This story is by cortney emerson and was part of our 2017 Summer Writing Contest. You can find all the Summer Writing Contest stories here.
The one with the Halfling
My name is Jeanette Tanner I am fourteen years old, I live in New York City, I just finished the Eighth grade, and my dad’s a vampire. I thought I had everything figured out, I thought I was from a normal family aside from mom who is in the silent waters asylum. She believes my father is a vampire. I never believed it, until now. Could he really be? No he couldn’t he’s a detective for the 13 precinct in Brooklyn there is no way. I repeat this over and over again until I reach the apartment, lugging heavy bags from a successful day of shopping for clothes. Trying to avoid thinking about what I just saw, my father hunched over in an inhuman way, ravenously ripping into the remains of body that from the looks of it had been mangled a couple hours ago, Its unrecognizable. He looks up in my direction, intestines hanging out of his mouth like a small child eating spaghetti. How will I sleep tonight with that image freshly imprinted upon my brain? Was my dad the one behind the disappearances that have been plaguing the city since mid-September?
Was this why he has been working nights lately? These questions inhabited my mind into the early morning hours. Dad didn’t return until 9 AM. Like usual I made breakfast and planted myself in front of the TV, turning on a random cartoon willing myself to not think of last night. When dad returned home he reeked, still covered in blood he sat down next to me.
“Long night?” I asked
“Yeah, disgusting too.” He replied
“That happened?” I asked trying to sound interested
“Well, things got ugly at a crime scene, blood everywhere, the body looked like it was sent through a paper shredder.” Dad said sounding disgusted
“Then why are you covered in blood then?” I asked motioning towards his clothes
“I slipped and fell in a big puddle of it. I guess I better go get a shower.” He said earnestly
He’s obviously lying; I cannot believe he used that excuse though, seriously he expects me to believe he slipped in fell at a crime scene. while he was in the shower I went snooping in his office trying to find some kind of clue, or reason for what I saw last night. His office held no secrets to him being a vampire other than the action figure of Count Dracula sitting on his desk, he received it as a prank Christmas present from his partner but treasured it all the same. Then I found it at the very bottom of the right middle drawer on his bureau, a birth registry for vampires, and something called half-lings. Looking through it I found my name, I’m listed as a half-ling.
“DAD!!!!!! What is this?” I said walking from his office to his room.
Not even bothering to knock I walked in, him still in his towel.
“What are you doing, walking in unannounced, I could have been naked?” he said with a look of confusion on his face.
“What is this?” I ask holding up the papers from his office.
“Where did you find those?” He asked trying to mask his anger.
“Your office, of course, where else?” I seethed
“Oh well you see sweetheart, I um, I’m a-
what your half-ling daughter?”
Everything around me began to spin, I felt like I was going to faint. Dad told me I
should lay down after finding out such shocking news. I retreated to my room with no intentions of laying down. Everything on my desk flew off in one fowl sweep of my arm, pencils, paper, sticky notes, and paperclips went skidding across the hardwood. Unsatisfied anger continued to flare inside me. I began flinging books from the shelves that lined my room. Still not satisfied but refusing to destroy my room more I escaped to the fire escape, gulping down fresh air. I didn’t realize I’ve been crying. I will not believe this. Vampires do not exist. Halflings do not exist. I am not a Halfling. My father is not a vampire. Dad knocked on the door drawing me back into my room from the fire escape.
“What?” I ask grudgingly, glaring at him
“Pizza’s here” he replied entirely to chipper
“What?” I ask again not quite registering what he had said.
“I ordered pizza, your favorite with extra cheese!!!” he offers as a reply while he turned for the door.
Suddenly I realized how hungry I was at the mention of pizza. There is no sense
in starving right? I started down the hallway to the kitchen for dinner. After grabbing a couple slices of pizza topped with tons of ooy oggy cheese and plopped into an ancient chair that whined in protest. Picking up a slice I tear into it as dad asks
“So I bet you’re wondering about your abilities and feelings?”
“I’m supposed to have abilities?” I ask regretting it as the words left my mouth
“Your Halfling abilities.” He replied excitedly
“What abilities and feelings are these?” I ask enthralled
“Well, you’ll have speed, not as much as a full vampire but you’ll be fast, to catch pray. Fangs so you can eat and feed, not a full mouth probably about two to four. Your hunger for blood won’t be as strong and you’ll be able to last longer without feeding.” He informed me.
“So you just feed on who ever, Where ever?” I ask quizzically
“No, of course not. We feed on bad vampires and only when we need to eat. We generally go for the organs that have the most blood and muscle.” He said.
“Oh, so when do you eat next?” I asked
“Tonight vampires feed for three days from the full moon. Last night was the first night, tomorrow is the last.”
“Can I come with you tonight?” I ask.
“Sure!!!” he replies.
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