The Divinity Saga: Part I

The Beginning + The End

As soon as we entered the party, I looked past the stares and examined the house. It was a complete mess and full of people, like I predicted. There were red cups all over the tables and floor. There was a DJ surrounded by groupies and boyfriends jealously watching from afar. We joined the circle of people who were watching two guys dance battle. I could still feel eyes on us as we cheered them on. Chrissy loved the attention, but it only made me feel uncomfortable. 

 “Do you want some punch?” Chrissy yelled over the loud music.

“Yes, please.” I gladly embraced Chrissy’s exit from our audience.

 As we walked over to the tables covered with food and alcohol, something else caught Chrissy’s attention. She dropped the ladle, and pulled me back to the dance floor, forcing me through crowds of people.

"So no punch?" I mumbled disappointed.

“Welcome home!” Chrissy embraced Star.

"Thank you!" She grinned. "I see you brought someone with you." She stared at me.

"Yes, you know my best friend Rayleigh." She pulled me by my hand and forced me in front of her.

"Oh, yeah." Her grin shifted to a smirk. "Let me introduce you to my friends." 

I could see the insincerity in her face, but I wasn't going to call her out on it and make Chrissy's effort to involve me seem unappreciated.

"Everyone, this is Rayleigh." She introduced me with the same grin she greeted Chrissy with.

Everyone rushed to meet me as if I was the new girl in school they couldn't wait to get to know. I tried to force the rosiness from my cheeks quickly but I wasn't used to this kind of attention. Star and Chrissy stood back while I was quickly interrogated.

"What is your name again?" A tall curly haired girl smiled at me after they all dispersed. 

"Rayleigh." I cleared my throat.

"I'm Atia, you’re friends with my sister right?” She smiled. 

“Right.” I nodded shyly.

“Well, we were all about to go play beer pong in the backyard. Care to join us?" She extended the invitation. 

"But-" Star stopped herself. "I mean, whatever." She stormed through her guest and out the backdoor. Everyone followed her except Atia.

"Did I do something wrong?" I asked confused as we walked through the crowd.

"No, Star is just...different." She shrugged sympathetically. "But, everyone else seemed to like you."

When we got outside, the crowds were smaller and the music was faint. Ava was at the beer pong table, Her words were slurred and her smile permanently plastered on her face. She was demanding to play whoever wins next even though she hadn't won a single game. 

“We call next.” Atia shouted.  

"I didn't know you knew each other." Ava smiled behind her red cup.

"New friendship." Atia winked at me.

"Careful, that’s Star’s territory." Chrissy whispered to me, "Go Rayleigh!" She shouted as a cover up.

I could feel Star burning a hole in the side of my face. I ignored her awkward stare and grabbed my paddle.

"Ready to lose?" I challenged Atia.

Admittedly, I'd never played beer pong a day in my life, but I was a pro at tennis. How different could they be? Besides, Atia was clearly tipsy which gave me a sobered advantage. Everyone slowly surrounded us as the seriousness of the game began to peak. 

We went from hitting the ball softly, not trying to pull rank over each other, to power grunts and full on competitive demeanors. I hated losing but I could tell she wasn’t about to give in, not with all of her friends watching. 

After the fifth round, and us being tied, we decided to let other people play. I could feel the alcohol sitting in now, I stared down at my feet trying to remove the sudden irremovable smile on my face.

“Kiss Rayleigh!” Ava said drunkenly forcing my eyes to meet the crowd around me.

Ava's boyfriend Clayton came and stole her from her audience as Atia began walking towards me. I was unsure if she was going to kiss me or walk past me to Star, but the butterflies built up in my stomach so high I could feel the fluttering in my throat. She stood right in front of me with a smile on her face similar to mine.

"May I?" She reached for my hand.

"Uh," I panicked. "Bathroom, I have to go to the bathroom." 

"Awwww" Everyone complained.

"I'll walk you." She offered.

"Actually, I was just about to play you Atia." Star skipped over to us. "Don't you want to play the queen of this game?" She twirled her paddle.

"Can it wait?" She side smiled. 

"No, actually it can’t." She crossed her arms.

"Well, it's going to have to." She pulled me into the house gently. 

"Great, as if she didn’t hate me enough already." I sighed. 

"She'll get over it." She shrugged. "If she doesn’t like it, then she shouldn’t have introduced us."

She guided me to a dark purple room and closed the door behind us. You could barely hear the music playing anymore. She sat down on the bed and I stood there awkwardly looking in every direction but at her.

“Let me guess. This is Star’s room?” I looked around. 

“How did you guess?” She giggled. 

“Wasn’t hard.” I smiled.

“Her bathroom is right there.” She pointed to the door. 

“Thanks, I’ll be out in a second.” I slowly walked into the bathroom.

I closed the door behind me and walked over to the mirror. I needed the feeling to subside before I joined the party. After a few seconds, I flushed the toilet and pretended to wash my hands. I stood there for a second longer just in case I was moving too fast to be believable. 

When I walked out of the bathroom she was sitting on the bed with a bottle of vodka next to her. 

“Want to drink?” She held up the bottle. 

“Sure.” I smiled. 

“Come sit next to me.” She motioned me to sit down. “So let me guess, you aren’t a party girl are you?” She opened the bottle. 

“Not really.” I admitted, “I’m more of a homebody. Boring, I know.” 

“No, not boring. I like to stay in and cuddle too.” She smiled.

“Really? I didn’t take Star as the stay at home and cuddle type.” I said surprised. 

“Definitely not, she’s the party all night til’ the sun comes up type.” She laughed as she put the bottle to her mouth.

“So, how does that work?” I asked confused. 

She passed me the bottle and I took a big swallow. I tried not to make a face of disgust afterwards.

“How does what work?” She looked just as confused as I was.

“You guys being together.” I took another swallow and passed it back. 

“Me and Star, together?” She laughed. 

"What’s so funny?" I frowned.

"We are not together." She shook her head. 

“Chrissy said you were.” I assured her.

"Is that why you wouldn’t kiss me? Afraid you'd upset Star?" She smirked. 

"Part of it." I nodded.

"Well, I'm sure she was just messing around because she and I are just friends.” She promised. "Now, lets drink." She placed the bottle to her lips.

A few shots later we were lying in Stars bed completely drunk staring at the ceiling, laughing about nothing. I liked Atia’s company, it was different. She was like a breath of fresh air to me. I don’t know what drew me to her but I didn’t care. Tonight, I was relaxed – I was myself. The moments with this new friend felt like seconds, but they were seconds cherished. It wasn’t like hanging out with Chrissy, who only talked about herself and what she was going through. This was an actual conversation that we both were completely engaged in. Drunk or not I was going to remember this night. 

“So, do you think I could kiss you now?” She said drunkenly. 

I was so nervous even thinking of her lips on mine. I didn’t want to ruin a potential friendship but she was pursuing me and if we were to regret it tomorrow I’m sure it would be something to laugh about. At this point I felt as if I had nothing to lose. 

She leaned over me and my heart began to race as she slowly pressed her lips against mine. She pulled away to see my reaction and I couldn’t help but smile. She kissed me again but this time it lasted longer. The way her lips moved against mine was a feeling I couldn’t explain – I just knew that I didn’t want this moment to end. 

We heard the door open but before we could pull away it was too late.

“What the hell?” Star stormed off angrily. 

“Uh, never mind. I can use the downstairs bathroom.” Chrissy said as she closed the door slowly. 

“Don't you want to go after her?” I asked hoping she said no. 

“Who?” She asked.

“Star.” I replied confused. “She is your best friend.”

“Why ruin our moment?” She smirked.

“Because” I sat up. “I bet I can beat you at beer pong this time.” 

“Let’s find out.” She stood to her feet.

“Don’t cry when I win.” I smiled as I stood up next to her. 

My phone fell off the bed and she picked it up for me. I watched her as she unlocked it. Our height difference was perfect. I was tall enough to reach her lips but short enough to hear her heartbeat perfectly.

 “What are you doing?” I looked at her as her phone began to vibrate in her back pocket.

“I hope you don’t mind, I stole your number.” She smiled as she handed me my phone. 

"Not at all." I smiled through my nerves. "I'll be right down, I need to call and check on my grandmother.”

"Is she okay?" She hesitated her exit.

"Yeah, it’s just her birthday." I smiled.

"See you down there." She closed the door behind herself.

I wasted no time dialing Nana's number. I slipped into the bathroom and waited patiently for her answer.

"You have reached the voicemail of-" The sound of Star’s voice startled me. I quickly hung up the phone and jumped in the shower to hide.

"They were just up here." I heard her shout. "I can still smell her." I remained as still as possible, If she was talking about me, I wanted to hear everything. 

"Flirting with a human.. Is she stupid?" She huffed. "She has me!"

My phone began vibrating loudly on the counter. I rushed to answer it before I was caught, but it was too late.

"Rayleigh." The door slammed open. "There you are." Star stood in the dark room.

I woke up in my driveway with no memory of how I got home or when I left the party. I stumbled drunkenly into my house and climbed the stairs as quietly as possible. I crept into my room and headed for the shower. 

I sat on the shower floor letting the warm water consume me. I laid lifeless until the sun peeked through my bathroom window. I used all the strength I built up and crawled into bed. I could feel the left over water soaking my sheets as I forced myself to sleep. 

“Niña!” Nana knocked on my door.

The minute I opened my eyes my body and head throbbed in sync. I sat up and quickly wrapped my damp blankets around my n***d body.

 “Come in." I finally responded.

She walked into my room smiling as always. I'm sure it was because it was her turn to lead the book club today. 

"Hi Nana." I greeted her.

“You never sleep in this late, are you okay?” She asked as she opened my window.

As the wind blew in, her scent overfilled the room. She smelled sweeter than I remembered. 

"I'm fine." I assured her. 

"So, how was the party?" She sat down on the edge of my bed with a grin. 

"It was, so fun!" I lied hoping she'd buy it. 

"I'm glad you enjoyed yourself Niña. See what happens when you actually stay at the party?" She smirked. 

"Yeah." I nodded. "How was your birthday?"

"That's actually what I came up here to talk to you about." She smiled. "So, Edith and Josie came over shortly after you left and they surprised me with dinner and a cruise trip. An official book club member trip."

"That's great Nana. I'm so happy for you. You're going to have so much fun!" I smiled back. "Do you need help packing your bags? I can help you pick out cruise worthy outfits." I bribed. 

"Aww" She rubbed my leg. "I'm already packed and ready to go." 

"When do you leave?" I watched her stand to her feet.

"A car will be here in half an hour." She looked at me sympathetically. "You'll be okay without me right?” 

"Of course." I ignored the pit in my stomach.

"Come have brunch with me? One last meal before I leave?" She pleaded as she made her way to the door.

"I'll be right down." I promised. 

I climbed out of bed feeling weaker than ever. I slipped on clothes and grabbed my phone from the floor.

“Rayleigh!” Nana yelled.

“Coming Nana!” I rushed down the stairs and into the kitchen. 

The food was done and sitting on platters on the table. Pancake and Eggs, our favorite. 

“Smells great.” I smiled as I sat down at the table. 

Truthfully, the smell made me feel sick to my stomach.

 I looked down at my phone to distract me from the nauseating aroma. I had two missed calls from Atia. I put my phone face down on the table. What happened last night?

“Here you go.” She put my plate down in front of me. 

 I watched her as she ate. She looked stunning in her favorite floral dress and long grey-brown hair.Nana loved me in a way I'd never seen anyone love before. She loved me unselfishly, unconditionally, and the feeling was mutual. 

 Was it the hangover or the fact that Nana and I hadn't ever been apart before that was making me feel so sick.

My phone began to ring loudly on the table distracting me from my admiration and constant flow of thoughts. Nana looked up at me as I pretended not to hear it ringing. 

“Aren’t you going to get that?” She pointed to my phone with her fork.

 “No I want to spend time with you. I’m sure it’s just Chrissy.” I assured her.

“Are you sure there are no new girls lately?” She asked me smiling.

“Actually” I said blushing.

“Tell me all about–” She was cut off by two honks from the driver in our driveway.  

The hour we had together felt like minutes. She kissed me and rolled her suitcase outside. I followed behind her sadly.

“I love you so much Rayleigh.” She hugged me tight. 

I hugged her extra tight to embrace her and her smell drew me in ever closer. Stronger than any perfume I've known. I felt a weird urge shoot through my body. 

“Bye Nana.” I pulled away suddenly.  

“Bye Rayleigh.” She kissed my forehead and got in the limo.

As I turned to go back inside I could feel the nausea setting in and everything beginning to spin.  I grabbed some crackers from the kitchen and went to my room. This hangover was the worst and the house already felt so empty without Nana. I closed the curtains and went back to sleep. 

I slept for three nights and three days. I only woke up to cry from the pain. I didn't know what was happening all I knew is that sleep was the only thing that soothed it.

Run. Catch him. You can do it. I coached myself as I sped through the trees to catch my prey. His white shirt and quiet sobs made him an easy magnet to follow. I sped up behind him close enough to smell the shampoo in his hair without touching him. His small sobs turned into loud panting as we played hide and seek. Finally I was tired of playing with my food and pinned him to the ground. I sunk my teeth into him. Satisfied, I stood up and walked back into the shadows of the trees.

I replayed the nightmare in my head as I tossed and turned in agony. My blood boiling and body covered in cold sweat. All of my nightmares have consisted of the same thing - me killing people. Who was this monster I was becoming?

It was 5AM and I was starving. My throat burning, my blood still on fire. I needed food – I couldn’t sleep anymore. I’d never felt so hungry in my life. I was a dedicated vegetarian most of my life but for some reason I couldn’t stop thinking about meat. Out of impulse, I ran down the stairs and found some frozen chicken in the freezer. I sat the tray in the sink under the hot water to defrost.

I stood in my kitchen trying to control myself but I kept having flashbacks of my nightmares, which regrettably made my mouth water. 

“Focus.” I told myself. 

I walked over to the sink, opened the chicken tray, and began to drain the blood. The smell made my head spin. I lifted up the blood sack with the urge to taste it. I put my lips under the sack and waited for the blood to drip. As soon as the blood was about to hit my lips I slammed it back in the sink and fell to my kitchen floor. What is wrong with me? 

I could feel my veins start to pulsate uncontrollably, and my heart beating triple times. I couldn’t fight the urge anymore. I stood to my feet and ran over to the sink. I put half of the bag in my mouth and squeezed. Tears filled my eyes as my mouth filled with blood. As soon as I swallowed it I instantly started to feel a sick feeling in my stomach but my throat stung a little less. After sucking it dry, I buried it in the trash can.

I rushed in the bathroom and brushed the blood stains off my teeth. Every muscle in my body ached the more I moved. I undressed myself and stood in the mirror. I pinned my hair up in a bun and examined myself. I got closer to the mirror to see that my eyes were getting lighter. Why were they changing?

It was 7:02 and I would not dare show my face at school. Especially not with all of my disturbing nightmares and inhumane blood thirst. 

I turned on the shower and got in. I stood there trying to remember what happened the night of the party. I knew that would give me the insight I needed to figure out what was wrong with me. Why were there so many pieces missing? It was clear I didn't know what I was doing. 

After two hours of crying, I forced myself out of the shower and down the hall to Nanas room. I stole four of her good sleeping pills and headed to my room. I swallowed two pills and picked up my phone off my dresser. I needed to call Nana and check on her before she got too worried and sent a rescue team for me. 

 I slid to unlock and all my messages flooded in. I ignored them and dialed Nana's number.

“Nana.” I said excited as I heard her pick up the phone. 

“Yes.” I could hear her smiling. “Get away, I’m talking to my granddaughter Manuel.” She said flirtatiously. 

“Who’s Manuel?” I teased.

“Just an old friend.” She laughed. 

“Right” I went along. “When are you coming home Nana?” I whined. 

“Sorry baby. They told me it was a week trip but it was actually 30 day senior singles cruise and they knew I'd never agree if I knew. I’m so sorry. You’ll be okay though right?” she said sadly.

“Yeah, Of course I will.” My voice cracked as I held back the tears. 

“Okay baby. I love you.” She promised.

“I love you too.” I sniffled. 

"Are you sure you're okay?" She asked suspiciously. 

I wanted so badly to tell her what was going on but I didn't even know how to explain it or where to start, and I wasn't taking the chance of ending her trip short because I was irresponsible at a party.

"No te preocupes." I promised her. 

"Te amo Rayleigh.” She said as the line went dead.

I wiped my spilled tears as I stood there feeling drowsy. I made my way to my bed and buried myself under the blankets. It didn't take long for me to drift away.

At 6pm I woke up out of my nightmare from someone knocking at my door.  

I was way thirstier than before. I held my throat hoping the pain would subside. I felt like I couldn’t breathe. The knocking continued but I ignored it, I refused to get up and find out who it was. I knew eventually they would get the hint that I didn’t want to be bothered. 

Whoever it was, they were persistent. The knocking was slowly driving me crazy. I stormed to my feet and out my door. 

As I walked down the stairs I could hear a heartbeat pounding my ears matching mine. I knew my hearing had been strangely heightened since the day after the party but this was a new sense of sound. Maybe it was a side effect from the sleeping pills.

I peeked out my window and  Atia was standing at my door.

 What was she doing here? I hadn't had human contact in a week but for some reason the smell of her didn’t make me want to kill her like how it was in my dreams. It was more of a soothing smell. 

I wanted to open the door and explain to her that I wasn’t avoiding her on purpose, but how? I missed school for an entire week and she’s been blowing my phone up ever since the party. I had no excuse to justify my actions without sounding completely insane. 

“Rayleigh, I know you’re home please talk to me.” She pleaded. 

I opened my mouth but nothing came out. 

I stood at the door waiting to hear her voice again – I needed to. I missed her so much. It was unfair the way I’ve treated her, but it was for her own protection. 

“Please?” She begged. "I'm not leaving until you talk to me."

I unlocked my door and slowly opened it. 

We walked into my living room not saying a word. Trying to avoid eye contact at all cost, I waited for her to sit down on the couch so I could sit on the complete opposite side of her. 

I stared at her from the corner of my eye. 

She cleared her throat, I knew she was going to say something. I tried to prepare myself. 

“What happened to you?” She asked. 

“Nothing.” I didn’t know how to answer that. 

“Tell me what happened.” She slid closer to me.

“Nothing happened.” I protested. 

“Something.” She hissed.

“You wouldn’t understand” I mumbled under my breath. 

“I wouldn’t understand?” She scoffed.

“No.” I tried to fight back the tears. “Nothing is wrong with me.”

“Oh really?” She reached in her bag and threw a silver bottle at me.

I caught it easily. I smelled what it was through the bottle. My mouth watered a little bit. 

“What is this?” I played it off.

“I know you can smell it.” She watched me. “Drink it.”

I screwed off the cap and the smell choked me. I sat there shakenely fighting the temptation. I didn’t want her seeing me like this. 

In a second, Atia was in front of me with her hands over mine. She gently forced the bottle to my lips.

"Don't fight it." She encouraged me.

I kept my mouth closed still fighting the urge to drink it. I tried to hold my breath but it was too late. As soon as one drop of blood seeped through my lips my shaking eased and my throat soothed. I grabbed the bottle away from Atia’s hands and chugged it in a few seconds. I felt myself gaining strength but I still wanted more.

I sat there awkwardly, feeling so embarrassed tears started streaming down my face.

“Who did this to you?” She asked me as she wiped away my tears.

I couldn’t answer because I didn’t know. 

“Who?” She grabbed me.

“I don’t know.” I cried harder. 

“Did this happen at Star’s party? Is this why you disappeared?” She asked trying to make eye contact.

“I'm pretty sure." I shrugged. "I just remember, one minute I was talking to Nana on the phone and the next thing I know -” my voice cracked. 

“What is it?” She asked concerned.

 “Well” I started again. “I was calling Nana and the next thing I remember I'm waking up in my driveway. Everything is still in pieces. But, I’ve been like this ever since that night. Thirsty for blood with excruciating pain and unbearable nightmares.” I cried again. “What’s happening to me?” I blinked away my tears and I looked at her in her eyes - Once I looked I couldn’t look away. 

I needed answers and she knew something. How else did she know that blood is what I needed? 

She interrupted my thoughts. 

“Your eyes are – they’re red.” She had a blank look on her face. “You’re already in the last stage of transition.” 

“Transition into what? What’s happening Atia?” I began to shake again, but this time with fear.

“You’re shaking, are you hungry?” She asked. 

“No.” I stood to my feet. “I want to know what the hell is wrong with me and why you’re avoiding answering the question.” I looked down at the empty bottle of blood and stormed off into the kitchen. 

“Where are you going?” She yelled from the couch as I walked away. 

 I sat down at my bar with my head down. Soon after, I heard Atia’s footsteps. I knew she was coming for me. 

"Why do I hear everything?" I groaned with my hands over my ears. 

“You want to know what’s wrong with you. I’ll show you.” She approached me with a knife in her hand. 

"What are you doing?" I asked skeptically. 

"Showing you what you are, what we are." She pressed the kitchen knife against the palm of her hand until the blood leaked onto my kitchen floor. 

"Atia." I winced. "Are you crazy? I'm going to go get the first aid kit." I stood to my feet. 

“Don’t." She said calmly. "Look." She held up her unwounded hand. 

“What does this mean? I still don’t understand.” I stared at her. 

“You drink blood, you heal fast, and you crave what no human would ever dare to want. You aren’t what you once were and you will never be again. You’re a vampire.” She looked at me trying to read my expression.

 “A vampire?” I whispered to myself. 

All night she explained everything that I was feeling and what lied in the future. At first I was in denial but Atia had a way of making you listen. I ended up falling asleep on the couch with her, and for the first time in a week I didn’t wake up with a nightmare.