chapter 93

Robin's POV

Me, Rosalie, and NJ were in the kitchen. Rosalie insisted on cooking for me. Why? Because her overprotective vamp instincts hadn't chilled yet after my daughter nearly took me out not too long ago. Gotta love newborn vampires and their lack of impulse control. And then there's NJ—who I can't leave alone for more than five minutes without something going sideways. We're prepping her for the unofficial Cullen-Denali Newborn Vampire Assimilation Camp™ (patent pending), but until then, I'm the only one who can keep her calm without risking a catastrophic incident. Hooray for being everyone's favorite emotional support hybrid.

Now, about Rosalie cooking... I'll be honest—I was nervous. Don't get me wrong, I love my mate to pieces. You all know that. I've been borderline obnoxious about how much I love her since we got back together. She's smart, gorgeous, strong, and pretty much perfection wrapped in a bow. But. There's a reason she's not a domestic goddess.

Back when she was human, she was raised to be the perfect flower vase for her father's social ladder-climbing ambitions. Cooking? Housework? Forget it. All her focus was on being stunning and charming enough to snag a rich husband. Fast forward to now—she's a vampire, which means she can't eat human food and definitely can't taste it. So yeah, her culinary skills leave a lot to be desired.

And listen, I know some of you are like, "But recipes exist!" Sure. And following a recipe is easy—unless you're someone who literally can't taste your own food to fix mistakes. Rosalie's tried, bless her heart. Mom even tried teaching her after we reunited. But, well… let's just say her charm stat is maxed out, and her cooking stat? Negative infinity. I once buried Isaac up to his neck for joking about how her food gave me a stomachache. Not funny then. Not funny now.

Currently, Nasu was on a mission to fetch me enough stomach medicine to dose a small army. Does Rosalie know her cooking is a one-way ticket to Digestive Distress Town? Nope. I begged everyone not to tell her. It makes her happy to cook for me. It's part of her dream—to care for her family. And in the future, when we have a baby, that child might have my metabolism and actually need edible food. For her happiness and our hypothetical child's safety, I will endure. Besides, it used to hurt for five hours. Now it's only four. Progress!

Moving on, I was giving NJ a crash course in the supernatural world's rules, especially for vampires. Things got a little heavy when I had to explain how she couldn't go back to her stardom in the human world. Rosalie hovered in the background, giving us as much space as her instincts allowed, which wasn't much.

*I'm so sorry, NJ*, I signed to her. *I didn't want this for you. I knew you had dreams, and I wanted you to achieve them. That's one of the reasons I left. But now… look what's happened. Just because you were involved with me… I ruined your life. Your future.*

NJ looked at me with a complicated expression. She's all grown up now—a stunning, fully-fledged adult. After her transformation, she was even more breathtaking, like someone had taken the Marilyn Monroe of my past life and cranked her beauty up to eleven. But to me, she'll always be the little girl I met, saved, and loved like a daughter.

"I won't lie and say I'm okay with losing everything," NJ began. "It wasn't my choice. It happened so fast. One moment, I was on the cusp of conquering the industry, inspiring people, and achieving my dreams. And then suddenly, I'm told I can never go back. All my hard work…" She sighed, her voice softening. "I knew someone was helping me from the shadows. I figured it out when my most fervent haters started vanishing one by one. Now I know why. And who was behind it."

Cue me hanging my head. Guilty as charged.

"But," she continued, "I don't know if you realize this… You're my savior. You've always been my savior. Even when I hated you for leaving, I couldn't stop looking up to you. I wanted to be like you. To touch people's lives the way you did—Nasus's, Olivia's, mine. And probably so many others. Your very existence brings comfort to people. And when you try to help someone? You leave a mark that never fades."

Her words hit me like a truck. Before I could respond, she raised a hand to stop me.

"I'm not finished," she said, her voice trembling. "I love Olivia. She'll always be precious to me—a mother figure, my other parent. But… I was never my true self with her. Not like I was with you. You changed everything for me. You made me believe I could dream. You made me believe I could be happy."

Her eyes met mine, brimming with venom tears—an ultra-rare phenomenon for vampires. Fun fact: crying venom hurts like hell. So the fact that she was crying at all? That said everything about her pain.

I reached out to wipe her cheeks, ignoring the sting of venom on my skin. Behind me, Rosalie bristled like an angry cat. I could practically feel her frustration, but she held herself back. I'd make it up to her later.

"Yes, I loved the fame. The attention. It was my dream," NJ confessed. "But after meeting you, the reason changed. I wanted to be like you. I wanted to find you. I even used him—Kennedy—for his connections to track you down."

Wait. What? My brain screeched to a halt. Kennedy? As in JFK? My daughter… the Marilyn Monroe of this world… and JFK were tangled up again? wait, Why am I reacting like this is new, I heard it on from JAtix already, but still...

I knew too much about their history from my past life. The scandals. The conspiracy theories. Marilyn's tragic death. And now, fate had somehow thrown them together again in this world? My head was spinning. I wanted to flick her forehead for bad life choices and dig up JFK just to punch him preemptively. I knew it wasn't rational—she was the one using him this time—but still. Just the thought of her death mirroring Marilyn's made my stomach churn.

"Don't go down that rabbit hole," I muttered to myself.

"What?" NJ blinked at me. A bit dazed from my voice, good thing i was able to reign it in enough to not have much of effect.

*Nothing,* I said quickly, waving her off.

She gave me a suspicious look but pressed on. "Anyway, I'm not happy about being turned the way I was, when I was, or by him. But since I can't undo it, I'm focusing on the positives. And the biggest positive… is you, Mom."

Her voice cracked on the last word, and I just… lost it.

Before I could respond, Rosalie broke in, her voice sharp. "Wait. Back up. Did she just say she used Kennedy? Kennedy? As in JFK?"

Oh boy. Here we go.

~~

Some more discussion later... we somehow end up discusisng about Olivia and how it was like when i was with them...

Rosalie was glaring daggers at NJ, her golden eyes narrowing further with each passing second. NJ, meanwhile, seemed blissfully oblivious as she kept talking about Olivia, the woman who had been her adoptive mother—and my complicated… well, ex-something.

"She always knew how to make the perfect pancakes," NJ was saying, a soft smile on her lips. "Perfectly golden, not too thick, not too thin. And the way she'd drizzle just the right amount of syrup..."

Rosalie's hands clenched into fists on the table.

"Rosie," I said gently, hoping to derail what was clearly becoming a jealousy freight train.

"Golden pancakes, huh?" Rosalie said, her voice sickly sweet. "Sounds riveting. Do tell me more about this culinary goddess Olivia."

I bit back a laugh. NJ, the little chaos agent, caught Rosalie's tone and smirked. "You know, Olivia was a catch. Smart, gorgeous, compassionate. She had it all. Didn't she, Robin?"

"She did," I admitted, a touch too quickly.

Rosalie's eyes snapped to me. "Oh, really?"

"Not like you, babe," I added hastily. "I mean, sure, she was great, but you're immortal great. Perfect skin, perfect strength, you can throw me through a wall and still look flawless doing it—"

"Keep digging," Rosalie interrupted, her smile tight.

NJ snorted. "You're not helping yourself, Robin."

"I never do," I muttered under my breath, then raised my voice to change the subject. "Hey, speaking of Olivia, NJ just told me she moved on! She's with Danny now—you know, the bartender who ran that pub where I saved them."

Rosalie blinked, momentarily distracted. "Danny? The one who couldn't pour a decent pint to save his life?"

"That's the one," NJ confirmed.

"Well, good for her," I said, smiling. "She deserves some happiness."

Rosalie shrugged, clearly unimpressed. "I guess."

NJ leaned back in her chair, a sly grin on her face. "You're jealous, aren't you, Rosalie?"

"Of Olivia?" Rosalie scoffed. "Absolutely not. She's mortal, and I'm Robin's MATE, SOUL MATE"

"She did have Robin first," NJ teased.

"Hold the fudge up, I, was her first. Get you r facts Straight, child."

Then Rosalie shot me a murderous look.

I'd be shaking in my boots if I wasn't so amused at how much I've influenced her them with how I talk, my words and everything else.

*Okay, that's enough,* I said, holding up my hands. *Let's focus. NJ, your disappearance as a human needs to look legit. We can't have people sniffing around.*

NJ frowned. "What do you suggest?"

*Simple,* I said. *We stage your death. Something dramatic, mysterious, and tragic.*

Rosalie raised an eyebrow. "Staging a death? Robin, that's not exactly subtle."

*It's effective!* I argued. *f she just vanishes, people will go nuts. A staged death gives closure. Besides, NJ, you're basically—* I stopped myself. No need to let on that I knew too much about her resemblance to Marilyn Monroe. *You're famous. People are going to notice if you just disappear.*

NJ tilted her head thoughtfully. *You might have a point...*

*And while we're at it,* I added, *we could—*

*Don't say it,* NJ warned.

*Kill JFK,* I finished.

NJ groaned, while Rosalie pinched the bridge of her nose.

"Robin, no," NJ said firmly.

*Think about it!* I said. *He's tied to your public image, and honestly, with all the shady stuff surrounding him, wouldn't it just simplify things?*

"No," Rosalie snapped. "Killing the president would not simplify things."

"It'd be a mess," NJ agreed. "And besides, it's not like he knows anything supernatural about me."

"Yet," I muttered.

"Drop it, Robin," Rosalie said, her tone leaving no room for argument.

---

Meanwhile, Outside the Kitchen

In the dense woods surrounding the house, three agents in dark suits crouched behind a cluster of bushes, their breath misting in the cool air. They had been sent by JFK himself to keep tabs on Marilyn Monroe—or rather, NJ.

"This is insane," Agent #1 whispered. "We're spying on vampires now?"

"Not just any vampire," Agent #2 replied. "She's Marilyn freaking Monroe."

"Do you think she'll autograph my tie?" #3 asked, hopeful.

Before #1 could respond, a low growl rumbled behind them.

All three agents froze.

"Was that…?" #2 whispered.

"No sudden moves," #1 hissed. "Maybe it's just a—"

A massive shape leaped out of the shadows, landing in front of them with a thud. Jatix, grinning like a madman, looked down at the agents.

"Well, well, well," he said. "What have we here? Government stooges lurking in the woods? Classic."

The agents scrambled backward, tripping over roots and each other.

"W-We're just, uh, birdwatching!" Agent #3 stammered.

"At night?" Jatix smirked. "Nice try."

Agent #2 reached for his concealed weapon, but Jatix moved faster, snatching it out of his hand and tossing it aside.

"Now, now," Jatix said, wagging a finger. "Let's not be hasty. You've got two options: tell me what you're doing here, or I'll feed you to my sister's cooking."

Agent #1 gulped. "We're under orders to monitor Marilyn Monroe's safety!"

"Safety, huh?" Jatix tapped his chin, pretending to consider. "Funny how stalking doesn't exactly scream 'safe.' Come on, boys. Let's go have a chat with the boss."

The agents groaned as Jatix herded them toward the house, their dignity dragging behind them like a forgotten scarf.

~~

Back to Robin's POV

Jatix barged into the kitchen, dragging three wide-eyed, terrified agents behind him.

"Robin! Look what I found!" he announced gleefully.

Rosalie sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Why is it always something with you?"

"Who are they?" NJ asked, narrowing her eyes.

"Spies!" Jatix said, shoving the agents forward. "Sent by JFK to keep tabs on NJ. Can I keep them?"

"No," I said, stepping forward.

One of the agents blurted, "We're just following orders!"

I crossed my arms, tilting my head. "Yeah, well, you're not going back with those orders intact."

The agents exchanged panicked glances as I leaned closer, my voice dropping to a soothing tone. "Look into my eyes."

Their gazes locked onto mine, and I felt the familiar rush of power as my compulsion took hold. "You never saw NJ here. She's gone, vanished. Understood?"

All three nodded, their expressions glassy.

"Good," I said, stepping back.

Jatix pouted. "Aw, no fun torture session?"

"Not today," I said, patting his head.

As the agents stumbled out of the house, Rosalie shook her head. "That was dangerously reckless."

"But effective," I said, smirking.

NJ sighed. "You're impossible, Robin."

"And you're welcome," I shot back. "Now, back to the important matter—staging your death. We'll keep it subtle. Maybe a boating accident? Everyone loves a boating accident."

"Absolutely not," NJ said.

Rosalie sighed, muttering, "Why am I even here?"

"Because you love me," I said, grinning.

"Debatable," Rosalie muttered, though her lips twitched upward.

~~

AN: sorry guys. As y'all must've already noticed, youre weird author aint the most stable in the head, so I had to go into an emergency mental break/vacation and just function on auto mode. So I tuned out everything including the app, no writing whatsoever. But I'm back.

Sorry for those who expected the update, and for the patrons... I'll get back to it aoon enough. Heres a double upload to make up for it.

Anywho, for those who want to send some support, be a patron on KoFi member, links are bellow, for the discord, you can comment

that you wanna join, and I or some of the friends we already have there will send you the link. Were all harmless! 😶😌

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