Mom baked brownies for dessert that evening. I took it more like a bribe. There were hints that she and Dad wanted to have some time alone. I took the cues and the brownies up to my bedroom and closed the door.
As I ate, I finished a few assignments for next week. To say that I was bored was an understatement. The last few months were only filled with staying on top of my online classes, studying, doing homework, and avoiding the news. Being grounded hadn't done much for my social life either - what little I had of one.
When I finished the last of my assignments, I closed my laptop and made my way to my closet. I had a few Jigsaw puzzles that I hadn't completed yet. Mom thought it was a good idea to get a hobby and had ordered me ten sets of one thousand piece puzzles. I had completed one of a garden. The others were still unopened. Well, I guess I knew what I was doing for the rest of the night.
From what was left, I picked the one with a lot of hot air balloons on the box. At least this one didn't seem to have different shades of the same color. I was working on the border when I heard a familiar knock on my window. I didn't have to say anything. Alexander simply appeared in my room. He immediately sat on my bed and fell back. I peaked over the edge at him.
"Hello to you too," I said.
Alexander looked at me. You would think vampires couldn't look exhausted but they could and right now, Alexander seemed ready to collapse.
"You okay?" I asked.
"I thought humans liked the sound of their voice," he said, "but honestly, vampires are worst."
I climbed up on the bed with him. "Sorry to hear that. At least it's over, right?"
He closed his eyes. "Not even close. There's this ball in two weeks and they want me to attend."
"Oh yeah," I told him. "Cassidy mentioned that."
His eyes opened. "She told you that?"
"Yeah." I didn't include the part where I'd accidentally her that I knew about the royal families in town.
"You two seem close."
"Jealous?"
A wave of de ja vu washed over me. Hadn't we had this conversation before?
"I don't like to share," he answered.
"Neither do I," I told him.
"I know," he simply said. "It's why we're good together."
That was the first I was hearing about this. "Really?" I asked. "You think so?"
Alexander pulled me down to him. I landed awkwardly beside him.
"When I'm with you," he began, "I can be myself. I don't have to pretend. You don't have an agenda unlike everyone else that I meet. Plus, it's nice to have somewhere to hide."
My insides melted. I ducked my head down as my face warmed. That was too sweet. He must be exhausted. Before I could change my mind, I leaned over and planted a kiss on his cheek.
"It's better here," he said pointing at his lips.
Smiling, I leaned forward again. This time he was ready. He curved his hand behind my neck and pulled me closer. I planted a kiss on his lips.
"Feeling better?" I mumbled.
"Not yet."
My stomach did a flip. He was unbelievable.
"That's all you're getting," I told him.
He looked up at me with puppy eyes. I raised an eyebrow.
"Is that supposed to work?"
"I don't know," he replied. "Did it?"
"No."
Sighing, he sat us up. "I come here for affection and I don't get any."
I pulled away from him, shocked. "I give you plenty of affection. I -it's a bit embarrassing, to be honest."
"Do I make you uncomfortable?"
I shook my head. "It's not like that. It's more like I'm not used to this. I have zero experience in dating."
Alexander grabbed my hands. "You're so adorable," he said.
"See? That's what I mean. What am I supposed to say to that?"
"Nothing," he answered. "Take it as a compliment."
"You're just teasing me though."
"Yeah, but I do mean what I say. I do think you're adorable. Even more so when you say things like that. It makes me happy."
"My inexperience makes you happy?"
He rolled his eyes. "Do I have to spell it out for you?"
"I sense an insult."
Alexander groaned. "I can't believe you're making me say this."
"But it's adorable," I told him.
He narrowed his eyes at me. Well, at least now he knew two could play at that game. Before I could react, Alexander tackled me to the bed and pinned me down.
Breathing heavily, I stared up at him. "Ale-" I began.
He didn't give me a chance to finish. His lips brushed against mine. It was just a touch but I shivered. Alexander pulled back, gazing into my eyes. Underneath that gaze, time didn't exist. It was just the two of us. Then he suddenly hugged me
"Is something wrong?" I whispered.
He shook his head into my shoulder. "Nothing's wrong," he replied. "I'm just enjoying time with you."
I held him close, rubbing his back. He seemed to like that because his shoulders relaxed.
I got the feeling that he wasn't telling me everything. Could it be that bad? Then again, I could be making something out of nothing. Either way, I held him close. It couldn't be easy for him.
Well, as long as I had him here, I might as well catch him up on what happened. Alexander must have heard the sudden jump in my heartbeat because he lifted himself and looked at me.
"What is it?" he asked. "Am I hurting you?"
"No," I quickly said. "I . . . was just debating on whether or not I should tell you something."
Alexander sat and pulled me up as well. My head spun for a moment before it cleared.
"What happened? Did someone hurt you?"
He looked concerned and ready to hurt someone. My stomach tightened for all the wrong reasons.
"Me? No, not me. Um, it was Cassidy, but she wasn't hurt or anything."
He patiently waited for me to continue.
I sighed. He was not going to be happy about this. Reluctantly, I told Alexander about the Cassidy wanting to talk and everything that occurred before I got home. Against my better judgment, I also told him about Miguel. I even mentioned Cassidy's invitation to her house.
When I was finished, Alexander sat there with a blank expression. He didn't blink. He just stared straight ahead. Nervously, I played with the bottom of my t-shirt.
"He did what?" Alexander asked quietly.
The hair on my body rose. Even as his expression never changed, his voice told a whole different story. Surprisingly, unlike before, his eyes weren't red.
"Miguel thought it was my fault Cassidy got harassed," I squeaked out. "I dealt with him so, don't uh, worry about it." I showed him my arm. "He didn't grab him hard enough to leave a bruise either so, I took that as a win."
"That's not the point," he said quietly. "He shouldn't have touched you."
I swallowed. "You had issues with personal space too," I reminded him, "but trust me. I dealt with him and gave him a piece of my mind. He won't be doing that stuff anymore."
"No. He won't."
Alexander continued to glare at the wall. I was flattered but I was also worried. If this is how he was going to react when stuff like that happened, we needed to talk. There wasn't anything wrong with Alexander acting this way but there was a limit. I couldn't let him go after every person that said or did something offensive to me. I did tend to piss people off and I knew how to handle them.
I placed a hand on his arm. "I'm okay," I assured him. "You know me. I am an expert in dealing with vampires."
This time, Alexander looked at me. "You have a knack for words." He rubbed his face. "Fine. I won't do anything to him, but he's going to know that I don't appreciate having my girl manhandled by anyone."
I rubbed the back of my neck. "Uh, yeah. You do that."
"Rin," he suddenly said, "what are you going to do about Cassidy's invitation? Are you telling your parents?"
I shrugged. "I'm not sure. My mom might let me. Dad on the other hand is doubting whether or not vampires and humans should attend school together. I mean, nothing's happened and I hope it doesn't, but I don't know if he'll sign the form."
"Do you want to go?"
"I'm not sure," I admitted. "I know Cassidy won't do anything but I still can't help but think about . . ."
I trailed off. Alexander patted my head.
"You don't have to force yourself to go," he said gently. "Take your time."
Grateful, I smiled at him. "I know, but I think I'll go through with it. Getting the permission takes a while so you never know, I can get used to the idea."
"That's not how it's supposed to work," he told me. "Don't force yourself to do something you're uncomfortable with."
"You're preaching to the choir," I said, "but if I don't do this, I'm going to spend the rest of my life being scared of something that might not happen. I don't want to live like that."
"Alright, if that's what you want to do then do it."
I sighed. Now that I said that, I couldn't chicken out in the end.
"Are you going to go soon?" I asked.
A devilish smile appeared on Alexander's face. "What did you have in mind?"
I smacked his arm. "Not like that. I meant, since tomorrow is the official weekend, we can go out or something."
Alexander raised an eyebrow. "Like a date?"
I shrugged. "If you want to call that . . . mostly I want to spend some time outside, with you."
He crossed his arms. "Hmm, I think I can manage a date. I'll put some sunglasses on so no one recognizes me."
I gave him a look. "You're a vampire. Can't you just make people not see you?"
"I could but I won't be as handsome and I don't want to put you through that."
I opened my mouth then closed it. I had no idea how to respond to that.
"Fine. Fine. Just be you and if we get surrounded by fans, I'll hold it against you forever."
He smirked. "Deal."