stop?” I say under my breath to Derek.
“Stop what?”
“Stop having conversations with people. Let’s eat and get this over with.”
He’s giving me that perplexed look again. Like what I’m asking him to do doesn’t make sense. But does he have to engage everyone? It’s ridiculous and exhausting. He does as I ask and remains quiet while keeping that confounded look on his face.
I get a salad wrapped in a cardboard bowl, wrapped in plastic and a bottle of water.
“Is that all you’re eating?” he asks.
I look at his tray and he has pizza, green beans and some sort of syrupy fruit thing. “What are you my nutritionist too?” Gosh, I didn’t mean to sound so harsh.
“No,” he says in his on defense, and he’s not even insulted, which makes me feel even worse. Being in his company exposes me to me .
“I’m sorry, didn’t mean to talk to you like that,” I say as he takes a step in front of me to pay for my lunch.
He just smiles at me after he tells the cashier thank you and then shines those bright, straight white teeth at her too.
“Follow me,” he whispers in my ear.
To my delight we head out the door. I catch a glimpse of Riley across the cafeteria sitting at a table with her two-dimensional friends, and neither she nor they look happy as they watch us.
Derek leads me down the steps and towards the front entrance of the school where there’s an unmarked door right before we get to the gate. He opens the door and there’s a small classroom with about six desks and chairs in it.
“It’s the tutoring room.”
“You tutor too,” I say as I watch him pull two desks together to face each other.
“Yeah, I help out.”
I shake my head but I’m smiling too. “Of course you do.”
He eyes me curiously. “Does that bother you?”
“No,” I first answer and then think about it. “Well, yeah, kind of. I mean if that’s what you do, then that’s fine but if you could just not do it while you’re with me, that’ll be great.”
He’s giving me that confused look again.
“What?” I snap at him.
“You’re not supposed to be this. What made you this way?”
“Which way am I supposed to be? Happy? Because I’m not.” I go stiff because I can’t believe what I just revealed to him.
Derek doesn’t say anything, and I don’t know what expression he’s wearing on his face because I’m staring at the wall, avoiding eye contact with him.
“It’s just,” I began to explain, “the world is big, but I feel like I’m trapped in a tight space. That’s all.”
After being successful at willing myself not to cry, I finally look at him. He’s smiling understandingly at me and it’s comforting.
“Do you have any more questions for me?” he quietly asks.
“Um…” I inch my face back to look at him. There’s no judgment in his expression, which causes me to take an inner sigh of relief. “I have questions,” I say just as quietly.
“Shoot,” he says and presses his back against the seat, getting comfortable in his chair.
“Okay, well, the other night, you said that the three guys were different from the other one. You know the one, who…”
“Yes, I know,” he says, allowing me not to explain what I thought about the injured vampire, the one on the ground by the dumpster. “Normally I can pick up on Selells energy. I knew the fog rolled in, but we thought they were just passing through.”
“Who are we?”
“Lux and…” he hesitates but is making sure he’ll be able to read every part of my face when he says, “Deanna.”
I take a long time to blink and actually see the black behind my eyelids for a little while.
“Do you mean my mother, Deanna?”
“Yes,” he says very slowly, holding on to the last part of that, like there’s more he wants to reveal but can’t.
I’m not shocked. Now her strange phone call makes sense.
“So she knows about the Life Blood.”
Again, he pauses. I think he’s checking with himself, making sure he’s
“Stop what?”
“Stop having conversations with people. Let’s eat and get this over with.”
He’s giving me that perplexed look again. Like what I’m asking him to do doesn’t make sense. But does he have to engage everyone? It’s ridiculous and exhausting. He does as I ask and remains quiet while keeping that confounded look on his face.
I get a salad wrapped in a cardboard bowl, wrapped in plastic and a bottle of water.
“Is that all you’re eating?” he asks.
I look at his tray and he has pizza, green beans and some sort of syrupy fruit thing. “What are you my nutritionist too?” Gosh, I didn’t mean to sound so harsh.
“No,” he says in his on defense, and he’s not even insulted, which makes me feel even worse. Being in his company exposes me to me .
“I’m sorry, didn’t mean to talk to you like that,” I say as he takes a step in front of me to pay for my lunch.
He just smiles at me after he tells the cashier thank you and then shines those bright, straight white teeth at her too.
“Follow me,” he whispers in my ear.
To my delight we head out the door. I catch a glimpse of Riley across the cafeteria sitting at a table with her two-dimensional friends, and neither she nor they look happy as they watch us.
Derek leads me down the steps and towards the front entrance of the school where there’s an unmarked door right before we get to the gate. He opens the door and there’s a small classroom with about six desks and chairs in it.
“It’s the tutoring room.”
“You tutor too,” I say as I watch him pull two desks together to face each other.
“Yeah, I help out.”
I shake my head but I’m smiling too. “Of course you do.”
He eyes me curiously. “Does that bother you?”
“No,” I first answer and then think about it. “Well, yeah, kind of. I mean if that’s what you do, then that’s fine but if you could just not do it while you’re with me, that’ll be great.”
He’s giving me that confused look again.
“What?” I snap at him.
“You’re not supposed to be this. What made you this way?”
“Which way am I supposed to be? Happy? Because I’m not.” I go stiff because I can’t believe what I just revealed to him.
Derek doesn’t say anything, and I don’t know what expression he’s wearing on his face because I’m staring at the wall, avoiding eye contact with him.
“It’s just,” I began to explain, “the world is big, but I feel like I’m trapped in a tight space. That’s all.”
After being successful at willing myself not to cry, I finally look at him. He’s smiling understandingly at me and it’s comforting.
“Do you have any more questions for me?” he quietly asks.
“Um…” I inch my face back to look at him. There’s no judgment in his expression, which causes me to take an inner sigh of relief. “I have questions,” I say just as quietly.
“Shoot,” he says and presses his back against the seat, getting comfortable in his chair.
“Okay, well, the other night, you said that the three guys were different from the other one. You know the one, who…”
“Yes, I know,” he says, allowing me not to explain what I thought about the injured vampire, the one on the ground by the dumpster. “Normally I can pick up on Selells energy. I knew the fog rolled in, but we thought they were just passing through.”
“Who are we?”
“Lux and…” he hesitates but is making sure he’ll be able to read every part of my face when he says, “Deanna.”
I take a long time to blink and actually see the black behind my eyelids for a little while.
“Do you mean my mother, Deanna?”
“Yes,” he says very slowly, holding on to the last part of that, like there’s more he wants to reveal but can’t.
I’m not shocked. Now her strange phone call makes sense.
“So she knows about the Life Blood.”
Again, he pauses. I think he’s checking with himself, making sure he’s
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