Rose started school that Monday despite her protests, and Heath is at the hospital that Thursday when he receives a rare text from her.

is it ok if i have someone over

“Everything okay?” asks Carmen, poking him in the shoulder.

“My kid just asked to have a friend over,” he says, perplexed. 

“How old again?”

“She’s fourteen.”

“Make sure it’s not a boy,” she advises, pushing up her thick-framed glasses. They’re a new pair that need to be adjusted, too big for her face. She squirts sanitizer onto her hands and rubs them together, wiping the excess on her green scrubs. “She’s at the age where you need to start worrying.” 

Boy or girl? he types back. He's a little worried she'll get pissed off, but figures it's a good question.

He had known Carmen several years ago before leaving Wyvern Heights. He knows her daughter is also a freshman at Wyvern Heights High School and that her husband Teddy is a werewolf. 

Heath’s phone buzzes, lighting up a picture of Leonidas on his back with his tongue out.

that shouldnt matter lol but its a girl

Fine by me.

“It’s a girl,” he says.

“Thank God!” exclaims Carmen, opening a small bag of Cheezits. “You don’t need that drama. Trust me.”

Heath gets another notification that Rose reacted to his text with the thumbs up emoji. He also receives an Amazon notification saying his colored contacts have been delivered. Heath wears contacts to work that make his eyes dark brown, finding that his patients feel more at ease when he’s not hiding a part of his face. He noticed after coming home with them that Rose doesn’t look him in the eyes when she speaks, but will when he wears his shades. 

“She’s a peculiar girl,” Heath thinks aloud.

“You should get a TV show to watch together,” Carmen suggests. “That’s how I bond with Stella. Right now we’re watching Gilmore Girls.”

“Is that a good show?” he wonders.

Carmen nods, swallowing her mouthful of crackers before speaking. “It’s excellent. It really depends on the kid, though. Find out what she likes, first.” She checks her watch. “Time for me to get rolling!”

Heath takes a swig of the blood in his thermos, checking his calendar to find out where he’s needed. “Thanks for the tips.”

“Any time.”

<> <> <>

When Heath rolls into the driveway, he’s nervous. He has no idea what kind of people Rose is attracted to and is hoping this girl is a good influence. When he enters his home, he’s hit with the smell of apple pie and the sugary sweet smell of magic.

Fuck.

“Hey, I’m home!” he calls out.

A girl reveals herself from the wall dividing the kitchen and the living room. She’s small, with pink hair tied into two thick braids and light blue almond shaped eyes

“It’s so nice to meet you! I’m Emily Mochizuki,” she says, giving him a braces-wearing grin.

“I’m Heath. I hope Rose is being a good hostess.”

“Of course I am,” Rose says. She comes over with a plate with a piece of apple pie on it and a fork. “Here.”

Heath doesn’t take the plate. “It looks delicious, but my stomach is off.”

“If you don’t try it, we’ll be deeply offended,” Emily insists with a smirk. 

“I told you he wouldn’t eat it,” Rose tells her. “He never eats.”

“Hmmm, I wonder why,” says Emily, eyeing him. Heath’s heart would’ve raced if he had a beating one. She’s playing dumb, but he now has no doubt that she’s in the know. If she tells Rose before he does, he’ll never hear the end of it!

Heath gulps dryly, his humanness now at stake. “I’ll have a bite.” He hadn’t eaten solid food since the day after his wedding day with Daisy when he had some of the wedding cake. He takes the fork with a shaky hand, scooping the steaming apple pastry into his mouth. It does taste good, but doesn’t spark his appetite. Rather, he feels a disgusting feeling rising in his gut. 

“It’s good,” he says. “Why don’t you girls go on a walk?”

“Nah.” Rose turns to Emily. “Wanna watch more Steven Universe?”

“Yeah! Let’s do it.”

“I’m going to go relax,” says Heath. He heads to his private bathroom, slamming the toilet lid up before everything in his stomach leaps up his throat and into the water. He vomits until there’s nothing left, and when he flushes the toilet and goes to close his door Rose is standing there, pale in the face and fidgeting. 

“Are you okay?” she asks, concerned.

“I have a stomach bug. Did you need something?”

“Do you know where the remote is?”

Heath, still trembling from being sick, heads into the living room. He finds the remote between the cushions, then heads to his room and lays down. Why is he so stupid? He needs to talk to Emily privately to see what she knows, and now he’s out of commission from that damned pie. Leonidas jumps up onto the bed and balances himself on his side where Heath is curled up.

He wakes up at around 8pm. When he enters the kitchen, Rose is sitting at the table with her eyebrows furrowed. “Are you bulimic, Heath?”

“Am I what?” 

“It’s okay if you are. I just want to help.”

Heath is touched at the uncharacteristic kindness in her voice and relieved that she’s not asking him about his vampirism. He’s also a little disturbed at the reversal of roles; he’s supposed to be the supportive parent, not Rose, who’s nearly sixty years younger.

“I’m not bulimic.”

“Then why have I never seen you eat anything?”

“I just… don’t eat much.” He rubs the back of his neck awkwardly.

“Tell me the truth.”

Heath sits down at the table in front of her, thinking of the Robert Frost poem The Road Not Taken. He’s at a fork in the road, here, and decides to choose the one that’s unavoidable.

“Okay, Rose. I’ll tell you.”

“Tell me what?”

Lord, help me.

“Everything.”