Future Mortality
Part 11/?
By Christine Hantzopulos
christine@forevernickandnat.com
Natalie
couldn’t remember the last time she’d gone out ‘with the girls’. Oh, she’d had
her share of late night drinking and dancing with friends in college, even
through Med school. She’d kept in touch with some,
meeting from time to time for dinner or coffee, or even a movie. But as time
had gone on, most of her friends had married, even had children. It was a lifestyle
she hadn’t shared in common with them, and the contacts had become less
frequent. Working at night hadn’t helped much. And then, when Nick had come
into her life, he’d slowly become her closest friend. Their frustrated, mutual
desire for more than that had made their time together precious. She hadn’t
wanted to spend time with anyone else, even though a nagging voice inside had
told her that it would be better for her to distance herself from him.
Luckily,she hadn’t listened to that voice. Especially after her
brother’s death, she’d isolated herself from everyone but him. With whom could
she really relate anyway? There was no one with whom she could share her
deepest secrets, her love and pain that had consumed so many years of her life.
When she’d
been forced to leave
Even
telling him the truth the night before he was murdered
by Spark, Natalie had not been able to reveal the extent of her bond with Nick.
For if Steven had known, it would have caused him more pain than he deserved.
With
Janette, Natalie had found an unlikely friend in a former rival. For years she
had envied Janette for the part of Nick that had belonged to her, that still
turned to her when his frustration was at its worst. Only after Steven’s death,
when Janette had come to protect Natalie and her children, had Natalie learned
the truth—that it was Janette who had envied Natalie. The vampire who knew Nick
almost better than he knew himself had known for quite some time that Natalie
meant more to him than Janette ever had. And Janette, having had her own taste
of humanity and human love, had come to terms with her own feelings for Nick,
as a brother, a maker, a friend…but nothing more. They had been lovers, but
their relationship had evolved into something different. And Natalie, secure
now in Nick’s loyalty and love for her, had found Janette to be probably the only
friend, female or otherwise, with whom she could be totally honest.
Nick hadn’t
felt too comfortable with that development, but they had both laughingly told
him that it was too bad. He’d worried that they would talk about him, and his
concerns were in no way unfounded.
Sometimes
Janette could be very helpful in understanding the complexity that was Nicholas
de Brabant. Natalie was confident that she herself knew him better, of course.
She knew the man he was now, and the man he had struggled to become. But
Janette knew the vampire he had been, and could sometimes fill in the blanks
with the insight of someone who had known him for eight hundred years.
They sat in
Starbuck’s now, Natalie drinking a decaf Mocha, wishing it had the triple shot
she was so used to. Janette had discretely added her own drink to the Tazo tea,
and Niki was munching on a blueberry scone. At their feet were at least a half dozen shopping bags filled with the evening’s bounty.
Makeup, perfume, clothes…Janette needed everything, and Natalie had taken the
opportunity to pick up a few things to make herself feel less…huge. This
pregnancy was really wearing on her, and she had serious concerns about being
able to lose all the baby weight this time around. A new lipstick, some beauty creams,
some maternity outfits that didn’t look so—matronly—and a couple of things to
wear once the baby was born. Even Niki was making out like a bandit, having
spent all the money her father had given her, and being treated by Janette to
an Este Lauder makeover to try some makeup that Natalie knew Nick would worry
made her look too grown up.
“This is so
much fun,” Niki said, pulling out her new lipstick and trying it on. She looked
up at the women. “How do I look?”
“Beautiful,
ma petite soeur,” Janette told her affectionately.
“You look
great, sweetie,” Natalie told her. “Although your father will probably throw a
fit when he sees his thirteen year old daughter looking like she’s fifteen.”
“Do I?
Really?” she asked, looking in the mirror.
“Nicolas is
so overprotective,” Janette commented, shaking her head in amusement. “He
thinks it’s still the thirteenth century. I don’t think it’s too much make up
for her, do you, Natalie?”
“You should
have seen what I wore in the eighties,” Nat replied with a laugh.
“Hey, Mom,
before we go, do you think I could take
a look in Hot Topic and see if they have any new Twilight stuff?” she asked,
drinking down the last of her Frappuccino.
Natalie
glanced at her watch reluctantly. “It’s getting a little late. Daddy’s going to
be worried.”
“Oh, let
her go, Natalie. This way we’ll have a chance to go to
Natalie blushed slightly, not as much at the thought, as the fact that
she was not really in a state to wear something particularly sexy.
“I dunno—“
“Oh, no,
don’t tell me I’m gonna have to blast the ipod again tonight,” Niki teased her
mother.
“Niki!”
This time she turned bright red.
“Thanks,
Niki, you reminded me to pick one up for myself,” Janette said conspiratorily,
and Niki giggled.
“Damn you
people with your extra sensitive hearing, can’t people have a little privacy in
their own home?” she retorted. The thought suddenly that LaCroix might have
heard too was suddenly very uncomfortable.
Niki pouted
apologetically. “I’m sorry, Mommy, I really don’t want to hear, trust me—“
Natalie
looked at her reproachingly, but couldn’t keep it up. It wasn’t really her fault.
She reached into her wallet and pulled out three twenties. “Here. Go to Hot Topic and look for Twilight
stuff and get your mind back on Edward and Bella.”
“Good
idea,” Niki said grinning, and took the money.
“We’ll meet
you there in a half hour,” Natalie called after her. She turned back to
Janette, uncomfortably. “Now this is awkward.”
“Oh please,
Natalie, don’t let it trouble you. Vampires are used to tuning out things they
don’t want to hear. If we didn’t, we would go crazy. Don’t
worry, Nicolette will learn to do the same.”
“I mean…you
hearing us. And LaCroix…” she explained, embarrassed.
“Don’t
think about it,” Janette said kindly, clearly more amused than disturbed by
whatever she had heard. She stood up, taking her bags. “And if you like, I will
get LaCroix to come fly with me around
Natalie
smiled, a little more at ease. “That would be…nice,” she said honestly.
“Good. Then
come to
“Uh,
Janette, I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I’m thirty-seven weeks pregnant. I
don’t exactly think they’ve got anything appropriate—“
“You’d be
surprised,” Janette told her. “Now, come. It will be fun.”
Natalie
knew very well she didn’t need to wear anything special to turn Nick on. He was
as addicted to making love to her as he had been to blood. But a little
surprise couldn’t hurt…
“Yes!”
Nicolette
squealed in delight as she saw the full line of Twilight merchandise on display
as she entered the store. There were t-shirts, buttons, hoodies, tote bags, a
replica of Bella’s engagement ring…
Sixty
dollars would not be enough. Oh well, she would pick out what she could and
come back soon. It wasn’t as if she hadn’t gotten a load of new things today.
Between her mother and Janette they had bought her clothes, makeup, and even a
pair of gold hoop earrings. She began looking through the rack, finding a
particularly romantic silkscreen of Bella and Edward kissing. “Woh. That is hot,” she said out loud as she found one in
her size.
“You like
vampires, huh?”
She looked
up at the voice, and saw…
…a god. Or an angel. Or maybe just the most perfect boy she had ever
seen. His hair was blond, almost to his shoulders, and his eyes were a clear
blue. His skin was white, not like a vampire’s, but as white as a human’s could
possibly be. Maybe a foot taller than she was, he was dressed in jeans and a
black T-shirt that seemed to cover a perfect body. He definitely worked out.
His muscles were obvious even though they weren’t flexed. He was smiling right
at her, and for a moment she couldn’t remember what he had asked.
“You like
vampires?” he repeated, as if sensing that he had totally dazzled her. My God,
he was like a real life Edward. With one major exception.
He definitely was not a vampire. If he had been, she would have been repulsed
by him. She was anything but.
“I love
vampires,” she told him. It wasn’t a lie. Her father, Janette…
“What about
you?”
“I like the
ones in the movies,” he said, moving closer to her, as if wanting to tell a
secret. “But the real ones can be a pain in the neck—no pun intended.”
She laughed
at the joke, not fazed by his reference to real
vampires. These days, with vampire fiction so popular, it was a playful fantasy
for kids she knew to speak of them as if they were real. Which
they were, even if she was the only one who knew it. “If they existed,
I’m sure they would be,” she replied, with the finesse of having played off
this question many times.
“But they
do exist,” he told her with meaning. “I know they do. And so do you.”
Her smile
faded, but she wasn’t sure if he weren’t still playing with her. “Don’t be
ridiculous,” she said, turning from him to look at the replica of Bella’s ring.
“They’re just fiction.”
“No,
they’re not,” he said quietly, placing his hand on her arm. She wanted to shake
it off, but there was something about him…
She turned
back to him. “Oh, and let me guess, you think you’re one,” she said
sarcastically.
He laughed,
dropping his hand. He was so handsome when he laughed,
she almost wished he had not broken the contact. “No, I’m not. But my father is.”
At this she
could not contain her shock. She stared at him wide-eyed. “Who are you?” she
whispered, quietly enough so that no one else would hear.
“My name is
Dimitri, and I’m a dhampir,” he said, looking into her eyes. “Just like you.”
End part 11