A/N: So…I feel like an awful author. I promised to get this chapter written and up "soon" and this is far from the last update…Please forgive me for my negligence, my Plot Bunnies were running helter-skelter on me and I couldn't really focus on my story.

That aside, I'm updating now. It's a rather long chapter for me and I put some "touchy" moments in it, full of that nauseating sweetness that I never seem to find in real life. Truths are going to be brought to the surface and there will be some more underage drinking, which I do not condone, but know that it is there.

So, please enjoy this chapter update…

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Faith watched the faces of the Lost Boys as she said the words, "A vampire."

They had fallen silent at those words and Faith watched as the wheels in their head started to turn once more. Marko and Paul started laughing, falling onto the ground with hyena laughter. Anger came crashing into her like a wave and her hands balled up into fists.

"Haha! I think she's drunk after all, Paul," Marko laughed, wiping tears from his eyes. "She thinks there are vampires in the real world!"

Paul laughed, "Maybe I should get my money back! She's gotten into the Giggleweed again!"

Faith's expression darkened. "I knew you wouldn't believe me! That you would think that I was crazy for admitting the truth!"

"Hon, the truth is that you're nutty or high or both!" Paul said with a large smile. "There are no such things as vampires…"

"Well, there are vampire bats," Marko commented, laughter taking over him again. "Nutty Faith-y must have confused herself with that!"

Faith felt tears sting her eyes despite her anger. "You are…bastards who can rot in Hell for all I care!" she snarled before turning and running away from the fire and the boys around it.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

David watched Faith run away with a frown before glaring at his brothers who were still laughing. "You two are assholes," he stated with a growl.

"I didn't see you defending her sanity," Marko pointed out as Paul started headbanging again to the music from his "rock box". "And you know we couldn't have agreed with her that there are really vampires in this world. It's supposed to be a secret, right?"

"Except to those poor unfortunate souls we eat off of," Paul said, smiling dreamily. "Speaking of which…I'm rather parched."

Marko grabbed a beer and tossed it to the Twisted Sister wannabe. David looked across the fire at a silent Dwayne. The dark haired vampire's eyes flickered in the direction that Faith had run towards and David took the hint. He stood up and started walking away from his brothers, knowing that somehow he had to make things right with Faith without giving up the secret that he and his boys were vampires.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Faith walked up the stairs back onto the boardwalk, irritably wiping away bitter tears. She had known without really knowing that the Boys would think she was crazy. That they would tell her that there wasn't such a thing as a vampire.

Maybe if I had died that night and became one of the undead, they would have thought differently! Faith thought, stomping up the stairs with unnecessary force. Even Dwayne was laughing…and David…

She froze as her feet hit the boardwalk. David hadn't laughed, not even cracked a smile. Instead his eyes had looked haunted with understanding. Faith shook her head. I must be seeing things. There is no way he'd believe that I was attacked by a monster out of Hell…no one would. I don't even believe myself half of the time because logic says that there is no such thing as an actual vampire, but…then what was that thing that attacked me?

Faith merged into the crowd for a couple minutes before breaking away at the carousel. She had no clue why she always sought out the carousel at carnivals, theme parks, and now this boardwalk. It was just her place to sit, listen to music and children's laughter, and think as the world around her turned. She leaned against one of the faded golden poles and ran a hand through her hair, trying to calm her raging thoughts.

"Faith!" she heard David's voice call out to her but she didn't see him.

The redhead turned and walked over to one of the benches on the carousel, sitting on it. She didn't want to face him, afraid that he'd laugh at her and think that she was insane. Faith tried to make herself as small as possible and prayed that she'd turn invisible for just once in her life. God did not hear her or make her invisible.

"Faith," David said, climbing onto the carousel. "Why'd you run away like that?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Faith asked, picking at her nails to distract herself from the sadness that was welling up inside of her. "I was being laughed at for something I didn't want to admit and when I did admit it, you all…" She trailed off, knowing she was talking in circles and repeating the same thing over and over again.

"The happiest person is one who can laugh at themselves with others," David commented, sitting down next to her.

"I didn't think what I said was funny," Faith grumbled, glancing at him. "I was being serious. Totally and completely serious…and you just laughed."

"I didn't laugh. Our brothers did..." David corrected her. "I knew you were serious when you didn't even crack a smile."

Faith turned her head to look at him full on. "You – you knew that I was being serious? Then why didn't you make them stop laughing at me? Why did you make me feel crazy?"

David sighed. "I'm going to tell you something that not a lot of people know, but you have to swear that you'll keep your trap shut about it. Understand?"

Faith nodded, looking at him expectedly. She watched him shift uncomfortably and pull a cigarette from behind his ear.

"The Boys and I know about vampires," he said quietly, taking a drag on the lit cigarette. "We've all lost someone or something to one or more. Dwayne and Laddie each lost their entire family. Paul lost his mother and Marko lost his father. I lost someone to a really horrible bloodsucker. The Boys and I were spared by mere chance and we found each other, promising to never let another vampire take something precious from us. We are joined by fear and we don't openly talk about the undead to anyone, not even each other. We just know they are out there and that keeps us going…if that makes any sense."

Faith stared at him for a moment, trying to process what he said. "You all…know vampires exist?"

"Yes."

"And you all lost someone to…vampires?"

"Yes."

"Oh…" Faith chewed on her bottom lip and looked out at the world for a moment. "Who did you lose to a vampire?"

David shifted against her once more as if uncomfortable. "My fiancé…" he admitted quietly, his voice laden with sadness. "I watched her die, there was so much blood…and I swore I'd never let another damn vampire take away someone I loved."

Faith frowned and snuck a glance at him. His arm draped around her shoulders and she felt the naturalness of the action, it scared her. His eyes were on her, meeting her gaze evenly. She couldn't tear her gaze away from his.

"Your turn, princess," David said with a slight smirk.

"What?"

"Your turn to explain what happened."

Faith sighed and put her hand on her stomach, touching the scars. "I was searching for my mom because she hadn't been home in a few days. I had to go to the rougher part of town and I came across this…this monster in an alley and he was feeding on some bum. I cried out and he saw me, dropping the body like it was nothing. He came at me with his claws and…I didn't know what to do. I knew I was going to die and then he pulled back after slashing me across the stomach and said 'You belong to another…You're lucky, precious' and then he was gone. He just flew away as if he had never been there. I ran home to Pru and told her that I'd been mugged for nothing. I didn't want her to think that I was crazy…I know she doesn't believe me, but how could I make her see that vampires exist?"

"You can't," David said firmly. "The less people know about what goes bump in the night, the happier they'll be. Let them live in blissful ignorance. It's better for them."

Faith nodded. The two sat in silence, listening to the world around them. The redhead started picking at her fingers again with a frown.

"You like Mexican food?" David asked, randomly.

The redhead looked at him quizzically. "Yeah…why?"

"No reason," David said, blowing smoke in her face. "I just thought it's about that time where I normally feed you, since you obviously can't feed yourself."

"And Mexican food is your answer to this continual problem?"

"If you don't want to eat, I can let you starve," David said with a smirk. "I just thought you'd like something other than Chinese food and the fare of the boardwalk."

Faith smiled and arched an eyebrow. "Aw…I was looking forward to having another chili foot-long too."

David laughed, the sound making her heart beat faster. Why do I feel this way around him so soon? Am I actually falling in love with someone who actually cares? Does he even care?

"We'll get you another chili foot-long some other time," David said, standing up and offering her a hand. "For now, we'll settle for Mexican food."

Faith took hold of his hand and he pulled her to her feet, her body rubbing against his. Color flooded Faith's cheeks and she looked away, embarrassed by the contact. David wrapped an arm around her shoulders and guided her off of the carousel.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

David held the door to the Mexican restaurant open for Faith, earning a smile that he found he was starting to crave. A nice senorita ushered them to their seat, a corner booth away from the other patrons who were nursing their own drinks. David slid into the seat next to Faith, their legs touching and draped his arm across the back of the booth, his fingers grazing her shoulder.

"What would you like to drink?" the senorita asked, pulling out a small white notepad and pen.

"Tequila for me and a chocolate margarita for the lady," David said with a smile.

The senorita nodded and walked away to get their drinks. Faith looked alarmed as she turned her eyes towards him.

"They don't ask for IDs here?" she asked incredulously.

"Not if I'm the one ordering," David explained. "I look older than I really am." Or is my age older than the legal drinking age? "Don't you agree, Faith?"

The redhead nodded and drummed her fingernails against the table, pretending not to notice his fingers drawing little circles on her exposed skin. David felt himself tighten slightly at the thought of those black nails embedding themselves in his back as they fell off the edge of ecstasy. Faith didn't seem to notice him move uncomfortably as she listened to the Mexican music playing throughout the restaurant.

The senorita came back towards their table with a fresh bottle of tequila and a glass and a large chocolate margarita. She slid them in front of the couple and pulled out her notepad again.

"What would you like to eat tonight?" she asked, looking at Faith.

"The habanera chicken burrito with extra jalapenos, please." Faith said, flicking the menu that David had placed in front of her towards him again.

"Y tu?" the senorita asked, looking at David.

"The habanera beef burrito with extra jalapenos," David said, not even bothering to look at the menu before handing it to the senorita. "Gracias."

Faith grabbed her margarita glass carefully and took a hesitant sip. David saw the smile cross her face and chuckled.

"You like it?" he asked with a smirk.

The redhead at his side nodded. "It tastes a lot better than that crappy beer Paul gave me. A lot better."

"I never knew a girl who could resist the temptation and taste of chocolate."

"Giselle's allergic to chocolate," Faith commented. "Her throat swells shut and she gets hives if she has any, but she loves the smell of it."

"That poor girl," David said, pouring himself some tequila. "Life is hard when you can't get any chocolate." He smirked at her. "You should consume twice the chocolate for her."

Faith laughed. "And get sick doing it? I don't think so. She can smell it and imagine that she is allowed to eat it, I'll eat my share and no more."

"Some friend you are."

"I'm the perfect friend. Fun and sensible. Wild and tamed at the same time. Not gluttonous –"

"Unless there's orange chicken and then all bets are off."

Faith smiled at him. "Exactly."

They shared a moment of companionable silence as they nursed their respective drinks. David looked at her once more, a thought coming to mind.

"Are you sure you can handle habanera chicken with extra jalapenos?" he asked. "You don't have to prove how tough you are to me by eating something that will tear your insides up." He smirked slightly. "You will regret it later."

Faith looked at him with a happy gleam in her eye. "I'm not trying to be tough. I eat habanera peppers by themselves and nothing bad ever happens to me." She smiled smugly. "I could care less about appearing tough to anyone…including you."

David matched her smile easily. "Now that that is settled…I've got a question for you."

"And the question is?"

"Are you gonna break up with that Surfer Nazi?" David asked, looking at her.

"I'm not going to reward that question with an answer," Faith mumbled, lifting her chocolate margarita to her lips once more.

David reached out and prevented her from drinking the alcoholic beverage. "Faith…" he said in a slight growl. "I already told you that I won't share you with anyone."

Those grey eyes turned to him as she sighed. "David, I can't break up with someone I'm not in a romantic relationship with. Terri…is just a friend."

"That you kissed," David reminded her.

"Yes, I kissed him once." She looked at her margarita, almost like she wanted to drown herself in it. "I feel…like he's just a friend. A guy friend who never will become more than that…I like to hang out with him because I'm tired of feeling alone…"

"Alone?" David repeated, watching her stir her straw around the glass. "How can you be alone if you are always surrounded by your friends?"

The redhead frowned, not looking at him. "A person can be alone in a crowded room…That's how I feel whenever I am with Pru and the others. They get to live, laugh, and love so easily. They form relationships so easily and…here I am, being a downer who can't find that Summer Love my friends wanted me to find."

"Bullshit." David said, causing her to look at him in alarm. "You can find the Summer Love. You just don't want to because you're scared of being hurt." He looked her dead in the eye, so she'd know he was serious. "Sometimes, you have to fight through the pain and experience life in order to find the right person…"

As he watched, one of Faith's eyebrows quirked upwards as her mind processed what he'd said. "Okay…When did you become a Love Guru?"

"Right about the moment you admitted that you loved me," David said with a smirk.

Faith looked at him, color rising in her face. "I was high when I said that."

"Your point?"

"My judgment was impaired."

"It seems like your judgment has been impaired for awhile. Starting with the relationship with the Emo whore." His eyes turned away from her as the senorita came towards their booth, balancing a tray of food in her hands. "I think the weed cleared your mind."

The girl rolled her eyes. "Like that makes sense."

"It does." David said after the senorita walked away, leaving their food in front of them. "Are you just scared to admit that you have natural human feelings?"

Faith looked at him. "Are you?"

"Ladies first, Faith."

David watched the redhead take a bite of her chicken burrito and chew it as she collected her thoughts. He had a feeling that she wanted to argue and he was ready to counteract her points.

"I don't understand these feelings I have had come up inside me since coming here," Faith admitted, staring at her food. "I don't understand how I could fall for someone so fast, without knowing them as much as I should, but it feels natural. Like I have felt this way before, but simply forgot about it. I hate how easily I've fallen in love when I know nothing about…you." She glanced at him. "I hate the naturalness of it all because I don't know you and my heart seems to think otherwise. I just…when you kiss me…It feels so right, but I…"

David watched her shake her head and take another bite of her burrito, looking confused. The redhead sighed and set her burrito down. Part of David wanted to be able to see into her mind, to play a mind trick to get a smile on her face, but he refrained. He patiently waited for her to speak again, not caring that his burrito was getting colder.

"I don't understand any of this," Faith muttered, putting her hands on her lap. "I don't understand love…I never felt this way before…I've never been in love, not this way. And I just don't understand this."

The leader of the Lost Boys looked at her. "Love is one of the hardest emotions to understand and to put words to. I don't understand it myself…" He shrugged a shoulder and poured himself some more tequila. "And I've been in love a few times…"

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Faith ate her burrito slowly, getting two refills for her chocolate margarita before she finished. David's arm slipped away from her shoulders as he helped himself to his burrito. She noticed the thoughtful gleam in his eyes as he looked out at the other patrons of the restaurant and wished she knew what he was thinking.

"I'll be right back," David said, sliding out of the booth. "Don't touch my tequila."

"I won't," Faith muttered, stirring her straw around her glass.

She was feeling slightly buzzed, but not completely drunk. Her grey eyes turned towards David's tequila bottle, noting that it was half way gone.

An optimist would say it was half full, Faith thought, letting the corner of her lips curl up. And he doesn't even seem fazed about the alcohol…Does that man ever get drunk?

The redhead sipped some more of her chocolate drink and looked up as David came back, but he wasn't alone. Several of the employees of the restaurant had followed him with sombreros and one of them held a small cake with a lit candle on it. Faith's eyes widened in alarm as they started singing in Spanish and placed a sombrero on her head, pulling her out of the booth and dancing around her. She'd never been good at Spanish, so she had no idea what was happening.

Are they going to sacrifice me as some sort of ritual? Faith wondered, watching them with confusion in her eyes.

David laughed at her expression and stepped into the circle, wrapping his arm around her shoulders. "They're singing 'Happy Birthday' to you," he told her quietly, his breath tickling her ear. She looked up into his ice blue eyes. "It is your birthday, right Faith?"

Realization creeping into her mind at his words through the haze of alcohol, she smiled and nodded. "Yeah, yeah it is."

The employees danced around her for a few more seconds before the one holding the small cake moved in front of her. She blew out the candle and they cheered. David took the cake from the employee and they left, taking their sombreros with them. Faith giggled a little as she slid back into the corner of the booth, David sliding in next to her.

"It's not really my birthday," she said quietly, accepting the fork that he offered her. "Why did you -"

"I thought it'd be funny," he said, cutting across her with a smirk as he cut off a forkful of the chocolate cake and ate it. "You needed a decent cheering up and since the boys aren't here, it was the best idea."

Faith smiled at him and playfully bumped her shoulder against his. "Thank you…"

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

After paying for the meal, David led her towards the exit door. They stopped short, looking out at the window at the pouring rain. David cursed quietly, startling Faith with a muttered complaint about how his bike would be wet. Faith felt a smile cross her face and she didn't know if it was because of the alcohol in her system, but she felt strangely warm and fuzzy on the inside.

"We can wait it out," David said, glancing at her.

"Or…" Faith giggled, smiling slightly at him. "We could do this…"

Without waiting to explain or see his expression, Faith ran out of the restaurant and into the rain. The rain was pleasantly cool on her warm skin and drenched her after just a few minutes standing there. She spun around in a circle, her face lifted to the crying heavens and laughter coming from her mouth. Strong arms wrapped around her and she looked up into David's eyes, seeing a smile playing on his face.

"You're wet," he said, brushing back that stubborn strand of hair.

"You're handsome," Faith said, putting her hands on his chest. She blinked as some raindrops got into her eyes. "I want to tell you something…"

David looked down at her, one of his eyebrows arching up. "What?"

"I…" Faith shook her head, trying to get the rain out of her eyes. "I want to kiss you…in the rain."

David smirked down at her and for once it didn't irritate her. She popped herself up onto the tips of her feet and brushed her lips against his. David pulled her closer to him and kissed her deeper until her body was humming with the heat of his soul-burning kiss…

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

A/N: Yay! There was another kiss! I've always wanted to be kissed in the rain, but ain't that lucky, so Faith gets to experience it. I hope you enjoyed this little "date" that Faith and David went on and that I made at least a few of you happy with this update. I'll try to start working on the next chapter in a couple days, but right now, I'm going to bed. I need my sleep.

Don't forget to review this story! I look at the reviews and reply to them, even after the story is dead. So please review! Thanks! ~ Scarlet