Nightshade: A SimLit | Chapter 6: Secrets

Amelia was seemingly sound asleep, but once she was sure that all was quiet in the house, she opened her eyes and sat up in her bed. She struggled to change into something warm in the pitch black darkness of her bedroom, knowing that there was a chill in the air tonight. 

Quietly, she walked across the floor, careful to avoid the floorboards that creaked when they were stepped on. She glanced over her shoulder to reaffirm that her brother was asleep, and then looked out into the hallway. ‘The coast is clear,’ she thought. 

Something shifted behind her. “Amelia?” a familiar voice rasped, sounding barely awake. 

“Um…” she froze where she stood. 

Alexander groggily forced himself out of bed and approached his sister. “Where are you going?” he asked, knowing something was up. 

Amelia blurted the first excuse that came to mind. “To the bathroom, of course.” 

He raised an eyebrow. “You had to get dressed for that?” 

She grew silent. 

“…You’re sneaking out, aren’t you?” Alexander asked. 

“Yes!” she confessed. “I’m sneaking out to see Onyx.” There was a slight tone of guilt in her voice, though she didn’t know why. She knew her mother was wrong about her friend. 

Alexander gasped. “What if mom finds out!? You’ll be grounded for… for the rest of your life!” 

“I know,” Amelia frowned. “But I don’t have a choice. I know you’re bad at keeping secrets, but… Alexander, please don’t tell on me. Please.” 

“My lips are sealed,” he reassured her. “But, uh… can I come with you? I’d like to meet him.” 

Amelia pondered for a moment. Her brother would undoubtedly embarrass her in front of Onyx, but she decided against her better judgement. “Fine, you can come, too.” 

“Sweet!” Alexander grinned. “I should probably get dressed first, though.” 

“Alright. I’ll be waiting outside, on the balcony," she said. “Hurry up.” 

---

Amelia walked outside and took a deep breath of the fresh autumn air. Although she didn’t like disobeying her mother, something about this newfound freedom was thrilling. 

Alexander wasn't far behind. “Ready,” he said. “So what now?” 

“We wait," she replied. “He’ll be here, I know it.” 

“Amelia,” he began, with an unusual tinge of fear in his voice, “are you sure that he’s… safe?” 

“Of course I am!” Amelia exclaimed. “You don’t have to be afraid of him, Alexander. I know what people say, but… it’s not true. He’s really nice. You’ll see.” 

He swallowed the lump in his throat. “Okay…” 

Onyx walked down the sidewalk near Amelia’s house, making sure he took the back way so no one would see him. He turned the corner and entered her backyard, hoping to see her on the balcony. 

She spotted him and leaned over the edge. “Onyx!” she exclaimed, possibly a little too loudly. 

“Amelia!” Onyx grinned. “I was hoping you’d be here!” 

Amelia smiled. “Be right down!” she replied, and turned to her brother. “C’mon, let’s go. Don’t walk through the house too loudly. We’re as good as dead if mom wakes up!” 

He nodded, and together they went downstairs and into the backyard, where Onyx was waiting.  

Onyx didn’t expect for there to be another person, and gave a confused glance to Alexander.

“That’s my brother, Alexander,” she said. “He wanted to meet you.” 

“Oh,” he smiled a little, suddenly feeling shy. “Um… hi, it’s nice to meet you. I’m–-” 

“Onyx, I know,” Alexander laughed. “You’re all she ever talks about.” 

Onyx blushed. “R-Really?” 

Amelia flushed and glared at Alexander, who simply offered a handshake to the vampire. “It’s nice to meet you!” 

Onyx made the grave mistake of shaking Alexander’s hand, and as a consequence was zapped by his hand buzzer. 

“Haha, gotcha!” he laughed. “They fall for it every time!” 

Amelia tried to hide the fact she was on the verge of laughter. “Really? That’s not how you make a good first impression!” 

Onyx, surprisingly, laughed. “Good one!” 

“We should probably go somewhere else to talk before someone catches us,” she said. The boys nodded in agreement, and they walked off to find a quiet place to converse. 

“So,” Alexander began, “Amelia was telling me about how she whooped Vance’s butt at school the other day!” 

“Yeah, she was amazing!” Onyx said, a little too enthusiastically. “You should have seen the look on his face!” 

She smiled. “You thought I was amazing?” 

“Of course. If you hadn’t been there, they would have beaten me up…” Onyx frowned. 

Amelia decided to change the subject before he got upset. “Hey, I noticed you’re wearing… you know, regular clothes? What happened to your vampire-looking ones?” 

Onyx sighed. “Mom said it would be best if I tried to blend in with the other kids, so maybe they wouldn’t be so mean to me… I guess I stick out like a sore thumb, huh?” 

“I get bullied too sometimes,” Alexander said quietly. “You know, ‘cause I’m a nerd and stuff…” 

“Vance is mean to everybody," she added. “He’s constantly picking on me ‘cause I’m a girl and apparently he thinks girls can’t do anything.” 

“Yeah? Well, you showed him!” Onyx laughed. “I bet he was really mad he got beat up by a girl.” 

Amelia giggled. “Yeah, probably.” 

“My sister’s the toughest girl in town!” Alexander bragged. “I’m the brains and she’s the brawn. She’s never lost a fight!” 

“You’re making it sound like I get in a lot of fights!” Amelia complained. “I only beat people up if I have to.” 

“Yeah, and you beat'em up good!” he grinned. “Nobody messes with Amelia. And if they do, they never do it again.” 

Onyx chuckled. “I wish I was brave like you..."

She smiled softly. “I bet you will be someday. Maybe I just need to show you how to be brave.” 

The group fell silent for a few moments. “We better get home before somebody finds out we’re gone,” Alexander said. “It was nice meeting you, Onyx!” He stood up from the park bench and started off towards home. 

“I’ll be there in a minute,” Amelia began. “You can go on without me.” 

He nodded. “Alright, but hurry up! The last thing you want is to get caught!” 

Amelia waited until her brother was out of earshot. “So, um, Onyx…” her voice trailed off. “I guess this is goodnight.” 

“Yeah,” Onyx quietly replied. 

Amelia stepped forward and hugged her friend. “I wish we didn’t have to sneak out like this,” she muttered. “It’s not fair. No one wants to get to know you before they decide to hate you…” 

“Hey, it’s okay,” Onyx said, returning the hug. “I know you feel kinda bad for sneaking out, but… it’s worth it, isn’t it?” 

“Yeah,” Amelia replied, and let go. “It is.” 

“So, I guess I’ll see you tomorrow night?” he asked. 

She smiled. “I’ll be waiting.” 

The two friends parted ways, and Amelia returned home. 

---

She returned to her bedroom, where Alexander was waiting. She sat down beside him on his bed. “So,” she began, “what did you think of Onyx?” 

“You were right. He’s pretty cool!” Alexander flashed her a toothy grin. “He really seems to like you, y’know.” 

“Yeah?” she smiled. “You think so?” 

“Yup!” Alexander exclaimed. “Who doesn’t? You’re really friendly! Too friendly sometimes, I think.” 

“Hey, what’s that supposed to mean?” Amelia laughed. “I just like being nice to people!” 

He laughed. “So let me guess, you’re seeing him again tomorrow night?” 

“Yeah,” Amelia admitted with a shy smile. “Y’know, ‘cause he asked me to.” 

“Right.” Alexander rolled his eyes. “Well, we’d better get some sleep! I dunno about you, but I’m tired."

“Yeah, yeah, I know," she said. “You need all the beauty sleep you can get.” 

“Hey!” Alexander whined. “That was mean!” 

 “No, it was honest!” 

The siblings laughed, and Amelia stood up to return to her own bed. “Goodnight, Alexander.” 

 “Goodnight, Amelia.”