I thought it was beautiful.
I stood beside Ethan and my dad, who had returned home several weeks ago, and watched as the witches and warlocks lit the river up with their magic to make it look as though the flowers were glowing.
Now a big party was being thrown at the Hawthorn Centre, and the entire street had been closed off to accommodate for the crowd of people. I sat at a table with Ethan while everyone got drunk and merry around me. I even invited Florence and her boyfriend, Frank, to attend, glad to see their relationship was still going strong.
On the other side of the table, Rita and Roman bounced off one another as Roman flirted and Rita tried her best to resist his charms. Gabriel and Alvie were dancing like they were having the time of their lives. Finn and Alora were dancing, too, all slow and romantic even though the music being played was fast. They smiled into each other’s eyes like they were the only two people in the entire world. Delilah sat atop Ira’s lap, feeding him hors d’oeuvres. Beside them were Amanda and Lucas, and I was so relieved to see them doing well. Amanda had never looked happier.
I saw all of my friends around me, happy and looking to the future. So why did I feel so sad? I felt as though I could be seeing them for the very last time, but that didn’t make any sense. Ethan pulled me from my thoughts when he took my hand into his, rubbing tender circles into the centre of my palm.
“You haven’t touched your crab,” he said, his deep voice resonating through me.
“Is that what it is?” I said, trying to sound light-hearted. “I thought it was chicken.”
“What’s wrong? You seem on edge.”
“I’m not. I just have this bad feeling.”
He took both my hands into his now and looked me right in the eye, his expression serious. “Nothing bad is going to happen, Tegan. You’ve lived with uncertainty for so long that you’re uncomfortable with stability. Your life is going to be good and safe from now on.”
“Yeah, you’re right. I’m just one of those glass half empty kind of girls, always looking for the catch.”
Ethan shushed me, taking my fork and lifting some crab to my mouth. “Eat and enjoy the party, Sunshine.”
I nodded and dug into my food. Finn and Alora returned to the table, Gabriel and Alvie following closely behind them. They were all laughing about something, but Gabriel looked unamused.
“Hey,” Finn said teasingly, his hands raised in the air. “Whatever raises your flag.”
“It’s not that weird,” Gabriel muttered in annoyance.
“What’s not that weird?” Rita asked.
“We were talking about poor old Marcel,” Alvie replied. “Gabe thinks he was attractive.”
“I just think he had a handsome face and an alright body for his age. Jesus, you’re making too much of a big deal out of it,” Gabriel grumbled.
“Eww, that’s gross,” Rita said, scrunching up her nose. “I don’t even want to think about what the two of you got up to when you spent so much time cooped up in Indigo together.”
Gabriel shook his head and sighed in exasperation. “I should never have opened my mouth.”
Alvie gave him a peck on the cheek. “It’s okay, Gabe. I still love you, even if you do have a penchant for wrinkly old men.”
Gabriel blushed and looked away, keeping his attention on the wine glass in front of him. Everyone at the table started laughing, all except for Ethan. His attention was focused completely on me, and there was a startling look of horror in his eyes. I followed his gaze to the lap of my pale silk dress to see it wasn’t so pale anymore. Now it was covered in deep, red blood.
I lifted my hand to my mouth in shock, a soundless gasp rushing from my lips, and that was when the pain hit me. Pure, undiluted agony shattered through my body, causing me to cry out. I was vaguely aware of the vampires nearby and how their eyes came alive at the scent of my blood.
I felt as though I was being ripped open from the inside out, and all I could think about was the baby. Was I losing her? The doctor said I was still two weeks away from my due date, and judging by how much blood there was, it wasn’t a good sign.
I could barely focus anymore. The pain was just too great, the strength of it tearing into my body at breakneck speed. Ethan took me into his arms and started shouting orders at people to get out of the way, but I was too out of it to concentrate on his words. Then it all became too much. I couldn’t handle a single second more of this agony.