“Books?”
“Check.”
“Pens and paper?”
“Check and check.”
“Lunch money, phone and crayons?”
“Check, check and I haven’t used crayons since third grade.”
“Okay, okay, cut down on the attitude. Taser and ass-kicking pack?”
Claire rolled her eyes and sighed as she turned to face Shane.
“I don’t think I’ll need the last two, Shane.”
“Too bad,” Shane said as he opened Claire’s bag pack and slid in Eve’s bedazzled taser along with stakes and other small weapons. He handed it to Claire with a large grin. “Have fun at school.”
“You’re an ass,” Claire sneered. “You know that, right?”
“It’s my specialty,” Shane smiled and bent down to kiss her. He sighed, and it seemed to pass through Claire’s entire body. “Why can’t you just stay here?”
“Because I refuse to be held captive in my house by my boyfriend.”
“I could make it fun?” Shane offered. “It would be the very first kidnapping that the victim wouldn’t want to run away from.”
“I’m going, Shane,” Claire said and adjusted her bag on her shoulders. “I’ll be fine. If anything goes wrong, I’ll have a bagful of weapons you so kindly gave me.”
“Michael will kill me for this, you know?”
“Michael will never know,” Claire turned to slide on her shoes. Shane fiddled with the game control as he watched Claire.
“I shouldn’t let you go,” Shane said with a sigh as he placed the controller on the space on the couch beside him. “I should throw you in your room and lock you in.”
“I’ll climb out the window,” Claire grinned evilly. “I told you, I’m done playing the prisoner. The only reason I came to Morganville in the first place was to go to TPU, and I’m going whether you like it or not.”
“You know,” Shane said slyly as he sunk onto the couch. “I was thinking about going back to school. Since I had to take off before graduating. Think TPU will take me in?”
“You’re not coming with me,” Claire said as she sat down next to Shane, wrapping her arms around his neck. His hands grasped onto her hips, and he pulled her closer. He sighed and gently placed a quick kiss on her lips, followed by shorter ones after that.
“It’s the least you could do after slapping me,” He tried for the puppy dog eyes, and Claire almost gave into the pool of golden-brown beauty.
“You brought that on yourself,” Claire bit her bottom lip, and Shane pushed a few strands of hair away from her face.
“I kind of liked it,” Shane said huskily and cunningly, meaning he was up to no good. “Kinky Claire.”
Claire blushed bright red, and she was almost certain that her cheeks were the colour of a tomato. Shane lost himself and started to burst out in uncontrollable laughs as Claire slapped him across the chest and scooted away.
“You’re awful,” Claire pouted and pushed herself off the couch.
“No, wait, wait,” Shane struggled to catch his breath and control his laughter. “I’m sorry, don’t go.”
“I’m going to be late for school, Shane,” Claire raised her eyebrows at him and tapped her watch on her left wrist. “I have to go.”
Shane started to sober up, and he wiped his eyes with the back of his hand.
“You can risk being ten more minutes late.”
“Shane, I’m already ten minutes late. You’re going to get me into trouble.”
And she was in trouble.
Her science teacher raised a disappointed eyebrow at her as she stepped into the classroom.
“Miss Danvers,” He said and folded his arms. “You do realize that you are twenty minutes late to my class?”
“Yes, sir,” Claire lowered her voice and tried to avoid the other students gazes. “I had some trouble getting here.”
He didn’t say anything else; instead he looked away from her and continued his lecture. Claire looked around the room for an available seat.
There were only two in the whole class, which was surprising. Normally hardly anyone showed up to science class.
One of the desks was in the third row, which meant that would have to sit next to awkward Aaron. But if she chose the seat at the very back of the classroom, she would have to sit next to Dylan. Dylan’s eyes met hers, and Claire quickly looked down as she hurried to the seat next to Aaron.
“H-Hi Claire,” Aaron smiled, but his voice shook slightly. “H-How are you t-today?”
“Hey Aaron,” Claire said sweetly as she smiled kindly at him. “I’m good. How are you? Oh, and what are we working on?”
“I-I’m fine. A-And we’re working with the b-Bunsen burner.”
“Bunsen burner?” Claire raised her eyebrows in surprise. “Wow. I haven’t used one of them since sophomore year.”
“At l-least one of us is smart,” Aaron shrugged, his confidence gradually growing with each second he spent talking to Claire.
“I know you’re smart,” Claire reached out and plugged the plastic tube into the gas tap. She turned to Aaron and handed him the Bunsen burner. “You were in my astronomy class last year, right?”
Aaron nodded, and he seemed to blush a little. “I like stargazing,” Aaron beamed at the thought of it. “A-And to be able to s-see the hundredths of thousands of stars burning up in the sky. I find it m-magical.”
“It is magical,” Claire smiled as she reached for the box of matches the teacher had dropped next to her. “Do you want to light it?”
Aaron nodded and smiled as Claire handed him the small, red box filled with matches. He opened it slowly, and Claire wondered if giving him the box was a good idea. She shook the thought out of her head. Aaron was like her. He’d skipped a few grades and gotten into university when he had just turned seventeen. He’d transferred to Morganville to attend Texas Prairie University. Aaron was smart, but there had been an incident that Claire had heard Myrnin talk about one time.
“C-Claire?” Aaron asked her as he pulled out a thin matchstick.
“Yes?” She smiled and turned to face him, ignoring the set of eyes that burnt holes through the back of her head.
“I wanted to a-ask you about the v-vampires?” Aaron kept his voice low when he mentioned vampires. Unlike half of the students in the room, Aaron had been unfortunate and had found out about the real story behind Morganville. And now, he wouldn’t be able to ever leave.
“What do you mean?” Claire tried playing dumb and she focused her attention on the beaker of liquid on the bench.
“I-I’m sick of being scared all the t-time,” He said softly as he tried to light the matchstick. Claire considered helping him, but the way her held it away from her made it clear that he was determined to do it himself. “I-I think I want to become a v-vampire.”
Claire slammed her hand on the desk loudly, causing Aaron to jump and students around her to give her dirty looks. Aaron’s hand moved down, and the matchstick caught on fire. He yapped and dropped it, the flame landing on Claire’s left arm and searing the skin. Claire yelped as she felt the stinging bite of the flame eat at her skin, and she flicked it off her arm as she pushed her stool back and stomped out the burning matchstick.
“C-Claire!” Aaron exclaimed. “I-I’m so s-sorry! I d-didn’t mean to!”
“It’s okay, Aaron,” Claire said softly and smiled weakly at the teacher when he handed her a cold water bottle. She winced as she pressed it to her burnt skin. “It was an accident. It doesn’t even hurt that much anymore.” That was a lie. It felt like Claire’s arm was burning, and she knew that there would be a massive, red blister on her burnt skin tomorrow.
“I-I’m sorry,” Aaron looked like he was about to burst into tears as he sank into his stool.
Everyone had stopped to watch and Claire beckoned the teacher if she could move outside the classroom to talk to Aaron alone. He nodded and gave her a five minutes gesture before snapping at the rest of the class and telling them to focus.
Aaron sulked out of the classroom with his head hanging low, and Claire ushered him to move faster. “I’m s-so stupid,” Aaron said as he buried his head into his hands.
“Hey,” Claire said and bent down to put the bottle on the floor. Her arm still stung, but it wasn’t as worse as it once was. “You’re not stupid, don’t say that.”
“I shouldn’t e-even be in university,” Aaron said, and pulled his hands away. His eyes were wet, and that was the only indicator that showed that he’d been crying. He rubbed the tears away. “I s-should still be in high school.”
“Why? So you can sit in a classroom and listen to boring teacher’s talk about stuff that you already know about? You were too advanced for high school. You belong in university.”
“No,” Aaron shook his head. “I-I don’t. I don’t fit in.”
“I know how you feel. A couple years ago, I was in your shoes. But things got better because I believed in myself. Hey, at least you didn’t get pushed down a few flights of stairs by a couple bitches.”
Aaron smiled weakly and sighed. He stared at the burnt skin on Claire’s arm that had already started to blister. He bent down and picked up the cold water bottle and handed it to Claire. “I-I’m sorry.”
“Apology accepted. Aaron, it’s fine. Trust me, I’ve been in way worse situations.”
“I know,” Aaron smiled. “I’ve h-heard.”
“Come on,” Claire opened the classroom door and started back towards her desk. She tried to ignore Dylan all together, but she couldn’t help herself. She looked up and glanced at him, except, he wasn’t looking at Claire at all. Dylan’s eyes were following Aaron with a poisonous scowl and he settled back in his seat and whispered something to his friend sitting on the table next to him. Claire swallowed and sat back down, plastering on a fake smile as Aaron looked at her.
Whatever Dylan had said to his friend, well, Claire had a feeling that it wasn’t good.
* * *
“Doughnuts,” Myrnin complained. “They are not hard things to pick up. If you don’t want to take the time to stop by a shop to buy them, make them yourself. You are a woman, and you can bake.”
“First off, I was avoiding running into Eve at Common Grounds,” Claire ticked off her fingers as she sunk into Myrnin’s armchair. “Second, doughnuts from the shop are disgusting and taste like plastic. Third, you’re a sexist bastard and fourth, screw you.”
Myrnin blinked and folded his arms over his chest as he watched her. “I won’t tolerate such language in my home. It is not ladylike.”
“You call this a home?” Claire asked and raised her eyebrows. She didn’t know why, but she felt like annoying her boss today. And she would stick to it like her own oath. “And fine. I’m not apologizing.”
Myrnin shook his head as he turned, his white lab coat flapping behind him. “You are not the innocent little girl that you used to be,” Claire heard Myrnin argue as he picked up what looked like a rusty scalpel.
“Whoa,” Claire stood up and held her hands up in surrender. “What is that?”
Myrnin gave her a look like she was some type of alien insect that he couldn’t believe he had just seen and he twirled the scalpel thing in his hand. “It’s a letter opener? Honestly, Claire. You are lucky that I am the only one here otherwise they would think of you as a moron.”
“Wow,” Claire said dryly. “Thank you, Myrnin, for your kind compliments.” He waved Claire’s comment off with an uninterested wave and made a wild dash to the other side of the room where he dropped the letter opener on the lab bench and picked up a curled rope... Thing.
“Come on,” Myrnin said and raised his eyebrows at her. “Drop that ridiculous bag and get over here. We have work to do.”
“Let me guess,” Claire said as she started towards Myrnin. “A telephone cable?”
Myrnin gave her another look and shook his head frantically. “No. How could you be so absurd?” Claire rolled her eyes as Myrnin went on. “It’s an electricity path. Outrageous. Has that boy scrambled your brain?”
“That boy’s name is Shane, and no. I work for a nutjob who constantly makes me help him with stupid inventions.”
Myrnin ignored her and fiddled around with the cable. “Put the bag on the floor before I rip it off your back,” Myrnin said suddenly, causing Claire’s stomach to flip – And not in a good way either.
“God,” Claire mumbled under her breath, but she was sure that Myrnin had heard her. She shrugged the bag pack off her shoulders, but one of the straps scratched past the burn on Claire’s left arm. Claire let out a loud yelp and gritted her teeth together, causing Myrnin’s head to shoot up and stare at her. Claire tugged down the shirt sleave, hoping to hide the burn mark. She’d been lucky enough to be able to get a bandage, but what she really wanted were longer sleaves or a jacket. Claire dropped her bag and hurried over to Myrnin, not meeting his eyes. “Well?” Claire demanded when Myrnin wouldn’t speak. His dark eyes watched her with a discerning stare. “Can you stop staring at me? It’s creepy.”
Myrnin looked away and back down at the cable. He handed a few strands of copper wire to Claire and she bit her bottom lip as she took them in her cold and shaky hands. All three strands were coated in a plastic, blue covering. One strand was black, the others red and yellow.
“Coil all the three fibres together,” Myrnin instructed, but there was something in the way his voice sounded telling Claire that he was suspicious. “Make sure the red and yellow connect, but the black does not.”
“Got it,” Claire said and started to twist the wires together. She felt Myrnin’s eyes watch her as she made sure the ends of the yellow and red wire connected.
“What happened to your arm?” Myrnin asked simply, but caution dripped from his voice like water from a tap.
Claire glanced at her right arm – the arm Myrnin was farthest away from – and shrugged. “There’s nothing wrong with it?”
“Your left arm, Claire.”
“Nothing.” Claire said, and handed the wire to Myrnin. “What now?”
“Tetanus shot,” Myrnin grinned and moved away to grab a brown box with a red cross painted on the front of it. He flipped open the lid, letting it hang below.
“What?” Claire squeaked and held both of her arms.
“Wouldn’t want you getting hurt,” Myrnin pulled out a syringe, and then he was rummaging through the shelves. “Ah, here it is.” He pulled out a bottle and shook it in his hand. “We’ll inject it in your left arm, since there’s supposedly nothing wrong with it.”
“I don’t need a tetanus shot,” Claire stammered. “I got one last year!”
“If you work in my lab, you need yearly check-ups,” Myrnin’s dipped the nozzle into the bottle.
“Then I’ll go to the hospital to get a shot,” Claire said and moved away from Myrnin.
“And pay money when I am willing to do it for free?” Myrnin shook his head, and he was suddenly in front of her. “Nonsense. I insist.”
He reached for her left arm, and his thumb pressed over her sweltering burn. Claire yapped loudly out in pain and Myrnin immediately pulled away from her. She put her hand over the thin bandage she had wrapped around her arm and glared at Myrnin.
“That hurt,” Claire said and tried to blink back tears.
“What happened?”
“You’re not even going to apologize?”
“I am sorry Claire,” Myrnin said, but his eyes were on the white bandage. “Tell me what happened.”
“It was nothing. An accident with a flame, that’s all.”
“Was it Shane?” Myrnin’s eyes grew dark and angry. “Did he do this to you?”
“No!” Claire exclaimed, somewhat mad because of Myrnin’s assumption. “He would never hurt me! I told you, it was an accident.”
“May I see?” Myrnin asked softly.
“No. You can’t actually.”
“I just want to look. Trust me, Claire.”
Claire laughed, “Are you serious? You’re asking me to trust you? It was nothing, okay? I accidently burnt my arm when I was pouring myself a coffee.”
“You said that you had an accident with a flame? How could you that have happened while pouring yourself some coffee?”
Claire opened her mouth to speak, but she couldn’t think of anything to say. Her mouth closed and she stared at Myrnin with wet eyes. “I’m fine,” Claire said softly, not being able to think of anything else to say. Myrnin placed the syringe and bottle on the metal bench with a metallic ring and took a few steps towards Claire. She blinked and watched him as he moved closer.
His cold fingers on her hot flesh caused her to shiver as goose bumps spread throughout her skin. She felt her breathing grow heavy as Myrnin’s careful fingers started to unwrap the bandage around her arm. He smelt like fresh earth, and the way hot roads smelt after it had just been raining. Myrnin didn’t smell like Shane, who smelt of Axe cologne and a hint of spices, but it was still a pleasant scent that caused a warmth to spread in Claire’s body, making her feel safe.
He was gentle when he pulled the bandage away from Claire’s arm, and his expression was unreadable when he saw the red and blistering burn. Claire didn’t think it was possible, but it had gotten worse.
Maybe she should have used some cream and taken a visit to the clinic.
“That doesn’t look like you burnt yourself with a teapot,” Myrnin said softly as his eyes flicked up from her arm to meet her eyes. “What happened?”
“It happened in class,” Claire heard herself say, and she thought for a second that Myrnin was making her talk. But he wasn’t, she just trusted him that much. “The guy I was sitting next to accidently dropped a matchstick on me.”
“You should have gone to the hospital,” Myrnin said and dropped the bandage on the bench to retrieve something from the shelves. He came back holding a metal tin with a creamy ointment inside. “This is a second-degree burn, Claire. It could have gotten infected.”
“I was going to get it checked out on the way home,” Claire winced and bit into her free palm as Myrnin tried to rub the lotion in as gently as he could. “Since when did you become such a smarty-pants in burns anyway?”
“Since that light bomb blew up in your face a year ago,” Myrnin said sombrely, but there was a tinge of sadness to his voice that couldn’t be missed.
“Almost forgot about that,” Claire chewed on her fingernail as she watched Myrnin apply one more layer onto the burn. “I got a fabulous tan though.”
Myrnin glanced up at her, as he picked up a moist bandage and started to wrap it around the burn.
“You should go home,” Myrnin said, all serious and sombre. Claire raised her eyebrows as she brought her thumb from her mouth and wiped it on her jeans.
“It’s just a burn, Myrnin,” Claire said as she looked down at the damp bandage.
“I understand that,” Myrnin said as he started to shelf everything away again. He looked distant, and maybe a little stressed. “I’m sure your friends will understand it in a completely different way though.”
“What?” Claire asked, her heart starting to thump harder in her chest. “What do you mean?”
“Do you think I’m so stupid?” Myrnin asked as he turned around. His voice was still quiet, but there was defiantly hardness in it that wasn’t there before. “Michael came over here himself to tell me that you are not allowed to leave your house. So I expect that you are not supposed to be here?”
Claire was quiet for a few seconds, and she felt something fall in her heart. Like a hammer dropping from a cliff and plummeting into the dark ocean.
Crap. She was busted. Shane was busted. Eve would kill them.
“Myrnin, you can’t –”
“Lies, Claire. Dishonesties, depravities, trickeries; they’re all the same. It will tear everything apart.”
“I couldn’t just be caged in my own house, Myrnin!” Claire yelled, frustration working its way up and through her body. “I refuse to be a prisoner! You, out of all people should know how that feels.”
“Of course I know, Claire,” Myrnin let out a loud sigh as he gripped onto one of the stools, causing the wood to splinter and break. It hurt him to see Claire in pain, she realized. “I was trapped in here for decades, not knowing who I was and not knowing how to ever get out. But I was kept in here for my own safety.”
“Myrnin please,” Claire pleaded. “I am begging you. Please, don’t tell them.”
Myrnin stared at her for a few long, hard seconds, and Claire thought that he was going to open a portal and kick her in and tell them everything straight away.
Instead, he dusted invisible powder from his lab coat and sighed.
“This will backfire, Claire,” He said and rubbed his eyes. “I don’t know what you are hiding from your friends, and I don’t know why, but it is the wrong decision.”
“They are making me stay in that house, Myrnin!” Claire wiped her eyes that pooled with hot tears. “I don’t have a choice but to sneak out.”
“Fine,” Myrnin waved his hand and turned.
“You’re mad at me?” Claire said softly.
“It’s not my opinions you should be worried about, Claire,” Myrnin said. “Just think if it were the other way around. Would you be mad?”
Claire didn’t answer that.
She knew it was bad when Myrnin started making sense.
* * *
The front door closed with a loud bang, and Claire jolted up on the lawn chair at the back. She closed her book, and swung her legs over so they touched the cool, green grass and she started up the wooden steps.
The flyscreen door opened with a creek and just as she put her book down on the kitchen bench, Michael walked into the kitchen.
“Hey,” Michael said and smiled at Claire before flipping the switch on the kettle and leaning against the counter. “How was your day?”
“Seriously?” Claire asked as she raised her eyebrows at him. “You’re seriously asking me that question? I was bored out of my mind.”
“We’re just trying to protect you, Claire,” Michael rubbed his eyes before dumping a spoonful of coffee into a Garfield mug.
“And my grades are just slipping through my fingers. I can protect myself.”
“We’re not going over this again. I’m not in the mood, okay?”
“Well, god.” Claire locked the back door. “I hope you realize that I won’t be able to pay rent. You know, because I’m not showing up for my job.”
Claire turned and started out of the kitchen, and she heard Michael let out a large sigh behind her.
“You should ease up, you know?”
Claire let out a small shriek of fear as Shane rounded the corner. He smirked at her and lightly kissed her lips. “Have fun at work?” Claire pouted.
“Nope,” Shane said. “I work with dumbasses and chop up meat. The only fun thing in that is stabbing stuff and stealing knives.”
“You steal knives from you work?”
“Hey, they wouldn’t give me a pay rise, okay? I deserve a pay rise.” Claire rolled her eyes and stepped around him as she continued her way up stairs. She heard Shane’s footdrops behind her. “What about you? How was your day of not staying at home?”
“Shane!” Claire exclaimed and spun on him. He stopped and backed up a step. Claire made a gesture, circling around her with her finger and pointed to the kitchen where Michael was. “He can hear everything!” She whispered fiercely.
“If he can hear everything,” Shane smirked as he whispered back. “Why are we whispering then?”
Claire shook her head and started back up the steps again, Shane following behind her. Somehow, he managed to get into her room before she could, and he flopped down on her bed. “Can I help you?” Claire asked.
“I just wanted to spend time with my beautiful girlfriend.”
Claire paused; she was halfway of pulling off the thin cardigan she was wearing and stared at Shane. He grinned up at her as he sat happily on the end of her bed. “What,” Claire began slowly. “Do you want?”
“Nothing,” Shane smiled again and played with the comforter that sat in a neat pile on the corner of Claire’s bed. He glanced up at Claire, met her eyes, and looked back down.
“What are you up to?” Claire began to smile as she walked towards Shane. He shrugged and looked up at her with that sexy lop-sided smile he only used around her. Claire placed her hands on his chest and pushed down on him, causing him to fall down on the bed. Claire smiled as she hovered over him, and he tucked a few strands of auburn hair behind her ear. “You’re up to something,” Claire’s lips lingered over his as her fingers danced over his chest. “What is it?”
Suddenly, Shane’s hands wrapped around her stomach and he rolled over so he was on top. Claire squealed and giggled as she slung her arms around his neck.
“I’m just happy to see you,” Shane gently kissed her neck and his hands caressed the sides of her waist. “Because you’re my girlfriend, and I love you.”
Claire stopped, and she blinked before letting out an amused laugh. “Oh my God,” Claire shook her head. “Are you stating that I’m yours?”
Shane smirked, “You are mine.”
“You make something that should sound unbelievably creepy, incredibly hot. You know that right?”
“What can I say?” Shane kissed Claire’s forehead. “I’m fabulous.”
“Shut up,” Claire said and pushed Shane off her.
“Hey?” Shane said and looked at Claire weirdly. Claire raised her eyebrows at him and shrugged.
“What?”
“What’s that on your arm?”
Crap. Claire looked down to her left arm. Her sleave had ridden up; exposing the now dry bandage Myrnin had so kindly given her.
“Shane, it’s nothing. I swear –”
“What is it, Claire?”
“It’s okay. I already got it checked out and –”
“What happened Claire?” Shane said loudly.
“It’s,” Claire heard herself stammer. She thought Myrnin was bad, Shane was ten times worse. “It’s a burn.”
“I new I shouldn’t have let you go. You leave the house for the first time since we get back, and that fucking dick already finds a way to hurt you.”
“Shane!” Claire exclaimed and pushed herself off the bed to reach Shane. He was already heading for the door, but Claire reached it before he could open it. “It was an accident. I swear.”
“Did he accidently fucking burn you?” Shane said and tried to push her out of the way, but she wouldn’t move. “Get out of the way.”
“Not until you listen to me,” Claire could see that Shane wasn’t listening to her. He would go down and tell Michael, and they would both get their asses handed to them. “Shane, listen to me!” She yelled, and causing Shane to grow silent. Fury still burnt in his eyes, but he clenched his fists as he tried to control it.
“I swear to you, Dylan didn’t touch me,” Claire said, and she could see Shane listening to her. It clicked in his head and moved like gears. She bit her bottom lip for a few seconds before opening her mouth to let a small lie. “Dylan didn’t even look at me. It was someone else. I startled him, and he accidently dropped a match.”
“Why did he have a match?” Shane asked as he looked down at Claire.
“We were in science class. We were working with liquids and chemical reactions.”
Shane rubbed his face with his hands and sighed. Claire gently reached out and took hold of his wrists, bringing them down. “See?” She said. “Everything’s fine.”
“I’m sorry,” Shane said. “It’s just that –”
“I know,” Claire interrupted and stood on her tiptoes to kiss him on the cheek. His arms wrapped around her, and he pulled her in for a hug. Claire sighed as she rested her head against his washboard abs, and listened to the beat of his heart.
“Michael doubtlessly heard all of that,” Claire said.
“Probably thinks that I tried to hit you again.”
“Oh stop it,” Claire smiled and quickly kissed him on the lips. “You really need to get over that.”
Shane thought for a few seconds and shook his head. “Nah,” He said. “I’ll let him suffer for a few more days. Maybe another week. Who knows what I could get out of it.”
“You’re such an ass,” Claire laughed as she hugged him tighter.
“And the truth comes out,” Shane kissed the top of her head.
“Come on, dork,” Claire smiled and pulled out of the hug. “I’ll make you a sandwich.”
Shane cocked an eyebrow, “Really?”
“No. I was lying.”
“Oh, who’s the ass now?”