AN: Just a reminder. Rating so far for this story is T and will probably stay that way (I just don't want anyone getting hooked any unable to read the rest of the universe.) There will be no inappropriate behavior between the characters: it's just friendship at this point.
Chapter Two:
At First Sight
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Now look at you out on the streets
Your mom and dad think you're a freak, don't understand you
You wear your heart on your sleeve
Seems all the people that you meet, they criticize you too.
But you stand tall and face the pain; you will not fall for the masquerade…
--Songs of Life
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It was a typical day for Resurrection. Quiet, peaceful. The middle of the week, so the rowdy drunks weren't getting into any fights. It was late spring. The days were getting longer and the sun higher, which meant most of the vampires were all snug in their "beds".
Unfortunately, Shane Alexander wasn't one of them. He normally worked the nighttime shifts during the second half of the year, but Greg had the flu, and he also had some things he needed to do. He found it amusing when he thought about how he'd lived a human life where people had a serious aversion to the dark, and ended up as vampire who lived in it. The transition hadn't been too difficult. He'd had worse. That being said, he still enjoyed being out in the light, especially in Alaska. The scenery was well worth a bit of discomfort.
Shane stepped out of the cruiser, pulling his hat down further over his face and pushing his sunglasses up higher. The home in front of him was unremarkable, just another house on the outskirts of town. A moving van was parked in the driveway, and boxes and packing material overflowed the garbage cans at the curb.
He went up to the front door and knocked.
The door opened after a moment… and Shane Alexander got his first look at Sara Adams.
"Hi there," he offered. Shane figured her to be about fifteen or sixteen, despite the fact that she was petite. Her long red hair was pulled back in a ponytail, and she was wearing jeans and a T-Shirt that said "I don't have an attitude—you're the problem." When she just stared at him without answering, he looked at her questioningly over his glasses.
"Uh, hi," she finally said.
"I'm Sheriff Alexander. Are your parents at home?"
"Uh, yeah." She stepped aside and let him in. "Dad!" she yelled piercingly, making Shane wince at the volume at such close range.
"Cool T-shirt. Is that like a motto, or something?" he quipped just to make conversation. Normally he wasn't good around kids, but for some reason he found her refreshing. He had no idea why. Maybe it was the way her eyes sparkled with both amusement and the hint of fire.
"Whatever it is, I didn't do it," she told him instead of answering, a smile just hinting at the corners of her mouth.
"What did you do?" he asked, earning another indecipherable but intense gaze. Yeah, the T-shirt was a motto all right.
A man and a woman walked out from another room, both faces showing surprise to see a man in uniform in their hallway.
"Sheriff? Is anything wrong?" he man asked.
"Oh no, nothing like that. I'm just here in my official capacity as the welcome wagon." He grinned. "I like to stop by and introduce myself to all our new residents. "I'm Shane Alexander." He offered his hand to the man.
"Well, that's a relief," he said, shaking hands. "I'm Ethan Adams."
"No relation to the furniture store," the girl put in.
Ethan gave her a warning look, causing Shane to hastily abort his grin. "This is my wife, Alisha."
"It's so nice to meet you," Alisha told him as she shook his hand.
Ethan then gestured to the girl. "This is our daughter, Sara."
Shane held out his hand to her in turn. "Hi, Sara." She gave him a long look as if taking stock, before finally taking his hand.
"Sara, don't be rude!" her mother scolded. "Now go find something to do while we talk to the Sheriff. Maybe you could unpack the boxes in your room."
Rolling her eyes in response to Alisha's reprimand, Sara went over to the couch by the window and flopped down.
"Teenagers," Ethan explained. "You have kids, Sheriff?"
"Uh, no, I'm not married."
"They can be a handful."
"I bet she can," Shane said, looking at Sara in amusement and finding their eyes locked for a moment.
"Would you like some ice tea, Sheriff?" Alisha offered.
"Oh, no thank you, I have to be getting back. I just wanted to drop in and say hi. Well, if there's anything you need, you be sure to let us know."
"We will. Thanks for coming by. Well, back to the unpacking," Alisha said with a sigh, leaving the room as Ethan walked Shane to the door.
"This is a small town," Shane told him reassuringly. "We take care of our own here."
"You've heard we come from New York," Ethan said. "We lived in the suburbs, but it was a quick trip into the City."
"Quite a change."
"I wanted a nice quiet, decent place to raise my daughter."
"I'm not sure a place like that exists anymore, but good luck."
His hand on the doorknob, Shane looked over to see Sara still in her spot on the couch. He gave her a wink, and then pulled the door closed behind him.
He felt her eyes on him all the way to the car.
End of Chapter two: at first sight
