Nightshade: A SimLit | Chapter 2: The Visitor



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“–And then I went, KAPOW! and slugged him!” Amelia exclaimed, waving her arms around. “He ran off after that, and I went to check on the boy and he said his name was Onyx, and he said he and his mom moved in the red house across the street -- remember I told you about that moving van the other day? And then I told him I’d walk him to class and then I told him I’d whoop Vance’s butt if he bullied him again, and–”

“Slow down, Amelia!” Alexander said. “You just can’t stay out of trouble, huh?”

“I couldn’t just let them beat him up,” Amelia replied. “Besides, I didn’t get in trouble. I didn’t get caught.”

Alexander snickered. “You’re just like me sometimes, little sis.” He shook his head. “Hey, maybe you should hang out with him for a little while. I bet he’s pretty lonely after moving to a new town with no friends.”

She nodded. “Yeah, that’s a good idea! I’ll go see if he’s busy.” She turned to walk out of the room. “See you!”

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Amelia approached Onyx’s house and knocked as hard as she could on the door to make sure he heard her. Onyx answered the door and stepped outside. “…Amelia? Um, hi.” He smiled sheepishly. “I wasn’t expecting you to come over, um…”

“Hi!” Amelia replied enthusiastically. “Me and my brother were talking, and we both agreed you’re probably lonely after moving to a new place so I thought I’d come over and visit for a little while!” she grinned. “Um, if that’s okay with you.”

He nodded. “Yeah, of course.” He opened the door and invited her inside. “I didn’t know you had a brother.”

“Yeah, his name’s Alexander. He’s a total nerd,” she laughed. “Y’know, a straight-A student and all.”

Onyx laughed in reply and lead her to his room, Amelia happily following behind.

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“Wow, cool dollhouse!” Amelia exclaimed. “My family can’t afford a fancy one like that. It’s so huge! I love castles and princesses and stuff,” Amelia continued. 

“It’s actually kind of old. It belonged to my mom when she was little,” Onyx said. “You can play with it, if you want.” he smiled. 

Amelia’s eyes lit up as she knelt down in front of the dollhouse and began excitedly playing with a princess doll. Onyx joined her, and they played together.

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“Where’s the prince?” Amelia asked. “There’s two princesses but no prince charming!”

“Um, there isn’t one. Mom said she lost him," he replied. “But these princesses don’t need any prince! They’ll fight the fire-breathing dragon together!”

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Amelia spotted a green dragon on the side of the dollhouse and picked it up. “Yeah, and here he comes now! RAWR!” she exclaimed. 

Onyx laughed. They played together for what felt like forever, but he had a hard time concentrating on the dolls. “…Amelia?”

Amelia looked up from her fantasy dollhouse world. “Hm?”

He struggled just to look her in the eyes. “There’s something I… I wanna tell you… about me.”

She nodded. “Okay. What is it?”

Onyx silently stood up and lead her to the living room sofa.

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The two children sat down together. Onyx looked over at Amelia, a hint of fear in his eyes. “The reason those boys were bullying me at school today is because they figured out I was a…” he grew silent.

“A what?” she frowned, confused.

“…I’m…” He took a deep breath. “I-I’m a vampire! Please don’t be scared of me!”

 “A vampire? You mean you’re a real vampire, like in the fairytales and stuff!?” She couldn’t believe her ears.

“…Yeah… and people… think I’m evil and stuff… b-because they don’t understand me, and I’m different…” Onyx was blinking back tears. “They think I wanna hurt them, but I don’t… I don’t wanna hurt anyone… and I was scared to tell you because you were being nice to me, but… you need to know…” He felt anxious, and stood up from the couch. “I understand if you don’t wanna hang out with me anymore…”

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Amelia stood up too, and walked over to him. She tried her best to reassure him. “Are you kidding? That’s the coolest thing ever! I thought they were just stories, I never knew they were real!” she exclaimed. “Besides, you must’ve been born a vampire, right? That’s not something you chose, and I’m not gonna judge you for it, got it? I don’t care what the other kids think. They don’t even wanna get to know you before they decide they don’t like you!”

Onyx smiled a little, perking up a bit. “You’re… you don’t hate me?”

Amelia laughed. “Of course not! Why would I hate you? You haven’t done anything to me. “Actually, I’ve got a feeling we might end up being good friends!”

“…Friends?” Onyx stared at her in disbelief. “You… you really think so…?”

“I hope so!” Amelia replied with a smile. “It’s getting pretty late, so I’ll need to head home soon. …Hey, I know. Vampires like the nighttime, right? Wanna go out and stargaze?”

Onyx nodded enthusiastically. “Sure!”

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Together, they walked outside and laid on the grass.

Amelia pointed up to the sky. “I think that’s a constellation! Alexander talks about’em all the time, but I uh… I don’t know which one it is.”

“Orion.” Onyx replied. “That’s Orion. …I think.”

She smiled. “You know stuff about space? Cool!”

“Yeah, I like the moon and the stars and stuff. Most vampires do.”

Amelia nodded. “Man, it must be so cool that your mom lets you stay up late! You’re lucky! …It’s already past my bedtime, actually… I better get home before mom gets mad at me.”

“You have to go already?” He stood up off of the ground and frowned.

“Already? I’ve been here for hours.” Amelia giggled and stood up too.

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“But I’ll see you tomorrow at school, alright? We’ll eat lunch together in the cafeteria!” Amelia said. “And I’ll come see you again soon.”

“Really?” He grinned. “Thanks, Amelia. See you tomorrow!”

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“See you! Goodnight, Onyx," she replied, and walked back toward home.

Onyx watched her leave, and for the first time in a long time, he felt truly happy. “A friend…” he muttered to himself. “I’d like that."

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