Эллен Шрайбер - Royal Blood

But he only took that as a sign of passion and held on to my shoe. "I knew you'd miss me. It's been all summer since I’ve seen you. I thought maybe you moved."

"I should have."

I yanked my foot away from him and scooted back. His fries spilled onto the grass, but he wasn't bothered. Trevor could buy the whole cafeteria if he wanted.

"Just think," he said. "You could have spent the summer with me, relaxing by the beach, rather than tending to a bat's nest. But you never did have good taste."

Matt and Becky approached carrying twosandwiches and holding my fries.

Since the Snow Ball dance where Trevor was outed as the one spreading rumors about Alexander's family being vampires and Matt began dating Becky, the soccer-snob twosome's relationship had become strained. They weren't the best buds they used to be, but Matt and Trevor acknowledged each other.

"Trevor was just leaving," I said. My nemesis rose and brushed off the dirt my boot had left on his freshly laundered designer polo shirt.

"So we're on for tonight, partner?" Trevor asked. "You can pick me up after practice. We don't want to wait until the last minute to begin."

Trevor snatched a bag of fries from Becky. "I believe these are mine."

Matt stepped before him, but Becky held him back. "It's going to be a long year," I said resignedly, and flipped my shades back on my head.

I barely spoke as Becky drove me home. Each of my classes was more miserable than the last. My thoughts weren't on history or mathematical equations but on a vampire on Benson Hill. As we made our way home, Alexander was still safely tucked away in his attic room, unaware of anything going on in my world. It was strange that so much was happening and he wouldn't be able to find out until the sun set. I really wanted to be a part of his life-not just for the summer, but forever. I gazed out the window as we passed Dullsville's cemetery. So many romantic dates Alexander and I had spent on sacred ground.

Why wouldn't I change my world for his? If only Alexander would bite me, plunge his fangs into my neck and draw out my sweet blood. It would mean an end to school and Trevor.And a new beginning for us.

That night, I danced on my front steps in wild anticipation of Alexander's arrival. I could almost smell his Drakkar and feel the soft skin of his cheeks against mine, his fingers sliding up the back of my spine, and his leg touching mine as we sat on the stoop. But after ten minutes had vanished like the setting sun, I began to pace. I was desperately waking to jump into his arms and tell him about my horrible situation at school. He'd insist I was overreacting and my circumstances would right themselves before I knew it. I had taken care of myself for years, and this case was no different except for one major thing: I had a hunky boyfriend in my corner. I had someone to watch my back-even if that person was sequestered in a coffin.He'd laugh off the whole Trevor thing and threaten to turn my nemesis into dust if he so much as looked at mewrong.

Instead of hearing the twigs snap as Alexander emerged from the shadows, I heard the ringing of my cell phone.

"I won't be able to make it," Alexander said flatly.

"You're kidding…"

"My parents want to talk to me."

"Well, so doI ."

"I guess that will have to wait. I promise I'll make it up to you."

"How's the drawer?"

"Everything is still intact. But I'd rather be holding you thanyour hoodies ."

I didn't even have a chance to tell Alexander about the classschedule mixup , much less my run-in with Trevor.

I heard Jameson calling for him in the background, so my knight in shining Doc Martens had to hang up.

My evening schedule was making me as miserable as my daytime one.

5

RISK

I was feeling all doom and gloom-and not in a good way. I'd been stood up by my own boyfriend-the most dependable gentleman I knew. So I thought I'd find comfort in the only other man I could count on: my father.

Billy and my dad were playing Risk in the family room and fighting for global domination while my mom was laboring at the family computer.

"I thought you were going to meet Alexander," my mom said.

"I did, too," I said. I peered over my mother's shoulder. She was designing flyers for Dullville's Annual Art Auction.

I plopped down on the La-Z-Boy.

"How was school?" my dad wondered.

"The pits," I said. "I have a partnered English assignment and it's with Trevor. Matt picked Becky, and Trevor deliberately picked me. His sole mission in this world is to ruin my life. I'm not going to get into any college. I'll be forced to live here for the rest of my life."

My parents looked at each other in horror. The thought of a thirty-year-old gothic slacker running to raves and getting tattoos instead of jobs wasn't what they had planned. It didn't fit with their golf- outings

-and-mixed-doubles- filled retirement plans.

"Why can't I be homeschooled like Alexander?" I whined.

"I think I saw Alexander's parents," Billy said suddenly.

"You did?" I asked. "You're not supposed to see them before I do!"

"Henry and I left Shirley's Bakery," he said, rolling dice, "and were cutting through the square when we spotted a lady anda man, dressed from head to toe in black, enter the Main Street Gallery."

I jumped up from my chair and faced my brother. "Did you see them up close?"

"I was too far away," he said, focused on his army. He was preparing to overtakeSiberia . "But I'm sure it was them. No one in town is that ghost white. Their skin was so pale you could almost see through it."

"I'm looking forward to meeting them. I have to admit, I'm quite curious about them, too," my father said, moving his troops.

"You?"I asked. "What about me? Alexander hasn't even invited me over. There must be something wrong with me."

"Duh," Billy mumbled under his breath. "I've been telling you that for years."

I was gearing up to wipe out his Asian invasion when he covered his pieces with his scrawny body.

"You think it's me?" I asked my mother.

"Of course not…They just arrived in town. They're probably still settling in."

"I'm not so sure… Something seems odd. Alexander never breaks dates."

"What happened to the confident girl Iraised ?" she asked. "You never cared what anyone thought of you. Not teachers, classmates, or even us."

My mom was right. But these people weren't regular people. These were the love of my life's parents.

And they were vampires.

"Relax," my dad said as I started for my room. "Alexander's not keeping you a secret. Perhaps he's concerned about what you'll think of his parents" I took my dad's words to heart. I had never thought of this situation from Alexander's perspective before. I remembered how embarrassed I was when Alexander first met my totally conservative mom and dad the night of the Snow Ball.

I surprised my dad and gave him a big hug. Though my dad was totally old school, at times like this he was the hippestguy on the planet.

6

A WALK IN THE PARK

School days and nights passed by painfully slow sans Alexander. I tried to find comfort in Alexander's handmade bracelet, like a baby does a blanket. The wooden masterpiece remained wrapped around my wrist in the shower and during sleep, but it was no substitute for my boyfriend's arms.

I knew the Sterlings hadn't seen their son for so long; perhaps they wanted him all to themselves. I didn't know too many things about them, but that much his parents and I had in common.

It was as if I were seeing a mirage when I finally saw Alexander waiting for me at the Mansion's gate.

However, he wasn't his usual loving self. He appeared distant and preoccupied, staring beyond me and off into the distance.