21
The sound of something heavy clattering to floor jolted me from my slumber. My eyes snapped and searched around, trying to locate the source of the clamor. The first thing I noticed was that I was in my temporary room. The second thing was Sebastian, giving me a sheepish look. He held up a book- the reason for the noise.
“Where’s Vincent?” The words slipped out of my mouth before I could stop them.
Sebastian frowned the slightest bit. “He left for court, why?”
“No reason,” I responded quickly, looking around my room again. When had I fallen asleep? Had Vincent carried me here from the living room?
“Are you hungry?” Sebastian asked, setting the book he’d been reading back on the shelf. “I’m not a good cook, but I can try…”
I shook my head, throwing the covers off me so I could get up. “Don’t worry about it. I can make myself something. Thanks though.”
He frowned deeper. “Are you sure?”
“Yeah, I don’t want to be a hassle.”
“You’re not a hassle,” he told me, crossing his arms. “I really wish you’d stop being so formal to me.”
I blinked at him. “Formal?”
“You can joke around and get angry with Vince, but you’re always so polite to me,” he explained.
“But you’re the next King…”
“But I don’t want you to act that way around me.”
Smiling, I shook my head at him. “I only act like that toward Vincent because he deserves it because he’s a jerk. It’s not something you really want…”
Sebastian’s lips twitched into a crooked smile. “I see. In that case, you’re not allowed into the kitchen to make yourself breakfast.”
“Why no-”
“I’m making it and it’s final.”
“I thought you couldn’t cook?”
He shrugged. “I never said I was going to make any thing fancy. Why don’t you shower and change then meet me in the kitchen?”
I glanced down, realizing I was in my pajamas. When did I…? I didn’t. My face flamed when I realized the only other person who could have changed me was Vincent. That pervert! When he got back I was going to slap him so hard…
“Emily?”
I ripped myself from my violent thoughts to wave Sebastian away. “Sounds good. See you soon.”
He left, and I went over to the duffle bag of my clothing he’d brought here a few days prior. My laptop was on top of everything. Picking it up, I brought it over to the empty desk in the corner of the room to get it out of the way. Just as I was about to walk away from it, a thought hit me. Was there Internet here? Glancing at the door to make Sebastian had shut it, I booted up my computer. It was an agonizing twenty seconds before I reached the home screen. I clicked the Firefox symbol, bringing up the Internet. To my amazement, it loaded.
So Vampires used the Internet…
I clicked Facebook, going to my profile. To my surprise, my wall was covered with my friends asking how California was going. My eyebrows pulled together in confusion. How many minds had Sebastian altered? The What’s On Your Mind? space was tempting me. Should I update my status? The last one was going to the movies. I hesitated a moment. What would my status be? Oh, I’m really not in California. Vampires kidnapped me a few days ago, and there’s a chance I could die, but beside all that I’m dandy? A smile broke across my face. I couldn’t write that.
After typing out It’s hot in California, I hit share, closing the Internet and shutting off my laptop again. Might as well go with the flow. I trudged back to the duffle bag, pulling out a pair of washed jeans and a tank top. For a few seconds I searched for a sweatshirt and eventually pulled out a cardigan. Shrugging, I piled it with the rest of my clothes and headed for the shower.
By the time I entered the kitchen, Sebastian was nearly finished cooking. Plates were already set out on the table, filled with burnt bacon, charred home fries, and slushy scrambled eggs. There was a small pop from behind me, causing me to start. Sebastian turned, his making a face at me.
“What?” I questioned, raising a hand to my face.
He came over to me, sighing lightly. “If you let your hair dry like that you’ll catch a cold,” he warned me, taking the towel that was around my shoulders and covering my head with it.
Before I could protest he started drying my hair, running the part in it I’d made earlier. When he finished I emerged from underneath the towel, pursing my lips at him. “What are you, my father?”
“No. But I’m old enough…” He furrowed his eyebrows. “Actually, I’m old enough to be your-”
“I don’t want to hear it,” I said quickly before he could continue.
He grinned, moving around me to the toaster, where he pulled out the first thing he’d cooked that didn’t look burnt. With an arrogant look, he placed the two pieces of toast on a plate, gesturing for me to sit in front of it.
“This looks… appetizing,” I said slowly, taking a seat at the place he’d indicated. “Thank you.”
“Don’t force yourself to eat it if you don’t like it,” he told me. “It might just kill you.”
I laughed, pushing the soggy pile of eggs around my plate. “I think I’ll manage.”
He sat down across from me, smiling. “Very well.”
A silence settled throughout the kitchen. Cautiously, I placed a forkful of the eggs into my mouth. He watched me intently, waiting for my reaction. I clamped my mouth down on the fork, tasting the eggs for the first time. After the initial shock of the taste of runny eggs, I managed to swallow, holding up my thumb. Relief flooded across his face.
I didn’t have the heart to tell him they were undercooked and that I could catch salmonella.
“I should probably ask Vince to teach me how to cook, but he’d probably refuse,” Sebastian suddenly spoke up, now putting some of his own eggs into his own mouth.
“You think?”
“I know,” he corrected. “Vincent doesn’t exactly love me. Not that I can blame him. He is put through a lot because of me.”
I frowned at him. “What do you mean?”
“Whenever I do something I’m not supposed to, all the blame goes to Vincent.”
“Why-”
“Because I’m the next King,” Sebastian cut me off, looking aggravated. “I can’t do anything that will cause problems for me when I later become King. When I mess up, Vincent is held responsible.”
I gawked at Sebastian. “Wait, seriously?”
He nodded solemnly. “Which is why he hates me.”
“Why would he hate you if there’s just the chance? You haven’t done anything, right?”
The corners of his lips pulled down and he stayed silent. “I have.” His eyes met mine. “You probably don’t know the whole story behind why Fiona’s here?”
“No,” I responded quickly, hopeful that he’d elaborate on the topic.
“Well-”
Suddenly the kitchen door opened, causing Sebastian to snap his mouth shut. Disappointed, I turned to glower at whoever was there. My frown dropped when I realized it was Fiona. Speak of the devil.
She stared at me curiously for a moment. “Morning, Em.”
“Good morning, Fiona,” I responded.
“Have you seen Mom, Seb?” she inquired, turning to her brother.
He dropped his gaze. “No, sorry.”
Her face fell. “Oh, it’s um, it’s okay.”
“Want some breakfast?” Sebastian offered, gesturing towards his place, his head still bowed.
“No, that’s okay. I need to find Mom,” she declined, taking slow, backward steps out the doorway. “See you later, Em. Bye, Seb.”
I glanced at Sebastian, seeing his face tightened as if he was in pain. Bewildered, I turned back to Fiona, but she was gone. Sebastian let out a deep sigh, placing his fork down on the table. With weary eyes, he stared at the floor.
“Sebastian?” I said hesitantly.
His gaze snapped to mine. “Yes?”
“Can I… Is it okay if I ask what happened between you and Fiona?”
The frown on his face deepened, but he didn’t reply. After a few minutes he slowly nodded. “I don’t see why I shouldn’t tell you.”
My heart jumped in excitement. I tried to keep calm, but it was hard. Curiosity always got the best of me. For all I knew, Sebastian could have killed Fiona just for the fun of it… Was that something I really wanted to know?
I already knew the answer to that.
I was dying to know.
“Why don’t you accompany me to my room?” he suggested, pushing his plate away from him. “You can bring your breakfast along if you’d like. I’ve lost my appetite.”
Pushing my plate away from me as well, I shook my head. “No, I’m not that hungry anyway.”
He smiled. “Or is it you don’t want to eat my cooking?”
“It might be a little of both,” I responded playfully, trying to keep the smile on his face.
It worked. Together we made our way out of the kitchen, making kittenish banter throughout the labyrinth of halls. Obviously the story behind Fiona and Sebastian wasn’t going to be a cheery one. I wanted to keep Sebastian’s spirits up for at least a little while before he revealed probably one of his deepest secrets.
“Through here,” he suddenly spoke, putting a hand on my shoulder. “You’ve never been to my room before, have you?”
I shook my head, following him through a door to our right. “I can’t say I have…”
“Excuse the mess, then.”
Mess? He stepped aside, allowing me to see the entirety of his room. Like almost every other room in the manor, this one was perfectly themed. The floor was made out of oak wood panels, which matched the color of the couch nestled in the corner and also the bedspread on his King sized bed. The walls were painted white, and brown curtains hung from the gigantic window on the far side of the room. There wasn’t one thing that looked out of place. Whatever “mess” Sebastian was talking about, was obviously not in his room.Exclusive © material by Nô(/v)elDrama.Org.
“Want to take a seat?” he offered, pushing me towards the couch. “Make yourself comfortable.”
“Sure,” I responded, awkwardly taking a seat on the leather couch. My eyes widened in surprise when I sunk just about five feet into it.
Sebastian chuckled, taking a seat next to me. “Feathers,” he told me before I could question him. “Comfortable, aren’t they?”
“Yes,” I replied, struggling to push myself into a more comfortable position. “It must have been expensive…”
“Money is a problem.”
“Right.”
He chuckled, sinking back into the couch. “Don’t let anyone know I’m telling you this. No one is supposed to know but the immediate family.”
“I know,” I said quickly. Joel made that clear. “I’m not going to say one word.”
“Good girl,” he commented with a smile. “Now where should I start…?”
“The beginning?”
He shook his head at me, chuckling. “I should have you beheaded for your impudence.”
“You can have people beheaded?”