*Warning*

This story will more than likely have multiple chapters. Certain chapters may have sexual contents or suggest some is going on. If this offends you in any way, or you are not legally old enough to read, skip over the chapter. I will post recaps on whatever the next chapter will be to tell you what you missed. Each chapter will have a warning at the beginning if it is of the sexual nature.

Chapter One

Claire slowly woke on a Monday morning. It had been quiet in Morganville for the last view days, which was saying something. No one had gone missing in the past week, no one had been attacked. Shane hadn't even started a fight with Michael or Eve over chores. It had been almost...nice... Claire made her way drowsily to the bathroom and looked at herself in the mirror as she started the shower. It looked as if she had used a blender to style her hair the day before. She sighed and stepped into the shower, working shampoo and conditioner into her hair in an effort to get the tangles out just as much as she was trying to get it clean. She idled in the shower, as it was too early for any of the others to be up yet. Eve didn't have work today, Michael didn't go in until ten, and Shane was still unemployed. She started coughing as she stepped out, but that hadn't been unusual for the last few days, either. She had been sick. In fact, she'd gotten less sleep than usual, and she hadn't been hungry. She would eat once a day in front of the others so they wouldn't worry, but she hadn't been hungry.

Claire stood in front of the mirror, and after checking to make sure the bathroom door was locked, she dropped her towel and looked at her body. She was nothing special, really. Average, well, everything. She began to recall what Shane's dad had once called her. Jailbait. How anyone could ever think of her as such was beyond her, but...well, she didn't mind. She got an odd thrill from not only being called that, but also by the looks Shane gave her after their makeout sessions. Claire stood in front of the mirror until her hair was half dry and her body was completely dry, hardly noticing the passage of time. A pounding on the door brought her back to reality. It was Eve. "Come on! I have plans today, Claire! Get out!"

"Coming!" Claire called, quickly wrapping the towel around herself and yanking a brush through her hair. She opened the door and flew past Eve towards her room. She could hear chuckling from behind her. "What?" she asked.

"Where's the fire?" Eve teased as she shut the bathroom door, starting up the shower again. Claire stuck her tongue out at the shut door, closing her own as she looked around for something to wear. She had actually done laundry the day before, and no longer had to wear the last-choice panties in her drawer, or the T-Shirts that had bears on them. She dug out a light purple tank top after putting on her undergarments, and a white pair of shorts. Claire looked at the time, then practically flew down the stairs. She was going to be so late... Claire threw on socks and her bag, just carrying her shoes in her hand as she ran down the street towards the college. She inwardly swore over and over again. She made it into her class about a minute before she would have been late, and she sat down in the seat she usually took for Advanced Biochemistry, one of the classes Amelie had signed her up for. Claire hid her mouth in the crook of her elbow when she started coughing again. She slid on her shoes and started taking lecture notes. She coughed all through the rest of class, trying to keep it quiet, and did the same all through Philosophy. By the time three o' clock rolled around, she was waiting for her ride to Myrnin's house. She began to wonder if she'd have to walk. At three ten, Claire gave up and began walking, not wanting to find Myrnin in a mood because she had been late.

All the same, Myrnin was in a mood, but not the one she expected. He was in a good mood, which was even more dangerous. Immediately, Claire was bombarded with journals full of neat, tight handwriting and old, leather bound books that had what looked like blood stains on their dark surfaces. She was also given about a handful of the bitter-sweet crystals. "Go on...!" Myrnin encouraged. "Take them!" Claire slowly raised her hand to her mouth. The bitterness of the crystals overpowered the taste that the strawberry flavoring tried to cover up. Everything seemed to just...snap into focus. She suddenly understood, and she could see clearly again. Myrnin had given her the weekend off, for on the previous Friday, he had given her an extremely large dose to help her stay focused as long as he. The new formula, with the help of the doctors, was a lot stronger, and it was helping Myrnin stay himself, but it was also making him more eager to have Claire learn.

Claire started coughing again, turning her face away so she didn't cough in Myrnin's face. He was hopping around as they got to work. He taught her a whole other language in the matter of five minutes just so she could read some of his journals. It took almost seven hours for the affects to wear off, and she could feel a pounding behind her eyes. Her body was shaking, exhausted, and she felt even more sick than before. Myrnin was starting to get bad as well. He began forgetting things. Claire left as quickly as she could, not wanting to be the target of his anger if he forget her, which he nearly always did. It was dark outside, and when Claire looked at her phone, she had missed seventeen calls from either Michael, Eve, or Shane. Shane called her right when she was about to put her phone back in her pocket. "Hello?" she said.

"Where the hell have you been?!" Shane demanded. Claire stammered something about being at Myrnin's. She could practically hear his anger, and his worry. "Michael will be there in a moment..." he finally said, just as Michael's sleek black car glided into view.

"He's here. I'll see you in a few minutes..." She hung up the phone and got into Michael's car. He looked just as worried, and started chewing her out for not picking up her phone. Claire chewed on her lip as she leaned her forehead against the cool glass, her head pounding. She coughed weakly and closed her eyes until they got home. She just dragged herself upstairs, exhausted. After tossing her bag into her room, Claire wandered over towards Shane's room. She knocked quietly on the door. "I'm home..." she said softly. Shane opened his door and immediately pulled her into a hug.

"You need to stop worrying me like this..." he whispered into her hair as she leaned against his strong frame. Her eyes fell shut and she relaxed in his arms. "I don't feel well..." she softly told him. He swung Claire into his arms and carried her to his bed and just laid her down. He kissed her forehead, and made her feel safe, just as he always did. He laid beside her and held her close while she fell asleep.

The next day, Claire woke up slowly. Shane's hand was resting on the curve of her hip, the blanket loosely sprawled across the two of them. Claire kept her eyes shut, coughing weakly. She felt horrible. It was worse than the morning after her first 'Crystal Hangover'. She felt weak and dizzy and just sick in general. Claire could feel when Shane woke, his hand tensed slightly on her waist. He relaxed after a moment and brushed his lips across her cheek. Claire slowly opened her eyes to find his looking at her. "You're skin is really hot..." he said. "Are you feeling okay?" Claire slowly shook her head. "I'll go get you some medicine, okay?" Shane came back a few moments later with Tylenol and a glass of ice water, helping Claire sit up enough to take it. "You hungry?"

"No..." Claire groaned. "I should go get dressed...I need to get to class..." After several minutes of arguing with Shane about it, Claire won, on one condition. She had to take Shane with her. She agreed and threw on clothes. Eve drove her to school, fussing at her the entire ride there. Claire was almost glad to escape her. Shane escorted Claire to class, casting worried glances at her now and then. She made it through her first lecture, and about halfway through her second before the coughs turned violent. She dug out a tissue from her bag and coughed into it, pulling away with a small whimper. Small dots of red coated the tissue. Claire stood to dig water from her bag, and the sudden change in height tipped her dizziness over the edge. Claire fell, her head cracking on the floor. She coughed weakly as she fought a losing battle to keep her eyes open. Shane was talking to her, but it was as if there was three inches of cotton in her ears. Her eyes fluttered shut...