“So? I’ve been there, too.”
“You have? See, you already have things in common. There aren’t many guys here who have been to Chicago, much less Berlin.”
“I guess that’s cool,” she said with halfhearted interest.
Becky and Onyx nodded again.
“And he loves art,” I added, remembering his tattoo. “He’ll take you to the greatest museums.”
“He’s an artist, too?”
“I think so,” I fibbed. “Maybe he can use you as a model for a painting,” I suggested.
“He sounds just like Alexander,” Becky interjected.
I was ready to stomp on my friend’s foot, but Luna’s sparkly pink-lashed eyes lit up like a crystal.
That was all Luna needed to know. She sailed over to the bar, and a guy offered her his stool.
She hopped on it, threw back her long pink hair, and leaned her elbows on the bar.
“What can I get you?” Romeo asked.
It was magic when their eyes locked.
“Well, that depends,” Luna said in a sultry voice. “What’s on the menu?”
“Romeo, I need your help!” Scarlet called. She was up to her elbows in drink orders.
Oh no! I’d finally made a love connection for Luna that didn’t involve any of my or my friends’ guys, and it was going to be messed up within seconds.
“Stay where you are!” I said to Romeo. “We’ll help her.”
Becky followed me as we raced behind the bar.
“I don’t know the first thing about making drinks,” Becky said, overwhelmed with our new mission.
“I don’t, either. But since there isn’t alcohol in them, it can’t be that hard.”
“I’m not so sure....” Becky whimpered.
“Just stick an umbrella in it,” I said. “It’s that easy.”
I found bartending wasn’t as easy as adding cute garnishes to frosted glasses. I had to take back as many drinks as I served, and Scarlet was taking in all the tips. Becky and I owed more than we came with, and I hadn’t had a chance yet to get back to Alexander.
Alexander finally found us at the bar, exhausted and spent.
“What are you doing here?” he asked, shocked. He and Sebastian sat down on two empty stools. I was pouring a cola from the soda gun; my hair was falling in my face and my charcoal-colored eyeliner was smearing in the heat.
“What would you like?” I asked him. “How about a Serial Killer?”
“We were looking everywhere for you,” he said, concerned. “You didn’t answer your phone.”
“Oh, sorry! I didn’t hear it ring,” I apologized. “It must be in my purse. I had no idea how hard this job can be. There are three of us here, and we still can’t keep up.”
“Why isn’t Romeo working?” Sebastian asked.
“He is. Look,” I said. Romeo and Luna were lost in each other’s gaze. “Isn’t that sweet?”
“That’s what this is all about?” Alexander said, scrutinizing them.
“I’m glad she has her fangs on someone else,” Sebastian said, his blond dreads bobbing as he turned her way. “That girl is cook-a-loo—!”
“She is not,” I chimed in. “Well, sort of. I mean, she wanted you,” I said to Alexander, “and then you,” I said to Sebastian. “And you both rejected her at the altar. How should she feel?”
Both guys thought for a moment before Alexander spoke. “What do you know about Romeo?” he asked me as I wiped off my hands with the bar rag.
“I know he isn’t you. And to me that’s all he has to be. Besides, why are you worried about who she dates?”
Alexander shot me a look. “I just want you to be matchmaking for the right reason.”
“I am,” I replied. “I want her to be happy so she doesn’t try to steal you away. I think that is the best reason one could have.”
“Why would she steal me away?” He leaned in close and took my hand. “Don’t I have a choice in this? Don’t you trust me?” he asked.
I trusted a lot of things—I was confident with my style, taste, and opinions. And I was secure with my relationship with Alexander. However, Luna, who was sneaky to say the least, had known Alexander before I did and had grown up with his family in Romania. And now that she was inhabiting Dullsville and living in the Crypt, which was only a few miles away from the Mansion, she was too close for comfort. I didn’t trust either her or her brother, and without Sebastian as the object of her romantic attentions she would surely aim her affection toward my true love, Alexander, once again.
nt size“I don’t trust her,” I said.
He pushed my sweaty hair away from my face and took the drink from my hand and placed it on the bar.
“You did all that so we could be together?” he asked, massaging my cola-sticky hand.
“Uh-huh.”
“That might be one of the sweetest things in the world,” he said. “But don’t worry—it will take more t
han pink eyelashes to keep me away from you.”
2 Believe It or Not
I still can’t believe Alexander is a real vampire,” Becky said the following day at Evans Park. We met at the swings, our usual outdoor hangout. No one was around, and we could talk freely about the Underworld.
Becky had a revulsion to my favorite haunts—cemeteries—and the swings always brought back memories of childhood. And I loved that swinging as high as I could gave me the closest feeling I ever had to flying.
“It’s really hard to imagine that it is true,” she continued, trying to keep up with me.
“I know,” I shouted proudly. “And there’s more. Jagger and Luna. Scarlet and Onyx. And Romeo…”
“And Sebastian?” she asked.
“Yes. Cool, isn’t it? And to think they are all living here in Dullsville.”
“It is so overwhelming. But most of all, Alexander.”
Becky was full of questions about the Underworld. And even if I’d already answered them, she wanted me to tell her again.
Becky dragged her white Keds into the dirt, and I followed suit with my untied combat boots. “When did you know?” she asked as I caught my breath. “I mean really know, like I do now?”
“I suspected when I first met him—especially because the people around town were saying his family were vampires. But I didn’t really know for certain until I didn’t see his reflection in Ruby’s compact mirror.”
“And you didn’t tell me,” she said with a sad longing.
“I wanted to!” I responded sincerely.
“I know it must have been hard. I’d have to tell you something like that immediately.”
I’d always felt guilty that I hadn’t blabbed the vampire news to my friend then. But I also had an obligation to Alexander. And the more I grew to know him, the more the sense of obligation was stronger.
“I wanted to every time I saw you,” I defended. “I even tried once—”
“I know you did. I guess I just wasn’t ready to hear it.”
“And now you are,” I said.
“It’s hard for me not to want to tell everyone, too. My parents…”
“But you know you can’t!” I insisted. “If word gets out, they’ll all be run out of town. And that includes Alexander.”
“I know. But it’s so hard. That’s why I have to talk about it with you.”
“Have you told Matt?” I asked.
She appeared shocked, as if I’d caught her stealing candy. “You said I could!”
“I know. I couldn’t imagine you keeping it from him, and for some reason he doesn’t seem to have loose lips.”
“Well, I told him.”
“Did he freak out?”
“Yes. I still don’t think he believes me. But I think the fact that I knew made me seem more worldly or something to him.”
“That’s cool.”
“I thought so, too.” Becky grinned. “So what’s it really like dating a vampire? You have to wait all day to see Alexander?”
“Yes.”
“Like now?”
“Uh-huh.”
“Until the sun sets?” she asked, looking at the bright sky.
I nodded.
“Isn’t that awful? I can see Matt at school and on the weekend. How can you take it? You are missing so much.”
“Thanks for reminding me,” I said sarcastically.
“I just mean…”
“I know. That part is a drag.” It was one of the many reasopire many ns I longed to become a vampire—so Alexander and I could be together full-time. “But since I like the nighttime and sleep through most days when I can, it’s really the perfect fit,” I told her.
“Does he sleep in a coffin?” she asked.
“Yes.”
“Have you seen it?”
“Yes.
“Is it in a dungeon?”
“No, in a small room off of his bedroom.”
“Have you been inside it?”
“Yes.”
“Oooh. I bet you loved it!”
“I did!”
“Do you think… I could see it sometime?”
“I’m sure you can.”
“I can’t imagine Alexander sleeping in a coffin. I mean, I can—he is different, in a good way. But Matt—everything is pretty normal about him. I can’t imagine what I’d do if I went to his room and found him sleeping in a casket.”
“I know exactly what you’d do. Faint!”
Her cheeks flushed as we both laughed. “But for you,” she began, “isn’t it a dream come true for you really, to be dating a vampire?”
“It is, Becky. It is. And I’m so happy that we can finally talk about it. I’ve been dying to tell you for ages.”
“And does he really drink…?”
I nodded eagerly as she cringed.
“And you still want to become one?”
I nodded again.
“Does he try to bite you?”
“No, but I wish he would.”
She shook her head at me. “So do you think it will happen?” she asked, slightly terrified, clinging to the swing’s metal chain link.
I was quiet for a moment.
She hung on for my answer.
“I don’t know.”
“What do you mean, you don’t know?”
“It takes two for me to become a vampire. I can’t do it alone. I need Alexander.”
“Of course. Isn’t he willing?”
“He wants to protect me from his world. He thinks I might hate it. I understand his struggle. It’s a big decision to make for someone else.”
“That is a big decision.”
And something I wanted so badly to happen. “But he did take my blood,” I confessed proudly. This was big news, and I felt like I’d burst with joy to finally be sharing it with my best friend.
“You are kidding!”
“No!” I exclaimed. “I had a cut—just like you did that night when you fell and Sebastian took…”
“What?”
Then I realized. Becky hadn’t known what Sebastian had done that night. “Oh … nothing.”
“No. What were you going to say?” she pressed.
“Uh … it’s not important.”
“You have to tell me. What do you mean, that night I fell?”
“Uh … you skinned your knee.”
“I know—I remember that. And Sebastian helped me when I began to bleed.” Her eyes grew wide as she remembered. “Oh no! Then you pushed him away. I thought it was odd then—that you struggled with him when he was trying to help me. But now that I know… Did he bite me? Did Sebastian bite me? Am I going to be a…?”
“No, calm down. He wiped off your blood from your knee. That’s all.”
“Why would he do that?” she wondered. “There’s more, isn’t there?”
“Not really. He didn’t bite you. That’s all you need to know.”
“But he wiped it off. I remember.”
“Yes, he did.”
“But what did he do with the blood?” she asked, trying to remember. Then she looked at me as2emked at if she already knew the answer.
I reluctantly nodded, recalling how he put his bloodstained finger to his mouth.
“Oh, gross!” She covered her ears. “I don’t want to hear.”
“You just told me you want to know everything.”
“I didn’t need to know that part. I feel woozy.” Then, suddenly, she clutched my shirt. “Will I turn into a vampire?” she asked desperately.
“No. You are no more a vampire than I am.”
“Are you sure?”
“Dead sure.”
My best friend sighed with relief.
“No, you have to be bitten for that to happen,” I said with a sigh of my own. But there was something I wasn’t sure she knew. Something I wanted to have happen to me. “And if the vampire bites another on sacred ground, then they are bonded together for eternity,” I said. “Isn’t that romantic?”
“Uh … yes. I guess,” she said uneasily. “But what is sacred ground?”
“A burial site. A cemetery. Or a tomb. But Alexander took my blood, too,” I said, not wanting to feel left out of the drama. “Not on sacred ground, but like Sebastian did to you. Only it was really magical for us.”
“Well, it would be to you, but to me, it’s completely gross. I think I will stick with Matt. Fortunately for me the only thing he likes to drink is Gatorade.”
We both laughed at the extraordinary situation that was now our reality.
“But do you still want to be a vampire now that you know the truth?” Becky asked.
“I’ve known for a while.”
“I know. But seeing them interact—their lifestyle and their needs. Do you really want to be one like you’ve always wanted to before?”
“Yes. More so than ever.”
She nervously twisted the ends of her hair and took a moment to process my answer.
“Would we still be able to be best friends?” Becky seemed seriously worried.
“Why not?”
“Because if youxtrcause i are a vampire … you wouldn’t be going to school anymore. I’d miss you in classes, lunch, and after school. I’d only be able to see you a few hours in the evenings. Who would I talk to at school?”
“Matt.”
“But you are my best friend.”
“I would still be your best friend. Nothing will change that.”
“I need girl time. I can’t imagine going to school without you.”
Her words hit me like a dagger in my heart. I didn’t want to hurt Becky by becoming what I wanted to be. I’d always thought about the positives of being a vampire, with one of the best being that I wouldn’t have to go to school during the day anymore. But I hadn’t thought about the downside—not seeing my best friend, Becky, every day.
“Well, we don’t have to worry about that now.” I tried to ease her mind. “Alexander isn’t planning on turning me any time soon—at least not that I know of.”
“It must be hard for him, being a vampire and loving a human.”
“I think it is. He tells me so.”
“Maybe that’s why you two get along so well. You both understand and crave the other’s world.”
I leaned back in my swing. “Yes. I crave it even more since I met Alexander. I feel like I’m only a step away.”
“Really. So soon?”
“I don’t know. I just want it so bad.”
“We only have one more year in school before college,” she said. “I’m hoping you’ll at least wait until then?”
I could feel the sense of dread coming from Becky regarding this change. It could have simply been college—but this matter was also about a life change. Becky and I had been best friends since third grade. Our friendship wasn’t something either one of us was prepared to give up—and I had truly never thought about that when I envisioned being a vampire.
“I’d die without you, Raven,” she burst out, hopping off her swing.
“Me too, Becky,” I sai
d, following after her. “Nothing will keep us apart.”
“Not college—” she urged.
“Or the Underworld,” I added. I was surprised I said it. It was new to me to be able to share the secret I’d been holding about Alexander, the Maxwells, and Sebastian. onspan>
Her smooth forehead wrinkled in shock. She was still getting used to the idea of the new reality herself.
“Besides, it isn’t something we have to deal with now.” I tried to reassure her. “Alexander hasn’t walked me down the cemetery aisle yet, has he? And neither one of us has really talked about college.”
“We’ll agree to go to the same one, then. You and me and Matt and Alexander.”
“Duh!” I said. I didn’t imagine Becky was planning to go to some fancy-schmancy college with outrageous tuition and a billion miles from Dullsville.
“Even if we have to meet in night classes,” she added.
“Agreed!” I put my arm around her shoulder.
“But what if you don’t wait until then?” she asked. “Alexander gave you that eternity ring.” She pointed to my ring finger.
I never took off the glistening ring with a black diamond heart in the center. Not even in the shower or when I slept.
“Yes … but…”
“I see the way Alexander looks at you. Now that I know the truth, I know what he is thinking. I thought it was just his European charisma.” She laughed. “But it’s not, Raven. He wants you in a way that is not…”
“Human?” I asked.
She nodded her head.
I felt a huge beam of warm energy flood through me. But what I took as a compliment from Becky was something she meant as a big concern.
Though I felt melancholy about any type of change that led my best friend and me to being apart even for a minute, I did like the reassurance from someone else that Alexander craved me in a way that only a vampire could.
“It will be okay, Becky,” I said. “No matter what happens between Alexander and me, you and I will always be best friends. You can count on that forever.”
Becky and I gave each other a quick hug before heading off to her truck to get some coffee.
I was ready for an eternity with my true love, but not an eternity apart from my best friend.
“I saw how quickly you yanked Luna off of me at the Crypt,” Trevor said to me in the hallway the following day at school. “The lengths you go to, just to keep girls away from me.”