Miley’s POV
I looked directly into Kira’s eyes and cherished the opportunity to dance with the man I love for the first time. Somehow, this night feels so magical.
The events unfolded quickly. It feels like just yesterday when I finally mustered the courage to express my true feelings to him.
Yes, I had already confessed my feelings to him. At first, I hesitated because I was afraid that he might distance himself or avoid me.
But I took the risk. And to be honest, the result is not what I expected it to be.
Even though I didn’t receive a response from him, it’s just fine. It wasn’t a question that he needed to answer anyway. Secondly, I know that his heart still belonged to Nics. It still hurt. But I promised that I would help him get over her.
We had a proper and serious conversation. He explained everything about him and Mikan to me. He also told me that Mikan is just a friend to him.
But me? I am somehow what they call a special friend. Knowing that I’m special to him brought enough joy to me already.
However, I furrowed my brows when he suddenly stopped dancing, causing me to stop as well.
“Is there a problem?” I asked him, confused.
He let out a soft chuckle, and there was a hint of amusement in his eyes. “The song is over. Didn’t you hear the loud applause?”
My eyes widened, and I glanced around in disbelief.
Oh, no! It’s true! We are the only ones left in the middle because the other couples have left. Now we have the attention of most people and vampires.
I could feel my cheeks suddenly heating up. I wished that the ground would open up and swallow me out of embarrassment.
“Oh, yes, indeed. I’m sorry. Let’s go,” I hurriedly walked away without waiting for him.
That’s so embarrassing!
I immediately headed towards the directions of our friends and my brother. But it looks like I made a wrong decision because they all had smirks on their faces, except for Kyle who had a serious expression.
I swallowed hard.
“Do you have something to say to us?” Kyle asked, shifting his gaze between me and Kira.
I shook my head. When I turned to Kira, he responded with just a smile.
“Come on, hurry up! Just sing,” I heard Reiri shout, so we all looked in their side.
“What’s the matter with you, Rei? I haven’t even recovered from that dancing incident of yours the other day, and now you want me to sing. And you even suggest a heartbreaking song. Seriously?” Hiro shook his head. “No way! I’m done with this!”
I couldn’t help but laugh. Was Rei serious?
Rei shrugged. “Okay. I’m easy to talk to anyway.” Then she turned to us and gave a mischievous smile.
“Please excuse me. I just need to find someone. I have an announcement to make.” She was about to leave when Hiro quickly stopped her.
“Fuck! Fine! I’ll sing already!” he said angrily before making his way towards the stage.
I couldn’t help but doubt as I looked at my cousin. “What’s going on with him that makes him follow so obedient to you, Rei?”
I noticed that others were also waiting for her answer, especially Vince, who stood quietly on the side but had a curious expression.
But Rei just shook her head and smiled.
Our attention turned to the stage as we heard the familiar intro of the song. There stood Hiro, with a grimace expression on his face, holding the microphone tightly.
We all struggled to hold back our laughter as he started singing. Besides the song itself, his comical appearance was also hilarious. But even in that state, I couldn’t help but notice his wandering eyes as if he was searching for something.
He was in the middle of singing when we burst into laughter. Especially Reiri, who seemed to be enjoying the situation and was slapping her stomach while laughing. Even the other students joined in the laughter. This made Hiro glare at Rei.
But in an instant, almost everyone suddenly fell silent.
I gasped. The vampire students started to act weird as expected.
“No! This can’t be happening!” I blurted out.
***
Hiro’s POV
That woman is really annoying, always seizing every opportunity to make fun of me. If only she didn’t know anything, my life would still be peaceful and normal.
I stormed off towards the stage. Feeling embarrassed, I whispered to the person operating the music to play the song I was about to sing. I could see on their face the effort to hold back their laughter, so I gave them a stern look to make them take it seriously.
Once everything was in order, I felt embarrassed to face all the students here. I wanted to close my eyes before starting to sing a song that I never thought I would sing in my entire life.
But instead, I roamed my eyes all over the crowd. Secretly, I hoped that she hadn’t returned yet because I didn’t want her to witness the embarrassment I was about to endure.
I breathed a sigh of relief when I didn’t see her. But I’m still worried about where she went. I really wanted to go after her and chase her earlier. But Rei stopped me which leads to another argument between us.
I was in the middle of singing when suddenly everyone burst into laughter. I wish I could shove this microphone I’m holding into Rei’s mouth when I saw her thoroughly enjoying the show.
What will the students think of me now? Because of her, they will surely look down on me and lose respect.
I was about to lose my patience when suddenly, a familiar smell reached my nose. I immediately stopped and looked at my friends.
I quickly descended from the stage and approached them. I noticed that the vampires here were also starting to act strangely. We needed to find a solution quickly before the situation worsened.
We were talking with the royalties when our attention was simultaneously focused on the high door of the function hall, which suddenly opened. We were taken aback as the newcomers slowly entered, whom we did not expect to see at this moment.
“Alright. It looks like we have nothing to worry about anymore.” I smirked.
***
Nicole Jane’s POV
“Shit! We need to act before there are more victims.”
Kyle’s anger was almost unleashed. But I knew he was holding back, especially since someone might suddenly see what he is capable of.
Blood. We could smell a lot of blood. So, we need to find a way to ensure the safety of the students here and prevent the bloodlust felt by the vampires.
“We need to make a move. But what should we do without panicking and arousing suspicion?” Rei asked with concern.
Kyle was about to answer when we heard the two wooden doors open. All our attention shifted there. I couldn’t even blink as we waited for the newcomers to enter.
My mouth fell open in awe when I saw them.
“Who are they? They’re so beautiful,” I couldn’t help but comment. I even heard a loud gasp inside the function hall. While others began whispering to each other.
Why wouldn’t I be amazed? The two women walking towards us seemed like goddesses in their beauty. Even the emerald color of their eyes was so fascinating.
“The two of you are just in time,” Kyle greeted them with a smile while I remained stunned. “What brought you here anyway?”
The girl with red curly hair waved her hand dismissively. “We’ll talk about that later. Let’s get your problem done and over with first.”
I furrowed my brow. How did they know about our problem? Do they have abilities like Reiri’s?
They all stepped back, so, I did the same. Steph immediately stand beside me.
“What’s going on?” I asked Kyle, confused.
“Athena will do something to make all of the students here fall asleep,” he explained.
I nodded, even though I was still somewhat confused about what was happening.
Truth be told, the girl with red hair took a step forward. So, her name is Athena. Even her name sounds like that of a goddess.
She began reciting words that I couldn’t understand, but I thought it was some kind of incantation. Then she opened her palm and blew on it, creating a swirling motion throughout the entire hall. One by one, people started collapsing and losing consciousness. Except for us.
“Now, we need to find those common vampires who disobey the rules,” Kyle said, and we all nodded in agreement.
“Rei, Hiro, Vince, and Steph, stay here to keep watch,” he continued.
They were about to protest, but Kyle gave them a serious look.
“Let’s go.”
We quickly ran out and followed the scent of blood. We were sure that more than one person had been attacked, as we could smell different scents of blood.
We stopped at the entrance of the forest when we saw two vampire students there. Without hesitation, they were sucking the blood of two lifeless human students lying on the ground.
“Stop that!” Kyle ordered them, grabbing their attention.
I gasped as soon as I saw them. Their eyes were bloodshot, their fangs were protruding, their nails were long, and their veins were visible.
“Something is wrong with them. It looks like they have been injected with some kind of drug,” the girl with blonde straight hair said.
“Yeah, that could be the reason why they lost control,” Kira agreed.
We were taken aback when they started rushing towards us. That was very strange because what chance did a common vampire have against purebloods and royal bloods?
We were all prepared for their attack when suddenly a strong gust of wind passed by. I was stunned to see that their hearts were completely ripped out.
“What have you done?” the blonde-haired girl shouted at Kira. “You shouldn’t have killed them right away. We could have had the chance to study what happened to them and find out who’s responsible!”
“Althea is right. You let your emotions get the best of you,” Athena shook her head. Disappointment was evident on their faces.
I was about to speak up when I noticed a shadow behind a large tree, as if someone was hiding.
“Wait.”
They fell silent and turned their heads towards me at the same time.
“Someone’s watching us.” They also looked in the direction I was looking at.
I approached slowly and peeked behind it. But my eyes widened in horror when I saw Mikan shaking with tears streaming down her face.
“Mikan! What happened?” I was about to go to her, but she quickly moved away as if she was terrified of me.
“D-don’t come closer. Who are you and what kind of beings are you?”
I was taken aback by her question. I felt like my heart was slowly being crushed. It’s painful to see your friend so afraid of you, as if you were a monster in her eyes. Now I know how Kira must have felt during those times when I asked him the same thing.
“Mikan...” Tears started to fall on their own in my eyes.
I wanted to approach her, hug her, and tell her that everything is fine and that I’ll take care of her. That I won’t let anyone hurt her and say that we’re not evil. That we’re not monsters.
But I couldn’t do it because I could clearly see fear, judgment, and anger mixed in her eyes.
Out of all the people who could have witnessed us, why did it have to be her?
Then I suddenly felt a hand resting on my shoulder.
“Don’t worry. We’ll take care of her.”
I turned around and saw Athena and Althea with reassuring smiles on their faces. I had no idea what Althea’s abilities were. But as much as possible, I didn’t want to use any kind of power on my friend.
But I had no other choice. It’s for her own sake.
I nodded at them. “Thank you.”
I turned away from Mikan and was immediately embraced by Kyle. My tears continued to flow.
“Everything will be okay. For now, what we need to know is if we have let one of our enemies in here.”
I clenched my fist. I will make sure whoever is responsible for this will pay.