Everywhere I looked eople from different cultures, all looking like they had known each other for decades and bee friends the eime. This was so unlike how I was used to seeing holiday gatherings, with everyone being all from the same family, that I was taken aback at just hoeople were gathered here. I couldn’t have possibly begun to name which cultures people had e from, for the most part.

  I turo Naomi and choked out, “Just hoeople show up for your holidays? This is insane. And your wife is handling everyone alone?” Naomi turo me and gave me a bright smile, a bit of fang showing. “Of course! She’s absolutely amazing. Let’s sober you up a bit before you meet her, okay?” She started trying t me along, but her sudden ge in attitude had me stuy spot. She turned bae quizzically before sighing, “Look, I know I was rough before, but face reality. You hat. And now you o be warm and to get sober. So move it.” She yanked me along and this time I didn’t resist.

  We wound our way through the crowd of people until we arrived i. It was beautifully done, marble ter tops and mahogany ets. That’s all I got to look at before I was standing in front of the fridge with Naomi p me some water. She the bread nearby as she did, “Get yourself some bread, it’ll help soak up the alcohol and keep yetting too drunk.” I nodded and moved to the other side of her, grabbing a couple slices of bread before putting the bag back, only to hear her scoff. “Put the bread back correctly so it doesn’t go stale. I know you’re drunk, but your parents definitely raised you better than that, didn’t they?”

  She seemed to know that I was going to retort as she was already gring at me the moment I opened my mouth to retort. I bit my tongue aied the bag of bread. She doesn’t have to be right all the time, fubsp;I could tell that I was going to get into a shouting match with her by the end of the night at this rate. I o lose her in this crowd. At least then I’ll have a ce of ‘enjoying’ tonight, as she said.

  She handed me the water and said, “Here, drink half and then I’ll pour you some more so you walk around.” I tilted my head to her quickly and she tinued. “What? I don’t want to spend the whole night around yrumpy ass, either. I just want you to wake up not pletely hung over. Or dead from your own stupid decisions.” I didn’t have a respoo that one, but I was definitely going to be thinking of one all night. I draupid water that didn’t taste bad and she poured more into my gss until it was nearly full. “Now don’t spill any, okay? You’re drunk, not a child, but you should still try not to spill.”

  She quickly made her way out fo the kit to find her wife before I could even e up with a retort. Damn, the sake really is hitting me hard if I ’t even quip. I’m so fug pathetibsp;I decided to just wander around the party and see if there were any iing versations I could quietly join. I didn’t know anyone here, they had ion to me, so who would bother me if I just wao listen, right?

  I found a group talking about the test fashion they’d gotten into. A suitably braiopie to listen in on. The women were rgely going on about their dresses they didn’t bring but swore had pockets and how they would revolutiohe fashion industry. Sure, right. Because that hasn’t been suggested before. I must’ve been more drunk than I thought because they all turo me with a gre at that. I took the hint aheir versation, feeling like a failure.

  I made my way through the party, but didn’t hear any topics that ied me so I eventually went to the stairs and made my way slowly up to the top so I could sit on them. I sat there for who knows how long before someoarted approag me. “Hi dear, I’m Remi. Would you happen to be Freya?” Her smile was so soft and gehat I was startled by the fact she approached me at all. I nodded, not wanting to speak right now. “That’s alright, you don’t have to talk if you don’t want to. Do you mind if I sit o you?” Again, a nod. She took a seat at the top of the stairs o me.

  “So, how are you enjoying tonight? Or rather, since you got here? I uand you didly have a fun time before this.” She asked. I looked over at her and I couldn’t find aion or hidden asks in her eyes.

  “It’s… it’s alright. Not really my se, but it’s niough.” I replied.

  “Mmm, and is that because you’re used to something more high energy or because you’re trying not to insult your host by saying that you ’t find a versation you want to be a part of without getting yourself removed for being rude.” She smirked as my eyes grew wide and my heart started to race. Shit, who is this dy? I thought as I turned away. “Though I suppose I ought to introduce myself fully. I’m Naomi’s wife. I just wao che on you because I know how close your parents are to Naomi and she seemed rattled a bit by your behavior. That’s not easy, you know?” Looking back at her again, she seemed truly ed, though for me or Naomi I couldn’t tell.

  I turned baot wanting to look her judgment in the eye, and picked up my gss of water as an excuse before finding that I had already fi. When did that happen? I set it back down aantly turned bai. She still looked ed, like I was truly someone who she cared about. Yeah right. Even my parents don’t really care. If they did, they’d be here.

  “Hey, e on,” she implored. “Open up. What’s really eating you? It certainly isn’t me.” I choked out a bark at that.

  “Fine, you really want to know?” I asked angrily, removing my filter I usually kept. “Every time I ask my parents for help, they always force things to be their way. They stantly pin if I try to do things differently from them. And when I decide I actually want to get surgery, they tell me they won’t support me going for it. I’m their daughter and when I ask for moo help cover a surgery I fug hey tell me not to bother with it, that I won’t like the results. How I possibly say that they care about me when that’s how they reae telling them my exaeeds?” I let out everything I’d been holding in for years. I tinued going over all the small slights that added up that my parents cimed to never remember, but I certainly did. As I went, I felt Remi rub my bad tears run down my face.

  As I came to a close on my rant, I realized that everyone in the foyer was staring up at me with mixed emotions in their eyes. “Well,” Remi said tersely. “You’re a bit of an ass, but you know your boundaries when you’re not drunk, at least. Tell you what, if you want it in the m, I’ll help you with your dysphoria, but then you leave. The way you talked about your parents was harsh and rude and I don’t want someone like you in my life. Here,” she stood and offered me a hand. “Follow me to your room for the night.”

  She painfully dragged me to a room at the end of the hall and nearly threw me inside. “We’ll go over what you want to happen in the m,” she said before smming the door behind me.

  Tsk, bitbsp;Still, if she wants to help me with it, I’m going to ask what strings are possibly going to be attached. I flopped down on the bed face first, hurting my small boobs that didn’t e out quite as I wanted from HRT. Ugh, stupid things. At least be bigger so I pass more often.

  I must’ve fallen asleep shortly after because the hing I k was m. I blearily rubbed my eyes as I remembered what all happe night and I became more and more mortified of the deserved reaming I was about to get. I know Remi said she’d help, but that doesn’t meaill will, especially with how I treated her.

  I made my way downstairs still smelling of alcohol and sheepishly ehe kit when I heard bright voices and ughter ing from there. As soon as I ehe noise died and I felt the weight of their gres on me. “About damn time,” Naomi started. “Got anything to say?”

  I sighed, “I’m sorry for ruining st night for you two. I uand you put a lot of time and effort into it, but I’m not going to lie and ‘apologize’ for telling the truth about my parents. They don’t care and have never cared.” I gred at them through tears in my eyes.

  Naomi scoffed and turo Remi, “See? I told you she wouldn’t take responsibility. I’d rather just toss her out.”

  Remi shook her head, “Even still, she doesn’t deserve this pain.” Remi turo me and walked over. “Listen, if you want, I help you with that pain. I’ll do it for free, ns attached. But I want you to leave me and my wife alone from now on, okay?”

  I gred at her but wasn’t willing to fight someone willing to pay for surgery. I put my hand out, palm up. “Fihen p-”

  I was interrupted by her biting my wrist. The pain coursed up into my brain but the shock of her doing so caused me to not feel it for a moment as I stared at her and what she was doing before finally yelping and trying to remove my hand from her grip. I felt my skin tear before she pensated for my attempt at escape. Naomi suddenly appeared behind me, grabbing me by the shoulders and applying just enough force to keep me pinned in pce.

  I tile as I felt like something was being pulled out of my body. I anig when I remembered the fang that I had seen on Naomi st night and started panig harder. Remi’s free hand roamed my body, roughly pushing into me, causing me no end of pain, especially when she moved to my breasts. Whe to my genitals, Naomi spat in my ear, “Keep it or remove it? Answer.”

  I felt pelled to answer her holy, “Remove it.” I struggled to not answer her, not knowing where this was going. Naomi Remi, who rammed her fist into my gut before forcefully grabbing at my groin. It hurt so much I was g out in pain. When Remi finished, she pulled back from my arm and stared me dead in the eye, her fangs on full dispy.

  “There. You got what you wanted. Now get the fuck out of my house,” she anded.

  I needed no further hints and bolted, not once looking back. I pulled out my phone when I got outside, trying to find my way bae.

  ----------

  Naomi POV

  ----------

  “Do you think we were th with her?” I asked my wife, worriedly. “She may e to hate us, or even vampires in general, after all that.” I hadn’t truly wao hurt the pirl, but she was so toxid unwilling to ge that helping her more would’ve meaing burned in the process.

  Remi sighed, “I know, and I worry for her, too. But this is something she o figure out on her own. If she shapes up, we’ll take her for ice cream and apologize properly, okay?” I smiled at that thought. I wonder if Freya khat her parents were pnning on ing for New Year’s?