My father was in complete shock. " I didn't know what would happen without your necklace... but I didn't expect you to still be alive after that.." my mind moved a mile a minute, craving for answers " What about the necklace? Tell me." He sighed not  before he got decked in the jaw by Tristan. I said nothing. He deserved it just a little. He in turn, spit blood at Tristan. 

The two of them visibly hated each other. Like, in a long-term, mutual kind of hatred." Dad, what about the necklace?" I asked quietly. He tenderly brought up his sleeve and pulled the necklace that wrapped around his hand out. The necklace was visibly different. The small black pendant was now pure white at its core. He twirled the pendant around in his fingers " Your mother died not because of complications. She died because you were a vampire at birth."

 I felt so lost and confused, I didn't know what to think of it. I felt my hands start trembling. It could have been in fear or in anger. " What else?" I asked, my voice mute. He still looked at the necklace, seeming pained by it's memories. " Your mother knew what I was. She also knew... that she wouldn't live if she had you. I gave this necklace to your mom after our first date. Right before you were born, she sent me to have it enchanted. I made you live as a human for far longer than I'd even expected. She wanted you to live a " normal human life " and than choose what you wanted. To stay a human, or remove the necklace yourself and live as a vampire. But now that the necklace is broken, and you walked the veil between life and death before coming back as a vampire. And you've fed... you can't go back to how things were. We can't go back to the way things were, Kaity." 

My temper flared, I felt lost and so unsure " No, dad what do you mean by that?" 

There was a scary moment of silence between all of us. Something that Tristan AND my dad knew that could be detrimental to me. I was waiting on my dad to say something.

" Vampires your age make their own choices. I can't protect you anymore. " My hand seized own and pulled my dad closer." I still don't get it dad, I-" 

" And it's okay." He whispered, almost pitifully " You won't understand it all now. Just... stay with Tristan." He kissed my forehead " I have to make... arrangements." He never got emotional around me, but I was certain he wasn't fine with this happening anymore. " And I'm sorry I attacked Tristan. None of this would have happened if he wasn't in your life and I-"

" Dad!-" 

" Katelyn... He's right." Tristan interjected.

I turned to Tristan, angry " How could you agree-?" I almost yelled with hot tears close to spilling over my eyes. He wouldn't look me in the eye after that
" Because... I didn't know you were bound until your dad told me and scolded me to stay away from you. He wanted to let you choose what you wanted to be. But... I couldn't stop. Now you suffer the consequences, Katelyn. I was being both selfish and destroying your life and for that I'm sorry."

My fathers voice was thick with tears of anger " You could have picked anyone besides her. You could have had Duchess or Nora. Katharina would have worshiped the very ground your feet touched. You could have any other vampire that would bow at your feet and never refuse you."  Tristan never even so much as had a response to him.

 My anger turned into fear and vulnerability. My voice had gotten tighter and strained " Tristan... What does my dad mean by that?" My dad sat at the table and looked very frustrated and sad. He was silent. I didn't know how to feel but disappointment was overwhelming me even before his eyes met mine. "... I'm a prince." He mumbled, not much else to say. So that's why all of the women... He was royalty. Which also meant... I was VERY replaceable if he felt like he didn't want me anymore. 

My breathes were almost audible. " Bye dad." I sighed, stressed. I ran upstairs into the spare bedroom. I never felt the need to hide under my covers more than now. All of the times I hit him, or called him out of his name or straight up turned him down was every time my life could have been taken. The amount of times he could have sentenced me and my father was more than I could count. A... prince? There was no way. His house was lavish, but fairly simple.

 He was the chillest ( slightly annoying as well ) caring person I'd ever met. But his cold blue  eyes told me I didn't know him at all. There was entire new world ahead of me to learn about but learning Tristan must've had its own designated profession. He was far more complicated of a man than he'd been letting on, even when I was human. A prince wanted me, of all the women he could have. I couldn't even call myself that when I could barely go a week without a bottle of SOMETHING. Now I was so pathetic I couldn't go a day without a half-gallon of blood. I've definitely progressed I thought stupidly. I was becoming irritated but also angry at how much I didn't know. Had none of this happened, I wouldn't have gotten the answers I needed so quickly. I gave the universe one for that.

Almost 6 am. The temperature had been consistent. I wanted to think the best of what was happening but that was harder than accepting I'd be a vampire and live for longer than I'd think I'd like to. 2:45 am exactly was when I woke up in the morgue. Before that, my human life was one fuzzy unorganized mess. The quality of my human memories was poor, leaving some beautiful moments darkened with film covering my eyes, or gone all together. I would forget my human life very soon.

 I liked Tristan a lot. There were so many things I liked about him but they each seemed obsolete when he told me such a big part of his life only now. I knew he couldn't tell me he was a vampire, but the least he could do was keep me in the loop. I lie in the dark, able to make out things I knew my human eyes would have mistaken as shadows or spiders. They were what they were. There weren't any living creatures anywhere near us. As far as anything breathing was concerned,  we were cold blooded killers... which was probably true. I pushed the thought away. The same kind face that came back for me in the morgue was just a small fraction of who he was. 

I stood and looked out of my window. I was cracked, which was alright. I pulled the burgundy drape back and let go of it. The sky was a gentle blue, dawn slowly breezing in. The cold morning air felt good, smelling of lilies and seawater. I felt his warm arms around my waist before I felt his face bury itself in the crook of my neck. I looked down at his arms, worried how this might turn out.

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" 

" I'm sorry."