Eventually I had calmed down enough to read until dinnertime. Dinner went by quickly. My parents asked me about the books I had bought and if there were any others I was planning on getting in the future. I kept the afternoon’s events to myself, however. What they didn’t know couldn’t hurt them, I figured. Why make them worry that their adoptive son was becoming a target for vampires? Because, in their adoptive son’s eyes, he was perfectly fine. Am I crazy? Maybe. Was I so bored out of my mind and so obsessed with fantasy that I would gladly allow myself to be attacked by vampires and/or other bloodthirsty, supernatural beings (may or may they not show themselves)? You bet your ass I was. Like I said earlier, I live for excitement. And a living, breathing, fantasy monster is more excitement than I could have hoped for.
Alright, so I’m not some daredevil, juvenile delinquent or something. I’m normally, believe it or not, a well behaved, obedient young adult. However, I will admit that the constant bullying and putting down I received at school did have a somewhat unnatural effect on me. Instead of making me self-conscious, their taunts and titters only made me more self-confident and sure of myself. I strove to be better than everyone else. Better than all of their venom-filled sarcasm and smart-ass remarks. Sure, I’ll admit, I have a foul mouth some-er, most-of the time, but that’s not the point. I’m strong and unique in my own right, and none of the others have any right to say otherwise.
So what am I like normally? Strangely, I’m normally a funny, optimistic, fun-filled fantasy-nerd who normal people would die to hang out with. I’m energetic most of the times, save for when I’m reading. I care about my friends and parents more than anything else and would die for them. I love learning new things, even things that don’t pertain to fantasy. But when it does, I get obsessive and tend to go on about what I’ve learned for hours. My parents know this side of me the best. They happily and willingly listen to my rants and raves about some awesome fight I read about between a dragon and a hero equipped with only a golden sword or about a war between the Greek gods and the Titans. Actually, they get a kick out of my tendency to act out my favorite scenes. So, all in all, I put on a tough front, but underneath, I’m just a big softie. A likeable and attractive quality, if I do say so myself.
But I digress…
Anyway, after dinner, I went upstairs and got in some more reading time before hitting the hay. My dreams were filled with fantasies and mythical beings; just how I like them. The next morning, I woke up and went through my daily routine like nothing in particular had happened the previous day. But, secretly, my mind raced. By the time I had taken a shower, eaten breakfast, and brushed my teeth, I had come up with about five different scenarios for the day’s events. I won’t bore you with them. It would take me far too long to describe them. My normal, natural schedule for the day was to hit the library.
And so I did.
I spent the better part of four and a half hours on the computer and reading and picking out books that looked even remotely interesting to me, only to reshelf half of them and check out the rest. In other words, I had a field day.
As I was walking back from the library, I didn’t bother to watch my back. Whatever was coming, I was going to let it come. And, sure enough, it did.
I felt a light, fragile hand land on my shoulder. I turned around to see a taller man dressed similarly to the two women yesterday glaring down at me. I could see four others dressed the same way behind him.
“Hey,” he said in Korean. “Are you the bastard who killed my sisters yesterday?”
“Why?” I spit back. “Who wants to know? It’s not like they were anything special anyway.”
Yep, I am one crazy ass guy.
The guy grabbed the front and back of my shirt and jacket, making me drop my books, and flung me back towards the others. The second guy from the right caught me by the neck in mid air and choke-slammed me into the pavement. The air whooshed out of my lungs and I struggled to regain my breath. Another guy picked me up by my hair until I was standing weakly and roundhouse kicked me in the stomach sending me flying back. The first guy lifted his leg and kicked me in the back, forcing me to the ground again with no air in my lungs.
I coughed, hacked, and gasped until I could breathe somewhat efficiently. The first guy nudged my side with his foot, knocking me over onto my back. I saw him about to cave my chest in with his foot and moved my hands just in time to dampen the blow. I was struggling to keep his foot off of my chest cavity when something flew above me and into the guy’s shoulder. He growled in pain and staggered back, clutching his shoulder. I saw that it was an arrow.
This was getting exciting.
Then, suddenly, I heard the roaring of a car engine. I looked back to see a white, Dodge Camaro speeding down the street like a Nascar racing car only without all the bumper stickers. At first I thought it was going to run me over. But then, after knocking down three of the four other guys, it swerved in a circle around me, knocking down the guy with the arrow in his shoulder. The Camaro stopped with the back door behind me. It clacked open and suddenly I was pulled in by a pair of small, yet strong, arms.
By that time, I was hyperventilating. The car had to be going at least sixty miles an hour and I was lying down in the back seat staring up out the window breathing like I was going sixty miles an hour. Every inch of my body ached. Colors flew before my eyes. I felt like I was going to have a heart attack if I didn’t calm down. I had definitely gotten more that I bargained for. Then, I felt my head lift up and gently fall back down onto someone’s lap. Soft, feminine hands caressed my face and stroked my messy hair. I heard a sweet voice cooing soothing words at me. Eventually my breathing slowed and I calmed down enough to avert my eyes upwards to see a small nose, thin lips, and sparkling blackish orbs floating above me. Her eyes and face were somehow comforting to look at. So, not knowing what else to do, I laid there and looked up at her, trying to focus on keeping calm.
Then I heard a male voice call back from the driver’s seat over the roar of the engine. “Hey! Is he okay?”
The girl looked over at the boy. “Yeah, I think so. He’s just shaken up.”
They were speaking Korean and couldn’t have been much older than myself.
Finally, I was able to speak. “What’s going on?”
“We just saved your ass from five angry vampires! That’s what’s going on!” the boy shouted.
“Ignore him. He’s just on an adrenaline rush,” the girl looked back down at me.
“Where are you taking me?”
“Somewhere safe,” she said.
That was fine with me. I had had my share of excitement for now. No more crazy, stupid stunts for a while.
