“Well, that’s too bad.”
Noel blew out the candle, temporarily pitching us into darkness. Her night vision must have been better than mine. The floor creaked with her swift steps toward the door. She brushed past me. Light from the hallway spilled in when she pulled open the door. I leapt to action, extending a hand to stop the door and prevent her from escaping.
“Who else have you had over?” I asked.
Noel glared at me. Funny how she looked more intimidating as a prep than she ever had as a Goth.
“I’m guessing you mean Fane. Look, I tried to explain things to you, but you refused to listen. There is nothing between me and Fane. Never was. He helped me out. I helped him. End of story. Why do you care so much, anyway? You’re with Dante now, aren’t you?”
“I don’t care,” I said, straightening my shoulders. “I just don’t want vampires in the house.”
Noel stared at me.
“Right,” she said, nodding. “Sure thing. No vampires allowed.” She pushed past me, and walked out the door.
My lip curled back. Even if those boys weren’t vampires, they were friends of Fane’s… and Goths. Guess Noel was still into all that despite her perky new look.
I had no interest in following her downstairs or arguing further. I thought she’d be out on assignment Friday and Saturday nights, and I could enjoy a little peace and tranquility. Instead, I shut myself inside my bedroom.
As I pulled the dress over my head, the caress of the smooth fabric sent shivers through me. My thoughts shifted to Dante.
I didn’t know what to feel.
I liked the way things had been before boot camp. Valerie had a point, though—my high school days were behind me. Relationships evolved. I couldn’t stop Dante from wanting more.
I’d never had a close guy friend before Dante. That kind of relationship seemed more worthwhile than going out. Dating led to breakup. Friendship was forever. Why couldn’t Dante see that?
My hair tumbled down my back when I freed it from Valerie’s hair pick. I rummaged through my dresser for an old T-shirt to wear to bed, but when I crawled under the covers, sleep wouldn’t come. I couldn’t keep my mind on the same thing for longer than twenty seconds. One minute I’d think about Dante, the next Fane.
It felt like I was awake forever. I thought maybe I’d drifted off and not realized it, but, no, I heard Daren and Reece leave shortly after three a.m. according to my digital alarm clock. I also heard Noel come up the stairs, go into the bathroom, brush her teeth with an electric toothbrush, and shut the door of her room.
To be expected, I had bags under my eyes the next morning. I did what I could with foundation and concealer before Mom and Gran picked me up at ten.
“There’s my college girl,” Mom said cheerfully after I answered the front door.
I gave her and Gran a quick tour of the downstairs. Noel didn’t seem to have any trouble sleeping; in fact, she was still in slumber land upstairs.
“Nice place,” Mom said as we backtracked through the kitchen.
Gran observed everything in silence. When we were outside she looked me over and said, “You look tired.”
I shrugged. “I’m a college student.”
“Well, don’t burn yourself out. It’s only week one. You need to make it to finals.”
“Sure. Thanks, Gran.”
“She’ll feel reenergized once she gets some food in her belly,” Mom said.
I followed them to the car, getting in behind Gran.
“Is your roommate nice?” Mom asked.
I gave a crude snort. “About as nice as a hyena.”
Mom met Noel once. I didn’t bother mentioning she was now my roommate. I didn’t want to talk about Noel more than necessary. Besides, Mom would never recognize her.
Her brows furrowed. “Don’t you think it’s a little soon to judge?”
“Definitely not.”
“Not everyone’s as lucky as me,” Gran spoke up from the passenger’s seat. “I have the best roommate in the world.”
“Aw,” Mom said. She started the car.
Good to see those two getting along. It could have gone either way. I’d done my part by disappearing to boot camp for six months. With me out of the picture, that left Gran as Mom’s closest family and confidant. Apparently Grandma had been a positive influence—not something I could have pulled off.
Sleep came to me Sunday night, but the deprivation from Saturday lingered into Monday morning. By Tuesday I was rested and better prepared for Noel’s alarm clock to “bleep” through the wall at five thirty a.m. What joy to be free of the high school schedule!
The shower went on, followed by a hair dryer ten minutes later. I waited until the front door opened and shut before getting out of bed. I had about three hours before I needed to head over to campus.
I set up downstairs with the three T’s: textbooks, toast, and tea. Having an entire house, let alone room, to myself was still a novelty, as was the blissful quiet compared to the cafeteria at boot camp. At mealtime, we were left to our own devices, and girls tended to get rowdy when given an inch.
I lifted the cup of English breakfast tea to my lips while flipping through the reading assignment for Methods of Written Communication. My instructor wanted everyone to pick out a research topic for the first paper by the end of the week. A big research paper was due at the end of the semester. Documenting everything properly intimidated me more than the actual research or writing.
I glanced at the clock on my phone every so often. I swore time sped up whenever I wanted it to last longer. So far, what I liked most about college were the tranquil hours of studying alone at home. On campus I felt on edge, like the new student I was. I hadn’t gotten into my groove yet.
After breakfast, I dragged myself back up the stairs for a shower. At least there wasn’t any crap on the countertop—no makeup or hair products scattered around, getting in my way. I was sure plenty of roommates left a mess, but Noel was surprisingly organized.
I showered, shaved, and dressed. Makeup wasn’t really my thing. When I finished combing my hair, I had ten minutes before I needed to head out.
It took roughly eight minutes to walk to campus if I was quick and another five to get to my first class. I didn’t want to arrive out of breath, so I gave myself twenty minutes.
My breath fogged the air as I hoofed it through the neighborhood. The trees were shedding leaves more every day. Melcher managed to do something right by finding me a place with an easy walk to campus. It was the least he could do.
I followed the road to Lake Otis Parkway and climbed the stairs to the overhead foot bridge. Once on the other side, I had to backtrack up Lake Otis to the west end parking lot. The extra walking took about the same amount of time as waiting for the cross walk at the intersection of 36th Avenue and Lake Otis. I preferred movement to standing in place, especially when it was cold and only getting colder.
I’d planned my schedule to start out my first class of the week in one of the buildings nearby in case I was ever running late. Once the snow fell, gearing up and walking over would take longer, but that was still a month off—two if Mother Nature played nice.
I silenced my phone after taking a seat in my Written Communications class. Following English, I had Introduction to Women’s Studies. I’d cherry picked the classes that sounded most interesting for my first semester. Math could wait until sophomore year… or junior… or if I really wanted to push it, senior year. Nothing like a looming graduation to put the pressure on.
The sun came out after lunch. I followed the example of my peers and sat at a picnic table, attempting to complete reading assignments. Three students at the end of the table swapped stories about what they’d done over summer break. I felt a stab of pain inside my stomach. I never thought I’d miss boot camp, but once more I wondered what my girls were up to now that we’d graduated and gone our separate ways.
We had been strictly prohibited from exchanging addresses or phone numbers, even Facebook f
riending was not allowed. Our drill sergeants said we could slip up too easily and make a public reference to vampires or vampire hunting.
I stayed off Facebook, anyway. I didn’t want to read about my former Denali High classmates at college, having the time of their lives.
When my last class of the day ended, I began the long walk home across campus. There were plenty of areas to kick back and study, but I preferred the comforts of home… even if that meant being under the same roof as Noel.
Her convertible sat parked in the driveway. At least there weren’t any other vehicles around. I had no desire to walk in on more sex games.
I tossed my keys on the kitchen counter, draped my jacket over a chair, and dumped my books on the dining room table. First order of business: brainstorm research topics for Written Communications.
I flipped open a spiral notebook and clicked my pen into writing mode. When no ideas came to me, I clicked it on and off, thinking about how I was thinking about thinking. Not helpful! What I needed were ideas. I looked at the blank sheet of notebook paper. This was ridiculous. I needed to get online.
My laptop was upstairs on the desk I’d made Dante help me move into my bedroom. It wasn’t fair that Noel got her own office, but there was only one place I could count on for privacy at any time, and that was my bedroom.
I got up, prepared to search the web for inspiration. Where else could a person find all the answers besides online? Before I’d cleared the kitchen, I heard a car engine hum up the driveway, followed by silence. I opened the front door in time to see Valerie slam her door shut. She’d pulled up behind Noel, blocking her in. Maybe not the best idea. Noel might want to flee when she saw who’d come over. Hopefully she’d remain upstairs. I hadn’t heard a peep from her since walking home from school.
I sighed. At this rate, I’d be pulling an all-nighter.
Valerie skipped up to the door in a pair of tweed shorts and a tank top.
“Party time!” she announced.
“If by party you mean study session, by all means come in,” I said sarcastically.
As Valerie stepped inside, Noel appeared on the stairway. She paused midway, staring wide-eyed at Valerie as though the vixen was the one who’d undergone a complete makeover.
For every millimeter Noel opened her eyelids, Valerie narrowed hers.
“Is that Noel?” she asked, sticking her nose in the air. “I hardly recognize her under all that makeup.”
“What is Valerie doing here?” Noel asked in an even voice.
“Hanging out, what does it look like?” Valerie retorted.
Noel addressed Valerie directly, “Can’t you hang out somewhere else?”
“No,” Valerie said.
Noel looked from Valerie to me. “Oh, I see.” I couldn’t decipher her somber tone. She sounded more upset than mad. A second later, she retreated up the stairs rather than argue further.
“What’s her problem?” Valerie asked.
I shrugged and headed down the hall. Valerie followed me into the kitchen.
“Want something to drink?” I asked as I opened the fridge.
“Anything with alcohol.”
“Sorry, we’ve got juice or soda,” I said, blatantly ignoring the wine coolers in the far bottom corner of the fridge. I wasn’t so wretched that I’d take Noel’s drinks. Besides, I didn’t want to owe Valerie anything.
“No alcoholic beverages? What kind of hostess are you?” Valerie huffed.
“So you’re fine with juice?” I said, face still inside the fridge.
“Hold on a sec.”
When I turned around, Valerie’s thumbs were flying across her phone’s screen. “There,” she said, looking up. “Gavin’s stopping at the liquor store.”
My jaw dropped. “Gavin can’t come over.”
“Why not?” Valerie asked, her elbow pointing outward at a sharp angle when she stuck her hand on her hip.
“I told Noel no vampires allowed at home.”
It was one thing to have the vixen over, another to break my own rule by allowing Valerie to invite over Noel’s former crush. I wasn’t that cruel.
Valerie rolled her eyes. “Gavin’s my boyfriend.”
I had another good reason for not wanting him over.
“Henry was being really creepy the other night. I don’t want to hang out with his best friend.”
Valerie tsked. “Henry’s harmless. I’ll tell Gavin to have him back off.”
“I’m sorry, Valerie. Rules are rules.”
Valerie’s cheeks flamed. Her lips pulled back and she glared at me harshly. A couple seconds later she released a breath. With it, her shoulders dropped and her expression softened.
“Fine, you can tell Gavin he has to go when he gets here.” She turned on her heel and headed to the living room.
“Wait,” I called after Valerie. “You need to text him.”
“No way, he’s bringing the liquid refreshments.”
I followed Valerie into the living room where she’d already plopped onto the sofa and put her feet on the coffee table. She pointed the remote at the TV, flipping through channels until she landed on a music video and turned up the volume.
“Nice sound system,” she said bobbing her head to the tune. “Kennick doesn’t like me playing my music out loud.” Valerie snorted in disgust. She gave me a sly look. “She also doesn’t allow vampires over. You could be BFs.”
“Yeah, sure.”
Valerie moved her arms in the air, not making conversation so much as singing along to tunes for twenty minutes until the doorbell rang.
I looked at Valerie. “Aren’t you going to get that?” I asked. She should be the one dealing with Gavin. But she made no move off the couch.
“It’s your house.”
The last thing I wanted was for Gavin to ring again and have Noel come down and answer the door. No matter what she’d done with Fane, I wasn’t the type of person to put her through that kind of agony.
I grumbled on my way out of the living room, though my displeasure was wasted on Valerie. The minx turned up the TV volume some more.
Come on brain, think of a reasonable excuse to send Gavin away before I reach the front door. No way could I mention the vampire thing. He might tell Henry, which would further cement my spot as a top ten suspect on Marcus’s murderer list. Who else wouldn’t allow vampires into her home other than a vampire hunter? Besides which, it wouldn’t make any sense. It was a well-known fact that I spent my weekends at vampire hangouts and supposedly dated one. A woman like me should welcome vampires into her home with open arms and veins.
Maybe I should put it on Noel and say she didn’t want him over. I was sure she didn’t, at least not with Valerie here.
Or I could say no boys allowed. That wasn’t biased toward vampires.
Lame, I told myself as I opened the front door. Gavin stood on the front step holding a bottle of rum in one hand and Coke in the other. He wore khaki pants and a light blue and green button up top. He looked nice. Either he’d lightened his brown hair or the sun had done it for him. I couldn’t help thinking he and Noel would look really good together.
“Hi, Aurora. It’s been awhile.”
“Hello, Gavin,” I said. “I’m sorry, but you can’t come in.”
Gavin’s smile dropped. “What do you mean?”
I rubbed my lips together, trying to come up with the right words. Some people could bullshit on the spot; I wasn’t one of them.
“It’s complicated. I have a better idea anyway. Let’s all go out.” I said the last part extra peppy trying to make it sound preferable to sitting at home.
But Gavin’s frown only deepened.
Before he could respond, Noel spoke up behind me, “It’s okay. Gavin’s welcome to come inside.”
Gavin looked over my shoulder. His expression instantly softened as his eyes lifted to look at Noel on the stairs. I suppose in all the time I’d been away, he hadn’t seen her, either. Valerie said he no longer went to West
High, and I’d put an end to parties at the palace.
“You look incredible,” Gavin said to Noel. I swore he looked star-struck.
Okay, enough of the awkwardness. Was it too much to ask for a chill evening at home on a weeknight? I probably would’ve been better off in a dorm.
I pulled open the door. “Come in,” I said.
If Noel said it was fine, than whatever. I didn’t know where else to go or what to say, so he might as well come in.
Gavin stepped into the entryway. As I closed the front door, I got a quick look at Noel standing at the top of the stairs.
“How have you been?” Gavin asked her.
“Marvelous,” Noel said. And she said it like she meant it, not like a woman trying to convince the guy who jilted her that she’d been better off ever since.
“How do you like being a senior?” Gavin asked.
“It beats being a junior.” Before Gavin could ask another question, Noel said, with perfect pitch, “Good seeing you, Gavin.” She turned and disappeared beyond the upstairs railing.
Gavin’s shoulders sagged.
“Valerie’s in the living room,” I said.
Gavin stared at me as though he’d forgotten I was standing beside him.
“Follow me,” I prompted.
As we entered the living room, Valerie jumped up.
“Finally! I was beginning to wonder if you were distilling the liquor yourself.” She strode over to Gavin and reached her arms around his waist. I thought Valerie meant to hug him, but she grabbed both bottles from his hands.
“Now let’s get this party started.” Valerie lifted the bottles into the air and headed for the kitchen.
Gavin remained in place, leaning a little my way. “You and Noel live together?”
I nodded.
“How long have you—”
“Gavin! Are you coming or what?” Valerie hollered from the kitchen.
Gavin made his way to the kitchen slowly, not bothering to mask a scowl.
“You, too, Aurora,” Valerie said.
There wasn’t much else to do besides join my guests in the kitchen. Valerie made herself instantly at home, opening cupboards until she found three tall glasses. She went overboard on the rum, topping each glass with a splash of Coke. I took a sip and winced.
Bad Blood (Aurora Sky: Vampire Hunter, Vol. 3) Page 14