Chapter 7
Hugo
It wasn’t a surprise to see Zay’s grandfathers walk through the shed door early in the morning, but it was definitely a surprise to see his Uncle Toby with them. I was a tad confused why he was here until I noticed the cooler in his hand.
Part of me was disgusted knowing it was filled with blood, but another part of me couldn’t deny that I’d felt healthier since I’d started drinking it and that I… well, that I didn’t mind the taste. Or at least, the flavor didn’t mess up my drinks when I add it in.
And maybe, possibly, there was a part of me that was curious about the whole… thing.
Shaking that away, I allowed Sebastian and Ailin to pull me into hugs, accepting the affection even though it had only been twelve hours since they’d left the property. Zay was right behind me, getting his own hugs from all three men.
When Toby greeted me, I was shocked for half a second that he pulled me into a hug.
Why I was shocked, I had no idea.
Perhaps because of all the Ellwood uncles, he seemed the shyest of the bunch? But then again, he was a part of the huggy Ellwoods, so I shouldn’t have been surprised.
After a few words, Zay, Sebastian, and Ailin all walked over to the addition to discuss… something or another, and I was left there, feeling awkward and unsure about what to do or what to say to his uncle.
But then I noticed the cooler again, and I gestured toward the house, saying, “Do you want to come in? We can put that in the fridge so you can take your cooler back.”
He smiled. “Sure.”
We walked quietly into the house, entering through the back door and straight into the kitchen. He passed me the cooler, and I wrinkled my nose as I set all the blood vials in the fridge.
When I was done, I passed the cooler back, and Toby said, “Thank you.”
I blinked at that, then let out a nervous laugh. “I’m the one who should be thanking you.”
His brow furrowed as he set the cooler on the counter. “What for?”
“Um, for the, uh, you know…” It seemed he didn’t know, so I added, “For the blood.”
He gaped. “Oh. No need to thank me. It’s no problem at all. Jules and I have been taking turns filling the vials.” He shrugged like that was the strangest thing ever.
“Yeah, but that means you’re… hurting yourself to help me and Jett out.”
“Just a small cut that heals quickly. It’s honestly no big deal.”
It felt like a big deal to me, but I didn’t particularly want to argue with him. “Right. Well, thank you. Jett and I really appreciate it.”
He was quiet for a moment. “We’re both happy to do it if it means keeping you and Jett safe.”
I couldn’t help but stare at the man—the vampire—for a long moment. Not because what he’d said was shocking but because I thought he meant it. And sure, maybe he only cared about keeping his nephew’s viramore safe, but for some reason, I didn’t think that was the only reason.
Like maybe, perhaps, he cared about keeping me safe for my own sake. And Jett safe for his.
And wasn’t that a strange pill to swallow?
I opened my mouth to thank him again or to say… anything at all, but no words came out.
He leaned back against the counter top and crossed his arms over his chest as he looked out into the living room, not meeting my eyes. “Did you know that I never wanted to become a vampire?”
My eyebrows rose. “Uh, no… I never heard that.”
He sent me a small, somewhat fond smile before looking away from me again.
“I suppose not. Jules and I were… well, we were held for a long time by a vampire. He was a cruel, horrible man, so my introduction into the supernatural was… well, it wasn’t kind.
It was violent and…” He trailed off and shook his head.
“Anyway, when we finally escaped, Jules turned me because both of us wanted the ability to keep ourselves safe from other monsters. And what better way to stay safe from them than to become monsters ourselves? Or that’s what I thought, anyway. ”
I stared at him, even more unsure of what to say now.
That sounded horrible, and I felt for him, but I didn’t know how to respond.
Should I say sorry? Should I ask him about it?
Should I say that sounds horrible and leave it at that?
I didn’t know. So I kept my mouth shut, hoping he would fill the silence.
I wasn’t sure how long it was before he spoke again, but his deep voice was quiet, almost gentle.
“In all honestly, my younger vampire years weren’t kind to me either.
But you know what? I’d do it all over again if it meant I got to meet Thayer and have him in my life.
We have a lot of years left, and I’ve never been happier.
Being a vampire has brought amazing things into my life…
amazing people like my Thayer, but also our family, including Zaos…
including you. I don’t regret turning for one second.
In fact, I love being a vampire now. It isn’t all blood and fangs like it is in the movies.
It’s also magic and quiet moments and strength and, well, and love.
There’s so much love in this family, Hugo, so much love and care.
And I know you can feel how much Zay loves you. I can see it with my own eyes.”
“I love him just as much.” My voice was quiet, my mind reeling from his words.
“I know. I can see that too.” He sent me a soft smile, and we were both quiet for a long moment before he began speaking again.
“Back when I was human, when Jules and I first started coming up with our plan and decided we both needed to turn, I was scared—terrified, really. I never wanted to hurt people, and from what I hear, that’s part of what makes you nervous about being turned? ”
I nodded and cleared my throat. “Y-yes. That’s… my main issue.”
He nodded. “I’m not trying to pressure you or anything, I just want you to have the facts right.
Yes, some turnings are violent, some baby vampires don’t have the best experiences, some are very lonely, but all of those are from a lack of caring, a lack of love.
And one thing this family has never been short of is love.
No matter what you decide to do, we’ll all be there to support you.
And if you ever decide to turn, I promise you, we’ll be there to help you, okay?
I promise you it won’t only be blood and violence.
Jules, Em, and I will be right there by your side, helping you, teaching you, keeping you safe, keeping you from hurting anyone, and making sure you know you’re loved.
Your viramore will be right there too, and so will the rest of our family.
You won’t be alone in this—ever. Never, ever alone, Hugo. ”
I still had no words. Honestly, what the hell was I supposed to say to all of that?
He sent me another soft smile. “I just wanted you to know that, just in case you’re thinking about it.
If you ever have any questions or anything—about becoming a vampire or anything else—feel free to ask me.
It doesn’t matter if it’s tomorrow, a year from now, or fifty years from now, we’re all here for you, but I wanted to make sure you know I’m here too.
I know we don’t know each other very well yet, but I mean that. Anytime.”
I sucked in a breath and gave a short nod. “I… I… thank you. That… that means a lot.”
He sent me that same smile again. “Anytime, Hugo.” And then, not to my surprise, he pushed off the counter, walked over, and pulled me into a long hug.
His dad hug was just as good as Sebastian’s.
I’d had a lot of time to think about everything Toby had said to me the other day, and I couldn’t help but wonder if I was putting too much into the whole I hate blood thing. But then again, maybe I wasn’t.
Toby was definitely right about one thing. I had Zaos, and I knew his family would help out.
That much was evident from the construction site outside.
But still, was I seriously considering becoming a vampire? It wasn’t a decision I could take lightly, and it definitely wasn’t a decision I could take back once it was made. Once a vampire, always a vampire.
But the thought of it was so foreign, and if I was being honest with myself, scary.
Shaking those thoughts away, I stared at my open fridge for a very long time before I sighed.
My nose wrinkled without my consent as I reached into the fridge for a vial of vampire blood. It still amazed me that this was my life now and that having literal blood in my fridge was considered normal. I lifted the vial up to the light to examine it for a few seconds.
It looked like… like blood.
There was nothing special about it from the outside. It didn’t shine or glitter or anything like that. It just… sat there, looking red and gross and unappetizing.
Yet, when I tasted it, it didn’t taste like normal blood. It tasted almost chocolaty, kind of smooth, and maybe even a little yummy.
Which made me want to vomit.
How in the hell did I think blood tasted good?
Why?
Was it because I’d been drinking this stuff for a few weeks now?
Was I getting vampire traits from it? Was I going to start thinking all blood tasted good?
With quick motions, I set the vial down, picked up the sharp knife I’d grabbed from the knife block, and sliced the end of my finger before I could think better of it.
The sting was sharp but not too bad at all.
With my other hand, I squeezed out a good bubble of blood, then shoved my finger in my mouth to taste it.
The second the blood hit my tongue, I started to gag.
“Oh my god,” I mumbled around my finger, horrified and disgusted all at once.
My blood still tasted like blood, gross and metallicy. I hated it. So freaking much.
“This is so gross.” I sucked on my finger, wrinkling my nose again, until it stopped bleeding. Pulling my finger out, I checked on the cut and blinked. “Holy shit.”
My finger was half healed already. Holy crap on a cracker.
Apparently, the vampire blood really was working to my advantage.