Chapter 7: The feelings

Confusion had barely just begun. A cacophony of screams had erupted from within the house, accompanied by the sounds of things crashing down and plain pandemonium. It was just as if the people inside were trying to run outside all at once and pushing down things blocking their paths while they attempted to do so.

Rademos and Andis exchanged a startled glance, and each wondered in their minds just what the heck was going on inside. Andis, who has always held a fascination for dragons since her younger days, suddenly wonders if one had made an appearance at the party. She shook her head at herself, feeling quite ridiculous about the thought.

"What the hell was that about?" Rademos asked, throwing the question more to the atmosphere than to Andis.

They looked at each one more time in curiosity before they both sprinted away, each headed for the house at full speed. Rademos effortlessly gained momentum on Andis. He had always been the fastest runner in their school. He tore silently past a couple of bystanders who were wondering about what was happening in the house as well. He didn't spare them a glance as he ran past them. He could hear Andis's steps as she raced to catch up with him, but she was no match for his running agility.

Upon entering the building, one at a time, Rademos first before Andis, they stared and gasped! The gory sight before them caused Andis to turn around and puke into the nearest flower vase she had seen. She couldn't bring herself back to the scene, and she stared some more into the flower vase she had just puked in.

Rademos felt cold shivers running down his spine. He wondered about the sort of pain, emotional damage, or physical abuse that could make one contemplate trying out the act before him.

"Out of the way," Lafreya's voice cuts through the wild crowd that parted magically like the red sea. She stood in the center of the room, just where the action had taken place. "How did this happen?"

Andis finally forced herself to look back at the scene when she heard Lafreya's voice. Rademos looked like he was in a bit of a shock himself, thought Andis. But who wouldn't be, really, coming back to see such a scene before you?

Lora was stretched out on the floor with the tail of her dress resting on her mid-thighs rather than on her knees if she had been standing wearing the dress. She had slashed her wrists with a fresh razor blade. Her blood dripped from the crisscrossed slashes on her wrist unto the printed floral motif tile. She was like an injured girl bleeding in a field of flowers.

Rademos heart did a double jump. He exhaled nattily through his mouth and raked his eyes all over the room before dragging the eyes back to the gory scene that was almost like a tragic movie with a sad end. The meaning of what had just taken place in his living room weighed in on him. Lora must have been in such emotional pain that she believed that the only way to end such pain and suffering was to take drastic measures such as this.

Lora whimpered on the floor, trying to suppress herself from screaming out in pain. She had known it would take a while to bleed out if she slashed her wrist with a razor blade rather than put a knife to her throat, but she hadn't thought it would hurt this much. She groaned in pain again as she slightly stirred on the tiled floor.

Lafreya acted swiftly in response. She knelt beside Lora on the tiled floor and slightly raised Lora's head which she placed on her lap while taking her bleeding arms in hers. "Oh, come on! Patch her up, please."

Everyone stared confusingly at each other without understanding exactly what was happening or about to happen. Even Rademos stared at his mother, thinking her action was bereft of any meaning. Maybe the shock of discovering such an act had been too much for her and had gone to her head.

Electricity fizzled, causing every bulb to flicker and the television to come on and off on its own. The music stopped abruptly, and the DJ's equipment sparked, shocking him and causing him to ditch his headphones hurriedly onto his work table. The speakers that had blared an ear-piercing sound before then went quiet, and everywhere went dark, and one could hear a pin drop in the room.

Everyone with a mobile phone immediately turned on their flashlights, most pointing theirs in Lafreya's direction to track the progress of discovery and what comes after. However, they realize that a miracle had taken place in the dark while the electricity had flickered and gone out. Lora's wrist had healed entirely, and her wrists were white and smooth with no tell-tale signs of an earlier encounter between the wrists and a sharp razor blade.

Lafreya moaned and stood up with an awkward smile. "Alright, the party's over now, everyone. It's time to go home. Single file, please."

Everybody, as if compelled by a force they could not see or comprehend if they did, just began walking out of their house. Their heavy footsteps sounded like soldiers marching into battle.

Rademos and Mideora gazed at Lafreya, speechless. Then they looked at Lora with uncertainty.

Lafreya, ignoring Rademos and Mideora's awe-stricken faces, turned to Lora and said, "So, my dear, why did you cut your wrists?"

Lora didn't hear a word Lafreya had just said. She was too deep in shock to notice anything other than her miraculously healed wrists. She turned it this way and that while she tried to catch the light on it from different angles.

"Uh, what just happened, mom?" Mideora

inquired, finally finding her voice.

"What do you mean what happened, honey?" Lafreya asked calmly. "I healed her."

"Can Lycans do that?" Mideora asked with a surge of new excitement.