I got up very early this morning to make sure everything was ready for the party. Around 8 AM, I received a surprise phone call.
âDakota!â I exclaimed.
They had let him use his cell phone to call people for Winterfest. I was so glad to hear from him. It felt like it had been so long since we had spoken. It felt like months, though it had only been weeks.
I caught him up a few things but left out the whole âdangerâ thing. For one, he doesnât know that Iâm a mermaid. Even if I left that bit out, saying Iâm in danger would only worry him. I didnât want to do that to him.
The conversation ended way too soon for my liking but he only got so long to talk to each person.
Aubree arrived shortly after, she wanted to help finish cooking the food. I happily accepted her help.
I invited Joey. I figured since Dakota was off training, Joey would be alone for the holiday. That would probably be depressing for him, so I didnât want him to be alone. Our past might not be full of sunshine and happiness, but I fully support him getting sober and staying that way. I still care what happens to Joey, I always will.
Everyone came to the party except Naya. Another business trip, itâs starting to worry me a bit. But maybe Iâm just being paranoid, given the current circumstances.
âSo uhhâŠ.thereâs a levitating vampire in your kitchenâŠ.â Joey commented. He sounded weirded out.
âHe does that sometimes. It helps him restore his energy.â I explained like it wasnât odd at all, because to me. It isnât.
âThatâsâŠ.cool.â Joey said, sitting down beside myself and Apollo.
I was very happy to see my little brother. I have to think of a way to invite him and Naya to stay with me. Maybe I should just be honest and heâll see that they need to.
"You gave me a security system? That's...thoughtful. Thank you, Caleb." Apollo commented, I could tell he was confused.
Safety. That's the reason Caleb wanted me to invite him and Lilith today.
I felt my cheeks turn red. On one hand it was very sweet that Caleb was trying to find more ways to protect all of us. On the other "For a vampire, you're not very subtle." I whispered so quietly that I knew only Caleb would hear me.
Caleb just gave Apollo a look before walking off. Apollo looked at me, he wanted answers.
"Let's go play in the snow!" I declared and shoved him playfully. I wasn't ready to have that talk with him yet. No, not the birds and the bees talk. The talk about our current situation.
âI swear that guy never ages. Itâs getting creepy.â Apollo commented as we built a snow pal.
Heâs right though. That guy never ages. Maybe I should ask Caleb if Father Winter is a vampire?
âPa-thet-ic.â Apollo sounded out after my snowball landed inches away from him.
Thereâs a reason I didnât do sports in school.
âI didnât miss that time!â I hollered after I shoved snow in my brotherâs face and ran away from him, because I knew heâd want revenge.
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Instead of just laying in bed the past few days, Iâve made me myself get up. Get up and go to work. Get up and take care of the cats. Get up and start doing yoga again. I know in the end, not doing things actually makes me feel worse. Even if I donât feel like doing those things at the time.
I realized this morning, after my morning yoga, that Josie is no longer a kitten.
Iâve had her since August and sheâs changed so much in these past few months.
The other cats and I celebrated Josie becoming an adult with her very own green collar and cat treats for all of them. We had a little âpawtyâ pawty, get it? Pretty sure Iâm only funny to myself.
Of course, Josie didnât enjoy her next step into adulthood. Being spayed. Itâs a perk of having your own vet clinic though. I got to do the procedure myself. But, no cat is happy about the cone of shame.
After I brought Josie home, I decided to go for a walk around town.
I never thought Iâd run into Ciara Scott and Muffin. I didnât mind seeing Muffin again. Ciara? I wasnât too thrilled to see her. Iâm confused why she was even in town. She lives in Willow Creek, the last time I checked.
âHello.â I said after she just stared at me.
âYou look familiarâŠ..â She trailed off, thinking before she nodded âAh yes, the vet. The one with the crush on Joey.â
âIâm a vet, yes.â I confirmed. As for the âcrushâ on Joey, thatâs in the past.
âHmm.â She hummed, looking me up and down. âI hear heâs in rehab. Man could never hold his liquor well.â
The way she said itâŠ
I snapped inside âJoey has an actual problem, which is he is getting help for. Which is the right thing to do. If you had actually loved him years ago, maybe you would have noticed he was developing a problem instead of being a stuck up witch about everything!â I yelled and stormed off. I didnât even let her reply.
I have never liked her. At first it was because of Joey, but after meeting her a while back, I just donât like her. Maybe it wasnât nice of me, but maybe someone needs to tell her off.
I decided to turn to a source of comfort in my life, after a brief shift of doing paperwork at the vet clinic.
My cats. Hearing their purrs always seems to make me feel better for a bit.
âYour Mom messed things up good. Any advice, Xena?â I asked her after I picked her up in the downstairs bathroom. Her look said âGet spayed. Solves all your male troubles.â
Wouldnât be a bad idea outside of the fact that Iâd like to have children someday. Maybe I should go with a sperm bank? No strings that way. But, Iâd like to find âthe oneâ, if he even exists.
Before bed, I decided to get a humanâs take on the situation.
I sat down with Aubree and and told her what happened with Caleb. What I remember anyway. She already knows what happened with Dakota. Well, what she remembers of it. Maybe the both of us shouldnât drink for a while.
âI donât know what to do, Aubree. I like Dakota. Iâm kind of shocked that is even true, given how we started out. But I do. I like him. I felt something when we kissed.â I told her. âThough we havenât even gotten to talk about the kiss because he got shipped to another training base for a few weeks. That kiss might not have meant a darn thing to him. Even though Joey did say Dakota likes meâŠ.but, Dakota has not told me that himself. So, this might all be in my head.â
If I could just deal with one guy at a time like I did back in high schoolâŠthat was actually easier.
âCalebâŠ.Iâve always known heâs attractive. Though I never thought about him in anyway beyond a family friend until Apollo and Nayaâs wedding. Then the whole him wanting me to have his baby thingâŠ.â I trailed off âWe obviously are attracted to each other. Or at least Iâm very attracted to him. Though I think if he didnât feel it too, he would have just pushed me off him when I kissed him.â I babbled, trying to sort out my thoughts.
Aubree for her part, knew I wasnât done yet. So she sat silently. Nodding every now and then as she listened.
âI donât know what I feel when it comes to Caleb, itâs jumbled mess. I think if I did have a baby with himâŠthat I wouldnât be able to keep things strictly cut and dry. I mean, heâd be the father of my child.â
âYou should bang them both.â Aubree declared. She was trying to break me out of my stress, by joking around.
I laughed a little. âTheyâre men, not cars. I canât just test drive them both.â
âItâs worth a shot. Or, I could try Caleb out for youâŠ.â Aubree said, she raised an eyebrow at me. She was being ornery. I think she wanted to see my reaction to what she said.
The idea of Caleb with another woman does bother me. I felt jealously. But I wasnât going to go Jerry Simmer on my best friend over it.
âVera. Dakota does like you. I can tell. Maybe heâs not ready to admit it to you or himself. I mean, he does know about Caleb asking you to have his baby. Maybe he thinks he donât have a leg to stand on in the situation? Or maybe heâs been hurt in the past and doesnât want to get hurt againâŠâ
I nodded at what she said. That does make sense.
âNow, this thing with Caleb. I think as a vampire, he does have that natural allure to him. At least thatâs what the vampire lore books say that I used to read in high school. It helps them lure in prey. But, we know Caleb isnât trying to lure you in for blood. He might be trying to entice you into being his baby mama, but if he really was all about that, he would have went for it the other night. He has morals. Standards. Which honestly, adds to his appeal. He obviously wants you to agree, but only if thatâs what you really want. I think he cares for you, maybe itâs just as a friend. Or, maybe he cares more than he realizes.â
In the end, Aubree gave me a lot to think about. Some things I hadnât considered.
I still donât know what to do. But, Iâve realized itâs not all up to me either. I need to talk to Dakota and Caleb both. The talks may not be comfortable ones, but they need to happen.
In the beginning, Caleb said he wasnât offering me a fairytale. He couldnât say heâs in love with me. Iâm glad he didnât lie to me. But, I need to make sure that is all still true.
I need to know where Dakota stands too. Basically, I need facts. Iâm not a teenager anymore. This is about my future.
I spent sometime with my furbabies today. Itâs Sunday, so no work. It amazes me sometimes how much Ares and Xena look like their parents. Makes me feel like I have pieces of Sabrina and Salem with me still.
Apollo popped in to visit me. I was glad to see him. We talked about the normal. The wedding. The vet clinic. I even told him about Joey. Apollo didnât say much on him. I think he just has his mind focused on the wedding, which I donât blame him.
I ended my night quietly, trying to work on knitting while trying out a new face mask I got at the local pharmacy. The face mask was relaxing at least. Iâm still not good at this knitting thing.
Why do I feel like theyâre all having some kind of lion king moment? Like âOne day Josie, this will all be yours.â And Josie is like âBRB, going to go play in the elephant graveyard now.â
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Today was a little slow. But still it was better than nothing.
My very first patient was scared. I had to pet her and soothe her before I could examine her, poor baby. I had a few more patients before lunch and then after lunch, I got a surprise.
I started examining the cat and realized it was Xena. My eyes about popped out of my head.
âUhhâŠ.â I said, confused.
âOh yeah, youâre brother dropped off this cat and another black one. Said theyâre yours?â Kailee asked, scratching her cheek and looking at a chart.
So much for making things less stressful for the two of them.
So I now have Xena and Ares with me. Maybe Apollo figured I just really needed them with me? Iâd like to that is it. Either way, they settled in pretty well after snooping around the house for a few hours. Granted, there isnât much to snoop in. I havenât really done much with the place yet, outside of paint the living room. But I donât like the color I picked. So, it will be changing soon. Hopefully.
I found Ares and cuddled him. My cats make me feel better. His fur has gotten more grey lately. He and Xena are considered senior cats now.
âWhere is your sister?â I asked him. He just looked at me before wanting to get down.
I put on warmer clothes, I noticed it was getting breezy outside.
I found Xena in the park across from my house. She must have gotten out when Dakota barged into my house. I picked her up, while she decided my hair made a good chew toy. Thatâs when I heard it. A little scared meow. I ran across to my house, putting Xena inside before running back across to the park. I followed the meowing to a little kitten under a bush.
Old enough to be weened. No collar. She was dirty and hungry. I picked her up and took her to my house. I fed her first before cleaning her up.
After a nap, she started playing with the long forgotten cat toys in my house. Xena and Ares donât play them at all anymore. I know in my heart I have a new cat, but I will still put up posters to see if anyone claims her. Iâm still giving her a name. Itâs Josie.
After all three cats were fed and sleeping, I tried to knit again. I swear. One of these days, I will be good at it!