he can do all a vampire can without needing to worry about the sun, although I’ll bet the smell of eggs and mushrooms will be driving him mad. Still, with me most likely being the first to rise, now’s a good time to finally meet one of my older cousins properly.
“Buen giorno!” he greets cheerfully when he spots me, “How’s your head?”
I smile knowingly at the question as I approach. “Fine thanks,” I reply, “but then I hadn’t drunk that much.”
“Ah, okay,” he nods, but then frowns as he studies my features. “Leo?” he checks, puzzled.
“Yeah,” I confirm, chuckling a little at his expression, “I know, I’ve changed a lot since the weddings.”
“You’re telling me!” he agrees, before warmly embracing me. “Long time no see kid! How’re you doing?”
“Okay thanks,” I smile, “What about you?”
“Not bad thanks,” he replies, his smile now slipping from his lips, “Your Dad told me what happened last night.”
“Yeah, thought he might,” I mutter, my gaze lifting upwards to watch his huge brown eyes as a green finger traces the lines under my own.
“He’s just concerned for you, that’s all,” he soothes, “He was worried that you’d all be following in his footsteps despite his trying to warn against it.”
“What about you?” I ask, hoping for an understanding ear, “Did you do this kind of thing too, or were you a good boy?”
I detect a rising tide of sadness within him, however. I watch quietly as he serves up my breakfast and sets it down on the table, hinting that I should take a seat before he’ll answer.
“I made a pot of tea,” he offers, “but since you’re probably the only one without a hangover, I can fix you a coffee if you’d rather.”
“Yes please,” I accept, waiting patiently for my answer. It doesn’t come until he places a steaming mug of coffee by my plate and takes a seat himself.
“I was far from good, sadly,” he replies slowly, “It wasn’t my jumping into bed with a guy at fifteen that got me into trouble… more who that guy was.”
Images of him at Mum and Dad’s wedding drift through my mind. I recollect seeing him with what looked like his boyfriend, seeing them in each other’s arms when our group photos were taken. That lad he no doubt speaks of seemed familiar…
“I remember seeing you with him when Mum and Dad got married,” I mention, “Didn’t we also see you after coming back from school?”
“You have a good memory,” he smiles.
“Was only about seven years ago,” I remind him.
“Ah yes, so it was,” he observes, “Time’s gone by so quickly.”
“Didn’t Dad say you were cousins?” I test, “Plural?”
“Yes,” comes the wary reply, “That’s why the trouble started.”
It’s then I notice the ring on his left ring finger, the one usually reserved for a wedding ring.
“You obviously love each other,” I shrug, gesturing to his ring, “So what’s the problem?”
A sad smile lifts the corners of his mouth. “That’s pretty much what your Dad said,” he remarks, “Seems some of his lessons have paid off at least.”
“Surely you’d understand why I did it though?”
“Do you two love each other?”
“Very much so,” I reply in a hushed tone, before I notice movement out of the corner of my eye. “Speak of the devil,” I announce as he walks over, and I take some time to introduce them to each other as Andy rises to finish serving. Alec seems a little worse for wear though. As he sits by me, he whispers into my ear while my green relative works.
“Some problem with his boyfriend?” he asks innocently.
My eyes flit across to Andy, noting his worried glance in our direction. “No need to whisper,” I tell him, “Andy’s a day-walking vampire.”
As if to confirm his range of hearing, he arches an eyebrow knowingly as Alec looks back at him.
“He’s a nice guy,” I reassure him, reverting to Italian as I speak.
He says nothing, but as he anxiously studies him his brown eyes seem restless. Remembering that Mum and Dad would adopt a similar stance sometimes, I know that he is administering his own test as he runs a surface scan on my boyfriend.
“Go on then,” he agrees, leaving me to explain softly to Alec that, for all that has happened with us so far, our situation is comparatively tame. I check his reaction carefully as I finish.
“He’s engaged to his brother?” he checks softly.
I silently nod, deliberately adopting an indifferent expression.
“Just don’t broadcast it, okay?” Andy warns as he serves the rest of the omelette. “Not only for us, but we’ve got kids to think about.”
“You have kids?” I ask. This is news to me.
“Yes,” he agrees, his eyes darting about the room. Spotting the others as they approach, his cheery air resumes as he greets them before he ducks closer to us. “All I’ll say for now is,” he mumbles to us, “thanks to our alien Grandfather, we can get pregnant. That’s on top of being able to plant the seed. I’ll leave the rest to your imagination.”
“Wow,” Alec muses as he watches him serve the tea, “And I thought we had problems.”
“Welcome to my family,” I mutter back to him, before my tone turns deadly serious as I lean closer to him. “Listen,” I tell him, “You never heard any of this, okay?”
His head jerks backwards, blinking as though taken by surprise. “Hear what?” he asks casually, glancing back at him, “Nice ring, wonder who gave him that?”
I don’t hide the satisfaction in my smile as I pat his leg. In reply, with his head turned away from the others, he slips me a sly wink as he picks up his fork.
“Thanks,” I whisper, pecking his lips. Inwardly, the love I feel for him, as strong as it is in such a short space of time, has increased threefold at least through one gesture. One hell of a test to put my first partner through, but with such promising results I pray he’ll also be my last.
*****
If anyone knows where I can get some nice decorative mugs/cups, please let me know! There's only so long I can keep using that alarm clock...
