World+Travelers

Kylie and Robert had been friends since Kindergarten. When they started high school they decided that, when they graduated, they would follow their favorite band, Psychedelic Vampires, on their 2011 8-month World Tour. A few days before graduation, they attended the final US performance in Atlantic City. After a two hour bus trip, they arrived at the convention center. “I love this song!”, Kylie shouted above the crowd of crazed fans. “Yeah, I know....Midnight Fright is an awesome song!” Robert responded with a fist pump. It was a great night. Once graduation was over, the two decided to get ready for their trip, however, they first had to figure out how they were going to get onto the cruise ship where Psychedelic Vampire was performing on their way to Europe. Tickets had been sold out for weeks, and, even though they had saved all of their birthday and graduation money, they were unable to get tickets to board the ship. There was only one way they were going to get on. Once they arrived at the port in Bayonne, they noticed a huge crowd of fans getting ready to board. They squeezed themselves in the middle of the crowd and managed to sneak on, hidden by the crowd. They were finally on the ship and the vacation of their dreams. “France, here we come!”

Robert poked at his pink and blue hair once more in his reflection in the window and admired his arm that had been freshly tattooed with the drummer's name 'Darcos'. Kylie liked Darcos too but she had a soft spot for Drak, the group leader. She hummed the chorus of their last tube again 'young blond girls, their blood running...'. She loved that song! Both were happy and impatient to attend the Psychedelique vampires' concert the day after but they still had to find somewhere to sleep 'Where are we going to sleep tonight? ' Kylie asked. 'I don't know at all' said Robert ' and what are we going to eat? ' A heavy silence fell......... They were still on the quarter- deck, hidden in a corner but with every noise they thought they would be caught. Finally, night-time came with no surprises .They didn't dare move, so they pulled a life boat cover over them and wore out by so many emotions fell into a deep sleep. It was 2 pm .All the passengers had gone back to their cabins ages ago, the boat was heading for the open sea very fast. At the same moment, on the promenade deck, two members of the crew were having a discussion.' Quick !They are starving....they have to eat something....'

The two members of the crew saw Kylie and Robert. They approached them, but they were sleeping. The crew members shook them to wake them.

“What's going on?" Kylie asked confused.

Then she realized she was caught. She socked Robert in the gut to wake him. Before either of them freaked out, the two crew members calmed them down by saying, "Hey chill out, you guys aren't in trouble."

"What?" they both asked.

"Yeah, we are serious. You don't have to worry."

Kylie and Robert looked at the crew members in shock. Was this some kind of joke?

"If you guys want a room instead of sleeping on the dock, follow us. Lucky for the both of you, we had some last minute cancellations, so we can get you into a room no problem. It's super nice actually. A very nice view of the ocean too," explained the crew members with smiles on their faces.

"Won't we get in trouble? Why are you being so nice to us anyways?" Robert interrupted.

"No you won't get in trouble. We've worked on this cruise ship long enough, and honestly we find people who sneak on here all the time. It's quite entertaining. Psychedelic Vampires is a popular band. We were sure to have found some people who snuck on, and well, we found you!" said the crew members.

"Well dang, thank you! This is crazy. You guys are awesome. Psychedelic Vampires is our favorite band, and we had to find a way to get on this ship, regardless of the consequence," Kylie said with a smile.

Kylie and Robert followed the crew members through the ship to their room. It was beautiful inside. As they were walking down the hallway to their room, they noticed a huge master suite to their right. They heard laughs and rock music inside. Kylie read the sign on the door handle: "Psychedelic Vampires: DO NOT DISTURB."

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 130%;">Her mouth dropped in disbelief; their room was parallel to the Psychedelic Vampires. What a trip this was going to be!

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 130%;">“Have you seen that?” Kylie asked Robert.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 130%;">“Sure, Kylie. We are in luck,” replied Robert with a smile.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 130%;">At last they were in their room which was even better than they had expected. It was not big but cozy with two single beds near the window. Kylie sat on one of the beds and said in a dreamy voice: “Do you think we might go and ask Darcos or Drak for autographs?” Robert shrugged his shoulders: ”Guess it can wait till morning. Not a very good idea to disturb any of Psychedelic Vampires right now. Moreover, as my aunt from Russia says, ”A morning is wiser than night”. At the same very moment they heard a knock on the door. That was one of the crew members who brought them some sandwiches and slices of an apple pie. “Enjoy your meal, guys, and have a good night,” he said with a wink before leaving. After a satisfying and filling meal, lying in a comfortable bed, Robert thought it would be great to get Darco’s autograph and to learn some of his tricks as a drummer. Darco was a real virtuoso!...

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 130%;">There was something scary in the heavy darkness that surrounded Robert. His only desire was to get out of here as soon as possible. Robert noticed a ray of light coming from behind the door and rushed there. He reached out his hand but the door opened and Robert saw Darco standing in the doorway. Those bloodshot eyes shining in the moonlight. His mouth opened in a broad smile and Robert could see his teeth dripping with blood. “Don’t be in such a hurry, buddy. We haven’t had our dessert yet”, said Darcos. Robert’s heart sank and …he woke up. Realizing it was just a nightmare, Robert sighed with a relief. How right his aunt Hope was when lecturing not to eat late at night. Robert sat up in his bed. It was still dark outside. He switched on the lamp on the bedside cabinet and his glance fell on Kylie’s bed. To his great surprise, it was empty. Where could she be? Feeling worried, Robert looked out in the hallway. There was nobody there, but the door of the Psychedelic Vampires’ suite was a bit open. “Crazy girl! She must have decided to get an autograph!” Robert thought. He walked towards the suite and heard something tinkle under his feet. He looked down and saw a bracelet. It was Kylie’s bracelet that she always wore on her wrist! “Looking for something?” Robert heard a voice behind his back. He turned and saw Darcos.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 130%;">Robert was awestruck, but he kept his head. “Mm mm….Mr.Darcos?” he stammered. “Have you seen my friend? She is a tall girl with red hair, green eyes and freckles.” <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 130%;">Darcos replied with a marked British accent, “Yes, I saw her going this way! Follow me.” Robert blindly followed Darcos into the ship’s galley. When they entered the galley, he saw it was poorly lit, but Robert noticed a figure in the corner of the room. He was stunned to see that the figure was none other than Kylie, bound hand and foot, to a huge table nearby. She had a cloth tied over her mouth. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 130%;">Suddenly a flash of lightening lit the room and the last thing Robert saw was a handkerchief closing in on his face. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 130%;">After a while Robert woke up to find himself tied to the table, beside Kylie. Kylie was looking anxiously at him. He whispered to Kylie that he will free her shortly. He remembered that he had a pocket knife in his back pocket. His hand that was tied to the back could just about reach inside and get the knife out. He quickly freed himself and went over to free Kylie. Whispering to her to keep quiet, he freed her. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 130%;">They ran to the door, when suddenly the door swung open and a dark figure appeared which turned out to be Drak.