Lunar's POV

Blinking, I looked myself in the mirror, looking at my right eye. Mathis wasn't kidding, I really did have the galaxy in my iris. My irises were naturally a vivid sky blue, similar to a bright neon blue. I had a few people fawn over them, saying how intoxicating it was to look at them. Don't get me wrong, it was flattering but after a while, it gets kind of boring to hear.

Now it was just my left eye that was blue while my right was shades of blacks, purples, blues, and even pinks. It looked like the Milky Way. You could even see stars shine and sparkle within my iris. My pupil was the shape of a five-point star with very faded dark pink encased around it, bringing more volume around the galaxy and stars behind it. Even moving my iris to different angles to look around made the little stars shine and prosper, making it seem as if the galaxy was real. Finishing up my teeth, I washed my mouth out and headed out of my bedroom, picking up a box from my bedroom.

Moving time.

Mr. Lincoln chuckled at my mother who was scolding him for taking a box from her, "I don't mind helping, Mrs. Floid. It really does mean the world to me to help such a lovely lady."

I swear this man simped for my mother. He catered to her every whim, even when she begged to do things herself. If he didn't Claim me, I'd be certain he was with me just to get at her and that's on my entire soul.

"You shouldn't have to carry my things, Mr. Lincoln!"

"Ma, just let him help, the more hands the sooner we can get out of here," I pleaded with a shake of my head, coming down the stairs, "You know I want to be away from here in case Anthien decides to come around."

"Alright, alright," She caved, seeing the fear in my expression as I passed her, heading over to the moving truck that Mr. Hayes had called in. I adored watching them bond and interact, but it didn't tower over the fear I had of Anthien. Knowing he wasn't human made him all the more terrifying, and I wanted us away from this blasted house as soon as possible.

Mathis leaned against the truck, giving me a warm smile hiding the solemn look in her eyes, "It's going to be weird having you roll up in a car instead of a board."

My expression only became more pained, "Please, come with, Praying Mantis. Convince your mother. I can't leave you where he can get to you."

"You know Mom won't leave, Lune," She got quiet, helping me pack a few boxes into the truck. Her mother refused to leave their home, to leave her husband. She loved that bastard with her entire being, it broke mine to watch her suffer for somebody who saw her as property.

"Live with her if you'd feel better," Mr. Lincoln chuckled from behind, setting a box in the truck, shrugging nonchalantly, "I get you for eternity."

He was hiding his concern, wanting to give me the freedom to make my own decisions. I was thankful, but secretly I wished he'd fight me with this. Secretly, I wished he'd convince Mathis and her mother to come with us, but I knew that was wrong. Her father may be abusive, but they still had a choice to stay or leave... Even if it was fucked up for them to stay and for us to watch on the sidelines. You can't force people to do things they don't want to do or force them if they aren't ready for that step.

A blush fought to appear on my skin as Mr. Lincoln placed my box back into my hands, Mathis jumping up and down with excitement, "Permanent Sleepover!"

"Wh-What about your dad...?" I murmured, hesitancy dancing in my posture, "Won't he be upset? I know he's still pissed about the last time I was around..."

"Screw him."

"Wh-What about you and Mr. Hayes...?" I peeked at Mr. Lincoln, earning him to lift my chin and plant a kiss on my lips before walking back into the house. He could tell what I was wanting him to actually do, using his eyes to tell me it wasn't going to happen. Part of me wanted to huff and pout to get him to do it, but I was thankful he didn't. It'd just end up hurting us.

"Pleaseeeeee, Looney Toons? It'll be so much fun!" Mathis continued hopping up and down then pausing with a shrug, "Well, most of the time."

"I will give it a chance," I finally gave in, scuffing my shoe into the pavement, "B-But if anything, anything goes wrong you and your mother must move into the mansion. Deal?"

"Deal!" She squealed at me, running inside, and grabbing one of my boxes before coming back out and taking me to her place. We never had to ask her mother or father if shit was alright with me staying over, they literally never cared. The only time her dad cared was when I didn't do what his friends wanted of me.

Swallowing my fear, I followed her inside. It had been the first time I had been inside her house since the fight with her dad. Her mother smiled at me, she seemed grateful to have me here, "Hello, Lunar! I haven't seen you in a while. Are things going well with the move?"

"He's going to move into the bedroom connected to mine! We're going to have a lot of fun decorating!"

"I'm glad you agreed to such a thing, I'm sure this house could use some friendly and fun energy," She beamed warmly, giving me a small hug, her mood lifting more. Her voice sounded tired near the end. That usually meant things were becoming tense and hostile in the house again. She made me sad... I loved her, honestly. She just made me sad. She was the sweetest lady, next to my mother, of course. She treated me like I was her son. The kindest lady only to be abused by some dirtbag that tricked her into marriage, raped her, knocked her up, and does so much other shit. She made me terribly sad...I hope she knows we love her, that it's alright to leave this fucker and she'll still have us there. I wish I knew why she loved him so much. I wish I knew why she stayed.

We let her get back to cooking some food for lunch and heading to Mathis' bedroom, it took a moment for my pupils to look away from her. Once inside, we set the two boxes down, traveling through the bathroom and into the other bedroom. The room had been empty for years so Mathis and I often used it to do stupid things like climb the roof or play games when we didn't want to be in her bedroom or outside. I smiled at the graffiti paint we had done in the room, looking all around as she giggled at my awe, "I still can't believe we did all this."

"I thought about painting over it but never could get the heart to do it," She admitted as she admired all the colors, "Too many good memories."

Chuckling, I hugged her tight, "I wouldn't be able to paint over it, either."

We went back to my house, getting the rest of my stuff and bringing it all back to hers. Once finished, we started setting up my bedroom. We worked together on setting up my little comfort tent, setting up my bed, and placing it inside before getting my mattresses and putting them onto the frame.

Mathis then began working on the walk-in closet while I put the sheets and blankets onto the bed. I laid out the pillows and a few small stuffed animals. She took a moment away from the closet to help me set up my desk in the tent, giggling at being inside the tent, "I never thought I'd ever get to see it set up."

The fear and anxiety in my body subsided and turned into contentment and relaxation from being in the tent as I breathed out, "I never thought I'd be able to set it up ever again. I didn't think this room would be big enough for it."

"I didn't think so, either," She chortled, crawling out and then pushing my flat-screen television into it so I could place it on the desk. We both laid back on the bed, looking at the little glow-in-the-dark stars we had painted on the fabric, smiling a little as we took a small break from setting things up, "I can't blame you for feeling safe in it."

***

Lunar's POV

Mathis and I walked out of her house, heading over to the shed in her backyard. She was filled with laughter as we snuck out so late. We were adults acting like teenagers sneaking out of the damn house.

"Shh, Matty," I whispered, quietly chuckling, "You're going to wake them up, and then we'll never get to do this, again."

Unlocking the shed, she opened it, tossing me a bunch of spray cans as she shoved a few into her backpack, "I can't help it! We haven't done this in forever! I can't believe Kyle is letting us do this shit."

She pulled a few masks off some hooks, tossing me one and putting two in her bag, taking my hand once I was finished and dragging me over to our boards. We laughed as we kicked off, heading into town. I came to a halt when I realized where we were heading, "M-Mat, we can't head there! Th-That area is dangerous!"

This section of town was known for some gang called the Canines; I didn't know much but I heard enough to know it's a load of trouble.

"M-Maybe he typed the wrong address...?" She also froze in place, pulling out her phone, and bringing it to her ear. She waited for Kyle to answer, swallowing as she questioned, "D-Did you give the right address, Ky? Th-The place we're heading for...It-It's dangerous."

She put him on speaker as he spoke, "You're heading to the right place. Don't worry about a thing, nobody's going to get you. Just keep going until you see a house with pink porch lights."

I waited until she hung up, murmuring, "Sh-Should I call Mr. Hayes and Mr. Lincoln...?"

We sat in silence for a moment until she took a deep breath and shook her head, "W-We'll be fine, b-b-but keep them on Quick Dial j-just in case."

Kicking off again, we started heading through the little town area, color draining from our bodies as we trembled. Slowly we approached a house with pink porch lights, Kyle sitting on the steps. He smiled once he saw us, standing up and pulling Mathis into a hug.

"I thought you'd bail. Glad to see you both showed up," Taking us inside, he showed us the part of the house we were to spray paint, chuckling as Mathis handed him one of the masks from her bag, "I don't know how to spray paint."

"I'll teach you."

***

Lunar's POV

Rolling out of the little area where Kyle stayed, I decided it was safe to put earbuds in so I did, turning Pandora on. Mathis was going to stay at his place for the night and I didn't want to be a cock block, so I convinced her to let me head back to her house. It was stupid of me to leave, but would you if you were a third wheel blocking your best friend from getting laid? No offense, but I didn't want to hear that, honestly. I'll risk being eaten!

"Man, it's easy...," I mumbled along as soon as I heard the beat to Dear Rappers by Tom MacDonald, kicking and pushing myself down an alleyway. Fixing my beanie, I jumped over a railing, landing on the pavement before coming to a stop. I froze once I saw the dreadful rose gold BMW M3 with matching gold rims, backing up to go back the way I came, running into somebody behind me.

Swinging my board at the person, I froze with the axel inches from my friend Jax's face, his dark blue eyes unphased from almost getting hit. I released the breath I had been holding, "Jesus, Jax, I almost cracked your skull! Don't do that!"

He grinned at me, his polished fangs popping through and sparkling from the lights that peeked through the windows around us, "You can't hurt me, Kiddo, but you really shouldn't be around this part of town, you know the dangers of a human being around here alone. It's even worse for a Claimed human to be around here."

"I-I came to see you," I admitted, bringing my board to my side, "I didn't know Anthien's 'Pet' would be here."

He ducked me behind some trash cans as soon as we heard movement, staying quiet for a moment before finally speaking, "They both have been coming here since Anthien came back to town. A lot of Bleeders have been coming in to Serve.

Bleeders were humans who came to certain Clubs to allow Vampires to drink from them, in return they got filled with ecstasy and endorphins. This particular Club was owned by Jax, his older sister, and his younger brother. The Club was a family place.

"Rumor has it you've been Claimed by the Fangs," He cocked his eyes at me as he said the words, his pupils dilating as he sized me up, "They're pretty powerful, dangerous even. Your aura is proving those rumors to be true. As is that iris you've got there. Only a Fang could cause that."

"Why is everyone calling them 'Fangs?'" All these terms, but no straight answers. I was going to go feral, for fuck's sake!

This made him chuckle as he ruffled my hair, "I can't blame their hesitancy in telling you. The Fangs aren't like regular vampires, Kid. They're more powerful. We consider them the vampire version of the Mafia. The Doppelgangers you got are next in line to be the Bosses of the group. Once something happens to the Leader, they take charge. They haven't even been throned yet, but they do one hell of a job."

He draped his arms above my head as some people started passing by us, eyeing them as his pupils dilated more. He was masking my scent and my aura with his own, trying to cover my detection and protect me from harm.

"The Fangs aren't the only Higher Up around here, but they are the most powerful. Anthien and his buddy are part of the Canines. My Club serves them both since both territories lapse over it. Both have agreed that this place is for fun only, no fighting. Of course, there are occasional mishaps but not often," Once they were gone, he went back to the subject. He leaned against the wall opposite me, winking at me as he spoke, "The Doppelgangers don't come here much, though. They vastly prefer a more dominating and fanatic scene. They adore flashing lights and high ecstasy settings with intoxicating music and auras. I rarely have such intense altitudes since this place is not quite often filled with popular and famous auras. How I wish to one day reach that, though."

We watched silently as Anthien and his friend came out of the club, Anthien's legs wobbling as he ripped the silence with drunken laughter. They both got into the BMW and drove off, leaving skid marks on the street pavement, someone blaring out, "Watch it, Jackass! We're not all undead!"

"They do this every night; it's annoying the first few times but now it's just old and uneventful. Still surprised nobody's died yet with their stupidity," Jax rolled his eyes, bringing his attention back over to me. He removed himself from leaning against the building, draping his arm over my shoulder, and grinning down at me, "I'll take you inside now that they're gone. Do not drink anything that is given to you unless I give it to you, understood?"

I nodded as he took me inside through the backdoor of the club, some eyes and attention instantly drawing towards me as he smiled at a few people, waving them off as he danced, "Yeah, yeah, yeah. A Claimed is here, fuck off or I'll kick you out of the club!"

They all attempted to lose interest, side-eyeing me as we passed them. He brought me over to the music booth where a woman with spiky blue hair, sunglasses, and a white crop top was messing with a laptop with lists and lists and lists of music.

"Lunar, meet my older sister Soarin' Skies," He chuckled as she did the sup-gesture, popping her neon green bubble gum as she added a song to play after the current one. Slowly the lights and setting of the room changed, the music fading to the next, "Her real name is Jasmine, but she prefers Soarin' Skies. Come, I'll introduce you to my brother."

I followed him up a flight of stairs that led to a lit-up office that overlooked the Club. In one of the chairs sat a male around my age, he was making out with some girl with pink hair. She removed herself as soon as Jax and I approached. Jax's brother had dark, dark violet-colored hair. It was long and pulled back into a man-bun while he wore black sunglasses, a black butterfly tattoo on the right side of his face. He wore a dark violet button-up with the first two buttons undone, black skinny jeans, and black leather boots with violet studs, Jax chuckled with a fond wave to the guy, "This is Violet Thorns; his actual name."

Violet said nothing and gestured frivolity. I could tell he was unamused with being interrupted and so could Jax, so we let him get back to getting laid. We headed back down the steps where Jax took me to the V.I.P section. He looked at himself in the mirror that the area had. He had silver-colored hair that was stylishly messy with matching silver piercings down his right ear. For clothing he wore a black turtleneck, the neck part being very fluffy and almost like a scarf while he wore dark grey skinny jeans. He wore matching boots with Violet, only his studs were silver. He also wore eyeliner, making his eyelashes pop and bringing attention to how dark his irises were.

He grinned at his reflection, winking at himself before plopping down on the bean bag chairs laying on the carpets. I sat next to him as attention was drawn to the entrance of the club by the people around us. Looking over, Jax stood up his skin turning pale. My eyes followed his, perking up as I saw Mr. Lincoln and Mr. Hayes at the door. They didn't wear their usual formal clothing. Instead, they wore matching black jeans and dark red button-ups with the sleeves rolled up, the first three buttons undone, and sunglasses clipped onto the button-ups.

Instantly everyone pointed toward me before either of them could even open their mouths, their eyes looking over to Jax and me. Neither of them looked very thrilled at my being here as they both approached me, entering the V.I.P room. Mr. Lincoln sat directly behind me on the black satin couch while Mr. Hayes sat on a black satin chair next to the said couch.

"I said not to serve that shit in the V.I.P room," Both stayed quiet as Jax waved off a lady holding a tray of drinks, a very dry hiss in his throat. I could tell he was trying desperately to not lose his shit from Mr. Hayes and Mr. Lincoln showing up out of the blue. He glared at me as I fought my laughter, "Shut the fuck up, L."

My laughter spilled out as I covered my mouth, "Maybe Violet should teach you how to keep calm, you could use a few pointers."

He very slowly lifted his hand at me, flashing his middle finger, "You've just revoked all chances of alcohol, Kiddo."

I laughed more, mocking his tone as I flipped the bird right back at him, "Jokes on you, I've never been drunk."

His expression went into frustration as he threw up his arms dramatically, "Goddamn it, I have no chance of seeing you drunk tonight!"

"Suck my dick because I win."

I leaned between Mr. Lincoln's knees, earning him to gently comb his fingers through my hair as Jax stood up before speaking, "I'll be back."

With that, he left the area and Mr. Lincoln sat up and pulled my head back by my hair sternly, "Why are you here? You should've said something. This part of town is dangerous."

My cheeks felt like fire at his tempered gaze, "M-Mathis and I came to see Kyle's place and do some graffiti b-but he didn't tell us it was around here s-so I figured on my way home I'd visit Jax. I-I-I didn't want to bug you since I know you and Mr. Hayes had a stressful day. I-I figured being with Jax was safe e-enough."

They'd both had such a tough day at the Company they wouldn't even let me come and do my job. They give me "paid leave," but I'd still like to feel useful...