Disclaimer: I did not write the Vampire Academy series. Richelle Mead beat me to the punch.

"What strange places our lives can carry us to, what dark passages,"

-Justin Cronin, The Passage

Forever I've Been Changed

Donuts. Hot, gooey, glazed donuts sat on the table in front of me. My stomach growled at me.

Just one wouldn't hurt. I'm going to run it off anyways…

I reached down and grabbed one of the heavenly pastries. I drooled in anticipation and brought it towards my open mouth.

Suddenly a sting of pain shot up my arm and my holy grail fell to the floor. Mouth wide in shock, I turned to find Lissa with a stern look on her face.

"Rose, donuts are not allowed on your diet. I agreed to go running with you every day at sunset to help you lose weight. The least you could do is stick to the food plan we created,"

I looked down at my stomach, which stuck out over my shorts and felt ashamed.

But at the same time I still wanted a donut.

"Alright, alright, no donuts. Ugh. I'm regretting this diet already," I sighed.

Lissa put her hand on my shoulder and smiled at me.

"Hey, we're two weeks in and you're doing great," She pulled me towards one of the mirrors on the wall of the cafeteria. "Just think of it like this. You're already pretty. Losing some weight will just make you even hotter. Then you'll beating the boys off with a stake," Lissa giggled.

"Ha ha. Oh yes I will just be so irresistible," I replied, rolling my eyes.

My smile faded as I studied our reflections in the mirror. Lissa never had to worry about her weight. She was naturally thin and amazingly beautiful with long, platinum blonde hair and the most stunning pair of jade eyes.

I gazed at myself and frowned. While I had always liked my hair and eye color and my naturally tan skin, my weight had always been an issue I struggled with. My hips were too wide, my butt stuck out in everything and my stomach tended to bulge out when I ate too much. Boy, do I like to eat…

About two weeks ago, I had confessed to Lissa that I wanted to lose weight and she happily agreed to join me on my diet for moral support.

So here we were, awake before the rest of the students, getting ready to go run. It was way too early for me and every part of my body yearned for the warmth of my bed. But I had dragged Lissa into helping me so I suppose I couldn't complain too much.

A light nudge brought me out of my train of thought and back to the present. Lissa dropped a pair of ear buds into my hand and started connecting her own pair into her phone and inserting them in her ears.

I slid my iphone out of my sweater pocket and did the same. As we walked out of the cafeteria and down to the track I scrolled through my music until I found my work out playlist.

The stadium lights cast a cold look onto the track. The grip on my phone became tenser as the knots in my stomach tightened and expanded in size.

"Come on, we're only doing two miles," Lissa said obviously reading my mood.

I growled. Two miles was a lot especially when you're a slow runner like me.

"Yeah yeah," I replied and pushed play on my phone.

We started out together but eventually Lissa's naturally faster pace put some distance between us and I was running by myself.

I tried to keep my mind off how much I hated running but each new step made me feel like I was running through water.

4 more laps…3 more laps…2 more laps…

I was dying. Sweat was sliding down my body, seeping through my clothes. My shorts kept sliding up legs and my stomach kept falling out of my tight shirt.

I knew I should have done laundry last night. Dang it.

My legs tingled with exhaustion and felt heavier with each footfall.

I had to actively motivate myself to finish.

You're almost done! Just think about how awesome you'll look when you've lost a ton of weight. Remember to breathe in through your nose, out through your mouth. Don't give up, you're doing great!

I was rounding the corner to start my last lap when a bright flash started me and I stumbled a bit. I gazed over my shoulder but couldn't see anything. I turned my focus back to the task at hand and put all of my energy into my last lap.

I picked up a faster pace and pushed myself to spring the last turn of the track. My feet came to abrupt stop as I crossed our initial starting point.

Turning back around, I shuffled my way off the track and tried to find Lissa. As I passed the bleachers, I collided with a body.

Dizzy and trying to catch my breath, I gazed up and found a pair of bright blue eyes staring down at me.

And they belonged my crush, Jesse Zeklos.

"OhmygoshI'msosorry," I mumbled and put my hands up defensively.

"No worries Hathaway," he laughed. "You becoming the next big track star out there?"

My hot sweaty face grew molten hot and I tried to stabilize my breathing.

"No, not really," I replied weakly.

"Well keep it up Hathaway. I'll see you around," Jesse flashed another hot smile at me and strode past me.

I was frozen in spot for what seemed like an hour before I remembered how to breathe and move my legs again.

Holy crap I just talked to Jesse Zeklos. Jesse Zeklos just smiled at me.

Lissa was drinking out of a water fountain when I found her.

She slowly brought her head back up, wiping her mouth on the back of her hand.

"What's with the silly grin on your face? You look like you just saw the guy's soccer team practicing shirtless again,"

I twirled around her. "Oh nothing I just talked to Jesse Zeklos. Now I'm picturing our date together where he tells me he is head over heels in love with me and always has been,"

"Well be sure to tell me what your colors are for the wedding so I can go ahead and get my dress," she laughed.

We joked around about Jesse's "inevitable" proposal before we split ways to get ready for class.

My goofy grin stayed plastered on my face as I showered and got dressed. I paused in front of the mirror, examining myself for the second time that morning.

Jesse talked to me! Maybe this diet is working after all.

I felt giddy and confident as I gathered all of my books and started making my way to class.

My head held high, I was hopeful for what the day would bring.

There's your intro! Curious what's going to happen? Stay tuned because you definitely do not want to miss next chapter.

Oh and reviews are always appreciated :)

-Selina