Bonus Ch 240: Supportive Home and Broken Home

[For Reference: Continued from Bonus Ch 237. Skip reading, if you want.]

"Ian, honey, will you please tell me why you dropped out of college? I thought this is what you wanted." From the other line, his mother sniffled, worrying about him.

Ian sighed, away from the cell phone's speaker, and clasped his spine on the hood of his car. "It's nothing to stress about mom. I just..." he paused because he couldn't come up with an acceptable enough excuse for dropping out of college.

Already, it was Friday, the third week of September, and not once has he attended a class. Yet, he was forbidden to tell his mother that he was a bloodsucker.

His mother sighed over the phone. "Ian, just tell me, did you get a girl pregnant?"

"What!" Ian sat straight up and piped loudly, "No, of course, not!"

His mother sighed in his ear, but he couldn't tell if she believed him, or not. "Ok, honey. You know if you did, you can tell me. You have graduated, so you must take responsibility. Your biological father always supported you and me," his mother lightly lectured with this sudden confession.

"Wait! What did you say about my biological father?" Ian asked because never once has his mother mentioned much about his biological dad.

"Honey, I haven't been fully honest with you about your dad," she started. "Even though he was absent from your life. He always slipped money for us in the mailbox. He'd write a note and say whatever you or I needed, I was to get it. I never spent it on myself, but I got you anything you needed. The rest is in your account that you have access to."

"Why didn't you tell me?" Ian asked, having mixed emotions.

Ironically, he was looking for him.

"I thought it would be easier on you, not to say anything related to him," claimed his mother. "And I'm worried that you might have gotten a girl pregnant."

Ian sighed and said louder than he meant, "Mom, I didn't get anyone pregnant!"

Inside the car, he heard Lily giggle. He blushed red and didn't have the temerity to peek at Lily through the windshield. He could only imagine she was beaming too.

"Are you taking drugs?" asked mom.

"Mom, no! I wanna find my dad!" Ian finally had it and clamored.

"Honey, he doesn't wanna be found," his mother, stressed with another sigh.

"Mom, please, I gotta figure this out," Ian settled her. "I promise, I'll keep in touch, but I wanna find him... I-I have to."

Chilling silence was all he heard from her end of the phone. Till, she exhaled.

"Alright, honey, I understand, but you be safe. Use the money your father gave you for the trip. Please, call me once a day. I love you," she said, being supportive.

"I love you mom, and I will," Ian sighed to finally get off the phone. Then he opened his car door to sit in the driver's seat.

"So, how did that go?" Lily asked, slouching from the passenger seat.

"Other than the fact, she questioned if I was on drugs or if I knocked up some girl. It went well," Ian replied, and Lily laughed.

"It's better than having your family think you got pregnant," Lily giggled. "My mom is convinced I am pregnant, and my stepdad called me a whore."

Ian felt for her and empathized. "I'm sorry he said that."

Lily carelessly shrugged her shoulders while she fiddled with her long fingernails. "Ya, I'm used to it. My mother married him for the money, and he never liked me because I'm not his kid. He loves my brothers and one sister. I'm only a nuisance to him. So I was told not to come back home since I dropped out of college and got pregnant."

Ian held his mouth from dropping. "And your mom let that happen. I mean she didn't believe you?" he questioned.

"Of course not. It's like I said, I'm only a nuisance child that she got knocked up with," Lily stated, emotionlessly. "She only cares about money, and the other kids she had with my stepdad."

Ian felt for Lily's unfortunate situation, coming from a broken home.

"Still, I'm sorry to hear that," Ian said, having sympathy.

"It's alright, I can only hope my vamp dad will give me a better life," Lily confided with hope in her eyes. "I don't know why he left me with my worthless mother, but I know from his call that he loves me."

Her words hit Ian's heart pretty deeply. "My mom just told me my dad always sent me and her money," Ian shared. "I'm sure they do love us."

"Did you have a good relationship with your stepdad?" Lily asked, lifting her head up from slouching.

"Yeah, he was always like a real father to me," Ian heartily shared, thinking about his stepdad.

Lily smiled but then opened the car door, saying. "I'm bored, let's go for a walk."

She got out, and Ian followed her to catch up. Once he did, he asked. "Where do you wanna go?"

Lily replied as they crossed the street, "Let's go shopping."

"Sounds good," he chippered like a dummy. Although he hated shopping, but for her. He suddenly liked the idea.

~~~

For three hours, they shopped at the mall, until it got dark. When they neared the car this strong scent alerted their senses. Without any time to waste, Ian took Lily's hand, and they hid by this building behind a dumpster.

Emerging out from the shadows, a group of vile vampires came forth with detrimental ambitions. Their eyes pierced about, and they browsed with flawless night vision sight. Lily and Ian could hear them breathing in the air.

They sidle the parking lot in search for someone.

One of the vampires crept toward Lily and Ian. They ducked lower behind the dumpster. Tension heated the back of their heads. Every anticipating step that the vampire made alarmed them. Then it didn't help that they could hear him, smelling the breeze. Their timid hearts pound, but they remain still and quiet from the vampire nearing the edge of the dumpster where they hid. The vampire was right there approaching.

"They're not here," a voice rang out strongly, making Lily flinch.

"We picked up their scent a few weeks ago. How could two juveniles disappear?" the vampire closest to them hissed.

"Once we find them, we'll detain the vampire and take the vampiress, before they reach their fathers," another vampire from the group declared.

Now, Ian and Lily realized they were being tracked by them.

"Let's check that college," one of the vampires suggested.

In agreement, the group left. Yet, Ian was puzzled because he figured they should have found them.

"Why didn't they smell us?" Lily whispered on alert.

"I don't know, but the dorm isn't safe anymore," Ian replied and Lily couldn't disagree.

[Next Chapter is back on the main story.]