Samantha pulled into Jason's driveway and shut her car off. "When are you expecting your parents to come back?"

"They're supposed to be back tomorrow morning... then they'll probably head off to work right away anyway," Jason sighed. "Why?"

She fiddled with her thumbs. "I was wondering if I could stay over."

His eyes widened. "Do you mean..."

"No, no! We're already passing a student-teacher line right now, and I don't intend to go all the way while you're still my student. I figured waiting a few months shouldn't be too hard."

"Oh..." Jason's eyes wandered around, both relief and disappointment washing over him.

"That said, I'd still like to sleep next to you and maybe have a bite," she licked her lips.

"Yeah, sure," his voice hitched. "Oh, but I don't know if Maggy—"

"Actually, I already have her permission. She said it might be good for you to finally have a girlfriend and she's not going to stand in the way of it. She also offered to hang out with Will and take residence in my house if need be, but she's probably safer away from our house... Unless you want to come to my house..."

"Kinda, but at the same time, I don't want to leave Maggy all alone here either."

"It's sweet how much you care about your sister," she stroked his cheek, caressing him softly with her thumb.

"Same as you and Will, isn't it?"

"I suppose so..." More like us in the past, but still. 

"You can come in and... have a bite," he offered, swallowing as he anticipated the feel of her lips and teeth on his skin and the ecstasy that follows. "But we should hang out with Maggy a bit first; I'm sure she's been lonely lately."

"Sure; I'd love to."

They entered his house. "Hey, Mags, sorry I was gone for so long," he peeked into the living room. He spotted her on the couch, her head tilted down instead of at the TV and she giggled. "Maggy?"

"Hmm?" her head shot up and she quickly hid something under her leg. "Welcome back, you two."

Jason's eyes narrowed as he inched closer to her. "What were you doing?"

"Watching TV..." she shifted around uncomfortably.

"Sure you were..." he glanced at the TV. "Since when do you watch the news?"

"I... always do..." Maggy had left it on since she was worried about another vampire attack, but something else had her distracted.

"Really? That's news to me," he flopped down on the couch beside her.

"Ha ha, very funny."

"Well, you have always been more informed than me," Jason nudged her.

Maggy nudged him back and then felt her phone slide out from under her leg. "Hey! What are you doing?" Maggy turned to Samantha who smiled at her while checking on the phone.

"Well, well, it seems you've been talking to Will," she smiled.

"You've been texting with Will?" Jason frowned.

"What of it?" Maggy reached out for her phone, but Samantha held it out of reach. "It's none of your business who I talk to..."

Bing, bing. "Wait, he's not the only one you're talking to? Roy?" Samantha's eyes widened.

"Will and Roy?! Two boys? I forbid it," Jason said, leering down at her.

"Funny, because it's not yours to forbid." Maggy's ears burned.

"I'm the older sibling—"

"And you're dating your teacher; who are you to complain about who I talk to? Seriously, it's not like I have many friends..."

Samantha handed her phone back. "Sorry... I just meant to tease you a little; I didn't want to cause a problem."

"Another tragedy strikes. Eighteen-year-old Lucy Grant was found by Duple Plaza mauled to death. The animal bit her neck and left her to bleed out," the newscaster said.

They all froze. "Was Lucy...?" Maggy trailed off.

"One of my students, yes," Samantha collapsed into a pile on the floor beside the couch. "Another student... is dead because of me."

"It's not your fault; you're not the one killing them," Jason said and flicked the TV off. He knelt down in front of Samantha and cupped her cheeks, forcing her to look up at him. "It's not your fault," he repeated himself. "They have no excuse for killing innocent people."

"But they're—"

"No buts. They are choosing to kill people. They don't have to—"

"But Evan—"

"And if they were good vamps, they wouldn't listen to him; they would find a new leader who protects his kind without resorting to vile tactics."

"Not all of them like the way he does things, but they're afraid of him, so they don't say anything. Actually, I'd say most of them don't care too much for his ways, it's mostly his tight-knit group that's stayed with the cruel ways of the past."

"And they're all too cowardly to face him together?"

"It's not easy to go against him. He's killed anyone who's opposed him so far."

Jason caressed her cheek with his thumb. "And yet you two were strong enough to escape his grasp."

"Temporarily."

"You're right, we'll make it permanent this time, but we might have to expand our group."

"The others in the clan won't join us; they're afraid of Evan and at the same time, they think he's the only reason they not being crushed by the wolves."

"Are the wolves as bad as they think? Why do the two clans keep fighting?"

"Centuries of fighting... it keeps going on and on..."

"Werewolves... I thought werewolves aged like regular humans though, so it's weird for the next generation to keep it going... isn't it?"

Maggy gasped. "You think the vampires are instigating the fighting, not the other way around?"

Why didn't I think of that?

"What she said," Jason nodded. "I think Evan is using fear to keep them under his thumb."

"I suppose it's possible," Samantha bit her lip, her brows furrowed. "But that still doesn't help us stop him."

"Don't be so sure about that," Jason smiled and kissed her on the lips.

"Get a room," Maggy rolled her eyes and left the room, back on her phone texting.

They separated, giggling. He finally initiated a kiss; I thought I'd always have to start... Pain spiked in her head again. "Ow..."

"What's wrong? Are you okay?" Panicking, Jason picked her up and rushed upstairs to his room. He laid her on his bed. "Stay here, I'll get Will... or Mags; she's here and actually knows about—"

Samantha tugged on his hand. "Don't; I'm okay. It was just an ice-pick headache I guess."

"Are you sure you're okay? You seemed to be in a lot of pain..."

"Ice pick headaches are like... a super-concentrated headache that doesn't last long. Think of having all the pain of a headache in a short time span, and it's like that."

"Ouch... Does that happen often?"

"No, not usually." But it's been happening a lot lately.

Jason closed the door and sat beside her on his bed. "So... would a bite help you?" he pointed at his neck, his ears already turning red.

"Jason, honey, is it me or is this turning into a fetish for you?"

"W-what? I mean... it's like... a win-win for us, unlike other vampire-human relationships because of your special blood, right? Besides, it's okay because it's you."

"I wasn't complaining; I know the pain from the bite turns into pleasure, so it's easy for people to get addicted to it like a drug... it basically is one... Oh my gosh," she cried out and covered her face with her hands. "You're a teenager... I shouldn't be—"

"Stop, now, please. I'm not a little kid and I'm eighteen; I'm old enough to make my own decisions. And I'm the type to stay away from drugs and whatnot, but I don't see this the same way; it's more like feeling good because you love the person you're being intimate with."

I have to ask. "You don't think it's disgusting for a teacher to date a student?"

"If they're too underage, probably, but I'm not, so stop worrying about it. Only a few months and I won't be your student anymore anyway. Come here." Laying beside her, he pulled her into a hug. "Quit worrying about that so much."

She snuggled up to him, enjoying his warm comfort. "I'm a perpetual worrier; I'll never stop worrying."

"We'll figure it all out together," he kissed the top of her head.