Rejected Luna, Vampire Queen

chapter 15

The hot steam from the bathtub was all around us like a thick white cloud. Damon turned around in the water. His eyes were dark and very serious as he looked at me. I felt like he was trying to read the secrets in my soul.

"What do you think happened to her?" he asked. His voice was very quiet, almost like a whisper. "Your mother. Where do you think she went?"

I looked down at the soapy water. I felt a little pinch in my heart. "I really don't know," I replied. I was trying not to cry. "But I have a feeling in my chest. I think she will come back to me one day. I have to believe that, or I will have nothing.

Damon leaned back against the edge of the tub. He looked at the ceiling for a moment. "In life, bad things and good things will always happen to you," he said. His voice was deep and sounded very old, like he had lived a thousand years. "You cannot control what happens to you. You can only control your emotions. You must not regret the bad things. You only control what you do after the bad thing happens."

"Thanks," I whispered. I didn't know he could be so wise.

He looked at his hands under the water. "My father died in my arms when I was very young," he said. The air in the bathroom felt even heavier now. "And my mother... she was killed right after I became the King. I had all the power in the world. I was the Alpha. But I still couldn't protect her. Power is a lie, Amanda."

"I'm sorry," I said. I felt so much pity for him. He was a King, but he was so lonely.

Suddenly, his eyes snapped to mine. They were sharp. "Another rule! Never say 'sorry' to me. I don't need your pity. I don't want anyone to feel bad for me."

Before I could move, he took my small hands in his big, rough ones. He pulled my hands forward and placed them right on his wet chest. Then he laid back down in the hot water, closing his eyes. I began to massage his chest. I could feel his heart beating strong under my palms.

"Tell me a story," he said.

I froze. My eyes went wide. "A story?"

"Yes," he replied. He didn't open his eyes. "Just talk."

"I... I don't know what to say. I am not good at telling stories," I stammered. I felt silly. What kind of story would a King want to hear from a girl like me?

"Say anything," he commanded. "Just talk. I want to hear your voice."

I took a deep breath. The warm air smelled like the oil I was using. "Okay... well, there was a day when I was young. I think I was in third grade. That is the class for little kids. I woke up early to do my chores like always. My Aunt Rebecca was being very troublesome that morning. She was shouting about everything."

I rubbed the oil into his skin as I talked. "I had my very first crush back then. His name was Zayden. He was a very nice boy, and he promised to visit me at my house that day. I was so excited! I told Aunt Rebecca about it because I was happy."

I remembered the look on her face. "She looked at me with so much disgust. She told me, 'Wow, which boy is foolish enough to come and visit a girl like you?' I felt a little sad, but I ignored her. I was too happy to let her ruin it. She just yelled at me to go back to my chores because she didn't care."

"I made sure I finished every single job that day," I continued. Damon was listening very quietly. "I cleaned the floors until they sparkled. I wore my very best dress, even though it was old. I sat by the window waiting for him. Finally, he came! But the second he walked inside, my cousin Miracle saw him. She jumped up and said, 'Hey Zayden!' She was trying to act all cute and pretty."

I felt a little proud as I said the next part. "But Zayden ignored her! He walked right past her and came to sit beside me. My heart was dancing. We were talking and laughing. But then Aunt Rebecca came into the room. She looked at me with an angry face and asked, 'Why are you sitting there? Don't you have more work to do?'"

"I told her no, I finished everything. But she didn't care. She told me to go and fix my room again. I knew she just wanted to get me away from Zayden. When I went to my room and came back, Miracle was already sitting right beside him! She was touching his arm. I wasn't surprised. Miracle always wanted anything that belonged to me. If I had a toy, she wanted it. If I had a friend, she wanted them."

"I came back and sat on his other side. Zayden turned away from Miracle immediately and started talking to me again. Miracle got so angry! Her face turned red like a tomato. she got up and stomped into the kitchen."

I giggled a little bit, remembering. "I already knew what she was going to do. She came back out with Aunt Rebecca. My Aunt said, 'Amanda! Come and help with the cooking right now!' She dragged me into the kitchen so Miracle could sit with Zayden alone."

"I knew they weren't going to let me eat with them. I was going to be stuck in the kitchen. So, when Aunt Rebecca wasn't looking, I took a big jar of garlic. I put plenty of garlic into the stew! I put so much in there. I did it because I knew Miracle was very allergic to garlic. It makes her face swell up and her nose get runny."

Damon's lips moved just a tiny bit, like he was almost smiling.

"When everyone sat down at the table to eat, I tried to sit down too. But Aunt Rebecca turned to me and pointed at the stairs. She told me, 'Hey! You go and wash the toilet upstairs! You have only washed it three times this week. Go do it now!'"

I stopped rubbing his chest for a second. I remembered the mean look in my Aunt's eyes.

"So I went upstairs. But as I was scrubbing the floor, I hea

rd a loud scream from downstairs. Miracle had taken a big bite of the stew..."