Demon Kisses

Chapter 1: Coming Home

  “Honey, wake up.” My mother’s voice coaxed my sleeping form. It was as if she was talking to my body but I was watching it from the outside. I stirred a little before becoming fully awake. I slowly opened my eyes, not wanting to make a precious, peaceful moment escape my sight. I yawned and took in my surroundings. People sat in three columns of seats, two seats by each window and three seats in the middle. The engines of the plane roared in my ears. I turned my head to my mother who was pointing to the food on her table.
 
  “Eat up this is our last snack before we land. See I told you the time would pass by very quickly.” My mother smiled but it did not provide a shell that could hide everything that happened before. The attempt at comfort was useless. I rolled my eyes and answered in a drowsy tone.
 
  “No Thanks, I’m not hungry.”
   
  The whole trip was so boring. The TV on the plane didn’t work, and the music was shitty. There was nothing else to do but read a book which she was absolutely not interested in. Like always, school assignments can do that to you especially if they’re given over summer.
 
  Minutes passed but it felt more like hours. I think I’ve memorized everyone’s faces who sat around me. With my ipod battery dead, I was completely bored. Finally a soft ring rang out informing the passengers to take their seats and buckle in, ready for landing.
 
  I tapped my foot impatiently on the floor. I’ve been just dying to see my family and old friends. I left the country when I was nine and haven’t visited since I was eleven. That was five years ago. I doubted that anyone remembered the wild, firecracker that was also an overachiever and used to be sweet yet could be bitter. The one that resembled her father so much that she grew curious with years and more anxious to someday meet him. At the moment, I don’t have a single clue of where he might be. My parents divorced when I was three. So I don’t remember him much. But my mother always reminds me, no curses me, that my behaviour is a perfect copy of his.
   
  The next few minutes flew by at the speed of sound. We got our luggage and passed through the border. We caught a taxi and were out of our way from the main city to the country. I was ready to jump out of the moving car as we moved up a familiar hill that led straight to my grandparents’ home. The taxi driver stopped at the brown wooden gate and went around to the luggage. I jumped out of the car to meet my grandparents and other relatives who gathered around the front gate to welcome us back home.
 
  “Oh my goodness, Lana! Turn around, let me look at you.” My aunt, Lily, exclaimed. I grinned happily at her. Even though she was my mother’s sister she was much different. Tall, lean and friendly. It was strange because my body shape did not resemble my mother’s at all, it was more like aunt Lily’s and her daughter, or more lean and tall like my father. Or so I’ve been told.
 
  “You look so much different from when you visited last.” Kristin said slowly looking over my body. We were like sisters, she was always the more muscular and strong one. I was the skinny, tanned kid beside her. Three months older then I and she already looked more mature then I was by around five years. In my preteen and early teen years I was quite chubby and after lots of diet watching, insane exercising and a long time spent speeding up my metabolism was worth while. I greeted all of them and we proceeded to enter the estate. Cherry trees were ripe and ready, the flowers bloomed and the birds cheered to the sunset.
 
  As I entered the living room, something struck me as interesting. Everything in the room was much different. Updated to a modern yet ‘homey’ feel. I knew my grandparents renovated but somehow this turned out to be quite out of their way and formal. Kristin and I sat on the large armchairs by the windows and Max sat on the floor in front of us. The adults mostly sat in the couch or extra chairs that were brought into the room.
 
 
  “So…tell us everything what’s been going on in your country?” My grandma asked. I caught my mother’s annoyed look at the corner of my eye.

  “Everything fine, our country is fine, you can see the recordings later.” She grumbled with annoyance and walked out of the room. I did not understand why all of a sudden she hated being here. I sighed heavily.  This was going to be a long summer vacation. There was a knock on the window by the front door. Max ran up to let the people in. In came a family I have not seen before. Just then I realized that a dining table was set up in the living room for a lot of people, well more then usual anyway. As the room filled with another family, it got really hot. I took off my brown cardigan and Kristin took off her sweater.
 
  I eyed the new family. They all looked very graceful and rich. I raised my eyebrow which received a chuckle from the boy who stood beside his parents. He looked a little bit older then me maybe even Kristin.
 
  “That’s River. Isn’t he hot? His family moved here shortly after you left.” Kristin whispered in my ear. And it was as if he heard us and smirked the most heartbreaking smile I’ve ever seen. His perfect lips curved and his eyes dead on me. It must have been my imagination but I thought he winked at me. Kristin noticed this too.
 
  “Did he just wink? Oh god, he’s so hot.” Kristin made a face and sprawled on the floor like she fainted. I laughed; this would be the time in any time to do just that. My grandmother came up to me to introduce the family. 
 
  “Lana, this is the Asakura family. They will be here for a while.” My grandma smiled broadly. “This is Logan, his wife Anna-Lese and their son River. He seems about your age. Socialize while we talk.” She ordered me. This was kind of funny because she always analyzed boys to the every single inch until she found them perfect for me to talk to or at least acceptable. River smiled as he closed the distance between us.
 
  “Hello again, Kristin and great to meet you Lana.” He said politely although his smile turned outrageously fake and I fought the urge to burst out laughing. His parents were watching us, so were the rest of the adults in the room. When I looked over to Kristin she just shrugged.
 
  “Mind going for a walk with me?” he asked still keeping the fake smile on. River offered his hand to me. I took it, glad to be out of this maniac moment. With the adults still staring at out backs, we exited the house and walked out to the main road in front of the house.  He let go of my hand as we proceeded down the street. “So Lana was it?” He said calmly but I could tell he was more reserved then back in the house.
“Yeah, and River?” I asked because there was nothing to say, at least for me.

  “Yes.” He said his face emotionless. It bothered me when people were good at keeping a straight face because I couldn’t tell what they were feeling or thinking. Thankfully there were only a few people I knew who were able to do that. “How old are you?” he asked
 
  “I just turned seventeen in winter.”
 
  “That’s great, congratulations. I will be twenty next winter.” He smiled. Somehow I couldn’t help but smile back, that helped break some of the awkwardness between us.
 
  “How long have you lived here?” I was suddenly curious how fast they moved in after I left because it seemed like I always missed out on the best parts.
 
  “Not that long really….just six years now. I lived in another country before this. What brings you here, except your mother of course?” He was so polite and formal that he awakened the side of me that I had lost forever. The respectful, calm and rich side that only a few people were lucky to see, because that was when I didn’t cause ruckus and trouble. It was when I was most vulnerable.
 
  “Well I am here on a summer vacation, and to visit my grandparents. Though it is going to be tough with my mother cornering me every five minutes. After she divorced my father I think she lost all her sensibility. After she had married my step-father, she lost all her maternal instincts so it ought to be long, long summer.” He laughed and the regret I felt for telling him grew thinner.
 
  “So do you know anyone else here rather then your family?”

  “Yes of course, I was born in this country. I lived in this town for six years and was quite loud so I doubt that people forgot the person who was part of a very loud group of kids. I have a friend right across the yard and two the other side of the house. One on the other side of the street that we just passed and another two across the road and another all the way up where the apartments are. Those are my closest friends. I’m sure you’ve met them before, since you know my cousin Kristin.”
 
  “Maybe most of them.” He shrugged. “Will you be going to the school with us?”
 
  “Not this year but in September.”

  “That is a shame, I am graduating soon.”

  “That means we are not going to have a chance to be real friends for a long time.”

  “Not exactly, I am to be tutored.” He sighed.

  “So you are wealthy, then.” I stated. But I already knew that.

  “Yes, but that is not the matter. There is a certain reason I am to stay here. If there was a university in the town, I would attend there; otherwise I am to be tutored with the skills I want to learn. My mother says it will be just like a university but without other students.”

  “Hmm…” I said thoughtfully.

  Just then, a familiar looking car went by but stopped a little bit away. As the door opened a blond haired girl walked out. She waved to me at the bottom of the hilly road and ran up to us. She slammed me so hard into a hug that I thought I was going to fall backwards. I hugged her back and she stood back to look at me. We were finally the same height as each other. (5”7) Still my legs were a little longer then hers. We really did look like twins now. “Oh my god!!!!!!!!!! Lana, fuck, when did you get here?” she exclaimed.
 
  “Just a few hours ago. How are you?”

  “I’m great! I just dropped Michelle off at her house and I was going to be dragged on my parents’ trip but screw that!” she explained. Her gaze turned toward River but she quickly turned away. Apparently she also had trouble with looking at him for a long time and not melting. She quickly told me everything that happened this year here, while her parents drove off. River looked really bored and pleaded for rescue when Isabelle started to ask him way too personal questions. 
 
  “Isabelle it’s getting dark…” I tried.

  “Which reminds me!” She clapped her hands. It was amazing how bubbly she could be. “The nightclub is open today. Ed, you’re still coming right?”

  River nodded. “Great! Lana wanna come?” she asked her eyes glowing.

  “Sure. I haven’t been to a nightclub for over a week.” I said in a joking tone even though it was the truth. I was eager to get my body moving like that again.

  “Okay then, put on something cute and I’ll come and get you at 10:00.”
 
  “Who else is coming?” I wandered.

  “Let’s see: me, Ed, Michelle, Logan, Tristan, Andy, Kristin, Alex, you and my cousin Anne. But she’s really shy and will stand by the wall so she doesn’t really count.”

  I rolled my eyes. “That’s very nice.” Isabelle just shrugged. “Okay I got to go, see you two at 10:00.” She winked at quickly walked up the hill and down her street. I looked over to River.

  “Alright then.” I said as we watched Isabelle go. “I didn’t know you were an outgoing type.” I said playfully.

  “You know nothing then.” He chuckled. “Do you mind if I just stay at your house until ten?

  “If it’s fine with my grandparents.” I nodded. I looked calm and together but on the inside I was jumping up and down with joy. He just met me and thought I was very quite even after my story. He did not yet witness my alternate side and I was sure he would be surprised.
 
When we got back to the house, my mother was drunk and asleep which meant I wouldn’t be fighting her to go out. I looked at the clock on the shelf. It was only 7:30. Two and a half hours to veg.