Disclaimer: I own nothing from the Sookie Stackhouse Universe. All characters mentioned in the books belong to Charlaine Harris.

Thank you for so many reviews! It is crazy! Thank you to Wandersfar who has helped me with corrections and tips on writing! I hope you like this chapter!


Chapter 9

"No way. Nuh-uh. Not happening." The partially undead teen's glower increased.

"It's the only way to make it look believable!" Rose explained. She placed her hands on her hips.

"By biting you?" Bo said. "I barely even know you. And I am not a vampire."

"But you look like one." Rose pointed out. "Fangs. Pale skin. The constipated look on your face. It's perfect."

Bo glanced over himself, offended. Did he really look like one of the undead? Sure, he was a little on the pasty side of the spectrum, but pale-skinned and dead were two different things. His temperature was lower than the average person's as well. It didn't make him one of the creatures of the night, though. Subconsciously, Bo rubbed his lower face. Was he really that constipated looking?

"What about my heart then? I don't think vampires would believe I'm one of them if blood is still pumping through my arteries. They have good hearing." Bo said, pointing at the backdoor of Fangtasia.

Rose brushed him off. "Oh please, that's not an issue at all. Did you see the crowd? There are nearly a hundred humans outside and probably a lot more in the building. You'll be completely covered."

"This is ridiculous. Do you know how much trouble we'll get in if someone finds out?" Bo lamented.

"No one is going to find out. We may not know each other real well, but I promise you, if we follow my plan exactly, both of us will benefit." Rose reminded Bo of the Aussie. Did all the people in Louisiana have a death wish? Bo wasn't any better though, considering he was going along with it.

"But you're underage. If I drink from you, I could get in trouble with the cops." The older teen reminded her.

The younger teen bristled, then countered, "You're underage yourself."

"Yeah, but if we get caught, I'm the one who's going to jail, not you." Bo backtracked. "On that note, we aren't even 21! We'll be booted out before we even set foot in the club."

"My god. You are worse than my older sister. Stop making excuses." Rose retorted. "Why do you even care? You're a...well, you're a shoe-in. You can pass for one of them. As for me, I'm fake ID all the way."

Rose yanked a card from her purse. She held it up for her skeptical companion. Bo threw her a sour look. "Candy Foxx? Who did you get this from? A stripper?" Bo commented dryly.

Rose stuffed the item back into her purse. "You. Are. Impossible."

"I still think this is a bad idea." Bo grumbled.

"Then go home. Why do you even want to go inside?"

"I'm sort of... spying on someone."

"Oh? Who?" Rose's interest was piqued.

"Uh..." The "spy" blanked on the man's name. "Big Viking vampire guy. Just forget I said anything. It doesn't concern you."

"You're pretty horrible at spying then. You couldn't even get inside without someone's help."

Bo changed the subject. "Shut up. I suppose you'll be my fangbanger then?"

The brunette frowned. "Never in a million years. I'm your girlfriend. There is no way I am going to pretend to be one of those kinky lowlifes."

Bo rubbed his temples. He was getting a headache and the sun wasn't even up. "Fine. Whatever. We should get started. Someone might come out soon."

They moved into a shaded area. Crouching down by the bushes, they awkwardly positioned themselves. Rose craned her neck next to his face, her hand on his chest. This was the closest he had ever gotten to a female besides his mom. Bo's nose accidently bumped into her hair. He caught a scent of her shampoo. Rosewood and peppermint. Bo nearly inhaled it. An underlying odor of her own sweat and essence only enhanced the experience. She smelled wonderful. Bo's fingers curled into fists. His fangs came out all on their own.

Bo had only tasted human blood a handful of times. His mom made sure of that. Usually his diet consisted of True Blood or Life Flow. There were accidents, especially during his formative years, but otherwise Bo had lived a relatively normal childhood. It wasn't until the middle school incident that he began to struggle with control. Synthetic blood only soothed his nutritional needs, not the thirst. Even now his throat felt scratchy.

He put his right hand on her shoulder. Her skin was lightly tanned, freckles dotting her shoulders and arms. He pushed back a stray lock of her hair. Rose was trembling. She had on a brave face, but her eyes said something different. She was scared. Straightaway Bo tried to comfort her.

"I'm not going to hurt you," Bo said slowly. Artlessly, he patted her on the back as casually as one would a dog. Bo had no skills with the opposite sex.

"I know. It's just... I've never been bitten before, okay? What if I turn into a vampire? Oh god, my mother is so going to ground me if I come home undead!" Rose blabbered on.

"I don't think it works that way."

Rose gulped. "Yeah. Yeah, you're right." Her face suddenly lit up in fascination. "Hey Bernard. Your heart... it's beating."

"Didn't I tell you I was human?" Well, almost. If what Mr. Compton said was true, Bo was sort of half and half. Like a Black and Tan. "And it's Bo."

"Wicked. You're more interesting than I thought Ber-Bo. I can't wait to interview you." Her expression became slightly more trusting, less stressed than moments earlier.

"Joy." Bo replied with little enthusiasm.

Bo used his left hand to steady himself. His right stroked Rose's hair, the motion calming her. He leaned forward. His lips revealed the things he'd hidden most of his life. How did Bo even come to this point? How was it even possibly he had these... things. Mr. Compton said he wasn't mostly vampire, but was he actually telling the truth? Was Bo bitten by a vampire at birth? Or was it something even more unimaginable? He ran a tongue over his elongated friends, their sharpness all too familiar and yet foreign at the same time.

What if he fed for too long? Bo wasn't sure how actual vampires did it. Television shows sort of glamorized the event. He knew that was false. His first real time had been much bloodier. Would this end up the same way? Bo struggled to keep a straight face. Trepidation ate at him. He was in a parking lot of a vampire bar about to bite into a girl's neck, and he wasn't even a vampire. At least, Bo didn't think he was. Mr. Compton was probably wrong. Bo gulped. What if he killed her? No. Bo was in control. He could do this. Possibly. Honestly, Bo was on edge. So much could go wrong if he didn't do it correctly.

"Close your eyes," Bo said softly. If there had been any uncertainty in his voice Rose didn't react to it. Rose did, reluctantly. "Hey Bo?"

"A little busy right now." Talking with fangs was difficult. Almost like wearing sharp braces.

"Sorry. You're going to be working at Merlotte's tomorrow evening, right?"

"Yeah. I'm the new busboy," Bo responded coolly.

"Oh, that's cool. Um..." Rose chewed on her lower lip. "I go there with my friends a lot. Maybe I'll see you there? If we get out alive that is."

Bo shrugged. "Yeah, sure. Whatever."

He put his mouth on the spot between her neck and shoulder. His tongue touched the freckled skin instantaneously. Rose shivered, but said nothing. The warmth of her body radiated into him. He'd never been this intimate with someone so willing. There was that one time in middle school, but Bo didn't count that. He closed that memory off for good. The moonlight drifted over them. His heartbeat quickened. Bo concentrated hard on how he would do it. The pulse of her blood soothed his nerves. Finally, he sunk into her.

A prick. It lasted only a second. He pushed off of her not a second later. The taste was there nevertheless. Bo licked his lips by accident. Life changed. Bo's pupils dilated. His perception became clearer. Everything was a hundred times more vibrant than before. He could see each individual strand of hair on her neck. The sounds of the crowd on the other side of the building were crisp and defined. Her taste was delicious as well. Like hot alcohol. Compared to True Blood or any other synthetic blood brand, the real stuff was like a three course meal with dessert. And the smells, oh the smells. The rich metallic odor of-

Rose was shaking him. He shifted back into reality. A deep, sinking regret gripped his heart. Bo had nearly done it again. Losing control was his greatest fear and here he had almost blown it. She was O negative to boot. He tried to spit out the taste, but it clung to his mouth.

"You feeling alright?" O negative girl said, concerned.

Bo struggled for control. He took five deep breaths. "Yeah. Let's get going. We don't have all night."

The boy brushed the dirt off his knees, getting up easily. Any soreness in his sides and back was long gone; in its place, Bo felt a rush of energy. It was like he'd just had three expressos. Around him, the world was completely different. Everything was much slower. Or maybe Bo was faster, he wasn't sure. But it felt good.

Really good.