From a young age, I've always been expected to be in a protector role. No matter what or who it was, my guard had been locked solid, unable to be broken. My parents always believed I was destined for greatness in their world, that I was humanity's best chance at survival against the threat of Vampires.

    "She looks up to you," My Mother's voice is a constant ringing in my ear, begging me to believe. I remember rolling my eyes at her, insisting that Leila only copies me in an effort to annoy me, nothing to do with admiration. 

    I didn't see it until years later, long after my Mum was gone. The way my little sister looked at me with stars in her eyes, the way she'd take any excuse to sit in my bedroom even if it was just to annoy me. Truthfully, that chair in the corner of the room was only ever for her.

    She never felt included in the family, I can see that now. Despite the small quantity of it, she always felt like an outsider. It's why she shows no interest in our heritage and bleaches her hair, trying to separate herself from her last name in a way.

    Maybe that's why she chose a Vampire to love, a way to separate herself even further. 

    Or, maybe it's my fault. Maybe this is the universe punishing me for betraying my family's legacy. 

    I can't stop my thoughts as I stare down at her face, unable to move despite the sky turning a lighter shade of blue. I've been sitting here for hours, feeling as her skin turns colder and paler by the second. 

    The way Yasmin looked at her the day before as if she recognised her, that's something I can't forget.

    Slowly looking up, my hair blocks part of my vision as I glare in Yasmin's direction. I shift, placing Leila onto Alis as I stand up, my bones creaking from the sudden movement.

    Thomas looks up from beside me, jumping up almost instantly as I race over to where Yasmin stands on the other side of the pool. She looks up at me, her expression blank and void of all emotion.

    Without saying anything, I shove my hands against her chest, pushing her back. "You fucking knew she was seeing him! I saw you look at her yesterday!"

    She doesn't say a word, instead, standing there and letting me push her once again. For the first time since I've met her, she's quiet.

    "Say something!" I scream, pushing her once again. I want her to fight back, to hit me or make a snarky remark. 

    "I didn't know it was her for sure," She almost whispered. I freeze for a second, thrown off by her calmness and almost sincerity, something that seems foreign for her.

    "Liar!" I accuse, my fists clench tightly at my side, "You should have told me if you had a suspicion!"

    She doesn't say anything at first, only looking at me sadly before whispering once more, "I'm sorry,"

    "Hey, C'mon. Take it easy," Thomas joins the conversation, keeping her voice soft and low as he steps to the side of both of us, trying to divert my attention elsewhere.

    "Take it easy?" I laugh bitterly, looking at him dumbfounded. "If it weren't for you almost killing that girl, I could have found her in time! Was that your plan, distract me so your brother and father can finish the job?"

    "Reid," He says lowly, bending his neck to look me in the eyes despite my efforts to avoid his gaze, "You know it's not like that,"

    "I don't know anything, Thomas. I don't trust you!" I exclaim, clenching my jaw as I hear my voice wobble slightly. I don't want to cry in front of him, any of them.

    "I know," He says sadly, looking across my face at every feature individually. "We should get you out of here,"

    "No, I'm not leaving her," I shake my head, stepping away from his attempt to touch my shoulder. 

    "I'll get her, bring her with us," He offers.

    "If any of your kind touches her I'll fucking kill you," I grit my teeth, my anger directing itself to the wrong person. I can feel my brain telling me that Thomas and Yasmin don't deserve my anger, but a much louder part of me is just angry.

    "I can't do this," Alis's voice grabs everyone's attention. I turn, watching as she lowers Leila's head onto the concrete and gets up without looking at her. I find my chest aching at the thought of Leila's head on the hard ground, my eyes ignoring the blood all down her body. Alis breezes past, only stopping in front of me quickly, shaking her head and running her fingers through her hair. "If I have to sit here around them any longer, I'm going to kill them,"

    She spits the word like it's poisonous, pushing the venom into her eyes and narrowing them towards the two Vampires. She doesn't give them a chance to react, instead, brushing past them and disappearing from sight. 

    Just like that, I'm the last one left. I promised I'd take care of Leila.

    I walk away from the group, numbness making me move like a zombie. I get to Leila, picking her body up in my arms and moving with her towards the car.

          My vision feels blurry as I trace the red patches on my hands. My skin is almost always covered in blood, but this kind of mark is permanent no matter how much stain remover you use. My wrists rest on my knees, the blood also covering that skin.

    Alex's couch feels smooth against my skin, a familiar feeling breaking into my head. Familiarity feels like a curse, I'm no stranger to loss and death, something I can also feel rubbing against me now. 

    I can't bare to look at her. I laid her down in Alex's bed and shut the door, not wanting to catch a glimpse of her. The longer I sat there the longer my brain kept trying to trick me into hearing a heartbeat or seeing her move. 

    Alex sits in the lounge room with me, across the room just watching me in silence. A lot has happened between us, a lot that shouldn't be discussed now. 

    "Michaela?" I hear my name being called. I move my eyes from my hands, watching as Levi stands timidly in the room, rubbing his arm. I don't take my eyes off of him, the sight of him reminding me of his hands on my arms, holding me back from Leila.

    He takes a few steps forward until he's right in front of me, dropping to his knees and staring at me like a wounded dog. 

    He doesn't say much to me, only staring at my still face and searching for the right words to say. I can tell he's haunted by his part in her death, willingly or not. I move my blood-soaked hands as he lowers his head, pressing his forehead to my knees. The image is something from a prayer as if I'm his God and he's begging for my mercy. It's a replica of the way I pressed my forehead to Leila's chest and tried to bargain with a higher power. 

    "I'm so sorry," His pleas are muffled by my skin.

    Reaching for him, I thread my bloody hands into his dark blonde hair, the crimson liquid merging into the locks. He feels my touch, almost leaning into it.

    "I don't blame you," My voice almost refuses to deliver the words. He was compelled, his actions weren't his own. Levi doesn't deserve to carry the blame for someone's death, I know first-hand how that feels, how it hardens your shell until no one can break into it. 

    I can't lift that burden off of my own shoulders, but I don't have to drop it onto his.

    "Alright, c'mon," Alex announces, pushing his hands onto his knees and standing up. He reaches me in a second, holding his hand out for me to grab. Levi lifts his head, moving as I take Alex's cold palm in mine and let me pull me to a stand. 

    Alex silently leads me to the bathroom, pushing me inside and shutting the door behind us. 

    "Come here," He says softly but sternly. For the first time in my life, I feel like a doll, not in control of myself as I blindly follow his instructions. He positions me at the sink, turning his tap on and running my hands under the water. He takes some handwash and scrubs it over my hands, the red water vanishing down the drain.

     "I spent my whole life training, trying to make sure it didn't happen again. Trying to make up for letting my parents down," I speak up, smiling bitterly at the red water, "It didn't matter. It happened again and I watched again,"

    "Y'know, I still don't know the full story of everything. All the Vampire related stuff, I mean," He tells me, continuing to rub the colour from my hands, "Maybe you could tell me some time,"

    "I'm done with it all. I was stupid to believe I could ever stop a Vampire," I shake my head, From my peripheral, I see Alex studying, almost physically putting the pieces of my past together and filling in the blanks. 

    "You don't have to be violent to stop them," He almost mumbles, scratching at the last patch of blood, "When I was...turning. You showed me compassion despite what your training told you. You sacrificed for me in a way a Vampire never could,"

    "Compassion doesn't win wars," I tell him, letting him pull my hands away from the water as he dries them with a hand towel. 

    He smiles, shaking his head as he finishes drying my hands, "I heard Tommy tell you a very similar thing the other night. I also heard what you told him, do you remember?"

    I blink, thinking back to the conversation I had with Thomas in this very room. I said something along the lines of kindness unknowingly saving your ass when you least expect it. No one cares about what happens to an asshole. 

    "It's different now," I decide.

    "How?"

    "My sister was murdered. If I wasn't wasting time talking to Thomas and Yasmin, I could have saved her," I say, biting the inside of my lip to stop my eyes from tearing up. "If I wasn't nice to you and Thomas--gave you both my blood. I wouldn't have been so weak,"

    He doesn't say anything, only looking at me. Guilt nests itself further into my chest and takes up space, my words obviously making him feel somewhat at fault.

    "I spoke to the man that killed her before it happened. He mentioned my Dad, insinuated that he's still alive," I change the subject.

    "Shit, Mic," Alex almost sighs, the weight of the possibility hitting him, "He was probably trying to throw you off your game,"

    "I think so too," I agree, dropping my hands to my side and looking up into his blue eyes, "But, it just gave me an uneasy feeling, is all,"

    "Mic," He says, lifting his hand to brush my hair behind my ears, "You don't know for sure that you could have changed anything, even if you were there for hours before the fact,"

    "It would have changed something!" I exclaim, turning and gripping the sink hard enough to turn my knuckles white. "When my parents died, I didn't want to move forward in life because I didn't want to become a version of myself they never got to meet. I couldn't stop myself growing up but now? Now, she's stuck with me forever in this version of me and she deserved better than this version!"

    "Mic, don't be stupid," He tells me, taking my hand from the porcelain sink and holding it in his hand, "Leila would want you to-"

    "Leila wouldn't want to be dead! I don't want her to be dead. Nothing else matters," I cut him off, my voice stern and cold. 

    A loud noise from outside the bedroom alerts me. I turn, looking over my shoulder just as the door busts open and Yasmin enters the room looking frazzled.

    She opens her mouth without a word coming out. I furrow my eyebrows, turning fully around and storming out of the room to the location of the noise. The scene before me is Chaos once more. Most of the furniture in Alex's house is tipped upside down or thrown across the room, the trio of Vampires stand off to the corner, all of them shouting as they try to contain something in the middle.

    Yasmin steps aside, allowing me to see into the inner circle. My heart drops, my mind feeling like it's melting in my skull at the sight before me.

    Without thinking, I almost run to the group, pushing Yasmin and Thomas aside to better look at the blonde in the middle.

    She turns to me, her red eyes and sharp fangs filtering away once she sees me. Her supernatural features disappear instantly, her once tanned skin now a pale light as she steps closer to me, tears welling up in her brown eyes.

    "Mic," Leila sobs, stepping forward and falling into my arms. I hold her tightly, my knees almost buckling under the sudden weight of her body. Instinctively, I press my lower face into her hair, closing my eyes and breathing in the smell of her fancy shampoo. If this is a dream, I want to savour every minute. 

    Her arms weakly wrap around my waist, her sobs causing her body to shake in my arms.  

    "It's okay, Lei. You're fine," I feel myself speaking before my mind can catch up. 

    I feel her body fall weaker in my arms, only becoming heavier as she becomes dead weight. Without meaning to, I turn and make eye contact with Thomas who closely monitors the situation. As if he can read my mind, he helps me move Leila over to Alex's bedroom and lay her on the bed. 

    Everyone else seems frozen in place, staying in the lounge room as I climb into the bed with her, resting her head in my lap as Thomas pulls a blanket over her shivering body. 

    "Is this real?" I whisper, looking down at Leila as I gently move her stained red hair from her sweaty face. 

    "It's real," Thomas reassures me, his eyes focused on Leila, probably looking for any clues on her pale face. "I'm not sure how, but it is,"

    "They must have given her their blood before-" I cut myself off, pausing to swallow the bile threatening to rise in my throat. I close my eyes, trying to push away the new set of awful, blood-soaked memories burned onto my brain.

    "You okay?" He asks gently, sitting down on the edge of the bed. 

    I look up at him with teary eyes, a stern expression to show him how stupid that question really is. He nods almost immediately, realising his mistake, "I don't care if you hate me for it but, I'm going to kill them. Both of them,"

    "I would never hate you," He says, the sincerity in his voice tightening my stomach in an unfamiliar way. He must realise the weight of his words, because he quickly clears his throat and straightens up, "At least, not for that,"

    "I didn't see any blood on her mouth before it happened," I furrow my eyebrows, looking down at her almost grey lips as if to double-check. 

    "I don't think Zeke gave her his blood. He never turns people, only kills them," He confesses, his eyes trained on Leila as if to avoid my gaze. 

    "Then it was your prick of a father," I reply, fiddling with the edges of the blanket to make sure she's warm. The amount of bedsheets that have been ruined since everything happened is a ridiculous amount.

    "Where do you think Zeke got that habit from?" He says, finally looking up as we make eye contact once more.

    I chew on the skin of my lip, staring at him with doubt evident on my face. "Well, one of them did because you can only turn if you have Vampire blood in your system,"

    "I know," He says, his intense stare telling me he wants me to push on and figure something out. 

    I blink--one, twice. My brain fights against the information being so clearly shoved into my face, "But, if a vampire didn't feed her blood, that would mean she already had the blood in her system it just needed to... to activate. That would mean-"

    He nods, closing his eyes for a brief second as if a weight has been lifted off of his heavy shoulders. Unbeknownst to him, he only transferred it to mine.

    "Thomas, no," I shake my head, clenching my jaw and moving Leila's head so I can stand up from the bed. Thomas joins me, staying close to me as I cross my arms tightly over my chest and shake my head, "You're wrong,"

    "Reid-"

    "And you knew this the whole time? You couldn't give me a hint? Done something- anything!" I spin around fast, stepping close to him as I once again turn my anger onto him. 

    "I didn't know until right now. It's the only explanation," He reassures, holding his hands out in surrender. 

    "Only explanation?" I gape, fire burning in my eyes as I look at him, "What about your family, huh? Y'know, the ones who killed her,"

    "It can't be them. Only some of us are allowed to turn humans," He vaguely tells me. I furrow my eyebrows once more, feeling frustrated at another piece of the puzzle that doesn't make sense. 

    "It has to be something else," I protest once more, refusing to believe that one of my parents was a Vampire the whole time, right under my nose. 

    An idea pops into my head, my arms dropping back to my side as I look to Leila quickly, seeing her fast asleep. I storm out of the room without a second thought, not needing to look back to know Thomas is following close behind me.

    "I don't feel great about you going out on your own right now," Thomas says from behind me, watching as I walk through Alex's apartment door.

    "Then, I guess you're coming with me," I reply, not bothering to turn back and look at him.

    Pressing the button on the elevator, a red mark on my sleeve catches my eye. Despite the black colour of my sleeve, I can still see the crimson tone of the cuff. My gut clenches, my finger leaving the button despite my eyes still being trained on my elevated arm.

    "Hey," Thomas's voice breaks through my mind field, his hand entering my vision as he gently grabs my hand and lowers it. I peel my eyes away, looking up to meet his gaze. "Don't do that to yourself," 

    "I can't help it," I admit weakly, feeling the urge to sew my mouth shut at the weakness shown. 

    "Here," He says, unzipping his jacket and handing it, dropping it over my shoulders. I don't object, pulling my arms through the sleeves as the tightness in my chest loosens from the blood stain being covered. 

    "You remember what happened last time I wore something of yours, right?" I ask, looking down to zip the hoodie all the way up and cover my body.

    "You think I care about a little blood?" He laughs to himself, looking down at me.

    I don't bother to reply, only biting back a smile as I exit the elevator and enter the car park where my bike is parked in the same place I left it earlier. I reach my beloved vehicle, pulling my sticker-covered helmet off the bike and pulling it over my head. I only have one, but Thomas would easily survive a fall.

    "Get on," I instruct him, slinging my bare leg over the vehicle and straddling the seat, leaving room for Thomas behind me. Sure, I should be wearing pants when I ride this thing, but it's never stopped me before. 

    Thomas climbs on behind me, his long legs aiding him in his mount. I feel his chest press against my back, his hands grabbing my waist as he adjusts himself on the seat. He finds a comfortable position, steadying himself as he wraps his arms around me and I turn the bike on. 

    I could drive to this graveyard with my eyes closed.